Black Jesus.com

Nappy Hair Is Good Hair? Some Black Women Are Missing The Point Of Chris Rock’s "Good Hair" Movie

Chris Rock has been criticized by some Black women 

for telling family business. They don’t want it known

that they are among those that spend billions of dollars

trying to get and keep straight hair.

 

I don’t want to debate whether it’s a waste of time

and money for some Black women to be obsessed with trying

to alter their God given beauty of having naturally curly hair to

persuing a Caucasian, Euro standard of beauty.

 

Biblical and scientific proof says that Jesus had hair like wool so

he must have gotten it from his mother.

 

"His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire; 15 And his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice as the sound of many waters." (Rev. 1:14 and 1:15)

"His body also was like the beryl, and his face as the appearance of lightning, and his eyes as lamps of fire, and his arms and his feet like in colour to polished brass, and the voice of his words like the voice of a multitude." (Daniel 10:6)

 

 

But What Are We Doing To Our Children's Natural Hair?

 

That’s at the heart of this movie. Are some Black women so insecure

with their own natural beauty that they are willing to compromise who

they are in the pursuit of someone else’s standards? And in this blind,

senseless quest, some are sending the wrong message to our children.

And in some cases permanently damaging their daugters hair  follicles

with exposure to the lye used in chemical relaxers to straighten the hair.

 

Recent studies have revealed that of all the teenagers in the US,

Black female teens are the most insecure about their appearance.

Most don’t believe that they are as pretty. Why? Because some

parents, the media and their peers, who are confused themselves,

tell them such.

 

The other important point of  the “Good Hair” movie that

many are missing is economics. A key point that most

Black people are failing  to understand in our every day lives.

 

Black women spend $9 billion dollars on their hair annually,

buying 70% of all hair extensions, weaves, and

hair care products in the United States, largely from

Asian suppliers and very little of this money is spent with

Black owned companies.  Of the  26 Black owned hair product

manufacturing companies that existed in the mid 70's, there

are only 2 left today. We have no one else to blame but ourselves.

 

Black Women Must Define Their Own Beauty

And Spend Money In Their Own Interests.

 

Madame CJ Walker in 1920 became the first Black female millionaire

by providing hair care products that created jobs, when the greater

market totally ignored the beauty needs of Black women. Yet her

brand is no where to be found today.

 

 

The newly appointed President of Xerox Corporation

Ursula Burns and Julianne Malveaux, President of Bennette College

have been successful either because of or

dispite not compromising their own natural beauty.

 

You will almost never find an Asian or a Jewish women having

their hair done by another nationality, while they happily

spend billions with someone else who doesn’t look like them

and doesn't have their interests at heart.

 

When will  we realize for the sake of our children and

our future;  To whom you give your money to, you

give your power.

 

Black unemployment today is way above 25% in most of our communities.

 

I have always told my daughters how naturally beautiful their

black curly hair and dark brown are and to not let their hair or 

body speak for their brains.

 

All women and all hair are Beautifully Good. As Black people, once we

truly embrace our own unique beauty, the rest of the world will too.

We come in all shades, with all kinds of hair. We must embrace our

own diversity. We understood this during the Civil Rights Movement

but some of us  have lost our way. To find your way back.....

Join The Nappy Hair Affair.

 

What do you think?

The fear of Black skin by some whites and some blacks

I have seen white people who are as pale as a glass of milk, yet I have never heard someone white talk about how white and pale another Caucasion is. Yet I have heard a few whites as well as some blacks talk about how dark an athletic, model or celebrity is.

Some of you may be to young to remember how Negros in college sororities in the 50"s and 60's would be given the manila envelope test. If you were darker than the manila envelope then you couldn't get in.  A recent report by John Stossel on ABC 2020 showed that many producers of music videos primarily select light skin black females to be the devia's and dark skin girls to be the hoochies. On this segment, young black boys indicated their preference for light skin girsl. Our kids are to young to realize that they are the victims of brain washing. Ask the average African American teenage boy to describe a beautiful girl and you will see what I'm talking about. By having so few Beautiful dark and brown skin Black women who are displayed as beautiful in magazines ,commercials and movies, this allows someone else to impose their standard of beauty on you.What makes it worse is that so many Black men have bought into it...what do you think?

The Black Church And Some Ministers Who Lead Us Astray

As I've traveled across the US in recent years, visiting most inner city Black communities, the only new construction I see are Black Churches surrounded by run down neighborhoods. Yes there are exceptions, but there are few. I don't see new housing, retail stores, new play grounds. Don't these ministers think that the same financing that builds a church can be extended to these other services.  As I flip the channel on Sunday morning , I see more Black preachers in custom made suits, but few are talking about how we improve the economic, educational or physical condition of Black people. Many talk about what we must do to save our souls but even fewer talk about saving our children, our communities and ourselves with a real plan of action.

The Millionaire Pastors!

How Do You Feel About Properity Preachers?

Who profits from Black consumers & How much we buy?

African Americans are proportionately the largest users of mouthwash, deoderant , soap, toilet paper, cough medicine, laxitives and lotion. We spend over $10 billion yearly on our hair. We spend $60 billion on food in the grocery stores annually and this doesn't include fast food where we spend around $25 billion annually. Proportionately, we are major purchasers of athletic shoes and apparel. Yet, can you name for me any products sold in your local supermarket or drug store that come from Black own companies? Maybe 1 or 2. Lets look around our communities. Do you see any Black owned retail stores. Think about your average week. Do you spend any money with businesses that you know are Black owned? Even franchises, how many of those are Black owned, proportionate to what we spend. Very, very few. There are less than a handful of Black owned BMW, Toyota and Mercedes Benz dealerships nationwide, yet we love to buy these cars. Don't get me started about the diamond ear rings that young brothers like to wear in both ears.

Why do we love companies and their products that don't love us back? Our purchases create companies, jobs ,opportunities and wealth for everyone else but ourselves. Foreigners coming to America know that the easiest and cheapest place for them to set up a family business is in the Black community. They are told that African Americans really don't care who they buy from. We don't seem to really understand the basic principles of economics and survival. If we don't begin to do business with ourselves, then who will.  Now lets look at other minority groups. Every major city has a China town where many Asians shop. Furthermore these shops hire Asian employees. The same is true for Hispanics who are now the largest minority group in America. A recent survey in the Wall Street Journal says employers increasingly prefer to hire Hispanics over Blacks. This is only going to get worse....

Many minority groups are now using the power of the internet to help redirect their  spending and build wealth for themselves and their family. Please share your ideas for real economic emplowerment....

Black athletics and white coaches and white cheer leaders.

Lets look at the real numbers. In college division one football there are only 5 Black head coaches despite many of the starting players being African American. This is even more true for division one basketball.  Many of these coaches are making well over $2 million a year.

The University of Texas, accoording to CNBC, made over $63 million off of its football program this year. Its coach makes over $3 million a year. If you extended this over all the division one foot ball teams, then these colleges are making millions off of these Black student athletics. But they don't want to hire any of their former players as head coaches or assistants, once or if they graduate.

The college boosters concede that you need these young black bucks to be competitive, but they have told the schools, just make sure that this doesn't bleed over to the coaching ranks, because we are the one who write the checks.

The NFL is a little better better. 68% of the players are African American and they finally do have a handful of Black head coaches. But when they had 9 vacancies this season, most owners decided to hire all white first years coaches who never had NFL coaching experience before. The message seems to be clear.....Black man, you can perform on the field, but when your playing days are over, we have no more use for you...What do you think?

New Orleans clean up and other headlines

A recent survey indicated that over 80 % of African Americans who were flodded out of New Orleanswon't come back. Despite the willingness and generousity of blacks and white from across the country to help, it still takes money to start a new life. Money comes from jobs. I think knowing this survey, New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin was desperately finding a way to get more Black New Orleanians to come home:

In his speech, he said, "It's time for us to come together. It's time for us to rebuild New Orleans - the one that should be a chocolate New Orleans." Nagin added, "This city will be a majority African American city. It's the way God wants it to be. You can't have New Orleans no other way. It wouldn't be New Orleans."

I think this is a comment that should have been kept at his dinner table. By stating this publicallythere will now be those who will want to make sure the demographics will never be the way they were. What do you think?

Hurricane Katrina - Hurricane Song

Million Man! stop marching and start doing. Time is running out.

I was deeply moved by the last Million Man March in 1996. As a Black man, I knew that the over 1 million Black men who decended on Washington DC came out of the hurt and pain they were feeling but more importantly they came with the desire for change. What kind of change? Economic.

All men, no matter what race, want to have the money to provide for their families. Earning a living is not easy for anyone, but it has been increasingly more difficult for many Black men. I watched CNN that day and heard all the speechs. I heard all the wolf  tickets about what whites need to do for us. But I did not hear a plan of what we are going to do for ourselves. There was no system in place to collect the names. address, phone, numbers or email address of every Black man that was there to follow up with a plan.

Who made money from the march? Let me see.....the airlines, bus, trains and gas stations made money from Black men who needed to get there . The hotels made money from the folks who needed a place to stay. The restaurants, street vendors and convenience stores made money feeding these hungry Black men. But after it ended what happened...NOTHING.

Jump ahead 9 years and there is another Million Man March. Do you think the organizers and the speech makers learned from the mistakes of the past and decided that this time we are going to offer a plan. Better yet an economic plan to help Black people better direct the $500 billion we spend in this economy toward impowering ourselves. Again, there were wolf tickets and chest beating but nothing came out of it.  And the same people who made money on the first march, were there to make money again.

Oh I forgot to mention, the shoes companies also made money from all the brothers who needed new shoes after marching...What do you think?

How Important Is Black History Month?

Most students, black and white go through 12 years of school learning very little about Black History beyond the fact that we were slaves. Students know little of the significant political, social and scientific contributions African Americans have made in the building of America. This lack of knowledge leads most whites to a false sense of superiority and black children to a sense of inferiority. Black History is American history and until it is incorporated in all American History classes for all grade levels, we will continue to have a lack of understanding and respect of African Americans. What do you think?

Today is National Black HIV/Aids Awareness Day

We are 12% of the US population ,yet we now account for over 50% of all HIV cases. Recently, the New Black Leadership Coalition applauded President George Bush's call during last Tuesday night's State of the Union Address to reauthorize a modernized and improved Ryan White Comprehensive AIDS Resources Emergency (CARE) Act. Up for reauthorization by Congress in 2006, the Ryan White Act must be modernized to alleviate inequities in treatment, primarily affecting the poor and minority Americans, according to the PR Newswire.

But the least we can all do today is buy a package of condoms . Use them and give them to our friends and relatives who aren't married and who are sexually active. We must constantly warn our young people of the dangers of unprotected sex. Our future as a people depends on it. What do you think...

Thank You Coretta Scott King. You will be greatly missed.

Behind every great man is truly a great women.  She carried on the torch of freedom for Black people and all people.  She was not content to be the widow of one the greatest men history has ever known. She knew it was her responsibility to carry on and that she did with dignity and strength. If you need to be reminded of just how great she was, please visit and listen to this page.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5180053

Over 1 million Black Males In Prison in the US and growing.....

Have you ever thought about the long term implications of what it means for a race of people to have over 1 million of their males locked away during their most productive years?  At this time lets not address whether they belong locked up or not. Let's just concentrate on the numbers and what they could mean to the future of Black people in America.

Based on the rate of incarceration, 32% of Black males will enter the state or federal prison system during their life time. And we wonder why are there so many Black single mother households. Some will tell you that Black people, especially Black males, are more prone to crime. Some how it must be in our genes. But they will never tell you that the prison industry is a $41 billion a year market, that creates jobs and business for construction , food , furniture, uniform and personal care product companies who are primarily white and who hire very few Black employees.

They won't tell you that many white communities beg to have prison facilities built near by because of the amount of jobs and supply contacts they generate.  But in order to keep all of this going, you must have a steady flow of customers....prison inmates. Corrections Corporation of America, one of the largest publicly traded prison operators in the country, generates over $3.5 billion a year. Nationally, an average of  $60,000 a year in tax dollars is spent on incarcerating each inmate.

There are mothers and fathers who don't have sons, children who don't have fathers, Black women who won't have husbands, and young Black women who are increasingly finding it harder to find a mate, because so many, who might have potential, are locked up. Look at the hard numbers that tell the real story... http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/crimoff.htm ...and tell us what you think.

"We Can Not Build Enough Prisons To Solve This Problem" says Presidential candidate John Edwards.

Break A Leg Nigger..that's what's posted on Gold Metalist's Shani Davis' website.

Maya Angelou was thinking of you Shani Davis, when she wrote the historic poem "And Still I Rise". Despite few commercial endorsements and support from some of your USA team mates, you are now in the history books as a gold metal winner from the South Side of Chicago. While most of the recent posts of Shani's great accomplishment are supportative, here is just one example of what he had to deal with as he kept his eyes focused on the prize.

BREAK A LEG NIGGER
SELFISH BASTARD LOOKS OUT ONLY FOR HIS SELFISH PERSONAL GOALS AND COULD GIVE A SHIT ABOUT THE TEAM, LET HIM BREAK A LEG, FAIL TO MEDAL AND DRAG HIS NIGGER ASS HOME.
Posted by snowhound on 14 February 2006.

I invite you to visit his site http://www.shanidavis.org/ and come back and share your thoughts.

Life Without Black People

I had a friend of mine sent me this excellent piece of prose about Black History for me to share:

LIFE WITHOUT BLACK PEOPLE
A very humorous and revealing story is told about a
group of white people who were fed up with African-
Americans, so they joined together and wished
them away. They passed through a deep dark
tunnel and emerged in sort of a twilight zone where
there is an America without black people.

At first these white people breathed a sigh of relief.
At last, they said, no more crime, drugs, violence and
welfare. All of the blacks have gone!

Then suddenly, reality set in. The "NEW AMERICA" is
Not America at all--only a barren land.

1. There are very few crops that have flourished
Because the nation was built on a slave-supported
system.

2. There are no cities with tall skyscrapers because
Alexander Mils, a black man, invented the elevator,
And without it, one finds great difficulty reaching
higher floors.

3. There are few if any cars because Richard Spikes, a
Black man, invented the automatic gearshift, Joseph
Gambol, also black, invented the Super Charge System
for Internal Combustion Engines, and Garrett A.
Morgan, a black man, invented the traffic signals.

4. Furthermore, one could not use the rapid transit
system because its predecessor was the electric
trolley,
which was invented by another black man, Albert R.
Robinson.

5. Even if there were streets on which cars and a
rapid transit system could operate, they were
cluttered with paper because an African American,
Charles Brooks invented the street sweeper.

6. There were few if any newspapers, magazines and
books because John Love invented the pencil sharpener,
William Purveys invented the fountain pen and Lee
Barrage invented the Type Writing Machine and W. A.
Love invented the Advanced Printing Press. They were
all, you guessed it, Black.

7. Even if Americans could write their letters,
articles and books, they would not have been
transported by mail because William Barry invented the
Postmarking and Canceling Machine, William Purveys
invented the Hand Stamp and Philip Downing invented
the Letter Drop.

8. The lawns were brown and wilted because Joseph
Smith invented the Lawn Sprinkler and John Burr the
Lawn Mower.

9. When they entered their homes, they found them to
be poorly ventilated and poorly heated. You see,
Frederick Jones invented the Air Conditioner and Alice
Parker the Heating Furnace. Their homes were also dim.
But of course, Lewis Later invented the Electric Lamp,
Michael Harvey invented the lantern and Granville T.
Woods invented the Automatic Cut off Switch. Their
homes were also filthy because Thomas W. Steward
invented the Mop & Lloyd P. Ray the Dust Pan.

10. Their children met them at the door--barefooted,
Shabby, motley and unkempt. But what could one expect?
Jan E. Matzelinger invented the Shoe Lasting Machine,
Walter Sammons Invented the Comb, Sarah Boone
invented the Ironing Board and George T. Samon
invented the Clothes Dryer.

11. Finally, they were resigned to at least have
dinner amidst all of this turmoil. But here again, the
food had spoiled because another Black man, John
Standard invented the refrigerator.

Now, isn't that something? What would this country be
like without the contributions of Blacks, as

African-Americans?

Martin Luther King, Jr. said, "By the time we leave
for work, Americans have depended on the inventions
from the minds of Blacks."

Black history includes more than just slavery,
Frederick Douglass, Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm
X, and Marcus Garvey & W.E.B. Dubois.

What do you think..........

"America's High Tech "Invisible Man"

Having worked in the media for years where I saw and see very few African Americans in highly visible news editorial positions, you can understand why very few stories about us as hero and victim ever get much exposure. But when we are the assailant or perpetrator, only then do we get the front page or the lead story, as if to say I told you so. Stories about our accomplishments make some of those who have a false sense of superiority feel very uncomfortable. In this age of technology, here is an African American you need to know about and applaud.

"America's High Tech "Invisible Man"
By Tyrone D. Taborn

You may not have heard of Dr. Mark Dean. And you aren't alone. But almost
everything in your life has been affected by his work.

See, Dr. Mark Dean is a Ph.D. from Stanford University. He is in the
National Hall of Inventors. He has more than 30 patents pending. He is a
vice president with IBM. Oh, yeah. And he is also the architect of the
modern-day personal computer. Dr. Dean holds three of the original nine patents on the computer that all PCs are based upon. And, Dr. Mark Dean is an African American.

So how is it that we can celebrate the 20th anniversary of the IBM personal
computer without reading or hearing a single word about him? Given all of
the pressure mass media are under about negative portrayals of African
Americans on television and in print, you would think it
would be a slam dunk to highlight someone like Dr. Dean.

Somehow, though, we have managed to miss the shot. History is cruel when it comes to telling the stories of African Americans. Dr. Dean isn't the first
Black inventor to be overlooked Consider John Stanard, inventor of the
refrigerator, George Sampson, creator of the clothes dryer,
Alexander Miles and his elevator, Lewis Latimer and the electric lamp. All
of these inventors share two things:

One, they changed the landscape of our society; and, two, society relegated
them to the footnotes of history. Hopefully, Dr. Mark Dean won't go away as
quietly as they did. He certainly shouldn't. Dr. Dean helped start a Digital
Revolution that created people like Microsoft's Bill Gates and Dell
Computer's Michael Dell. Millions of jobs in information technology can be
traced back directly to Dr. Dean.

More important, stories like Dr. Mark Dean's should serve as inspiration for
African-American children. Already victims of the "Digital Divide" and
failing school systems, young, Black kids might embrace technology with more enthusiasm if they knew someone like Dr. Dean already was leading the way.

Although technically Dr. Dean can't be credited with creating the computer
-- that is left to Alan Turing, a pioneering 20th-century English mathematician, widely considered to be the father of modern computer science.
-- Dr. Dean rightly deserves to take a bow for the machine we use today. The computer really wasn't practical for home or small business use until he came along, leading a team that developed the interior architecture (ISA systems bus) that enables multiple devices, such as modems and printers, to be connected to personal computers.

In other words, because of Dr. Dean, the PC became a part of our daily
lives. For most of us, changing the face of society would have been enough.
But not for Dr. Dean. Still in his early forties, he has! a lot of inventing
left in him.

He recently made history again by leading the design team responsible for
creating the first 1-gigahertz processor chip.. It's just another huge step
in making computers faster and smaller. As the world congratulates itself
for the new Digital Age brought on by the personal computer, we need to
guarantee that the African-American story is part of the hoopla surrounding
the most stunning technological advance the world has ever seen. We cannot afford to let Dr. Mark Dean become a footnote in history. He is well worth his own history book.

The Angry Black Woman?

70% Of Black Women Are Single!

What Opra fails to deal with is the intentional marginalization of the Black male, but this topic doesn't make for good television.