RezaRitesRi.com

Isis Storm Presents…

Finding the Gray:
A Black History Month Film & Discussion On the Diaspora & Identity

Thursday, February 25, 2010
Brooklyn Coffee Tea House
209 Douglas Avenue
Providence, RI 02908

Doors open at 6:30 PM; $5 donations collected at the door.

Can Blacks tell the story of Whites and can Whites tell the story of Blacks? Can men properly reflect women in art, and can women reflect men?

What about everyone in between?

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Join members of Isis Storm and RI’s film community for this special viewing of “Mix,” courtesy of the National Black Programming Consortium (NBPC). Mix is a film directed by South African filmmaker, Rudzani Dzuguda, about “freedom in South Africa after 1994.” Following Tumelo and Dominique, two female, hip-hop disc jockeys (dj’s) – one Black and one White – Dzuguda explores the issues of personal freedom “in ways that genuinely baffle their parents.”

Part of NBPC’s critically acclaimed AfroPop Series, Dzuguda through his filmmaking and Tumelo and Dominique through their everyday lives, “are forging new social realities – between black and white, between males and females, across vast stretches of land – which seem to leave the generation gap as wide as ever.”

For more information about Isis Storm and the February 25 event, visit www.IsisStorm.com or email beginthestorm@gmail.com or call 401-497-5246. For more about NBPC’s AfroPoP series, visit www.afropop.tv. To learn more about Brooklyn Coffee Tea House, visit www.brooklyncoffeeteahouse.com.

Before she passed away on December 27, 2009, Dana Wright was spreading the word about a children’s book she had written called Rolling with Nia. Click on the image of the book cover or here to watch a video to see and learn more about Wright and her book. I, Reza Rites, produced the film for “Black Perspectives Now,” an online initiative of the public media organization, WGBH, and the program “Basic Black.”

by Reza Corinne Clifton

PROVIDENCE, RI - On Sunday, December 27, 2009, a friend, mentor, and colleague of mine passed away, leaving me shocked and saddened. From her activism in the community and online, to her work as a storyteller and published author, Dana Wright inspired me professionally and personally, and for these reasons and more, I will never forget her.

Before her untimely death I had a chance to talk to Wright, about a project she had recently completed, and about the impact she was on having on youth and families. And I wasn’t the only one interested in her story.

Up in Boston, Massachusetts, series producer Valerie Linson had just launched a new online initiative, which was to be tied to “Basic Black,” a television show she runs out of WGBH. Basic Black was created in 1968 - “during the turmoil of the civil rights movement as a response to the demand for public television programs reflecting the concerns of African Americans.” But Linson saw a more contemporary need for “Black Perspectives Now,” and for “stories, events, people and voices of black New England.” Dana Wright’s was one of them.

Learn more about my interview with Wright and see other stories from Black Perspectives Now by clicking here. To learn more about Basic Black, visit www.wgbh.org/basicblack.

And Rest in Peace, Dana.

by Reza Corinne Clifton

WASHINGTON, DC - On Thursday, January 28, 2010, Families USA, a national organization, began Health Action 2010 - its conference for consumer health advocates. The three day conference ended on Saturday afternoon, January 30 after being held at The Hyatt Regency Washington, on Capitol Hill, in Washington, DC.

According to Families USA, which is a Washington, DC-based nationally-serving nonprofit organization, the 2009 conference drew approximately 800 participants from more than 40 states.

This year’s conference featured a powerful group of leaders, informants, and advocates who talked about health reform legislation, field strategies for advancing the message about health equity, and strategies to keep constituents engaged. On Friday, January 29, yours truly, Reza Rites - in part representing UrbanHealthWatch.net - co-presented on the topic of “Getting Your Message Out: Strategies for Advancing Health Equity.”

It was day two of Health Action 2010 and after a 10:45 AM start and a preceding talk on engaging the traditional media, your RezaRitesRi.com/Urban Health Watch editor, delivered “Spread the Word in 2010: Health Equity Today, Tomorrow and Right Now,” a presentation which included statistics about diversity in the media to illustrate why advocates need to take matters into their own hands and tips on starting, maintaining and sharing new media projects and social networking accounts.

Photos and additional coverage of the conference are available at UrbanHealthWatch.net, but to catch a glimpse at what I shared, click here to download the presentation.

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Originally sent in the December 8 RezaRitesRi newsletter.

Take 5 with Reza Rites:
Show Some Love with Venus Sings, Isis Storm, and UrbanHealthWatch.net

PROVIDENCE, RI - Sometimes when I speak to people, they are surprised to hear that I’m haunted with regular bouts of self-doubt and withdrawal. The websites, radio show, and, for instance, my position as Social Chair of the Rhode Island Young Professionals – they throw people off. And yes, it’s true that these and other projects show a side of me that is very public and proud, but they also in fact relay one of two techniques I use to address and cope with those shadows: Performance.

Just like at a job interview or on-stage mimicking a character, I create and accept the roles I’m playing when I’m at a certain place or setting. So if I am dj’ing and/or hosting a radio show, I am ready to play songs and talk topics that will catch you even as you go. And if I’m asked to speak at a meeting, I will prepare and organize my remarks to be logical and instructive because that’s the character I’ve agreed to play.

What is my second technique? Well that’s what this week’s Take 5 is about: Show Love. From the beginning, my freelance work and then website, RezaRitesRI, was about promoting “the voices of our ethnically, socially, and artistically diverse.” Since expanding, I cannot measure how much I have received back, personally, through using love as a lens for my work.

What I can do is inform you about funding opportunities for healthcare initiatives because you asked for it, and I appreciate you. I can post your health event because I am a testament to your work and success at bringing people and communities together. And I can post information about your upcoming show because with Isis Storm, we’ve started a cycle of women giving love to other women, and I intend to keep that cycle going. I also thank you for your part in showing and sharing love.

Sunshine and Laughter,
Reza Rites

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Take 5 with Reza Rites

1. Funding Opportunities and Links from UrbanHealthWatch.net and AHRQ,
2. Community Forum Highlights Healthcare, Human Rights, and more – Thu, Dec 10,
3. Bowling, Free Food, and Family Fun: PrYSM’s Rice Bowl Fundraiser – Dec. 12,
4. Men Who Cook Holiday Party and Launch of New Venue – Dec. 15,
5. Join a Team and Get Active: Registration Begins for Shape Up RI

Five More from IsisStorm.com and VenusSings.com

1. Words for Warriors featuring Kalyana Champlain and Jessica Simes – Thu., Dec. 10,
2. Venus Sings Radio this Saturday, December 12 on WRIU,
3. Singer-Songwriter Event at the Ruffstone features Michelle Cruz – Sat., Dec 12,
4. A Winter Concert by Woman Spirit Rising– Sunday, December 13
5. Nataly Garcia to Rip it in Worcester, MA on Monday Dec. 14

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This edition of “Take 5 with Reza Rites” was sent in the Friday, November 20, 2009 RRR e-newsletter. To receive the updates sign up above.

Take 5 w. Reza Rites (and Venus Sings):
Film Screenings, Live Music, and Newsroom Diversity

PROVIDENCE, RI – Well, I’m at it again: giving you more than the five links we talked about. That’s simply because there’s too much going on, some of which hopefully draws you in.

But what weaves all of these stories and links together?

They all embody the expression made famous by Cartman, a character from the animated fiction series South Park: “I do what I want.” These events, these opportunities, the producers, filmmakers and writers – they all saw a need and opportunity to make change and make room; to fight for independence, justice, and truth. And they went for it, individually or through teams, but with a vision that would not be blurred.

And so as silly as the show South Park and its character Cartman are, as me and many of my friends have concurred, “I do what I want,” is the ultimate motto, and a revolutionary one if you let it.

Sunshine and Laughter,
Reza Rites

P.S. Save the Date: Venus Sings Radio - Saturday Nov 28, 9-11 AM on WRIU

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Take 5 with Reza Rites

- Isis Storm at Black Rep: The People are the Panel, bell hooks is the Voice, and Good Times Continue Afterward – Saturday, November 21

- African Alliance of RI Annual Membership Dinner – Saturday Nov 21

- Hear New Kim Trusty, “I Will Be Waiting” – Online and on Sunday Nov 22

- Screening at URI, Providence Campus: RiP: A Remix Manifesto – Monday, Nov 23

- Jobs, Events, Volunteer Opportunities and More – The RIYP E-News Blast

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Bonus 5

- Interesting Articles: Racism, Sexism in Newsrooms, Congress

- Consider Taking a Quick Survey: How Can UrbanHealthWatch.net Help You?

- Opportunity/Call for Poets, Musicians, Artists and Performers: Rosa Parks Day, 2009

- Opportunity/Call for Poets, Musicians, Artists and Performers: Arts Education Project focused on RI Black History

- The Film and Music of Providence in Recovery

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Reza Corinne Clifton
Online Publisher, Freelance Journalist, Independent Producer and Music DJ

www.RezaRitesRi.com
www.VenusSings.com
www.UrbanHealthWatch.net
www.WRIU.org

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To the right, Lisa Renee Holderby meets an attendee of the New England Regional Minority Health Conference, after presenting at it on Wednesday, October 14, 2009. Holderby and I, Reza Rites (Editor, UrbanHealthWatch.net), served as members of the planning committee, which, like Urban Health Watch, meets to expose and eliminate racial and ethnic Disparities in health.

PROVIDENCE, RI – Why read UrbanHealthWatch.net? Because people of color and urban communities need a place to “Join the Discussions” around health equity and “Create the Solutions” to nagging health disparities. And we’re not waiting anymore.

The blog Urban Health Watch (UrbanHealthWatch.net) is part of the Rhode Island Prevention Block Grant, a program funded by Rhode Island Department of Health (HEALTH) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Like other initiatives under HEALTH’s Prevention Block Grant, Urban Health Watch is focused on achieving health equity by identifying the chronic diseases, environmental health issues, and social determinants that impact health care disparities and influence conditions for health.

UrbanHealthWatch.net is also charged with developing and distributing health information with an emphasis on reaching racially and ethnically diverse groups and implementing health education and risk reduction activities to improve the quality of life for Rhode Island’s most vulnerable populations, communities of color and urban families.

Not convinced? Check out our most recent posts and headlines:

• Urban Health Watch Wants to Hear From You: “How can we help you?”

• Be in the Know: Facts and Updates on RIte Care

• A Clear Conference Message: Everyone Can Make A Difference to Achieve Health Equity

• Photos from the New England Regional Minority Health Conference

• Healthier Choices for Children and Families

• Recruiting Health Volunteers Like You

• Breast Cancer Resources and Facts from National Cancer Institute

• Workshops and News from Shape Up RI

• Information, Action and a Word from Destiny House: Domestic Violence Awareness Month

Urban Health Watch is not a one-way street; readers, health groups, and community organizations have all begun sending events and engaging the blog. But the publishers are looking for more. Tell your family and friends; tell your clients and neighbors; and make a personal note of your own – Join the Discussions, Create the Solutions: UrbanHealthWatch.net.

For more information about Urban Health Watch or to share your event, story, or opinion, visit www.UrbanHealthWatch.net or contact the blog’s editor, two-time Metcalf Diversity in the Media recipient, Reza Clifton, by emailing urbanhealthri@gmail.com or calling 401-497-5246.

Reza Rites of RezaRitesRi.com and Dan Yorke of WPRO engaged in friendly, professional sparring twice recently. You can see it on TV tonight at 9:00 PM or you can hear a podcast. Click here to listen to the podcast.

PROVIDENCE, RI - Are Black women and communities of color accurately and fairly portrayed by talk radio?

- Is there room on the AM - or FM dial - for honest, analytical discussions about the multiple issues effecting people of color?

- Are newsrooms in RI and across the country making room for the different views and voices coming out of communities of color?

- Where in the community or who can you go to to find new and young leaders?

These are just some of the topics I recently responded to, asked about, and debated over during a friendly, two-part sparring with RI radio talkshow host, Dan Yorke, of 630 AM, WPRO. Part I of our conversation happened when Yorke and I were invited to be guests on the cable access show, Capitol Colors, which is hosted by RI Representative Anastasia Williams, from District 9 in Providence, and Peter Wells, the editor of The Providence American newspaper. The episode, which began airing on Saturday evening, October 31, will continue to air through November 11, on Channel 15 (Saturdays and Mondays at 8:30 PM) or 18 (Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 9 PM) for Cox Cable users, or channels 34 and 39 for Verizon cable subscribers. Tune in tonight, Wednesday November 4, at 9:00 PM on channel 18 or 39, or Saturday November 7 at 8:30 on Channel 15 or 34.

Part II of our conversation happened even more recently, on Monday November 2; it was during Yorke’s talk show which airs every day at 2:00 PM on 630 on the AM radio dial in and around RI, or online at www.630wpro.com. From electoral politics within the African American community, to the mainstreaming of baby mama culture, Yorke and I talked about the emotional charge around these and other issues as well as took time to dissect them more deeply. To download a podcast of the show, click here.

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Take 5 with Reza Rites: Get Together and Demand Change

How does a community make changes that endure? By coming together, demanding it, and supporting each other. That was the idea behind this past week’s New England Regional Minority Health Conference (NERMHC), and that’s the idea behind many of this week’s Take 5 items. The next Isis Storm show coming up on Saturday, October 24 is a great example. When my partner Kalyana and I reflected on what we saw and heard from female musicians, poets, and hip hop emcees, it was clear to us that getting together on a regular basis was going to be the best way to do address the problems around visibility, supporting authentic content, and networking.

More coverage from NERMHC will be included in next week’s e-newsletter and on UrbanHealthWatch.net, so stay tuned. In the short term I will say it was great meeting all the change-agents in the community and across New England. And next Saturday, October 24 is the next edition of Venus Sings Radio, so spend some time on VenusSings.com for more about when to tune in and what to expect.

Thanks for the support and helping me get the word out.

- Reza Rites

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Take 5

- Isis Storm Presents On the Rise at the Poets Place on Saturday Oct 24 for Female Musicians, Poets, and Hip Hop Emcees

- Information, Action and a Word from Destiny House: Domestic Violence Awareness Month on UrbanHealthWatch.net

- Legal News and Updates for Bloggers

- Tech School Scholarship for GED-Recipients and Adult Learners

- Info Sessions About New Roots Trainings and Grants - Oct 20 and more

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Originally sent in the RezaRitesRi E-newsletter on Friday, October 9, 2009.

PROVIDENCE, RI - From school bands and chorus, to mixed tapes and live shows, if you know me, then you know music is a constant in my life. But who would’a thunk that I’d find satisfaction working around the topic of health when as a youth I ran at rapid speeds away from the idea of med school. It started after I graduated from college, when I was entrused with the responsibility of examining and analyzing possible factors attributed to health disparities in different youth with asthma. The topic was interesting then, and it remains so today, but when I left the position in 2005, I thought that my working life around health was over.

Fast forward to today and this week, and I’ve spent considerable time scouting, booking, and selecting live and recorded music as part of my work with the New England Regional Minority Health Conference. And I am excited, for I’ve spoken with and booked talented, creative, and independent performers who will be weaved into an eclectic fabric of cultural and thematic arts. For those planning to attend NERMHC, you can anticipate the drumming troupe, Didakan featuring Issa Coulibaly; actor and poet, Rudy Cabrera; singer-singwriters Kim Trusty and Candida Rose; and vocalist and master percussionist, Nisha Purushotham.

Life can be funny that way if you give it a chance.

Sunshine and laughter,
Reza Rites

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Take 5

- October 10 and October 24: Venus Sings Radio on WRIU

- RICJ Youth Discuss Afghanistan Thru Film - Oct. 13

- ‘DJ Reza Wreckage’ and Youth at the New England Regional Minority Health Conference – Oct. 15

- Other Updates about the Regional Minority Health Conference

- Free Health Screenings for Women Ages 16-26

Public Health in Action - Seeding the Pipeline is a youth-focused summit happening during the New England Regional Minority Health Conference, on Thursday, October 15 at 5:30 PM. I, Reza Rites, will DJ during the networking social.

PROVIDENCE, RI - On the evening of Thursday, October 15, the New England Regional Minority Health Conference (NERMHC) will present its first youth-focused summit: “Public Health in Action – Seeding the Pipeline.” Youth from across New England will attend and present during the evening event, and several regional colleges and employers will be on-hand for a panel discussion and networking. The summit is open to the public, but students are highly encouraged to attend. Doors open at 5:15 PM and refreshments will be served. Music during the networking social will be provided by me, multimedia journalist and DJ Reza Rites (aka DJ Reza Wreckage).

Seeding the Pipeline is FREE to attendees, but registration is required. For more information about the summit and to find a link to register, visit www.nermhc.com/PHIA-information.htm.

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“Public Health in Action – Seeding the Pipeline”
A Youth-Focused Summit
Thursday, October 15, 2009
5:30-10:30 PM

The Westin Hotel
One West Exchange Street
Providence, RI 02903

Info and registration at www.nermhc.com/PHIA-information.htm. More updates about NERMHC can be read on UrbanHealthWatch.net.

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