Monday, May 10, 2010

Seasons of a Life: R.I.P Lena Horne

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I Love her"Doe Eyes." I Think They Are the Classic Trademark of a Timeless Beauty.

On May 9, 2010, Singer, Actress, Civil Rights Activist, Lena Horne passed away at the age of 92. A few weeks ago, while I was visiting a forum, when I came across a conversation about who, amongst actors would receive the next crown for the most beautiful female or handsome male. I questioned the need for our generation to constantly desire a next great, in place of those who can be considered timeless. Pointing out those timeless people, of course, I mentioned Lena Horne.

Lena Horne will always be known for her beauty. However, her indelible impression on humanity goes far beyond the mirror of her looks, and penetrates the mirror of her soul. What always fascinated me about Horne, and those of her generation, was their readiness to be "race-people" and not just for the social construction of the African American race, but for the Human race. She made it her responsibility to stand up for Civil Rights and her position in that movement is notable.

Like most my connection with Ms. Horne traces back to her appearances on The Cosby Show and A Different World. I was reintroduced to her, when I was in the eighth grade. Every year, at my school's ice cream social, the graduating class would put on a production. For that year, our class was chosen to perform the Broadway version of The Wiz and for reference, we watched the movie. When I heard that Lena Horne passed this evening, I was truly shocked. Her being 92 years of age, did nothing to soften the blow. In fact it made me sad for the future generations.

In the wake of this news, the conversation I had two weeks ago came full circle and like I do after every legend passes, I find myself wondering what legends will I have to pass on to my children. Lena Horne was a star for the generation of my great-grandmother, entrusted to the generation of my grandmother, heralded as an icon for the generation of my parents, and passed down through heritage to me. I am grateful to my exposure of this incredible woman. There will never be another Lena Horne and may she rest in peace.




Man Up! In Defense of Chivalry...

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*Disclaimer - While my post appears to talk in generalizations, know that I am aware this does not apply to ALL males. I however, am too lazy to constantly make references to "most" males, "some" males, not all males, etc., throughout this post...
 
Fellas please stop blaming Ms. Independent for the Death of Chivalry. To do so willingly relinquishes your own accountability while bogusly passing it off as merely cause and effect. Au contraire, chivalry has never been about what you expect to get out of holding the door open, helping your woman put on her coat, or pulling the chair out. Although I admit I do have to take into account, that chivalry has been perverted by politics and is now the currency used in the exchange of goods and services as eloquently stated in B.I.G's I'm F*&king You Tonight.


Whenever I hear conversations about Ms. Independent versus Mr. Chivalrous it always makes me think of the chicken before the egg argument. Men love claiming they refuse to be chivalrous because women don't appreciate the gesture. Yet, I find it hard to believe that a chivalrous man, will always reap the complete opposite. When women stop doing things for the opposite sex because of bad past experiences, we are misdiagnosed as bitter. However, when men do it, they are called wise or heralded for "keeping it real." o__O Also, it is interesting to note how the dynamics of chivalry has played out in non-romantic relationships. I can't count how many times I've seen a man scurry in front of a woman to have a seat on the bus.

Whatever your reason for not being chivalrous, know that I'm judging you. Men expect women to cook, clean, put it down in the bedroom, yet expect us to believe that there is something so draining about holding a door open, or helping to put on a coat. It's not like we're asking you to go all LL Cool J, I Need Love, style on us and lay down your jacket so we can walk over a puddle. Just a simple act of kindness will suffice. We can dissect all day whether the beginning of women being independent was the decline of chivalry, or if it was the decline of chivalry that made women independent. However, I think the act should be regarded as an inner characteristic that you take wherever you go, simply because you want to be polite. Naive? Perhaps.
 
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