Who needs the media when you have live coverage from the blogosphere. Shawn, author of the Dallas South Blog will be making is way to Jena and will be posting live from the rally. He’s put together some good content and below I’ve listed some additional links to posts that he’s done on the Jena Six movement. It makes me proud to see black people coming together for a common cause. If this were not to happen, those six young men would just be another statistic in the criminal justice system.

All I’m asking is for a fair trial. In a radio interview with Mychal Bell’s father, he said there are a lot of issues regarding race in Jena. As long as Bell was running the ball on the football field, everyone loved and supported him. It was until this situation that his support dwindled and the town has turned on him. I hope things turn out well and the media covers the real reason behind the rally. This is a movement to make right some of the wrongs in the world.

Dallas Prepares for Travel to Jena
Judge vacates conviction of Mychal Bell

All I have to say is, it’s about time. The media is finally starting to put the spotlight on the Jena Six trials. While Anderson Cooper and CNN get the attention on a national level, I credit the blogging community for leading the charge. The first time I heard about it was from the Villager at the Electronic Village, Afrospear and Vanessa at vanessabyers.net. If you don’t know what’s going on, I’ve provided some links for you to check out. The Villager and Vanessa have put out some good information on the Jena Six and I don’t believe in re-inventing the wheel when it’s already well-designed.

Racism is still an issue and it only leads to trouble. While the young men were wrong in what they did, the problem I have is with the charges brought up against them. If the situation was reversed, would the same charges apply? The National Bar Association is looking to open their own investigation to make sure each of the young men are properly represented.

97.9 the Beat, a local Dallas radio show is getting ready to travel to Jena on Sept 20th to attend the rally. For those who can’t make it, they are asking you to donate to the Jena Six Defense Fund at www.colorofchange.org. Send what you can, no matter how small of an amount it is. Details for the rally are still being gathered and I will post them when I get them.

Please sign the online petition and read the following links for more information.

Going To Jena
Jena 6: Racism in America
Jena Cuts Down Noose Tree
The Jena Six: An American Tragedy and a Shameful Reality
Jena 6: An American Tragedy

Update: I also ask that you check out Jena Six Activism Getting Results. Black bloggers making a difference. Now that’s what I’m talkin’ about.

With so many people bashing hip hop artists, it’s good to hear some good news every now and then. The Kanye West Foundation is working with Ariel Capital Management and Strong American Schools to improve the high school drop out rate among African American and Latino students. Kanye will be working to get the presidential candidates to make education a top priority on their list of campaign promises. I feel it’s the least they could do. Our government has shown where their priorities lie and it’s not with our students. We talk a good game about being competitive with other countries when it comes to education, but we’ve fallen short of the mark.

The blackgivesback blog has a really good post about the benefit concert and the other events that took place. Check it out.

Hip Hop Superstar Kanye West Combats School Drop Out Rate Through Hip Hop Music

Jimmy, a good friend of mine (and frat brother) has started a new blog with his first topic called “The New 2007 Jim Crow is subtle and rarely overt”. A friend of his was discriminated at a local restaurant here in Dallas because her toddler was “too loud” during a time when everyone else was talking equally as loud. She ended up sending a letter to the mayor and other high ranking officials at the restaurant in Dallas detailing what transpired.

Being the father of a toddler, I know there are times when they can get loud (especially when they’re tired). My son is active and loves to talk, but this is what kids do. There are certain places I know not to take him, but if you have booster seats for kids I consider him welcome. I’m sure people have mixed feelings on this, so we’ll see what comes out of this situation.

I’m the kind of person who likes to know where I’m welcome, so I wouldn’t be offended if businesses put up signs with restrictions on age limits. What happened to her was wrong and she has a right to be upset. There is more to the story and if I can post the letter, I will at a later date. Check out the post and let me know what you think.

Benin at www.beninmwangi.com has a very good article on which form of money better benefits the countries in Sub Saharan Africa. I’ve been interested in learning how to do business in Africa and I’ve heard this same question come up on shows like Inside Africa on CNN. While I think it’s great that Bono, Oprah and all these celebrities are working to get aid for Africa, is the money helping or hindering the overall growth? Would it be better to invest in African businesses by encouraging more trade in the U.S?

It’s a tough question to answer that’s worth looking in to. I try to always encourage people to think global. There are a lot of opportunities in these emerging countries and I don’t want to miss out. I hope to do a podcast on this topic one day because it’s an issue worth discussing.

Trade Versus Aid in Africa, Who Wins?

Once again Villager at the Electronic Village puts together a good post we all need to read. His latest post Black Spending Power covers the myth of black buying power and explains the difference between being income-rich and being wealthy. He also tells us of the importance of investing back into the black community.

I have to agree with him on this. I know a lot of people who are income-rich, but I often wonder how wealthy they are. I’ve read books by wealthy people and I’ve even hung around a couple and they have a very different mindset than the income-rich. Most are very thrifty when it comes to spending money and they are actively involved in investing in stocks or businesses. They realize that having your money work for you is better than having to always work for your money. I’m also a strong believer in spending money with black businesses. They tend to be a little more expensive, but it helps out a black business in the process.
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JD at Black in Business has awarded me a Thinking Blog award. This award is for those blogs that cause you to pause and think. JD had some of the bloggers on his list that I would have added to mine, but it’s all good. I had no problem at all for finding other quality thinking blogs to share with you. Here’s my list of some of the blogs I’ve found in my journey through the blogosphere.

Vanessa - Vanessa is a Fiscal management professional, freelance writer, poet and activist. Man this sista is deep and has some very thought-provoking posts that make for some very good discussions. She actually manages three blogs Vanessa: Unplugged, On the Black Hand Side, and Don’t Just Play Barbie, Be Barbie. Man, I can barely manage one blog.

Tisha - I just found Serenity Quest this week and I’m already hooked. She has some great posts that make me think and laugh at the same time. She’s very interactive with her readers in the comments area which in my opinion adds character to the site.

David McQueen - Author of davespeaks.wordpress.com. According to his site, he is a speaker, writer, youth worker and mentor and a Christian! He has a keen passion for education and youth development. He used to be good at badminton, but he sucks now. I like his site a lot and admire his passion for helping others. Check out the projects he’s got going. I’ll be blogging about one in particular later this week. Check him out!

JayEss - He has a fairly new blog about technology and how it relates to culture, economics, and everyday living at tightbrain.com. He’s started out with some good tech posts and I hope to see more as the site grows. Anyone who has a passion for technology is alright with me.

Martin Hodges - A college friend of mine who is making his mark on the blogging/commentary scene with the Lead Media Network. He also has a personal blog with some of his older posts at mlhodges.wordpress.com. This brotha is very insightful when it comes to social issues and I value his opinion on the issues we see in America.

Alright blogger peeps. If you get the chance, leave your five thinking blogs in my comment area or on your site. Thanks!

This month on the podcast we are covering the topic of education. I found this post at The “d” Spot and thought it was interesting to hear about some of the issues that other cities are facing at their schools. According to the post, Detroit is going to be forced to close more than 30 schools this year.

I hate to see this because the kids forced to change are going to have to deal with adjusting to a new school, new classmates and new teachers which could easily affect their learning. I would hope it wouldn’t be a long-term effect, I just hope they are taking that into consideration. Kids have enough to deal with and I hope the powers-that-be are being fair about the schools they decide to close. Check out the post and let me know what you think.

Woman arrested for throwing grapes at school board

I found a good post by Benin Mwangi on the topic “Is There A Dedicated Business Media in Africa?” In Episode 11 of my podcast I made some references to a show I watch on CCN International called Inside Africa. They made a comment that doing business in Africa would help a lot more than just giving money to the country. This peaked my interest and I’ve been interested in finding someone who knows and understands how to do this. His post has some really good links to sites for you to learn more about business in Africa.

I ran across The Benin Epilogue Part I: Africa-Ready for Business through MyBlogLog and I’ve had the opportunity to talk with him via Skype. We were able to learn a lot from each other. He was able to school me on some of the business and financial opportunities available in Kenya. I hope to have him on the podcast soon to share more of his experiences. Benin also has a podcast episode at blubrry.com.

Let me know what you think and leave comments. As I learn more, I’ll be sure to share.

Is There A Dedicated Business Media in Africa?

I got a comment on my post from Mother at Chittlin’s and Chopsticks and the possiblity of Shaquanda being released. This shows t he power of the Internet and how one article can fuel a movement (even if all the facts weren’t there). See I told you. Just think if we united and came together on more issues that need to be solved in the black community.

I love technology