Know Thy Neighbor...

Okay by now we’ve all heard, or overheard the situation with Henry Louise Gates, Harvard professor and intellectual extraordinaire, who was accused of breaking into his own house. As per the complaint of a neighbor, (who obviously doesn’t know her neighbors well), the popo showed up in full effect and questioned Professor Gates about who he was and what he what doing in the house. After showing i.d., that of course included Gates’ Harvard credentials, proving that he is in fact a card caring member of the “Talented Tenth”, he was still being questioned. And then of course, he was arrested and granted with what seems to be every other Black man’s rite of passage, a mug shot. (cute picture though) The charges have since been dropped, but how the hell does someone come to your house and accuse you of trespassing?

The fanciful notion that because we now have a Black President, the era of racism is coming to a close is surprisingly naïve. Things are better, but all brown folks know that at any given time, for any given thing, we could all get hemmed up. And with Gates being consistently referred to as "prominent", it doesn't matter because rights are rights regardless of "classism".

On “The View” Whoopi Goldberg claimed that this isn’t just a Black issue, and that anyone could be in this situation. Yes, anyone can get a visit from the police but it happens more when you’re brown. That is why it's called racial profiling. (Maybe all that time spent around White men has skewed her perspective a bit?) Goldberg also didn’t like the fact the President said the police acted “stupidly”. She’s more concerned with the word stupid instead of the fact that a Black man minding his own business can still be treated like an intruder on his own property? Well, it is stupid to accuse someone of trespassing on his own property. It’s dumb. And if the President weren’t a brother, would the press have even asked him about this issue?

And the funnier thing about this is that Gates is married to a White woman and some say that he got a “Tiger Woods Wake-up Call” to the fact that no amount of degrees, prestige and White lady linkage can protect a brown person from America’s legacy. Hmmm… And yes, one could say that Professor Gates does come across a bit "booshie" at times, but whatever the deal is with that, Gates’ rights were still violated. Period.

Bottom line, this is where we are being “Black in America”. (Is anybody watching that series on CNN? The first installment was trite and irrelevant. Hopefully this time around it’s more substantive and interesting.)

So if you don’t know, now you know. Know your rights and don’t step off the porch!

The Michael Jackson Memorial--A Send-off Worthy of a Legend

The Michael Jackson Memorial was truly moving. (BET should take a note from AEG going forward, and apply the same thoughtfulness and creativity to its productions.) We all feel that at only fifty years old, Michael left us too soon. But if you think about it, the life he lived and the talent he possessed would have taken the average person several lifetimes to fulfill. So we have to believe that he got it all in! He gave us ALL he had to give and his mission here on earth was accomplished. And we were blessed for it.

When the memorial began with the remaining Jackson brothers Jackie, Jermaine, Marlon, Randy and Tito transporting Michael's casket into center stage, didn't your heart just sink? But that was only the first of a number of tear jerking events of this unforgettable tribute that canonized, as Queen Latifah stated, "the biggest star on earth". There were many moments that moved my heart.

After opening remarks by Pastor Luscious Smith, Queen Latifah, who looked gorgeous, read one of the most beautiful and insightful poems ever written entitled, "We Had Him", by Maya Angelou. It reads:

Beloveds, now we know that we know nothing, now that our bright and shining star can slip away from our fingertips like a puff of summer wind.

Without notice, our dear love can escape our doting embrace.

Sing our songs among the stars and walk our dances across the face of the moon.

In the instant that Michael is gone, we know nothing.

No clocks can tell time.

No oceans can rush our tides with the abrupt absence of our treasure.

Though we are many, each of us is achingly alone, piercingly alone.

Only when we confess our confusion can we remember that he was a gift to us and we did have him.

He came to us from the creator, trailing creativity in abundance.

Despite the anguish, his life was sheathed in mother love, family love, and survived and did more than that.

He thrived with passion and compassion, humor and style.

We had him whether we know who he was or did not know, he was ours and we were his.

We had him, beautiful, delighting our eyes.

His hat, aslant over his brow, and took a pose on his toes for all of us. And we laughed and stomped our feet for him.

We were enchanted with his passion because he held nothing.

He gave us all he had been given.

Today in Tokyo, beneath the Eiffel Tower, in Ghana's Black Star Square.

In Johannesburg and Pittsburgh, in Birmingham, Alabama, and Birmingham, England we are missing Michael.

But we do know we had him, and we are the world.

Lionel Richie sang one of his greatest songs, "Jesus is Love". I have always loved that song!!

Berry Gordy referred to MJ as the "consummate student", reminding us all that no matter how great we think we are or how great we are told we are, there is always something to learn. Gordy shared that Michael "raised the bar, and then broke the bar". True story!

Stevie Wonder summed up our emotions by singing, "Never Dreamed You'd Leave in Summer". Okay, this was another tissue grabbing moment as you could hear the longing in Wonder's tone.

For me it was strange and a bit out of order to see Kobe Bryant at the memorial. He's a great ball player, but what does he have to do with Michael? Okay the Lakers play at the Staples Center, but his own personal reputation doesn't warrant him to be worthy to contribute to the memory of a legend. But Magic Johnson's hilarious anecdote about him and Michael eating Kentucky Fried Chicken on the floor was hysterical and so cute!!! And Magic was the most eloquent he's ever been.

Then, a visibly pregnant Jennifer Hudson came out and tore the roof off when she sang Michael's "Will You be There?" She effortlessly rocked that song and sent us to church!

And did Al Sharpton preach or what? With all of Al's media shenanigans we almost forget that he is Reverend Al Sharpton and he broke, it, down. If I'd had a church fan I'd have been waving the heck out of it when he said to Michael's babies, "wasn't nothing strange about your daddy. It was strange what your daddy had to deal with". Preach! (I believe this refers to his long life in the public eye, and goes all the way back to a father who beat him and worked him to death, using him as the family cash cow, and not fostering the critical self love that every human being needs to be whole.) And did you notice that he left out Papa Joe when he spoke of who will look after Michael's children? Okay, got my two cents in! (But let me ask: Where was all this support from public figures when Michael was being persecuted in the media? Michael Jackson was every man when he was a performer, but a Black man when he was being attacked. Where were Michael's public defenders then?)

Not exactly sure why John Mayer was there--but he tore it up when he played "Human Nature." Period.

Awww, Brooke Shields--she loved him. And you could see she was for real by the way the family embraced her after she spoke.

When Jermaine sang "Smile"...(sigh) tears. Period.

Then Bernice King and Martin Luther King III came out, and I was back in the pew all over again! Who knew Michael had a relationship with Coretta Scott King and reached out to her in her last days? Let's remember what Martin Luther King III reiterated, "be the best of what you are". Michael was the BEST. Period.

Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee let a certain politician and the rest of Michael's detractors have it!!! And then she honored Michael with the "World Humanitarian Award". Wow!

Okay I got a little nervous when Usher started singing to the casket, but he sounded great, and obviously was appreciated by the family as they embraced him after his performance.

And.....WHO was that little British boy, Shaheem Jafargholi who SANG HIS HEART OUT on "Who's Loving You?" He killed it. Period.

Then it was over for real when Marlon got choked up and had to be consoled. And then Michael's daughter, Paris broke down and had to turn to Auntie Janet, (and yes I know it wasn't a fashion show, but Jan's ensemble was fierce!), it was again, tissue time.

Well except for Mariah, (sorry girl), who was the weakest link, (what happened?), everyone held it down for Michael Jackson, as Berry Gordy put it, "simply, the greatest entertainer that ever lived".

Watching this memorial makes me think about what will my legacy be? How do I want to be remembered? Let's all try and keep that in mind as we walk through life putting forth the effort to be a little more kind, a little more patient, and little more giving and apparently a little more strong as little Michael had to be all of his life.


What did you think of the Michael Jackson Memorial?