Haitian Earthquake, Katrina Memories

One couldn't help but think it looked all to familiar. Devastation, despair and hopelessness seen in 2005 during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina seemed to have been replicated in the tiny nation of Haiti.

Like Katrina before it, the earthquake that has wrecked the nation of Haiti has been met with much sympathy and soul-searching. To be frank, Haiti's rebuilding will be a lot more extensive than that of the Gulf Region, post-Katrina. On the surface it would seem as Haiti was yet another poverty-stricken nation found in too many places in the Western Hemisphere. And in terms of statistics, it is the poorest in this part of the world.

I've had the benefit of having an understanding of the nation, mostly due to chance. Two of my closet friends are of Haitian descent and through them, I have had the opportunity to learn more about the country and its culture. A similar history to many of its Caribbean neighbors, Haiti's glaring difference is the manner of which they were able to defeat their former colonizers, France. Their timing, during the time where slavery still existed in many other countries, represented both the peak and the nadir of their national existence. Shunned by the international community (most notably the United States and France), sealed their fate as a nation even before it began.

Years of corruption, dictatorial rule and rampant poverty, have led the nation in a state of flux for decades. Despite this, there are few nations that have such an emphasis on family and perseverance, and this in itself will give them solace during this time of intense tragedy.

What's Eating Gilbert Arenas?

A couple years ago, I wrote a blog speaking on the iron fist of NBA Commissioner David Stern. The longest-serving commissioner of the major sports, Stern has overseen the many highs and few lows that the league has experience since 1980.

The man who benefited from the emergence of Larry Bird and Magic Johnson in the 80s, the larger-than-life impact of Michael Jordan has also been at the helm for 'Malice at the Palace', the gambling allegations of former referee Tim Donaghy, and the latest incident, the indefinite suspension of Washington Wizards' star guard, Gilbert Arenas.

Although the incident in question remains somewhat murky, the facts remain and stand against Arenas who brought a gun (unloaded) to the Wizards' locker room and allegedly brandished it against his teammate Jarvis Crittendon during a dispute over Arenas' gambling debt. Arenas, who said the gun was taken out as a joke seemed somewhat remorseful over the incident, but his antics afterward seemed to be mocking Stern and the NBA. Big mistake.

The NBA is not a democracy and rarely has been. There is no"'jury of your peers" that can side with a sympathetic defendant. Decisions are made by Stern and levied by Stern, end of story.

Now Arenas has been thrust into the national spotlight for his extreme carelessness. To some, he represents the thug imagery that the NBA has been trying to escape for years. To others, he is yet another egotistical athlete with too much time on his hands and money in his pocket. While Arenas can be accused of the latter, he is definitely not a thug. For those who call themselves avid NBA fans, Arenas is arguably one of the most popular players in the league. From his constant twittering, to his goofy personality, Arenas is beloved by fans across the league. Usually when people talk about what's wrong with the game, Arenas' name rarely comes up.

And now that he's been thrust into the spotlight so negatively, his life and contributions to society will be forgotten. This was a young man, raised by a single father, who at different points in his life, was homeless. Arenas has made huge contributions to local D.C. youth since joining the Wizards and personally mentors a 10-year-old boy who lost his father to gun violence. These will serve as a counterweight to those who will vilify him for his extremely careless decision.

Arenas will now be forever linked with athletes and guns like Plaxico Burress as well as joining Ron Artest as the main culprits for the NBA's two most controversial suspensions. While Artest has been able to revitalize his NBA career, Arenas will now face the same fate after being suspended, possibly until the end of this year and maybe longer.

Arenas is now a player who will serve a year in the NBA wilderness, an outcast from the game he cherishes.

In Memoriam: Chris Henry

Any time someone passes on before their time, you take notice. Whenever its a 26-year-old star athlete in the nation's most popular sport, you have to pause and come to grips with the reality of it all.

Cincinnati Bengals Wide Receiver Chris Henry was often more known for his mistakes than his successes. A superior athlete in college at West Virginia, Henry's draft stock dropped due to off the field incidents. The Bengals took a chance and drafted the enigmatic wideout in the 5th round and for his first couple seasons, Henry's skeletons continued to chase him as a pro. Henry's legal problems became more of a unwanted distraction than a cry for help.

But those in his corner, like Coach Marvin Lewis and teammate Chad OchoCinco knew that he would turn the corner soon. This year, there hopes were seemed to be vindicated by Henry's change in demeanor and new found dedication to his sport. If not for a season-ending injury suffered this year, Henry would no doubt still be an integral part of a Bengals team primed for the playoffs.

However, this is so much more about Chris Henry the man than it is about the athlete. We often sit back in judgment of superstar athletes, seemingly given the golden ticket to success, only for them to squander it by making bad decisions and surrounding themselves with bad people. There's no doubt Henry's detractors made this same assessment of him as he battled his personal demons for the world to see. Those closest to him, like family, obviously gained much joy from watching him achieve his dreams, and when all of the eulogies given by ESPN and sports fans are over with, it will be his family that will be left to grieve.

And he was only 26.

The Down Low....Real, Imagined or Both?

Sometimes, all it takes is Oprah. An appearance on the nation's most popular talk show is a sure-fire route to many things; wealth and notoriety being the two most coveted.

Controversy is also a bi-product as well. It was one appearance by noted author Terry McMillan that changed perceptions of Black male-female relationships forever. McMillan, author of such works as Disappearing Acts and How Stella Got Her Groove Back, (both of which were made into films), brought an issue to the fore that had previously only been a whisper in the past.

The 'Down-Low' Brother.

Black men who are on the down-low maintain a heterosexual lifestyle on the surface, sometimes through marriage, but also engage in homosexual acts in private. When McMillan spoke on Oprah that she had been the victim of this betrayal, Black women across the country began to wonder privately (sometimes out loud), 'could this be me'? What came next was something that resembled half-phenomenon, half-urban legend.

There is no question that this issue, while important, came at the wrong time (or right time depending on your perspective), for Black women. Faced with the decreasing number of eligible Black men in their communities due to the increasing number of Black men being incarcerated, pursuing women outside their race, etc., this was fuel added to the fire of Black womens' frustrations with their brothers. They were now faced with something they couldn't as readily identify as Black men being in jail or dating 'other' women. Their men could be loving them one night, then in the arms of another brotha the next. I understand the fear.

But when does fear become fact and caution become paranoia? I often heard my female friends speak about the down low as if anyone could fall victim. Granted, there are real and dangerous consequences to these acts. The cases of HIV and AIDS amongst Black women are rising like no other. This in itself is enough to give anyone pause. There is no cause to believe that this has nothing to do with Black men playing both sides of the fence. But is every man a possibility. Most definitely not.

When it comes down to communication between Black men and women, this is the least likely to succeed. The majority of Black men have no time for it and are offended if its even brought up. Their reasoning is that their woman should know already. Whereas women, often with facts but more often with hearsay, do not know.

The truth is, there are some men who are down low, but I would venture an educated guess and say the majority are not. But if nothing else, the hope is that this issue will be talked about more freely in the communities that need to the most.

We can always hope....

Why Michael Vick Will Always Divide Atlanta

It ended up being much like we expected. Last Sunday, Michael Vick, now quarterback for the Philadelphia Eagles returned to the Georgia Dome, a stadium he used to electrify nearly every week with his quarterback play as a member of the Atlanta Falcons.

Vick's introduction into the game brought a mixture of reaction: boos with a smattering of cheers here and there. Vick's return to Atlanta was almost as divisive as his reign there as a player and most of that has to do with what Vick represented to the fans of the Atlanta Falcons.

To understand the Vick issue more in depth, you'd have to know a bit about Atlanta the city and their franchise the Falcons. Historically not the winningest franchise in the NFL, the Falcons began to turn the corner in the mid to late 90s thanks, in part, to their star player Deion Sanders. That brief flirtation with success carried on and off through the years and made Falcons games something else to do in the growing southern city.

The drafting of Michael Vick in 2001 as the Number 1 pick overall was supposed to represent a new era for the franchise and the city. Conspicuously absent in prior years, African Americans started to flock to Falcon games more regularly to root on their beloved #7 whose pure athletic skills took the league by storm. He was one of their own, a southern-bred boy and to their delight playing quarterback and winning.

We all know what happened next and it was in the aftermath of Vick's trial, sentencing and release that the two sides of Atlanta really started to emerge. As one of the fastest growing cities in the South, Atlanta has become home to many African Americans and has given it the name "the Black Mecca". While many of the Falcons fan base were incensed at Vick's crimes (as they should), many of his Black fans remained loyal.

It was these fans who wore their #7 jerseys to the game last Sunday while the mostly white attendance at the Georgia Dome expressed their rejection of Vick throughout the game. Even though the team remains successful under new quarterback Matt Ryan, the Vick issue continues to divide the city in ways that most outsiders fail to understand.

Who says race and sports don't mix?

Who Gives a F*** About A Grammy

"We don't give a fuck about a god damn Grammy", were the words uttered by Public Enemy on their seminal album It Takes A Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back in 1989 and the words were far from subtle.

Truthfully, there has always been an uneasy relationship between Hip Hop and the most prestigious of award shows when it comes to music. An artist-led boycott of the Grammys led by Public Enemy during the early days of the Best Hip Hop Album award, led by Public Enemy was in response to the Grammys not televising this part of the award ceremony (that year DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince were the recipients of the award, yet also took part in the boycott).

To their credit, the Grammy committee has made some strides in the past 20 years, obviously due to the popularity of the genre and the fact that the early generalizations about the genre (about rap "not" being music) were unfounded, have led to the award show having slightly more credibility in the hip hop community. This is not to say brothers in L.A. or Brooklyn are tuning in to watch the ceremony; most don't care. With the numerous amount of "Black" award shows that abound to muddy the waters, there's no emphasis on the Grammys amongst the hip hop underground. But for established artists, I would argue that the awards still are held in a greater light to them. In short its the validation of mainstream success.

And for the most part, it is.

N***a Ears

This is a continuance of the 'Death of the Black Band' blog. The issue is 'Nigga Ears', a phrase I lifted by Kerry Washington's character on I Think I Love My Wife. While exchanging an iPod playlist with the character played by Chris Rock, Washington asks Rock if he has "nigga ears" after hearing successive R&B tracks. So in short, it means Black people who only listen to Black music.

In this day and time of specialized radio stations that play a certain listing of songs, you can forgive people for having the false notion that there is little else besides Hip Hop and R&B. Thankfully, I never had to define music only by Quiet Storm standards. My mother listened to songs from Steely Dan, Fleetwood Mac and Ambrosia (if these names are foreign to you, there is a problem). This taught me that indeed, other people did make music and it sounded damn good. The 80s also saw a very diverse array of music and with MTV, the likes of the Police and Michael Jackson could be seen in the same hour. Black people of my generation are familiar with the New Wave Bands from Britain and even some Rock n Roll songs. With the increased visibility and prevalence of BET and Hip Hop, music became more narrowly defined.

The rise of Hip Hop and listening to it, became somewhat of a definition of Black culture. In addition, R&B followed suit and those kids who liked a little alternative music in their life were viewed with suspicion. All was not lost however. Artists like Run-DMC, who teamed up with Aerosmith and even P.Diddy's rock version of 'Benjamins' were welcome but rare additions to the musical landscape. Some groups like No Doubt and Maroon 5 do have Black fans, but nothing in comparison to how many white fans listen to Lil' Wayne or Jay-Z; its definitely not an even exchange of music.

So ask yourself...do you have n**a ears?