Remarkable Connectedness via the NAACP Centennial Celebration and Image Awards

...200 years to the date of Abraham Lincon's Birth
...100 years to the date of the founding of the NAACP
...40 years to the date of the first NAACP Image Awards
... Black actors nominated for Oscars Again
... Black singers sweeping the Grammy's
... Black Nobel Prize Winners
... A Black President of the United States of America

And then we watched the awards.

Black people have come to the point that celebration now means a reflection on the past while moving into the future realm of star power.

Tonight's NAACP Image Awards was more than a mere praise of the 40 years of the show, it was a victorious collection of the best and the brightest from across the globe.

The show's opening of Image Award winner, Beyonce Knowles, was certainly appropriate. Beyonce's performance of her smash hit "Halo" was accompanied by an array of Civil Rights Movement-era photos. Surprisingly, the song became an anthem which tied together the theme of the night with the idea that our forefathers have been "watching over" us for all of these years.

Nonetheless, the major highlight was Jennifer Hudson's acceptance of the Image Award for Best New Artist. She absolutely deserved the honor and it was heart-warming to see the crowd applaud her with a standing ovation. She would later appear in an highly emotional tribute to activist Muhammad Ali, performing "The Impossible Dream".

Will.I.Am's song about the need for social reform was absolutely needed in this time of turmoil in America. We are beginning to see the makings of a new Renaissance of artistry.

The awards, in and of themselves, were for the most part predictable. We knew that Will Smith and Rosario Dawson would win the best actor and best actress trophies. We knew that Beyonce would hands-down win for best female artists. And that Secret Life of Bees would be crowned the best film of the year (seeing that these were all winners of Goldie Awards).

Yet in still, the waving of American flags made our stomach turn a bit. Although we are celebrating a newness associated with President Obama, we are still on the helms of a highly racialized society. We must beg the question as to the symbolism in every audience member waving a mini red, white and blue around. Have we overcome the historical bloodshed of the flag? Does the flag now mean hope to our Black babies? Is it okay to be patriotic now that we have a Black president?

Although we are concerned about the ending of the award show, we were thrilled at the abundance of stars which graced the stage (Cicely Tyson, Halle Berry, Tyler Perry, Monique, Muhammad Ali, and the list goes on and on).

NAACP is so important to our struggle and we felt a sense of pride along with an immense connectedness as we wrapped up one of the most historical nights in Black American History.

Happy Birthday NAACP!