Gabby Douglas's Hair

Well I haven't posted in a while folks but I felt the need to speak on an issue (one that shouldn't even be an issue in the first place), that issue is Gabby Douglas's Hair. Now just in case you've been sleeping under a rock for the past week, Gabby Douglas is a wonderful 16 year old gymnast on the U.S. Women's Gymnastic's team for the Summer 2012 Olympics in London. Gabby has just won the Gold Medal in the Women's Gymnastics All-Around and is the first African -American to do so, however, instead of hearing praise for this graceful young lady, the critics (primarily African American Women -_-)  are complaining about her hair.


 Now I'm not sure if it's because some of these women have never played sports or if it's just jealousy but honestly if the only thing you can say to a young lady who has just made history is that she needs her hair done....you need a reality check. It's very hard when you have natural hair (the hair God gave us...you know the hair with kinks and curls that don't lay flat on their own) to keep it tamed when you are doing an intense sport, one with flipping, and turning, and spinning, and sweating. It is also NOT IMPORTANT to have your hair done all the time anyway, her ponytail is fine, it looks just like the other girls hair.


 It is important that we instill in our children values and that we allow them to pursue their dreams, it is clear that Gabby's mother has done that, from the way she handled herself on the mat, to the way she gave honor to her creator off the mat after she won, this girl is going somewhere. Unfortunately we can't say the same for some of our sisters acting like crabs in a barrel. Let's stop pulling each other down and start lifting each other up and maybe you'll have the confidence to stop wearing out the weave and letting your own hair free. Everyone does not want a perm and NO ONE needs a perm so while Gabby is busy shining up her medal to put on her mantle, maybe you should take some time out to reevaluate your own life. WHAT HAVE YOU DONE? If the answer is not win a gold medal in the Olympics and be the first black anything by the age of 16 then, SHUT YOUR MOUTH! 




Good Day to You,
Miss Understood

I'm Back!!

Well I finally remembered my password to my blog! lol I hope all is well with you guys. Thanks for being such faithful followers. I will be heading off to Singapore in 9 days so the writings will soon be coming at you all full force! I hope you are prepared :)


Miss Understood

Education Is Key

I've been away for a while but I'm back in action. Here's a new poem I wrote this morning to get me back into the groove. Enjoy!

I don’t like school. It’s not for me.

I like rough streets and poverty.

As I sit and watch my brothers die

in my silence, I fail to rise.

But I don’t care because it is not my place,

No one cares if I stop the race.

I can stop half way and say it’s too hard,

Without ever even trying I can kill my people.

The words I spout, show ignorance, half empty signs of bliss,

And even in a no talk, posture only event you can see this.

You can see my hatred for myself; you can feel my self esteem fading

As I keep degrading myself in my music, in my actions, in the raising of my children.  

Head hung low, hoodie on my head, spending most of my time in bed.

Or on the corner where my real friends are…they have my back but not my head.

Encouraging me to leave the loving embrace of a mother, the guidance of a God and the presence of structure, I am led by what I see but never stop once to THINK.

Money and power are all I want but the road’s too long to go the right way so I’ll make a short cut and end up farther away.

I live a lavish lifestyle, I want a big house with many rooms, all my friends can live with me….the one’s from my corner and the next.

Most of the time these wishes come true too….I take the shortcut like those before me and wind up far away, in a big house with many rooms and all my friends are there, from this corner and the next

But unfortunately this house is called Jail.

As I pass through the doors it all comes rushing back.

The times I sat and thought I was in lack but was actually wealthy. Had an opportunity to use this gift, this talent that could heal the world and bring my brothers back from the pits.

Each time I let out a word it could’ve been worth more than spit, what my mother said was right. Education is the key, but if you never finish the race you’ll never get to the door that the key unlocks.

SEE YA IN AUGUST

Many apologies to my loyal followers. I haven't written anything in a while. I will be working at the Morgan State Estuarine Research Center all summer so I won't have time to write much not pertaining to my research. I pray that you all enjoy your summer and have lots of tasty treats and grand memories stocked up for when school rolls back around.
PEACE,
MISS UNDERSTOOD

THE END OF THE WORLD.....On Saturday? Not Likely

Here we go again, more deranged people on the cusp of pure insanity coming up from their permanent posts in the New York Subway System to share their beliefs on the news. I just don't understand why these people can't take a seat and stop acting like they know when the end of the world is. They claim to be Christians but if they were truly Christians they would certainly know the scriptures Matthew 24:36, Mark 13:32, and Acts 1:7 all which state that NO MAN (or woman) knows the day, time, or even the year that The Lord will return and the earth as we know it will be no more. 


It is very unfortunate that most people are so out of touch with their own religious beliefs that anyone could tell them anything and they'd follow along like a donkey to a carrot on a stick. THE WORLD IS NOT ENDING SATURDAY!! Stop believing these crazy folk! There is no reason this particular branch of "Christians" should be taken seriously anyway because their leader Harold Camping is a nut job. He predicted this date and time on Saturday but I wonder if any of his idiot follower understand that he said the same thing would happen in 1994. Clearly that did not come to pass so why the heck are they still following him? I haven't the slightest clue. 


If you are really that concerned about the world ending maybe that means you need to do something to get your life in order. If you are doing wrong and making poor life decisions fix them, reconcile yourself with God, and make amends with people you've hurt. The when the time does actually come, you'll be ready. Enjoy your weekend ;)

HATE CRIME?

Well it's been a while guys, I've been buckling down on the books and taking finals like crazy. I've got two more to go but something caught my attention in the news yesterday and I just had to write about it and ask your thoughts on the situation.


McDonald's may be facing a lawsuit from a young Baltimore native named Chrissy Lee Polis after she was brutally beaten to the point she had a seizure and was pretty much left to fend for herself in a Baltimore McDonald's a short while ago.  While being filmed by one of the employees of McDonald's (now an ex employee of course) the watcher of the video embarks on a journey. What starts out as normal garbage you may see in the streets of any neighborhood when girls get upset with each other quickly turns into an awful showcase of skills one would only deem appropriate in a WWE no way out cage match.


 Stomping, punching, hair pulling and lots of profanity all thrown at Chrissy because she spoke to Teonna Brown's (one of the attackers) man. The only person in the entire place that attempted to stop the fight was a woman who looks upwards of sixty and    as was expected also received some backlash by these awful animals? "people" with no home training. We later learn that one of the attackers was 14 and the other 18 year old Teonna, who seems to have a history with fighting and being arrested at McDonald's.....the same McDonald's to be exact. 


As unfortunate as this story is another wrench was thrown into the mix because the two attackers are being charged with a hate crime. Now as much as I like to see justice served, I just don't see how this is a hate crime. Yes Chrissy is Caucasian, yes Chrissy is also transgender, but where in the three minutes of fighting and yelling do we hear any racial epithets or derogatory terms related to gender being thrown around? I didn't hear any at all. 


If we are all supposed to be treated as equals no matter what our skin color, gender identity, or sexual preference then why is this being called a hate crime and not just HOT GHETTO MESS that needs to be treated as such? I would appreciate if someone could explain this to me because I'm very perplexed at the moment. Hopefully someone will counsel both Teonna and the 14 year old because there are clearly some issues as far as mental stability being aroused here, beating anyone into a seizure  for speaking to someone is mortifyingly (yes I made that word up) ridiculous.


Don't take my word for it though, if you haven't seen it yet here it is...(FOR MATURE AUDIENCES ONLY)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AfYRFX5GTLg&has_verified=1

Cracker Jack and Acting Black... (a tribute to yesterday's conversation)

       Yesterday I was fortunate enough to go to take part in a conversation at Morgan State University that many black people choose not to have. Either because of the heaviness of the topic or ignorance of it's existence (to some extent). The discussion, held in one of the lesser used buildings on campus, was entitled "Meet the Oreo". The only reason I was intrigued is because I have been called an Oreo multiple times in my life, and much to my dismay the word as well as it's negative connotations don't seem to be going anywhere any time soon. Armed with my comfort team, Patrick Sweet and Isis Tutman I braved the conversation and even put forth my own opinion when necessary.


        Here are a few things I wanted to make clear to people. Having darker skin does not make you inferior, dumber, poorer, ghettoer, or sneakier than the next guy, however, it also does not make you better than anyone either. We as a race (THE HUMAN RACE) need to get over skin color as a defining factor in our day to day living. Dating, hanging out, school choices, neighborhood choices, television channels, and radio stations have all become ways to separate ourselves from each other. We all breathe the same air, eat the same foods, need the same nutrients, and pump the same blood through our bodies, which as far as I'm concerned, makes us all equal. We ought not teach our children labels and instill them with garbage or the cycle of ignorance WILL continue.


   We are the ones who have the opportunity at this present time, as the next generation to take over, to wipe the slate clean and start fresh. We have to be bigger than black, white, yellow, red and everything in between or we'll never move forward, and the unfortunate events of the past are doomed to repeat themselves. When we go out into our communities, we need to make meaningful change, we need to stop letting the media turn our tapestry of textures into a joke. We should not allow ourselves to be relegated to stereotypes, because when we allow one person to be brought down, it is not just at their expense, it's at ours also.


THINK BEFORE YOU SPEAK.....THINK BEFORE YOU ACT.....CHANGE THE WORLD


Join the what is white? what is black conversation at www.crackerdress.wordpress.com and share your thoughts and solutions to a problem that just doesn't want to go away....