Private phone conversations

 

Revisiting Instability and Violent Extremism in West Africa

DC Street Art

 In 2017, I published a book on street art in the District of Columbia. It can be purchased on Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075RT9G6H. This has been one of my more popular books, with over 100 copies of the paperback version selling from 2020 to 2022 alone, which is almost unprecedented for a book of photographs that wasn't from a nationally known photographer.

Most of the photos for that book were in digital format on a stand-alone hard drive which was destroyed when my house burned down in 2021, but I had a chance recently to go back to one of the areas where I saw some of the most striking street art, the Shaw Neighborhood of DC. Once the black entertainment Mecca of the District, it was home to notables like Cab Calloway and Sister Rosetta Sharpe and many others. Home to Howard University, where I ran a writing workshop for Rangel Foreign Affairs scholars each summer for the past eight years (except for 2020 and 2021 when the workshops were virtual, Shaw has some of the best street art--in my humble opinion. Even some of the wall tagging is extremely artistic.

Here are some samples taken on July 21 as I walked the streets after finishing my last workshop.

The Rangel Summer Enrichment Program

This month, July 2022, marks the 8th year that I've run the professional writing workshop for the scholars in the Rangel Summer Enrichment Program (SEP) at the Ralph Bunche International Affairs Center at Howard University. Eight years of enjoyable interactions with some of the brightest college students in the country who compete for 20 positions each summer where they come to Howard and learn about careers in foreign affairs. A heavy course load, briefings, field trips, socializing, and of course, my six-week boot camp in official writing.  I enjoyed working with them and hope that they got something useful out of it. This was my last course as my other commitments, and my moving out of the DC area, make it impossible for me to devote the proper amount of time to the program each summer. I will, however, always treasure the past 8 years.

Here are some photos taken on July 22 at the graduation ceremony.

 

Mr. Versatile: A Profile of DSP's Hitmaker Charles Ray

 A profile of me and my writing career Mr Versatile: A Profile Of DSP's Hitmaker Charles Ray (dspublishingnetwork.com)

Honesty vs integrity

 

Old enough to buy a gun

 

Dealing with ethical dilemmas

 

Top-selling western writers at DS Productions

 This painting of DS Productions' top-selling western writers was recently commissioned and imagine my surprise to see myself included in that august group. I'm the hombre on the left in the purple shirt.

When school shootings become routine news

 

Training children & pets