London Olympics Entry #3: Gabby Douglas and Hair Politics

I write this journal entry particularly to the black women who thought Gabby Douglas' hair was inappropriate or unkempt.

While the rest of the US are celebrating a newly minted American hero, some Negroes are fuming over something as petty as her hair. I guess this is what happens when the emphasis for black women has become how one looks in the eyes of others, even if it is to her own detriment.

Tis true, we are the first to attack our own about our coily tresses; however, if you are a black woman, you know the first tormentor regarding your kinky aesthetic looks just like you.

But since a good portion of black women in the United States have been locked into years of relaxers, flat irons, extensions and weaves, we don't even know what their natural hair really looks like anymore, nor how to care for it.

I am sure most of these critics look in the mirror and see their thinning or disintegrated edges, male-patterned baldness at the crown, severe breakage and empty patches where hair used to reside, and still think Gabby's hair is a mess.


But this time, as you attempt to project your self-deprecation, something I understand is not all of your own-doing, I am telling all of you to step the fuck off.

Keep your 'Buckwheat' images tucked into the orifice of your arse. And don't come crying to people like me when a non-black person calls you a nappy-headed ho.


Our tresses do not wisp about in the wind. They roll and wine in spirals like a Trini Calypso song during Carnival. We are not Snow White, no matter how biracial and octoroonish you may think you are, our edges will forever puff up in resistance like a Zulu army.

SPOILER ALERT FOR MEN WHO DATE BLACK WOMEN: If you have only seen us with relaxed, pressed hair and tracks or weaves for years than it is highly likely that there is not much to work with. Case and point, Naomi Campbell

Lupe Fiasco Pushes Against the Machine with Lyrics, Sweat and Tears

Of course people would argue that Lupe Fiasco's tearful interview explaining the continual violence, gross disenfranchisement and hopelessness in his hometown of West Side Chicago should be the very reason why he should vote.

On the contrary, it has provided the impetus for him to be vocal about not voting and seeing it useless for the average person whose interests are never served.

Lupe's perspective, in truth, is the reason why black and brown youth are ever so turned off about the voting process 4 years since they largely participated in the 2008 presidential elections.

Though they say politics are local, the youth were reined into the national election, thus staying mis-educated about the issues on the local level. There is a difference between casting a ballot and being politically active; however, most "activists" were not interested in that part of the equation. You see, mentoring youth and their activists so that they can understand the importance of localized political engagement would only mess up Sharpton's time at the salon to get his edges retouched.

As a result, local politics remained the same---completely failing and disregarding the same population that was mobilized to vote for them.

Nonetheless, this reality also pushes Lupe to be politically engaged in his music and beyond.

Lupe who  is currently providing, free, healthy food during Ramadan, articulates the contradictions and ironies he sees in US policies and social order. Lupe's latest single, "Freedom Ain't Free" provides insight into the conundrum, corporate exploitation and chaos that the average young person navigates in the midst of profiling, unemployment, and streamlined resources to be a productive citizen.

I agree with Lupe when he states in his latest single, "America’s a big motherfuckin’ garbageman." And as he says in the interview, this system has eaten and thrown away many of his peers. The brilliant and provocative emcee who also attended and supported Occupy Wall Street pointed out in this interview that some of cats on his block are either imprisoned or dead, haunting him today as harsh testaments that black and brown Chicago communities and blighted and burning.

The MTV interview showed a previous Lupe interview when he first came out six years prior. He was a hood kid who used skating as a way to balance his life. When he went to the other side of town, the place he called home, he described is displeasure with the high levels of disenfranchisement that his community endures.

The two frames are juxtaposed realities that the average inner city youth lives. On one hand, we are entrenched with visuals and realities of social-political-cultural implosion from Brooklyn to Oakland , but on the other hand, we live a parallel to an alternative life of the hipster movement, a commercialized, and fresh-faced Justin Bieber-esk campaign that borrows heavily from our culture, minus the poverty and prison records.

And that is how a lot of us youth live, even if we have made it, we must all go home. Even if we are second and third generation "middle and upper class" black people, we all have family members who are struggling. And while Lupe enjoys the lightness he feels in his career choice, his travels, and his evolution as a human, he wears the weight of his people on his shoulders.

Though Pete Rock is pissed that Lupe took his legendary beat that was used in "They Reminisce Over You (TROY)," a song that memorializes friend Trouble T, he is simply the pot calling the kettle black since he stole it from Tom Scott and the California's Dreamer's song "Today".

Love the lyrics in Lupe's shit. Rip it brother on both ends.

Profound line
Crucifixes, racism and the land grab/Katrina, Fema trailers, human body sand bags

Another dope line
Say that we should protest/Just to arrested/That goes against all my hustling ethics/A bunch jail niggas say its highly ineffective

Speaking truth line

Down at the Lakota Sioux casino/A whole culture boiled down to given you Pokeno

Get More: Lupe Fiasco, Music News

New Orleans Culture 101: Dialect and Food

(top photo: pralines like my mama be making, oh yeah and Ayankha's recipe)

I am the daughter of a Louisiana woman, and grew up with much of the culture. Growing up in Los Angeles, I was ridiculed because of my mother's accent and the fact that we could not cut our hair, or sometimes wore tigons (colorful headscarves) to cover our heads; but now, everyone is intrigued. Funny how times change, but I am glad that they did.

Louisiana is very culturally distinct (just like all areas of the country), and is known mostly for it being the trading hub of the United States for many years. New Orleans being at the opening of the Mississippi river, hosted many peoples and nations. As a result, good music, good food, and other rich aspects of a profound cultural milieu resulted.

Though many people trek to NOLA during the Essence Festival, there are so many other things that happen during the year that one might consider attending when hotels are not that expensive and when it is not a sweltering 100 degree weather.

Great times to visit are in the Fall and during Christmas holiday. It does not get cold until January/February, so the time there is perfect for you not only to explore New Orleans, but the surrounding parishes that are as rich in culture.

For those of you who are stuck on NO, let me give you some New Orleans 101 lessons. Three of the most profound cultural wonderments that visitors adore about NO is the food, music, and the dialect. Since I am not too keen on the music, I will write about the dialect and food to give you some understanding of its complexities.

Now, for those of you who watch reality television and are fans of "Tiny and Toya" show, the speech from Toya is a representation of New Orleans speech structure, but it is only a small sample of the dialogue. Personally, I think she and Tiny, who hails from Atlanta (a place I have lived), just put too much extras on their accents for TV drama emphasis.

Anyway, that's my bone to pick. However, today's tips are is mostly on food, but there are some language tidbits that might be helpful. Oh yeah, and for all the people who come from cities where they look at you funny if you say "Hello" please note that, that greeting someone is a social staple in New Orleans, so be nice...for once.

Dialect Lesson
#1. "Hey Baby" (pronounced BayB): A usual greeting that is a term of endearment.

#2. How ya doin' Chez (pronounced Sheah): This is an old, school term of endearment that many use who live in smaller towns outside of Louisiana, but it is still used.

#3. Lagniappe (pronounced LAEN-yap): This means "something extra," that usually pertains to an extra helping of something like food, liquor, or an extra item when purchasing. You will often get lagniappe in a restaurant or a gracious vendor.

#4. The Causeway (KAWZ-wey): Refers in particular to the bridge running from Metairie to Mandeville across Lake Pontchartrain. This was actually the longest bridge in the world up until a few years ago, at 24 miles.

#5. Canjun (Cay-juhn): Refers to French whites who were foreced to relocate from Nova Scotia and Acadia Canada back in the day by the British and resettled in Southwestern Louisiana. NOTE: Black people are NOT Cajun, they are CREOLE (look at next definition).

#6. Creole (Kree-ole): This term started out as the racial, ethnic, and cultural mixture that occured first when French and Spanish and other European ethnicities would mix in New Orleans. This term became the mainstay description for Africans were brought to the Louisiana region as enslaved Africans and intermingled with the other populations (most by force, some by consensus). The mixture is mostly African, French, Spanish, Italian (some Irish) and Native American racial and culture mixes, though there is also West Indian. Mind you, there were black Frenchmen and Spaniards in the 1700s, so a Creole with a French/Spanish mix most likely had an African bloodline.

Anyway, this culture melange was a survival strategy which helped Africans retain their homeland identity in the New World. As well, in the rural and smaller towns of Louisiana, Creole was a demarcation from who was black and who was white (Cajun). As time went one, the political term of Creole meant very-fair or light-bright, near white colored communities who deemed themselves "not black," but something different and better. This was especially emphasized in New Orleans.

Foods
Southern Louisiana food is a saucy, spicy, and flavorful experience; but let me note, everyone down there does not know how to cook. I gotta warn you, there are a lot of nasty perpetrators, so I suggest you go to the New Orleans Visitors Bureau African-American Guide to start your venture. Let me stress, the key word is "start" because there is so much to do, you gotta ask and you gotta look.

Gumbo: The soup or stew of all soups. It comes in different flavors and colors. Gumbo can be meat heavy, all seafood, or a combination of meat, pork and seafood. In New Orleans the emphasis is seafood since they sit right on the Gulf of Mexico. The seafood that is put in there is usually crustacean like crawfish, shrimp, crab. If you have food specifities or allergic ask in detail what the ingredients are, because baby, they will leave out some things. Sometimes it is because what you consider as being in there they don't. For example, I only eat seafood and when I asked someone about the ingredients they said it was all seafood with no other meat, but did not tell me they put a sausage in there to give it flavor. As well, the color of gumbo ranges from dark brown, to various shades of red, to light brown. It all depends on the roux, or base that is put in there. The brown colors are from the cooking of the roux (flour, oil, onions & garlic)to a deep or almost black color. Red is a result of tomatoes.

Jambalaya: This dish is like a gumbo, but dry. It is mixed in a large pot with sausage, fish, celery, bell peppers and other goods. What makes it dry is that it is cooked like the Cuban dish paella, with the rice. However, do not get it twisted, Jambalaya has its own swagger.

Crawfish Boil: Crawfish is the main local seafood. It looks like a large shrimp or prawn, but has a very dank taste. Traditionally, in group gathering crawfish is boiled in a large cast iron pot with seasoning and corn-on-the cob. You put your helpings on a paper bag and go to work. Crawfish is also good in etouffe.

Etouffe (Crawfish or Shrimp): This scrumptious sauce is made with butter, celery, and usually crawfish, shrimp, crab, and/or chicken. It is a spicy mixture that is put over rice. It is either a light/dark brown or red color.

Boudin: When I ate pork, I could not stay away from this delicious sausage. This is local delicacy that is made with pork, ground beef, rice, onions, garlic and a host of seasonings. Boudin is boiled or grilled. You can get it at the local bakery, but it is also served in the local sandwich called, Po'Boys.

Po'Boys: A gutbusting sandwich that puts Subways out of business. It is a long flatbread that is cut in half, then stuffed with your favorite meats such as sausage, shrimp, crawfish, and then topped with lettuce, onions, tomatoes, special creole sauces, mayo, you name it.

Red Beans & Rice: OMG, this is a poor family's staple that has turned into a great gourmet cuisine on a cold, lonely night. Mixed with local spices, this dish usually has sausage. Think of Popeye's beans and rice, but knocked outta de park.

Fried Alligator Tail: The thought of eating alligator scares the hell outta people. But don't trip, you are not entering into a "Bizarre Foods" episode. If seasoned well, it tastes like a more tender version of chicken.



Beignet: My grandma would make these fried donuts when we would visit her in Lafayette. These donuts are sweet dough that are fried then sprinkled with powdered sugar. Most eat with coffee or hot chocolate.

Snoballs: It gets hot as Hades in NOLA, so a snow cone with diabetic sweet flavors is a great way to cool off.

Popcorn Balls: This is a local sleeper that many do not know about. It is popcorn that is meshed in a ball using the local molasses. Since Louisiana had many sugar cane plantations, molasses is a regular commodity.

Pecan Pie: If you can find the right person to flip a pecan pie and put a rum sauce over it, I swear you would be two steps from heaven.

Praline: This ain't the hard, nasty peanut stuff you get in other parts. This praline is cooked to perfection with condensed sweet milk and butter. It is usually soft to a medium-firm texture and is laced with Louisiana pecans. Oh, I miss my grandma's pecan tree.

Hurricane Drinks: For all the sassy drinkers, you cannot leave without this sweet, rum-inspired concoction that will get you drunk in about 10 minutes. The syrupy taste fools drinkers, but this mixed beverage packs a punch.

*This is something I submitted to another blogger that I wanted to share with y'all.