BlackPerspective.net’s 1 Year Anniversary
posted in Cultural, Thoughts | | | View blog reactions | Print This PostThis is actually more than two weeks past due; but with all the important happenings going on that I needed to write about; I haven’t had time to squeeze it in.
On February 26, 2007 I made my first post to BlackPerspective.net, and started on a year long journey, that in most ways was more than I could have ever imagine would have transpired in such a short period of time.
I entered the scene to find a more robust Afrocentric minded Black blogging community than I expected. I wasn’t exactly a rookie to internet ideal exchange as a veteran of years of message board wars at various places, and a periodic reader of blogs. Yet, as it just so happened, as I was starting my blog, a group called the Afrospear was simultaneously forming.
For the first few months I didn’t post that much. I guess I was a little disappointed at the lack of response. I didn’t want to keep posting if nobody was reading. I’ve come to realize you need to post regularly to get people started reading and to keep them coming back.
In May I only had 3 post, and in June only 2. In July I caught a spark for some reason and started posting about every 3 days. By the last week of that month the Jena 6 came on my radar screen and everything changed.
I was lucky to have come across Villager’s Blog pretty earlier on. He introduced me to both the Jena 6 and the Afrospear. Outraged by the Jena 6 story, and for some reason feeling empowered and thinking I could do something to raise awareness (this is one of those times when foolish ignorance makes you think yes I can, when conventional analysis would have found it laughable); I endeavored to use my little blog to try to help. It was probably the feeling that I wasn’t just one voice but a part of a movement of others, so I guess I recognized the potential of collective power.
We pulled off the Day Of Blogging for Justice with dozens of participants, and everything took off from their. In the January 8th interview with me that Vanessa Byers conducted, I told her in regards to this that:
I was relatively new on the scene when I proposed putting it on, yet many other bloggers, some who were already well established, such as yourself; jumped on board with me right away. PurpleZoe at the UltraViolet Underground immediately offered to help write the press release and Francis Holland of the Francis L. Holland Blog gave me some good advice on framing the campaign.
It was my first time doing a campaign like that, and I really didn’t know what I was doing, but it went off like gang busters and served as a model for future campaigns that I’ve run and even others have run.
The trajectory of my blogging activity changed do the success of this campaign from the first days, along with other campaigns like seeing bloggers defeating BET. My primary mission remains the same, to provide analysis and commentary towards building a dialogue to elevate the Black body politic and even shift the Black political paradigm. But I’ve add to that. Being that mainstream media has always ignored our issues, and seeing that even major Black media is neglectful of things that corporate America might not like; I realized it my duty to be informative about news, events, and injustice happening right now. I still refuse to just be a news headlines site, commentary and analysis is remains primary; but it’s expanded to having some news headlines just to inform, action alerts to call people to battle, and outright activism through the blog. Though I was already an activist in the actual world, I don’t think I set out planning to use my blog to effect activism through the virtual world, I initially intended just to effect thought.
Anyway, I thank all of you who’ve gone on this ride with me the last 12 months as I’d amassed approximately 350 posts by February 25th of this year. I truly appreciate those who keep coming back, and especially those who tend to comment. I hope to keep having these discussions with you.
I will have a second part to the anniversary celebration next week, including something special for my readers.
Edited to add: I just wish you guys would pay me attention about warrentless spying and corporate amnesty. Watch the debate live in the House of Representatives about the FISA Amendment that will be voted on today: www.c-span.org/watch/cs_cspan_wm.asp?Cat=TV&Code=CS
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