Vision Circle

Vision Circle On Hiatus

As of today, the Vision Circle is now closed. This is not forever. It will return in some other form in the future. I think it has been a good run.

As a final post I would like to leave you with the Antoinette Pole research paper on blacks and blogging. Feel free to read it. When I come up with another good idea for the blogosphere that merits all kinds of attention, I'll certainly speak up. In the meantime I refer you all to the places where our primary authors have dispersed.

Dr. Lester Kenyatta Spence Will continue at Blacksmythe, a portal to all his work.

Ed Brown
Will be spouting stuff at his new blog.

Craig Nulan
Can generally be found over at Prometheus Six.

Me, I'm at Cobb as usual..

Thanks for your Patronage.

Blacks Number One Problem: Racism?

Going around the 'net, or reading opinion pieces, or listening to talk shows, I often read/hear people say something like, "Despite what Blacks think, racism is NOT the number one problem facing Black America.

OK, for me that's a no brainer; it isn't Black America's number one problem. What I want to know is, what percentage of Blacks believe it IS Blacks number one problem?

I suspect that most Blacks will say that it's not, and if that's the case, it's another issue of critics of the Black community setting up a straw man for them to defeat.

Does anyone want to help me find such a poll of Black folk?

"Acting White", One More Time

P6 is throwing down on the false hype of "acting white".

He quotes someone else:

Whites aren't quitting the schools because the schools are failing academically. Quite the contrary: Many white parents say they're leaving because the schools are too academically driven and too narrowly invested in subjects such as math and science at the expense of liberal arts and extracurriculars like sports and other personal interests.

The two schools, put another way that parents rarely articulate so bluntly, are too Asian.

Ya'll go visit now. Ya here?

Katrina: The Race Aftermath

Right now, one of the things being discussed in the aftermath of Katrina is race.

Well, as usual, it's infantile if you ask me.

But, THIS is what should be watched. This is race in America, 2005: Old-line families plot the future. Note the class issues that are also involved.

The power elite of New Orleans -- whether they are still in the city or have moved temporarily to enclaves such as Destin, Fla., and Vail, Colo. -- insist the remade city won't simply restore the old order. New Orleans before the flood was burdened by a teeming underclass, substandard schools and a high crime rate. The city has few corporate headquarters.

The new city must be something very different, Mr. Reiss says, with better services and fewer poor people. "Those who want to see this city rebuilt want to see it done in a completely different way: demographically, geographically and politically," he says. "I'm not just speaking for myself here. The way we've been living is not going to happen again, or we're out."

...

Black politicians have controlled City Hall here since the late 1970s, but the wealthy white families of New Orleans have never been fully eclipsed. Stuffing campaign coffers with donations, these families dominate the city's professional and executive classes, including the white-shoe law firms, engineering offices, and local shipping companies. White voters often act as a swing bloc, propelling blacks or Creoles into the city's top political jobs. That was the case with Mr. Nagin, who defeated another African American to win the mayoral election in 2002.

"Black Militancy"

Bear with me for a few minutes please.

Can someone tell me exactly what came out of "Black militancy" other than a lot of hot air?

This is asked in response to Booker Rising commentary and P6.

[ Update ]

lks said the question should be phrased a different way, so here is the question phrased a different way: What would we as individuals have today WITHOUT black militancy?

And now I guess I should ask, what do you define as "Black militancy"?

Again, bear with me. I'm going somewhere. Just hang on for the ride.

Commission on Black Male funded by Kellogg

I must have missed this article because I was on vacation. I always thought those "crisis of the black male" joints were patriarchal and sexist. I still do. But the numbers don't lie. he question is what will commission hearings--which are largely symbolic events--actually do? Thanks to Terecico for the article. (As an aside I must be getting old as dirt...homeboy was on the yard the same time I was, but I have no recollection. Granted I was in grad school with a family but damn...)

Oh. Podcast interview with Craig Nulan coming up later.

$178 million drug ring busted

Turns out the kingpin of this marijuana ring worked at the plant where my father and brother work. So in order to hide almost $200 million, homeboy maintains a $70,000 job? For people with resources, one of our biggest hurdles is maintaining an imagination large enough to contain our desires. It's clear to me that this guy's imagination simply wasn't big enough.

Community Organization Shout Out

Do you know of a community organization dedicated to addressing issues in the Black community?

If so, let's hear about it right here.

If they have a website or just a snail-mail address or just a telephone number, let us know.

"Acting White", Yet Again

P6 started it up by pointing out problems with this article on an "Acting White" study.

Check out the comments section.

Urban League, "Empowerment Fund"

Urban League, state announce $127 million 'empowerment fund'

Seeking to foster the expansion of minority businesses, who often lack access to the capital, the National Urban League came to Baltimore on May 17 to announce a new "empowerment fund" designed to promote entrepreneurship among minority and urban-based businesses.
Standing with Sharon Pinder, director of the Maryland Office of Minority Affairs, executives from the National Urban League and Stonehenge Capital announced that $127 million in U.S. tax credits had been assembled and would be sold to raise money to capitalize existing businesses poised for growth and expansion.

"Small businesses are the largest creators of new jobs in America, and the Urban League Empowerment Fund will help minority-owned businesses find the technical assistance, financial investment and corporate relationship they need to grow, develop and create more jobs in those urban areas that need it most," said Marc Morial, president and CEO of the National Urban League. "Growing small businesses is one of the best ways to close the wealth gap in America."

The National Urban League, through partnerships with Stonehenge Capital, the Kauffman Foundation, the Business Roundtable and the Office of the President of the United States, will use the fund to purchase guaranteed loans made in low-income areas, directly fund minority-owned businesses and finance projects and increase minority employment.