“Get out!  Go,” my mother yelled, as a blazing fire swept through our house within minutes.  My 5-year-old brother was playing under his bed with a grill lighter when he set his mattress on fire.  At 19-years-old, having been uprooted before and gazing at the smoldering skeletal remains of our home, I thought to myself, here we go again. 

Earlier in my life, when I was 9-years-old, my mother worked three jobs to keep a roof over our heads and food in our stomachs.  My father was hardly around. When mom was at work, I took care of the household:  bathing and feeding my two younger sisters who were then ages 4 and 7 (my brother wasn’t born yet).  A few years later, my mother broke her ankle and had to stop working.  As a result, we were evicted from our apartment and became homeless. Eventually, my sisters and I were separated.   We went to live with various family members in the Washington metropolitan area.  Living the hardship we suffered without the support of our father, I knew as a youngster that I always wanted to be independent. This experience also contributed to my growing mistrust of men.

Full Story | Your Comment

Pulitzer Prize winner and MacArthur Fellow Junot Díaz opened his unconventional keynote speech for the 30th Facing Race conference in Baltimore by asking the audience for questions.  He continued at the conference sponsored by the Applied Research Center by joking around and lacing his talk with profanity when one of the 1,400 participants asked, “Are you single?”

The creative writing professor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and fiction editor at Boston Review continued to joke around and then pivoted to his first “serious” question that symbolized the conference’s focus:  “What was my process in identifying my own system of oppression?”

Growing up as an economically-challenged Dominican-American male from a family with members of various shades of brown and black, he responded, “Noticing how clearly and naked privilege got distributed across gender and racial lines.” He continued that he began to notice that the darker family members got less praises for their beauty.

The cross-race and cross-cultural alliance that was decisive in the re-reelection of President Obama,
“shocked the shit out of every one,” he said as he moved onto America politics. “Who knew if the coalition will hold," he continued, nevertheless the Obama victory provided those seeking social justice a ray hope.

Yet, despite the progress, he says White supremacy remains. “Skin bleaching to gain racial capital remains the rage,” he explained.  White supremacy wouldn’t miss a beat even if we sent all White people to the outer space, he continued.  “White supremacy is the racial order in all of us,” he says.  All the light skinned people and honorary Whites would simply step up to the plate, he said too much laughter.

Photos: Junot Díaz (top). "Hoodie" art (bottom). See Full Story on "Hoodie" art and other social justice works.

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Washing your face is as simple as using soap and water, right? Not quite say dermatologists with the American Academy of Dermatology (Academy).  How you wash your face can make a difference in your appearance.

“It’s important for people to treat the face with care. Never scrub the skin or use harsh products as doing so irritates the skin, which makes skin look worse,” said Thomas E. Rohrer, MD, FAAD, a board-certified dermatologist in private practice in Chestnut Hill, Mass.

For healthier-looking skin, Dr. Rohrer recommends people follow these tips to keep their face looking healthy:

1. Use a gentle, non-abrasive cleanser that does not contain alcohol.
2. Wet your face with lukewarm water and use your fingertips to apply cleanser. Using a washcloth, mesh sponge or anything other than your fingertips can irritate your skin.
3. Resist the temptation to scrub your skin as scrubbing irritates the skin.
4. Rinse with lukewarm water, and pat dry with a soft towel.
5. Apply moisturizer if your skin is dry or itchy. Be gentle when applying any cream around your eyes so you do not pull too hard on this delicate skin.
6. Limit washing to twice a day and after sweating. Wash your face once in the morning and once at night as well as after sweating heavily. Perspiration, especially when wearing a hat or helmet, irritates the skin. Wash your skin as soon as possible after sweating.
   

“A board-certified dermatologist can answer your questions about how to care for your skin, hair and nails,” said Dr. Rohrer.

In recognition of November as National Healthy Skin Month, these steps are demonstrated in “Face Washing 101 ,” a video posted to the Academy website and the Academy’s YouTube channel. This video is part of the Dermatology A to Z: Video Series, which offers relatable videos that demonstrate tips people can use to properly care for their skin, hair and nails. A new video in the series posts to the Academy website and the YouTube channel each month.

Diabetes affects nearly 26 million people in the United States. In addition, another 79 million people are estimated to have pre-diabetes, a condition that puts people at increased risk for diabetes. All people with diabetes, both type 1 and type 2, are at risk for diabetic eye disease, a leading cause of vision loss and blindness.

African Americans with diabetes are at higher risk of losing vision or going blind from it.  The National Eye Institute want to stress that all people with diabetes should have a dilated eye exam at least once a year to detect vision problems early.

Jason Miccolo Johnson’s Celebration
complimentary hors d'oeuvres, classic jazz & cash bar
The B SPOT
1123 Pennsylvania Ave, SE
Washington, DC
Thu, Nov 29, 6:30p, free

PAPER DOLLS:
Poetic Responses to the Artwork
of Ulysses  Marshall - Reception
Gallery 110
3901 Rhode Island Ave
Brentwood, MD  20722
Fri, Nov 30, 6:30p- 9p

POH Cover Artist Al Burts
International Visions Gallery
2629 Connecticut Ave, NW
Washington, DC
Sat, Dec 1, 5p-7p, free
Exhibit through Sat, Dec 8





BZB Holiday Gift Show
Shiloh Baptist Church
9th and P St, NW
Washington, DC
Sat,  Dec 1 and Sat, Dec 8, 10a-7p
Also Sats, Dec 15, 22 and Mon, Dec 24, free

The Hurston/Wright Legacy Award
Armour J. Blackburn Center
Howard University
Washington, DC
Sat, Dec 1
5:30p - Reception
6:30p – Ceremony, $85-$125

Journey Stories - Exhibit Opening
Oxon Hill Library Branch
6200 Oxon Hill Rd
Oxon Hill, MD
Thu, Dec 6, 6:30p, free

Women Entrepreneur Graduation &
Artisans Holiday Marketplace 
Durant Center
1605 Cameron St., Alexandria, VA
Sat. Dec 8, 3-6p, free

 

Click here for POH Snippet’s Full Review

The exhibit closes Inauguration Day, which is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, January 21, 2013, and is open Wednesday through Sunday 10a-5p. Admission is $10, $8 for seniors, $6 for students (18-25), and free for those 17 and under and who are members.  The exhibit is free Thursdays from 5p-9p.

Free Daily Tickets Drawings
Click Here to Enter Daily Drawing

For free tickets to see Revealing the African Presence in Renaissance Europe you only have to enter the drawings once.  From the available entries, we will randomly select one and post the entry on our homepage under “November 29 – December 12, 2012 Snippets.” 

We will select a winner at 10p every night starting Thursday, November 29.  The winners will have 24 hours (until 10p the following night) to claim the free tickets.  We will continue drawing entries and posting the winners on the homepage until we give away 4 sets of tickets. 

We will also announce the winners on Facebook and Twitter.  Winners must be Snippets subscribers and use the e-mail addresses listed in their subscriptions when entering the drawings. Snippets subscriptions are free.

Glenda Davis won a pair of tickets to witness Revealing the African Presence in Renaissance Europe while attending the viewing of African-American Pioneer Muslimahs in Washington, DC at the Alexandria Black History Museum. About 11 others attended the show and discussion sponsored by Port of Harlem magazine and the Alexandria Black History Museum.

Our next scheduled event in Build/Renovate Your Own Castle V on Saturday, April 6, 2013.

• Meshell Ndegeocello Sings Nina Simone
  
  
• Charlie Wilson, Doug E. Fresh and Slick Rick at Executive Leadership Council Gala
  
  
• 2012 Election Results by County (below)
  Mr. Obama is blue. Mr. Romney is red. Obama largely won urban counties. (click image for more info and to see maps of Alaska and Hawaii)