A Book Took My Child's Innocence

Frankly the idea of a book stealing ones innocence seems quite silly!  Yet, some (over protective parents) believe this to be possible.  Enraged by the content of the material in a few of the books selected for reading in school- parents have complained.  All the complaints have led to a list of banned books.  But contrary to what you might think, the books on the list are actually celebrated during an annual Banned Books Week hosted by the American Library Association.  This year it runs September 25- October 2nd, 2010.  The goal of this is to celebrate the first amendment and our freedom to read and have access to such materials that may expand our knowledge, creativity, awareness, etc.

Intellectual freedom—the freedom to access information and express ideas, even if the information and ideas might be considered unorthodox or unpopular—provides the foundation for Banned Books Week.  BBW stresses the importance of ensuring the availability of unorthodox or unpopular viewpoints for all who wish to read and access them. -ALA

This year 20 out 87 challenged books were banned.  Some of those on the list include "Snitch" Allison Van Diepen, "Eye Candy" by RL Stine, and "Forever" by Judy Blume.  "To Kill A Mockingbird" by Harper Lee continuously makes the list despite its permanent status as an American classic. In fact there are several classics that have constantly been challenged including, "A Catcher in the Rye" by JD Salinger and "The Color Purple" by Alice Walker and the "The Sun Also Rises" by Ernest Hemingway.  These books were a huge part of my childhood and adolescence.  Aside from learning valuable lessons, reading these books allowed me to make connections not only with my peers from other schools but also with my older siblings, my parents and even grandparents... because we had all read the same book.  Books become classics not because they paint a rosy picture but more importantly because they present a unique perspective in history that perhaps is left out of the history books, or maybe is complimentary to history books. Books become part of our history and serve to enrich future generations, by offering the context.   

Earlier in the week Obama appeared on morning news to be apart of NBC's weeklong focus on education in the United States.  Our education system is in crisis. It was reported that American children are slowly and progressively falling behind in education.  NBC cites that the U.S. currently ranks 21st in science and 25th in math among advanced nations.  While the focus should be on boosting learning in these subjects, we should still continue to cultivate well rounded individuals.  Thus instead of banning books and shielding our children, perhaps we should strive to educate them more.  Give them the gift of awareness and knowledge because ignorance is not bliss.

Mario Empanya- A Black man with a global mission

In 2008 Vogue made headlines across the world when the Italian edition created the Black issue which featured Black models. It was a big move for Vogue, who is considered a longtime leader in the fashion world but with that one great step forward, they have now taken great steps back. The pictures that accompany this posting were all shot by Mario Epanya for what he had hoped would be Vogue Africa, an African edition of the magazine. His vision for the magazine came from his belief that it was lacking in African influence.

“I read my first Vogue in 1979 and have been buying it regularly ever since. I always felt that African creativity was not represented.” -Epanya

“I also realized that black women in Western magazines didn’t correspond to African beauty. Women in Western magazines frequently had light skin, fine features, and long hair. Today I think black women want to re-appropriate their image and don’t want others to dictate what is beautiful and what isn’t. Beauty is diverse and today we aspire to more diversity of choice. So when I got the idea to create the covers, I said, why not?” -Epanya

Epanya, created several sample covers for the envisioned Vogue Africa and presented them to Vogue publisher Conde Nast. Nevertheless he was met with rejection. Afterwards Epanya posted on his Facebook page:

“DEAR ALL. The Wait is over. Condé Nast said NO to an African license of VOGUE. So this is the last cover. Enjoy, but it’s a beginning of something”

This is only the beginning. Epanya plans to start his own high fashion magazine, which will feature a non-white & non-Western standard of beauty. He may even opt to purchase the license that will allow him to create Vogue Africa. While Empanya has many supporters, he has been met with challengers. Some have made the argument that Africa is and always will be a player in the fashion game. Magazines such as Arise and Canoe are examples, yet, Vogue magazines in Africa are still more popular. Sadly, African designers still need validation from the West. Yes, Colonialism is still a nasty bitch! For this reason Epanya feels that it is necessary to join forces with the great force that is Vogue and branch out.

His response to his critiques:

“Bullshit, bullshit, bullshit. Africa is behind in a number of sectors, including politics, chemistry, research, I could go on. I’m sorry, but we can’t enter into war with the people who created the internet, cell phones, and airplanes. No, I didn’t create the Ipad, life saving vaccines, or Google but I’m happy for the things that contribute to our lives so that the world advances. I’m not at war with the West…and I think that instead of living in the rancor of a difficult past between the races, we should look at how we can exchange between people.”

SO now the question is: Should the Africans nations move to sit at the big global table or should they continue to build their own table? Epanya clearly believes that it is time not only for Africans to take their place at the table but to bring along their own dishes for the rest of the world to experience.

The Arabic edition was also rejected, but Vogue India was launched.  Perhaps there wasn't enough room at the table for Africa...it is a continent after all.

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When to Shut up

One thing that really bothers me at work are the endless and ineffective meetings. Is it necessary to meet constantly to discuss each and every step of an action plan? There can't be any progress made if you are constantly interrupted by a meetings where you must update folks on your inevitable lack of progress. I think this is something that everyone deals with... which lead me to believe that its not just my boss who likes to hear himself talk. People are just obsessed with talking.

I came across this article on Huffington Post discussing this obsession with communication. If you find yourself wondering if you are guilty of obsessive talking here is a simple guide:

1. When someone starts a sentence with "We need to talk about..." run for the hills.

2. If you think you have a great idea for an invention, book, product or song, wait until it is ready to come out. Don't wrench it from its womb while it is incubating.

3. If you feel you are not having sex often enough or as you want it, think again about talking about it. You may make your partner feel even less like having sex.

4. Obviously, when your partner asks for advice, shut up.

5. When talking replaces action, lose the talking in favor of the action. The next time you are inspired by someone telling you to live your best life now, sketch out an action plan immediately after. If not it will live in soap bubbles of inspiration and will serve the sole purpose of temporarily making you feel inspired without any follow-up impact.

Talking is a balm for the lonely and afraid, but a poison for those who use it to replace the art of living.

Scheiße, oder Sie steigen den Topf!

Rude Boy

Does anyone feel like this is the vibe that Bey was going for in "Video Phone" but didn't quite achieve?