IS HE COOL OR IS HE JUST COAL? (FIND OUT HOW WANDE COAL REALLY IS IN PERSON!!!

Wande Coal & I

Wande Coal (Oluwatobi Wande Ojosipe), one of the most popular and most talented young Nigerian artist to hit the music scene has graced NYC with his presence. Performing at CPAC (Brooklyn, NY) on March 13, 2010 alongside the all so famous D-bang and Don Jazzy, this event was one that brought nearly everyone out their homes to witness the outstanding extravaganza. But who is this man on stage entertaining everyone? Who is this person that had females as well as males booming with excitement at the sound of his unique voice and music? Is he nice? Does his true character/personality compliment his achievements? These are just a few of the questions that invaded my mind until I was able to get first hand answers to them.

On Saturday March 20, 2010, my sister (Adetoro Ajibose) and I were blessed to have an opportunity to meet with "the man of the hour" at a cozy restaurant (Footprints) in Brooklyn, NY. Initially, not knowing what to expect, we assumed that the worst that could happen is that he would be a stuck up person, but boy did he surprise us. Wande Coal was more than a nice gentle man; he was respectful and very fun to be around.

Upon arrival, he immediately made us feel extremely comfortable and free. He made jokes and shared delicate information about his upcoming projects. As we waited for the food, we chatted and made small talk about everything ranging from the "cold" weather to life in Nigeria as opposed to the US. Of course one should be able to guess which life he prefer...NIGERIA. As we chatted, one thing was always obvious, and that is Wande's undeniable love for music. He repeatedly danced and sang along with the various music rendered by the DJ. At a certain point, we even sang old songs, and created our own hilarious lyrics. One thing was certain; our table did not lack laughter.

So the answer to the above question is...Wande is not just Coal, he is also very cool. Truth be told, it was a pleasure hanging out with him, and for all of you who are his fans out there, all I could say is, "let us continue to support this wonderful and talented man". The show that he did in NY was just a tease, because this man has an entire entrée of delicious goods that will soon knock your taste buds out.

My Sister (Adetoro Ajibose) and Wande Coal

Wande Coal & I Again

Wande Coal & I

CLARIFICATION OF CONDESCENDING STEROTYPES ABOUT NIGERIANS!!!

As I took a glance around the crowded New York City Penn Station in Manhattan, I was immediately reminded of the reason why America is continuously referred to as the “melting pot”. Within the limited area, hundreds of distinct faces ranging from Haitians to Mexicans, Chinese to Jamaican, Caucasian to Asian and much more can be observed all attending to the unique yet specific reasons that brought them to this particular location. As I witnessed this cultural conglomeration, I realized that with each distinct individual culture, there was a story to be told. For instance, a look at the Chinese women who spoke her native tongue to her two well behaved sons made my mind drift to a culture whose foundation was laid on discipline. With another glimpse, I noticed a well dressed Caucasian male who was waiting on a long line unconsciously tap his foot on the ground while looking at his watch. Immediately I thought of a fast pace life of living in the city. Finding this rather intriguing, I realized that people must think of something when they looked at me. I wanted to know, so I embarked on a quest to find out what others felt about my culture and people. After some probing of about thirty individuals, I realized that aside from some good comments that stated that Nigerians are beautiful, smart and happy people, the comments went downhill from there on. The remaining comments included that…..
1.) Nigerian men are all cheaters , users and womanizers
2.) Nigerian women are stuck up
3.) Nigerians in general are thieves
4.) NIGERIA is the next IRAQ
5.) Nigerians are ethnocentric for no reason
Perplexing isn’t it. You can imagine how it felt conducting these interviews with a straight face while taking in some of the unappealing and rather condescending remarks that individuals had to say about Nigeria. Although each individual is entitled to their own opinion, I do believe that it is very essential to clarify these stereotypes because they are in one way or another affecting all Nigerians as a whole.
Are All Nigerian Men Really Cheaters, Users and Womanizers?
Of course the simple answer is NO. I mean seriously, how in the world can an entire group of people all be cheaters, users, and womanizers. Don’t get me wrong, of course there are some Nigerian men out there that do fall under the radar, but it is just inconceivable to label every single one of them such absurdity. What I realized was that most people who had nothing but negative things to about Nigerian men all had bad experiences or knows someone or a few people who did. This however is not enough justification for anyone to generalize on an entire group. I personally know some Nigerian men who are happily married and whose thought process revolves around the idea that cheating on their wives is equivalent to consuming poison.
All Nigerian Women are stuck up?
To begin with, I am a Nigerian women and I do believe that I am NOT stuck up. Come to think of it, I know many Nigerian women that are very humble and would not snob their noses at anyone. So what does this say? It means that it is true that “a few bad apples can spoil the bunch”. Let us keep in mind however that within every cultural group, you will find stuck up people, but that does not mean that everyone within that group are snobs. Again bad experiences come into play for these negative stereotypes.
Nigerians are NOT all Thieves or 4.1.9ners!!!
To believe that all Nigerians are thieves and 4.1.9ners is absurd. As we all know, to numerous people worldwide, the #’s 419 might as well be just another set of numbers like 221, 520, or 449, but in a Nigerian mind, these numbers are registered as scams and frauds. The 419 scam which is named after a section of the Nigerian penal code dealing with fraud is currently practiced by more than 400,000 people worldwide. With recent arrests of an abundant number of scammers in the United States, and with the degrading images publicized by the media stereotyping all Nigerians, it is safe to say that we are all affected. Oprah said “all Nigerians - regardless of their level of education - are corrupt." With this statement, Oprah a very influential women without any remorse condemned an entire nation because of the evil act of an insignificant number of people. By doing, she along with other sources of media brought light to this crime, but at the same time, they left other innocent Nigerians to suffer by ruining the image of the entire nation. This is wrong, and I think that it is time to shed light to this situation. There are a vast majority of Nigerians who are well educated individuals and whose success was built on their sweat and blood. What about them, where does the mighty Oprah place these individuals in her stereotypical remark?
NIGERIA IS THE NEXT IRAQ
With the recent terrorist attempt by a Hausa man Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, it is no surprise that someone would utter such an insolent remark. I mean seriously, Nigeria as a whole is not the next Afghanistan or Iraq and it can never be. There are many tribes and it is not wise to say that Nigerians are terrorists because one Hausa man committed an atrocity. Nigeria is the next Afghanistan. According to Jay who wrote a blog on this particular topic, “Nigeria has had absolutely no record of international terrorism. The first and last one so far has been the situation of Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab. Please note that even this virgin case did not come without early warning to the US government from the much concerned father of the perpetrator to further paint the absurdity of this event to the average Nigerian family.” This is true. If all Nigerians were terrorists, Umar’s father would have NEVER contacted the US government, and the general population of Nigeria would not be as angry about the situation as they are. To my belief, Nigerians are angrier about this situation than the USA a hundred times over. This is behavior that we do NOT condone, and this is how things have always been and will most definitely remain.
Nigerians are Ethnocentric for No Reason
For once, of all the claims made about Nigerians, I actually partially agree with this one. Yes, many Nigerians are ethnocentric, but I do not believe that it is for no reason. Nigerian, even in all its political crises according to CNN has recently been named the happiest people in the world. Is this not enough to be excited? Nigeria is going to be 50 years old this year (2010). I think this is enough for us to be ethnocentric about. Despite all the negative stereotypes listed above and much more circulating about Nigeria as a whole, we still manage to remain optimistic and are still very strong minded people. We should embrace our culture. According to Webster Dictionary, Ethnocentrism is the tendency to believe that one's ethnic or cultural group is centrally important, and that all other groups are measured in relation to one's own. I see nothing wrong with Nigerians believing that we are centrally important, simply because we are. No matter the situations surrounding us, we will always raise above these condescending stereotypes.
TruthbeTold- So you have heard what the world has got to say about you. Now it is time to relate your response to the world. Above are my own personal opinions, but I strongly belief that yours count too. So please do respond to these stereotypes, and join me on this mission to if not completely eradicate, at least limit these stereotypes. My email again is twentwo2002@yahoo.com.

ONLY 20 AND NO LONGER ABLE TO BEAR CHILDREN!!! READ JOY'S STORY!!!

“He promised me the world and everything in it” she said. “He said that he was going to marry me, help me get my papers, and even put me through school because his love for me surpasses all odds, and I believed him” said Joy, a young lady of 20 years as she wiped away stubborn tears.
Joy met the man that she at the time thought was her knight in shining armor when she was only a 16 year old High School student and he a 22 years old college graduate. They met at a family friends’ wedding reception that she attended with her parents.
“I was walking down the stairs and he was standing around with a couple of his friends when he saw me and motioned towards me. He asked me my name and I told him my Nigerian name. He showered me with numerous compliments and made me feel so important and beautiful. Nobody ever made me feel so special, and it was also the first time that any guy bluntly came to me to express his feelings without the interference of friends. This made me realize that he was not like any regular guy that I have ever met. I knew he was mature, so when I too wanted to present myself in a mature manner. I informed him that I was eighteen years old, openly flirted with him throughout the night, and gave him my number upon his request” Joy said.
After several phone conversations, Joy went on a couple of dates with the guy and eventually developed feelings that even she couldn't control. She fell in love with the guy and according to joy; he was in love with her too. So in love that when she told him her actual age, he didn't bulge. Their mutual relationship turned sexual after a couple of more dates. Joy lost her virginity to him and was devastated when she found out that she was pregnant.
“I didn't know what to do” Joy said sobbing. “I was only sixteen and I knew I couldn't keep the baby, so I discussed it with him, and we both decided that an abortion was best. I told my parents that I was going to stay at my best friend’s house that weekend and I went in for the procedure. It was the worst thing that I ever did, also the most painful. It took a lot for me to do it, but I just couldn't let my parents know.”
“After this, I went on the pill and was back to normal until my first semester in college when I realized that I was pregnant again. Again, I confided in my boyfriend and he told me an abortion was the best way to go. I let him know that I couldn't go through another one. I informed him that since he had a stable job, and since I was now eighteen, together we are capable of taking care of a baby. My optimism however did not faze him. He was ready for to take care of a baby and told me neither was I.”
“He reminded me of my legal status which meant that I really couldn't get a decent job to take care of both myself and a baby. I knew he was right, and telling my parents wasn't an option. It took me two of months to come to grounds with myself, and then, I had no choice at the time but to go through yet another painful abortion. I wasn't so lucky this time around however, and some remains of the baby were left inside of me. I bleed uncontrollably and was rushed to the ER. I later found out that my womb was perforated, and I will not be able to carry another baby.”
“I cried myself to sleep every night after that. When I explained the situation to my boyfriend, he was perplexed and told me he needed some time to think the whole thing through. Days turned into weeks, and weeks into months and I still did not hear from him. When I called his cell phone, I found out that he had switched his number, and now I am left alone in this lonely world by myself. I tell this story not because I want to get advice, or pity, but rather because I felt the need to tell my story. I tell my story to inform everyone out there that this is real and it does happen. I also tell my story because I cannot dig up enough courage to tell my parents, but I know they will read the story here, this is why I decided to share this here. I am sorry mommy and daddy” Joy said sadly.
TruthbeTold- Joy is not the only one who has faced such painful ordeal; there are numerous Joys out there that are facing similar situations. It takes a lot for someone to come out and tell such traumatic experience, so I want to thank Joy for sharing her story. I hope many learn from her situation and think twice before making such drastic choices. Please feel free to comment and give Joy any advice that you feel is appropriate.

Below are statistics of abortions in the United States from (http://www.abortionno.org/Resources/fastfacts.html)
Number of abortions per year: 1.37 Million
Number of abortions per day: Approximately 3,700
Who's having abortions (age)?
52% of women obtaining abortions in the U.S. are younger than 25: Women aged 20-24 obtain 32% of all abortions; Teenagers obtain 20% and girls under 15 account for 1.2%.
Who's having abortions (race)?
While white women obtain 60% of all abortions, their abortion rate is well below that of minority women. Black women are more than 3 times as likely as white women to have an abortion, and Hispanic women are roughly 2 times as likely.
Who's having abortions (marital status)?
64.4% of all abortions are performed on never-married women; Married women account for 18.4% of all abortions and divorced women obtain 9.4%.
Who's having abortions (religion)?
Women identifying themselves as Protestants obtain 37.4% of all abortions in the U.S.; Catholic women account for 31.3%, Jewish women account for 1.3%, and women with no religious affiliation obtain 23.7% of all abortions. 18% of all abortions are performed on women who identify themselves as "Born-again/Evangelical".
Who's having abortions (income)?
Women with family incomes less than $15,000 obtain 28.7% of all abortions; Women with family incomes between $15,000 and $29,999 obtain 19.5%; Women with family incomes between $30,000 and $59,999 obtain 38.0%; Women with family incomes over $60,000 obtain 13.8%.
Why women have abortions
1% of all abortions occur because of rape or incest; 6% of abortions occur because of potential health problems regarding either the mother or child, and 93% of all abortions occur for social reasons (i.e. the child is unwanted or inconvenient).
At what gestational ages are abortions performed:
52% of all abortions occur before the 9th week of pregnancy, 25% happen between the 9th & 10th week, 12% happen between the 11th and 12th week, 6% happen between the 13th & 15th week, 4% happen between the 16th & 20th week, and 1% of all abortions (16,450/yr.) happen after the 20th week of pregnancy.
Likelihood of abortion:
An estimated 43% of all women will have at least 1 abortion by the time they are 45 years old. 47% of all abortions are performed on women who have had at least one previous abortion.
Abortion coverage:
48% of all abortion facilities provide services after the 12th week of pregnancy. 9 in 10 managed care plans routinely cover abortion or provide limited coverage. About 14% of all abortions in the United States are paid for with public funds, virtually all of which are state funds. 16 states (CA, CT, HI, ED, IL, MA , MD, MD, MN, MT, NJ, NM, NY, OR, VT, WA and WV) pay for abortions for some poor women.