Anthony Asadullah Samad: People got mad love for Diane Watson, and she’s not one that we were going to let go the way of Dymally. She was going to go out on her terms. Nobody was going to force her out. But I, for one, am glad she did it right. It shows that black leaders can effectively ensure quality future leaders will continue their work.

Anthony Samad: he Tea Party was no more than an attention grab. It was like a person who draws attention to themselves at the neighborhood block party by hoo-rawing. All the Tea Partiers said to the nation was, “Party over here!”

Anthony Samad: Gay rights actvists have this pressing need to tie King to their cause, to legitimize their movement. They can’t find adequate venues to engage the black community on the issue of gay marriage, so they hijack King Day programs where they can dominate question and answer periods by interjecting questions around gay marriage. And they never want to have a morality conversation, as critical as that conversation is to a conversion (and shift) of America’s cultural mindset.

Anthony Asadullah Samad: In fact, I wonder if the White House will still be “the White House” when the Obamas leave. You know America got that thing about living where we’ve lived and leaving once we come to the neighborhood. They might come back eventually…but usually not immediately after we’ve been there.

There seem to be some indications, however, that the sparse political will in Congress that has historically placed reparations on the legislative agenda may be waning. Michigan House member John Conyers may be giving up on his 20-year fight to legislate the case for slave reparations in America.

I’m sure this is something President Obama will be mindful of from here on out. Was it truly a “mistake” or the beginning of another conspiracy?

Changing the mindset of black men to see a doctor is a difficult one. Fear of doctors is tied to a vestige of slavery where black male illness was totally ignored. Distrusting doctors has a long history, even before the Tuskegee experiment.

People need to stop complaining that he hasn’t done enough. Obama was elected President. He wasn’t elected Jesus. Like Al Sharpton said on Meet The Press this weekend, “we now realize that Obama doesn’t walk on water, but he’s still the fastest swimmer in America.”

The fact is, if we had waited for Black unity to come about on the simple question of whether Barack’s candidacy was credible before we supported him, Obama would have never been elected, because the divide was in evidence and deeply entrenched.

Whether President Obama is to be tolerated or followed is still playing out, but what is clear is that the world is ready to follow his lead. The world is also watching to see if Obama’s election was a sincere transition toward a different “change” mindset or a false signal while America ideologically recasts itself.

For the past three years, a group of black men within 100 Black Men of Los Angeles have been studying the successful publicly funded single-gender school of our New York chapter, The Eagle Academy for Excellence, as a possible solution to the dilemma facing black boys in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD).

So when the community went with Ridley-Thomas, Parks went to the feds and the newspapers. The L.A. Times, always willing to get in the middle of a good community fight, took it and ran with it.

Yes, Serena is a rebel. She rebels in her dress, her intensity, and her ability to overcome unwarranted criticism. Yelling at the linesman “John McEnroe” style doesn’t become her. Hell, it didn’t become him. It was dumb sh*t when he did it, too.

There was always one person in the mob who ignited the spark. “You lie” equates to “the Ni**ers lyin’” in another period, or “get em, boys” in yet another. Congressman Joe Wilson was the one holdin’ the rope in a previous period.

LAPD may be off parole as it relates to the federal consent decree, but they’re not off probation. Racial profiling is a primary indicator as to whether LAPD has really changed.

Quality health care is tied to wealth, work, and wellness, none of which seems to find its way into the black community on a parity basis.

Our hearts have been heavy for about over a week now since the news broke that pop star Michael Jackson died suddenly from a heart attack (of some sort). Everything, and when I say everything …

It’s been a while since I’ve been on the same page at the same time with Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. As one of the few black stakeholders who backed his losing bid in 2001, …

Last week, the federal government moved forth with allowing public airwaves to be transitioned from the analog transmission to the newer, advanced digital forms of communication transmission. Now understand, we all must realize that everything …

The Superintendent of the second largest school district in the United States, Ray Cortines, recently announced that the Los Angeles Unified School District will be canceling summer school as a cost-cutting remedy for the district’s …

I had a déjà vu moment last week while watching Los Angeles Clippers owner, Donald Sterling, receive the Los Angeles NAACP Chapter’s Life Achievement Award. Watching Sterling try to find the words of why he …

Sometimes it takes an event (or two) to make plain a reality that nobody wants to talk about. Pervasive police abuse and police misconduct are usually activities nobody wants to acknowledge and nobody wants to …

The benchmarks in which we in America seek to establish “acceptance” in the labor force generally come without much fanfare. New hires commonly have 90-day, sometimes six-month, probation periods that affirm their competency and synergetic …

The City of Los Angeles is about to unveil its brand new “state-of-the-art,” world-class headquarters for what it considers its world-class law enforcement agency. Just know there’s one too many “world-class” attributes in that last …

The death of preeminent historian and race scholar, John Hope Franklin, and his life-long contribution to helping America understand the legacies of slavery and racial vestiges that have been carried forward, is a true loss. …

Young men who are re-entering society from prison can’t find work. Recent studies on prisoner re-entry suggest that, in California, nearly 400 prisoners, A DAY, are being released into the community, with 70% to 90% of them being unemployed because only 20% of the state’s employers are willing to hire persons with convictions (no matter how long ago).

The Republican Party put all its business in the streets as talk radio rhetorician, Rush Limbaugh, went on the offensive (even more than he’s been on the offensive since Obama has taken office) at the …

The New York Post issued a “sideways” explanation (I really wouldn’t call it an apology) on a provocative and highly incendiary political cartoon it ran on February 18th. Combining two news events of the day, …

The one thing American popular culture loves is a good “freak show.” Anything out of the ordinary gets our society’s attention, but the more bizarre it is, the more media attention it receives. The demand …

This week, the most venerable of civil rights organizations, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, more commonly known as the NAACP, turns 100 years old. Founded on Abraham Lincoln’s 100th birthday (February …

Last week, after six ballots, the Republican Party elected its first African American party chair in the history of the party, former Maryland Lt. Governor, Michael Steele. This new “lovefest” with black America is almost …

President Barack Obama’s first week in office was certainly filled with only the highest of expectation, given the eight years of Republican elephant poo-poo that was left on the White House floor for him. That’s …

The day of an African American President of the United States is no longer coming. That day is here. Witnessing Barack Obama take the oath of office, in the freezing cold with a million other …

The nation’s most abusive, and aggrieved law enforcement agency, the Los Angeles Police Department, is still “doin’ what it do” as it presented its response this week to a racial profiling study released to its …

Barack Obama’s election to the Presidency of the United States has had a residual effect on the economy in ways that are not (yet) reflected on the New York Stock Exchange. Barack Obama merchandise is …

The announcement that syndicated talk radio host, Larry Elder, was leaving his daily radio “squawk show” shouldn’t go without notice. Elder is a major remnant of the “colorblind” conservative movement that allowed race and race-based …

I’ve been watching this same-sex marriage debate for some time and, like most of my community, I’m deeply conflicted about it. As sexual orientation is a deeply personal matter, I chose to remain silent in …

The Los Angeles Times has rarely offered a fair and balanced portrayal of the black community. It usually was (is) a strategic player in the witch hunt to depose black leaders, no matter who they …

The euphoria has yet to wear off, and probably won’t for a while. The “shock and awe” of the looks of dazed black people walking down the street really says more than could ever be …

The day we all thought we’d never see became a reality this week as the nation took a major step toward racial reconciliation in entrusting the country’s national government to a black man.
President-elect Barack Obama, …

The day we’ve all been waiting for is less than a week away. There are times in our lives we will remember all of our lives. There are few dates in American history that represent …

The most respected public figure in, or out, of American government endorsed Barack Obama this week. To even suggest that the endorsement of former Secretary of State, former National Security Adviser, former Joint Chiefs of …

Much ado has been made over Georgia Congressman John Lewis’ statement about the nasty turn the Presidential campaign took at Republican rallies. From Palin saying Obama was “pallin’ around with domestic terrorists, to Republican rally …

When Sarah Palin signaled to the “Bubba” vote that she was part of the “Joe six-pack” crowd – meaning she was just an average American seeking to represent the nation on the highest ticket in …

by Anthony Asadullah Samad –

Watching the first presidential debate involving the first African American major party nominee was historic. But the aftermath was less than euphoric. By all accounts, Barack Obama won the debate. He …

I love Tina Allen, who was a personal friend and one of the deepest spirits I’ve ever met. I will hold her memory close.

The Democratic National Convention put on a fantastic show last week. You did understand that it was a “show,” don’t you? Political parties put on conventions to show their spirit, to show their platforms and …

The Democratic National Convention was held this week, amid the hyperbole of the Joe Biden selection as a running mate and one in four Hillary supporters stating that they would not vote for Barack Obama …

One of the funniest comedians I ever heard in my life, Bernie Mac, died this past weekend. He was 50 years old.
Overcoming life’s challenges is often not considered funny material. Black life in America is …

The U.S. House of Representatives issued an apology for slavery last week. Something some people have waited for some 10 lifetimes, something others thought would never happen, what was once a significant event that would …

The Presidency aspirations of Barack Obama have caused a renewed discussion on race in America. The prospect of a black President has cast America in a different light throughout the world — as demonstrated by …

Jesse Jackson, Sr.’s “live mike” comments about Barack Obama remind us that there’s always someone laying in the cut to divide and conquer Black America. For once, Black America seems to be all on the …

The Fourth of July is a date that historically brings about much confliction in the African American community. Never one to miss a great party, black people spend considerable money on bar-b-ques and fireworks. And …

The election of Barack Obama as President of the United States will be viewed by many as accomplishing racial diversity’s last frontier. The politics of diversity carries a heavy stigma, particularly in the post-affirmative action …

Much ado (about nothing) has been made about Barack Obama becoming the first Presidential candidate to reject public financing of Presidential elections (and the $84.1 million spending limit that comes with it) since it started …

For the longest period in our community, I’ve said that if more people did a fraction of what they say they can do, there would be a different reality in black communities across America. There …

On This Day, In This Time
I, too, sing America.
I am the darker brother.
They send me to eat in the kitchen
When company comes,
But I laugh,
And eat well,
And grow strong.
Tomorrow,
I’ll be at the table
When company comes.
Nobody’ll …

“There is no place like home. There is no place like home. There is no place like home.”
– Dorothy from the “Wizard of Oz”
This week, for the first time in 15 years, I called a …

The notion of the first black President in the history of the United States has become very real over the past couple weeks. So much so that we are now beginning to see both Barack …

For the first time in 16 years (and only the second time in 40 years), the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors Seat in the Second District has a vacancy. The L.A. County Board of …