Harry Belafonte Criticized for Calling GOP Presidential Hopeful Herman Cain a "False Negro," While Years Ago Praised Fidel Castro

Harry Belafonte is under fire in conservative circles for his lambasting of black GOP presidential hopeful Herman Cain. He called Cain a "bad apple," "a false Negro," someone "denied intelligence" and "denied a view of history," among other choice words. Most recently he appeared on HLN's "The Joy Behar Show" and kept up the assault on Cain. What has unnerved the right is the hypocrisy he may have shown years ago when he praised Cuban dictator Fidel Castro. Humberto Fontova at Town Hall wrote a lengthy column about why Belafonte, who played a prominent role in the fight for racial equality and justice during the civil rights era, is a hypocrite for praising Fidel Castro. But, does that mean Belafonte can't speak up about what he dislikes about Herman Cain? His views are widely shared by most people in the black community.

“If you believe in justice,” vocalized Mr Belafonte in an interview with Cuba’s propaganda ministry years earlier, “if you believe in democracy, if you believe in people's rights, if you believe in the harmony of all humankind—then you have no choice but to back Fidel Castro as long as it takes!”

If only Herman Cain were a lily-white Stalinist whose regime murdered more people in its first three years in power than Hitler's murdered in its first six, jailed and tortured political prisoners at a higher rate than Stalin's--including the longest suffering black political prisoners in modern history. If only Herman Cain proposed policies to plunge a nation more prosperous than half of Europe’s into one that repels Haitians. If only he’d driven into exile—even with machine-gunners and Tiger Sharks as dutiful border guards-- 20 per cent of the population from a nation formerly flooded with immigrants. Source

I guess my question to Mr. Fontova is where is the proof that Harry Belafonte colluded with Castro's KGB propaganda ministry for a documentary? Yes, I said it, a documentary. If this is the best the right wing can do to refute criticisms by Belafonte, then they must be in more dire straits than they would have us believe.

Miriam Makeba, South African Music Legend Who Sang About Apartheid, Dies at Age 76

As a child growing up in Jamaica, I remember hearing the sultry voice of South African legend Miriam Makeba as she sang about the scourge of Apartheid. I can hear Peter Tosh singing about "Mama Africa," as Ms. Makeba was affectionately known. She was banned from her own country for more than 30 years because of the stance she took on the injustices. She died early this morning after collapsing on stage in Italy, a fitting place for her to spend her last moments. She was 76 years old.

In her dazzling career, Makeba performed with musical legends from around the world — jazz maestros Nina Simone and Dizzy Gillespie, Harry Belafonte, Paul Simon — and sang for world leaders such as John F. Kennedy and Nelson Mandela. "Her haunting melodies gave voice to the pain of exile and dislocation which she felt for 31 long years. At the same time, her music inspired a powerful sense of hope in all of us," Mandela said in a statement. He said it was "fitting" that her last moments were spent on stage. Source ABC News

The Pineta Grande clinic in Castel Volturno, near the southern city of Naples, said Makeba died of a heart attack.

Makeba collapsed on stage Sunday night after singing one of her most famous hits "Pata Pata," her family said in a statement. Her grandson, Nelson Lumumba Lee, was with her as well as her longtime friend, Italian promoter Roberto Meglioli. "Whilst this great lady was alive she would say: 'I will sing until the last day of my life'," the statement said.

Castel Volturno Mayor Francesco Nuzzo said Makeba sang at a concert in solidarity with six immigrants from Ghana who were shot to death in September in the town, an attack that investigators have blamed on organized crime. Yes, she took her last bow, fighting for a cause she believed in. Wow. That is profound on so many levels.

The death of "Mama Africa," as she was known, plunged South Africa into shock and mourning. "One of the greatest songstresses of our time has ceased to sing," Foreign Affairs minister Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma said in a statement. "Throughout her life, Mama Makeba communicated a positive message to the world about the struggle of the people of South Africa and the certainty of victory over the dark forces of apartheid and colonialism through the art of song." Source: ABC News

The world has, indeed, lost a true champion. Someone who perserved in raising awareness of the plight of South African in her songs, despite the odds that were against her. She was the first African woman to win a Grammy award. Her rise to international prominence started when she starred in the anti-apartheid documentary "Come Back, Africa" in 1959. Ms. Makeba is survived by her grandchildren, Nelson Lumumba Lee and Zenzi Monique Lee, and her great-grandchildren Lindelani, Ayanda and Kwame.

To read more about Miriam Makeba, CLICK HERE.....

Miriam Makeba, South African Music Legend Who Sang About Apartheid, Dies at Age 76

As a child growing up in Jamaica, I remember hearing the sultry voice of South African legend Miriam Makeba as she sang about the scourge of Apartheid. I can hear Peter Tosh singing about "Mama Africa," as Ms. Makeba was affectionately known. She was banned from her own country for more than 30 years because of the stance she took on the injustices. She died early this morning after collapsing on stage in Italy, a fitting place for her to spend her last moments. She was 76 years old.

In her dazzling career, Makeba performed with musical legends from around the world — jazz maestros Nina Simone and Dizzy Gillespie, Harry Belafonte, Paul Simon — and sang for world leaders such as John F. Kennedy and Nelson Mandela. "Her haunting melodies gave voice to the pain of exile and dislocation which she felt for 31 long years. At the same time, her music inspired a powerful sense of hope in all of us," Mandela said in a statement. He said it was "fitting" that her last moments were spent on stage. Source ABC News

The Pineta Grande clinic in Castel Volturno, near the southern city of Naples, said Makeba died of a heart attack.

Makeba collapsed on stage Sunday night after singing one of her most famous hits "Pata Pata," her family said in a statement. Her grandson, Nelson Lumumba Lee, was with her as well as her longtime friend, Italian promoter Roberto Meglioli. "Whilst this great lady was alive she would say: 'I will sing until the last day of my life'," the statement said.

Castel Volturno Mayor Francesco Nuzzo said Makeba sang at a concert in solidarity with six immigrants from Ghana who were shot to death in September in the town, an attack that investigators have blamed on organized crime. Yes, she took her last bow, fighting for a cause she believed in. Wow. That is profound on so many levels.

The death of "Mama Africa," as she was known, plunged South Africa into shock and mourning. "One of the greatest songstresses of our time has ceased to sing," Foreign Affairs minister Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma said in a statement. "Throughout her life, Mama Makeba communicated a positive message to the world about the struggle of the people of South Africa and the certainty of victory over the dark forces of apartheid and colonialism through the art of song." Source: ABC News

The world has, indeed, lost a true champion. Someone who perserved in raising awareness of the plight of South African in her songs, despite the odds that were against her. She was the first African woman to win a Grammy award. Her rise to international prominence started when she starred in the anti-apartheid documentary "Come Back, Africa" in 1959. Ms. Makeba is survived by her grandchildren, Nelson Lumumba Lee and Zenzi Monique Lee, and her great-grandchildren Lindelani, Ayanda and Kwame.

To read more about Miriam Makeba, CLICK HERE.....