Black Salvage

It's interesting to me that some of the people proclaiming "Black Lives Matter" and "All Lives Matter" still buy season tickets from sports clubs with blatantly racist names.  A number of African-Americans and Whites  defend & dismiss the Washington Redskins name: "it's been called that for so long, everyone is just used to it..." "well, I don't look at it that way..." "it's just a name..." "there are more important issues..." I'm a Humanist, which I have firmly found to be the most distressing psychological state of mind for a human being, based off of my own experience. I am also educated, so I know that most people are largely ignorant of the true history of this country's native history. To those African-Americans who say, "I'm part Cherokee and I'm not offended..." or my, "great-great-grandmother was Indian..." - I ask that if you have ...

You know, there's nothing I like more than to start a post with an epic quote...lol. "There was two kind of slaves. There was the house negro and the field negro. The house negro, they lived in the house, with master. They dressed pretty good. They ate good, cause they ate his food, what he left. They lived in the attic or the basement, but still they lived near their master, and they loved their master, more than their master loved himself. They would give their life to save their masters house quicker than their master would. The house negro, if the master said "we got a  good house here" the house negro say "yeah, we got a good house here". Whenever the master would said we, he'd say we. That's how you can tell a house negro. If the master's house caught on fire, the house negro would fight harder to put the blaze out than the master would. If the master got sick, the house negro would say "What's the matter, boss, we sick?" ...

Anybody who knows me well, or well enough for that matter, knows I was going to write about this at some point...smh... Why do Dark Skinned Black people hating on Light Skinned Black people?  Without Frederick Douglass, we would probably still be slaves. Without Jesse Jackson, helping out MLK jr,, White people would probably ignored him. Without Thurgood Marshall, Clarence Thomas wouldn't be Judge now. Now we got Obama as President... and you know eventually we will have a dark skinned African American President. Bush looked at Colin Powell, made him Secretary of State, then gave Condi Rice a chance. See... Dark Skinned Black people should be grateful that we Light Skinned Black people are making their life easier...Agree?” - Yahoo Answers Poster I have grown to accept that many African-Americans don't have a genuine desire to learn or embrace their history and heritage. I have become accustom to one's “Blackness” in America being more so defined by their clothes a...

Black Salvage. What began as a forum for me to rant about issues affecting the African American community transformed, in just a year and a half, into a respectable journal chronicling the black experience. A second lead editor joined, followed by several other writers and contributers. We even dabbled into video blogging and initiating interviews with well-known voices. For a time, things were good. But then, something happened for everyone involved- life . I don't think there was ever a time for any of us that none of us stopped caring about what the site was about, atleast in spirit, but I think the very thing that made this blog so great in the first place was it's very undoing- I found positive, motivated, inspired people to contribute but people with the qualities I just mentioned, tend to be very active and dedicated to the things closest to their heart first. Even for myself, blogging and writing is not my first love- music is. I am not saying that Bla...

I present a story of an extraordinary young man who demonstrates brilliance on and off the football field. Myron Rolle, the All-American safety for Florida State University's football team, decided to forgo the NFL Draft in order to pursue a medical degree at Oxford University. This brilliant young brother is no ordinary collegiate football player; he is considered one of the top safety's in the country, and he is considered to be a second or third round draft pick, meaning if he had entered the Draft, he would most likely have been offered a multimillion dollar contract. Mr Rolle's remarkable athletic ability is surpassed by his scholastic achievements. Rolle was awarded as one of thirty four Rhodes Scholars that will be studying at Oxford University,a highly prestigious school in England. Being a Rhodes Scholar is nothing to take lightly, the selection process is intense and students are picked from fourteen specified geographic locations. The most notable American Rhode...

The Black Salvage would like to introduce to you the inagural article from the newest addition to our team, Cynical Jubilee. Below is a brief introduction: "I'm a Religious Studies Philosophy major at MSU. I enjoy studying Religion for the sole purpose of tracing a HISTORICAL outline of religious origins and moral codes instead of bashing other's beliefs with the Tomfoolery they tried to brainwash me with in Sunday School. I'm here to present you all with historical FACTS, but I respect everyone's beliefs and opinions. " Since it’s the New Year and I’m new to the team, I find it very fitting to share some insight on the story of Genesis and propose a question that many choose to look over- Adam and Eve were the first two humans and they had two sons- Cain and Abel. One son kills the other, so: WHO GAVE BIRTH TO HUMANITY????? Where did where did Cain find a wife to reproduce with if there were no other humans on earth? Well, there are two books that come to min...

Happy Holidays! This one's going to be a quickie. . . The term "house negro" is a pretty harsh way to reference any black person. I want go into the history of it, you can do that yourself. That said, I present to you Alan Keyes. Keyes is one of several individuals at the moment apparently challenging Barack Obama's citizenhip and as well, his presidency. There are theories claiming that Obama was born in Kenya and others alleging he's really an Indonesian citizen. Another cedes that because Obama held dual citizenship at birth from the U.S. and Great Britain, he is ineligible to hold our nation's highest office. Here's the good news- no court is taking this matter seriously and the Supreme Court of the U.S. has declined to even hear the case three times already. For the moment, it seems the only place this nonsense is even catching steam is on Faux News. Now, back to Mr. Keyes. . . Some folk are calling the man a house negro. Maybe he is, maybe he isn...

She knew that winning was unattainable, but to be a black woman and run for President of the United States, amidst a time of racial and gender inequality is a victory in itself. Her campaign was unorganized, underfunded, and unprepared, but to be a pioneering trailblazer, who changed the facade of American politics speaks volumes about her character. Chisholm story proves that effective leadership is not measured by the performance of the leader, but rather his/her ability to inspire and motivate others to lead. Sixteen years before Jesse "kept hope alive", Shirley Anita St Hill Chisholm sought the Democratic nomination for President of the United States. Thirty six years before Hilary and Barack turned American politics upside down, Mrs Chisholm became the first woman and African American to challenge the concept of what a President should look and act like. Furthermore, at the 1972 Democratic National Convention, she received 152 first ballot votes, this may be insignifican...

[I know some of you have realized by now that the Salvage kinda' goes dormant during the summer. . . for obvious reasons. . . so I won't give some lame excuse for the absence, lol. That said, I would like to present the first article from the newest addition to the Black Salvage team, Angry Sally. -Chief Editor ] Why so Hateful? According to Urbandictionary.com, the number one definition of hating is when one puts down the success or fortune of others due to jealousy. When you hear the word hating what comes to mind? Lately, in my mind, the term conjures up images of Michelle Obama. Ever since she came into the national spotlight, Michelle Obama has been an open target. She has been described as a volatile “angry black woman,” caricatured as a gun toting terrorist, and quoted to sound like an unpatriotic fist-bumping anomaly. Most of her criticism comes from “credible” twenty-four hour television news programs, magazines, and newspapers. For every compliment and praise Mrs. Ob...

The Black Salvage is pleased to bring you more real talk from our regular music contributor L. A. Grant. They say talk is cheap so you can speak freely but, if it’s not for a reason, then what is it actually good for? The station that was meant to highlight things pertinent to blacks along with educating, uplifting, and motivating “our people” has lost its luster. There was a time when such shows as Teen Summit and B.E.T. News were a staple of our network. Now, you would be hard pressed to find anything resembling communication of thoughts that don’t include money, cars, or something of monetary value. The quality of programming has changed so drastically that I have noticed, in talking with educated people of color, most find it hard to even view Black Entertainment Television on a daily basis unless they are trying to see the latest videos. Movies like, “Cornbread and Earl”, will most likely never air on B.E.T. again even though the premise behind the situations and problems conveyed...

I would like to take this time to formally announce and introduce the third editor and contributor to the Black Salvage team, Ms. Catrina Sally. Here are some words from our newest addition: "I’m a Graduate English Student at Morgan State University. My concentration is screenwriting and I work as a paraeducator during the day. I love being Black, I love to write, and I hope my posts will exhibit these sentiments. Jerel and I have argued over the most mundane things, at least we have Black awareness in common!" As a long time commenter on the blog before making the move to join us, Catrina will continue using the pen name "Angry Sally", and likely for good reason. . . lol.

So... don't you hate when people who have absoulutely no relevance attack a relevant person to get their name in the news so that somehow, they might become relevant? I'll cut to the chase. Here are some comments presidential hopeful(yet again!?) Ralph Nader made: "There's only one thing different about Barack Obama when it comes to being a Democratic presidential candidate. He's half African-American. . . whether that will make any difference, I don't know. I haven't heard him have a strong crackdown on economic exploitation in the ghettos. Payday loans, predatory lending, asbestos, lead. What's keeping him from doing that? Is it because he wants to talk white? He doesn't want to appear like Jesse Jackson? We'll see all that play out in the next few months and if he gets elected afterwards." This is probably one of those things a lot of people are thinking, especially a lot of black people. Honestly, I think this comment and others come...

First and foremost, The Black Salvage is not turning into a celebrity gossip column so calm down! I just thought this would be something a lot of you'd take interest in. Below is a clip of some choice words old school rapper Ice T had for Soulja Boy . Ice T's words are at the beginning and Soulja's Boy's response follows. I'm sure that most of you who know me personally know that I despise Soulja Boy. I used to say, that his music was stupid- now I know that he too is stupid. . . sigh*. Now, I'm not in anyway justifying Ice T's "eat a dick" comment because that was entirely uncalled for, but everything else he said was entirely true, in my opinion. Now for part two. This vid is of Ice T's response to Soulja's Boy. Too funny. But personally, I'm glad someone of Ice T's stature did openly criticize Soulja Boy. I wouldn't say he's killing hip-hop but as far as lowering the standard- that can't be argued. By Prodigy-...

Just wanted to let everyone know about another documentary that's coming up in July. It's going to be on CNN and it's entitled, "Black In America" . It's a two part series that airs on the 23rd and 24th. Watch the trailer; it looks pretty good. Another reason why you should watch this is because its CNN, which is basically the only news network on cable that's not biased against blacks or Democrats, lol. YES, FOX AND MSNBC, I'M TALKING TO YOU!! I'll keep you posted. By the way, the documentary on Douglass High comes on tonight at 9 on HBO. Don't bother me during those two hours! - Prodigy Maestro (You do not have to be a member of Blogger to comment. Choose 'other' or 'anonymous' when your identification is asked for.)

What I’m about to bring to your attention, if you already haven’t seen or heard it, is probably one of the best rap/hip-hop songs that’s come out in awhile, from one of the best rappers, in my opinion. The below video is of Nas’ “Be A Nigger Too”, from his still untitled album that drops next month. When I first saw the video I was speechless. It was a shock to my system- all I’ve heard the last several weeks was the ignorant stuff, most notably Lil’ Wayne . But this “Be A Nigger Too”- it took one of the most offensive words in our society and laced with one of the most important messages in rap music that I’ve seen in awhile. He essentially made the ‘n’ word positive. It’s almost like he made it a learning tool. The Black Salvage caught up with Prince George ’s County, Maryland area rapper Jay Luminarty for his thoughts on the video. Luminarty, who attested that he has to deal with the words nigger and nigga on a daily basis said that calling the video controversi...

Just letting you all know that Monday night, HBO will be airing a documentary on Baltimore's Frederick Douglass High School. A professor and good friend of mine, Donyel Hill, was involved in the project. Here's a little of what he had to say about the film: "Alan and Susan Raymond spent one year filming in Frederick Douglass High School, which has a rich history of successful alumni, including Supreme Court justice Thurgood Marshall. Shot in classic cinema verité style, the film captures the complex realities of life at Douglass, and provides a context for the national debate over the controversial No Child Left Behind Act, focusing on the brutal inequalities of American minority education, considered an American tragedy by many. . ." "Douglass principal Isabelle Grant oversees a staff of teachers that is two-thirds non-certified, while many are substitutes unqualified to teach their subject areas. Threatened with sanctions, or even closing, unless student scor...

Anyone who knows me well, or well enough knows that I do my fair share of video gaming. Now honestly, I never thought that video games would have take the topic of discussion on The Black Salvage, but here we are. . . Your’s truly was playing Grand Theft Auto online via Xbox Live the other day. Those familiar with online console gaming will know that there is a ‘forum’ type area before matches begin, where players can communicate with each other if they have the headset and do things like talk trash. . . or. . . .call Your’s Truly a nigger, filthy nigger(while imitating a Southern accent), and nigger-lover. Why any of this was even necessary is beyond me. And the expletives I and others were called was not limited to just these. People were expressing their hatred of Jews as well as Hispanics. The token Asian slur was also thrown about. One person even told me, that “blacks are only good for peanut-butter and basketball”. One player told me that "black people can't afford Xbo...

A couple of months ago, we ran a piece on the relevance of historically black colleges and universities . With all the disproportionately negative press these schools receive, it’s important that positives stories, like the one I am about to bring you, get out. With that said; I present to you our first ever Black Salvage Spotlight- allow me to introduce to Mr. Ke’Shawn Forbes. Here’s a snapshot of Forbes- He’s a junior, majoring in Social Work at Morgan State University in Baltimore, MD, and currently has a 3.1 grade point average. Outside his studies he mentors, tutors and serves as a host for different university events. Did I mention he’s in school on a “full ride” through academic scholarships. Forbes has a nickname, “Flexxa”, which is Caribbean, he tells the Black Salvage. “down there you get a nickname for what your good at. It comes from flexibility and being multiple places at once- and being a people magnet.” People magnet is an understatement, given that Forbes just won th...

As a white man, how in the hell were you able to become a photographer for the Black Panther Party(BPP)? The exact question I asked world renown photographer Stephen Shames ( I highly encourage you to visit his site). Looking at me with a condescending smile-he began to speak-but, before he could answer, an announcer called him to the podium, to present a lecture on his experiences as a photographer for social and cultural awareness. Knowing that I was unable to stay the entire lecture, he began first, by answering my question. After hearing his in depth explanation of how the BPP's intentions were social reform, and not racial division, I suddenly realized the lack of knowledge I have on the black liberation movement of the sixties. My false impressions of anti-white, pro violence, and racial demagoguery were all thrown out the window. Feeling like a misinformed asshole, I stood frozen for two minutes, drowning in a pool of my own ignorance. Walking out the lecture hall-with a sa...

BET, MTV, VH1; not at this moment-instead, try focusing your attention on PBS-there you will find a phenomenal television series, African American Lives 2 . Executive produced and hosted by Harvard professor Louis Gates Jr, genealogical research and investigations are done on the ancestry of black celebrities. Trust me, what the researchers discover, will motivate you to research your family's history. Celebrities such as Chris Rock, Morgan Freeman, and Don Cheadle show expressions of disbelief, as they discover unknown truths about their ancestry. Below is a clip from AA Lives 2 ; observe the look on Chris Rock's face, as he learns about his great-great grandfather: Knowing ones history is knowing ones self. I am sickened at how undervalued and overlooked black people are in history. Our history has been so distorted, that we lose sight of how important we are, not just to history, but, every aspect of society. Since our involvement in history remains unappreciated, it is our...