Volume I, Issue II Laney College Oakland, California November 2007

Patience Adagba plays djembe as President Davis speaks at Black Studies Rally Oct. 23AYAAN GATES-WILLIAMS/DEFENDER

STAFF REPORTS

BSU demands Ethnic Studies faculty

Black Studies professor collapses in class at Laney

Laney African American Studies professor Dr. Mary Lewis collapsed

during a class Oct. 23 in E-207. She was hospitalized, but is now in stable condition.

Details about what caused her collapse are still uncertain, but some have specu-lated it was due to her workload at Laney.

time, classes like those currently offered by Laney’s Ethnic Studies Department, such as African-American, Asian and Asian American and Mexican and Latin American Studies classes, were rare or non-existent.

“Students rose up and said, we want courses that refl ect our interests, that re-fl ect our culture,” said Nidamu Khutha-za of the All-African People’s Revolu-tionary Party. “It’s incumbent upon all of us to struggle to have these classes

continue.”Paula Parker, a post-baccalaureate

music major at Laney, recalls partici-pating in the student movement of the early 1970’s in her native New York. The role of students in “supporting the Black studies classes, African American fac-ulty and making their opinions known to everybody on up to our Laney College president,” is critical, she says.

By Sista Ayaan Gates-WilliamsSPECIAL TO THE DEFENDER

Dr. Mary Lewis hospital-ized but in stable condition

The Laney BSU held a noontime rally Oct. 23 on the quad to protest the fact that Laney no longer has any full-time African American studies instructors and to demand that the administration prioritize this department for upcoming faculty allocations.

Under the warm sun, impassioned Laney students took to the microphone to share personal stories of what African-American Studies classes at Laney have meant to them and to stress the benefi ts of African-American Studies, not only to Black students, but all students.

Punctuated by live drumming, world music and progressive hip hop, the rally harkened back to the era, more than 40 years ago, when college students fi rst began to demand “Black Studies” and “Ethnic Studies” classes.

In the 1960’s and 1970’s, Bay Area colleges and universities were pivotal in the national movement to bring Ethnic Studies to Higher Education. Before that

® BSU RALLY: Page 7

Rally stresses need for fulltime Black Studies faculty at Laney

Lewis is one of two part-time profes-sors who have had to work overtime this semester due to staff shortages in Laney’s Ethnic Studies Department.

More information in the next issue of the Laney Defender.

Remember the film “The Birth of a Na-tion”?

Based on Thomas Dixon’s novel, “The Clansman,” the 1915 film set during and after the U.S. Civil War, is one of the most in-fluential films in the history of Hollywood. Due to the innovative technical feats of the time, it is still considered required viewing for all college film students.

But the film glorifies the Ku Klux Klan while depicting the Black man as a savage beast.

One hundred years later and the negative por-trayals of Black men on the big screen still re-main. Enter “American Gangster.”

Now brace yourself for “American Gangster” overload: (1) the film starring Denzel Washing-ton, (2) the Jay-Z album, inspired by the film, and (3) the DVD release of BET’s documentary series. All right on time to satisfy America’s craving for the savage Black brute.

The BET documentary series has fascinat-ed nearly one million viewers per episode for nearly a year now with its classic American crime stories. America’s most infamous Black “gangsters” – you know the ones your favorite corporate rappers impersonate and imitate – are dramatized on the silver screen.

Denzel, an amazing actor, has now brought Frank Lucas, a 1970’s Harlem drug lord, to life with a film of the same name. Although Denzel won the Academy Award for Best Ac-tor for his portrayal of a crooked cop in “Train-ing Day,” he did not win for “Malcolm X,” in 1993. And since Hollywood loves the image of the “Bad Black Guy,” Denzel is sure to be rewarded again.

Lastly, Jay-Z’s upcoming lyrical interpreta-tion of “American Gangster” will likely do noth-ing more than promote Black gangsterism.

Not only do people believe Black men are criminals, at home and abroad, but many of us believe it and fall victim to the limited life-style of crime and the prison industrial com-plex. “American Gangster” is just American violence in blackface.

In reality, the real “American Gangsters” reside win the White House.

Brother Reggie is the Defender Editor. Please email him at reggiegeneral@yahoo.com.

2 / Defender OPINION November 2007

Who is the real “American Gangster”?

‘What’s Going On?’How would you improve Laney College?

Compiled and photographed by Justin Thompson and Reginald James.

Students should voice concerns on what they are learing and different teaching meth-ods. The smoking on campus is really bad. I hear it is smoke-free but there needs to be better signage.

There should be more activities for in-coming freshmen, like Black College Tours. We need more energy in the environment. It makes me not want to come to school. We need more support and encouragement, too.

Denita Scott

Film

NameMajor

Justin ThompsonAfrican American Studies/Economics

Laney needs more academic programs like music industry and recording engineering courses. Athletics could use more support, games should be major events to get people to participate. I had a free pass but didn’t even want to go.

More pride. Just because Laney is is a community college doesn’t mean it is not a place of learning. The feeling takes you back to high school where people only went to school because they had to.

Antionette BracksTheater Arts

This is really a diverse campus and I would like to see a lot of cultural events for the different races and backgrounds to increase awareness. There could be an event to bring people together, like a talent show, each month.

Ernie RockerTheater Arts

President DavisMarketing/Sociology

3 / Defender NEWS November 2007

Farrakhan speaks ‘live’ at Laney

Minister Louis Farrakhan speaks via webcast hosted in the Laney Forum on Oct. 16.

Nation of Islam Minister Louis Farrakhan leader gives lively speech dur-ing the ‘Holy Day of Atonement’

By Brother ReggieDEFENDER EDITOR

Nearly 350 people came to the Laney College Forum on Oct. 16 to hear the Nation of Islam’s (NOI) leader, the Hon. Minister Louis Farrakhan, speak live via webcast.

The program, which was co-sponsored by the Oakland Muhammad Mosque and the Laney Black Student Union, com-memorated the 12th anniversary of the historic Million Man March of 1995 when over one million African-Amer-ican men descended upon Washington, D.C. for “atonement, reconciliation, and responsiblity.”

Farrakhan touched on global warm-ing, religion, HipHop, politics, and the need for African-Americans to create a new society that benefits the masses of

people in the world. “Pharoah has nothing else for us to

do but to fight in his unjust wars and serve his prison industrial complex,” said Farrakhan, alluding to the biblical parallel of Africans in Americans and the Israelites in Egypt.

The 74-year old Farrakhan, who was recently ill, spoke passionately for near-ly two-and-a half hours, cautioned the nearly 15 million viewers not to believe the media “tomorrow.”

“Don’t let the media tell you about ‘an ailing Farrakhan,’ tell them you saw a strong Farrakhan, who spoke for two hours and could’ve spoken for two more.”

Following the speech, Oakland Min-ister Keith Muhammad, reflected on Farrakhan’s words.

“I hope all the students and the people heard the words the minister shared,” said Muhammad. “And I hope that we can and will act upon what he said.”

BSU MEETINGSThursdays at 3 PMStudent Center

4th Floor

Advance.Grow.Unite.

RECYCLEShare this Defender with others.

Myspace.com/LaneyBSU

Tybalt (Tone) shoots Mercutio (Adonye) aka “Young Merc” during “Ebony and Johnny,” a version of Romeo and Juliet which mixes both shakespearean English and Bay Area slang. The play was held at the Joseph P. Prescot Theatre in West Oakland.

Ebony & Johnny lights up West Oakland

4/ Defender ARTS November 2007

BROTHER REGGIE/DEFENDER

The Herbman (Adimu of Hairdoo Music) performs a marriage ceremony for Ebony (Tatyana) and Johnny (Siraj Fowler).

Put in a little Shakespeare, plus some Bay Area slang, and criti-cal sociological analysis of Oak-

land’s Black community, and what do you get?

“Ebony & Johnny: A Hood Tale” is just that a hood tale. Now, don’t let your ste-reotypes of the hood cloud your thinking and assume that this is some low-budget “I’m ‘Bout it” or something like that. Ebony & Johnny explores a variety of issues affecting the Oakland through the experiences of two hood-crossed lovers. Creatively engaging both Shakesperean English with Oakland Ebonics, the plays language forces the audience to broaden its understanding of human dynamics and relationships amongst people.

Ebony moved to the hills while Johnny lives in the flatlands. Their families don’t get along for a variety of reasons.

There is an underriding theme of clas-sism amongst the Black community in the play which makes one question, “What is Black?” Do you have to be in poverty to be Black? Do you have to act ignorant to keep it real?

The urban adaption of Romeo and Juliet featured a few faces familiar around Laney.

BSU Member Ernie Rocker, aka DJ Ego, starred as Paris while President Davis played Benvolio. Tybalt was played by Tone while the Tatyana was featured as Ebony. Former Laney stu-dent Siraj Fowler plays opposite Tatyana as Johnny.

The Lower Bottoms Playas perfor-mance was under the direction of Ayo-dele “Wordslanger” Nzinga, MA, MFA. Wordslanger is a renounced writer and spoken word artist, also wrote “Mack” a “gangster tale.”

Wordslanger told the tale of so many people’s odyssey from the hood to the hills and the challenge to “keep it real.”

Wordslanger’s cast gives a heart-wrenching performance showing the futility of urban violence. Black-on-Black violence reveals its hateful face and the audience is moved to reach out to prevent the senseless murder of hu-man beings. We can stop our community from losing more Ebony’s and Johnnys to violence on the streets of Oakland.

By Brother ReggieDEFENDER EDITOR

Urban Romeo and Juliet adaptation explores violence, classism and relationships

BROTHER REGGIE/DEFENDER

‘MAAFA’ remembered at Ocean Beach

Left: Solomon Smith gazes into the Pacific Ocean during the reflection section of the 2007 Maafa.

Right: A young drummer par-ticipates in the Maafa Chant

and Dance cycle.

Photos courtesy of Tasin Sabir

5 / Defender CULTURE November

On an early Sunday morning in October, hundreds of the descendants of Africans who

survived the Middle Passage, slavery, Jim Crow, and institutionalize racism, gathered at Ocean Beach in San Fran-cisco to deal with the trauma and heal from the legacy oppression. The “Maafa Commemoration Ritual,” is a “Black Holocaust Remembrance” which was started 12 years ago.

“Maafa is a Kiswahili term for disas-ter, calamity, or terrible occurrence,” according to the Maafa SF Bay Area website.

“People of African Descent are invit-ed in an attempt to honor our ancestors who have suffered through the middle passage and the lives that continue to be compromised due to racism and oppres-sion. This ritual is for the descendents of the Africans who were unwillingly trans-ported to these shores and elsewhere in the Americas 500 years ago,” says Wanda Sabir, founder of the Bay Area Maafa Commemoration. “This ritual is for the 200 million stolen, those un-named ancestors whose bones lie on the

ocean floor and for those who survived the passage –whose sweat fertilized the coffers of Western culture.”

The program began before sunrise with a drummer led procession through the “Doors of No Return,” a gate supported by wood and cloth, which symbolized the doors of a slave dungeon in which captured Africans would never return again. Sojourners, after passing an al-ter formed a large circle on the beach standing close to one another to collec-tively bear the early morning cold from the Pacific Ocean.

Sabir gave a greeting and welcome as the circle was completed with near-ly 300 African people awaiting sunrise and reconciliation.

“The Maafa is not a choice,” said Sabir, “it is a destiny we haven’t been able to es-cape without returning through the fire. Travel with us there this morning.”

Sister Sipiwe and Sister Carol Afua poured libations and led the “Maafa Prayer,” as people repeated the lines in both English and Shone (Zimbabwe).

As the sun peaked out the San Francis-co hills, the group then sang the “Maafa Song,” led by Brother Clint. This was followed by more libations and prayers led by Minister Mxolisi of the Wo’se

Community Church and Sister Geri Abrams.

The song was followed by the Maafa Chant and Dance Cycle, which was led by the Wo’se Choir and Sister Isaura Ol-iviera, respectively. The dance cycle fea-tured Yoruba chants titled, “Healing,” “Love,” “Freedom,” and “Thanksgiv-ing,” to symbolize the journey necessary to recovery from the Maafa.

“Let go of the rage that simmers in your stomach, curdles in your throat, burns as it travels in your veins,” instructed Sabir, as participants were encouraged to release their frustrations, anger, and pain through screaming and yelling.

The group then headed to the water’s edge for individual prayers and medita-tion. Some reflected silently on thethe experience of their ancestors, while oth-ers rejoiced, hands towards the sky, as their hearts felt the anew. Flowers were thrown into the ocean onto the breaking waves as offerings.

Meanwhile, children danced with the incoming waves; running after receding waters and retreating in anticipation as the tide climbed up the shore towards bare feet and tennis shoes alike. The drums brought the people back to the circle and the event ended with a song by Lady Sunrise called, “Calling all Angels,” announcements and a clos-ing poem by Javier Reyes.

“This event is an honoring of our past and also a prayer for our future.”

‘Maafa is a Kiswahili term for disaster, calamity, or

terrible occurence.’

By Brother ReggieDEFENDER EDITOR

Black Holocaust honors our ancestors who have survived ‘Middle Passage’

6/ Defender KNOWLEDGE November

By virtue of identifying or find-ing one’s place in race, it is often times a challenge to some people,

and to others a collective pride for not having to identify to one’s race.

For Blacks, it is often debatable as to who are Blacks? Are they any differ-ent from Africans? Who are African-Americans?

It is quite an important subject that needs to be deeply looked into.

As an African and a foreigner in the United States of America, I have to iden-tify myself by race everyday. This so-ciety categorizes people into “different races” or race columns. What really in-terests me is the way races are decided upon and how they are passed on to us as final decision that has to be accept-able by everyone.

At Laney, Black students make up about one-third of the population of students and staffs in the school. The other two-thirds are a combination of other races. Even amongst Black people, questions such as, “Where are you from? Are you African? Are you African-American?” Gets asked all the time. These questions often trigger dis-cussions amongst peers, and other races who find it difficult to identify who is an African, and what difference is it be-tween Blacks and Africans.

Job applications and other materials containing statistical data on race some-times confuses me. Some of these data could spell out the “Black” and other times would interchange it with “Afri-can-American.”

Is Black African? I recall my first few months in Amer-

ica on every job application I fill; I get confused what to declare as my race, and whether to be marked out as an African-American or a Black. This is because in my own understanding, be-ing African-American means I was ei-ther born here in America or something while being an African incorporates a fine cultural background, strong ethics and moral values of a common people, well defined structural traditional values which make a huge difference.

Therefore, when I don’t see AFRI-CAN on race columns, I want to make my own column.

Black is a broad term, but is is used to describe a people who are of a “Black origin?” The question then becomes, who is an African?

An African could be someone born in Africa or who is of an African de-scendant. African Americans have a dual identity. This is because they are Africans in American and Americans and also of the African origin.

One of my Asian friends said to me one day that it is very difficult for him to differentiate between “real” Africans and Blacks. Real? He says that Blacks that are born in this country are not “real” Africans because of the significant dif-ferences he sees between “real” Africans and them. These differences, to him, are the accent, dressing patterns/styles, the kinds of food, facial structure, tribes, family structure, areas of interest, aca-demic performance etc.

I was really perplexed with his findings because I have never really sat down to elaborate on these differences to under-stand the level of truth in it.

Although some African Americans are yet to fully identify themselves with the motherland either out of curiosity or in-terest but some are definitely not con-sidering themselves Africans or do not like to be called Africans.

*Quinesha doesn’t want to be called an African because “there is just too much going on in Africa; AIDS, poverty etc therefore, since I wasn’t born there, I don’t want to be considered as one.”

*Patrick (real names withheld) thinks because it is very difficult for him to flow with Blacks born in Africa , it is there-fore impossible for people to mistake him for an African. To him, the accent and the way Africans carry themselves make it difficult to “flow” with them. He went further by saying that he thinks Africans are too reserve, conservative and shy in a lot of ways thereby mak-ing interaction difficult.

On the contrary, some Blacks born in America who has never been to the Af-rican continent before still have a very strong interest in learning about the dif-ferent African cultures and values. This

interest alone does make a huge differ-ence between these interested minds and the likes of Quinesha and Patrick mentioned above.

Some Blacks wouldn’t like to associ-ate with Africans could be because of “self pride” and the impatience in learn-ing about the different African cultures. Another factor could be the painstaking in getting used to the numerous African countries there are, the various tribes and ethnicity, the food, languages etc.

Plus the cost of taking a trip to Africa and the travelling distance involved has really discouraged most Black people as well.

Therefore, it becomes a personal de-cision as to do I want to be called an African because I am Black or I am an African because I am from the Moth-erland?

Are they all the sameg? Is it the skin color, different weather conditions, country of birth, difference in food, difference in cultural and moral val-ues, accent, difference in looks, dress sense/code, family structure, languages, tribes, areas of interest, etc. that defines who an African is or does the govern-ment defines who is Blacks or African-American.

Blacks need to wake up and embrace one another in love and stop believing the lies told about Africa .

All the media does is neglect the beauty of Africa and emphasize AIDS, poverty and corruption for the world to see. Af-rica is full of life and rich in resources. Blacks should be called Africans if they identify themselves as one, and possess in them the reassurance of a better Black generation.

Being Black is beautiful and we glow in pride and not in shame or denial. We are the ones that have endured persecu-tions and war; therefore, we have to stay strongly in love, and not in separation. Unity should be our motto. It would be a shame for Blacks to continue in dis-unity, because we are all one from the Motherland, we should sing it loud with a collective Black voice.

Let’s not hate on one another because life is too short. We are the World’s great-est and should start living it.

ONE LOVE!

Is ‘Black’ African?By Sista Patience

SPECIAL TO THE LANEY DEFENDER

Above: BSU Historian Lamar Caldwell speaks

during Black Studies rally on Oct. 23

Right: Rashaunah Bashir (l) and Natalie

listen to speakers rais-ing awareness of the

faculty crisis of Black Studies at Laney

7 / Defender CONTINUED November 2007

BSU: Hire full-time African-American Studies faculty® BSU RALLY

Continued from Page 1

Photos courtesty ofAyaan Gates-Williams

Too many of the current generation of young students take ethnic studies course offerings for granted and don’t realize that they could lose them, she warns.

Of Laney’s more than 12,000 students, 27% are African American, the second most represented ethnic group on cam-pus. Due to recent retirements and res-ignations, Laney’s African-American Studies department has gone from an all-time high of eight full-time instruc-tors to none. This is not acceptable, in-sists the BSU.

Laney BSU Historian Lamar Caldwell and speaker at the rally, says the lack of a full-time professor refl ects the de-valuation of African American studies within the college curriculum.

“Black studies is important and it needs to be taken as seriously as sci-ence, English, and everything else,” says Caldwell, “because you won’t have an English department without a full-time English instructor.”

“We’re taught to think of Black stud-ies as something to take for fun,” said Caldwell, of the perception that Black studies classes are “fl uff” or “vanity” courses.

Khuthaza argued against the idea that students who major in ethnic stud-ies might not be able to get a good job upon graduation.

“History is very important,” says Khuthaza. “It lets us know what we’ve done and what we’re capable of doing. It has a lot of the answers that we need to resolve a lot of the contradictions that we face today.”

‘Black studies is important and needs

to be taken as seriously as science,

English, and everything else.’

LAMAR CALDWELL, BSU HISTORIAN

Defender StaffBrother ReggieEditor-in-Chief

Sister AndreaAssistant Editor

Brother PresidentPhoto Editor

Sister ArianaEvents Editor

Brother LamarHistory Editor

Brother JustinCirculation Manager

Black History is your History

WE NEED YOU!The Defender needs

photographers, writers, and poets for new issues.

w

This is your newsletter.

Email your stories, poems, submissions to laneybsu@gmail.com

or visit us online atMyspace.com/laneybsu

for more information.

“DEFENDER”

Anti-Lynching Crusader

18

62

-19

31

“The people must know before they can act, and there is no educator to

compare with the press.”

Answers in Next Issue

Answers from October 2007 Crossword Puzzle ACROSS: 2) Johnson, 4) Farmer, 6) Allensworth, 9) Roots, 12) Ferguson, 13) Banneker,

14) Poole, 15) Woolsworth DOWN: 1) Johnson, 3) Payne, 5) Montgomery, 7) Howard, 8) Roosevelt, 10) DuBois, 11) Lynching

CALENDARHIV/AIDS Testing

Thurs. Nov. 14 – 11 A.M. to 2 P.M.Student Center, Room 401B

Laney BSU MeetingThurs. Nov. 15 @ 3 P.M.

Student Center, Room 401B

Blue CandleTues. Nov. 20 @ 8 P.M.

Dorsey’s Locker5817 Shattuck Ave. – N. Oakland

Hosted by President Davis

THANKSGIVING HOLIDAYNO SCHOOLThurs. Nov. 22

HIV/AIDS TestingThurs. Nov. 29 – 11 A.M. to 2 P.M.

Laney Quad

Laney BSU MeetingThurs. Nov. 29 @ 3 P.M.

Student Center, Room 401B

“Blue Moon Thursday” atHOLLA BACK OPEN MIC

Thurs. Nov. 29 @ 8 P.M.Eastside Arts Cultural Center

2277 International Blvd – E. OaklandHosted by Brother Reggie General

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Answers in December Issue