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Martin Luther King Jr.’s Fight Against Income Inequality
Although our family celebrates African and African American history and culture (also known as “history and culture”) 365 days a year, I believe that African American History Month should officially begin on January 15, Martin Luther King, Jr.’s birthday.
It’s clear that Dr. King’s crusade for equality and justice for all human beings is not over. If anything, the 45th presidential administration represents a backlash against the gains obtained as a result of the civil rights and black power movements.
And as much as King championed civil and human rights for African Americans, he also fought to end poverty and income inequality for everyone. The video above includes excerpts from speeches that demonstrate his activism far beyond the dream of racial equality. With the GOP set to execute another reverse Robin Hood heist from the middle and working classes to fuel the filthy rich with tax cuts, King’s voice belongs front and center in contemporary conversations. We need to hear quite a bit from him in the weeks to come.
Opinion | The quiet resegregation of America constitutes a national crisis
Infuriatingly, we’ve known about the deleterious effects of racial segregation for decades. In the aftermath of nationwide civil unrest — including the 1965 Watts Rebellion, triggered by racially biased policing practices, as well as 1967 uprisings in Detroit, Michigan and Newark, New Jersey — President Lyndon B. Johnson charged a panel of civic leaders with investigating the genesis of racial inequities in the United States. The Kerner Commission, chaired by Illinois Gov. Otto Kerner, released a chilling report.
“Our nation is moving toward two societies,” the report stated, “one black, one white — separate and unequal.” It concluded, “Equality cannot be achieved under conditions of nearly complete separation.”
Fast forward five decades, however, and this unequal separation continues to exist. Such “conditions” are, of course, not happenstance but rather the result of policies that have systematically favored the social well-being of white people at the expense of people of color.
Does the White Working Class Really Vote Against Its Own Interests?
“These are good questions. They’re also not new ones. The historian W.E.B. Dubois asked them more than 80 years ago in his seminal work on Reconstruction, when he posited that working-class Southern whites were complicit, or at least passive instruments, in their own political and economic disenfranchisement. They forfeited real power and material well-being, he argued, in return for the “psychological” wages associated with being white.
“Since then, the issue has inspired a vibrant debate among historians. Until last year, most agreed with DuBois that the answer to the question was not so simple as “yes” or “no”—that whiteness sometimes conferred benefits both imaginary and real.
“In the age of Trump, we’re once again pressure-testing DuBois’ framework. As one might expect, it’s complicated. White identity pays dividends you can easily bank, and some that you can’t.”
The “Redneck Revolt” Is Showing Up at Gun Shows and KKK Rallies to End White Supremacy
Our friend, Zenobia Jeffries, introduces us to Redneck Revolt:
“Our best hope for changing deep-rooted attitudes that perpetuate racism and White supremacy is for people from similar backgrounds to work together toward that end. Conversations between people with shared life experiences could perhaps more effectively change minds and, ultimately, behaviors.
This is a strategy of Redneck Revolt.
"The self-described anti-capitalist, anti-racist, anti-fascist group was founded in the summer of 2016 to challenge working-class White people to stand against White supremacy.”
Music Producer and Creative Strategist Nadir Omowale
Nadir Omowale has established a burgeoning career centered upon his limitless creative energy, fine technical knowledge and unique musical vision.
As a music producer and engineer, Nadir has recorded, mixed and produced an array of projects in a variety of musical genres. As a creative strategist, Nadir contributes as project architect, challenge solver and Jedi Master.
He helps recording artists, media companies, entrepreneurs and brands advance their myriad projects by charting practical pathways and developing thoughtful solutions that accomplish the most critical creative and business objectives. Nadir is also an experienced coach and mentor to songwriters and vocalists. Depending on the needs of the project, he can function as marketing coordinator, indie label administrator; media project manager, editor, copywriter, or consultant.
Ultimately, Nadir’s deep passion for storytelling in every medium, his dexterity within the creative process, and his diverse skill set all combine to bridge the gap between creative work, business action and brand direction.
Connect with Nadir to discuss how he can help move your project forward.
The Music of Nadir Omowale
Nadir Omowale doesn’t have time to stand still. There is far too much life to be lived.
The fifteen-time Detroit Music Award winner and former MTV News correspondent is driven by an impassioned activism. All of his hats – performer, producer, creative strategist – are worn by a man who explores as he produces, teaches as he advises, and creates art that honors the fact that life is filled with extremes and in-betweens. The result is infectious, a creative electricity that is essential to who Nadir is.
Nadir will tell you that life is too important, not to be an activist. His impressions about life are the essence of his work. His lyrics can tug at heartstrings, tickle funny bones, or evoke an honest look at the world around us, and (possibly more importantly) the world within us.
His music is influenced by funk, but don’t call Nadir a funk revivalist. His understanding of rock, R&B, hip hop, and jazz takes funk to a most Nadir-centric next step; a Southern born, and Detroit raised sound that doesn’t fit in traditional boxes. His music reaches across genres and political aisles – sometimes with a gentle, outstretched hand, and occasionally with a clenched fist – always challenging listeners with a funk inspired, Motor City sound that is as relevant today, as Holland-Dozier-Holland were in the sixties.
Jane Asher of Radio Sophie 103.7FM in San Diego writes of Nadir:
“If Motown had never moved to L.A.,
this is what it would sound like today.”
His live show is dynamic. Nadir works a stage comfortably, engaging with audiences, guiding them on an energetic, emotional experience. There will be time for laughter, and love, amid irresistible outbursts of dance, and the occasional plea to understand the challenges that we still face in our attempts to insure freedom for all.
When Nadir Omowale performs, you get more than music. You get all of the man, his humor, his passion, and the depth of a personality that embraces his responsibility to make this a better world, because of his love of life.
“To label Nadir as a neo-soul artist would be neglecting his rock roots; to call him a rock artist would be overlooking his hip-hop and jazz influences. Fully encompassing all the talents that Nadir possesses would be comparable to expanding the mathematical term Pi to its last digit.”
The Michigan Chronicle, Detroit, Michigan
“It’s STONE COLD FUNK,
It makes you DANCE, it ROCKS your world,
It’s got GREAT LYRICS,
It’s got POWERHOUSE SOUL SINGING,
It’s got GREAT MUSICIANSHIP,
It makes you THINK about the world and it makes you SMILE.”
Bob Davis, Soul-Patrol.com
“As usual your performances NEVER disappoint.
Sometimes I felt like I was seeing Sly and the Family Stone again.
Great show!”
Terri Koggenhopp – Executive Director, Detroit Music Awards and
Director of Artist Relations, Detroit International Jazz Festival
