Black Nerd
Heard about this article in the documentary, brooklyn boheme. super good article and great documentary. In the doc, Spike Lee says EXACTLY what I thought about Forte Greene - folks move in and think they are running it! CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS syndrome - like you discovered FG - there were people here first - a culture here first. Don't come and act like you tell us what we can and cannot do! Absolutely - one of the things I don't miss about my ol'hood.
The Rise of the Black Nerd
Separated From Racial Mainstreams, the Outsiders Make Their Mark
They're neither co-opted conservatives nor keep- it-real black nationalists. Their politics are questioning, not exclusive. Rejected or misunderstood by blacks, whites, and nearly everyone else, their view of race matters balances the sins of America's past with hope for an internationalist future. And since both Martha Stewart-brand whiteness and ghetto-fabulous negritude are in remission, the culture is now giving mad props to black nerds.
Not for a long time have so many brothers and sisters received so much mainstream attention without trying to be down. Yale law professorStephen L. Carter received a $4 million book advance from Knopf for The Emperor of Ocean Park. His first novel, a thriller with the black bourgeois world of law degrees and Oak Bluffs vacations as its backdrop, arrived in stores in June. Playwright Suzan-Lori Parks nabbed this year's Pulitzer Prize in drama forTopdog/Underdog, currently on Broadway.Colson Whitehead's novel John Henry Dayswas short-listed for the 2002 Pulitzer and theNational Book Critics Circle Award. Poet-performer Carl Hancock Rux received this year'sNew York Foundation for the Arts prize; his playTalk completed a run at the Public Theater in May. Last week, Simon & Schuster bought Rux's first novel, Asphalt, for a "six figure" advance. Even hip-hop's reigning kings and queens are Southern goofballs who dress funny—Missy andTimbaland, Outkast and the Neptunes, a/k/aN.E.R.D. In addition to the higher-profile success stories, writers such as theologist Thandeka, Boston University economics professor (and supposed former neocon) Glenn C. Loury, performance artist William Pope.L, and novelist Martha Southgate have also found new ways of addressing the tricky nature of modern American racism.
Read more: http://www.villagevoice.com/2002-07-30/news/the-rise-of-the-black-nerd/
Read more: http://www.villagevoice.com/2002-07-30/news/the-rise-of-the-black-nerd/
