Dirty Old Man

"In the Congo, women develop quickly, both physically and emotionally, due to the substantial responsibility society places on them from early childhood," Nachman wrote. "In Kinshasa, the vast majority of teenagers are sexually active with men that are substantially older. ... Their main concern is marrying young girls to men with financial stability, a concern dating thousands of years and cutting across cultural lines.

Those are the words 42 year old U.S. Diplomat (and prominent nudist) Gons G. Nachman used in defense of his indefensible act of having sex with underage girls during his overseas postings. And that's not all. It is alleged that he even pressured young women applying for visa to have sex with him, ostensibly to smooth the process for them.

There are so many issues that are dredged up by this case. The sexualization of children, for example. Or stereotypes about the promiscuity of women and girls from "other" cultures (read, non-White). However I won't get into all of that right now.

U.S. prosecutors are seeking a 20 year maximum sentence in their case against Nachman, and suffice it to say I hope they get it. Our reputation around the world has been tarnished enough during the past 8 years. We definitely do not need to send the message that our diplomats are above our own laws, based on their "perceptions" of foreign culture and norms.

Because the fact remains that no matter where in the world you do it, its still child abuse.

And here is the rest of it.

Black Marriage Day

Ladies,

I know the this article from yesterday's Chronicle is rather long and you probably don't want to spend your time reading this on a Sunday afternoon. But, this is good.

The questions Richmond activist Adia Blackmon posed to a group of 13 girls were basic. How many wanted to be mothers? Blackmon, charged with mentoring the girls, counted 13 arms in the air. How many wanted to be wives? Their response shed light on a community that leads the nation in levels of single-parent homes.

"Only one hand went up," said Blackmon, who was floored by the response from black girls as young as 11. "They said they wanted the fathers to be involved and wouldn't mind them coming around," she said. "But they did not want to be married to them."

Blackmon will join churches and community groups in some 200 cities nationwide taking a moment on Sunday to celebrate — and they hope, encourage — lasting unions as part of Black Marriage Day.

If you can't read the whole thing, at least jump down to the bottom and read the part about them wanting to teach young girls how to handle a "crush". Hmmm.

Because, grown folks know that "crushes" are just that. They totally CRUSH you but you get over it. So. If we know that (which we do), why wouldn't we want to tell our little girls to keep their legs closed longer? Imagine if we could convince our little girls that they do not have to "drop it like its hot" to get and keep the kind of man we know that they need to keep them and their children from ending up on welfare for generations.

Now imagine what our communities would look like if we taught our little girls that those little horny 13-year-boys most likely WILL NOT end up being their husbands. Statistics show that there's a 60% chance that he'll either end up on drugs, end up in prison, end up dead, or end up dating your best friend's husband by the time that he's 25 years old. Maybe with HIV/AIDS. Right?

So. Why wouldn't we grown folks just break down and start telling our little girls to keep their legs closed at least long enough for them

(1) to find a job that pays at least $20 hr.,

(2) go to college and maintain a grade point average that lets you know that she's serious and not just looking for new men (if she's worn all the men around the neighborhood out already), or

(3) make sure that that little boy marries them. (After he finishes that class at the community college and gets that certificate.)

Imagine.

Well. Anyway, I know that it's the weekend. But....imagine what our communities would look like with a "Daddy" in every house (With a job!).

I'm excited.

Do You Know Her?

Her name was Sara Baartman.