The Negro Intellectual

I thought I would take the opportunity to write something briefly about my day of birth.  This is, however, not an attempt and at promotion or some weird intellectual vanity, but a young man taking an honest inventory of himself (hopefully briefly as I have the tendency to be long winded sometimes).

On this day at 4:06pm at Jewish Hospital in St. Louis, Missouri, Norma and Vernon Mitchell welcomed their first child into the world--Me!  Now thirty-one years later, here I am. So where is "here" and "Who Am I"?

This birthday has been quite a reflective one as I have looked back over my brief life and thought about "What have I done?"(especially since I am now on the other side of thirty).  Was Jay-Z right? is this the new twenty?  I'm not so sure.  I would like to think so since my generation is doing thing much later than my parents' generation did. 

My sister left me a voice mail message this morning where she mentioned, "Brother it is time to start looking back ain't it? It's time for some reflection."  She is so right.

As a thinker and an academic in training my mind is constantly engaged with ideas and concepts even when I don't necessary want to.  Sometimes I wish I could turn my brain off to sit back and "do nothing." However, I don't think that is in my blood to holistically "do nothing."

I will say that I am especially thankful for life on this day...because I realize more and more that life is a beautiful, ugly, fragile and equally precious thing. As I woke up this morning I thought about the number of people like my paternal grandmother Rosie Mae Mitchell and one of my best friends, Brian Barton, who have transcended this existence. Both of them, and a host of others who have passed on, had a profound impact on my life.  Of the two I mentioned, Brian did not see his 31st birthday as I have.

I thought about what each of them might say to me today. My grandmother would offer some sage wisdom and the love that only a grandma can give and Brian would no doubt say something that was funny as hell. I miss them both.

A friend posed the question to me today in an email, "Vernon what do you want to do this year that you didn't do last year?  What do you want accomplish?"

My quick response to that question is that my goal is still the same. I hope to have challenged folk to think outside themselves and their situations to impact positive change in someone's life other than their own. While history is part of my profession, it also is an important part of my life and the circuitous path I have taken to get to where I am today. I am solely a result of previous sacrifices made by so many, and I am thankful.

I only hope that as I live my life through my own mistakes and successes, I have done their collective memory justice. Fame and fortune have not been part of my life and may never be, but if I have helped at least one person along my own short life's journey then my living will not have been in vain.

Lord willing this time next year, I'll be talking about graduation and a job...and I'll be that much more thankful as I celebrate another trip around the sun.

Peace and Respect.

This past Friday not just Americans, but likely the world was shocked by the announcement that the 44th President of the United States, Mr. Barack Hussien Obama was selected as the 2009 Awadee for the Nobel Peace Prize. Mr. Obama himself mentioned in his comments at the White House Rose Garden that he was, "surprised and deeply humbled by the decision of the Nobel Committee." Of course this has not been enough for both many of supporters and all of his detractors and socio-political enemies. He seems live in a world where he is damned if he does or damned if he doesn't...no matter what it is.

I read and re-read several blogs and op-ed pieces before writing this post today.  Once such post by NYTimes columnist Thomas L. Friedman entitled, "Peace (Keepers) Prize." He makes the argument that "The Nobel committee did President Obama no favors by prematurely awarding him its peace prize." He goes on to say "...and it dismays me that the most important prize in the world has been devalued in this way."  Devalued?  I was floored at that assertion.  Very harsh words to say the least.  The rest of his column is a speech that Friedman feels Obama should give, where he thanks all of the soldiers who have been "keeping the world safe." Thus, the thought is, there is no peace without peace keepers.  However "peacekeepers" don't have to be the military. I thought the article was more than arrogant and extremely dismissive, but I wanted again to see what was being said.

Another NYTimes contributor Marueen Dowd, wrote a fictional and deeply satirical phone conversation between Bill Clinton and George W. Bush. Here I was given a bit more insight to another take on the issue that was creatively written but still I found troubling in some ways. The best line is from Bill Clinton where he says, "Any peace prize that goes to Henry Kissinger but not Gandhi ain’t worth a can of Alpo."  That got me thinking as well. However it was a conversation with my father, Vernon Mitchell, Sr., that really made me reflect.

"Pop what do you think about Obama and the Peace Prize?" I inquired. "Well, I think it is a great honor no matter what folks are saying. We have to look at President Obama's global impact, not just his impact on American soil." That made me think.  "Look back to the election," my father proclaimed. "Folks all over the world were rejoicing at what the election of Obama meant for them. We cannot underestimate that."  I couldn't agree more.

So the question still remains, "Was it too soon?"  Maybe. However, I am not inclined to give such arguments that much weight. The decision was made by the Nobel committee was one that I am certain they mulled over again and again, knowing full well the possible political implications for Mr. Obama. All we can do now it accept what is, in the hope that the award will continue the push toward progress and holistic freedom for those who lie on the fringes of economic opportunity and peace.

As a historian, I also began to think about context, which is what I believe my father was doing in his own way. When I think back to last November I distinctly remember the news coverage that showed people, and children in particular, all over the world cheering and crying tears of joy. I remember thinking what does this mean to them?

I knew what it meant to me as an African American, but what were the global implications?  For one Obama's election signaled the first time that anyone of African descent (or non-white) was elected the leader of a Western Nation. That is huge when you think about the legacy of colonialism and imperialism has ransacked the globe from the Transatlantic Slave Trade to Europe's carving up of the African continent. Think too about Asia, Austrilia, and the lands in the Pacific.  All have been adversely effected by encrouchment from the West and many deivstating ways. Even now.

Ironically today is Columbus Day.  The day that has been set aside to honor the "discovery" of a new world that just happened to already have people living in it.  I think not of discovery, but of destruction of culture and a celebration of human tragedy via the so called free market.  Within the field of history we speak constantly of the "Columbian Exchange" which is a term used to discuss the "exchange of culture" between the Spaniards and native indigenous populations in the Western Hemisphere.  While we think pleasantly of corn(maize), horses, and potatoes, no one wants to discuss the impact of diseases like small pox or syphilis. So, Obama being in the White House is transformative in ways we, as Americans, can only begin to imagine.  He is the personification of hope, of dreams deferred for the global community.

Those who view the 2009 Peace Prize as a mockery I'm sure had nothing to say when Al Gore recieved for his efforts to inform the world about the climate change.  Then again maybe they likely did.  I take heart in the fact that President Obama is keenly aware of his position in time and takes everything in stride. Obama accepted the award as a "call to action" to confront the global challenges of the 21st century. Furthermore he stated, "I do not view it as a recognition of my own accomplishments but rather an affirmation of American leadership on behalf of aspirations held by people in all nations."

Obama's remarks about his prize sound very similar to another American who won the same prize. On December 10, 1964, Martin Luther King remarked during his acceptance speech, "I accept this award today with an abiding faith in America and an audacious faith in the future of mankind. I refuse to accept despair as the final response to the ambiguities of history."

Premature or not, this is just another chance for this nation to show itself to be what it says on paper.

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

Those coveted words were penned on July 4, 1776 and have been the bedrock of our so called democracy. More Americans need to wash off the dirt of pessimism and the filth of ignorance and arrogance and cleanse themselves in the waters of justice and peace that we affirm in the words of our Declaration of Independence.

I've said this before and I'll say it again, President Obama cannot do this alone. It will take the work of each of us in our own way to see the transformation we want in this troubled republic. For now, let us each accept the Peace Prize with our president and roll up our sleeves to do the real work nation building at home and abroad.  Violent action can only secure peace for a limited time--if you want to call that "peace" at all.  Respect, tolerance, and education can do much more than any weapon ever could to establish a true communion of global brotherhood.

Maxwell not only has the hottest new album out, but his new tour might equal, if not eclipse the accolades that the studio production is receiving. After an eight year hiatus, Maxwell is back and this weekend his BLACKsummers'night Tour will hit St. Louis.

Maxwell's new album boasts a sound that blends love with laughter, pain with perseverance. BLACKsummers'night is the marriage of Maxwell's soulful, intimate, and inspiring vocals to the superb musicianship of an outstanding band. Two of those band members, Shedrick Mitchell and Keyon Harrold, are St. Louis natives that are excited about their homecoming this Friday.

For both Shedrick and Keyon the black church was an integral part of their musical and personal coming of age. Shedrick began playing the piano and organ for his grandfather's congregation and later for his father's church, (both located in Kinloch, MO). Keyon played the trumpet in much the same way. Family and faith were one in the same. "The church is the basis of my playing...it is that soul that other cats can't learn," Keyon mentions. Elaborating further, Shedrick suggests that there is an invaluable asset to growing up in the church as he and Keyon did. For Shedrick, the church, "prepared me for everything that I've encountered to maintain and stay on the scene...to have longevity and musically stay alert with my onstage surroundings."

Being alert is an important part of playing with Maxwell it seems. Shedrick calls Maxwell a "spontaneous entertainer" referencing the fact that working with him whether in the studio or especially live, the singer "keeps you on your toes. " Likewise, Keyon finds that Maxwell's ability to allow each band member freedom that does not compromise their own sound, while still contributing to something innovative and new is important as well. Keyon admits, "I feel like I'm playing my music every night--that's a blessing."

This is not that hard to believe. Keyon says that working with Maxwell has been a "musically stimulating experience, " from the standpoint that they "have created incredible music together...and there's still more levels of creativity to be dealt with."

Generally speaking, that very "creativity" emerges from both sacred and secular forms of music. Those musical roots have been equally significant in the musical maturation of Shedrick and Keyon. Both musicians cite gospel and jazz as their biggest musical influences. In Shedrick's case in particular it was Miles Davis' "Kind of Blue" (1959) and Chick Corea's Akoustic Band's "Alive" (1991) album that really began to expand his musical horizons.

In much the same way, Keyon found his inspiration through the work of Davis too. "The album I fell in love with was the "Birth of the Cool","(1949) mentions Keyon. The sound and tone of Miles' trumpet on the tune "Boplicity" reaffirmed his love for the instrument and jazz music when he first heard it around age twelve.

Aside from a shared experience of family and faith, Shedrick and Keyon are products of the same high school in St. Louis (McCluer Senior High) and also attended Mannes College The New School for Music in New York City. These master musicians have played with the best artists in almost every genre of music: jazz, gospel, rock, R&B, country, and rap. Shedrick and Keyon last played together with iconic rapper Jay-Z on his American Gangster Tour.

Now together again, playing for Maxwell, Shedrick and Keyon bring their extraordinary talents into a volatile cauldron of creativity that will both grab at your heart and enliven your spirit. Specifically, you can hear the spontaneous, smooth, effortless, and yet robust sound of Keyon's trumpet on full display when Maxwell performs "Playing Possum". Shedrick personifies the sacred and secular mastery of the Hammond B3 organ as he commands the instrument like no other. His solos ring out like a divine messenger calling us to serve in "Help Somebody" while his chords are enchanting in the sultry, intoxicating "Bad habits".

Both musicians are able to accomplish such musical feats, along with their bandmates, without ever overpowering the vocal stylings of Maxwell. Shedrick and Keyon remain students of their craft. Shedrick maintains, "it's very important for me to always be a student of the music because I never want to become complacent with where I am...music is always evolving and it's very important that I keep my ears to the ground to stay fresh and current."

BLACKsummers'night is more than "fresh and current". When I first heard this album in November of last year, in its earliest incarnations, I knew it would change and revitalize an industry starving for creativity, purpose, and passion.

Maxwell has done it again, and Shedrick and Keyon are valuable assets to the continued growth of Maxwell's artistry, while staying true to their own sound.

To say that both musicians are excited about their homecoming is truly an understatement. "St. Louis is going to have an unforgettable night of music...Maxwell is going to croon and I'm going to keep it soulful and sexy," Keyon comments. Shedrick is assured that his hometown is in for a unique experience. "They can expect a night of musical romance, " he professes. As far as his own contribution to the concert Shedrick declares "...it will be a great night for everyone...for my family...for the fans as well because everyone will be family that night. People won't know if they are in a store front baptist church or an Alabama juke joint!" "PIANOMAN",(Shedrick's musical alias), promises "the concert will give you the sacred and secular in no particular order."

Ironically enough Shedrick's forthcoming solo project is called "The Sacred and the Secular". His first album "Introducing Shedrick Mitchell" was released independently in 1996. Keyon just recently released his own solo project, "Introducing Keyon" in September on the Criss Cross Jazz label while also producing a remix of Maxwell's "Pretty Wings" with his brother Jason.

St. Louis prepare for a helluva show!

On this Sunday morning I sat reflected on one of my favorite parables from the Bible. It is the story of the rich man who was a fool. Found in the twelfth chapter of Luke, verses 13-21, it recounts the all too familiar story of a man who is only concerned with himself and while he wades in the waters of self-righteousness and selfishness, he famously extols that he will build bigger store houses for himself then he will relax, “eat, drink, and be merry.” That parable is still apropos today.

Over the past few months it seems that many of the one-time “die hard” supporters of President Obama have become that rich man in one way or another. They say that he is not as progressive as he should be. They question whether or not he is cowering too much to corporate interests and the associative lobbies. They wonder if the GOP has his number, as they search for meaning themselves. Some have even gone as far as to question Mr. Obama’s integrity not just as a politician, but as a man. I think this pessimism and doubt is misplaced.

Where are all the teary eyed, inspired folk who came to see Mr. Obama sworn in on that frigid day in January? Where are the folks who stood transformed by that moment whether they watched on television, computer, or listened to the radio (yes, radio)? I’ll tell where they are. They have retreated back to the safety and warmth of passivity and inaction, governed by a spirit that has, for all practical purposes, given up the very hope that got our president elected in the first place.

I was there too in January and for the first time I actually sang the national anthem, not as a stepchild of democracy, but as one of its standard bearers. I still feel that same way (minus the frost bite). With a more than checkered history of maltreatment and inhumanity born out of the peculiar institution of slavery, I still stand as proud now as I did on that day of this nation for what it can be, and understanding the debt owed to those who gave the ultimate sacrifice to ensure that we would enjoy brighter tomorrows.

Now, that is not to say that I have donned rose colored shades to give me the impression that Barack Obama’s Presidency is some post racial moment, a signal for neo-Black Nationalism, or some kind of reincarnation of the New Deal. It is not. President Obama’s election is merely a watershed moment but requires work of all of us to see the “change” we voted for.

As a boy growing up, I spent many days outside with my father working around our property. We had a few acres that were used primarily to house his horses and that takes work to maintain. I mean WORK. We would go into the fields repairing fences, gates, refurbishing the barn, painting barns, mowing grass, stacking hay…you name it we did it. We would spend all day outside especially on Saturdays. One Saturday, during the middle of those humid Missouri summers, I asked my father, “Daddy, will we ever get all this work done?” He looked back at me and simply said, “Son, there is ALWAYS work to do.”

A democracy works no different. I once listened to one of England’s greatest progressive politicians, Tony Benn. Commenting on how democracy works he simply stated, “If you don’t keep up the pressure for democratic control you lose it…it’s use it or lose it.” Expounding further he warned, “there is never a final victory for democracy it’s always a struggle in every generation and you have to take up the cause time and time again.”

At this moment it is time to take up that struggle. President Obama mentioned during his inaugural address, “as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job, which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighter's courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent's willingness to nurture a child, that finally decides our fate.”

During his oration, Obama constantly referenced “we”. Remember his campaign slogan, “Yes WE Can!”? It is high time we recommit those words to memory and engage it through word and deed and not sit back like the rich man who was a fool to relax, eat, drink and be merry. In the Christian Gospel according to John, he recounts Christ telling his disciples “he must work while it is day for night cometh that no man can work,”(John 9:4 KJV). Similarly, we must get busy while the sun of social change is shining, for the darkness of ignorance, intolerance, and bigotry is always looming and lately those shadows seem even more ominous.

We must understand that President Obama is not some messiah sent to wash our sins away…he is man. And as a man he has limitations, just as we all do. We elected him to lead, and to his credit I believe he has tried his best to do that. He will not always succeed, nor will he continually fail. He is leader who is accountable to the citizens, but we all must work just like I did on my father’s ranch. There will not be some great day that we can sit back and reminisce about how “we made it over.” There is no “Promised Land”. That notion, like democracy, is an ideological construct that takes sustained diligence to make manifest. There is always work to be done, now let’s do it!

Historically, South Carolina is known for showing incredible audacity to do what others will not, no matter what the circumstance, for what they believe is right, no matter how wrong it is. On December 20, 1860, South Carolina passed an ordinance of secession. This was the pivotal step that paved the way for the strategy of separate state secession. South Carolina was arguably the most extreme pro-slavery state in the Union and it seemed logical to Southern Democrats that any fight over maintaining the peculiar institution should be fought in one of their strongholds. Not surprisingly, it was also in South Carolina at Fort Sumter on April 12, 1861 that the first shots were fired in the Civil War.

Another shot was fired tonight during President Obama's speech to the nation regarding healthcare. The shot rang from the mouth of Rep. Joe Wilson of South Carolina. During the President's speech, Wilson yelled, "You Lie!" to the top of his lungs, mirroring a recent trend of hecklers that we have all witnessed on the news during the summer, as members of Congress and even the President himself have held town hall meetings around the nation. Such outbursts have been viewed by those from the conservative circles as their right to speak in a public forum or "free speech" in some kind of twisted "the voices of the masses must be heard" ideology. The reality is that this type of thought is the ideology of dissent, the specter of unrelenting fear, governed by ignorance, and baptized in the waters of white supremacy. Can one ever voice a concern that does not agree with the majority? Of course, but there must be some civility in the discourse.

Discourse. Some Republicans and Democrats should look that word up. Sadly this nation has markedly been about choosing one side of the political aisle or another...there has never been any meaningful political dialogue. Even when we have declared war (unjustly), no one wants to discuss peace. Ironically enough, the declaration of the War in Iraq was the last time we heard about bipartisanship during the Bush administration--particularly, when everyone wanted to know after 9/11 which members of Congress did not vote for the war. The quote “American people" wanted to know who was not being patriotic by dare I say it...thinking (what a novel idea). Years later those votes came back to haunt both parties during the last election cycle (especially Hillary Clinton).

Wilson's blatant disrespect, however, is deep. Yes he apologized but that apology is as worthless as the apology Congress issued for the institution of slavery. It means nothing. No action is taken. No retribution given. There is no remorse, just empty words. And just like the Congress, Mr. Wilson can keep his apology. He needs to be reprimanded and disciplined. I would even entertain him loosing his seat. His supporters (a la Rush Limbaugh among others) will argue that Wilson's actions hearken back to Patrick Henry's "Give me liberty or give me death" oration. Most of these clowns would love for you to think that.

The reality is that Rep. Wilson’s actions last night fall more in line with former Gov. George Wallace's thoughts about segregation or Senator Joseph McCarthy's witch-hunts for communists. Actually, I think it is both. Certain segments of the American population do not want progress if an African American will usher it in, even if it means that it will help them enjoy a better standard of living. The liquor of white privilege is just that intoxicating.

Worse still, Wilson's actions totally throw out any argument Bush supporters had about respecting the executive office in America. That was their line for all criticisms of Bush. "You don't have to agree, but you must respect the office." In all of my study of American History, I have NEVER and I mean NEVER heard of anyone interrupting or heckling the President of the United States while addressing the legislative branch of our government. The last time I saw anything close to that it was the Iraqi journalist who threw the shoes at President Bush. We all know what happened to him. This is just more of the same white backlash to a black man being in the oval office.

Let us be clear, racism is alive and well and here to stay. Any ultra left leaning persons who thought that President Obama would wash their hands of slavery and if nothing else create a post-racial watershed moment are sadly mistaken. No more tip-toeing around the subject, we all know that even as much as folk hated "Dub-ya" he NEVER got that type of disrespect in the chambers of Congress.

As I listened to the heckling again and seriously thought about it, the utter insolence reminds me of the Dred Scott Decision of 1857, where Chief Justice Roger B. Taney coldly remarked in his opinion of the case that African Americans "had no rights which the white man was bound to respect." While we are not dealing with the issue of slavery, we still engage the vestiges of the institution. The Republicans now are as desperate as their Southern Democrat forefathers were in 1865, and are willing to do anything to stop any type of progress by their opposition. They are willing to denigrate the audacity of hope, to the audacity of ignorance, as Mr. Wilson so callously displayed.