================================================================= Stuck In Traffic "Current Events, Cultural Phenomena, True Stories" Issue #22 - January, 1997 Contents: How To Defent Ebonics In addition to the comic side of the ebonics controversy, there's a darker, more tragic side to the story. But there's also a way that ebonics can be defended. Codependency Rocks! A review "Host Body," the debut album from the Los Angeles rock band Leather Hyman. Charlie David Price on the value of helping out those in need. ==================================== Current Events How To Defend Ebonics You know the drill. Ebonics, or "Pan-African Communication Behaviors" or "African Language Systems" for those of you inclined to scholarly pursuits, is, in theory at least, a language that has no spelling rules, double negatives, no plurals, no conjugation of the word "to be," and legitimizes profanity as a new class of word right along with adjectives, verbs, and nouns. Mention the word "ebonics" these days and everyone within earshot is likely to either break out in fits of uncontrollable laughter. But amid all the guffaws about ebonics, it's important for us to notice that the funny thing about ebonics is not that people actually speak this way. Well, OK, it's a little bit funny that people speak this way; but we've been poking fun at them for decades. What makes ebonics so excruciatingly funny is that there are people, serious people, supposedly scholarly people, who claim that ebonics is a language unto itself. In other words, the joke is on the education establishment in general and the Oakland Unified School District in particular since they are the ones that have officially declared that ebonics is a language independent of English, at least with regard to official school policy. But despite the fact that the media have consistently focused on the debate about whether ebonics is a "vernacular," a "dialect," or a "language." The ebonics controversy is really all about money, failing government schools, and a dangerous emerging trend in the civil rights movement. It's About Money: But to dissect the ebonics controversy, one must first be clear about what it isn't. No is claiming that students should actually be taught ebonics. No one, particularly not the Oakland Unified School District (OUSD), is suggesting that ebonics is an acceptable means of communication in the United States. The OUSD has repeatedly stated that they are fully committed to ensuring that their students become proficient in what they call Standard American English. Nor is anyone claiming that ebonics be treated like other "second" languages in school. In many school districts, students for whom English is a "second" language are often taught core subjects in their native tongues. So, for example, in the southern regions of Texas, where there are large numbers of Hispanic students who primarily speak Spanish, a school system might choose to set up Spanish speaking classes in subjects like math and science, etc. These students would also attend "English as a Second Language" (ESL) classes also, in order for them to become more proficient in English. But no one not even the OUSD, is suggesting that a school system set up an Ebonics speaking class to teach Ebonics speaking students subjects like math. Ebonics is about money. Potentially big amounts of money from both the federal government and the state of California. When the ebonics controversy erupted, the OUSD published a spin control document of epic proportions called "Synopsis of the Adopted Policy on Standard American English." In this document, the OUSD attempts to sound like they aren't going after money by stating that, "Misconceptions [about the policy] include .... OUSD is only attempting to pilfer federal and state funds." The operative word here is "pilfer," which means to steal. No, the OUSD is not attempting to steal funds from the state of California and the federal government. But classifying ebonics as a separate language would, in fact, be a first step in attempting to _qualify_ for funds from the state of California. They're trying to get the money legally, not illegally. The same OUSD adopted policy recommendation that classified ebonics as a language, also recommended that OUSD participate in an educational program sponsored by the State of California known as the Standard English Proficiency (SEP) program which specifically "promotes English language development for African-American students." S.E.P. teachers "respect and acknowledge the history, culture, and language that the African-American student brings to school." And OUSD superintendent Carolyn Getridge, as reported in the San Francisco Chronicle, said that the intent of the policy was to show that ebonics speaking students are not wrong for speaking the way they do. Who would better qualify for S.E.P funding than a school district that embraces ebonics as a legitimate language and explicitly states that they believe their ebonics speaking students are not speaking incorrectly? Even a high school dropout could see what the OUSD was trying to do. But thanks to the San Francisco Chronicle, the OUSD scheme erupted into a publicity nightmare that ruined any chances it had for qualifying for government money via ebonics. Within two days after the story broke, the federal Department of Education issued statements indicating that ebonics would not be acceptable justification for receiving federal finds, particularly ESL funds. And the state of California's department of Education issued warnings that it opposed ebonics "if it becomes a way of lowering standards for those students." Even Jesse Jackson, the tireless champion of African-American targeted government programs, had to go on national TV. and oppose what he called "teaching down" to African-American students. It's About More Than Just Money: If the ebonics controversy were just a thinly veiled attempt at qualifying for government money that went awry, we could all have a good laugh and then move on to the next hot story of the day. But the ebonics controversy is also the latest example of how the civil rights activists are totally reversing the direction they are leading the civil rights movement in. In 1979, there was a landmark court case in Ann Arbor, Michigan that set the precedent for how school districts were required to handle African-American students that did not speak standard English. Geneva Smitherman, and African-American, was placed in a special education class when she was in the 5th grade because she spoke "black English." But civil rights activists of the day cried foul, opposing the policy. And the courts ruled in their favor stating that schools could not put African American students in separate classes just because they spoke nonstandard English. Instead, teachers were required to integrate the nonstandard English speaking African-American students into their normal classes and forced teachers to learn how to understand what these students were saying. The court ruling was consistent with the other integration goals of the civil rights movement. Schools could not be segregated due simply to the location of schools. Segregation could not be done on a classroom by classroom basis within a school. And, with this ruling, schools could not segregate African-Americans simply on the basis of their nonstandard English. And, for the most part, the nation has, over time, embraced the goals of having a fully racially integrated society. After hearing about the OUSD's policy, Geneva Smitherman was quoted by the San Francisco Chronicle as saying, "Oakland is to be congratulated and celebrated for its vision and its wisdom." Nonetheless, the OUSD policy represents an abandonment of the civil rights movement's integrationist ideals for a to a separatist, African-American centered approach. OUSD's spin control document stated that the adopted ebonics policy was the result of recommendations from a "broad based Task Force." But the task force commissioned by the school board to come up with these recommendations is the African American Task Force. Presumably racial diversity is not required in order to be "broad-based" in Oakland. But regardless of the ethnic make up of the task force, it is clear that the task force believes in promoting the education of African-American students at literally any cost. In the recommendation overview that the African American Task Force made to the OUSD school board, they recommended that financial commitments be made during the current fiscal year, that "all categorical and general funding be used to ensure access to and mastery of the core curriculum," and that "all resources of the district shall be applied and used to ensure that these recommendations are implemented." In other words, they are telling the OUSD to drop everything else they are doing and make their recommendations, as the school district's top priority. It's not until you read the details of the Task Force's recommendations that you get to the part about recognizing ebonics as a language. And of course, the other key recommendation that the African American Task Force makes is that they be "retained in order to assist OUSD in developing work plans and implementation strategies." While it may be amusing to contemplate the silliness of recognizing ebonics as a language, the Task Force's recommendations, and the OUSD's adoption of those policies, represents a disturbing shift away from traditional integration goals to a specifically African-American based agenda and reinforces a growing perception among the general public that African-American civic leaders arbitrarily shift between favoring integration and favoring separatism depending on the political expediency of the moment. How To Defend Ebonics: But the motives and strategies of the Task Force would have never come into question and the whole ebonics controversy would have never happened if it weren't for one tiny, troubling fact that school systems are famous for ignoring when devising new education programs. There isn't a shred of evidence that indicates African-American students will have an easier time learning standard English if ebonics is treated as a separate language. The OUSD would like for you to believe otherwise. They state that "this language has been studied for several decades" and they offer a bibliography of 20 citations on the study of ebonics and related topics. But OUSD fails to cite even a single source to justify the educational value of treating ebonics as a language. Instead they have issued statements saying that their policy is "building on the language skills that African-American students bring to the classroom without devaluing students and their diversity" and that "we have directly connected English language proficiency to student achievement." Of course, no learning environment should ever belittle or "devalue" its students. And the connection between English language proficiency and success in other subjects has been well researched and documented over the years. But that's not the issue raised by the ebonics controversy. The question at issue is, "Will treating ebonics as a separate language do anything to help students learn standard English?" California's state school's Superintendent, Delaine Eastin, was quoted by the San Francisco Chronicle as saying, "We are not aware of any research that indicates that this kind of program will help address the language and achievement problems of African American students." Federal officials at the Department of Education have made similar remarks. If the OUSD wants to classify ebonics as a separate language, fine. Let them. But they should do so within the framework of proving that it is effective, not simply as a ploy to get more government money. They should put together a scientifically sound experimental program, complete with a control group and prove to the nation that this approach to educating struggling African-American students really works. If they would do this, the nation would thank them for their initiative and vision rather than ridiculing them. As the OUSD policy stands, it deserves all the ridicule it's been getting precisely because there's no proof whatsoever that it will help and precisely because it smacks of political expediency that runs contrary to the integrationist goals that the entire nation has been struggling toward since the dawn of the Civil Rights movement. ==================================== Cultural Phenomena Codependency Rocks! Can codependent, dysfunctional relationships serve as a theme for a band's debut album? The Los Angeles based modern rock band Leather Hyman are betting on it with their first nationally distributed album, Host Body. It's a tall order to fill. The key to the success of any album is creating music that people will want to listen to over and over again, so it would seem that Host Body's theme dooms it from the start. Who wants to listen to lyrics about bad relationships over and over? But Leather Hyman's mastery of several rock sub-genres, their own experimental sounds, combined with an intellectual, almost literary approach to their lyrics, transforms Host Body from a public therapy session into something the band aptly describes as "a cerebral and cathartic experience." You can tell immediately from looking at the cover art that Host Body is nothing like the typical debut album from a rock band. Usually a band's first CD has a picture of the band looking as cool as they possibly can. But Leather Hyman chose to forgo the usual narcissism. Instead we see a painting of a emaciated man being preyed upon my a man sized parasite. The back cover art shows a woman breast feeding a baby sized tick. Combine these images with the CD's title, Host Body, and it's obvious this album isn't going to be filled with light, sunny, rock. The CD's title track, "Host Body", reinforces the parasite theme with a heavy metal tribute to paramecia living on our eyeballs and in our blood stream. Through the heavy guitar power chords and a thundering base, the singer belts out, "They serve me, I serve them/ These tiny one celled creatures are my symbiotic friends./ It makes me think that there's a cosmic plan/ To unite the fates of paramecia and man." But this album isn't really a tribute to parasites. They serve as a metaphor that keeps reappearing throughout the album. "Scabs" compares ending relationship to an apparent delousing, "Scratch the scab that covers over/ All my thoughts and feelings for you./ Lick the blood it tastes of iron and lye." From "Rake," "All these blankets made a cocoon/ And you know what that means/ To fly in your sleep/ To see the world from nowhere/ In a dark room to wake with no wings." And lest we think that all the blame lies on the parasitical side of the relationship, there's "Trunk", which shows us that the "host" of the relationship is equally to blame, "Do you remember when you had no mouth?/ I liked you better then./ You lay at my feet, silent and still./ I liked you better then." In "Frank," co-lead vocalist Heather Lockie sings of a boyfriend who's ashamed of his attraction to her, "You loved me but never would/ Tell all the world" and she recommends, in keeping with the lover-as-parasite metaphor, "Antigen for character: `Follow all directions wisely' will cure your allergy." But the fullest expression of these dysfunctional relationships comes from the haunting "Girlfriend" in which Heather sings, "You think I'm your girlfriend/ You think you've got a chance/ You try til it's pathetic./ You won't leave when I ask." So who are these folks? What's with the attitude? Is this another cartoonish Riot Grrrl band? Are they trying to top Pink Floyd's hopeless fatalism? With all the downer lyrics about bad relationships with abusive, manipulative significant others, you might think so. Certainly with a name like "Leather Hyman", (despite the fact that it's Hyman with an "a") you would get the impression that this band's all about sexual frustration, unfulfilled love, and the degeneration of society. But when asked what the name of their band means, Leather Hyman simply responded, "It's a Spoonerism." A spoonerism, an unintentional interchange of sounds, usually the initial sounds, in two words. So the band's name is a play on words. This is key to understanding this band. Underneath all the angst and downtrodden attitude, Leather Hyman is a band that's smart enough to effectively use a play on words and write lyrics that develop an extended metaphor throughout the album. There aren't many bands out there that could use the word "antigen" in a lyric to make a point. Leather Hyman shows that intellect doesn't have to be the death of modern rock. But lyrics don't mean squat if the music's no good. Leather Hyman doesn't have to worry. From the high energy drive of the album's opening track, "Million Dollar World" to the closing power chords in "Host Body," it's obvious that Leather Hyman is as accomplished in music as they are with their lyrics. Leather Hyman is a true ensemble band; they know how to put layers and layers of sound together to create a mood. On "Pussy" and "Away", Heather Lockie plays a viola in spots where you would normally expect to hear a lead guitar riff, creating an almost operatic mood that harkens back to the glam-rock tradition of yesteryear. And while many bands hide their lack of musicianship behind a wall of noise and distortion, Leather Hyman is not afraid to slow down and simplify like they do in "Frank" and their cover of Lou Reed's "All Tomorrow's Parties" by weaving sounds around Heather Lockie's dreamy, ethereal voice. But the best expression of Leather Hyman's big, dramatic, ensemble sound is in the haunting "Girlfriend." Even on the tracks that have a more traditional rock format, Leather Hyman is able to add their own unique elements. For example, "Steve McQueen" has drums and keyboard parts that sound psychedelic, like something you might hear on a Doors album, but combined with the high energy tempo and heavy guitar sound. The guitar work in "Rake" brings in a 70's funk sound but adds melodic lines from a viola and hi-tech synth effects to give it a unique feel. But Leather Hyman really puts it all together on "Ritalin," combining Heather's voice, a driving tempo, surfer rock inspired guitar work and drums, and ambient effects to create a track that sounds like it could be the theme music from a Quentin Tarantino movie. Like all the best rock, "Ritalin" is best enjoyed by playing it as loud as possible while driving down the interstate way, way too fast. Not only is "Host Body" a cerebral and cathartic experience, Leather Hyman has created an CD that dares to be literary and musically inventive while remaining true to its hard hitting rock and roll roots. "Host Body" by Leather Hyman is produced by Frozen Hound Recordings and distributed nationally through Navarre. Leather Hyman has a web site at http://www.leatherhyman.com/ ==================================== True Story Charlie by David Price When I was in high school there was a student whose name was Charles Dowdy. He was 26 years old, yet a sophomore in high school. He was in a lot of the same classes I was. He was no Forrest Gump; he had a quick mind and a ready wit. But the mind and wit were housed in one of only 3 parts of his body that were normal size. Besides his head, there was his left hand and his, er, -well, let's just say he had a normal adult sex drive. His arms and legs were stunted and rather grotesquely twisted, and from neck to toe he had the body of a 3-year-old. He was permanently confined, of course, to a wheelchair. He'd lost all that time from school simply because he'd spent so much time in hospitals, but he was BY-GOD-DETERMINED to get his diploma. He worked hard, but had little help. All the kids shunned him. He couldn't enroll in any of the classes on the second floor, because there was no elevator, and nobody he could rely on to haul him up and down the steps. And his brother had to pay taxi fare to and from school every day because that was the only way he could get there. The brother, his guardian, was a hard-working, up-and-coming pharmacist, and worked about 12 hours a day. Charlie also needed academic help; he'd gotten as far as he had in part because previous teachers had passed him to higher grades solely out of pity. He was game, but unprepared. I have to admit to being one of those who shunned him, just because I had no idea how to deal with him. I happened to mention him to my father one night - laid out the whole story. I was somewhat distressed that no one would help him. My father said, "What have YOU done to help him"? "Er - nothing, really". Dad grabbed me off the sofa by my left arm, kicked me in the butt, and said "Well, get the hell around there and do your homework with him. And you've got a damned car - take him to school". He only lived just around the circle from us. Maybe 300 yards. I did those things. And a lot more. I helped him wherever he needed to go at school (it was a struggle getting his wheelchair up and down those steps). I took him to the downtown library. We started hanging out at Shoney's restaurant over coffee, sometimes for hours at a time. We went to movies. We went to malls. I tried to give him the normal life experiences that the rest of us took for granted. I didn't know what to expect in the way of reaction from the other kids, but I feared that I would be shunned myself. It soon developed that a small group of them would follow us around, and then they started helping him carry his books, and help us up and down the stairs. We finally worked out a system for the stairs where I would pick him up and carry him in my arms, while someone else carried his books and a third folded up his wheelchair and carried it. I made some pretty close friendships that way. He was a real scamp, too, and it took an awful long time for me to catch on to a running practical joke he played on me. My car was a 1941 Plymouth 2-door sedan that had a cavernous passenger compartment, and fairly high windows. When Charlie was sitting on the seat, he was invisible to anyone outside the car, except when he raised his left hand to flick cigarette ashes out the window. He gradually learned all my buttons, and as we rode around town, he'd push them all and goad me into an argument. We'd fight like brothers. And I noticed that he smoked more when we were in the car than at any other time. It took months for me to finally say, "Look, every time we get in the car, you pick a fight. And you smoke like a fiend. What the Hell's going on"? He broke up into a cackling fit of laughter that turned his face a brilliant red and almost choked him. Then he finally caught his breath. "Don't you know by now? Nobody can see I'm here. It looks like you're all by yourself. And you're sitting there arguing at the top of your lungs. The drivers around you must think you're crazy as Hell"! "And then there's my hand that appears out of nowhere every time there's a car in the right lane. What do you think they think"? The little bastard. The next time we went to Shoney's we "borrowed" one of their child's booster seats (under the benevolent eye of the manager) and from then on Charlie was visible and the booster seat was a permanent part of the optional equipment in my car. It was, over those 2-3 years, a lot of effort. What did I get in return? A lot of friendship and admiration. But most important, the honor of wheeling Charlie onstage to receive his diploma at our graduation. He had made -earned - straight A's our senior year. About the Author David Price (definitely NOT the ex-politician of the same name) is a Tar Heel who makes his home in a cow pasture near Commerce, Georgia. He lives with 1 ancient computer, 1 ancient car, 1 ancient pickup truck, 1 not-so-ancient wife, 3 dogs, and an unpredictable but unwieldy number of cats. He makes his living as a radio announcer in a market about the size of the average thumbnail, and is writing a book about his first love: Eastern Airlines. ==================================== About Stuck In Traffic Stuck In Traffic is a monthly magazine dedicated to evaluating current events, examining cultural phenomena, and sharing true stories. Why "Stuck In Traffic"? Because getting stuck in traffic is good for you. It's an opportunity to think, ponder, and reflect on all things, from the personal to the global. As Robert Pirsig wrote in _Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance_, "Let's consider a reevaluation of the situation in which we assume that the stuckness now occurring, the zero of consciousness, isn't the worst of all possible situations, but the best possible situation you could be in. After all, it's exactly this stuckness that Zen Buddhists go to so much trouble to induce...." Submissions: Submissions to Stuck In Traffic are always welcome. If you have something on your mind or a personal story you'd like to share, please do. You don't have to be a great writer to be published here, just sincere. Contact Information: All queries, submissions, subscription requests, comments, and hate-mail about Stuck In Traffic should be sent to Calvin Stacy Powers preferably via E-mail (powers@interpath.com) or by mail (2012 Talloway Drive, Cary, NC USA 27511). Copyright Notice: Stuck In Traffic is published and copyrighted by Calvin Stacy Powers who reserves all rights. Individual articles are copyrighted by their respective authors. Unsigned articles are authored by Calvin Stacy Powers. Permission is granted to redistribute and republish Stuck In Traffic for noncommercial purposes as long as it is redistributed as a whole, in its entirety, including this copyright notice. For permission to republish an individual article, contact the author. 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