Obituaries: Gil Scott-Heron and Geronimo Pratt

The force of personality of Gil Scott-Heron and Geronimo Pratt are unique and irreplaceable. I'm saddened by the loss of their beautiful spirits. But am inspired to carry on their truth, their light and their strength. Rest in love, peace and power to two titans of our time..

Gil Scott-Heron (April 1, 1949 - May 27, 2011)

Elmer "Geronimo ji-Jaga" Pratt (September 13, 1947 - June 2, 2011)

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The love that once was born can not die

For it has become part of us, of our life,

Woven into the very texture of our being.

Each of us would wish to leave some part of ourselves,

So here and now we bear witness to the one we knew in life,

Who now in death bequeaths a subtle part, precious and beloved,

Which will be with us in truth and beauty,

In dignity and courage and love

To the end of our days.

- Algernon Black

Know Hope

"Take these broken sounds and mend them into minor symphonies. And this will be the soundtrack to our times. In these busted surroundings and these vacant spaces will transform into telescopes through which we can see both the elsewhere and the anywhere."

- Know Hope

On Love and Light

A Return to Love

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us.
We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant,
gorgeous, talented, fabulous?
Actually, who are you not to be?
You are a child of god.
Your playing small does not serve the world.
There is nothing enlightened about shrinking
so that other people won't feel insecure around you.
We are all meant to shine, as children do.
We were born to make manifest the glory of god that is within us.
It is not just in some of us; it is in everyone.
And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously
give other people permission to do the same.
As we are liberated from our own fear,
our presence automatically liberates others.

- Marianne Williamson

bell hooks on Education

"Educators who have dared to study, and learn, [and practice] new ways of thinking and teaching so that the work we do does not reinforce systems of domination, of imperialism, racism, sexism or class elitism have created a pedagogy of hope."

Os Cangaceiros on Spectacle

"If we sack the banks, it's because we have recognized money as the central cause of all our unhappiness.

If we smash the windows it's not because life is dear, but because commodities prevent us from living at all costs.

If we break the machines it is not because of a wish to protect work, but to attack the slavery of salary.

If we attack police it's not to get them out of out neighborhoods, but to get them out of our lives.

The Spectacle wished to make us appear dreadful.

We intend to be much worse."

weekly links (april 24th edition)

Why A Michigan High School is Ground Zero for US Politics (MSNBC & BAMN)

Call to Save Our Schools (Dissident Voice)

Good Education is a Right, Not a Crime (The Root)

California Schools Move Towards LGBTQ History Lessons (RaceWire)

Three Hip Hop Scholars Talk About Combatting Homophobia (RaceWire)

The Class Dynamics of Asian America (Monthly Review)

US Racial and Economic Inequality Visualized (RaceWire)

Noam Chomsky: Is the World Too Big To Fail? (Common Dreams)

Robert Scheer: The New Corporate World Order (TruthDig)

Why The West Wants the Fall of Gaddafi (Dissident Voice)

Revenge of the Nerds: (Not So) New Representations of Asian Male Sexuality (Racialicious)

Mumia Abu-Jamal: On Reading Franz Fanon (I Am Not A Rapper)

Blaxpoitation's Baadassss History (The Root)

".. And Roses Too," or The Case for Public Arts Funding (Rebel Frequencies)

Slideshow: Crazy Stuff That Has Happened on 4/20 (GOOD)

George Takei Protests Akira Whitewashing (Racialicious)

Bruce Lee Art Made From MetroCards (Angry Asian Man)

The KO Hip Hop Cello-Beatbox Experience (YouTube)

J Dilla: A Documentary of Greatness (tonefresh)

Coachella Roundup: Lauryn Hill, Erykah Badu, Kanye, Cee-Lo & more (OkayPlayer)

Mos Def "Umi Says" Live with The Robert Glasper Experiment, Lupe Fiasco & Kanye West (The Smoking Section)

Why Catherine Ferguson Academy Matters To Everyone

In effort to save the school from closing, students and faculty at Catherine Ferguson Academy organized a sit-in and occupied the school for several hours. Police assaulted and arrested a number of the protestors.

Catherine Ferguson Academy is the only public school in Detroit that serves pregnant teens and teen moms. The specialized school boasts a 90% graduation rate and 100% graduate college acceptance rate - the school requires college acceptance as a requirement for graduation. The benchmark of a "good school" should be its ability to prepare its students for college and careers.

Young mothers in low-income communities of color are among the most marginalized, most overlooked, most abandoned by the system. Catherine Ferguson Academy is one of a few schools in the country designed to meet the needs of young mothers - offering support programs, childcare and parenting classes. The fact that it is the only school in Detroit with these necessary programs and supports is sobering. And that it is slated to close is more than unjust - it's social exclusion.

The bigger picture is that school functions as a socializing and learning space for young people to learn skills and tools that will prepare them for the world. In addition to creating a supportive academic and social space, Catherine Ferguson Academy also runs a successful urban farm, which was featured in the documentary "Grown in Detroit." The urban farming movement has created viable alternative economies in Detroit, New Orleans, the Bronx and other areas hit by abandonment and urban decay.

It's obvious but needs to be said: the school is academically excelling, providing necessary services, building sustainable economy in Detroit.. and it's being closed.

Organizers at Catherine Ferguson Academy posted the following demands:

• No school closings
• Keep all Detroit schools public - no more charters or privatization
• Reinstate all programs and services that have been eliminated, including art & music as well as counselors & social workers
• Student control of curriculum and school character to assure that every Detroit school provides equal, quality education for all
• No discipline or retaliation against any of the participants in the occupation

"I'm fighting because I believe in our school." - Ashley Matthews, 17

Rachel Maddow feature on the struggle of students at Catherine Ferguson Academy:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

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No Child Left Behind has systematically dehumanized the education system - reducing students to faceless statistics, restricting teachers to standardized curriculum, and assessing schools on test scores and graduation rates. Thus anesthetizing students, stifling teaching and learning, and suppressing future generations. Core curriculum is prioritized at the expense the arts, music programs, and resources for student health and wellness programs. It has paved way for mass school closings, the spread of charters and the wholesale privatization of education.

It's time we elevate education to a human rights issue. The state of public education effects us all - it's no overstatement that our future depends on our ability to educate our children. The stakes are too damn high. The students at Catherine Ferguson Academy seem to understand that better than anybody.

Related: support organizing efforts at Catherine Ferguson Academy here