“How does it feel” D’Angelo to be objectified? …the table gets turned

Before, I get on my high horse, let me dismount and tell you that D’Angelo’s “Untitled” video was THE hottest man sexy video ever.  It could make a lesbian think twice and send a nun to a confessional.  I’m not the touch myself type, but who wouldn’t with 3 minutes of imagery like this available?

Ok, now to being serious…

So, I’m reading this article on Black Voices about how D’Angelo has finally signed up with another record company and will be working on a new album (article- Did Sex Symbol Status Kill His Career?).  The remaining (and majority) part of the article goes on about how D’Angelo really hates how his song “Untitled” and the sexy pec’ and abs bearing video that accompanied it…leaving little to the imagination…became his namesake.  It bothered him that all women wanted him to do was to take his clothes off.  I’m guessing he felt that he had more to offer as an artist.

As a woman, I can’t help but yell out a sarcastic “whoop-di-do” because it is status quo to objectify women, and women, such as myself, who resent it spend a lifetime being annoyed when going to the club and watching you menz lick your chops at the girl with the least amount of clothes on, the fact that we can make good money as an exotic dancer, how you seek to put us in your hip hop videos.

Don’t get me wrong.  I do feel for the brutha, we all live and learn.  That’s part of living.  I just wish we women could just up and walk away from our objectifying roles all at once.  Like one big planned walk out.  What would our men do then?

Cost for hanging a noose in front of Jena demonstrators? 4 months.

I swear I thought up my post title before I ran into this picture, but it just sums up my initial reaction so well. Kudos to the photographer (source- http://flickr.com/photos/35237093608@N01/1528508443).

Well, at least he got jail time, right??

Just pasting the image above (from the article I found here- http://a.abcnews.com/TheLaw/BlackHistory/story?id=4184706&page=1) brings tears to my eyes. I guess it’s just the reality of it all. Right in your face.

Do you think 4 months is adequate? Just curious. I’m not sure if putting time on a sentence “cancels out” the crime or the depth of the impact, but you could say that for a lot of crimes.

Associated Press ALEXANDRIA, La. — A Louisiana teenager who used nooses to intimidate black civil rights demonstrators was sentenced Friday to four months in federal prison.

Jeremiah Munsen, 19, of Colfax, had nooses hanging from the back of his pickup truck when he drove past people who had attended a massive civil rights march in Jena last September, according to federal prosecutors.

Munsen had faced up to a year in prison after he pleaded guilty in April to a misdemeanor charge of interfering with the marchers’ federally protected right to travel.

U.S. District Judge Dee Drell in Alexandria also sentenced Munsen to 125 hours of community service and one year of supervised release following his prison term, according to Assistant U.S. Attorney William Flanagan.

Munsen was sentenced on the same day that an anti-noose law took effect in Louisiana. The new law makes it a state crime, punishable by up to one year in prison, to try to intimidate someone with a hangman’s noose, a Deep South symbol of racial hatred.

The marchers were waiting in Alexandria for a bus home to Tennessee after protesting the criminal cases against six black teenagers charged with beating a white student at Jena High School in 2006.

A 16-year-old passenger in Munsen’s truck also was arrested, but Flanagan said he couldn’t comment on juvenile proceedings.

In a court filing last month, prosecutors said Munsen cooperated with investigators and asked Drell to impose a sentence that reflected his “substantial assistance.”

The Rev. Al Sharpton, who helped organize the march in Jena, said in a statement earlier this year that he applauded federal prosecutors for charging Munsen with a hate crime.

Munsen’s attorney, Billy Guin Jr., did not immediately return a call for comment.

Natural Hair Blog- “My Natural Hair”

I just ran across it and thought I’d share.  I haven’t read it thoroughly but she has some nice product reviews for those of you looking for new things to try.

http://mynaturalhair.wordpress.com/

Did anybody go to the Blogging While Brown conference?

I just ran across this conference online that has now past after clicking a link on Diary of a Content Black Woman’s blog (formerly called Why Black Women Are Angry), and it seemed like something I would have considered attending.  It was July 25-27, 2008 in Atlanta.

Did anyone attend?  If so, do you mind posting a comment with your thoughts?  Was it worthwhile?

If I hear good things, I’ll make plans to attend next year.

Here’s a link to the conferenece page- http://bloggingwhilebrown.com/index.html

Just another story from a black woman working in Corporate America

Ya, I bet your company had a brochure with a picture like this on the front of it with lots of words like “diversity,” “inclusion,” and “value” in it.

They were at your NSBE conferences, NBMBAA conferences, all smiles, shiny displays, the best giveaways.

You were hooked, weren’t you?

Gym onsite. Nice walking path around the building with picnic benches and maybe a little pond with a fountain.

State of the art applies to every aspect of your work experience, right?

Then your first reality check hits you and your diversity utopia, comes crumbling down like a thunderstorm on what was a beautiful day.

I don’t generally like to use this blog for me, me, me stories but I’ve got to share this with you. After a work meeting the other day, a few of us were hanging around and the subject of politics came up. Generally, that’s my cue to head for the door especially when we do have a black man running for president. I just don’t want to be around for some shit that’s gonna piss me off. Well, I was trying to finish my green tea and stuck I was.

…and then it happened….

The lady sitting right next to me found her only contribution to the conversation, “I don’t know. I’m just don’t like to vote for a president whose middle name is Hussein.“

A few people didn’t catch it (or maybe couldn’t believe their ears) and asked her to repeat it…several times, to which she did obligingly.

Shit! I just was not in the mood for getting pissed off or having to school anyone. I’ve already been tagged the angry black woman. Besides, I was chillin’, sippin’ my green tea y’all!

So, to my rescue comes a West Point grad who has traveled the world with the military and speaks a cazillion languages. The white guy who on the surface would appear like someone who would embody entitlement, but I find him intriguing. He’s well read and always brings depth to the conversation.

I went into childlike mode, literally covering my ears after she first said it and yelling (literally), “la la la la la la, I don’t want to hear this.” She still chose to repeat herself, again and again, sitting right next to me.

So Mr. West Point replies, “Well, that’s racist,” and I look at him with a thank you in my eyes for him being the one to call that out.

The rest of the room did what most people do which annoys me, try to throw a bath mat over the giant elephant of a comment by weighing in on their more “sound” political stances. One even tried to make me “feel better” by saying, “Well, I think it’s time.”

Like someone set some appointment on their Outlook calendar and they just got their 15 minute alert saying, “Remember that appointment you made to vote for a black president? Well, your time is now.”

WTF????

The Hussein-phobe eventually closed her argument with what she felt was a light hearted joke, “I guess there are ignorant people out there like me,” with a smile almost smurkish in nature.

Now for some history (this is the bonus track. you can move on with your reading of other web frivolity or read some more.)

I have been telling my husband that this lady never speaks to me and we work so closely together. She literally just doesn’t say anything to me, unless she absolutely must utter a word. I even approached her a few months back saying that I’d like to talk sometime because I feel like perhaps I’ve rubbed her the wrong way and I’d like to know what is concerning her. You know how women get (and I am a woman). They find one random thing to not like and hold onto it and justify it ’til kingdom come.

I never went back to her to talk about our rapport. I get enough of a lashing for being so vocal at work that I didn’t want to invite another opportunity. My husband immediately said she’s racist just based on the fact that she wouldn’t talk to me, but I didn’t want to believe it. You know, I’m the dreamer. A Pisces. Everything is rainbows and butterflies, but I have a tender heart and I just couldn’t bear another dose of that bitter pill that is corporate America.

Of course, I tell my husband the Hussein story and he gives me the, “I told you so.” I’m just so over it. I rejoined corporate America after going to grad school and having had my own business (that paid way more but just wasn’t fulfilling) and will likely return to my own gig (maybe this blogging will pop off) or get with another entrepreneur and work something on a smaller scale.

Not that this sole comment has tipped me over, it just comes at a time where I’m weary of all the bullshit that comes with corporate America.

Stupid racist mutha fuckas! (aaah! that felt good. and i can say it because it’s my garsh darn blog!)

p.s. you should do a google image search on “angry black woman.” the results are entertaining and actually might make you an “angry black woman” after you scroll through a few pages and see how many times Michelle Obama’s photo comes up.