The Black Informant

Black women riding the waves

The future of marketing on R&B radio rests in the hands of African-American women, according to data presented at Interep’s 7th Power of Urban Radio symposium held at New York’s Grand Hyatt.

During the research panel, “Black Consumers: Recent Changes in a Formidable Force,” Ken Smikle, president of Target Market News presented data compiled by the U.S. Census and Labor Bureau suggesting that the bulk of the African-American community’s spending dollars comes from the female sector.

According to Smikle, women own 40% of the businesses owned by African-Americans, while more black women have entered the work-force over the last 10 years than in any previous period. This translates into more buying force for black women overall…more

Hating customer service

Computer-maker Dell will hire another 2,000 people by the end of the year to make India a hub for its software development and back-office work, its top executive said Friday.

“It has been a very exciting time here in India, running customer support and internal software development centers,” Dell Inc. Chief Executive Kevin Rollins told reporters in Bangalore, India’s technology hub.

Dell will increase its staff strength in India to 10,000 by January from nearly 8,000 at present, he said.
Less than two years ago, Round Rock, Texas-based Dell moved support for some customer calls back to the United States from Bangalore, citing “customer complaints.”

On Friday, Rollins said the November 2003 decision was due to the company’s internal management issues…more

No Rollins, this had to do with a language issue.

If you are like me, there is nothing more frustrating than to call up any customer support service these days. These days, practically anything that is electronic-based has its customer support based out of India (for the culturally-sensitive, no I do not hate people from India). A typical call will have me asking the CSR to repeat what they just said at least 20 or so times. Believe it or not, that is not what bothers me. What ticks me off is when the person on the other end of the phone is actually reading the troubleshooting steps out of a book and not listening to me. I do not interpret this as some character flaw or ignorance on their part. Instead I believe that these folks are so focused on getting the language part right that the technical expertise is greatly compromised (again, I am strictly dealing with CSRs here).

This problem is not remote to India. Call just about any American-based call center and although there is no language barrier to deal with, you still have to deal with the widespread incompetence.

You know you are in sad shape when YOU have to tell the CSR how to fix something. I have heard of stories where the only problem was that an icon was missing and the CSR recommended a full system recovery. Personally, when I have to make the unfortunate decision to call customer service, I go straight to the manager about 90% of the time. Don’t worry, I do not get ig’nate with the struggling CSR, I just politely ask “Can you just get your manager, boo?” “Bless yo’ heart, you tried”.

Getting back to India, I am all for improving the economy of any impoverished nation. I just have huge problems with it when it comes to the expense of the American consumer because now we are stuck with sometimes expensive products that cannot be fixed unless you are prepared to pretend that you are an interpreter for the UN WITH NO TRAINING.

Remember when PC’s used to average about $1200 in sale price? Well, part of the reason you can almost buy your average computer these days for almost a song is because of this compromise on customer service.

What cracks me up about Dell is that the CSR’s that they use on all of their commercials are white, black (actually a light-shaded black man with the blow-out hair), and female (for political correctiveness). All of them speak perfect English and answer customer questions on the fly. Maybe it is time for them to show us the staff in the back office ‘cuz we sho’ nuff talk more to them.

Good education, good job, bad credit (USA TODAY)

**As part of USA TODAY’s Financial Diet, five families or individuals are working with members of the Financial Planning Association to improve their financial pictures. Today, reporter Mindy Fetterman profiles Juanda Smith and outlines advice from her planner. We’ll return to her in three months to see how she’s doing.

Smith has a good education and a good job. At 28, she earns about $60,000 a year working for a consulting firm in Atlanta.

But the credit card debt and bad credit score she accumulated during her years as a computer sciences student at Spelman College “are things that haunt me.”

So much so that she’s had trouble renting apartments and getting utilities hooked up. “You know how it is when you’re in school. You get a credit card for $500, and before you know it, the late fees and charges add up, and they increase your limit, and then you’re really in debt,” she says.

“I didn’t understand the big picture of credit. I’d say, “Oh, I forgot to pay this week.’ Then, a week turns into a month, and a month turns…more

Wow! Something school didn’t teach

Yes there were indeed Blacks in ancient China. The skeletal remains from southern China are predominately Negroid. The people practiced single burials which is an African ritual. In northern China the blacks founded many civilizations. The three major empires of China were the Xia Dynasty (c.2205-1766 B.C), Shang/ Yin Dynasty (c.1700-1050 B.C) and the Zhou Dynasty. The Zhou dynasty was the first dynasty founded by the Mongoloid people in China called Hua (Who-aa). The founders of Xia and Shang came from the Fertile African Crescent by way of Iran. Chinese civilization began along the Yellow river . Here the soil was fertile and black Chinese farmers grew millet 4000 years ago, and later soybeans. They also raised pigs and cattle. By 3500 B.C., the blacks in China were raising silkworms and making silk. The culture hero Huang Di is a direct link of Africa. His name was pronounced in old Chinese Yuhai Huandi or “Hu Nak Kunte.” He was supposed to have arrived in China from the west in 2282 B.C., and settled along the banks of the Loh River in Shanxi. This transliteration of Huandgi, to Hu Nak Kunte is interesting because Kunte is a common clan name among the Manding speakers. The Africans or blacks that founded civilization in China were often called Li Min “black headed people” by the Zhou dynasts. This term has affinity to the Sumero-Akkadian term Sag- Gig-Ga “Black Headed People”. These Li Min are associated with the Chinese cultural hero Yao…more

Adventures in Paris

Been doing tours for Walking the Spirit Tours on black Paris (see the website at http://walkthespirit.moonfruit.com) for details and to make reservations) and have been having the time of my life. I hope all of you get the chance to realize what you’re supposed to be doing with your lives and future. I believe I have found my calling. I get to combine all I love – walking in this gorgeous city (and getting exercise!), teaching (which is a passion), talking to new people who are thrilled to learn about our history here, and talking (just try and shut me up!). I can’t believe how lucky I am… Okay, calling the universe: I want to stay in Paris!
============

Robin Mitchell currently resides in the city of lights. Her blog, along with the rest of her post above can reached by clicking on the link below.

Website: http://www.cafedelasoul.com/bpa_deux.html

“White” crimes committed by blacks

A very tired subject (I know), however there are those out there that do make this crazy distinction.

Just recently, the man pictured above (left) was charged with the crime of arson:

A D.C. man was arrested and charged yesterday in connection with nearly 50 fires intentionally set in the District, Maryland and Virginia over two years, including one in Northeast that killed an elderly woman.
Federal authorities charged Thomas A. Sweatt, 50, of the 500 block of Lebaum Street SE, with 11 arson-related charges in connection with three fires in the District and two fires in Maryland. More charges are pending from the 49 cases attributed to him since March 2003…more

And let’s not forget the D.C. sniper incident. Everybody and their momma expected some white, confederate flag waving, Bush-supporting neo-nazi. To the surprise of the world, the culprits were not one, but two black guys that went on this insane rampage.

When the news hit the airwaves that the snipers were black, the reaction of many blacks in my circle was “Why…did they have to be black?” (again, for the racially sensitive among us, NO I am not saying that all blacks felt this way–however I think we can all agree that this feeling was not a remote one).

Bottom line: A crime is a crime PERIOD. I think both sides have been guilty of this dangerous assumption. Our prisons contain numbers of inmates who are there because of “assumption”.

Another case for the need for absolutes in our society (where right is “Right” and wrong is “Wrong”).

Global Gene Project to Trace Humanity’s Migrations (National Geographic)

New DNA studies suggest that all humans descended from a single African ancestor who lived some 60,000 years ago. To uncover the paths that lead from him to every living human, the National Geographic Society today launched the Genographic Project at its Washington, D.C., headquarters.

The project is a five-year endeavor undertaken as a partnership between IBM and National Geographic. It will combine population genetics and molecular biology to trace the migration of humans from the time we first left Africa, 50,000 to 60,000 years ago, to the places where we live today.

Ten research centers around the world will receive funding from the Waitt Family Foundation to collect and analyze blood samples from indigenous populations (such as aboriginal groups), many in remote areas. The Genographic Project hopes to collect more than a hundred thousand DNA samples to create the largest gene bank in the world. Members of the public are also being invited to participate…more

African-American Golfer’s Digest

If you are into golf, then here is a magazine to check out. Does not have a whole lot of helpful links, but I am sure that your input would make this into a much greater site for the golfer amongst us.

Link: http://www.africanamericangolfersdigest.com/home.html

Another reason not to believe the poverty-pimps

A greater portion of minority Americans own homes now than ever before, but their homeownership rate still lags far behind whites, according to data released by the U.S. Census Bureau this week.

In the first quarter, 51.6% of minority households owned their own homes, up from 50.8% in the first quarter a year ago. Thirty years ago that rate was 44.4%.

Most of the recent increase occurred among Hispanics, with 49.7% of Hispanics owning homes in the first quarter, up from 47.3% a year earlier.

While low interest rates have no doubt spurred much of the growth, the increase in minority homeownership rates also reflects the Bush administration’s goal, stated two years ago, of adding 5.5 million new minority Americans to the ranks of homeownership by 2010, the U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development said in a press release.

To explain the increase in ownership, HUD cited programs such as the American Dream Downpayment Initiative, which subsidizes down-payment and closing costs, the tax credit offered to developers to encourage production of low-income housing and $4 million spent on marketing in minority publications in the last two years…more

The good news here is that black home ownership has gone up in a short amount of time. As usual, news like this is always followed by pointing out the fact that we still lag behind whites, but this is something that we should not place our focus. The mere fact that whites outnumber blacks and other races in this country will have an effect on how these stats are calculated.

The fact that progress is being made in this area is something to celebrate.

Oh well….

BANNOCKBURN – A Black college student was charged with a hate crime Tuesday for allegedly mailing racist threats to fellow minorities on campus, apparently because she was homesick and wanted to convince her parents the school was dangerous, authorities said.

The hate mail at 3,300-student Trinity International University spread fear among Blacks and Hispanics on campus and prompted authorities at the Christian school to move more than 40 minorities out of their dormitories and into a hotel last week….more

And she was studying to become what?

Expanding our horizons: Eunuchs in India

Believe it our not, I do enjoy reading on subjects that are not all race-related. While the rest of my male friends enjoyed giggling over the pictures of bare-chested women in the National Geographic magazines in the school library, I was the “weird” one that actually enjoyed reading these magazines.

Last night I happened to catch a story on TV that talked about eunuchs in India. I found it to be very interesting. As time goes on, I will try to add more postings to this site that go beyond the typical race-related stuff that is discussed here.
=========

It has been estimated that there are at least a million eunuchs in India. They are known as hijra, and make their livings as beggars, prostitutes and by removing “bad luck”.

Visitors to India can frequently see groups of gaudily dressed hijra outside large railway stations. They beg for money and, if you refuse, you will be loudly cursed and they will expose the area between their legs where their genitals used to be. Many of them have also had this area branded, so that at first glance they appear to be women.

The prostitution side of their income is interesting. They act as prostitutes for men who can not afford the price of a real woman. Of course, they are also popular with men who like transsexuals.

Removing bad luck also provides part of their income. When a house is built, the owners will frequently employ a eunuch to dance in each room to take away any potential bad luck. This is because eunuchs have suffered the very worst fate that could befall anyone, and consequently do not mind accepting a little bit more for a fee. Groups of hijra also turn up uninvited at weddings and dance around the guests, ostensibly to take away any bad luck that may befall the groom and bride. However, it is an expensive matter to get the hijras to leave, making this a lucrative part of their income.

During the last few years they have found a new way of making money. In a crowded country like India it is very difficult for young couples to have time all by themselves. Consequently, they find secluded parts of public parks to cuddle and perhaps make love. The hijras search out these young couples out and demand money to leave.

Most hijras are transsexuals who have had the operation voluntarily. The operation is expensive and most have had to save up to have it done. It is performed out of doors and a group of hijras will gather to sing songs as the operation is being performed. The eunuch-to-be is usually drugged and the operation is performed with one cut, severing the entire genitalia. The person is then made to walk around for an hour or so…more

(warning: the above link also contains pictures [yuck])

Here is another link on the same subject

Do You Really Understand the Bill of Rights? (Larry P. Arnn)

In our country the term “right” is a powerful thing. If something is a right, then it is the whole purpose of our country–of any decent country–to protect it. In that case, the definition of rights matters very much. To help us understand the foundation of our rights, we should consider what is said in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.

According to America’s Founders, a right is a claim that a person may rightfully make against someone who would deprive him of what is his own. If you own something, like your car, then you have a right to it. If someone takes it from you, then you have a legitimate claim against that person. He owes you back your car; he has a duty to give it back–or rather not to take it from you in the first place.

A “natural right” doesn’t have to be acquired, like buying a car. You own it by birth, by your nature as a human being. Natural rights belong to all people, in all times and places. Whenever they are taken from us, we are deprived of something that is naturally our own, something that cannot belong to another.

The Declaration of Independence says, “To secure these rights, governments are instituted among men . . .” Three rights are named specifically: “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” Life and liberty belong to us at birth because every person is born free, and he remains free unless someone deprives him of that freedom. A person may only rightfully be deprived of his life or liberty if he neglects his duty to recognize the rights of others. A criminal who steals or kills may justly be deprived of his liberty, or even his life.

The Declaration also speaks of a right to the “pursuit of happiness.” No one can have a right to happiness itself. Happiness is an achievement. It encompasses the…more

You create the caption

Wanna collect Social Security checks? Use the Psycho method.

LA CROSSE, Wis. — A man told police he kept his mother’s corpse in a basement freezer for more than four years while he collected her Social Security checks, authorities said Monday. A body was found encased in ice, in a sitting position.

Philip Schuth, 52, told police his elderly mother, Edith, died of natural causes in August 2000, but that he didn’t tell anyone because he was afraid police would blame him, according to documents filed in court Monday…more

Age restrictions in the NBA (part II)

About a week or so ago, I posted a response from Jermaine O’Neal’ s take on the controversial issue of age restrictions in the NBA. This week, former NBA star Spud Webb gives his take:

O’Neal needs to remember that life wasn’t always a box of chocolates for the former South Carolina Mr. Basketball.

In fact, O’Neal should be Exhibit A for Commissioner David Stern’s proposal to allow any NBA player to be at least 20 before coming into the league.

As a graduate of Eau Claire High School, O’Neal was drafted by the Portland Trail Blazers in 1996 and was expected to follow in the footsteps of Kevin Garnett and Kobe Bryant, both of whom made an immediate impact in the league. But instead, O’Neal rode the pine in Portland, playing less than 13 minutes in each of his first four years. His best scoring average during that span? A measly 4.5 points.

He was depressed and despondent because he wasn’t having fun running the floor. At one point he griped that he should have gone to college, noting that the NBA was tough.

Jermaine, that’s exactly the point.

Sure, you’re a solid player today, but back then you were a…more

Where was the Conservative parade for this one?

Teron, a seventh-grader at Community School 4, was taken to Bronx-Lebanon Hospital Center on Monday complaining of a severe headache and toothache. The family said doctors conducted a CAT-scan and told relatives that an infection had spread to his brain.

After Teron went into convulsions and became unconscious, he was hooked up to a respirator and transferred to Montefiore for surgery on Tuesday, his family said. On Wednesday, doctors told relatives he was brain dead.

On Thursday, Douglas said, a doctor at Montefiore told the family that New York State law empowers physicians to remove respirators from brain-dead patients after 24 hours. That’s when Marcerlyn Francis, who did not consent to that move, contacted a lawyer.

I think we should pause on this one (UPDATE II)

UPDATE II: See below (near the end of this piece)
============

I had a couple of additional postings that I wanted to add today, but I think that we should pause on this issue that recently took place at Mifflin High School in Columbus, OH. Click below to read the post, follow the link to catch up on the story itself, and most importantly read and add your own comments on this issue.

Once again, OUR politics supersedes racial pride

One of my biggest concerns of this issue is how most black media, politicians, etc. with national attention have been somewhat mum on this issue (I cannot speak for all, but certainly most). This was not the case some years ago when a young girl by the name of Twanda Brawley claimed that she was raped by white police officers. Most if not all black media outlets covered the story (I was living in Jersey at the time so black stations in my area even went as far to give daily updates).

As I mentioned in one of my comments, MSM (Mainstream Media) does shoulder some of the blame of not giving more coverage to this issue (again, this would not have been the case if these boys were white). What I want to address here is why have WE, OUR MEDIA, OUR POLITICIANS have barely mentioned this issue. Besides providing some helpful and much needed news, why is it that OUR MEDIA will have gone all out of its way to cover a white-cop-kills-black-kid story and be virtually silent on issues like this one (no whites involved).

Two more things, please keep political persuasions out of this discussion. I could care less for either party. Also, try not to focus too much on what MSM is not doing. MSM has a proven track record of being a benefit to both sides of the political spectrum, so what they is or ain’t doing is of very little relevance here. What I do care about is our people and how we view and deal with self-inflicted crime.

Again, I am focusing on OUR MEDIA, OUR POLITICIANS, ACTIVISTS, ETC. on the national level.

You can add your comments to either this post or the one that I am referring to.

Later this evening, I will create a post that will highlight some of your comments. If you have a website, please include the link so I can include that as well.

UPDATE I: See what I mean–

BLACKNEWS.COM CIRCULATES VIDEO OF 5-YEAR OLD BLACK GIRL BEING UNNECESSARILY HANDCUFFED

Long Beach, CA - BlackNews.com recently partnered with CBS 10 in Tampa Bay to circulate the video of a 5-year old Black girl being handcuffed for no reason.

The girl did throw a tantrum, but appears to have calmed down when three white officers approach and handcuff her. Of course, after being handcuffed, she throws another tantrum. (emphasis mine)

======
Yes, this is a different story that is horrible in its own right; however, where is the video that depicts the outrage of the locals of Columbus, OH? Why ain’t WE circulating that?

UPDATE II: Wow! A second press release on the same story!!

Here is another press release distributed by blacknews.com:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 26, 2005

…Her temper tantrum was caused by her jelly beans being taken from her. What is appalling is the actions demonstrate perhaps one of society’s most pernicious evils - racism. A salient issue is whether a five-year old Caucasian girl been treated the same way.

======
I am just giving you an excerpt. As you can see, more outrage being amplified BY OUR PRESS about this child being handcuffed by the police (sorry, white police). As for the case of this special needs child being raped, nothing from this particular news service. I even sent them an e-mail asking why the “oversight”. So far, nothing.

***PLEASE NOTE - If you do not see your comment posted immediately, don’t worry. All comments on this site are sent to a queue where I eventually post the comment. I have to do it this way because of the enourmous amount of spam that I get on an almost hourly basis. The only time I will filter out a real comment is if there is name calling or by accident (whoops!).

It’s up to gangsters to break the cycle (By T. Bernard)

Very good article!!!

I’ll only give you excerpts.
=====

I am a 26-year-old African American male. I have been an active gang member since I was merely 8 years old and am the father of an 11-year-old son on the verge of closely following in my footsteps.
I write this in hopes of opening his eyes and the eyes of others to the recently reported racial tensions between African Americans and Hispanics that lead to melees of violence at Jefferson High School.

Behind the walls of California’s prison system there is a war for superiority and control. Drug trade and other forms of underground commerce are the basis for what goes on in prison in respect to racial warring. The ripple effect takes form and the hate streams back into the streets as people are released or as phone calls are made.

The fact of the matter is nobody gave a damn when it was inmates against inmates and gang members against gang members; nobody batted an eye when the dregs of society were simply doing the free world a favor and killing each other.

…Those who were at the root of the problem from its onset are not happy with the result of their negative activities. Men like me and youths like my son and others in all ages in between don’t want to be preached to by some community center leader; they don’t want some smiling-faced politician in telling them that there is a better way; and they really don’t want some celebrity patsy or over-exposed rapper telling them to stop the violence…more

Why Don’t the Amish Have Autistic Children? (Dr. Joseph Mercola)

A United Press International (UPI) reporter went out to search for autistic children in Lancaster County, the heart of Amish country in Pennsylvania. Based on national statistics there should have been as many as 200 children with autism in the community. Instead, he only found three.

One was a young girl who had been brought over from China, adopted by one family only to be given up after becoming overwhelmed by her autism, and then re-adopted by an Amish Mennonite family. The second definitely had received a vaccination and developed autism shortly thereafter. The reporter, however, was unable to determine the vaccination status of the third child.

A quote from the mother of the adopted autistic child speaks volumes: My husband just said last week that so far we’ve never met a family that lives a healthy lifestyle and does not vaccinate their children that has an autistic child. We haven’t come across one yet.

Folks, you don’t have to be a medical doctor, hold advanced epidemiology degrees or teach molecular genetics to figure this one out. You don’t even need a degree in rocket science. How much more obvious could it be?

Unfortunately, this is just another reminder that the link between autism and vaccines is certainly not new. In fact, many so-called experts have known about these links for more than a decade. Last year, a study I posted found children who received vaccines with thimerosal were 27 times more likely to have autism. Looking at the percentages, that’s a 2,700-percent increase in autism in those children who received unnecessary vaccines tainted with mercury.

If you’re a young parent weighing the pros and cons of vaccines, I strongly urge you to learn more about the toxicity of thimerosal, the mercury-laced preservative still present in many vaccines.

When will the public wake up?

From: www.mercola.com/blog

Weekend Health Clinic: Sweet Potato Pudding

Ingredients
4 cups of sweet potatoes
1 tablespoon lime juice
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup coconut milk
1/4 cup of rum
grated rind of lime
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon powdered cinnamon
1 tablespoon raisins

To mashed potatoes, add sugar gradually and whole eggs, one at at time, mixing well after each addition. Mix in butter with a fork. Add milk. Blend well. mix in grated rind of oime juice.
Add rum. Mix well. Add salt, baking powder and cinnamon, sifted together. Mix. Add raisins.

Mix well. Pour this mixture into a greased pan and bake in a moderate oven (350 degrees) about 50 minutes, until done. Makes 8 servings.

From: www.caribcon.com

Instead of 340 calories, 12 grams of fat and 54 grams of sugar per serving, you get just 170 calories, 3 grams of fat and 27 grams of sugar…more

To make this even healthier, replace salt with sea salt. Also use raw sugar instead of the more widely used white sugar. Raw sugar will give it a slight hint of molasses taste.

Enjoy!!