Standupsistah

tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-64347986542403562862011-12-21T09:21:05.207-08:00StandupsistahStandupsistahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012586829995888971noreply@blogger.comBlogger111100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6434798654240356286.post-17125767828074996362011-12-21T09:15:00.000-08:002011-12-21T09:21:05.223-08:00Pearl Cohn Unitown: Deconstructing the Myth of Black Kids at a Black School

Allow me to set the scene for you. It’s a charter bus of 35 African American students from a North Nashville neighborhood school headed towards White Bluff, Tennessee for a weekend leadership retreat. Yes, White Bluff. Enough said? Also, on this bus are two female school staff (one African American, one Caucasian), one Oasis Center male staff (African American), and two Tennessee State University

Standupsistahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012586829995888971noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6434798654240356286.post-42858645661470744122011-12-17T05:17:00.001-08:002011-12-17T07:17:41.936-08:00Intersectionality or All of This Right Here

Maybe it's the end of the year blues or the climate change but I'm feeling very "now you see me, now you don't" these days. My mind and spirit are taking hits more frequently as I work to be whole and seen for all of my complex selves. I can no longer ignore or make excuses when folks attempt to erase some aspect of my identity in conversation or practice. I am so over whitefolks insisting that

Standupsistahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012586829995888971noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6434798654240356286.post-26613934372377029542010-09-27T08:32:00.000-07:002010-09-27T08:38:06.804-07:00Youth Violence: One Way Street?

Recent local articles about youth violence (specifically homicides of Black youth by other Black youth) lead one to believe that these crimes are only impacting high poverty areas and usually are related to some gang violence. Current reporting in the Tennessean and the City Paper readily mentions the location of the crime, the past criminal history of the youth that has been charged as an adult,

Standupsistahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012586829995888971noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6434798654240356286.post-16111095708104454352010-07-21T20:14:00.000-07:002010-07-21T20:21:40.661-07:00Journey So Far to Womynhood

“I have come to believe over and over again that what is most important to me must be spoken, made verbal and shared, even at the risk of having it bruised or misunderstood” Audre Lorde, Womyn WarriorAs a teenager, I knew every damn thing and didn’t mind telling you in a salty word or two, especially a word borrowed from For Colored Girls. I was totally clueless about you and your journey.

Standupsistahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012586829995888971noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6434798654240356286.post-8477575480370616262010-03-22T04:14:00.000-07:002010-03-22T04:22:17.554-07:00What is Precious?

Some will tell you it is a harrowing story of physical and sexual abuse, of un-sufferable cruelty and malicious parenting. However, my spin is that Precious is a movie about the resiliency of being human and the opportunity for hope to creep into those tortured places of our spirit and dare to take root. I feel the need to remind folks that abuse (especially sexual abuse) is rooted in power and

Standupsistahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012586829995888971noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6434798654240356286.post-31885345854242183162010-03-22T03:45:00.000-07:002010-03-22T03:49:16.249-07:00Sexting and the Perils of Virtual Communication

In the Spike Lee movie Do the Right Thing, there was a character (DJ “Mr. Senor Love Daddy”) holding a ringing alarm clock towards the radio microphone and screaming “WAAAAKE UP”. Well, good people, it’s time to ring that alarm and move into action because our youth are rapidly falling into the ubiquitous vat of virtual communication and risking their present and future lives due to poor

Standupsistahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012586829995888971noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6434798654240356286.post-17360115944575679052009-10-15T10:32:00.000-07:002009-10-15T10:40:09.622-07:00Parenting: Money and Race Ain't Every Factor

Last week, I facilitated training for juvenile court probation officers. I heard too many stories about parents that were abdicating their parenting responsibilities in general. The group was from across the state of Tennessee. Represented in the room were staff from urban cities with tremendous resources (i.e. Memphis,Chattanooga, and Nashville) as well as rural towns with sparse resources (i.e.

Standupsistahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012586829995888971noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6434798654240356286.post-57306773576171113862009-10-02T07:23:00.000-07:002009-10-02T07:25:44.889-07:00An Open Letter to Tyler Perry

Dear Mr. Perry:Thank you for your willingness to provide images of African Americans in our diversity and humor. Laughter is good, we forget that at times. Your contribution to film over the past 7-9 years has expanded America’s reality of who we are and provided so much needed relief during chaotic times. Your creative financing has provided many artists with an avenue for producing their

Standupsistahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012586829995888971noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6434798654240356286.post-2882285214273677662009-09-14T14:55:00.000-07:002009-09-14T14:57:18.925-07:00On Raising Boy: Things

He is 13 and does not have a cell phone or a television or computer in his room. Oh, the only game system he had was a Nintendo 64 which he and his friends played regularly when they were allowed in the house. He got a Play Station 2 this summer when the DVD player in the family room died. I think he has five games for it. He’s allowed to play it only on weekends. He does not have a private home

Standupsistahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012586829995888971noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6434798654240356286.post-88598156100819216072009-09-11T12:00:00.000-07:002009-09-11T12:02:56.102-07:00Sell the Shadow for the Substance: On Developing a Youth Organizing Model

In the words of Sojourner Truth, “well chirren, where this is so much racket, there must be somethin out of kilter. Tween the negroes of the south and the white women of the north both talking bout they rights, the white man gonna be in a pretty bad fix and real soon”.I’ve got competing voices in my head. One voice is saying ”youth led, youth voice” and the other voice is saying “youth-adult

Standupsistahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012586829995888971noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6434798654240356286.post-2356377251559129582009-09-04T11:03:00.000-07:002009-09-04T11:06:04.559-07:00Are you serious? My only choice is race and class, what about community?

I must confess I am a transplant from DC. I’ve lived in Nashville for 10 years and I still long for the community feeling of Eastern Market or Mount Pleasant some 20 years ago. I’ve been back and both of those communities have changed but in my mind there isn’t a Starbucks and for $20 I can buy fresh flowers, Ethiopian coffee beans, and a piece of jewelry, maybe even some Batik. Anyway, I didn’t

Standupsistahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012586829995888971noreply@blogger.com2