Welcome back to another Movie Night Friday, where I tell you about my favorite movies and why I love them. If you like the movies too, feel free to comment why you love them.
So today we’re looking at Boyz N The Hood, one of the best hood movies ever made.
John Singleton’s Directorial debut, Boyz N The Hood, released in July of ’91, is a Coming of Age Drama surrounding the life of three black men growing up in South Central LA, and starring some of the best black actors to date: Lawrence Fishburne, Ice Cube, Cuba Gooding Jr., Angela Basset, Regina King, and a young Nia Long, and Morris Chestnut. In fact, this was Ice Cube and Chestnut’s first movie debut.
After his many troubles in school, a young Tre (Desi Arnez Hines II) is sent to live with his father Furious Styles (Fishburne) by his mother Reva (Basset) in the Crenshaw neighborhood of South Central. His father, one of the reasons this became one of my favorites, instills in Tre the life lessons and values many of his young friends do not have. In fact, as Tre reunites with his childhood friends, Darrin “Doughboy”, his brother Ricky and Chris, their mutual friend, his lessons in manhood take on new meaning and his decisions become critical. His friends do not have the privilege of a positive father figure and are drawn to the streets for guidance. Furious therefore warns Tre about following in their footsteps but despite his warnings, older Tre (Cuba) and his friends have their own way of surviving. In this Teen Hood Drama, loyalty and danger dance too close for comfort, and dire situations force Tre to decide for himself the future he wants.
Trailer:
Funny Movie Mistakes:
In the scene where Lawrence Fishburne hooks up Cuba Gooding Jr.’s fade, he never actually cuts any hair, but then demands that Cuba clean up the mess after he is finished.
I’m no expert, but I do know that writing is a unique career. It’s the same as other businesses, and yet it is not the same. It requires the same level of dedication, professionalism, and hard work. However, it is also a lot different than lets say, selling your neighbor a bar of soap.
Reading takes a lot of time. It is on a level that is a lot more personal. Readers actually get very sensitive when it comes to buying a book that sucked than buying a bar of soap that also sucks. People are also easily bored these days, so as authors we have to constantly keep our ears to the ground, discovering what’s trending and what’s throwback. It is for this reason that readers tend to find an author they love and stick to him or her. If you’re that author, great, but the story does not always end this way. As I thought about this, I started to really think, not about selling books, but being of service. As I babysat these thoughts, I ran across some great advice from one of my subscription blogs:
“Don’t SELL to your readers, SERVE them. With the changing dynamic between readers and writers, authors need to listen, gather knowledge about readers, foster communications, collaborate, and build long-term relationships.”
We have to be realistic. Authors are constantly told not to sell. But full time authors, those who don’t hold secondary positions elsewhere or receive money from additional sources, have bills to pay, food to put on the table, and needs that require monetary investment. So we can’t just tell writers that they should not sell their books no more than we can tell bloggers not to get excited over new readers. Despite how we gloss it up, the reality is that an author’s end goal is to sell you this book. But here is where being of service comes in:
For me personally, anything that I bring into my space should teach me something. This just means it should advance me in some way. Will it make me laugh? Cry? Think? Discover? Will it inform me? Teach me? Show me? What does this book, more than any other book, do for me? This is the same way that I look at Blogging. I am more than likely to bond with blogs that have something to offer.
Now, back to soap:
When you’re selling soap, I want to know that it’s because the benefits of this particular soap outweigh Irish Springs; not just because you’re trying to make a quick buck. If you can convince me that your product is of some significance to my life and you can back this up, then I will be more than happy to become a dedicated supporter. I have enough sense to know that you have bills to pay, but I also see that your purpose is bigger than dead presidents on paper. Why does this matter to authors?
Because people want to matter.
I believe this is true in everything that we do, and not just writing. But specifically, the first clue to readers that they matter, is the amount of hard work we put into the end product. Our professionalism, or lack thereof, speaks volumes far before these books hit the shelves. So I just want to encourage my writers out there to do the best you can, because it doesn’t get any better than your best. And I believe this is the difference between selling a product and being of service to the people. Readers (and bloggers) want to know that they are getting something out of the process. So I wouldn’t say don’t sell to your readers, instead I would just say to be of service to them.
“When I sit down to write a book, I do not say to myself, ‘I am going to produce a work of art.’ I write it because there is some lie that I want to expose, some fact to which I want to draw attention (to)….” —George Orwell
I think this is a great way to sit down and write a book or article or poem. If you think more about your purpose for this particular piece, or you engage and have fun with the writing process in general, then I think you will unintentionally create something unique. Because you’ve put your all into it, you have the potential to create something really beautiful and powerful for readers. I do not believe the best songs were built under the notion that they will become hits, they were just written from the heart and that’s what makes them great. Anyone can write a book, poem, or sing a song, but when you can feel the passion, really feel it, and you know that it’s truly coming from the heart, that’s what makes it art.
About The Author:
I was first introduced to Orwell about seven or eight years ago when I read his book, 1984. I wouldn’t say he’s my favorite author but I did enjoy the book. At a time where I was just coming into a proper understanding of both myself and the world around me, it was an enlightening read.
Orwell was born June 25, 1903 in Bengal, India. His birth name was Eric Arthur Blair in Motihari, and he was a novelist, essayist and critic who went on to become best known for his novels Animal Farm and Nineteen Eighty-Four. Speaking of Nineteen Eighty-Four, the title sounds like a throwback to us, like something old but for Orwell it was the future. He wrote 1984 back in 1949. In short, it is a look into the future of the world which is divided into three nations. In the story, Orwell gives us a look into what would happen if the Government controlled every aspect of a person’s life, all the way down to his private thoughts. It was the first time, before Minority Report (the movie), that I had ever heard of something called thought crime.
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And that’s it for my portion of Writer’s Quote Wednesday. As always, don’t forget to check out the links or the pic to see how you can join the fun. Don’t forget to also Like or Comment on the post of other participants. You get support by giving it :).
10 weeks ago, in Charleston North Carolina, an unarmed black man (Walter Scott) was shot in the back. The footage was caught on video. Today, his murderer sits in a cell next to last weeks Charleston Shooter, as many are now calling him. After killing 9 people, Dylan Roof went on the run and was caught 16 hours later by Law Enforcement. Once captured, FBI began to question Roof. Shortly after that, according to a statement given to the Charlotte Observer, they took Roof to Burger King because he said that he was hungry.
Two months ago, 25 year old black man, Freddie Gray, was arrested by police, taken into custody, and critically injured in the transporting van. He fell into a coma and died due to injuries to his Spinal Cord. His death would lead to ongoing protest in downtown Baltimore. Pending further investigation into the incident, the six suspected police would be suspended… with pay.
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I know it annoys a lot of people, the constant conversations about blacks and race. The constant eruption of discussion concerning racist whites against blacks. The constant pushing forth of articles and posts concerning the relationship between these groups of people. At some point in History, every nation of people have experienced some form of racism within the context in which we know it. Specifically, when we talk about blacks in America, the subject of slavery often accompany the explanation concerning our captivity and struggles here. You’d be hard pressed to sit in on a conversation that does not include that part of history. What people who are not black, however, must understand is that it is not just about slavery. The institution itself was very traumatic for our people and has had, as a result, a dramatic effect on us so much so that it leaves a mental stain even until this day. However, this alone does not make our story unique, though it plays a pivotal role. Just as other nations have been discriminated against, other nations too have seen some form of slavery (though not to the extent of our confinement). This is the commonality of our servitude. The difference however, is this:
The reason you will always hear of blacks when discussing racism is not just because they have been slaves, nor is it simply because they have been mistreated once or twice. But in addition to slavery, being black in America also has to do with our affliction in America. We have not been slaves for 400 years, but we have been afflicted for nearly 400 years. Since 1619, when the first blacks were brought through the ports of Jamestown Virginia to begin what we know as the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade, we have been mistreated and afflicted for the entire time that we have been in this land. Meaning there has not been a let up; not one moment of peace and it has been nearly 400 years, this is what makes our captivity unique. From slavery, to Jim Crow, to police brutality, racism and discrimination, high prison population, drugs, disease, you name it, we’ve seen it. Name one instance in History, from 1619 forward, where blacks have not experienced some form of humiliation.
I’ll wait.
Others have been, and are mistreated, but none outside the so called African American can produce documentation that will prove that their people have endured one continual stomping, blow by blow by blow for nearly 400 years straight. Blacks were not part of the U.S. Constitution, they are an add on; an amendment if you will. And this is the difference between having been a slave and having endured a continual affliction even after that slavery has ended. Thus, while we have not been in physical chains this whole time, we have been afflicted this whole time (aside from the affliction of chains) more than any other people. Our psychological troubles then, and the anger built up among many of our lost brethren, is because they have seen their people as constant targets.
Many of you have probably already noticed that I have no problem using the “N Word” on this blog. You have probably asked yourself why, “Surely she understands it’s history..?” Of course I do.
I figured since Obama just used it, which means it’s fresh in your minds, this is a good time to talk about it.
Here’s the thing:
Words have meaning. They are not idle and do not exist just because, but words always have and always will have meaning. In a recent post, I discussed the many titles placed upon black people in the attempt to define their nationality. I used words like Black, African (or Afro) American, Colored, Negro and I threw Nigger in there too. These are all bywords and proverbs and mockeries placed on us throughout our history here. They are proverbs and mockeries because they do not define who we are. (Duet. 28:37).
Logically speaking, all emotion aside, I’m going to put this as real as I only know how. Just as words are not idle, action is not either. Every thought, and every action means something. If you want people to stop using “The N Word”, then stop acting like niggas. Stop degrading yourself and your people by accepting ratchet behavior and slave like mentalities. When you know something is wrong and you continue to do it, that is disobedient behavior and only niggas and thugs and hood rats are disobedient. Stop accepting mediocrity and then calling it racism. Now I am no fool, I know there are tons of Europeans who use this word with every intent of harnessing the spirit of slavery. This is why it hits hard with blacks because people feel it in their spirit, and in their bones, that the tone in which some use it is a mere shadow, a reflection, of the generational racism in which many have been raised. Time doesn’t matter, there are still white people who are racist and they don’t want to admit it. I understand that. But not all of our white brothers and sisters are racist, we need to understand that too.
Everyone must be held accountable for their actions and the results they incur. If a slave is released from his chains and yet he stays in the same spot, then you cannot blame the slave master if the slave refuses to free himself. If you want other people to stop making mockery of you then show them a different you. I’m not saying bigotry is OK, for racism and discrimination has never left the fabric of America and that is hard for some people to believe. But as for us, to be given something different you have to show something different. I don’t call my friends niggas and my girlfriends are not my bitches. In addition, I refer to my people as brothers and sisters unless they have otherwise shown me something different. I give respect to those I love and to people who have shown me respect.
When I said, in a recent post, “We will not be niggas too much longer“, I meant that we will no longer exhibit wild and disobedient behavior; we will not rob and steal and oppress one another. The Pookies and Ray-Ray’s will rise to be the prophets and priests they were chosen to be and their names no longer associated with wildness but with the fear that is respect and the strength that comes along with it. That is what it means to no longer be niggas. Not that everyone will erase the N word from their vocabularies and racism will magically disappear.
I’ll end with this: a person cannot change his name if he wishes not to also change his actions. The whole purpose of name changes is to exhibit the characteristics of this new name, thereby becoming a new person. If you want to get rid of the “N Word”, you have to first get rid of the behavior associated with it and this cannot be done by always placing the blame on someone else. In the words of Carter G. Woodson:
“When you control a man’s thinking you do not have to worry about his actions. You do not have to tell him not to stand here or go yonder. He will find his proper place and will stay in it. You do not need to send him to the back door. He will go without being told. In fact, if there is no back door, he will cut one for his special benefit. His education makes it necessary.”
– Carter G. Woodson, The Mis-Education of the Negro
Interesting story. It reminds me of the importance of education outside of schools. I cannot help but notice that students are not taught how to start their own businesses without going to College. If they were, I believe there would be more inventions by young adults. While I encourage what is referred to as “Higher Education”, I believe too that in the world we live in it is possible to make it without pursuing a two or four year University. It’s cool, but I do not believe it is necessary for survival. Just look at the Master Degree holders who’ve had to settle for managerial positions at Wendy’s, or worse, cashier. Not that there’s anything wrong with this, a job is a job, but I am sure he or she didn’t spend thousands of dollars in tuition and four – six years of classroom time to work in fast food alongside Freshmen High School students.
My proposal for the students reading? Get into a trade, a 6-9month program that doesn’t cost as much as a University that will train you to specialize in a certain area (make sure that area is a strong one, like H VAC-Heating, Air-Conditioning, or MA, Medical Assistance). You will not have to pay back as much money and you’ll always have something open in your field. The two I have mentioned specifically are booming right now and they are not going out of business any time soon. Don’t stop here though, this is just the beginning. If you’re in High School, use that smart phone for something other than Facebook, and use Google for something other than finding funny Memes. But take full advantage of this technology and use it as a way to research how to start your own business. There are pros and cons to this technology, but the biggest advantage is that it’s much easier to spread important information and to start businesses. Because of Company’s like Vista Print, that allow for inexpensive ways to create your own business cards and promotional products, and Legal Zoom, that allow for inexpensive ways to create your own company, it’s much easier now. College to me is like the army: everyone loves you when you’re there. It gives the impression of doing something special with your life, you learn lots of new things and the world loves you. But, when you get out it’s a completely different world. People forget about you and you must find your own way. Welcome to the real world.
In the end, I do not speak against College but be smart about it. Go to acquire the skills you will need to start your own company, not just to work at Dr. Feel Good’s fortune 500. The purpose is to own what you do. Create your own schedule, your own hours, and retire when you feel like it. What advice do you think is being given to the children of billionaires?
Welcome back to another segment of Movie Night Friday on The PBS Blog, where I list some of my favorite movies and why I love them.
This week, I’d like to discuss The Great Debaters.
I love this movie and I can give extensive reasons why but if I am honest, the real reason is poetry. I like The Great Debaters movie because their debates sound like spoken word poetry. Even before I knew Melvin Tolson was a poet, I found the language, even basic dialogue, so very poetic and the debates as Open Mic Nights.
Aside from this, there was also the concept of race in America and parenthood. Yes, parenthood. James Farmer Sr. was so engulfed in his work that he did not often give much attention to his son. For example, James Jr. was letting his father know, subtly, that he liked Samantha Booke, another fellow debater and classmate. He mentioned her as one of the alternatives among the group and, recognizing this, his father reminded him that “you must not take your eyes off the ball son.” While this was all good (as I loved the “we do what we have to do in order to do what we want to do” line) Farmer Sr. didn’t realize at that moment the opportunity to speak with his son about girls. It was this knowledge that upset his mom who didn’t say anything but whose anger could be seen in her sudden fast pace in peeling the potatoes. She recognized her husband’s failure to take this opportunity to have an intimate conversation with his son. This is the kind of writing that I love; the kind that could reveal an emotion or a feeling even without it being verbalized.
The Great Debaters is a movie based on real events about the poet and professor Melvin B. Tolson (Denzel Washington) who teaches at the predominately black Wiley College in Marshall Texas, in 1935. Tolson starts a debate team and as the tryouts begin and end, Tolson picks four students, three of which become the central focus of the movie. As the students prepare to challenge various schools, we see also how they deal with the challenges that face them in the Jim Crow south.
While at first Tolson butts head with the influential father (Forest Whitaker) of one of his best debaters, eventually Tolson is able to form a team of strong-minded, intelligent young students, and they become the first black debate team to challenge Harvard’s prestigious debate champions.
“Who’s the judge?”
“The judge is God.”
“Why is he God?”
“Because he decides who wins or loses, not my opponent.”
One of my favorite lines is this one. While I believe in calling the father by his name, Yah, I understand what this scene means and I like it because it’s strengthening even for those of us who are watching the movie. No matter who you think you are against, the judge is always Yah, not your opponent. In the end, we will be asked about our own sins and not the sins of others.
Tolson’s political views, add more to the story. He is a man who sneaks out at night to a country barn wearing overalls and works boots. And as rumors of radical communism sparks, it causes him to lose one of his students. Tolson is not to be undone, however, and keeps his politics out of the classroom. While the movie highlights his knowledge of poetry as he teaches English, it does not mention that he is a leading poet. Tolson in fact, published long poems in such magazines as the Atlantic Monthly and in 1947 was named poet laureate of Liberia.
History
As stated, this movie is based on the real-life events of the student debate team of Wiley College. Under the leadership of Tolson, Wiley College’s debate team became legendary. It won almost every debate among historically-black colleges and became the first to debate a white college when it took on and defeated Oklahoma City College in 1932. The team’s crowning achievement, however, came in 1935 when it defeated that year’s national champions, the University of Southern California. And naturally, after the movie was made in 2007, Wiley College rose to popularity again with increased enrollment and the re-establishing of its debate team.
My Favorite Line:
“I am here to help you to find, take back, and keep your righteous mind because obviously you have lost it.”
Trailer:
Funny Movie Mistakes:
It was hard to find any real mistakes in this movie. Most people say it is the Willie Lynch Speech, that there was no such letter and Tolson’s reciting of this piece of History is flawed. However, I do not believe that. I believe The Willie Lynch Letter did exist because I don’t believe in coincidences. Everything written in that letter to other slave owners on how to control their slaves can be seen in the behavior of many in the black community today. From the separation of the races by color (pitch the dark skin slave against the light skin slave), to the Making of a Slave and the Breaking process of the Black woman.
After his many troubles in school, a young Tre (Desi Arnez Hines II) is sent to live with his father Furious Styles (Fishburne) by his mother Reva (Basset) in the Crenshaw neighborhood of South Central. His father, one of the reasons this became one of my favorites, instills in Tre the life lessons and values many of his young friends do not have. In fact, as Tre reunites with his childhood friends, Darrin “Doughboy”, his brother Ricky and Chris, their mutual friend, his lessons in manhood take on new meaning and his decisions become critical. His friends do not have the privilege of a positive father figure and are drawn to the streets for guidance. Furious therefore warns Tre about following in their footsteps but despite his warnings, older Tre (Cuba) and his friends have their own way of surviving. In this Teen Hood Drama, loyalty and danger dance too close for comfort, and dire situations force Tre to decide for himself the future he wants.
The PBS Blog 