From the Archives of Marvin X, the USA's Rumi, Saadi, Hafiz, Plato

Al Fitnah Muhajir

When you enter
strange cities
be silent
in the streets
but speak
with all
you meet
And you will see
as the people see
the poor people
are very rich.

When you enter
their homes
eat with them
or they will hate you
but eat not
that which will kill you
even if they insist
for you have been taught
by the Great Teacher
and they know Him not
may even mock Him
to your face
but cool your voice
they will submit
when they meet Him
when they see Him
in you

When you love
peoples of the world
rivers are nothing
between you
and strange tongues
a soulful tune
Salaam, salaam.
--Marvin X, aka Nazzam Al Sudan, El Muhajir
from The New Black Poetry, edited by Clarence Major, 1972, New World Paperbacks

Marvin X and the Black Arts Movement 27 City Tour is coming your way soon as you book us in your city. For booking the BAM Poet's Choir and Arkestra: Call 510-200-4164. Suggested fee for three hour concert with the BAM Poet's Choir and Arkestra, including Q and A: $50,000.00--$100,000. Fee negotiable.

 

BAM District Flag statement revised

For the Women by Marvin X

Women Writers Panel at Black Arts Movement 50th Anniversary Celebration, Laney College, Oakland, Feb. 7, 2015. L to R: Elaine Brown, Halifu Osumare, Judy Juanita, Portia Anderson, Kujichagulia, Aries Jordan. Standing: Marvin X, BAM producer
photo South Park Kenny Johnson

For the Women
For the women who bear children
and nurture them with truth
for the women who cook and clean
behind thankless men
for the women who love so hard so true so pure
for the women with faith in God and men
for the women alone with beer and rum
for the women searching for a man at the club, college, church, party
for the women independent of men
for the women searching their souls
for the women who do drugs and freak
for the women who love only women
for the women who play and run and never show
for the women who rise in revolt in hand with men
who say never, never, never again
for the women who suffer abuse and cry for justice
for the women happy and free of maternal madness
for the women who study and write
for the women who sell their love to starving men
for the women who love to make love and be loved by men
for the women of Africa who work so hard
for the women of America who suffer the master
for the women who turn to God in prayer and patience
for the women who are mothers of children and mothers of men
for the women who suffer inflation, recession, abortion, rejection
for the women who understand the rituals of men and women
for the women who share
for the women who are greedy
for the women with power
for the women with nothing
for the women locked down
for the women down town
for the women who break horses
for the women in the fields
for the women who rob banks
for the women who kill
for the women of history
for the women of now
I salute you 
A Man.
--Marvin X
www.blackbirdpressnews.blogspot.com
jmarvinx@yahoo.com
510-200-4164

Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf's proclamation of the Black Arts Movement Day

 

Merritt College: Home of the Black Panthers (New Trailer)

Marvin X on War in the Hood

America is the Black man's battleground. As I travel the streets of Oakland, I run into police at crime scenes, streets taped and markings for bullet casings. It is almost  daily or weekly. This is war, whether caused by external or internal forces. War is war. Coast to coast. But we cannot make war unless one is prepared. When unprepared, one is simply the victim who suffers but is unable to stop the war against him or her. How does one prepare for war? Put on the armor of God or obtain spiritual consciousness, then one can walk through the valley of the shadow of death but fear no evil. Be conscious of the Tone Test: when stopped by the police, one can be arrested, released or killed, depending on one's tone of voice. When encountering another brother, the tone test operates. Depending on our tone of voice, we can have an argument or the situation can escalate to violence and death. Isn't there a Hadith that says when we encounter the ignorant, say As-Salaam-Alaikum. Don't escalate a situation when you know where it is going! We must survive to fight another day of our choice, not the enemy's. And don't think you are going to defeat the enemy with guns. My friends and comrades in the Black Panther Party tried this but suffered a military defeat. We don't have enough guns or bullets to match the police, the US Army, Navy, Air Force, FBI, CIA, NSA, spies, snitches and agent provocateurs. Fidel Castro said, "The weapon of today is not guns but consciousness."--Marvin X

Marvin X at Yoshi's San Francisco Part II

Bobby Seale honored at Peralta Colleges Foundation Dinner/Bobby Seale honors Marvin X

  Black Panther Party co-founder Bobby Seale and fellow Merritt College student, Marvin X. Bobby Seale performed in Marvin's Black Arts West Theatre before joining the Black Panther Party. He played a young revolutionary Black man trying to find himself in Come Next Summer, Marvin's second play.

Tonight at Oakland's Marriott City Center, the Peralta Colleges Foundation honored one of their own, former Merritt College student Bobby Seale, co-founder of the Black Panther Party, along with fellow student Huey P. Newton. Bobby Seale was ill, so he sent Virtual Murrell, another Merritt College student and first president of the Soul Students Advisory Council, that morphed into BSUs across America. The first thing Virtual Murrell read was a note from Bobby to let those in attendance know that the Soul Students Advisory Council began after a performance of fellow Merritt student Marvin X's (Jackmon) play Flowers for the Trashman. The anti-Vietnam play recruited students into the Black consciousness and activist movement at Merritt College. Marvin X stood at the $175.00 plate dinner, a benefit for the Peralta College Foundation that gives scholarships to needy students.

Speaking for Bobby, Virtual also said Peralta College students and instructors must tell the true story of Merritt, not the watered down, Miller Lite version so often heard, although attendees did view a trailer of the award winning Peralta College TV documentary on Merritt College as the birthplace of the Black Panther Party and student activism, especially in the Bay Area.

Marvin X's autobiography Somethin' Proper, narrates the student struggle at Merritt, one of the few sources on the history of the Black Arts/Black Power Movement, especially on the West Coast. Laney College Professor, Judy Juanita's novel, relates some of the history as well. See also the writings of Donald Warden of the Afro-American Association, the key organization that preceded the Black Panther Party and the Black Arts Movement on the West Coast and nationally.

 

Bobby Seale and Marvin X

Flag of the Black Arts Movement District in the heart of downtown Oakland

WHITE SUPREMACY-2 BY MARVIN X

Black Bird Press News & Review: Marvin X on Malcolm X and Elijah Muhammad

Black Bird Press News & Review: Marvin X on Malcolm X and Elijah Muhammad: Assassinations happen in all revolutions, betrayal is part of revolution, grow up, study revolution, friends betray each other, long time associates, look at Fidel and Che, Stalin and his friends. Even Noble Drew Ali had problems with friends, jealous, envious. Elijah ran for seven years from the jealous ones who said they would eat a grain of rice a day until Elijah was killed after he was appointed leader by Master Fard Muhammad. Check out the Mexican revolution, a history of betrayal. The Palestinians kill then hug and pray together in the mosque. Negroes will hate you forever over two cents, don't hate the white man but hate you.

Black Bird Press News & Review: Marvin X reviews the film My Son the Fanatic

Black Bird Press News & Review: Marvin X reviews the film My Son the Fanatic

Abstract for the 27 City Black Arts Movement 50th Anniversary Celebration

 Two of BAM co-founders, Marvin X and Amiri Baraka (RIP)

 Marvin X and Black Panther Party Minister of Culture, Emory Douglas

 Elena Serrano of Eastside Arts, Alameda County Supervisor Keith Carson, Marvin X

 BAM Physical Wellness Boot Camp at Laney College, Oakland

BAM Celebration at Laney College, Oakland: Kujichagulia and Taiwo

The mission of the Black Arts Movement’s 27 City Tour is to continue the cultural revolution we initiated during the 1960s. This cultural revolution is still needed because for a variety of reasons the Black Arts Movement was aborted due to the radical nature of our task which was the liberation of our people in harmony with the political movement. Today, the need to address the political condition is critical, yes, even with the election of a non-white president, though this president has done little to address non-white issues, especially the high unemployment of youth, the high incarceration rate of 2.4 million and the deportation rate of two million so called illegal immigrants since President Obama took office.
But more than the political and economic situation is the cultural condition, the reactionary values in hip hop culture, especially unconscious rap poetry, and even the socalled conscious poetry is, in the words of my daughter, an expression of the pseudo conscious, for words are not followed by the right action. As we know, talk is cheap!
But most important is the overall lack of mental health wellness in our community nationwide, to say nothing of physical wellness. The high rate of homicide among young North American African men is symptomatic of a lack of manhood training or the infusion of traditional values that inspire and motivate people to be the best they can be, to give honor and respect to their elders and ancestors.
The 50% or more drop out rate of students in our schools is partly the result of our dire mental health condition. Alas, it is said not only is there a critical need for a positive curriculum and teachers with an undying love for our children, but the mental health condition of our children requires mental health counselors with radical values of wellness based on a holistic approach to solving our myriad psychosocial and economic issues. We are dumbfounded to learn the USA (Bush and Obama) promised the young men in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere (except in the USA) three items if they stop their violence and pledge allegiance to the constitution of their lands: education, jobs and housing. Why not offer education, jobs and housing for the boyz and girls , in the hood? The BAM tour will address some of these issues through the medium of art, i.e. poetry, drama, dance, music, graphics.
While art therapy has been used in traditional cultures, and was utilized in the Black Arts Movement, there must be a concerted effort to make use of art in the healing of our people. Throughout the years, we have seen the power of art in changing destructive personalities. We recall the production we did of Amiri Baraka’s play The Dutchman in Fresno CA. The local pimp loaned us a wig for the female character Lula. When he viewed the play and saw her stab the young North American African male, Clay, this rocked the pimp’s world and he threw in his pimping towel, joined the Nation of Islam and eventually became an imam and made his haj or pilgrimage to Mecca. Thus we see the power of art to heal broken, self destructive and economically damaged personalities.
Many times we heard Amiri Baraka speak about the need to reach our people in the 27 major cities we inhabit—to reach out and touch them with healing Black Art that can restore our mental and physical wellness. In honor of ancestor Amiri Baraka, we propose to conduct a 27 city tour with concerts and wellness workshops to aid in the recovery of ourselves. Our special focus shall be on young Black men, although we cannot and will not ignore young black women, nor will we avoid adult and parental responsibility.
We estimate the overall budget for this project will be 2.7 million dollars at $100,000 per city, including artist fees, promotion, advertisement, rental of venues, insurance, security, lodging, food and transportation. Since many of the Black Arts Movement workers are elders, the timeline would be at least three years to complete this project, including planning and production.
BAM workers in each community will be recruited to participate and we would like to establish a BAM center in each city, no matter if it is a 50 seat theatre as Amiri Baraka suggested. A staff of educators, and mental and physical health workers must be a part of this project so that we more effectively deal with our wellness in a holistic manner.
Sincerely,
Marvin X, Project Director
The Black Arts Movement 27 City Tour
Philadelphia PA
4/23/14
510-200-4164

Marvin X on Malcolm X

Assassinations happen in all revolutions, betrayal is part of revolution, grow up, study revolution, friends betray each other, long time associates, look at Fidel and Che, Stalin and his friends. Even Noble Drew Ali had problems with friends, jealous, envious. Elijah ran for seven years from the jealous ones who said they would eat a grain of rice a day until Elijah was killed after he was appointed leader by Master Fard Muhammad. Check out the Mexican revolution, a history of betrayal. Check out the African revolution. Palestinians kill each other, then hug and pray together in the mosque. Negroes will hate you forever over two cents, don't hate the white man, love his dirty drawers.--Marvin X

 Aside from the Autobiography of Malcolm X, Marvin X's Fly to Allah, poems, 1968, is the foundation of the genre known as Muslim American literature, according to Dr. Mohja Kahf.The teachings of Elijah Muhammad and Malcolm X are the ideological roots of the Black Arts Movement, the most radical artistic and literary movement in American history.
photo Doug Harris, Harlem NY 1968

Two men  influenced my life greatly.  One can say I am that I am because of these two men, of which there are no divisions in my heart, I love them both deeply, always have and always shall. Shit happens in revolutions, friends become enemies, enemies become friends, there are no permanent friends, only permanent interests.

If you were a gambler (and I am not) but if you had to bet on a certain relationship that was successful for 12 years, but when divided, one individual didn't live 12 months, would we not say the twelve years of stability speaks for itself, no matter how rocky it may have been.

On a deeper level, jealousy and envy kill from within, thus it was almost inevitable that Malcolm's prominence would be challenged by senior officials jockeying for power, authority and influence.

His personal relationship with the Honorable Elijah Muhammad was enough to make even the simple minded jealous. Let us remember the classic master teacher relationship between Rumi and Shams of Tabriz. Rumi was murdered by his jealous students, jealous of his relationship with Master Teacher Shams, thus the Sufi whirl and whirl into the states of divinity in morning of their teacher, Rumi.

And so I morn both my teachers, Elijah and Malcolm, love them both no matter what happened between them. Shit happens in revolution, get over it and move on to higher ground! 

 

No one can say they loved Malcolm X more than I. No one can say they loved Elijah Muhammad more than I.

--Marvin X

Black Bird Press News & Review: Black History is World History by Marvin X, the USA's Rumi, Plato, Saadi, Hafiz

Black Bird Press News & Review: Black History is World History by Marvin X, the USA's Rumi, Plato, Saadi, Hafiz

Words of the Week

My self is on the shelf collecting dust!--Toya Williams

God BAM!--Dr. Nathan Hare

There's a new movie coming out: Marvin X Driving Miss Libby!--Paul Cobb

Thanks, Marvin, for stopping me that day at the Jazz Festival and taking me on the wild crazy ride called the Marvin X Experience.--Aries Jordan

Forget hands up, it's pants up!--Judy Jackmon

Wake up? Wake up to what?--Anonymous lady on Lakeshore Ave., Oakland

video 4c:How to recover from addiction to white Supremacy peer group, BAM Laney College, Dr. Nathan Hare and Suzzette Celeste

Video #4b How to Recover from the Addiction to White Supremacy, BAM at Laney College, with Dr. Nathan Hare and Suzzette Celeste

video #4a Recovering from Addiction to White Supremacy Peer Group with Dr. Nathan Hare and Suzzette Celeste, MPA, MSW