HAPPY NEW YEAR

PUERTO RICO DAY 2

On our second day we visited Castillo de San Cristobal or Saint Christopher Castle. This is the largest fort in Puerto Rico, and the largest fortification built by the Spanish in the Western Hemisphere. Completed in 1785, it covers 27 acres of land and rises almost 150 feet above sea level. Built to guard against a land assault from the east, San Cristóbal is an example of the “defense-in-depth” architectural model. This was a tiered network of fortifications that would force an enemy to face several defensive barriers before the fort was breached. San Cristóbal fired the first shot of the Spanish-American War in 1898. In 1942, the U.S. army built World War II bunkers on the northen face of the fort.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

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DID YOU KNOW?

Paul Kelly was a New York criminal who founded the 'Five Points Gang', one of the last dominant street gangs in New York history . He recruited many of the most prominent criminals of the 20th century, including; Johnny Torrio, Al Capone, Lucky Luciano, and Meyer Lansky.

VIDEO MUSIC BOX SHOWING SOME LOVE!

Pep "Mr. Blog" and Ray Dejean

HISTORY OF CHRISTMAS

The middle of winter has long been a time of celebration around the world. Centuries before the arrival of the man called Jesus, early Europeans celebrated light and birth in the darkest days of winter. In Rome, where winters were not as harsh as those in the far north, Saturnalia—a holiday in honor of Saturn, the god of agriculture—was celebrated. Beginning in the week leading up to the winter solstice and continuing for a full month, Saturnalia was a hedonistic time, when food and drink were plentiful and the normal Roman social order was turned upside down. For a month, slaves would become masters. Peasants were in command of the city. Business and schools were closed so that everyone could join in the fun.

Also around the time of the winter solstice, Romans observed Juvenalia, a feast honoring the children of Rome. In addition, members of the upper classes often celebrated the birthday of Mithra, the god of the unconquerable sun, on December 25. It was believed that Mithra, an infant god, was born of a rock. For some Romans, Mithra's birthday was the most sacred day of the year.

In the early years of Christianity, Easter was the main holiday; the birth of Jesus was not celebrated. In the fourth century, church officials decided to institute the birth of Jesus as a holiday. Unfortunately, the Bible does not mention date for his birth (a fact Puritans later pointed out in order to deny the legitimacy of the celebration). Although some evidence suggests that his birth may have occurred in the spring (why would shepherds be herding in the middle of winter?), Pope Julius I chose December 25. It is commonly believed that the church chose this date in an effort to adopt and absorb the traditions of the pagan Saturnalia festival. First called the Feast of the Nativity, the custom spread to Egypt by 432 and to England by the end of the sixth century. By the end of the eighth century, the celebration of Christmas had spread all the way to Scandinavia. Today, in the Greek and Russian orthodox churches, Christmas is celebrated 13 days after the 25th, which is also referred to as the Epiphany or Three Kings Day. This is the day it is believed that the three wise men finally found Jesus in the manger.

By holding Christmas at the same time as traditional winter solstice festivals, church leaders increased the chances that Christmas would be popularly embraced, but gave up the ability to dictate how it was celebrated. By the Middle Ages, Christianity had, for the most part, replaced pagan religion. On Christmas, believers attended church, then celebrated raucously in a drunken, carnival-like atmosphere similar to today's Mardi Gras. Each year, a beggar or student would be crowned the "lord of misrule" and eager celebrants played the part of his subjects. The poor would go to the houses of the rich and demand their best food and drink. If owners failed to comply, their visitors would most likely terrorize them with mischief. Christmas became the time of year when the upper classes could repay their real or imagined "debt" to society by entertaining less fortunate citizens (history.com).

SLICK RICK THE RULER IS BACK!

Slick Rick & Pep "Mr. Blog"

EN VISITS PUERTO RICO

Christopher Columbus landed in Puerto Rico in 1493, during his second voyage, naming it San Juan Bautista. The Taínos, the indigenous people, called the island Boriquén Tierra del alto señor ("Land of the Noble Lord"). In 1508, the Spanish granted settlement rights to Juan Ponce de León, who established a settlement at Caparra and became the first governor. In 1519 Caparra had to be relocated to a nearby coastal islet with a healthier environment; it was renamed Puerto Rico ("Rich Port") for its harbor, among the world's best natural bays. The two names were switched over the centuries: the island became Puerto Rico and its capital San Juan. The United States anglicized the name to "Porto Rico" when it occupied the island in 1898 after the Spanish-American War. This spelling was discontinued in 1932. Puerto Ricans self-define as a homogenized Taíno, African, and Spanish mixture. Taínos were Amerindians who occupied the island before European domination. Then estimated at thirty thousand, they were reduced to two thousand by the seventeenth century through exploitative labor, disease, native uprisings, and emigration to the other islands. But many fled into the highlands or intermarried: Spanish immigration to the island was mostly male and interracial relations less stigmatizing than among Anglo settlers. The contemporary revival of Taíno identity is partially based on the survival of Taíno highland communities. Although the Spanish introduced slavery to replace a dwindling Taíno labor force, slavery never reached large proportions until the plantation system was fully implemented in the nineteenth century. However, there was a significant African influx of slave, indentured, and free labor. Chinese labor was introduced in the nineteenth century, and immigrants came from Andalusia, Catalonia, the Basque provinces, Galicia, and the Canary Islands. Threatened by Latin America's nineteenth century revolutions, Spain facilitated immigration through economic incentives, attracting other nationalities as loyalists fled republican uprisings. The nineteenth century also brought Corsican, French, German, Lebanese, Scottish, Italian, Irish, English, and American immigration. The U.S. occupation increased the American presence, and the 1959 revolution in Cuba brought an estimated 23,000 Cubans. Many Dominicans immigrated in search of economic opportunities; some use Puerto Rico as a port of entry into the United States. Tension and prejudice against these two groups have emerged. Americans, Cubans, and Dominicans tend to consider their presence in Puerto Rico temporary (everyculture.com). We highly recommend that you visit this country. Puerto Rico is rich with culture, nature and history.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

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COME PARTY WITH EN & PREMIUM LACES

Happy Birthday Pete (King of Kicks)

EMPERIAL NATION MEETS THE NY GIANTS

Pep aka Mr. Blog, Steve Smith


Pep aka Mr. Blog, Derrick Ward

EMPERIAL NATION @ THE JORGE TERON FIGHT

Pep (EN Marketing Manager), Zab Judah, Double A

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THIS WEEK IN HISTORY

DEATH OF JOHN LENNON

On the night of December 8^th, 1980 Mark David Chapman shot Lennon in the back four times (the fifth shot missed) in the entrance hallway of the Dakota. Lennon had autographed a copy of Double Fantasy for Chapman earlier that same night. Lennon was pronounced dead on arrival in the Emergency Room at the Roosevelt Hospital at 11:15 p.m. On the following day, 9 December 1980, Ono issued a statement: "There is no funeral for John. John loved and prayed for the human race. Please pray the same for him. Love, Yoko and Sean.” Chapman pleaded guilty to second degree murder and was sentenced to 20 years to life. He is still in prison, having been denied parole five times. Two days after his death, Lennon's body was cremated at Ferncliff Cemetery in Hartsdale, New York. The whereabouts of Lennon's ashes are not definitively known.

PAPERMAG SHOWING SOME LOVE TO 323 EAST (DETROIT)

Andrew W.K. is rocking our Bad News Tee in purple....www.emperialnation.com

In an uncharacteristic move, we here at PAPERMAG decided to look beyond our safe little New York lives and chose to celebrate nightlife on a much larger scale by including "America's Best Party" in the roster of People's Choice categories at this past Sunday's Nightlife Awards. The people, as they say, have spoken, and after an online voting competition, deemed Funk Night, Detroit's monthly throw-down, the best party in America. Andrew W.K., himself a Michigan native, had the pleasure of announcing the award at Sunday night's award show, which was pretty exciting. The Funk Night crew flew all the way to NYC for the awards ceremony (check out the photos above), and we were able to ask promoter Mike MakCool a couple questions about his legendary party.

So tell me, what exactly is Funk Night all about?
Funk Night is an all night party on the last Friday of every month, with two DJs, Frank Raines and Brad Hales, and the occasional guest or live funk group. The two DJs are some of the biggest funk and soul 45 collectors in the Midwest, and play some of the rarest funk available, meaning only original 45 vinyl all night long. The party was started by Scott Craig about eight or nine years ago and when he moved out of the city he passed full reigns over to Frank and Brad. Over the last year Funk Night has been moving around Detroit to various locations with my help (tour detroit / MKL Productions).

Why do you think it deserved to win America's Best Party?
Funk Night has been one of the best parties in Detroit consistently for years now, and it has a large and devoted crowd of people who like to get down and let loose. It has one of the most diverse crowds you could imagine, and brings out the best of Detroit. Detroit being one of the best party cities in the country, and Funk Night being one of the best parties in the D, it seems to be a good fit.

How would you describe the Detroit party scene -- what's it like these days?
Like I said, Detroit is one of the best places to party. We have some really great music coming out of Detroit, and we are pretty spoiled. Dance parties go harder and longer than anywhere else. We like it grimey, we like it hard, and we love to have a lot of fun, let it all go and just dance. From dance, electro, techno, disco, hip-hop, DJs, live music and anything in between and with a lot of crossover, there are a lot of influences to develop what a Detroit party is today.

Anything you'd like to say to your legions of supporters who voted for you?
A big thank you, because the people in Detroit are what makes it all happen. It was great to see what Detroit can pull together in just a few short days, Funk Night def has a lot of support and it showed. Special shout outs to Peoples Records and 323East.

323 EAST carries Emperial Nation...check them out below!

323 EAST
323 E 4th St.
Royal Oak, MI 48067

GALLERY EXHIBITION DOWN UNDER

sponsor by yours truly...

TEES INSPIRED BY THANKSGIVING

Discovey Tees from our Wild West collection.




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DVAZQUEZ B-DAY PARTY

CANON TEES ARE LOOKING GOOD....

Pep (EN marketing manger), Dvazquez (hot 97), Jorge Teron (boxing champion)


Dvazquez & Jorge Teron


Dj Kay Slay and the EN crew


Hino from the hit boxing series The Contender

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