collaborative brainstorming and revolutionary heartstorming towards conscious community ::: race, gender, sexuality & masculinity politics, news, events, resources, personal perspectives & good conversations too.
hello everyone. thanks for your readership and words. may this reach you doing well! i'm sure most of you are feeling the change in the air, in our personal lives, the earth, and social arenas. may the winds of change blow positive transformation and blessings your way.
and i've been riding the winds of change so religiously that i'm only getting around to promoting the San Francisco Walk Against Rape here a whole WEEK before it happens :P
last year my goal was $1500, and because of you incredible people who passionately believe in justice and healing, i was able to blow away that goal for a whopping **$1800**, and whoa... next thing i knew i was receiving an award for being the top individual fundraiser! not quite what i was planning for, but of course, a pleasant surprise and honor. wish all of you were there to accept it with me, cuz my contribution was $50, and Y'ALL handled the rest!!
giving how late i'm kicking this off, i'm not going to be as ambitious as asking to reach a goal of $1500, i'm going to split that in half and aim for $750. I'm at $285 now, i think this is definitely doable.
i'm aware that its fundraising season, and that we are all trying to make ends meet, just know that $60 = a one hour shift on the 24-hour rape crisis hotline, so even $10 could provide a crucial 10 minutes in someone's life. If you can spare more, $120 is the cost of a rape prevention presentation for teens. And when all is said and done *any* donation makes a difference. To support these and other services, and to help build healthy communities free of sexual assault, please click here to make a donation, or click on the widget to the right.
and again, thanks for supporting me in my 5th year of walking for SFWAR! It has been transformational, and I am thankful to be a conduit to help create change with the help of my community members.
Together we can help get survivors crucial services and help dismantle rape culture. Let the winds of change continue to bring healing, justice, and a more humane society for all of us.
blessings,
richard
http://www.firstgiving.com/fundraiser/richard-wright-1/7th-annual-walk-against-rape
PS: For more info about the walk, the movement, SFWAR's services and more, click here:
http://www.sfwar.org/programs.html
Wow. It's been an incredible week. Heard Angela Davis & Grace Lee Boggs speak on revolution last weekend at the Empowering Women Of Color Conference, and now spent International Women's Day with Alice Walker. She led a sit at the East Bay Meditation Center for the POC sit evening, and also read new poems on revolution. Wow. In my spiritual tradition, the Orisha tradition from West Africa, this year belongs to Oya, who is the Warrior Woman Of The Winds Of Change; the principle of Transformation. Sitting with all of these elder woman warriors who speak of personal and social transformation... has been an incredible, blessed gift. Maferefun Oya.
And Alice Walker... her presence is so deeply peaceful and wise. Much less to hear her poetry after meditating... the already profound words permeate your consciousness on a whole other level. I'm so grateful. She will be sitting for 5 more Thursdays at the East Bay Meditation Center POC sit night.
and now, some gems. enjoy.
Alice Walker On Wanting The Self & Meditation: "There is such a lot to be said about learning to want yourself. no matter who does or does not want us, or me or you, want yourself. if you want yourself, you are already winning, because you know what is worth having. and want your true self, not your phony self. the phony self doesn't really exist, its just a figment of somebody's...humor. so want yourself as you are- and that's why meditation is so divine... because you get to sit there, with you. and finally you have to agree... it's not that bad."
Alice Walker On Ancestors: "All of us in this room, if you go back far enough you will come across somebody who stood up when everybody else was saying sit down, shut up and don't move. You had an ancestor that said, I will stand thank you. I will stand."
Alice Walker on Teaching Youth Meditation & Ancestors: "I think that sitting is basic to liberation. and i truly believe that if you sit with sufficient patience, humility, and openness that your ancestors will show up. that has been my experience....if you teach them how to meditate, they will then lead themselves, the inner spirit will attract the ancestral forces that they need to be guided by....that has been my experience... some of the best times of my life... its not like a search, its just like an openness, like you are preparing for a guest. You are preparing for an ancestor. You are preparing for wisdom. and your job is to hold your seat. and some of it can be very scary, but you just hold your seat."
Alice Walker on Joy: "What brings me joy? Everything. Everything but the bad things. I'm naturally joyful. and it took decades of depression for me to realize it."
Alice Walker on Womanism: "You notice how this word has 'man' right in the middle of it. That is one reason i like it. He is there, front and center. But he is surrounded."
The crowd laughed raucously for the last one, and others too :) and duly noted! hmmmm... womanism does comprise of feminisms from communities of color, maybe i should change my blog to wo.men.ist....
Happy International Women's Day! And thank you Alice Walker for one of the most profound ones yet. <3
Amazing, radical workshops, healing bodywork on more will be available at this conference, happening on the Berkeley campus. Click here for a list of workshops, and register! The 1st day is free and open to the public, and whoooo: March 2, "On Revolution: A Conversation Between Grace Lee Boggs and Angela Davis" from 4-6pm in Pauley Ballroom. What?!? I will be there, trust! I was honored for the second year in a row to be asked to speak on the Male Feminist Of Color panel on the 2nd day, Saturday 10:20 - 11:15 in the Pauley Ballroom. Truly an honor, and i'm looking forward to linking up with other men of color who believe in this path. We need each other dammit! In any case, come through, its really a profoundly powerful and important event, regardless of gender. Bless....
Sometimes a really good jpeg starts circulating on that Facebook thingie. This ones DEFINES flipping the script in the most amazing way. Real talk!! Take responsibility mens!!!
i am glad that Jay-Z is quite literally taking this baby step towards accountability, and i'm sure this will have some ripple in hip hop community around fatherhood/manhood and misogyny... but he's gonna also have to swear not to have scantilly clad women depicted as brainless objects decorating his videos as well, and use his influence to send healthy messages to our children. his daughter may not hear him say b, but can still learn that she is supposed to be an object for male pleasure, and that her appearance is more important than her soul and intellect from his videos.
I also wonder what Beyoncé thinks about the fact that for however long as she and Jay-Z have been married, it took the birth of their daughter for him to make this step. What does that make her?
Sean Carter, who performs under the name Jay-Z, has apparently vowed never again to use the word bitch in the wake of the birth of his daughter, Blue Ivy Carter. And while I celebrate and congratulate his new fatherhood, this vow didn't impress me.
It doesn't begin to address his role in contributing to and profiting from the global power of a hyper-sexist brand of hip-hop masculinity. I need to hear quite a bit more about how he feels about this legacy and its impact on millions of black girls and boys before getting all teary-eyed.
Sure, hip-hop didn't invent sexism, nor has it been the only musical genre to profit from promoting it. The vast territory that is popular music is a treasure trove of sexist ideas and images. And it is also true that racist, rightwing critics have targeted hip-hop as a way to continue the demonisation of black men while remaining silent on countless other sexist images, sounds and stories that define US culture.
also, Lisa Belkin from the Huffington Post brilliantly explores how "Jay-Z is not the first man to realize he has been a misogynistic jerk only after he has a daughter", chronicling stuff like male CEOs who decide to close the gap between higher paid male employees and female employees by a few more fractions of a percentage. She hilariously starts out her piece asking the question: "Ladies, do you feel more respected this morning?"
Well, i'm glad that at least its starting some good dialogue.
Update: Jay-Z says to New York Daily News "that poem and that story are fake." The UK Star editors however stick to their story saying that "It is not made up or fictitious at all. We bought the interview from a reporter in the U.S. who conducted the interview with Beyonce before the birth." The Huffington Post reports.
Wonder if an iota of introspection occurred with this very influential couple around this rumor. Best celebrity hoax ever. I'm still glad that it started some good dialogue.
WOW. Sooooo... its been quite some time since i've blogged. Won't get into all the ways i have been using my energy otherwise... but i came across this gem, and it just made my day, i and i knew i had to post it here!! Science is amazing sometimes. I feel like it affirms what a lot of us knew already.
Heterosexual men with the most anti-gay attitudes, when asked, reported not being sexually aroused by gay male sex videos. But, their penises reported otherwise.
Homophobic men were the most sexually aroused by gay male sex acts.
Amazing. Insightful. Hilarious. And sad at the same time. It's not even a new study (1996). But now its official... Homophobia Is Gay.
like, REALLY breaks it down. Definition of raw and real.
“the nudity scares the nation as a whole.... but what i really learned was that when it was packaged the way i was, no high heeled shoes or long hair, spinnin around a pole or poppin it... people have a hard time processing it when its not packaged for the consumption of male entertainment. So they don’t know what to do with it, or how to place it or what to say. Because surely, a woman couldn’t be intelligent enough to be making a point. (smiles)”
Watch this.... and prepare to be moved, angered, inspired.
The Oakland Sister Council was formed initially in response to a charismatic, attractive, unconsciously counter-organizing man who was targeting women of color in progressive/activist communities. His manipulative behavior traumatized powerful, community-conscious women, broke trust, and left some organizations trying to figure out how to recover, as he continued to build bigger, more influential networks springboarded off the shoulders of these women. Instead of being silenced and shamed, these women banded together to spit fire in the face of patriarchy and misogyny that DOES happen in progressive/activist communities. Don't mess with organizers y'all!!
i am proud to be an ally of the Oakland Sister Circle (i just wish i had been in town to dj pro-bono for em!!) , and i invite other men of color in our communities to step up, and not look the other way when one of our brothers is causing harm. Radical sisterhood is one part of the equation to rise against patriarchy and misogyny, but it is of the utmost importance than we as men pull our weight as allies, and dismantle bullshit from our end as well. i, other men, and the sister circle continue to toil at co-creating restorative justice, and how we as men can be optimal allies without taking over the movement.
i love this! especially how this sweetly doting brotha exhibits fairly traditional masculinity but is proud to be doing make-up for his girlfriend. i was taking notes :) Got this one from Colorlines, a gem!
Hope this reaches you doing well. On April 30th (two weeks away!) i will be proud to be doing my 4th year participating in the San Francisco Walk Against Rape, and i am thankful for all of the support to this cause so many of you have given. Rape impacts me through the lives of many people i love, so for me, this is an act of love, and one way i can contribute to dismantling patriarchy. Every year it is profoundly powerful and beautiful. I encourage others to walk, even if you don't fundraise.
This year, my goal is $1,500, and i would love your support helping me reach it. I'm asking for just $5 - $10 today, just so more people can be involved in supporting this. Know that $60 = a one hour shift on the 24-hour rape crisis hotline, so even $10 could provide a crucial 10 minutes in someone's life.
If you can give more than $5 - $10, please consider sponsoring a one hour hotline shift for $60, or donating $120 to sponsor a rape prevention/healthy dating presentation for teens (important work!).
To support these and other services, and to help build healthy communities free of sexual assault, please clickhereto make a donation.
Cons/critiques: REALLY wish it had more a diverse representation of men. Like, really. Sometimes i felt a little twingey about the essentialist declarations of what the "feminine" realm and ""masculine" realm are. Although i *very* much value these men bringing spirit and psyche into the discussion... i fear that they will lose the men who really need to hear this message, that it will be discounted as hippie ramblings or something. i don't agree that submitting this apology means that "the past should be forgotten".
Pros/critiques: Wow. Besides alla that, its kinda beautiful in a really powerful way. i am impressed by how thorough this MANifesto is. it covers commerce, trafficking, religion, government, war, spirit, the human psyche and soooo much more. clearly, a lot of thought and strong intention went into this. its pretty inspirational, and for all of my con/critiques, i am glad that something like this representing actively non-patriarchal men and masculinities is out there. my very good female friend who sent this to me said she was moved to tears, so just even the healing that happens there also means a lot.
Click here to register for the 26th Empowering Women Of Color Conference that will be held on the Berkeley Campus this Saturday. I will speaking on the Male Feminist Of Color panel @ 10:30am, but wow... SOOO many other amazing workshops/presentations to check out! birthing justice, building community for WOC's in predominantly white academic institutions, community accountability strategies (i would be at this one if i wasn't doing a panel at the same time!!) healthy relationships, capoeria, dance, yoga, dj classes for women... and much more. Peep the grid below to see what's up, and more details on are the website. Looking forward to building with some cool brothas, and building community in a larger context as well.
I found this deeply insightful checklist at Queers United... it has given me much pause, given me much to think about. I have thought about some of these privileges i have, but many i have not thought about in depth, or at all. All of the ones listed are deep reality checks, but the one that my eye stayed on for a long time was number 27:
27. At my funeral, it is unlikely that my family would present me crossdressed against my living wishes.
Wow. The notion of such disrespect, such refusal by close, supposedly "loved ones" to essentially really see someone, was really impactful. And the point of privilege is driven home... i will never have to worry about this.
Patriarchal notions of gender as static are really archaic. And harmful. To everyone.
Sending love and strength to my trans fam, stay up y'all.
Men's stories? Isn't that uh, already kinda the standard, one might ask. The Men's Story Project is ongoing and evolving show has a different agenda. Peep this multidisciplinary event that explores male strength, manhood and masculinity in ways that are rarely modeled. Topics include creation of a historic gang truce; friendship between men; homophobia and pride; gender identity; forgiveness; images of African American masculinity; men's public restroom rituals; healing from partner violence and sexual assault; relationships with fathers and other family members; disability & sexuality and much more. Last show... tonite!
Amazing blogpost written by Nerdy Apple Bottom, documenting all of the issues that arose because her 5 year-old son dressed up as Daphne from Scooby Doo for Halloween. If you've ever doubted that love is revolutionary, read the account of a mother who loves bravely and fearlessly. A must read!
hello everyone, its been a looooong time. Been going through many changes. Will be stepping back up more with blog duties. Apologies for the hiatus, though apparently i needed to step back and grow some more before writing more.
This new Usher song was brought to my attention, so i YouTubed it, and was slapped in the face by these lyrics:
"i'll show you what love is if you let me lay you down... you ain't goin nowhere, nowhere, nowhere girl, not until you let me lay you down"
"i'll make your body come to me, pull you back when you try to run baby"
what?
I am furious, saddened, and frustrated with all the patriarchal elements that come together and make it permissible to put this kind of message out there. Whether Usher's intentions are consciously aligned with the danger of this message, no one can say, but for sure... this is a song about a man disregarding a woman's clear message of non-consent, and forcing her into a sexual situation against her will, under the guise of "love". This is a song about a man who has decided that because his "love" is so sublime, he has made the decision for both people involved around what has to go down. This is a song about rape.
I have already seen a man react defensively to this notion, minimizing the impact of the content of this song. I am hoping that some men will be able to speak to this non-defensively as well. This is a seductive song, done by a talented and loved man to a catchy beat. That makes this song very powerful. It glamorizes this behavior. Our young boys take this in, want to be cool, and if they are straight, want to be loved by girls.
As a young boy, i was one of the "sensitive" ones who had crushes that often never materialized into anything more than jokes and longing looks. My female friends assured me that i was special, and that someone would be lucky to have me. I imagined that i had so much love to give. I imagine some other young boy going through a similar situation, body wracked by hormones, longing for connection with one of his crushes... a boy who may be inspired to step up his "game" when he sees how a respected "pro" does it. And of course I fear the impact this may have on our girls too, as this glamorizes them being targets for unwanted attention and straight up sexual violence. Not only girls, but women, as it isn't just pubescent boys and girls influenced by this song. And for that matter, women are perps against other women too- but lets not get it twisted, cuz as serious as woman-to-woman abuse is, the stats of man-to-woman abuse is just waaaaay more off the charts.
Some may still dispute, saying that its ridiculous to say that "this song will make people go out and rape". In a rape culture (a culture that portrays sexual violence as sexy, permissible, and sometimes even funny) we are bombarded with messages that glamorize rape, and turn girls and women into objects for male gratification. It is more accurate to say that I fear the impact this song will have as another contribution to an already huge, toxic stockpile of images and messages that either subtly, or outrightly condone rape.
I am sure that any man who has a daughter (or wants to) would get chills at the idea of some young man taking her out on a date, then putting the powerlock on the car doors while crooning "you ain't going nowhere, nowhere..."
Our boys need messages around healthy dating and healthy loving. About respecting the autonomy and humanity of others. Girls do too. And boys especially need messages that manhood does not rest on ones ability to use aggressive physical force. Being a good nurturing father, creatively expressive, in touch with ones feelings and unashamed to express them, and having courage to speak up when something not wrong is going down (especially if all the other boys are going in on something not cool) are just some positive examples of expressing manhood.
I don't have a solution around the whole issue of this song being out there. I am not convinced boycotting is the answer, seeing how that hasn't been so effective with dancehall artists around homophobia. I am wondering what could really cause lasting change. At this point, my fantasy is that Usher would have a televised forum where we talk about this is in a workshop around masculinity, responsibility, gendered violence and sexism, and that after a transformative event, Usher changes the words to something like "we can go anywhere, anywhere, anywhere as long as you want to" or something. What ideas do you have?
hello all! its been a minute. been the busiest i've maybe ever been, building, building, building. Its a good thing.
I kept coming across things i wanted to post, and i knew i wanted to post at least some of em before the month was over. Of course, awareness of gender continues throughout the year, but i wanted to share some thoughts and salutes... so here are several items of interest:
This will be my 3rd year of walking the San Francisco Walk Against Rape, and each year folks have just floored me with how generous they are, and how passionate they are about this cause. I'm hoping that you can donate anything at all towards supporting essential services for survivors in San Francisco's only community run crisis center. Click here to go to my fundraising page. Click here for reports from previous walks. It has always been a powerful and beautiful experience. Thanks in advance for any support!
a sobering message from the women of DRC; a powerful stance on their humanity, and being tired of being seen as victims by the world, as opposed to being seen as some of the strongest and most resilient women in the world. They also state that if things are gonna change, its gonna have to be on their terms, not the terms of well intentioned people who are not from DRC. Real talk.
Just wanted to shout out this hot new blog! Nuff props. If I may share some of their mission statement:
The Crunk Feminist Collective (CFC) will create a space of support and camaraderie for hip hop generation feminists of color, queer and straight, in the academy and without, by building a rhetorical community, in which we can discuss our ideas, express our crunk feminist selves, fellowship with one another, debate and challenge one another, and support each other, as we struggle together to articulate our feminist goals, ideas, visions, and dreams in ways that are both personally and professionally beneficial.
The CFC aims to articulate a crunk feminist consciousness for women and men of color, who came of age in the Hip Hop Generation, by creating a community of scholars-activists from varied professions, who share our intellectual work in online blog communities, at conferences, through activist organizations, and in print publications and who share our commitment to nurturing and sustaining one another through progressive feminist visions. This collective is a forum where we seek to speak our own truths, and to both magnify and encourage the feminist credos that shape and inform our lives and that we use to engage and transform our world. Crunk Feminism is the animating principle of our collective work together and derives from our commitment to feminist principles and politics, and also from our unapologetic embrace of those new cultural resources, which provide or offer the potential for resistance. Crunk(ness) is our mode of resistance that finds its particular expression in the rhetorical, cultural, and intellectual practices of a contemporary generation.
And then they go even deeper into the paradigm of "crunk(ness)" and how it relates to a revolutionary platform when combined with a feminist lens. It's off the hook. Peep the rest of the mission statement, the blog, and GET YOUR MIND RIGHT!
........................................................................ Erykah Badu's "Window Seat" Video
Sooo... maybe if you've been busy spring cleaning under a rock lately, then perhaps you haven't heard about this new Erykah video that is making huge waves on the internets. People love it. People hate it. It's known as the video where Erykah gets nekkid at the site of JFK's assassination. I am one of the people who love it, and see this as a timeless, provocative, thought provoking work of art. If you haven't seen it, check it out and then read on....
A lot of people are not happy about the combination of nudity and the JFK thing. Or just the nudity. And why JFK, people might ask? Why not MLK, or X? Who knows... to broaden audience? To not ruffle the feathers of people in the black community who would already disapprove of the video? Simply because its a more scenic location? Or because its her home town? Who knows.
I will cut and paste what i said on The Root about this video, where images of Venus Hottentot and Aunt Jemima were raised, as well as seeing the liberation that Erykah is evoking:
i am definitely hearing all of the perceptions and views on this video. my feeling is that this may be the first video where a black woman's body is shown in a way that causes people to think about deep issues, our own shine, how much we may repress of ourselves so we don't get "assassinated" in literal or virtual ways. Those deep issues gave rise to this post and thread! In my opinion, this was a huge depart from just being another dime a dozen portrayal of the black woman's body as a hypersexualized object for mass consumption by men. I have not looked at those videos and thought of deep messages around liberation, evolution, body image, and more.
in truth, Erykah probably knows that a segment of our population will "assassinate" her for "revealing herself". I feel that she is clear that she is of divinity (as all of us are) and that her body is not something to be ashamed of. I thought this was a very meaningful video that resonated with even me as a black man, and how much psychological armor i must wear to walk through the world. I will never know the black female experience, but i imagine that she was speaking about disrobing of the black female version of that armor, and getting free, evolving.
Do you remember when you first heard "Nasty" and it was the rawest, edgiest, crunkest beat you had ever heard? Wanted to close out with this 80's gem, where Janet was bringin the fierceness, making anti-harassment cool, asserting strong boundaries without apology, all while rockin the then groundbreaking Paula Abdul choreography (she is in the video too!). Enjoy the memories! Her name ain't baby y'all....
...feels good to have finally made a post. May all the revolutionary seeds that people planted this month come to glorious fruition this spring! Heartful salute to all the moms, sistas, women and girls. Bless up
MAAAN UP! Presents: a community screening of BACK UP! Concrete Diaries, a documentary on street harassment from the perspective of sistas
This is a free event. All are welcome. please come out with your lovers, family, colleagues and community members, and watch Nijla Mumin & co-director Monique Hazeur's impactful and extremely relevant work-in-progress. Q&A with the filmmaker follows, donations accepted in support of the completion of this film. We would also love to see men and boys representing at this event!
BACK UP! Concrete Diaries This Wednesday, 6-8:30pm 500 William Street, corner of William and Telegraph @ 20th free admission, seating for 30. small snacks and beverages will be available.
looking forward to connecting around this issue, and pleasse forward this to your community! Bless up
***PS: extra prize for women who bring a man or boy with them!!
MAAAN UP! is the Men of African Ancestry Action Network for Unlearning Patriarchy. We hold spaces for men of African ancestry to process issues of black masculinity and its intersections with patriarchy, and seek multivariate strategies to be allies to women and girls.
dj, producer, writer, artist, activist, counselor, feminist, unapologetic straight ally, snuggler, Jamaican New Yorker in Oakland.
Richard is currently going thru CHANGES! Movin on through. Will be posting less for awhile. Bless...
(Multiple Answers) The Oscar Grant Protest-turned-riot:
A woman who is not feminist = A woman with high internalized sexism.
why would you want to meet men who are actively anti-sexist?
What last inspired you to explore new sexual territory?
what should be done about homophobia and colonial buggery laws in Jamaica?
How has reading this blog been for you? (you can pick more than one)
which western feminist icon are you? (apparently i'm angela davis)
Which Western feminist icon are you?
You are Angela Davis! You were the THIRD WOMYN IN HISTORY to appear on the FBI's Most Wanted List. You are a communinist, black power-lovin' lady who shook up the United States when you refused to lie down quietly to oppression. You WENT TO JAIL! Wow. You kick so much more ass than Foxxy Brown. Take this quiz!
Posts
