Tracing your family’s roots may seem like a daunting and maybe even impossible task. Many black families have migrated a lot , have ghost family members and have documented histories that may not be easily accessible. But these hurdles have not stopped several African Americans, such as Morgan Freeman, Vanessa Williams, 50 Cent, Maya Angelou, Chris Rock, and Tina Turner from delving into their family histories and discovering more about their heritage. Even if you don’t have huge amounts of money or time to spend on advanced methods for tracing genealogy, there are four steps that can move you closer toward your family’s roots: Meet Alicia Keys & Swizz Beatz Son Egypt Bow Wow Finally Addresses His Daughter Shai! 1. At this summer’s family reunion or cookout, actually take the time to talk to the older members of your family . It would be a good idea to record or write down a list of aunts and uncles, cousins, great aunts and uncles, great grandparents, etc. and to ask questions about your family’s history. For tips, visit: FamilySearch.org 2. Take advantage of online services that help you build your family tree. All you have to do is input information like birth and death dates, residences, spouses, etc. These sites contain census records, directories, documents, and fellow users that can help you connect with potential family members. FamilySearch.org (free service) Ancestry.com (subscription service) HeritageQuestOnline (subscription service) 3. DNA testing is good for more than finding out who the father is. Testing kits can use your DNA to determine maternal and paternal lineages, possibly tracing your roots back to specific African tribes, European countries, and beyond! AfricanAncestry.com DNAAncestryProject.com 4. If you visit Genealogical Societies, State Archives, or their websites to learn more about your family lineage, be prepared to search through tons documents like wills, deeds, slave records, and such that can lead you closer to your roots. List of Genealogical Societies List of State Archives
Since releasing her video for “Man Down,” Rihanna has been at the center of a firestorm. Conservative groups are up in arms because of the visuals plot featuring rape and murder. Rihanna gets raped in the Anthony Mandler directed video and winds up killing her attacker. What’s crazy about all of this is most of these conservatives-whether they realize or not-are defending rapists. Nevertheless, Rihanna isn’t the first pop star to cause controversy with her music video. The Urban Daily is counting down the ten most controversial music videos by women. 10. Ashanti – The Way That I Love You For her comeback single, Ashanti made fellas think twice about cheating. In the clip, she realizes she’s not the only one and has visions of killing her beau. Many believed art was imitating life because rumors swirled about her real life boyfriend, Nelly , constantly stepping out on her. If those allegations are true, he got the hint and appeared in her next video as the loving and trust worthy partner. 9. Christina Aguilera ft. Redman – Dirrty Christina Aguilera debuted as the pop princess with a huge voice and wholesome image. Not happy with being the good girl, Christina threw on some as**less chaps and a bikini shocked the world with this video. The public’s main gripe was the message she was sending to young girls. They felt Aguilera was entirely too talented to reduce herself to booty popping and salacious lyrics. Christina responded by saying, “This is me. No glass and no pretense.” Whatever you say, Christina. 8. Britney Spears – Baby One More Time By 1998, pop music was at a standstill. Nothing interesting was happening until a fifteen year old Britney debuted her music video with her dressed as a Catholic school girl dressing and dancing provocatively. Many parents condemned the record company for selling sex with such a blatant disregard for the messages being sent to their young audience. The only issue was the young Spears came up with the concept herself, knowing it would get her the attention needed to become a world class pop star. She was right. So what does that say about us, the people who ate it up? 7. Ciara – Ride The clip from Ciara’s first single from her latest disc stirred up the drama for many reasons. First, the racy lyrics already caused some women to shy away from the song. However, men were drawn in by the overtly sexual depictions of Ciara. Riding a mechanical bull in a wet t-shirt and hot pants and wearing a itty bitty swimsuit and a fur coat had the guys drooling. My mom saw the video and responded, “All she’s missing is a pole!” BET deemed the video so explicit, it was banned from the network and became an internet sensation. 6. Fiona Apple – Criminal In 1997, Fiona Apple slithered onto our radar with her hit, “Criminal.” The then barely legal singer’s video featured the aftermath of a wild party. Apple is seen in various states of undress. The heroin chic look thought up by director, Mark Romanek , was criticized relentlessly. The heat became so much for Fiona, she denounced her own video in an acceptance speech at the MTV VMAs the following year. Criminal, indeed. 5. Lady Gaga and Beyonce – Telephone Illuminati conspiracy theories aside, “Telephone” was one of the most talked about videos in recent history because some didn’t understand it. Others thought it was too sexy for television. The rest of us just enjoyed watching Beyonce . Showcasing lesbian acts, murder, and nudity, Lady Gaga and Beyonce do their take on Thelma & Louise. While many were distraught over the themes, there was a poignant moment. The conversation about trust is absolutely true. 4. Madonna – Justify My Love If controversy was a man, Madonna would be its wife. Never has anyone conjured more scrutiny for images in music videos than The Material Girl. For this 1992 clip, Madonna bucked at conservatives with images of homosexuality, bondage, and voyuerism. Once MTV banned the video for its sexual nature, Madonna capitalized on the media storm by releasing it on VHS in conjunction with her book aptly titled, SEX. Lenny Kravitz , who wrote the song, is still making money off that. Madonna – Justify my Love from OfDreamAndDrama on Vimeo . 3. Erykah Badu – Window Seat Erykah Badu has always been the artist to push boundaries in the R&B genre. Her videos are thought provoking pieces of art. This is especially true for “Window Seat.” A video depicting Badu strolling the same path in downtown Dallas as JFK rode the day he was killed, while stripping her clothes off. The reactions in the clip are real. Erykah was fined for her body baring stunt. In case you didn’t know, the concept is Erykah is taking off the layers of learned behavior until she is free enough to think critically on her own. When she is finally able to do so, she’s killed because society doesn’t want us to think differently than the majority. That backside wasn’t bad to look at either. Erykah Badu “Window Seat” from triggerhappy on Vimeo . 2. Madonna – Like A Prayer Burning crosses, making love to saints, and a Black man playing said saint. Oh my! The Pepsi generation wasn’t ready for Madonna’s ideas. She lost her Pepsi endorsement after the video aired. Back in the 1980s, it was still very taboo for interracial couples to be shown on television. Blacks were never portrayed as biblical icons in that time. As forward thinking as this video is, I’m throwing some shade for the burning crosses. Every time I see a burning cross, I think the KKK is about to do me like Emmett Till. What were you trying to say to the Black community, Madge? Inquiring minds still want to know. 1. M.I.A. – Born Free M.I.A. has been pushing buttons with her artistry since bursting on the scene in the early 2000s. In the clip for “Born Free,” she holds a mirror up to America to show them how stupid we look as we randomly attack people for being Muslims. Only in her video, soldiers were attacking all redheads. Soldiers were seen kicking in random apartment doors just to see if the residents were redheads. If they weren’t they just left. If they were, they would be put in in prison and tortured. It’s a no brainer why American music fans hated this video. Who wants to be shown how much of a jackass they’ve been?
Usually when we think of adoptions we do not think of African Americans children as being key in adoptions. New numbers are proving this to be the complete opposite. There are dozens of children who need loving homes and care. We cannot let these children just fade into the system to be forgotten. We see actors and actresses stepping forward adopting minority children. With 130,000 children adopted each year in the USA, researchers find growing numbers involve kids whose race is different from their parents’. About 84 percent of children adopted from other countries are either trans-racial or trans-ethnic. The most common type of adoption in the USA is from foster care, which makes up 68% of adoptions, compared with 17% for infants adopted domestically and 15% from international adoption, Pertman says. To read more about family adoptions you may go here . If you would like to adopt you can visit: http://www.adoptuskids.org/resourcecenter/howtoadopt.aspx Good luck! There is a child out there that needs your love. Related Articles : Minute Meditation: Prayer For Your Parents Discover Five Secrets Work At Home Moms Enjoy
Today begins Autism Awareness Month. Autism is a developmental disorder that appears in the first 3 years of life, and affects the brain’s normal development of social and communication skills. Actress, talk show host and mother of four, Holly Robinson-Peete recently shared on CBS afternoon show, THE TALK about her family’s journey with son RJ who has the condition. Holly and Rodney’s Story Part 1 Related Article: Join Holly Robinson-Peete and support “Genius of Autism” [Video] Holly and Rodney’s Story Part 2 Related Article: Holly Robinson Peete’s Son RJ is Honoree For “Genius of Autism” [Video] Click here for CBS “The Talk” website For more information go to: HollyRod Foundation Autism Society Autism Speaks follow me on twitter- @elev8_Kelly
Spring is a wonderful time to create new family habits for a fresh start. Some people consider spring time the real new year. Here are some tips for creating new habits for your family: 1. Commit to Thirty Days – Three to four weeks is all the time you need to make a habit automatic. If your family can make it through the initial conditioning phase, it becomes much easier to sustain. A month is a good block of time to commit to a change since it easily fits in the family calendar. 2. Make it Daily – Consistency is critical if you want to make a habit stick. If the family wants to start exercising, go for a walk or an play an active family Wii game day for your family’s first thirty days. Going a couple times a week will make it harder to form the habit. Activities you do once every few days are trickier to lock in as habits. 3. Start Simple – Don’t try to completely change your family life in one day. It is easy to get over-motivated and take on too much. If you wanted to study two hours a day, first make the habit to go for thirty minutes and build on that. 4. Stay Consistent – The more consistent your habit the easier it will be to stick. If you want to start exercising, try going at the same time, to the same place for your thirty days. When cues like time of day, place and circumstances are the same in each case it is easier to stick. 5. Replace Lost Needs – If you are giving up something in your habit, make sure you are adequately replacing any needs you’ve lost. If watching television gave you a way to relax, you could take up meditation or reading as a way to replace that same need. 6. Be Imperfect – Don’t expect all your attempts to change habits to be successful immediately. It took me four independent tries before I started exercising regularly. Now I love it. Try your best, but expect a few bumps along the way. 7. Use “But” – A prominent habit changing therapist once told me this great technique for changing bad thought patterns. When you start to think negative thoughts, use the word “but” to interrupt it. “I’m no good at this, but, if I work at it I might get better later.” 8. Remove Temptation – Restructure your environment so it won’t tempt you in the first thirty days. Remove junk food from your house, cancel your cable subscription, throw out the cigarettes so you won’t need to struggle with willpower later. 9. Run it as an Experiment – Withhold judgment until after a month has past and use it as an experiment in behavior. Experiments can’t fail, they just have different results so it will give you a different perspective on changing your habit. 10. Write it Down – A piece of paper with a resolution on it isn’t that important. Writing that resolution is. Writing makes your family goal ideas more clear and focuses you on your end result. Related article: Affirmation: “I am going to relax and have fun with this, no matter what” 10 Tips To Prepare To Spring Into Action 3 Financial Habits To Break In 2011 Minute Meditation: Prayer For Family
Our homes are shelter from the storms. If there is chaos and unrest in your home, begin with this prayer when you return tonight. Our homes are the place in which we regroup rest and find peace. It is within the walls we find the ability to recharge our batteries from the day’s demands. A few moments in prayer to prayer for that place that shelters us from the storms of life can only serve to help us and strengthen us. Many of us work from home. If that is true for you than you can use this prayer as a beginning to your day. Home is also the place in which we have love unconditional. When we have relatives that pass on we say that they are going home. We must never forget that we are just pilgrims n this journey that we have a home that is other than this physical realm but the emotional and soul filled meaning of home. Bless this home with Your love and peace. May we have as Christ loves the assembly. Strengthen their bond and commitment to one another. May we respect and follow your leading as the shepherd of this household. Let this place be a model to of your love. Fill these rooms with Your joy and laughter. Let these be great halls of learning of Your truth and grace. Let Your glory shine through these windows to the neighbors. May their kind words and consideration for others draw many into Your kingdom. So we bless our home with length of days and years till the setting of the sun. Bless this family richly in the precious name of Jesus. Amen.” Effective family life does not just happen; it is the result of deliberate intention, determination, and practice. May you be on your way to a happy and healthy home today. Like Stephanie sings When I think of home/ I think of a resting place/ A place where theres peace, quiet, and serenity And thats where some of my friends have gone Related Stories: Don’t Let The Bed Bugs Bite! Do You Really Understand Forgiveness? Work It Out Wednesday: 8 Steps To Being A Positive Person Minute Meditation: Prayer for Parents
Philadelphia rapper Freeway is not only a dope emcee, but he’s also a devout Muslim. The former Roc-A-Fella rapper manages to balance his career as a rapper with his faith. “My faith means everything to me. It’s the thing that keeps me going everyday. It’s my core it’s my soul,” Freeway tells CNN in an interview. Freeway also discusses being able to stay credible in hip-hop while not going against his religion. RELATED: Shyne Observes Rosh Hashanah In Jerusalem [VIDEO] RELATED: VIDEO: Freeway & Jake One, “She Makes Me Feel Alright”
It is Monday. The hardest day of the week for many of us. Let’s try this week to make Monday the hallmark in which we claim all that is good and great in life. This will be the week in which we reign victorious. We claim all these things in the name of the Divine.ake a moment a give yourself a huge stretch, and wake up. The first thing you want to do is say thank you for this day. Be thankful for the people in your life and that you woke up. We have so much to be thankful for, we don’t even realize it because of the daliy grindstone. Anyway, when you get ready in the bathroom, do the same thing as the night before, look at yourself in the mirror and say “I am going to have a great day, and nothing is going to get me down” I can do anything, with a smile!! Prayer for a Good Day Dear Lord,as I arise And bend my knee to pray I ask please place your guiding hand Upon this busy day All my yesterdays are said and done Tomorrow may never be But I give you full reign over this day To make the best of me May each little word I speak Be filtered through your love May all my thoughts be connected To the heavenly courts above And use my feet to take me To where you want me to be Guard my eyes that they would only See what you want me to see Give me a heart that longs to show Others the way back home And with these two hands help me Fashion glory for your throne From the great expanse of eternity One day is all I can borrow So help me Lord to take care of today And we’ll talk again tomorrow Amen May this week be great for you! Related Stories: Do You Really Understand Forgiveness? 8 Steps To A New Career 7 Ways To Become Financially Responsible Can You Practice Stripping With Christ In Mind? Does Chris Brown Need Mental Help Or A Mentor? [OPINION]
It is Monday. The hardest day of the week for many of us. Let’s try this week to make Monday the hallmark in which we claim all that is good and great in life. This will be the week in which we reign victorious. We claim all these things in the name of the Divine.ake a moment a give yourself a huge stretch, and wake up. The first thing you want to do is say thank you for this day. Be thankful for the people in your life and that you woke up. We have so much to be thankful for, we don’t even realize it because of the daliy grindstone. Anyway, when you get ready in the bathroom, do the same thing as the night before, look at yourself in the mirror and say “I am going to have a great day, and nothing is going to get me down” I can do anything, with a smile!! Prayer for a Good Day Dear Lord,as I arise And bend my knee to pray I ask please place your guiding hand Upon this busy day All my yesterdays are said and done Tomorrow may never be But I give you full reign over this day To make the best of me May each little word I speak Be filtered through your love May all my thoughts be connected To the heavenly courts above And use my feet to take me To where you want me to be Guard my eyes that they would only See what you want me to see Give me a heart that longs to show Others the way back home And with these two hands help me Fashion glory for your throne From the great expanse of eternity One day is all I can borrow So help me Lord to take care of today And we’ll talk again tomorrow Amen May this week be great for you! Related Stories: Do You Really Understand Forgiveness? 8 Steps To A New Career 7 Ways To Become Financially Responsible Can You Practice Stripping With Christ In Mind? Does Chris Brown Need Mental Help Or A Mentor? [OPINION]
Furious about an unkind comment? Angry about a social snub? Say a prayer, even if you’re not religious. There have been several different schools of thought on this. When you were little your mother most likely told you to “pray for that child, or this child” Well research is starting to point in the direction that is can be possible that we can actually affect are emotional range by praying. Think about this for a moment. Do you stop to count to ten when you are angry? If the answer is yes than you are well on the way to proving that theory science is after. New research from American and Dutch scientists shows praying can help ease anger, lower aggression and lessen the impact of provocation. “People often turn to prayer when they’re feeling negative emotions, including anger,” said Brad Bushman, a professor of communications and psychology at Ohio State University and a co-author of the study. “We found that prayer really can help people cope with their anger, probably by helping them change how they view the events that angered them and helping them take it less personally.” In research published online in the Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, Bushman and his colleagues found that prayer helped to control anger regardless of the person’s religious affiliation, or if they attended church or prayed regularly. In the first study they asked 53 U.S. college students to complete a questionnaire that measured levels of emotions such as anger, depression, tension, fatigue and vigor and then put them in a situation that could elicit an angry response. Then the students were told to read a newspaper report about a cancer patient and randomly assigned to pray for her or to just think about her. Students who prayed for the patient had lower self-reported anger levels. In other studies Bushman, Ryan Bremner of the University of Michigan, and Sander Koole, of UV University in Amsterdam in the Netherlands, found similar results about the power of prayer in dealing with anger, aggression and provocation. Related Stories: Minute Meditation: Prayer for Safety Affirmation: “I’m Going To Relax And Have Fun With This, No Matter What.” Quiet Is Where You Find The Real You
