Recently, the The Food and Drug Administration restated via its Web site that gay men are still banned from donating blood because of the risk of HIV/AIDS. Before giving blood, all men are asked if they have had sex, even once, with another man since 1977. If they happen to answer yes, they will be permanently banned from giving blood.

The ban was established in 1983, during the beginning of  the epidemic. Twenty-seven years later, the ban has been reiterated, and on what premise does the FDA have to maintain this ban? None. In fact, all this ban signifies is the stigma America still attaches to homosexual men and AIDS, one that is not supported by facts, but rather biased perceptions of the LGBTQ community. The FDA maintains that this policy is not discriminatory, though  last time I checked, excluding people based on sexual orientation is considered discrimination.

The fact that the FDA has not banned (God forbid) black women from giving blood is quite interesting considering the fact that African American women make up over half of the new HIV/AIDS cases in the U.S. So why is it that the FDA is so intent on focusing on the gay population and not the black female population? Because of its need for exclusion. I doubt anyone is terribly anxious to donate their blood, but knowing that you couldn’t even if you wanted to reinforces the fact that you are still a second-class citizen in this country. When giving blood, the blood supposedly goes through several rigorous tests to ensure that the blood is uncontaminated and blemish-free. If this is the case, there is no need for this ban; it is biased and unfounded. Next, they may start requiring us to disclose how many sexual partners we have had. I wonder which number would be the limit.

Regardless of whether you identify as gay, lesbian, heterosexual, anti-gay, asexual, etc., this ban is relevant to all of us because it represents the stagnancy of this country when it comes to granting liberties for all people. We have made a significant amount of progress as a nation, but obviously we still have a quite a journey ahead of us, and racial discrimination is not the only hurdle we have to conquer. –constance collins

Source

I-Playaz is from a collection of toys featuring rappers Chub C. and Hype from Chub City. Officially licensed by Volkswagen and marketed as an iPod-ready speaker for kids, the I-Playaz ‘59 Volkswagen Beetle (available in red or blue) plays music through an integrated speaker, and “moves and jams to the beat with interactive lights and sounds.” Four AA batteries provide power for the little car, which has its motion activated or deactivated by a press of the front Volkswagen seal; the headlights, taillights and windows flash with colored lights, the wheels are rotating spinners, and the car’s body pops up and shakes. There’s a sampled track built in for when your iPod’s not connected; a small audio cable is included, while the batteries aren’t.

Jada Chub City i-Playaz Character

Somehow I stumbled upon this…

Black Barbie

Ostlie’s site, Tabloach Productions is a showcase of her work. Fair and freckled dolls sit next to dolls modeled after real women – like pop star, Brandy. Ostlie has even reworked Skipper – Barbie’s long-neglected kid sister.

I want this one!

Other than having a bit of a headache, a Kansas City woman was uninjured after a bullet fired at her ended up tangled in her hair weave. Police said the 20-year-old woman was in a convenience store parking lot late Wednesday when a man flagged her down and told her that her ex-boyfriend still loved her.

She replied, “Well I dont love him,” then heard gunshots. She said she looked behind the vehicle and saw her ex-boyfriend firing a handgun at her. She stomped her accelerator and fled, then turned into another parking lot and called police.

She told officers she recently had ended an eight-month relationship with the suspect.

Police arrested the ex-boyfriend and his friend in a car.

Source

*warning: explicit language

Tyra has met women willing to do almost anything to lighten the color of their skin … including the use of bleach, despite the negative or harmful side effects. What’s really scary is that you can buy bleaching creams in stores across the country. While these creams are intended to be used on small spots to reduce scarring, as we saw on the show, some women slather creams over their entire bodies. But is the result worth the risk — even if the risk is cancer? Read on for the scary side effects of these controversial creams.

Read more HERE

Ready for some heartfelt neo-soul goodness?  Check this guy out…

Blessed with roughhewn, down-home vocals that hark back to when rhythm and blues repped for both those components, influences ranging from hip-hop to gospel and songs that are nakedly emotional and truthful, Noel Gourdin states his case on his refreshingly heartfelt debut CD. Featuring production from Kay Gee (Jaheim/Zhané), Raphael Saadiq (D’Angelo/Angie Stone), Mike City (Brandy/Sunshine Anderson), Dre & Vidal (Jill Scott), Butta (Usher), Eddie F (Heavy D), RLES and Trackaddix, Noel’s debut release is soul at its best. Speaking to the vibe he offers, Noel divulges, “It’s about the emotions of the average man. My intention is putting my feelings on the track and leaving everything I’ve got in the recording booth. I want people to think; this is a man that you can feel. That you can slow dance with, have a drink with and cry with. It’s real music that affects your life.”

Official Website

Myspace Page

I’d smash repeatedly.

Enjoy.  I know I did.

Da Brat

Check her new hair cut, people.  Fiyah!

Check out this video: ChinoTV Mix up Mawning

Definition: Adj. 1. busted – out of working order.

2. A way to describe a very ugly female, who can barely be described as female. A “busted” female is not even considered for Mercy Sex simply because they are so ugly.

Creating a passion for reading is one of the greatest gifts you can give to an African American child. The African American Child book can be the key to enabling enthusiasm for reading in the community. I came to this conclusion not from formal training in any the educational sciences (as matter of record my background is in technology and project management) but as a parent who just happened to be a Sci-Fi fan. Science Fiction opened my eyes to the cross synergies between the African American reading gaps and African American images.

In today’s world media comes at you from all directions. The internet the PC, cable TV, Video Games, IPODs etc. The exposure to all of this media for today’s African American Child is a given fact, you can not avoid it, the fact that is not so obvious is how this impacts African American reading gaps.

CASE IN POINT

I am a Sci-Fi media fan. One day while I was enjoying a episode of Star Trek – The Next Generation on TV with my then 6 year old in my lap when she turned to me and said,

“Daddy why do the black people on the show look strange?”

Before I tried to explain to my daughter that Worf was a Klingon and he hailed from a different planet and that Geordi was blind and his funny looking glasses allowed him to “see” I paused and asked myself

“Why DO the Black people on the show look strange?”

I then tried to look at the screen from the point of view of a 6 year old African American child.

I see 2 black faces and 1 white face on the TV screen:

* The African American character named Worf has the physical facial features of an animal and is from a race of warriors that loves to fight (violent) .
* The African American character named Geordi job is to “fix” and maintain things on the ship (the maintenance man)
* The 2 African American lead actors do not look human (see picture).
* I see the whitest face on the show (character Lt. Data the android ) is the strongest and most intelligent character on the show.
* The android actor who is not human “looks” human.

Read More

Whatcha know about that popcorn shrink top with the bellbottoms?  Stylin on you…

Find more ads here