 By: Kaylin McGlothen
President of Dillard University Dr. Walter Kimbrough, better known as The Hip Hop Prez, launched a lecture series that invites guests to the campus of Dillard University to talk about relevant topics in our society. This series is free and open to the public. Last year’s guests, such as Keke Palmer, Remy Ma, and Leslie Brown, were brought over to speak at no cost to the university. A couple of other guests within the last year include Angela Rye, Dayton Contemporary Dance Company, Gabrielle Union, Rev. Dr. Howard-John Wesley, Jamele Hill, and Sheba Turk. The community is expecting a plethora of other popular socialites. Going into its sixth season, Fall 2018 continues the series with its first guest of the year, Tarana Burke. In the introduction, Hip Hop Prez acknowledges the lack of conversation about important problems in our communities. Why do we not speak on certain topics if we KNOW they are a problem? His answer was, “Because there is a wide range of issues that we don’t fully understand, are reluctant to discuss, or don’t pay enough attention to.” Tarana Burke was a little brown girl that grew up in a strictly pro-black household in Harlem, New York. She grew up with the struggle of being abused by her mother’s boyfriend. This experience aided in her commitment to serve. At 14 years old, she became apart of 21st Century’s youth group to be a community organizer. Her first organized event was against the current U.S President, Donald Trump, in his infamous Central Park Jogger Case. Burke admitted that her role with 21st Century was a way to hide from the reality of her sexual assault. During a leadership camp for boys and girls in Selma, Alabama (27% African American population), she became a mentor to a little brown girl she calls Heaven. Heaven confided in Ms.Tarana and told her she was being sexually assaulted by her mother’s boyfriend. It was all too familiar and it began her acceptance that there in fact IS a problem. As she got further into the project, she began to see more cases of sexual harassment in these young brown children. Seventh grade girls commonly with 21 year-old boyfriends, and girls explaining sexual encounters their fathers have had while in the same bed sparked a conversation to emphasize the vocabulary to describe this issue; sex·u·al ha·rass·ment. Trying to “stay in her lane” but kind of testing the limits of ‘appropriate conversation’, Tarana Burke witnessed Rape Crisis centers in poorly placed areas reject potential victims without appointments in a community where 27% of black communities get care. In 2007, “Me Too” became Tarana Burke’s staple phrase. On October 15th, actress Alyssa Milano tweeted “#metoo”; this produced movement. The rapid movement of #metoo in the media led her to express global community of survivors coming together, spreading empowerment through empathy, and cultivating joy as a point of personal healing and most importantly, individual healing. Community and individual healing are both necessary. These steps ultimately lead to concrete policies and practices. During the last year, Tarana has visited 83 colleges (Dillard being the only HBCU) to ignite conversations about the 66% of women with the chance of getting assaulted AGAIN by adulthood and the 9.9% of undergraduate sexual assaults reported on HBCU campuses. We need to become a safe place for this conversation, as a community. Burke emphasizes that #metoo is not just for women looking for recovery! Family secrets will end communities to save the little brown children without a voice. Tarana continues to build #metoo with a $25 million New York Women’s Foundation #MeToo Movement Fund to provide resources for On the Ground groups (survivor groups) that need support. “Medias make movements and headlines.” - Tarana Burke
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In 2014, VH1 & Executive Producer of the Love & Hip Hop Franchise, Mona Scott Young, tried [empahsis on tried] to use the Black Greek Lettered Organizations, usually referred to as the Divine 9, as a form of entertainment. The way these ladies acted on this show was unladylike & was not what their organizations stood or will ever stand for.  Delta Sigma Theta Inc. chose to expel all members associated with the show back in 2014. But Ms. Priyanka Banks, a former Miss. Alabama State University, is now planning to sue the 105-year-old sorority for defamation, negligence, breach of fiduciary duty, breach of contract & more.
Ms. Banks knew exactly what she was getting herself into when she signed up for this show, in my opinion. These organizations are sacred to the Black Community. If you’re using your letters for clout or money, then you don’t need them in the first place. That’s not what any organization based on sisterhood & service is about. As someone once said, “You made your bed, now lay in it”. Follow @HBCUSpotlightTV, we’ll keep you posted!
Written by: Christian Wise
HBCU Unity it’s something we call for Nationwide within our prospective Universities. Lately, a wave came rolling through our beloved campuses. A wave of might I say of silky ness with durags galore. Starting with Morehouse University their video started off the national trend. Take a look below
@edowalker4 [on twitter] came through bringing the world of durags to his HBCU. Other HBCUs soon came out on their campuses with their durags and bonnets. The one and only FAMU then came m full force as they created their own FAMU Du-Rag Day on October 4th, 2017. Followed by NCAT, Savannah State, Morgan State, UMES, and even Delaware State University has had a Du-Rag day and some received coverage from the local news networks
Ah freshmen year, the excitement being on a college campus without your parents hoarding your every move. The freedom to do what you want when you want. Even better, being an 18 year old man with a endless amount of beautiful, single women around you; however, I learned quickly that grades came first. I almost got kicked out of UMES my freshmen year because of my mischief but I quickly got my act together. Now, I’m in grad school and I’m running a news business. It’s about working smarter, not just harder. Here are my four tips for college freshmen guys 1. GRADES BEFORE ANYTHING: Yes, I know. In college they’re endless women, turn ups, and days where you will hang out with your boys. If you want to keep doing that, you need the grades that will allow you to do those things. It’s much harder to raise your grades than to maintain them so understand this…. YOUR GRADES MATTER! 2. SMARTER NOT HARDER: Don’t over work yourself to the point of careless exhaustion. Regardless of your work ethic, you will fail. It’s not about how hard you work to get your 4.0, it’s about the method you use to achieve that 4.0. If you’re a communications major,like myself, get a math and science tutor. They can help you achieve As in classes that a communications major would normally struggle in. A communication major will achieve As in classes that suit their strengths. That’s what you call achieving a 4.0 with less effort. The energy you would’ve used by yourself to achieve a 4.0 can be spent by getting involved on campus. 3. TREAT WOMEN WITH RESPECT: Fellas, yes we naturally flirt with women but do it respectfully. No means no, no matter what. One secret, women like men who can show restraint and not try to over pursue them. Don’t be the guy who hits on every girl he sees or is in the group of guys who hollar at every girl who walks by. Women don’t like men like that. If you like a girl, approach her by yourself. If she doesn't want you, it’s okay. You can just be her friend. Also THEY’RE too much women in college to obsess with one girl who is not your girlfriend. Don’t lie about her sex history because she denied you. That’s not cool, you wouldn’t want a woman calling you a “hoe”. Thus this is how I met my girl. I approach her by myself and just had a conversation with her. Then I got her number with the intention of being her friend but we clicked on a different level. Now i cuffed her and she's all mine.
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