And now the winners...
Best Picture: The Departed: I really can't believe this won best picture. I still say the original is better
Best Director: Martin Scorsese for The Departed: Just think after all those years of making Italian mob movies he wins an Oscar for making a movie about Irish gangsters. The cherry on top of the cake was Lucas, Spielberg and Coppola presenting it to him.
Best Actor: Forest Whitaker for The Last King of Scotland: He gave one of the best speeches in the history of the Oscars. I love the fact that a humble genuine nice guy won. Sorry Peter O'Toole.
Best Actress: Helen Mirren for The Queen: Did I call it or what? I knew she was gonna win.
Best Supporting Actor: Alan Arkin for Little Miss Sunshine: Glad to see Arkin win. I wonder if Peter O'Toole tried to jack him for his Oscar at the after party.
Best Supporting Actress: Jennifer Hudson for Dreamgirls: Just goes to show you; you can lose on American Idol and go on to win an Oscar. Good for her.
Best Original screenplay: Michael Arndt for Little Miss Sunshine: A smart witty and funny movie, won an Oscar. What is this world coming to?
Best Adapted screenplay: William Monahan for The Departed: He didn't thank one Chinese person. I mean seriously that's just bad form in my book.
Monday, February 26, 2007
Black Greeks Part 2
I know I've been slackin'. In part one I presented a brief outline of the nine black Greek letter organizations. In part two we will get into pledging, elitism, and why would I want to join a black Greek letter organization.
Pledging: Pledging is the period of time in where the recruit (the pledge) goes through a series of challenges which eventually lead to initiation in to the group. Hazing is the ritualistic harassment, abuse, or persecution of prospective members of a group as a means of initiation. Hazing is something that has become a huge problem among black fraternities and sororities. There have been numerous deaths as a result of initiates being hazed. When ritual reaches the point where it endangers the life and limb of an individual, it needs to be discontinued. The pledge process is not about beating someone down. It’s not about degrading someone just so you can feel good about yourself. Basically you don’t put a person online to drop (make them quit) them. So then what is the process about? The answer is simple it is meant for: team building, leadership experience, organizational skills, time management, and learning the history of said organization. It is a shame that people have lost sight of that over the years.
Elitism: This always seems to come up in one of these conversations. Please someone help me out here, because I’ve never been able to put my finger on what people mean by that. I’ve always assumed that these organizations are highly selective and thereby exclusive to people who qualify for membership. There has been a history of these organizations being HIGHLY selective, whether it was expressed through excluding people based on degree of skin tone, or socio-economic back ground. That being said in my humble opinion I think the days of the brown paper bag test are over. Frankly this wasn’t my experience. Most of the Alphas in my chapter come from similar backgrounds. Most of us grew up working class. The one thing I respected about the Alphas on my campus before I pledged was that they were some of the most REAL brothers on campus. Now this varies from chapter to chapter and organization to organization but in my case I was lucky enough to be in the company of some of men of true integrity and intelligence.
Why would I want to join a Black Greek letter organization?
Now this is the big question. Many people join just so they can wear a t-shirt and go to parties, others join because they are legacies and it’s expected of them, then there are others that really want to do some good and see this as a step in the right direction. It all depends on what kind of person you are.
Pledging: Pledging is the period of time in where the recruit (the pledge) goes through a series of challenges which eventually lead to initiation in to the group. Hazing is the ritualistic harassment, abuse, or persecution of prospective members of a group as a means of initiation. Hazing is something that has become a huge problem among black fraternities and sororities. There have been numerous deaths as a result of initiates being hazed. When ritual reaches the point where it endangers the life and limb of an individual, it needs to be discontinued. The pledge process is not about beating someone down. It’s not about degrading someone just so you can feel good about yourself. Basically you don’t put a person online to drop (make them quit) them. So then what is the process about? The answer is simple it is meant for: team building, leadership experience, organizational skills, time management, and learning the history of said organization. It is a shame that people have lost sight of that over the years.
Elitism: This always seems to come up in one of these conversations. Please someone help me out here, because I’ve never been able to put my finger on what people mean by that. I’ve always assumed that these organizations are highly selective and thereby exclusive to people who qualify for membership. There has been a history of these organizations being HIGHLY selective, whether it was expressed through excluding people based on degree of skin tone, or socio-economic back ground. That being said in my humble opinion I think the days of the brown paper bag test are over. Frankly this wasn’t my experience. Most of the Alphas in my chapter come from similar backgrounds. Most of us grew up working class. The one thing I respected about the Alphas on my campus before I pledged was that they were some of the most REAL brothers on campus. Now this varies from chapter to chapter and organization to organization but in my case I was lucky enough to be in the company of some of men of true integrity and intelligence.
Why would I want to join a Black Greek letter organization?
Now this is the big question. Many people join just so they can wear a t-shirt and go to parties, others join because they are legacies and it’s expected of them, then there are others that really want to do some good and see this as a step in the right direction. It all depends on what kind of person you are.
Thursday, February 01, 2007
Black Greeks Part 1
*Note to all my white readers. Some of you are not going to understand this whole black greek thing some of you are going to sit there and scratching your head all the while saying "Why is he talking about fraternities and sororities? That crap is for college kids." Well my melanin challenged friend black greek life does not end upon graduation for some of us. Some of us choose continue serving our community through being active in a graduate chapter (speaking of which I gotta pay my dues)....Any who please just sit back and read and maybe ya might learn something.
*Please note that the links will not lead you to the fraternity or the sorority site but instead it will lead you to their Wikipedia site. If you are interested in learning more about these fraternities and sororities you can click on the links provided on the their respective Wikipedia site.
A couple of months ago I opened my big fat mouth while visiting the After Party and said I would do a post about black greeks. Well I was given a deadline and my time is up so here goes. Please keep in mind that I am not going to get into a deep history debate. Basically what I'm going to do is give you founding dates (in chronological order) and prominent members. Feel free to click on the hyperlink to their respective sites.
Let's start with the first of all black greeks Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Incorporated. A Phi A is the first national intercollegiate fraternity established by African Americans. Founded on December 4, 1906, on the campus of Cornell University. The Prominent members of this fraternity are a various who's who of Black intelligentsia. Martin Luther King, Cornel West, Thurgood Marshall, Jeese Owens, Congressman Charles B. Rangel, and Paul Robeson; I could go on but you get the idea. This fraternity is very near and dear to my heart because well if you haven't guessed by now I am also a member. Now I could big up my frat all day but that is for another time.
Next up are my sisters the lovely ladies of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Incorporated. AKA was formed in January 15, 1908 at Howard University, it is America's first Greek-letter organization established by Black college women. Prominent members include Maya Angelou, Diahann Carroll, Ella Fitzgerald, Alicia Keys, Coretta Scott King, Jada Pinkett Smith, Toni Morrison, and Alice Walker. Well you get the idea.
Next up are the gentlemen of the crimson and cream the brothers of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Incorporated. Kappa Alpha Psi is the second oldest collegiate Greek-letter fraternity with a predominantly African American membership, founded January 5, 1911 at Indiana University. Here is a short list of members of note: Arthur Ashe, Calvin O. Butts, Bill Russell, John Singleton, Tavis Smiley, C. Vernon Mason, Johnnie Cochran, Percy Sutton, Stan Lathan, and Congressman John Conyers.
Next up are the brothers of Omega Psi Phi also known as the Ques. Omega Psi Phi Fraternity Incorporated was founded on Friday, November 17, 1911, at Howard University in Washington, D.C. Prominent members include Bill Cosby, Alonzo Mourning, Carter G. Woodson (black historian), Vernon Jordan, Jr., Michael Jordan, Shaquille O'Neal, Ozzie Newsome, Jesse Jackson, Charlie Ward and the great poet Langston Hughes.
Next up we have Professor Angry's sisters the lovely ladies of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated. Delta Sigma Theta was founded at Howard University January 13, 1913. Let me drop some names for you: Octavia E. Butler, Carol Moseley Braun, Poet Nikki Giovanni, Fannie Lou Hamer, Shirley Chisholm, Ruby Dee, Roberta Flack, Aretha Franklin, Cicely Tyson, Lena Horne, and the late great Betty Shabazz.
Now we move along to the fourth fraternity, Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. Phi Beta Sigma was founded at Howard University in Washington, D.C., January 9, 1914. Here's a short list of famous members, A. Philip Randolph, Willis Reed, Jerry Rice, David Ruffin, Emmitt Smith, Eddie Kendricks, Huey P. Newton, Kwame Nkrumah, Benjamin Chavis Muhammad, writer James Weldon Johnson, Blair Underwood, Morris Chestnut, and George Washington Carver.
Moving right along we have their sisters of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Inc. Zeta Phi Beta Inc. was founded January 16, 1920, on the campus of Howard University in Washington, D.C. Famous memebers Jayne Kennedy, Zora Neale Hurston, Dionne Warwick, Sarah Vaughan, Minnie Riperton, Esther Rolle, and Melba Moore to name a few.
Next up we have the ladies of Sigma Gamma Rho. Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Incorporated was founded on November 12, 1922 by seven educators in Indianapolis, Indiana. The group became an incorporated national collegiate sorority on December 30, 1929, when a charter was granted to Alpha chapter at Butler University in Indianapolis, Indiana. Here are some notable members: Hattie McDaniel, MC Lyte, Marilyn McCoo, Victoria Rowell and Lindy Boggs
Last but surely not least we have the brothers of Iota Phi Theta. Iota Phi Theta Fraternity Incorporated was founded on September 19, 1963 at Morgan State University in Baltimore, Maryland. Here's a short list of prominent members: Bobby Rush (former Black Panther turned US Congressman), Terrence "T.C." Carson, Kirby Wilson and Earl King.
In part two we will get into pledging, elitism, and why would I want to join a black greek letter organization.
*Please note that the links will not lead you to the fraternity or the sorority site but instead it will lead you to their Wikipedia site. If you are interested in learning more about these fraternities and sororities you can click on the links provided on the their respective Wikipedia site.
A couple of months ago I opened my big fat mouth while visiting the After Party and said I would do a post about black greeks. Well I was given a deadline and my time is up so here goes. Please keep in mind that I am not going to get into a deep history debate. Basically what I'm going to do is give you founding dates (in chronological order) and prominent members. Feel free to click on the hyperlink to their respective sites.
Let's start with the first of all black greeks Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Incorporated. A Phi A is the first national intercollegiate fraternity established by African Americans. Founded on December 4, 1906, on the campus of Cornell University. The Prominent members of this fraternity are a various who's who of Black intelligentsia. Martin Luther King, Cornel West, Thurgood Marshall, Jeese Owens, Congressman Charles B. Rangel, and Paul Robeson; I could go on but you get the idea. This fraternity is very near and dear to my heart because well if you haven't guessed by now I am also a member. Now I could big up my frat all day but that is for another time.
Next up are my sisters the lovely ladies of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Incorporated. AKA was formed in January 15, 1908 at Howard University, it is America's first Greek-letter organization established by Black college women. Prominent members include Maya Angelou, Diahann Carroll, Ella Fitzgerald, Alicia Keys, Coretta Scott King, Jada Pinkett Smith, Toni Morrison, and Alice Walker. Well you get the idea.
Next up are the gentlemen of the crimson and cream the brothers of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Incorporated. Kappa Alpha Psi is the second oldest collegiate Greek-letter fraternity with a predominantly African American membership, founded January 5, 1911 at Indiana University. Here is a short list of members of note: Arthur Ashe, Calvin O. Butts, Bill Russell, John Singleton, Tavis Smiley, C. Vernon Mason, Johnnie Cochran, Percy Sutton, Stan Lathan, and Congressman John Conyers.
Next up are the brothers of Omega Psi Phi also known as the Ques. Omega Psi Phi Fraternity Incorporated was founded on Friday, November 17, 1911, at Howard University in Washington, D.C. Prominent members include Bill Cosby, Alonzo Mourning, Carter G. Woodson (black historian), Vernon Jordan, Jr., Michael Jordan, Shaquille O'Neal, Ozzie Newsome, Jesse Jackson, Charlie Ward and the great poet Langston Hughes.
Next up we have Professor Angry's sisters the lovely ladies of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated. Delta Sigma Theta was founded at Howard University January 13, 1913. Let me drop some names for you: Octavia E. Butler, Carol Moseley Braun, Poet Nikki Giovanni, Fannie Lou Hamer, Shirley Chisholm, Ruby Dee, Roberta Flack, Aretha Franklin, Cicely Tyson, Lena Horne, and the late great Betty Shabazz.
Now we move along to the fourth fraternity, Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. Phi Beta Sigma was founded at Howard University in Washington, D.C., January 9, 1914. Here's a short list of famous members, A. Philip Randolph, Willis Reed, Jerry Rice, David Ruffin, Emmitt Smith, Eddie Kendricks, Huey P. Newton, Kwame Nkrumah, Benjamin Chavis Muhammad, writer James Weldon Johnson, Blair Underwood, Morris Chestnut, and George Washington Carver.
Moving right along we have their sisters of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Inc. Zeta Phi Beta Inc. was founded January 16, 1920, on the campus of Howard University in Washington, D.C. Famous memebers Jayne Kennedy, Zora Neale Hurston, Dionne Warwick, Sarah Vaughan, Minnie Riperton, Esther Rolle, and Melba Moore to name a few.
Next up we have the ladies of Sigma Gamma Rho. Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Incorporated was founded on November 12, 1922 by seven educators in Indianapolis, Indiana. The group became an incorporated national collegiate sorority on December 30, 1929, when a charter was granted to Alpha chapter at Butler University in Indianapolis, Indiana. Here are some notable members: Hattie McDaniel, MC Lyte, Marilyn McCoo, Victoria Rowell and Lindy Boggs
Last but surely not least we have the brothers of Iota Phi Theta. Iota Phi Theta Fraternity Incorporated was founded on September 19, 1963 at Morgan State University in Baltimore, Maryland. Here's a short list of prominent members: Bobby Rush (former Black Panther turned US Congressman), Terrence "T.C." Carson, Kirby Wilson and Earl King.
In part two we will get into pledging, elitism, and why would I want to join a black greek letter organization.
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