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Earl Smith Earl Smith

Earl Smith

Illinois, United States

About Me

I am a retired journalist who founded Order of Kush International and its subsidiaries Kush University, Museum Africa, the Sons and Daughters of Africa Network and, most recently, the Adopt-A-School Program. I do not plan to retire from either endeavor anytime soon.

I am a firm believer and supporter of the right of all human beings to choose whatever lifestyle or belief they desire. Although I abhor labels, I am proud to assert that I am a libertarian and egoist, with a fervent belief in Ayn Rand-style Objectivism.

I love the Russian novelists, Dostovesky and Tolstoy in particular. South American writers, like Pablo Neruda and Jorge Luis Borges, follow close behind. In music, I absolutely swoon over Sergei Rachmaninov's Concerto Nos. 2 and 3. In art, the French Impressionists dominate. Gaugin and Matisse are my favorites. I recently discovered Ethiopian artists.

Finally, I deeply admire the resilience of the human spirit and its capacity to love and be loved.

Interests

Music:
I am eclectic when it comes to music, enjoying classical, blues, opera, salsa, rhythm and blues, rock -- you name it. I cry every time I hear Luciano Pavarotti sing Nessun Dorma from the Opera Turandot.

John Coltrane and Charlie Parker are my favorite jazz artists, with Nora jones, Miles Davis and Herbie Hancock following close behind.

In Pop music it's Nat King Cole, Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett. Doris Day is my all-time favorite female singer. My mother took me to see her movie "On Moonlight Bay" when I was thirteen years old, and I've been in love with her ever since. Some say it's unnatural for an African-American male to adore a white female singer, but to that I say: Doris Day is not the only one. I also love Barbra Streisand and Celine Dion.

Duke Ellington, Count Basie are favorites, too. So are Roberto Carlos, Marc Anthony, Marvin Gaye, Jerry Butler, Gladys Knight, Mina, and Nancy Wilson.
Movies:
The House of Sand and Fog, The Brothers Karamazov, Pink Panther, The Last Samurai, Pulp Fiction, Get Shorty, and others too numerous to mention.
Books:
The Brothers Karamazov, The Idiot, Notes From Underground, War and Peace, The Picture of Dorian Gray, The Fountainhead, Atlas Shrugged, Pablo Neruda's poems, Things Fall Apart.
Sports:
Baseball. I am a die-heart Chicago Cubs baseball fan. I loved basketball until Michael Jordan retired.
My Heroes:
The Thirteenth Century BC Pharaoh Akhenaten, Marcus Garvey, Malcolm X, my mother and father, Jerry Butler, Barack Obama.
Other Interests:
Cooking, writing, listening to music, developing web sites.

Friends (35)

Nonprofits (64)

Companies (14)

Communities (16)

Comments (2)

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  • Papillon
    The Papillon Foundation (04 Jul 2011 07:39 GMT)

    Hi Earl, you are welcome to have a look at the eductional inroads that The Papillon Foundation is making into poor areas in South Africa. We are listed on Ammado and our website is: www.papillonfoundation.com
    Regards, Stephen Smith

  • APA
    Aids Partnership Africa (16 Dec 2009 13:53 GMT)

    Thank you very much for adding APA.

ammado giving circle

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