Professor Locs

Charlotte Pastor proposes concentration camps for Gays and Lesbians

I am really struggling these days to have some pride in the state of NC.  I know we all are not small minded bigots but it is fools like this that give the entire region a bad name.

We first had to deal with Rev. Sean Harris who suggested parents beat their kids into traditional gender roles, another “man of God”  then Pastor Charles L. Worley of Providence Road Baptist Church’s took it to another level by saying  he thinks all gays and lesbians should be placed behind electric fences and left to die.

SMH, I don't know where to start on the lunacy of this man.

First of all the isolation theory has been tested and failed it's called the Castro District...lol.

Gay folks are known for turning transition areas into prime real estate due to their fierceness so he would only succeed in attracting other people to his so called camps.

News flash it is straight couples who produce gay children.

I think he is taking the gospel lyric "Jesus build a fence all around me everyday" in the wrong direction...lol

And if anyone should be isolated and not allowed to reproduce it is these characters. 

President Obama Comes Out In Support of Gay Marriage

President Obama recently came out in support of gay marriage in an interview with Robin Roberts on ABC.   He already had some folks from his cabinet including Vice President Biden who had spoken in favor of gay marriage so this may have put pressure on him to finally publicly address the issue.

 "I've always been adamant that gay and lesbian Americans should be treated fairly and equally," Obama told Roberts, in an interview that will air in full on ABC's "Good Morning America" Thursday.

Given our local and recent defeat of gay marriage in North Carolina this is huge.  President Obama will not immediately change policy regarding gay marriage or civil unions but the fact that our first African-American President also is the first President to openly speak in support of gay marriage personally makes me very proud!  This is absolutely historic!

I swear just when you were beginning to look at real estate in Canada here comes a sign of hope that all is not lost and maybe the fight now has some momentum.....smile.  

 

 

A Wasted Opportunity for Self-Expression

I was halfway watching the television when I came home last week and saw out of the corner of my eye a young brother run and grab a reporter’s mic and yell something I could not quite understand.

I had been dealing with a week’s worth of youth apathy, so for a moment I got excited. Could this be a real, live activist I had just witnessed?

Snoop Dog recently appeared on stage with a hologram image of Tupac. Could this could be a sign of a new movement?

Could this media vigilante I had just witnessed be a new Malcolm or Martin in the making? Could some of our youth finally be coming to understand their power, voice and purpose?

I quickly changed from my work clothes into some shorts and T-shirt as the news show went to commercial with a promise that they would run the story again after the break. I sat back and daydreamed: What if this young guy were an up-and-coming leader of his generation?

The commercial was over and I was taken out of my young-hero daydreaming when the news channel was back and they were about to run the story again. I turned up the volume and leaned toward the television so as not to miss a moment of this young revolutionary caught on tape. The media story was so brief it was like a youth activist Bigfoot sighting.

The anchor started with the story by saying one of their reporters was covering a story in Myrtle Beach, S.C., and that a young Charlotte man was put in jail after yelling an outburst on live television.

Outburst, my Aunt Fanny, I thought. Surely this was a war cry from a generation of pissed-off, angry and disenfranchised youth!

The anchor continued by saying that the Charlotte youth was apprehended shortly after the incident. (See the news report.)

I thought: What fascist was trying to silence the voice of this young radical?

I sat there smoldering at the thought of this young Charlotte home-grown freedom fighter locked up in some jail. I was just about to start a FB campaign for his release when the reporter continued:

“Justin Moore, 20, was charged with assault after storming into a live newscast during reporter Ashley Taylor’s report for WMBF.

Taylor was not seriously hurt after the push and was back at work on Thursday.

Moore interrupted the reporter, took the microphone and yelled the "N" word on television.”

(Insert record scratch sound and tape rewind)

Hold up! Did I just hear the anchor correctly?

I could not fathom that my young, would-be Malcolm X, future leader of the young Black Panther movement had just used his prime opportunity for digital media social activism and what does he yell? The “N” word?

Really?

First of all, he physically pushed a woman and then he absolutely wasted an opportunity for free meaningful speech.

He did not yell “No Justice, no peace’”

He did not rally a call for “President Obama for a second term”

He did not scream “We will not forget you, Trayvon Martin”

He did not rant about the unfairness of now charging us for honey mustard at Wendy’s.

He did not even speak in protest of yet another season of “Meet the Browns.”

I was absolutely done and through. I went in just a few moments from believing we might have a new Tupac on our hands, but all I got was some fool acting out on live television.

I was caught up in the intoxicating freedom of youth, revolution and individual expression.

My brief streak of rebellion was squelched as I settled on the couch to endure yet another night of “Dancing with the Stars.” (Once Gladys Knight was kicked off I pretty much lost interest.)

But then I had a fleeting, albeit exciting, thought.

Not that it would be right, but just for a moment imagine there you are 20 years old and you are bold enough to grab the mic during a live broadcast and express yourself -- hopefully with something more meaningful than the “N” word -- what would you say?

Mom Addicted to Tanning

A New Jersey mom, Patricia Krenteil, is accused of taking her 5-year old daughter to a tanning booth.  She is pleading not guilty to the charges.

"My client is 150 percent innocent," Krentcil's attorney, John D. Caruso, told CBS News. "That child was never in that tanning booth."

The New Jersey mother is bringing national attention to a disorder called "tanorexia" which is an addiction to tanning.

The owner of the tanning salon that Krentcil reportedly frequented said that the mom tanned about 20 times a month, and about five days a week.  Damn at that rate she could run for Ms. Black USA...lol

More power to her but she better be prepared to take it all, the bad credit, high blood pressure, diabetes, hair weaves and another season of Basket Ball Wives...lol.  

 

 

Dick Clark Dies at 82

The iconic figure and part of American music culure, Dick Clark has died at age 82 of a heart attack.  Dick Clark was probablly best known for his eternal youthful looks. 

I often said he was one of the first mainstream vampires....smile.  

Clark also had a major contribution to American music through the show American Bandstand.  His show influenced popular culture in so many ways. 

Dick Clark later went on to become a successful radio personality.  He also becaume the spokesperson for New Year's Eve celebrations with his Dick Clark Rocking New Years Eve. 

I know many years we brought the new year end with his smile and good nature. 

Recently Ryan "How you doing" Seacrest stepped up to carry on the New Years Eve tradition but it was not the same...lol.

He was an iconic figure and definitely part of the fabric of American popular culture.

RIP old friend....smile.  

Sherry Shpherd Leaves DWTS With a Tearful Goodbye

Hey guys I found this cool site on Yahoo that does a Prime Time recap of most of the leading shows.  This week includes a very emotional departure for The View Diva, Sherry Sheppard.  

I am not a big fan of Dancing With the Stars but I am always fascinated by how long the Black folks last on that show....lol   Check it out!

http://tv.yahoo.com/primetime/sherri-shepherd-s-emotional-exit-on-dwts-28915824.html

 

Young Justice | Watch cartoons online, Watch anime online, English dub anime

Guys I stumbled across a new cartoon channel and a new animated series treaure. 

Join me in a big old comic book geek squeal for Young Justice.  The series chronicles the events of all the side kicks (side note they hate that reference) from members of the Justice League. 

You have Kid Flash, Aqua Lad, Super Boy, Robin, The Martian's niece, a girl Green Arrow and many more interesting characters. 

My guilty pleasure is coming home and watching an episode online to catch up with the more than 20 episodes I have not seen.

If you are a comic book fan like I am you will definitely love the series! 


Young Justice | Watch cartoons online, Watch anime online, English dub anime.

Mad Men: Season Five

Hey guys I just caught up on the premiere of Mad Men, season five.  I just love this show. It is an anomaly because it does not have a huge following but seems to be a darling with the critics and has consistently swept many of the awards shows since its' origin.

Mad Men is AMC's runaway hit and it is all about the way cool mod world of advertising during the 60's.  The show is art directed to death.  If you are a retro fan then you will die for the offices and homes in the sleek 60's decor.  You will revel in the martini lunches, the slim suits and skinny ties the men wear not to mention the fierce retro-Diva look of the women of Mad Men. 

Pay special attention to the red haired, buxom, bomb shell, Joan.  The girl is fierce. 

Sit back smoke and have a martini (stirred not shaken...lol) and enjoy the retro-rapture that is Mad Men!  

Trayvon Martin: A Culture of Apathy

Al Sharpton and others are already preparing to protest and start a national campaign to highlight the tragic death of Trayvon Martin, the 17-year-old Florida teen who was shot by an overzealous neighborhood watch leader. Unlike in so many other cases, this young man was not engaged in nefarious activity but was simply walking home from a neighborhood store, which makes his death all the more senseless.

Still, I can’t help but wonder: Why do some youth in our community die in total obscurity while others are given a national spotlight?

Mine may be a minority opinion, but I would like to see us as a community become as engaged and outraged when any of our youth are taken too soon, regardless of the killer’s ethnicity.

Thanks to an epidemic of violence, we have become desensitized to killing. And this sense of apathy becomes more distinct as it relates to marginalized communities and the disposability of their citizens.

We have seen our share of teen casualties right here in Charlotte. And just recently, according to the Chicago Tribune, the Windy City saw a rash of shootings that left at least 10 people dead, including a 6-year-old girl. We are not hearing as much about those because some folks involved have been linked to gang activity – again, they were disposable.

I guess this is hitting close to home for me because I have three young nephews, and although they are reasonably well adjusted, I fear for their well-being. I do not want them to suffer the same fate as Trayvon Martin. The cultural dirty secret that we do not like to discuss, of course, is that they are more likely to be harmed by someone from their own culture.

I mentor many youth, especially young black men, and I am increasingly disturbed by the pervasive street mentality that I see. How can you say that you want to be educated, learned and evolved when you continue to adhere to the same street ideology?

I see how angry and disillusioned these young men are and how quickly they are willing to take it out on one another without understanding that there is a system in place that is waiting to absorb them into its institutionalized mechanical clutches.

It is like watching an episode on the Discovery Channel, where two hyenas attack one another while absolutely oblivious to the more prominent threat of a huge culture of lions surrounding them and awaiting to consume them both.

Chris Rock once said during one of his comedy routines that, when he went out at night, he was not fearful of “the man” but was more concerned of other black folks. He used the n-word, but I am trying to be more academic…smile.

Again, I am not trying to diminish the tragedy of young Martin’s death, but can we expect to hold mainstream society accountable to a standard of our cultural worth when we cannot consistently honor our own lives and relevance?

How can I talk about the state of your kitchen when I have dirty dishes stacked in my sink?

Maybe an appropriate litmus test of our evolutionary status as a society and community should be that we passionately organize, rally and protest when any child is lost, regardless of race, class, gender or socio-economic background.

Professor Locs serves on Panel "The Color of Media"

For the second year the Charlotte Black Film Festival (CBFF) will screen three days of independent films that express the African American experience. It all happens during the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) basketball tournament.

Q City Metro’s own weekly columnist Professor Locs, aka Charles Easley will serve on a panel  for the Charlotte Black Film Festival with other distinguished guest on the subject of The Color of Media.  The panel discussion will be held March 1st this Thursday at the Mint Museum UPTOWN from 10:00am – 12:00pm.  The Color of Media panel will discuss how African-Americans are portrayed on TV and in Films.

The Charlotte Black Film Festival was founded by Tommy Nichols president and CEO of Glorified Media, and Dream Media Studios, LLC, an innovative corporate and event video production company.  The mission of the festival is to create economic empowerment for, heighten awareness of, promote the significance and need for African American cinema as an art form, and to be a voice for independent filmmakers of color.

You can visit http://charlotteblackfilmfestival.com/for more information on the films being screened, moderators, panelist, workshops and a complete schedule of events.