The New York Times just ran a story a few days ago based on a US Census Bureau report announcing that, for the first time in American history, white folks are the nationwide minority among the newborn. In other words, us colored are birthin’ more babies than white people. So naturally, the response among some (in the declining majority camp) has been to frustrate themselves over what this means about America’s future. Does this mean that we’re now becoming a minority majority country, someone asked? And what does that mean? Should we round up all the women and children and lead them to a safe white place?

OK, first thing. If we weren’t a minority majority country for all those centuries that white folks had us by the numbers, then why should America suddenly be labeled a ‘minority majority’ country once the former minorities become the majority? Sounds to me like somebody just can’t let that ‘minority’ designation go. Gotta find some way to keep that in there, right?

Except that no. Time to face up to the new dawn, people. To those of us who have been following this issue, this isn’t exactly news. The writing has been on the walls (on the wombs..?) for quite some time now. The US Census predicts that by the year 2050 whites will not only be the minority among the newborn population but among the entire US of A population (see video above). Look out y’all, here we come.

But I’m sure the concern about what to call this latest development isn’t the largest concern among some of our more paranoid brethren. The Big Concern is what happens to White Power once the numbers decline? And does the (possible) deterioration of White Power mean that whites will become targets of revenge for all that pent up anger going back to slavery?

Who knows, man. I’m trying to leave the prediction game alone. I predicted that Obama was going to wait until after the election before he openly supported gay marriage, and that this was the best course to take. Within about a day after I wrote that post here on JJP, here comes Obama making his announcement that he supports same sex marriage, right? So enough with the predictions. But I will say that, historically speaking, just because whites are due to become the minority in a relatively brief amount of time hardly means they will switch places with the poor and dispossessed. Globally speaking, white people have been the minority pretty much forever and a day. And globally speaking, they have pretty much been running things for just about that long. Just take a look at how colonialism worked. That wasn’t the work of a majority population taking over a minority. Quite the opposite. Just sayin I think white folks are pretty good at holding their own when it comes to power.

Does this mean things will remain the same? Hell no. I seriously doubt it. The so-called minorities throughout the world – and here at home – have been paying attention to how the game is played, and I suspect there will be some rule changes taking effect. But don’t expect whites to be evicted from Wall Street anytime soon, if you catch my meaning.

As for the whole vengeful chickens full of pent-up anger coming home to roost thing, I doubt that as well. At least insofar as the non-white population rising up as one righteously angry mob to make the White Man pay for past injustices. To be honest, I’d like to believe we all have better things to do than revenge. If Nelson Mandela can come to such a conclusion in favor of moving forward, after all of the sheer hell white folks put him and his beloved South Africa through, then I believe such a necessary direction is instructive for the rest of us.

So rest easy white folks. See, that wasn’t so hard, was it?

Many believe Detroit is a violent city, is that accurate?

I think it’s grossly inaccurate. There’s a small percentage of people involved in a great percentage of the problems. And what I am very resistant to doing is bowing to media pressure to “get tough on crime,” which to me is a euphemism to crack down on these young Black folks. When you indiscriminately do that and paint everybody with the same brush, you’re going to catch kids that are not bad kids up in that web. You are going to make the mistake and over police and violate the rights of somebody that is absolutely doing nothing that deserves that. I want my department to be one … that honors the rights of the citizens of the city of Detroit. Not to be compliant with a consent judgment, but because it’s the right thing to do.

 

Do you see any correlation between youth violence and the demise of the Detroit Public School system?

I think they definitively go hand in hand … If you look at some of the socio-economic factors that play in to the issues in the city of Detroit … for instance the illiteracy rate, how high it is and people say we just need jobs in Detroit. Well, that sounds good, but if you bring a job base into the city and you have the structurally unemployed that for all intents and purposes are unemployable because the education system has failed them or we have failed them in some kind of manner, where if somebody can’t read … or do the things necessary to hold that job … or don’t have the requisite job skill, then we’re just doing a song and dance … if you travel back to October/November when people were starting to be put off public assistance and the law was retroactive, it is no mistake that my larcenies are going up. It is no mistake that my car thefts are going up. Because … these social nets that were just snatched without a transition, well these folks have got to eat. Then it becomes a matter of survival. Is it an excuse? Absolutely not. But it exacerbates what’s already a very difficult situation on the ground for our citizens.

 

Last month on Feb. 28 a story appearedin my hometown newspaper, theDetroit Free Press, detailing how homicides in my city have escalated by 25 percent since last year. Much of that steep incline resulted from the madness that has taken control of the city’s east side, which now more closely resembles the wild wild west. Within a matter of weeks a 14-year-old teen murdered his own mother and a 9-month-old baby was killed by gunfire.

From the Detroit Free Press, Feb. 29, 2012:

First it was the 48205 zip code. Now it’s the entire east side of Detroit.

Responding to yet another spate of violence in the city of Detroit, U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade today announced a federal crackdown on Detroit’s entire east side, saying the crime-plagued area has become the most violent section in the city and warrants federal attention. Homicides in particular, she stressed, are “intolerably high” on the east side, which saw a 75% jump in homicides last year. The west side saw a 27% drop in homicides last year.

“I made it my personal resolution in 2012 to reduce homicides in the city of Detroit,” McQuade said at a press conference this afternoon, flanked by 15 uniformed federal, local and state police officials. “We will not allow Detroit to be defined by violence and homicides.”

It was at almost exactly the same point in time one month ago when Trayvon Martin was killed by some maniac self-appointed comic book superhero. You know the rest I’m sure. And like most of you (I’m sure) I want that maniac behind bars yesterday and I want justice for Trayvon. Of course I do. That’s an easy call.

But where was all this national outrage when that 14-year-old boy murdered his mother? Who among us was wearing their hoodie when 9-month-old Delric Miller IV was killed before he even got a chance to make his contribution to the world? If President Obama had a son, he may very well have looked like Trayvon Martin. But he may also have looked just like that 14-year-old boy who killed his mother. Or the 6-year-old boy who was killed by an AK-47 during an attempted carjacking. Or Delric Miller. Or…

Understand that I love and support this President. I do. But Trayvon is an easy one to claim. There are others, Mr. President. So many others. And I can assure you they aren’t quite so easy to embrace openly during a campaign season.

Where is the national march and united cry of outrage for the black-on-black murders that are tearing Detroit apart? Who do we demand justice from for all of this?

It’s because we’re used to it. There’s nothing new about us-killing us – or at least so we tell ourselves because we’ve forced ourselves to become numb to it as a survival technique. It’s that monster in the mirror. The monster is the truth, and the truth is that black-on-black crime is much newer than white-on-black crime and white oppression overall. Black folks have been chewed up and spit out by White America ever since the first ancestor was dragged off the boat in chains all those hundreds of years ago. By comparison, black-on-black crime is the baby on the block.

It’s crazy out here right now, people, and there’s no sign yet of the cavalry.

Wait. I take that back. We are the damned cavalry.

In many ways my adopted hometown of Detroit can be considered a barometer of the condition of Urban America – since, as we all know, ‘urban’ is the new ‘black’.

And if this is the case, then we really can’t wait too much longer for that slow-rising economic tide to rise us on up and outta this mess before we go down for the count. Because if we’re still holding onto the hope that it’s going to get worse before it gets better then, well…

Understand that I love this city like I’ve never loved anyplace else I’ve ever lived. And I’m not leaving. This is home, and I will always believe the best about home. This city is too damned tough for its own good, and if anyplace can weather this type of storm then it’s Detroit. But mind you, this is one hell of a storm, and it’s not getting better.

Currently we’re experiencing a rash of gun murders (homicide is up considerably from this same time last year) and many of those murders are being committed by teens. One 14-year-old teen recently killed his mother, reportedly because he felt like she was being too strict on him and wouldn’t let him party with his friends or bring home his girlfriends. I mean, what do you say to that?

From the Detroit Free Press Feb. 28, 2012:

In recent weeks, the city has witnessed the shooting death of an infant, the shooting death of a 12-year-old girl, a 14-year-old boy accused of killing his mother and a 6-year-old critically injured after being shot with an AK47 in an attempted carjacking.

The suspects in the attempted carjacking are two 15-year-olds, who will be charged as adults. Police say they went on a violent crime spree, striking five times in less than 24 hours before being arrested on the city’s east side early Monday.

Mayor Dave Bing says that the parents must seriously do a better job with their children, but are we really going to blame all this madness on bad black parenting again? I don’t have the same problems with Bill Cosby that Michael Eric Dyson does - as a matter of fact I think he makes a lot of sense on some of his points – but I do think we’ve passed the point where we can keep saying it’s all the fault of the parents. Sure, some of the parents could do a better job, but to suggest that this is overall the fault of the parents is to suggest that these parents don’t care or aren’t trying. Was the mother of that homicidal 14-year-old at fault for trying to keep him out of the streets? Really?

What about all these damned guns, man? What about the fact that Detroit can no longer afford to support anything near the size police force that we actually need? You can get as ‘creative’ as you want (a favorite approach/phrase of those who insist money doesn’t matter when it comes to fixing urgent urban problems in broke urban areas) but those who actually believe that it’s possible to do so much more with less simply do not know how to add. Conservatives love that phrase because it puts the weight back on the shoulders of those who can stand that weight the least. Simple math will tell you that if you have half the amount of gas in your car this week compared to last week, then you will be going half as far. Simple.

And the simple fact is that Detroiters have squeezed just about as much blood out of this rock as they can. And now the children are paying the price not only as murder victims but as victims of poverty. Some might say the one is inextricably linked to the other.

From the Huffington Post:

An annual report examining the living conditions for children across Michigan finds high poverty rates satewide, and even bleaker news for kids living in the city of Detroit.

The most recent Kids Count in Michigan Data Book shows a 13 percent jump in the number of kids living in poverty in the city between 2005 and 2009. It also finds that more than 80 percent of children in Detroit Public Schools now qualify for free student lunches.

Jane Zehnder-Merrell, the study’s project director at the Michigan League for Human Services, told HuffPost children in both Detroit and around the state are suffering the impacts of the long recession.

“The general situation [in Detroit] pretty much mirrors what’s happening in Michigan in terms of trends, [but] the level of economic distress in the city is much more acute than the state as a whole,” Zehnder-Merrell said.

About 51 percent of Detroit children age 17 and under were living in poverty, more than double Michigan’s childhood poverty rate of 22 percent, according to Kids Count’s most recent statistics from 2009.

The percentage of people of all ages living in poverty was 33.2, according to census data.

When will it be politically safe for Democratic politicians to have an ‘urban agenda’ again…?

A few days ago Brother Mitt was back here in Michigan- or ‘back home’ as he likes to say when trolling for votes – and he said the cutest thing; he said that in Michigan the “trees are the right height”. He also said that he loves lakes. And cars. And dogs, especially when strapped to the roof of..

OK no. He didn’t say the part about the dogs. That was just mean.

But the rest? Yeah, well…he kinda did…

This is your brain. This is desperation. This is your brain on desperation.

This is being cross-posted at Black Liberal Boomer 

John Sinclair Radio Show 418

420 Café, Amsterdam, December 20, 2011 [20-1156]

I’m back in Amsterdam for the holidays and the beginning of the new year, beaming out tonight from the Poet-In-Residence table at the 420 Café and playing the last set of holiday music for this year by Mabel Scott, Jimmy Liggins, Lowell Fulson,  Vaughn Meader, and Boris Pickett, collected from Tom Morgan’s Bartender’s Bop archive, plus a extended visit from the Sun Ra Omniverse Jet Set Arkestra in performance at the Detroit Jazz Center on New Year’s Eve, December 31, 1980, from an Art Yard CD titled Beyond the Purple Star Zone > Oblique Parallax. Happy New Year’s, everybody!

[01] Mabel Scott: Boogie Woog1e Santa Claus

[02] John Sinclair ID & Intro Comments

[03] Jimmy Liggins: I Wanna Be Home For Christmas

[04] Lowell Fulson: Blue Christmas

[05] Vaughn Meader: Christmas Time Is Near

[06] Boris Pickett: Monsters’ Holiday

[07] John Sinclair Comments

[08] Sun Ra & His Omniverse Jet Set Arkestra: Beyond the Purple Star Zone

[09] Sun Ra & His Omniverse Jet Set Arkestra: Rocket Number Nine

[10] Sun Ra & His Omniverse Jet Set Arkestra: Immortal Being

[11] John Sinclair Comments

[12] Sun Ra & His Omniverse Jet Set Arkestra: Romance on a Satellite

[13] Sun Ra & His Omniverse Jet Set Arkestra: Planetary Search

[14] Sun Ra & His Omniverse Jet Set Arkestra: Oblique Parallax

[15] Sun Ra & His Omniverse Jet Set Arkestra: Vista Omniverse

[16] Sun Ra & His Omniverse Jet Set Arkestra: Celestial Realms

[17] John Sinclair Closing Comments & Outro

[16] Closing Music: Sun Ra & His Omniverse Jet Set Arkestra: Journey Stars Beyond

A JOINT PRODUCTION

Radio Free Amsterdam & Detroit Life Radio

Hosted by John Sinclair for TapDetroit.com

Produced, edited & assembled by John Sinclair

Executive Producer: Holice P. Wood

Special thanks to Tom Morgan, Sidney Daniel, Ravi, Claudia, Steve Fly, Nick Smith, and Sunny, Celia & Beyonce Sinclair

Sponsored by Sensi Seeds, Amsterdam

© 2011 The John Sinclair Foundation

Sinclair On The Air 160

Above The Hash Museum, Amsterdam, December 20, 2011 [JS-0160]

Detroit Life Radio 719

It’s Saturday night in Detroit and I’m broadcasting from the Sensi Seeds guest apartment above the Hash Museum on the second canal in the Red Light District of Amsterdam with a final program of Christmas music from Radio Free Amsterdam selected from Tom Morgan’s Bartender’s Bop archive, including classic and obscure cuts from artists like Charlie Parker, Ella Fitzgerald, Fats Waller, Titus Turner, Brenda Lee, Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry,  Marlene Paul, Bobby Helms, Tee Jules, The Supremes, The Turtles,  The Surfaris, and several artists we haven’t been able to identify by airtime. The Sinclair On The Air show can be heard on Radio Free Amsterdam and on Detroit Life Radio every Sunday at 4:20 and now at www.TapDetroit.com at midnight on Saturday nights.

[01] John Sinclair ID & Opening Comments

[02] Charlie Parker: White Christmas

[03] Ella Fitzgerald: Santa Claus Got Stuck in My Chimney

[04] Fats Waller: Jingle Bells

[05] Titus Turner: Christmas Morning Blues

[06] Brenda Lee: Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree

[07] Elvis Presley: Its Christmas Time

[08] John Sinclair Comments

[09] Chuck Berry: Run Rudolph Run

[10] Brenda Lee: Fool Santa Claus

[11] Elvis Presley: Here Comes Santa Claus

[12] Marlene Paul: I Wanna Spend Christmas With Elvis

[13] Bobby Helms: Jingle Bell Rock

[14] Tee Jules: A Cajun Christmas

[15] [Unidentified Artist]: Frosty The Snowman

[16] John Sinclair Comments

[17] [Unidentified Artist]: Mister Santa Claus

[18] The Supremes: My Christmas Tree

[19] The Turtles: Sidewalk Surfer Christmas

[20] The Surfaris: Surfin’ Santa

[21] [Unidentified Artist]: All I Want

[22] [Unidentified Artist]: Sleigh Ride

[23] John Sinclair Closing Comments & Outro

[24] Closing Music: [Unidentified Artist]: Here Comes Santa Claus

A JOINT PRODUCTION

Radio Free Amsterdam & Detroit Life Radio

Hosted by John Sinclair for TapDetroit.com

Produced, recorded, edited & assembled by John Sinclair

Executive Producer: Holice P. Wood

Special thanks to Tom Morgan, Claudia, Ravi, Sidney Daniels, Hollywood, Sunny & Beyonce Sinclair, and Steve the Fly

© 2011 The John Sinclair Foundation

Bartender’s Bop 28 with John Sinclair & Tom Morgan

Above The Hash Museum, Amsterdam, December 21, 2011 [BB-0028]

Detroit Life Radio 718

Tom Morgan’s Bartender’s Bop program series, produced for WTJU-FM in Charlottesville VA in the mid-1980s, features music selected by Tom Morgan from the glory days when Rhythm & Blues ruled America. The series has been reconstructed, reprogrammed and hosted by John Sinclair for Radio Free Amsterdam and Detroit Life Radio, and this week’s episode features part two of our 2011 Bartender’s Bop Christmas Special with classics & obscurities by Lou Rawls, Pearl Bailey, Julia Lee, Freddie King, the Alphabetical Four, Sonny Boy Williamson, Billy Boy Arnold, Albert King, Lowell Fulson, Nat “King” Cole, Thomas Refus, Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong, and three artists we haven’t been able to identify yet. You could call this a Joint Production and you’d be absolutely right. Bartender’s Bop plays at midnight Eastern Time every Friday night on Detroit Life Radio with John Sinclair at http://www.TapDetroit.com

[01] Lou Rawls: Merry Christmas Baby

[02] Bartender’s Bop ID, Intro & John Sinclair Comments

[03] Pearl Bailey: Five Pound Box of Money

[04] Julia Lee: Christmas Spirits

[05] [Unidentified Artist]: Christmas Time

[06] Freddie King: Christmas Tears

[07] Alphabetical Four: I Hate To See Xmas Come Around (Christmas Blues)

[08] Sonny Boy Williamson: Sonny Boy’s Christmas Blues

[09] Bartender’s Bop ID & John Sinclair Comments

[10] Billy Boy Arnold: Christmas Time

[11] Albert King: Christmas Only Comes Once A Year

[12] Lowell Fulson: Lonesome XMas

[13] Nat “King” Cole: The Christmas Song

[14] [Unidentified Artist]: Santa’s Got The Blues

[15] Sonny Boy Williamson: Santa Claus

[16] Bartender’s Bop ID & John Sinclair Comments

[17] Albert King: Santa Claus Wants Some Lovin’

[18] Thomas Refus: I’ll Be Your Santa, Baby

[19] Ella Fitzgerald: Good Morning Blues

[20] Nat “King” Cole:  Mrs. Santa Claus

[21] Louis Armstrong: Christmas Night In Harlem

[22] John Sinclair Closing Comments & Outro

[23] Closing Music: [Unidentified Artist]: [Unidentified Instrumental]

A JOINT PRODUCTION

Radio Free Amsterdam & Detroit Life Radio

Hosted by John Sinclair for TapDetroit.com

Music selected by Tom Morgan for the Bartender’s Bop, WTJU-FM,

Charlottesville VA, circa 1986-87

Produced, edited, assembled & annotated by John Sinclair

Executive Producer: Holice P. Wood

Special thanks to Tom Morgan, Hollywood, Sunny, Celia & Beyonce Sinclair, Sidney Daniels, Ravi, and Claudia

Sponsored by Sensi Seeds, Amsterdam

© 2011 Tom Morgan & The John Sinclair Foundation

Bartender’s Bop 27 with John Sinclair & Tom Morgan

Above The Hash Museum, Amsterdam, December 21, 2011 [BB-0027]

Detroit Life Radio 717

Tom Morgan’s Bartender’s Bop program series, produced for WTJU-FM in Charlottesville VA in the mid-1980s, features music selected by Tom Morgan from the glory days when Rhythm & Blues ruled America. The series has been reconstructed, reprogrammed and hosted by John Sinclair for Radio Free Amsterdam and Detroit Life Radio, and this week’s episode features the first part of our 2011 Bartender’s Bop Christmas Special with classics & obscurities from Jack Teagarden, Babs Gonzales, Leo Watson, Johnny Guaraneri, Louis Prima, Louis Armstrong, Mabel Scott, the Moonglows, Charles Brown,Esther & Mel Walker, Charlie Parker, Amos Milburn, the Cadillacs, the Drifters, Eartha Kitt, Edd “Kookie” Burns:,the Enchanters, and Big John Greer. You could call this a Joint Production and you’d be absolutely right. Bartender’s Bop plays at midnight Eastern Time every Friday night on Detroit Life Radio with John Sinclair at http://www.TapDetroit.com

[01] Jack Teagarden: Christmas Night In Harlem

[02] Bartender’s Bop ID, Intro & John Sinclair Comments

[03] Babs Gonzales: The Black Before Christmas

[04] Leo Watson: Jingle Bells

[05] Johnny Guaraneri: Santa’s Secret

[06] Louis Prima: What Will Santa Claus Say?

[07] Louis Armstrong: Zat You, Santa Claus?

[08] Mabel Scott: Boogie Woogie Santa Claus

[09] Moonglows: Hey Santa Claus

[10] Bartender’s Bop ID & John Sinclair Comments

[11] Charles Brown: Merry Christmas, Baby

[12] Li’l Esther & Mel Walker: Merry Christmas Blues

[13] [Unidentified Artist]: I’ll Be Home For Christmas

[14] Charlie Parker: White Christmas

[15] Amos Milburn: Old Fashioned Christmas

[16] Li’l Esther & Mel Walker: Faraway Christmas Blues

[17] Cadillacs: Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer

[18] Bartender’s Bop ID & John Sinclair Comments

[19] Drifters: White Christmas

[20] Eartha Kitt: Santa Baby

[21] Edd “Kookie” Burns: Yuleville

[22] The Enchanters: Mambo Santa Mambo

[23] John Sinclair Closing Comments & Outro

[24] Closing Music: Big John Greer: Santa Do The Mambo

A JOINT PRODUCTION

Radio Free Amsterdam & Detroit Life Radio

Hosted by John Sinclair for TapDetroit.com

Music selected by Tom Morgan for the Bartender’s Bop, WTJU-FM, Charlottesville VA, circa 1986-87

Produced, edited, assembled & annotated by John Sinclair

Executive Producer: Holice P. Wood

Special thanks to Tom Morgan, Hollywood, Sunny, Celia & Beyonce Sinclair, Sidney Daniels, Ravi, and Claudia

Sponsored by Sensi Seeds, Amsterdam

© 2011 Tom Morgan & The John Sinclair Foundation

Vintage Radio Vaults 61: Steve Fly’s Saturnalia

Fly Agaric Studio, Amsterdam, December 23, 2009 [VV-0061]

Detroit Life Radio 716

The last few weeks I’ve witnessed John Sinclair programming spontaneous radio shows across the table from me. John made a number of shows that knocked me off my stool so I figured it was my duty as DJ Fly Agaric to respond with a festive selection of tunes. The tracks were selected from my LP collection, recorded Wednesday 22nd December 2009 on a H4 Zoom Recorder. [00] Baba Israel > Detroit Life Radio ID [01] Darlene Love: Marshmallow World [02] Channel One Studio: Ballistic Affair version [03] Miles Davis: Round About Midnight [04] Bobby Lester & the Moonglows: Hey Santa Claus [05] Clark-Boland Big Band: Sakara [06] Fel Kuti: Trouble Sleep Yanga Wake Am [07] The Larks: I Ain’t Fattening No Frogs For Snakes [08] The Ronettes: Sleigh Ride [09] Jimmy Reed: Rockin’ with Reed [10] Marcus Belgrave: Glue Finger (Part 2) [11] James Brown: Don’t Tell a Lie about Me [12] Bob Marley: No Water [13] Rage Against the Machine: Killing In The Name [14] Baba Israel > Detroit Life Radio ID

A JOINT PRODUCTION

Radio Free Amsterdam & Detroit Life Radio Produced, edited & assembled by DJ Fly Agaric 23 Vinyl spun on two Vestax turntables & recorded on Zoom H4 recorder Post-production, editing & annotation by John Sinclair Executive Producer: Holice P. Wood Special thanks to Steve “Fly” Agaric & a Merry Xmas to all. © 2009, 2011 The John Sinclair Foundation. All Rights Reserved.