Black Blogs Lost, Black Blogs Dead

I now know why the Field Negro told me last year to keep writing, even if it is a paragraph. I understand why Rippa told me that it is hard out here for a blogger to stay motivated and energized.

It is because the number of blogs have died tremendously. It is like a reappropriation of a Nas mixtape entitled, "Black Blogs are Dead".

Maybe it is more than that, more like, the good blogs shall inherit the internet domain. I mean dagggg, blogs are dropping faster than strippers' panties, and believe me folks, I am not one of them. I have just been absorbing this conundrum of life and have been writing offline in other important matters.

I asked myself, "Ecosoul, why have so many blogs died?" There are many ways to explain this Darwinian phenomenon of the dying black blogs.

Blogs are A LOT of work to manage; especially when you are doing them alone, without any pay, and feel like you are just writing out in space without little to no feedback. And when you are actually writing original pieces on original topics with your own thought, that even presents another labor that is done in love, and thanklessly.

Which leads to my other angle to the depreciation of blogs. Since people don't read at length anymore and want fast food notes that are about four sentences long including the title, a lot of people just recycle the same shit posted in 80% of gossip or gossip news without their own spin.

Like that Pac song, "Every other city I go, all on the video, no matter where I go, I see the same hoe." Excuse the misogynistic citation, but blogs have become some what of a news brothel. Stank nasty, overused snippets of fishy things that are recirculated on CNN and Fox every hour. For the last two years, the same blogs talk about the same shit, with the same tag lines and speaking points.

Plus, black blogs just don't get the funding or the love like they need to expand. You hear about these simple blogs that become these media giants, and they seem so innocent. There is the fantasy that is distributed that goes something like this "Peggy started with $10 and turned her shoe love into a million dollar online shopping Bonanza. And you can too! (gush, cheer and applause)"

Truth be told, those Cinderalla stories are far, far, far and few between, and take a lot of backing that we rarely, rarely see.

Lemme give you a little intel on the online/digital community, it takes a shitload of investment money and labor to position yourself as successful (meaning financially lucrative) in the digital community. And definitely time and labor for them to grow and thrive.

Finally, black blogs simply fall behind on the latest gadgets and online knowledge to expand and keep up, along with the time and work it takes to maintain them. Simply put, one way or another, you have to put dinero into the product to see it grow. Or you get burned out and die.

So what can the readers do to keep us motivated? Read, respond and encourage. Plus, if we have a product or an event, attend and support. It won't hurt, but will sincerely help black blogs thrive.

Blog on....EcoSoul

Too Black and Not Black Enough, Classism and the Untold Tale of Two Black Cities

Yesterday, charges were dropped against Harvard professor and W.E.B. DuBois Institute director, Henry Louis Gates, Jr. who was arrested for disorderly conduct when he complained about the actions of Cambridge, Mass. law enforcement for obvious racial profiling activities. Just back from working on a documentary in China, Gates was identified as a possible suspect when an officer passing by his residence noticed the lauded African-American scholar and his driver attempting to unhinge a jammed front door.

After the “misunderstanding” was somewhat cleared up, an upset Gates expressed his disappointment, which led to him being taken into custody. Resultantly, the Harvard community was in an uproar once word of the incident spread. The “liberal” reputation that the small enclave of Harvard Square happily touted was now receiving a downpour of what some saw as undeserved criticism.

The Gates case has added to the blatant events of racism that are reawakening the grave race issue in America. This dialogue is shadowing the era of Obama where a cry of a post-racial conscious had been celebrated by many idealists, but seen as a dangerous delusion by those who knew better to jump too soon.

However, there is a troubling fissure in this dialogue and debate. Another serious issue that is being swept under the rug is class issues in the African-American community.

Several months ago, a burgeoning female scholar by the name of Chanequa Campbell, who hails from Brooklyn, NY, was kicked out of her campus dormitory and not allowed to graduate for her association to a murder suspect. More specifically, she was the friend of the suspect’s girlfriend. The confusing part of this case is that while Campbell was banned and not allowed to graduate, the suspect’s girlfriend, Brittany Smith did graduate and is allowed on campus grounds.


Campbell, who says she is from a poor family and was not part of the black elite student circle, has pointed out that it is because of her socio-economic status that she was treated in such a way, and without the support of black Harvard students or faculty. The silence of black Harvard in the case of Campbell drastically contrasting the racket made in support of Gates illuminates the serious class issues that have caused serious boiling points in the African-American community.

Gates is an established historian known most recently for his documentary, “African American Lives,” a series that connects noted African-Americans back to their complex lineages such as Oprah Winfrey, Tina Turner, and Morgan Freeman. He is at the zenith of his career. He has achieved what many scholars dream.

On the other hand, Chanequa Campbell was at the beginning of her academic journey. She too has been praised for her academic success, but since her dismissal, her whole life trajectory is questionable. At a time when Campbell needed the utmost guidance and support from black Harvard faculty and peers, she was quietly disregarded, suggesting that her less-than-desirable background would possibly mar the reputation of blacks on campus.

Though many do not like to acknowledge the classism in African-American communities, it is prevalent throughout the group. It is a hideous historical social construct that is determined by more than wealth, but also skin color and hair texture (espcially for women), education level, and sadly how distant is one’s slave lineage.

Ironically, Gates, who in his African-American heritage series repeatedly points out the “white ” blood in him, so much so, that he smiles in delight when a DNA scientist tells him that he has more white blood than black, is nothing but black when the police come. Yet he is not “too” black to be rallied and insulated by the black and white Harvard community. Yet Campbell, with her Brooklyn roots, who is a darker, young woman with blatant West African features, is too black, even for black Harvard.

Like in the days of DuBois, who was proud of his European ancestry (Dutch and French) and his Massachusetts roots from a community of free people of color who were educated and reasonably prosperous; his pedigree, which also included his physical characteristics, were perfect for the black elite of that time. DuBois’ elitist ideology was so heavy a belief that he campaigned for blacks to support his vision of the “Talented Tenth” or a group of black intelligentsia that would further the black race and lead the rest of the group. This idea was heavily contested by other thinkers and black activists of the time, but the idea and practice of an insulated, crème de la crème, black circle still remains.

It is not surprising that Gates’ (or should I say gatekeeper's) name has been saved, and in some eyes, has been elevated, while someone like Campbell, who could’ve been the next Gates or Oprah, or perhaps furthered his work, is now forgotten.

****RETRACTION*****When I wrote this article, I pulled a write up from the NY Post that said in a May 25, 2009 report, Brittany Smith was not barred from campus. However, in a Newsweek report I saw yesterday, Smith was not allowed to graduate like Campbell.