Animation Series: Who is that Mystery God?

In the Atlantis School For Gifted Youngsters animation episode we discuss "Who is that Mystery God?" and explore the journey of Knowledge of Self.

***VIEW BELOW***

Preparing Ambassadors Of The Future!

Want to know more?! Click HERE

   As I mentioned in one of my previous "articles", my "Boys as Allies" Rights of Passage Program was the first official initiative through my Atlantis School For Gifted Youngsters. Boys as Allies is a FREE 10-Week Rights of Passage Program for boys ages 12 to 14 that explores ideas and myths about manhood, masculinity and is a proactive deterrent against sexual violence. Some of the topics we cover are: Self Knowledge, The Male "Box", Misogyny and Sexual Violence, Respecting Intimate Partners, Being Allies with Girls and Woman and etc. 

   Maybe a few years ago I did a free online self-development course via the Periscope App and since then people have contacted me about doing another one. It was through that demand and my desire to create something more comprehensive that this Youth Outreach Development Course was ultimately born! This unique online Youth Outreach Development Course instructs students in the area of youth advocacy and equips you with the knowledge and ability to successfully inspire, empower and educate the youth. As a child educator for over two decades I considered what were some of the most important points that every person should know when engaging our youth. This course is not only a great introduction for anyone who has never worked with youth, but it also a great source of professional development for those who already work with youth in some capacity. The proceeds from this course go directly to the Atlantis School For Gifted Youngsters and the completion of this course is required for all future residency instructors.

   As I've learned a very long time ago; the path to becoming a successful youth advocate takes dedication and time, but if you put your mind to it, you'll become one of the best! So what are you waiting for? Our youth need you! You can check out and share this course at the link below:

Atlantis School For Gifted Youngsters

Youth Outreach Development Course

Peace,

Saladin

Lord of All Worlds: Basir Fhem and his Journey Abroad

In Episode 51 of Atlantis Build Talk Radio I feature an exclusive build with one of my God Brothers [Basir] I taught over 20 years ago; Basir Fhem. Once he gained KOS [Knowledge Of Self] he moved to Jerusalem and lived there for some years. He then moved to Benin and eventually settled in Ghana. In this build we discuss his personal journey, cultural differences and similarities, growth and development opportunities and much more!! You can listen/download the interview below:

Institution Building and The Atlantis School For Gifted Youngsters

   
   In Episode 50 of Atlantis Build Talk Radio I feature my Sept 2nd, 2017 interview on Do Tha Knowledge Radio where I discuss the monetization of "Wokeness", my current projects, the Atlantis School For Gifted Youngsters I'm building, my journey as a youth advocate, author, nomination for the 2017 BP Awards in Atlanta Georgia, the October 6th-8th Region 5 Growth & Development Conference I'll be attending in Dallas Texas and other sciences of life!

Peace,
Saladin

Dear Santa Claus

Dear Santa,

   I know you haven't heard from me in a while but I'm writing you on behalf of those of us who still believe in you. Many of us may not say it, but we damn sure do. We believe in you just like we believe these women taking contorted body selfies actually got an hourglass figure. We believe in you like we believe the generic commentary people copy, paste and post on Facebook to look intelligent. We also believe in you like we believe these goldbricking charlatans who claim they're for "the people" yet didn't do a damn thing for the people, in-kind, this year. We may not call you Santa, or even write you letters anymore, but many of us still believe in you.

   The other day in my preschool class when one of my students asked how you made all of those toys another student said, "He don't make them, he gets them from Walmart." Although I don't think you're buying your sh*t from Walmart now, it warmed my little Five Percenter heart to know that my four-year-olds haven't been exposed to that flat earth ghetto scholarship that would have them believing your elves are snow Twa people and direct descendants of Bes.

   Anyway, I know that Christmas has always been about the children but I wanted to ask could you do something for us adults this year? I know you know everything Santa but things look a lot different here in America than on Fox News from the North Pole. Some of my people were really f*cked up behind Billary not getting elected. So if you can.., please stuff their stocking with a little pick me up. Aside from that, here's a small Christmas Wish List I came up with if you decide to do something for us adults this year:

• Please give some substance, work ethic and the ability to execute to people who are a part of the Conscious Community or who claim to be conscious, have knowledge of self, be WOKE or promote black power. Santa these are some of the most sh*t talkiness sedentary people I've ever seen. If that's too much to ask, please just give these Monday morning quarterbacks some constructive sh*t to do next year. I speak for many people in saying that we are tired of seeing and hearing them critique stuff they have no intention of doing anything about. 

• Please give some solid reference materials to women throwing around the title Queen. Many of these women primarily define a Queen in terms of extravagance, appearance and Diva-like decorum. Even the names some of them identify with are aesthetic, lacking substance and have nothing to do with a woman's character and virtues. Better yet, there are quite a few sisters I know who exemplify what a true Queen is. If you can just amplify their social media platforms next year so when women are looking for that sense of consciousness, integrity and empowerment, they'll primarily come in contact with them. That would be excellent.

• I'm not sure how cool you are with Mark Zuckerburg but can you please see if you can get him to automatically flag the bullsh*t memes and gossip in some of the Five Percenter Facebook groups I'm in? I think if people are forced to only post things that practically engage others for the purpose of actually building something tangible, especially for our children, as opposed to theorizing, debating or having pissing contests on Nation History, we could lighten your sleigh Santa.  

• I would ask for something for these die hard Trump supporters but I'm not sure how you could make their Christmas any whiter. Well, just for sh*ts and giggles leave them and their children a gang of President Obama paraphernalia. 

• Lastly, could you please give some brothers a list of agencies, organizations and institutions in their city where they can volunteer throughout the year. We need more men involved in helping build strong communities.

   Santa I hope these things weren't too much to ask on such short notice and I understand the enormity of getting it done. I'm only asking you to help us help ourselves. As always, I will continue to do whatever I can to add-on and I want to THANK YOU again for all you do to brighten our children's day in the dark world we adults have made for them. Tell Mrs. Claus I said Peace!

Saladin

Madam Alchemsa and the Metaphysical Music Serum

   As a Creative Artist I'm always inspired and working on some project whether it's literary or musical. The other day I woke up with an idea of putting an album together and making it a free download so I went into my studio and about an hour later I was finished. To include my readership and listening audience I put out a call on my Facebook Page for people to share a photo of themselves, an image they took or an image they created and encouraged people to vote on the one they liked best. The one with the most LIKES I would use as the Album Cover for this music project. I received many entries and all of them would have made beautiful covers yet the winner was the above image submitted by a Queen named Shaina. Based upon her image I also came up with the Album Title: "Madam Alchemsa and the metaphysical music serum."

   I want to THANK EVERYONE who participated by submitting images and voting and I will that this project is inspirational, empowering and educational.

FREE DOWNLOAD HERE

Peace,

Saladin

Deconstructing Kanye West

  

   Kanye West is arguably one the most creative, insightful visionaries of our time. Many would also argue that he is one of the biggest a**holes and the most immature. Whatever we think or feel about him, fifty years from now it would be virtually impossible to discuss Pop Culture during the Millennial generation without mentioning the social commentary, musical and fashion contributions of Kanye West. 

   Since the mid 90's of his Roc-A-Fella Producer days up to the present, West has evolved into somewhat of a Pop Cultural Messianic Figure and people either love him or hate him. Coming from an educational background in Chicago, I could always see a growing social consciousness throughout West's music and that's what resonated with me. It wasn't until September 2nd, 2005 that he took a public stance and vocally expressed it during the live Hurricane Katrina telethon by stating, "George Bush doesn't care about black people" in regards to how the government handled this natural disaster. Although he later clarified his statements, West's often unpredictable social commentary began to take center stage, often to the point of eclipsing his artistic contributions. Since 2004 to the present date West is known for his anti-Award Showism. He's done everything but storm out of, publicly criticize, boycott and even take the microphone from an artist who received an award he felt she didn't deserve. Some shows have strived to accommodate this by giving West a platform to speak and this often comes back to bite them in the a**. He's walked out in the middle of concert performances and stopped performances midstream to share his philosophical views about everything from the music industry, fashion, politics and humanity. He's turned interviews upside down, he's shared his frustrations with the Paparazzi and has even announced his run for Presidency in 2020. On top of that he dated stripper Amber Rose and eventually married and has two children with Kim Kardashian who was catapulted into the limelight because of her sex-tape with Ray J. Most recently West cancelled the rest of his Saint Pablo tour dates before being hospitalized at the UCLA Medical Center for sleep deprivation and exhaustion. Through all of this, and more times than not, West has expressed very lucid thoughts on everything from capitalism, politics, human/civil rights, religion, the music/fashion industry, relationships and etc. Oftentimes his delivery is questionable. The very best interview I've seen was with Zane Lowe for BBC Radio.

"I've been sent here to give y'all my truth even at the risk of my own life, even at the

risk of my own success, my own career. I've been sent here to give y'all the truth."

-Kanye West-

   I think in order to gain a sense of where Kanye West is often coming from it's important for us to consider, and strive to understand, the perspective of a Creative. Although the content and contributions may be different, as a Creative, there is not much of a difference between Michael Jackson, Phyllis Hyman, Dave Chappelle, Nina Simone, Basquiat, Sly Stone, Lauryn Hill, Jimmy Hendrix, Zora Neale Hurston, Richard Pryor, Marvin Gaye and many others. To be a Creative and simultaneously exist within a racist/sexist entertainment industry that seeks to capitalize off of ones intellectual property is very difficult to cope with. Many have literally lost their mind. Others became drug addicts and alcoholics. Some left America while others walked away and became a recluse. Many died here, from a broken heart. 

   Being a Creative requires a person to think differently about life and solve problems in a new way. In order to do this, Creatives face fears, self-doubt and take risks that many people don't. Thought leaders; Creatives are ambassadors of an uncharted territory the world has yet to discover and fully appreciate. They are the subject matter experts of the unknown. To be this kind of person we must be open to inspiration at all times. Inspiration that often defies social norms and conflicts with the status quo. As a painter that may mean working countless hours and through sleepless nights to finally unveiling a social justice painting at a gallery owned by the very people who've fought against it. As an actor that may mean turning down the highest paid role you've ever received and Grammy shoo-in because it conflicts with your core values. As a musician that may putting your career and family security on the line to fight getting out of a record contract. As a fashion designer or model it may mean walking the long hard road of independent slow money instead of selling out your image, and images, to the highest bidder. All of these are life decisions that people often take for granted that Creatives have to make. There are many times I've literally been in my recording studio all night. There are many times I've been stirred out of my sleep in the middle of the night with an idea that I immediately start writing about. Many of these articles and chapters in my books are the result of this process. Being a Creative is like being on call from the universe because inspiration is a round-the-clock devotion to work. Although the beauty of what we manifest is timeless, the backstory, blood, sweat, tears and hours of dedication that often goes into forging such beauty is something many never see. What many also don't see is the stress, frustration and physical/social strain. As I've said, many Creatives have always strived to find various methods to cope with this in a society that tries to quantify, package, sell and often simultaneously marginalize, genius. West is not known for having a history of drug use or alcoholism. Aside from past lovers, he has not been associated with any women except his wife. The question many of us should be asking is how has he coped? I would argue that what we've seen from his off-the cuff interviews, public meltdowns and concert rants is not him simply venting or throwing a tantrum. I would also argue that this medium has become his coping mechanism; a platform he's learned to use as an outlet and form of therapy.

   There's an earthly gift and worldly curse that comes along with being a Creative. On one had you may be gifted to write the most beautiful poetry or paint the most brilliant picture the world has ever seen about love, yet be companionless or experience some of the most tumultuous relationships a person could imagine. Creatives are some of the most complex, sophisticated people to understand and the perimeters of a world always proves to be a societal box not large enough to contain their spirit. To paraphrase what Dave Chappelle once said, it's easy to call someone crazy. It's dismissive. It doesn't require you to examine anything they're saying or what's behind them acting the way they do. Maybe the environment West, and countless other Creatives have been in, is a little sick. If that is even part of our conclusion, we must ask ourselves what can we do to teach them, about healthy ways to disengage or healthy coping skills to thrive? I challenge all of us to not just consider that but strive to actively seek solutions; the mental, physical and socioeconomic health of our growing Millennial and Alpha generation depends upon that. 

Peace,

Saladin

MOST Black Men...

MOST Black Men...

     One of the surest ways to get blindsided by life is to start off with a wrong or false premise. A premise is the basis [foundation] of an argument or theory. For example, if I start off saying, "MOST women...", that is the wrong premise to argue from. It suggests that I know most women when I absolutely don't. Therefore, everything that concludes that wrong statement has more of a chance to be wrong too. Why? The foundation isn't solid. If you've ever witnessed a person start off with the wrong premise you may have also seen that conversation take a sharp detour to address the wrong premise before going any further. For example, before I could even go into talking about "MOST women" a critical thinker would first address the fact that I don't know most women to speak on them. Starting off wrong sets the tone for whatever else I have to say about women that has a high probability of being wrong too. At best, all I could say is "most women I know" -which sets the right premise and frames the conversation in the proper context. 


     What inspired this article are the countless false premises and arguments I see offline and on social media. While some false premises are deliberately made as clickbait, there are those who simply don't know how to soundly communicate their ideas. They may be well intended, and even have a valid point to make about their own personal experiences or observations, yet it all goes out of the window when they start off wrong. I once saw a Facebook post get so out of hand that it resulted in violence offline, all because of a wrong premise about how someone died.


     I recently had an online exchange with a black woman who shared a post of a white man being interviewed by a black woman on a South African News Station. Out of frustration of her questions, the white man walked off of the show and threatened her to the point he had to be escorted out of the building. The woman who posted this video captioned it, "This is how most black men treat black women now a days. It's pitiful" Upon seeing this I commented that at best all she could accurately say is, "most black men I know." Instead of considering the fundamental flaw in her statement her only response was "My mother always told me only a hit dog makes noise." The irony in this is she was literally talking to a black man who is not "MOST black men" she described. In fact, all of my colleagues are not like that. When faced with this scenario some people take pride in trying to convince someone like this otherwise. If it's a child who lacks the experience then I share with them some examples they can consider outside of their sphere of awareness. If it's an adult with no physical/mental impairments that limits their experience or sphere of awareness then I don't waste time trying to explain anything. This is an able-bodied adult who is ignorant by choice. Meaning, they choose to ignore new information and experience anything outside of their limited sphere of awareness. With this person it is only a matter of time before life shows them something otherwise. In this woman's case, who was single, she'll miss brothers like myself who don't fit into her conceptual prison house.


     As I said, many arguments start from the place of a wrong premise. Consider Donald Trump's false premise about Mexican Immigrants that, "THEY [The Mexican Government] send the bad ones over because they don't want to pay for them" or Hillary Clinton's 1996 Speech at Keene State College Speech describing inner-city [black and brown] youth as "superpredators" -a word first mentioned by Princeton Political Science Professor John DiIulio to describe these youth as subhuman, wild, amoral creatures ready to violate and murder Americans without a conscience. Both of these false premises, and many others, have been used to criminalize people of color in this country and reinforce an image of inferiority/distrust that permeates every institution, that colors every resource and fuels this economy.


     How do we begin to change that? To start, knowledge must be our foundation, not belief, hearsay or feelings. Having the facts enables us to speak from a position of surety and confidence because our proposition is sound. When we start off right, with the right information, the conclusions drawn from what we say and do will be less likely to be wrong. Belief, hearsay and feelings don't afford us the same sense of security and stability because they aren't concrete. People believe whatever they want regardless of the facts, hearsay is nothing but a rumor and feelings change like the wind. While there's a place for all of these perspectives, they're not the most sound sources to build upon because they're too transitory [impermanent]. The more we know, we have the ability to make wiser decisions. It's difficult to make wise decisions when we don't know anything first. So as we become more informed about people, places and things ,we'll begin to expand our sphere of awareness and experience life beyond the limits of belief, hearsay and feelings. We'll begin to "know" the "ledge" [knowledge] of the false premises we once stood upon and willfully speak and act wiser than we did before.


     In the series Kung Fu, Master Kan in speaking to his student Caine about perceiving the way of nature said, "Avoid rather than check. Check rather than hurt. Hurt rather than maim. Maim rather than kill. For all life is precious nor can any be replaced." With growth and development comes power, and this influence makes us a resource and responsible to those who are unaware. There are times I didn't follow the above advice in regards to mental combat and killed rather than maim, maimed instead of checking a person and checked a person instead of avoiding them. As I've gotten older I realize that many arguments can be avoided with a few well chosen words or avoiding the conversation altogether in order to preserve the relationship. People are capable of drawing the right conclusions, such as "my love wasn't wrong, I just shared it with a person unwilling to reciprocate it" if they can get their premise right, "there is a chance for love" as opposed to  a false premise like "b*tches ain't sh*t but hoes and tricks" or "all men cheat." It takes courage and receptivity to think outside of the box before stepping outside of the box, but it's a way of thinking and a step that's worth it. To say that MOST or ALL people, places and things are a certain way, especially when we don't know MOST or ALL people, places and things, is equivalent to building a house with straw or sticks. And it's only a matter of time before the big bad wolf comes and huffs, puffs and blows that house down.

Peace,
Saladin

Planet Asia Interview via/KOS Series

In Episode 36 of Atlantis Build Talk Radio I feature a raw, uncut interview with Power Allah; AKA Hip Hop Artist Planet Asia. This interview was conducted following his performance during the Tour Wavy with Ras Kass on August 16th in Bethlehem (Buffalo, NY). Planet Asia elaborates on his growth and development process, Supreme Mathematics, 120 lessons and of course his introduction to Hip Hop.

-click link-
 Planet Asia Interview via/KOS Series

College Access: Setting The Course

College Access

Setting The Course

On Saturday August 13th I had the pleasure of attending the College Simulation Experience to speak on a panel for high school youth about the importance of Self Advocacy and role of Social Justice. The College Simulation Experience is an initiative dedicated to improving college retention rates for students from disadvantaged backgrounds. This stylized enactment of college life used dramatic role playing to help pre-college students develop time management and financial management skills, as well as better understand the responsibilities associated with collegiate success. For the last two decades I've worked with youth, from preschoolers to college age students. Of my many experiences one of the most alarming has been the lack of career preparedness on the part of our young boys of color. It's been quite common for me to talk to a young man who is finishing his junior year or in the middle of his senior year of high school with a desire to go to college with no knowledge of the SAT; an entrance exam created by the College Board that's used by most colleges and universities to make admissions decisions. When I say no knowledge I'm talking about they never even heard of it before. On a couple of occasions I've had this conversation with young men with their parents and the parents didn't know what the SAT was either. My response? I began to educate them, and youth as early as elementary school, about college access and provide them with the resources so they're successful in their undertakings. One project I did was the A.S.I.A. College Tour Project which enabled me to sponsor two high school students on a black college tour. In recent years I learned about another subject we need to be educated about in regards to college access and that is the trending concept of Previewing and Forward Credit summer school classes.

Previewing and Forward Credit Summer Classes are classes offered by high schools for students who are striving to get a head start on a class they'll be taking next year or to earn credit for a class they won't need to take next year. One of the sixth graders in my STYA Program actually earned Forward Credit this year taking a math and science class this summer before he starts middle school in the autumn. Students also take summer classes to accumulate AP [Advanced Placement] class credit because College Admission Boards look at AP exams. In many cities college access has become so competitive that high schools often hold summer school lotteries for students to be admitted to their programs. Many of these programs such as Northfield Mount Hermon in Massachusetts have tuition costs of $2,900 per day and $3,700 when English is a second language. Horace Mann School in Pelon [Bronx] offered a summer physics class to students for $4,175 and the Hun School of Princeton in New Jerusalem [New Jersey] offered boarding tuition for $5,675 this year. Therein lies a problem that widens a disparity that already exists between students who can afford this and low income students; low income students simply don't have access to these summer school programs and an opportunity to preview or earn forward credit for classes next year. low income students already find it difficult to compete and this puts them even further behind unless we can help supplement their access to creative ways. This is also important in terms of encouraging our youth to explore the trades and entrepreneurship as viable alternatives. Not because they can't compete but because data supports the fact that many of these students competing for college access usually don't settle into a career path that's in alignment with the degree and debt they spent their life paying for.

My young Queens don't come from a place of financial access where their mother and I had/have the kind of disposable income to pay for the college access other parents could. We've had to canvass the landscape to find any and every program available to give them an advantage to academically compete with those parents who could send two to three of their children to a Hun School of Princeton for summer without robbing Peter to pay Paul. This has also been challenging because we co-parent our Queens and reside in different states. Canvassing that landscape resulted in finding free SAT classes being offered on Saturdays, taking them on college tours, doing community service, networking to gain access to resources and enrolling them in programs such as project Forward Leap. We also encouraged them to explore high school sports or extracurricular activities they'd like which would could result in a partial or full scholarship to college. My eldest Queen Asiyah played lacrosse in high school and successfully earned an athletic scholarship to Howard University to play lacrosse; ranked #2 among all Black College and Universities by U.S. News and World Report. She's a senior this year and has been awarded Defense of Player of the Year twice. My youngest Queen Aziza also attends Howard and is in her sophomore year. She's 19 now and I have a picture of her wearing a Howard U shirt when she was 8 years old; which says a lot about her vision and ability to execute her plan to reach her goal. Although we as parents helped provide them with resources, encouragement and access to experiences to expand their mind and its possibilities, it was/is ultimately up to them to be self-determined and discipline enough to set forth a plan to reach their goals. It's their life, not ours and we're proud to see them evolve into young women.

As parents, we are like many parents who simply didn't or don't have the money to do certain things for our children that others could. What we didn't or don't have financially we learned to find or create. For example, every year since our Queens have been in college they've attended summer school to earn Forward Credit for college. They didn't have to pay for these classes because their ole Earth works Administration at a college where they could take these classes tuition free. We learned creative ways to help our children gain access to those resources and I've likewise shared these creative ways with parents and youth I've worked with over the years. While this is a start this definitely isn't enough and cannot replace actual credit hours many privileged students are literally buying during the summer to bolster their high school transcripts and earn free transportation to college. Even though The No Child Left Behind Act signed into law by George W. Bush over a decade ago [2002] under its Title One was established to distribute funding to schools and school districts with a high percentage of students from low-income families, funding needs to be directed to assist these students seeking to Preview and earn Forward Credit during School Classes. This funding is initially distributed to state educational agencies who then allocate those funds to local education agencies that invest those funds to public schools in need. This means that it will require active Parent/Teacher Associations and other Lobby Groups to work with local city and county elected officials who can leverage state officials to address this disparity. If you're already living in a school district where schools are already in need there is already funding being directed to those schools under the guise of No Child Left Behind. Therefore the goal is simply a redirection of funding already there to help improve college access and retention rates for disadvantaged students by offering SAT/ACT classes and practice exams, scholarships for students seeking Forward Credit in Summer Classes and even transportation to other schools in the district that programs that will help close the college access gap. 

In closing, whether you have children or not, you may have nieces, nephews, cousins or friends with children who need to understand this changing academic landscape in America where youth are no longer being sentenced to summer school for failing but choosing to go, and paying money, just to get ahead. This is setting the tone for the level of competitiveness within our future global market and the power dynamics between the Haves and Havenots. If we're not in a financial position for our children to formally Preview a class next year then we need to find out what they will be learning and have them enrolled in some program, find a tutor, tutor them ourselves or explore other creative ways to keep them academically competitive so they don't fall behind their peers. If we don't personally have the financial ability to help them enroll in summer classes to earn Forward Credit then we must consider creative ways to finance it such as crowdfunding, gofundme and etc. There are also organizations and agencies that provide scholarships to support youth like this. We gotta canvass the landscape! Many of our children aren't college bound and they also need to know that it's O.K., everybody isn't. However, they also must understand that they must have a career alternative such as learning a trades and being an entrepreneur. If they're not striving to legitimately eat to bring something to the table or build their own table they will be on someone's menu.

Peace,

Saladin

Relief Valveology (RV)

Relief Valveology (RV)

I recently had a dream about how systems work, or don't work, based upon a role of a relief valve. Over the years I've watched the ebb and flow of important issues within the mainstream media and various talking heads weigh in on everything from #BlackLivesMatter, police brutality, foreign policy, the 2016 Election and Monsanto to the show Empire, Caitlyn Jenner, LHHATL, Raven Symone and McDonalds offering breakfast All Day. While some of these critical perspectives and the dissatisfaction is genuine, I think many of them serve as valves to simply release pressure on "the system", not to fundamentally change anything.

So what is a relief valve (RV)? A relief valve (RV) is a gate-like device used to control or limit the pressure on a system or vessel that can cause that system's equipment to fail and become damaged. The valve is designed to safeguard a system by limiting the maximum amount of pressure on that system. To relieve that pressure the valve opens. When pressure conditions return to normal, the valve close. Without a relief valve pressure will continue to grow until other components in the system fail, thus ultimately relieving that pressure.

Sound familiar? Have you ever listened to the perspectives of some people and see that their underlying intent is safeguarding the system/status quo? What about those who function like a valve; they open [their mouth] to speak out on issues the people are dissatisfied about, yet close [their mouth] when the pressure to change those conditions returns back to normal? In Freemasonry this is the same role and responsibility of the Tiler/Tyler; a gate-keeper and symbolic valve used to [safe]guard the outer door to the lodge from potentially malicious, unqualified and nosey people. Tiler comes from the Latin word "tegere" which means 'to cover' or roof. In other words, this is a person who got the system covered... Although some of these people you see organizing rallies in cities, doing lectures, sharing videos and etc. may not be due paying members of a masonic lodge, they act as Tilers none the less. I elaborate on Tilers and other things in my latest book Eyes Wide Shut: The Science of Secret Societies. While some may even be on the government's payroll to quell the emotions of the public who are putting pressure on changing public policy, some are not but they both serve the purpose of maintaining the status quo. Keep in mind that I am not talking about Don Lemon or those who come from the David Clarke tribe. We know their posture and it's not to release the pressure building up within black/brown communities. It's obvious that they, and others, are here to safeguard the system that's already failing in many areas. I'm referring to those some of us assume are for a new system of things. I'm talking about some of these black militant, black conscious, nationalistic, religious, Pan-African, metaphysician, sovereign folks who appear to be banging on the system. I'm also talking about some of these white liberal, free-range, off the grid, anarchist, racism conference attending, political candidate Eminemians who appear to be banging on the system too. Some of them, are only here, to provide vent forums. And once you've gotten your concerns off of your chest while they nod their heads and articulate they understand, things remain the same. And if you ask too many questions, get deemed unqualified or accused of entertaining malicious intents against them or their leaders, you'll see the Tiler come out.

At the end of the day we must be mindful that some people are simply not invested in being change agents to help transform the conditions of this world. They're nothing more than relief valves that helps release the pressure being put on this system. It doesn't matter what gender, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation they are; they're all gate keepers. Age also doesn't matter because the older ones strive to socialize and incentivize the younger generation to do the same thing. There are some things right about what goes on here in America in comparison to other places in the world. There are also things that aren't right that needed to be changed yesterday, perhaps many years ago. In order to do this, knowledge must be our foundation, not sentimentality, being in our feelings or getting riled up to rally around talking heads who aren't invested in change. The more we know, the more we can personally and collectively do n order to see the changes in our families, communities and society as a whole. It's not about valve-like position aspirations or being proud that we're the only person of color on our job. The only pride in being a gate-keeper is safeguarding the lives of the most vulnerable members of our society; our youth, elders, women, disabled, disenfranchised and poor. And it shouldn't take pressure from these segments of our population to make changes in the way this system operates. When we don't, that pressure will continue to grow until other components in the system, including the system itself, will fail. It's not rocket science, I'm simply talking about relief valves. 

Peace,

Saladin

Unrequited Love: Gamophobia

Unrequited Love: Gamophobia

In today’s technological age of text messaging, social media and smart phones we have instantaneous access to information, people, places and things unlike ever before. I can literally go online right now and order an item rush delivery from China that will arrive at my doorstep within the week. I talk to my God brother in Ghana like he's next door using a free app and I have successfully hosted a Hip Hop album [Unique Heat Vol 3: Clearer Understanding] produced overseas without having set foot in the UK. That is convenience. The downside to all of this is the minimization and lost of the human touch. With this lost of a human touch has come chronic and temporary emotional unavailability. People may often text instead of talk and tag each other on Facebook/Instagram instead of touch. This growing departure from human contact has also spawned a fear of commitment that manifests itself in the form of 'situationships': per diem relationships. Per diem meaning "per day" or "for each day" because these freelance arrangements have no long term commitment or stability.

When it comes to emotional unavailability, there are various reasons why people have issues with closeness and intimacy. As elaborated on in my book GAMES, some people have emotional unavailability issues going all the way back to their childhood. These issues, sometimes defined as R.A.D. [Reactive Attachment Disorder], classifies children who have a problem forming meaningful attachments/bonds with others. Scientists examined how the lack of attachment (stroking) that babies received over a period of time made them either not respond or react negatively to social attachments with others. In addition to the emotional, social and cognitive components, this lack of response and/or negative reactions towards attachments was also measured in the low or stabilized levels of Oxytocin these children had during pleasurable inter-activities. Children like this, without the proper counseling, tend to carry this into adulthood. Other reasons some people are emotionally unavailable include, but are not limited to, failed relationships, divorce, [sexual, emotional, physical or financial] abuse, trauma, mental illness, parental alienation, addiction, being workaholics and etc. Whatever the cause may be, the effect is the same; a person’s unwillingness or inability to be close to and share space with others. One of the other things that's worth mentioning here in regards to emotional unavailability is the trans-generational trauma First World [Original] People have suffered at the hands of western colonialism, global white supremacy, institutionalization racism and sexism. As a coping mechanism, many of us have learned to not put our thoughts or feelings out there and have been emotionally unavailable to America, so-called Americans and American ideals for generations; our livelihood and survival has depended upon that.

According to Dr. Judith Orloff, psychiatrist/author of Emotional Freedom and other books, the ten key signs that someone is emotionally unavailable are:

1. They are married or in a relationship with someone else.
2. They have one foot on the gas pedal, one foot on the brake.
3. They are emotionally distant, shut down, or can’t deal with conflict.
4. They’re mainly interested in sex, not relating emotionally or spiritually.
5. They are practicing alcoholics, sex addicts, or substance abusers.
6. They prefer long distance relationships, emails, texting, or don’t introduce you to their friends and family.
7. They are elusive, sneaky, frequently working or tired, and may disappear for periods.
8. They are seductive with you but make empty promises — their behavior and words don’t match.
9. They’re narcissistic, only consider themselves, not your needs.
10. They throw you emotional crumbs or enticing hints of their potential to be loving, then withdraw.

While some of these signs are obvious, others aren't so obvious because sometimes people send mixed messages. An example of this dilemma is a person who may be separated, still legally married or still in a quasi-relationship with their Ex while simultaneously presenting themselves as single. They may share themselves with you on various levels yet still be unavailable emotionally when it comes down to true transparency, closeness and intimacy. As a narcissist who is emotionally unavailable, they're comfortable dealing with people at a distance while simultaneously expecting them to be close to them; they desire a commitment from others that they're unwilling or sometimes unable to reciprocate. Sometimes this intimacy dilemma can become a tumultuous relationship similar to fighting Mike Tyson in a phone booth; where every time you get close, you get hurt.  

Aside from recognizing these obvious signs and mixed signals, the biggest challenge for us is accepting what we see and not rationalizing these signs and signals away. Our willingness and ability to see things for what they are, not what they appear to be or what we want them to be, is the key factor in not losing time waiting for unrequited love. Not only do we suffer but our families and communities do as well. How? Because other important areas of our lives get neglected when we prioritize people who only view us as an option. One of the biggest complaints I've had and have heard from others about relationships that didn't work out is the time wasted. Whether a person is dealing with emotional unavailability temporarily, it's chronic or they've been diagnosed with the anxiety disorder Gamophobia [a fear of commitment], as partner or prospective partner it's still time we're investing that we have no way of knowing if it will ever be reciprocated. Some people are simply unwilling or unable to give of themselves in a relationship and need help to get to that place to do so. We may be one of those people and it requires an honest self assessment, willingness and ability to seek that help. Again, and even with that help, there's no way of knowing if this person, or we, will ever be emotionally available. This commitment to self development is the first true commitment they, or we, must make in regards to addressing these issues with commitment and intimacy. And it is through this commitment to self that we learn to develop the trust, honesty, courage and other qualities that are necessary to commit to others who are deserving of us. It's a risk. It's vulnerable. It's frightening at times to depend upon someone to do the right thing with our heart, but it's ultimately worth it when we've found the right person. As people of color in America, the socioeconomic landscape and cultural backdrop has historically created an environment that breeds unrequited love. There are numerous daily challenges we face and open attacks on our self identity that the dominant society doesn't have to consider such as western colonialism, global white supremacy, institutionalization racism and sexism that has distorted our ability to love ourselves and each other. Finding healthy ways to address and define ourselves outside of these conditions is also paramount to our commitment towards self development. Again, it's a risk. It's vulnerable. It's frightening at times to depend upon ourselves and each other to do the right thing outside of these conditions, but it's ultimately worth it when we've found the right alternatives.

Peace,
Saladin

Is Bill Cosby Innocent or Guilty?

Is Bill Cosby

Innocent or Guilty?

Since the rape allegations against Bill Cosby have come out, people have also come out on both sides offering their perspectives on his innocence or guilt. Some have framed it as a white supremacist witch hunt to destroy the black father image. Others have viewed it as a man getting off easy, pun intended, because of his celebrity status. What many are not saying, or taking a look at, is the cultural context or backdrop these alleged incidents happened on or the mainstream medium they're being discussed in. What do I mean by that?

When you look at Bill Cosby's comedy career, on different occasions he's done comedy bits about slipping women a mickey; drugging women. He did it in live stand-ups, on his comedy album it's true! it's true! and on Larry King Live in 1991. This doesn't mean that he actually did these things but it does mean that this was something that his audience related to; it was an obvious part of popular culture, especially in Hollywood, going back to the 1960's where these incidents date back to. In terms of popular American culture, some of its background music historically reflects this notion about its drug culture. Here's a very popular song covered by various rock, country and etc. artists called Quaaludes Again you can listen to below. The artist even explains to you what Quaaludes are.

  



Quaaludes Again covered by Pork

Post WWII in the 1950's America saw an expanse of drug use that was articulated in a popular Hollywood film called The Man With The Golden Arm starring Frank Sinatra, who was speculated to be a cocaine business partner of Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar. Even when you look at the backdrop of 1960's drug culture, including Jazz music, it's rare to find jazz artists who didn't have contact with drugs. Many died from this. In the 1970's you see it's continuation with popular heroin addict songs like Neil Young's The Needle And The Damage, Gil Scott Heron's Home Is Where The Hatred Is and novels like Faggots where the characters are constantly doing Quaaludes as a party drug used in New York gay community before the popularization of AIDS. Even in the 1980's you see it the popular film Scarface when Tony referred to his wife's drug addiction, the coming of crack and President Reagan's so-called War On Drugs campaign. This type of popular American culture continued on into the 90's and 2000's and cannot be trivialized or overlooked when considering the context of the Cosby allegations. Being a Hollywood staple for many years, Cosby and many others most certainly had contact with the drug culture. Hollywood wasn't in a vacuum nor a place in an alternate universe disconnected from popular American drug culture. Because of this, it's rare to find any comedians, actors, musicians and people working in the entertainment business who didn't have contact with drugs. With the new designer drugs of today, coupled with various drugs of yesterday, I think it's still rare to find comedians, actors, musicians and people working in the entertainment business, especially in Hollywood, who don't have contact with drugs. This has been a part and continues to be a part of popular American culture. A popular American culture that some of the present day corporate sponsored rap artists have now become one of its biggest advocates of.

Herein lies a fundamental problem; Popular drug culture is superimposed over a racist and sexist [misogyny and chauvinism] American backdrop. This is a problem that many of us overlook, ignore and ultimately fail to address. What this translates into are people of color and women being victimized in/by a system we may or may not choose to participate in. In the case of Bill Cosby we see this being played out on two fronts. First we see him being used as the face of popular American drug culture, which he is not. Yes it's possible that he sexually assaulted women in his past and got away with it because of his celebrity status and the fact that he is a male. It's possible that some of these women were active participants or outright lying. It's also a fact that various others were doing this, especially white male celebrities, yet they have not been demonized in the same way Cosby is. Take Roman Polanski for example, the famous director, producer, writer and actor who drugged and raped a thirteen year old at Jack Nicholson's house. He plead guilty to the charge of "Unlawful Sexual Intercourse with a minor" and in 1988 he agreed to pay her $500,000 plus interest based upon a civil suit. This and countless examples show you there's a contradiction here.

Secondly we see the marginalization of women living in a misogynistic society that mirrors ancient Rome and women in the Victorian era. Because of this, females/women are devalued, objectified and their issues trivialized. Take for example the recent public outrage surrounding the Rick Ross album Black Market that was pulled from Walmart's website because the song Free Enterprise had Anti-George Zimmerman/Donald Trump lyrics. In it Ross raps, "Assassinate Trump like I’m Zimmerman/Now accept these words as they came from Eminem." This is the same Rick Ross who was slapped on the wrist for his rape rap verse, "Put molly all in her champagne, she ain’t even know it/I took her home and I enjoyed that/She ain’t even know it" on the Rocko song U.O.E.N.O. While he was kicked off of the public campaign to represent the Reebok brand at the time, he is still the face of its Rebook CrossFit training program he remixed as #RossFit. What this and various scenarios sadly demonstrate is that females/women, especially ones of color, being violated, unacknowledged and not protected comes along with the territory in a historically sexist [misogynistic and chauvinistic] society. Now I've heard the argument that some or many of the women accusing Bill Cosby of sexual assault are hoes who were trying to f*ck their way to the top. Well even if this was the case, based upon your definition of a hoe or even a woman who proudly calls herself a hoe, even a so-called hoe has the right to be conscious and coherent while she's f*cking her way to the top. In other words, at no point is it alright to take advantage of any female/woman or male/man, without or even with, their consent, period. Unfortunately, this attitude towards human life has gone on since America's unsavory inception, up until today. In addition to looking at what's happening with these allegations, another problem is people don't want to look at the sick system that helps produce, protect and perpetuate these dysfunctional behaviors.

I don't anticipate or expect this narrative to be discussed along with the Cosby sexual assault allegations. Nor do I expect some cataclysmic shift in the American culture that continues to produce, protect and perpetuate dysfunction. This would require a system to indict itself. Has Bill Cosby received celebrity privileges surrounding these allegations? Absolutely, and this is a problem. Is he being treated differently than his white counterparts who've had sexual allegations or plead guilty to sex offenses? Absolutely, and this is a problem. Are victims or alleged victims of sexual abuse, especially females/women, blamed for what happened to them and/or slut shammed? Absolutely, and this is a problem. Has there been a popular American drug culture going on since the 1960's up until today that has shaped every aspect of this society, including the commentary surrounding these allegations? Absolutely, and this is a problem too. In analyzing what's going on I would encourage people to not get sucked into an emotional game on a lopsided field governed with unfair rules, covered by unfair commentators and funded by unfair sponsors.  In the end, nobody wins but them, unless we're wise enough to not play their game. Whether Bill Cosby gets convicted of something or not, the popular American culture is still here and we'll see more people like him in the news. Whether some of the women who've accused him of sexual assault are proven to be true, the popular American culture is still here and we'll see more people like them in the news. As we critique these allegations and determine what needs to be done based upon the findings of facts, we must also examine the areas in this cultural system that need to be revamped that makes drug and rape culture acceptable. This is especially important for our youth -who are being shaped and molded into the image and likeness of this kind of culture.

Peace,

Saladin