Mark Anthony Neal's Blog, page 743

That Moment When the 'Electric Slide' Breaks Out in Class...

Photo Credit; Eldrin Deas

Jay Smooth on the Police Shooting of Walter Scott: “Why do they never try to save them?”

 
In this edition of The Illipsis , Jay Smooth  talks about 50 year-old African American father Walter L. Scott, who was shot in the back eight times while fleeing a police officer after a questionable traffic stop. 

The Move 9: Political Prisoners & State Violence--A Conversation with Pam Africa on 4/11

Originally premiered on September 20th 2013 at the Full Frame Theatre in Durham, NC Let The Fire Burn is a documentary about the bombing of an organization called MOVE and the historical developments concerning the group’s political repression by the city of Philadelphia since 1978. Founded by John Africa in 1972, MOVE (originally “Christian Movement for Life”) was a small group of Black Liberationists who prescribed to a unique lifestyle through cultural and religious philosophy.
Prior to the film’s core storyline of the 1985 bombing, Let The Fire Burn details the Philadelphia Police Department’s 1978 raid on MOVE’s Powelton Village home in West Philadelphia. During the raid, Philadelphia police officer, James Ramp was somehow shot and killed. Ballistics and state evidence pointed to friendly fire. Yet, nine MOVE members were convicted of the murder of one cop and sentenced to 30 to 100 years each in federal prison. Two days later, their Powelton Village home was destroyed by city bulldozers as MOVE was forced to relocate.
Seven years later on May 13th 1985, over 200 Philadelphia police officers gathered outside of MOVE’s home on Osage Ave. Over 10,000 rounds of police ammunition was used against unarmed citizens. Two state-sponsored C4 bombs were dropped on a row house full of people.
When informed about the developments of this violent occurrence, Philadelphia’s then Black Mayor, Wilson Goode consciously responded on live video to “Just let the fire burn.” A raging fire that had already killed 11 people (5 of whom were children) was intentionally allowed to spread. In just a few brief hours, 61 homes were completely destroyed—memories and life-savings leveled to worthless ashes.
Only two MOVE survivors exited the burning building – activist, Ramona Africa and a young boy named Birdie, whose testimony and childhood descriptions were documented throughout the film. In lieu of such an atrocity, not one city official, police officer or fireman was ever held accountable. Eight of the nine MOVE members, however have remained in prison for 35 years on trumped-up charges. As Let The Fire Burn clearly illustrates, justice is still waiting in this case. Truth is still waiting to be unleashed.
Join us in learning about the history of state violence against liberation groups, political repression, and how we can apply these lessons to today’s struggle. Free film screening Friday, April 10th 2015 at 6pm at Palace International, 1104 Broad St. Durham NC. The following day, Saturday, April 11th at 1pm there will be a public discussion in the same venue with MOVE member, Pam Africa. Comrade Pam has led the movement to free Mumia Abu-Jamal for the last three decades.
For more information contact Lamont Lilly at 919.904.8479 or visit https://www.facebook.com/events/1104488822910489/. To support the current efforts to save Mumia Abu-Jamal please visit www.millions4mumia.org. Both events are FREE and open to the public. #BlackLivesMatter #FreeMumia

NewYorkCloseUp: Rashid Johnson Keeps His Cool | Art21

"In this episode of NewYorkCloseUp artist Rashid Johnson talks with ART21 about his decade-long aesthetic and professional development from his early portrait photographs to his later conceptually-based sculptures made from glass, wood, and tile. Johnson is "a materialist at heart" and his earliest work—painterly, monochromatic photographs of African-American men made with obsolete 19th-Century techniques—evidence a career-long fascination with materials and processes." NewYorkCloseUp is a Documentary Series on Art and Life in the City.

Mark Anthony Neal as "Himself" on Being Mary Jane

In this clip from the popular BET series Being Mary Jane, Duke University Professor Mark Anthony Neal appears as himself, along with artist India.Arie and writer and fashion expert Michaela angela Davis,  in a discussion of the controversial Psychology Today article that argued that Black Women were "less attractive."           

Debunking the Myth of a "Gay Agenda" in Black Popular Culture

In this episode of Left of Black on The Root,  host Mark Anthony Neal sits down with Professor Sheena C. Howard to discuss the significance of Black Queer characters on prime time television series such as Empire and Scandal.  Howard is Assistant Professor of Communications at Rider University and the author  of Black Queer Identity Matrix: Towards An Integrated Queer of Color Framework and co-editor with Ronald L. Jackson II of Black Comics: Politics of Race and Representation which won the 2014 Will Eisner Comic Industry Award for Best Scholarly and Academic Book.

Why Black Queer Characters on Prime Television are Important

In this episode of Left of Black on The Root,  host Mark Anthony Neal sits down with Professor Sheena C. Howard to discuss the significance of Black Queer characters on prime time television series such as Empire and Scandal.  Howard is Assistant Professor of Communications at Rider University and the author  of Black Queer Identity Matrix: Towards An Integrated Queer of Color Framework and co-editor with Ronald L. Jackson II of Black Comics: Politics of Race and Representation which won the 2014 Will Eisner Comic Industry Award for Best Scholarly and Academic Book.

Documentary Trailer: Mavis! (dir. Jessica Edwards)

Directed by Jessica Edwards,  Mavis! is the first documentary about Mavis Staples and The Staple Singers. The film premiered at the 2015 South By Southwest Film Festival and will screen at the Full Frame Documentary Festival . 
Mavis! - Documentary Trailer from Film First on Vimeo.

Left of Black S5:E26: Freestyling on The Invisible Man, Hip-Hop & Living the Life of the Mind with James Braxton Peterson

Left of Black S5:E26: Freestyling on The Invisible Man, Hip-Hop & Living a Life of the Mind with James Braxton Peterson
Left of Black host and Duke University Professor Mark Anthony Neal (@NewBlackMan) is joined in the John Hope Franklin Center studios by Professor James Braxton Peterson (@DrJamesPeterson), Director of  Africana Studies and Associate Professor of English at Lehigh University.  A regular contributor to MSNBC, Professor Peterson is also the host of The Remix on WHYY in Philadelphia. He is author of  The Hip-Hop Underground and African American Culture: Beneath the Surface.
Left of Black is a weekly Webcast hosted by Mark Anthony Neal and produced in collaboration with the John Hope Franklin Center at Duke University and in conjunction with the Center for Arts, Digital Culture & Entrepreneurship (CADCE).*** Episodes of Left of Black are also available for free download in @ iTunes U*** Follow Left of Black on Twitter: @LeftofBlack

Dick Gregory Talks Black Film with ReelBlack

Comedian, author and activist Dick Gregory shares his thoughts on Black Film in this exclusive interview from Reelblack TV's podcast series.  Gregory shares his thought on the "Blackest film ever made," the movie Belle and the secrets behind King Kong, The Wizard of Oz,  12 Years a Slave and The Spook Who Sat by the Door.