(Akiit.com) Well sadly the Olympics is coming to an end… Have truly enjoyed all the events this year although the USA relay team has failed once again… Not even getting a chance to run for the gold… Still Michael Phelps is americas golden boy as I can see any company gifting away promotional products, with his face on it… On a sadder note, Gene Upshaw has died as I know raider nation is mourning at this time… May he rest in peace… Well let clean up the house…

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(Akiit.com) “The Impact of seeing positive Black Men” those prophetic words kept ringing in my consciousness as I drove home after completing my second basketball clinic in 3 days. Over a 3 day span I had the pleasure of interacting with 200 inner city youths, teaching, speaking, laughing and having an overall great experience. A common theme ran as an undercurrent while teaching the participants the fundamentals of the game, the importance of them seeing black men in roles that counteracts the media’s constant bombardment of negative portrayal and stereotypes.

The awareness of this initiative is nothing new, but it’s value can’t be underestimated. As a basketball coach I was not surprised at the turnout of young people who came to the clinics, as I wrote in an earlier article “Sports The Unspoken Drug of the Black Community” about the powerful stronghold sports has on the community. The role of Sports in the black community is sacred, and too many of our future leaders and change agents think sports or entertainment are the only keys to unlock the doors of opportunities.

Yet there is something mystical that takes place when you are in the midst of these great minds. I can’t really explain it in words, but there is a spirit coupled with a light of internal optimism and trust that shines within their eyes. This is the stage of their lives when they are the most vulnerable, receptive and influenced. I really treasure the girls and young woman who attend the clinics, there will never be a shortage of boys at sports clinic especially basketball, but the importance of having female participation can’t be overlooked, our young sisters have to overcome a lot to participate in sports, many of them want to play but don’t have the opportunities the boys have , they have to avoid the pitfalls of drugs, alcohol and pregnancy, often times they help raise younger siblings, can’t find enough girlfriends interested in sports, not encouraged to play because it will make them too masculine, etc.

Quite a few of these young woman, have no meaningful relationships with their fathers or have been hurt by men they trusted including family members, not just the playa’s, gangstas or thugs. So when I interact with them on the court I make a concerted effort to engage them with the balance of a disciplinarian to motivate them to work harder and not expect anyone to give them preferential treatment because of their gender, and blend that approach with the gentle touch and words of encouragement that comes from a father or uncle,(not ready to be a grandfather yet). This is an opportune time to show them that there are men in the community who love them unconditionally and not trying to “Get at Em”
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(Akiit.com) And so here we are…fast approaching the Democratic National Convention. For the young people and those not intimately familiar with the inner-workings of the political machine; this is the moment when Senator Barack Obama “officially” begins his bid for the presidency of these United States. Everything up until now has been the pre-game show, the exhibition season, the overture before the musical if you will.

It’s during (and after) the DNC that the proverbial rubber meets the road. No more discussion about running mates, no more chants for “Hillary for President” or the supposed questions of Barack Obama’s electability. It’s an 8-week sprint to the Oval office…or the hell of trivia answer obscurity.

Somewhere, Senator John Kerry is being added to the game Trivial Pursuit as the answer to the question of “who lost to George Bush in 2004?”

When you’re best remembered for your failure in American politics, you are officially in the hell of trivia answer obscurity.

Moving right along…

So America, what have we learned thus far? Well, we’ve learned that we as a country are both capable of great progress and great regress. We’ve learned that for all the wonderful strides Obama as made individually, African-Americans are still the most hated group of people collectively.

You will never find another presidential candidate in the history of politics compared to the #1 American enemy in all the world.

That’s what we call racial regress.

Conversely, you might never see another candidate galvanize voters both young and old, Black and White in the way that Obama has.

That correctly can be characterized as racial progress.

By definition, there is something irreplaceable and unrepeatable about being the first of a kind. Never has a single candidate managed to reach such a wide and disparate demographic. At the same time, never has a presidential candidate been openly disrespected by fellow politicians and general populace alike. Senator Obama is a trailblazer in many ways…some less desirable than others.

Much has been made about Senator Obama’s middle name of “Hussein,” yet little has ever been made about George “Walker” Bush sharing the same middle name as convicted terrorist John “Walker” Lynn. And last Mo’Kelly checked, Saddam “Hussein” was cleared of any involvement in 9/11 or other terrorist acts against America.

Nevertheless, Obama has managed to press forward.

From Colin Powell to Bruce Springsteen, Senator Obama resonates with a multitude of Americans never before seen in American politics.

Never.

Not Kennedy (either John or Robert), not Jesse. Not Abraham, not FDR. Now before you accuse Mo’Kelly of historical heresy…hear me out.

In this multicultural America, never has so much been asked of any candidate. It’s hard enough to just be a Black man in America. Don’t believe the hype, despite Obama’s ascent in American politics…the world has not changed at ground zero for African-American men. You can best believe that the perception of Obama is separate and distinct from the perception of Black men collectively. On one hand, it’s a good thing as it allows the possibility for Obama to succeed. On the other, it’s indicative of the painful reality that Black men are “acceptable” individually, but never collectively. History would have you believe that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was an acceptable anomaly; an aberration.
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(Akiit.com) Last week, I drew a picture of the fall of America’s so-called “Liberal Democracy,” which includes riots, specifically between the “haves” and the “have-nots.”

In this nation, when any “haves” are African American, we know historically that white “have-nots” will start to lose their minds.

American racism and elitism rear their ugly heads when Blacks appear to be ahead of whites on any level—lower class, middle class and upper class.

Within the upper and so-called middle class, institutionalized racism comes into play to keep the playing field level for whites. That racism includes the glass ceiling, preferential hiring and replacement of Blacks with less qualified whites.

On the lower level, racism appears as violence when impoverished whites blame Blacks for taking “their” jobs.

At the opening of the twentieth century, whites committed acts of violence against Blacks who were better off, blaming them for societal problems and viewing them as needing to be “put in their place.”

One of the bloodiest, and perhaps most significant race riots of this nation’s history was the Tulsa, Race Riot of 1921 in Oklahoma. Its importance stems not from its resultant death toll, but from its shroud of mystery. Shortly after the bloody massacre, history closed its mouth and attempted to erase memory of the ugly event.

The Tulsa Race Riot was also significant because it represented white backlash against Blacks who were attempting to enjoy the promises of capitalism and democracy with their own communities and their own commerce.

In Tulsa, the Black area called the “Greenwood District” was nationally recognized as an area of high entrepreneurial activity, dubbed the “Black Wall Street of America.”

Blacks came from all over the nation, hearing of the economic opportunities available on The Black Wall Street, where the concept of recycling Black dollars was thriving in the face of segregation which, unlike integration, gave Blacks no other option but to conduct commerce amongst themselves.

The community grew and flourished economically. Whites in the remainder of Tulsa were not only jealous, but also afraid of what Black prosperity meant for their own growth potential.

In the same fashion as the Wilmington Race Riot of 1898 and many other race riots, the Tulsa Race Riot erupted based on the assumption of Black sexual assault against a white woman named Sarah Page.
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(Akiit.com) Albrightsville, PA - August has arrived, and in another week or two millions of college students will be heading towards their respective colleges. All have high expectations and aspirations of making good grades. Yet, many students will fail while others will barely make passing grades simply because they do not know what to do in order to make top grades.

“Every semester I see students make simple mistakes that, unknown to them, jeopardize their grades,” says William Paterson University Professor Kamau Kenyatta. “More and more students are dropping out or failing out of college each year because they lack essential information that goes beyond the typical classroom skills.”

Professor Kenyatta’s new book, The Confessions of A College Professor: Insider Secrets To Making Top Grades In All Your Classes, is a practical guide that shows current and prospective college students how to reach their goals of making top grades without sacrificing their social life. Here are his top 5 suggestions from the book for students who need and want to make better grades this year:
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