Category Archives: the adversary

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Pedophiles Are All Around Us…

 

Hello World,

If anything good has come from this whole Penn State scandal, it is the awareness that pedophiles are truly all around us, and often they are people that are trusted and revered by others. Since the news of these allegations broke, people across the nation are admitting they were sexually abused when they were children and are no longer hiding in secret shame.

Here is one person’s story on NPR: Penn State Scandal Emboldens Other Abuse Victims

This summer when I attended the Greater Philadelphia Christian Writers Conference in August, I met Angela Williams, who shared her story of being sexually abused by her stepfather for 14 years. Williams, who lives in the metro Atlanta area, founded VOICE Today, a grassroots initiative to launch child sexual abuse as a highly visible public issue. It is a multifaceted program that engages all forms and outlets of media and is designed to bring about social change by increasing awareness and advocating PREVENTION education. Below are some alarming statistics about child sexual abuse from the VOICE Today website:

  • Numbers of children abused before they are 18 years old: 1 in 4 girls, 1 in 6 boys. Only 1 in 10 children tell.
  • 90 percent of children are abused by someone they know.
  • Serial child molesters may have as many as 400 victims in their lifetimes.

VOICE Today offers various services for child sexual abuse victims including education and prevention workshops and healing workshops. For more information, please go here.

I also met New York Times best-selling author Cec Murphey, who was a victim of child sexual abuse as well. Through his blog menshatteringthesilence.blogspot.com, he provides a safe place for other male victims of child sexual abuse to connect with each other. He is also the author of “When a Man You Love Was Abused: A Woman’s Guide to Helping Him Overcome Childhood Sexual Molestation” which is available on the blog site.

I pray that all of us, even those of us who are not parents, take care of our children…they need us…

Any thoughts?

 

 

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Remembering 9/11 10 Years Later…aka We Won’t Stop…

Hello World,

There are events that define a nation. Through my history books I read as a student, I learned about the start of the Civil War, the attack on Pearl Harbor, the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and other tragedies that changed the trajectory of our country. The 9/11 attacks in New York City, Washington D.C. and Shanksville, Pennsylvania are recorded in history books destined to be read by students generations from now as a tragedy that redefined our nation’s course…

But in every tragedy, there is an opportunity for triumph…I truly believe that…In 2006, I visited Ground Zero, where I was able see with my very own eyes physical remnants of the tragedy that shook the very foundation of New York City in particular and our country in general. I was both saddened by what I saw and yet encouraged by the vigilant rebuilding taking shape…

A makeshift memorial for the victims of 9/11 at Ground Zero. I took this photo in December 2006.

I was also encouraged that a church located directly across the street from the World Trade Center complex in New York City was still standing, but most importantly, the church had been instrumental in ministering to the victims of 9/11 that horiffic morning. That church is St Paul’s Church.

This is the photo that I took of St. Paul’s Church in December 2006.

Read an excerpt from an account of an associate of ministry of St. Paul’s Church about their service to the victims that morning. (To read the entire account, go to National Geographic.com.)

On September 12, after having escaped the maelstrom of 9/11, I returned to Lower Manhattan to survey the damage to St. Paul’s Chapel—just yards away from where building 5 of the World Trade Center stood—and to find ways to be helpful in the rescue effort. At that point we assumed there would be many survivors.

As I walked down Broadway from my apartment in Greenwich Village, my heart was pounding, not knowing what I might find. I assumed the chapel had been demolished. When I saw the spire still standing, I was overwhelmed. It took my breath away.

Opening the door to enter St. Paul’s was an extraordinary experience; except for a layer of ash and soot, the building survived unscathed. Many proclaimed that “St. Paul’s had been spared.” It seemed clear to me that if this was true, it was not because we were holier than anyone who died across the street; it was because we now had a big job to do.

Taking this challenge to heart, we set up a cold drink concession and hot food service four days later for the rescue workers, and men from our shelter, and many others, proudly flipped burgers at what came to be called the “Barbecue on Broadway.” The relief ministry at St. Paul’s was supported by the labor of three local institutions—the Seamen’s Church Institute, the General Theological Seminary, and St. Paul’s, in the parish of Trinity Church—and volunteers from all over the country.

More than 5,000 people used their special gifts to transform St. Paul’s into a place of rest and refuge. Musicians, clergy, podiatrists, lawyers, soccer moms, and folks of every imaginable type poured coffee, swept floors, took out the trash, and served more than half a million meals.

Emerging at St. Paul’s was a dynamic I think of as a reciprocity of gratitude.a circle of thanksgiving—in which volunteers and rescue and recovery workers tried to outdo each other with acts of kindness and love, leaving both giver and receiver changed. This circle of gratitude was infectious, and I hope it continues to spread. In fact, I hope it turns into an epidemic.

-The Reverend Lyndon Harris

As we reflect on the tragedy that knocked the collective wind out of our country for a time, let us also rejoice in the triumph that has emerged from our despair: the determination that we still be human in spite of the inhumane acts committed upon us, that we are still a refuge for “your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,”  and that we are still “one nation under God.”

In the words of famed New Yorker Diddy, “…We Won’t Stop.”

Any thoughts?

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For Colored Girls…My Two Cents…

Hello World! 

Well, I finally saw Tyler Perry’s “For Colored Girls” last night with my girl “I” so I feel I should offer my two cents about the film…First of all, let me get this out of the way. No, I have not seen Ntozake Shange original play, “For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf,” (boo, hiss, I know, I know, get over it…) So admittedly, I am bit stunted in my ability to grasp the whole concept of the film…

When I first heard the film was coming out, I was not sure if I was even going to see the film…I had imagined it would be a modern day “The Women of Brewster Place.” I love you Oprah, but I wasn’t enthralled by that television movie although I applaud Lady O for getting it made…But when I understood that fellow UGA alum Omari Hardwick was in the film, and I saw all the buzz on Facebook about it, I knew I should go ahead and spend my ten bucks…For the record, UGA alums are doin’ big things in Hollywood. I see you Omari, Keith Robinson (“Dreamgirls”), Candace Afia (“Grey Anatomy” – she also played MLK Jr’s older sister in “The Boy King.” Only those originally from the A would know that though.) and IronE Singleton, ( “The Blind Side). Go Bulldawgs…Okay, I know I have digressed…

Let me start of with what I liked or appreciated about the movie. I appreciated that Tyler Perry was able to give work to so many black women in particular and black actors in general…Whatever people have to say about him, he is offering water in what can be a desert for black actors. I did think each character’s story was interesting and compelling their own way. I was especially taken in by Anika Noni Rose’s character Yasmine in the film maybe because of all of the characters I related to her the most. She is basically a sunny personality who happens to run across the wrong dude who date rapes her…While she is being interviewed by a police officer after the rape, she recites what seems to be some of the lines from the original poem on which the play is based. I was moved when she talked about always preparing for danger from someone that you don’t know, only to be end up being assaulted by someone that you do…

I also enjoyed Kimberly Elise’s performance as Crystal. I don’t care what movie Elise is in from “Beloved” to “Diary of a Mad Black Woman,” this actress can do gnawing pain and agony like no other…I won’t tell what you caused the pain and agony since I already revealed a plot tidbit earlier…But I will say this: her pain and agony were well justified, particularly when she realizes that her own frailties and perhaps selfishness played a part in the tragic event…

Loretta Devine’s character Juanita had me laughing although it probably shouldn’t have…Although the character was probably in her 50s, she was just learning a lesson that all women should have properly learned at the latest by 35 years old – When a man shows who he is, you’d be smart to believe to him –  no matter how good he makes you feel…There is something about Ms. Loretta that I really love even she always seems to play a similar character in all of her films and television programs from “A Different World” to “Waiting to Exhale.” In her roles, she always seems to be on the verge of blushing or nervously giggling until she is pushed beyond her boundaries and then she erupts in a sister-girl rant… I like her because she just seems the type of person who would be the same no matter what circle of people that she happened to be surrounded by…

And finally, I loved – let me say this again – I LOVED Ms. Janet’s outfits even if she channeled Michael in this film. Her outfits were so fierce, I probably would not have been surprised if Janet I mean Jo did not break out into a choreographed dance from one of her videos…Her makeup although heavy was pure razor-sharp artistry…Her wardrobe was a true boss chick’s dream – from her matrix-like leather blazer to her red bottom stilettos…

So what didn’t I like…I said this before on my blog…I’m not a fan of musicals…so what, who cares…I guess because it messes with my sensibilities when a character just breaks out in song in the middle of what seemed like a regular play…Probably an idiosyncrasy but whatever…This idiosyncrasy is the same reason why I was jarred when the characters, who for most of the movie spoke in regular modern day English, all of a sudden started reciting poetry. I almost felt like the audience should have been signaled before the characters switched gears…I mean it did feel like you were cruising in a manual car, and the car suddenly revs up when the driver decides to operate the vehicle in a different gear…It just made for a disjointed experience…But again, maybe I’m just not deep like that…

Whoopi Goldberg’s character Alice was a black version of the mother in the 1976 movie “Carrie” with her hyper-religious lunacy…When Alice poured oil on her daughter’s head in a scary attempt to rid her of the devil in her, I half expected the daughter to start summoning her telekinetic powers to destroy everyone in the film as Carrie did…But Alice’s daughter Tessa was not Carrie. Instead she just ran out the apartment screaming which was probably the most normal response to Alice’s crazy character in the movie…Alice was so predictable in one scene that I even called out her next line in the theater before she spoke it…I get why she was tragic character in the film and even one that should be explored, but I imagine that Ms. Shange’s intent for this character was much more nuanced than presented in this film…

I could go on, but I feel like I have said enough…In sum, it’s a film worth seeing and I applaud Tyler Perry’s effort although there were some contrived elements in the film…

Note to the brothers who may have seen this film or heard about it and are now criticizing it (READ Courtland Milloy): Contrary to what Malloy asserted, this is not the year to bash the black man…In fact, if anything, it is the year  to scrutinize the single black woman…do I need to mention the ABC “Nightline” special and the media frenzy that resulted again? Maybe I am a bit sensitive because I am a single black woman…but regardless, sometimes black men hurt black women…and sometimes black women hurt black men …and more often than not, people of all races hurt people of all races..stop trippin’. Everyone has a right to tell their story…Hmm…I wonder if it is true…maybe a hit dog will holler…just kidding…For real dough, this is just one movie – not an indictment of the black man…And for the record, I love me some black men…

Any thoughts?