Unbothered: The Life and Crimes of Doris Payne

I don't see many movies on the big screen.  The last grown-up film that I can remember watching in the theater was Dreamgirls when I was pregnant.  Or maybe it was The Help.  In any event, it's pretty sad; my parents have seen Straight Outta Compton and The Perfect Guy- I have not.  However, I do enjoy a good documentary and The Life and Crimes of Doris Payne is one of the best that I have seen in a long while.  You know when you watch something and it's so good that you either:

a) want to watch the entire thing again b) text all of your friends and tell them to watch it?

It's that good.

My first exposure to Doris Payne came a few years ago.  If I remember correctly, I was teaching Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man in 7th and 8th grade LE and we were discussing the trickster in the African-American literary tradition.  I came across an article about a female jewel thief in her 80's, and we ending up having a debate about whether she was a hero, a criminal, or both.  Ever since then I have been (not-so) patiently waiting for this documentary to come out.

Brer Rabbit, the original trickster

I must say that watching Doris Payne on screen in her 80's is inspiring.  The way that she artfully applies her Chanel make-up and combs her white bob into place is like an actress getting into costume.  The thought that she puts into details of her appearance (pale lavender nails and animal print flats) puts me to shame.

Say Yes to the Dress!

The Life and Crimes of Doris Payne is interesting because it is about the power and pathology of physical beauty.   The way that Payne presented herself was crucial to the success of her cons.  She was able to get rich, white people to ignore her blackness at the height of segregation because of the way that she styled and carried herself.  Her crimes (or "campaigns" as she calls them) were victories against racism as she used her looks and her intelligence to outmatch her victims.

Ironically, there is nothing remarkable about Payne's physical features.  In The Bluest Eye,  Toni Morrison refers to "the cloak of ugliness" that Pecola puts on that makes her unattractive.  Doris Payne demonstrates that there is also a "cloak of beauty".  She was attractive because she believed it to be so.  And because she believed it, so did others.

She was described as "sharply dressed" and "looking like a model" in her police reports.

Doris Payne's success as a jewel thief was due to her skills as an actress, as well as her looks. Actresses are professional liars and Payne is riveting to watch.  I wonder why the filmmakers did not make more of an effort to verify her stories about her childhood and her children.  Her mother was a Cherokee? That's what we all say.  Her son, who is clearly an addict, never asked her for any money?  Ok.  Perhaps they wanted viewers to do the work of figuring out what was true and what was not.

One of the most interesting scenes in the film was when Payne was caught lying to her probation officer about being with the filmmakers when she was not.  She first got angry and then tried to make him feel guilty for her lie.  Hmmmm.  Very familiar.  The thing that is refreshing about Payne is that she seems to know when she's lying, as evidenced by the final scene in the film.

Is Doris Payne a liar? Yes.  Is she a psychopath?  Probably.  Does she have anything to show for the 2 million dollars without of jewels she stole?  No.  But as her daughter says, she lived her life the way that she wanted to live it.  With joy and without apologies.

Watch the trailer and then see the film on Netflix. I'm about to go watch it again!

Peque Vinos and Tapas

If you aren't careful, you can leave Peque Vinos and Tapas happily tipsy and broke; the food and wine are just that good! Located at 235 West 145th Street, Peque is in the former location of  Mountain Bird.  The interior is cozy and intimate, and the tables are accented with beautiful decorative plates featuring the portraits of fabulous women of color.

Peque has an extensive wine list that includes several wine based cocktails and a delicious red-wine Sangria.  Happy Hour is Tuesday through Friday from 5-7, and includes $6.00 Sangria.  The photograph below doesn't do the generous size of the glass justice!

There is also a wide variety of tapas to choose from.  James and I started off with cheese, which was served with grapes roasted in extra virgin olive oil.  We then ordered artichoke hearts and chorizo.  Once Kyle arrived we ordered grilled mushrooms, meatballs, shrimp in garlic sauce, and cheesecake for dessert.  I could have continued ordering but decided to leave some menu items undiscovered for my return visit with Chloe!  Peque is a warm, relaxed place that is the perfect location for anything from an evening out with friends and family to a romantic date.  Brunch begins this Sunday, October 18th!

Black Art Saturday

It's surprising how many middle-school children come to school with wet coughs, clammy skin,  and feverish eyes.  Despite all efforts to dodge their projectile germs, by the time they come to my desk assuring me that "they feel much better, " I have already begun to feel sweaty and chilly at the same time.  Nevertheless, Saturday was one of those rare fall days not to be missed.  The temperature was  in the mid 60's, but the sun made it feel much warmer.  I lured Chloe away from the television and out of the house with promises of empanadas from La Sonrisa at The Highline.  Our first stop was the new Hudson Yard Station at 34th Street and 11th Avenue.  We rode the escalator up and down looking at the mosaics by Xenobia Bailey.    

Artist Xenobia Bailey

Next, we walked the length of The Highline to The Whitney Museum to see the Archibald Motley: Jazz Age Modernist exhibit.  My first exposure to Motley's work was seeing his painting "The Octoroon Girl" used as cover art for Nella Larsen's novel Passing. 

Octoroon Girl

When the elevator opened onto the 8th Floor it was thrilling to see the purple and brown walls filled with vibrant painting of African-Americans.  Chloe noticed that Motley's portraits were realistic looking, while the other paintings looked more like "animation." His use of blue and green tones to highlight the diversity of African-American skin tones was beautiful and unexpected.  His paintings were inspired by locations as diverse as Chicago, Paris, and Mexico.  

Archibald Motley: Jazz Age Modernist is on view at The Whitney Museum of American Art until January 17th.

No Room for Debate

Elizabeth Catlett, Invisble Man

Don’t ask me how I became the head of the debate team.  It’s laughable that my name and the word “coach” would ever exist in the same sentence.  Competitions make me anxious because I feel too deeply for the losers.  But, I guess these are the breaks when you are a new employee.  You have to take the assignments that others have been wise enough to avoid.

Every Wednesday I meet with a group of around twenty 6th-8th graders for an hour.  During that time the students conduct research on both sides of a topic determined by the debate league that we belong to.  They have to be knowledgeable about both the proposition and opposition positions because they are not told what side of the issue they will be asked to argue until the day of the debate.  On Saturdays they compete against other private and charter school students. 

When I opened up my email earlier in the week, I read that one of the three topics was “Ban the public displays of Confederate symbols.”  Today, as I copied the statement onto the whiteboard in purple Expo marker, I shook my head at the insensitivity of the topic.  Dylan Roof killed nine Americans in a church in June, and here we are in October asking MIDDLE SCHOOL students research arguments justifying the display of Confederate symbols.  People can be so clueless at times.

I didn’t really get angry until I sat down with the one black girl on the team (also the only black person in the 8^th grade).  She was very clear about the fact that she didn’t like the topic, and she asked me to send a letter to the organizers in protest.  I don’t need to imagine how uncomfortable she felt having to research a topic that made her race especially salient.  Luckily, her teammates were pretty disgusted with the topic as well- either that or they were scared of her :)

As we sat there in front of our laptops, I thought about all of the crazy ways that this scenario could play out on the day of the debate.  Imagine one of the all black charter school teams (who are sometimes mocked and always underestimated) standing up defending the display of the Confederate flag, while the all white the private school team makes the opposite argument.  Who would I root for in that contest??

Or what if the debate organizers decided that the charter school team should argue against the display of the Confederate symbols and the black kids ended up losing the debate?  How self-esteem shattering would that be?  

Yes, it is important for children to learn about all sides of an issue and understand the perspectives of the parties involved.  However, asking a twelve year old black child to stand in front of a room of adults and her peers and justify the display of the Confederate flag four months after a racially motivated mass shooting is a slap in the face.

In America, we would never ask Jewish children to defend the use of Nazi symbols in a debate.  I would hope that we would know better than to ask Native American students to argue in favor of the Redskins team name and logo.  Why then, would we ask children who are the descendants of those who survived slavery to stand up in front of an audience and defend the use of symbols glorifying it?  What kind of hotmessmindfuckery is that?   Think about the dissonance that that would cause a black child.

And what of the white students?  Some were able to approach the activity as a purely intellectual exercise, but a few of the older students were savvy enough to understand that they were copying language coded with racism into their carefully organized GoogleDocs.  I wondered what assumptions would be made about them (fairly or unfairly) if they were a little too convincing in their arguments in the opposition on the day of the debate.  If they are chosen to defend the display of Confederate symbols, do they lose on purpose in order to avoid being perceived as a  racist? 

The most aggravating part of this is the fact that this topic was chosen by people who probably did not consider any of these issues.  (Did they assume that all of the debaters would be white kids with no emotional investment one way or the other?)  

Because of the ignorance of the organizers, I am put in the position of the black person who has to educate grown people about race and risk being called "oversensitive".  Or even worse, I am asked to turn moments of black discomfort into a "teachable moments" for white people.  YUCK.

In Ralph Ellison’s novel, Invisible Man, the vet tells the narrator to “play the game, but don’t believe in it.”  That is my usual strategy when I'm on Central Park West.  Unfortunately, this is one game that I can not play.

The Fall Five

Fall is here.  Gone are the days of waking up when my body feels like it, throwing on my favorite pair of jean shorts, and exploring the city with Chloe.  These days I'm up at 6am and so exhausted that I can barely speak by 2:55pm.  Teaching is a delicate balance of pushing children past where they feel comfortable, while simultaneously keeping them from hating you.  It's harder than it looks! 

Below is a list of the things that are currently helping to ease my transition back into work mode.

1. Lianne La Havas, Blood.  I loved Lianne La Havas's first album, Is Your Love Big Enough? and her second album of soul/folk songs doesn't disappoint.  Her work is a combination of vulnerability and  righteous indignation, fueled by her strident voice and her guitar.  My favorite songs are "What You Don't Do," and "Grow."  Prince is a fan, so you don't have to take my word for it.

Listen to La Havas cover Jill Scott's "He Loves Me."

2.  Perfect Match Nail Color in "Mi Amor." A few years ago manicures were an occasional indulgence for me, but now I feel naked without one.  Gel manicures are the best because I don't have to worry about my nails chipping when I am digging in my bag or smudging while I am talking out Chloe's braids.  Having freshly painted, shiny nails helps me feel put together, and I love this not-too-dark/not-too-light nude color for fall.  The great thing about Perfect Match is that they have corresponding non-gel colors for my pedicures.

3. Nars Audacious Lipstick in "Leslie," and Sephora MicroSmooth Baked Blush in "Rose Emotion.  If I don't have lipstick on when I come to work my students are the first to let me know that all is not right with the world.  I am giving my red lipstick a break for fall and going back to the rich browns that I wore in high-school and college.  "Leslie," billed as a "cherrywood" color is both moisturizing and long lasting.

I discovered this blush while shopping in Sephora with Alexis. It is intensely pigmented and gives me more color than the blush that I usually wear.   I love that the Sephora collection products are so affordable because after spending $32 dollars on Nars Lipstick, my cosmetics budget is basically finished :/

4. The Sugar Hill Children's Museum of Art and Storytelling.  Chloe and I stopped into this museum on Sunday and  I was pleasantly surprised by how nice it is.  Designed for children ages 3-8, the museum is part of The Sugar Hill Project which seeks to meld affordable housing with cultural education as a means of encouraging neighborhood revitalization.  Families can engage workshops in the spacious art studio and visit works by Elizabeth Catlett and Romare Bearden on loan from The Studio Museum in Harlem.  Furthermore, the website says that the space will be available for birthday parties facilitated by museum educators.  This is a great place to bring restless kids to create art and make new friends on the weekends; I wish that it was around years ago when Chloe was younger.

5. The Heart Goes Last, by Margret Atwood.  Imagine a world characterized by violence and unemployment where people live in their cars and are afraid to walk through the park.  In the dystopian world of Margaret Atwood's The Heart Goes Last, The Positron Project aims to be the solution to these problems.   The project offers people the opportunity to live in a flourishing suburb six months out of the year, if they agree to live in prison the other six months.  A biting commentary on the prison industrial complex  and corporate culture, The Heart Goes Last  illustrates Atwood's point in The Handmaid's Tale that "[people] can get used to anything, as long as there are a few compensations."