Mark Anthony Neal's Blog, page 790

'The End Again'--a short film (dir. Crystle C. Roberson | written & produced by Felicia Pride)

Openended Film
THE END AGAIN, directed by Crystle C. Roberson and starring Columbus Short and Tanee McCall-Short, is a prequel to the feature film OPENENDED, and a pensive portrait of a couple's last day together as they emphatically end their five-year relationship. Joe and Jane have reached an impasse. It's moving day. But knowing that it's over doesn't make it any easier to walk away. Produced by Latisha Fortune for Great Fortune Films and written & produced by Felicia Pride. Music by The Foreign Exchange.We're running an Indiegogo campaign right now to make OPENENDED, the full-length film which picks up four years after THE END AGAIN. 
Support here: http://bit.ly/loveopenended. 

Talks at the Schomburg: Motown + Fashion

Schomburg Center
Designer Emilio Sosa (ESosa), writer and fashion expert Michaela Angela Davis, Essence Style Director Pamela Edwards Christiani, Co-host of Bravo's "Fashion Queens" Bevy Smith, and Valisia Lekae, Grammy and Tony Award nominee for her role as Diana Ross in Motown The Musical, in conversation about Motown's impact and legacy in the world of fashion. 
Michael Dinwiddie, Associate Professor at the Gallatin School and current President of the Black Theatre Network, moderates. 

Links Between Black Literature and The Law: A Preview of Next 'Left of Black' with Karla FC Holloway

The Root.com
In a Preview of the next Left of Black host Mark Anthony Neal is joined by Karla FC Holloway to talk about her new book, Legal Fictions: Constituting Race, Composing Literature, and the question of whether we are on a path to a post-racial America. She also weighs in on President Barack Obama’s ability to serve the interests of African Americans while serving as president. Holloway is the James B. Duke Professor of English at Duke University. She also holds appointments in the law school and in the women’s studies and African and African-American studies departments.

The HipHop Archive Presents: Hiphop Activism & Notions of the Democratic in Senegal | Oct 8th

HIPHOP GALSENHiphop Activism & Notions of the Democratic in Senegal
Wednesday, October 8 | 12:00PM
The Hiphop Archive104 Mount Auburn Street, Floor 3RCambridge MAA Colloquium Presented byDAMON BURCHELL-SAJNANIHiphop Artist & Doctoral CandidateAfrican American StudiesNorthwestern University
Lecture is free and open to the public.A Q+A will follow the talk.
For more information please visit:hutchinscenter.fas.harvard.edu

Social Activism in North Carolina: Rukiyah Dillahunt

Duke Human Rights Center | FHI
In this oral history, Rukiya Dillahunt discusses her experience organizing with Black Workers for Justice (BWFJ), as well as her tenure as a teacher and assistant principal in the Wake County School System. She also provides insight about the school-to-prison pipeline and its implications for North Carolina’s youth.

Duke students in Bruce Orenstein’s Video for Social Change class at the Center for Documentary Studies learned what it means to live the life of a social advocate in North Carolina. Through a series of oral history interviews, students explored the lives and motivations of social activists across North Carolina, painting a portrait of social advocacy efforts related to labor, civil rights, immigration, and education. 

Rukiya Dillahunt, born Elaine Dillahunt, is a retired educator and active advocate. Dillahunt grew up in Charleston, South Carolina and recounts how her youth was impacted by Jim Crow laws. In 1963, encouraged by the NAACP, Rukiya engaged in one of her first activist efforts, joining high school friends in an attempt to integrate a movie theater. After high school, she went on to earn her undergraduate degree from West Virginia State University and then received a Masters in Special Education. Dillahunt moved to North Carolina in 1978. Here, she convinced the Assistant Superintendent of Wake County Schools to give her a job for her background in education, an experience that nourished her commitment to education advocacy work.

Accused of Stealing a Backpack, Bronx HS Student Jailed for Nearly Three Years Without Trial

Democracy Now

We look at the incredible story of how a 16-year-old high school sophomore from the Bronx ended up spending nearly three years locked up at the Rikers jail in New York City after he says he was falsely accused of stealing a backpack. Kalief Browder never pleaded guilty and was never convicted.

Browder maintained his innocence and requested a trial, but was only offered plea deals while the trial was repeatedly delayed. Near the end of his time in jail, the judge offered to sentence him to time served if he entered a guilty plea, and warned him he could face 15 years in prison if he was convicted. But Browder still refused to accept the deal, and was only released when the case was dismissed. During this time, Browder spent nearly 800 days in solitary confinement, a juvenile imprisonment practice that the New York Department of Corrections has now banned. We are joined by reporter and author Jennifer Gonnerman, who recounts Browder’s story in the current issue of The New Yorker. We also speak with Browder’s current attorney, Paul Prestia, who has filed a lawsuit against the City of New York, the New York City Police Department, the Bronx District Attorney, and the Department of Corrections, on Browder’s behalf.

Why There is No Ebola Vaccine

APM Marketplace
The first diagnosed case of Ebola in the United States reveals a truth people in developing countries know all too well: There is little incentive for drug manufacturers to develop vaccines and drugs for diseases that affect the poor.  “If there are a million consumers and each of them would be willing to pay $1,000 for a drug, that translates into a billion-dollar potential market,” he says economist Frank Lichtenberg; That is in no way the Ebola market.

'Scandal' Actress Khandi Alexander Brings Complicated Women to Life on Screen

Credit: Charles Bush Public Radio International

On the ABC prime-time television show "Scandal," veteran actress Khandi Alexander plays the devious mother of Kerry Washington’s Olivia Pope. “Devious isn’t even the word,” says critic Hilton Als. “She’s just hot — but with a vengeance.”

Authors Cora Daniels & John Jackson, Jr. Talk 'Impolite Conversations' on Race and Sex

The Cycle | MSNBC
Journalist Cora Daniels and UPenn professor John L. Jackson, Jr., co-authors of Impolite Conversations on Race, Politics, Sex, Money and Religion explain why talking about the most awkward, taboo topics can help encourage important breakthroughs.

'Won't be Fooled Again' (1972) -- LaBelle | 'The Liberation of Aunt Jemima' (1972) -- Betye Saar

The Liberation of Aunt Jemima (1972) -- Betye Saar
"Won't be Fooled Again" (1972) -- LaBelle