As I surfed the racism and discrimination tag surfer I came across a post that sounded promising. It was called The Afronista Rants #7: Sorry, MLK , The War Ain’t Over Yet. I mean from the title and how the post starts I thought this was going to be an insightful strong view. And all I got was disgusted and basically pissed off. I almost wished I had not seen it, but then I wouldn’t be able to address some of the views that we have of our own. It is pretty obvious that this person is channeling Bill Cosby or at least studies at his school of non thought. So basically this was a reply that ran hella long so became a post instead. So bare with me.
Wow, is this post supposed to be inspiring? I was with you for at least a paragraph or two. But as I read on this seems to have lapsed into nothing more than the same stereotypical tripe that is being force fed to the masses constantly with the help of Bill Cosby and the like. You speak about the fact that the war isn’t over, and you are right at least about that one thing.
The war isn’t over, but the war isn’t with us like you think. The last time I checked blacks weren’t holding the positions of power in which to deny jobs to other blacks. But that is beside the point. Let’s just go and address the articles main points, shall we. You talk about how we oppress ourselves more than the white man ever could. And you might be right from looking at your thoughts on the black community. But the sad cold facts are that in the game of oppression the majority still reigns supreme.
Talking white, acting white, Uncle Tom, etc. You claim that these are all things said to other blacks to make them feel guilty for succeeding. Um, what? That is a load of crap. Acting or talking white, which I doubt very seriously is even being used as often as people like you claim, is not about people doing well. It is about people who have a propensity to speak proper English, which by the way is no indicator of how well you are doing. My son has just finished going to an ALL black school where he was on the honor role as well as being in honor and AP classes, and has not been called that. I guess it may be regional.
I also, never suffered those names and neither has my significant other who was a math major and went to a school for the gifted while living in an all black neighborhood. My sister who kept a 4.0 all through her school career has also never suffered from this form of taunting. We lived in a black neighborhood as well. I am not saying it doesn’t happen, but I am saying that I have talked to too many people who would definitely have been candidates for this talk who don’t know anyone suffering this as well. Not to mention we are all successful now and live in an all black neighborhood that anyone who can see, would consider the ghetto. And that is by choice. And I have yet to be called anything other than neighbor.
And Uncle Tom is a whole other beast in itself. Also, having nothing to do with how well a person “plays the game” or so called game. It is about a black person who will sell the rest of the black community down the river to get ahead. Now unless this is the “game” you are talking about, then maybe you are right. But, then again if this IS the game then I would think that this would be a bad thing, deserving of some derogatory name. You see, to a LOT of black people, we can do well AND help the black community at the same time. Success doesn’t have to be mutually exclusive. And maybe that is the problem.
Just because a person spots an Uncle Tom doesn’t have to mean that they somehow failed the game, or can’t play the game. This kind of talk is just a cop out in order to justify leaving the black community in the dust in order to win at this so called “game”. People act like they can never see pointing out these blacks is anything other than envy, jealousy or what have you. And since it goes deeper than just the same stereotypical thoughts, you might need to think outside the box to understand.
Black people segregate themselves far worse than the Jim Crow laws. Wow, just wow. I guess you haven’t heard of Red lining, gentrification or discriminatory and predatory lending practices. All of these practices were and are designed to keep the “majority” of blacks in specific areas. But, hey, don’t let me rain on the bash black parade. I guess all it takes for blacks to get out into those exclusively white dominated housing markets is to turn on a bit of “other people’s music”. Because lord knows that blacks love crummy neighborhoods and choose to stay there whenever possible.
I am guessing the fact that black unemployment is over twice that of the general white dominated population is just a fluke. I suppose, to you blacks are just a lazy bunch of do nothings who refuse to try new things. At least this is what your writing looks like to me. You of all people should realize that the black community is not this monolith we are generally seen as. You have people from every walk of life who decide to ONLY stick to the music they have grown up with. That isn’t some sort of black trait that signifies uncouth uncultured people. You seem to have a narrow mind when looking at the black community.
Just because one is born in a middle class neighborhood doesn’t mean they need to stay there as well, and the same can be said for upper class neighborhoods too. And what makes you think you know how much determination there is with each new generation of blacks? I am curious to know. And what circumstances surround these new generations who lack determination? Or do you know or even care? You are great at naming symptoms of this disease we in America live in, all the while seeming to gloss over or better yet ignore the facts of the actual disease.
Black people want to be rappers or sports stars? And why would this be? Would this be because if they turn on their televisions, radios or internet, they see that blacks, who were once relegated to those crappy neighborhoods as you put it, were able to use those means to bust out of the crappy place? Is this a black trait; are black children the only ones who have dreams of entertainment or sports? Because the last time I checked there were kids from every walk of life aspiring to be stars of some sort.
And I guess you don’t see the hypocrisy in your statements, right. Either these kids have no determination and are happy wallowing in their crappy neighborhoods or are actively wanting something better or more even if they are chasing the wrong rainbow. I guess there aren’t any props for the dream.
And black men don’t think of college, only getting it quick by selling drugs on the corner. Again, wow. And this isn’t stereotypical why? I guess all of those black men who DO go to college only did so for sports. Even though the majority of them actually major in and graduate to do something other than sports. And I guess all those black drug dealers who are standing on the corner have hidden airplanes, speed boats or other equipment to help them import all the drugs from outside the country.
We know damn well that almost every drug sold in America comes from outside the country and people still want to claim that selling drugs is a black thing. Are you nuts? Cocaine isn’t grown in the U.S., so where are these drug dealers getting it in order to make crack, crank and whatever else? Where are they getting the heroine which is made from the poppy plant and is pretty much a staple of Afghanistan right now? You really think that black men can get away with carting drugs down from Canada or up from Mexico or in from overseas with all the racial profiling that goes on, these dudes can barely walk down the street. And if you are ignoring this, can you say who is getting a pass on bringing the drugs to those black men?
And let’s talk more about the education. You speak of college but somehow fail to mention all of the failing, crumbling, shoddy excuses for public schools. Who is responsible for those schools? Why do you think that the government would set up a system where the schools are funded by tax dollars, when we know that the majority of black neighborhoods have a tax base so low they can barely pay for a school window? Do you think that was a coincidence?
I mean come on it isn’t rocket science! OK, black unemployment HIGH, black income, SUPER LOW, black middle class GONE, black tax base LOW, schools in black area funded by unemployed, low income, low tax revenue equals POOR SCHOOLS WHERE KIDS DON’T HAVE A CHANCE. So while black kids are being undereducated by the truckload; who can we say is getting a pass on this one? If we wanted to educate every child in America, we would. This isn’t that far a leap to make; it wouldn’t even be for some poor kid educated in a black public school.
And now January 20th is rolling around and yet the fool is ALREADY up on the soap box! You claim that black people got all of these rights and act as if just because there are laws against discrimination, all of a sudden bingo bongo the doors flung open and blacks were ushered inside. You know there are laws against murder too, do I need to go on. You speak of reparations and people knocking on our doors to hand us our due. Well the last time I checked I didn’t get a dime of freaking reparations and no one is banging on my door to give me neither reparations nor this supposed due, you spoke of.
But what I do know is that black people today aren’t, this monolithic poor ghetto population who refuse to leave our squalor ridden crummy neighborhoods, while ignoring our education as we refuse to do anything besides sell drugs all while dreaming of being the next super rapping sports sensation who doesn’t want to listen to the Beach boys for fear someone somewhere will call us a white talking and acting, Uncle Tom.
I hate to say it as well, but we are losing the war. The war we are losing is the one where even our fellow black people can’t seem to fight the programming which says we are all just that one big raging black drug dealing ghetto thug who is out to ruin America by begging for a hand out. It is a shame when we have such hatred or disdain for our own community that we can’t even see that we have taken up the bell of the town crier. One whose bell is so much stereotypical crap that once was heaped on us by a white dominant community town crier.
Hopefully as your buddies continue to send you statements about how they are black and proud, you can look at yourself and see someone who should be a proud black person yet isn’t because you allowed yourself to get drunk off the Kook aid spiked with propaganda fed to you by the dominant community. Hopefully you will realize that you are no better than those ghetto folks you seem to hate. Those ghetto folk may be tearing the black community down with their ignorance and complacency.
But unfortunately, you are nothing more than their twisted doppelganger. You think you have made it, are making your way to it or some version there of. Yet, you do nothing to help the black community with this stereotypical rant. Actually you are working hard and seeming to be very successful at tearing the black community down. And the one thing that unites you with Mr. and Mrs. Ghetto in all of your destruction of the black community is blatant ignorance. And to think the title of the blog is “Senseless Scribbling Of An Idiot.” Kudos, sounds like you finally hit the nail right square on the head with that one.
The Black Sentinel 