Malcolm X

At about 8:15 p.m. on election night, Ilyasah Shabazz, the third daughter of Malcolm X and Betty Shabazz, stood inside the building where her father was assassinated in February of 1965 and spoke about the election of Barack Obama.

"I know that a lot of people my age and older never expected this to ever happen,” she began.

Speaking under a wall-length mural studded with images of her father, Shabazz, 46, was addressing a crowd of about 200 people gathered at the Malcolm X & Betty Shabazz Memorial Center (formerly the Audubon Ballroom) to watch election coverage amid panel discussions on youth community involvement, race, and of course, the potential impact of Obama administration.  read more »

There are certain pivotal plays that make mighty noises in small rooms, and Dutchman, by the black a  read more »

Here's an item from tomorrow's Daybook: Noon to 3 p.m.

Muslims protest Danish publication of Prophet Muhammad cartoons; in front of the Danish Consulate, Second Avenue and 48th Street.

--Contact: Imam Talib Abdur Rasheed

And maybe it's time to get Mike's position on this one. Unless I'm mistaken, Rasheed gave the invocation this time last year at an event commemorating Malcolm X's assassination, an event the Mayor attended.

Nobody seems quite to know where Virginia's campaign goes from here, and it must be tough times in the campaign's fund-raising office. But perhaps all will be made clear at her July 19 fund-raiser, which is to be headlined by the comic Paul Mooney and his alter ego, the noted soothsayer Negrodamus of the Dave Chappelle Show.

In the past, Mooney's comedy has explored such mysteries as, "Why do white people like Wayne Brady so much?"  read more »

Answer: "Because Wayne Brady makes Bryant Gumble look like Malcolm X."

But before you think that The Politicker is something other than a Mooney fan, I (ed: Azi!) must admit -- I have his autograph.

Remembrances and Celebrations: A Book of Eulogies, Elegies, Letters, and Epitaphs , edited by Jill W  read more »