Saturday matinee benefit for the Bay View: ‘for colored girls …’
Saturday, Feb. 28, the Black Repertory Theatre generously set aside the matinee performance of "for colored girls who have considered suicide when the rainbow is enuf" as a benefit for the Bay View newspaper. Playwright Ntozake Shange was there in person. The performance sold out! Thanks, everybody!
On the New York Post simulation of the murder of the president of the...
Naturally we are outraged by Rupert Murdoch's low rag The New York Post's depicting Barack Obama as a monkey. That cartoon is actually calling for the assassination of the president of the United States!
‘The Whole Woo Wop’: an interview wit’ Kmaxx of KPOO’s Ghetto Gumbo
Definitely it has been a long time coming for one-time Coup bass player Kmaxx to drop his latest release, "The Whole Woo Wop," which is in stores now.
National Public Radio, how can you get rid of News & Notes?
National Public Radio (NPR), hit by the global economic crisis, is preparing to lay off in March 2009 more than 60 staff and eliminating two major programs, one being News & Notes.
Wanda’s Picks for Feb. 14
Be sure to listen to the archived Wanda's Picks Radio for Feb. 11, when the guests are Cynthia McKinney in the first hour and Guy Patrice Lumumba and Lisa F. Jackson, director of the film, "The Greatest Silence: Rape in the Congo," in the second. Extraordinary radio! Superb mix of arts and politics!
Music over the Mall
What moved me most at the presidential inauguration was the quartet - Itzhak Perlman and Yo-Yo Ma sounding a mournful dirge, shattered by Anthony McGill's light, airy clarinet, which was as triumphant as the coming of spring.
Iconoclast Productions brings hot urban films by independent Black filmmakers who direct like the...
The San Francisco Black Independent Film Festival will be held in Koret Auditorium, San Francisco Main Public Library, 101 Larkin St., San Francisco, on Sunday, Feb. 15, 1-6 p.m. Admission is free.
Wanda’s Picks for Feb. 7
Wearing colorful beads and red and blue tunics, the Friends of Sironka Maasai Dance Troupe recently performed to celebrate and honor President Obama at his inauguration. Their performances include pulsating chanting, singing and traditional dance.
Obama’s post-racial ‘New Deal’
What does Obama's otherwise spectacular achievement say about the issues of police brutality, welfare to work, Reparations or Affirmative Action? What about the New Year's Day police shooting of an unarmed Black man, Oscar Grant?
Wanda’s Picks for February
We want to call the names of those who made their transition in January and offer condolences to their loved ones who have yet to cross that bridge. I still can't wrap my mind around the fact that Ave Montague is gone.
Wanda’s Picks for Jan. 16
Theme for the week: "Martin King to Barack Obama, from ‘I Have a Dream' to ‘Yes, We Can.'"
Wanda’s Picks updated Jan. 13
The Coalition Against Police Execution (CAPE) will hold the Praying for Peace, Working for Justice March and Rally at Oakland's City Hall Wednesday, Jan. 14, at 4 p.m. as the Oakland community continues to demand justice in the senseless murder of Oscar Grant by BART police.
Wanda’s Picks for Jan. 2
The real creation story of Kwanzaa: After Maulana Ron Karenga gave her a mimeographed sheet with the concept, Sister Makinya Kouate, through her study and creativity and travel to African nations, developed the celebration.
Black Repertory Theatre presents … Paul Mooney
Paul is as real as real can get. "Forget saying ‘pulling the race card'; I'm pulling the reality card," Paul yelled from the center of the stage during his show.
Wanda’s Picks for Dec. 26
Dr. C. Diane Howell, editor and publisher of the Black Business Listings and founder of the Black Expo, died suddenly on Wednesday, Dec. 24, from complications of pneumonia.
Wanda’s Picks for Dec. 19
Prince Lasha wrote, performed - as saxophonist, flutist and clarinetist - and recorded his music all over the globe. He passed away Dec. 12.
‘Without the King’: Meet the director, Michael Skolnik
When my 4-year-old daughter watched the film, she told me she did not think it was right for the royal family to be so rich while the regular people have to drink water out of puddles on the ground.
California murders Tookie
At 12:35, Stanley Tookie Williams was dead. The state of California had murdered him. A man whose greeting was the Swahili term Amani, or peace, was gone. What a waste.
Wanda’s Picks for Dec. 12
Langston Hughes will be celebrated in Oakland and San Francisco beginning this week at Allen Temple Baptist Church and Lorraine Hansberry Theatre. The gospel play "Black Nativity" is a Bay Area favorite.
Wanda’s Picks for Dec. 5
It's first Friday and the holiday season is in full swing. The usual first Friday haunts are hosting late night events: the Oakland Museum of California on 10th and Oak Street, Joyce Gordon Gallery on 14th Street near Broadway. Sister Souljah is in town.