Today, August 28t, 2008 marks Forty-five (45) years since Dr. Martin Luther King delivered his historic I Have A Dream speech A PHI!!! shout-out to the Brothers of Ice Cold Distinction, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc. of whom Dr. King belonged and was a proud member so i say with much pride that Dr. King is my Brother. with that said i digress to reflect on this day, its meaning, significance and symbolism, in a word HISTORY.
as we anxiously anticipate the futhering of its history on eve of Barak Obama's acceptance of the Democratic nomination. The First major party nomination of an African-American candidate. my mom put it perspective for me this morning saying, "your kids will read about this in their history books." i thought about it and for a minute and what makes that so profound to me is the historical denotation of the torch being passed from one generation to the next. my parents and their generation lived through the era of the civil rights movement, they remember this day 45 years ago in Washington D.C. on the steps of the Lincoln memorial when Dr. King spoke the profound, profetic words I... Have... A Dream... they lived what my generation and i read about in our text and history boooks growing up. one day i will sit my children down, the way my parents sat me down when i was a child and say to them, you know what you're reading about wasn't written in any history book when i was your age. i lived it as it was happening.
the culture & the climate of what we are living through can be put into words but it will always fall short of capturing its essence. i understand now the passion with which my parents spoke as they recanted the story of history being made on this day two score and five years ago. Dr. King said I have been to the mountain top, i have seen thr promised land but just as the Lord showed Moses the promised land neither was allowed to experience it on this side of glory. however, the people these Men of God led in the fight against bondage have and are experiencing the promissed land God showed them.
for forty (40) years the people of Isreal walked in the wilderness before they were allowed to enter and many of them died before making it, how amazing is it that forty (40) years after Dr. Kings assiniation we stand at the threshold of a promised land that many who were apart off the struggle have died on the way to. my father used to tell me, there are two (2) types of people, those who make it, and those who talk/tell/write about it, we have an opportunity to be apart of making history so regisster to vote and when the day comes, this november 4, 2008, go out to the poles and make history. Dr. King's dream lives and is as evident as ever, I... Have... A Dream... peace!
lil brother b
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Monday, August 25, 2008
Roots
welcome to the stump, the stoop the shop...
if you're wondering about the name here is the break down. i came up with this name about 3 years ago when i first considered creating a blog. it epitomizes what a blog is in my mind. a place where you speak your mind, build, rap, share info etc. with people you know or may have never met. i always try to pay respect to the past because as my dad always said, aint nothin old, aint nothin new and neither is this concept. no matter what culture/ethnicity you identify with there are places where this concept of blogging was taking place long before the internet.
if you do your research it started at the stump - the stumps left from trees that had been cut down that served as platforms for speakers to express their thoughts, hone and master their public speaking ability. from the stump we have the stoop - the steps that led to your building or front porch where you formulated some of your first world views and opinions as a youth debating with your peers & friends, and who doesn't know about the shop - the barbershop. i remember going to the barbershop as a youth and soaking up everything the older men said as they discussed everything from people, politics, relationships and religion, waiting for the day i was old enough to express my views and have them accepted by the seniors. i write this blog for all those who preceded the blog, fathered the concept, either long passed from the stump days, no longer living in the stoop days and/or still enjoying the shop days. thanks to you all for i am a product of the chunks of knowledge and information i gained from you that i have seasoned with my own understanding. peace!
lil brother b
if you're wondering about the name here is the break down. i came up with this name about 3 years ago when i first considered creating a blog. it epitomizes what a blog is in my mind. a place where you speak your mind, build, rap, share info etc. with people you know or may have never met. i always try to pay respect to the past because as my dad always said, aint nothin old, aint nothin new and neither is this concept. no matter what culture/ethnicity you identify with there are places where this concept of blogging was taking place long before the internet.
if you do your research it started at the stump - the stumps left from trees that had been cut down that served as platforms for speakers to express their thoughts, hone and master their public speaking ability. from the stump we have the stoop - the steps that led to your building or front porch where you formulated some of your first world views and opinions as a youth debating with your peers & friends, and who doesn't know about the shop - the barbershop. i remember going to the barbershop as a youth and soaking up everything the older men said as they discussed everything from people, politics, relationships and religion, waiting for the day i was old enough to express my views and have them accepted by the seniors. i write this blog for all those who preceded the blog, fathered the concept, either long passed from the stump days, no longer living in the stoop days and/or still enjoying the shop days. thanks to you all for i am a product of the chunks of knowledge and information i gained from you that i have seasoned with my own understanding. peace!
lil brother b
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