The Indie Black Film Festival

by Jermika N. Bradberry

Houston’s most culturally-varied university has discovered yet another medium to celebrate diversity – the moving image. PopCornNlemoNade.films will host UH’s first Independent Black Film Festival on October 21, 2007 from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m. in the Houston Room of the University Center.

The film festival will be an extension of the monthly film screenings produced by the Songhai News staff. Self-dubbed “the Black Collegiate Voice of the Greater Houston Area,” the newspaper “features an array of articles focused on Black issues concerning the student body.”

Angela Bankhead, publicist for Songhai News, said that the festival has lots to offer anyone interested in the independent film industry. In addition to the films shown, there will be vendors on-hand and workshops led by actual documentary film makers.

Bankhead, a graduating senior receiving a degree in media production this fall said, “It’s an opportunity for people who are interested in film to learn the media aspect of communications as well as network and talk to people in the industry.” Film maker and Houston-native Michelle Farris-Lewis, whose work includes an in-depth study of African-American hair issues through first-hand accounts, “New Growth,” will be present.

Also scheduled to attend, is famed documentary film maker and Houston-native Greg Carter, director of acclaimed films “Fifth Ward” and “Thug Life.”

November/December 2007

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Fact or Opinion?

By Alua Aumade

There is no time like the present, the upcoming 2008 presidential election fairs to be the most important in American history. Each generation and demographic will consider its own needs and vote appropriately. I don’t think our generation is so blindly allegiant to one party or another as older individuals. Thus, we will tend to be more swayed by the most recent political on-goings.

As of late, the conservative Republican Party’s image seems to have been marred by a series of scandals (the most recent being Idaho Senator Larry Craig‘s bathroom scandal) which goes against some of their more rigid moral beliefs. Outside of Hillary Clinton and Barak Obama, I don’t think any other candidates stand a chance for the Democratic Party nomination. Clinton, though very seasoned, thick-skinned, and politically keen, seems to be quite polarizing.

People are usually strongly for her or strongly against her, which, considering the increasingly divisive nature of politics among the American people will be a hindrance when she tries to convince all Americans to believe her vision. Obama on the other hand lacks experience in international affairs and not a politically savvy like Clinton. But, I don’t believe a president must be exceptionally scholarly considering the fact that he or she will appoint the brightest political minds to advise in decision-making.

Thus, I think Obama’s managerial skills, ideal thinking, and charisma will serve him well, especially in bringing the country together. After those considerations, it’s very much a matter of personal choice. Are we even going to exercise our right to vote? I’d like to think that we would unfailingly exercise a right that our parents and grandparents fought for back in the day. However, there are people in our generation that cannot give you the name of a single candidate that is running.

For many people, it’s come to a point where their vote doesn’t matter. Some believe, and rightfully so, that despite how they vote, their socioeconomic condition will remain unchanged. Often times those that are elected aren’t concerned with the well-being of some of their constituents anyway. Have the generations preceding us failed to instill in us political responsibility?

Generally, I think they’ve taught us admirably. Because of our parents, most of us have always known the importance of voicing our political opinion through voting. However, when it comes to being activists, or being proactive in the political process outside of voting, we’ve gotten the sense that it is reserved for only the extreme cases (i.e. Jena 6).

The sense of complacency arises because we want to compare the overt injustices with the hard-to-see, covert injustices. Moreover, we seem to want to deem a covert injustice less worthy of standing up and marching for because it is not so easily perceived. Usually, the covert unfairness manifests itself in the most overt ways.

Therefore, in this sense, we don’t fully assume our political responsibilities despite how well intentioned our parents were when they taught us.

Leading the Way in the 21st Century!

By Jasmine vann, Staff Writer

TransAfrica Leader Randall Robinson is the most politically relevant writer in the Black community to date/currently because he speaks about and to social issues/ issues that effect Black people transnationally. From the healing that needs to occur within to the reparations that need to occur without/ externally.

He speaks in the face of challenges and naysayers to author books such as The Debt, The Reckoning, Quitting America: The Departure of the Black Man from his Native Land, Defending the Spirit and his new book An Unbroken Agony: Haiti, From Revolution to Kidnapping the President. Robinson is at the vanguard for social justice.

His prolific and heartfelt speeches have been heard across campuses and lecture halls in America. He brings an awareness to the forefront that inspires and provokes young Black Americans and seasoned Black Americans alike to stand up and speak out, rather to sit idly by and allow their history, their future, to be dictated to them by those outside the realm of experience and thus inept to address-correct what is necessary and needed.

His discussion about our experience and the need for the truth to be told is enough to agitate our people to rise up and take matters whether it is healthcare to the presidential race to see ourselves as a viable and key component of American society.

Our sitting in the dark and being oblivious to issues that have plagued and continue to plague our community is killing our young men and women and our negligence is sending our mothers, fathers, aunts and uncles to early graves because we are not equipping ourselves to be a healthy people holistically and most importantly politically.

Policies are being set in motion that will dictate the lives of our youth for years to come and it is up to us to ban together to take Washington by storm.

Muddling a nation’s identity confuses and handicaps them as to what their full capabilities are, but Robinson does and amazing and thorough job of providing the lens through which we are to see ourselves as a self-determining, capable and strong people.

Black National News: “Ghetto-Fabulous Parties, a Poor Façade for Blatant Racism”

By Joshua Delano, Staff Writer

A party put on by white students at Clemson University in South Carolina this past January to “commemorate” Martin Luther King Day was yet another sad day in the history of the dis-United States of America. In mockery and the vein of their predecessors’ minstrel shows these white students played rap music while wearing fake teeth grills, stuffed padding in the seat of their pants mocking black females, while drinking 40s and flashing gang signs.  This is not a new phenomenon nor is it solely the doing of white fraternities and sororities, but likewise the work of conservative student groups on campus holding “affirmative action” bake sales and “white only” scholarships.Â

Another similar act of racism passed off as a crusade against political correctness and liberalism at American Universities are called “south of the border,” or “taco and tequila” parties. As detailed in C. Richard King’s article in ColorLines, these parties mock Latino’s as the “young women feigned pregnancy, the young men played at being cholo and everyone reveled in the symbols and spectacle they associate with Mexican Americans.

 These aren’t just isolated incidents but these are actually being perpetuated by bastions of the conservative movement like the Young America’s Foundation and Intercollegiate Studies Institute battle against political correctness on campus. Whether they know it or not, they are giving way to a new kind of racism, justifying it in new ways.

Conservative groups like these, according to The Nation, pour over 35 million dollars into college campuses each year. Thus, white students who identify with the sentiment of their ideologies feel that they are not represented because they have somehow become oppressed though being the majority.Â

 As long as there is an upward trend in corporate influence on US college campuses, such as student bookstores and dining services run by corporations (sound familiar), there will be money poured into countering the “counter-culture” that conservative organizations consider the parasitical leach on the underbelly of American Universities. As long as Universities are painted as a nesting place for ex college radicals to serve as Deans, Chairs of Departments and your professors, these conservative organizations will find new and interesting ways of maintaining the undercurrent of hatred. Our country is supposed to be one that is based on such clichés as “United We Stand,” and “E Pluribus Unum(Out of Many, One).”Â

When can we get away from the undercurrent of what is really facing us and become thus? In reality we have people with money seeking to demonize the true minorities on campus by what they will likely maintain as “poking innocent fun,” while they hide behind free speech. All the while they seek to tear down other people especially other races for not conforming to a lock-step march with the majority.Â

 If out of many we are one, then why not just be what we are and admit what we do. Still, we discriminate, but use new and loosely legal means to do so. Why do so few with so much seem to be able to tap into innate stupidity of the greater whole so that they may undermine the masses while maintaining their grip on our throats. How wonderful it would be if we would come together and be united and seek true change, what a day that would be.Â

 However, human greed, mistrust, ignorance, and arrogance seem to rule the day while we are divided. Not only is class disparity there, but racism is always just below the surface waiting and hoping to rear it’s ugly head in new ways.

God would not have us to be this way. If he is merciful, why aren’t we as mankind, as human beings? Why can’t we stop oppressing one another and just realize we are all the same and all a bit different? At the end of the day we all eat, sleep, seek love, rest, and refuge …and hopefully to make this world a little better than we left it when we leave for our reward in eternity.

Times May Not Change, but We Should

By Christine Pierre

The more things change, the more they stay the same. In a time of changing technology and advancement, racism continues to plague our country now just as much as it did during the 20^th Century. Of course, the method of racism, for the most part, no longer involves lynching or Jim Crow tactics, but, the legal system remains a battlefield for many racial injustices.

In Jena, LA six black young men are in the process of being tried for aggravated assault for a school yard fight. However, all the students involved in the incident have not been charged. The white ones. It is easy to point out the wrongs of the white people in the justice system in Jena, but we must ask ourselves what part has our community - black people with power and a voice - played in this going too far? After speaking with several people one can draw the conclusion that this case did not (at its onset) have national attention, and it was not been pushed enough by prominent Blacks to receive the attention it deserved.

Atlanta Falcons quarterback, Michael Vick, charged with animal cruelty, was on every news outlet daily because of his celebrity. Yet, six innocent lives are in danger and there is no fuss. There is no fuss until the last minute.

Our leaders tend to show up to speak on a matter once it has become vital; there must be more of a proactive stance amongst black leaders so that our cases have a fighting chance. Names like Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson have recently come up, yet 17-year old Mychal Bell sat in jail for nine months, the first of the Jena six to be tried, on a $90,000 bond since December 2006.

This was in no way a NEW case and yet it was new to many. There have been several incidents in the past four years such as the groom that was shot and killed by the New York Police Department’s use of excessive force, the treatment of blacks in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina, and now there are the Jena 6.

All of these incidents have displayed that times have not changed in reference to racial tensions and actions inAmerica, despite them things must change amongst our black community leaders.

We have to come together to protect each other and our children, and not just when it is convenient. The families of these six are not wealthy and we should have already come together for them financially. These young men should receive our attention, focus, and resources like their names were Michael Vick.

Unfortunately, there may not be much that can be done and Governor Blanco has not responded in aid. Our leaders may have shown up too late.

Hip Hop NEEDS a MIC Chek…

By Kalaiah Vaughn, Contributing Writer

Self-Destruction…

We’re headed for self-destructionÂ

It is my opinion that the subconscious penetration of hip-hop into the psyche of the collective black community and popular American culture is indeed a factor in vilifying representations of black women running rampant. Hip-hop culture appropriates sex as a hallmark of masculinity and loyalty to black men so much so, that labels such as ‘bitch’ and ‘ho’ that used by some black women in an exegeses on their womanhood.

These labels for black womanhood are the bastard children of Aretha Franklin’s demands for “R-E-S-P-E-C-T,” and the absenteeism of their fathers is only paralleled by the near nonexistence of rappers who choose to be black men. If Cheryl “Salt” James of the legendary girl rap group Salt-n-Pepa was accurate in saying black women follow the lead of black men, I have no choice but to conclude black women are allowing black men to drag them through the muck and mire of violence, disrespect, commodification, promiscuity, hyper masculinity, and hyper sexuality to the valley of self-destruction.

“Allow Me to

Re-Introduce Myself”Â

 In the above paragraph, it is possible that I appeared as a staunch opponent to the hip-hop genre as a whole. In fact, nothing could be further from the truth. Born in 1985, hip-hop and rhythm and blues are the soundtrack to my life. I idolized “The Flyy Gyrls” on In Living Color who danced to every popular hip-hop song at the show’s opening each week.

I learned the words to Tupac’s “Dear Mama,” thought Queen Latifah was ‘bad’ (ergo: great) when she asked brothers everywhere “Who you callin a bitch?” In eighth grade, I found refuge in The Mis-Education of Lauryn Hill, and it was the first hip-hop album that I memorized backwards and forwards. I cried when she accepted all five of her Grammy awards for that album, and was overjoyed that her lyrical masterpiece on wax made Grammy history. But soon, my love for hip-hop was tested relentlessly.      Â

As I grew older, I found myself trying to defend the misogyny within hip-hop. I lied to myself by only listening to radio versions that deleted expletives, and vowed not to purchase albums that referred to women as ‘bitches’ or ‘hos.’ But the disrespect never stopped me from dancing to the music in the club, or turning up the volume on my radio each time they played the music.

As I began to step into my consciousness and fully understood my responsibilities as a black woman, I realized that I was no more just than the lyrics I held in such disdain if I danced to them or listened to the songs on the radio.

Once I became cognizant of my own hypocrisy, I started to put together the pieces of the hip-hop puzzle. I found that the genre is a microcosm of the black community, and most of the artists reflect pressing issues—violence, sexism against women, homophobia, and misogyny—that permeate black culture. I further discovered hegemony and white male patriarchy are the parents of black male supremacy, and helped to indoctrinate many black men with their skewed perceptions of masculinity and blackness. Â

In light of all of this knowledge, I asked myself, “What can I do?” Through my spiritual foundation and determination as a writer who seeks not to pacify but protest and empower, I picked up my pen and began to write. But I do not write in hopes of a Pulitzer Prize, but I write for my people.

I write for countless black girls everywhere who grow up just like I did: public schools, projects, and a paycheck from being poor. I shudder to think of my existence without two parents who loved me unconditionally and dared me to dream dreams that were bigger than the ‘hood, louder than the gunshots, and prettier than any video vixen.

But for the countless young black girls who are not so fortunate, I protest the injustices of hip-hop because it is imperative to empower young black girls if black people are to ever “overcome.” Someone must encourage black girls/women to understand that the power of their womanhood can never be bought or reduced to their physiques. I have committed my blossoming career as a writer to the uplift of black people as a whole with special attention to the education, empowerment, and experiences of black women. Â

And so I continue to write and each time I think of hip-hop, I remember the words of Lauryn Hill’s “Superstar:” “Come one baby light my fire/Everything you drop is so tired/Music is supposed to inspire/How come we can’t get no higher

Black.HISTORY

with Benjamin Woods

In my music, my plays, my films, I want to carry always this central idea-to be African.

Paul Robeson (1934)

Sankofa is an adrinka symbol from the Akan of West Africa which means “go back to the past to build for your future” or “return to the source.” What does Sankofa mean to the Arts? Everything. Today’s artists must question themselves as did Countee Cullen of the Harlem Renaissance era, in his poem Heritage: “What is Africa to me?” In the African conception, community includes Africans who are deceased, living, and those yet to be born.

Afrikan artists all over the world must Sankofa or “return to the source.” I have made the pilgrimage to the Elmina and Cape Coast dungeons where our ancestors were shipped to the Americas like property. I saw the ten by fifteen foot room where up to fifty of us were placed in with little ventilation and no plumbing. I saw the holding pen the size of a college dormitory where more than twenty “rebellious” men who refused to surrender their humanity were placed.

I walked through “the door of no return” and viewed the ocean where our ancestors would Sankofa by putting sand from the beach in their mouth before being put on a slave ship, not knowing if they would ever see home again. More recently, I volunteered at the Houston arena where the descendants of those same Afrikans were held in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. After witnessing all those things, I agree with W.E.B. Dubois that “all art is propaganda and ever must be.

I say that whatever art I have for writing has been used always for propaganda for gaining the right of black folk to love and enjoy. I do not care a damn for any art that is not propaganda.”

Francis Watkins Harper, 19^th century African female activist, knew this when she wrote “Let me make songs for the people/ Songs for the old and young/songs to stir like a battle cry/ wherever they are sung.” Africans in America have a clear revolutionary heritage that is reflected in their art. 19^th century Black Nationalist Martin Delany wrote the novel Blake or Huts of America about a violent Black revolution to overthrow the slave system in the U.S. and Harlem Renaissance poet Claude McKay in

If We Must Die proclaimed: If we must die, let it not be like hogs Hunted and penned in an inglorious spot,
While round us bark the mad and hungry dogs,
Making their mock at our accursed lot.
If we must die, O let us nobly die,
So that our precious blood may not be shed
In vain; then even the monsters we defy
Shall be constrained to honor us though dead!
O kinsmen we must meet the common foe!
Though far outnumbered let us show us brave,
And for their thousand blows deal one deathblow!
What though before us lies the open grave?

Like men we’ll face the murderous, cowardly pack, Pressed to the wall, dying, but fighting back! This tradition lives on in hip-hop artists like Dead Prez or the revolutionary film by Sam Greenlee “The Spook Who Sat by the Door.” The Black Arts Movement was parallel to Black Power Movement and the goal of both movements was defined by Minister of Defense, Huey Newton.

He said they wanted power through “the ability to define phenomena and make it act in a desired manner.” In this article’s context, the phenomenon is art. Artists desired to develop a uniquely “black aesthetic.” In the essay, The Black Arts Movement brilliant literary critic Larry Neal declared, “Black Art is the aesthetic and spiritual sister of the Black power concept…one is concerned with the relationship between art and politics; the other the art of politics… a main tenet of the Black power is to define the world on [our] own terms.

The Black artist has made the same point in the context of aesthetics.” Continental Africans believe fervently in Sankofa as well. Ethiopian filmmaker Haile Gerima produced the exemplary film “Sankofa” to help us remember. Ghanaian writer Ayi Kwei Armah chronicled our “Two Thousand Seasons” of misery in which we have lost the way. Kenyan novelist, playwright, and activist Ngugi wa Thiong’o argues that language is not just a means of communications, but also a carrier of culture.

Therefore, for the past twenty-five years he has only written in Afrikan languages (Asante Sana to you all). In the “African Aesthetic and National Consciousness” Marimba Ani contends the role of the artist is to create symbols, images, and icons to build a collective Pan-African consciousness that is spiritual and political in nature. Through Sankofa, “going back to the past to build for the future” the arts can play a central role in our movement for national liberation and sovereignty.

Issue.4

Michelle Farris-Lewis comes from the inner city of South Park Houston, Texas. She is a graduate from Prairie View A&M University with a degree in Mass Communications with an emphasis on radio and television. She has worked in the industry as an intern for the Arsenio Hall Show and on the camera crew for Mike Jones: The American Dream film.

Since 2002, Lewis has worked on and completed her first film New Growth: The Natural Progression discusses, “the evolution of hair in the black community.” In her film, she uses black women with all types of hair from straight, to weave, relaxed, dreads on purpose, to get all types of opinions on natural hair.

There seems to be a conflict among black women with straight hair versus black women with natural hair. She informs us from the film that not everyone views there hair as a reflection of who they are.

Check out the film today it is very enlightening, refreshing, and will spark dialogue all day long with your girlfriends. Meet Michelle Farris-Lewis at The Black Indie Film Festival @ The University of Houston on October 21, 2007!

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Meet Greg Carter,

Filmmaker

by Songhai News

When did you know you wanted to be a filmmaker? It was ten years ago when I first got my taste of stage acting while attending school at Texas A&M. I was hooked istantly. I found it fascinating that I could take someone else’s words, which were foreign and lifeless to me, until I read their script, and through my internalization, make them partly mine. I worked long and hard to develop and sharpen my craft, but in doing so, I slowly began to discover that my translations ofother playwrights’ works were simply not enough to fulfill me.

The ideas that you had about film in college were they fostered with help; or did you come up with everything on your own? Fortunately, I was able to study method acting, playwrighting and directing under Charles Gordone. Gordone, was the first African-American to win a Pulitzer Prize for playwrighting back in 1971. He started teaching at Texas A&M that fall semester.

What are your central themes in your movies? Strong Black men and women taking charge to better their lives and the ones they love. I’ve produced a total of 16 features and documentaries, and I’ve directed 9 of those.

How long did it take for you to film Waters Rising?
I shot a music video about 5 years ago in New Orleans for a group called “The YGs”. A year or so later, I did a comedy called “Treasure n tha Hood”, which was also shot there. At that time I had met the executive-producer, Shawn McElveen, who wanted to do a gritty urban film about the infamous Desire projects. I was in post on another film, “Resurrection: The J.R.Richard Story” when I got the script.

The initial idea was a little rough, but it followed the comings and goings of two small-time criminals and their desire to get out of the neighborhood to do better for themselves. One of the original writers on which the story was based was killed in a drive-by shooting. The script went through the hands of several writers over the next 9 months. But, once Hurricane Katrina hit, everything changed.

What do you want the audience to get from the film? I really felt, as we got into the filmmaking process, that the camaraderie on the set and the subject matter provided a therapeutic outlet for most of the Louisiana actors who were trying to adjust to their circumstances. I hope it would do the same for the viewing audience.

What is your role in Swamp Media; and how long have you been associated with them ? I’m currently on the board, but I started out back in 93′. I created a program called the Fifth Ward young filmmakers program where we taught underprivileged how to make their on

Where do you see Nexus Films in 2015?
I’d like to hope we’d still be on track doing a movie a year, with budgets ranging from 50-100 million per picture, but most importantly that we’d stay culturally relavant and still telling good stories.

View Greg Carter’s film: Waters Rising on October 21, 2007 @ The Indie Black Film Festival. He will host a free Filmmakers Workshop. Arrive at the event on time to ensure seating for the workshop. The workshops are free to the public.

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September 2007

Issue.3

Meet: N’Dambi !

By kYmberly Keeton, Editor N Chief

Soul is a word that connects with Black sistahs who can sing… and N’Dambi can sang= SOUL.FUL. While speaking to the sultry-soul singer via telephone, she says ecstatically that she’s been in the music game, “10 years now.”

In 1999, she released the highly anticipated “Little Lost Girls Blues”, received critical acclaim, sold 70,000 copies and created her own label Cheeky-I-Productions. Her sophomore project, “Tunin Up & Cosignin” debuted a short while thereafter… N’dambi then graced the cover of Vibe magazine and began touring nationally & internationally.

The unique talent says she left Dallas, Texas to move to the west coast because, “I did all I could do in Dallas per say; I needed to get out of my comfort zone. When you get comfortable, you get lazy. I believe the move to L.A. was a good choice for me.” Music needs a new direction.

Now with music sales and the defunct art-form going awry, she persists, “Every part of music derived by an original. I still feel there is room for everything. There is still room for peeps like me.” N’Dambi’s third gift to the masses will debut shortly, and she says of the new album, “It’s a surprise… [This album] stretches, pushes me to unexpected places.”

It is now time for you to order your soul-food at café.Music. Purchase something new on the menu like, “Hot Pearl C,” from N’dambi’s 1st-album. The track will do the soul some good. Soul is a word that connects with Black sistahs who can sing… and N’Dambi can sang= SOUL.FUL.

Listen to tracks by this artist at: www.myspace.com/ndambi

(A)lways (W)illng to (E)mbrace (S)uccess by (O)vercoming (M)ediocrity (E)veryday!

• The key to having flawless skin is to have a consistent skin care system and to wash your face atleast TWICE a day!

• Using soap and water as a skin care system clogs your pores and can cause severe damage in the long run!

• Your face can start showing signs of aging (wrinkles) by as early as the age 19, so it is imperative that you take care of your skin.

• Wearing the right foundation can help keep your skin looking beautiful!

• Do NOT share make-up! That is how you can get bacterial infections on your face!

• It is not important to match your eye shadow with whatever color shirt you are wearing for the day

• Most women wear the wrong bra size, it is important to get measured and know what is your proper fit.
• Check out these pictures to see just what I’m talking about… and you too will have perfect skin for any season!

—-

Miss Awesome’s

Beauty Secrets

byAmanda Wilson,

Associate-Fashion Editor

If you are interested in sending me a beauty tip for inclusion in one of my beauty editorials shoot me an email-QUICK at: Amanda.associateeditor@gmail.com.

Issue.3

A Look At Hurricane Katrina In o7′

by LaShic Mondrell, Contributing Writer

Hurricane Katrina would hit the Gulf Coast Region in August of 2005. The storm magnified the poverty rate in such cities as New Orleans, which was 40% pre-Katrina according to a study titled “Katrina, Black Women, and the Deadly Discourse on Black Poverty in America” by Barbara Ransby. The same study showed that black women in the region were hit even harder by the storm since some were the poorest in the nation and since women in general “are more vulnerable in times of natural disaster because they are the primary caretakers of the young and the old.”

Many of the storm’s survivors compared the horrific catastrophe to slavery where generations of families of African descent were separated and scattered across several continents only to endure years of inhumane acts and no human rights. Those who survived the storm would be transported away from their relatives and homes without knowledge in the stability of their futures.

Phylicia Bradley attends University of Houston and is a member of the American Humanics Student Association. She and her family are from New Orleans and are survivors of the storm. While Bradley feels that the Bush administration made no verbal promises in handling the storm’s aftermath, she believes it is still assumed that the government would help in some manner.

She believes people “can’t blame [the storm] on the government solely…we allow things to happen even though should have personal responsibility.” She states that the people of New Orleans have some blame in the neighborhood’s neglect and gentrification because many residents in the low-income areas were not educated enough and were not interested in politics to protect themselves. Bradley sees that the average to low income areas, Eastern New Orleans and 9^th Ward, are not being rebuilt and that many “familiar places [are] not coming back” while tourist attractions are up and running again.

She states it is like this because, “they don’t want us to come home. Many want to and will come home. It isn’t theirs. People who want to come were kept from coming back. The Bush administration had contracts and hired illegal immigrants to clean up the area.” As a result, she stated that the residents are not placed in jobs where they are rebuilding their city and instead must work in fast food and corporate services.

Bradley has heard of no news about the levees being rebuilt to withstand a category five or six hurricane or about houses being built above sea level. While “they are in Iraq for democracy and rebuilding whatever they blow up,” she stated that the “people in New Orleans don’t have democracy.”

In response to an editorial illustration of the Katrina survivors as being ignorant and frivolously spending FEMA funds done by The Daily Cougar who has not issued a public apology or showed any accountability, she stated to media outlets who support those stereotypes that “until they really walk in our shoes, they don’t really know.”

After the storm, Bradley went back to work and school just as she did in New Orleans. Phylicia Bradley believes that the survivors of Hurricane Katrina should get educated and get jobs to help others if nothing else in order to gain overall stability.

In recent news, the federal appeals court ruled that Hurricane Katrina survivors whose homes and businesses were destroyed could not recover money from their insurance companies for the damages. Taking personal responsibility and making independent economic choices are no longer optional.

• Did you know that Kalaiah A. Vaughn, Creative Writing Senior, Won the Ms. Black & Gold Black Texas Pageant over the Summer?
• Did you know that students in the African-American Studies Program traveled to Ghana, West Africa, this summer and made it back safely?
• Did you know that the Cat’s Back Rally is off the chain and that everyone should have school spirit in 2007-08?
• Did you know that you can actually eat a free meal every day on campus if you just map it out right?
• Did you know that Songhai News management team are all seniors graduating in 07 & 08 respectively?
• Did you know that it’s good to be an activist on campus and stand up for what you believe?
• Did you know that the Wellness Center offers free exercise classes on a daily basis?
• Did you know that the African-American student ratio on campus is dwindling?
• Did you know that Songhai News has a Facebook page?
• Did you know that the Editor N Chief and Managing Editor of the paper were born in September two days a part?
• Did you know that Kanye West and Common are the tightest rappers out in hip-hop right now?
• Did you know that Jill Scott’s new album drops on September 25, 2007?
• Did you know that it’s nice to say hello, good morning and good evening?
• Did you know that some professors on campus actually care about you?
• Did you know that your ancestors fought, died, were enslaved, shipped off and built the United States of America?
• Did you know that Cougar Place and Moody Towers need a new makeover from management to the floor?
• Did you know it’s about that time that we get ready to make a decision on who we are voting for in 2008 ?
• Did you know that more people are on Facebook and Myspace in the Library than doing research and learning?
• Did you know that Songhai News is hosting the first Black Student Film Festival in October of 2007?
• Did you know that Shasta’s Cones & More is the only place that emails you coupons and always gives back to students?
• Did you know that free t-shirts are better than shirts that cost?
• Did you know that Black is Beautiful?
• Did you know that you are KINGS & QUEENS
• = ROYALTY?
• Did you know all of that?
• ….Created by the Songhai News Team

– Fall 2007

August 31^st –

“Zeta: Something Like a Phenomenon” Interest Meeting

University Center – Bluebonnet Room 6:20 pm

BalanZed LifeZtyle – Zeta Week Fall 2007

• September 9^th – “Amazing GraZe” – Worship Service
• Christ Temple Church of God – UH Hilton 11:00am
• September 10^th – “Fit and Fab Sisters Workout” Z-HOPE {Stretch It Out}UH Recreational Center – 8:20 pm
• September 11^th – “Upgrade Your StandardZ” Relationship Discussion
• Z-HOPE {Is a Good Man Hard to Find?”University Center – World Affairs Lounge {Underground} 7:20 pm
• September 12^th – PHAmily Affair Luncheon w/ Phi Beta Sigma, University Center – Millenium Café – 12pm
• September 13^th – {UN}Forgotten Black Issue, University Center – Bluebonnet Room 7:20 pm
• DECEMBER 1^ST – BLUE AND WHITE WINTER BALL
• UNIVERSITY CENTER – HOUSTON ROOM 8PM

Resurrecting the Black Family

By Alua Aumade

Kudos is in order for the National Black United Front. First off, the organization should be commended for its plasticity of thought as it acknowledges and respects other Afrocentric viewpoints as a viable means of upliftment. With that being said, its Houston chapter recently hosted the organization’s 28^th Annual National Convention at S.H.A.P.E. Community Center July 12^th-15^th. This year’s theme was Resurrecting the Black Family: Revolutionary Tools to Build the African Family, Community and Nation. More influential than the convening of the organization to recognize and celebrate its own was its continual efforts to affect change in the community.

There were a slew of events, workshops and forums centered around the Resurrecting the Black Family theme. Among some off the topics discussed were black male and female relationships, the effect of the criminal justice system and the impact of Hurricane Katrina on the black family. Some of the most noteworthy speakers were former Black Panther Dhoruba Bin Wahad, keynote speaker Dr. Leonard Jeffries and Dr. M. Denise Lovett.

One of the most notable forums discussed the importance of Afrocentric education. I, like many other people of African descent I’m sure, found a certain disinterest in my formative years from the lack of being culturally represented in educational subject matters. Indeed it implied that my heritage was largely ahistoric outside slavery and MLK. I would surmise that if a historical continuum inextricably links the past with the present, then the student may be, in a very real sense, anomalous. So to re-establish the element of cultural connectedness (via black history, black literature, etc.) seems to firmly root a student in self-affirmation.

Mastering Success

By Jasmin Vann

A road map for successfully completing a Master’s degree should include patience, perseverance, tenacity and dedication. Before embarking upon graduate school in literature, one should ascertain if they are dedicated to research and if they possess the internal drive to seek information and conduct research in the face of little to no scholarships or dead ends. Besides taking the GRE, obtaining letters of recommendation, submitting a writing sample, and having a strong GPA in given major as an undergrad, I believe it is also important for a student to consider the university environment and constituents.

A pivotal experience for me was participating in two summer research programs during my undergraduate studies. Doing so allows ample amount of time to consider one’s desired field of study in order to pinpoint and fine tune personal interests. Going into a graduate program with prior research gives the students background from which they can launch into dialogue with professors and fellow scholars alike about the direction of future research interests.

Some important questions to ask are the following: do I believe I will be able to thrive academically, survive socially and grow mentally and will it provide avenues for me to recommit and reconnect with foundations and truths I hold at my core? Considering these questions can help a student figure out what type of program suits his/her personal needs. It is important to wade through the papers, seemingly unending readings, and at times, pompous professors in order to realize one’s self as a self-actualized and contributing scholar to the academic community, which is key to remember when considering graduate school. Sometimes as a graduate student, that is all one has to hold onto.

The Storm After Katrina

by Joshua Delano

After Hurricane Katrina, everything became divisive. Whenever I visit New Orleans, I am still reminded of the antiquated beauty that makes the very personality of the southern Queen city. My life growing up in south Louisiana was highlighted every year with a visit to New Orleans. Every time I have gone back, I think of our government and the president’s carelessness towards a city that I share a love with. New Orleans is the American Mecca of beautiful music, people and culture that is unmatched else where in the U.S. Mayor Ray Nagin has garnered criticism since the storm for his actions as well as his inaction. Yet, I cannot think of another man who could do a better job as he has so far been the most honest and progressive mayor.

Now, with the advent of nouveau disaster to include venture capitalists, they seek to pluck the very soul from the city and make it a smaller and whiter New Orleans. There are talks of tearing down towns and not replenishing historic areas due to ideas that it is feasible and quite convenient for those with money to re-create New Orleans in their own image. That image is not the “Chocolate City” that Mayor Nagin referred to in a prior, now famous press conference. GCR and Associates show that 58% of New Orleans’s population has returned. The Louisiana Road Home program has shown, according to a BayouBuzz.com news article, that there have been 30,000 closings to date in south Louisiana.

Many of the cosmetic changes will likely alter New Orleans demographically. Of course, this is what many politicians and businessmen want. What they may or may not realize is that the heart and soul of New Orleans is founded, created and fashioned after the people who have made up the history of the city.

The city has always been riddled with scandals of corruption and organized crime. That history is sometimes ugly and terrible to look back upon, but to use an old cliché, “we don’t know where we’re going until we know where we’ve been.” The people that make New Orleans unique and beautiful are black people who have been grossly mistreated and harmed by mass media reports and disaster capitalists who would rather re-paint the picture that is New Orleans without blacks. Present day race and class segregation is at work as we live and breathe.

Black Economics: Time of Need

By Steven Toliver

Imagine being immersed in water from the neck down with the anticipation of drowning. Try to visualize rescuers tossing a life preserver inches away while succumbing to one of nature’s most destructive forces. For many survivors of Hurricane Katrina, this imagery depicts the ineptitude of FEMA.

During the summer and fall of 2005, our eyes and minds were filled with horrific images of human suffering on American soil. What followed was a revelation of how incompetent our government could be. Many of us are aware of the proverbial tug of war that Katrina survivors have had to play with insurance companies and FEMA in regards to shelter and food, but what about college students? In New Orleans, students who were enrolled were forced to transfer out temporarily until the universities underwent repairs and the city was livable again.

Jesse Parkhurst was one of those students who had to make adjustments to his future aspirations. A Florida native, Parkhurst enrolled at the University of New Orleans to major in naval architecture and marine engineering. UNO did not have student dormitories, so Parkhurst lived off campus in some nearby apartments. Like many of the other structures in the city, UNO was severely damaged forcing Parkhurst to transfer back to Florida. Without funding for housing, food and education, Parkhurst was forced to turn to FEMA.

Parkhurst was given $5000 when he enrolled at University of North Florida with the hope of returning to UNO soon. By November 2005, it became obvious that UNO had been damaged too badly to reopen immediately. The university gave students the option to salvage what was lost or to take a complete loss on everything. Parkhurst chose to salvage what was left and transferred to north Florida permanently. He changed his major and attempted to pick up the pieces.

Life was beginning to look up for Jesse. Then, one day late last year while visiting his parents’ home, he received a letter from FEMA requesting for the money back. The Parkhurst family received the money believing that they would never have to pay it back. Lucky for them, detailed receipts of all their purchases were available.

Families who have experienced FEMA’s incompetence are no longer being hounded. Under the new rules, students who received compensation for damages suffered from Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita can keep the money if they can prove through written documentation that they lived in campus housing for at least six of the 12 months prior to the 2005 storms.

We must learn from this hard lesson of dependence and embrace the concept of Black Nationalism, which is the idea of controlling the politics of our communities. During times of prosperity, black people scoff at the idea of taking the reins of power and shaping our future and look to outside resources during economic hardships. At a buying power of nearly 700 billion dollars, we should not look to FEMA or the U.S. for help after the next disaster. We should look to ourselves.

“Power concedes nothing without demand.”

-Fredrick Douglass-