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Wednesday, May 06, 2009

Sun. 5/10/2009 @ 4:00 PM C~W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Radio~Dr. John Hope Franklin: Master Griot...A Tribute

Celebrating 2 Full Years In The Biz: Ain't No Stopping Us Now!!!

May 2009 Theme: Paying Tribute...
Air Date: Sun. May 10, 2009
E-mail: r2c2h2@gmail.com
Time: 4 PM C/5 PM E/2 PM P

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http://www.blogtalkradio.com/weallbe/2009/05/10/Tha-Artivist-PresentsWE-ALL-BE-News-Radio

TOPIC: Dr. John Hope Franklin: Master Griot...A Tribute

(January 2, 1915-March 25, 2009)

Portrait by Simmie Knox

On The History Of African Americans:
"In discussing the history of a people one must distinguish between what has actually happened and what those who have written the history have said has happened. So far as the actual history of the American Negro is concerned, there is nothing particularly new about it. It is an exciting story, a remarkable story. It is the story of slavery and freedom, humanity and inhumanity, democracy and its denial. It is tragedy and triumph, suffering and compassion, sadness and joy."

"One might argue the historian is the conscience of the nation, if honesty and consistency are factors that nurture the conscience."

"I think knowing one's history leads one to act in a more enlightened fashion. I can not imagine how knowing one's history would not urge one to be an activist."

"I want to be out there on the firing line, helping, directing or doing something to try to make this a better world, a better place to live." ~Dr. John Hope Franklin

Tha Artivist Says:
"Who You Are Will Show In What You Do."
~Thoms A. Edison

This man has planted many seeds for many generations to come...I am glad that I have let his seed of compassion for and sharing with my fellow humans germinate in my fertile mind and imagination...A wise man once told me that your true legacy lies in those people who you touched and inspired by your actions and character...Long live Dr. John Hope Franklin a.k.a. The Dean Of African American History!!!

Featured Guests Paying Tribute:
U.S. Pres. Bill Clinton
U.S. Pres. Barack Obama
U.S. Rep John Lewis (D, GA)

Tha Artivist And Dr. John Hope Franklin

Keep Hope Alive!!! Tha Artivist Reports...
http://weallbe.blogspot.com/2006/11/keep-hope-alive.html

*Also featuring a W.E. AL.L. B.E. Classic Interview Remix With Dr. John Hope Franklin!!!*
Originally Featured 5/30/2007

Dear Fam, Friends, And Supporters,
I Interviewed The Legendary Scholar And Visionary Dr. John Hope Franklin...I Was Deeply Moved By His Candidness, Frankness And Overall Enthusiasm...It Was Such An Honor To Interview A Person Of Such Brilliance, Courage And Passion...I Feel Honored To Be Connected To This Great Humanitarian And Man Of Learning For All Times...If I Am Blessed To Live As Long As Dr. Franklin I Can Get A Chance To Reminisce About This Historic Meeting Just Like He Told Me About His Interaction With One Of His Friends, The Great Dr. W.E.B. DuBois...Be Blessed By What You Hear In This Interview And Always Be Opened To Receive It!!! Your Comrade And Brother In The Struggle...R2C2H2 Tha Artivist

More On W.E. A.L.L. B.E. News & Radio:

Mumia Speaks...John Hope Franklin: The Passing of a Griot
http://weallbe.blogspot.com/2009/04/mumia-speaksjohn-hope-franklin-passing.html

Dr. John Hope Franklin Was Pro-Black Reparations...
http://weallbe.blogspot.com/2009/04/dr-john-hope-franklin-was-pro-black.html

A Giant @ Rest: Dr. John Hope Franklin (1915-2009)
http://weallbe.blogspot.com/2009/03/giant-rest-dr-john-hope-franklin-1915.html

W.E. A.L.L. B.E. News & Radio Special: Dr. John Hope Franklin Interview...
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/weallbe/2007/05/31/legendary-scholar-dr-john-hope

Dr. John Hope Franklin Says We Got Step Our Game Up
http://weallbe.blogspot.com/2007/06/dr-john-hope-franklin-says-we-got-step.html

****
Get Involved

As Always You Can Catch Tha Artivist Presents…W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Radio Live Every Wednesday In 2009 @ 8PM Central By Clicking On The Following Link:
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/weallbe

Please Be Our Invited Guest By Calling Us Live @ 646-652-4593 Or E-mailing Us Your Questions And Comments @ r2c2h2@gmail.com

As Always Please Spread The Good News!!!

Thursday, March 26, 2009

A Giant @ Rest: Dr. John Hope Franklin (1915-2009)

A lifelong academic, Franklin wrote works that remain staples on college reading lists. In 1995, he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. (By Katherine Frey -- The Washington Post)

John Hope Franklin, left, who was thrust into a role as social activist, speaks with President Bill Clinton, right, and members of the race advisory board. (White House)

Franklin knew many famed figures of the black struggle in the 1950s and '60s, including Martin Luther King Jr. (By Jim Bounds -- News & Observer)

Tha Artivist And Dr. John Hope Franklin

Historian Helped Blaze A Civil Rights Path

Portrait by Simmie Knox

By Wil Haygood
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, March 26, 2009; A01

John Hope Franklin, one of the most prolific and well-respected chroniclers of America's torturous racial odyssey, died of congestive heart failure yesterday at the age of 94 in a Durham, N.C., hospital.

It was more than Franklin's voluminous writings that cemented his reputation among academics, politicians and civil rights figures as an inestimable historian. It was the reality that Franklin, himself a black man, had seen racial horrors up close and thus was able to give his academic work a stinging ballast. Franklin was a young boy when his family lost everything in the Tulsa race riot of 1921. The violence was precipitated by reports that a black youth assaulted a white teenage girl in a downtown elevator. In the end more than 40 people died, mostly blacks, although some reports put the death total much higher.

Franklin was among the first black scholars to earn prominent posts at America's top -- and predominantly white -- universities. His research and his personal success helped pave the way both for other blacks and for the field of black studies, which began to blossom on American campuses in the '60s.

In time, a second generation of eminent black scholars -- Harvard's Henry Louis Gates Jr., Georgetown's Michael Eric Dyson and Princeton's Cornel West -- would follow Franklin to the heights of America's most illustrious schools.

"He gave us a common language," Gates, director of the W.E.B. Du Bois Institute for African and African American Research at Harvard, said yesterday. "As the author of a seminal textbook, 'From Slavery to Freedom,' Franklin gave us young black scholars a common language to speak to each other. He had invented a genre out of whole cloth."

Gates, a former recipient of a MacArthur "genius grant," for years was curious as to who had recommended him. He attended a dinner once with Franklin, and Franklin confided that he had been the one to recommend Gates. "And I cried at the table we were sitting at. A lot of us called John Hope 'the Prince.' He had such a regal bearing. We're all the children of John Hope."

Over the course of his career, Franklin taught at Duke, Harvard and the University of Chicago, and would regale friends with the joy he had teaching at Cambridge University in England. Among his many honors was the Presidential Medal of Freedom, which President Bill Clinton bestowed upon him in 1995.

Franklin's life became so celebrated in his later years, and his testimony at congressional hearings so frequent, that he seemed almost a fictional figure, a combination of Booker T. Washington and Mark Twain. "I could not have avoided being a social activist even if I had wanted to," Franklin once said.

Among Franklin's more popular works, many of which remain constants on college reading lists, are "From Slavery to Freedom" (with Alfred Moss Jr.), "The Emancipation Proclamation," "Reconstruction After the Civil War," "A Southern Odyssey: Travelers in the Antebellum North" and "The Militant South, 1800-1861."

John Hope Franklin was born Jan. 2, 1915, in Rentiesville, Okla. His father, Buck, was a lawyer and the first black judge to sit on an Oklahoma district court.

Franklin attended Fisk University, a historically black college, and received his undergraduate degree in 1935. He earned both a master's and doctorate from Harvard University. From there it was an academic career full of highlights, fellowships, research stints and publications. He was a professor at Howard University from 1947 to 1956. His rising reputation caught the eye of Brooklyn College, which named him chairman of its history department. The appointment was met in the black press with an exuberance usually reserved for black sports figures. Franklin had become the first black person to chair a history department at a college that was not historically black.

But it was in the arena of politics and social activism that Franklin carved a new niche for himself. He provided important historical research to NAACP Legal Defense Fund lawyer Thurgood Marshall in the historic Brown v. Board of Education case that outlawed school segregation. A new generation of young Americans would witness Franklin's testimony during the unsuccessful nomination of Robert Bork for a seat on the Supreme Court.

In his long life, Franklin rubbed shoulders with many of the most famous figures from the black struggle in 1950s and 1960s America: Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr., Jesse Jackson and Marshall. He also lived in many of the cities that experienced tumultuous racial clashes. In a 2005 interview with The Washington Post, Franklin recalled living in Montgomery, Ala., in the 1940s: "In the liquor store, you would use the same clerk as the whites, but walking up to the clerk, there was a wall that separated you from the white person. So all you saw was that white person's hand."

In that same interview, Franklin talked about going to Richmond in 1947 to donate blood to his sick brother. Afterward, Franklin boarded a bus and sat in the whites-only section. He told the driver he had just given blood and was too tired to move; the driver threatened arrest. "The blacks were yelling at me: 'Stand your ground!' And you know what? That bus driver drove on off with me sitting right there."

Word of Franklin's death quickly swept throughout the academic community yesterday. Eileen Mackevich, executive director of the Lincoln Bicentennial Commission, first met Franklin in the late 1960s while doing graduate study in Illinois. "He taught me about race, about life, about communicating with people in respect to their differences," she said. "I am white, but he taught me things I never would have understood about race even though I've lived most of my life in integrated communities."

She continued: "I think a lot of white institutions congratulated themselves for hiring him as the first or second African American historian. But in the end, he made them feel honored to have him because of what he did for the faculty, the students and the neighborhood."

Franklin was married to Aurelia Whittington, his college sweetheart, who died in 1999. They are survived by their son, John Whittington Franklin. Aside from his family and his intellectual pursuits, Franklin also loved orchids. He was devoted to raising them. "There is even an orchid named after him," Gates said.

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Mumia Speaks...John Hope Franklin: The Passing of a Griot

Portrait by Simmie Knox

[col. writ. 3/29/09] (c) '09 Mumia Abu-Jamal

For historians of every stripe, the name John Hope Franklin (1915-2009) is one that cannot be ignored. This is, in part, because he was past president of the American Historical Association ((AHA), a group of American scholars that has been in existence since 1884.

But his distinction arises from his work in the vineyards of American history,
as a corrective to the lies about U.S. slavery, through his 1947 classic, From Slavery to Freedom, which considered with the work of late radical historian, Herbert Aptheker's American Negro Slave Revolts, served to abolish the white-washing of American history that generations of historians inflicted on generations of American students.

Franklin was born amidst the flames and terrors of the infamous race riots that consumed Tulsa, Oklahoma, once the center of Black wealth and business success. The papers and even books called it a race riot, but it was actually an anti-Black pogrom by state and private racists in envy of Black Tulsa's achievements.

That his classic work, From Slavery to Freedom, is still in print today, over 1/2 a century since its initial publication is a testament to his historic brilliance.

Still, that wasn't my favorite work of his. In 1999, Franklin and one of his former students, Loren Schweninger, published Runaway Slaves: Rebels on the Plantation(Oxford Univ. Press). It's both fascinating, and given its grim subject matter, surprisingly funny in its uncovering of dozens of hidden stories from slavery days.

Franklin and Schweninger mined the private letters of slaveholders to unearth their real concerns. In an April 7, 1829 letter from Louisiana cotton planter, Joseph Bieller, he complains bitterly about the slave's practice of 'swinging' his pigs. Wrote Bieller, "I have had a very seveer time among my negroes.... they have bin Swinging my hogs and pigs."

Bieller meant captives were tying up, treeing and swinging his pigs until they were badly damaged. In other words, one form of property was destroying another form of property.

Also, Franklin's work illustrates, through reprint of runaway ads in the newspapers, that all kinds of captives fled their captivity; as shown by the descriptions used to describe them, like: "intelligent", "witty", "quick-witted", "proud", "shrewd", and "keen", just to name a few. Among them were every strata of slave life: young, old, male, female, African, mixed, rebel, Uncle Tom, well-treated or whipped. Everybody wanted freedom.

And perhaps this was Franklin's robust contribution -- the thirst for freedom that bubbled in Black hearts from 1619 to the present.

John Hope Franklin was 94.

--(c) '09 maj

==================

The Power of Truth is Final -- Free Mumia!

Audio of most of Mumia's essays are at: http://www.prisonradio.org

Mumia Abu-Jamal's new book -- JAILHOUSE LAWYERS: PRISONERS DEFENDING PRISONERS V. THE USA, featuring an introduction by Angela Y. Davis -- will be released soon!
It will be available from City Lights Books at a 30% discount weeks before you can get it at any other bookstore, or from Amazon.

Sign up for an email alert and when the book becomes available for sale you'll receive an email letting you know: http://www.citylights.com/book/?GCOI=87286100448090

In support of Mumia and the publication of JAILHOUSE LAWYERS, organizations around the country will be holding "More Than a Book Party" events on or around Mumia's birthday, April 24, 2009.

If you are planning to organize an event or would like to order in bulk, you can also receive a 45% discount on any bulk orders of 20 copies or more. The book retails for $16.95, for orders of 20 copies or more the discounted price would be $9.32 per book, plus shipping and handling. Prepayment would be required and books are nonreturnable. If you or your organization would like to place a bulk order, please contact Stacey Lewis at 415.362.1901 or stacey@citylights.com

Let's use the opportunity of the publication of this brilliant, moving, vintage Mumia book to build the momentum for his case, to raise the money we desperately need in these challenging economic times, to get the word out – to produce literature, flyers, posters, videos, DVD's; to send organizers out to help build new chapters and strengthen old ones, TO GET THE PEOPLE OUT IN THE STREETS … all the work that we must do in order to FREE MUMIA as he faces LIFE IN PRISON WITHOUT PAROLE OR EXECUTION!

Please make a contribution to help free Mumia. Donations to the grassroots work will go to both INTERNATIONAL CONCERNED FAMILY AND FRIENDS OF MUMIA ABU-JAMAL and the FREE MUMIA ABU-JAMAL COALITION (NYC).

WWW.FREEMUMIA.COM

Please mail donations/ checks to:
FREE MUMIA ABU JAMAL COALITION
PO BOX 16, NEW YORK,
NY 10030
(CHECKS FOR BOTH ORGANIZATIONS PAYABLE TO: FMAJC/IFCO)

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
215 476-8812
212-330-8029

Send our brotha some LOVE and LIGHT at:
Mumia Abu-Jamal
AM 8335
SCI-Greene
175 Progress Drive
Waynesburg, PA 15370

WE WHO BELIEVE IN FREEDOM CAN *NOT* REST!!

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Wednesday, April 08, 2009

Dr. John Hope Franklin Was Pro-Black Reparations...

Did John Hope Franklin Want $100 Trillion for Blacks?

Dr. John Hope Franklin, the wildly accomplished historian who documented Blacks' place in the great American story, firmly believed in reparations -- the idea that the descendants of slaves in the United States should be compensated for the centuries of free labor that enriched slaveowners and their descendants and the American empire. It is a fact overlooked by the recent flurry of mainstream media coverage commemorating his life work. (He died at the age of 94 late last month.) But it is no small detail.

Consider his response in 2007 to state legislators in North Carolina and Virginia who balked at apologies for slavery introduced by their peers. For him a mere verbal apology wasn't enough.

"People are running around apologizing for slavery," he said. "What about that awful period since slavery -- Reconstruction, Jim Crow and all the rest? And what about the enormous wealth that was built up by black labor? I think that's little to pay for the gazillions that black people built up -- the wealth of this country -- with their labor, and now you're going to say I'm sorry I beat the hell out of you for all these years? That's not enough."

When Dr. Franklin spoke of history, he did so with the definitive authority of an expert who spent over half a century culling through the details. His accomplishments are legendary: distinguished Duke University professor who taught at the University of Chicago and Harvard University (where he earned his doctorate in 1941); author of 20 books; first African American to chair a history dept at a predominately white university; over 3.5 million copies of his book From Slavery to Freedom have been printed since it's 1947 publication.

It is very easy now in our age of political correctness to courteously applaud the accomplishments of a barrier breaking African American in the field of U.S. History, which he said he wrote without "the embellishment of emotional display." But an entirely different pill to swallow is the conclusion he gleaned from his analysis: reparations are essential to acknowledging the country's wrongs.

"There are all kinds of ways you could do it," Franklin said in a video interview at Duke University, in which he insisted he wasn't asking for reparations personally -- even though he was entitled. "What about scholarships? What about descent places for people to live? Out of the fortunes that were made, you could build a mansion for the descendant of every former slave."

Others have argued that reparations should be paid directly by the U.S. government, which Harpers magazine (November 2000) estimated at $100 trillion dollars for 222,505,049 hours of forced labor between 1619 and 1865 with compounded interest of 6 percent. Still others have argued that payments should come from corporations who benefited as well as former colonial governments.

The idea of reparations for Blacks has for years been met in the American mainstream with at best contempt and at worst ridicule. But for John Hope Franklin the essential truth of American history was found not just in the large sweeping narrative, but also in the subtleties of the racial divide lived everyday.

His careers as a historian and as an activist (he was a researcher for Thurgood Marshall for the Supreme Court Brown vs. Board of Education case and marched with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in Selma) are well documented. Less known are his day-to-day confrontations with the legacy of white supremacy, subtleties he often related in personal anecdotes:

As a 6 year-old boy, his father's business in Tulsa was destroyed (luckily his father survived) during the infamous 1921 race riot. As one of the first Black boy scouts in 1927, he was severely reprimanded midway through helping a blind white woman cross the street upon her discovery he was black. In 1995, while in DC to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest award for a civilian, he hosted a party for friends at the Cosmos Club where he was a member and was asked by a white woman to get her coat, even though uniform attendants were present.

Personal insults like these only scratch the surface of the economic and psychological setbacks he suffered, like countless other African Americans, at the hands of white supremacy ingrained in American culture. Insults like these were a reminder of the big picture reasons why descendant of enslaved Africans lagged behind in the present. For Dr. Franklin, this was a direct result of American slavery.

"They ought to develop some kind of modus operandi that they can do something else -- something to absolve themselves of three centuries of guilt from which they are the direct beneficiaries," he said in a 2007 interview. "How large is the black population now living in abject poverty in this country? How large is the population of blacks who have poor health? Sometimes they inherited the poor health right from their forebears who were beaten and treated like they were animals all over this country."

It is true, as opponents of reparations argue, that America's troublesome history of racial inequity was born in the past. But it is equally apparent, as John Hope Franklin insisted, that our future is defined by the ways we address its legacy in the present.

If we really seek to commemorate him, it seems to me that the best we can do is to not just pay lip service to the man. Instead we should honor him by paying homage in the form of meaningful national policy that considers the conclusion of his life work.

Bakari Kitwana is visiting scholar at Columbia College's Center for the Study of Women and Gender in the Arts and Media and co-author of the forthcoming Hip-Hop Activism in the Obama Era (Third World Press, 2009). He also writes for NewsOne.com.

Sunday, November 12, 2006

Keep Hope Alive

Educators with purpose driven lives: Dr. Franklin with Ms. Callie Herd the founder and visionary of http://www.ctherd.blogspot.com

Legend and Legend in the making: Tha Artivist meets Dr. John Hope Franklin...Dr. Franklin an avid music lover is holding an art work named "Money Jungle" which is Tha Artivist's tribute to Duke Ellington,Charles Mingus, Max Roach and their phenomenal album "Money Jungle"..The small pic Tha Artivist is holding is entitled "Black Gabriel" which is Tha Artivist's tribute to jazz trumpet players.

Keep Hope Alive!!! Tha Artivist Reports...

I had the pleasure of meeting the one and only historian extraordinaire Dr. John Hope Franklin at the Southern Festival Of Books on Saturday Oct. 14,2006 at the Memphis Cook Convention Center…In my nearly three decades on earth I have met my share of celebrities and famous people…However on that beautifully bright and warm autumn day meeting this particular celebrity was a necessity...You see one of my favorite subjects is African American History…Dr. John Hope Franklin is one of the preeminent scholars on this subject…You could probably consider him the Living Dean of African American Scholars…His seminal work "From Slavery to Freedom" has been in print and taught in American classrooms and universities since its first publication in the 1940s…At the young age of 91, Dr. Franklin can be considered the bridge connecting early 20th Century historians and scholars such as Dr. W.E.B. DuBois and Dr. Carter G. Woodson with their later 20th Century counterparts such as Dr. Cornel West and Dr. Michael Eric Dyson…Dr. John Hope Franklin's academic and scholarly prowess is so revered that he was asked by then U.S. President Bill Clinton to serve on his special commission on race relations to find out the root causes of racism and to create solutions to eradicate the social virus once and for all…For his life's work in 1995 Dr. Franklin was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor.

I pride myself on being an "artivist" (one who uses his/her art and talents to promote and bring about change) and "artstorian" (one who uses his/her art to document history)…So in many ways Dr. John Hope Franklin is a hero to me for what he has been able to endure and achieve in his 91 glorious and peaceful (he said he has only endured one headache in his entire lifetime and that happened when he was about 5 or 7 years old!!!) years on this earth…

I remember seeing Dr. Franklin on the Tavis Smiley show back in February of 2006…He was there promoting his newly released autobiography Mirror to America…Watching and listening to Dr. Franklin has always been a source of "edutainment" (educational and entertainment) for me…This time on t.v. he didn't disappoint being very vivid and candid about his nearly century old existence on earth…My supportive mother, Ms. Callie Herd creator of ctherd.blogspot.com also saw the episode and suggested that I send Dr. Franklin a portfolio package about me and my activities detailing my aspirations, achievements and so forth with the hopes that I can get a chance to meet and talk with the man himself…She even went as far as to write an e-mail to the man and got a response from Dr. Franklin's handlers at Duke University in less than 24 hours on what to do and where to mail whatever we were going to send…Although I had a lot of respect for Dr. John Hope Franklin, I truly had no desire to pursue this...I have tried and failed or came up short on many occasions to meet with influential, well known and paid individuals like Dr. Franklin…The results for the most part have been mixed, indifferent if not totally disappointing…At this point I wasn't in the mood to waste more money, hope and time with unreceptive celebrity types…

However, after much "harassing" by my insistent, but well meaning mom I finally put together a nice size packet that seemed to include every newspaper clipping and article that included a mention of my name and activities…I assembled everything in the packet myself except for the cover letter which was provided by my seemingly omnipresent mother (after all it was her idea why not leave it to her to provide the explanation)...I also sent Dr. Franklin an autographed copy of the newspaper article a great friend of mine Mr. Byron Lee did on me for the St. Louis Limelight Newspaper…Well we sent the packet off and waited…And waited and waited…Finally my mom, not I, grew restless and decided to contact Dr. Franklin's handlers at Duke…They said that he was currently on the road promoting his book and will get back with us shortly…In the meantime they told us to send them a fax detailing what we wanted with Dr. Franklin...My mom almost followed through on the request when she realized that we already sent him a nice size package detailing all that stuff and so she e-mailed his handlers telling them what was the purpose of faxing when we already sent you all a package detailing my background and requests??? Finally after six months of waiting I got a reply…My portfolio was mailed back to me with a handwritten letter…The handwrting was really beautiful and neat in slanted cursive...I knew it had to be his hand because they don't teach kids these days to have that much pride in their handwriting abilities especially with the rise of the computer, internet and Microsoft Word…The following is from the handwritten letter:

Dear Ronald Herd,
I have received much information about you from your dear mother, and from what she says I must say that your interests and activities are noteworthy. If you are as interested in your career as your mother is, please indicate it by taking up your own cause and promoting it in every way possible. Meanwhile, best wishes to you
Sincerely,
John Hope Franklin

At first glance, I was a little taken aback by the letter for one being that I actually got a response and a handwritten letter at that from one of those celebrity type (at least in the academic field) personalities…Secondly, the advice although well intended is not truly reflective at all of the situation in regards of me taking up my own cause…If you are reading this article I am taking up my own cause because I am writing about my experiences or cause...If you are looking at the pic of me and Dr.Franklin holding my art then I am taking up my cause because I created the opportunity...Well, I take partial credit, it was actually my beautiful mom's idea to go to the book festival with the exact goal of meeting Dr. Franklin…As I stated earlier I put the packet together, but my mom provided the cover letter and like I said before since it was her idea to contact Dr. Franklin in the first place I saw it as a fitting tribute…As a matter of fact many people especially in the arts have always let relatives helped them in the advancement of their careers…Would Vincent Van Gogh even sold a painting in his lifetime if it wasn't for the efforts of his art dealer brother Theo in promoting his work??? Would Usher be the superstar he is today if it wasn't for the efforts of his mom who is also his manager??? The same could be said for Beyonce and Jessica Simpson whose fathers have played substantial roles in the developments of their talented and beautiful daughters' careers…Supermodel turn t.v. talk show hostess Tyra Banks credits her mom's support in helping to get her career off the ground in a very hands on way… Could John F. Kennedy had a successful political career without the aid and help of his family in particular his father Joe P. Kennedy and brother Robert Kennedy as his campaign manager??? What about Joe Jackson??? Regardless of what you may think of these examples and the many more I could provide, we must all realize that it really takes a group effort or village to make things happen…Just like Dr. Franklin has his many handlers at Duke University we all need people to lean on and aid us in our respective journeys…Like the poet John Dunne wrote "no one man can stand alone as an island"...Besides if you receive any e-mail, newsletters, visit my numerous websites, attended any of my art shows you should know that I play a pivotal role in making those opportunities happen with the unwavering support of my mom of course…

The letter did not really bother me, I actually took it as a sign of respect and encouragement…However, when my mom saw it she was a little perturbed by it…Even though she didn't say it much it really did bothered her that Dr. Franklin allegedly thought she was doing most of the heavy lifting...I told her it shouldn't matter and that the most important thing in these types of situations is to get a response and so regardless what was written or said the Dr. Franklin project was a success…

My mom still couldn't put the issue to rest and so I guess it was a blessing that we got to see Dr. Franklin this past October…The funny way on how we got to meet Dr. Franklin must have been destiny...My mom was actually coming back from the restroom when she just so happened to cross paths with Dr. Franklin while he was getting off the escalator…I was actually waiting in the hallway in front of the conference room where he was to give his speech…I could hear my mom's distinctive voice…I knew she must have met somebody of importance and reverence by her tone…I look around the corner and lo and behold there was my mom talking with Dr. John Hope Franklin!!! The first thing she addressed to him was the letter he wrote in response to the packet I sent him…Although the letter was signed in his name he denied knowing about the existence of such letter, probably to save face in front of two of his admirers, both high school teachers with one of them in particular hero worshipping him with praises of all sorts (which he deserves)…However I knew without a doubt that he wrote the letter, but I did not feel the need to express that to him…As a sign of goodwill he did offer his card with his personal mailing address to us...He also let us take pictures with him as well which was also very nice of him considering that he needed some time to get his thoughts together for his presentation...Overall I found him to be a very nice and peaceful man who reminded me a lot of in look and manners of my late maternal grandfather, Arthur "Grip" Taylor…

We truly enjoyed his presentation…The room was packed with people (mostly White folks, it is a shame that many people of color didn't come out for this was a message that Black folks in particular needed too hear)…Basically Dr. Franklin talked about his childhood, the importance of documenting one's history on one's own terms, his fascination and passion for the extraordinary life and achievements of George Washington Williams, love of opera, racism and little bit of everything in between…As usual he kept it edutaining…When it came to the Q and A session my mom and I were eagerly awaiting our turn to ask the living legend a question or two...My mom went before me and asked Dr. Franklin why is that Old School so hesitant to help New School meaning why sometimes respected elders did not always share what they know with younger people who eagerly seek them out for advice...I then followed up the question with how much of an influence was Dr. W.E.B. DuBois (who also went to Fisk and Harvard like Dr. Franklin) on him becoming a historian…I also asked his thoughts about one of my favorite historians, Mr. J.A. Rogers (he did not supply an answer to this part of my question...I guess he tired himself out for he was long winded in a very good and honorable way on answering a question about who was Mr. George Washington Williams, a person who caught his imagination and who he became the definitive biographer for)…To summarize his answers to both questions he said that Dr. Dubois wasn't an influence…He said that he first met Dr.DuBois as a grad student and was disappointed by how the famed academic was unreceptive to his introduction…Years later he was invited by Dr. DuBois to lecture at some of his classes at City College in New York City...Dr. Franklin stated that Dr. DuBois started to respect him as a colleague once he started seeing Dr.Franklin's name in the press and even went so far as to apologize to Dr. Franklin for disrespecting him earlier saying that he was shy and didn't mean any harm…He also stated that Dr. DuBois would actually sit in on the classes taking notes while he lectured!!! Dr. Franklin ended this story about his relationship with Dr.DuBois by saying that you should never let anyone or any circumstance stop you from achieving your goals or pursuing the things that you are passionate about …Once my mom heard this it seems that her mood went from anxious to serene…She got what she wanted and I got what I needed...KEEP HOPE ALIVE!!!

Thursday, November 15, 2007

Passionate Icons Push Education As The Key To Unlocking A Purpose Driven Life On W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Radio...

November's Theme Is "We Are Icons!!!"

W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Radio Proves Once Again That We Are The Icons When It Comes To Giving You News That You Can Use!!!

Please Check Out The 4/11 You Missed Or Can't Miss On One Of The Fastest Growing Internet News You Can Use Hubs Around...And As Always Please Spread The Good News!!!

Please Peep Knowledge By Listening To The Nov. 11, 2007 Edition Of W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Radio:
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/weallbe/2007/11/11/Tha-Artivist-PresentsWE-ALL-BE-Radio

Summary:

THE GODFATHER OF HIP HOP TV AND SCREENWRITER FOR THE MOVIE "BASQUIAT" TALKS ABOUT HIS FIRST SUCCESSFUL SOJOURN TO THE CITY ON THE BLUFF WHERE HE PLANTED SEEDS FOR EVOLUTION AND REVOLUTION!!!

Press Release:
http://weallbe.blogspot.com/2007/11/sat-nov-10-from-6-8pmmichael-holman.html

Michael Holman

Mr. Holman was also close friends with artist Jean-Michel Basquiat. Holman formed a band called Gray, together with Basquiat. Holman wrote the screenplay for the bio pic about Jean- Michel Basquiat entitled "Basquiat" for Miramax. Mr. Holman also produced, wrote and recorded music for, as well as acted in, the classic art film " Downtown 81" which stars the real Jean-Michel Basquiat.

Jean Michel Basquiat

In case you didn't know, Jean-Michel Basquiat was a painter who died at 27 years of age. His work is phenomenal and the fact that he was African-American and his work now sells for millions of dollars is worth noting."

More Michael Holman On W.E. A.L.L. B.E. News And Radio:
http://weallbe.blogspot.com/search?q=michael+holman

Also Icon Throwback: Interview With Dr. John Hope Franklin

Tha Artivist And Dr. John Hope Franklin

Dear Fam, Friends, And Supporters,
I Interviewed The Legendary Scholar And Visionary Dr. John Hope Franklin On Weds. May 30,2007...I Was Deeply Moved By His Candidness, Frankness And Overall Enthusiasm...It Was Such An Honor To Interview A Person Of Such Brilliance, Courage And Passion...I Feel Honored To Be Connected To This Great Humanitarian And Man Of Learning For All Times...If I Am Blessed To Live As Long As Dr. Franklin I Can Get A Chance To Reminisce About This Historic Meeting Just Like He Told Me About His Interaction With One Of His Friends, The Great Dr. W.E.B. DuBois...Be Blessed By What You Hear In This Interview And Always Be Opened To Receive It!!! Your Comrade And Brother In The Struggle...R2C2H2 Tha Artivist

Dr. Franklin is Almost 100 Years Young Yet He Has A Sharp Mind And Wit That Can Easily Compete With Many Of The Best And Brightest People On The Planet...Dr. Franklin Represents The Bridge Between Dr. Cornel West/Dr. Michael Eric Dyson And Dr. W.E.B. DuBois/Dr. Carter G. Woodson In Terms Of African American Scholarship...Because Of This And In Addition To His Brilliant And Invaluable Scholarship And Research In To The Condition And Contributions Of The African American Experience, Dr. John Hope Franklin Is Considered By Many To Be The Dean Of African American Scholars...

In 1995, He Was Awarded The Presidential Medal of Freedom, The Nation's Highest Civilian Honor...On November 15, 2006, It Was Announced That Franklin Was The Third Recipient Of The John W. Kluge Prize For Lifetime Achievement In The Study Of Humanity. He Shared The Prize With Yu Ying-shih.

More Dr. Franklin On W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Radio And News:
http://weallbe.blogspot.com/search?q=dr.+john+hope+franklin

GET INVOLVED!!!
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Please Be Our Invited Guest By Calling Us Live @ 646-652-4593 Or E-mailing Us Your Questions And Comments @ r2c2h2@gmail.com

*Please Read The Latest R2C2H2 Newsletters To See How You Can...

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Friday, June 01, 2007

Check Out Historic Interview With Dr. Franklin On W.E. A.L.L B.E. Radio

Tha Artivist And Dr. John Hope Franklin

Check Out The Actual Interview By Clicking On the Link:
http://boss.streamos.com/wmedia/blogtalkradio/show_25754.wax

"My Challenge Was To Weave Into The Fabric Of American History Enough Of The Presence Of Blacks So That The Story Of The United States Could Be Told Adequately And Fairly."
~Dr. John Hope Franklin

Check Out Some Short Bios On This Incredible Man By Clicking On The Following Links:

http://library.duke.edu/specialcollections/franklin/bio.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Hope_Franklin

Check Out An Article I Wrote Concerning My First Encounters With This Amazing Man:
http://weallbe.blogspot.com/2006/11/keep-hope-alive.html

As Always Please Spread The GOOD News!!!

Tha Artivist Presents...W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Radio Also Airs Live Every Sunday @ 4PM Central/5PM Eastern Click On The Link Below To Listen Live:
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/hostpage.aspx?host_id=1952

W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Waiting For You

Monday, May 21, 2007

Dr. John Hope Franklin A.K.A. The Dean Of African AMerican Scholars On W.E. A.L.L B.E. Radio Weds. May 30 @ 7PM Central/8PM Eastern

"My Challenge Was To Weave Into The Fabric Of American History Enough Of The Presence Of Blacks So That The Story Of The United States Could Be Told Adequately And Fairly."
~Dr. John Hope Franklin

On May 30, 2007 @ 7pm Central/8pm Eastern I, R2C2H2 Tha Artivist, Will Be Interviewing Legendary Scholar/Author Dr. John Hope Franklin!!! Dr. Franklin is Almost 100 Years Young Yet He Has A Sharp Mind And Wit That Can Easily Compete With Many Of The Best And Brightest People On The Planet...Dr. Franklin Represents The Bridge Between Dr. Cornel West/Dr. Michael Eric Dyson And Dr. W.E.B. DuBois/Dr. Carter G. Woodson In Terms Of African American Scholarship...Because Of This And In Addition To His Brilliant And Invaluable Scholarship And Research In To The Condition And Contributions Of The African American Experience, Dr. John Hope Franklin Is Considered By Many To Be The Dean Of African American Scholars...

In 1995, He Was Awarded The Presidential Medal of Freedom, The Nation's Highest Civilian Honor...On November 15, 2006, It Was Announced That Franklin Was The Third Recipient Of The John W. Kluge Prize For Lifetime Achievement In The Study Of Humanity. He Shared The Prize With Yu Ying-shih.

Check Out Some Short Bios On This Incredible Man By Clicking On The Following Links:

http://library.duke.edu/specialcollections/franklin/bio.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Hope_Franklin

Check Out An Article I Wrote Concerning My First Encounters With This Amazing Man:
http://weallbe.blogspot.com/2006/11/keep-hope-alive.html

Please Listen To The Entire One Hour Long Conversation Live By Clicking On The Following Link:
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/hostpage.aspx?host_id=1952

You Can Also Join In The Conversation By Calling Us @ 646-652-4593 And/Or E-mailing Us With Your Questions/Comments @ r2c2h2@gmail.com

If You Have Problems Accessing The Show From That Link Please Go To http://www.blogtalkradio.com ...Normally When A Show Is On Live A Link Is Provided To The Show Towards The Bottom Of The Page So That You Can Listen To The Show...My Apologies To Mac Users If You Are Unable To Access The Show...

As Always Please Spread The GOOD News!!!

Tha Artivist Presents...W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Radio Also Airs Live Every Sunday @ 4PM Central/5PM Eastern Check Out What We Have In Store This Sunday May 27,2007:

http://weallbe.blogspot.com/2007/05/check-out-we-all-be-radio-this-sunday_22.html

W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Waiting For You

Thursday, May 21, 2009

To Honor Franklin, Read His Books...

By LEONARD PITTS JR.
lpitts@miamiherald.com

Dr. John Hope Franklin died of congestive heart failure on Wednesday at the age of 94.

BET marked his passing with a criminally brief obituary on its website, bet.com. There followed a posting on the message board from someone called ''fefe'' who asked: ``Was this guy related to Areatha Franklin?''

For the record, no. ''This guy'' was not known to be related to Aretha Franklin. Nor, for that matter, to Melvin Franklin, Bonnie Franklin, Benjamin Franklin or Franklin Delano Roosevelt. John Hope Franklin, born in 1915 when Woodrow Wilson was president and America was still two years from entering World War I, was one of the deans of American history and the preeminent chronicler of the African-American story. Indeed, his 1947 book, From Slavery to Freedom, now in its eighth edition, is regarded as the seminal text in African-American studies.

The angel of patience and caution that perches on my right shoulder tells me I should not make too much of the callow question ''fefe'' poses. For all I know, this person is 12 years old or not from this country. And even if he or she is 47 and born in Dallas, it's not as if even a celebrated historian will ever be a household name. Besides, it's unfair to extrapolate from one individual's ignorance some sweeping comment upon the nation as a whole.

To which the devil of fed-up-to-here that perches on my left shoulder responds: well, that's just too darn bad.

And I'm sorry, but this time, I'm listening to the devil.

Because ''fefe's'' question suggests to me not simply ignorance of a historian, but ignorance of history, evidence of the blithe dismissiveness with which a profoundly unserious nation treats its story in general and the African-American component of that story in particular. But see, history is context. You cannot understand the world as it is unless you understand the world as it was.

Take it from me. I have too often had the sobering experience, while debating some aspect of modern African-American life, of using basic history to provide context, to explain how this happened, which led to that, which impacted the other thing -- only to realize the person had not the faintest clue what I was talking about. At which point, of course, the conversation becomes pointless, like trying to discuss anti-Semitism with someone who cannot define Kristallnacht.

It is always frustrating when you encounter that ignorance of African America's story, but never more so than when you find it among African American people, as on a website for a company whose first name is ``Black.''

I was debating what I should say today to honor Dr. Franklin. I was going to talk about his chairmanship of President Bill Clinton's commission on race, his winning the presidential medal of freedom, the time I got to interview him, years ago. It occurs to me, though, that perhaps the most fitting thing I can do to honor Dr. Franklin is implore you to read and understand the story to which he dedicated his life.

You should read From Slavery to Freedom, of course. And his 2005 autobiography, Mirror to America. But don't stop there. Read Lerone Bennett's lyrical, elegiac BeforeThe Mayflower, the other greatest book on African-American history. Read Douglas Blackmon's revelatory Slavery by Another Name and Jervis Anderson's gossipy recounting of the renaissance years, This Was Harlem. Read Leon F. Litwack's Been in theStorm So Long and his heart-breaking Trouble in Mind.

Read this story. Or else, sit back and watch the story die, then scratch your head and have not a blessed clue how the world got this way.

A story needs two things to live: mouths to tell it and ears to hear.

For longer than most of us have been alive, John Hope Franklin kept his part of that bargain. The best way to honor him would be if we, at last, kept ours.

© 2009 Miami Herald Media Company. All Rights Reserved.

See Also...

*W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Radio Special*
Dr. John Hope Franklin: Master Griot...A Tribute

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/weallbe/2009/05/10/Tha-Artivist-PresentsWE-ALL-BE-News-Radio

W.E. A.L.L. B.E.

Wednesday, May 06, 2009

Sun. 5/10/2009 @ 4:00 PM C~W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Radio~Dr. John Hope Franklin: Master Griot...A Tribute

Thursday, March 26, 2009

A Giant @ Rest: Dr. John Hope Franklin (1915-2009)

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Mumia Speaks...John Hope Franklin: The Passing of a Griot

Wednesday, April 08, 2009

Dr. John Hope Franklin Was Pro-Black Reparations...

Sunday, November 12, 2006

Keep Hope Alive

Thursday, November 15, 2007

Passionate Icons Push Education As The Key To Unlocking A Purpose Driven Life On W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Radio...

Friday, June 01, 2007

Check Out Historic Interview With Dr. Franklin On W.E. A.L.L B.E. Radio

Monday, May 21, 2007

Dr. John Hope Franklin A.K.A. The Dean Of African AMerican Scholars On W.E. A.L.L B.E. Radio Weds. May 30 @ 7PM Central/8PM Eastern

Thursday, May 21, 2009

To Honor Franklin, Read His Books...

James Reese Europe: Jazz Lieutenant

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