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September 25, 2004

Message from Jessie, Aaron's Mother

My name is Jessie Cunningham and I am the mother of Aaron Hawkins. Mere words cannot begin to express our gratitude at the outpouring of love and support we have received from Aaron's Internet family. Your postings to his site and the many online memorials have been overwhelming. My hope is that Aaron knows how much he was loved and respected.

The blog will continue! We are working out the details, but rest assured it will be here.

We are planning a memorial service for Aaron at one of his favorite coffee houses, so check back for the details.

If you read Aaron often you know he had passionate opinions about many things, including politics. If you really want to honor him this year, please register and vote on November 2, 2004.

You can write me at Morning Praises to You at aol.com or keep sending messages to val at valsadie.com.

You can download an Adobe Reader PDF version of the cover of the funeral program at A Celebration of Life.

Obituary
Aaron Hawkins, 34, was born in Chicago on January 12, 1970, to Stephen and Jessie Hawkins.

During elementary school on Chicago's south side, Aaron participated in a youth program at WBEZ, Chicago's public radio affiliate, marking the beginning of his role as a media personality. He graduated, begrudgingly, from Homewood-Flossmoor High School in 1988 and from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1995 with a degree in linguistics. Aaron was in the Naval Reserves during college, and in late 1990, he was called to active duty and sent to Saudi Arabia for six months. Aaron faced his involuntary call to active duty with the same irreverence he faced everything else in his life--forced to serve in the food line, he wrote "Stop Big Daddy Bush's Oil War" on his hat.

After college, Aaron spent several years in the computer industry, eventually starting his web log--or blog--uppity-negro.com. There, Aaron built a community of people who came to appreciate and rely on his insightful commentary on everything from the second War in Iraq to drag kings.

Aaron left us way too soon on September 3.

There was a story about Aaron's passing in RedHerring.com, Bloggers mourn a lost brother.

Also, Aaron's passing is mentioned during the Blogosphere News for 09/26/2004 online radio webcast.

The Chicago Sun-Times also did a story, which appeared on page five of their September 17, 2004 edition, Fans flood Internet with grief at blogger's death, by Lucio Guerrero.

September 9, 2004

This is the Hardest Thing I've Ever Had to Write

This is Val, Aaron's sister. My family and I are still working out what we wanted to say and do on the site. But at this time, however briefly, I thought it was best to confirm that yes, Aaron did pass away. We found out for certain yesterday. Please write me at val at valsadie.com or valsadie at aol.com for information on the funeral arrangements.

September 7, 2004

From Val, Sister of Aaron - The Hiatus Continues

Sorry, all, Aaron's not back yet.

He did leave the following entry...

First, at Women and Children First:
Time: Monday, September 13, 2004 7:30 PM
Location: 5233 N. Clark
Title of Event: Marjane Satrapi: Persepolis II

Marjane Satrapi: Persepolis II
The follow-up to her dazzling 2003 debut Persepolis, Marjane Satrapi's new installment of graphic-memoir follows her journey to high school in Vienna in 1984 and her return to her native Tehran four years later.
Who knows? Perhaps we won't have invaded Iran before the 13th. . .

Back to Val:
Aaron left more to the entry as to another upcoming event (as of September 3) but we're all still working on confirming that part of message. Aaron didn't leave a lot of details, but we're hoping to sort it all out in time.

Meanwhile, as I posted in a previous comments section, there was interesting news over the weekend:

Black history unearthed
Archeologists in Pike County, Ill., are exposing traces of the first town founded in the United States by an African-American
By James Janega
Chicago Tribune staff reporter
Published September 5, 2004

BARRY, Ill. -- The farm field grew corn and native grass for years, the sun-baked land hiding what remained of the first town a black man had founded in the United States.

More than a century after the 1836 town of New Philadelphia disappeared into the prairie, scholars digging here hope its broken pots, hand-forged nails and buried garbage will fill in details of life on the nation's old northwest frontier.

But historians also say the summer dig in western Illinois has unearthed significant gaps in what is known about black Americans from that time, as differing interpretations have been presented for why blacks and whites lived side-by-side here on the frontier.
Read on...

Also, check out the new Margaret Cho poster from the American Library Association (ALA) on her blog (see 9/2/2004), at http://margaretcho.net/blog. What people don't know is that they themselves can go ahead and buy the READ posters that you see in libraries directly from ALA. Margaret Cho's poster should be available in a matter of weeks at the ALA Online Store, at http://alastore.ala.org. Margaret is holding the forthcoming book, Almost Home, by Damien Echols of the West Memphis Three.

Anyone wanting to contact me can write me at val at valsadie.com.