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Filmmaker Tyler Perry has donated $1 million to the NAACP to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the civil rights organization.

The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People says the gift announced Monday is the largest donation from an individual in the organization’s history. It will be distributed over four years.

In a statement, Perry says the perseverance of thousands within the NAACP helped pave the way for his success in the film industry.

NAACP leaders say the gift marks a major shift in black philanthropy. They say donations of this size have not typically gone to civil rights groups.

It’s also a key time for the NAACP as the group faces questions over whether it remains relevant.

I’ve had artistic issues with Perry over the years, but I also recognize game and must do so when someone puts there money where there mouth is.

Still, I found myself thinking while reading: How is a million dollars the record for an individual donation in 2009?

The coverage of Miss Sarah has been fascinating to me. Yes, she’s interesting and colorful – I get that the pool of Republican politicians out there is so tedious that she glimmers in comparison. But all that glitters…

Watch the clip above taken just recently in Columbus Ohio on one of Palin’s book tour stops. The video team do a great job of exposing the people in line to meet Sarah as the bewildered, mouthbreathing base of the GOP that they are. It’s a group of people with acute fear-of-a-black-president syndrome desperate for a leader who “gets” them.

What no one is talking about — Palin’s crowds are exclusively white. Yet Columbus is 26% black and 4% Latino. Palin might be setting s segment of the Republican base on fire. But she’s not popular among all white people according to this very recent WaPo poll: 51% of whites overall view her unfavorably although the dislike is softer in the suburbs. Democrats and Independents mostly despise her and 52% of white women say they wouldn’t vote for her (sexist Newsweek cover notwithstanding apparently).

AND interesting/typical, there’s no polling of the African-American or Latino demographics in this Washington Post poll. Yes, I know Sarah’s world is like an idealized 1950s view of an homogenous America where minorities are hidden in ghettoes and tucked away in non-threatening low wage jobs. Or deported.

But given her very soft support among whites, the only way she’s got a chance in 2012 is if she manages to court significant support among Hispanics.  She’s not totally clueless on immigration. From a Univision Interview with Sarah Palin, by Jorge Ramos on Oct 26, 2008:

Q: Should undocumented immigrants all should be deported?
A: There is no way that in the US we would roundup every illegal immigrant–there are about 12 million of the illegal immigrants–not only economically is that just an impossibility but that’s not a humane way anyway to deal with the issue.
Q: Do you then favor an amnesty for the 12 million undocumented immigrants?
A: No, I do not. Not total amnesty. You know, people have got to follow the rules. We have got to make sure that there is equal opportunity and those who are here legally should be first in line for services being provided and those opportunities that this great country provides.
Q: So you support a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants?
A: I do because I understand why people would want to be in America. To seek the safety and prosperity, the opportunities, the health that is here. It is so important that yes, people follow the rules so that people can be treated equally and fairly in this country.

Palin’s already taking some hits from her hard-core, ultra-conservative base. I think this is her Achilles heel — to win in 2012, she needs a moderate-to-progressive stance on immigration to attract the Latino vote while still sounding tough enough for her racist base. Probably a no-win sitch IMHO.

I’d like to see more journalists ask her and her supporters about her true views on idiot ideas that her base favors like the border fence. Let’s get her on record re: her post-McCain campaign positions on immigration since this is likely a major wedge issue with her and her “book” readers.

The only thing missing from the BET you and I know are some booty-shaking video hos — hard to believe SNL skimped on that crucial addition you know BET would add to the debate. Because it’s not that African-Americans don’t care about climate change. The problem is that BET, like Bush, doesn’t care about black people or really anything else other than exploiting the very bottom of our culture in order to make an almighty dollar.

This segment actually made me LOL for realz. Kudos to SNL for some smart, political comedy with a sophisticated edge on race in America.

Good Morning.

As you go through your day, don’t forget JJP.

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More information about today’s events inside[ hat tip- a poster from Mrs. O]

Three events for Michelle on Tuesday: 9:15 am the Obamas welcome the Singhs to the White House–big production. 2 pm an event in the East Room on the history and protocol of state dinners. 7 pm the Obamas welcome the Singhs on the North Portico and the rest of the event follows. Wonder if she’ll wear 3 new outfits?

All three will be live streamed by the White House. C-Span will not do the afternoon event but will air the others plus the presidents press conference. C-Span’s broadcast appears to be after the evening event. Will start at 9 pm and promises Michelle’s pre-dinner remarks about the dinner (maybe the afternoon event?), guests on their arrival and the toasts.

CORRECTION-NAME US President Barack Obama (C, R) walks out of the Jefferson Memorial after visiting with his family Daughter Malia (R), wife Michelle (2nd R), daughter Sasha (3rd R), niece Suhaila Ng (L), sister Maya Soetoro-Ng (2nd L), brother-in-law Konrad Ng holding his daughter Savita in Washington on September 27, 2009.
——NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/Getty Images

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The video starts off with some passionate words from another African-American Nobel Peace Prize winner, Martin Luther King who opposed the war in Vietnam. If Obama wants to live up to that Nobel bling, I’d suggest he re (or re-read, he’s a literate dude) King’s “Strength to Love” which is a collection of King’s sermons that he compiled during his lifetime. It’s available free at Google Books btw. There’s some powerful prose and King’s oratory skills were matched by an incisive and inspiring pen.

Obama should ask himself: “WWMD” — What Would Martin Do? He would say as he did then: “The world now demands a maturity of America…” and of Obama. I’m pretty sure he would say we need to stop dropping bombs on Afghanistan (and Pakistan) and start droppin’ some schools & hospitals & food. There’s nothing to win in Afghanistan — we know that Al Qaeda is not there, but everywhere. Yet isn’t there everything to lose as we saw at Fort Hood and Oklahoma City with unstable veterans returning home or refusing to leave, distraught and angry.

Did you know that we’ve lost almost as many troops this year to suicide as to combat injuries due to the dual wars in Iraq and Afghanistan? From USAToday:

The class is part of an urgent initiative aimed at halting an epidemic of suicides, which has killed almost as many American troops this year as combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan combined. The trend has left top military psychologists puzzled and resulted in a new emphasis on programs that alleviate stress and prevent possible suicides while troops are still on the battlefield, where doctors say many mental health problems begin.

To that end, every soldier arriving in Iraq is now handed a card detailing the warning signs for depression and suicide. Two-star generals appear on the Armed Forces Network talking about their experiences with mental health specialists and how it helped. And mental health experts are spending more time on the front lines to make the counseling process informal and accessible to troops who may be reluctant about seeking out a psychiatrist.

This is a laudable start. Peace within is peace without. I’m ok with more troops but only if the end goal is to create enough safety for current troops in place so they can withdraw from the field and re-focus on the fight against terrorism elsewhere — including here in America.

Here’s Dr. King laying it down in a short version of one of his classic speeches on Vietnam with images from Afghanistan. Just insert “Afghanistan” where he says “Vietnam”.

———Allison Shelley

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As you begin a new week, don’t forget JJP.

Drop those links. Engage in debate. Give us trivia and gossip too.

And always, have a peaceful day.

Good Afternoon.

Drop those links. Engage in debate. Give us trivia and gossip too.

And continue to have a peaceful day.

Football – BEST.SPORT.EVER.

The President Does an NFL PSA

The right (and some on the left) would have you think that Medicaid was created so lazy shiftless black people could eat bonbons, watermelon & fried chicken while having their free x-rays, abusing the tax dollars of hardworking white people. Like Lamar Alexander who has repeatedly called Medicaid a “Medical Ghetto” on the Senate floor (see video above) including my favorite reference:

“This bill is historic in its arrogance. Arrogant in its dumping of 15 million low income Americans into a medical ghetto called Medicaid that none of us or any of our families would ever want to be a part of for our healthcare.”

Wow. This is deep hardcore racism — it might be fun to deconstruct it…together!

So let’s get this straight Lamar: Obama’s desire to provide healthcare to those who don’t have it (close to 40 million people in the U.S., mind you) means that he’s going to niggerize healthcare. Any self-respecting white person would rather go without health insurance, would rather than family members go without medical care when they need — die early, go death or blind, have a foot removed due to diabetes — rather than live in a nigger neighborhood or have nigger healthcare.

Because let’s be clear — there’s only one senator out of 100 who is black. And we all know who Alexander’s talking about when he says “our families”, right? The funny thing is there are plenty of white folks who need Medicaid, yet it’s stigmatized because there’s a disproportionate number of African-Americans in the program compared to our population. Which is because of our sad legacy of economic discrimination from which we’re only beginning to recover.

Let’s get into the deets: 25% of the people of Tennessee are in TennCare which is TN’s Medicaid program — it’s one of the highest percentages in the nation. And it doesn’t even cover all the people who need it. BTW, You can’t just be broke to be in Medicaid — income is only one determinent. The program was designed to make sure that society’s most vulnerable citizens — low income pregnant women, children and the disabled including people who are blind or deaf — receive the healthcare they need so our society is healthy. According to Wikipedia:

It is estimated that approximately 60 percent of poor Americans are not covered by Medicaid.^[3] Medicaid is the largest source of funding for medical and health-related services for people with limited income in the United States. Because of the aging Baby Boomer population, the fastest growing aspect of Medicaid is nursing home coverage.

Given the deep recession (and for black folks who’s unemployment rate is at 30% — it’s a depression) we’re in, I’m willing to bet there are plenty of people in TN right now who would love to qualify for TennCare so they can take their kids to the dentist (yeah, it covers dental too) or to the doctor to take a look at that cough.

What kind of person tells those who have no access to healthcare that they should turn away from it because that kind of healthcare ain’t for them — it’s for niggers? Lamar thinks you should rather go bankrupt after a car accident or die rather than be grouped into a medical ghetto with a bunch of lazy, ignorant & filthy blacks. Or maybe they should just hope they don’t get sick.

People with Medicaid don’t tend to complain about having it or needing it — no, one of the main problem with the system is that not enough doctors take it so having access to Medicaid still doesn’t mean that you can get to a doctor near you. There’s racial discrimination in the Medicaid system that needs to be weeded out — personally I think one of the improvements in the system should be that it’s illegal to NOT accept Medicaid. If you’re a doctor, your job is to be a healer no matter the size of the wallet — or the race — of the patient.

Sour, Sorry Sen. Alexander — please sit down and shut up. This type of talk might work among your country club members, but it’s clearly not what the hurting people of TN and the rest of the United States are needing. As Senate debate continues — thanks to 60 votes, there’s no filibuster — it will be up to us to keep the debate honest and make sure that certain people don’t use racially loaded language to deny those who need our help from receiving it.

Good Morning.

As you go through your weekend spending time with family and friends, don’t forget JJP.

Drop those links. Engage in debate. Give us trivia and gossip too.

And always, have a peaceful day.

Good Afternoon.

Drop those links. Engage in debate. Give us trivia and gossip too.

And continue to have a peaceful day.

Yes, the Black President is gonna RAPE you.

As old as Birth of a Nation, these mofos don’t quit.

And, what should be done to rapists?

Yes, you get the point.

This is not about free speech. These folks are dangerous, and attempting to incite violence, and should be dealt with as such.

———–ROBYN BECK/AFP/Getty Images

Good Morning.

As you go through your weekend spending time with family and friends, don’t forget JJP.

Drop those links. Engage in debate. Give us trivia and gossip too.

And always, have a peaceful day.

CNN: Woman to plead guilty to misdemeanors in Missouri Wal-Mart scuffle
November 20, 2009 8:35 p.m. EST

Kennett, Missouri (CNN) — A woman accused of cutting in line at a Wal-Mart, shoving merchandise and assaulting police officers will plead guilty to disturbing the peace and resisting arrest, both misdemeanors.

Under the agreement — reached after the jury received the case for deliberations — Heather Ellis will plead guilty to disturbing the peace and resisting arrest. She will serve a year of unsupervised probation, attend an anger management course and serve four days in jail before the end of the year.

The sentence stipulates that if Ellis stays out of trouble for a year, the charges will be sealed and the arrest won’t be on her permanent record.

Ellis said after court was adjourned that she was “taking responsibility for her actions and [hopes] that everyone else involved in the case will take responsibility for theirs.”

Earlier Friday, Ellis, 24, took the stand and denied all charges in the racially charged case.

Think you have what it takes to be a mouthpiece for hate?

They will pay $500 to “ethnically ambiguous” actors in their 20s or 30s, with no Southern accent, who can work with a teleprompter — to help them put a modern face on their extreme agenda and disguise their clear ties to white nationalism.

FAIR spends millions of dollars a year on online ads to promote videos like this on websites — including some progressive ones you know and read. So if you get the part, you could be the envy of  “ethnically ambiguous” racists across the country!

Watch this to learn what FAIR’s like when the teleprompter turns off:

To help you out, here are some quotes from FAIR leaders. Try practicing them in front of the mirror before heading to the casting call.

John Tanton,  FAIR Founder and Board Director, and publisher of the Social Contract Press, a white nationalist hate zine:

“As Whites see their power and control over their lives declining, will they simply go quietly into the night? or will there be an explosion?”

Donald Mann, FAIR National Board of Advisors:

“We should give incentives to low-income people who agree to sterilization. We should make available free abortion to low-income people on demand. And companies should cut back or deny maternity leave to women who have more than two children.”

Dan Stein, FAIR President:

“It’s almost like [Asians and Hispanics] are getting into competitive breeding.”

John Tanton, FAIR Founder and Board Director, and publisher of the Social Contract Press, comparing immigrants to bacteria:

“In the bacteriology lab, we have culture plates. You put a bug in there and it starts growing and gets bigger and bigger and bigger. And it grows until it finally fills the whole plate. And it crashes and dies.”

In addition to its online ads, FAIR has front groups set up to dupe African Americans, labor union members, progressives, non-“ethnically ambiguous” Hispanics (that’s me!) and environmentalists into believing that FAIR’s white nationalist agenda is in their best interest.

This video will be a part of the hate group’s “online university,” which will help everyday people learn how to talk about the need for racial profiling, mass deportation, and racial division.

So if you’re a little “too black,” “too brown,” “too white,” or if you’re over 30, don’t worry — you’ll get a shot at stardom soon enough.

The casting is going to be held at Magick Lantern Video Production in Atlanta, though you’ll have to try getting the time from FAIR (we couldn’t track it down).

Good luck!

Cross-Posted at America’s Voice.