The Michael Jackson Funeral: Race, Celebrity and How Far We've Come
• "It was Michael Jackson that brought blacks and whites and Asians and Latinos together." Al Sharpton, today, at Michael Jackson's public memorial.
• "Chris Brown stunned onlookers with a giant pendant that spelled out the word 'OOPS!' in diamonds after the Sean Combs 'Malaria No More' White Party." July 7, 2009, The YBF.
• "Only 2 percent of the nation's 4.8 million teachers are black men." July 4, 2009, Washington Post.
• "Less than 18% of [African-American] adults 25 and over have a bachelor's degree, and 200 women graduate from college for every 100 men." March 25, 2009, Detroit Free Press.
• "The employment rate among African-American men aged 20 to 24 is now just 51 percent, as opposed to 68 percent during the late 1990s. For African-American teens, it's just 14 percent." March 16, 2009, Christian Science Monitor.
Nothing says "So long, Michael Jackson" better than charts, graphs, and statistical analyses. Michael, we hardly knew ye!
Actually, I think it was Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg that brought black and white together. At least among my friends. 100% of my friends can recite NWA lyrics from memory.
Indeed. My fondness for "Don't Bite It" resulted in my willingness to become friends with the black guy once I got to college.
Hello? It was Arsenio Hall that took care of all that racial transcendence stuff. Remember? "It's a NIGHT thing!" Kids today. What the hell do they teach in history anymore?
I, for one, will never the forget the healing provided by the Dogpound.
I will say that my wife and I both cried buckets when Mariah sang "I'll be there" today. I think that song will instantly replace "At Last" as the most popular wedding song first dance. So sweet.
A time chart of Michael Jackson's skin colors would probably be the exact reverse of the chart on this post.
The Abnormal Distribution.
Well thanks for that Choire, and shame on you America.