Uptown Notes

“History is not a procession of illustrious people. It’s about what happens to a people. Millions of anonymous people is […]

On Tuesday, the New York Times published a story entitled “As Population Shifts in Harlem, Blacks Lose Their Majority.” The […]

And one of them is not the use of the word Negro which has BEEN appearing, including on the 2000 […]

This is my reflection on Nia Purpose “To make our collective vocation the building and developing of our community in order […]

My reflection on the second principle of the Nguzo Saba of Kwanzaa is Kujichagulia – Self-Determination “To define ourselves, name […]

For the past few weeks I’ve remained unsettled by the videotape of Derrion Albert’s death at the hands of Black youth in Chicago. Like many, I avoided the tape for days on end, only to finally watch it in horror, with pain, and without direct recourse. This feeling of paralysis that many of us have felt is not one that is new to our community, whether it was the viewing of Emmett Till’s body in Jet or the railroading of the Central Park Five, the loss and defilement of Black male life at the hands of those Black, White or other remains sickening.

We, the concerned, the tired, and the committed have a rare opportunity to join not just in frustration, but in production. This week, at the Think Tank for African American Progress' meeting in Memphis, Tennessee entitled: "What is the future of Black Boys?" While the media, and by admission in many of our community, suggest there is little being done to combat the conditions that black male youth face, there is work, there is opportunity, and there is the need for your voice and energy.

“Honest and earnest criticism from those whose interests are most nearly touched, -criticism of writers by readers, of government by […]

Hip-Hop has been political, you just haven’t been paying it attention. My reflection on the Black August Hip-Hop Project.

The month of August has been the seat of many important events in the history of African people, particularly people […]

A look at what happens when race and gender are uncorked in a chicago eatery