“If you bring forth what is within you, what you bring forth will save you. If you do not bring forth what is within you, what you do not bring forth will destroy you” – Jesus ( The Gospel of Thomas)

One of my intentions for twomp tweezy is to release as many creative works as i can that can possibly serve to assist someone in their journey towards greater awareness and being.  It is also my intent to connect with others who are advocates of fresh ass expression via style AND substance based creative works. Socially aware and responsible artists play a HUGE roll in the moving of society towards higher degrees of awareness and understanding. If you hold this view, please holler at me here or through email (pitchblackgold@gmail.com) and let’s see how we can possibly assist each other in the process of setting off audio-visual-conceptual-multidimensional alarm clocks.

Much is in the works, but for now, here is the first entry into the process. Peace and Truth 2 U.

Beneraf Market. Papua province, Indonesia

On July 8th, 20,000 Papuans peacefully rally demanding a referendum on West Papuan independence

From westpapua.net:

Facing an epic struggle they see as similar to those of indigenous minorities in Timor, Aceh, Burma, Laos, South Sudan, South Africa, Iroquois America, and so many other nations, people identifying as Papuans are shifting significant energy into a peaceful information campaign meant to help them achieve solidarity as a people along with either greater autonomy or full independence for the Papuans from Indonesia.

The latest chapter of this media campaign is Unheard Voices of West Papua, a wildly colorful online and print history book for kids aimed at underlining the indigenous point of view at the cost of the colonists and Indonesian government.

The book looks great, sounds great, and the people make good points, but many Indonesians of other ethnic groups are going to be either threatened or scared by the otherwise friendly book.

That’s because at the heart of this peaceful media with cool pictures and fascinating people is the core argument that the Dutch, and then Indonesian government, colonized the region and brutalized the people, and that Indonesia continues to exploit natural resources for the profit of the central government and Western corporations at the cost of the native people.

While much of this is well evidenced — the Indonesian government itself has admitted there’s a serious problem simply by shifting significant military resources to the region, brokering political talks, and prohibiting foreign journalists, if not by acknowledging the many, many allegations that they have tortured or even murdered indigenous activists — the moral problem for the international community comes down to the same issue as in other rebel regions of the world.

For the rest of the article click here

Read Unheard Voices of West Papua: unheardvoices.westpapua.ca

Other articles:

http://www.fpcn-global.org/content/Thousands-Papuans-Rally-Again-Referendum

http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/opinion/a-mediating-hand-to-pull-papua-back-from-the-edge/387234

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/mar/19/fossilfuels.indonesia

Tupac Amaru Shakur (June 16, 1971 - September 13th 1996)

There have been ZERO rappers in the mainstream to come anywhere near this close to the passion and fire for the people:

Cats nowadays get passionate about Beyonce not winning video awards and shit. Anyways, this is Pac’s first recorded speech. Schooling adults:

Makeveli – Hold Ya Head

Hold Ya Head off Makeveli 7 Day Theory album is my personal favorite Pac song. It possesses everything that was great about Pac and amidst a sea of Death Row required shit talking, this gem of a song jumps way out. 7 Day Theory also is my fav album and I remember at the time, that i just could not stop playing this song.  Listening to it again now, it just shits on the retardedity (my word) of these thug rappers of today. The one thing that i really love about the legacy of Pac, was that his greatest songs, the ones that we remember him for, were NOT club hits. They were great songs that spoke from and to heart of Black people.

Who remembers when “Brenda’s got A Baby” owned “The Box” (For you youngins, there used to be a channel in Oakland, back in the early 90′s, where you could call in and order videos) I used to get sick of it cuz i would ALWAYS make me all emotional. The song and the video was just hella intense. With “Dear Mama”, “Shed So Many Tears, “Temptations”, he was even in the videos, but we felt him. Everyone knew his situation and was ridin’ with him. Until T.I. or Lil Wayne or any other millionare rapper can make singles like the aforementioned, I DONT GIVE A FUCK if them niggaz get locked up. As dope, clever and a better lyricist B.I.G. was, he never made songs that spoke to hopes, dreams, inner fears, vulnerabilities, strengths and empowerment of Black people. He never moved anyone to shed so many tears and neither has Jay-Z or Nas (though Nas has many great songs of substance). Pac got a catalog of spirit touching songs and for that reason he is still the Greatest Rapper Of All Time.

Hold Ya Head:

[prison in the background while 'Pac speaks]
Yo Jackson! (8231549)
Yes (?), come on down
Hold the doors – let’s go!
8599 (?) close it tight
Lock it down

[2Pac]
My homeboys in Clinton and Rikers Island
All the penitentiaries
Mumia, Mutulu, Geronimo, Sekon
All the political prisoners
San Quentin (Can you see him? I see him).. all the jailhouses
I’m alive!

[2Pac]
Yeah
One thug, one thug (How do we keep the music playing)
You’re listenin to the sounds of one, thuuug
One thug, one thug (How do we get ahead)

[2Pac]
I wake up early in the mornin, mindstate so military
Suckers fantasizin pictures of a young brother buried
Was it me, the weed, or this life I lead
If daytime is for suckers then tonight we bleed
Out for all that, knowin that this world bring drawbacks
Look how this shit bump once I deliver these raw raps
Meet me at the cemetery dressed in black
Tonight we, honor the dead, those who won’t be back
So if I die, do the same for me, shed no tears
An Outlaw, thug livin in this game for years
Why worry, hope to God, get me high when I’m buried
Knowin deep inside only a few love me
Come rush me to the gates of heaven, let me picture for a while
How I lived for my days as a child; I wonder now
How do we outlast, always get cash
Stay strong if we all mash, hold ya head

[Chorus: sung + 2Pac]
How do we keep the music playing (yes, you got to hold ya head)
How do we get ahead.. (hold your head!)
Too many young black brothers are dying (yes, you got to hold ya head)
Livin fast, too fast..

[2Pac]
Hahaha, yo
These felonies be like prophecies beggin me to stop
Cause these lawyers gettin money everytime they knock us
Snatchin pockets lyrically, suckers flea when they notice
Switched my name to Makaveli, half the rap game closed
Exposed foes with my hocus pocus flows they froze
Now suckers idolize my, chosen blows
And mo’ money mean litigatin, mo’ playa hatin
Got a cell at the pen for me waitin – is this my fate?
Miss me with that misdemeanor thinkin, me fall back?
Never that, too much tequila drinkin, we all that
Make them understand me, if not I slang my posse
Everyone with me is family, cause everybody’s got me
Watch me paint a perfect vision, this life we livin
got us all meetin up in prison..
Last week I got a letter from my road dog, written in blood
Saying, “Please show a playa love” – hold ya head!
Hold it

[Chorus]

[2Pac]
The weed got me tweakin in my mind, I’m thinkin..
God bless the child that can hold his own
Indeed, enemies bleed when I hold my chrome
Let these words be the last to my unborn seeds
Hope to raise my young nation in this world of greed
Currency means nothin if you still ain’t free
Money breeds jealousy, take the game from me
I hope for better days, trouble comes naturally
Running from authorities ’til they capture me
And my, aim is to spread mo’ smiles than tears
Utilalize lessons learned from my childhood years
Maybe Mama had it all right, rest yo’ head
Tradin converstion all night, bless the dead
To my homies that I used to have that no longer roll
Catch a brother at the crossroads..
Plus nobody knows my soul, watchin time pass
Through the glass of my drop-top Rolls, hold ya head!

[Chorus]

[2Pac over Chorus]
No matter how hard it get, feel me
Get the weed, drink a drink, read a book
Watch the stars, get some pussy, whatever..

[Chorus repeats to fade]

Travel In Power

Tupac Amaru Shakur (June 16th, 1971 – September 13th, 1996)

I had started writing this a few weeks ago and had stopped, but then I read another article about “Black/Asian tensions”and I had an exchange with a Chinese man that spoke with a clear undertone of resentment for “these young kids nowadays” (read Black kids nowadays). So, I’ma put this out there.

In the past few weeks, there has been a lot of drama and pervading tension surrounding the recent assaults on Asians by young Black men in the Bay Area. Being a Black man who grew up in San Francisco and Oakland, with a 2 year stint in Daly City, and who has spent the last 6 years living and travelling throughout Asia, I figure may be able to offer another perspective. A perspective that can see beyond the stereotypes of both communities and go a little deeper into why these events went down.

If you haven’t been following local news lately, here’s a brief rundown of the main events;

- In January, Huan Chen, 83, was kicked and beaten as he left the Muni stop at Third and Oakdale in the Bay View. He died about two months later (March 19th).

-On March 22nd, five Black teenagers surrounded a 57-year-old Chinese woman at the same Muni stop. Surveillance camera video from the second incident shows one of her assailants grabbing the victim by the neck and throwing her from the platform.

-On March 27th, a group of Black teenagers assaulted a Chinese Muni rider on Third and Williams streets.

-April 16th, Tian Sheng Yu, 59, died a few days after he was beaten into a coma by two Black teenagers, after coming to the aid of his son, who was beaten. This was the tipping point leading to the open anger currently being expressed by the Chinese community toward the Black community.

(Here is an unofficial city incident that took place on a Muni bus in October 2009; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nx6FRSemW38 . Take note of the number of views)

Before I speak to the above events, i’m going to share a few incidents. One personal, two cinematic and another real life incident…..

About a month ago, I walked into a Louisiana Soul Food joint on Adeline in South Berkeley. The door was locked, so i knocked on the glass and to my surprise, a little old Asian man , about 5’2, thin gray hair and large round glasses came, unlocked and opened the door. “Good evening” he said in a soft lightly accented voice. “You want take-out? We will close soon.” “Yes” i replied and walked in. I looked around at the decor and I was sure this was a Black owned joint. Maybe the owner is just helping the old man out and hired him. He then brought me a menu and sat down at the register. Out from the kitchen came an old Asian woman wearing an apron. She handed the man a piece of paper and hurried back to the kitchen. It tripped me out for a sec, because the visuals weren’t addin’ up. What the hell were these two lil elderly Asians doing running a full on Soul Food joint?! I ordered my food and began talking to the lil old man. I wasn’t sure if he was Japanese or Korean, so i asked him where he was from and he said Korea. He and his wife had been living in the Bay for 20 years, “Just working and learning”. He asked me if I had ever been to Korea and I told him that i spent about 5 hours in Seoul Airport a couple months ago, on my way back to SF from Indonesia. He said, “Oh..very cold now”. Sheeeit, cold was an understatement. It was -7 degrees coming off the plane and the airport was an ice box. We continued with small talk until the woman brought out my take away bag. “Annyong haseyo”, I said attempting to say “good evening”, the one word I know in Korean. The woman’s face lit up in surprise, “Oh! You speak Korean?! “No no no” I replied “I only know that word. Was that correct?”  ”Very good!” She said. She then taught me how to say “Good night” (which i’ve forgotten) and “Thank you” which is “Kashamnida” (I don’t know if that’s spelled right). I left with a smile on my face and they closed their lil Soul Food joint with a smiles on theirs…..we all went home and slapped that “We Are The World”.

Okay now, do you remember this?:

Alright now, reflect on what you felt when you first watched this movie scene:

You were most likely like me, saying, “Oh shit!”, no matter what your racial background is. Clearly, this scene is an extreme case, oozing with stereotypes, but the scene also holds the underlying sentiment that is most definitely felt in interactions between many Black Americans and Far East Asians. I must emphasize “Far East” and more specifically Koreans & Chinese (Interestingly, not the Japanese or South East Asians, for reasons i’ll get into in a bit) whom are the Asian ethnic groups most often operating businesses in Black neighborhoods and in San Francisco, increasingly moving into homes once occupied by African Americans, changing the demographics of the community.

And finally;

All of the above scenarios possess information that can be learned from. In reality, the common experience is somewhere in the middle of my personal experience and Radio Raheem’s, but if you listen and read the media over the last couple of weeks, you may be inclined to think that Black and Asian relations are somewhere between Radio and O-Dog. This misconception are the leaves on a huge tree that has quite a few branches, but one big root…..Fear. This Fear is perpetuated and maintained by steady flow of negative stereotypical media images of Black Americans, positive stereotypical images of Asians and cultural ignorance on the part of (a segment) of both communities whom buy into those stereotypes. The stereotypes of the other community, as well as the stereotypes of ones own community.

Not all Asians are smart and rich. Believing this to be true leads to a false since of superiority and arrogance if you are Asian and a false since of inferiority if you are African-American.  Not all Black men are criminals. If you are Asian, believing that all young Black males are criminals, will make your body language tense and overall vibration radiate fear, which will actually increase your chance of having a negative encounter. Believing, as a Black male or female of any age, that possessing careless attitudes, criminal mannerisms, attributes and violent actions are somehow being “real”, is to buy into a system that has told you to hate yourself and community. A system that has told you that being a criminal, literally or artistically, is your ticket to freedom. Just harboring these ignorant perceptions sets up the stage for the drama to play out, all to the monetary benefit and continued dominance of a White media structure.

Do I think that these recent attacks are cases of Blacks “targeting” Chinese in a racist way, like Whites have targeted Blacks? No. I do not for a few different reasons, the main one being that a certain segment of  young black males are just looking for victims, who usually happen to be other young Black males (No uproar there right?). Does the Chinese community have a right to be angry and speak out? Hell yeah they do and from there perspective it would seem they were being targeted, even though crime stats show that prior to this wave, serious Black on Chinese crime is close to non-existent. But the manner in which that anger is being expressed is not productive whatsoever. Many Chinese folks are spewing hella racist shit, despite the fact the victims of these crimes were assisted by Black people after the crimes were committed and Black people were also showing up to the rallies organized in support. Those Chinese also are just a segment (though a very large one) of the Chinese community. Both of the segments pretty much have no interaction with the other community beyond, bus rides and Chinese food pickups and deliveries.

Allow me to do what I do here on PitchBlackGold’s path, and step into a more metaphysical space of perception. Chinese are NOT being targeted by Black people any more than Chinese school children are being targeted by Chinese adult males. What does this have to do with metaphysics? First, let us notice that both are waves of serious violence, occurring in a relatively short span of time. Here are the dates to note:

March 19th – Huan Chen dies from a result of being beaten by a group of Black teens in January

March 22nd (eve-PST) – Black teenager throws 57 year old Chinese woman from train platform

March 23rd (7:20 am UTC) – Chinese man kills eight children with a knife in a school in Nanping, China

The above took place within hours of each other. Chinese time is 15 hrs ahead

April 16th – Tian Sheng Yu is beaten in by 2 teenage African Am. males in downtown Oakland and dies a few days later on the 20th

April 28th – Another knife-wielding man at a different elementary school wounded 16 students and a teacher in Guandong, China

April 29th – In Jiangsu, China 47-year-old Xu Yuyuan went to a kindergarten and stabbed 28 students, two teachers and one security guard; most of the Taixing students were 4 years old.

April 30th – Wang Yonglai used a hammer to cause head injury to preschool children in  Shandong, China

May 12th – An attacker named Wu Huanming, 48, killed seven children and two adults and injured 11 other persons with a cleaver.

There are two main factors that link both of these waves of events. Media and fear, the latter being the being the core energy and the former being the amplifier. Like attracts like energy is a metaphysical law, which means whatever ones state of being is or whatever vibration one is projecting out, will attract more of the same vibration to the person. With this in mind, we can look at violence against Chinese in The Bay, with the violence against children in China.

An act of murdering children is an extremely intense negativity generator in and of itself. The negativity can get amplified 1000 fold if media gives detailed attention to it, allowing scores of people to charge the collective consciousness with anger and fear. This charge, due to the like attracts like law, increases the chance of  a similar, if not the same, type of attack occurring. Couple this with specific astrological factors concerning China and this time period, and a deeper, more esoteric explanation begins to emerge.

So, the horrible events beginning with the death of Mr Huan Chen on March 19th and ending with the rampage in a school in China on May 12th, were not targeted attacks rooted in racism or child hating. The perpetrators of these attacks are individuals with serious problems in their own lives and unbeknown to them, the negativity in which they harbored was drawn out by media amplified (via t.v., radio, blogs) fear and anger. The negative feelings which already existed in a subtle -and sometimes overt- context, attracted an extreme overt expression when the astrological window was opened up. I do believe that window is closed now, but in the Bay Area Chinese community is still very hot.

Maybe, I’ll come back with some possible solutions to this Blasian soap opera. Dr. Marshall, you can hit me up for assistance on this if you wish. No need for the NAACP to come in and such. I actually lived in China for a bit. I could speak on a few things that are relevant to this situation. I could talk about what Chinese/Koreans could learn from Filipinos and Japanese about how to interact with Black folks. I could also talk about how Feb 8th, 11th, 12th and 14th of 2008…school shootings took place in the U.S.  killing a total of 9 people and wounding a total of 19 and relate that to the series of events that have taken place. I could also talk about how Hip-Hop culture proves….

….we’ll see if i’m moved to continue this.

Me and my nephews and nieces

Peace Family, Friends & Community,

Most of you know for the last 5 years I’ve been living in Asia, based in Bali, Indonesia. I’ve continued my work as an evolving artist with the goal of shifting minds, progressing spirit and motivating action, especially in youth. As one of 6 Black men living in Bali (yes..6), and 3 from the US, I’ve been a direct contact for a people whose only reference point has been through movies, music videos and televised soccer games. Because I’ve grown up in Oakland, amongst a culturally, socially and spiritually aware community of artists/teachers/activists, I’ve been able to correct many of these false assumptions and negative stereotypes for many Indonesian people.

I came home to The Bay, for the first time in 5 years, back in February. Since I’ve been back, I’ve had a lot of time to reflect on my 5 years of experience in Bali and how it connects with the arts and activist community here in The Bay. In that reflection and I’ve become clear in my vision of making official the work i’ve been doing over the last 5 years, specifically and the work i’ve been doing since I was 18 year old newborn in knowledge of self and community.

Here in the Bay, there are organizations and centers left & right that are dedicated to youth development in every way, and we’ve always had them. In Bali there are organizations dedicated to young children, but there are much fewer dedicated to teens and young adults and none dedicated to young urban performance artists, and nothing close to a center or organization dedicated to connecting arts and activism and social entrepreneurship. There has never been a Live Lyricist Society, Upper Room, Black Dot Cafe or Leadership Excellence, organizations which guided my artistic development.  There is no Youth Speaks, Youth Uprising, Green Arts Center or DJ Project, where youth have consistent access to top tier music production equipment, dance studios, practice and performance spaces and more than a few professional mentors to guide their growth process. Bali does not have those youth centers,  but Bali has hundreds of youth who desire it and would directly and immediately benefit from it. My goal is assist, full-time, the young urban arts community in Bali, in resolving this issue. To do that, I need your assistance.

I have founded Tru Karya Cipta (True Creative activity), a youth performance arts, education and social entrepreneurship organization in Bali, Indonesia. It will be the first organization in Indonesia to train young artists, not only in developing their talents, but also how to use their talents to benefit their communities. The organization will inform them of the social, ecological and economic issues facing Bali, and guide them in the process of becoming socially aware and responsible artists and entrepreneurs, to better address and aid in the solution to these problems. The long term goal is to establish a facility in Bali, that will serve as an international center for young artists who are dedicated to solving the many issues facing humanity and the Earth. With the establishment of a facility, international cultural exchange can take place. Every year young artists and professional artists, from organizations or solo, in the Bay and other parts of the world, can come out to Bali for a few weeks and do their creative work in a beautiful and natural environment, also collaborating with Balinese performance artists in using art to engage, enlighten, inspire and ignite action for the benefit of our global village. Imagine young artists from East Oakland collaborating with young artists from Denpasar, Bali in a project addressing issues affecting both of their communities. This uniting of cultures through the arts, with the goal of real change, is the vision.

Here is the link to the blog site where all of our goals and objectives are posted: http://truecreativeactivity.wordpress.com/donate-to-the-cause/

I’m asking for your assistance in raising $3400. This funding cost will cover:

- One airline flight to Indonesia ($1600) – One work permit for one year ($1800)

With this covered, I can devote attention to the development of the organization, without having issues with immigration. This will also allow this project to be rooted in community funding and from that root grows a tree with fruit that nourishes across international borders.

Right now, I have 800 friends on Facebook. If only 170 of those friends would contribute $20 (which is about the cost of a movie ticket and a drink), then it would allow the project to move to next step, which will be obtaining non-profit status with the Indonesian government, acquiring funding to secure land and building to establish our Pura Tru Karya Cipta or True Creative Arts Temple.

I have already did the groundwork and have gathered support from professional local and international artists and organizations in Bali, now I need your support. If you are able to donate $20…or $10….or $5, just click  the “Donate” button below. I only need 170 people to invest $20 in this project and the next steps forward will be taken immediately.

Please forward this to any of your friends who you think would be interested and ask them to make a donation to this project.

I thank you very much for your supporting the global youth arts and activist movement.

Peace, Kamau Bakari Abayomi (PitchBlackGold)                                                                                                                                   pitchblackgold@gmail.com