[black] girl pt. II

I am vanilla bean
Coffee cream
Chesnutt
Peanut butter
Caramel drop

Mocha latte
dark chocolate and everything flavor and shade in between

I am you full lipped
Thick hipped
Wide nosed with a
Booty that makes you stop and say hello

I am your bow legged
pigeon toed
Twisting my hips
Walking with a switch
Snapping my fingers and pumping my fist

I’m what they call thick

My body curves like cursive words

Evoking curse words from everybody who see it

I am your Shaniqua’s , your Cheyenne’s
Your Nefertiti’s , your Nicole’s
Your Keisha, and your Kennedy
I’m your Williams, Jacksons, Jenkins, Abdul’s, Mohammad’s, and your Winfrey’s

I’m your “that boy ain’t shhhhh!”
And “girrrrrrrl you betta quick!”

I’m your little sister
I’m your tacky auntie
I’m your best friend
I’m that other woman who took your man
I’m the grandma, I’m the cousin, I’m the baby’s mama and the child too

I’m that updo
I’m the braids
The jerri curl

The tapered fade
The natural waves
The big fro
And the hair weave that goes for days

I’m your confidant
Your sorority sister
Your hairdresser
And your favorite singer

I am that head scarf and house coat
Fitted tees & tight jeans
I’m the manicured nails
I’m driving that hoopty that never fails

And I’m pushing that range rover smelling like Chanel

I’m a dancer
I’m your cook

I’m the definition sexy,

I read and wrote the book

I’m eloquent enough for any Alpha

I’m sultry enough for any Nupe

I’m nasty enough for any Que

I’m crunk enough for any Sigma

I’m Iota radical, I coulda been a centaur too

I was your queen and your slave

I’m the great gorgeous Cleopatra

and Aunt Jemima with durags and 2 braids
I’m your forefathers who paved the way

I’m your celebrity
And your senator

I am your Oscar award winner

I’m your first lady
And the first lady
I’m the mother of earth

From my womb all nations were birthed

I’ve shed your tears
I’ve lived your fears
I am a life changer
I am the cultural re-arranger

I’m your doctor
I’m your lawyer
I’m you deep thinker
I’m your white wine drinker

I’m your ambitious girl

Forget what you’ve heard

I’m not your whore
I’m not your trick
And I will not be subjugated or called bitch

I’m beautiful in every sense of the word

My very presence evokes passion.

I live like the verb.

I’m your EVE.
All great things come from me.

I’m a black girl
You better ask about me.

I didn't write this poem

I couldn’t write this poem because I’m empty

I asked myself where your creativity?

No metaphor. No simile.

All that’s on my mind is PhD

and the GRE

And 2 jobs

and a To Do List that reads at the top

GET MORE MONEY

And term papers, and study groups, and trying to figure out the square root of 22

And being pretty sure that my philosophy professor hates me because class starts at 10:30

And I walk in at a quarter till faithfully…

See I really am empty, I can’t write this poem

No creativity.

No metaphor. No simile.

Damn sure no alliteration

Just instigation & frustration brought on by my so-called friends here in the Sooner Nation

Who are growing constantly impatient because that can’t use me quick enough

Hey Lauren, can I get a buck

And a ride to pick my homeboy up

Or better yet, just let me use your car

Because what you do for me is how I measure how good of a friend you are

See why I can’t write this poem

See this why I am empty…lack of creativity

No metaphor, no simile,

No love story, no passion just constant clashing

Because your boyfriend thinks you’re a joke

And you best friends called you a whore

And now that you little brothers no long 4, he doesn’t look up to you any more

Add this family drama

and multiply it by how pissed off I get when people hate on Obama

and how fed up I get with Soulja Boy

and other punch line rhymers

and how angry I am to hear that my little cousin has a baby’s momma that I have no words.

No verbs no metaphors, no similes

Lack of creativity

& Life is distracting me from writing my poetry…

But then it hits me like a symbols clashing in a symphony That life is in fact a mystery, stories woven together creating a beautiful tapestry Each of which speak to the artist in me, and ignite my creativity, and propels me to use my circumstances and write this poetic testimony Through I which I plant seeds and pray that they will grow miraculously like a the rose that grew from concrete And will hopefully stand a monument to remind me that to take the time out to find the creativity. There are metaphors There are similes And I can write this poetry

#shouldawentaHBCU

So I think this whole heated debate started with a couple harmless tweets about OU homecoming:

I hate that all the HBCU alum & students on my timeline are crunk about Homecoming and I can't relate

1:03 PM Oct 13th via Echofon

Today's OU homecoming festivities consisted of free fruit on the South Oval. #shouldawenttoaHBCU

1:04 PM Oct 13th via Echofon

From there, for the last week or so, I've been in conversation with #afewofmyfollowers about the idea of HBCU vs. PWI, the quality of education and the culture experience. I was shocked to learn that a lot of my peers (African American peers at that) thought that attending a PWI better prepared them for the corporate world and felt as though attending HBCU would have put them at disadvantage professionally.Some of my peers also there are only advantages that HBCU had over an PWI are social (i.e. parties, greek life etc). Needless to say, I was appalled . SOO I wanted to bring some more people into this debate because I'm sure I can't be the only one who's jaw dropped at these statements.

The Question (or questions):

1. Are PWI's better than HBCU's?

2. Does an African American student gain a better "real world" experience attending a PWI as opposed to HBCU?

3. What advantages do African American students receive from attending a PWI over an HBCU and vice versa?

You really don't have to read any further to tell me WHAT DO YOU THINK

but keep reading if you want to know what I think.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Let's rewind. Before I give you my opinion, here is some background information that you should be aware of in regards to this discussion.

What is an HBCU?

An HBCU is an historically black college or university. The first HBCU's were founded after the civil war and principal mission was, and is, the education of black Americans according to Higher Education Act of 1965. Most of these institutions were founded in former slave states because the public universities in the area would not admit African American students. Though these institutions were established in the interest of African American students, enrollment in these institutions are not limited to African Americans. The term PWI refers predominately white institutions where these African American students were once denied admission to or any college or university whose Caucasian enrollment outnumbers the enrollment of any other ethnic group.

What I think:

If you as you ask me do I think predominately white institutions are better than historically black colleges and universities I will answer you with a resounding HELL NO! I will say that attending a PWI offers different academic experience, but better, I think not. Sadly, a lot of people suffer from a "just because it's white means it's better mentality". I've heard too many of OU students say "I went to OU because I want my degree to mean something" as to imply that a degree from an HBCU wouldn't hold as much weight, which is wrong in my opinion. The logical thing to do is evaluate each institution on a case by case basis. A bad school is a bad school whether it is black or white. But if you compare an academically sound PWI with an academically sound HBCU, HBCU's compete and in some cases trump PWIs.

Saying a PWI better prepares students for the "real world" better than an HBCU can is equally as outrageous as to me for many reasons, first of which is retention. An African American student is more likely to complete a 4 year degree from a HBCU than PWI. When PWI can only retain 15-20% of African American students long enough to complete a degree, how can one argue that they are more equip to prepare students from the "real world"?

I would also argue that HBCUs produce more culturally well rounded students than PWIs. Beyond the academic education HBCUs offer, the cultural education is unmatched especially for African American students who have spent their entire academic careers in predominately white enviroments. I personally feel that PWIs push African American students to assimilate as a means to succeed, but I think that's a separate discussion. In any case, the networking opportunities that HBCUs offer African Americans students have yet to be matched by PWIs... I really could go on and on, but I'm going to stop here. I really am interested to see if I stand alone in thinking this things.

WHAT DO YOU THINK

Some Extra Reading: (That I don't necessarily agree with)

http://chronicle.com/blogs/innovations/why-do-we-have-hbcus/27506?sid=at&utm_source=at&utm_medium=en

http://www.colostate.edu/Depts/SAHE/JOURNAL2/2001/Challenges.htm

Dope Music

If music was a drug, I'd smoke it all day,

get high off it's melody

blaze with it's beats

and hallucinate through metaphors

tripping out on dope beats like dope feins

with tracks marked by the streets

If music was a drink, I'd stay drunk off my ass

throwing up lyrics

and pour more entendres in my glass

woozy with the head phones like a drunk with no class

punchlines like doubleshots

hooks like long necks

16 bars like 16 bottles in VIP with reserved tables, sections, and stars

If music was sex, I'd probably be a hoe

and I'd keep coming back to it begging and begging for more

new players

new positions

new potentials

trying to decide if I like it better when it's complex or simple

volume erections followed by

instant eargasisms

3 to 5 minutes of extacy

satisfaction, never leaving disappointing me

If music was love, I definitely be head over heels

public displays of affection translated by labels of parental discretion

the one four threes, the L-O-V-Es

over taking

controlling

and addicting me to

Dope Music.

#ThingsIveLearned Pt.II

#ThingsIveLearned You can't expect somebody do something you aren't willing to do yourself

#ThingsIveLearned To be comfortable being uncomfortable

#ThingsIveLearned That you can't change people, you can really only work on yourself

#ThingsIveLearned To let the PAST stay in the PAST

#ThingsIveLearned People are strategically placed in your life for reasons & seasons. Stop messing with the timing.

#ThingsIveLearned Jealousy is a weak emotion, rooted in insecurities.

#ThingsIveLearned ACTIONS speak louder than WORDS

#ThingsIveLearned You can't replace quality people. You just find cheap imitations

#ThingsIveLearned You cannot run from your destiny

#ThingsIveLearned If you brand yourself, people will buy into it

#ThingsIveLearned I am my own best critic

#ThingsIveLearned Change is the only consistent thing in life.

#ThingsIveLearned It truly is better to have loved and lost than to never have loved at all

#ThingsIveLearned Distance does make the heart grow fonder

#ThingsIveLearned Sometimes its better to listen to you heart than your head

#ThingsIveLearned Everybody is NOT worthy of your friendship

#ThingsIveLearned To lean not on my own understanding

#ThingsIveLearned Being alone doesn't mean you have to be lonely

#ThingsIveLearned Not to settle for less than I'm worth

#ThingsIveLearned To be comfortable with not being well liked as long as I'm respected

#ThingsIveLearned To challenge authority

#ThingsIveLearned To listen to that small still voice

#ThingsIveLearned You are as beautiful as you feel

#ThingsIveLearned God don't make no mistakes....

Cooked Crack: Arrogant Images

Photoshop...my second love

#nowplaying Summer 20ten

#nowplaying

1. “All I Do Is Win (remix)”- DJ Khaled & everybody and their mama
2. “Miss Me”- Drake featuring Lil Wayne
3. “Set Me Free”- Lloyd featuring Mystikal
4. “Bet I Bust”- B.O.B.
5. “Lose My Mind (remix)”- Young Jeezy featuring Drake
6. “I’m Looking For Ya”- Big Boi & Andre 3000 featuring Sleepy Brown
7. “Up All Night”- Drake featuring Nicki Minaj
8. “Blowing Money Fast”- Rick Ross
9. “I’m Back”- T.I.
10. “I’m Beaming”- Lupe Fiasco
11. “Shutterbug”- Big Boi
12. “Who Dat”- J. Cole
13. “Studio Lovin”- Wiz Khalifa
14. “Live Fast, Die Young”- Rick Ross featuring Kanye West
15. “Power”- Kanye West featuring Dwele
16. “Higher”- J.Cole
17. “Jump Up In The Air (Stay There)”- Erykah Badu featuring Lil Wayne
18. “All I Want Is You”- Miguel featuring J. Cole
19. “Fall In Love”- Estelle featuring Nas & John Legend
20. “Repercussions”- Lauryn Hill
21. “Closer”- Corrine Bailey Rae
22. “Turn Me Away (Get Munny)”- Erykah Badu
23. “Maybach Music III”- Rick Ross featuring T.I. & Erykah Badu
24. “Free Mason”- Rick Ross featuring Jay-Z
25. “Unforgettable”- Drake featuring Young Jeezy
26. “Premeditated Murder”- J. Cole
27. “Contemplate”- Wale featuring Rihanna
28. “Fear”- Drake
29. “90210”- Wale
30. “Light Up”- Drake ft. Jay-Z
31. “Out My Mind, Just In Time”- Erykah Badu
32. “Ambitious Girl”- Wale