Saw "Selma" Today. Why You Should Too.

NJFantastic in many ways. Go see this film!

Why:
This is NOT the usual Hollywood African-American history movie nor is it about MLK, the icon/legend of the Civil Rights Movement. There is no white savior. This film IS about the movement work leading up to the "Selma" marches and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. This film CENTERS the many people who were involved including MLK and Coretta Scott King.

"Selma" is directed and produced by Ava DuVernay (previous contractual obligations prevent her from getting screenplay credit) the first black female director to be nominated for a Golden Globe Award for this film. That's right. This is not another movie done through the lens of a straight, cis, white man. It is done through the lens of someone whose family still lives in that part of the state. A black female someone.

This film is so timely right now as to be uncanny, but this is how the universe works. For me, there is a direct connection from the events and struggles depicted in Selma to the current social justice movements in the U.S. It makes clear to me (okay, clearer) that the forces we live under now are simply a (sometimes not so) disguised continuation of the forces then.

I could go on. Go see for yourself.

©2014 Kim L. Ford

Just a thought....about neighborhoods

I've been thinking about what is and isn't in my neighborhood (a short walking distance that feels comfortable and quick). What is: 3 diners (2 with the same owners, 1 sometimes operating as a sports bar), 1 real sports bar, 3 chinese takeouts, 3 supermarkets, 2 dry cleaners (same owners) 8 so-called delis, 4 bodegas, 2 jamaican food spot/restaurant, 1 caribbean/cuchifrito restaurant, 6 fast food spots (I'm including 2 dunkin donuts), and more. What isn't: a hardware store, a florist, a bakery.

On a walk beyond my usual perimeter (not that far, just not a quick run and includes a steeper hill). Here's what I noticed: 2 florists, 2 bakeries, 3 hardware stores, a myriad of dollar stores, restaurants & food spots (jamaican, spanish, african), bodegas & at least 1 supermarket, and more.

This leads me to wonder about my definition of neighborhood. Is it about what's in closest proximity or is it further, say a train stop or a bus ride away? Is it even further maybe taking a 30 minute walk or 20 minute bus ride?  Maybe it's not saying it's in my nabe, but it's b in my area.....

©2014 Kim L. Ford

Reconciliation

There are times I receive the message of where my work lies is so very powerfully. I feel that my heart and spirit know it clearly, and yes, even my head may know it in a fuzzy "kind of /sort of" way. The hard part is landing on just what THAT work looks while still being mindful that I also need income producing work.

©2014 Kim L. Ford

Privilege

Sometimes the hardest part of privilege, especially as queer people of color, is recognizing if & when we have it, therefore we must realize that because of it we can be a party to the oppression of others.

©2011 Kim L. Ford

Loss Grief Joy Love

Whether expected or sudden, the death of a loved one is never easy. Find peace knowing their pain is over. Share love & joy 4 knowing them.

I know from whence I speak multiple times. It may be "easier" for some than for others but at the end of the day we must all figure out our own way to cope with loss & grief. The choice is always individual.

I believe that while a loss is felt deeply & the heart is truly broken, it will heal in time if allowed. I have found that the best way to allow healing is to remember the best about your loved one & let that love guide you. Honor them by sharing the joy they brought you with others.

It is not easy & there are times when the pain hits with full force. That is okay. Be with it. Let it flow. Be thankful that they were in your life for how else would have known such a love.

This is a choice I make on a daily basis. The pain of my losses varies daily, sometimes moment to moment but I realize that above all I have loved & been loved deeply.

May those who are hurt & grieving find some solace in my words. Aché.

©2009 Kim L. Ford

love

love with your heart.

your heart is love.

let love lead you.

©2009 Kim L. Ford

Racist Cartoon in the Post-Racial Obama Era. Really?

Today the NY Post ran a cartoon that depicts two cops shooting a chimpanzee and referring to the now-signed stimulus package. Care to guess what the cartoonist is trying to say?

Here's a link to the offensive cartoon: http://www.nypost.com/delonas/delonas.htm. Needless to say it's caused outrage among several people including Al Sharpton. So much for the post-racist era. Hah! Like it really exists.

I say let the paper know how you feel. Email them at letters@nypost.com or call 212-930-8000, press 8 for the operator to be directed to the complaint line. Here's my letter to the paper.

To Whom It May Concern:

I am outraged that images like this are still being published. This is disrespectful and an insult to all of us who are working towards a just society. A direct correlation is being made between President Barack Obama and the chimp that was shot. Come on, didn’t we leave this back in the fifties with the racist Tarzan movies? I find it hard to believe that there was no in-house comment about the content of the cartoon or that no one saw a problem. After all, this cartoonist has a history of homophobic cartoons. He along with the Post has been called on it (http://www.queerty.com/?s=delonas). Most likely the Post will hide behind it’s disclaimer and the right to free speech, but to disregard the tasteless content & context is naïve, which I believe the staff at the Post is not.

I am sure you’re being flooded with emails and phone calls. I just hope you realize that’s just the tip of the iceberg as most folks will not respond, but they will talk & post about it. After all, this is the NY Post in NYC. A public apology is in order along with pulling the cartoon. To do otherwise would be tantamount to slapping your current readers, many of whom are working class people of color, in the face. You must take action now.

In peace,
Kim Ford
--
"When the Power of Love overcomes the Love of Power...the world will know peace" ~Jimi H

We Don’t Like The Truth

I know sometimes we don’t like the truth.
We don’t want to hear it, especially from ourselves.
We would rather listen to the lies we tell ourselves inside our heads.
The words that remind us that we’re not good enough, not ready yet, not quite, almost, too much, too soon.

But we know the truth.
We may not want to face it, but we know it.
The truth will do more than set us free.
The truth will turn us around, upside down, inside out, make us stand on our heads, stand on our toes, reach for the stars, dig down deep, make us be.

No, we don’t like the truth, but we know it.

©2008 Kim L. Ford

I Ponder a World, Part 2

I woke up on Wednesday to a different world. A world full of possibility. It wasn’t until I accepted the reality of the election outcome that I allowed myself to fully feel what had been bottled up for so long. It was simple. It was hope.

©2008 Kim L. Ford

I Ponder A World, Part 1

I sit here today and ponder a world with a black American president realizing that just a year ago I didn’t really believe, much less imagine this could happen in my lifetime. I also realize that no one person can be everything to everyone and that undoing the last 8 years will take more than the 4 upcoming. And it will take more than one person. But I know that the first is the one that takes the hits, the lumps, the name calling, the insults, the slurs, and everything else that comes with that role. I also know that because they take all that abuse with grace and equanimity, they prepare the road for the rest of us. This man that would become president may not be the progressive/left/revolutionary that we want, but he his the hope of what is needed and what can be done.

©2008 Kim L. Ford

If

(for all little girls who dream)

If I were free to speak my mind

I would tell them how it was.

How it was to grow up a girl child.

A black girl child in amerika.

With all the lessons, spoken & unspoken.

How it was to be told what to do & how to do it.

How it was to hear what others wanted, but never to be asked what you wanted.

How it was (is!) to be a thing, a body, a tool for someone else’s use.

To fulfill their expectations.

I would tell them what it feels like to awaken knowing that there is more.

I would tell them what it is to grow, to reach, to stretch for the sun, the stars, the moon.

To be a part of everything that is spirit.

To be me

If I were free to speak my mind

I would tell them about me.

©2008 Kim L. Ford

PAPER

Where is that piece of paper, that blue piece of paper?
Or maybe a red piece paper?

That piece of paper that said who I was,
When I was being too many things for too many people,
For too little.

That piece of paper that began something.
Maybe a story, my story. Maybe not the beginning,
But the end.

I look again; I know it’s here.
That piece of paper wants to be found, to be read.
I find it – it’s purple.

©2008 Kim L. Ford

memories

reality, dreams, body, soul
recollection

old, new, forgotten, remembered
reminiscence

mine, yours, too many, none
remembrances

our memoirs
who's memories

©2008 Kim L. Ford

My Return

It's been a minute since I've been here. Had a chance to ask some questions, do some reading & some ruminating. I think I'm ready.

Redemption Songs - Grandmother's Songs

A mixture of old world & new
Jamaican & American
The lilt of an accent
A history lesson taught
both in words & doing

Freedom
America, land of new beginnings
Hopes & dreams, Fulfilled?
What did she know at 16
this giver of comfort, healer of pain

Gospel truth & true gospel
religion & spirituality all in one
Her church was lost to her
She never lost her God

Passing peacefully one evening
Greeting her husband once again
Saying farewell to us all
Visiting me later, at night
Sitting on my bed
Talking, listening

I learned so much from her
Those last months
She said so much
She gave so much

Redemption songs
Grandmother songs
Believe in yourself
What got her through
Gets me through

©2008 Kim L. Ford

First Day

First blog, first post. Well, I've talked about doing this long enough. So here I am. I don't know where it will lead, but I welcome the journey. So there it is. First blog, first post.