Founder/CEO

Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Universal Street Academy
E-Newsletter


  The Makers and the Owners
Peace!
 
We will that this newsletter finds you in a state of peace and happiness. We have been very productive since our last correspondence. We are in Master Allah Why and we are showing and proving Why Allah is Master; because he is the best of planners, the best know-er and owner of the planet. Historically we've settle on the best part; however the Universal Street Academy is settled in what many may call the worst part (of the city); WE WILL make it the BEST PART. We are building righteousness and destroy that which is not. The Gods and Earths have never been more determined. We are writing history in advance and the future is bright!
 
We have much to catch up on; from the fish fry fundraiser, to the raffle results, our other institution in PowerHill and the huge turnout at the U.S.A. 'Build to be Born' Cleanup. Let's get right to it!


-Universal Street Academy
 
All For One. One for All.


On Saturday, May 18th 2013, the 5% made history. Universal Family from Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York traveled to PowerHill to add on to the massive clean out. More than 60 Gods and Earths came together to build and bond. This was a monumental day! Collectively, we removed more than 20,000 lbs (>10 tons!) of metal, wood, and debris!This was the last major demolition and removal before we begin designing our home. We worked from 12PM to about 4PM. Afterwards we nourished our bodies with the meal the Earths, who were gracious enough to provide, and enjoyed our social equality. It all happened in a flash. The Gods were on their way back north by 6PM.

New bonds were built, old ones continued, and new borns were sparked. The neighborhood USA is located in had never seen so many dedicated original men and women working as one for one common cause in the name of righteousness. May 18th 2013 will be remembered as one of the greatest days in Universal Street Academy's history...And When the call comes from abroad to build the next academy, regardless to where it is, your family from PowerHill will be there to show our supreme equality.
 
 
 
Top Left: Almighty Radi Allah and I Supreme Allah pause for a reflection.
Bottom Left: Um Allah putting the finishing touches on the second floor.
Top Right: Just some of the scrap metal from the basement.
Bottom Right: Gods hauling 'fill' to the dump truck.

Left: Allah Sha Sha showing his carpetry skills.   
Top Right: Gods drawing up plans for the basement.  
Bottom Right: Wisdom Understanding and C-Mecca ensuring all attendees are accounted for; "Make sure you sign the shirt!"

 
The Universal Street Academy Salutes
The Black Writers Museum
 
Our brother I-Supreme of the Desert in PowerHill has relocated his famed Black Writers Museum (BWM) to 5800 Germantown Avenue at the historic Vernon House (seen above). The Gods and Earths are making our mark and creating institutions that will stand the test of time! The Black Writers Museum is a cultural institution that emphasizes on black, historically significant language, poetry, and prose. Only minutes from the Universal Street Academy, the Black Writers Museum will build hand and hand with USA in bringing civilization to the forefront of our communities. Let's rewrite our history one word at a time! The Black Writers Museum will be conducting their 'Expressive Arts Summer Camp' from 7/8/13 to 8/16/13 featuring African Dance, drumming, and black classical literary arts with academic enrichment, sports, recreation, and nutrition. Look out for the official BWM Grand Opening September 2013!

SEEN AND HEARD: True-Skool Radio Interviews the Gods

 
Allah Universal Lord Life, Divine Universal Allah, and Khazire Knowledge Allah interviewed with True Father Allah on True Skool Radio in April regarding the Universal Street Academy, its early impact, and future plans. The interview was peace. We want to thank Saladin Quanaah Allah, who brokered the interview and of course True Father Allah for giving the Gods and opportunity to speak about our beloved Academy. You can check out the Full Interview HERE
 
U.S.A. April Raffle Winners...
Congratulations to the Winners of our April Raffle Drawing!!!
 
1st Prize: Ms. Destiny Smallwood (top left) $300 
2nd Prize: Mrs. Dee Click (bottom left) $200 
3rd Prize: Mr. Shabazz Dow $100

'Fresh Never Frozen' Fish Fry

In April we hosted our first fish fry and it was a great success! The doors were open, the music was on point, and the foood?! Just ask the people! All the funds raised went to Universal Street Academy incurred and inherited debts. We would like to thank everyone for coming out and supporting our event. Be sure to keep an eye out for our other upcoming events in May and June!


Builder's Build


'A Nation Needs its Icons, Institutions
 and Monuments'

Nation n. (from Latin--nationem, accusative of natio/gnatio; (g)natus "to be born," "nation, race, birth"): A chronologically constituted "stable" community of people, formed on the basis of a common language, territory, economic life, ethnicity and/or psychological make-up manifested in a common culture. [knowledge/ awareness + culture= nation].
Building our nation is something to get enthused about. Establishing its' institutions is what its all about. We have a project in which to pull our arm, leg, leg arm, head together, to achieve something great as a single entity (NGE, our universal family) and that makes me feel excellent. We are growing together as a nation, and we have a focus project that we are excited about. It is so great to see us coming to together for a common cause. Social means to advocate a society. . . for one common cause and equality means to be equal in everything (8/1-14).
Ironically, the discussion in this lesson was why the devil keep our people from their own social equality. They were always about "divide and conquer." There is no future for a man without a country. We are a people who need to come together. During slavery in this country, as a practice, they would never export slaves from the same locale. Once we (as several different groups) were brought to the wilderness of North America, we witnessed the White mans deeds from 1555 (in Jamestown, Virgina) until present. We were brought over here to be his tool; "his" slaves of mental death and power (14/1-40). So we were sold to slave owners like ox and mule and kept in the barns and plantations of White America as a smart beast of burden (with no culture of our own), helping our owners build his free nation, while we remained enslaved without any architecture, without any monuments, without land or homes. We were subject to the will and desires of these colonists--soon to be called Americans (this was 1555--221 years before America won their independence from England). Our people witnessed those people called the colonists, double-crossed the Native Americans (the two million/the brown man)--after they helped them survive America's harsh winters. They systematically stole the land from the Natives by way of broken treaties and aggression. They annihilated them with germ warfare (syphilis, gonorrhea), disrespected them through deceit, and all out war with the objective to take their land. We watched Whites, not as fellow human beings--not as man--but as a beast of burden who could comprehend the chronicles and posture of the Whiteman's progress in America.
Though we were on plantations all over the thirteen colonies, as well as the lands obtained after the Louisiana Purchase--slaves did not look at themselves as the same people with the same ethnicity and common suffering--but different people from different tribes, just as the devil wishes us to believe--because there's strength in numbers ( Why does he like the devil (7/1-36)(8-10/1-36)(6/1-14)(8/1-14); Why does the devil teach that (12/1-40).
We lost everything including our language and the knowledge of who we are as a people. To subjugate means to forcibly impose obedience or servitude. We were a people who were separated from our culture and not allowed to even speak or practice any of its elements by the colonists who subjugated us. We were their property, their tool--their inventions, their religion and manner of doing things was the only consistent thing in our lives (10/1-40). In early American history, their was no punishment for a slave-master killing a Blackman who was considered a slave to a White man. And generally speaking, in this society, killing a Blackman in America has a different consequence than killing a White. But worst of all, was the psychological perspective these acts had on Black people. If someone keeps telling you something over and over--aaand you don't take the time to investigate to see what is true and what is not--eventually you will give into their psychosis (13/1-40). As subjugated people, one is subject to what the other culture feels about or concerning them.
We seem to be more of a collective--more like one people or nation--during the Separate But Equal/Jim Crow Era. That is because we had no help, no assistance from White America--we had to rely on ourselves or perish. Sure fear and thoughts of inability entered the minds of our former Self (ancestors) but we had to make a way or perish. Necessity is the mother of invention. We got used to it and began to grow as people. We begin to prove to ourselves, their psychosis perpetrated upon us--was wrong. We became more confident in ourselves, given the experiences we were making. We began to know better. The message came through during 1933/1934. The Blackman was exposed to it, but he didn't fully get it. Elijah did, Malcolm did, the Father got the Morse code, but a lot of us seem to not be able to recover from the "sleepy slumber and psychosis" that the White man's culture placed upon the Blackman in America. Our people did not have that much belief in ourselves. Unless we saw it with our own eyes, we didn't believe the Blackman capable of ever doing much. White society had been downing us directly and indirectly for so long, until we subliminally started letting it seep in! It would take some time for us to totally see who we are as a people, but we know it will come from what we show and prove to ourselves.
When The NGE came about, we had to learn the culture and integrate it into our living. We had to make it our identity. We had to forget what the Whiteman taught us and taught their own people. We had to forget the tricknowledge (4/1-14). We were taught that the Blackman is God and that there is no God but Allah, but it took us time to understand that that meant we were one awareness operating through several forms. It took us even longer to work together and be advocated for one common cause--but as we grow older and steadfast within these principles or lessons--we are getting that clear mental picture known as understanding. We are not as reluctant to pull resources. Slowly we are considering the possibilities. We are waking up to what we can achieve by knowing what knowledge our former Self believed.
Right on Broad Street, near Broad& amp; Ridge Av., stands the Divine Lorraine Hotel. The hotel was purchased for pennies by the Father Divine group as a collective entity. This is exactly what Ron Karenga meant by collective economics (Kuji-chakalia). A lot of these things never made the major news because These were not things the Whites like to put in the papers because they didn't want to encourage us. Many Blacks were using the "power in numbers strategy" in the 1930's. There's strength in numbers, and our adversaries know this. Pretending like they are making some concessions, is how they usually diffuse our momentum. Just look at the Civil Rights chronology and you'll see. Simply put, the powers that be want to rob all and and live in luxury (12/1-40). The Father came to address our First Born's time, as they came to address ours, and we come to address the babies here and on the way. But still the colored man pollutes our playing field. . .
The NGE needs visual institutions for the community to see. A building that people passing by can say, "The Gods and Earths mean business!" We need a building where people can come by and see that we are a serious force within the community. We need "home" to provide "shelter from the storm." We need a place to come home to; an operation base for community opportunity. That's what the Universal Street Academy is. It is a place for brilliant minds to landscape. We need a place to gather together, to strengthen one another; a place of fellowship. We need a base to enterprise. Marcus Garvey had his members working during the Depression because they sold various necessary perishables to its' members (toilet paper, paper towels, brooms, shovels, car tires, etc). They kept their money in their own hands.
We are living in some exciting times. My persons is very pleased at the developments here. This isn't the first time we thought about developing a school/ academy, but my personal perspective is--then our desire was there but our individual development and maturity--as a group--was not up to the level where it is today; nor were our skills as entity. "Life" has taught us a lot about the other side of Allah: "The I am because we are part." The Universal Street Academy is a much better building in terms of features, it is situated in pivotal neighborhood that services several Black areas. It is on a major avenue, Germantown and around the corner from Broad Street--one of our city's "main vein" streets (Market Street being the other). It is also very close to Temple's Medical School. It has two major auditoriums with stages, which can double as ballrooms for our own activities and can be available for rental. It has two accompanying store fronts for rental and money making ventures. But most of all, it is something our nation owns, so it can generate its own income and enterprises, as well as a place of refuge.
This is a real good move to begin controlling our own destiny.
Allah U Akbar! This is great!
Peace,
A.U.L Life Justice Shabazz
 


Let's Get Dirty
We Meet at the Academy every Saturday between 8AM and 1PM
3306 Germantown Avenue, Philadelphia PA 19140
 
Save the Date
Mark your calendar, set your reminders, notify your family and join us in celebration of our 31st
Annual Family Day.
Cookout July 7th 2013, LEMON HILL PAVILLION, PowerHill, PA 12PM
 
 
If you would like to subscribe to our newsletter please send an email to Ustreetacademy@yahoo.com
 
For Secure Online Donations, please visit:
Until Next Time....
Peace!



Saturday, May 04, 2013

Silhouettes of the Soul
A Book of Poetry and Prose by Roger A. Talley
 
Silhouettes of the Soul is the second book published through my company Quanaah Publishing and this has been a very inspiring journey reading and editing Roger A. Talley's writings. As a Poet myself, who hadn't written in this style in quite some time, Roger reawakened in me feelings that I hadn't poetically articulated in a while. Silhouettes is his personal testimony of being embraced by love, strengthening his spirit, and learning to live a full life; a poetic commentary about his quest to gain understanding and increase the value of family, friendship, and faith in his own abilities.

The Author, Roger A. Talley, was born and raised in Los Angeles, California until moving to Detroit, Michigan in his late teens. At 21 he joined the U.S. Army and dedicated eight years of service to the military.

A career in Law Enforcement soon followed until a tragic accident ended his career and the new millennium brought new career opportunities. Roger found himself pursuing a career in the Casino Industry, and currently holds a position in Management at Seneca Niagara Casino in Niagara Falls, New York with the vision and intent to achieve a top level management position. He is currently in pursuit of his Master's degree in Business Management at Empire State College to attain his goal. His leadership and intellectual abilities have been augmented by his love of life, willingness to learn and new found opportunities for growth. Roger has an uncanny ability to navigate through the negative inevitabilities of life always effectuating a positive end. He strives to keep his public and private life aligned, always keeping his eyes on the prize.      

I want to thank Roger for sharing his intimate experiences and illustrations about love in a way that reminds me of what I've once shared and strive to share once again. His book, and a Woman very close to me, were the inspiration behind various poems I've written recently and my musical piece My Tapestry of Love.
 

My Tapestry of Love...

I want to thank Author Asia M. Jackson (Rarity of Beauty and The Rose Thorn's Purpose) who helped in the editing and artistic development of Silhouettes of the Soul and Author D. Scott (Stay in Your Lane) for her consulting and business acumen.   

If you would like to purchase a copy, Silhouettes of the Soul is now available directly through our E-Store, Quanaah Publishing, Amazon, and can be ordered through any bookstore or store that sells books Globally.
 
Peace,
Saladin