Absurd Theater of the Hood
By Heru Ammen Lights, camera, action! Cue Baltimore. Wait for it. Wait for it. And now coming to the stage…..black pastors, ministers, academics, activists, leaders, pundits, politicians, and their wannabe sycophants. They are like dyslexic roaches coming out only when the lights come on - framing them in the center of the pomp and circumstance of another hood uprising. They all wax eloquently about this and that and the need for black folks to “come together.” They prance to and fro in front of or near the camera waiting for their 15 minutes of fame outfitted in their finest attire; neon silk, wool blend or polyester pinstripe suits, gators and staceys, monogram cotton or silk shirts complete with gold (or gold plated) cuff links and jeweled finger and neck accoutrements. When approached by a reporter, they dance a jig of excitement, make the appropriate gas face and invoke Dr. Martin Luther King’s famous staccato when they speak; all the while talking loud and offering n