WHAT IT IS
Onyx Cranium is a labor of love for readers desiring a form of entertainment based on critical thought, humor and honesty. Topics covered range from the seemingly trivial to larger moral and social issues. The site is written from a black/Negro/African American (non-immigrated descendants of slaves) viewpoint and does not apologize for doing so. Keep this in mind when the words “I,” “we” and “us” appear in articles. The editors of Onyx Cranium are based in
Los Angeles
but search for content beyond the local, state and national level. The majority of content is written by Gen Y black women with the occasional brother weighing in. There are no apologizes for this either. The purpose of Onyx Cranium is to provide a combination of relevance, amusement, sharp wit and humor through spoof sections, reviews and brief opinion columns. How do you distinguish fact from fiction on this site? The truth has a certain ring to it – just listen carefully.
WHAT IT AIN’T
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- Representative of All or Most Black People
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- Voice of All or Most Black Generation Y
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- Going to Forsake Truth/ Insight for Political Correctness
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LEGIT STATUS
The name Onyx Cranium, our logo and the tagline “Black Thought As Entertainment” have been registered with the United States Trademark Office and are legally owned. Please know that we are unaffiliated with any other website, periodical, product or anything else that has Onyx or Cranium in its title.
LOGO
Onyx Cranium is a euphemism for the black brain. Our logo of a fist fused with a cerebrum represents the creator’s (and staff’s) experience of growing up as Black/African American in America. Most of us were born in the late 1970s and were raised to have an ingrained respect for black conscious thought. A racial lens does not dictate every experience, but it does enhance and sometimes limit our perspective. The logo is the property of Onyx Cranium’s Creator/Editor-In-Chief who felt the concept matched perfectly with the website’s content. Keven Williams of KRJ Productions in Atlanta, GA brought the logo to life. Check out his ad on our homepage!
WEBSITE
The professional and sleek look of our very content driven site is due to the stellar work of Khalid Patterson who owns Thunderbuilt Entertainment based in Philadelphia. Want to know more about this innovative and affordable black owned business? Visit ThunderBuilt Entertainment when you get a chance.
WHAT WE WON’T DO
Bottom line – we’re a tiny outfit. We cannot afford to devote space on our site for debate or basking in any (well deserved) praise. Letters or emails to the staff of Onyx Cranium will not be deliberated or featured in any way on this website. This is a take-it-or-leave-it project and each reader is free to do one or the other, but nothing in between. Of course we will check our email and respond as promptly as possible where appropriate.
FATE OF HATE (E) MAIL
All mail of a physically threatening or harassing nature will be forwarded to the proper authorities and then dismissed from our thoughts and given no more of our valuable time. Find something more productive and less predictable to do.
FATE OF HATER MAIL
All mail that is simply bashing the site on non-threatening grounds will receive a courtesy automated email, but no follow-up email. We don’t have time for that either, though it may be helpful for you to get it off your chest. You’re welcome for the complimentary therapy.
DON’T SAY WE DIDN’T TELL YOU…
You’ll find a small, but healthy dose of profanity on this site. Onyx Cranium doesn’t believe it is gratuitous. You may think differently, but we’ll take that risk. Also, Onyx Cranium takes NO responsibility for information provided in any reader’s correspondence to us. If you are enraged, get involved in civic action. If you are contemplating suicide, please reconsider and seek counsel immediately. If you are terrified, disgusted or on the brink of madness due to the state of the world – welcome to the club, but we can’t direct you to the appropriate services.
IMAGES (PHOTOS AND ILLUSTRATIONS) ON THIS SITE
All photos and illustrations on OnyxCranium.com were legally purchased for use on this website. These images are not to be sold, duplicated or used for any purpose beyond adding context to this site. Photos and illustrations were chosen for their quality by Onyx Cranium staff. The race, income level and notoriety of the photographers/illustrators are not taken into account. Images are used based on the feel they give our written work. Unless otherwise stated, all people in photos are models who have no relation to, affiliation with or awareness of this website or its content.
A LITTLE MORE ABOUT THE SECTIONS
NewsFlash!
Featured Article: Factual fiction in the form of a news article or interview. This is as close to magazine writing as we get.
Onyx Observations: What the writers or those who report to our writers see on a daily basis. We try to take a deeper look but sometimes the subject is even too shallow for us to do so.
Retro Review
Black movies from the past century (that's before 2000) will are reviewed through the lens of a Gen Y sister.
Straight-to-DVD Review
Onyx Cranium offers reviews of Straight-to-DVD films that will keep in mind low budgets, budding careers and the challenges of this exploding market.
Document This!
This section focuses on a documentary by, about or impacting African Americans.
Ain't About Us’
The best stories aren't always our stories. Onyx Cranium reviews a films that don't focus on African Americans, but that still have a powerful impact. Everything that we need to know can't center on us, so we encourage you to expand your mind and your viewing options. Only films that Onyx Cranium feels are worthy of our attention and dollars will be featured in this section. Flicks of all types, time periods and genres will be the focus of this section.
Cancer. And my name is Onyx...A little insight based on what’s in the stars, in the world and on your mind. While we have mixed feelings about the predictive power of astrology, we do acknowledge that certain characteristics seem to fit certain signs. Working with this most rudimentary of fortune telling theories, we put our spotlight on the Zodiac sign of the moment and give some unsolicited advice that stops just short of a guaranteed prediction.
(And it don’t stop!)
Still Standin’
Onyx Cranium takes a look at black institutions, programs, products and organizations which have been around so long that they may have fallen off the radar. We attempt to figure out what keeps them going.
Still Happenin’
We take a look at events that are still huge news to those that experience them and should still be huge news to us. Unfortunately, there are countless casualties of mainstream news and its attempt to only focus on what happened yesterday.
Concept/Subject
Onyx permits a chosen concept or practice (i.e. Truth or Integrity) to interview a topic. Interviewing actual people is sometimes of very limited value. With an eye on African Americans, we seek a level of objectivity in getting to the bottom of the hype.
Hindsight
Onyx lets the past get in that ass! Based on the old saying that “Hindsight is 20/20,” a former issue or entity will interview its modern counterpart or evolution in an attempt to figure out if progression or regression has occurred.
This section examines both the obvious and inconspicuous trends that are generally questioned, shunned or denounced by Onyx Cranium. Featured trends are not limited to mainstream American culture or particular to black culture. Our criticism always comes with an opinionated and admittedly biased justification. Why else would we write about it?
Domestic and global trends are examined separately, but we attempt to recognize a connection when it’s present.
We profile an individual African American RainMaker whose personal ambition benefits those he or she touches.
Mixed Bag is a section for items that our readers can enjoy, but don't fit into the other sections on Onyx Cranium. Fiction, interviews, book or music reviews, and oddities that aren't easily categorized can be found here. Enjoy!
