Sword & Spear STEEL SHARPENS STEEL
Spring/ Summer 2017
groove convenes in memphis for 2017
Also in this issue: The ‘N Word’ One Mic: the get down on “the get down”
Hernando de Soto Bridge, spanning the Mississippi River into Memphis, Tennessee
table of contents spring/summer 2017
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president’s message
Letters for life:
Fl. Mobley discusses what being a member of an organization truly means.
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The Get Down:
A musical review on this ground breaking historical take on the birth of Hip Hop
one mic
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Fellowshipping in Memphis: The Fellowship convenes in the home of the blues. What to do and see while you are there.
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what to do:
A summery of some ot the things to do and places to eat in Memphis
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The Power Of Words:
The most notorious slur known in Black America, and how its modern usage is still used to make us hate ourselves.
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president’s message f l . d e n n i s t h o m a s 11th international president, groove phi groove, sfi.
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greet you in full recognition that “We’ve Come This Far by Faith”. Welcome to the 2017 Conclave issue of the Sword & Spear. As our organization prepares to convene In the city of Memphis for our 2017 gathering, we are excited and thankful to the City of Memphis Convention and Visitors Bureau, the administration and staff of LeMoyne-Owen College, Knowledge Quest, Memphis Ministries, Street Ministries, Members of St. Andrews A.M.E. Church, the staff and management of the Memphis Hilton Hotel and The South Atlantic Region. Last but certainly not least, thank you to our Founder Robert Simpson. Founder Simpson has diligently worked behind the scenes to make this year’s event is a rousing success. Each entity and individual has provided us with tremendous assistance in making sure that our members will be comfortable and pleased during their stay. We plan to provide meaningful engagement with Memphis high school students as they participate in our annual Youth Empowerment Summit (Y.E.S.) being held on the campus of LeMoyne-Owen College. Our goal is to successfully demonstrate to each of these students the importance of a college education. With the assistance of The Groove Fund and many of our organization’s Regional Directors, we will provide scholarships to a number of Memphis high school students. There are many events planned in conjunction with the Sisters of Swing Phi Swing Social Fellowship, Inc. that will make everyone’s stay in Memphis memorable. Included in this issue is the itinerary for all the planned events.
I hope you enjoy reading this edition of the Sword & Spear. Many thanks to the staff and contributors of this edition. All the best to you and your families.
In our next issue of the Sword & Spear you will get to see many of the highlights that will take place at this year’s Conclave.
Dennis K. Thomas International President Groove Phi Groove Social Fellowship Incorporated
Fl. Dennis Thomas
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opinionpiece letters for life or not? f
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eing a member of a fraternal organization, Greek or not, one will be faced with a multitude of inquiries from people that have either aspirations to one day become members of organizations or have chosen to abstain from doing so. From probes regarding the process through which one must go through to obtain membership, to queries as to the pros and cons of making the decision to join, curiosity is an extremely powerful and contagious entity. I’d have to admit, curiosity was at the precipice of my interest in lettered-organizations when I walked onto the campus of Benedict College in the summer of 2007. Regardless of whether one may admit it or not, there is an undeniably intriguing aura that surrounds Greek/ Non-Greek organizations. Of all of the questions, comments, and concerns regarding “organizational life” that I’ve expressed before joining, and of those I have witnessed or received from GDIs (people with no organizational ties), the most frequently raised issue revolves around the lives of people with letters once they reach the status of alumni. “He still throws up his frat sign in every picture. Didn’t he graduate like ten years ago?” “It seems like she doesn’t have a life outside her org. She’s always with her sisters.” “These two are at every probate, every homecoming, don’t they ever get tired of this?” Or, my favorite: “Why are you always wearing your letters? You know that the world is bigger than Groove, right?” I usually get a variety of sentiments when I hear comments and questions like these. However, I am able to deduce most questions or comments into two categories: Envy or Ignorance. I tend to choose to engage the ignorant rather than the envious. The Merriam-Web-
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ster Dictionary defines ignorant as showing lack of knowledge or intelligence therefore ignorant people can be educated; while the envious are either too prideful, fearful, or judgmental, to do so. So to the ignorant, the reason why some Greeks and Non-Greeks remain ‘so active’ in their organizations post-grad is: because they should be. When one becomes a member of a Social Fellowship, a Sorority, or a Fraternity, the idea is that they are pledging themselves to the tenets of the organization and make a pact with themselves to uphold those ideas for as long as they live. I won’t speak for other organizations, but when a man is initiated into Groove Phi Groove, he understands that he is making a commitment to “hold up the Groove Phi banner until the day he dies”. Therefore, from being proud enough to regularly wear paraphernalia, to being regularly present at organizational/community functions, to being current on your dues… and to speak colloquially, this is what we signed up for. The implications of being a member of an organization in combination with being from some of the communities that many people in organizations come from, are as externally rewarding for the individual as they are internally. I think about the instances where middle and high schoolers have come up to me asking “G-O-G, What’s that”? and I know that my response needs to not only be a dignified representation of my organization but also has to be informative, powerful, and persuasive enough to not only interest Letters continued, page 19
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one mic
The “Get Down” On
The Get Down
FL. ERIC M. GREENE MUSIC WRITER, S&S
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ugust 12th, 2016 was a glorious day for Hip-Hop Heads who have long awaited this new Netflix series directed by Baz Luhrmann and Stephen Adly Guirgis.
The show was set in the South Bronx in New York City during the late 70s, and its title refers to the sections of disco and R&B records (called the break beat or the get down) that could be played back over and over using multiple turntables to create a single uninterrupted beat that party goers danced to at early hip hop parties. The Get Down shows us how this set the groundwork for one of the five elements of Hip-Hop & Rap Music-the D.J., while also showing how the MC, dancing and graffiti also formed three of the other elements that created the culture of Hip Hop. The only element that I feel should have been more visible (or audible), was the fifth element which in terms of its recent evolution is the element of knowledge, that also became a part of the music and culture early on. Unfortunately, the show has been cancelled and will not return for a 2nd season due to production issues and many behind-closed-doors dealings with the director and the Netflix Studios. The show itself still has a very large importance with many who are hip-hop fanatics because it speaks to how our favorite genre came into existence, and also compares it from its foundation in the context of its current state. The show gives the stage to a turntablist, known as Shaolin Fantastic (played by newcomer Shamiek Moore), studying the craft of DJing under the legendary Grand Master Flash and their main lyricist Ezekiel “Books” Figuero (played by Justice Smith) as the leaders of the Hip-Hop crew “The Get Down Brothers”, as they grow into a group in the late 1970’s.
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Around this, the director Baz gives the viewers an excellent story on what were the social and community situations in that time, although some will argue that the way the story was conveyed could have been slightly “distracting” or “a bit too much” and straying away from the story. Although that is debatable, we all must take into consideration that the show was not only a historical piece that can be considered one of the first of the new millennium that we have other than former classics such as “Beat Street”, it was still good gaining 73% on rottentomato.com for the first season. The show, whether it was clouded with the drug use or the personal battles and feuds within the storyline, gave the new generation a reason to truly look into the roots of the genre that they have listened to and potentially, they can gain a newfound respect for what groundwork was laid for the many artists that came to play in our beloved genre. Although the show has already been cancelled, the director has alluded in some interviews that he might take the script back to the drawing board, re-tool and take it to another avenue (Theatre? Movies?). The real jewel that I am trying to give in this article and many will tell you is that any genre, albeit Hip-Hop, Rap, R&B, House, Techno, Reggae, Disco...Old School or New School...In order to truly catch and feel the essence of any of these said genres the greatest and best way is to see it live. Listening to the music itself in the privacy of your
home or via T.V. are excellent ways to capture a slight picture-but when you see it live and you feel what a lyricist is truly saying, or hear the DJ scratching within a syncopated drum loop with a Disco/R&B sample, only then will you feel what the artist is trying to give you. Rest in (Production) heaven to a great show. Check out “Hip Hop Evolution” to get a taste in the place of a good show!
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sword & spear fl. f. lennis brantley sword & spear Staff Writer
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ince 1962, the fellowmen or Groove Phi Groove Social Fellowship Incorporated have been at the forefront of performing community service that has been aimed at studying and alleviating the problems that concern young Black boys and men and to function as a brotherhood with the purposes of promoting academic awareness, good ethical standards, and unity among men. We serve in various and varied communities and campuses, where our established chapters provide community assistance. Groove was founded in 1962, at Morgan State College (now university), by fourteen Black men seeking an alternative to Greek organizations. The fellowship has a heavy presence at the nation’s HBCUs in the southern U.S., however chapters can also be found at traditional institutions across the country. Groove Phi Groove has continued along its path of mentorship, community service and other initiatives through its undergraduate, graduate and international chapters to fulfill this purpose more than fifty years later. This year the fellowmen will be convening in Memphis, Tennessee, where we will be hosting a variety of events and functions. One of the flagship events will be the Youth Empowerment Summit (Y.E.S.), that we will be conducting with our sister organization, Swing Phi Swing Social Fellowship, Inc. The summit is an event where the fellowmen of Groove and the sisters of Swing have collaborated for over 25 years to educate and empower young men and women between the ages of 14-18 through an array of workshop sessions, live entertainment and thought-provoking guest speakers. This event will be held at LeMoyne-Owen College, an HBCU located in Memphis, on July 22, 2017 from 8:30 am – 2:00 pm.
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conclave 2017 Aside from organizational business that will be taking place, there will also be an All-White Party that will be on July 22 from 9 pm to 1 am at the Hilton Memphis, 939 Ridge Lake Boulevard, Memphis, TN 38120. The theme is “Grown & Sexy: Party With A Purpose, that will help support LeMoyne-Owen College. There will be hors d’oeuvres and signature drinks between 9-10 pm, with the sounds of the evening provided by DJ Houston. Those that are interested in attending this worthwhile event, tickets are $25.00 and can be purchased online at Eventbrite.com.
phernalia. If you are an undergraduate in an accredited college or an graduate and would like to find out more about Groove Phi Groove, you can visit our website groove-phi-groove.com. If you are a woman who is an undergraduate or college graduate and would like to find out more about Swing Phi Swing, visit their website, swingphiswing.org.
There of course will also be a step competition, the Groove Cookout, and the Interfaith Prayer Breakfast that will be taking place that week. So, for the third week in July, the city of Memphis will bear witness to an explosion of Black men wearing black and white and Black women wearing white and black, proudly rocking the colors of our respective organizations as we come together in a spirit of unity, fellowship and community service.
So, if there is anyone that is reading this article that is not a member of Groove or Swing and you would like to find out more about our organizations, feel free to ask an individual wearing G Phi G or S Phi S para-
Grown & Sexy Party With A Purpose event for LeMoyne-Owen College
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conclave itinerary Wednesday, July 19 10:00 am – 7:00 pm Vending
6:00 pm – 11:00 pm GPG® & SPS® Civil Rights Museum Tour & Black Gala
3:00 pm - 6:00 pm Registration
10:00 pm - 3:00 am Blow Hookah Lounge & Bar
3:00 pm – 6:00 pm Stax Music Museum Tour
Saturday, July 22 9:00 am – 1:00 pm Registration
8:00 pm - 11:00 pm Hospitality 10:00 pm - 3:00 am Blow Hookah Lounge & Bar Thursday, July 20 9:00 am – 5:00 pm Registration
9:00 am – 7:00 pm Vending 8:30 am – 11:30 am GPG® & SPS® Interfaith Non-Denominational Prayer Breakfast- Double Tree Hotel
9:00 am – 7:00 pm Vending
8:30 am - 3:30 pm GPG® & SPS® Youth Empowerment Summit - LeMoyne-Owen College
8:00am - 10:00am Joint Executive Leadership Meeting
4:00 pm – 6:30 pm Mix and Mingle - Hilton Hotel
10:00 am – 12:30 pm GPG® Executive Board Meeting
9:00 pm - 1:00 am GPG® All White Party With A Purpose - South Atlantic
1:30 pm – 4:30 pm GPG® National Delegates Meeting 6:00pm - 8:00pm GPG® Executive Board Strategic Planning Meeting
Sunday, July 23 8:00 am -3:00 pm Check-out
9:00 pm – 1:00 am GPG® National Neo Soul Jazz Party 10:00 pm - 3:00 am Blow Hookah Lounge & Bar Friday, July 21 9:00 am – 5:00 pm Registration 9:00 am – 7:00 pm Vending 9:00 am – 12:00 pm GPG® Strategy Forum & Discussion 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm Islamic Prayer (Location TBD) 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm GPG® Groove Fund Luncheon 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm GPG® Lifetime Member Reception Beale Street, Memphis, Tennesse.
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what to do while in memphis f l . f. l e n n i s b r a n t l e y sword & spear Staff Writer
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his year the fellowship travels to Memphis, Tennessee for their annual conclave and convention. But it does not have to be all business and meetings in this proud southern city, Memphis has a lot to offer residents and visitors alike. It is world renown as the home of the Blues and artists such as B.B. King are nearly synonymous with the name of the city itself. So while you are there strolling down the legendary Beale Street amongst the throngs of other tourists and locals, you can almost imagine seeing the King of Blues walking into his favorite spot and grabbing an order of some Memphis’s famous barbeque while the soundtrack of the city blares into the restaurant. Memphis also is the home of the National Civil Rights Museum, the second most important encyclopedic museum site of all things related to Black America after the Smithsonian Museum of African American History and Culture. Located in the Lorraine Motel, where Martin Luther King was assassinated, sits the story of the Civil Rights Movement documented from the enslavement of Africans
in America to the Black Lives Matter movement of today. As members of an organization of college educated men, this is the spot that should be of interest to us, as we carry on our mission of helping Black boys and young men. Memphis is the second largest city in Tennessee and the largest city on the Mississippi River. It is an important transportation hub, and contains two of the most iconic tourist traps for music lovers, with Beale Street and Graceland. Other locations that visitors may want to check out are the Stax Museum - located at 926 McLemore Avenue, the former location of Stax Records, where artists Otis Redding, Isaac Hayes, Booker T. & the M.G.’s and Sam & Dave recorded some of their classic records; The Memphis Walk of Fame is a published exhibit located in the Beale Street historic district, which is modeled after the Hollywood Walk of Fame, but is designated exclusively for Memphis musicians, singers, writers and composers. Honorees include W. C. Handy, B.B. King, Bobby Blue Bland and Alberta Hunter, among others; As of 2010, its Black population was 6.3% of
Spring/summer 2017 its 646,889 residents. Of those that choose to go to an HBCU for his or her education, they can attend LeMoyne-Owen College. This school was opened in 1968 and is currently offering bachelor’s degrees in 23 programs. LeMoyne-Owen College ranks in the Top 100 HBCU schools in the United States and in the Top 5 HBCU schools in Tennessee. Major competing HBCU schools for this college are Jackson State University in Jackson, MS and Tennessee State University in Nashville. To find out more about LeMoyne-Owen College go to this site - www.loc.edu or inquire at the Youth Empowerment Summit that we will be hosting there on July 22, from 8:30 am to 2:00 pm. So, where do you go grab something to eat after a long day of meetings? Memphis has a wide variety of places to eat with the foodie in mind. Everything from fine dining establishments to legendary BBQ joints can be found in and around downtown Memphis. But keep in mind this is the BBQ Capital of the world. Some of the samplings from the area include: BLFGT Salad - Felicia Suzanne’s (Downtown) This Southern take on the traditional BLT sandwich features fried green tomatoes rather than regular ol’ tomatoes, which negates the need for bread and makes it one amazing salad. Thick, yet crispy Newman Farms bacon, two lightly fried tomatoes, and a layer of homemade pimento cheese is topped with a heap of baby mixed greens tossed in a delicious rémoulade dressing. BBQ Nachos - Central BBQ (East Midtown) Kill those nacho and barbecue cravings in one bite. The BBQ nachos are built from the bottom up with your choice of housemade BBQ chips or tortilla chips, cheese sauce, shredded cheese, tangy barbecue sauce, perfectly smoked barbecue, and pickled jalapeños. BBQ Spaghetti - Interstate Bar-B-Q (Downtown/ South Memphis) When Jim Neely bought Interstate Grocery in 1978 and turned it into a barbecue restaurant in 1979, he put the Neely family firmly on the barbecue map. BBQ spaghetti is an Interstate original -- it’s Interstate’s signature pork in a mixture of its intoxicating barbecue sauce and spices served over spaghetti. Skillet of Shrimp - Rendezvous (Downtown) Don’t tell, but with 24 hours notice you can get a big old
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iron skillet full of five mouth-watering pounds of barbecue shrimp right there at your table. (costs ~ $150) Lobster Pronto Pup - Rizzo’s by Michael Patrick (Downtown) This is a tribute to a Memphis original - “The Pronto Pup”. Chef Michael wanted to take something as succulent and high end as lobster and serve it in a simple, fair interpretation. Lightly battered and fried, it is served with a Creole mustard aioli. With so much history, culture and entertainment in and around the city, there is no way that one should be hard pressed to satisfy your appetite, your mind and your soul. Memphis offers its guests some of that southern hospitality in a modern setting with a historical backdrop. It’s highly doubtful that one would get to experience everything that Memphis has to offer-but don’t let that stop you from trying. Above: Beale Street; Below Stax Records museum.
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groove leadership conference A
fl. Steven wilkins
s the owner of Spring Hope Consultants (Steven@ TheSpring of Hope.com) and the current consultant to Groove Phi Groove Social Fellowship, Inc., I pledged in the spring of 1979 at NCA&TSU. On induction night my line started with twenty-five young men‌ Almost two months later, ten of us crossed over. It was one heck of a ride which I will never forget. The Grooves taught me to be unapologetic about my history, who I am, and to totally trust God and never take the status quo of someone else’s standard. Today I work for a major organization in New Jersey where I am the Chief of Organizational Development and Training. I have been working in the business of human development since 1990. The art of working with people to see their potential in light of the human condition is an awesome experience. My ultimate goal when I enter any classroom is that the participants should have the educational experience of their life. Fellowman and International President Dennis Thomas and I have been meeting regularly since the beginning of the year to discuss and plan the design for the next Leadership Conference. The first of several
geographic sessions to take place throughout the country this year and next. The purpose of the conference is to examine key leadership principles and to incorporate those competencies into our daily lives as leaders of Groove Phi Groove. Thus, improving our beloved organization! My methodology of communicating when instructing is to create engagement opportunities. Research indicates that when a participant is fully involved/engaged that the retention rate of information increases substantially versus when being lectured to. My goal is to keep us moving, by creating continuous opportunities for discussion and participation. I look forward with great anticipation to seeing you at one of the scheduled sessions. Peace and Blessings, Fellowman Steven Wilkins Aka The Black Shampoo
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‘N’ Word
It Was Used And Still Can Be Used To Make Us Hate Ourselves f
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n May 18, 2017, Brando Simeo Starkey published a commentary regarding the use of the word “Nigger” on the ESPN website TheUndefeated.com.
Mr. Starkey based his commentary on his reading of slave narratives that explored the lives of “agricultural workers” or former slaves after the end of the Civil War. The narratives were sourced from the Federal Writers Project of the Works Progress Administration. It was a program sponsored by the federal government program that employed researchers from 1936 to 1938 to interview former enslaved people. The project produced more than 2,300 first-person accounts of the conditions under which slaves existed. The recorded narratives
Spring/summer 2017 are available online and are searchable at the Library of Congress. The compilation of narratives provide historical documentation that recount varied human experiences and includes stories from the interviewee’s years as a slave and how they freed themselves or learned of their emancipation. The narratives of the former slaves recount how they endured life on the “edges of a white supremacist society” in the decades following the end of state sanctioned slavery. In the commentary, rather than focus on the reported conditions of the former slave, Mr. Starkey focuses on negative self-images of these former slaves as expressed and reflected in their use of language. He focuses specifically on their use of the the word “nigger”. In the opinion of the commentator, the documented language used by former slave and the negative self-perceptions reflected, is best explained by what social scientists call “internalized oppression”. Their self-perception reflects a “psychological trauma that ensues when a person from a stigmatized group believes in the negative stigmas” imposed upon them by an imagined white master race. Mr. Starkey concludes that slave masters, their beneficiaries, and other believers in white supremacy indoctrinated slaves into accepting their supposed inferiority. He further writes that;
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ple clearly, perhaps subconsciously, considered themselves subhuman, just like how their former owners regarded them”. In one excerpt, a former slave, Mr. Jim Allen, refers to himself as his master’s “pet nigger boy” and a “stray”. He describes himself as privileged because he slept on the floor beside his master’s bed. That a freed man, Mr, Allen, used language to liken a past self to a pet animal confounds the commentator. For Mr. Stakey, the word “nigger” as used in the narratives embodies a worldview that holds black folk as lower order human beings. This is further exemplified in, another former slave’s comments, Ms. Irene Robertson. She claimed her former slave master was mean, in part, because “he
Top: NAACP demonstrates to bury the “N” word. Bottom: A panel on CNN with Don Lemon and hosts a discussion on the ‘N’ words use.
“These narratives illustrate the success of this campaign of mental terrorism, and no word conveyed the depth of this internalized oppression more than “nigger.” Now, whenever I hear the epithet, a visual and emotional representation of the heinous process by which a people — my people — were induced to think they were less than trespasses into my thoughts.” The commentator then reveals that after years of his habitual use of the word “nigger,” he has banished it from his speech to “honor the humanity that many never saw in themselves.” To support his conclusions, Mr. Starkey provides narrative excerpts to identify how “internalized oppression” reveals itself. He opines that “the former enslaved peo-
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‘n’ word c’td beat his wife like he beat a nigger woman.” For Mr. Starkey, the use of the word “nigger” by these former slaves signified a loathing toward fellow black folk. In yet another narrative, Ms. Mattie Mooreman reported that, following her emancipation she migrated north with a white family for whom she worked. One evening, some family members invited her to go to the circus to watch a black boy’s performance. She told her interviewer the following: “Guess they thought it would be a treat to me to see another niggah. I told ’em, ‘Law, don’t you think I see lots, lots more than I wants, every day when I is at home?’ ” According to Starkey, when you read how she refers to the family’s baby for whom she provides childcare and why she stays in the child’s room, you detect an irrational fear that without her unyielding protection, someone would kidnap the child. She continues to share the following with the interviewer; “No matter what time they come home they’d find me there. ‘Why don’t you go in your bedroom and lie down?’ they’d ask me. ‘No,’ I’d tell ’em, ‘somebody might come in, and they would have to get that baby over my dead body.” The slave narratives contain a barrage of dispiriting uses of the word “nigger”, according to Starkey. He provides several snippets from the narratives to underscore his point; “The Ku Klux kept the niggers scared.” “The Ku Klux did a whole lot to keep the niggers away from the polls. …” Slaves owned by “nice” masters are repeatedly called “free niggers.” “Niggers ain’t got no sense. Put ’em in authority and they gits so uppity.” “I’se just a poor old nigger waitin’ for Jesus to come and take me to heaven.” Slave traders are called “nigger traders.” Defiant enslaved people required the service of a
During the era that this image was captured, the term nigger was used to demean Black Men, Women and Children. “niggerbreaker.” “Nigger dogs” aided the recapture of those who escaped. The commentator is even more dismayed by scenarios where the use of the word “nigger” by the former slaves was averted. Mr. Starkey’s analysis of comments by a former slave leads to his conclusion that they viewed black men who owned slaves as “colored men,” yet those who were owned as “niggers.” In a moment of reflection, Mr. Starkey recalls a scene from the television documentary O.J.: Made in America. In the scene, a white woman who saw black people talking to Simpson uttered, “Look at those niggers sitting with O.J.” O.J. Simpson is in ecstasy on hearing this because she “knew I wasn’t black. She saw me as O.J.”
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letters c’td “We’ve Come This Far By Faith”
SWORD & SPEAR
2423 MARYLAND AVENUE, BALTIMORE, MD., 21218
Incoming Editor in Chief: Toomage Abza Art Designer/Layout: Floyd Brantley Marketing/Food Writer: Chris Smith Music Writer: Eric M. Greene
the student in both college [in general] and Groove [specifically] but to deter the student away from gangs and the street life. I think about Black men in neighborhoods like Newark, Irvington and East Orange, New Jersey; Harlem, Brooklyn and The Bronx, New York; and think about how imperative it is for them to see other men that look like them in letters. This is not to say that a man with letters on his chest is any better than a man without them, but they [Black men] need to see an alternative; just thinking or knowing that there is one just isn’t enough. Something needs to spark the idea in their heads that it’s never too late to pursue higher education. Seeing another Black man exude the aura of intelligence and purpose could be all it takes for them to want more for themselves; this, I know from experience. So you ask, “why a Non-Greek or a Greek would stay ‘so active’ in their organization”? I ask: “Why aren’t there more people staying active”?
Photographer: Floyd Brantley Opinion: Preme Mosbey Social Media/Guest Contributor: Chris Hill
visit our website @ www.gphig.com
‘n’ word c’td It intrigues Mr. Starkey that the worldview of these former slaves equate to both the racist white woman that uttered the remarks and the “unspeakably racially deranged O.J”. Starkey’s commentary continues as he focuses next on the use of the term “Nigger” in a 1906 murder trial. He cites how the term “nigger” is used by so-called “freed people” during the murder trial of Rufus Martin, a black man accused of taking a life. Mr. Martin stood accused of the murder of Charles Swackhammer, a white man. The accused black man, had a reddish moustache, a fair complexion continued, page 21
The officers and brothers would like to congratulate Bowie State University, Norfolk State University and Virginia State University for
50 years of Groovin’
Spring/summer 2017 and could pass for “white”. During the trial, it was reported by a local newspaper that an elderly black woman who occupied a front seat in the courtroom shouted out; It’s the white people that is to blame. They know that they got to make niggahs work or they ain’t no good and they know as long as they ‘low niggah men to loaf aroun’ low down saloons they ain’t goin’ to work. This man come from a good niggah fam’ly — one of the best I knows of, but the p’lice ‘lowed him to loaf aroun’ without workin’, and to drink and gamble, till he just got to be no good and thought he didn’t have to work. The p’lice ought to raid them low down niggah saloons every day and every night till they make every blessed one of the niggah toughs go to work or else send ’em all to the county road. Them saloons is what makes bad niggahs and the white folks is to blame for it, ’cause they let ’em run. Mr. Starkey proceeds to conclude that the elderly black woman’s courtroom reference to Martin’s “good niggah” family background is based purely upon his physical appearance. Mr. Starkey writes further that; “Black folk rescued the word (Nigger) from the smoldering debris of a virulently racist land, reclaimed it and renovated the slur into a celebration of black comradery — defenders of contemporary usage of ‘nigger’ repeat this”. He further argues that our contemporary use of the word is irreconcilable with the word’s historical legacy as used by slaves, former slaves and freed persons that thought of themselves as “niggers” in the most disparaging sense and said so. “The n-word” has been used as part of the American english language since at least the Revolutionary War and it survives to this day. Starkey’s commentary asks black people to confront an uncomfortable truth: “Absent the internalized oppression of those who called white men and women their masters, ‘nigger’ would probably not be a part of black folk’s lexicon. We black folk are reclaiming it not from bigot-
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ed white folk but from our ancestors, who, sadly, deemed their blackness a badge of inferiority”. In his final analysis, the commentary does not advocate for the elimination of the word “nigger” from the english language as implied in the article’s introductory comments. The commentator and I both readily acknowledge that we continue to enjoy at least some contemporary Hip-Hop music. For example, I love hip-hop artist Jay Z’s recent release “The Story of OJ”. Also, in a view similar to Mr. Starkey’s, I am often educated and entertained by the comedy routines of Larry Wilmore, Dave Chappelle and Chris Rock. The use of the term “nigger” by some of our cultural icons does not undermine my appreciation and respect for the genius of their art. Just like Mr. Starkey, whenever I hear the so-called “N-Word”, it does elicit a visceral response in me. The decision for any person to include it in their vocabulary, however, remains personal. The word can be spoken either in a context of ignorance or enlightenment. Criticism by black folk of other black folk who continue to use the term with purpose must be careful and to consider the contextual underpinnings. Note that use of the word “nigger’ by so-called white persons is another matter. Mr. Starkey ends his commentary with the following grim reminder on the word’s origin and to; “... summon the words of former enslaved people from beyond the grave to express that “nigger” is haunted by the ghosts of hate and the more spiritually chilling ghosts of self-hate.” I rarely use the word, but my advice is that you need to first know your audience, use the term appropriately, and use with care. Brando Simeo Starkey is an associate editor at The Undefeated and the author of In Defense of Uncle Tom: Why Blacks Must Police Racial Loyalty.