For Colored Girls May Still Not Be Enuf

Here we go again...Tyler Perry bashing. It seems that whenever a Black producer makes a movie, whether good or not, the usual people climb on their high horses and start throwing stones. I often wonder whether his movies would do much better at the box office, enabling him to do a more broader type of film, if his detractors would tone it down and try to be more objective. At the same time they are bashing him they are not coming out with their own films, books or plays. It is easy to throw that stone when you don't see yourself walking into that glass house.

When I first started seeing advertisements of his plays back in the day, I dismissed them because they sounded ridiculous and made specifically for the Bible thumping COGIC, Baptist and Methodist Black church crowd. They all had one common theme...woman scorned or abused...resurrected by her faith in God. Nice thought but simplistic, often unrealistic and the acting just left little to be desired. His two TV shows, 'The House of Payne' and 'Meet the Browns' definitely raises both of my eyebrows. After spending the late '80's into the '90s watching 'Cosby', 'A Different World' and 'Living Single' showing African Americans as professionals as well as intelligent college students and entrepreneurs, it is sad to see buffoonery back on TV, played over and over, rerunning as if there is nothing else ever made. I don't like the images, albeit normal for some people, therefore I don't tune them in. Spike Lee said it best in an interview for shadowandact.com: "When John Singleton made Boyz in the Hood, people came out to see it. But when he did Rosewood, nobody showed up. So a lot of this is on us! You vote with your pocketbook, your wallet. You vote with your time sitting in front of the idiot box, and [Tyler Perry] has a huge audience. We shouldn’t think that Tyler Perry is going to make the same film that I am going to make, or that John Singleton or my cousin Malcolm Lee would make. As African Americans, we’re not one monolithic group so there is room for all of that." Let's remember that Spike was also criticized when he made his films, regardless of how relevant the storyline.

Perry's new movie is a screen adaptation of the critically acclaimed 'For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide/When the Rainbow Is Enuf' 1975 play by Ntozake Shange. If the book was so critically acclaimed, what is the problem w/doing a movie? Everything isn't always roses in any community. Perhaps African American dramatic writers need to write about things other than abusive people so that 'acceptable' material is available for movies. Even writers such as Terry McMillan have less than desirable male characters. As we live in our country with the first AA president, I am hoping we can begin to experience movies w/new material. There are science fiction writers such as Octavia Butler and Tenanarive Due whose books really deserve a closer look because they are FANTASTIC and w/technology their characters can now come to life. These are just two of the myriad of authors out there writing stories that could be silver screen worthy.

I plan to see the movie as Tyler is a talent and one of the ONLY AA's in Hollywood willing or able to put US on the screen even if the characters are less than desirable at times. It's a shame we still have to 'settle' some times, but we do it and don't make much effort to demand better. My hope is that Mr. Perry will get better as time goes by and I have begun to see a shift already. 'The Family That Preys' I thought was well done and had more than just US hurting US. I do hope we can look forward to stories showing AA men (and women) in a better light because I know plenty of wonderful normal men who aren't abusive...but does it make for a good story and will all the detractors go see it when it comes out even if it's bashed by mainstream critics? I will let you know what I think of the movie and how it represented the narratives in the book after I see it.

Until next time...

Slavery Was Work

I have tried really hard to keep certain issues off FB so I will vent on my blog. I just have to say that anyone who says "we don’t cotton to that whole emancipation thing. Freedom means having to work for real, think for ourselves, and take consequences along with the rewards" in an attempt to make a point is incredibly ignorant. Putting aside all the political crap going on, I am just offended at the thought that someone actually thinks of slavery as non-work. Furthermore, the 'consequences' of slavery were extremely harsh. If a slave tried to think for themselves they may have ended up with a harsh whipping or even worse. In attempting to make light of something to get a point across, this person has just reinforced the idea that many people have no idea why America still bleeds from her very ugly past.

Note to those who prescribe to a certain way of thinking: slavery was work and slaves suffered extreme consequences for even trying to think for themselves!

A Few Random Rants...Incomplete

Obama is correct...no nation should dominate another nation. It is time that the US end it's wasteful spending on military and other programs whose intent is world domination. Every country deserves to exist on it's own terms based on the desires of it's people.

We cannot AFFORD to occupy with such military force any country for an undetermined period of time.

There will be turmoil in the middle east as long as EVERYONE wants the oil and other valuable minerals, regardless of whether the US occupies countries. If England is worried, let them send then's of thousands of their own troops to die.

'American Greatness' is almost a conundrum. This country owes many countries and people of the world more apologies than has been given. Do a little bit of research and you can find out about all the horrible things our government has done. Perhaps as president Obama is now privy to the info and remains in shock and disbelief...most of the US led terror doesn't make any headlines.

Timetables for both wars were announced or discussed before Obama was president. Bush put in place the timetable for Iraq. The US simply cannot afford to be at war. If there are other countries that can afford wars, then have at it! But exactly why are we at war again?

Where did the Obama's vacation before the white house? I have friends who are not rich and treated themselves to lavish vacations just because they wanted to and they saved and could afford to. Did other presidents not go on vacation if the economy was bad? I'll have to do research on that one as does anyone who criticizes.

Is he perfect? No. Is anyone? No. Could he do better? Sure.

Drill Baby Drill!

O my little goldfish that can't remember more than 5 minutes of history, it was the Republicans' Palin and McCain that had that inane motto of Drill Baby Drill!! Get your facts straight before posting responses on sites and writing articles!! But good job rewriting history!! I suppose Obama better use his 'engineering' degree (lol) and some pure elbow grease, get a wetsuit and snorkels and dive a mile down to 'stop this immediate leak' like the idiot author of an article on CNN.com states! Either way all of those idiots are in a dream world!! A nuclear bomb under water, used many times before, or the relief wells is the only sure thing...But those who really don't care about the environment just want to politicize this horrible oil disaster. Sad, really sad!! If you have time, drive or fly to the gulf coast while you still can...it has some of the most beautiful beaches in the world!

Grandmotherhood

Congratulations to me and my family. My eldest had a son on March 2. His name is Zyiere and he is just beautiful! Welcome to the world, baby Zy!

My heart goes out to the people of Haiti.

According to Pat Robertson, Haitian slaves made a pact with the Devil when they decided they didn't want to be enslaved anymore. The Devil helped them beat the poor helpless Godfearing white slave masters and now they suffer because of the Devil-based help they received, therefore it's their fault they are so poor and the earthquake happened. God is punishing them for winning their freedom!

I guess he forgot that Haiti was ostracized economically because of the fear that the success of the slave revolt would inspire other slaves to do the same and the economic warfare continues even today.

I pray for all those lives lost in the earthquake and I pray that the ignorant and hateful people of the world will eventually feel the verbal pain the inflict on innocent people.

Text "Haiti" to 90999 to donate $10 to the American Red Cross because every little bit helps.