Why Black Literature Is Important

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota

When I first published my first novel, The Ebony Tree, I'll never forget how I found out later that my then, 23 year-old niece ran through the house and screamed with laughter, after she read the book. Now mind you, my niece had always been an avid reader of white romance novels since her early teens, but reading my book was like landing on Mars for her. She reportedly asked her mother, "Mama, did Aunt Maxine make this up? Did you guys actually 'play white'?"

My sister-in-law told her, "Not only did we play white, we dreamed in white. That's all we ever saw in the books or on TV were white characters. It seemed like they had all the fun."

Typically, most Blacks grew up in the 50's with pictures on the wall of white Jesus, white Santa Claus and even white angels. There was nothing in the media or in books that reflected the beauty of blackness. Needless to say, if there were any books beside the Bible in the home, they were not Black books. It sent a silent message that Black was ugly and white was beautiful. This was as negative of an experience as when reading was forbidden to slaves.

Fastforward almost half a century. I know from rearing my children, who are now all adults, that having had Black books in the home was, and remains, a good influence on their self-esteem and confidence. When a person sees himself reflected in the literature he or she reads, it indirectly helps build a better self-image. For in literature, we find our role models, our archetypes from which we can learn life lessons. More specifically, in African American literature, the stories are relevant to the Black experience in this country. These experiences range from people coming from different socio-economic classes, from varying urban to country regions, to different professions. We often get the Alger Horatio rags-to-riches story to its reversal, the riches-to-rags story. Most of these stories make social commentaries on how we all play a part in the symphony of the American Dream.

"Black Writers on The Rise," the headlines screamed. I believed them. After all, seeing the different genres of African American books in the local, predominantly Black bookstores, who wouldn't think that? Hadn't things improved for us as Black writers, since the late 1980's? However, after attending the Book Expo of America (formerly the American Book Association) held in Los Angeles, California in late April 1999, I had a rude awakening. Because of seeing all the books in the predominantly Black book stores scattered throughout LA, I had been lulled into a false sense of complacency that we, as African American writers, were being published at the same rate as mainstream books. To say the least, I was disillusioned.

Yes, The Book Expo of 1999 was a big eye-opener. The bad news is this: Our problems (as African American writers) are far from over. When I compared the books represented by the major publishers, I saw that the percentage of Black books is infinitesimally small compared to that of other races. Not one to be a soothsayer, but I feel the number of African American books can disappear like they did after the Harlem Renaissance, after the late 40's, and after the Revolutionary 60's, if we don't take control of our own written words.

However, the good news is this. The increase that is witnessed in the number of African American books can be attributed, by and large, not only to more Black publishing companies, Black editors, but to self-published books. Given the advent of desktop publishing, the Internet, and Black book clubs, many writers are taking control of our destines and empowering ourselves by publishing our own stories.

So consider these questions. What are other ways having more Black books have helped? Is it easier to get published by mainstream as a Black writer, in a tight publishing market? Why is self-publishing so important, particularly for Black writers, if you can't get your books published by mainstream? To encourage other writers to pen their stories, here are some of the good things Black literature has brought to this country.

1. Salvation. To paraphrase Toni Cade Bambara, fiction snatches you back from the edge as a Black person in America.

2. Continuity with your ancestors. To paraphrase Toni Morrison, "If you are not writing about the Village which you come from then you are not writing about anything."

3. A reading audience who is eager to see stories that reflect their reality.

4. A way of restoring history which was not allowed to be written down in the past.

5. A way of lifting up the next generation through the printed word, in addition to our oral tradition, which is reflected in rap, Hip Hop, and Poetry.

6. A way of promoting racial understanding for other ethnic groups. I learn a lot about other parts of the Diaspora when I read books by Haitian Americans, or when I read Chinese American literature, or any other culture's literature.

Recently, a teacher told me at a book signing, that a study was done at her school. It was found that all the little Black girls said that their image of beauty was still a blond, blue-eyed child. Imagine! This was December, 1999! It reminds me of the tragic tale in Toni Morrison's book, The Bluest Eyes, where the scourged Black child, Pecola, went insane, all because she wanted blue eyes. This book's setting was circa 1940.

My point is this. If we keep writing our stories down, we, as African American writers, may not ever have parity in the world of books. But at the same time, we won't have another generation of little Black girls playing white, like my friends and I did, with scarves and towels draped over our hair, which we felt wasn't beautiful enough. Or perhaps, we won't have little girls going crazy like the fictional Pecola did.

Copyright 2006 Black Butterfly Press

Dr. Maxine Thompson is an author, literary agent, literary coach, ghostwriter and Internet Radio Show Host. You can email her at maxtho@sbcglobal.net. You can sign up for a free newsletter at http://www.maxinethompson.com/

The World Is Here By Ismael Reed

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota

Ishmael Reed's essay "The World is Here" is preceded by a well-chosen excerpt from a 1983 New York Times article which evokes an image that epitomizes the two tiered concept of Ishmael's proceeding essay. Reed offers several examples of cultural blending from inside the walls of a McDonald's to inside the walls of a respected university, and from Detroit to Houston. Reed aims to enlighten the U.S. Population in general as he peels away at the layers of half truths, at best, that certain entities in the U.S. Continue to foster as he speculates the question "what is Western Civilization?" and follows up his answer with several historical facts.

Reed states that the mirror of our current day world reflects an eclectic cornucopia of cultures that can no longer be ignored simply because it doesn't mesh with the fabricated concept of "Western Civilization". He believes that as evident as the existence of a multicultural society is there are those in power who refuse to accept the current reality and who remain attached to the idea that the U.S. is solely descendant of this so called European "Western Civilization", whose existence Reed questions in the first place based on nearly a dozen examples of how the U.S. has tried to build its history on an already unstable foundation. Reed believes the concept was created by the still-in-power descendants of Puritan patriarchs, as a smokescreen to obscure historical facts and create a false hierarchy in order to justify acts of repression, hate, persecution and murder toward other cultures right here on U.S. Soil in the last century, of which Reed cites undeniable examples.

Reed ends his essay with a message to the ethnocentric entities addressed in the article, the same Puritan posse who believed that their imperialistic expansion was "manifest destiny", that it's too late for their failing agenda because the world is already here, integrated and interconnected.

Copyright 2006-Elle Housman is a freelance writer and graphic designer based in Colorado. Her publications can be found in Toward Freedom Magazine, The Colorado Daily's monthly Women's Magazine, Ujama News and on the website of The Black Biomedical Research Movement. Visit her website at [http://PositiveScribes.com/]

A Book of Dichotomise: Ceremony by Marmon Silko And

Just as Janus was depicted seeing into the past Protocol agent and "future at once so too is a Ceremony, Marmon Silko And by Novell. A face, half shown in the light and the other in the dark, stares defiantly out from the front cover open almost daring me to delve into the depths and it. Later, I realize the face is both a stark reminder and unconscious revelation from where this story springs. Silko, born in Albequerque MN, is of Laguna ancestry herself and weaves the story of a young native american "haunted" by the horrors of being a soldier during WWII and of his own cousin killed in action during the conflict.

Interwoven between flashbacks of war and struggle against Tayo's alcoholism, poverty and post traumatic stress disorder a; The author breathes life back into the young man's existence with traditional stories and myth. The story is as much about the dichotomy that occurs between life on and off the reservation-as it is about war and its lasting effects. Eating at the soul in Each their own way.

Tayo finds he must travel the path of his ancestors and the vision quest to retrieve parts of himself that had been torn away bit by bit. The story culminates in finding himself whole and well-known Tayo, with the help of through reclamation of himself on a spiritual or physical, and mental health.

Aptly named, the Ceremony was released in 1977, embraced by many during the Vietnam war era-post. The Novell was both critically acclaimed and criticized-yet another interesting polarization. For me, it was a very thoughtful book and one that I did not read lightly. Each turn of the page was filled with layer upon layer of meaning. Reading this book is like peeling an onion to reveal yet another Janus-like implication.

Read more about post traumatic stress disorder a.

Enjoyed this resource? Deidre Lin invites you to read more about Healthy Lifestyles for mind, body and spirit in a world of Chaos at http://www.transformx.com/

A Mystery Book Biography About a Black Woman That is Not Part of African American History

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota

The story of black and white in America runs deep through our conscience. Each of us has both an experience and opinion on the subject. Whether it recalls a black man, a black woman or child it doesn't rise to the level necessary to be considered "text" worthy of African American History.

This book biography represents the history of just one unusual drama that had its beginnings wrapped in bigotry customary to the times. If there is one inspirational story to open our minds and hearts to our commonality rather than our differences, this mystery book can be considered at the top.

The inexperience of youth, who often sees life through ideals, rarely has the opportunity to deliberately manipulate social justice and force their romanticized values onto others. Even with the best of intentions it can create havoc for those least prepared to deal with the resulting catastrophe. But this is exactly what happened in the early 1950's.

Fauna Hodel, the Caucasian progeny of a prominently social California family, was given away at birth to a Black maid, Jimmie Lee, who worked as a restroom attendant in a Nevada casino. The purpose was to make sure that a black family raise her baby. In her 16 year old mother's naive eyes, Blacks were the only people capable of unconditional love. To insure that the child would never return to her emotionally reclusive white family, she provided the race of the father as "Negro" on the birth certificate. The child grew up believing that she was of mixed race.

This is not just the story of a young girl and a Black woman who struggled to overcome extreme poverty and enormous social prejudice, but also the story of perseverance. But through perseverance, and strength of character, the will to overcome these enormous obstacles prevails and succeeds.

To understand how difficult living in a racist world where you clearly don't belong, yet trying to blend in to survive, one needs to be able to walk in those footsteps. But for us to do so cannot be accomplished voluntarily. To find the true knowledge of emotional & physical reliance requires either slavery or kidnapping, two serious felonies universally frowned upon.

Our story begins with the dubious behavior from those responsible who initiated and controlled the events. The actions of Fauna's grandfather who was accused and acquitted of incestuous relations with his daughter Tamar, and Tamar who insisted but did not name the father as "Negro", and the grandmother unmoved in her resolve to eliminate this tragedy from the family, become only passing consequences. But for a child, to begin life buried in a haystack, it's a lifetime of absurdities.

This story allows us to flow into the life of a young woman as she searches for the truth. We can feel what it's like to not know where she came from, nor why she is there in the first place. Her only hope is a few words remixed a dozen different ways, but never enough to piece together an answer.

With a very young Tamar leaving unanswered questions for Fauna, and Jimmie Lee not answering those questions for fear of losing her daughter, neither mother could foresee the consequences of their actions. Actions that affect generations yet to come. We can all learn something from this misguided manipulation. This part of African American history should not be left without notice.

The author began writing in high school and throughout college and first published articles in sporting and finance magazines. The recent release of his first full biographical novel has created a buzz in Hollywood for the film rights. Click on the link to find out more about this mystery and see some photos of these real characters at http://www.onedayshelldarken.com/
Copyright ?2008 Rick Briamonte

Book Review of "American Muslims, The New Generation"

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota

About the author:

As she has mentioned in the preface of her book she is an American Muslim from immigrant Pakistani parents who has born in Chicago. She has made up a title for herself "I am s self proclaimed Muslim feminist cowgirl....my spirit is a mix of American individualism, the American west, the Islam that I grew up with and practice, my family code of ethics and the Feminism I believe in." She has published another book "Why I am Muslim".

She was a 25 years old student studying law at New York when this book published in 2000. She has written editorials for the Denver Post, fiction for the Susquehanna Review. It seems she has mingled some of Islamic rules with the circumstances of living in America to create a light-minded feminist Muslim. From the evidences she provides in her book, she probably says her five daily prayers and fast during Ramezan and helps charity but thinks just modest attire is enough to save Hijab, or in judgment day she would not be guilty for not obeying a complete Halal diet.

She thinks that American Islam as it grows and evolves will offer a model to Islam in the rest of the worlds: a purer Islam. "I believe American Islam is a purer form of Islam than is practiced in some Islamic countries."
About the book

Hasan published her book before 9/11. After this event in an interview in National radio, she said that some of conservative Muslims have said her, "You can't be a Muslim and believe that!" and she answered, "Yes, I can!" In the interview, she did not mention what was her meaning of "that", so a glance on her book would get an idea what "that" meant.

This book is written in ten chapters, each covers a different issue. Generally speaking, it is about the sects of Islam, Hijab, principals of Islam, military in Islam, media and Islam, feminism, reform, growing up in America, and politics.
This book is neither autobiography, although in narrating the situation of Muslims her experiences are conspicuous, nor is it a historical explanation about development of Islam, while it contains some background from some issues to get a totally stranger American audience more familiar with Islam. In this respect, her experiences illustrate how it is like to be young Muslim and live in America. For instance, when she prefers to say the waiter in a restaurant that she has allergy to pork, rather than say she keeps religious diet, she implies that even nowadays it is somehow odd for an American to encounter uncommon issues, which he would consider as unnatural.

She tries to correct some misconceptions in American minds. She attempts to make Americans believe that what one Muslim does cannot be generated to all of Muslims. If a Muslim does terroristic actions it does not mean that all of them have belligerent ideology. She tries to tell that the image of oppressed Muslim women in the minds of the American is not right, in proving her claim she exemplifies herself as a female Muslim student with feministic ideas who is living freely.

In correcting Americans mind, sometimes she makes an effort to optimist their attitude and change what they had already believed. She says that Jihad does mean a struggle and mostly "inner struggle to strengthen one's belief against corrupting and anti-Islamic forces" (p.49) According to her, this meaning is shown in Quran and life of Prophet of Islam, so it is not a holy war against all Americans. It is obvious that she herself struggles to soften Islamic principles to introduce them very gentle.

She brings another subject to get a common sense between Americans and Islamic principles and emphasizes similarities between these two. She claims "Islam was founded on the same principles and ideas the United States was." In her desire to integrate with a common religion she says that as "western culture and Judeo-Christian ethic are defined by a belief in one God, also the major belief of Islam" it is better to consider" Judeo-Christian-Islamic"
She describes the difference of being Muslim and living in America in contrast to other countries in this way "American Muslims don't have the cultural support system most Muslims all over the world have. Each Islamic country has its own set of Quranic interpretations, even a group of academics that set those interpretations, called the ulema. Here in the Unites States, Muslims are mostly flying blind, although we do have a national Fiqh Council, created by and consisting of some American Muslim leaders... However, we need to create our own support systems to do with our new approaches to the Quran." (P. 132)

Regarding politics, she thinks that a major involvement in American politics is electing Muslim congressional representative. And the reason why Muslims do not take part eagerly in politics in her view is "because they are disturbed by overwhelming U.S. policy against Muslims, especially the implicit lack of support for Palestinians." (P.152) Then she continues with the activities of Muslim institutions like AMA, MPAC and AMC not to leave a disappointing picture in this part.

Criticism and evaluation

According to Hasan"... this book is about other Muslims like me, who are living as American and Muslim and figuring out their spirit and identity as we go along." Her claim that her book is about nearly six million other Muslims who live in America and all are like her is suspected. I think as there are so many interpretations, ideologies and lifestyles related to Islam in the United States, it is a big venture to think that all of them think like her or even live in the circumstances like hers, because treating with minorities is different in different parts of America.

What I can say at first is that I think that the title of this book, "American Muslims", is not appropriate at all. Hasan is a young Lady who narrates her own perception of Islam and so she is not permitted, to my view, to generate what she thinks to all Muslims who live in America.

The second point I noticed is that as young and unexercised as she is, she cannot picture a right and multi dimension perspective of Islam. Her background shows that she has no prophecy in studying Islam to judge if what American Muslims do is according to Islam or not, although it is obvious that she has had a glance at Quran at least. For example, she believes that Hijab (head covering) according to holy Quran and prophet Mohammad (P.B.U.H) is not necessary for women except in praying time. In her view, it suffices for women just to dress modestly.

The other weak point I understood was that her statements are very general, I mean without specifying the meaning of her terminology (like "modestly" in women attire or "feminism" in her idea) and on the other hand, she claims something without giving evidence and reference for that. When she narrates some sentence from Quran, she does not specify where she has read it. For instance, she mentions, "In truth, Islam is really supposed to be practiced and interpreted by each individual and not handed down by a Pope-like figure. It says so in the Quran."

Recommendation

So I think what she has written in her book is just her point of view about Islam and cannot be relied on. It is very personal, a completely personal narrative. Even from the cover picture that is the photo of the writer it can be guessed how personal it may be! Therefore, although it is interesting to know how a young Muslim girl thinks in the days before 9/11, reading this book for another Muslim who already knows about Islam and at the same time may be in disagreement with the author may be boring.

Never Underestimate the Latino Market Segment - The Latino Book is Here in the USA

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota

The Hispanic and Latino market is on fire, there is a lot of spendable income there and they love personal electronics, and they are good voters. This is changing the dynamics in the United States and the way we live. This is one incredible consumer market segment that no business can neglect. Perhaps, it is for that reason that I have a very good book I'd like to recommend to you. The name of the book is;

"The Latino Boom! - Everything You Need to Know to Grow Your Business in the US Hispanic Market," by Chiqui Cartagena (female), published by Ballantine Books, New York, NY, 2005, (232 pp), ISBN: 0-345-48235-2.

This author knows exactly what she's talking about and she grew up in Spain and runs a Hispanic media company. She tells us that in 2005 Hispanic families made $4000 more annually than African-Americans in the United States. Hispanic could be many different nationalities - Mexicans, Cubans, Puerto Ricans, Latin Americans, and people from Spain. The teens are urban trendsetters and by 2020 Hispanics will be 25% of the population in the United States and that is at the low end of the projection.

It is estimated that by 2012 the spendable income from Hispanic citizens will be well over $1 trillion. Although Hispanics also have the highest dropout rates, many of them also are self-employed or own businesses. In the United States Black Americans account for 36 million people or 13%, whereas Hispanic populations account for 41 million or 15%, and Hispanics are outpacing in population growth almost 2 to one presently. In Puerto Rico alone there are 3.8 million Hispanic folks.

The Hispanic voters were the decider in the 2004 elections. In the 1960s hundreds of thousands fled from Cuba and came to Miami. Miami is also home to Argentinians, Brazilians, and Venezuelans all considered Latino. They bring with them their culture, strong family values, and future buying power. 80% of the Hispanics in the US live in seven states; California, Texas, New York, Arizona, New Mexico, New Jersey, Florida, and Illinois.

In 2008 they had an estimated $800 billion in buying power, and at that time only 4% of Hispanics who were over 50 years old made $50,000 per year, although that number is rapidly climbing. The average Cuban-American is 30 years old and they are one of the most industrious groups running many businesses in Florida. 30% of Hispanics are foreign born do not speak English very well and 10% of US-born Hispanics don't speak English, although 30% are bilingual.

With larger families they lean towards collectivism and they believe in fate and God, very religious folks. They are spontaneous and are much more able to relax than a typical whitey American. Their spending on personal electronics is way up, and perhaps this accounts for the reason that Carlos Slim is now the richest person in the entire world and he is involved with cell phones and personal technologies. It is also known that in North Carolina Hispanic populations have quadrupled in the last decade - a story which will be repeated in many states in coming years.

This book is a complete eye opener for anyone who thinks they can neglect the Hispanic market in their business. Because nothing could be further from the truth - this is definitely the demographic and market segment that you need to watch in your business, and that's why I highly recommend that you buy this book and get yourself educated on this topic. This is a game changer, it will change everything, and it's time that you went with the flow to greater profits in your business.

Lance Winslow is a retired Founder of a Nationwide Franchise Chain, and now runs the Online Think Tank. Lance Winslow believes intelligent demographic study and hiring intelligent contractors too; http://www.yakimabuilders.com/.

Note: All of Lance Winslow's articles are written by him, not by Automated Software, any Computer Program, or Artificially Intelligent Software. None of his articles are outsourced, PLR Content or written by ghost writers.

Three Cups of Tea

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota

When Greg Mortenson traversed Pakistan's rugged terrain in 1993, it was to climb and conquer the indomitable K2. He left the country without conquering the peak, yet he left with something more important - a promise. A remote village called Korphe had taken in the weary mountaineer and helped him recover after an arduous expedition. When Mortenson saw 82 children (only 4 of them girls) attending school outdoors, "kneeling on the frosty ground, in the open," he knew what he wanted to do for these people who survived on so little and had given him so much. He promised to return and build them a school.

He didn't know that fulfilling his promise would direct the course of his life and lead to building 130 more schools that would educate 51,000 students in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Today he is the director of Central Asia Institute, an organization formed to accomplish Mortenson's goal of creating schools for girls in remote regions. Three Cups of Tea documents the challenges and successes of the finding the funds, of transporting roof beams by hand for 18 miles, of persevering through religious resistance and hostile environments. Mortenson is kidnapped, spied upon, and stuck in the middle of a showdown between opium smugglers.

Through these epic adventures, the story maintains a deeply personal tone. Korphe's town leader becomes a surrogate father for Mortenson. He falls in love and has children. Men vow to die to protect his life. Mortenson cultivates relationships that transcend barriers of tradition, religion, and race amidst the complex cultures of Pakistan and Afghanistan. He approaches each new people group and school building project as a learner.

Armed with this attitude and the conviction that education will change lives, Mortenson serves some of the world's most impoverished children and fights terrorism in his own way. If you want to learn about Pakistan and Afghanistan beyond what you hear on the radio waves, if you want to see a successful grassroots model of education in undeveloped areas in progress, if you want to believe that one person's life can make an impact, then read Three Cups of Tea.

Julia Phillips blogs regularly about social justice issues and parenting at [http://www.dosmallthings.com].