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Tag Archives: Nation of Islam
Cancel Culture Redux
Revisiting “The Cancel-Culture Conundrum.” Continue reading
Posted in Politics & Public Affairs
Tagged cancel culture, Charlie Kirk, Elijah Muhammad, faith, history, Jimmy Kimmel, John F. Kennedy, Malcolm X, Nation of Islam, news, politics
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Streets of Rage Redux
When my childhood friend, Isa Rock, read and reviewed my novel, Streets of Rage, he wanted more. A few mornings ago, I started to think about more, and thus the process began in my head. My process as a writer … Continue reading
From the American Revolution to the Black Arts Cultural Revolution
After the American Revolution, most of the defining moments in American history involve or revolve around Black people. Black folk were even involved in the American Revolution, fighting on both sides – the British promised Africans and the descendants of … Continue reading
Posted in Politics & Public Affairs, Streets of Rage
Tagged 1619, 1619 Project, American Revolution, Black Arts Era, Black Patriotism, Black Shadows and Through the White Looking Glass, Boston Massacre, Camelot, Crispus Attucks, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Growing Up, John F. Kennedy, Larry Neal, Malcolm X, Martin Luther King Jr., Nation of Islam, patriotism, Poetry, Robert F. Kennedy, Slavery, urban decay
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The Black Arts Movement
The theme for this Black History Month is African Americans and the Arts. For purposes of this blog, I’ll highlight the “Black Arts Era” (1960-1975). The Black Arts Era began at the very beginning of what Samuel F. Yette, influential … Continue reading
Posted in Education & Teaching, Politics & Public Affairs
Tagged Black Arts Era, Black History Month, Black Shadows and Through the White Looking Glass, Decisive Decade, democracy, John F. Kennedy, Larry Neal, Malcolm X, Martin Luther King Jr., Muhammad Ali, murder, Nation of Islam, Robert F. Kennedy, Samuel Yette
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Me and Malcolm X’s Murderer
On this day in American history, Malcolm X was murdered. I was four years of age. Fourteen years later, I would meet Malcolm X’s killer. The first thought that crossed my mind: He, Thomas Hagan, is unremarkable. And then: What … Continue reading
Posted in Family, Memory & Personal Essays, Religion
Tagged Alex Haley, Black Shadows and Through the White Looking Glass, Decisive Decade, Five Percent Nation, Growing Up, Malcolm X, Martin Luther King Jr., murder, Nation of Islam, raising black boys, Samuel Yette, The Autobiography of Malcolm X, Thomas Hagan
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“Final” Touches on The Black Blood of Poetry
Early this morning I put the “final” touches on my title poem, “The Black Blood of Poetry.” I wasn’t going to post it, but it is timely, and I’d rather not wait until the collection is published to put this … Continue reading
Posted in Politics & Public Affairs, Streets of Rage
Tagged "I can't breathe!", #AllLivesMatter, Black Shadows and Through the White Looking Glass, BlackLivesMatter, Blood in My Eye, Emmett Till, Fred Hampton, George Floyd, James Baldwin, James Chaney, Malcolm X, Martin Luther King Jr., Medgar Evers, murder, Nation of Islam, Ossie Davis, Poetry, raising black boys, Soledad Brother, Sometimes Blue Knights Wear Black Hats, Sonny's Blues, The Black Blood of Poetry
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Review of my book, Streets of Rage, by Isa Rock
Easy Waters’ Streets of Rage is a must read, especially for anyone who enjoys reading a good and well written coming-of-age tale. The majority of the story takes place in 1970’s Brooklyn, in the projects and surrounding area. It’s a … Continue reading
Posted in Books & Writing Projects, Streets of Rage
Tagged being a teenager, Brooklyn in the '70s, Five Percent Nation, Growing Up, Jimmy Carter, juveniles, Manchild in the Promised Land, Marcy Housing, marcy projects, murder, Nation of Islam, raising black boys, Ronald Reagan, South Bronx, Streets of Rage, urban decay
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Some thoughts on my novel, “Streets of Rage”
Growing up in the early ’70s, the Black Power Movement, informed by Malcolm X and the Nation of Islam, and its offshoot the Five Percent Nation, informed the thinking of the best minds of my generation — including mine, if … Continue reading
From my novel “Streets of Rage”
PROLOGUE The little black guy was in the living room, kneeling on the floor as if in prayer. Papers were on the floor before him. A Bible was before him, too. He was intent upon what he was doing. “Peace, god!” the … Continue reading
The Three Erics
Three years ago, when I turned 50 years of age, I wrote a poem in the tradition of Ginsberg’s “Howl!,” talking about what had happened to some of the best of my generation. I titled it “Celebrating Fifty Years of … Continue reading
William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters 