Month: December 2016

Santa Claus at Christmas

On By thewriterfredIn Black Culture, Black History, Blackness, History1 Comment

black-santa-clausThis Christmas, I’ve been giving a lot of thought to Santa Claus. Yes, Santa Claus. And for all of you who might think I am digressing to a time in my life when Mr. Claus was relevant, that is not the case. But I have thought about the jolly ole Saint Nick in relation to his symbolic meaning, and exactly where we are as a country this late in a very turbulent year. As I recall from my much younger days in the past, Santa Claus spied on all of us from his perch in the North Pole, and kept a record as to whether we had been naughty or nice. On Christmas Eve, as he loaded all the toys into his sleigh and fed the reindeer who would take him all over the world, he also reviewed the list of young folks whose chimneys he would come down and leave requested gifts, under the Christmas tree.

Using our creative imagination, let’s consider our country as one big kid who has been under surveillance by Santa and his helpers for the past twelve months. As early as January 2016, he knew there might be problems with this child. The bickering was getting out of hand, as the country prepared for what would be a nasty election. This was something that Santa did not condone. After all, he was always jovial and happy and wanted others to display the same demeanor all the time. One man in particular caught his attention. He sought the highest elected office in the country, and was willing to use bully tactics against his opponents to achieve his goal. According to Santa’s standards, he never made a stop at the homes where bullies resided.

The other person seeking the highest office wasn’t quite as bad as her opponent, but she also lacked the kind of values that Santa expected from anyone who would receive a visit from him. She often stretched the truth to cover up her misdeeds, especially with her use of emails. As of Christmas Eve, he wasn’t sure if she would get a visit from him because of the ambivalence he felt toward her.

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Then there is the rest of the country, divided in support of these candidates.  Both sides were willing to step outside the bounds of civility in support of their candidate. In fact, grown men often went to blows in the heat of the battle. But according to Santa Claus, it should never have been a battle, but simply an election. They all lost a sense of comity, and carried on in a manner unsatisfactory to Santa. There was a slight possibility that the old man might just skip over the United States, and keep on South into Mexico.

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But on second thought, as he prepared to take off, he considered that maybe his presence could make a difference and bring peace, love, and unity back to this country, desperately in need of help. Maybe he could influence this obstreperous child to change its ways, and help the occupants of this country to understand that they all have too much to lose to carry on in this manner. Maybe his presence for just a little while, on the eve of the birth of the person who came to earth to save mankind from its own self-destruction, would make a difference in how they treat each other, going into the new year. Maybe in 2017 they would all come to their senses, and realize this selfish and vicious behavior must end.

He thought he might leave gifts of a different nature than in the past. These gifts would be for a better understanding that we all must reach out, and do what is in our power to make sure that Santa returns every year. A gift to understand that it would be cruel and deplorable for the country to repeal Obamacare and leave over twenty million men and women without health care coverage. A gift to understand that it is necessary to raise the minimum wage, so that those at the lowest rung of the economic ladder might live more prosperous lives. Instead of the top one percent hording the resources, they should be shared more equitably among all the people. Santa could remind the country that Jesus left the message, “Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters, you did for me.”  Yes, Santa might be able to get us back on the right track, and live up to all the promises made in the United States Constitution that all men (and women) are created equal and should be treated as such. And that the values found in the First, Fourth and Fourteenth Amendments far exceed the perceived guarantees of the Second. Maybe, just maybe Santa Claus could bring all of us back to our senses and recognize we must give, “Glory to God in the highest and on earth, peace and goodwill toward men and women.” And we all will be better off as we head into a new year.

A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU ALL FROM SANTA CLAUS

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THE WRITER FRED AND FAMILY!

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Tony Lindsay: Writing with a Purpose!

On By thewriterfredIn Black Culture, Black Literature2 Comments

zorafestival2017Every year for the past five years I have taught a creative writing workshop to high school students during Education Day at the Zora Neale Hurston Festival of the Arts and Culture in Eatonville, Florida. And every year, I carry out the same exercise before we discuss the necessary tools to good writing of fiction. I ask them to close their eyes and just imagine the year is 2116 instead of 2016, and it is their great grandchildren who are about to read a novel they wrote a hundred years ago. I suggest that novel will reflect who they are and effect how their great grandchildren view them as a writer and person. Furthermore, it will provide every reader in the year 2016, an idea of the condition of our people, and the nature of our society at that time. My intention is to get them to think about writing with a purpose, and the important role they serve when putting pen to paper or given contemporary technology, fingers to computers.

acornsinaskilletI believe if more Black writers would practice the same exercise they might not produce such trashy, inconsequential works of fiction that gut our communities and reach our children. Maybe some of these writers would put a little more thought into what they publish. Please do not misinterpret what I write; I am not casting aspersions on all our writers. We do have some that give a great deal of thought to their works. One of those authors is Tony Lindsay, an outstanding writer out of Chicago, Illinois. Tony has a MFA from Chicago State School of Creative Writing and has penned seven novels, two short stories and recently completed an anthology of short stories titled, Acorns in a Skillet.

Adhering to our commitment at Prosperity Publications to publish only works that have quality content that are entertaining, enlightening, and empowering, we were proud to be able to publish Tony’s anthology, because it met all our standards. It is a serious work by a serious writer in the same category as Richard Wright, Ralph Ellison, James Baldwin and Walter Mosley. Tony explains to the reader that his collection of short stories grew out of America’s complex racial interactions. The stories are unsettling in their timely nature, which will stimulate the reader to examine American life and how we live in a country where race matters so intently.

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The constant in these riveting portrayals of American life is race, but not always racial conflict. His collection of short stories is inclusive in the message and ends with a story of unity and a hopeful look to the future; something that every good piece of literature should accomplish and is why we can place Tony in the category of writers with a universal appeal.

tonylindsayI can comfortably state that Tony Lindsay is one of the better Black contemporary writers who refuses to compromise his talent and his message in his writing just to get published. He writes with a purpose because he knows what he puts on paper now will be read one hundred years from now, and he is determined to be remembered as a writer with a message. He has what I refer to as a passion for the art and he places that passion over profit, and that I must admit is very refreshing. He is a throwback to a time when most of our authors wrote because of a burning desire to interpret our world as is, and also how it should be. Those of us who abhor the trashy, sex riddled novels of today must thank Tony for rising above that level and giving us stories that empower, enlighten, and also educate.

I urge you who are serious about reading good and decent works, to reach out and get Tony’s short story anthology, Acorns in a Skillet, and in doing so, make a statement that we do appreciate good writing and will offer our support to those authors who do care about how we will be viewed through our literature in the year 2116.

You can purchase at www.amazon.com. For an autographed copy contact info@prosperitypublications.com. Please visit our website at www.prosperitypublications.com and review all our publications.

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