I Love My Slum!!!!

What is the attraction to slum dwelling? In Mumbai, India the government has offered to relocate dwellers to brand new apartments across town, so that the land they are on can be used to construct residential and commercial properties. But residents of the Dharavi slum do not want to leave.

What is interesting is that this is a common response around the world, even in America. My personal experience of this happened in St. Petersburg, Florida. When city and federal officials wanted to tear down half of the buildings in the largest low income housing projects in the region. They offered to relocate the affected residents to brand new apartments. This was done due to the rampant violence and drug trafficking that was taking place in the area. It was determined that the area was overpopulated and too difficult for police officers to patrol. In response, some residents took up a petition and attempted to get the housing projects listed as a historic site, thus protecting it from being destroyed.

I was shocked that people would work so hard to maintain an obviously dysfunctional neighborhood that was riddled with crime. This is especially the case being that no one living there had any ownership rights there. They are all renters. So what is the attachment? Some of them have had their families there for generations. But is that really something to be proud of? That your family has been living off of government assistance programs for generations?

In India, there are more realistic concerns. Many of the residents run businesses out of their homes and the apartments that are being offered are too small to continue this practice. The second thing that is very troubling is that only residents that have lived in the slum since 1995 are eligible for the new apartments. That leaves 10 years of new residents homeless. Where are all of these people supposed to go? I guess they will be relocated to another slum sitting on less valuable land.

You can read more about the slum relocation issues here.

All-Female Unit

Came across an article in the Christian Science Monitor about and an all female U.N. peace keeping unit that is active in Liberia. It is an interesting read addressing the recent rape allegations that have been brought up agaisnt members of U.N. forces. The hope is that this female unit will raise the respect of women in countries that often see women as second class citiizens. They also hope to inspire some women to apply to become police officers in their communities. It was interesting to read that having a higher education was a requirement to be a police officer in Liberia. This puts women at a disadvantage because it is custom is some areas that a family's money is spent on sending young boys to school not girls. It is also great to hear that Liberia has implemented an accelerated education program for women who missed out on an education as children. This is definitely a program that should be duplicated for both men and women across Africa. The full article is available by clicking here.

Illegal Guns Burned

A report out of Kenya stated that the government burnt 8,000 illegal guns that were confiscated. I think this is a great practice that all countries need to develop. I have supported this idea since it was reported that thousands of guns that were confiscated by the Miami-Dade police department (in Miami, FL USA) had found their way down to South America and were being used by guerrilla forces. So the police department was unintentionally supporting armed conflict in other countries.
I came to the conclusion at that time that when guns were confiscated by the police after processing has been completed, these guns should be destroyed. This would prevent the possibility for them to ever be used illegally again. What would be even better is if the gun metal could be recycled and for something useful. There currently seems to be a revolving door of guns, where some police departments collect guns and then auction them off to gun dealers. These gun dealers just turn around and put these guns right back on the street, or even worse, send guns to countries that are suffering from civil war, terrorism or other armed conflict.
For those who think that this idea is anti-gun rights, I would do have an argument. By taking illegal guns off the street it actually benefits gun manufacturers. When people can't buy illegal guns, they are forced to buy the new guns that are currently coming off the assembly line. So both the citizens and the gun manufacturers benefit from this process.
It is possible that this is already taken place somewhere, and I am just not aware of it. But there definitely needs to be an international effort to take illegal guns off of the market permanently. Congratulations to Kenya for taking a huge step in the right direction. You can read the article here.

Russel Simmons in Africa Discussing Diamond Industry

"Bling'd" A Great Documentary

I just watched a great documentary last night. "Bling'd: Blood, Diamonds, & Hip Hop"
This film featured some hip hop artist taking a trip to Sierra Leone to see first hand the results of civil wars that have been funded by the selling of "blood diamonds." Included in the trip were Raekwon of the Wu Tang Clan, Paul Wall, and Tego Calderon. Other artist contributed commentary on why diamonds seem to be so important to the hip hop community.
The artist travel to Freetown to visit diamond mines and see the conditions miners are forced to work in. They also travel to an amputee camp to visit the victims of the long civil war. The film is very disturbing and you can tell that the artist had a hard time dealing with what they were witnessing. Raekwon had to be talked into getting off the bus and spending time with the amputees.
There were so many issues that were touched in this documentary you could probably dedicate 10 blogs to address each one full time. But I will try to address a few of them here.
It is incredible that with all of the diamonds available in the country that none of the miners had any idea how to polish or cut a diamond. In fact, they looked amazed when they saw the jewelry of the rap artist. It seemed like they had never seen the end product of their hard labor. My immediate response was saying to myself, that is the key. These Africans need to be trained how to cut and polish their own diamonds so they can get more money for the stones that they find. Basically cutting out the middle man. Of course this isn't in the best interest of many people in the diamond industry so it will take a lot to make this happen. Reminds you of slavery in the Americas when the slave master didn't want the slaves to learn how to read. Now, they don't want them to learn how to cut and polish stones.
The second issue that came up was the hip hip mogul Russel Simmons. A few of months ago Russel Simmons did a media tour repeatedly stating that the diamond industry is fair. Posting his trip to Africa on youtube.com ( I will post a clip Soon),he often shared how diamond manufacturers were investing their profits back into Africa. But he never visited Sierra Leone or even addressed the issues face there. He was happy to stay in South Africa and Botswana. Even stating that he was considering opening his own diamond company whose profits would go into economic development. After watching this documentary, it really makes you to start to question his motives at the time. When he first made these statements on how good the diamonds industry was, many detractors stated that he was being used as a pawn to distract people form the uproar that would be caused by the movie "Blood Diamonds" that was being released. At the time, I gave him the benefit of the doubt that his intentions were pure. Now, the only question is was Mr. Simmons a willing participant in this media manipulation, or was he simply ignorant to the realities of the situation.
When visiting the VH1 page regarding this film they suggest you support the people of Sierra Leone by donating to the Bombai Bling Foundation. If you click on the link, you are taken to a page that is under construction that isn't scheduled to be completed until May 2007. No information is given of what this foundation does, but I will be following it and be posting updates. There is so much more that can be written and I most likely will in the near future. I would definitely recommend you see this film. It is a real eye opener.

Digital Dump in Nigeria

Interesting short clip on where computers end up when we throw them away.

Technorati Profile

The Locusts Look Delicious!!!!!!!!!!!

Dog for Dinner!

Senan Murray has writen an article expressing the high damand for dog meat in certain parts of Nigeria. He sprinkles the article with many superstitions that surround the eating of dog meat that exist in the country. Some believe that eating dog meat can cure malaria, for example. Most agree that it is a great tasting dish.
This is interesting becuase I have often wondered why more domesticated animals have not been used for sources of food in certain regions of the world. Dog meat is a common dish in China, but these Nigerians are written about as if the idea is completely absurd. With pet populations out of control in certain parts of the world, wouldn't using these animals as a source of food be a wise choice? This is especially the case when you look at the alternatives. Right now, the United States of America puts thousands of stray dogs and cats to sleep because there is no one to take care of them. In Australia, organized kill offs are scheduled to keep wild animal populations in check. In these cases the animal bodies are simply buried. This is the case when there are millions of malnourished people across the world that dream of the day when they will be able to taste meat.
I also recently read an article that told the story of North Korean officials who bought several giant rabbits from a breeder. This was done so they could research the possiblities of turning them into a new food source.
It is easy for citizens of the west to turn their noses up at the idea of eating dog meat. But for those regions who dont have many options for meat, I really think this is a great option.
Just some food for thought!!!
You can read the article by clicking here.

Life in A Kenyan Slum

Hannah in Australia referred this video to me to show how life is for residents in a Kenyan slum. The video gives you clear insight into what people face everyday. Thank you Hannah

Congratulations!!!!! I Guess?

Let me start out by saying this article might be completely bias because I am a huge fan of Jay-Z. For those of you who don't know, Jay-Z is an American hip hop star. It was announced that he has sold the rights to his clothing line Rocawear to Iconix Branding Group. It is being reported that the deal will pay Jay-Z $200 million upfront.
Although it is sad to hear that another black company has been sold, it is good to hear that an African American entrepreneur is making major moves in any industry.
So congratulations are in order!!! And if you are reading this and you have an opening on your team. HIT ME UP!!!!!!!!!
You can read more here.

(RED) Campaign Off To A Bad Start

Well, I have already written about the ridiculous $300 shoes that Bono would like people to buy in order to contribute to charity through his (RED)campaign. Even though less than $20 actually goes to charity. It has now come out that the campaign has spent close to $100 million in just marketing cost. On top of that, the charity has only been able to bring in a meager $18 million dollars. If this isn't a waste I don't know what is. Sounds like Bono is going to have to come out and do some damage control for this. The whole concept of the line just sounds off. The idea that people are expected to pay more money for clothes than usual, but only a small percentage of the extra money actually goes to the charity, the rest is kept by the company. So instead of billion dollar corporations donating a part of their proceeds to charity, they are actually making more profit off of their gullible customers.
Granted, after seeing Bono on Oprah I ran out to by a (RED) t-shirt. Luckily for me the Gap store that I went to didn't have any in stock. You can read more about the short comings of the (RED) campaign here.

Moving in the Right Direction

The BBC has done a great series about the Black Economic Empowerment initiative in South Africa. Over 15 years after the release of Nelson Mandela, black South Africans are seeing the benefits of black majority rule. Most of the articles feature stories regarding the development of the new black middle class. With all of the negative news that gets presented from the continent, it is refreshing for a news organization to focus on the positive steps South Africa is taking to reverse the lagging effects of apartheid. Steps have been implemented to provide financing for homes and businesses. Rules have been enforced to increase the use of black employees and manufacturers in the supply chain. There is also a lot of effort being invested in the training of black people in skilled trades that were once monopolized by their white counter parts.
The only surprising thing about this program is that many people outside the country have never heard of it. The program states that they encourage corporate and social investment into black communities, but there doesnt seem to be any effort to raise foreign investment. I am sure there are many organizations from across the world that would be more than happy to invest in this new emerging market of middle class black Africans.
South Africa stands as a more stable model of economic transition than the drastic steps and tragic results caused by the land grab in Zimbabwe. Although there are many South Africans who argue that this transition has been too slow and not enough. I am sure when compared with their couterparts to the north, they will be content with what they have.
To read more you can click here.

Profile: Tavis Smiley

With the recent televising of the now annual State of the Black Union address. I thought this would be an opportune time to acknowledge the work that Tavis Smiley has put out over the last few years.
I personally have been a fan of Mr. Smiley for several years. I was introduced to him, like most people, when he was the late night talk show host on BET. The show covered a wide range of topics within the black community. His strong fan base was very apparent with the outrage that came with the announcement that he was being relieved of his duties at the station. This announcement came shortly after the announcement that BET was being bought by the corporation Viacom. At the time BET founder, Robert Johnson was forced to do some damage control stating that Smiley would have been released whether the deal with Viacom had gone thru or not.
Since then Tavis has had a run as a radio show host on NPR. The show ended due to differences with the station. If you are interested in hearing Smiley's version of the story you can click here.

He has since had his television show picked up by PBS.

I have to admit I am not as much of a fan of this new show. In my humble opinion, this new show really lacks the personality, energy, and hard hitting questions that his previous television show had. Working for the likes of NPR and PBS can sap the flavor out of any man. I actually find the show hard to watch. Even with one of the most well rounded guest list of any show on television, every interview just puts me to sleep. There are no hard hitting questions, nothing that would catch anyone off guard. If a guest avoids answering a question, Tavis doesn't push the issue. It is just a very "safe" show. I recently tuned in to catch an interview with Bill Maher, the political comedian. It was the most lackluster interview I have ever seen of Bill Maher.

That being said, I can't reasonably expect every show on television to cater to me. I am sure there are plenty of people out there who are fans of the toned down Tavis.

Luckily for those out there like me, Tavis has not rested on just the success of his television show. With the State of Black Union address he brings together politicians, academics, and social leaders together in one setting to discuss social issues facing the African American community. He has also been able to get panel discussions of this event aired on C-SPAN, so people from all over the world can be inspired by these great thinkers. In 2006, Smiley took the steps to go from talk to action by creating the "Covenant with Black America." The covenant address specific issues within the community from healthcare to technology.

Tavis Smiley should definitely be applauded for his work in uplifting his community. There will be more posting in the future giving further detail on his continued contributions. If you would like to read more about the Covenant with Black America you can click here.

And I Thought Only The US Had Sex Scandals

A senior minister in the presidential office of Liberia, Willis Knucles, has resigned after photos were released showing him in a sexual situation with two women.
Neither of whom were his wife. Without admitting guilt, he has apologized to his family and the country. My only question is, who took the picture? If you dont believe me you can click here.