Out the door...inspirational quote to start your day

Good Morning friends! I hope yesterday went well for all of you. Its time for my favorite part of the day-the "out the door" quote!

Today's inspiration is from the impeccable Don Cornelius:

“It's always a pleasure to find something that matters.”
-Don Cornelius

Make time today to do something you love. You may surprise yourself with how great it makes you feel.

Sharing is caring

Jacked Saw this and decided to share(translation: I do not claim rights to what follows):

Malcolm X's legacy ignored 45 years after his murder

Apparently, Malcolm X does not exist. At least that's what you might think while visiting the Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, Tennessee. During our rally for the Heather Ellis Case, the young woman who faced 15 years in prison after cutting line at a Wal-Mart, I took a tour of the museum. After completing the hour-long tour, I realized that they'd forgotten something. Even though the museum had hundreds of pictures of other events representing the civil rights struggle in America, I saw only one picture of Malcolm X.

This incredibly disappointing display at the Civil Rights Museum is a reflection of how Malcolm's legacy has been treated like the neglected step-child of the African-American struggle for freedom and equality. Malcolm fought for civil rights just as diligently as Dr. King. He was just as impactful as Dr. King. He gave his life like Dr. King. But for some reason, most of us don't remember Malcolm's birthday. We've never considered having a holiday to commemorate his contribution. He is rarely discussed in the same sentence with Dr. King. We just ignore him and this has got to change.

It's easy to understand why mainstream America has been conditioned not to appreciate the legacy of Malcolm X. They dislike Malcolm for the same reasons that the British dislike George Washington. Malcolm wasn't an apologist and challenged black folks to respect themselves, which was in direct contrast to a strategy of constrained and oppressive integration. Our goal was to get a seat at the table, even if we were given the scraps, and some are wondering if we are better off because of it. Malcolm kept a crystal ball in his mind which told him that a distorted, imbalanced marriage between blacks and whites would lead to terrible inner city schools, huge imbalances of wealth and unemployment and a lack of willingness by politicians to acknowledge serious concerns within the African-American community. Hence, you have the year 2010.

While the social, economic and political relationships of blacks and whites have presented quite a few gains for African-Americans, they don't work when there is still a fundamental disrespect for black people themselves. Malcolm was not necessarily against these kinds of ties, but he might agree that this union should only take place when there is definitive proof of mutual respect. Rather than embracing concepts such as ownership and institution-building, African-Americans have positioned themselves as an occupied state which leaves itself vulnerable to distorted economic and political condition. Many of us understand that the dreams of neither Malcolm nor Martin have been fully realized.

It's time for us to evolve our thinking. If we continue to use the same models, we will continue to get the same results. Martin Luther King was an undeniably great man, but to some extent, mainstream media has chosen him as an African-American hero. In the same way Lil Wayne has been promoted extensively by non-black music executives, Martin Luther King is tossed at us like the latest Jay-Z song or those Democratic nominees that none of us have ever heard about. We've never been given the opportunity to choose our own iconic figures. Instead, we are taught that Dr. King fought the entire struggle for civil rights all by himself.

We must make a collective effort to raise Malcolm from the dead to give him the appreciation he deserves. We can first start by learning Malcolm's birthday, which is May 19, 1925 and the date of his assassination, Febuary 21, 1965. We can also study his life, and his contribution to the country in which we live today. Malcolm gave black people pride and courage, which are just as valuable as eating at the same lunch counter at whites. He encouraged an honest recollection on our experience as slaves, which is far better than being taught that slavery should be forgotten. He helped us understand that black history is a living, breathing phenomenon, determining how we name ourselves, what we eat and what we think. In many ways, Malcolm gave black America a new beginning.

Malcolm, Martin and thousands of others fought to get us where we are today, and we know that. It's time to talk differently about our history. So, as we go to one MLK dinner after another, we must make a point to stop and give respect to Malcolm.

If you haven't already, check out HUSL Today's salute to Malcolm X here.

Source: http://www.thegrio.com/opinion/malcolm-x-legacy-ignored-45-years-after-his-murder.php (Be sure to read other posts while you're visiting)

Do you think Malcolm X's radical approach has tainted his legacy and made people want to steer clear of his message? OR is do people use his approach as an excuse not to give him just as much credit as Dr. King? I dont want to start a rivalry or diminish the legacy of either of them, but I am interested in your thoughts.

Share your thoughts because sharing is caring.

Enjoy the rest of your day my friends!

HUSL Today Salutes

Aretha Franklin

Aretha Louise Franklin (born March 25, 1942) is an American singer, songwriter and pianist commonly referred to as "The Queen of Soul". Although renowned for her soul recordings, Franklin is also adept at jazz, rock, blues, pop, R&B and Gospel music. In 2008, the American music magazine Rolling Stone ranked Franklin #1 on its list of The Greatest Singers of All Time.

Check out her amazing performance of "Natural Woman"

Franklin is one of the most honored artists by the Grammy Awards, with 18 Grammys to date, which include the Living Legend Grammy and the Lifetime Achievement Grammy. She has scored a total of 20 #1 singles on the Billboard R&B Singles Chart, one of which also became her first #1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100: "Respect" (1967). "I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)" (1987), a duet with George Michael, became her second #1 on the latter chart. Since 1961, Franklin has scored a total of 45 "Top 40" hits on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.




Franklin was the only featured singer at the 2009 Presidential inauguration ceremony for Barack Obama. Her hat (pictured above) garnered significant attention and started a brief trend.




*snaps in a Z formation*

Awards & recognition:

1. On June 28, 1968 she became the second African-American woman to appear on the cover of Time magazine
2. In 1985, then-Gov. James Blanchard of Michigan declared her voice “a natural resource” during a ceremony that marked her 25 years in show business.
3. Aretha Franklin is one of three musicians, along with Madonna & Marvin Gaye, to achieve each of the top 10 positions on the US Billboard Hot 100.
4. On January 20, 1987, she became the first woman to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
5. On March 29, 1987, Franklin sang "America the Beautiful" at WrestleMania III.
6. In 1987, she was awarded an honorary Doctor of Musicology degree from the University of Detroit.
7. In 1994 she became the youngest recipient of a Kennedy Center Honor.
8. In September, 1999, she was awarded The National Medal of Arts by President Clinton.
9. In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked her #9 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. To give perspective to this honor, only the Beatles, Bob Dylan, Elvis Presley, the Rolling Stones, Chuck Berry, Jimi Hendrix, James Brown, and Little Richard finished ahead of her on this list. Ray Charles finished at number ten, right behind Franklin.
10. In 2005, she was awarded The Presidential Medal of Freedom by President George W. Bush.
11. In 2005, she became the second woman (Madonna being the first, a founding member) to be inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame.
12. In 2005, Franklin was inducted into the Michigan Rock and Roll Legends Hall of Fame.
13. On February 6, 2006, she performed, along with Aaron Neville, "The Star-Spangled Banner" at Super Bowl XL.
14. On May 13, 2006, she was presented with an honorary Doctor of Music degree by the Berklee College of Music.
15. On April 1, 2007 Aretha sang "America the Beautiful" at WrestleMania 23.
16. On May 14, 2007, she was presented with an honorary Doctor of Music degree from the University of Pennsylvania.
17. In 2007, Aretha Franklin's recording of "Respect" was voted a Legendary Michigan Song.
18. Is an honorary member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.
19. On February 8, 2008, Franklin was honored as MusiCares "Person of the Year."
20. On February 14, 2008, Franklin was given the Vanguard award at the NAACP Image awards.
21. On May 4, 2008, Franklin was given the Key to the City of Memphis at the 2008 "Memphis in May International Music Festival" by Mayor Dr. Willie Herenton during her performance onstage.
22. On September 13, 2008, Franklin was ranked #19 on the Billboard Hot 100 All-Time Top Artists list by Billboard.
23. November 2008, Franklin was named by Rolling Stone as the #1 all-time best singer of the rock era. She came in ahead of Ray Charles at No. 2, Elvis Presley at No. 3, Sam Cooke at No. 4, and John Lennon at No. 5, according to the magazine's survey of 179 musicians, producers, Rolling Stone editors, and other music industry insiders.
24. On January 20, 2009, Franklin performed "My Country, 'Tis of Thee" during the inauguration ceremony of Barack Obama. The distinctive hat she wore during that performance is displayed at the Smithsonian.
25. On December 4, 2009, Aretha Franklin performed in EMPAC at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute to celebrate RPI's President Shirley Ann Jackson's 10th year of being tenured.








Trivia: Can any of my HUSL Today friends share with me the words to "Respect" that come after she says "R.E.S.P.E.C.T. find out what it means to me. R.E.S.P.E.C.T. take care of (blank)

Share your favorite Aretha moments and songs amongst friends in the comment area. The platform has your name all over it...

HUSL Today Salutes Aretha Franklin!!!!

Out the door...inspirational quote to start your day

Happy Wednesday my friends!!! Ready to get your day off to a positive start? Good. Thats what I'm here for. Thank me by making yesterday jealous.

"Trying to grow up is hurting, you know. You make mistakes. You try to learn from them, and when you don't, it hurts even more."

-Aretha Franklin

We've all learned hard lessons. I have definitely learned my fair share. I challenge all of you to shift your focus from the pain of the lesson and to focus on the lesson itself. There's an old saying "when you know better you do better." The problem is doing better can be difficult. If you slip up and have to repeat the lesson give yourself a break, dust yourself off and acknowledge your mistakes.

Don't be too hard on yourself my friends. Knowing is half the battle, now its time to act on your knowledge and maintain hope for better days.

Take Deep Breaths.
Hit the ground running!
GO!

HUSL Today Salutes

W.E.B. Du Bois

William Edward Burghardt Du Bois (February 23, 1868 – August 27, 1963) was an American civil rights activist, Pan-Africanist, sociologist, historian, author, and editor.

Du Bois entered Harvard College in the fall of 1888, having received a $250 scholarship. He earned a bachelor's degree cum laude from Harvard in 1890. In 1892, he received a fellowship from the John F. Slater Fund for the Education of Freedmen to attend the University of Berlin for graduate work.

In 1895, Du Bois became the first African American to earn a Ph.D. from Harvard University.

Du Bois wrote many books, including three major autobiographies. Among his most significant works are The Philadelphia Negro (1899), The Souls of Black Folk (1903), John Brown (1909), Black Reconstruction (1935), and Black Folk, Then and Now (1939).

HUSL Today Salutes W.E.B. Du Bois!!!

Out the door...inspirational quote to start your day

Good Morning friends! Congratulations you've made it to Tuesday! Did yesterday's quote help you? Well its a new day which brings new opportunities but before you hit the ground running take a moment to check out today's quote:

“Now is the accepted time, not tomorrow, not some more convenient season. It is today that our best work can be done and not some future day or future year. It is today that we fit ourselves for the greater usefulness of tomorrow. Today is the seed time, now are the hours of work, and tomorrow comes the harvest and the playtime.”

-W.E.B. Dubois

Has anyone ever told you not to put off until tomorrow what you can do today? Well this is one of those things. Dont put off things for tomorrow that you can do today because tomorrow may never come.

What are you waiting for? Take chances. Make mistakes and get messy!

HUSL Today Salutes

Lorraine Vivian Hansberry

Lorraine Vivian Hansberry was born May 19, 1930 in Chicago and raised in a middle-class family. When she was 7 or 8 her family moved to a restricted white neighborhood which was against the law at that time. The Hansberrys had to go to court in order to remain in their home which was vandalized on several occasions.

The production of her play, A Raisin in the Sun catapulted Hansberry into the forefront of the theatre world. She was named most promising playwright of the season by Variety's poll of New York Drama Critics.

The title of the play is based on a line in the Langston Hughes Poem Dream Deferred-What happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun?

Upon receiving that year's Drama Desk Award, Lorraine Hansberry became the youngest person and the first African-American to win that distinguished honor. In 1961 the film version of the play, starring Sidney Poitier, Claudia McNeil and Ruby Dee opened; Hansberry won a special award at the Cannes Film Festival and was nominated for a Screen Writer's Guild Award for her screenplay.

A second television adaptation of the play aired in 1989 starring Danny Glover, Esther Rolle, and Kim Yancey.

Check out the original version of the movie:

Check out the trailor for the updated version of the movie starring Sean Combs:

A Raisin in the Sun was chosen as one of the 100 most significant works of the twentieth century in a National Theatre poll of playwrights, actors, directors, journalists, and other theatre professionals. A Raisin in the Sun became the first play by an African American woman produced on Broadway and its revival has been critically acclaimed.

HUSL Today Salutes Lorraine Vivian Hansberry!

On THIS date in black history...

February 22

1841-Grafton Tyler Brown was born on this date. He was an African-American lithographer and painter. Brown is considered the first Black professional artist in California.

1866- The birth of John Frank Wheaton is celebrated on this date in 1866. He was an African-American politician who became the first black man elected to the Minnesota House of Representatives in 1898 from a predominantly immigrant district. He was a supporter of civil rights and lobbied for the commissioning of Black officers during the Spanish American War.

1888- Horace Pippin was born on this date in 1888. He was an American folk painter known for his primitivist depictions of Black American life and on the horrors of war.

1933- Ishmael Reed was born. He is an African-American writer. As of 1995, Reed had published nine novels, five books of poems, and four collections of essays; he also had authored four plays, three television productions, and two librettos, and edited four anthologies. His publishing and editing enterprises have included Reed, Cannon and Johnson Publications, I. Reed Books, and the journals Yardbird Reader Y’Bird, Quilt, and Konch.

1950-Julius Irving aka Dr. J is born. He was inducted into the NBA hall of fame in 1993 and he is still revered as one of the greatest basketball players ever.

1988- Today is the celebration of the first rap Grammy award. It was given to DJ Jazzy Jeff (Jeffrey Townes) and the Fresh Prince (Willard Smith) for the hit single “Parents Just Don't Understand.” Almost 12 years later, there is STILL no need to argue because parents STILL don’t understand (hi mom & dad).

Sidenote: The US is currently leading the Winter Olympics with 24 medals. Go team USA!

Out the door...inspirational quote to start your day

Good Morning friends! I hope your weekend was restful and productive. Here is your "out the door" quote to get you started on a positive note today.

"There is always something left to love. And if you ain't learned that, you ain't learned nothing. Have you cried for that boy today? I don't mean for yourself and for the family 'cause we lost the money. I mean for him; what he's been through and what it done to him. Child, when do you think is the time to love somebody the most; when they done good and made things easy for everybody? Well then, you ain't through learning -- because that ain't the time at all. It's when he's at his lowest and can't believe in hisself 'cause the world done whipped him so. When you starts measuring somebody, measure him right child, measure him right. Make sure you done taken into account what hills and valleys he come through before he got to wherever he is."

-From A Raisin in the Sun

This quote reminds me that people do not need our love in good times as much as they need love and understanding in tough times. When someone is going through a difficult situation, do not look at them with anger and anguish, instead look at them with love because they need it. If you're dealing with a difficult person and you're unsure of how to treat them, remember to base your evaluation on all the things (the good & especially the bad) he/she has been through before you make your judgment about how to love them.

Share your interpretations of today's quote in the comment section. Comments are welcomed and appreciated.

They survived slavery, they will survive this

Jacked Saw this and thought I'd share it:

At this time, [five weeks ago], the earth opened up its deep crevasses and let out a large yell that knocked down the people of Haiti. The devastation and destruction of Port Au Prince and its surrounding areas was heartbreaking, heart wrenching and at times, almost unbearable to even look at. The sadness in the faces that appeared on television and in the newspapers touched me to the deepest of my core. I humbly did everything in my power to help and will continue to support the Haitian people in all of my capacity. While the earthquake might have knocked down these beautiful people, with history at their back, I know they will rise again.

Since the slaves of Haiti rebelled triumphantly against their French occupiers in 1804, becoming the first free black republic in the world, Haiti has since been the subject of harsh policies, U.S. military occupation (1915-1934) and a pawn in the cold war. After Haiti’s liberation, for sixty-two years America refused to recognize Haiti and then organized an embargo and blockade against them. Later, the United States along with France threatened to re-invade Haiti unless they paid France 150 million francs in gold as reparations for defeating the French, which took until the mid 1940s to pay. Just to put it in perspective, 150 million francs in gold in 1804 is equivalent to approx $1 trillion US dollars today. This began a long history of Haiti being in debt to the world.

Our relationship with Haiti dates back hundreds of years, where Haiti even sent 900 soldiers to Savannah, Georgia to aid America in its war against England for our independence. Not only did they help us gain our independence, their rebellion against the French helped us obtain the Louisiana Territory, which makes up one-third of the United States. However, once Haiti liberated itself from the French, our relationship with Haiti changed dramatically. Although we recognized Haiti as a free nation in 1862, it was largely because President Lincoln wanted to have Haiti as a place for the Africans in America to go to. Later the US government, according to many historians, was complicit in the rise of the brutal dictatorships of Francious Duvalier and his son Jean Claude with their secret police, the Tonton Macoutes, which many believe was done because of fear that the USSR would try to bring communism to the island like they had done in Cuba. Although this never happened, the connection between the United States and Haiti has been forever intertwined, and has only gotten more complicated and more one-sided as time went on.

The Haitian people were the first to be free of slavery, but they have been paying a price ever since. As the United Nations Goodwill Ambassador for the Permanent Memorial to the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade, I feel it is important to address the lingering effects of slavery that the Haitian people have endured. We, as a nation, have drained this beautiful island, but now we have the chance to repair the past. Although throughout our history, our government has at times made horrible choices, in the end, it is the people of our great country that can stand up and inspire the world once again. We have the chance to help re-build this country as a model for the 21st century, full of innovation and sustainable technology that is healthy for their and our environment. The wealth of giving that has out poured from our nation to theirs’ since this horrendous tragedy is the right beginning, but let us not stop there. Let’s continue to exude the love that is in the hearts of all decent Americans. It is this love that makes us great givers, as we know those who are in need the most, need not ask for any help. The ability to give is the greatest gift we have from god, so let us give all that we have, and smile when the people of Haiti rise again.

-Russell Simmons
United Nations Goodwill Ambassador for the Permanent Memorial to the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade
Founder, GlobalGrind.com

Follow Russell on Twitter @UncleRush

Flashback to HUSL Today's coverage of the quake here and find out how you can help here.

L'Union fait la force!