from michael jackson’s unexpected and sudden death to janet jackson’s unexpected and sudden breast, there have been numerous events in the past 25 years that have had a particularly strong resonance in the black community.
today, as a service from vsb.com, the champ has decided to list the top five. enjoy and sh*t
***in reverse order***
5. the oj ordeal (june 14, 1994-october 3, 1995)
you know, the more i think about it, the more i think this actually had more resonance in white mainstream america.
although the entire country was captivated by this trial, i really can’t recall any black people genuinely feeling anything other than shock that he actually got off, and i definitely didnt see the widespread joy that, according to every news channel, was going on in our neighborhoods. like blacks who celebrate kwanzaa, the black who celebrated the oj verdict is still an urban legend to me
plus, jim jones killed nicole brown simpson anyway
4. the rodney king beating (march 3, 1991)
and
3. the LA riots (april 29, 1992-may 4, 1992)
while there have been bigger news stories, i don’t think i’ve ever seen a single clip more times than the footage of a coked-up defenseless rodney king getting his ass kicked by four cops. you can even argue that its the single most famous amateur footage in american history, even more than the zapruder film.
as far as the riots, a part of me felt a perverse amusement watching that unfold. it was like watching an unedited version of cops mixed with the biggest food fight ever, and the surreality of it all had me captivated.
the “amusement” quickly ended though, when seeing reginald denny pulled out of his semi and brutally stomped unconscious, reminding me of exactly how real that sh*t was
2. hurricane katrina (august 25, 2005-present)
its been four years, and i’m still too saddened about everything that happened down there to write intelligibly about it. sh*t, just thinking about watching “when the levees broke” still puts a lump in my throat.
1. president-elect obama (november 4th 2008, at approximately 11:00pm est)
honestly, since that night everything else to me (his acceptance speech, the inauguration, his eerily efficient fly-killing abilities, my life, etc) has been anti-climatic. i guess thats par for the course when you’re a witness to the biggest news story in black american history. (yup. i said it)
i know my list is right, but since liz my contract requires me to ask if i’m missing anything, i need to ask…am i missing anything?
—the champ
Related posts:
- 10 Biggest Stories of the Decade In The Black Community.
- Get Like We: The Biggest And Most Popular Trends in the Black Community in the last 20 years.
- Still Black: 7 Things I Learned While Watching CNN’s Black In America 2
- Black and Positive: What Black in America Brings To The Table
- I Am Coming To America.
{ 328 comments… read them below or add one }
you’re right. i couldn’t watch all of “when the levees broke” – i had to leave after the second part cos i was about to burst out sobbing like an infant in a museum, which probably wouldn’t have been appropriate, and i’m not even american. spike definitely did the right thing with that one.
@puff, I watched all 900 hours of When the Levees Broke, and yes, I boo-hooed and sniffled in a most un-gangsta fashion.
@OneChele,
welcome and sh*t
@puff,
I haven’t watched “When the Levees Broke” but a friend of mine did a documentary on going down to volunteer post-Katrina & the state of the place made my eye allergies act up :’-(
@Thuggie Luvvie, pink eye is no joke, get it all the time. i wish i had tear ducts instead.
@overit, ewwwww… you got conjunctivitis.. somebody got poop in your eye! LMAO
@blackberry molasses, you nasty, lol. i was only trying to illustrate the thug tendencies luvvie and i share.
if you weren’t my e-mama i would have had to e-cut you.
@overit,
LMAO u stoopit
@Thuggie Luvvie,
i neva saw it either watchin the real thing was hard enuf
Um yeah. Riots weren’t so fun when you were right there in south central where they broke out.
scariest night of my life.
@Liz, since I lived in Gardena, I didn’t feel the brunt of it like folks in the city did. The shopping center around the corner from me did catch it and a lot of places I had once patronized around town did burn down, which was sad. Media watching was something else for me, seeing things I never knew could happen on the news. But the aftermath did yield necessary changes (one of which was a true clean break from those horrible 80s Blacks suffered through in this town).
@Stuff Ghetto People Like,
das real shi im from nothern cali but i got fam down there and my cuzos was all up in that shii lootin my one cuzo said he aint neva seen nuthin like that in his life.
Umm… so you just not gon mention the day Lil Kim became an Asian Woman as a notable news event?? Or even the day that JayZ finally took some TCB (two combs & a brush) to his natty coif? Or the day Wanda Sykes shocked us ALL and came out *snicker*? You racist, Champ.
@Thuggie Luvvie, or the day Beyoncee sang her own song as a tribute MJ?
@JamaicanGirl,
ugh!!!!!! that disgusted me. i don’t mean to be fickle, but i’ve been the biggest beyonce fan since forever. however, this whole mj tragedy has me lookin at her like, “b*tch sit yo old ass down.” micheal had 36,372 songs. you mean she couldn’t pick ONE as a 60 second tribute!? hell, “halo” isn’t even HER best song. uh uh. da*n that.
@JamaicanGirl,
I’m going to her concert tonight and if she performs that shat like she did at the awards, I’m throwing a rock at her…mid on-stage costume change. So what I’m in section 311…I’ve been building up strength in my baby bicep ever since I saw the BET Awards….
@K to the…,
lmao u crazy
i cant stand bey jelly or not well actually if she is on mute i can watch the “single ladies” video dayum
@Thuggie Luvvie,
“Or the day Wanda Sykes shocked us ALL and came out”
Uhmmmmm yeah…who…saw….that….coming! LMAO
@Yaa,
Wanda Sykes is gay!?!?! *jaw drop*
j/k
from michael jackson’s unexpected and sudden death to janet jackson’s unexpected and sudden breast
lmao nicely written intro, Champikins. you’re on a roll this week.
i remember being in my spanish class when we watched the OJ verdict on tv. mr. orteaga actually turned it on for us 7th graders to watch (sidenote: wtf??). and all the black kids in my class were jumping and hollering like they actually knew the implications of such a verdict. my parents found OJ disgusting, and so thusly i too (at the tender age of 12) thought OJ was wrongfully acquitted. Johnny Cochran did make for some funny 1-liners (again none of which i could truly appreciate until i got older).
@Gem Possible, dam* i am old, that was when i was a senior, lol
@Naturally Alise,
i was in the 4th grade! fountain of youth up in this bish!! lol
@charli skipper, i was in the second grade its clear who was all up in the Fountain of youth.
@JamaicanGirl,
7th grade and OJ AINT DO IT
@charli skipper,
i was in the 4th grade too
@Naturally Alise,
I know right? Why did she have to give her age an sht, lol.
@RedBeanzNRice w/Red Snapper,
lol my bad. i was just trying to enhance the memory and sh…
@Naturally Alise,
yo, Gemmie, Charlie and Jamaican Girl making me feel old as shyt. I was a sophomore….
and being one of the 45 black kids in my H.S. of 1,900– we were getting side-eyes for a week, like WE did something. Even from the teachers.
@blackberry molasses,
Forget ya’ll….”Old”. hmph.
I was already “grown” w/a baby. Tina was a toddler and I had walked her to the playground that day (of the OJ verdict). We were walking home and all of a sudden there were ppl cheering and jumping up & down in the street in my old neighborhood. I knew right then what had happened. I just shook my head. I’ve always thought he was guilty, but I know why black folks were so happy.
Personally, OJ is my “boogeyman”. He scares me shytless. Ever since the day they found his ex-wife dead, I’ve had nightmares of that lumbering monster chasing me down and cutting my head off. He is absolutely terrifying.
@PBG,
**going to fetch your cane**
@Naturally Alise,
lol, according to the date, i was a junior, but for whatever reason, i remember being a senior.
@Naturally Alise, I was a senior too…geez seems like yesterday
@Gem Possible,
I remember how tense it was a school that day. The school I was being bussed to, was in a neighborhood in the middle of White-flight, in Alabama. Everything ground to a halt when it was time for the verdict to be read. There were pools and everything. I bugged one of my teachers for a week to let me in on the sentencing/verdict pool. I was thinking that there was going to be a hung jury. There were a couple of fist pumps, but not a bunch of hooting and hollering.
@Legendary Dash,
LOL wowsers @ “I bugged one of my teachers for a week to let me in on the sentencing/verdict pool.”
@Gem Possible,
I was in 6th grade during the OJ ordeal and I remember being in the cafeteria jumping around when the verdict was read. Oh how things change…I think that negroid did that ish…while rocking a pair of isotoners!
@K to the…, I too was in the 6th grade, but I skipped school that day. My mom and I chilled in the crib and watched. There was no cheering, just eerie silence. Shocked isn’t even the word.
Black people can get mad at me, but he did it lol.
@Bailey,
I ain’t gone get mad. I feel the same way.
@K to the…,
“rockin a pair of isotoners” lmao smooth criminal
naw i member watch the high speed/low speed chase lolololol oj was a foo like “tell um i gotta gun” lol i was still surprised they ain rodney king him when he stopped.
@Gem Possible,
I hate to say it but the OJ verdict was a slight symbol of progress, I mean a black man (allegedly) kills a white woman, the evidence is very damning, then he gets away with it and no black towns or neighborhoods are burned down by white mobs (that I know of). That’s historic.
I think Michael’s death knocks OJ off the list. OJ didn’t rate to Black folks at large IMO. Numerous killings of Blacks by police or civilian whites rank higher on Black America’s collective scale. And OJ by and large brought the pain upon himself
Honorable mention could go to freeing Mandela/South Africa.
@Stuff Ghetto People Like, cosign
@Stuff Ghetto People Like,
double co-sign on Mandela. Followed on its heels by his election to the presidency.
@blackberry molasses, YES!!!!
@blackberry molasses,
almost forgot mandela yea pops was hella afro centric i memba we was carvannin bout 20 cars deep riding thru the street of east palo alto with a bullhorn, honkin horns, bumpin music talkin bout “mandela is free” 80′s baby like wha
@Stuff Ghetto People Like,
I think Michael’s death knocks OJ off the list. OJ didn’t rate to Black folks at large IMO.
that was easily the toughest decision for me. thing is, the oj ordeal was more about the case and the circumstances surrounding it than oj himself, so the fact that cats didnt really f*ck with oj like that didnt come under consideration.
with that being said, you can go with mj’s death and still not be wrong
@The Champ,
oj was the man to a few ninjas i mean he lived the ninja dream get out the ghetto play ball for SC go to the nfl set record be a hall of famer bang whateva you like. mj was bigger tho.
@Stuff Ghetto People Like,
I agree. How could we forget when Abna Louima got sexually assaulted by the cops with a night stick then handcuffed to a hospital bed and they wouldnt release him until the mayor came down and told them to
@Stuff Ghetto People Like,
“Honorable mention could go to freeing Mandela/South Africa.”
Ohh, good one. A lot of resonance for that event. Folks cry when they visit his jail cell, it’s so powerful.
@Stuff Ghetto People Like,
And I’m just wondering.. y is it that when ninjas, that dont like other ninjas get in trouble, the ninjas, that the ninja in trouble wouldnt get get caught dead with, go runnin to the ninja that is the bullish’s aid??? The perception of the black community… SHAM FRIGGIN WOW! I’m still trying to understand the OJ thing.. Thats why his a$$ is doing life for stealing his own shyt back!
@Laneianna,
lol dam to many ninjas feel like a kung foo flick. Oj got some great quoteables tho lol yall hear the tape when he takin his shii back lol classic oj at his finest
After looking at the list, I feel like we should all join hands and start singing “We Shall Overcome” … lol
Seriously, look how far we come in 25 short years. From Rodney King, to OJ, to Katrina …to President Obama.
I think Michael Jackson’s death should be on the list. Jordan’s shot over Byron(sp, whocares) Russell deserves consideration. And I’d combine the LA Riots & Rodney King into one because that is one big story like OJ.
Good list though.
@thismayconcernyou,
you know what though, if you take the top 20 “black” news stories of the past 25 years, its amazing how many of them are negative. at least 70 percent of them would be about some bad sh*t happening
@The Champ,
also Ennis Cosby and Jordans dad gettin shot
#1 .. i agree
I was living in Spain on Nov. 4th, and everyone from home was texting/calling me at 5:00am (8pm LA time)… it was the craziest thing ever…. then on my train ride to school every single newspaper (there are about 6 that get handed out at metro entrances) had the pics and the stories about President Obama’s win on the front page. Random Spaniards were celebrating and giving me thumbs up signs lol……. I cried the whole way to school… and we watched the Youtube speech during our class. And I cried some more. LOL. One of my best memories.
Yea that was long. Sue me.
@Selah,
Yea that was long. Sue me.
if i had a dollar…
@The Champ,
we have discussed this. no amount of dollars will bring your account out of the red.
Great list! Thankfully Obama at Grant Park burned the White Bronco slow speed chase on the 405 out of my consciousness. I would include MJ somewhere in the top 5.
@OneChele, the OJ verdict was the first time in my life where I actually knew that 2520 got a taste of how we felt for once. I was in Arizona at the time and there isn’t that many of us in AZ to start with. The day of the verdict, my supervisor brought in a TV from the A/V department and invited everyone on the floor in to watch.
Up ’til that point, I hadn’t really given The Juice all that much thought except I knew he was going to get off because Marcia Clark and Chris Darden were a couple of clusterfu(ks. How do you not bring in that badly written suicide note in as evidence? Why do you bring that racist cop on the stand? How could you two ugmos even think about having sex with one another? Boy was that stewardess sista who went coo coo fione? And how about Arnell Simpson…pull up to the bumper baby….bang bang!
Anyway….
It was the social event of the season for 2520. Me, I was checking the exits to see which one was closest in case these fools wanted to get lynch happy. When the verdict was announced, you could have heard a rat p*ssin’ on cotton, man. I have never seen 20 people shut up so fast. Nobody said a word to me the rest of that day. I didn’t care, don’t get mad at me, I didn’t get a invite to the OJ Afterparty. When I went to lunch in the cafeteria, quiet….except for the woman across from me who was crying….CRYING as if Nicole was her mother.
Wow.
When I got home, I turned on ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT and, of course, they were interviewing folks to get their feelings on the verdict. Three people stood out, Tori Spelling’s ole horse with lipstick on a$$, bawling like a b!tch, Steve Young from the 49ers who was doing a guest cameo on 90210 that day, who was showing how much of a redneck he really was and Jenifer Lewis, the loud, neck popping actress, who playing a lesbian judge on a show called COURTHOUSE, was talking about how upset she was about the verdict. She wasn’t the loud, sassy, sterotypical broad she usually played, she was quiet, respectful, almost as if she was in mourning. She pissed me off with her playing it up for the 2520 audience and I’ve made it a point not to intentionally watch anything she’s been in ever since.
@T. Troy Stewart,
1. “Me, I was checking the exits to see which one was closest in case these fools wanted to get lynch happy. When the verdict was announced, you could have heard a rat p*ssin’ on cotton, man. I have never seen 20 people shut up so fast. Nobody said a word to me the rest of that day.”
I live in the deep south. So this paragraph could pretty much sum up the reaction of 2520 folk when President Obama was elected.
2. I looove Jenifer Lewis. She’s playin my momma in the movie.
@T. Troy Stewart,
She pissed me off with her playing it up for the 2520 audience and I’ve made it a point not to intentionally watch anything she’s been in ever since.
so you’re telling me you’ve never seen “who’s your caddy”???? or “jackie’s back”????
blasphemy!!!!!
@OneChele,
“the White Bronco slow speed chase on the 405″
I still remember my Dad and my brothers doing a collective “oh heyll naw!” when they interrrupted the NBA finals that year to broadcast this ish. Then they put up the split screen.
It was the year the Rockets were in there too. LMAO
Notable events in Black music:
*When Puffy came out with “Mo’ Money, Mo’ Problems” vid & came to be known as “Shiny Suit Man” (B-I-G-P-O-P-P-A, no info for the DEA, Federal Agents mad cause I’m flagrant…)
*The “Untitled” video by D’Angelo
*The release of “Miseducation of Lauryn Hill”
Future Black music events to look forward to:
*Mama Whitney’s new album coming in September. YESSSSS!!!
*The day Sasha Fierce discovers pants again
*The day Mariah Carey realizes that cropped tops & cut off jean shorts are TRULY not meant for anyone over 15
*When Rihanna realizes she wasn’t meant to be a singer and finally signs that exclusive modeling deal
These are just a few.
@Thuggie Luvvie, on the serious tip, a post about the most significant shifts in Black music would be a good one. I could weigh in with plenty on that.
@Thuggie Luvvie,
The most significant is when Luvvie, Naturally Alise and The PBG met and started the greatest blog, friendship, and ignance conglomerate known to man….
@Naturally Alise, I must thank you ladies fir all the ignance it brings a smile to my face everyday. Just yesterday Luvvie made me choked laughing at her “greeks draft”.
@Naturally Alise,
That was truly a glorious IG occurrence.
@Thuggie Luvvie,
The “Untitled” video by D’Angelo
For YEARZZZZZZ I would watch that video and get the tinglies until I saw a recent picture of him. It was like eating next to a garbage can!! He totally ruined it for me!!
@Yaa,
wasn’t it like he took the slime from “You Can’t Do That on Television” and threw it all over a Picasso? Just ruined his masterpiece.
*sigh*
@Yaa,
I have bad memories of my mama runnin to the screen and trying to look down the tv *cringes*
@Peysonic Temple,
lmao!!!!!!
@Peysonic Temple, LMBAO, omg, i just laughed hella loud at work.
@Peysonic Temple, why must you kill me. OMG I was trying so hard not to laugh out loud at work….
@Yaa,
Umn.. I STILL cue that video and watch it like it’s Slayer pron. You can’t tell me he wasn’t getting a tune-up at the service station… don’t tell anyone but ::looks to see if anyone is watching:: I like to think it was me
@Thuggie Luvvie,
“*The “Untitled” video by D’Angelo”
Mmm, mmm, good.
Oh, I meant to add that the subsequent picture of how messed up he looked several years after that video was pretty groundbreaking too. Made us say, “WTF happened?!” Case in point:
http://www.spin.com/sites/spin.com/files/imagecache/huge_page_view/sites/spin.com/files/dangelo-mug-shot.jpg
@Cheekie, OMG…i almost choked on a m&m I ate two weeks ago when I saw that picture….what happened…say it ain’t so!
@klysha,
Yeah, sincerely hate to be the bearer of such bad news.
I heard he was tryin’ to get back in shape and back into the game. He hit such a bottom I’d be surprised if he could truly regain his physical image. Ya know it gets harder with age and ish.
@Cheekie,
augh!!! I.AM.UPSET.
@Thuggie Luvvie,
sasha did jus say f pants not really mad about it tho lol
Good list, though I would probably tie Rodney King to the subsequent riots, like the Slow-J chase and the final verdict.
Where would the Million Man March fit?
@maximillian, good call on the Million Man March, forgot all about it when thinking of what else could make the list. Mad brothers from here and all over the country went (or talked about heading out there). Farrakhan certainly stuck it to his detractors that day. Then proceeded to fall off, but…I digress.
@Stuff Ghetto People Like,
I remember that day vividly. 70 people got fired from my job for not showing up that day.
Yes, myself included…
@maximillian,
This made me chuckle.
@maximillian,
i hada night job so it was all good but yea the million man march was huge but the day after all was forgoten
@maximillian, I mean..
I would probably tie Rodney King to the subsequent riots, like the Slow-J chase and the final verdict also.
I didn’t see what TMCY put…
Oh, what about James Byrd, the guy who was chained to a truck and dragged to his death in TX?
Or, the Jena 6?
@maximillian,
“Oh, what about James Byrd, the guy who was chained to a truck and dragged to his death in TX?”
Being from here, you know I’ll never forget this.
@maximillian,
“Or, the Jena 6?”
definitely makes the cut if the list is extended to 200
@maximillian,
Jena 6 would have made it if they didnt go and coon it up after
@Peysonic Temple,
showin up at award shows n shii like they celebs now
@maximillian, I agree. the Million Man March was epic.
@maximillian,
“Where would the Million Man March fit?”
Jesus, Mary, AND Joseph knows the productivity I could’ve experienced had I been the age I am now during the Million Man March.
*swoons at the thought*
It was pretty epic. And I love “Get on the Bus”. Shabooyah, sha-sha-shabooya, shabooya, sha-sha-shabooya roll call.
@Cheekie,
Co-sign!
Get on the Bus was a great movie!
@maximillian,
Where would the Million Man March fit?
good question. if i extended the list to 10, it probably would have been number 7.
When Magic announced that he had contacted AIDS (HIV positive or whatever comes first, I always get them confused).
That was the day, in my opinion, that Black America started taking this thing seriously. Didn’t do a damn thing about it, but they stopped and thought about it for a little while.
The 9-11 Attacks
That bad boy affected us and is still affecting us today. Think about it, if there was no 9-11, does Dubya Bush get another four years to finish setting this country back 50 years (at least) economically? If there wasn’t a two term limit on Presidential terms, that fool would be in the White House still, blowing smoke up 2520 arses as the majority of us Black folx are packing up and moving to Canada.
@T. Troy Stewart,
“That was the day, in my opinion, that Black America started taking this thing seriously.”
I beg to differ. Black America as a WHOLE still doesn’t take HIV/AIDS seriously. If we did, 1 in 16 Black men wouldn’t be diagnosed with HIV in his lifetime. Plus, Washington DC’s HIV rate won’t be mirroring some African countries (7% of Black men, 3% of Black women in DC are infected).
Naw Troy. We still ain’t taking the disease seriously (http://www.theredpumpproject.com, http://www.theredtieproject.com)
MESSAGE!
@Thuggie Luvvie,
how can you say that Black America as a WHOLE doesn’t take HIV/AIDS seriously and then bring up numbers that are the opposite?
the majority of Black America did start taking this seriously. I know the numbers and if you applied those numbers to any other group of people, they would say that’s a minority. What’s 1/16 of the population? Is that WHOLE or 6.25%? Don’t get me wrong, the AIDS situation in the community is a problem, but let’s not insult the WHOLE community because of the actions of a few. There are enough people out there who are more than willing to do just that without us adding to the mayhem.
Now, if you want to talk about the practicing of SAFE SEX? Now we’re talking about much larger numbers. Black men who don’t take care of their children? Much larger numbers. We start going after those who don’t practice safe sex, both men and women, then we can begin to knock down all those bad numbers across the board.
@T. Troy Stewart,
“Now, if you want to talk about the practicing of SAFE SEX?”
YES that’s exactly what I’m talking about. Isn’t unprotected sex the #1 way of getting HIV? Well then if we’re contracting it so disproportionately, WE aren’t taking it serious enough.
I can drop stats ALL day to show this. HIV is one of the most serious epidemics in the WORLD that IS NOT contagious. Most, if not, ALL epidemics are either cancers or communicable diseases. So if that’s the case, why are WE (yes, US) dying of it at such ridiculous numbers if we can PREVENT IT?
I stand by what I said.
@T. Troy Stewart,
And 6.25% of ANY population being affected by a disease is a public health issue as well as a PANDEMIC. Those numbers should be panic-inducing in your mind. 7 out of 100 people in a room should not have a disease that is 100% preventable. That is a FAIL on our part & I think the entire Black community oughta feel the responsibility.
The cycle of ignorance, apathy and indifference when it comes to HIV/AIDS is killing us and not as slowly as we think.
*steps off soapbox*
@Thuggie Luvvie. The cycle of ignorance, apathy and indifference when it comes to HIV/AIDS is killing us and not as slowly as we think.
i agree 100% with luvvie. i think we’re looking at it from our more informed perspectives. there are whole segments of the black community that many of us are cut off from in some way. in dc, people are contracting AIDS from any mode of transmission you can think of, from drug use to mothers passing it to their kids. even if we argue our community is more aware now, it reflects poorly on our level of awareness. funding for hiv prevention is often the last thing considered. if there is hiv education, it clearly isn’t working or else unprotected sex wouldn’t be the norm. in short, we have a huge problem,africa aint the only place where there is an aids holocaust going on…
@T. Troy Stewart,
you are talking to a chick that works with kids and grownups who don’t take safe sex seriously… it is still a HUGE problem
@T. Troy Stewart,
I get where Luvvie was going but think the better numbers to use are:
We are 12%-13% of the US population but:
We make up 50% of new HIV infections.
We make up nearly 40% of AIDS related deaths.
@V.E.G.,
That should get folks to understand that it is indeed an epidemic for us.
if not, this will:
“the leading cause of death for black women (including African American women) aged 25–34 years.” – CDC
@Thuggie Luvvie,
Nice plug. lol.
But I agree with Troy, Magic’s announcement brought the disease to the forefront in the black community. Black folks – he!!, folks period – may not take the disease seriously but they sat up and listened when Magic made his announcement.
When Eazy E died from AIDS, even the ‘hood paused for a minute.
The thing with something like AIDS – or lung cancer for people who smoke or heart disease for people who eat fatty foods and/or refuse to exercise – is that it is never going to stay top of mind. There are lots of reasons why that is, and we could discuss them all night. But most reasonably sane and literate people know what the risk factors are and what they can do to lower their risk.
@V.E.G.,
“folks period – may not take the disease seriously”
Yes but Troy said “That was the day, in my opinion, that Black America started taking this thing seriously”. That is what I’m disagreeing with.
@Thuggie Luvvie,
I think they took it seriously after Magic dropped that bomb. Did they continue to do so? No. But I think that with his announcement, we all realized AIDS was not just a gay, white male disease.
A lot of what you see now, in terms of not realizing how serious the disease is, is folks who forget, because of all the advances in medicine that keep you alive, how people were dropping like flies when the disease first hit. Or people to young to remember the scary news reports about the new disease that had hit the block. Some people now see AIDS like cancer – you may get it, you may not.
@Thuggie Luvvie, V.E.G.
just like the majority of Black America isn’t out there robbing and stealing, smoking crack, inhaling Fried chicken like it’s air, “tawk lyke Sandee De Squir-rel”, have jobs, want the same American dream that 2520 and everybody else wants , the majority of us have taken heed to AIDS. I am not a fan of this “crabs in the barrel” mentality that permeates every single thing in the Black Community. We’ve been hearing the END TIMES ARE NIGH when it comes to AIDS for over 10 years now. It’s not working. It’s past time for a new tactic in this thing.
I agree with V.E.G. the youngsters never saw how AIDS was killing people. You couldn’t go a day without hearing about someone dying from it . I’m trying to think about the last time I heard on the news that someone had died from it. The advancements in medicine has “helped”.
(Expensive medicine…a lot of people have gotten rich off of creating and selling AIDS medicine, funny how that works, huh. You can make more money off of stabilization than a cure. Slowly creating a group of people caught up yet another “system” that’s allegedly supposed to help them. Slavery, Jim Crow, Welfare, Crack, AIDS and AIDS co-existance via pharmacutical drugs)
But the elephant in the room is SEX. Two of the big issues facing the Black community has to do with SEX, Single parenting and the AIDS situation. If we approached these these brothas not taking care of their kids, these sistas not letting anybody run up in them with no condoms and with no ramifications when they come up pregnant (you know the drill) with the same animosity/attention that some of us do when you mention THE DOWN LOW, playing into the old 2520 myth that we’re nothing but a but a bunched of reckless, oversexed savages and giving it a genocidal twist.
Time to face facts, everybody is f*cking. Time to kick the prevention stance into another level. Time to stop being shy about telling your kids about sex, it’s a little too late when you got a 14 year old with a swollen belly and you about to be a grandmom at 32, having baby showers for the kid like this a happy occasion, or not saying anything when some dude is up in the club bragging about how many women he has when you know he got just about as many kids. It goes back to the cross your legs celibacy for 1 year stance I was talking about the other day.
The WHOLE Black Community negative propaganda spiel is something that we’ve all have heard all of our lives. With each generation, it’s falling on more and more deaf ears. It’s not working anymore. It’s way past time for something new.
@Thuggie Luvvie,
I feel where you are coming from but with Magic coming out we stopped thinking of it as a white gay man’s disease and something that a virile straight (as far as we know) man could be affected by
@T. Troy,
“I am not a fan of this “crabs in the barrel” mentality that permeates every single thing in the Black Community.”
Technically, “crabs in a barrel” is when one tries to pull the other down from being successful or happy. My statement and placing the weight of the epidemic on the shoulders of the entire Black Community is not “crabs in a barrel”.
If the leading cause of death of young Black women is HIV/AIDS, then CLEARLY its not just “a small portion” of our population refraining from protecting themselves.
So nay to me being a crab in a barrel. with that being said, I think I’m done w/ this thread. It’s so long that I got carpal tunnel while tryna scroll past it.
@Thuggie Luvvie, it’s not the WHOLE Black community, either. All of us don’t have our heads stuck in the sand being blissfully ignorant about the situation either.
@Thuggie Luvvie,
you know what though, to his point, i do think that magic’s situation made people realize that this wasnt just a gay issue.
i think people are aware…but some just dont care that much
@Thuggie Luvvie,
I think that the AIDS epidemic that is still going on is a product of a lack of hope in the young black population. Why take necessary precautions to prevent disease and lengthen your life when you dont think that you’re going to live that long in the first place? I know dudes who seriously wrote their wills at 19. I think that this is the major issues that exist in America and to we fix this everything else we do is moot.
@Peysonic Temple,
I completely agree with you here. Totally. 100% Co-signage.
@T. Troy Stewart,
Ok I lied. I wasn’t done. I think Magic is the best and worst thing to happen to HIV/AIDS & Black people. Best – He brought the issue to our consciousness by putting a face that looked like ours on the epidemic.
Worst – He is somewhat trivializing the disease’s seriousness. This fool is on huge life-sized ads on CTA bus stops on the southside of Chicago with a big old grin to advertise AIDS drug cocktails. He got folks thinking all you need to do is pop a pill & ur HEEV will be ok. What Magic isn’t showing or talking about is the mineral oil he gotta use to coat his throat so he could take over 20 pills a day without scratching his throat.
@Thuggie Luvvie,
The same with the commercials on the radio advertising the medicine…saying there’s only one pill you have to take. It’s like saying, it’s ok if you get loss in the sauce and get HIV…you’ll only have to pop one pill a day for the rest of your life.
@Thuggie Luvvie,
I’ve never seen any of these ads and commercials…wow.
Luvvie speaks the truth about them Magic ads. He’s focusing more on showing everyone it’s “not too bad” for him nowadays (which is good for him), than focusing on how to prevent the disease in the first place.
@Thuggie Luvvie, I really do think that we’re on the same page, we’re just getting (I admit, I am too) getting hung up on the semantics of WHOLE thing.
I did not know about Magic pimping out AIDS meds like they were tic tacs. Nobody’s trying to find a cure for AIDS anymore, they’re trying to get paid.
@T. Troy Stewart,
Nobody’s trying to find a cure for AIDS anymore, they’re trying to get paid.
as a research scientist i don’t believe this at all. big pharma may be tryna get paid, but their are plenty of basic science researchers who aren’t.
@Gem Possible,
Yeah but as long as big pharmaceutical companies keep making BIG business from selling AIDS medicine, they will hush up the lil scientists who are tryna find the cure. Hell, there could very well be one already discovered but HEALTHY people don’t make you money. Sick ones do.
AND while we on conspiracy theories… why does lotion have to be white? I’m just saying… LOL. Why must the OTHER man keep me moisturized as opposed to the BROTHA man?
@Gem Possible,
I don’t doubt that there plenty of people out there working for the betterment of us all.
You said it yourself, it’s the big Pharms that are getting paid off of nonsense like Magic’s AIDS Arrester and Stoney Jackson’s Dik-Em-Down Penis Stimulator while the humanitarians get no play
@Thuggie Luvvie,
The thing about Magic that people seem to forget. Dude is LOADED. He has the money for the newest meds, the best nutritionists, the best doctors… all of it. He has resources at his disposal that the average HIV positive person (h3ll the average person PERIOD) doesn’t have.
Those HAART drugs which are the therapy of choice come with a laundry list of do/don’t eats, do/don’t drinks, storage requirements, dosage timing and spacing requirements, side effects, drug interactions, precautions for pre-existing conditions… the whole NINE. Managing HIV is not as simple as popping a pill and keeping it moving.
He makes it look like it is that easy. That’s why I have a love-hate thing going on with him. I love the fact that he’s showing that its not an automatic death sentence and that you can live a POSITIVE life. But he’s also kind of sending the message that its not that big of a deal. That is a problem.
@blackberry molasses,
great points!
Urban Lit (bowel) Movement
From Langston Hughes, Ralph Ellison, James Baldwin, Zora Neale Hurston….etc…etc…etc…to Zane and E. Lynn Harris????
Jesus wept.
Slick Willy Moves To Harlem
There goes the neighborhood…
East Coast-West Coast Rap “War”
Some of the dumbest bulls*it my generation ever did, and that includes HOMEBOYS IN OUTER SPACE and Doug E. Doug’s career. But, I’m sorry, Tim Dog’s F*CK COMPTON is still the funniest dis rap ever. Then fools started shooting one another…idiots.
Toni Morrison declaring Slick Willy “the first Black President”
the only time in my life I’d ever wanted to smack a woman right dead off in her mouth. I laughed my arse off when both he and Hillary damn near broke out with the holey pillowcases in South Carolina last year when Black America “betrayed” them.
@T. Troy Stewart,
Try as I may, the memory of “HOMEBOYS IN OUTER SPACE” refuses to stay repressed. That TV show’s budget was less than Ashanti’s side-burn waxing budget. The tin foil outfits? The cardboard set? UPN??? iCan’t.
@T. Troy Stewart,
“Urban Lit (bowel) Movement
From Langston Hughes, Ralph Ellison, James Baldwin, Zora Neale Hurston….etc…etc…etc…to Zane and E. Lynn Harris????
Jesus wept.”
agreement.
and i HATE when people refer to Clinton as the first black president. that’s so dam* ignorant.
Doug E. Doug, on the other hand, i cannot hate.
@T. Troy Stewart,
Toni Morrison declaring Slick Willy “the first Black President”
I’ve often wondered who was responsible for that bullish. Thanks Toni Morrison, *throat punch* to you and your dry arse books (except for the Bluest Eye).
@miss t-lee,
You’re the 2nd person besides me that I’ve “met” that isn’t a big fan of Toni Morrison. Her books….bleh! Save “The Bluest Eye”, I’ve never been able to get through one of them.
@PBG,
*daps*
When I tell people I don’t get the Toni Morrison hype, I usually get the side eye. I kept thinking I was missing something. Good to know I’m not alone.
There are much better Black female writers out there.
@miss t-lee,
I pride myself to be an avid book reader and once I start a book, I finish it 95% of the time. However, the last 2 T. Morrison books I started, I could not finish them.
But on the other hand, one of my favorite books ever is Morrison’s “Sula”. LOVE that book. And I also enjoyed “Songs of Solomon”, although it perplexed me at certain parts. And “Bluest Eye” was also good.
@Thuggie Luvvie,
I’ma use your terminology to describe Ms. Toni.
iCant. *sniggling*
@T. Troy Stewart,
“Toni Morrison declaring Slick Willy “the first Black President””
Aw, snap, I didn’t know SHE was the one that gave him the official declaration. Wow. So, wat was it… the southern charm and his ability to play the saxomophone put him in the running?
I really wish I knew where those ninjas are now who were co-signing this on national television now that we have a true first Black prez.
@T. Troy Stewart,
Toni Morrison declaring Slick Willy “the first Black President”
if you read that phrase in context, it doesnt sound nearly as bad as the “first black president” soundbite everybody loves to use. she was basically saying that he was being treated a certain way because of his lower-class background. it wasn’t about clinton as much as it was how he was perceived by many upper class whites
“Years ago, in the middle of the Whitewater investigation, one heard the first murmurs: white skin notwithstanding, this is our first black President. Blacker than any actual black person who could ever be elected in our children’s lifetime. After all, Clinton displays almost every trope of blackness: single-parent household, born poor, working-class, saxophone-playing, McDonald’s-and-junk-food-loving boy from Arkansas.”
@The Champ, well I am glad she was proven wrong and Slick Willy was outed as the carpetbagger he truly is.
@T. Troy Stewart,
East West rap war yea mayne i was in va kinda during the height and i got hated on somethin dirty well my bay area slang and raiders, a’s, giants and warriors gear aint help either.
Where were you when James Evans died? when Florida reached deep into her soul and uttered the four words that will remain with us forever:
“Damn, Damn, Damn, James!”
@Brandon St. Randy,
*DEAD* (like James Evans). What? Inappropriate? *slinks away*
@Brandon St. Randy,
The last 25yrs. James Evans been dead at least 30yrs now. I should know, I was watching when Florida smashed that punch bowl.
@Brandon St. Randy, I have this theory. James didn’t die…he hit the numbers, didn’t tell anyone and moved to South America or California with his mistress (you know he had one…I mean Florida Evans? for the rest of your natural life? What if he wanted to get some neck?)
@Mr. Mister,
“What if he wanted to get some neck?)”
This is evil on like 800 diferent levels.
*cackling*
@Mr. Mister, In certain cultures the layered neck is considered beautiful LOL. Her neck crossed cultural lines!!
@Yaa,
iQuit u for calling Esther Rolle’s neck “layered”. LMAO! She had an esophagus sweater going on? Dayum.
@Thuggie Luvvie, And Vishnu forbid she had to talk with a voice box?
@Thuggie Luvvie, LMAO, i officially hate all of you.
and Vishnu forbid?
@Mr.Mister
woooowww.. took it all the way to the Hindu Pantheon. I’m impressed.
I still don’t like your azz though. You know why.
@Brandon St. Randy,
Damn damn damn James
*Cue Outkast’s “Spottieottiedopalicious”
@K to the…,
YES!!! Love that song.
@K to the…, Why did I go to the sweet 16 a couple years ago and I heard the best band version of that song ever from the University of Washington. Not Jackson State, not FAMU, Washington. Not a brother in sight. But them white boys and Asians got it in on the horns.
@Brandon St. Randy,
“Damn, Damn, Damn, James!”
This is so groundbreaking because of its unintentional hilarity. It was quiet as hell and then she just up and drops a plate and lets out three damns. I know I was supposed to be sad, but laughter is stronger than me.
Other notables:
*When Rosa Parks died. That was Mother of Civil Rights Movement (although we are well aware of the politics between her being that symbol). Twas like all the links from that era are not-so-slowly going.
*Clarence Thomas being appointed to the Supreme Court. Having an Uncle Tom (who attempts to overcompensate for his skin color and his need to show he isn’t biased in support of Black folk) in the highest court of law was NOT a positive.
*Oprah Winfrey being the first Black Woman Billionaire in the US. Made me FURTHER realize that my mirror can show me the face of a future world-changer. Eff you and your glass ceiling. I’m taking over, one FIERCE Pump at a time
And I will add that Black folks are having the BEST YEAR EVER. Being Black is the new Black. We’re cool & “whats happening”.
@Thuggie Luvvie, KFC’s having the best year too from Oprah and those coupons to Magic and his King Of Pop & 2 piece and a bisquit story…
@T. Troy Stewart,
Yeah KFC’s communications team needed reprimanding w/ the coupon fiasco though. That turned into a PR nightmare
@T. Troy Stewart,
i still hate majic for sayin that kfc story i know they paid him at least 50k i kno it Joe got paid 200k for his interview he did eariler this week and letoya got 70k for hers sheisty now latoya got a new cd droppin ? wtf
@Thuggie Luvvie, What I remember most about ole Cler’nce is the pubic hair in the soup thing. lol
@Nicki Sunshine,
LOL! The pubes were allegedly in the Coke can!
I remember watching the questioning of Anita Hill and being so angry! How dare they treat this intelligent and accomplished black woman like that! It made me feel like when Miss Sophia said “A girl chile ain’t safe in a family of mens”.
@PBG, speaking of a woman of color getting grilled, anyone catch the sotomayor hearings? ugh.
@overit,
Yea she got grilled but ultimately the people who grilled her the most are the people who are most impressed with her now. Senator Lindsey Graham (what kind of name is that for a man) tried to bust her bubble and she handle hers and earned his vote
@overit,
you know what… those hearings were not so much an “ugh” for me, because she handled her shyt well. They were trying to rattle her and she stood her ground, held her own… and earned some votes.
@PBG, Oops. I was way off. lol. I agree with you though.
@Nicki Sunshine,
Me too!! And Long Dong Silver. LMAO
@V Renee,
Me too!! And Long Dong Silver. LMAO
for years i wouldnt eat at long johns because of that imagery.
@Thuggie Luvvie,
*Clarence Thomas being appointed to the Supreme Court. Having an Uncle Tom (who attempts to overcompensate for his skin color and his need to show he isn’t biased in support of Black folk) in the highest court of law was NOT a positive.
definitely an honorable mention
@Thuggie Luvvie,
[Clarence Thomas being appointed to the Supreme Court. Having an Uncle Tom (who attempts to overcompensate for his skin color and his need to show he isn’t biased in support of Black folk) in the highest court of law was NOT a positive.]
I love how Aaron Mcgruder made Uncle Ruckus look like old Uncle Clarence.
http://slanttruth.com/2008/12/04/yes-i-just-went-there/
I think these four news stories helped remind us that, no matter how far we had collectively progressed at that point in time, we are sometimes at the mercy of cops, rednecks and shop keepers from foreign who sell over price goods in our neighborhoods:
Latasha Harlins
James Byrd, Jr.
Amadou Bailo Diallo
Sean Bell
@V.E.G., The Amadou Diallo verdict was the cause of my one and only ever arrest and brief incarceration… so what it was the campus pokey and I was there with 300 of my closest militant friends?
*sigh* I miss college.
@blackberry molasses,
e-mama, i had no idea you were such a rebel.
@Gem Possible,
chiiiillllle, I have LIVED.
LOL
@V.E.G.,
True.
@V.E.G.,
So true . There was a guy down here (DC area) named Acrhie Elliot that was shot while already handcuffed inside a police car and the cops STILL got off.
@Omar,
shi like that pisses me off
“burn baby burn”
I would add:
the DC sniper: in my heart of hearts, i knew he was a white man, white van? i had no idea, i mean if yall dont know where the bullet is coming from, how did you see the van? it did not matter, he was not black.
as fate would have it, not only was he black….his last name was muhammad. in a post 9/11 millieu this was my 2002 equivalent of FML.
2 deaths i was personally affected by: aaliyah and betty shabazz. aaliyah for obvious reasons, and betty shabazz because her death was yet another tragic chapter in an already tragic narrative. besides, i loved malcolm and to me (aside from his daughters) i felt betty was the last real link to him. RIP to both.
@overit,
cosign to the whole paragraph about the dc sniper. when i found out that he was black, i experienced allll the emotions. fear, anger, hurt. hell…i still don’t reaally believe it.
and the death of aaliyah was soooo sudden and sad. child, i’m still wearing the swoop hair and everything.
@charli skipper,
and this is random, but aaliyah looked good in red lipstick….well, cuz you know, a few posts ago we were discussing how red lipstick looks bad on everybody…hm….i need to go to bed.
@charli skipper, I missed that conversation!
@charli skipper, i missed that convo, i def a few hair and style cues from her, she made me feel it was ok to be a “thinbone” (lmao) my nickname in middle school. i rocked the side swoop and baby tees too.
@charli skipper,
she was the only skiny chick i wud wife up
@overit,
My boyfriend at the time and I would turn on the TV every night to watch our fav new reality show “DC Sniper”. It was riveting.
We ALL – including the FBI – thought that was a white dude. I actually uttered a ‘aw he!! no’ when I learned he was black. The one thing we as a people had was our whole ‘well, at least we aren’t serial killers’ thing. And then dude messed it up for us all.
@V.E.G., girl, it was a mess. people ducking, eyes darting at the gas pump. it was unreal.
i was in DC when he murdered that woman at the home depot in falls church, va (like 20 minutes away). on the way back into VA i remember feeling sooo bad for anyone coming into DC, police had it shut down, i’ve never seen rifles or a back up like that. i woulda just put the car in park and called it a night.
@V.E.G., The one thing we as a people had was our whole ‘well, at least we aren’t serial killers’ thing. And then dude messed it up for us all.
I know thats right, and then here come these ninjas just ruined it for us.
@overit, The DC Sniper…lordy!
My daughter was going to a private school out in MoCo when he was out there shooting folks all random. I hadn’t been THAT frightened since I saw the KKK march in DC when I about 4 or 5.
@PBG, A KKK march? That’s terrifying.
I heard that they still have them in the back woods of Kentucky, but I don’t go to those parts.
@Nicki Sunshine,
Shooo….they still have them in parts round here too.
@Nicki Sunshine, I know they have me in Indiana and in Cicero, IL
@PBG,
I think I remember that KKK march. Were they being protected by the police?
I was in DC ducking at the gas station with everyone else. I was shamed when I saw them arrest a black man. After a couple weeks of discussing nothing else, I didn’t even mention the Sniper after the arrest.
@PBG, there was a kkk march….in DC??
@PBG,
WE HAD ONE IN BROOKLYN, NEW YORK!!!!!
@Peysonic Temple,
NJ checkin in… they just had one in Rancocas River 2 years ago. Ironically, Rancocas is right next to Willingboro… the blackest suburb outside of Atlanta.
@Peysonic Temple, “WE HAD ONE IN BROOKLYN, NEW YORK!!!!!”
DAMN! Thats crazy!! I couldn’t imagine black folks in Brooklyn letting them get away with that . . . must have been in Bensonhurst or Mill Basin somewhere . . . that’s a d@mn shame
@PBG,
How you gon’ go to Chocolate City and have a KKK march. Such an antagonistic march is definitely terrifying for the citizens, but I wonder if THEY were terrified for THEIR lives? Too many Black men willing to retaliate…to many ninjas that don’t play that ish.
@overit,
“the DC sniper: in my heart of hearts, i knew he was a white man, white van? i had no idea, i mean if yall dont know where the bullet is coming from, how did you see the van? it did not matter, he was not black.
as fate would have it, not only was he black….his last name was muhammad. in a post 9/11 millieu this was my 2002 equivalent of FML”
Yup!
Black comedians had a field day with that news. Everyone just KNEW we could put that crazy mofo off on The Man. Like, “Naw, that’s ya’ll people’s stuff…that’s what ya’ll do”.
@overit,
[the DC sniper: in my heart of hearts, i knew he was a white man, white van? i had no idea, i mean if yall dont know where the bullet is coming from, how did you see the van? it did not matter, he was not black.]
I thought the same thing, especially when he left the card in the police station that said “I am God”, that just sounded like some white ish. Not to mention what brother gets away with randomly walking into a police station…
@Omar, i forgot about the “I am God”, SMH all over again.
I am still upset.
@overit, co sign on the DC sniper….I had recently moved to the Mo county back when that was going on….my mom was already nervous about me moving here because 911 was still pretty fresh in her mind….and lawd when he shot somebody literally a few blocks away from my job in Rockville riding a lawnmower on a street I regularly walked on it got a little too close for comfort for me. …. why why why did he have to be a black man….driving a caprice no less….
Um, I’m scanning here, but I didn’t see anything about when my former husband was killed. Tupac Amaru Shakur – 1997.
I was taking my homegirl to the dentist that day, and I heard it on the radio. I thought it was a sick joke at first, but then it was broadcast all over. *sighs* That was the biggest stab in the gut – the second biggest being Aaliyah’s death, third being Marvin Gaye’s daddy killing him.
And I just want to mention this…
What about when Elmo (from Sesame Street) took over households all across America? (still does) Causing every white person in this country to go into a maddened frenzy just TRYING to get a “Tickle Me Elmo” doll for their unappreciative rugrat, paying obscene amounts via auction, and losing their sh*t when they couldn’t get one. Yep, you guessed it – Elmo is a brotha – recognize. (Kevin Clash)
Yeah, clearly I’m sleepy, cause I took it to Sesame Street, lol. Night yall!
@RedBeanzNRice w/Red Snapper,
Mad props for the Elmo addition.
I heard that Barney the Dinosaur is a Black dude, too. Not sure if that was true, but heard a lot of folks saying it.
@Cheekie,
I heard that too, but I never looked into it cause Barney used to drive me crazy, lol. I didn’t want it to be a brotha.
@RedBeanzNRice w/Red Snapper,
Um, I’m scanning here, but I didn’t see anything about when my former husband was killed. Tupac Amaru Shakur – 1997.
lol, you obviously werent much of a wife if you dont remember when your husband died
@The Champale,
It was so close to 97 that I call it 97. And how dare you question my wifing skillz!
@RedBeanzNRice w/Red Snapper,
Chump.
Sorry. I forgot to add that to my original outrage.
Errr… Umm… Nobody remembers when Len Bias died.
(ironically foreshadowing the crack epidemic)
@Omar,
*googles Len Bias*
@charli skipper,
Whaaat? You had to google Len Bias??
Anyways…wait til you read that tragic tale. It was so sad.
@PBG,
dude was doin way to much 7 much
@charli skipper,
Wow, I didn’t know about this either. Incredibly heartbreaking.
@Omar,
I remember…and that was HUUUUGE news.
But I don’t think it resonated with all of black America.
Most non sports folk don’t know who Len was.
@V.E.G.,
But it did largely put a stop to NBA and NFL players using cocaine in the 80′s. I mean that has to count for something.
@V.E.G., Yeah, sad story. I’m shamed to say I only know about him bc of a rap song. I wasn’t 2 yet when he passed.
@Omar,
I remember Len Bias. That was just so unfortunate.
@Omar,
Errr… Umm… Nobody remembers when Len Bias died.
(ironically foreshadowing the crack epidemic)
i do. if we were ranking sports stories this would have made the top 10 or 15.
also, i dont know if foreshadowings’s the right term there. i mean, we were already knee deep in it. the only thing it really foreshadowed was the string of bad luck the celtics had from that moment until the summer of 2007.
@The Champ,
I guess it’s being from DC, from the people I know shit seemed worse here from 86 to like 96.
Speaking of Katrina,
Kanye’s response to Bush’s response to Hurricane Katrina, was CLASSIC. I will forever love him because he said that…. yeah, and for other stuff too.
In addition,
1. Biggie and Tupac’s murders
2. Ray Carruth
3. Ray Lewis trial
@Nicki Sunshine, Ray Lewis is a murderer yo. Just sayin.
@Mr. Mister, I’on even remember what happened… all I remember is that is the first time I heard about him and for some reason, I began thinking he was the sexiest em effer on earth, and I hoped he got to play SuperBowl and I even watched it!
Let me go google!
@Mr. Mister,
Steelers fan?
@maximillian, Definitely not. But he stabbed at least one of those folks and then did that goofy dance.
@Mr. Mister,
In other words…Steelers fan
@Mr. Mister, Definitely not
Hi hater. lol.
@Mr. Mister,
Ray Lewis is a murderer yo. Just sayin.
***nodding head***
@The Champ,
He was acquitted man. Please do not spread these false allegations against the great Ray Lewis.
@Legendary Dash,
ima life time RAIDER but u gotta love Ray Lewis the boy isa savage and between him and jamal lewis? the rb b-more had a team fulla thugs
@Nicki Sunshine, ***** NEW ADDITION *****
Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown’s timultuous relationship. And then they documented it on a tv show!
@Nicki Sunshine,
Yeah, like when she ran to him after he got outta jail? Train. Wreck.
@Nicki Sunshine, Say word…..
That whole Katrina “Telethon” thing had black folks like “F YEAH MR. WEST!”
I was going to Southern University when the whole Katrina thing went down, folks made t-shirts with what he said on them. The B.E.T. awards of that year did a skit where they whipped and imprisoned W. that year i believe. I think that may have been the only politically influenced sketch in the history of the B.E.T. awards.
More over another huge Black story (and blunder)
The Mishandeling of the FEMA checks. Black people already dont get decent economic oppourtunities for the most part, so the ones that some how got a FEMA check and went out and got some 26′s for their unpainted rusting 88 Cuttlass……when they hadnt even paid for their tuition, room and board, or books…or had hefty student loans…..EPIC fail…smh…
(i add this as a foot note. a Jr staying in an apartment complex i also lived in goes out and buys a BMW M3 with his FEMA money and refund check…..smh……)
@ESQuared, I will be happy when the pass that Kanye got for that expires.
@T. Troy Stewart,
C’mon son
@Dorian G., what?
@T. Troy Stewart, hell, we been forgot that he had political capital off of that. Blacks just let him get his Kiss-FM love from the 2520s while focusing on Soulja Boy and Young Money.
@T. Troy Stewart,
kanye always gotta ghetto pass even if he dress funny
@ESQuared, People who were mishandling those funds get an immidiate go to hell pass. (lol, but seriously).
The people of Katrina went though some real bull shat and NEEDED that money. They lost everything.
@Nicki Sunshine,
“Kanye’s response to Bush’s response to Hurricane Katrina, was CLASSIC. I will forever love him because he said that…. yeah, and for other stuff too.”
Same here. It was very eerie in a way. When he said it, it was like it was bubbling inside of him and it just flew outta his mouth, beyond his control. He looked like he was in a daze when he said it. It was so strange…and I’m glad those words did escape his thoughts and fly into the public because they needed to be said. And mofos needed the truth instead of that sugar-coating crap they were trying to feed Black folks (which, since it’s sugar-coated it gives us the diabeetus, so again, stop corrupting us 2520s!)
@Cheekie, “He looked like he was in a daze when he said it. ”
Everything you said… it’s like he couldn’t help it!!!
The Crown Heights Riots were pretty intense . . . hasidic jews busting folks in the head with walkie talkies and folks getting stabbed because the jewish ambulance left that little boy to die . . . learning how to cuss jewish folks in their own language on the cheesebus . . . talk about a divisive time . . .
@IVR,
i forgot about that sh*t.
you can make an entire list just off of sh*t that happened in new york (central park jogger, tawana brawley, etc, etc)
@The Champ, I remember Tawana Brawley as a kid. Min. Farrakhan brought her to one of our conferences. I believe she converted to Islam.
When Katrina happened I was glued to the TV. I watched all the footage, I was sitting at home on the couch crying. My city took in a lot of folks and I was moved to donate some goods and clothes to the effort. That was the 1st time I had ever felt that way. I think it was mostly because the folks looked just like me and I realized just how close I could be to a natural disaster.
OJ- I remember being on field trip my junior year of HS when we went to lunch at at McDonalds. One of the dudes had brought a jambox so we were listening to the radio while were eating and I remember them breakin in on the music to broadcast the verdict. Like the Champ said, I remember us all being shocked that he was actually not guilty…and not really in a celebratory manner…lol
Barack–hands down!! Story of the century.
@miss t-lee,
“We’re on a rescue mission damn it!”
When General Honore went off on that solider, I ain’t gonna lie, I got choked up, I got tears in my eyes just thinking about it. I wanted that dude to run for President.
and I cheered when Ray Nagin dropped all diplomacy and got ninja on the radio. He been coasting on that ever since, unfortunately but that day he was the man.
@T. Troy Stewart,
and I cheered when Ray Nagin dropped all diplomacy and got ninja on the radio
i just could get past the fact that he sounds like joe buddens and looks exactly like drew gooden
*smiles from ear to ear at The Champ pointing out that resemblance*
@Stuff Ghetto People Like,
drew gooden lol my main homie look like gooden and we get on him all tha time lol
For the Chicago heads, the
assassinationdeath of Harold Washington. There are now grown folks that don’t know any other mayor than Daley, as if he inherited the position.@maximillian, everytime I see President Obama chowing down somewhere, I think about Mayor Washington….pace yourself, Barry.
@maximillian,
I was a wee 3 year old Cheekie (and just as cheeky) when this happened and yes, it was a groundbreaking moment. I remember teachers discussing it and putting this massive picture of him in our preschool and kindegarten combo school. I will always remember that picture because of it’s huge size and how it reflected an icon to me, even at that tender age.
@ ESQuared,
I copped a shirt with that on it. It’s one of my favorites along with “Terrorist Fist Jab.”
@Stank-0,
“Terrorist Fist Jab.”
if i played fantasy sports this definitely would have been the name of my team
Champ I’m surprised at you, you left out some major events that affected the entire black community…
Michael Jordan becoming the most marketable sports icon IN THE WORLD. This is different from Muhammad Ali being the most famous, or Pele being widely considered the best, this was a hulking 6’6 bald black man, that the entire world allowed into their lives and the lives of their children and paid good money to associate themselves with his name and brand. This would have been un-thought of just 20 years prior.
Tiger Woods winning the 99 masters. To piggy back off of the Jordan thing, I think Tiger being the face of golf finalized the American divide of “these type of black people” vs. “those type of black people” that we see play out in offices, country clubs and every social situation today. I’ll argue that Cosby started it, but Tiger made it real.
Someone already mentioned Magic, I can’t think of a more powerful event in the black community with HIV/Aids. I have uncles and cousins to this day who tell me they never used a condom in their life until Magic sat on that podium and announced he got the hiviees.
The death of Tupac and Biggie. The argument here is simple, if you acknowledge that hip hop music is permeated and engrained in the black community you can’t ignore the biggest event in hip hop ever. Tupac and Biggie getting killed not only affected the way artists, albums, labels and image were promoted, but also affected what we consumers accepted and demanded from our artist. In fact the biggest hip hop icon to date rose to power largely riding the legacy and lyrics of Biggie. Also look at Diddy, dude is still relevant and making money in a number of different avenues purely off of the magic of the summers of 95 and 96.
I got more but I gotta work lol
@Dorian G.,
when you make a top 5 list, some important sh*t aint gonna make the cut.
in another words, surprise deez
@Dorian G.,
“Tiger Woods winning the 99 masters. ”
I get this certain giddiness whenver I see a brotha overtake what is perceived to be a 2520 sport. Like ol’ dude in the Olympics that won gold for speed skating. It seems like EVERYtime we try a sport that Black folks wouldn’t be expected to partake in, we dominate. I’m just waiting to see a hood ninja dominate curling or some ish.
Reference – Curling (http://lmgtfy.com/?q=curling)
@Cheekie,
For some reason, I love curling. It fascinates me to no end.
@PBG,
Yeah, I was straight hyponotized when I first saw it at the Winter Olympics. I still don’t quite get it. LOL
@PBG,
[For some reason, I love curling. It fascinates me to no end.]
It has the opposite effect on me…
@Omar,
Just wait ’til a brotha starts dominating the sport. There will be curling groupies.
@Cheekie
“Just wait ’til a brotha starts dominating the sport. There will be curling groupies.”
No.
@miss t-lee,
lol
yes there will. They will be out there in their cutest ski outfits with sunglasses hoping bruh notices them and will cop them the fur lined hat they’ve been eyeing
@Cheekie, I don’t know, Tiger rates to me less and less everyday. Him winning the Masters in ’97 was hot, but besides me still not caring much for golf, the majority of how he is makes it clear like Ever that Tiger ain’t down with us.
I dont care how post-racial we’re supposed to be, his steez looks some kinda way. As much as ppl will defecate on Kobe, at least you won’t get that “not identifying with Black” vibe from him. Tiger makes OJ look like a member of Brand Nubian.
@Stuff Ghetto People Like,
I don’t disagree with you. But you cannot deny Tiger’s influence on the black community. If nothing else, only how he helped shaped perceptions of the other side of negro in this country and around the world.
@Dorian G.,
makes me think of the dave chappell show “racial draft” skit tiger top pick “fo shizzle” lol
TO whipping out the Sharpie on MNF. It ushered in the new era of primadonna wide receivers.
The release of Dr. Dre’s “The Chronic.” It was probably the most well put together hip hop record of all time.The skits are still funny after all these years.
The discovery of the power of Erykah Badu’s shonery.
@Legendary Dash,
The release of Dr. Dre’s “The Chronic.” It was probably the most well put together hip hop record of all time.The skits are still funny after all these years
this sounds like a potential vsb topic
@The Champ,
naw i saw “all eyes on me” or “makaveli” the world stoped when those cds dropped
@Legendary Dash,
Am I the only one who enjoys the primadonna receiver and the coonery than ensues?
@Peysonic Temple,
No, you aren’t. The primadonna wideouts and cornerbacks gives the game more juice. There are only so many covos about The Tampa Two that a man can have before he becomes disinterested.
@Legendary Dash,
justa bouta ta say i luv CB’s like Deon “must be tha money” Sanders dude changed the game with his moves. i mean deon was tha nigg. member the fight he had with andre rison lol i was juiced like yea
@BLUNTBLAZER,
That “fight” between Andre and Deion led to an impromptu boxing lesson. My pops to take my brothers and I out to the backyard to make sure we knew how to throw hands. He did not want us sullying the family name by slapping and scratching like
The DC Sniper!! That was HUGE for me. I live in DC and the fear was real. The killings were random and they were at places that you HAD to go. The mall, the gas station & then they were shooting at kids going to school. Then when we found out that they were Black…I was done!! Who saw that coming?!?!?!
@Yaa,
Who saw that coming?!?!?!
the rza. if you listen to the skit after track 11 on the second disc of “wu-forever” he makes a reference to dart throwing dc niggas.
@The Champ, SIIIIIIGH
Did anyone mention Jena 6
@cocomyst,
yup
Or the” two birds with one stone” Denzel and Halle Oscar victory
@cocomyst,
Oh, just saw your comment. Great, minds, great minds…
@cocomyst,
for sucky a$$ movies im still kinda mad bout that
like they neva seen x or savin isaiah
I still haven’t seen When the Levees Broke and I doubt I ever will. I live in New Orleans. I lost my house and almost everything I owned. And still I consider myself lucky because me and my family all evacuated and were safe. Since then I have rebuilt my home and watched as the city I love struggles to get on it’s feet. And we’re doing it one step at a time, but I can’t watch that movie. Katrina was already real enough for me and I already know too much of people’s sorrows. So no, I don’t want to take a tour of the 9th ward and no I don’t need to watch Anderson Cooper’s report on revisiting New Orleans. But I am glad that those things resonate so strongly with other people.
Katrina was obviously a huge news story with wide ranging implications, but I have been most amazed by how people have continuously responded to it. Just this morning there was a volunteer group on my block cleaning out one of the last remaining ungutted houses. It took the appalling governmental response to the tragedy to demonstrate the overwhelming good within our society that still exists and empowers people to want to help.
@AstralTraveler, *starts the slow clap*
Wow, Champs, you’re right about OJ not having THAT much of an effect as the media showcased. I actually think the line, “If it doesn’t fit, you must acquit” had more resonance than him actually getting off. Now MJ getting off of his trial in 2005? That caused the entire earth to rumble. Every “not guilty” sent mass amount of ninjas and 2520s alike to collapse in sheer joy.
Other groundbreaking moments in the Black community:
1. When Celie told Mistuh (Allllbert) off. “I never asked you for nothing, not even your sorry ass hand in marriage!” and subsequently, the Celie curse. Women all across the hood slapped their boo by instinct after watching that glorious triumph.
2. Halle getting her Best Actress Academy Award. This was allegedly the groundbreaking moment, but to me, Denzel’s acceptance speech comment (regarding the Academy “killing two birds with one stone” ) after receiving HIS, was more groundbreaking me and firmly cemented my love for him.
3. When it was revealed that Maggie was the one that shot Mr. Burns and it wasn’t poor Carl, who is Black and probably who all them yellow characters thought did it but didn’t verbally speak it.3. The whole Rev. Wright fiasco and then even more so, Obama’s race speech. I thought that was groundbreaking for our community and very poignant. I think it really got a lot of people off their comfy racially unaware arses and they started truly discussing it.
@Cheekie, ROTF @
#3@Cheekie,
1. When Celie told Mistuh (Allllbert) off. “I never asked you for nothing, not even your sorry ass hand in marriage!” and subsequently, the Celie curse. Women all across the hood slapped their boo by instinct after watching that glorious triumph.
Being a black man in America suck dog dyck at times. THE COLOR PURPLE honestly made me wonder if there was anything that we couldn’t do right. You turn on the TV sometimes you get the feeling that you’re the Boogyman. LOL
@T. Troy Stewart,
Yeah, ya’ll probably had it rough during that time. And I love Albert’s failed attempt at a retort, “You Black, you poor, you ugly!!” as the camera made an extreme close up on his soggy lower lip. Ugly?! Like that mofo look like Tyson Bedford. He was casting stones and living in the crystal clearest of glass houses.
@Cheekie, that time period LOL everyday is more like it.
@T. Troy Stewart,
LOL…meant to put an “extra” before the rough. I know you po’ po’ Black men got it bad.
*turns around and eye rolls*
Yessiree…a hard knock life.
@Cheekie,
“. The whole Rev. Wright fiasco and then even more so, Obama’s race speech. I thought that was groundbreaking for our community and very poignant. I think it really got a lot of people off their comfy racially unaware arses and they started truly discussing it.”
Obama earned points with me becuase he went to Rev. Wright’s church. I can’t think he sat in that church for that long and didn’t pick up anything.
@Humble_One,
Agreed. I can see it in him.
@Cheekie, Major co-sign on all of this LMAO
The 5 biggest news stories in black america over the past 25 years in no particular order
1) The crack epidemic.
When crack era was something phenomenal that we will never see again. The 80s was wild in Detroit. The shootouts in the mall, teenagers in IROCS and BMWs wearing more jewelry than Mr. T. While crack had been in other parts of Detroit for a few years it didn’t hit my neighborhood until 1986. I saw my area go from borderline suburb to zombies walking the street in 2-3 yrs.
2) The spread of Hip-Hop
I remember when rap albums and tapes were sold in the r&b or soul section. Now Hip-Hop is mainstream. I remember when you could only here rap b/w 6pm and 10pm.
3) Hurricane Katrina
This was sad. Just sad. What I couldn’t understand was why this country wasn’t embarassed about it? Katrina exposed America for what it really is.
4) The beginning of the slow death of Affirmative Action.
White males and some psuedo-black folks have had a hand at killing this. What I find amazing is how white males are all for “equality” when it comes to affirmative action. Where was this passion in the 60s and 70s?
5) The election of Barack Obama
I fact that a significant amount of 2520s could vote for a black man to lead this country is amazing. Although we have a very long way to go you cannot deny that things have changed and progress has been made.
@Humble_One,
wouldnt 1,2, and 4 be listed as “things that have had the biggest effect” instead of “biggest news stories”?
@The Champ,
i memba when crack hit oh boy life has neva been the same. people still slangin rocks its crazy.
I was a sophomore in high school when the OJ verdict came down. We watched the trial on TV everyday (EVERYDAY!) at my majority black school. The verdict came down midway through fourth period and as soon as we heard not guilty everyone (every person in a school of a couple thousand) bolted out of class screaming, hollering, dancing and oj-running down the halls. It was wild. I can’t remember how they got us back in class.
But as big as that was, Katrina (I live in New Orleans) and Obama are definitely bigger. Good list.
@GiGi,
The verdict came down midway through fourth period and as soon as we heard not guilty everyone (every person in a school of a couple thousand) bolted out of class screaming, hollering, dancing and oj-running down the halls. It was wild. I can’t remember how they got us back in class.
wow. i definitely didnt see anything like that, lol. you must have been in one of the classrooms shown on 20/20 or something
@The Champ,
oh you saw me? i was the one with the one yelling “if the glove don’t fit, you must acquit” into the camera. and chanting “johnny, johnny, johnny.”
@GiGi,
johnny with the ski mask : priceless
This is off-topic but I just saw part of what Obama said at The NAACP Anniversary celebration. Am I the only one that notices that everytime he talks to black folks he feels the need to tell them about themselves? Which is funny because he usually says it to blacks that are pretty well off.
@Humble_One,
what did he say?
@The Champ,
Stop trying to be like Lil Wayne, stop trying to be athletes, start trying to be engineers and presidents.
He forgot to mention that engineers don’t got no hoes tho. Lil Wayne got Laura London and Nivea, as a 10 year old I can tell u exactly who I would have aspired to be.
@Dorian G.,
He forgot to mention that engineers don’t got no hoes tho
lol, all the engineers i know are swimming in p*ssy, as are most other young men i know who are making over 60.
sh*t, it doesn’t even hafta be 60. 30 and a nice 403b will get you nice draws most places.
basically, if you’re a nice dude with a decent job and steady income, you’re probably not gonna be hurting for female attention. that sh*t isn’t as widespread as alot of us have made it out to be. you dont hafta be drake to eat cake.
i do see your point about kids trying to emulate what they see on tv, i just think the whole “regular dudes dont get play” angle is overblown
@The Champ,
Thanks for ruining the joke there buddy
@The Champ, agreed…. no one in my circle is sweating rappers (save the wayward friend from back home who never quite shook the ghetto mentality)…. they’re all sweating the nerdy in a cool way engineer dude who isn’t married already (they’re scarcer than rappers these days)….. of course I should probably qualify this statement by saying that most of my friends are engineers
@klysha,
It took everything in me not to come back till I saw your last sentence. Thank you lol
So nobody’s gonna bring up the emergence of Souljah Boy and his *trying to keep it PG-rated* phallic cream going on a girl’s back, then covering that cream with a sheet? He made that ish into a dance, son…and became a star-ruh!!! Come on now…that was phenomenal!
*side eye of sarcasm*
@K to the…,
On that note, did anybody see the pic of Mr. Tell Em in his draws?? Things that make you say Hmmmmmmm.
@V Renee,
I did.
*giggling*
@V Renee,
Wait…what? OMG, NO.
So, um, I assume he doesn’t have anything to tell ‘em correct?
@V Renee,
And my little sister thinks he is so fine! *gag*
@K to the…,
ROFL. I was quite shocked (shocked I tell you) when I learned of the origin on Superman that ho. I really feel sorry for the soccer mom’s who just think it’s just a silly little dance those urban kids do when their son Billy is singing it around the house. Ignorance is bliss and all that, but I’m sure there’s some dad out there trying to be cool singing it with his middle aged wife and looking like the most epic fail.
@Cheekie,
i hate that my son like solja boy but i blame his mama she like him too thas another reason why i hate her lol
@Cheekie, I seriously don’t think that explanation of the origins of supaman dat ho is correct….. someone made that mess up and it spread like wild fire….
Well,
Being a Katrina Victim myself, I was very glad that you listed this catastrophe in your Top 5 Champ…. This was the worst shyt imaginable. For those who saw it on tv… the internet… What you guys saw was Dinseyland compared to the experience, and what it looked liked in person. I still relive some of the things I personally went through, I still have flashbacks…. To me… it was a horror and a blessing. New Orleans poverty is dayum near 3rd world. The level of ignorance and education in the urban community is SHOCKING to most.. Especially average educated african americans who come here and witness it for the first time. New Orleans is a city that possesed massive housing projects that streached over a 2 mile span full of 3 stair well 3 story developments… What does this tell you? They even (and when i say they i mean the MAN) went so far as putting schools in the center of these developments.. Grocery stores on the edge of these developments.. They had thier own police stations.. This city has one of the most viable tourist incomes than any other American city. We are rich in resources ( oil, fishery, gambeling, agriculture, tourism), we are at the mouth and earn from the most important port in the entire country.. So I am curious to know why is it that a city, that is over 70 % African American, and 50% of that 70% is poor as phukk is in such a state of neglect??? Google this shyt… New Orleans not only posses the 2009 Murder Capitol of the Country, but we are also on the list for the most jacked up roads and highways, we are top 10 in poor education, top 10 fat momofuggas, and OMG please don’t google the reputation of NOPD, and political scandle…. What Hurricaine Katrina did was expose this to the world, who never knew anything about it. For that I am grateful. I know yall are wondering why I am still here.. well I have investments here(rental property LOL!), and am the only child of 2 parents that refuse to leave, but SWEET BABY JESUS, if it were not for those things…. In the Infamous words of the Great Kanye West.. “George Bush does not care about BLACK PEOPLE” *drops mike*___________________________
@Laneianna,
yeah, when you consider how effed up new orleans already was, the hurricane combined to make it a perfect storm of sh*ttyness and despair. i dont know if a disaster like that could have happened in any other american city
@Laneianna, This is deep. And people still think that racism and classism doesn’t exist. The only way for the dominant class and culture to keep their status at the top is to keep other people down and or make it really really really hard for them to get ahead. We continue to buy into the “American Dream” hook line and sinker. smh. This is a da*n shame.
*sorry wrong post*
1) Oj * sidenote* in that pic it looks like oj bout to make a over the shoulder catch lol. OJ AINT DO IT anyways nicole hada coke habit thas why she got columbian necktied duhh. RIP Johnny Cochran tha boy was bad the ninja put the ski mask on like wha lol ill neva forget that
2) Rodney King- Hundai should thank him he was their first spokeperson i neva knew wtf a hundai was untill i saw the tape. me bein political i was pissed and wanted to fly to la jus ta riot.
3) Riots- I loved watchin it and reginald gettin hit got me juiced i mean ima revolutionary type so i think we overdue for another riot. In oaklnad they rioted for oscar grant rip we way over due people.
4) Katrina- Every ninja got fam in the dirty south so i was def hurtin seein them in the superdome hella humbled me like dam wtf happned. then cops shootin people tryna break into stores to get food, fema shiii lemme calm down next.
5) Obama- i actually watched it with my son he knows who obama is and he is 5 I felt privledged to live to see that and to be able to see it with my son was memorable. and him bein a mixed kid it was big. for the first time lil ninjas say i wanna be the pres instead of nfl, nba, rapper etc. its a beautiful thang.
My hard moments
1) Rip Tupac, mac DRE, Aliyah, left eye, MJ, rick james, james brown- me bein a musical genius and shii these deaths really hurt me the biggest was PAC. say what you want but I shed tears for pac growin up as a lil ninja in the ghetto pac was like what stevie and marvin were to my pops I mean i eat, sleeped and shii to pac, chexed, did dirt, got faded, got hemmed up I mean pac was always playin in the background from age 12-18 (my worst dnt give a fuq years). I bought all eyes on me and macaveli like 5 times each over these last 10 years or so.
2) Mr Mixon- the dude who gunned down 5 cops in oakland. i dunno bout yall but i was kinda happy that day. ben a victum of police brutality i wanna do a few unspeakable thing to a some piggys and homeboy went out like a “STRAIT UP MENACE”
@BLUNTBLAZER,
so you’re cool with random cop killing because you’ve been harassed a couple times?
@The Champ,
hell muthafuqin yea
i cant tell you what i would do if i had my back against the wall
my family got 3 generations of police brutality my grandpa, my dad and myself caught a beatdown from the piggs. i hate um 4real.
@BLUNTBLAZER,
VSB…the top bookmark for hood ni99as
@Dorian G.,
naw my hoodness jus comes out on some subjects i cant help it my ninja and i suck at english esp grammer lol. math is my strong suit.
@BLUNTBLAZER,
i can understand feeling a certain way about cops because of how you and your peeps were treated, but wishing death on all of them because of that is, for lack of a better term, ignorant as hell and f*cking scary.
i know there are bad apples, but the vast majority of cops are just trying to do their jobs and go home to their families after work…just like everyone else.
@The Champ,
not where im from homie not where im from.
My city PD is jus like LAPD, OPD.
We were murder capital of the world in 1992 and my city is only 2.5 sq miles !!
they had to fired the whole force cause they all were shady. i seen cops sell druggs that they jacked to the dealers, take payoffs, tell killas who the snithces are sorry they gets no luv from me neva eva eva eva. A old lady got her house shot up for tryna drop anonymous tips and the piggs ratted her out. even my son saw his grandpa get beat down by the pigs and his grandpa was the one that called him. i neva met a nice pig in my life maybe you have but i havent. call me ignorant but untill you walked in my shoes you wouldnt understand. prolly vice versa cause i cant understand your stance
@The Champ,
I can’t agree w/ u either on this one Champ. Not saying that all cops are bad. Not saying that at all, but there is a very thin line that separates the police from the “criminals” that they are supposed to be protecting everyone else from. I can see how it would be very easy a policeman to cross the line – they have easy access to money, drugs and all the rest of it, they have power, and they are immersed in a grimey culture. No way u can escape it unscathed unless ur a traffic cop. There’s a very thin line.
The thing is that cops are people, who have feelings and biases and all that. I think a lot of them start out as police officers w/ good intentions and all that. And maybe even want just do their job and go home… but a lot of them can be tempted, can be corrupted, and can also treat normal people like criminals – since they are surrounded by criminals a lot. It has to play on their psyche.
@The Champ,
Isn’t there a comedian that said, everyone wanna say f*ck the police, till they a$$ get robbed, then its “where the f*ck is the police!”
@Dorian,
naw 911 is a joke in my town. pops hada strap and since i was 8 he showed me where it was and what to do if someone ran thru the door. he aint show me how to dial 911 why ima call them. they proll come and blast me for mistaken id.
I don’t know if it counts as biggest news but one of the biggest cultural events that I remember was when the Malcolm X movie came out .
@Omar,
Yeah, it’s a pretty big deal, IMO.
Remember everyone wearing those ‘X’ hats? I remember I was like 6 years old and I wore some ‘X’ earrings someone got from some flea market and then gave to me. They were actually supposed to be first name initial earrings, but my government name starts with a ‘T’ so I thought they were Malcolm X earrings.
@ Champ, thank you! I’m from the Bay and don’t remember that being a happy day at all!
Sorry! that should have been posted to comment #37 !
@angie,
shiiii i was you kno how many times pigs get away with stuff.
my homie got choked out by tha pigs ata traffic stop cause they said they saw him sellin crack and they saw him swallow it so they choked him. they searched the car found nuthin (guns, drugs, money) and arrested my folks for resistin arrest? wouldnt you resist arrest to if a mf start chookin you for a traffic stop. i got cop tales for years they will neva be a friend of me.
shiiii i needa blunt blood pressure all risin lol
@BLUNTBLAZER, I don’t doubt or undermine any of that, but that does not mean that those 4 particular cops Mixon killed did any of that or deserved to die.
@angie,
like my pops always said dont hava strap on you unless you ready to die shiii happens they had straps jus like mixon. whatabout oscar grant tha boy aint even hava strap and got shot in the back. there are more cops that kill people than people that kill cops.
cops r a gang anyways you wear that badge you one of them and i aint in that gang.
@BLUNTBLAZER,
Robbie Tolin
google him and his story
i cry for my people not piggys
back to kanye…
ok, i’ll give him his shine for the bush quote, but he got his pass revoked from me for not only making computer love- the album (808s and heartbreak), his blond/bald gf who cant seem to keep her clothes on, and this quote about books:
“I am not a fan of books. I would never want a book’s autograph. I am a proud non-reader of books. I like to get information from doing stuff like actually talking to people and living real life”
not only does he have huge influence on black kids and pop culture as a whole, but his mother was a professor and his father was a panther, so I know they stressed education. in the words of vsbers: icant.
also honorable mention to ATL hosting the cenntenial olympic games-i mean really a majority black city- whose dck got sucked for that one? lol