Jack & Jill Politics

I was told by the small business administraction the because I am not a "minority" - and that includes anyone other that a white person, that I cannot apply for certain programs or contracts - those contracts for small business owners are closed to me because I happen to be caucasion. But my heritage goes back to Africa before my ancestors immigrated to Ireland - Black Irish. I wish I were black skinned to be honest, because there are so many programs available and jobs and other benefits available to non-whites. As a prior post said, there are SO MANY successful black Americans - look at Opera and Maya Angelou who is my role model - I look up to them - I can't think of white people I look up to - but many black people I admire.

Jane, I think you must be living in a dream world if you thing that there are more opportunities for Black people in America than there are for White people. This is the same reverse-racism crap that makes White people feel like they are discriminated against more than Black people. ITS NOT TRUE! Imagine for every affirmative action opportunity provided to Black people there are 10 that will be blocked to them (basically affirmative action for White people). If you watched the documentary at all you would not be wishing you were Black. If you attended school a day in your life you would have numerous White people to look up to and I think you were just making up that part about not admiring any White people. I'm not going to bother going on with this because its just ridiculous for you to think this way and you need to have a reality check. I'll bet you a million dollars that its MUCH easier and better being Irish American than Black American. You have a major thinking distortion problem if you think otherwise.

Whoops. Wrong spot.

No ID you are making me pee in my pants!

Were they actually talking about Black women, I mean it was really hard to tell?

I guess I am in the absolute minority here because I didn't think the documentary was as awful as it's being painted at ALL. They only had 2 hours, of course they couldn't address everything about what it is to be a Black woman in America. The annoying poet notwithstanding, I think they did a good job of showing the positive AND negative. What about the doctor in Baltimore and the brothas and sistas in Houston going door to door trying to get high school dropouts back in school? What about the single, beautiful, successful sistas who were seeking a brotha? What about that beautiful family that owned the successful construction company who were sending ALL their children to college? What about Dr. J Malveaux or the Harvard professor or the Harlem cardiologist who were working hard for and in our community? What about the hardworking single father who was raising his children the best he could and the hardworking single mother raising her 5 kids PLUS her niece? Those were all positives in my opinion, coupled with the fact that a successful Black woman, Soledad O'Brien herself, was doing the show. Sure, there were negatives but those negative aspects, sadly, are reality.

It seems like alot of people are embarassed and I think that's sad...

"It seems like alot of people are embarassed and I think that's sad..."

I'm going to call bullshit on that. First, the majority of comments have addressed the paucity of critical thought--embarrassment has nothing to do with it. The so-called documentary failed to put any of the statistics (these well-worn, oft-tossed-out statistics) into any sort of perspective, the reporter failed to actively critique any of the people she interviewed (especially TD Jakes' assertions that women so desperately craving male attention to the degree that they will "do anything to get the love of a man"), and the segment that was supposedly on "the black woman and the family" failed to proceed with any clear thesis or objective (other than presenting black people en masse as a some form of pathology to which successful, well-adjusted black folk exist as an anomaly).

Why are you glossing over all the positives I highlighted in my previous post?

That's not the question you ought to be asking. You ought to be asking why CNN glossed over those positives as though they were some sort of exception or anomaly in African American life.

Exactly.

CNN wasn't exploitive in their depiction of the successful Black folk. How specifically did they gloss over them in your opinion? Glossing would have been not to include them at ALL...

Nonsense. The idea of glossing over something involves mentioning something and minimizing it while emphasizing other ideas.

Roger, I love you. You make the most excellent points. Black American Princess, you're lost and have fallen for the farce.

I'm not watching this mockumentary tonight.

"NO ID -- can you imagine what the conversation was when they were planning the episode about Black men? God help us! Lock up your virgins, those mandingos are coming to get you!"

-Where all the white wimmen at?

Admiral: I'm there. :>) :>) I promise that I'll let no more humor get past me. :>) :>) Well, at least I'll try! :>) :>) :>)

For those planning to watch tonight's episode of this farce, I will wait to read your reviews because I will not subject myself to more Black bashing masquerading as thoughtful, insightful analysis of the Black experience in America.

NO ID -- can you imagine what the conversation was when they were planning the episode about Black men? God help us! Lock up your virgins, those mandingos are coming to get you!

Nothing will be said about the beautiful Black man, whose sensual walk alone seems shivers down a sister's spine. Just watch a Black man walking and you will see why so many "others" feel threatened, not an educated Black man, an intelligent Black man, a wealthy Black man, a family-loving Black man, a GOOD Black man. Just watch a Black man walking, even with all the attempts to emasculate.

Do I love Black men? You think?!!

Here was the conversation about black men...

BIM Producer: So, Soledad, who do you know that we could put on the show?
Soledad: Umm, I mentioned Snoop right...do you think Barack Obama is available?
Black Intern: I think he's probably pretty busy preparing for the White House right now.

BIM Producer: What? He's not going to win! Now, who else do we know - Will Smith is doing a movie, LeBron James and Kobe Bryant are playing basketball, hey what about that guy my kids like Wally, Woozy, Weeble?

BIM Intern: You mean L'il Wayne? But what about black stepfathers, grandfathers, doctors, bus drivers, lawyers, corporate executives, weekend golfers, college professors, writers, artists, software developers and IT guys, uncles, fighter pilots, fireman and grass roots in the trenches working in the community guys?

BIM Producer: Soledad, do you know what he's talking about?

Soledad shakes her head.

Soledad: I don't know anybody like that.

I just caught this. You are joking, but it seems like that's exactly what they did.

BWA HA HA HA HA

You are hilarious.

NO ID: I am enjoying the humor! :>) :>) :>)

The program was what I expected. The same old topics. It wasn't really about what it's like to be Black, it was more like what its like to be American, but things are just harder for Black people. Other than the part where the Black family had a White great, great, grandfather, these are issues that affect all Americans. They didn't show unique things like what its like to live in a country where people expect the worst of you, living in a society with a Eurocentric beauty ideal, not knowing your history or where you are from, living around people who may have owned and raped your ancestors, dealing with an education system that tells you almost nothing about African Americans or Africans now or in the past, what Black people see as life goals, and even what its like to be a victim of constant racism!!!. I am actually pissed about how they showed statistics. They showed things like 53% of Black people graduate highschool but they showed nothing about the difference between predominantly White schools or predominantly Black schools! They mentioned the incarceration rates but nothing about the bias in the justice system that convicts Black people and sentences them to prison more often than White people! By doing that they make it seem that there is something inherent in Black people that accounts for the problems.

Don't even let me start on how irresponsible and sensationalistic is is to show opinions from scholars who have no scientific evidence behind their claims. Why have Michael Eric Dyson say he was treated better by his family because he is light skinned and his brother did not because he is dark skinned? That's just an anecdote. He's a social scientist, couldn't he have cited some research that supports this phenomena? Also, why focus on that school who is paying students for test grades as though this is the revolution in education that will save Black people? What about all the charter schools that work? What are they doing differently? What about Black students who attend predominantly White schools? Why do they do better? How did the three kids in that one family stay in school and get into college? How is their life different from the drop-outs? And don't even get me started on that stupid salt sensitivity idea? Why were they wasting our time with something that has no research evidence behind it when there is research that supports fact that it is harder to find healthy foods in inner cities (yes they did a little clip about that but there were no statistics or research findings) and that unhealthy foods are cheaper than healthy foods so poor people are more likely to buy unhealthy foods?

I think that PBS would have done a much better job because they base their documentaries on a lot of research and that guides the presentation. This special was based on what they could get a select group of Black people to discuss and government statistics without the background and context. It would change things if they explained why inner cities are the way they are and why Black schools are the way they are (i.e., lack of funding, lack of investment, lack of jobs, unqualified teachers etc).

This was not a presentation meant for Black people. It was meant for people who don't know much about Black people. Something about it is kind of objectifying as if they are anthropologists observing "The Black Man" in his natural habitat. It wasn't meant for us. They hyped this thing WAAAAY too much and I've seen PBS and HBO documentaries about Black people that were so much more informative. It didn't provide solutions other than the unusual one about paying students because they wanted to cause debate or something about the experiment.

Bronze Trinity: Co-signing on "It didn't provide solutions other than the unusual one about paying students . . . ." I had a similar observation. NOT that I had any objections to programs that motivate and work - which this one appeared to do. But, it also took TIME AWAY from the discussion of other VIABLE programs because it was the subject of controversy and "debate". I don't believe that there is time for that. Let's just see what works! Hence, my question about the "design"/designers of the program.

I was so excited to watch the program last night. But after watching it I was left with a really bad taste in my mouth. I understand these issues exist, but for crying out loud, there is more to us than just the negative. In fact, I can even give you a positive spin on the single mother issue! I know a sister who has always been raising her now 13 year old daughter without the father, but who has ALWAYS had her daughter in PRIVATE school; who goes to sleep away summer camp, plus the mother owns TWO Bed-Stuy brownstones! The mother is 4 year city college educated and works as an administrative assistant (secretary!) for a major Fortune 500 company. Where is that story???

Oh, I'll tell you where that story is: in the dumpster. The so-called "liberal" whites at CNN don't want to see that--how could such a story accurately describe the Deep Bottomless Sadness that is being Black In America? I mean, a daughter in private school? And she's not a hooker? A mother raising her child by herself? Where's her pathology? She owns two brownstones in Bed-Stuy? Surely she must have bought them with drug money from her no good layabout babydaddy Raheim...right? She went to college? Sure, but was it accredited? No, if it isn't full of the kinds of swing-low-sweet-chariot pain that America LOVES to see in relation to black life, it ain't makin' it to the screen. Especially if it upends any negative stereotypes.

Tonight's installment of Deep Bottomless Black Sadness should be a hoot.

So true, Roger. The best answer period.

Well, given everyone's comments, here are the notes from the CNN Planning Meeting for "Black in America."

Black Production Intern: I know a family that has four children, the parents are married, all the kids have 3.5 and above GPA'a and they live in a four-bedroom suburban home.

CNN BIM Lead Producer: I've never heard of that. They must be the exception, that's not realistic.

Soledad O'Brien: Well, I know a family like that but the black man is married to a white woman.

CNN BIM Lead Producer: Now that's what I'm talking about Soledad. Do the kids look like those cute little curly-haired mixed kids on TV, you know like the kid from Heroes?

Black Intern: I know a young couple who brought a house in the inner-city, live on a block with other young professional couples and just had a baby. They were registered at Tiffany's and everything?

BIM Producer: You said they live in the INNER CITY? Is he a drug dealer?

Intern: No, I think he's an IT guy and his wife's a doctor. They restored a historial home and --

BIM Producer: There are no historical homes in the inner-city! You said they're married? And no one's selling drugs? The girl is of legal age and she's a doctor? That's not realistic!

Soledad: Well, I do know one black married couple. He's a rapper, and they have four kids. You know who Snoop Dogg is right? He's a rapper and he had that show, "Fatherhood?"

BIM Producer: Great, Soledad, that's why I'm glad we had you do this special. What about that football player Deion Sanders? They have a nice house, and his wife is very attractive....

Black Intern: Well, you could include a story on the black 14-year-old who enrolled in college...

Soledad: Oh, that's great....was it Harvard?

Black Intern: No, I think it was an HBCU.

Soledad: A what?

You are too funny on this. Too funny.

rikyrah: Sorry to you too for messing up this thread by mis-interpreting true humor. :>) :>) I have come back to earth, I have taken my (deep breaths) and I am getting my "laff" on! :>) :>) :>)

if that's meant for me thank you! :-)

NO ID: WHAT!!!?? OH-MY-GOODNESS!!!!!! DATA/FACTUAL INFORMATION!!! Yes. This EXPLAINS sooo much!! Can anyone have access to these notes?
I am so through!!!! The LEVEL [LOW] of DISCUSSION {???} at this meeting EXPLAINS IT ALL!!!

WHEW!!!! MAJOR DEEP BREATHS!!!!

ummm, GreenLadyHere....I think NO ID was making a joke...

Ohboy: Thank you. I have made my mea culpas below! :>) :>) And I will try to be better when I
see comedy. :>) :>)

yes, I should probably say that I made that up...although it sounds very close to what would have passed for discussion over at CNN, given what the show reviewers on JJP have shared.

Uhmmmmm: Thank you [she said making her hand move over her head like one flew
over the cukoo]. And as much as I like subtle humor - I missed that one! :>) Thanks,
EVERYONE for bringing me out of the STRATOSPHERE back to EARTH. Now I'm
JOINING you in the humor! :>) :>) :>)
Come ta think of it, I did ask if anyone could get those "notes". Oh well. I'm just going to
enjoy the day that Mr. Obama had in Germany with e'rrybody else. :>) :>)

I remember a few articles I have read that challenged the conventional wisdom of the "black experience." One made the point that of all the negative statistics you can name, in all but one (out-of-wedlock births), a majority of black people don't experience it. For example, if 1 in 3 black Americans are poor, that means that 2/3 are not poor. If 1 in 10 black men are in prison, that means that 9/10 are not in prison. If 16% of black adults are unemployed, that mean that 84% of black adults are employed. And so on.

The other article was talking about the "achievement gap" in test scores. The author pointed out that all the other "achievement gaps" between whites and blacks have been bridged, and this one will too. For example, the literacy gap was bridged between 1865 and 1900; the elementary school attendance gap was bridged by 1940; the high school attendance gap was bridged by 1960; and the high school graduation gap was bridged by 1990. The author suggested that those other gaps had to be bridged first before we could tackle the test score gap, and indeed, the gap is declining, just not as fast as we would like.

Meanwhile, if they want an example of a black family, let me propose my own. I have a large extended family, and we are not rich; we are middle class and working class. I have only one non-black relative, the wife of one of my cousins. We're descendants of American slaves, and are not recent immigrants, either. Yet none of us grew up without our fathers; none of the men in the family has ever been to jail; all of us are gainfully employed; with one exception, no one is addicted to drugs or alcohol. Not everyone has been to college, but all who are old enough have graduated from high school.

There are a few negative statistics that affect our family. A few of the men have children out of wedlock, but they are all involved in their children's lives. Only one of the women has a child out of wedlock - a baby born last year - and I don't count her as irresponsible. She is a 39-year-old doctor, and I think she made the decision because she wanted a baby before her biological clock ran out.

The biggest one, however, is that a lot of the health problems that disproportionately affect blacks - heart disease, stroke, and diabetes - are very present in our family. Most of the men have had one of the above, and several of us, myself included, lost our fathers when we were young to disease.

Soledad O'Brian is an Afro-Cuban married to a white man. When she came to this country from Cuba she and her Afro-Cuban family ran into bigotry, racism and discrimination from white cubans in Miami. Even with that, she still did not identify with the struggles of Black Americans as with most Cubans who affiliate themselves with white folks.

Her perspective of the Black experience in this country has evolved because of the evident hue of her color, something that even if she wanted to, couldn't deny. So in her conversations with Black folks that surround her in journalism, I'm sure she has been schooled on being Black in America even if you don't want to believe it. For Cubans many of them aspire to whiten up their Black families and look down on anything perceived as Black. In Miami many Cubans could not understand the pride that Black Americans had in our accomplishments and often reacted in hostile ways, such as her reaction when reporting on MLK.

I said all that to say, the report last night was nothing more than a string of commercials and upcoming attraction previews for other shows with a few snipets of Black life thrown in between. Those so-called segments were so short and pieced together without any indepth coverage of the causes of the negative aspects of these folks lives, with only a short segment at the end showing the resilience and preserverence of Black folks in this country in spite of. This was a failed attempt and was not substantive or edifying at any point.

A hugh disappointment.

The only good thing I can think of is at least they didn't put it on in February (Black History Month).

SquarePeg: VERY enLIGHTening!!! :>) :>) Wonder if this is in Wikipedia? :>) Thank you.

Hey, I have a family reunion coming up to --- Aug. 1-3 in South Carolina. It would be great to trace family history.

Related but not related to the documentary which I have DVR'd haven't seen yet...

I attended an Undoing Racism workshop last week with mixed group of educators and non profit organization folks. In talking about racism it was obvious that white people have great difficulty in knowing their own privilege. It is in essence why Katie Couric can say that sexism is more pervasive than sexism. As the saying goes, the fish has great difficulty in describing what is wet as it has never known what it means to be dry.

That said, in the spirit of revisiting Peggy McIntosh's list in her article "Unpacking the Knapsack" http://seamonkey.ed.asu.edu/~mcisaac/emc598ge/U...
I would like to recreate the list from the perspective of people of color. I just saw the clip of Soledad O'Brien talking about how white people never sit their sons down to talk about what to do if they are stopped by the cops. I was privy to the same conversation when it was had with my nephew and son of a friend.

Help me make a list. I will then use it as a resource when I do my work (diversity education,) helping highlight the parallel universes we live in.

evita: Good project! My sister and I have both had the "play dumb even though you have a degree" to some officers if you are pulled over for a DWB.
Here's one; My son was given a "ticket" around 10 P.M. for ---drum roll please --
SPEEDING ON HIS SKATE BOARD!!! I KID YOU NOT!!!! I saw a record of it!
Only in America! :>)

I didn't watch; and I'm probably not going to.

The reality is that the vast majority of Black folk are ordinary citizens who are neither newsworthy nor documentary subjects. That being the case, why then does CNN want to air a series on Black America other than for entertainment value.

And let's face it; if we've learned nothing about TV in the last 80 years, there's nothing more entertaining than dysfunctional Black folk.

Thanks but no thanks, CNN.

ditto RonnieB. I refuse to watch.

"The reality is that the vast majority of Black folk are ordinary citizens who are neither newsworthy nor documentary subjects. "

Say it again.

Also, It's not until I read business magazines do I find out we are starting businesses more than any other group out there.

You know, I am not a fan of airheaded Rachel Sklar, but I think she accidentally did us a favor in her bizarre review of "Black In America" a few days before it aired. I direct your attention to this cringe worthy passage which will probably give you an idea of how out of touch some of these people are. After skimming through a few of the sobering topics O'brien attempted to cover, Sklar pivots to this:

"On to lighter topics! The reception afterward was delightful and everyone was all smiles as servers passed trays of delicious samosas, grilled shrimp and dipping sauce, chicken quesadillas, spinach-and-cheese mini-quiches, mini-burgers and mini-crab sandwiches. Oh and battered mushrooms. Mmm. We have pics below, from the party and the doc, but in the meantime, here's who was a-mingling, in no particular order: actress (and Oscar nominee) Cicely Tyson, academic Cornel West, activist Malaak Compton Rock, wife of Chris, Bishop TD Jakes, Time Warner CEO Dick Parsons, CNN prez Jon Klein, Oprah pal Gayle King, Essence exec editor Angela Burt-Murray , CBS News correspondent Michelle Miller, CNN arts and culture correspondent Lola Ogunnaike, NBC's jolly "Today" show co-hostess, Hoda Kotb, Abyssinian Baptist Church pastor Dr Calvin Butts, actresses Lynn Whitfield (the Josephine Baker Story) and Janet Hubert-Whitten (Fresh Prince of Bel-Air - "Oh, Philip!"), author/former CNN producer Jim Miller, who co-wrote "Live From New York: An Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live," Essence Communications president Michele Ebanks , TVNewsers Chris Ariens and Steve Krakaeur, plus author/commentator Keli Goff and FishbowlNY co-editor Glynnis MacNicol, aka ETP's dates. We roll with a posse, yo."

Yes. Rachel Sklar rolls with a posse. Yo.


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/07/16/black-...

Halfway through, I told my friends, "I need to be drunk to finish this." It was so hackneyed, so stereotypical--it wasn't about being Black; it was about what a bunch of stupid so-called "journalists" think being Black is. Of course, it was full of what you'd expect: statistics thrown left, right and center as though that constitutes real research, speaking with TD Fucking Jakes who asserted that girls need fathers because they'll fall in love with the first man who crosses their path and then "backing it up" with ONE single black female parent who has five kids, treating success in black families as though it were the exception--and this is their words--"not the rule." Tonight they'll "focus" on the Black Man. Of course, Michael Eric Dyson will be on. And as someone pointed out upthread, he's nothing but a Cornel West-wannabe, Civil Rights Industrial Complex talking head who spouts whatever mainstream black pathology nonsense is en vogue at the time. Last night's segment had precious little to do with black women and the family (seriously? note that tonight's segment isn't called "black men and the family"--no, that's too much like dispelling with a false dichotomy) and more to do with calling black women stupid, men-obsessed whores who can't keep it together because they're out looking for manflesh (and, of course, when they can't get it from the trifling brothers, they automatically default to white).

"Marry your baby daddy day"???? That was the precise moment I decided to have a beer.

TD Fucking Jakes....what blasphemy!
(P.S. I agree)
LOL

I hope all of you let CNN know how you feel.

I didn't see the broadcast, but if there was no mention of adoption, informal or formal, when talking about the Black family, did their profiles were incomplete.

that's so true, i'm always wondering when we talk about the lack of black fathers in the home, why the stepfathers who take on non-biological children are NEVER mentioned. I know several brothers like that.

No mention of adoption or many other positive things in the black community.

Figures.

Someone suggested that people who are black and Buddhist make their own documentary rather than complain about being left out of CNN's investigative report on black America, so I did:

http://rainbowdharma.com/festivalscreening/thea...

The QUESTION is, what are we going to do as an Afrikan people in America to change the ills that effect our people? Lets talk solutions that can be applied today. "Forward forever, Backwards never"

This is the number one question. We really have to respect people like Dr Carnell Cooper who started VIP and is taking his time to do something in the community. I also feel that the Eric Kennedy story was nice as well

I didn't watch it. It must be because I've been watching this same "expose" since the 60's.

It would be nice if someone did a special telling the untold history of blacks in America. You know, the stuff our ancestors were doing before the Civil Rights era? The contributions blacks have made to this country since the colonial days? Enough of this "noun/verb/MLK" shit. Tell somebody who Frederick Douglass is every now and then.

So "This is what it's like to be Black in America?"

I was thoroughly disappointed in this show. I thought Part 1 would be a story of triumphs of black women and families. Instead, we got more of the same. This show could have been made with any race in mind...just show the most troubling parts of anyone's culture and then fade to commercial.

I was expecting to see stories of triumph, and how sisters used their ingenuity and deep down resilience to make it in this country. I think of people like my Mother, who started out in the projects of North Philly. A single mom, she actually moved us to the worst apts in the suburbs so I could get a decent education (after pulling me out of school mid-year). Was it fun to be essentially integrating a school district? No. But I learned in a great environment that help me get to where I am. She raised 3 college grads (and one soon-to-be grad). My best friend's Mom was a crackhead but he got a Masters and is a sought-after teacher. Ish like that...not this nonsense that I see.

And I'm not condemning every single segment, but I guess I'm frustrated y'all. CNN had a chance to transform coverage of Blacks in the media, but they opted for the easy way out. With their unlimited level of reach and resources it's a damn shame that this was the result.

Has Soledad even seen a movie like "The Pact?"

This show set up back years with respect to media perception. Fortunately, Barack will be on TV for the next 8 years as Prez and make people forget about this show.

The program treads the same ground which is depressing. I think Dr. King would be pissed about our lack of economic progress, and the failure of many in the subsequent generations to achieve more in education.

What's important about this program is showing the inspirational privately driven solutions, like that of Harvard Prof. Roland Fryer. Now the key is finding a way of networking the private efforts, to church / social group solutions. The other issue I have is the detractors from academia to some of the novel trials in education in particular. I am a supporter of Teacher unions and their causes, but I think we need to integrate the union causes with the novel approaches to education. Nice thought I know.

Single parent, fatherless families has got to stop. Black women need to look beyond their race, and broaden their standards in terms of culture. A good, respectful, complimentary mate can come in many colors and backgrounds.

I like to see a documentary on being black anywhere. I believe the experiences are similar.

I am signing of to go to bed, but just wanted to say the On Demand info guide gives the following description for this segment of the program on now:

Verbatim:
"The Black Woman & Family", (2008), Soleday O'Brien examines the black female experience in America, including single parenthoold, classroom disparaties between blacks and wites and the HIV/AID epidemin in black communities.

In closing,
I think what bothers me most about these type of programs and syposiums, is that you have a bunch of so called experts , politicians, and intellectuals pontificating on these issues. However, rarely do I hear actual solutions. When someone does have a solution, it is criticized . For instance, I believe there is a Harvard professor on the program who is paying students as an incentive to do well. May not be the best idea, but hey he is in the trenches. Also, there was another guy on the earlier who started a school I believe for males only. He espoused the idea of gender specific schools.

Honey01: I'll co-sign to this as often as I can!! Shoulda been more - WHAT WORKS- educational strategies. And don't subject them to discussion!! If they work - THEY WORK!!! Whew! (deep breaths!)

WHY does the mainstream media keep harping on HIV/AIDS as thought it's the number one killer of black women? It's not, it's heart disease, exacerbated by high rates of obesity. That's an issue I'd dare say that far more African-Americans struggle with than HIV/AIDS. I wonder how many black producers worked on this show. Never mind the host...who was in the planning meetings, who was green-lighting the programming?

..For instance, I believe there is a Harvard professor on the program..

Roland Friar, he's pretty terrific in what he's doing. He got a little pushback from Julianne Malveax on the earlier special. She said she wanted to see "empirical data" on whether his program would be successful in the long term. It felt like a swat...ah, that pesky biology again.

Well, I'll say this... after watching this documentary, you'd think I'd be some sort of oulier. Meaning, I'm educated, married w/ a family, disease-free, and grew up in a nuclear family. I'm sorry, but where I'm from, this is the norm. Baby mommas and ignorance are the outliers. It's too bad that CNN couldn't show that.

Topics I would have liked to see discussed:

1. black youth (millenials)
2. the political aspects of the black community (why we vote democratic and why black republicans are self-haters)
3. the split b/w the older generation and the younger generation on civil rights
4. the success stories of everyday black people who make a difference in their communities
5. the black family (not single-parent homes, but about how blacks discipline their children compared to other races)
6. health in the black community
7. how the economy and housing crisis is affecting the black community
8. the nuances of black people and culture in different areas of the country (for example: black ppl in Atlanta have a very different mindset than black people in Los Angeles, etc.)

I mean we all can come up with a list of things other than, single moms, AIDS, high school drop outs, and poverty/welfare. I give this "documentary" a C-.

Yes I would like to have seen those topics too! Here are some things I would have liked to see.

1. How Black women feel about living in a society with Eurocentric beauty ideals that they either accept or reject?
2. How do Black people feel about living in a country that eslaved them, stole their names and history, called them less than human, etc?
3. How often do they get discriminated against, what incidents occured, how do they feel?
4. How do they feel about having light skin or dark skin (self-image)?
5. What do they think about their media representation and about Black celebrities?
6. How do they feel being a minority in predominantly White schools?
7. What do they think about race as it is described in the Bible (e.g., that stupid Ham curse)?
8. What do they know about how racism against Black people began and why it exists?
9. How do they feel about Africa?
10. Why do some date interracially and why do some prefer Black partners.
11. What is it like working in predominantly White settings.

I think thats a lot. These topics would really help others to understand where we are coming from and why we are the way we are.

So... why aren't you a producer? Your presence really coulda helped with this documentary. Those are good topics!

So should we just forget about the baby mammas and people who are trying to succeed in spite of the circumstances they find themselves in?

Best post of the night!
3, 5, and 8 would have made my night. Just one of them.

Lets get you the grant money to do such a documentary.

This show was the same superficial BS that is continually recycled and edited to depict the same one dimensional view of being Black in America as seen through the white world's comfort lens.

A REAL show of what it is really like being Black in America would be based on the true dichotomy that exists when you are Black in an America that was created to be solely based on white supremacy as the rightful norm in society.

That REAL informative piece would not have Soledad O'Brien as the journalist and also no Anderson Cooper trying to intelligently discuss something for which he has no reference point... which shows!

"A REAL show of what it is really like being Black in America would be based on the true dichotomy that exists when you are Black in an America that was created to be solely based on white supremacy as the rightful norm in society. "

That would indeed be a real look at what it means to be Black in America. Unfortunately, they are not going to tell that story, nor will they let us tell it.

best clip that was worthy of the No-They didnt award..

MarryMyBabyDaddy.com

In the clip, they actually showed a brotha dancing down the aisle, to marry his baby momz... All that was missin was the group of newly weds doin the Harlem Shuffle...

That kinda made me cringe.

The Kennedy family story was moving. Here is a black father taking care of his children.

Sheesh. After reading these comments, I'm glad I didn't watch the special. I actually like Soledad, but if this election coverage has revealed anything to me about CNN, its that they wouldn't know what balanced, fair, and nuanced news coverage was if they had a map and a flashlight. So I didn't have high hope for what was going to be seen on this special. I mean the title pretty much gave it away..."Black in America" I just found that to be pretty lame.

What is this Tara person talking about?

CO-signing with many on the use of Soledad as a moderator. I've stated B4 that she has NICHED herself into the role of the "African-American EXPERT", WITHOUT having LIVED THE LIFE! That's what calls AUTHENTICITY into QUESTION!! And WHO made up the THESES - the QUESTIONS that are the subject/categories of what is being presented. This is CRUCIAL to know. Was there a panel which included Black folks??
For example, there is a segment on a "controversial" issue related to PAYING children for getting high test scores in an effort to close the "achievement gap". That is ONLY ONE strategy for motivating students. BUT, there are OTHER just as EFFECTIVE, NON-MONETARY strategies. As an educator, if I were asked about whether to spotlight this strategy - I would say NO! It could be listed as ONE strategy BUT NOT a major focus. I would highlight a spectrum of strategies.
Whew! (Deep Breaths).

This quote struck me the most in your comment: ""African-American EXPERT", WITHOUT having LIVED THE LIFE!" So....what qualifies to you as someone who can present information on how african americans live their lives?

dmtyus311: Having LIVED THE LIFE!

to say "Having lived the life" implies that there is a definitive group of markers that denote what it is to live life as a black person in this country. and part of the reason so many people on this thread have problems with this documentary is that its glaring deficiencies are evidence that there is no such thing as an easily summarized "Black Life." our experiences vary. i find dmtyus311's question to be a good one.

bingo glory

glory: Point taken.

I didn't think it was terrible, but I did think it focused way too much on problems instead of holistically discussing black people.

She's: Co-signing.

Soledad had to toss in for effect that while they had a father "he was abusive"

msmartin: SEEEEEE! Always the negative jab!!!
Whew! (DEEP BREATHS!!)

understatement of the year: "I've not always made the best choices"

On tomorrow's installment I wonder if there will be a segment on black men dating white women?

Okay now Anderson Cooper is going to do a spot on Dyson's brother being in prison for murder when they were raised in the same household. He asked was it a question of skin color. OMG.

I don't even understand that.

I guess Dyson brought it up. Soledad (who I can barely stand at this point) said it was discussed while she was interviewing for the segment. Colorism that is.

Dyson is another one of these Civil Rights Industrial Complex wannabes who like Cornel West likes to sound really educated and use a lot of words while promoting himself as the authority on Black people, except for him the Black people are in fact Black men. He actually refers to himself as a 'yellow' child.

Yeah Dyson brought it up. I'm not too crazy about discussing the Black colorism issue for the masses to view. Obviously, this is the internets so anyone is privy to our discussions here at JJP and other forums with a Black audience.

Something about that particualr topic being broached on CNN just kinda...just like discussing of usage of the "N" word. I just prefer certain topics to be moderated/hosted/ whatever by those whom actually care.

The voice over announcing "Being Black in America" every five minutes drives me crazy.

Honey01: Co-signing.

This is what we get: Too many single women with multiple kids who don't know 'what to do', too much criminal mentality, no discussion of how that mindset permeates so many and why they see limited options and engage in so much negativity. Did you hear the Negro spirituals being sung in the background? UGH.

Oooh David Gergen just joined in and called her out on a lie she told.

I haven't been watchig "Black In America", is this in reference to that, or is it the usual AC360 bull.

BTW, I can't stand that Tara woman. If she is the sista with the long hair who talks out of one side of her mouth, then she is the conservative shill that they use now instead of Amie Holmes. I just realized that Amy Holmes was all over CNN, now she's gone. What happened to her? Is she in "Token Black" Conservative witness protection

lamh: Amy has MORPHED into an INDEPENDENT! She probably took the "HINT" that she was not welcomed even as a REpug. I'm going to Wikip to see if it's reported there.

Amy Holmes has always been an undercover (conservative-leaning) independent with "Liberal" views. I'm convinced she went conservative for the bank. If you're black and a conservative it's a LOT easier to get on TV.

I'm a bit of an Amy Holmes lover/hater, so I keep abreast of such things.

The_Black_Snob: Thank you. I've been over to "visit" your site since I've started my
blogging venture! Like the title - good stuff! :>)

Thank you! I do my best to blog for the people!

She was on yesterday during a segment with TJ. She had a baby. Hey at least they're looking for some Black people huh? No seriously, Tara is a Rethug shill and works for the WSJ and she's always trying too hard to be a right wing pundit. She hasn't gotten the memo that only white men are allowed to be bullish.

Amy had a baby?

And which old white guy is the baby's daddy?

Sepia: In an article about her in April, '08, it was stated that "she was enjoying life with her new Jewish boyfriend."
I Goggled her name to get information.

Why am I not surprised?

They probably wanted some black conservatives who seem "really" black to shill for them.

is this CNN?

Yeah it was.

Off Topic - But oooh Joe Klein just checked that Tara person.

msmartin: On that TARA woman - 1. she could uncross her legs. 2. If she doesn't like "brothas", "whycome" she's gotta out them with their "level of education", makes less than some Black women, etc. We know that! SOOOO! Geeez!!
And you do know that her political lean is so to the "right"!
Whew! (Deep breaths)!

They could have really made it good and interviewed some black conservatives like Shelby Steele.

OT, but for those who might want to know:

OBAMA'S SPEECH IN BERLIN

So I found out that Obama's speech is scheduled for 7pm Berlin time, which I now know, thanks to my handy new timezone calculator (thx google) should be 12 noon CST.

Is that the Unity speech that's being advertised?

yep

Is that the Unity speech that's being advertised?

Yep,

It's the one I think some people have been saying is not a good idea, but I think it's okay.

I hope it's a barn-burner. Let's place bets that all 3 cable networks will broadcast much of it. I would bet FOX news cuts away first though. MSNBC might broadcast the whole thing, but 12noon is usually the time that Andrea "rattlesnake" Mitchell does her show.

I'm sorry, but this documentary was sensationalistic garbage.

A friend asked me to watch it.
That's it.
I won't be buying the DVD.

Yes.it.was!

daaaam y'all was it that bad?
sigh, i'm sure it was. thanks for the reviews, i don't feel so bad now about having no cable. the olympics is coming though, i'm going to have to splurge on that. LOL

I thought it was pretty good, I do wish they would have delved a bit deeper into the CAUSES of all the ills plaguing our people though, that would've been GREAT...

i just hate the fact that the overarching title was black in america, as if it represented all of our experiences (or a majority of them). a better title would have been ignorant and poor in america since most of the people they profiled fell into one or both of those categories.

Ignorant, poor, diseased, uneducated, husbandless, and the occassional success story.

If you didn't like it tonight, tomorrow is going to make you sick - Black men in America.

I agree smoothie, since the real audience was obviously non blacks, as nothing in this documentary was news to most black people.

they could have done better by us, much better

Myh question is,
If there trying to get other races to understand us, why show them only one aspect, and have it 90% negative.

I mean if I were someone who had no idea of what blackfolk went through and saw this, I'd assume were all sexually active, highschool dropouts who are raised in single parent homes. Maybe I missed something.

Smoothie: Co-signing!

Uh, they're showing them the part they want them to understand.

Gee, I can hardly wait!

I'm just counting the hours! :-P

Can someone explain what this black guy's purpose is? They keep ending and beginning segments with this spoken word type brother. Do people need a black interpreter to get this stuff?

Anyway I didn't hate it overall.

Oh....tonight was just about whats wrong with being a black woman in America....black men get the full beatdown tomorrow night.

Beatdown...hahaha

Co-sign!!

I realy hate the way Soledad is smiling and laughing while talking about these reall y serious issues affecting the black community.

I noticed that too- I like her but I wonder if she was the right person to do this documentary.

I haven't liked her since the King story and she kind of snickered at the thought of a conspiracy behind his assasination.

Soledad can't understand why a black doctor would want to go back home to his comfortable home that is not in the hood and not try to solve the problem with black males.

Is this about being Black in America or what's wrong with black folks in america?

I co-sign...
In the nearly 2 hrs that have passed, they have had 1 segment on proffesional blackfolk and that was single sisters..And rather then speak on tryin to make it in a white male driven worforce, they focused on them being single.

The other segment about the white-mobley construction family only served as a segway to the johnson family..
I think CNN didnt really focus on all aspects of being black, rather they took the easy way out and hit what some see as problems in the community.

That's exactly what they did. Are your surprised? I'm so sick of this shit, I might have to cancel my Essence subscription.

my thoughts exactly. if i were a nonblack I would wonder why all blacks don't just slit their wrists now and end the misery.

Lol...its just sucks to be black.

ya know!

You'd be surprised how many people feel that way.

Oooo, Totally Off Topic, But:

Diahann Carroll (pictured recently on your blog) has been nominated for an Emmy!!

It's for her guest role in Grey's Anatomy: Guest Actress In A Drama Series, ABC · Diahann Carroll as Jane Burkev. (Sandra Oh's (also nominated) potential Step-mother, i think. Only one word can describe this: FABULOUS!!! Even at 70+ (what is her age anyway? Black don't crack, that is for sure!) Diahann Carroll continues to demonstrate excellence, dominate scenes and practice her craft to the delight (and recognition) of both peers and audience.

I LOVE myself a true Blacktress!

PLUS, Ms. Diva Carroll just released a tell-all book and basically said 'so friggin' what?' to critics of her biography of life with Vic Demone
Is one of only 7 African-American actresses to receive the Best Actress Oscar nomination.

How about a post on behalf of this Glorious Diva!?

I am super excited about both nominations because their acting was superb last season. yeah!!!!

@ msmartin

No he doesn't look completely white.

No he sure doesn't.

Okay, now the black girl's white husband does not look completely white.

there are alot of nice areas in Houston with black folk in them i noticed theyve failed to visit. Of course if you do a special in 5th ward you'll see stories like this.

I

Sugar Land - Missouri City-Third Ward

I have a cousin who lives in Sugar Land.

Inwood Humble Kingwood,
Katy...

I think the guy speaking after the intermissions is what gives it the "negros on display" feel

TariqNelson: Co-sign!! Whew!! (Deep breaths!)

Deja-vu.....Its better a better production and Soledad can carry any segment, but I've seen this "Black in America" special a hundred times in the last decade...or heard it on a radio show, or read about it in a magazine. This is the same show, same script just a different case. Same simplistic reasons for what "ails us"...I had hopes that it would go deeper, but alas, tis not to be.

I am tired of the graphics and the brother (when introducing the topics).

I co-sign with the "negroes on display" feeling.

omg, I really want him to stop. who thought it would be cute to insert def poetry into each segment? grrrr....shame on CNN!

So owning a successful construction company is middle-class. I would think they would be upper-middle class.

No, that is just middle class.

I knew it would be negroes on display when they announced it. I wondered when this was planned and I heard Soledad tell Campbell Brown last night that they planned it 18 months ago. Ummmmm.

I'm watching it right now, and I have to agree with nondelusional; there is a slight "Negroes on display" feel to it.

We can't let Eric Kennedy Jr slip through the cracks. He has too much potential!

It's sad that his family will be homeless in a couple of weeks.

Just saw the segment on the Kennedy family with the single father. Have to wonder what happened to the mother

I am flipping back and forth. I just saw the first positive image via the Texas family.

How many parts are in this series? All of what I have seen bascially discussed, AIDS in the Black community, achievement gaps, teenage pregnancies, etc.

The title of the program is "Being Black in America". The above social ills although real and are/have reached epidemic proportions in some areas, are not exhaustively representative of "being Black".

They even had Campbell Brown's doing a little segment prior to tonight's airing.

Teenage pregnancy has dropped 50%...of course thats not worth mentioning.

The percentage of single parent households and two parent households are 50/50...while one should also take into account that just because a parent is non-resident, does not mean that they are not taking care of parental responsibilities. Now that shrinks it even more.

The majority of AA's are middle classed.

Lastly, I refused to watch this series...REFUSE! No thank you.

White people have always had a fascination with "dysfunctional black folks" or what they consider to be dysfunctional or "the other" from cinematic stereotypes to sociological myth-we as a race are constantly reduced to the lowest denominator.

You see, while other blacks participate in it, I refuse to. Its all racist at best.

I will wait to see the "Latino in America", "White in America" , "Asian in America", "Arab in America" etc...etc...until, my theory stands.

Honey01: The only thing "brown" about her is her name. So "whycome" she's all up in the Kool-aide when she isn't the "flava"!!!

i can relate as my family is tracing roots as we speak for our reunion august 2nd

Hey, our reunion is August 1-3!

I SO wanted to have our roots genetically traced, but we couldn't foot the bill.

our family reunion is in on aug 8 and im goin to see can we start tracing our roots

Is this truly the story of most African Americans? yes indeed i believe we all should trace our roots and see where we really come from

Nice first story about the Rands

All this "Negroes on display" shiznit CNN is doing is so much an obvious, "Hey there might be a Negro in the White House, you better learn about these people" meme. Its so corney and wack. The race pandering and "spade work"at CNN really needs to stop.

Yeah I get what you mean. Its like Black people are under the microscope by a bunch of antrhropologists who want to teach the White man about the Black man even though we have been living in the same bloody place for 400 years!!!

Some of us may have wished to look like the Huxtables, but the reality was that we looked like the Evans family on "Good Times".

My father wasn't always yelling like James Evans, though. But what would we expect from the Clinton/Klanton News Network?

Ironically, my family is more like the Huxtables along with many of the black families that I know than anyhting on Good Times.

Listen, they need to show the diversity of the black community that includes the Evans and the Huxtables and whatever you will see on Menace II Society.

Funny enough, my family maternal family name is Evans, and we lived in the New Orleans Housing projects, so "Good Times" was my reality.

And my younger cousin acted so much like Michael, that even though his name was Darryl Evans, we called him Michael.

lamh: Good post. :>) :>)

http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,2021456...
Well, here's one black family we like on this board...

This was my surprise for tomorrow. This is the picture for my Thursday Open Thread.

sorry, girl :-)

rikyrah: GREAT!!!! :>) :>) Can't wait!

All the pictures are great in that article. I love the wedding picture especially. What a great couple.