Interesting Website & Other Events

Good Looks: Scandalize My Name on BET
Reviewed by Amin Sharif

I am not a great fan of BET. But occasionally, there is something worth watching on the channel. This month they offer two documentaries that are well worth watching: Scandalize My Name and The Howlin Wolf Story. Each, in its own right, is a unique contribution to the African-American experience. Scandalize My Name is, perhaps, the more exceptional of the two pieces.

Most scholars of African-American history are well aware of the impact of the anti-communist McCarthy period had on the careers of such notables as Paul Robeson.  Scandalize My Name  fully fleshes out the true impact on the black artist of that period. What I like about this documentary is that it devotes a significant amount of time to the story of Canada Lee-one of the most interesting actors of the period.

Canada Lee was born in 1907 and made movies from 1939 to 1951. He worked with both Orson Wells and Alfred Hitchcock. Canada Lee was cast as Bigger Thomas in Wells' production of Native Son. But a greater audience came to know Lee in films such as Lifeboat, Cry, the Beloved Country, and his work with John Garfield in Body and Soul. Lee’s role in the latter was particularly poignant since he was also a well-known prizefighter. By the way, it would be nice to see BET run all of Lee's films during Black History Month. But for now, I highly recommend that you watch this documentary.

The Howlin Wolf Story will bring smiles to the face of any serious Blues fan. This documentary follows the career of one of the most dynamic performer in Blues history. In grainy black and white, Howlin Wolf's raw sexual power and artistry is made plain. Son House, Bukka White, Otis Spann, Muddy Waters-all appear sometime or another in this documentary. And, then there is the music. From the Delta to the streets of Chicago, Howlin' Wolf roams and sings. There is a lot of good fun to be found in this film.

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Interesting Website

Merira Kwesi (Richmond, Virginia) on "sistahs in the struggle" www.kemetnu.com

Sistahs in the Struggle: A Tribute to Black Women Liberators - Ancient and Modern

This enlightening Power Point slide presentation lecture reveals the stories of well-known and little known African women throughout the diaspora. The focus is on those who fought against discrimination and oppression. Lives of ancient African queens are compared with women of African descent in later periods.

Merira Kwesi is a lecturer on African culture and history. She links the past with the present by means of exciting and dynamic slide productions based on her travel and study on the African continent.

Sister Kwesi researches the many female personalities who have played an integral role in the history of Black people. She also investigates the many symbols and cultural practices that originated with our African and African American ancestors.

Merira Kwesi has researched and traveled in the African Nile Valley for the past twelve years. She also conducts the Kemet Nu "Know Thyself" educational tours to Egypt and Ethiopia with her husband, Ashra Kwesi. Sister Kwesi is co-owner of Kemet Nu
Productions, a company that presents African history by means of video productions.

www.kemetnu.com / e-mail: kemetnu@aol.com / (214) 371-0206

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 posted 12/18/04 /  update 3 July 2008