Project Playwright: Sanguine Productions’ Playwright Contest!

Posted on October 6, 2010 by marlowe

Sanguine Productions announces “Project Playwright,” our premiere play writing competition. Once all submissions have been read a panel will select three scripts of which Sanguine Productions will produce a staged reading in New York City of excerpts from the play that will be determined by Sanguine Productions in collaboration with the playwright. From there, a grand prize winner will be chosen and have their play fully produced in a New York City theatre along with opportunities to workshop their script.

Submission Guidelines:

*One full-length play (no longer than 90 pages, no less than 70 pages)
*2-7 characters
*Minimal set and costume
*The title page must include the playwright’s name, address, telephone number, email address and a brief synopsis of the play
*Previously produced plays will not be accepted
*No children’s plays or musicals
*Sanguine Productions reserves the right to change any contest rules
*Sanguine Productions reserves the right to accept or reject any play submitted to the contest for any reason
*No playwright revisions will be accepted once a script has been submitted. Sanguine Productions reserves the right to request changes to any script.
*For the staged reading, two complimentary tickets will be made available for each of the three playwrights selected. In order to reserve these complimentary tickets please notify Sanguine Productions at least one week in advance of opening night. *After this time, Sanguine Productions will release all seats for sale to the general public.
*For final performances, two complimentary tickets will be made available to the playwright who has been selected as the grand prize winner. In order to reserve these complimentary tickets please notify Sanguine Productions at least one week in advance of opening night. After this time, Sanguine Productions will release all seats for sale to the general public.
*Any additional tickets must be purchased. Ticket pricing for the contest is currently to be determined.
*No submissions will be accepted after November 19, 2010 at 5pm EST.
*We are a contemporary theatre group looking for pieces that deal with contemporary issues, and our target audience is generally in their 20’s to 30’s. Please check out our website (http://www.sanguinenyc.com) to get a sense of who we are.

Finalists will be chosen based on the following:
*If the structure of the piece is conducive to theatrical storytelling
*How well the script conveys thoughts and ideas through subject matter, dialogue and staging
*Dialogue that is natural, creative and supplemental to the storyline
*Well-developed characters that invite the audience to become invested in them

To submit:
*Please send your script to info@sanguinenyc.com with “Project Playwright” and your last name in the subject line.
*A $15 non-refundable administrative fee is due at the time of submission. It can be paid on Paypal by clicking the button below:

You will receive a confirmation receipt within 48 hours.
*Finalists will be contacted via email address or telephone number (as provided on title page of submitted script).

CONSENT-Read before you submit!

Contestant, by submission, either physically or electronically, of his/her/their work to Sanguine Productions agrees and consents to the following terms and provisions:

1.) That Contestant’s submission is solely the work product and intellectual property of the Contestant.

2.) Contestant has read and fully understands the terms and provisions of Sanguine Productions’ “Project Playwright” competition (the “Contest”).

3.) Contestant understands that the $15.00 submission fee which is to accompany a Contestant’s submission is non-refundable.

4.) Contestant consents to Sanguine Productions’ unlimited use of excerpts from Contestant’s submitted work for future promotion of subsequent Sanguine Productions Playwright Contests.

5.) In the event Contestant’s submitted work is selected as one of the three (3) top entries; Contestant authorizes Sanguine Productions to produce and present, if it so chooses, to the general public the Contestant’s submitted work in the form of a theatrical performance for a total of five (5) theatrical performances and waives any entitlement to royalties or other fees that might be derived from such theatrical performances. Provided; however, that this grant of authority to produce is limited to and shall not exceed a period of twelve (12) consecutive months from and after the date that Sanguine Productions publicly announces the top three (3) winning entries. Further, Sanguine Productions, in the promotion of any and all theatrical performances, shall adequately and fully advertise the Contestant’s name and the fact that Contestant was one of three (3) top entries in the Contest.

6.) If Contestant’s submission is one of the top three (3) entries selected by Sanguine Productions and Sanguine Productions elects to produce and present the Contestant’s work to the public, Contestant agrees that Sanguine Productions shall not be responsible for any and all costs and/or expenses associated with Contestant’s travel to and from the site selected by Sanguine Productions for production, technical planning meetings, readings, performances or other associated and/or related events.

FAQs

Why the $15.00 submission fee?

When you submit a script to our contest it will be read by people who are trained in the theatrical and writing fields. Then, the winners will be picked based on the comprehensive opinion of these experienced folks. We know, $15.00 might seem like a lot to someone trying to get their writing out there, but we just don’t feel right asking these people for their services and then not rewarding them with some sort of stipend. After all, it takes quite a bit of work to read and critique a full-length piece. Whatever money is left over will go to the final production of the winning play, which might just be yours.

What is with all of the red tape surrounding a writer’s consent? Do you get to use my play however you want?

Absolutely not. As a company we have a deep and unmovable passion for the playwriting process. We would just like to use pictures from the final production and quotes from the script on our website and in other media forums for future promotional use. We encourage workshopping for writers, but we would never change your words or compromise your artistic integrity.

Are your play submission rules set in stone? What if my play is 91 pages when you have a limit of 90 pages?

We understand that a play is something that cannot necessarily be boxed into such specific limitations. These are guidelines, and while we take them pretty seriously there are always exceptions. When in doubt just email us! We are always available for questions.

You guys seem kind of new.

Well, that isn’t really a question, but we will address it anyway! We ARE new as a matter of fact, and our production and staff members have built this company up from the ground in the past year. We are so excited to be a brand new organization that produces contemporary work. Our dedication to artistic excellence has aided us along our journey and it will continue to be our number one priority as we grow.

For questions:

Send us an email at info@sanguinenyc.com with the subject heading “Playwright Question”.

(SHORT) FICTION COLLECTIVE

A JOURNAL OF CONCISE CONTEMPORARY FICTION.

100th story Contest!

 

(Short) Fiction Collective is proud to celebrate our 100th story! In order to do so we've set up a writing contest. Don't worry, no entry fees! So here's the deal, send up to 3 short stories (no romance or sci-fi please) of no more than 5,000 words each (email above.) Contest ends on November 1st. Winner will be announced in mid November. If you're selected you'll have your story published on the site, a hundred dollar check mailed to you, a few randomly selected books from the Editor's private library, and eternal bragging rights. If you don't win, don't despair because when we re-open the site for regular submissions in January of 2011 (we need a break for the holidays after all!) all of the stories that weren't selected will be up for publication (no promises though.) No lose situation so don't miss out! We look forward to reading your submissions.

Submission Guidelines

What turns us on:

Literary fiction that uses the great wordsmiths of the past for inspiration while still showcasing your own unique voice.

Well told stories that refuse to be pigeonholed into just one genre/category.

What we don't like:

Science fiction, romance, obscene horror.

Poetry (sorry, it's just not our thing.)

The Details:

Send unpublished and previously published fiction to

editorfic@aim.com.

In the subject line include your name and title of the piece.

You can choose to attach the story as .doc or .docx or paste it into the body of the email, whatever works for you.

Keep it between 3 and 10,000 words.

We guarantee an insanely quick response time because we believe it's bullshit that editors receive submissions and hold them hostage for months on end. We'll make every effort to give you a personalized response within 48 hours (72 at the latest.)

Because of the quick response we ask that you don't send us any simultaneous submissions. 

Please keep submissions to no more than two per month.

We have no publishing schedule as we'll publish as often as good stories come our way.

Since we're in our infancy we can't afford to pay authors just yet but we can promise you all the glory associated with seeing your story published for the world to see!

The author will always retain the copywright to his/her work. We'll keep your story online forever, or until you tell us to take it off. If you later publish your story elsewhere, we'd appreciate your mentioning somehow that (Short) Fiction Collective published it first.

 

   This contest is being generously sponsored by Serenity Sales.  Serenity Sales will be awarding beautifully restored retro mystery novel cover art prints and magnets (winners' choice of Nancy Drew or Hardy Boys) to the winners.  Just the thing to display near your writing desk!  See below for prize details, and don't forget to visit Serenity Sales' store to check out these wonderful items for yourself!   

  

Current Contest Prompt:

     Silver moonlight spilled across the wilderness, shining like a searchlight on snow-dusted mountain peaks and filling the valleys like floodwater. Ara stood in the shadow of a tall oak, sheltered from the unusual nighttime brightness. Traveling in the revealing moonlight didn’t feel safe, but neither did the woods. Those closely clustered trees were older than her grandparents and could hide too many things beneath their dense canopy - not so much as a single drop of moonlight touched the forest floor. Behind Ara, her mare nickered. She felt the animal’s breath on her shoulder, followed by a soft nudge. She didn’t want to stand still any longer. Well, neither did Ara. She swung into the saddle, clutching a familiar strand of blue beads that had been mined out of the very mountains she faced. She heeled her mare forward and wondered for what must have been the hundredth time where Jon was now.

 

_____________________________________________________________

   Submission Deadline:   December 31, 2010

   Word Limit:  3,500

   Prizes:  

           First Place: $25  cash+ Retro Mystery Novel Restored Cover Art Print           

             Second Place: $15 cash + Retro Mystery Novel Restored Cover Art Print  

           Third Place:  Retro Mystery Novel Restored Cover Art Refridgerator Magnets


   Winner Announced:  January 15, 2011

 

How to Submit an Entry - The Rules

 

Submitting your story is easy!

All you have to do is e-mail it to us at  submissions@creativewriterscircle.com .
But first, you'll need to read the rules to make sure that we can accept your entry.
Please read the rules carefully and follow the directions, otherwise your entry will not be judged.


Contest Rules
  
  Entries may be sent in the body of the e-mail or attached, whichever you prefer.  If the entry is attached as a seperate document it must be  saved with the  .doc or .docx  file extension.  These are the only file extensions we will accept.  If you can't comply, please just include your story in the body of the e-mail. Please include your name as you would want it to be displayed on our site if your entry wins and your story's title (if it has one) with your entry.

 Entries must be the original, unpublished work of the entrant.  By submitting your entry to the contest, you are verifying that the submitted work is your own and that it has never been published.

 All entries must in the English language.

 One entry per person, per each contest.

 Entries must consist of 3,500 words or less.

  Entries may not contain explicit sexual content.

 Entries may not contain profanity.

 Entries must be inspired by the current contest prompt.  Irrelevant entries will not be accepted.

 Entries must be submitted by the current contest deadline.

 
 Entrants must use paragraphs and punctuation when writing their stories.  Our judges will not be able to score entries that they cannot read.  Also, send your entry in a normal text size (10-12, for example).  Nobody enjoys reading a story when the type is so big that the 'A's get mistaken for the Eiffel Tower.

 A minimum of 50 entries must be received in order for the contest to be judged and the prize awarded.  If 50 entries are not received by the deadline, the contest may be extended or terminated (note: we've never terminated a contest before, and wouldn't do so unless it was unreasonable for us to continue with it).

 The winning story or stories will be featured on the Creative Writers' Circle website, along with the authors' names.  When you submit your entry to us, you are agreeing to let us feature your story and your name on our website.

 

 

 

 

 

I Love My Hair Part II —

The Story Behind the Story

I'm a journalist at heart and behind every story, is another story. So, of course as soon as I saw the wonderful Sesame Street, "I love my hair" video, I wanted to know who had created it. I imagined a crusading Black woman trying to convince her well-meaning, but perhaps unaware colleagues just how intrinsic hair acceptance is for the self-esteem of little Black girls growing up in America. But boy was I wrong.

The hair hero in this story is actually the head writer at Sesame Street, who happens to be a White man with an adopted Ethiopian daughter. I don't need to tell the story, because he tells it so much better. You can read/watch the story here.

And while we're on the subject of videos featuring little Black girls who love their hair, what do you guys think of Willow Smith's (yes, the daughter of Will and Jada) new video/song, "Whip My Hair?" Haven't seen it yet, take a look below. The song is kind of annoying, but completely catchy, but I have to say I dig the energy of the video and I love all of the very cool, avant garde hairstyles. Obviously not the same audience as the Sesame Street Video, but I'd love my tween to see all the cool things Black hair can do, besides, of course, be whipped back and forth. Thoughts?

I'm going to be whipping my hair back and forth for the rest of the day.

Peace!

 

Posted by LT at 7:56 AM

Labels: Black Hair, Hair Story, Meltingpot Music, Meltingpot stories in the Media

 

1 comments:

Teresa said...

So have you seen the mash-up of the two? Here's a link:

http://jezebel.com/5667752/watch-the-sesame-street-willow-smith-mashup

4:56 PM

'I Love My Hair' Video Inspired By Father's Love of Daughter

'Sesame Street' Writer Pens Song To Help Black Girls Love Their Hair

73 comments

By LINSEY DAVIS and JESSICA HOPPER

October 18, 2010

"Sesame Street" has always been about learning. But one particular muppet is getting tremendous praise for her latest lesson; teaching young, black girls that their hair is beautiful just the way it is.

Sesame Street:Song: I Love My Hair

The viral video of a brown Muppet, meant to represent an African-American girl, singing, "I really, really, really love my hair" has been visited by a quarter of a million people on YouTube. The video, which has made many people smile, was inspired by one father's love for his daughter.

Joey Mazzarino, the head writer at"Sesame Street," who is also a puppeteer, adopted a little girl from Ethiopia named Segi.

 

Sesame Street Writer Inspired By Daughter

"She's like my little muse," Mazzarino said.

As Mazzarino and his wife watched their daughter grow, he noticed a change when she started playing with Barbies. Segi started saying negative things about herself and her own hair.

"She was going through this phase where she really wanted like the long, blonde hair. ... She would look at Barbies and really want the hair."

Related

WATCH: 'I Love My Hair' Video Teaches Self-Acceptance

WATCH: 'Good Hair' Film Asks a Knotty Question

WATCH: Chris Rock Exposes 'Good Hair' Secrets

Segi is not alone. ABC news talked to several young, African American girls, who told us their feelings about their hair. Eleven-year-old Monique told ABC News, "I think I want to straighten my hair because it's curly and it's puffy."

The feelings held by Monique and Mazzarino's daughter are nothing new in the black community.

 

Comedian Chris Rock said he was prompted to make his documentary about the $9 billion black hair business "Good Hair" when his five-year-old daughter asked him, "'Daddy, how come I don't have good hair?"

African-American Women and Beauty

The idea of "good hair" and the feeling that one must have straight hair can be seen in vintage ads for black beauty products. The products tell young black women to straighten their hair. One product, Hair Strate perm, tells black women that the product will keep their hair so straight, they can "swim, shower, shampoo ... hair can't revert!"

The 1960s "Black is beautiful" movement brought the Afro into fashion, but it was never able to completely drown out the historical and perhaps subliminal message for young black girls that their hairdo was a don't.

Take Whoopi Goldberg for instance. Her early days of standup included her portrayal of a little black girl who wore a towel on her head.

"This is my long, luxurious blonde hair," Goldberg said.

 

This anthem about hair, from Sesame Street, has gone viral with more than a quarter million hits on YouTube.

Mazzarino: 'I Just Want Kids To Know Their Hair Is Beautiful'

Mazzarino decided to help his daughter and other young girls appreciate their beauty.

"I just want kids to know their hair is beautiful," Mazzarino said. "I just hope little kids, little girls see this and really feel positive and great about themselves."

Mazzarino wrote the song and with the help of the "Sesame Street" designed the little girl Muppet dancing around, wearing different hairstyles like braids and cornrows, singing, "Don't need a trip to the beauty shop because I love what I've got on top. ... I want to make the world aware I love my hair.

 

Viral Sesame Street Video Resonates With African American Women

The video hasn't struck a chord only with little girls, but grown African-American women as well.

ABC News found hundreds of responses on the Internet like this: "I wish 'Sesame Street' would've had this segment about 18-19 years ago because my mother and I surely needed to see this message."

Another woman wrote online, "My daughter loves this video. ... I could see her eyes light up as she began to sing along with a little girl with hair like hers.

"I was reading some [responses] the other day and I just started to well up," he said. "I am just amazed at how far the reach is."For Mazzarino, the response has been overwhelming.

The reaction of Mazzarino's daughter might have been the most important reaction of all.

"She was jumping up and down, dancing and she really loved it," Mazzarino said.

As for her relationship with her hair, Mazzarino said she loves her hair now.

"She's really come into her own. ... Hopefully that stays that way," he said.

>via: http://abcnews.go.com/WN/sesame-street-writer-inspired-daughter-creates-love-...

_________________________________________

Neither African nor European: Young Africans in Europe

[NOTE: All the photos in this article are from "BLACK AUSTRIA," a photo essay by Philipp Horak. Go here to see the whole exhibit. —Kalamu]

© PHILIPP HORAK

How young Austrians of African origin are rejected by both societies. An example from the life of a young Austrian from Ghana.

Kofi Akwanpa likes to consider himself a “true Viennese with a Ghanaian background.” He was born 25 years ago in Vienna. His parents came to Vienna 30 years ago to study. His father, who now lives in Ghana, completed his studies at the Vienna University of Technology and his mother graduated with a degree in political science at the University of Vienna. Though both from Ghana, they came from different eth- nic groups with distinct dialects. Their three children grew up speaking four languages: English, German, Fante and Ewe. Ultimately, as Kofi’s mother says, it was “stressful” and confusing for both parents and children to continue like this. So they decided to raise their children in English and German only, which made things considerably easier.

© PHILIPP HORAK

English and even German was spoken at home. School homework was done in German. Kofi Akwanpa was born in Austria, speaks and writes perfect German and studied in Austria: but he does not feel accepted by the austrian society. Kofi Akwanpa speaks perfect German and is even very proud to be able to speak and write Viennese dialect as well. When asked what his mother tongue his, the proud answer is: “German, of course.” “I went to school here, I studied in Austria and have my friends here. To put it another way: I was socialised in Austria.” Although he travelled to Ghana with this parents every second year from the age of two, he does not feel socially integrated in Ghana, even though “I highly regard both country and people.” It was important to the parents for their children to gain first-hand experience of both cultures. Kofi remembers skiing holidays in Tyrol, Vorarlberg and Styria. “We were always the only African fam- ily wherever we went skiing,” he says. Kofi’s childhood memories also include vacations on farms and excursions to several tourist destinations in Austria such as Mariazell, Großglockner, and even Melk and Radenthein, a smal town located in Carinthia, the southernmost Austrian federal state.

Kofi also remembers visits to his parents’ home country: “When I was 21 I visited my parents’ families in Ghana. That was the first time I felt a sense of belonging: I felt more like an Austrian than a Ghanaian.” After 13 days of vacation he decided to return to Austria. This caused something of a stir in the family. “My father couldn’t understand it and my mother said nothing,” he says softly.

© PHILIPP HORAK

”Unfortunately, many people in Ghana saw me as the ‘white’ Ghanaian from Europe who would soon go back.” He got very bored in Ghana “because I wasn’t home (in Vienna).” He was able to communicate in English, but he missed what he had built up over the years in Austria: “My feelings, my environment, my friends, my clubs, my pubs, my sports companions, my relationships. In other words, my entire social environment.”

Kofi feels Austrian and thought his home was here. But after finishing his university studies he had to undergo  painful experiences. After graduating with a business degree from the Vienna University of Economics—”with distinction,” as he points out—he wanted to start a career in banking. He dreamt of a rosy future, he says, because “I am very good with numbers and people. These had been my strengths for years.” He wanted to start his career from scratch and applied to a well-known Austrian bank for a job behind the counter. As he puts it, he wanted to engage in “direct contact with people.” This proved to be an unrealistic dream for a black Austrian. His application was turned down. Several weeks later he found out from a friend who worked for the same bank that employing a black person at the counter was feared to have “a negative impact on the traditional Austrian clients.”

© PHILIPP HORAK

Ghana is my parents’ country, not mine

He had often heard similar stories from his African friends in Vienna. “Many of my friends were not accepted by public bodies and various companies because they said customers would protest and they would lose business.” A killer argument for anyone looking for a job. “I wanted to be visible, not work in some basement or office and only have contact with paper. It would have been a revolution for the bank to show an international profile, not just in its figures and activities but also within its workforce.” 

Because of his skin colour he is only “accepted and tolerated as an Austrian in certain places,” as he puts it, even though he has spent his entire life here, speaks German perfectly and has an excellent university degree. In Ghana he is accepted but he lacks a social and cultural environment, making it difficult for him to integrate. He has an identity problem.

© PHILIPP HORAK

“I was socialised in Austria, I have my best friends here and I like living in this country.” But it really hurts him to realise that many Austrians and many Austrian institutions are not yet prepared to accept black people as Austrians. “It’s not just an Austrian phenomenon,” he remarks.

© PHILIPP HORAK

“The whole of Europe finds it difficult to deal with people of our skin colour, even though some have been living and working here for generations. I know African families who have been living in Austria for three generations. The children of these families have always left Austria after high school to study in England or the U.S. As far as I’m con- cerned, that’s an embarrassment to my home country, Austria.”

© PHILIPP HORAK

His five university friends have now got jobs appropriate to their qualifications. He also has a job —in a well-known IT company— and enjoys it a lot. But his dream of becoming a banker in his beloved country Austria has not come true ... “because of the colour of my skin.” He says.

Chancellor of Germany comments on industrial labour policy

But mistakes it for multiculturalism

by Michael Lithgow on October 20, 2010 · http://artthreat.net/?p=5556">View Comments

What follows is an account of what German Chancellor Angela Merkel told a group of young Christian Democratic party members on Monday. The verbatim excerpt below (in italics) is revealing.

In the interests of entertainment, I have recreated Merkel’s comments as a dialogue with a fictitious, pesky and well informed attendee at a fundraising event. Imagine the two of them meeting in a large room filled with well-dressed socialites, Chancellor Merkel moving slowly through the crowd with her handlers and encountering rather unintentionally this bespectacled and nebbish character – indeed, a party pooper – whom she tries to evade and does, eventually, successfully slip away from after a very brief exchange.

Chancellor Merkel: In Frankfurt am Main, two out of three children under the age of five have an immigrant background. We are a country which at the beginning of the 60s actually brought guest workers to Germany.

Tobi (the party pooper): Woa .. Chancellor Merkel, I am so delighted to meet you. My name is Tobi and I couldn’t help but overhear … I wasn’t sure what you meant by “actually”? Do you mean as a kindness? Because, surely you remember, that Turkish workers were brought to Germany to feed an industrial labour shortage after the war. It didn’t even start with the Turks. Germany’s first “guest worker” agreement was with Italy in 1955, then came agreements with Spain, Greece and finally Turkey in 1961, followed by Portugal and Yugoslavia. The German government created “recruitment bureaus” in countries including Turkey to identify unskilled and uneducated workers who were transplanted to industrial zones throughout Germany. The bureaus were closed during the recession in the 70s, but even in the 1980s Germany cultivated guest worker populations, this time from Eastern Bloc countries with new agreements with Yugoslavia, Hungary and Poland. We didn’t “actually” bring Turkish guest workers to Germany, it was a carefully planned program to create industrial growth with migrant labour.

Chancellor Merkel: Now they live with us and we lied to ourselves for a while, saying that they won’t stay and that they will have disappeared again one day. That’s not the reality.

Tobi: (whispering in the Chancellor’s ear) Madame, are you drunk? (Tobi leans away, but is still whispering …) As you know, those original agreements forced workers to return home after a year or two. The goal of these agreements was to prevent settlement while taking advantage of labour. There was tremendous pressure on workers to eventually return to their countries – they were kept in factory dormitories and generally isolated from mainstream German society because the idea was to discourage any inclination to stay – and because of this pressure, worker communities had an incentive to build communities with strong cultural ties to their home countries on the expectation of repatriation.

This is widely known, which is why I asked if you were drunk – I’m sorry, it was rude.

Chancellor Merkel: (start’s to say something, but is cut off …)

Tobi: Excuse me, Chancellor, but please let me finish for I fear that I’ve embarrassed both of us …

What was astonishing about your statement is that the reason workers stayed for longer periods in Germany – that they were allowed to stay – is because German industries found it too expensive to retrain new workers. It was more efficient to keep them here! But you’re right, there was never an expectation that they would stay forever – not on the part of government, the public, or the workers themselves. Like you said, everyone hoped they would disappear.

Chancellor Merkel: This multicultural approach – saying that we simply live side-by-side and are happy about each other – this approach has failed, utterly failed.

Tobi: Chancellor Merkel! Of course the multicultural policies were a failure because they weren’t multicultural policies! You’re embarrassing yourself! Where in this living happily side-by-side that you speak of is there room for, as you say, hoping that they won’t stay and “that they will have disappeared again one day”? What a policy!

You’re forgetting that it wasn’t until 2000 that Germany extended citizenship to the families of guest workers. That’s right! Second and third generation members of Turkish migrant workers, born in Germany, did not have German citizenship!

[The Chancellor begins to ease away from this irritating social encounter, but Tobi has also had a few drinks and pursues.]

And another thing! Without citizenship these people were denied many of the social and economic benefits that come with citizenship. Which meant in turn that they had to rely even more on their own community for survival – the state being largely irrelevant to their well-being. It also meant that they couldn’t vote. Who can feel included in a country when you can’t vote? Chancelor Merkel! Chancellor Merkel! …

* * *

Tobi chased after the Chancellor, but at this point, she successfully slipped away, some of her handlers stepping in front to block Tobi’s pursuit. The Chancellor returned to freely working the room in comfort, while Tobi, hopes dashed for a real connection with the Chancellor of Germany, was made to feel even worse when event organizers threw Tobi out of the building for being drunk. So ends the little tale.

This has been a “Truth” Report exclusive, a semi-regular, playful and hopefully provocative inquiry into the world around us as we find it in the news.

Further reading:

The chancellor’s words were plucked from the video of her speech at The Guardian’s website. The dialogue format hints at a vision of the world where politicians have conversations with the public rather than give speeches – or lay them, as the case may be. Here it is from The Guardian’s website:

We are a country which at the beginning of the 60s actually brought guest workers to Germany. Now they live with us and we lied to ourselves for a while, saying that they won’t stay and that they will have disappeared again one day. That’s not the reality. This multicultural approach – saying that we simply live side-by-side and are happy about each other – this approach has failed, utterly failed. [great applause]

“Germany: Immigration in Transition” By Veysel Oezcan, Social Science Centre Berlin 2004

Spiegel Online International

“Citizens versus permanent guests: Cultural memory and citizenship laws in a reunified Germany” Nergis Canefe 1998

Watch the Pursuit of Passion

The film really is engaging. I think it is very inspirational and will encourage young people to take a first or maybe second look at the advertising industry. The insights into the ad world are priceless and I was even inspired by lot of what was said. Did you note there was like three (3) senior level creatives of color at TBWA! (What is Lee Clow doing to the industry, I like it!) They found a pretty great group of talent to speak to and they all delivered nuggets of addy markety goodness for the neophytes to bite deeply into.

The film also has it's detractors (sometimes me), who feel the industry in a large part overlooks existing talent and ethnic talent of the past. That talent has been mostly relegated to ethnic work only or pushed out of advertising all together. Now, of course this film can't be all things to all people, but that is a true and legitimate issue.

For now I'll keep the focus on what the film is attempting to do; inspire young hearts & minds. For that task I believe it gets a 10+! I wanted to run out and get an advertising job and so will many youngsters. I just hope the industry is ready to accept (not assimilate) the new talents, cultures, hearts & minds that are probably very different and even scary to some who are not accustomed to them. There are kids on the street right now that could put the best of advertising luminaries to shame and probably will someday.

The film is 22 minutes and 34 seconds long, it is worth every second.

 

 

Powerful Learning

Grows in New Orleans’

Lower Ninth Ward

In the Lower Ninth Ward of New Orleans, the devastation of Hurricane Katrina and the failure of levees and government support remain bluntly visible. Despite the surrounding ruins, David Ferris and his colleagues, whose classroom is an old grocery store and urban farm, help students not only be the change they want to see in their community, but also in themselves. This is David’s story.

by David Ferris

posted Oct 11, 2010

 

 

Driving on Claiborne Avenue in the Lower Ninth Ward you notice the Magnolia Corner Store, Martin Luther King Elementary School, and a gas station. North of Claiborne, the view resembles a jungle. Thousands of lots remain vacant and hundreds more are neglected, overgrown. A mere 10 percent of the neighborhood population has returned since Katrina demolished New Orleans in 2005.

Our School At Blair Grocery is a beacon of sunshine in New Orleans’ Lower Ninth Ward / Photo courtesy of David Ferris

In this landscape appears an oasis. Tall banana trees tower and lean into the street, a golden sun made of plywood scraps hangs on the fence. Flowers and green edibles abound. In the face of neglect, a handful of teachers and students have constructed beauty, growth, and potential.

Our School at Blair Grocery (OSBG), founded in 2008 by Nat Turner, is located in the old Blair Family Grocery. Turner came to the neighborhood with a black dog, a blue bus, and $12 in his pocket. He saw a need for a safe learning environment in a unique neighborhood that had one of the highest poverty and highest homeowner rates in New Orleans.

In the face of neglect, a handful of teachers and students have constructed beauty, growth, and potential.

Our students, ages 13-19, face serious life challenges, learning difficulties, and educational obstacles. Terrance had not been to school since the storm. He lived with his aunt and sold crack to survive. Josh was arrested for driving without a license when he took his mother to work one day. Duke told us that when he was arrested outside of school, administrators told him not to come back, although they never issued any official suspension or expulsion.

Most of the students at OSBG would not be in school otherwise. With these young people, there is less room for emotional distance and disengagement. The most significant difference we, as teachers, can make is to teach values of goodness, honesty, love, and service. We recognize multiple levels of learning and use different techniques to reach them. Students may learn construction skills, analyze the racial and economic history of New Orleans, and study English through hip-hop lyrics in the same day. But, we’ve found the most effective way to engage our students is by immersing them in sustainable community development activity.

Blair School founder Nat Turner with neighborhood kids on the farm. The open space provides a safe, engaging place for them after school./ Photo courtesy of Brennan Daugherty

Local situations become the lens through which we work with students to understand larger lessons about education, society, environment, and economy. Our main initiative is the Food Justice Project, a holistic attempt to remake the food system in our neighborhood and city. OSBG’s campus is home to a highly productive urban farm, which is used as a mechanism to achieve the larger goal of just and sustainable redevelopment. The farm’s also an open and safe place for neighborhood kids to play after school. Otherwise, there would be nowhere nearby to go and nothing else to do.

Local situations become the lens through which we work with students to understand larger lessons about education, society, environment, and economy.

OSBG’s farm is a live, cyclical model of sustainability through action: We get food waste from Whole Foods; turn it into soil by composting; use the soil to grow plants; and then sell the produce we grow. Staff and students rotate the opportunity to peddle sprouts around the city. Peter, a renowned New Orleans locavore, puts our sprouts on his salads and sandwiches. Susan Spicer, John Besh, and Emeril Lagasse tell their head chefs to support us as much as possible, and their commitment makes Blair School exist.

Last Thursday, Brennan, Ryan, Vincent, and I raced to cut as many sprouts as we could—pea sprouts, sunflower, sango purple radish, and more—for delivery. I reminded Vincent to look the chef in the eye, shake hands firmly, and introduce himself because we're guests in the chef’s kitchen. It was hard for Vincent, but I told him to be proud of what he was doing. Growing and selling our own food is not only how we transform the food system and advocate for environmental justice, but also how we educate, shift paradigms, and create meaningful jobs. We’re in the business of teaching people–students, chefs, foodies, and our neighbors–what is possible.

We’re in the business of teaching people–students, chefs, foodies, and our neighbors–what is possible.

Kaleb and Josh ran their own workshop on food justice and organizing at a national conference on transformative, grassroots education. They came back talking about themselves as “organizers.” Within a month of returning, Josh went to the Beehive Collective and Kaleb to a farm in Maine to “network and learn.” Success doesn’t always happen at the school or on the farm. I like to see our students seize outside opportunities.

Critics and die-hard supporters question whether OSBG students are getting a “real” education or “meeting standards.” To pretend we do not constantly think about this ourselves, as teachers, would be false, pretentious posturing. Our students’ experiences, life struggles, and worldviews influence our goals and methods. Any standards assigned out of this context are irrelevant to them.

OSBG students pick and sell fresh basil and other microgreens grown on campus to local restaurants. / Photo courtesy of Cory Ashby

I know OSBG is working when Duke calls a meeting with staff and students, rather than threatening to fight someone. When Vincent agrees to attend a training on economic justice in rural Tennessee, and ends up enjoying it. When Kaleb asks me to take him to Clark Atlanta University, a prestigious and historically black university, “just to see it.”

The crab in a barrel story—one crab is getting itself out of the barrel and all the other crabs try to pull it back down—is often told around here because we feel like we’re that one crab. OSBG is about building resilience, the skills and capacity to deal with stressful and unforeseen situations. Crisis surrounds us, whether in the Lower Ninth Ward, rural Missouri, downtown Detroit, or suburban LA. We have a choice to meet these crises with open eyes and a humble heart. For the Lower Ninth Ward and the students at Blair School, there is much to gain. And we are all implicated in their struggle. As Martin Luther King, Jr. stated, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”

---

David Ferris wrote this article for YES! Magazine, a national, nonprofit media organization that fuses powerful ideas with practical actions. David was the Community Development Teacher at Our School at Blair Grocery during the 2010-11 school year, where he taught urban studies and involved students in the networking and visioning for a number of community development initiatives for the Lower Ninth Ward. He has lived in New Orleans for the past two years, and currently coordinates transformative service learning for the Louisiana Delta Service Corps and works part-time for the Latino Farmers' Cooperative of Louisiana.

Interested?

• VISIT:  Find out more about Our School at Blair Grocery

• EXPLORE: Powerful learning, innovative teaching. Coalition of Essential Schools

• LEARN: Student-led (not adult!) group addresses inequality in New York and New Orleans. NY2NO
  

 

 

Hit The Ground

Blue Rose

<br /><b>Lizz Wright - Blue rose</b><br /><i>Uploaded by Mihyar. - Music videos, artist interviews, concerts and more.</i>

Nature Boy

Old Man

Stop

Alrick Brown

 

Trailer – “Kinyarwanda”

By Tambay, on October 16th, 2010

Here’s the trailer for Alrick Brown’s debut feature, Kinyarwanda, which we plugged yesterday.

Synopsis: During the Rwandan genocide, when neighbors killed neighbors and friends betrayed friends, some crossed lines of hatred to protect each other. At the time of the 1994 Rwandan genocide, the Mufti of Rwanda, the most respected Muslim leader in the country, issued a fatwa forbidding Muslims from participating in the killing of the Tutsi. As the country became a slaughterhouse, mosques became places of refuge where Muslims and Christians, Hutus and Tutsis came together to protect each other. KINYARWANDA is based on true accounts from survivors who took refuge at the Grand Mosque of Kigali and the madrassa of Nyanza. It recounts how the Imams opened the doors of the mosques to give refuge to the Tutsi and those Hutu who refused to participate in the killing. KINYARWANDA interweaves six different tales that together form one grand narrative that provides the most complex and real depiction yet presented of human resilience and life during the genocide. With an amalgamation of characters, we pay homage to many, using the voices of a few.