Marking It's Ten Year Anniversary - Does Tavis Smiley's State Of The Black Union Meeting Have Any Purpose or Value?

Other than resulting in more videos and books for Tavis Smiley to hawk on the Internet, what purpose has ten years of State Of The Black Union meetings served? Can anyone name one program or piece of legislation that resulted from these meetings? Other than the usual gang of predominantly black male panelists, Farrakhan, Joyner, West, Dyson, Jackson, etc.....has any African American gained anything from appearing on this program?

What has come out of the so-called Covenant With Black America? Has the State of the Black Union helped elect one African American to public office? African Americans are notorious for marches and meetings, but in the 1960s and 1970s we produced results, in the 1990s and 2000s, we have produced what exactly? I think it's time that we start asking ourselves that question.

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Tavis Was Wrong And So Was Barack.....

Barack Obama was wrong for not attending the State of the Black Union. It was a golden opportunity to turn an event that is truly preaching to the collective black choir, into an event about real issues within the black community. He is the one of the most powerful black men in America now, he could have made arrangements to have an appearance at the event, even if it was a token one. It was a missed opportunity on Obama's part.

Tavis Smiley was wrong for not accepting Obama's invitation to send Michelle Obama in his place to the State of the Black Union. It would have been a wonderful platform for her and another historical moment for African American women. It was a missed opportunity on Tavis Smiley's part.


And Black America was wrong for turning on Tavis Smiley for not falling to his knees to worship at the altar of Obama. If any lesson black folk need to learn from this election is that all black people do not agree and they do not have to. And the idiots that sent death threats and hate mail to Tavis Smiley are some of the same meatheads that worry that Barack Obama will be assassinated. How can you wish hate and death on one black man, but pray for the safety of another black man?

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