OURstory: Lynching in America

Some of the most graphic photographs that I've ever seen in my life contained the images of Black men people being lynched. Collector James Allen uncovered an extraordinary visual legacy: photographs and postcards taken as souvenirs at lynchings throughout America. He published these photographs in his book Without Sanctuary. You can experience the images as a flash movie with narrative comments by James Allen, or as a gallery of photos. Please be aware before entering the site that much of the material is very graphic and very disturbing.

African Americans suffered grievously under lynch law. With the close of Reconstruction in the late 1870s, southern whites were determined to end northern and Black participation in the region's affairs, and northerners exhibited a growing indifference toward the civil rights of Black Americans. Taking its cue from this inter-sectional white harmony, the federal government abandoned its oversight of constitutional protections. Southern and border states responded with the Jim Crow laws of the 1890s, and white mobs flourished.

With Blacks barred from voting, public office, and jury service, officials felt no obligation to respect minority interests or safeguard minority lives. In addition to lynchings of individuals, dozens of race riots--with Blacks as victims--scarred the national landscape from Wilmington, North Carolina, in 1898 to Tulsa, Oklahoma, in 1921.

Between 1882 (when reliable statistics were first collected) and 1968 (when the classic forms of lynching had disappeared), 4,743 persons died of lynching, 3,446 of them Black men and women. Mississippi (539 Black victims, 42 white) led this grim parade of death, followed by Georgia (492, 39), Texas (352, 141), Louisiana (335, 56), and Alabama (299, 48). From 1882 to 1901, the annual number nationally usually exceeded 100; 1892 had a record 230 deaths (161 Black, 69 white).

Although lynchings declined somewhat in the twentieth century, there were still 97 in 1908 (89 Black, 8 white), 83 in the racially troubled postwar year of 1919 (76, 7, plus some 25 race riots), 30 in 1926 (23, 7), and 28 in 1933 (24, 4). Sadly, we still see signs that racial demons can reared their head in 2007.

Statistics do not tell the entire story. These were recorded lynchings; others were never reported beyond the community involved. Furthermore, mobs used especially sadistic tactics when Blacks were the prime targets. By the 1890s lynchers increasingly employed burning, torture, and dismemberment to prolong suffering and excite a "festive atmosphere" among the killers and onlookers. White families brought small children to watch, newspapers sometimes carried advance notices, railroad agents sold excursion tickets to announced lynching sites, and mobs cut off Black victims' fingers, toes, ears, or genitalia as souvenirs.

Nor was it necessarily the handiwork of a local rabble; not infrequently, the mob was encouraged or led by people prominent in the area's political and business circles. Lynching had become a ritual of interracial social control and recreation rather than simply a punishment for crime.

Recently lynching has come to have a contemporary informal use as a label for social vilification, particularly in the media, and particularly of African Americans. However, I recall that even the Don Imus situation resulted in headlines using the word 'lynching'.

I hope that we never use the terminology as loosely here in the Afrosphere.

NOTE:  This was originally posted on this blog in May 2007.

Related articles

• OURstory: Underground Railroad (1780-1862)
• Florida State House Candidate Wants Obama Lynched

Hey White People: A Kinda Awkward Note to America by Ferguson Kids

Racism is not over, but these kids from Ferguson, Missouri, are way over it.



In a new video from social justice-oriented T-shirt company FCKH8, several Ferguson children lampoon the excuses white people give to avoid getting involved in ending discrimination in America and deliver a call to action to stomp out racism.

"Just because Beyoncé is on your playlist and you voted for Obama doesn't mean that our generation has seen the end of racist drama," the kids, who range in age from 6 to 13, say. They add later, "We just want an equal shot at life, not to be shot to death."

Spoken Word: 'Miss America 2014' by Ramya Ramana

Nina Davuluri

Nina Davuluri won the 2014 Miss America contest. She is the first American of Indian descent to win that prestigious award. Not everyone in America was happy with her victory. There were some who chose to 'hate' on Ms. Davuluri rather than glory in the diversity that is America.

Ramya Ramana, 2014 Youth Poet Laureate, recently won a full scholarship to St. John's University as a result of her creative talents. Ms. Ramana was proud that Nina Davuluri had a similar heritage as herself. As such, she was deeply offended when she read from anonymous 'haters' on the Internet who spat out vile against Ms. Davuluri.

Ms. Ramana responded with her own lyrical spit.

"...say back, 'NO'. Your great-grandfathers raped, killed and oppressed every race in the world ... YOU are the biggest terrorist I know."

Powerful words...

Today Black Men Die by Police Violence, Yesterday Black Men Die by Lynching. What's Changed?

Melissa Harris-Perry shocked me when she noted that a Black man is killed by a white police officer twice a week on average. How much different is this state of affairs from the days when the 'strange fruit' on trees around the nation were filled with lynched Black people? No trial, no jury, no judge, no appeal. Now, well into a new century, as a family in Ferguson, Missouri, buries yet another American teenager killed at the hands of authorities, the rate of police killings of Black Americans is nearly the same as the rate of lynchings in the early decades of the 20th century.

About twice a week, or every three or four days, an African American has been killed by a white police officer in the seven years ending in 2012, according to studies of the latest data compiled by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. That number is incomplete and likely an under-count, as only a fraction of local police jurisdictions even report such deaths – and those reported are the ones deemed somehow “justifiable”. That means that despite the attention given the deaths of teenagers Trayvon Martin (killed by neighborhood watchman George Zimmerman) and Jordan Davis (killed by a white man for playing his music too loud), their cases would not have been included in that already grim statistic – not only because they were not killed by police but because the state of Florida, for example, is not included in the limited data compiled by the FBI.

Click here for more...

White High School Dropout Has Same Chances of Getting a Job as Black College Graduate

Some have claimed that America is in a post-racial, color-blind era since the election of President Barack Obama. They tell us that the need for race-based affirmative action policies is long-gone. However, those of us in this 'village' beg to differ.

For example, when it comes to employment, a white high school drop-out has the same chance of getting a job as a Black college graduate. That fact alone highlights the level of bias still present in the U.S., but it doesn’t end there.

According to ThinkProgress, the Bureau of Labor Statistics and Census researched how race impacts education and employment and the result should disabuse anyone of the notion that the U.S. is even close to becoming a post-racial society. The study found that a Black man with an associates degree has the same chance of getting a job as a white man with only a high school diploma.  That is wrong on so many levels.

“At every level of education, race impacts a person’s chance of getting a job,” researcher Tom Allison told ThinkProgress.

This fact is evidenced not only by the overall unemployment rate, but the unemployment rate for Black millennials, which was 16.6 percent in May, as compared to 7.1 percent for white millennials.

What are all the factors contributing to a high unemployment rate for Blacks?

The study attributes the employment gap mainly to hiring discrimination, high incarceration rates for Black people, and African Americans’ lack of inherited wealth from past generations due to a long history of discrimination. Less inherited wealth results in low homeownership rates and high deficits among African Americans: While a college-educated white American has an average net worth of $75,000, a college-educated Black American has a net worth of less than $17,500.

There is a bright light though, considering that, according to Rory O’Sullivan of the Young Invincibles’, Blacks do much better when they obtain advanced degrees. As an example, “a professional degree gives a Black male a 146 percent larger increase in employment opportunities than his white counterparts.”

'Post-racial' my ass!

Related articles

• A Black College Student Has The Same Chances Of Getting A Job As A White High School Dropout
• White High School Drop-Outs Are As Likely To Land Jobs As Black College Students
• Race Matters: Blacks With College Degrees Are Twice As Likely To Be Unemployed As White Or Asian Graduates
• The Colorblind Millennial Generation and the Problem With Being Blind to Race
• Economist: Black Unemployment Stays High Because Blacks Don't Give Up Looking

James Baldwin vs. New Hampshire Police Chief Who Called Obama the N-Word

So, did you hear about 82-year old Robert Copeland, the New Hampshire police commissioner who called President Obama the 'N-word' while dining in a public restaurant? It turns out that a citizen heard him and wrote a complain to City Hall complaining about his blatant racism.

Do you think that the old codger apologized? Not even a little bit.

In an email response to O’Toole’s complaint to town officials, Copeland, admitted to having made the comment, writing,

“I believe I did use the ‘N’ word in reference to the current occupant of the Whitehouse. For this, I do not apologize — he meets and exceeds my criteria for such.”

Copeland is one of three elected police commissioners in Wolfeboro, an overwhelmingly white town with 6,300 residents, about 20 of whom are Black. His boss, Joseph Balboni Jr. says that he doesn’t plan to ask Copeland to resign.

“He’s (Copeland) worked with a lot of Blacks in his life,” Balboni said.

Being white in America often means you can be elected to a public office without ever having to apologize for your racist remarks or behavior. Racism still runs rampant in America. Sometimes there are consequences.  Other times there are not.   The Wolfeboro ctizens hope to use 'shame' to get Copeland to resign.

Author and activist James Baldwin spoke on this matter over 50 years ago:



Copeland is a old and foolish. The fact that he is responsible for law enforcement policy in his town makes him dangerous. But, maybe it's our fault...

Related articles

• NH Police Commissioner Refuses to Resign After Referring to Obama With Vile Racial Slur
• New Hampshire town's white police chief calls Obama N-word
• New Hampshire Town's White Police Official Calls Obama "N-Word"

Racist Clippers Owner Donald Sterling: What You Can Do

This blog believes that online activism is an important way for all 'villagers' to protest the continued racism of Donald Sterling. We actively support the call to action by the folks at Color of Change!

We've known for decades that Donald Sterling is a racist scumbag and sexual harasser who shouldn't be the owner of an NBA team.

The tape released Friday — which allegedly features Donald Sterling telling his girlfriend he doesn't want her to bring Black people to Clippers games or "broadcast her associations" with Black people on Instagram — is just the most recent example of Sterling's well-documented hostility towards Black people.

Donald Sterling should not be allowed to continue profiting from the achievements of some of the world's most exceptional Black athletes. Major companies that rely on business from Black folks shouldn't be lining the pockets of an NBA owner who doesn't want us at the games. Stripping the Clippers of their corporate sponsorships is an important first step towards removing Donald Sterling as their owner.

Join ColorOfChange in demanding that corporations end their sponsorship of the Clippers until Donald Sterling is no longer associated with the team.

Since he acquired the Clippers in 1981, Donald Sterling has repeatedly demonstrated racial animosity both inside the Clippers organization and out:

• Former General Manager Elgin Baylor charged in a racial discrimination suit that Sterling ran the Clippers with the "vision of a Southern plantation–type structure" asking him to create a team of “poor Black boys from the South and a white head coach.”
• When interviewing one prospective white coach, Sterling reportedly asked "I wanna know why you think you can coach these n**gers."
• Despite complaints from players, Sterling has made a disturbing habit of of bringing women into the locker room and saying things like "look at these beautiful Black bodies."
• Sterling is a ruthless, bigoted slumlord. In 2009, he settled a case with the Department of Justice paying the largest settlement ever obtained in a government housing discrimination suit. He was accused of systematically denying rental opportunities to prospective Black and Hispanic tenants across his Southern California properties. In court documents, he stated that "Black tenants smell and attract vermin."

The NBA is a league with a distinctly Black identity.  And most of us ... unlike Donald Sterling ... know that Black History Month is not celebrated in March! Someone with such vile views towards Black people and a wretched past of racial discrimination should not be allowed to profit in a league where more than 75% of the players are Black.  Snoop Dogg agrees!

Donald Sterling and Adam Silver

The NBA has a larger share of Black viewers than any other major U.S. sport. The Clippers and the NBA share a number of crucial corporate sponsors which count on a Black NBA audience as customers. Assuming his investigation verifies the authenticity of the recording, new NBA commissioner Adam Silver should demonstrate that naked bigotry will not be tolerated and do everything in his power to remove Sterling as the Clippers owner — including an indefinite suspension. Pressure from ColorOfChange.org members will encourage sponsors and the NBA to cut ties with and punish Donald Sterling.

Sign the petition. Tell corporations: Drop the Clippers and their racist owner.

Related articles

• Why the Clippers made the wrong decision by playing after Donald Sterling's racist comments
• Donald Sterling, Los Angeles Clippers Owner, Caught on Tape Being a HUGE Racist
• Magic Johnson blasts Clippers owner Donald Sterling
• NBA Players React to Alleged Donald Sterling Racist Rant
• LA Clippers Racism Controversy: Obama Rips Donald Sterling, New Audio Surfaces, NAACP Cancels Award

Seven-Year Old Child Thinks His KKK Halloween Costume Was 'Cool'

Racism is a taught behavior. The sad thing is that it is still being taught in America. Case in point? A young 7-year old child wore the white sheets and hooded mask of the Ku Klux Klan as he went trick or treating on Halloween night in Craigsville, Virginia. The young child thinks it was "cool" to wear the uniform of a racist terrorist group. You can listen to the child and his mother in the following news report:



What do you think? We all understood that “the problem of the twentieth century is the problem of the color-line" ... but, does it have to be the problem of the 21st century as well?

One Day Those Who Flaunt Their Racism Will Experience the Backlash of Karma

I'm not sure what it is about wearing 'Blackface' that white folks think is funny? It's never funny. It's like folks that compare politicians to Adolph Hitler ... it's never appropriate. So you can imagine my dismay when someone forwarded to me the following image from Twitter:

I wonder if their parents were chuckling when they came across this tweet? I wasn't. Well, I did smile when it dawned on me that these two idiots looked like the Oompa Loompas.

Anyhow, a few hours after seeing this tweet I was introduced to the spoken word poetry of Dominique Christina. The sister is powerful. She is a spoken word champion and one of her poems is entitled, 'Karma'.

I've decided that whenever I come across racists on the Internet I'm going to spend a few minutes listening to Dominque as she shares her insights on what 'Karma' is going to be at some point in the future for these racist fools.



'...If I could write this shyt in fire, I would write this shyt in fire!' Yeah, this ignorant and evil folks that try to degrade and denigrate with their race-based humor will one day learn what 'Karma' is all about.

NJ Gov. Chris Christie Calls a Black Man 'Boy' During Town Hall Meeting

Chris Christie (R-NJ) is the toast of the town in many circles. There is hope that he will change the fortunes of the Republican Party by running in the 2016 presidential election cycle. If so, he is going to need to find a better way to communicate with Black men. Calling us 'boy' while on stage with a microphone in his hands ain't a good political move.

In his response to a constituent at a town hall meeting, here is what Christie said,

“You can yell all you want about ‘fix the public schools.’ Yeah, I hear ya, boy, I hear ya. I hear what you’re saying, but let me tell you something else. What I hear is the despair, I hear the despair of folks all over this state.”

I don't see any justification for Gov. Christie to call a grown man by the name, 'boy'. It is a racial code word that shines a light into the character of the man. Do you agree?

Racist Fool in Kentucky Mocks President Obama Holding Watermelon

President Barack Obama is the first president since FDR to win back-to-back elections with over 50% of the nationwide vote. Yet, he is still the recipient of racism and disrespect from a growing number of idiots. Case in point? Some idiot in Kentucky put a life-sized mannequin in his front yard of President Obama holding a slice of watermelon. [SOURCE]

"The way I look at it, it's freedom of speech," said Danny Hafley. "I don't know how other people will take it."

Hafley bought the Obama mask on sale after Halloween and put up the display around the time of November's presidential election. The mannequin, dressed in a grey suit, clip-on tie and blue-collared shirt, stands out near the road in front of Hafley's house.

I was disappointed to learn that his neighbors didn't appear to mind having the racist display on their block ... all except one neighbor:

"If he wants to place it someplace else that would be fine," said the neighbor. "We don't have Black people in this community but I'm sure they travel this road like everybody else does. They could be offended. I don't agree with it."

When will Americans rise up and let their neighbors, co-workers and online friends know that these types of racially-based displays are simply unacceptable?

Racist California Girl Calls President Obama a N-Word ... and Loses Her Job

Some white folks truly have lost their mind because President Obama won re-election as the President of the United States. It is so difficult for some of them to accept the fact that we don't have an old white guy in the Oval Office that they have lost their ability to restrain their racist tendencies. For example, did you see where a 22-year old California woman was willing to lose her job over the re-election of President Obama?



I watched this young lady as she gave her insights in this video interview. I wonder if her parents, grandparents are proud about her 15-minutes of fame?

Hopefully, these folks will slow their roll as they come to grips with another four years with a Blackman in the White House. After we shake our heads in disbelief .... and laugh ... perhaps we should say a prayer for these sad, pathetic and racist folks.

Why Won't Mitt Romney Fire John Sununu for Racist Remarks on Colin Powell?

The sad influence of racism continues to show itself in the presidential campaign. Colin Powell is a true American hero. At one point he had a legitimate to be the President of the United States.  He retired as a 4-star general before accepting a presidential appointment as our nation's Secretary of State. He is a quiet and well-reasoned leader.

None of this matters to former New Hampshire governor John Sununu ... who serves as one of the loudest surrogates for Mitt Romney. Sununu felt the power of his white privilege enough to tell a national television audience that race motivated Colin Powell's endorsement of President Obama.  Sununu discounted all of the qualifications of Colin Powell and theorized that his endorsement of Barack Obama was strictly tribal in nature:

"When you take a look at Colin Powell, you have to look at whether that's an endorsement based on issues or he's got a slightly different reason for endorsing President Obama."

He added: "I think when you have somebody of your own race that you're proud of being president of the United States, I applaud Colin for standing with him."

Powell -- who also backed Obama in 2008 -- made his endorsement of a second term on Thursday, an an appearance on CBS' This Morning.

Powell said that the nation is recovering from the severe recession that Obama inherited.

"I see that we are starting to rise up," Powell said. "I also saw the President get us out of one war, start to get us out of a second war and did not get us into any new wars. And finally, I think that the actions he's taken with respect to protecting us from terrorism have been very, very solid."

It is tiring to continually have to watch the subtle and not-so-subtle use of the race card by Mitt Romney and his minions. They have written off any chance of appealing to voters of color ... and they are doubling down on the idea that it will take a massive turn-out by white folks, primarily white men, for Romney to win the presidency.

Sununu should be asked to step down from his prominent role as a Romney minion. His racially-motivated strategies and words disqualify him. Don't you agree?

GOP Gone Wild: Racist Texan Lynches 'Invisible' Obama Chair

Clint Eastwood sent out his dog whistle to the GOP wing-nuts in the nation during the Republican National Convention when he had his stage conversation with an empty chair that supposedly had an invisible President Obama sitting in it. Texas Republican Bud Johnson heard the dog whistle and took the skit to a disgusting level, by lynching an invisible Obama in a chair.

Any American recognizes that lynching is a direct reference to the racial strife in this nation when African Americans were lynched (primarily in the Southern states) by racist whites. Homeowner Bud Johnson has a “lynched” empty chair on display in his front yard to depict President Obama.

When asked about his front yard display, Johnson was unapologetic. [SOURCE]

“I don’t really give a damn whether it disturbs you or not,” Johnson said. “You can take [your concerns] and go straight to hell and take Obama with you. I don’t give a shit. If you don’t like it, don’t come down my street.”

I guess that our President must be getting used to the racist backlash to his presidency. At a GOP Convention in Montana, birthers put on a nasty display to demonstrate their disdain for President Obama by setting up an outhouse labeled 'Obama’s Presidential Library'.

A photo of an anti-Obama bumper sticker, labelled 'Don’t Re-Nig In 2012,' above smaller print that read, 'Stop repeat offenders. Don’t re-elect Obama!' went viral in March.

In addition, President Obama has also been referenced as a tar baby and un-American, which many consider code speak for 'not one of us' because he’s Black.

Romney Supporter Gives Middle Finger and Calls President Obama a 'Jerk' in Campaign Signs

I rarely hear Mitt Romney or his supporters speak in an affirmative and positive way about what he will do as president of the United States. His wife and others let us know that he is a nice guy ... but, there has not been much policy discussion about what Mitt Romney will do in the next four years that is any different from what the Republicans and George W. Bush did in 2001-2008.

On the other hand, Mitt Romney and his supporters ... including actor Clint Eastwood ... spend a lot of time denigrating and disrespecting President Obama. A Massachusetts business man spent his own money to produce two anti-Obama campaign sign in Hanson MA. [SOURCE]

One of the billboards shows a young girl giving the middle finger to the president and calling him a 'jerk'.

The other billboard is even worse. It has a picture of our president with the statement: "Somewhere in Kenya a village is missing its idiot. Obama One Big Ass Mistake America, Vote Mitt Romney for 2012!" This campaign sign includes two images of the hammer and sickle, which are symbolic of communism, on Obama’s shirt collar. I 'spose that this billboard would make GOP wing-nut Christine O'Donnell happy.

What is your opinion on these two billboards?

State Senator Nina Turner Blasts Voter Suppression Efforts in Ohio

State Senator Nina Turner (D-OH) is a rock star. She ain't no Aunt Jemima! The Republican effort to suppress the vote in Ohio is the "biggest story in this presidential race," according to Ed Schultz. And in a fiery appearance on Ed's show, Turner pulled no punches in describing what's happening.

The GOP has shortened voting hours in all 88 counties since 2008 when 47% of voters — predominantly African Americans — took advantage of extended hours to cast their ballots.

Nina Turner took it from there.

"This is nothing more than uniform voter suppression, make no mistake about it".

Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Nina Turner became one of my political favorites last night! She is obviously an outspoken advocate of the disenfranchised and under-represented and I hope she runs for statewide office in the near future!

Racism Runs Rampant on Both Romney's Team and the Greek Olympic Team

I joined Pinterest last month. It is a social network that allows you to post photos on 'boards' that you create in areas that interest you. One of my boards is called 'Racism in America'.

Who knew that my board was too restrictive. Racism is running rampant in Europe as well.

Today we learned that an adviser to the Romney campaign suggested the Republican hopeful was better able to navigate the “special relationship” between the United States and England because of his understanding of “Anglo-Saxon heritage.” [SOURCE]

I guess that Anglo-Saxon heritage is a white supremacist homonym used in Europe.

“We are part of an Anglo-Saxon heritage, and he feels that the special relationship is special,” the unnamed adviser said, according to the report in the Daily Telegraph. “The White House didn’t fully appreciate the shared history we have.”

Mittens didn't deny the report.

“I’m generally not enthusiastic about adopting the comments made by people who are unnamed. I have a lot of advisers,” Romney said. “I’m not sure who this person is … So, I don’t agree with whoever that advisor might be.”

The Romney campaign wasn't the only one with racist foot-in-mouth disease today.

Triple jumper Voula Papachristou was expelled from Greece's Olympic team for her comments on Twitter mocking African immigrants and expressing support for a far-right party.

Commenting on the widely reported appearance of Nile-virus-carrying mosquitoes in Athens, Papachristou wrote:

"With so many Africans in Greece, the West Nile mosquitoes will be getting home food!!!"

The Hellenic Olympic Committee kicked Papachristou from the team "for statements contrary to the values and ideas of the Olympic movement."

So ... this woman trains hard for YEARS to represent her country ... she fine-tunes her skills so that she is the best in her nation and one of the best in the world ... she is within a few days of being on a worldwide stage ... and in 140 characters or less she managed to screw it all up.


Racism is a sickness that makes you do and say things that are simply dumb! Hope she has Greek cable TV subscription so she can watch the Olympics on her couch!

I also hope that Mittens can get a backbone like the Hellenic Olympic Committee and locate the racist nit on his staff who made the 'anglo-saxan' comment. That guy needs to get kicked off the team as well!

OURStory: Tulsa Race Riot (1921)

Today is the anniversary of the "deadliest mass shooting" or "deadliest shooting rampage" in our nation's history occurred on May 31, 1921 in the Greenwood neighborhood of Tulsa, Oklahoma.

The Tulsa Race Riot, also known as the 1921 Race Riot, the Tulsa Race War, or the Greenwood Riot, was a large-scale civil disorder. During the 16 hours of rioting, over 800 people were admitted to local hospitals with injuries, an estimated 10,000 were left homeless, 35 city blocks composed of 1,256 residences were destroyed by fire, and $1.8 million (nearly $17 million after adjustment for inflation) in property damage.

Our glorious Black Wall Street was destroyed in the carnage of that day.

39 people were officially reported killed, although most experts agree that the actual number of Black citizens killed during the riot to be around 300. You can read about it yourself here, here, or here.

We must never forget. I hope that supporters of the Electronic Village will ensure that OURstory isn't ignored or forgotten as others write HIS-story. National columnist Jim Clingman recently wrote about his experience with eight of the survivors of the Black Wall Street murders.

We ask you not allow the Tulsa Race War murders to be swept under the rug of distorted, revised, and repressed history. We must never forget, and we must not allow others to forget either.

OURStory: Silent Soldiers

I read a passionate post from the Fort Wayne African American Independent Woman back in April 2007 that discussed the plight of women in the blogosphere. I am very familiar with racism. That is a factor for anyone that is Black in America.

On the other hand, my understanding of the sexism experienced by women, in particular nubian women, is not nearly as informed. I've been blessed in my personal life to be surrounded by powerful Black women that owned their own businesses, practiced medicine, invested in the stock market, served in top-level positions with federal government and so forth. I have seen these Black women overachieve in spite of obstacles they faced because of their gender or race. Like I said ... I'm blessed to have these powerful sisters in my life. I hope that my two daughters draw upon these powerful women as role models as they both grow up.

Most villagers are not aware of the power that exists in our own midst. We may know our ancestors, however, history continually turns into HIS-story ... without much mention of our Black women. Did you know that our Black women were silent soldiers in the Civil Rights movement?

Ella Baker. Septima Poinsette Clark. Fannie Lou Hamer.

They and others risked their lives and worked tirelessly, demanding a social revolution — but history has often overlooked them. They were the women of the civil rights movement.

Though historians now acknowledge that women, particularly African Americans, were pivotal in the critical battles for racial equality, Rosa Parks’ death highlights the fact that she was one of the very few female civil rights figures who are widely known. Most women in the movement played background roles, either by choice or due to bias, since being a women of color meant facing both racism and sexism.

Click here to learn more about women that were overlooked during the Civil Rights movement.

We have to tell OURstory whenever possible. We must define ourselves. The beauty of being a blogger is that you are not censored. I invite you to share some little-known aspects of our story. We are not limited to telling our story in the month of February. We can do it whenever we want.

Anyhow, I would love to hear from other villagers on the powerful women in their lives. We're just sitting around the fire under the baobob tree. Care to share a comment on this post?

Skittles, Neighborhood Watch and the Death of a Child

I've been watching the developments in the Trayvon Martin case over the past couple of weeks. I'm still amazed that the powers-that-be in the state of Florida haven't figured out that nothing changes until the guy who pulled the trigger ... George Zimmerman ... is arrested.

It's been almost a month since 17-year old Trayvon Martin was gunned down by self-appointed neighborhood watch captain George Zimmerman. Despite Zimmerman admitting to following, confronting, and killing Trayvon, he has yet to be arrested or charged with any crime.

Just minutes before Trayvon was killed, Zimmerman had called police stating that Trayvon looked "suspicious." Trayvon was unarmed and walking back to his father's home in Sanford, Florida when Zimmerman accosted him.

At the crime scene, Sanford police botched their questioning of Zimmerman, refused to take the full statements of witnesses, and pressured neighbors to side with the shooter's claim of self-defense. As it turns out, Sanford's police department has a history of failing to hold perpetrators accountable for violent acts against Black victims, and the police misconduct in Trayvon's case exemplifies the department's systemic mishandling of such investigations. And now, the State Attorney's office has rubber-stamped the Sanford police's non-investigation, claiming that there is not enough evidence to support even a manslaughter conviction.

Trayvon's family and hundreds of thousands of people around the country demanded justice. It took some time but earlier this week the Department of Justice began an independent investigation into the Sanford police department's unwillingness to protect Trayvon's civil rights.

Walking home from the store shouldn't cost you your life, but when Black youth are routinely assumed to be violent criminals, being randomly killed is a constant danger. Before Zimmerman decided to get out of his parked car gun in tow to pursue Trayvon on foot that night, he called the police to identify Trayvon as a "suspicious person" apparently because he was wearing a hoodie and walking too slowly in the rain for Zimmerman's liking. Despite being instructed not to follow Trayvon, Zimmerman proceeded to confront and fatally shoot the boy in the chest within a matter of minutes. Zimmerman went from being a Neighborhood Watch volunteer to a vigilante in a nanosecond.

The case has been compromised from the beginning. When Sanford police arrived on the scene, Zimmerman was first approached by a narcotics detective not a homicide investigator who "peppered him with questions" rather than allowing him to tell his story without prompting. Another officer "corrected" a witness giving a statement that she'd heard Trayvon cry for help before he was shot, telling her she had heard Zimmerman instead.

And beyond the questions of professional competence or even the police's disregard for the facts, Florida's notorious "Shoot First" law takes a shooter's self-defense claim at face value incentivizing law enforcement not to make arrests in shooting deaths that would lead to murder charges in other states. These 'Stand Your Ground' laws need to be changed.

Sanford has a history of not prosecuting when the victim is Black. In 2010, the white son of a Sanford police lieutenant was let go by police after assaulting a homeless Black man outside a downtown bar. And, in 2005, a Black teenager was killed by two white security guards, one the son of a Sanford Police officer. The pair was arrested and charged, but a judge later cited lack of evidence and dismissed both cases.

Emotions are running raw in Sanford and all around the nation. How are you feeling about the Trayvon Martin case at this point in time?