“Hoodwinked,” “Black People Don’t Read” and The World According To Janks Morton

By Gary A. Johnson, Black Men In America.com

My main man Janks Morton and I will be getting the band back together next week to promote his new movie “Hoodwinked,” the much anticipated and long awaited sequel to the movie “WHAT BLACK MEN THINK.”  Janks Morton is one of the best storytellers in the business.  He is to many, the voice of the unheard.  Janks is part of a growing underground that is beginning to surface and gain more attention.  He’s his own man and is deserving of wider recognition.

This is where guys like me come in.  People who own and control their own media who work together with other media owners to collectively educate our community and facilitate a constructive dialogue.  Black Men In America.com has a wide reach in the Black community.  Janks and I living proof that black folks can come together and work toward a common goal.  We’ve done it for years.  Do we agree on everything?  No!  However, we agree on the IMPORTANT things.  Actually, we agree on most things.  Janks Morton is a “submarine deep” thinker who works tirelessly doing the work of others to help dispel myths and stereotypes about Black people.  He is not to be taken lightly.

For those of you who don’t know about Janks Morton read the information below from his official web site and watch the movie trailer for “Hoodwinked.”

Here’s some of the thoughts and logic that drive the behavior of my friend Janks, who I affectionately call, “The Man from Mars.”

For over four-hundred years, the majority white society has used many tools to reinforce a message that the peoples of African descent are less-than, not-equal-too or not-good enough. In this modern era of information, the media, government and special interests use statistics to further promote the message of Black inferiority. What troubles me most, is that we as a people have internalized the misinformation, embraced the myths, and perpetuated the stereotypes, sadly reinforcing a collective misperception of our own identities.

Here’s a quick test of how we perceive ourselves – Excluding athletics, entertainment or religion, name a positive stereotype about African Americans. I’ll wait…

Most African-Americans have a challenging, if not impossible time summarizing our collective experience into one positive statement of group-worth. Sadly if I were to ask you the same question about other racial groups, you would rattle off quickly “smart,” “hard-working,” “and “good with money.” This is a testament to how we have allowed Black identity to be twisted and maligned, while also adopting this societal defamation of character as our own belief set.

WHAT IS HOODWINKED ABOUT?

Hoodwinked will be an exploration of the most recent data being released by the US Census, DOJ, DOE, DOC and the CDC to highlight strides and achievements in the African American community. It will feature expert contributors, man on the street interviews, anchor desk headline reporting, and the return of Janks Morton and his “Board of Education” to examine further the symbiotic relationship between media, government and special interest, as they exploit imagery, statistics and data that too often presents a skewed perspective of the modern era African American experience.

BLACK PEOPLE DON’T READ is a comprehensive summary of Data and Statistics from the most recent US Census Bureau, Department of Justice, Department of Education and other agencies around the state Blacks in America. BLACK PEOPLE DON’T READ is a tool to not only refute the plethora of misinformation that exists about Black Identity, but also as a conversation starter around many positive data points, too often missed by the media and seldom discussed at the barbershop.

Click here to learn more.

Dr. Boyce Watkins, Michael Eric Dyson, Steve Perry, Marc Lamont Hill Sign on For New Film

By Gary A. Johnson

My friend, Janks Morton called me last week to announce that he had secured an agreement with Dr. Boyce Watkins, Michael Eric Dyson, Dr. Steve Perry, Marc Lamont Hill and other leading black male scholars to take part in his film “Hoodwinked,” a documentary about the state of the black male in America.  This was a long time coming.  Good things come to those who wait.  I know that Janks has been working hard to (these are my words) “re-frame Black America’s reality,” when it comes to the image of black men.  I have always said that my role as Publisher of Black Men In America.com is to maintain a “truthful balance” when it comes to the image of black men in the media.  People like Janks, Dr. Boyce, Steve Perry, Michael Eric Dyson, Marc Lamont Hill and countless others like them, most of whom are NOT household names, makes my job easier.

Listen up America.  Janks Morton is on a mission.  He will not stop and you cannot hold him down.  Like Morton’s groundbreaking film, “What Black Men Think,” “Hoodwinked,” is designed to challenge many of the prevailing myths about black male underachievement and incarceration.  Here are some of the statistics that Morton presents as an alternative to prevailing perceptions:

There are more Black Males in College# than in Jails, Prisons, Private Corrections, Military Jails and Institutions for the Criminally Insane combined#

(1,236,443 in College/841,000 Incarcerates – regardless of age)

4 to 1: The ratio of 18-24 year old Black Males in College# vs. Jails, Prisons, Private Corrections, Military Jails and Institutions for the Criminally Insane#.

(674,000 in College/164,400 Incarcerates)

32.3% (1 in 3) Black Males ages 18-24 are enrolled in College#

(674,000 in College/2,082,000 Total)

1.37 to 1: The ratio of 18-24 year old Black Females enrolled in College to Black Males#.

(930,000 Black Females Enrolled/674,000 Black Males Enrolled)

6.3%: Black Males (age 18-55+) enroll in College at a higher rate by sex than White Males and Hispanic Males and are surpassed only by Asian Males#.

(Black Males is 6.3%, White Males is 5.8%, Hispanic Males is 4.7%, and Asian Males is 9.7%)

25.1% of Black Males (age 25 or over) have either an Associates, Bachelors, Masters, Professional, or Doctoral Degree#.

(2,519,000 with Degrees/10,018,000 Total)

82.1% of Black Males (age 18 or over) have at least a High School Diploma or GED# .

(9,897,000 with HS Diploma or GED/12,044,000 Total)

12.1%: The Black Male Dropout Rate# (ages 16-24) for 2008.

(301,000 Dropouts/2,583,000 Total)#

5.1%: Percent of married Black Men who marry White Women#

(279,000 Black Husband-White Wife/5,654,000 Married Black Men)

88.8%: Percent of Black Males earning income# ages 25-64 (employment)

(7,899,000 Employed/8,893,000 Total)

$23,738: Average Income for Black Males# 15 and older

$19,470 Average Income Black Females

1,812,000 The number of Black Men making $50,000/year or more#

71.6% of Black Men pay their agreed to or Court Awarded Child Support#

(855,000 Payers/1,194,000 Recipients)

$253 Billion: Total Income earned by Black Males# (15 and over)

($262 Billion earned by Black Females)

13,104,000 Total Black Men age 15 or over#

(15,816,000 Total Black Females age 15 or over)

Janks Morton describes “Hoodwinked” will be an exploration of the most recent data being released by the US Census, DOJ, DOE, DOC and the CDC to highlight strides and achievements in the African American community. It will feature expert contributors, man on the street interviews, anchor desk headline reporting, and the return of Janks Morton and his “Board of Education” to examine further the symbiotic relationship between media, government and special interest, as they exploit imagery, statistics and data that too often presents a skewed perspective of the modern era African American experience.

Watch the video below to learn more about Janks Morton.