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This year’s super bowl is by far the greatest in American football history. For the first time two black coaches, Smith and Dungy, go head to head to bring home the gold. For the first time, we can see light at the end of the football field but for whom? Will this year’s playoff stats affect the way black coaches are treated in the National Football League? Will black coaches in the NFL finally get a shot at equal opportunity, equal salary, and equal consideration? In 2002, Johnnie L. Cochran, Jr. and Cyrus Mehri published a report titled, Black Coaches in The National Football League: Superior Performance, Inferior Opportunities. (1) The report clearly outlines the disadvantages and insurmountable obstacles black coaches, Art Shell, Tony Dungy, Dennis Green, Ray Rhodes, and Herman Edwards, among others face in the NFL. Question these disparities because these men are qualified and perform way better than their white counterparts. Dr. Janice Madden of the University of Pennsylvania shed light on this phenomenon grouping NFL statistics from 1986 to 2001 for a side by side comparison of the performance of black and white coaches. The results were shocking. Shocking enough to wake you up football fans! Open your eyes and acknowledge football can no longer be viewed as an American pass time. It is also an institution with prejudicial set backs and discriminatory practices based on race. Qualified black coaches in the NFL are not given enough opportunities for career growth even when they perform better than whites in similar situations. Black coaches average 1.1 more wins per season. Their teams will go to the playoffs 67% of the time compared to the 39% for white coaches. Black coaches averaged 2.7 more wins in their first season and 1.3 more wins in their final season . These numbers should speak to football fans across the nation. Each and every one of us should question why Tony Dungy’s salary is not equivalent to that of his colleagues in the same rank who are not performing as well. We seek out reasons why the NFL refuses to allow Dungy the merit of his labor. Even when evidence shows Dungy’s ingenuity compensated Manning’s lack luster performance and adjusted around Adai’s strength to bring the Colts to Super Bowl 2007. If in seeking answers you hit a brick wall, ask this: Are white American executives buried, lost in their own ignorance that they still consider a black man mentally inferior? At the end of the day, the Super Bowl Week-End will become history, the players and coaches will get some rest while the office of the commissioner prepares for a new season. What will you do with this information? It is simply put out there to trigger your curiosity and inform you on the injustice practices of the NFL towards its black coaches. If the field is not leveled in football then where is the American dream catcher? Since Football is a contact sport now is your chance spectators to get involved! Support the Black Coaches of the NFL, contact Paul Tagliabue/NFL Commissioner/National Football League/280 Park Avenue/New York, NY 10017. 1. Cochran, Mehri: Black Coaches in the National Football League: Superior Performance, Inferior Opportunities, 2002.

Article by Shelia E. Lipsey Native Floridian, Dwan Abrams, is making sure her presence and footprints are being left along the literary trail. Her impressive list of titles includes that of Novelist, Publisher, Professional Speaker and Founder/President of Navaeh Publishing LLC. The Scream Within was Dwan’s first literary work which she chose to self-publish. Shortly thereafter, Dwan met national best-selling author, Kendra Norman-Bellamy. The two ladies became close friends, and, “it was Kendra who mentored me,” says Dwan. “After a lot of prayer, I was led to write inspirational fiction.” When asked when she first considered herself a true writer, Dwan responded, “I considered myself to be an aspiring writer for a long time. It wasn’t until I completed the manuscript for and published my second book, Only True Love Waits that I truly felt like a writer. I was blessed to be able to quit my job in corporate America, and devote my time to doing what I love – writing. The overwhelmingly positive responses I’ve received from readers, book clubs, and reviewers let me know that I made the right decision.” Only True Love Waits (PublishAmericna.com) which explores incest, rape, abandonment, adoption, siblings, and alcoholism has been nominated for an award by The American Authors Association (AAA). Dwan says, “The book will appeal to lovers of romance and mystery novels. I think women will love this book because of the strong female lead characters. The story is more than just a love story and deeper than just a romance novel.” Contact Dwan at dwanabrams1@aol.com or visit her on the Web at www.dwanabrams.com for upcoming events and releases. Only True Love Waits is available at www.publishamerica.com, www.amazon.com, www.barnesandnoble.com and www.cushcity.com.

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Eleven-year-old vocalist/actress/model Neenah Taylor is making heads turn with her awesome talents. The sweet and talented young lady has been turning heads since she was 7. But now 11, the heads that are turning are entertainment industry executives who have felt confident enough to place her as an opening act for major artists, in television and print advertising, and in feature and industry films. Though talented in all those areas, what stands out most is her unbelievable powerful vocals. Neenah Taylor has performed as opening act for such artists as Trey Songz at the 2006 Hip-Hop Summit, and Angela Bofill and Angie Stone at African- American Heritage Festival. Her performances were even honored with a citation from the mayor of her hometown Baltimore. Neenah has won numerous competitions such as the Atlantic Records Showcase Competition and the national Uplifting Minds II Entertainment Conference's talent competition showcase. Nicole Stevenson: How long have you been singing? Neenah Taylor: Well, I've been singing all my life but I professionally started singing when I was 7. Who are some of the people that you have been compared to? I have heard that I am a mini Mariah Carey and Christina Aguilera but overall I think I have my own style. Who is your inspiration? My inspirations are Mariah Carey, Aretha Franklin, Lauren Hill, and Michael Jackson. Do you write your own music? Yes, I do write my own music, I also CO write and produce. What record label do you belong to? Right now I'm not signed to any label because I want to wait for the right one to come. Where do you think you'll be in five years? Well, in the next 5 years I hope I will be doing more shows, making records, and getting more publicity. Hopefully in the next five years everyone will know my name. When I met you two years ago I was blown away by your vocals, what kind of reactions have you gotten after people hear you sing? Well, I’m still getting good reactions, maybe better because I have grown. As a model what advertisements have you done? I have done advertisements like Style magazine, Toys R Us and National Geographic. I had fun at all of them! What do you do in your free time? In my free time I practice, listen to music, sing, and read books and magazines. Normal stuff and Oh yeah, I forgot shopping, I love to shop.

Would it be offensive to you if some one called you a Nigger? What if your boss said, Nigger come here or a teacher told a child wrong answer Nigger? Some people say the N-Word is not offensive and that it was a thing of the past; slavery is over. I strongly disagree, what do you think? Nigger is a term used to refer to dark- skinned people especially people of African ancestry. Nigger is the ultimate insult! Racial slurs have victimized all racial and ethnic groups, however, no group has suffered as much as we did. Historically, Nigger defined, limited, and mocked African Americans. It is a term of exclusion, a verbal justification for discrimination, whether it is used as a noun, verb, or adjective. The etymology of Nigger is often traced to the Latin word Niger, meaning black. The word Nigger has been in existence for centuries, yet the word has not died. A racist society created the word Nigger and continues to feed and sustain it, however, the word has a life of its own. There is a strong link between the word Nigger and anti-black caricatures. It is usually directed against blacks that supposedly have certain negative characteristics. Most caricatures portrayed African Americans as lazy, ignorant, angry, physically strong, animalistic, and prone to violence. Because the word is used freely, there are many official places containing the word Nigger, such as Nigger Bill Canyon, Nigger Hollow, or Nigger Head Mountain located in Burnet Texas. In 1967 the United States Board on Geographical Names changed the word Nigger to Negro in 143 places. Since the 1980's, Nigga has been used as a slang word. Instead of saying my friends, now people are saying, my Niggas. Many say there is a distinction between Nigger and Nigga. When asked some African Americans said it's not offensive because it is not the same word and we should not be held prisoners of the past. But for those who agree with this statement have to realize that our past is who we are. My Brothas and Sistas, Nigga is a state of mind that leads to a state of existence. We have not always lived in this state of mind. We once lived in a state of mind of Supreme Excellence. We have been psychologically destroyed. Even though we are not confined to the chains of slavery, we are mentally in bondage. Your mind is the most important thing that you have to be in control of. Your thoughts and actions are directly or indirectly controlled by your conscious or sub-conscious mind. Nigga is a word that was used to describe African Americans as lazy, ignorant, angry, physically strong, animalistic, and violent. So if Nigga or Nigger is linked to these types or words, why in the world do you think, it is acceptable to call yourself or be called a Nigga. For those who believe slavery is over, think again! Remove the Niggativity that dwells inside of you. Modern day slavery calls for modern day technique. Instead of beating you, now the technique is to whip your brains to death. Our great ancestors have fought for us. They have been lynched for us! They have been raped for us! They have fought for Dignity and Honor, yet we allow ourselves and others to treat us less than the Supreme Being that we are. The word Nigger is a word associated with degrading African Americans. It amaze me how so many people of different cultural background uses the word so freely. Nigga is not even offensive to some anymore. Between songs and movies, it seems that everywhere you go and everything that you listen to contain this word. How can we object someone of a different race calling us a Nigga, but accept it if someone of our own race calls us a Nigga? James Brown said it best, Say it Loud, I'm Black and I'm Proud.Be proud of who you are! Lets enlighten ourselves and re-educate our fellow Brothas and Sistas of the knowledge of Self. Lets escape Niggativity, so we can become who we really are. So, let me ask you again, would it be offensive to you if someone called you a Nigger?

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There’s quite a lot of stigma toward the whole subject of sickle cell anemia. People can feel guilty because they carry a gene and they choose not to talk about it. So they need to talk about it to start breaking down the barriers and the stigma. People are a bit sensitive about screening but you now can be enrolled on a program and start to care for your baby with sickle cell anemia. Sickle cell anemia can no longer be overlooked upon as a largely black disorder. There has been the crossing of racial boundaries with sickle cell. Sickle cell anemia has not been highlighted because it is a black disorder so it has not received any spotlight with interracial mixing. We are starting to see white babies born with sickle cell anemia. Although times have changed people still have a stigma about sickle cell anemia they think it is a “curse of the devil”. Many physicians and scientists both black and white have complained that restrictions against blacks with the sickle cell trait was a senseless stigma and unscientific suggestion that their genes were somehow inferior in addition of its use in barring blacks. From the air force academy the trait has also been cited by the navy in keeping blacks out of the submarine service and by the army although they will not allow the sickle cell trait carriers to become aircrew members. This policy persists in the air force itself despite today’s change in admissions policy but it is under review. Blacks have also been charged more money for insurance policies when it was learned that they had the trait. Sickle cell trait screening has not been limited to the military or to the insurance companies in the chemical industry theories have been expounded for years that sickle cell trait carriers were at special risk in the chemical work place. The Dupont Company said in February 1980 that it routinely gave pre-employment blood test to all blacks to determine who might be a sickle cell trait carrier. Today the law would be condemned as racial profiling. The stigma was made worse by a misunderstanding of the inheritance of the condition contrary to report of premature deaths carriers of the sickle cell gene were in almost all cases, healthy genetic screening and public immunization programs have also raised suspicions among blacks and sickle cell anemia. Screening programs of the 1970’s created misinformation confusion and feared inadequate planning and preparation on the part of the medical profession and public health officials and a disease and having it resulted in unnecessary stigma and discrimination as a result. Of this confusion and misinformation a great suspicion arose in the African American community that the sickle cell policy was another instrument of genocide.

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