Activist" Go Back to Africa!"

For many African Americans the term "Go back to Africa" is the ultimate insult , rivaling the dreaded "N word." However, a Durham NC activist and minister is urging African Americans to do just that this Black History Month. Not in a physical sense but academically, spiritually and culturally.

"Growing up,' Go Back to Africa was the ultimate diss among classmates, often leading to either tears or fist fights, says Paul Scott, "Now, the term is widely used by racists as an insult."Paul Scott, is urging African Americans to "upgrade" black history by including African History in Black History celebrations and school curriculums across the country."We cannot just be happy that black history is being taught and celebrated," says Scott, "We have to ask which type of black history is being taught, the version about African kings and queens or the one that begins with happy-go lucky slaves picking cotton on the plantation."

Scott hopes that the same way the Hip Hop Generation has tried to take the sting out of the "N word" they will take the sting out of "Go back to Africa" by promoting Afrocentric education."Historically we have been taught that nothing good has come out of Africa and it has infected our young people with the fatal disease of self-hatred, says Scott, "Only through education can the healing begin."

Paul Scott is a minister, writer and activist who recently started the "Intelligence Over Ignorance Campaign." In 2000, he coined the phrase Afrikan Liberation Theology which is the "Black Liberation Theology for the Hip Hop Generation." Scott has been a guest on talk shows across the country including Fox News and MSNBC discussing Hip Hop, rap, race and religion. His blog is No Warning Shots Fired.com

For more information contact (919) 451-8283 or info@nowarningshotsfired.com

What About our Children Again?

What About Our Children, Again?

Paul Scott


Back when I was in school the blue eyed soul group, Hall and Oates had a song that had the chorus, "you're out of touch, I'm out of time." The song was about some dude who couldn't get along with his main squeeze but it also sums up how I felt while watching the MSNBC special "About Our Children," last night.

The program was promoted as a Bill Cosby Town hall meeting, so like many folks, I tuned in to expect to see Dr. Cosby ranting and raving about how Hip Hop is destroying the minds of young black children especially since he had tons of material following last week's MTV Video Music Awards. I assumed that as the credits were rolling he would still be pointing his finger at the camera and yelling, "Now about that Kanye West fellow...and who told that little girl to jump on the stage with Jay Z !"

But no, as Cosby pointed out during the intro, it wasn't his show; he was just the draw.

That was pretty much the case.

As with most meetings that deal with the plight of "troubled youth," the MSNBC program suffered from the same problem; wrong place and wrong people.

The meeting took place in a nice auditorium at Howard University in Washington DC. I think that it would have been more realistic if it would have been held at one of the many community centers in the 'hoods of DC but I guess that wasn't the ambiance that the producers were trying to create.

On the panel you had a bunch of mostly private school educated folks who would probably wet their pants if one of their students threw up a gang sign during English class. You had the professors professin' about the problem. You had the ,obligatory, lady who looked like she just stepped out one of those movies where the great white hope goes into an inner city school and within the first 6 weeks the students all become Phi Beta Kappa candidates. I'm still not sure how comedian, Paul Rodriguez wound up on the panel, I guess Chris Rock was busy.

They even showed scenes from a few schools where the children all wanted to grow up to be doctors and teachers. Not one mentioned wanting to be Lil Wayne's hype man or a forward for the Chicago Bulls.

Where were the real people? Where were the community activists that could have told the challenges that they face in trying to change their local school systems? Where were the "inner city" teachers who would have been told where to go and what to kiss if they tried to implement some of the feel good strategies that the panelists suggested? It would, also, have been nice if they would have ,at least, allowed the parents of "at risk youth" to Twitter in some comments even if they couldn't make the pilgrimage to the nation's Capitol.

But instead you had a two hour visit to a fantasy world where the children always beat the tardy bell and the hallways smell like Lemon Pledge instead of stale urine.

I can't really say that watching the program made me a better parent or taught me much that I didn't already know. I can think of a few scholars (Jawanza Kunjufu, Na'im Akbar) that would have kept me from watching the clock hoping that I wouldn't miss the kick off of the Cowboys/Giants game for most of the program.

Maybe it's not all that deep. Perhaps, the problems facing our children can be solved with nice polite town hall meetings where people sit unemotionally, quiet as a panel of really smart folks gives them advice to save their children who step over crack pipes and broken wine bottles on their way to class every morning. Or maybe the solutions are so controversial and advanced that the folks over at MSNBC wouldn't dare allow "real folks" on national TV to discuss the issue.

Or maybe there could have been a good mixture of the two possibilities?

But as Hall and Oates sang , at the end of the program, I think that most of us were left with "manic moves and drowsy dreams or living in the middle between the two extremes..."

Paul Scott writes for No Warning Shots Fired.com. He can be reached at info@nowarningshotsfired.com or (919) 451-8283 He recently launched the Intelligence Over Ignorance Campaign. http://www.ioimovement.com/

Rappin' With the Hip Hop Educator

To many people, the terms "Hip Hop" and "education" are polar opposites. However, Miami's, Tony Muhammad thinks differently. Known as the "Hip Hop Educator" Muhammad has been successful at using the art form to educate the children of Florida.

Originally from New York, Muhammad has been an instructor for the last 10 years and sees Hip Hop as a useful tool when trying to reach young minds, many of whom have become bored with the educational system.

"Public education is not meeting the needs of black and Latino students," says Muhammad.

In order to meet this need he often incorporates rap lyrics into his lesson plan. Although he teaches history classes, Muhammad says that Hip Hop has been instrumental in bridging the gap between the past and the present and has served as a motivational tool.

"Students feel that there is a separation between the people of history and themselves", he said. "We have the same problems."

No stranger to the world of Hip Hop, Muhammad says that he began "B-Boyin'" in the third grade and has been hooked on Hip Hop every since. He does, however, admit that the message of Hip Hop has changed from positive to sex driven and overly materialistic. Even so, he refuses to judge his students who listen to the music but instead he challenges them to think analytically about the lyrics.

Despite the type of music being played on the radio, today, the Hip Hop educator is optimistic about the future of the art form.

"We are headed towards a new era of intelligence," he said. "Educators must use Hip Hop to bring forth a new breed of intelligence."

Although much of his work focuses on reaching the children, he also does professional development workshops to teach his fellow educators how to use the art form to inspire their students to learn. Unfortunately, many teachers have so distanced themselves from pop culture that they can no longer relate to their students on a personal level.

So, he has a dual mission; to educate children and adults about the positive potential of Hip Hop.

As he put it, "there is always a lesson to be learned."

Yep, even for grown folks.

Tony Muhammad can be reached at hiphopeducator19@gmail.com



Paul Scott writes for No Warning Shots Fired.com. He can be reached at info@nowarningshotsfired.com