Posts tagged with "election 2020"

The Finger Of Providence Pointed To A Trump Loss

Leave a reply

BY JEANETTE LENOIR

“Only virtuous people are capable of freedom. As nations become corrupt and vicious, they have more need of masters.” – Benjamin Franklin 

Knowing that nearly 70-million Americans voted to keep a deranged racist at the helm of the most powerful nation in the world couldn’t dampen the spirit that rose like a phoenix from the ashes today. We did it, America! With the fire of the legend of Jim Thorpe, we did it. And this new dawn isn’t just washing away the worst of American greed and corruption, it’s ushering in the dreams and the hopes of enslaved Africans responsible for the wealth of our great nation, leaving behind the domestic terrorism fueled by the sitting duck in chief, Donald Trump.

And if you listen really close, you’ll hear the words in the breeze Dr. King spoke in 1963 during the March on Washington, “I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed…” Well, America, we’re rising despite all the noise from those with a death grip on hate, racism and intolerance.

And let’s not forget the spirit of Shirley Chisholm, the first Black woman elected to Congress and the first African American to vie for the Democratic nomination for President in 1972. If you can’t see her essence in our first Woman of Color Vice President-elect, Kamala Harris, you don’t know American history, the divine power of spirituality, the Black struggle for equality and the true meaning of demanding a seat at the table. Chisholm emboldened us to bring a folding chair to the table if a seat wasn’t offered. How proud she must be looking down at her countrymen who, during her lifetime, denied her basic human rights. We’ve come a long way but the journey to true freedom and equality is still far from our reach.

As Louisiana proudly holds on to the shame of American history with its support of a hateful and corrupt president, I can’t help but remember the 1863 photo of the brutally whipped slave, Whipped Peter, who had escaped to join the Union Army. You see, Louisiana is comfortably numb to the truth of Black lives in America because they’ve been successful in convincing the, “lowest white man that he’s better than the best colored man.” So, they maintain their grip on hate disguised with political rhetoric unsuitable to the reality on the ground for their people; Black, white and everyone else not secured in generational wealth catalyzed by slave labor and persistent, inexcusable inequality. It’s an ugly truth but it must be told.

Another story worthy of remembering as we mark America’s first Jamaican Vice President is that of Fred Littlejohn. In the 1920s he moved his family from the South to Queens, New York and called themselves Jamaicans to avoid the mistreatment of Southerners in the North. And it was a biracial student committee in Chicago that founded Congress of Racial Equality, (CORE). The group staged its first sit-in at a coffee shop, leading to the inclusion of serving Blacks. Harris embodies all of America; the lives of the enslaved, native born and immigrant, who sacrificed everything for the homecoming we are witnessing in the election of this historic Democratic ticket.

And this win is also reminiscent of the 1968 Summer Olympics when African American sprinters John Carlos and Tommie Smith raised their gloved fists in a Black power salute. What many of us miss in translation is the white sprinter from Australia, Peter Norman, who joined in the protest by wearing a button on his uniform promoting a Human Rights campaign to stamp out racism. Australians punished him for his act of bravery, only coming to their senses 6 years after his death in 2006, (after a tragic life spurred from the abuse he endured) with a formal apology from the Australian Parliament saying his gesture “was a moment of heroism and humility that advanced international awareness for racial inequality.”

Joe Biden and Kamala Harris are progenies of revolutionaries intent on fully birthing the dream that is America. And Biden’ American legacy beats in rhythm with Harris’, making them a powerful and symbolic metaphor of America’s strength and deep-rooted posture as leader of the free world and beacon of hope for all mankind. The disheartening election results serves as a reminder of the evils of mankind, including the demagoguery, thuggery and authoritarianism that Donald Trump and his family demonstrated. So, let’s heed the lessons learned because it’s time we do the necessary and uncomfortable work to make America, and the world, a place where we all feel good in.

“The sum of us all is, if we would most truly enjoy the gift of Heaven, let us become a virtuous people; then shall we both deserve and enjoy it. While, on the other hand, if we are universally vicious and debauched in our manners, though the form of our Constitution carries the face of the most exalted freedom, we shall in reality be the most abject slaves.” – Samuel Adams

The Ancestors And Our Vote

Leave a reply

BY JEANETTE LENOIR

The day we’ve all been waiting for, November 3rd, has come on gone. How are you feeling? Anxious, I bet. Don’t worry, you’re not alone. It’s a collective state most Americans are in, including the spirits of the ancestors. With votes still being counted, it’s a sad realization despite the rhetoric of having far more in common than not, this election proved we’re not a united nation. We’re learning that more Black men voted for Trump this election cycle; jumping from 13% in 2016 to 18% in 2020. Also Black women, according to the NYT, doubled their support—from 4% to 8%—for a race agitator who referred to African countries as “shithole countries” and has consistently disrespected nearly every woman of color covering him. And, the number of white women who supported this foul-mouthed crotch grabbing president who doesn’t care about caging babies and separating families at our southern border jumped from 42% to 55%. Sadly, even the LGBTQ+ community increased their support for a president who stated multiple times that he doesn’t support gay marriages. The illusion of America is real. Our life predicted on screen is not.

This election outcome is another reminder that it is in our ancestors that we can discover ourselves and demonstrate their teachings of our social functions. And these last 4 years of the Trump administration have been a lesson in humility, hope and hate: a lesson on humility because trump reminded us of the fragility of our sacred human bonds and the tenacity of racism; a lesson of hope because these deeply troubling times under Trump’s so-called leadership suggests that to make America truly great will require a renewed commitment to the ideals of a blossoming nation yet to be fully satisfied and equally felt by all her people; and a lesson in hate because Trump reminded us that this nation remains deeply divided by it.

“I’ll tell you what’s at the bottom of it. If you can convince the lowest white man he’s better than the best colored man, he won’t notice you’re picking his pocket. Hell, give him somebody to look down on, and he’ll empty his pockets for you.” – Lyndon B. Johnson

It’s unconscionable that our country, specifically the Republican Party, that proudly bombed ISIS in the name of democracy and to end their reign of terror across Iraq and Syria has adopted ISIS like tactics of loaded trucks with violent flag flying intimidation, blatant voter suppression and engaging in race fueled domestic terrorism. This nation is eating itself from the inside as the founding fathers warned could happen. It’s become a gang war; Red vs. Blue. That’s how much we have cheapened our country. We bomb developing country’s to adopt our ways and yet, we fight each other mirroring what we fight to stop in so-called hostile nations. These are ever changing times. And the 2020 election is a stark reminder of the rising tide of American racism fueled and emboldened by an unhinged madman at the helm of the most powerful nation in the world.

“At what point then is the approach of danger to be expected? I answer, if it ever reach us, it must spring up amongst us. It cannot come from abroad. If destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of freemen, we must live through all time, or die by suicide.” – Abraham Lincoln

Setting aside the devastating impact of Trump’s mishandling of COVID-19, money, power and race were the main actors in this election cycle. Money because the rich want to get richer at all cost, even by deteriorating a nation they claim to be patriots of. Make no mistake, they won’t stop sending jobs overseas for cheap labor and interference from human rights watchdogs. The elites make it abundantly clear; money over humanity and decency is their way forward in our democracy. And basic fairness has no practical value from their perch. It’s hard to accept billionaires fighting against paying Americans a living wage of $15 an hour but that’s the ugly truth of the matter. And yet, they’ve managed to convince even the poorest whites to adopt their position with lies and brainwashing tactics of government overreach and the unfulfilled promise of a trickle-down economy. If that’s not power, you don’t know what it is. South Carolinians refused to hold Lindsey Graham accountable with his own words. Maine voters are sending Susan Collins back to Washington despite setting women’s rights back several decades with her votes and shamefully supporting this boorish president who paid off the stripper he was cheating with while rubbing elbows with a powerful and bold pedophile. And Kentucky is a prime example of successfully convincing the neediest Americans to cast a vote against their own self interests. And unfortunately, the truth about Mitch McConnell’s track record has fallen on racist deaf ears amongst the poorest and least educated Americans, with Kentuckians voting for the 7th time to stunt their progress, throwing away an opportunity to rise from the depths of their poverty and educational access by reelected the sickly man who has only enriched himself and his family. Imagine the level of deep rooted racism that requires. 

 “The vote is the most powerful nonviolent change agent you have in a democratic society. You must use it because it is not guaranteed. You can lose it.” – John Lewis

These words echo across our nation from beyond the boundaries where the ancestors roam. They left us the tools we need to improve the walk of life. Their wisdom is meant to guide us in forming a more perfect union. And yet, the fight for the soul of our nation in the era of Donald Trump has derailed us from the tracks of decency and humanity like the ill-fated Germans before WWII. That this election wasn’t a hands-down defeat for a madman likened to Hitler is personally demoralizing. I’m left feeling suspicious and even fearful of some of my white countrymen who make up 70% of voters, and who clearly harbor all that Trump represents; hate and intolerance of others in a country made rich by enslaved Africans; my ancestors.

When the election results are finally settled may this land, formed by the sweat, blood and tears of my enslaved ancestors, perform the Day of Death dance by ancient Africans, singing:

Natir ben be, O yi ye’e; O yi Man gon, O yi ye’e.

Here there are sores, May they go away; Across the river, May they go away.

Today, we find ourselves in an unholy place, not just because the Trump family represents America’s sore, but because they constitute all seven deadly sins, from gluttony, greed, wrath, lust, sloth, envy to pride. And a Biden win is how this ancient purification ceremony will symbolically wash away their stain on the White House and in due time, America.