NUBIANMESSAGE NORTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY | RALEIGH, NC | THENUBIANMESSAGE.COM | wednesday, Ferbruary 14, 2018
celebrating Black Heroes
wednesday, February 14, 2018 | 2
Letter from the editor
THISISSUE 4 URBAN BUSH WOMEN Dance performance at State
5 ‘HAIRSPRAY’ Hairspray actors talk about the casting
6 BLACKADEMICS HEROES
The heroes of NC State unmasked
8 BLACK EXCELLENCE
Tyler Allen lands Forbes’ 30 Under 30.
10 SHOP CULTURED Black owned businesses to support
10 NCSU LIBRARIES LIST Celebrate BHM with these resources
11 ROLE MODELS Why we all need role models in our lives
The Sentinel of the African -American Community at N.C. State Since 1992. Stephanie Tate
Editor-in-Chief
Anahzsa Jones
Managing editor
Only with the permission of our elders do we proudly produce each edition of the Nubian Message:
Dr. Yosef ben-Yochannan, Dr. John Henrik Clark, Dr. Leonard Jeffries, The Black Panther Party, Mumia A. Jamal, Geronimo Pratt, Tony Williamson, Dr. Lawrence Clark, Dr. Augustus McIver Witherspoon, Dr. Wandra P. Hill, Mr. Kyran Anderson, Dr. Lathan Turner, Dr. M. Iyailu Moses, Dokta Toni Thorpe and all those who accompany us as we are still on the journey to true consciousness.
opinion
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Why is black history month so important at a pwi? Attending a PWI can often be exhausting. Students of color are constantly subjected to microaggressions, racially targeted acts of hatred and just plain ignorance. We have to deal with all of these things on top of the stress that already comes with being a college student. Black History Month is the one time of the year when spaces are created where Black Excellence, creativity, love and culture are celebrated and put into the spotlight on a campus that is normally a sea of whiteness. -Yesenia Jones, Staff Writer
Cause I’m black! More seriously though, Black History Month is about raising awareness about the unsung heroes of history who have contributed a vast amount good to America. Moreover, the contribution of black people around the world has enriched global society as a whole. Black History Month is also about connecting with your fellow black students in learning about black history. Here at NC State the black community can connect with each other on the basis of celebrating their history with one another. Black History Month at a PWI means recognizing the impact black people had on the history of the world but also their impact on the future. PWI’s need Black History Month as one way to appreciate the contributions black people have made in higher education. -Shawn Fredericks, Staff Writer
We need black history month because history in general is often whitewashed and overlooks the contributions and achievements made by people of color, even on a college campus. For example, George Washington Carver did not invent peanut butter, contrary to popular belief. However, he did invent over 300 uses for the peanut. We will need Black History Month until African/African-American history is a required course for all students. We will need Black History Month at the very least until we all collectively agree to stop celebrating Christopher “I discovered something that was already discovered” Columbus. -Casey Johnson, Correspondent
We need Black History Month for the same reason we created the Blackademics series, which highlights black faculty and staff at NC State. It was created as a response to the question, “where are all the black people?” We wanted to show students that there are many great black minds at NC State, even if they seem hard to find. Black History Month is a reminder to honor these people, their scholarship and their advocacy while they are still living. -Anahzsa Jones, Editor-in-Cheif
Why is there only one building at NC State named after a black person? As professor, associate dean and, ultimately, vice provost, Augustus Witherspoon was a champion for the concerns of black students. He was instrumental in founding the African American Cultural Center, Peer Mentor Program and the Multicultural Scholars Symposium. What about others who’ve made lasting contributions to NC State? Where is the Craig C. Brookins Center for Africana Studies? Or the Toni Thorpe Gallery? -Keilah Davis, Managing Editor
I feel Black History Month is especially important at a PWI because a lot of the academia that students are exposed to during their college years is Eurocentric. Sure, there are specific professors and courses that highlight black people’s contributions to society throughout history, but generally, across many subjects of study, there’s little to no attention given to these people. Just google “famous philosophers in history” for an example. Also, I think celebrating Black History Month at PWIs keeps these institutions from being less “isolated,” in the sense that anything not-white suddenly becomes unimportant just because it’s a PWI. -Kennysha Woods, Staff Writer
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news
Urban Bush women: hair and other stories casey johnson Correspondent
Sarah Cochran/Staff Photographer Tendayi Kuumba (left), Du’Bois A’Keen (center), and Courtney J. Cook (right) pose during their performance of Urban Bush Womens’ Hair & Other Stories on Friday, February 9, 2018 at NC State University’s Stewart Theatre. Urban Bush Women was founded 30 years ago by Jawole Willa Jo Zollar, who was hoping to establish a company that captures the energy of the African American community and would inspire others.
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he Urban Bush Women dance company performed “Hair and Other Stories,” a commentary of social issues, in Stewart Theatre on Friday, Feb. 9. Through comedy, dancing, singing, acting and audience interaction, Urban Bush Women used hair as a method to tackle issues of racism, colorism and beauty standards. “Hair became a device to unpack race and unpack gender in a race-based society,” said Chanon Judson, performer and associate artistic director of Urban Bush Women. “There was no YouTube when I came up to share these stories and experiences.” Along with the performance, Urban Bush Women also hosted three events in the two days leading up to the show. These events included a Community Sing, Hair Party, and a movement jam/dance class. “What you see on stage is only one arm. Another arm is community engagement,” Judson said. On the day of the performance, Judson gave a pre-show talk in Talley Student
Union. The room was full and some attendees had to stand along the walls. “If I had arranged this room,” she said, “we would be sitting in a circle, a space where we’re all invited.” Judson mentioned the company’s efforts to “dismantle the top-down structure” by having co-directors. During the talk, Judson had the audience members turn to each other and ask, “If your hair could talk, what would your hair say?” “Everybody’s got a relationship with hair,” Judson said, “whether you got it or you don’t.” “I hope this leaves an impression on your story,” Judson said before leaving to prepare for the performance. Outside of Stewart Theatre, the NC State Women’s Center set up a pop-up exhibit titled “The Politics of Black Hair.” The gallery consisted of 12 portraits of black women along with quotes from the women. Angela Gay, assistant director of the Women’s Center, said the full 97-piece exhibit will open on Tuesday, Feb. 13 in the African American Cultural Center gallery. Urban Bush Women took to the stage at 8 p.m. for the second time at NC State. The first was in 1993, nine years into the company’s journey. “You thought you came here to see a show, but we are going on a journey,” said dancer Courtney Cook as the show began. These scenes included “Hair Hell Moments 1, 2 and 3,” sketches about entering an elevator and having one’s hair being the center of attention, whether for ridicule or praise. Stephanie Mas, the sole white dancer, told the audience that the first time she dyed her blonde hair red, her father did not speak to her for a month, noting her Aryan features were always praised as beautiful. “We need to talk about the N-word,” said dancer and associate director Samantha Speis as she entered from stage left. “I’m gonna say it and you’re gonna say it, so fix your lips–Nappy!” Several times, the dancers started to furiously scrub themselves, each other, the props and the stage itself. Speis once began a prolonged monologue, “Clean, wash, lather, to cleanse, lather, rinse, repeat, to wash, to purify, to clean, lather, rinse, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat.” Crystal Smith, an English professor at
UNC Greensboro, said during the intermission, “It was fantastic. I’ve never seen them perform before. The energy from beginning to end was intense and purposeful at the same time. I was surprised at the how they incorporated the audience.” During the after-party, Wolf Tales, a part of the NCSU Libraries Special Collections Research Center, gave attendees the chance to share their own hair stories to be archived in the library. The following words appeared on the screen behind the dancers during their last dance: “Life hits you hard. But it takes three seconds to decide if you are a superhero or not. I am.”
jessica hernandez/Staff Photographer Du’Bois A’Keen, Tendayi Kuumba and Courtney J. Cook, performers in the Urban Bush Women company, list words used to describe Black hair in the “Hair & Other Stories.”
Sarah Cochran/Staff Photographer Tendayi Kuumba (left) and Courtney J. Cook (right) dance, sing, and entertain during their performance of Hair & Other Stories from the Urban Bush Women company on Friday, February 9, 2018 at NC State University’s Stewart Theatre.
features
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diversity crisis in ‘hairspray’ Good morning NC State! February 21st25th, University Theater will be performing the hit Broadway musical, Hairspray. Most people agree that the message of the show is generally uplifting and revolves around inclusivity and acceptance. However, Lauren Knott, a junior studying psychology and the actress playing Velma Von Tussle, the show’s less than accepting producer, feels the show falls a little short. “I feel a little white savior-y,” Knott Said. “Because the journeys of the black people are so dependent on this white girl’s generosity. We’ve sort of linked her up as this savior, and I don’t necessarily think that’s a great narrative to put out. I think that is one of the shows failings, is Tracy as the hero.” The show tackles many modern issues; racism, body image, interracial relationships and diversity in the media, all in a musical ‘60s setting. Jordan Williams, a senior studying communications, and the actor playing Seaweed, is excited to tackle these issues on stage. “They’re talking about weight issues, they’re talking about social issues, about feminist issues. It’s very dated, but it’s still very timely to what’s going on today,” Williams said. “We can still talk about these things and make it relevant. We’re trying to break away from those ideas and you can do it through dance and song and self expression.” Riki Dows, a junior studying communications, and the actress playing Motormouth Maybelle, sees value in presenting the issues in way the show does, even though she feels it’s less powerful. “It’s a really watered down way of trying to get the message across, but I feel like that’s what the audience we’re trying to reach needs. It sounds bad, but you kind of have to ‘spoonful of sugar’ this medecine a little bit.” As important as the message of the show may seem, it wasn’t UT’s main focus when choosing a show for this year. Nia Crews, a junior in computer science, is the show’s stage manager. She believes part of the reason the show was chosen was for the heavy dance element and the desire to reach a wider audience. “A part of it, I think,” Crews said, “is that they’re trying to start appealing to a younger audience. UT in general has a lot of older people come see the shows. Hairspray is just such a big show, a well known show, that I think they were hoping to pull more people in and make it more diverse in the UT community as well.” Diversity in UT was one of the biggest
questions all around. Crews said, “That was probably one of the biggest concerns. Could we cast the show, was the first question. Not even thinking about talent, there are just some roles that you can’t cast a different race.” Fara Marin, a junior studying zoology, who plays Tracy, had the same concern. “Generally, there are not a lot of people of color in [UT] shows, and I know I was wondering, are people of color just going to show up and audition? Because that’s not the general reoccuring people that are actors in the theater.” In the end, thirty-six people were cast, 9 of which are people of color. Marin felt that given UT’s record, the level of diversity is impressive. “We have a fairly large cast for the North Avenue kids. So I think, especially when considering the normal profile of [UT]’s normal shows, this one is really diverse.” Knott was less satisfied. “I wish the ratio of black to white ensemble was better. I think we could have cast more people of color for sure, and I think that we should have cast more people of color for sure. And I’m not quite sure why that didn’t happen.” Dows agreed. “I think we pulled it off by the skin of our teeth. Like the bare minimum of what we needed. But I think if we had just maybe done a little bit more reaching out before the semester, it would have been like, easy peasy, and maybe worked on the schedule a little bit.” The small number of people of color in the cast presents logistical issues. Some characters are doubling up on roles. Kaitlin Perkins, a senior studying biological engineering, who plays Little Inez, will also be playing one of the Dynamites. “I heard that extras weren’t needed,” Perkins said, “but it still kind of surprised me a little bit that I am playing two of the fairly main roles. I feel like someone else could have maybe done.” Crews, who took part in casting the show, said, “Our main focus is to be able to cast roles without being offensive and trying to make sure black roles are cast as black people, and we had plenty of black people audition for black roles. The problem is that not everyone has a singing voice and so it’s like, where do you draw that line of talent versus fitting a role?” A show with these themes being controlled for the most part by white people presents its own challenges. Dows talked about an experience in rehearsal where the
few people of color presented a logistic and a subtle social issue. “Run and Tell That (a number in the play) was looking quite sparse, let me tell you,” Dows said. “Our choreographer was like ‘I want more people in there...would it be alright if I put some white people in there? Like, you could run and tell them that.’ And that’s where those sensitivity things come in... I’m not running and telling a white person nothing, not in the sixties.” Perkins said there was also a desire for more voices. “I honestly got upset at one point, because they were saying, ‘oh we need more people to sing this’ and I was like, it will not make sense if we have white people singing this part of the lyrics.” The lyrics in question are “Give me five on the black hand side.” Dows also feels the tension of being a person of color in a largely white environment with a certain joke amongst the cast members. “There’s this running joke that’s ‘Tracy turnblad defeated racism’ ...I
anahzsa jones Editor-in-Chief
guess it’s humorous sometimes, and I guess that’s the best way to look at it when you’re going to be working very closely with these people for six weeks.” Perkins finds the joke genuinely amusing and sees it as a way for the cast to commiserate over the show’s flippant tone. “Because that’s the way it makes it seem and how it’s written. I’m glad that the cast members for the most part are all on the same page. We’re all just like, this is utterly ridiculous.” Hairspray opens on February 21st and tickets are selling out fast. Despite the possibly problematic nature of the themes, the show promises to be a good time for all. Knott sums it up well. “I think people should just take the show for what it is; a light hearted, fun, musical romp. I guess in today’s political climate, a message of love, of loving yourself and your body and loving people regardless of weight or skin color is a good message to have.”
wednesday, February 14, 2018 | 6
features
blackademics: Here are 9 NC State heroes we’ve highlighted in our Blackademics series. Paired with them are nine of the too few black superheroes in comics and, more recently, movies and TV shows. We used different criteria to match them up, but each of our heroes have something in common with their super counterparts. We’ve never seen these heroes or these people in the same place at the same time. Coincidence? We think not. Dr. Stephen Ferguson:
As a professor of philosophy, Dr. Ferguson highlights black philosophers and their contributions throughout history. He also uses philosophy and politics to aid in solving social issues.
Matched with: Icon.
Icon is an alien taking the form of black man. He crash-landed on Earth during the time of slavery and took the name Augustus Freeman. Because of his alien physiology, Icon lived through slavery up toward modern times. Having the powers of Superman, Icon serves the city of Dakota as a lawyer by day and a crime fighter by night
Dr. Jamila Simpson:
Dr. Simpson’s background as a science major and position as assistant dean for diversity and student services at the College of Sciences allow her to provide resources and representation for minority students majoring in the sciences. She was the 1st black person at NC State to graduate with a degree in meteorology. Matched with: Storm.
As the descendant of African priestess, Storm is a mutant with the power to control the atmosphere and manipulate the winds and the weather.
Dr. Fredessa Hamilton:
Dr. Hamilton is a lecturer in communication who earned her PhD from NC State at age 59. Her thesis and current work focuses on low-literate adults in NC. She broke barriers at Duke, which was desegregated only 10 years before she started as an undergraduate, like how Misty broke into the NYPD. Matched with: Misty Knight.
Also known as Kelly Knight, Misty was a NYPD officer serving justice until her arm got amputated after a bomb attack. Her bionic arm gives her a superhuman grip, and with add-ons from Stark Industries, she can equip different tools and use various abilities.
Preston Keith:
As the assistant director in the GLBT Center, Keith raises awareness for GLBT issues through his management of advocacy programs and student organizations. He is also known on campus for his electric personality. Matched with: Static Shock.
Static is the marquis character from Milestone Comics. His power to manipulate electromagnetic fields allows him to magnetize and demagnetize anything, bend electrons, and generate protective shields, among other things.
features
Tony Williamson:
Tony was the founder and first editor-in-chief of the Nubian Message.
wednesday, February 14, 2018 | 7
the heroes of nc state unmasked
Matched with: Black Panther.
T’Challa, otherwise known as Black Panther, inherited the crown of Wakanda, one of the wealthiest nations on the planet, after his father T’Chaka was killed. T’Challa received the Black Panther vibranium suit and connected with the Wakanda Black Panther spirit, giving him supernatural strength, speed, agility, stamina and healing.
Dr. Tracey Ray:
Dr. Ray has served a slew of roles on campus from director of Multicultural Student Affairs to Africana Studies professor to assistant vice provost for student diversity. Amidst all her work, Dr. Ray works to help students develop as professionals and as people. Matched with: Shuri.
Black Panther’s sister serves as Princess of Wakanda and is armed with a suit just like her brother. She also has supernatural abilities like turning her body as hard as stone or turning people into birds after being trained by a griot spirit while in the Djalia.
Dr. Blair Kelley:
An assistant dean for interdisciplinary studies, professor, wife and mom, Dr. Kelley is an expert in history who enjoys volunteering and engaging with her community. Her favorite approach to history is looking for the messy pieces. As an administrator, she also founded a scholarship program to fund study abroad trips for underrepresented minorities and first-generation students. Matched with: Spectrum.
While trying to stop the creation of a dangerous weapon, she was exposed to extra dimensional energy giving her the power to transform herself into any form of energy in the electromagnetic spectrum including gamma rays, microwaves cosmic rays and x-rays.
Moses Greene:
Using his knowledge of art media and communications, Greene serves as the director of the African American Cultural Center to further its outreach to students. Matched with: Mr. Terrific.
Also known as Michael Holt, the third smartest man on Earth, Mr. Terrific excels in everything from intellect to athleticism.
Dr. Elan Hope:
Dr. Hope conducts research to understand the academic and social experiences of marginalized children.
Matched with: Vixen.
With the Tantu Totem, Vixen can take on the qualities of different animals. Using this totem, she fights against injustice to protect the innocent.
wednesday, February 14, 2018 | 8
features
black excellence at nc state: tyler allen Meet Tyler Allen: student, researcher and example of black excellence in STEM Erin elliot Correspondent
Photographer Name/Staff Photographer Yaheard founders Jeremiah Ufot, Josh Puente, Marcus Spurill, DomiNick Downing and Robert Dates, all NC State students or graduates, post for a photo. Contributed.
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yler Allen’s colleagues describe him as humble and modest. Although, let’s face it, he clearly has a lot to brag about it. He is a current National Cancer Institute NRSA Fellow and is set to graduate this spring with his PhD in comparative biomedical sciences, making him a two-time alumnus. Most recently, he was named one of Forbes’ 30 Under 30. “To hear Tyler won this award was really exciting and kind of funny because last year one of his friends won, and I remember him telling me that he was going to win it next
year, and then he does,” said Emmanuel Amu, Tyler’s current research mentee. Jessica Proctor, who has known Tyler as both a colleague and friend for six years, described him as a go-getter who sets his goals really high and isn’t afraid to go after anything. “The principal investigator for my lab says Tyler is referred to as the champion for the Biomedical Partnership Center and the Comparative Medicine Institute,” Proctor said. According to Proctor, Tyler didn’t tell his lab the news. “A colleague of mine who happens to read Forbes pointed it out and it
wasn’t until a couple of weeks later that the entire building took him out to celebrate,” Proctor said. Tyler became interested in biology during late elementary school, when his class did an experiment to observe their own cheek cells under a microscope. “My science teachers were always the most excited to teach us during school,” Tyler said, “and I kind of picked up on that enthusiasm myself and began to truly enjoy what I was learning.” Tyler is the first person in his family who decided to enter a STEM field. Despite his successes, the underrepresentation of African Americans makes him feel he sometimes battles feeling like the only one in certain spaces. To promote diversity in STEM, Tyler makes an effort to excite others about science. “Outreach is a big thing for me,” Tyler said. “I actually speak to students about science while they are still in grade school so they can see that there are black people represented in this field, because I know a lot of times, for me growing up, I didn’t see people who looked like me.” Dr. Erin Banks, the director of the Initiative for Maximizing Student Diversity at NC State, recruited Tyler for this program in his junior year. This program mentors students through the academic process, coaching them through graduate school options, encouraging them to attend professional conferences and offering professional development opportunities. “What I really like about Tyler is that he is very passionate about science, but he is even more passionate about people building, improving and bettering our country and world,” Dr. Banks said. “He is a great role model for his peers in the program and although he is an alum of the program now, they still look up to him.” Tyler and I discussed respectability
politics and representation over a game of Connect Four. “When I first came to NC State, there was an incident that happened in the free expression tunnel when someone painted the “N” word over a picture of Obama,” Tyler said. “Then a recent incident a couple of years ago in GroupMe brought me back to those same feelings of feeling like we don’t belong.” As the president of the Graduate Student Association, Tyler regularly meets with higher administration to discuss issues around campus. “The university is doing a lot but there is still more to be done,” he said. “During undergrad, I worked in Multicultural Student Affairs and I was able to find my people. I am grateful that we have centers on our campus that advocate for our students and provide a sense of community because sometimes we don’t get that in our programs.” He mentioned that in his own program, and even at conferences, it can be hard to not feel like the only black person in the room. He recalled a conference he attended in Canada last year, saying, “There were hundreds of people there, but I was literally the only black person and it’s kinda the recurring theme. “I’d say the biggest thing I have had to overcome is this internal battle of self-doubt and loneliness, thinking that I can’t be a scientist because there isn’t anyone else who looks like me,” Tyler said. “I have to overcome the feeling of loneliness. “I understand that unfortunately, my progression is leading me to see less and less people that look like me, but I have to keep trudging along so that I can eventually shake things up and change that.”
Room Selection 2018 Option one
FEBRUARY 5 5-6 FEBRUARY
Closed selection for students returning to Wolf Ridge Apartments or a Village
Option two
FEBRUARY 13-15
Open selection for current residents with less than 61 credit hours
Option three
FEBRUARY 19-20
Open selection for current residents with less than 92 credit hours
Option four Open selection for all current residents
go.ncsu.edu/renew
FEBRUARY 22-23
wednesday, February 14, 2018 | 10
features
‘Shop Cultured’: Support Black Owned Businesses
yesenia jones Staff Writer
Contributed by YeseniaJones
Yesenia Jones (Left) and Patrice Graham (Right), owner of Colors of Yoga.
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lack History Month is a 28-day span specifically created to celebrate Black Excellence everywhere. Some choose to celebrate by diving deep into their cultural roots or by challenging themselves to shop for goods through black-owned businesses. But supporting black-owned businesses is a practice that should be continued throughout the year and not just within the month of February. In a country dominated by capitalist values, money equals power. By supporting black-owned businesses, consumers are creating a currency flow that will empower the black community. With larger support, black business owners are able to expand, network and create new jobs within the community, thus developing economic power and building generational wealth. While developing economic power, business owners also provide representation
for people of color in spaces where there is traditionally no representation. Patrice Graham, owner of Colors of Yoga, began to understand the importance of representation after she began her journey as a yoga instructor. “So I was just doing it by myself, it was a very personal thing,” Graham said. “Then when I was in yoga teacher training, my mom and sister started coming and they never came. Then I was like, ‘Oh maybe if a black person is teaching, more black people will do it.’” Her yoga studio in downtown Raleigh provides a safe place for people of color to explore the teachings of yoga. “Even when I think of yoga I think of a skinny white woman,” Graham said. “And nothing against that, but if you don’t see yourself represented, you’re less likely to try to break down this barrier. I think especially for people of color there is a lot of trauma and stress that we are working through and we just keep going.” In order to bring in diverse students, Graham offers classes like Trap Yoga. Trap Yoga blends together two cultures—yoga and trap music—making people of color more likely to try yoga as a healthy stress reliever. As more black-owned businesses promote culture through their services and products, black people are able to show pride for their culture on a broader scale while also keeping wealth in their communities. Co-owner of Cultured by Gentleman’s Choice Kollection, Alec Virgil uses his business to help historically black fraternities and sororities rep their groups through socks, bowties and lapel pins. His brand also features accessories that feature sports teams and historically black colleges. “We came up with the name ‘Cultured’ because our brand is literally for diversity,” Virgil said. “It’s about all the people, especially for those that feel like they are not represented. It’s about the culture.” Cultural representation, physical representation and community wealth are all benefits of shopping black and buying black. Therefore, black people, and
minorities in general, should practice a form of consumerism that intentionally supports the endeavors of their fellow community members. When revenue is being created and spent in the same communities, it benefits everyone involved. Here are a few black-owned businesses to support in the Raleigh/Durham area:
Color of Yoga
Inclusive Yoga Studio aiming to promote self growth and wellness. 16 S Glenwood Avenue, Suite 30B Raleigh, NC 27603 https://colorsofyogaraleigh.com
Cultured by Gentleman’s Choice Kollection
Library BHM Resources Contributed by NCSU Libraries NCSU Libraries has compiled a list of resources created by and about black activists, writers, poets and filmmakers. Each these are available to the NC State community at NCSU Libraries. We’ve highlighted some of the resources below.
Books Behind the Dream: The Making of the Speech That Transformed a Nation
Written by Clarence Benjamin Jones and Stuart Connelly
Bad Feminist: Essays
Written by Roxane Gay
Go Tell It On the Mountain Written by James Baldwin
Accessory store aiming to provide items that represent a variety of cultural groups. 615 W Hargett St Raleigh, NC 27603 https://gckollection.com
Wild Seed
Souly Vegan Cafe
Movies & Documentaries
Vegetarian/Vegan cafe specializing in soul food classics such as “fish” cakes, mac and cheese and collard greens. 4125 Durham-Chapel Hill Blvd Durham, North Carolina 27707 https://www.facebook.com/ SoulyVeganCafe
Jinsa Essentials
All natural skin/hair care made with botanical oils. Featuring products such as essentials oils and waterless lotions. 1325 Kirkland Rd #103 Raleigh, NC 27603 https://www.jinsaessentials.com
Written by Octavia Butler
Men We Reaped: A Memoir Written by Jesmyn Ward
Whose Streets?
Directed by Sabaah Folayan
Malcolm X
Directed by Spike Lee
The Black American Experience: Mary McLeod Bethune - Champion for Education Directed by Brian Stewart
This Side of the River: Self-Determination and Survival in the Oldest Black Town in America By the North Carolina Language and Life Project
Chisholm ‘72: Unbought and Unbossed Directed by Shola Lynch
opinion
wednesday, February 14, 2018 | 11
Why you need a role model in your life Heroes are not bound to comic book pages, video games, movies or any other medium. Heroes are in workplaces, offices and most importantly, across the dinner table everyday, puttin’ in work. With Shawn “Black Panther” hitting federicks theaters soon, it’s imStaff Writer portant to be aware of the importance of role models both on screen and off screen. Role models provide a blueprint for people to use in their own lives; they blaze a trail for others to follow. They also spark imagination. For example, Barack Hussein Obama shattered expectations when he became the first black president and fulfilled his duties with diligence and excellence. Now black boys everywhere can imagine themselves in a position of power and status such as presi-
dent of the United States of America, despite the efforts of the current orange-in-chief to defile his legacy. (See America, this is why we can’t have nice things.) But au contraire, mon ami. Role models aren’t required to be in positions of power. Activist figures such as Malcolm X, Angela Davis, Rosa Parks and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. became great role models by standing up for justice when few would do so. All that being said, I want to paraphrase the words of Hall of Fame football player Shannon “Shay” Sharpe: Your most important role model should be across the dinner table. This means the people that should be your role models, the examples you should be following, are not rappers, singers or YouTube creators. The people you should be following are across the dinner table from you, whether they’re your mother, father, sister, brother, grandmother, grandfather, auntie, uncle or big cousins. Family plays an important role in a child’s development; as the old saying
goes, it takes a village to raise a child. However, if family relations are strained, I urge you to look towards community leaders or counselors—people who have dedicated their lives to uplifting others. These heroes are often overlooked as role models and taken for granted. Too often, young people fill the empty void left in the absence of a strong role model with negative celebrities who do not take responsibility for their influence, namely their negative influence on the youth. Role models are severely needed for marginalized groups. Representation gives people someone to aspire to and helps them imagine themselves participating in a particular field. For instance, a recent study co-authored by Catherine Porter of Heriot-Watt University and Danila Serra of Southern Methodist University found that female university students were more likely to enroll in an upper-level division microeconomics class if they had first encountered successful female role models in the
economics field. Growing up, I personally did not have a role model; currently, I still do not have one. This made me a more independent soul and gave me an earned sense of self. However, it also made my development—both professionally and personally—difficult because I had no one to help guide my interests and teach me habits to be successful. That is why I advocate for young people, especially in my generation, to find and connect with a person that can serve as their role model. By having a role model, individuals can enrich their life’s path and take themselves further in life by following the footsteps others have already made. Navigating the world can seem to be an insurmountable task, but having a role model, a person who can guide and advise, is paramount. Through a role model, one can aspire to reach the tallest mountain, overcome the strongest obstacles and envision themselves in a position of power and prestige.
calling all writers, photographers and designers:
The Nubian Messsage wants You! Interest Meetings: Tuesday, February 27 at 5:30pm Wednesday, February 28 at 5:30pm Friday, March 2 at 2:00pm All meetings will be held at Witherspoon Student Center in Room 314
