September 6, 2007
We have lost all the rights to our music!
Look at this photo of the faculty of the jazz department at this university. Not one African American amongst them.
http://www.wpunj.edu/coac/music/faculty/index.html
What the heck is going on?
I've sent buckets of emails to these institutions to teach jazz history and Women in Jazz. I don't even get a response.
Ugh, this is making me ill.
Joan Cartwright - www.fyicomminc.com
So, back to the question:
Then, there's this article to top it off:
Good grief!
So, now, I'm on my way to Haiti to meet some businessmen who are interested in funding our dream.
Hi Joan,
We all know that they have and will take anything we have, just as they stole the whole "American" continent from sea to shining sea. The have and will take any human and natural resources they want from the African continent. Miners are currently rushing to the African Museum in Belgium to examine the detailed maps on exhibit there for their next invasion of Africa as we fight savagely among ourselves.
What Joan is pointing out is closely related to our standing by and watching young African-Americans go to jail, get murdered in the streets, get inferior education, live in broken homes that drugs have destroyed, etc. The world has gotten used to thinking that we are deservedly at the bottom of the food change and can only INDIVIDUALLY claw our way out of social/cultural despair because old Europe and old America successfully managed to divide and conquer us forever.
What's most embarrassing is that the whole world feels that we are incapable of doing anything about any of these things. When the Bay Area got the world's attention by complaining about Yoshi's and The Jazz School's treatment of African American musicians in the Area, Bay Area musicians came together but they were not supported by African American musicians world-wide. So, again, it showed the world that we are completely disorganized and, thus, ineffective.
Most of all, we lose the timing that such opportunities to make SIGNIFICANT change offer . . . and rhythm is everything.
I always stand ready to participate in any direct, proactive and sustained effort to counter these centuries old trends whenever we are ready to move beyond conversation into the realm of unified minds, resources, strategy, and effort that lies beyond words.
Perhaps we can still build upon the effort that Rhonda Benin led the charge on in the Bay Area?
Now's the Time . . .
(!?)
Peace profound,
KH
Good morning, Joan.
Well, Clark Terry is Permanent Artist in Residence, Cecil Bridgewater is listed as is Mulgrew Miller (?).
I know it's a small number, but maybe they couldn't make it to the photo shoot! LOL!
Seriously, not at all surprised. The whitewashing continues. White folks are largely uncreative, so they do what they have always done...steal.
They continue to perpetuate the myth that Blacks offer nothing but pain and misery to this society, and we keep still, remain silent or passive, it will continue. Until we step up and take ownership of what we know to be true and real, and stop being "politically correct" or worrying about whose feelings will be hurt, we will continue to be relegated to the back of the bus.
I attended a WRFG Blues Concert and Fundraiser on Sunday, and you could count the number of Blacks in attendance on two hands maybe. And most, if not all, of the performers were Black. Chick Willis ("Stoop Down and Let Yo' Daddy See") continually heaped praise on the white folks who work at the station.
And the bullshit goes on!
JH