Five Smooth Stones

Arkansas got some Sooouuuul Trrraaiiin!

Kwadjo Boaitey — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 03:12:01 +0000

QUESTION: Hey Plainclothesman, I’m told you’d do your best to find the answer on all things Arkansas. Someone, who will remain nameless, told me that the voice of Soul Train (the Sooouuul Trrraaain intro voice) is a man from Arkansas. Anything is possible, but this person, who will remain nameless, couldn’t back it up. Tell me is this True or False? Thanks, Man from out of town

SCUTTLEBUTT: MFOOT, did you give yourself that name or is that how you’re perpetually referred to? I can relate. I had always wanted to go horseback riding and for my birthday a few years ago Mrs. Plainclothesman treated me to a trail ride in the North Georgia mountains. I believe my horse was called Samson and he had a flatulence problem so the horses (and riders) behind him had a lot to overcome. Anyway our guides kept saying to me “you’re not from around here,” and before long I was affectionately referred to as “the man from out of town.”

Thinking on it now reminds me of the John Sayles flick, “The Brother from another planet.” It’s a cult classic.

The brother is an alien who touches down on earth by way of New York City. He can’t talk (speak verbally) but the film is an allegory for the immigrant experience. It was nominated for Sundance Grand Jury Prize.

I must say digging up information on Soul Train was an absolute delight. Soul Train was an international phenomenon. The music, vibe, expression was unmatched. Everyone from Aretha Franklin, Marvin Gaye, Curtis Mayfield, Al Greene, The Ojay’s, The Average White Band appeared on Soul Train. Soul Train was the epitome of cool and for the 70’s, 80’s and even 90’s qualified soul music. The Soul Train dancers were hip and always on the cutting edge and for a generation the show evoked the heart of blackness.

To get the answer and more go to the plainclothesman blog at The Sync Weekly. Enjoy!

Race and what truly matters

Kwadjo Boaitey — Tue, 21 Sep 2010 18:17:38 +0000

I had the great opportunity to write this piece for the Christian Science Monitor. It was published today. Here’s an excerpt. Enjoy

A recent Monitor feature considers racial progress in the United States. Mary Baker Eddy, who founded the Monitor, wrote this about measuring progress: “To ascertain our progress, we must learn where our affections are placed and whom we acknowledge and obey as God” (“Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures,” p.239).

Ten years ago I found myself parked on the side of the road, pacing up and down a stretch of sidewalk, wrestling with that fundamental fact of progress, asking, “Where are my affections placed and whom do I acknowledge and obey as God?”

I had relocated to Atlanta from New York City, and on this particular morning was to be received as a new member of a dedicated and loving church of Christian Scientists.

As I headed to church that morning, I was blindsided by an overwhelming sense of dread and fear. I was suddenly asking myself if I could honestly be an active member in a congregation that looked nothing like me. I am black and the congregation was predominantly white.

Click here to read the entire piece.

No, I meant to say Big Rock, Arkansas

Kwadjo Boaitey — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 03:27:01 +0000

QUESTION: I am fairly new to Little Rock. I have lived here for a couple of years now. My parents were visiting from Massachusetts and while driving along Rebsamen Park Road Dad pointed out what he called a gorge in the Arkansas River. We couldn’t quite see the river from where we were sitting (in my car) but because I wasn’t aware of a gorge on the Arkansas River as it passed through Little Rock, I asked him, Mom, my two brothers and sister to provide alternate explanations for what we saw. Now, what we saw was a rather large outcropping of rock that looked almost like a canyon wall on the North Little Rock side of the river. It’s stunning. What is it? Thanks Zeb.

SCUTTLEBUTT: According to Little Rock photographer, Brian Cormack the story goes something like this: “The Big Rock was noticed by French explorer Jean-Baptiste Bénard de La Harpe in 1722, who called the hill “Le Rocher Français” or “French Rock.” Le Harpe is also the guy who called a nearby smaller outcrop along the Arkansas River “little rock,” a name that stuck around….when the French explorers were sailing up the Arkansas River, Native Americans [Quapaws] told them of a massive green rock along the river…the explorers thought that it must be a massive jewel-encrusted rock…the large green rock they had been dreaming about was just a bluff with trees on it.”

SKINNY: Zeb, thank you for the question. I know the spot where you and your family were on Rebsamen Park Road. You were heading east past the Rebsamen Golf Course and just before Rebsamen becomes Riverfront Drive there it is that great wall of rock on the North Little Rock side of the river…..

For more on Big Rock, Arkansas check out The Plainclothesman at Sync Weekly.

Little Rock’s South End public watering hole

Kwadjo Boaitey — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 03:20:27 +0000

QUESTION: Earlier this year I took part in the Martin Luther King Jr. Marade and discovered what seemed to be a site where the general public or people in the know can access spring water. It is located right next to the Martin Luther King Jr. Heritage and Enrichment Center (3012 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive). Is this a public watering hole? What can you tell me about it?

Thanks, -Free Water

SCUTTLEBUTT: Jessie Garrett, Executive Director of the Martin Luther King Jr. Heritage and Enrichment Center informed the Plainclothesman that for the past 100 years people have been coming from all over to this Pulaski County spring to drink.

SKINNY: FW, your question touches my heart because I know the spot, the spring you speak of that’s accessible to the public on Martin Luther King Jr. Drive. In fact, it was one of the first places I visited upon my arrival to Little Rock. I passed it on my way to the infamous Sim’s Barbecue which until the past year or so was located in the Martin Luther King Jr. Neighborhood (Little Rock’s South End) on West 33^rd Street…….

For more on Little Rock’s South End Public Watering Hole check out The Plainclothesman at Sync Weekly.

In defense of fair housing

Kwadjo Boaitey — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 05:24:08 +0000

42 years after passage of the Federal Fair Housing Act Arkansas enacted its substantially equivalent Fair Housing Act in 2001. The Arkansas Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in the sale, rental, and financing of dwellings, and in other housing-related transactions, based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, familial status (including children under the age of 18 living with parents of legal custodians, pregnant women, and people securing custody of children under the age of 18), and disability. Because April is National Fair Housing Month I thought it fitting to republish an opinion piece written about fair housing and the Ninth Annual Arkansas Fair Housing Conference at The Peabody Hotel (in downtown Little Rock), April 29-30, 2010.

Check out the plainclothesman to read this piece and more!

Arkansas’ most famous front doors

Kwadjo Boaitey — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 05:28:39 +0000

QUESTION: I drive by the Capitol on my way home from work every day and I can’t help but admire its incredibly shiny front doors. What can you tell me about them? Thanks, Crosstown traffic

SCUTTLEBUTT: According to Richard Adcock, keeper of Arkansas’ State Capitol Doors, when President George W. Bush’s labor secretary Elaine Chao came to town she raved about them. She said that she wished our doors [U.S. Capitol] could look that shiny and good.

SKINNY: First let me say that Crosstown Traffic happens to be one of my favorite Jimi Hendrix tunes. I’d wager you like the song too…..

For the answer and more check out The Plainclothesman at Sync Weekly.

Capon Anyone?

Kwadjo Boaitey — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 06:23:02 +0000

QUESTION: Hey Plainclothesman, I’ve been burning to ask you this….over the holidays…Thanksgiving to be exact, I waited til Thanksgiving morning to go shopping. The only fresh bird Kroger had left was a Capon, which I later learned was a neutered Rooster. Thank goodness I chose Salmon! Anyway, a friend of my Mom’s told me that it actually tastes pretty good. Go figure. What can you tell me about Capon? Have you had it? Is it good?

Signed,

Capon For Thanksgiving 2010.

SCUTTLEBUTT: A well informed Arkansan who has lived in this state well over 50 years told Mrs. Plainclothesman that Governor Winthrop Rockefeller introduced Capon to Arkansas and had it imported here from New York.

For the skinny and more check out The Plainclothesman at The Sync Weekly.

Be a history detective

Kwadjo Boaitey — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 05:22:53 +0000

I asked Guy Lancaster, editor of the Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture why he was so interested in Sundown towns. Sundown towns started in the late 19^th century and were places in Arkansas and our nation that blacks were not welcome after dark. In fact the Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture notes that sundown towns didn’t reach their peak until the 1970’s.

“Many people will tell you that the reason there were no blacks in various places throughout Arkansas was simply because blacks didn’t want to be there,” says Mr. Lancaster. He believes that if we understand that we created sundown towns then we might be more mindful of the ways in which we develop our communities in the future.

To read the rest of this article go to The Plainclothesman at Sync Weekly online.

Tamales, state food? Yes and No.

Kwadjo Boaitey — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 04:43:53 +0000

QUESTION: I was at Whole Foods Market the other day looking for a tasty prepared hot treat for dinner. Don’t do this all the time, but I love Whole Foods and have just got to have it. My eyes fell on what the clerk told me were Tamales. The clerk says Tamales is a state food of Arkansas. Is that true? Thanks, Whole Foods Always

For the answer and more check out the plainclothesman at syncweeklyonline.

Does Vimy Ridge have anything to do with the Civil War?

Kwadjo Boaitey — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 05:31:32 +0000

QUESTION: I live on Vimy Ridge Road in Saline County, near Benton to be exact and am wondering if the name of the street has any Civil War significance. We’ve got a Civil War marker in the neighborhood and I was just wondering…? Thanks, Mel.

For the answer and more visit the plainclothesman at Sync Weekly online.