Tavis Smiley forum like breath of fresh air.

[European Socialist]

Conyers, Sharpton, Jackson etc. all in one place and on C-span. Nice to hear people talk who really know the rotten crap that is happening in this country. Not much mention of election fraud-I don't understand why this is not a bigger issue in the Black Community?

[followthemoney]

1. Tavis always had a big share of, but not all, Republicans like

JC Watts on his old NPR radio show. I saw Cornel West at North Eastern Illinois University. That man is great. Tavis dropped in and these guys both tried to outdo each other in bowing to each other. Obviously good friends. I can't figure out where Tavis is coming from.

[AP]

4. I've heard Smiley talk to an audience imediately after taping his show.

His show HAD to be neutral. It was NPR for god's sake. The only way he could get West on was to have Watts on too, and even THAT was too left wing for NPR.

His chat after his show was about as enlightened and progressive as a human being could possibly be.

This guy is the real deal and he's a model journalist. He puts people like Brokaw and Jennings and the rest of those assholes to shame.

[followthemoney]

5. Thanks! I should have guessed that .

[AP]

6. America would be a better place if we had hundrends of Tavis Smileys

rather than just one.

He proves that you don't have to cheerlead for Democrats to move toward progress and the future. You just have to give people honest information that helps them make the right choices.

[followthemoney]

23. There may be a hundred Tavis smileys.

It is just that NPR won't even let ONE on the air in control of his own show.

[hector459]

2. I missed it this year. I usually watch to get insight into the black

community. It has been a wonderful program in the past. The guests have hit all the nails on the head in the past. I trust they did so once again.

[FreedomAngel82]

3. If you have

realplayer you can view it on the CSPAN site. http://www.cspan.org It's on the main page. Just click on the title of the event and it'll pop open in real player. :D

[politicasista]

7. He can be over the top sometimes

but he is ok.

[proud patriot]

8. Shoot I missed it

:-(

I watched a forum he did a couple of years back .
It was great .

[Tinoire]

14. You're in luck! Links in post 13 ;)

:hi:

It was inspiring to watch!

[joanski01]

9. I watched it all. It was great.

C-Span was advertising that you could see it anytime you wanted to by buying their DVD. It was really uplifting to hear honest conversation.

[DU_ONE]

10. Farrakhan Tsunamied that conference

Farrakhan turned the show out . . .

[donsu]

11. I heard part of Farrakhan - thought he brought some truths home

nt

[Tinoire]

15. Farrakhan was fantastic.

Did it scare you to see him get the audience cheering and stomping their feet in agreement :shrug: Get used to it; Black people have a nasty, nasty habit of not shutting up and of not caring what people think of the leaders we choose to speak for us. 300 years of slave labor to enrich this country and not just no 40 acres or a mule, but no healthcare, no nothing. I'm not surprised some people won't like the message.

Farrakhan rocked. He was prominently included in the panel for a reason- the main one being a clear message that we will no longer allow outside influences to determine who are leaders are- they are who we decide they are, the ones who have enough support behind them to bring a sizable number of voters to the conference.

[blm]

21. Farrakhan is one of RevMoon's closest allies. WHY? Moon does NOTHING

without a reason. He and Farrakhan have over 10 years in alliance, and Farrakhan calls him the great prophet from the east. WHY?

YOU trust Farrakhan. I'll stick to those whose intenttions don't align with Moon's.

[Tinoire]

25. Moon gave him financial assistance for the Million Man March

& Farrakhan says he's right about some things. I really don't care about that anymore than I do about Sharpton having to take money from Republicans to run because the system is so stacked for pro-corporate candidates.

Any thoughts about Moon's friendship with Charlie Rangel or about Dems like Harold Ford Jr, Danny Davis & Sanford Bishop hosting the coronation ceremony for Rev Moon on the in the Dirken Senate building last year((Was the Washington Marriott booked that month?!))? In view of the inroads Moon has already made with the Black Clergy and the Black Caucus, I'm really not concerned about Farrakhan thinking he can get some mileage out of an alliance with him. Ralph Abernathy and James Bevel like Moon too. Should we trash the the Martin Luther King movement for it? Or is it just Farrakhan because he speaks some truths White America doesn't like? The point is that, whether people like it or not, Farrakhan speaks for millions of Blacks and if a nasty secret society like Skull and Bones can have a prominent place at the table, so should people like Farrakhan who have millions of real, breathing, voting people behind him.

I don't like Moon anymore than you do but Farrakhan speaks for many Black people and it's time Blacks had a real seat at the table and were not represented by the manufactured house darlings of the White establishment. People like Tavis Smiley, Michael Dyson, Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson Sr, Farrakhan, Jocelyn Elders, Synthia McKinney, Jehmu Greene etc are coming together to form a coalition and write a contract for and with Black America, so thankfully you won't have to worry about trusting Farrakhan.

You trust a man from Skull and Bones, I don't. And Farrakhan? I don't trust him implicitly out of some misguided allegiance, no more than I would trust Elijah Mohammed over Malcolm X but Farrakhan is Black and whether you, I or anyone else likes it or not, millions of Black people trust him more than they trust a Washington establishment that has continously stabbed us in the back for hundreds of years. That's how it's supposed to work in a democracy and I'm very happy to see the various factions of the Black community coming together.



==
Should Americans be concerned that on March 23rd a bipartisan group of Congressmen attended a coronation at which a billionaire, pro-theocracy newspaper owner was declared to be the Messiah – with royal robes, a crown, the works? Or that this imperial ceremony took place not in a makeshift basement church or a backwoods campsite, but in a Senate office building?

(snip)

But not long after it appeared on the Post's web site, the paper erased the quote. Columnist Richard Leiby told me via e-mail that it shouldn't have gone out in the first place. The paper replaced it with breaking news about "Celebrity Jeopardy!" with Tim Russert.

The Return of the King

So no one covered this American coronation, except Moon's own Times, which skipped the Messiah part. It wasn't in other newspapers, which only wink at the influence of Moon's far-right movement in Washington, when they cover it at all.

In fact, the only place you could read about the new king, unless you bookmarked Moon's Korean-language website, was in the blog world. There, dozens of the most CSPAN2-hardened cynics reacted to the screenshots with a resounding "WTF," the sound of dismay and confusion at a scene that news coverage hadn't prepared them for. The images might as well have come from Star Trek's Mirror Universe.

First, we're shown a rabbi blowing a ram's horn. Most Jews would hold off on this until the High Holy Days, but it probably counts if the Moshiach shows up in a federal office building at taxpayer expense. Then we see the man of the hour, Moon, chilling at a table at the Dirksen in a tuxedo, soaking all this up. He claps. He's having a ball.



Cut to the ritual. Eyes downcast, a man identified as Congressman Danny K. Davis (D-Ill.) is bringing a crown, atop a velvety purple cushion, to a figure who stands waiting austerely with his wife. Now Moon is wearing robes that Louis XIV would have appreciated. All of this has quickly been spliced into a promo reel by Moon's movement, which implies to its followers that the U.S. Congress itself has crowned the Washington Times owner.

(snip)

http://gadflyer.com/articles/?ArticleID=131



Hail to the Moon king
The deeply weird coronation of Rev. Sun Myung Moon in a Senate office building -- crown, robes, the works -- is no longer one of Washington's best-kept secrets.

- - - - - - - - - - - -
By John Gorenfeld

June 21, 2004 | You probably imagine your congressman hard at work in the Capitol debating legislation, making laws -- you know, governing. But your newspaper probably didn't tell you that one night in March, members of Congress hosted a crowning ritual for an ex-convict and multibillionaire who dressed up in maroon robes and declared himself the Second Coming.

On March 23, the Dirksen Senate Office Building was the scene of a coronation ceremony for Rev. Sun Myung Moon, owner of the conservative Washington Times newspaper and UPI wire service, who was given a bejeweled crown by Rep. Danny K. Davis, D-Ill. Afterward, Moon told his bipartisan audience of Washington power players he would save everyone on Earth as he had saved the souls of Hitler and Stalin -- the murderous dictators had been born again through him, he said. In a vision, Moon said the reformed Hitler and Stalin vouched for him, calling him "none other than humanity's Savior, Messiah, Returning Lord and True Parent."

(snip)

www.salon.com/news/feature/2004/06/21/moon/

[blm]

26. Farrakhan claims Moon IS a prophet and he did a mass marriage together

during the Million FAMILY March, Tinoire.

Name one Democrat who claims Moon as a prophet. That is WAY beyond acknowledging Moon for his media power.

He's all yours, darlin'. I will NEVER trust anyone who claims Moon is a prophet.

[Tinoire]

28. I named you quite a few who crowned Moon Messiah on Senate grounds

Messiah, last I checked, was much higher than a prophet. I see you didn't get my point. No one is asking you to trust Farrakhan. He's not pretending to speak for anyone but his followers and his followers are Americans entitled to vote.

You take Skull and Bones if you want. I will never trust anyone who's part of the Satan-worshipping Illuminati. Given a choice between S&B and Farrakhan, I'll take Farrakhan but I won't blindly defend him or try to spin that he's right in everything he says & he does. It's really very simple and we're just going to have to agree to disagree.

By the way, Farrakhan did NOT "do" a mass marriage with Moon, he presided over a mass marriage blessing for the renewal of marriage vows that to an overly eager or malicious eye may seem similar to the ceremonies performed by the Unification church, especially by the time CNN was done with its habitual twisted reporting that pretended only a few thousand had attended the march.

I watched that event on CNN as did many DUers. Did you watch it at all? I'll see if I can dig up some threads because nobody, at that time, commented on a Moonie mass wedding ceremony. Most of the comments were in admiration of what the speakers had to say, particularly one brilliant 12 year old who electrified the audience. I hope you're not suggesting that all those Black people marching were cultist loons. March 28 is, coincidentally, Black Marriage Day for Black Muslims so the renewal of marriage vows would be quite appropriate to remind people not to break marriage vows through adultery or violence, or to abandon their children.

===
Smithsonian Institution

The rally was one of largest demonstrations in Washington history, surpassing the 250,000 who gathered in 1963 for Martin Luther King Jr.'s historic "I Have a Dream" speech.

Joining Farrakhan on the steps of the U.S. Capitol, civil rights veterans Benjamin Chavis, Jesse Jackson, Rosa Parks, and Dick Gregory were among those who addressed the marchers. Stevie Wonder sang briefly and, with poetry, Maya Angelou urged the crowd to do right by itself and "save your race."


http://photo2.si.edu/mmm/mmm.html

Many prominent political and entertainment figures spoke, including the Rev. Al Sharpton, Martin Luther King III, Dick Gregory and Will Smith. A mass marriage blessing by Farrakhan followed the speeches, along with musical performances by Macy Gray and Mary J. Blige.

http://www.thehoya.com/news/101700/news1.htm

The march's pièce de résistance will be a spectacular ceremony in which Farrakhan will renew the vows of thousands, perhaps tens of thousands of married couples -- modeled after the mass marriage ceremonies led by Moon for the past 30 years.

http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2000/10/09/march/index.html

===

"The family is the basic unit of civilization so everything must be done to take care of the family unit," Farrakhan said during his speech of more than two hours.

He, along with rabbis and ministers of other faiths, then presided over a mass "sacred marriage blessing" reminiscent of the mass weddings conducted by the Rev. Sun Myung Moon, whose Unification Church was a major sponsor of the march. "There will be many trials, many tribulations but you must never think to back out of the word you give to God and to each other," Farrakhan told the already married couples lined up on the U.S. Capitol stage and at the Lincoln Memorial.

http://archives.cnn.com/2000/US/10/16/family.march.04.ap/

==

The MMM Pledge
By Frances Murphy
Washington AFRO staff
Over one million men standing peacefully on the mall on the west side of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. on Oct. 16, and millions more watching television around the country and the world, raised their hands and took a pledge to improve their lives and the lives of their wives, children and families.

The pledge was one of the highlights of the speech given by Min. Louis Farrakhan of the Nation of Islam, one of about 60 or more speakers at this historic Million Man March on Washington. A hush spread over the crowd as Min. Farrakhan asked each man to raise his right hand and take the pledge, as follows:



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I - say your name- pledge that from this day forward, I will strive to love my brother as I love myself.
I - say your name - from this day forward will strive to improve myself spiritually, morally, mentally, socially, politically and economically for the benefit of myself, my family and my people.



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I - say your name - pledge that I will strive to build business, build houses, build hospitals, build factories and enter into international trade for the good of myself, my family and my people.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I - say your name - pledge that from this day forward I will never raise my hand with a knife or a gun to beat, cut or shoot any member of my family or any human being except in self defense.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I - say your name - pledge from this day forward, I will never abuse my wife by striking her, disrespecting her, for she is the mother of my children and the producer of my future.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I - say your name - pledge that from this day forward, I will never engage in the abuse of children, little boys or little girls, for sexual gratification. But I will let them grow in peace to be strong men and women for the future of our people.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I - say your name - will never again use the "b" word to describe any female, but particularly my own Black sister.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I - say your name - pledge that from this day forward that I will not poison my body with drugs or that which is destructive to my health and my well-being.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I - say your name - pledge from this day forward that I will support Black newspapers, Black radio, Black television. I will support Black artists who clean up their acts and show respect for themselves and respect for their people and respect for the heirs of the human family.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I - say your name - will do all of this, so help me God.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Min. Farrakhan then asked each man to turn and "hug your brother."
http://www.afro.com/history/million/pledge.html

[blm]

30. Farrakhan LEGITIMIZED Moon for blacks that day.

It's for that very reason that black politicians are forced by Moonie black ministers and followers of Farrakhan to make nice with Moon, especially in the DC area where Moon really spreads the gold around. 135 black ministers threw away their crosses and replaced them with Moon's crown symbol and that is OK with you?

Those black politicians did NOT declare Moon a messiah, and were there expecting some other sort of peace award ceremony as Moon likes to color these events. I don't doubt any of their reasonings, except for Danny Davis' since he seems closest to Moon, but, that could also be a blackmail situation cuz Moon worked intel with Poppy Bush for many years.

I have no doubt that Farrakhan is Moon's tool for at least the last decade.

[Tinoire]

31. He did huh? Well don't forget all these good people who were there

Throw them in the shit pile too. You seem a little obsessed with Farrakhan and trying to confuse a wedding vow renewal with a Moonie Unification ceremony. As I told you, I don't really care- I have a lot more faith in the astuteness of my Black brothers and sisters than I expect you to. People are going to have to deal with it; we're not going to remain fractured and we're not dropping Farrakhan. If you're that concerned about Black people being led astray, you should write to the following people and tell them how appalled you are that, in your opinion, they legitimized Moon during a deeply symbolic ceremony of wedding vow renewals. I don't believe they did any such thing- nor do I believe they threw their crosses away to replace them with Moon's crown symbol. I'm not overly fond of Farrakhan because I have the same problem with the Nation of Islam that Malcolm X eventually did and for which the NOI, in cahoots with the US government, gunned Malcolm down but I'll ally with them when the common cause is the advancement of Blacks in this racist system. If I could vote for Kerry despite his CFR, Skull and Bones association, I can sure sit down and march with Farrakhan- there's no purism here just a cold, steely calculation of where we're headed and what tools we have at our disposal to get there.

It's a damn shame Blacks had to ally with Moon for this and not with the political party that keeps pretending to give a rat's ass about Black people's concerns. And that takes us smack dab right to the main poing of Tavis' show- we are not going to allow White people to set our agenda or choose our leaders for us. If a sizable portion of the Black community trusts Farrakhan we're just going to have to deal with it. It may suck but that's the way it is and the two political parties have only themselves to blame.


Rev. Jesse Jackson
Rev. Al Sharpton
Rosa Parks
Congressman Kweisi Mfume
Betty Shabazz
Earl King
Martin Luther King,Jr III
Rev. James Bevel
Dr. Cornell West
Rev. H. Beecher Hicks
Sheik Ahmend Tijani Ben-Omar
Rev. Fred Hayes
Melvin Deal
Min. Arief Muhammad
Rev Benjamin Chavis
Rev. Donad Hunter
Rev Terry Wingate
Rev. C. V. Smith
Rev. Kojo Nantambu
Rev. Robert Smith
Rev. John Wright
Matsemela Mfumo
Rev. Wayne Gadie
Dr. Oba T'Shaka
Imam Malick Sylia
Ron Hastic
Carter Womack
Ron Salior
Jawanza Kunjufu
Carl Upchurch
Shawn Barney
Rev.Johnny Yoiungblookd
Dr. Alim Muhammad
Ron Daniels
Haki Madhubuti
Rev. Wendell Anthony
Rev. Joseph Lowery
Rev. Jonathan Greer
Brother Ishmael Muhammad
Gregory Hopkins
Chuck D.
The Honorable Marion Barry
Tynetta Muhammad
Rev Wyatt T. Walker
Atty Faye Williams
Dr. Dortothy I Height
Queen Mother Moore
Bishop H.H. Brookins
Leonard Dunston
Father George Clements
Rev. Jeremiah Wright
Wintley Phipps
Rev. Clay Eveans
Bob Laws
Rev. Frank Madison Reid,III
Rev William Revely, Jr
Dr. Conrad Worrill
Danny Bakewell
Rock Newman
Bishop Jeff Banks
Oscar Eason
Henry Nicholas
Willie Wilson
Lavan Akbar
Dr. Thuman Evans
Mwalima Shuja
Zachery Mcdaniels
Bishop George Augusts Stallings
Bill Crews
Brother Leonard Muhammad
Rev. Willie F. Wilson
Min Ismael Muhammad
Bishop W.C. Walker
Tony Powell
Linday Boyd
Dr. Dexter Allgood
Boubacar Joseph Ndiaye
Min. Akbar Muhammad
Congressman Donald Payne
Former Congressman Gus Savage
The Honorable Curt Schmoke

[blm]

33. Suit yourself. I know when your mind is made up there's no point arguing

with you.

But, I do wonder if you really believe I'm just throwing all black people on a shitpile?

There was nothing to Poppy Bush standing with Moon and legitimizing him with all the evangelicals and the Argentinians, either. No....that's just me throwing them all on the shitpile because I'm obsessed with Moon who is really harmless.

Moon has no agenda. Farrakhan is a great man. Bush will bring us all peace on earth.

Amen.

Nothing personal. We just disagree.

[Skidmore]

34. Amen

Tinoire wrote:

"It's a damn shame Blacks had to ally with Moon for this and not with the political party that keeps pretending to give a rat's ass about Black people's concerns."

Stole my thunder. My sentiments exactly. People turn to fringe groups when those with avenues in the mainstream of society do not address their concerns or admit them to circles of influence which address the needs of the community. I don't know what it will take for the Dems to quit navel gazing and get back to being the party of the working class. Perhaps it will get slapped down further before some in this nation realize, the country doesn't need 2 Republican parties--one is destroying well enough, thanks.

[nashville_brook]

12. does anyone know where Tavis is going after NPR?

isn't he leaving b/c they didn't support his show? gawd, i LOVE his show! would love it if he went to Sirius!

[Tinoire]

13. I'd recommend any progressive who missed it, watch it- links

It was electrifying and spells a lot out for both political parties- Blacks aren't going to take it anymore and the leadership is coming together to tell both the DNC and the RNC when & where they can stick it.


State of the Black Union 2005, Morning Session (02/26/2005): rtsp://cspanrm.fplive.net/cspan/15days/e022605_smiley1.rm?start=:18.0&mode=compact

State of the Black Union 2005, Afternoon Session (02/26/2005)
rtsp://cspanrm.fplive.net/cspan/15days/e022605_smiley2.rm?mode=compact


While America grows more divided by race, class, gender, and moral values, now is the time for African Americans to set a National Agenda for health, education, politics, and for US!

Join Tavis Smiley, Tom Joyner and 35 of America's top Black leaders policy makers, educators, health care professionals, and community organizers, as we discuss innovative solutions for African Americans to help bring America out of crisis.

Topics include: Healthy living ideas and holistic treatments - Nutrition and fitness - Sexual health - Elder care - Men's & Women's health - Mental health - Voting rights - Strengthening our public schools - Wages and employment - Economic development - Family, faith, and politics...

www.blackamericaweb.com/site.aspx/ bawnews/bawcommentary/sobu05

Cornel West, Minister Louis Farrakhan, political strategist Donna Brazile, Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, former Surgeon General Dr. Joycelyn Elders, economist Julianne Malveaux, Coretta Scott King, Rev. Al Sharpton, Jehmu Greene, president of Rock the Vote; and Mary Frances Berry, former chairwoman of the U.S. Civil Rights Commission.

Also Faye Wattleton, Center for the Advancement of Women, Dr. L. Natalie Caroll, National Medical Association past president, Marc Morial, president of the National Urban League and Phill Wilson, executive director, Black AIDS Institute.

[qanda]

16. Faye Wattleton was absolutely the best at breaking down politcal spin

Why don't we see her on every single channel? She is sharp and has the rightwing pegged!

[Tinoire]

17. I missed her but just started re-watching it now.

What did she say? Or are you going to make me wait til I get to the part I missed ;)

On edit. Listening to her now and you're right- she rocked!

[qanda]

19. I just read your post

I'm glad you agreed. Maybe we should start a list of people we would like to see speaking for us and send it in to the DNC.

[Tinoire]

22. I'll take everyone on that panel

even if I don't agree with them all 100% because my disagreements with any of them seem to be on minor issues that I could easily suck up. We need everyone from Donna Brazile to Louis Farrakhan. It's a pleasure to meet you Qanda.

[qanda]

24. Oh, I agree with you

They were all great. I've been concerned about all the Conservative African American pundits I've seen lately-- they seem to be everywhere. The DNC has to get on the ball and reintroduce the thoughts and ideals from Liberal African Americans into the mix.

Nice to meet you too! :hi:

[Tinoire]

27. I hope they do too but the points that were brought up about the DNC

were a bit disheartening. I hope it changes under Dean but I know Dean can't do it alone and that we can't sit on our laurels, we've got to start getting rid of all the impediments around him so that the DNC can become more racially diverse & Democratic in its make-up.

Time to get the Uncle Tom's away from the cameras ;)

:hi:

[SemperEadem]

18. they did discuss it

They did speak on it, but the forum wasn't just about election fraud--it was about the many issues concerning African Americans. It was more about the contract/covenant which the whole forum was structured around.

[tinfoilinfor2005]

20. caught a portion of it while getting ready for work yesterday

and I have to admit that I was as uninformed about the widespread number of female AIDS victims in the AA community as are all of the politicians out there. Before I retired from nursing I had many AIDS patients in my care, but at that time they were all white males. I believe some loud noise is in order regarding this issue.

[me b zola]

29. It was an awesome conference!!

Democratic leaders need to take note. The black community is clearly stating what will be demanded of ANY party that may want their votes. I was struck by how issue after issue was a call for what we think of as traditional Democratic values. Equal opportunity for education, jobs,voting & health care. Labor unions, living wages, sustainable communities, accountability in government & big-business, election reform. The issues that directly impact the lives the 95% of Americans who do not own the majority of the wealth.

Clearly if the Democratic leaders continue to allow the DLC to set the agenda and prop up their candidates, they will lose the black vote and well as the rest of their base.

Props to Tavis for hosting the conference and to all the leaders who showed up and are working for the interest of all of us.

[journalist3072]

32. I always look forward to the annual State of Black America

And I applaud Tavis Smiley for his tireless desire to help make life for Black America better.