Things You Need To Know

Back To School Deals

HBCU - Historically Black Colleges and Universities

Did Someone Say Scholarship?

Tonya Ridley; The Takeover

Your Child May Have Good Grades

Ms. J's Sports Update

Orrin Hudson and The Power of Chess

Before Your Children Head Back To School

by Yolanda M. Johnson

If your child isn’t one of the millions who have started the 2006-2007 school season, it won’t be long before you’ll be bogged down with PTA meetings, Parent Teacher Conferences, school fund raisers and athletic games. But before your child heads back to school, there is something you need to know to prepare them to be the best they can be. This applies to children from Kindergarten, 1st Grade to 6th Grade to 9th Grade, to Seniors to college students.

Everything is essentially important to the growth of our children, but one really concerns me. I called my teenage son, who will be entering the 9th grade this week, to make sure he had everything he needed to start school . I was taken back when he told me he didn’t want to go school. I mean I was surprised that this was coming from a rather smart child with an above average I.Q. I wasn’t prepared for what he had told me once I asked him why. He told me that high school students across the nation are participating in “initiation day”. The initiation includes both boys and girls. The girls are raped in this initiation while the boys are jumped on and beaten. Not only are the these girls deflowered by boys of their peers, they are also raped by other female students and forced to perform bi-sexual acts, while some boys are beaten badly, forced to get tattoos and carry out other initiation rituals. I am frightened for my child and the mere fact of knowing that my child’s life is possibly in danger in the one place where he is seeking safety and education. I recently wrote letters to my child’s high school with no response and when I called was told that nothing like that will be going on in their school. This has me questioning the faculty of these schools. I later found out that my son’s step brother received the same initiation last year, luckily he escaped with a black eye and a broken arm. I live in North Texas and my son lives in Colorado, and although I feel helpless, my intentions are to be on that school like white on rice. The evil spirits that have attacked our child have gotten way out of hand and infested our children like a chicken pox about to burst. The ironic thing is that our children appear to be mechanical. When children can brutally attack another child while they are being filmed and think its okay, I have a problem with that.

Another thing I have a problem with is the new “grillz” craze. What in the world? A lot of our children have bad hygiene habits as it is and they want to go and put a $3000 grill in their mouths? Where are they getting this money from? And I’m told that $3000 is a lower end grill. “Rob the jewlrey store and tell ‘em make me a grill. Dirrty, R&B And da whole top diamond and the bottom rows gold. Yo we bout to start a epidemic wit dis one, Yall Know what did is – so so def. Got 30 down at the bottom, 30 mo at the top. All invisible set in little ice cube blocks. If I could call it a drink, call it a smile on da rocks. If I could call out a price, let's say I call out a lot I got like platinum and white gold, traditional gold I'm changin grillz errday, like Jay change clothes, I might be grilled out nicely (oh) In my white tee (oh), On South beach (oh) in my wife beat. V V and studded you can tell when they cut it Ya see my granmama hate it, but my lil mama love it Cuz when I - Open up ya mouth, ya grill gleamin (say what) Eyes stay low from da cheifin' I got a grill I call penny candy you know what that means, It look like Now n Laters, gum drops, jelly beans I wouldn't leave it for nothin only a crazy man would So if you catch me in ya city, somewhere out in ya hood just say Smile fo me daddy (What you lookin at) Let me see ya grill (Let you see my what) Ya, ya grill ya, ya, ya grill (Rob da jewelry store and tell 'em make me a grill) Smile fo me daddy (What you lookin at) I want to see your grill (You wanna see my what) Ya, ya grill ya, ya, ya grill (Had a whole top diamonds and da bottom Row's gold) What it do baby It's da ice man Paul Wall I got my mouth lookin somethin like a disco ball I got da diamonds and da ice all hand set I might cause a cold front if I take a deep breath My teeth gleaming like I'm chewin on aluminum foil Smilein showin off my diamonds sippin on some Pinot Noir I put my money where my mouth is and bought a grill 20 carrots 30 stacks let 'em know im so fo real My motivation is them 30 pointers V VS the furniture my mouth Piece simply symbolize success I got da wrist wear and neck wear dats captivatin But it's my smile dats got these on-lookers spectatin My mouth piece simply certified a total package Open up my mouth and you see mo carrots than a salad My teeth are mind blowin givin everybody chillz Call me George Foreman cuz I'm sellin everybody grillz Gipp got dem yellows, got dem purples, got dem reds Lights gon hit ya and make you woozie in ya head You can catch me in my 2 short drop Mouth got colors like a fruit loop box Dis what it do when da lou Ice grill Country Grammar Where da hustlas move bricks and da gangsta's bang hamma's Where I got em you can spot them On da top in da bottom Gotta bill in my mouth like im Hillary Rodham Dis what it do when da lou Ice grill Country Grammar Where da hustlas move bricks and da gangsta's bang hamma's Where I got em you can spot them On da top in da bottom Gotta bill in my mouth like im Hillary Rodham I got fo different sets its a fabolous thang 1 white, 1 yellow, like Fabolous chain and da otha set is same got my name in da mold (Had a whole top diamonds and da bottom Row's gold) Boy how you get grill that way and How much did you pay Every time I see you Tha first thing I'm gon' say hey......

Now forgive me for a moment as try to get this look of bewilderment off my face. Am I the ONLY one that has a problem with this? Our children are killing, stealing and dealing for this? Well I’m going to tell it like this. If I ever see my son with something in his mouth doesn’t belong there, I am going to knock so many of his teeth out that he won’t even have a place to put a piece of foil.

Another area of concern are these so called friendship bracelets. Although these are not new, they are becoming quiet popular. For those of you naïve parents whose children come home and say “Hey Mom and Dad, look I made a new friend” and shows you a bracelet, you need to be bopped over the head if you don’t yank it off their bodies. Yes they’ve made a new friend, and excuse my bluntness, but these aren’t the kind of friends you may think. These types of friends require sucking, licking , kissing amongst other thing; need I go on? Each part of that bracelet represents a status and a sexual act. Here is the break down: Black: sexual intercourse Blue: blow job (alternate meaning: lap dance) Green: cunnilingus (alternate meaning: outdoor sex, hug) Clear: whatever you want (alternate meaning: hug) Orange: kiss Yellow: hug (alternate meaning: analingus) Red: lap dance (alternate meaning: French kiss, oral sex) Purple: anal sex (alternate meaning: holding hands, doggy style) Silver: fisting White: flash your tits (alternate meaning: gay kiss, French kiss) Pink: flashing Gold glitter: make out Brown: toss my salad, i.e., analingus Glow in the dark: using sex toys, e.g. vibrators, dildos, etc. Forgive me, I fainted there for a moment.

Last and certainly not least. Our schools and parks are surrounded by sexual predators. Many of our children are required to walk to and from school on a daily basis. It is important to teach your child to be aware of his or her surroundings as predators these days will strike anywhere. Remind your younger children to never to speak to strangers and always stay in a public area. Make sure your child knows emergency numbers including 911. It wouldn’t hurt for them to take a self defense class either. It baffles me that with all the sexin’ going on in the world that a predator has to choose a child. You can find out if a predator lives in or near your neighborhood, parks or schools by going to your states website and searching for their sex offenders link. These sites have lots of useful information to aid in protecting your children’s innocence.

I realize that this was probably and article that you really didn’t want to read or deal with, but I have to ask you all, if not now, when? Let’s protect our babies, no one else is going to.

It’s that time already. Back To School! This is another opportunity for our children to expand their little minds and grow into productive citizens. I am pleased to see that many more schools have taken the initiative to make children wear uniforms.

I remember when I was going to school, way back in a time so long ago. You know when dinosaurs roamed this earth. If you didn’t have the right kind of shoes, or designer jeans, you were an outcast. In this day and age, the less distractions our children haven in school, the better. Now if I can get parents to stop making folx like Lebraun James and other stars who have their own shoe, rich and stop buying these children these $100 tennis shoes, we will be one more step closer to productive young adults. Hey one step at a time and one mind at a time.

I hope you enjoy our Back to School Issue and wish your children all the best this school year. For those of you that are off to college, please remember, this is not the opportunity to PARTY! Definitely what you do from this point on will have an effect on the rest of your life. Don’t blow it.