Melissa Harris-Perry DCABP Eighty-Third Annual Founders’ Day Gala Sat., Aug. 25, 7 p.m., $85 301 West Morgan Street, Durham Tickets available at dcabp.org My life and work have been connected to political scientist Melissa Harris-Perrywho received her bachelor’s at Wake Forest and her Ph.D. at Dukeever since she wrote Barbershops, Bibles, and BET: Everyday Talk […]
Carl W. Kenney
Posted inMusic
Durham is becoming a national hotbed for spoken-word poetry
Local spoken-word events & recommended albums “Connected to words like Siamese twins”: That line from Dasan Ahanu’s poem “Deep in Thought” epitomizes the rise of the Triangle’s spoken-word community. Metaphors and similes dangle with cadence and intonation. The wordsbled from poets who carry pens, pads and bags filled with homemade books and CDs in store-bought […]
Posted inNews
Where are Durham’s new, black leaders?
Let me tell you a secret. There’s a lot of grumbling right now within Durham’s black community. People have serious issues with what they perceive as a lack of leadership coming from those in political office and from the organizations designed to serve them. Most people agree Durham gets a bad rap from those around […]
Posted inUncategorized
‘Guys are much meaner now’
My friend April Yvonne Garrett passionately shared her views regarding the alleged rape by members of Duke’s lacrosse team. “Lacrosse is my sport,” Garrett informed me. She managed lacrosse teams in college. I wasn’t expecting to read that on her résumé. Garrett, an African American, didn’t seem to be the type to watch lacrosse. We […]
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‘Now we lay this burden down’
A group of angry African-American women gathered at 610 N. Buchanan Blvd. They stood in silence as they reflected on their own pain, and how the word of a gang rape stirred so many emotions. Most of those who gathered were survivors of sexual assault. Each person had a story to tell. For some it […]
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Meanwhile, at N.C. Central …
Here are a few reactions from N.C. Central University, where the alleged assault victim was a student, as expressed to Independent columnist Carl Kenney: Remisha Jones, a graduate student in criminal justice Being [that] the victim is a Central student and black made me more upset. Things get downplayed when it’s a historically black university. […]
Posted inNews
Durham, heal thyself
I was hoping for something different. I stepped into the Hayti Heritage Center on Sunday with great anticipation. After more than a decade of an intense battle, I prayed that three crosses burning would bring the city together. I was disappointed. What happened during a special meeting called by members of the Durham Human Relations […]
Posted inNews
A conversation that can’t be heard
My cousin Herman struggled to take his next breath. The man known for his strong tenor voice lay helpless in a hospital bed, barely able to speak. The scars on his body bore evidence of the drain of living with AIDS. It was time for him to die. Everyone in the room knew there was […]
Posted inNews
Waiting to exhale
Editor’s note: In this essay, Carl W. Kenney II writes about his experience in the black church, and the issues of tradition and denial which often pervade religious practices, particularly in African-American communities. Kenney is a columnist for the Herald-Sun and the author of the soon-to-be-released novel, Preacha’ Man. He is the founder and pastor […]