PURE SWEETNESS IS...

¿CARAMEL?

OR...

¿CHOCOLATE? 

EQUALITY IS A RIGHT, NOT A PRIVILEGE!

A chapter has closed. After almost two years of a grueling campaign that included SHAKING COUNTLESS HANDS, TRAVELING TO & SPEAKING IN SMALL TOWNS/LARGE URBAN AREAS, BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA II is president elect of the United States. For some that is a nightmare, others the result of what Langston Hughes called A DREAM DEFERRED. With the realization of this dream, some of us were disappointed because as a VERY important event took place, another NEVER happened. It was a difficult night for same-sex marriage advocates. Florida and Arizona voters supported same sex marriage bans. Out in California, Proposition 8 numbers are still coming in and it’s going to be tight. IF ONLY PEOPLE UNDERSTOOD THAT ALL GAY PEOPLE WANT IS TO BE LEFT ALONE TO LIVE THE LIFE THAT MAKES THEM HAPPY. This loss shows that ALL quests for EQUALITY & FREEDOM will ALWAYS face obstacles. So for right now, the future of gay families has taken a big step backward, but NOT that far back. Though this was a sad night there are signs of hope…The Prop 8 vote was very close (it passed by a 52 to 48 margin); but eight years ago, a similar measure passed by a much wider margin (61 percent) before being overturned by the California Supreme Court. Hence, the last word on gay marriage is almost certain to come from the U.S. Supreme Court—where the election of Barack Obama is expected to lead to appointments much more sympathetic to OUR rights than the current Court. THE ELECTION’S OVER, THE CHAMPAGNE’S BEEN DRUNK, FOR SOME THE SOBBING HAS SLOWED TO SNIFFLES, & ALL THAT’S LEFT IS TO FIGURE OUT HOW THE OUTCOME OF THIS ELECTION IS GOING TO HAVE A POSITIVE IMPACT ON US…TODAY, WE ARE LEFT RIGHT WHERE WE STARTED, BUT I DON’T FEEL THAT WE SHOULD LOOSE HEART BECAUSE OUR HEARTS N’ MINDS ARE ON THE FUTURE & OUR FOCUS IS ON THE BIGGER ROAD AHEAD…

ON HIS OWN TERMS...

Barack Hussein Obama II wrote his name indelibly into the pages of American history, engineering a social and political upheaval to become the country's first black resident-elect on his own terms, strategically AND symbolically. Obama stepped through a door opened 145 years ago when Abraham Lincoln, a fellow Illinois politician, issued the Emancipation Proclamation that freed African-Americans from enslavement in the rebellious South in the midst of a wrenching civil war. Though it took some time to happen, he is here standing on the shoulders of those that came before him with his head held high. But it is my opinion that this couldn’t have happen with just any man; it had to be the RIGHT man. There needed to be someone that could give the people HOPE and a BELIEF that they should be invisible no longer. You can tell that he took this walk NOT because he felt he had, but because he WANTED to. A man such as this knows that there is INJUSTICE n’ STRIFE that is killing humanity and he knows that someone has to take up the torch and become a beacon that’ll light the way… This light reflects the accuracy of his vision of a reshaped world. Last night, his VICTORY turned RACISM, HOMOPHOBIA & POVERTY into a footnote of time. Like he said, "this victory alone is not the change we seek; it is only the chance to make that change." As grand as the symbolism of Obama’s victory was, it was also a victory for his steady HEART, SOUL & MIND…NOW THAT WE HAVE SEEN WHAT CHANGE CAN DO, HOW ABOUT WE ALL TAKE THIS ENERGY, HARNESS IT & CONTINUE TO BRING ABOUT CHANGE IN OUR LIVES?

THE VOTE THAT WILL CHANGE THE WORLD

MAKE IT COUNT AMERICA!!!

THE EDGE OF HISTORY...

For a while, I’ve been BITTER, UNINTERESTED & CLOSED to the notion AND thought of Barack Obama becoming the FIRST BLACK PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. My reasons were many and I am sure that there are MANY of you out that would agree with them on some level, but those don’t matter right about now. The ONLY thing that had me SO unmovable was the fact that the candidate that I was supporting (HILLARY CLINTON) had to be demonized AND vilified to justify why Barack should be the nominee. It hurt me SO much to see that things happened the way they did, but now I can say that it was for the best. I know that many may say NO, but it is MY opinion that Barack Obama wouldn’t have become the nominee if Hillary wasn’t who she is. I came to see her place in the whole scheme of things and I couldn’t agree with her anymore when she said that YOU HAVE TO BLOOM WHERE YOU ARE PLANTED. That statement made sense to me AND it put things in perspective…CHANGE HAS COME TO AMERICA and I was foolish for wishing AND thinking that the OTHER party should win. Colin Powell said it best when he said, “I truly believe that at this point in America’s history we need a president who will not just continue...basically the policies we have followed in recent years,” “We need a president with transformational qualities.” For that reason, he said, “I will be voting for Barack Obama.” That statement along with Hillary’s showed me that I had it all wrong. I mean how could I NOT see the journey of this man that WILL takes us down a winding road of constant evolution? With him, we will be provided with a MULTITUDE of opportunities that can allow us to transform into our next best selves. And during these moments of awareness, WE can take that step to change. I am NO longer asleep to the truth behind the glass and NO matter what happens, I say that I BELIEVE…I BELIEVE

BECOMING WHOLE…AGAIN…

We are experiencing a TREMENDOUS amount of loss the likes of which of which the world has NEVER seen; and @ the center of it all is America. For about 8 years there as has been NOTHING and in a matter of time the tide will turn…We’ve been given the gift of choice that will allow us to go DEEPER within ourselves to rediscover the light amidst the seeming darkness. For far too long we’ve been living in shock AND denial and I am asking that we as humans RELEASE our pain, STOP fearing the unknown AND LET go of the people places AND things that we’ve lost. If we don’t, we are @ risk for becoming a stagnant AND destructive force in our own lives and the world around us. So in order for the WORLD TO BECOME WHOLE…AGAIN, we have to tear down AND rebuild. OUR collective lights have to BURN BRIGHTLY so that OUR souls can shine AND manifest itself in the manner it should. NO longer should we crawl under rocks AND hide, we need to take OUR place and set things right. None of us are meant to hide; each one of us radiates a unique brilliance that is meant to illuminate the world. And I am begging that we STEP out of the wings AND letting OUR light shine…IN THIS WORLD WE ALL HAVE A RESPONSIBILITY TO CONTRIBUTE TO WHAT IS RIGHT, GOOD & TRUE. SOMETIMES WE ONLY GET ONE CHANCE TO DO THIS, SO WE HAVE TO MAKE IT COUNT…SO AS AMERICA THE WORLD LEADER GETS THE BALL ROLLING IT IS UP TO EACH OF US TO KEEP THINGS MOVING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION…SO SHINE YOUR LIGHT OUT INTO THE WORLD FROM THIS DAY FORTH, BLESS THOSE AROUND & WATCH THE UNIVERSE GLOW AS IT IS BECOMING WHOLE…AGAIN…

U WILL KNOW WHAT FREEDOM IS…

Black Men United (B.M.U.) was a collaboration of many African-American male R&B, Hip-Hop and Soul music artists. The sole song "U Will Know", written by a young D'Angelo, was released in 1994. It was featured in the movie Jason's Lyric and on the movie's soundtrack.

FREEDOM was a 1995 song released on Mercury Records featuring a chorus of over 60 African-American female artists and groups of note in hip-hop, pop and R&B music including Aaliyah, Mary J. Blige, MC Lyte, En Vogue, SWV, TLC, and Monica.

GIVEN WHAT WILL HAPPEN IN THE NEXT 3 DAYS, I THOUGHT THE ALL-STAR RECORDING OF BOTH SONGS WERE APPROPRIATE. THEIR MESSAGES RESONATE THE PLIGHT OF A NATION THAT NEEDS TO BE FIXED & I FEEL THAT AMERICA IS ON IT’S WAY THERE…SO I HOPE THAT ENERGY FROM THESE SONGS BEGIN THE HEALING PROCESS…