Carnival of Education- Radical School Edition

Welcome to the Carnival of Radical Action : Back To School edition.

Why Radical Education Black Amazon?

Because I am officially on the tail end of my youth and I am tiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiired.

of people trying to "save" me

I am young, black, black, brown, female, fat, poor and if one more person seeks to “guide” “instruct” ”counsel” or dissect me , or the multitudes like me

*F#@*F#@*F(*& THE MACHETE MAKES A REAPPEARANCE I SWEAR TO ALL ABOVE AND BELOW!

*edited cause I am actually gearing this to young people ( which is comical considering how much I cuss just three posts down ALLOW ME MY PLEASANT FICTIONS)

Forget saviors

We need teachers. We need them from the places we have never thought to have gotten them before

We need scarred forearms ,split tongues, bowed heads, nappy roots , and raised fists.

gender queers, drag queens, bois, grrrrrrrrrls ,nerds, jocks, fierce women ,dangerous young men, single mothers, grad students, auto didactics, blind to the seeing world , brave in the face of danger, scared in the night, way too loud in the library, too big for the Gap, too small for your pants ,

but most of all we NEED each other.

And because we need you there are things we need you to know.

So this Carnival is meant to be only the beginning of our education.

Because we are NOT the world’s special case, or pet issue.

We are not to be recruited, convinced, or calmed down. We are not here to be enlightened, uplifted or “bettered”.

We want to live. And it’s not about cool or fun or hip . It’s about

Our lives ,Our rights, Our terms.

Fighting governments, fighting confusion , fighting for our lives

I have this incredibly odd belief.

WE CAN SPEAK FOR OURSELVES.

And one more

WE SHOULD BE AND ARE SPEAKING TO EACH OTHER.

“Contrary to popular opinion, communities of color have not sat about for the last few years wringing our hands wondering how we can get those white folks to pay more attention to us. Our communities are flourishing and full of intellectual diversity.”-Brownfemipower

And we are. Here there and everywhere we are teaching ourselves , each other in ways that can never be duplicated

And it can always be easier

And there can always be MORE

And contrary to popular belief , there is never “enough” attention paid

No one cause, no one word, no one movement big enough to hold us has been made

So it’s not “easy”

But We , and you are more than worth it.

So from one “ young person” ( What am I a dang toaster comes in green red and YOUNG PERSON”)

I give you

Carnival of Radical Education

What exactly are we being taught?

Readings

Nadia of No Snow Here starts us off with Reinstate Debbie Almontaser. Did you know that merely trying to learn Arabic while Muslim is enough to drive people straight insane?

Would there be a need for an Arabic language and culture public school if all public schools offered this curriculum? Or if humanizing treatment of the Middle East and recognition of Arab Americans was worked into the curriculum across the board?

Kameelah of KameelahWrites writes about learning while Black and Female. , with Making Black Girls Ladylike. Yep education, the great equalizer!

something just isn’t right when young Black female students are being punished for participating in discussions and standing up for themselves

Nez of The Unapologetic Mexican talks about Shock Treatments performed on young children. Because KIDS MUST BE “ NORMAL”!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THERE IS A STANDARD FOR HOW WE PRODUCE WIDGETS oh I mean CHILDREN

AMAZING. Just when you think you can't be...well, shocked--to employ a terrible pun at a terrible moment. Autistic, "emotionally troubled," and "mentally retarded" children are being treated this way.

Kai of Zuky brings this video about the other members of his planet . Thousands of species gone in a flash. If that’s not radical I’ll eat my hair grease.

Ninotchka Rosca changes your life with the post This Is Called Human Security? When you’re done go to her blog read ,reread, take notes. I won’t even excerpt, yeah you need to read that woman THAT badly. You will probably need to look up words, and do research . GOOD welcome to the work.

Devious Diva of THIS IS NOT MY COUNTRY ( who is guest blogging on Feministe) has been doing one of the most amazing pieces of citizen journalism I have seen with her Roma series , about the Roma people in Greece.

Yolanda Carrington at The Primary Contradiction reminds us the interesting ways we “ forget” how America sanctioned free speech with this wonderful post on the film Salt of the Earth. All speech is treated equally and free and always has been *scrolls up to first link* Alrighty then. Think of this as we celebrate Labor Day go watch the movie.

And Kai comes back one more time with this post on the GIGANTIC gulf between the truth and the actual facts in terms of the China recalls and the gasp inducing hand wringing shock it is connected to a long history of Anti Asian Racism. Yeah I couldn’t even manage a good sarcastic rejoinder to this it’s been that MIND NUMBINGLY obvious , how quick we latch on something to be real special with racism and nationalism.

And finally for this section right now. We are now on the SECOND anniversary of Katrina. This is what is going on. Yeah I linked to their front page. CAUSE YOU NEED TO READ ALL OF IT

So I have basically destroyed your faith in news media or at least given you some curiosity on what else is out there?

EXCELLENT!

So here are news sources you can use and love or hate . But remember News is like fruit and veggies , you need at least five servings a day , there is a whole lot of bad stuff out there and the only way to get used to picking them out is to get in there and feel it out.

But to speed you on your way a bit .

Afrospear.net - Did you know there were Black people on the web. Did you know they actually don’t always agree. Did you also know they are REALLY REALLY smart.

Al Jazeera- In our world right now I would argue one of the MOST necessary news sources. PERIOD.

AngryIndian- One stop shop for lots of good stuff.

BBC- Well you need one large one media conglomerate for comparison and right now they fulfill my “ NOT OWNED BY RUPERT MURDOCH” requirement so there they are

CENSORED- Great site for indigenous reporting and border issues

The Latin Americanist-Because the Americas doesn’t stop in Texas. And frankly Texas Arizona most of California is questionable but shhhh I’m not supposed to say that aloud!

Narco News Bulletin- Ahh the war on drugs! Cost billons, Screws millions see how it works from all perspectives

New American Media – News in the perspective of cultural groups specifically leaning left. Am I always happy with it, NOPE. Am I less likely to look at it and yell obscenities at my screen. YEP

Newseum-Six hundred news papers from fifty five countries is there anything more to say?

The Maramushi Flash-It’s a visual way of using the Google News Aggregator. It’s Eurocentric but also really shiny and a really interesting way of seeing how different colonialist histories influence news reporting.

Sepia Mutiny- South Asian journalism and pop culture commentary, brought with extra funny and a whole heaping helping of real smart.

Writings

There are vibrant , amazing things starting every day, but it’s not as vibrant and amazing as it could be

BECAUSE YOU AREN’T writing yet. OF course I wanted to start with reading cause , forget what you heard ignorance is not only NOT bliss, but DAMN ANNOYING to people who have to deal with you. But hopefully after all that educational goodness ( with more to come below) you want to get your write on

And you know what YOU ARE QUALIFIED EXACTLY WHERE YOU ARE RIGHT NOW

So let me of service to you spend an hour writing instead of on myspace and then you can link it form you myspace! :

Blogger- Where I got my start

Wordpress- is better but I am lazy.

CureThis- Healthcare specific and free!

AllGirlArmy- Young ladies ESPECIALLY young ladies of color. I never hear enough of you . What ever number there is there can be more. This is an excellent project. I would apply but I really feel to damn old.

Wiretap- Youth Journalism! And they will pay you and give you instructions! I need more news that doesn’t make me want to commit violence and you should be paid to give it.

UrbanWordNYC- makes me all kinds of happy . ALL KINDS

Vegan kid hits us up with the link of 55things good for a blogger to know. I think a good amount of it also applies to all writers

Lex Broken Beautiful Press reminds us that writing is an art but can also be art. I WILL be rocking the shit out of a that girl love her self halter dress when I get a sewing machine Believe That!

Hermana Resist is a zine writer/mam/poetess/ amazing woman, who rules at all things.

And your knowing writing can do amazing things

Radical Gym-Flexing Muscle

Nezua at The Unapologetic Mexican talks about Defend the Honor getting Ken Burns to act right in his Documentary about World War II

Little Light talks about how literal knowledge CAN SAVE LIVES and how that struggle can change you at Feministe

El Enimigo Comun - Amazing AMAZING journalism out of Oaxaca. Yes the subaltern does speak. BEAUTIFULLY!

Myth of the Motherland-

Wherein I now take a moment to give you some instructions. You go there You listen to the poetry . You then BUY A CD.

Why?

Because I am in deep love with this. And because they are more than worth it. Because when we hear about Africa it should be from the children of her Diaspora. Because there is so much greatness in being willing to learn in a world where come first class flights and a week make you an expert .

And if you want to give a larger amount . AND YOU DO! IT’S TAX DEDUCTABLE. And then you tell em I sent you.

Now go make me happy !

Palestine Education Project- I met Ora Wise at AMC . She ran the most amazing workshop ever!

The testimony of the Palestinian Children the work of the American children. It changes your life. It does and if doesn’t I’m not sure your living.

UBUNTU- I am just in love with there truth their vision and their clarity . Their willingness to pull light from darkness and their peace while facing things that make you cringe is something we all should know of.

So I got you reading and writing is there anything I would want you to specifically

Well since You asked

Social Studies

Jena Six- Welcome to the thing that haunts my dreams. Kids your age , our age really cause I am not old enough t be distant are shown nooses and then told they can be disappeared. That a pair of Nikes is worse than a shot gun. And they ASKED to sit under that tree.

Critical Resistance- More prisons, more non violent offenders coming out violent,more people stripped of their rights and dignity and why is it again these people always tend be brown, poor or both?

The New York Four- Hey Ladies. Should you be attacked in the Street and not accept the assault. YOU CAN GO TO JAIL. Because Sakia Gunn was not enough!

Mariah Lopez

Genarlow Wilson – Because he didn’t want to leave his little sister

And it goes on and on and on.

Radical Lunch -Nourishment

So why this invitation to a Radical Education it sounds rough!

Because you get to be you

And you get to be you with people like you who care about you

FIERCE- FIERCE! is a community organization for Transgender, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Two Spirit, Queer, and Questioning (TLGBTSQQ) youth of color in New York City.

Girlchild Press- Lex of Broken Beautiful is in this anthology and it’s about young women of color from the mouth of young women of color!

The Cultural Connect- A multi layered site for almost everyone.

Grace Lee Bogs Center- She is Amazing . Her biography is Amazing . Detroit is Amazing. I have nothing non starry and googly eyed to say about this woman or her work

Brecht Forum- Learn to work and if Kazembe Balagun is down with it It’s got to be wonderful; and it does Brechtian popular theatre which does my theatre minor heart all kinds of happiness

AMC- This made me so happy. Let Nadia give you details. My heart she sung

Radical Health-

Yes the sex and sexuality section is on it’s own!

Because as young people , and as young people of color, TLGBTSQQ ( using that acronym forever I am) we are at all kinds of risks. We are beyond the “abortion debate” . We who can’t get pregnant ,we who want to kee p our babies but choose their births,are still important . We who are scarred are important and we need OUR lives loves and bodies centered

And it happens

And here it is

Sistersong- Women of Color Reproductive Health Collective. Just saying that inspires cha cha’s around my house!

Project Choice- Demand your right to a Healthy Life DEMAND IT!

INCITE!- Just cause because it is what should be here

NO! The Documentary.- Because you are not alone.

Aishah Shahidah Simmons, NO! explores the international reality of rape, other forms of sexual assault and healing through the first person testimonies, scholarship, spirituality, activism, and cultural work of African-Americans. This groundbreaking, award-winning documentary also explores how rape is used as a weapon of homophobia.

Scarletteen- Not POC specific but when I was a 16 year old giving out sex advice. I LIVED by this woman . Now I’m 23 I use her book. Her book is all kinds of neccessary . All kinds

RhealityCheck- It’s just good and features brown folk !

Radical Recess- Learning How to play with Others

So I made no Bones about this being POC especially YPOC centered

But it’s no problem with other people reading it

And frankly I want to be honest about what I am sending them into. I do most of my work online with feminism and left politics. If I did not of the WOC blog community and progressive men of color ,I’d have packed it in.

This section is dedicated to those who want to “help”

For this section you need to be playing a song .

“ We Don’t Need Another Hero” By Tina Turner. It’s 80’s cheese but LISTEN TO IT READ THE LYRICS!

We need no saviors or heroes, we’ve been fighting long before you and will be long AFTER you . We don’t have an option of getting tired

So Nadia please tell em why they DON’T GET A COOKIE

BFP starts us off with her fabulous guest post on Kai’s . I excerpted it above. But should you be looking to include us . Read that TWICE. Then read it one mo gain.

Sudy follows up with a letter specific to feminists but can apply to everyone.

Magniloquence has a handy 101 series so that if you decide to continue ,which I hope you do. You do not stop the works so folks can TEACH YOU!

But I want a colorblind society! BINGO! Because there is a script and you follow it all the time.

YES WE HAVE TO TALK ABOUT THIS. NO YOU CAN’T SUPRESS IT. Yes you are that predicatble !

But I am trying and I will revolutionize left politics/feminism/reinvent the damn wheel!

Alrighty I am old and steeped in the wisdom of my foremothers/fathers/ancestors and your argument is something they heard BEFORE MY MAMA WAS BORN!

Combahee River Collective

Mind you it’s not just white folk who can get special.

Andrea Smith Talks about Rethinking Women OF Color Organizing

Should you continue tow want to be an ally . Please expect to screw up. We all will.

But remember something

These people who are being “mean” to are PEOPLE.

And this happens so often we WRITE BOOKS! Marcella Howell explains ( thanks Sudy)

Nanette brings it out with Benefit of the Doubt . They risk things to try and make you better.

And one from me. Because we have feelings ,and hearts, and they break into pieces

Radical Music( To Our Ears) – Because We Do Dance in Our Revolution

Because we have fun and go out and sling beats and spit rhymes and make new things

We combine and flip and make new things. This video married my great loves Hip Hop and Classical .Makes me happy!

All the Grooviest Online Video in One Place, GroovyGrooves.com

Queen Godis- Mentor Poet of Myth of the Motherland. Creator of the only way I can listen to the “ Throw some D’s on it “ beat with out reach for a sharp object. Plus Queen Freshington . Made of the win on all days that end in Y. Hear her perform Music . Believe in Music again.

Louder Arts- Poets out of NYC

My favorites

Rachel Mckibbens – I lubber her I lubber her a lot. Her joint peace with her Husband on Def Poetry Jam CHILLS!!!!!!!! All up and down spine.

Roger Bonair Agard- HE is awesome and Trinidadian which as A Guyanese I will not hold against at this time because he is awesome

AND

Carlos Andres Gomez- OH COME ON! You knew it was coming! Fresh from a tour of Scotland ( five star reviewed even I love my people I shill shamelessly) He is a mentor poet on Myth of the Motherland. You wish to buy things form him or see him when he is on tour

WritersBlock- Urban poetry and journalism out of Philly

GhettoSOngBIrd- Psychadelics, multi layered Grace Slick type Harmonies , guitar and from Philly. My lighter is already up.

CivilMics- Their We Shall Overcome Mixtape Makes me head noddy happy,Philly!

Nuyorican- One of the originals.

The Rotunda- Beautiful Building on the Upenn Campus that does stuff like the Gathering, and community arts festivals.

Periphadelphia- Where in you get art out side of hipster hell. Plus say hi to my platonic life partner

Radical Homework- Things To Do and Read Offline

LadyJax is All over it with this booklist . Black Girl By Talib should be in your ear when listening!

Like Manga? I know you do I trip over you in book stores. Read one of these As Well

Everything By Marjane Satrapi.

Barefoot Gen- Keiji Nakazawa

The History Of the Universe- Larry Gonick ( not perfect by any means but pretty decent actually mentions the flood of African Gold into Europe funding the Renaissance)

Still I Rise- Roland Owen Laird

Latino USA-Ilan Stevens and Lalo Alcaraz

This is a work in progress.

It will be it’s own website . It grew and shifted and blew up beyond me.

And I want it spread HIGH AND LOW far and wide.

I want to know what I missed

I want to know what you hate

I want to know how I made you so mad you’re gone hound me till I fix this

OR make your own

Because we need to hear form you

I need to hear from you

The Capstone piece is by another poet /writer/multi talented man : Warren Longmire . Who will have his own website where I may link him and jump and clap freely

Inappropriate

In no other time has the world been so small.

In no other time has the common man been in touch with the thoughts of others.

Never has the citizen had so much power.

And thus, never has then been more fear of the collective responsibility this brings.

I don’t know what comes next. I read my multiple RSS feeds at work just like anyone and feel just as helpless. You do your little contributions to moveon.org and move on with the rest of your day. You dream of leading a coup and put Motorcycle Diaries on your netflik’s queue but ultimately you still have to go to work. Got to pay those loans. Got to live that life.

But I do know that no matter what tools we currently have, they mean nothing if we do not believe in ourselves. All the technology in the world will do nothing if the big questions of western society: the supposed infallible of the stock market, the continued legacy of slavery and other histories of oppression, the connectedness of humanity as a species and our responsible to each other and the world, as long as honest talk on this question is inappropriate what real use is there so called radical action?

So in lue of a personal army, I am just trying work on myself. To always be honest in world where it is assumed our leaders lie and we just swallow it. To be vocally outraged when a racist comment and to say so even if I may be making an assumption myself. And more importantly maybe, to be honest when I am called on that assumption, to make my peace other perspective and use my mistake to grow.

Perhaps the greatest courage comes not in the face of a tank rolled down our neighborhood throughway but in the face the common ignorance of friends, workmates and of our own minds.

Perhaps the greatest effort comes, not in changing the world, but changing ourselves.

Never forget Katrina/Blog for Jena 6