Posts tagged with "racism"

Overdue Recognition – The Tuskegee Airmen’s Top Gun Victory

Leave a reply

They were the best of the best, but their victory was silenced. In 1949, a group of Black pilots known as the Tuskegee Airmen soared to victory in the US Air Force’s first aerial gunnery competition, a precursor to the renowned “Top Gun.” Yet, their triumph was deliberately buried due to the pervasive racism of the era. This is their story, a tale of skill, resilience, and the fight for long-overdue recognition.

Need to Know:

  • In 1949, the US Air Force held its first aerial gunnery competition,  precursor to the famed “Top Gun.”
  • The Tuskegee Airmen, a group of Black pilots who had overcome racial segregation and discrimination, won the competition.
  • Due to racial bias, their victory was not officially recognized for decades.
  • It wasn’t until 1993 that the truth came out, and only recently has the Air Force fully acknowledged their achievement.

Takeaways:

  • The Tuskegee Airmen’s victory highlights the incredible skill and bravery of these pilots, who faced both enemy fire and racism.
  • Their story underscores the injustice of racial segregation and the importance of recognizing and rectifying historical wrongs.
  • This long-overdue recognition is a step towards honoring the contributions of Black Americans to military and aviation history.

The Truth: Lt. Col. James Harvey, Tuskegee Airman and 1949 First Gunnery Competition winning team member. The Lie: Tom Cruise.

Impact on American Culture and Society:

  • The Tuskegee Airmen’s story is a powerful reminder of the struggles and triumphs of Black Americans in the face of adversity.
  • Their achievements challenge stereotypes and inspire future generations to pursue their dreams, regardless of obstacles.
  • Recognizing their victory contributes to a more accurate and inclusive understanding of American history and culture.

During the Air, Space and Cyber Conference in National Harbor, Maryland on September 21, 2021, Gen. Mark Kelly, commander of Air Combat Command, paid tribute to the 332nd Fighter Group. As part of the AARP “Wish of a Lifetime” program, he recognized the accomplishments of Retired Lt. Col. James Harvey, a Tuskegee Airman and member of the 1949 First Gunnery Competition winning team.

The Tuskegee Airmen’s Top Gun victory is a story of skill, perseverance, and justice delayed but not denied. It is a story that deserves to be told and celebrated, not just for its historical significance but also for its enduring message of hope and resilience.

Sankofa Café Owner: You’re Not a Special N-Word In The Room

Leave a reply

Haile Gerima called me a “nigger” in front of a crowd of Black elders, Howard University students and professors. They clapped for him after the disinformation he spewed in anger about the history and story of Maroons. This happened at his establishment, Sankofa Café on Georgia Ave in DC during a talk on the book, I Am Maroon.

After sharing my views on the use of the term Maroon and that my tribal community does not use the term because of what it means, (run away slave) Haile Gerima made his way to the front of the room to speak on the issue and after a brief back and forth with me spewed angrily, “Don’t say you’re a special nigger in the middle of Negros. That’s brag language. You’re not special, you’re not special, you’re not special. What I’m trying to tell you is all Black people made history out of their circumstances.”

Haile Gerima during the Q&A: https://youtu.be/s5sHg_UQvmU

In spite of what I know, including the books I’ve read, as well as my lived experience, I was told to crawl back into my cave, slandered, dismissed and insulted when I spoke about the history, meaning and impact of the word Maroon on my Pamaka culture. I was speaking as a so-called Maroon from Suriname. During the Q&A session I applauded the two speakers, children of the late author, Russell Shoatz, a gang member who turned political activist after hearing Malcolm X speak. He was sentenced to life in prison “following a coordinated attack in Fairmont Park that left one park guard dead.” He was affectionately called Maroon for his attempts to break out of the prison walls that kept him away from his community, activism and the life he deserved to live if justice knew its way to him and all those marred in the ongoing freedom struggle for a just America.

My comment during the Q&A: https://youtu.be/WvQ4-bxQRpQ

Simply expressing my disgust, shock and dismay at being called “nigger” by the owner of Sankofa will not suffice this storytelling. Because something deeper, more meaningful, even eye-opening took place that Saturday evening at Sankofa, a place I had come to enjoy for its unique African celebrations and elevation of Black voices.

Haile Gerima, a stranger to me, was angry and hostile when he addressed me while speaking to the crowd that had gathered to listen to the book talk. He took issue with my earlier comment by covertly insulting me, followed by dismissing all I had shared,  even disregarding my lived experience and cultural knowledge and understanding of history and basic facts of Maroons. At one point he even unfurled a long list of supposed names used to describe Maroons. One of the words was Ifu Gadu Wani. I was shocked to see my tribal language on the list that seem to have been put together rather flimsily. I said “Ifu Gadu Wani” is my tribal language, Pamaka. I speak it, write it and know that it does not mean Maroon, nor has it ever been used as another word for Maroon. The phrase actually means God willing and literally, “If God wants.” I grew up in Suriname with my mother and elders saying this phrase all the time. Haile Gerima pumped with ego and adrenaline refused to listen. I even held up the book I brought along to offer as reference for this knowledge, The Maroons of Jamaica 1655-1796, A History of Resistance, Collaboration & Betrayal, by Mavis C. Cambell but it fell on deaf ears with a dismissive retort, “why do you think I don’t have that book!” Haile Gerima got so riled up he crouched like a wild beast readying to pounce its prey, leaned forward with hate-filled eyes and fire in his breath and said, “Don’t say you’re a special nigger in the middle of negros. That’s brag language. You’re not special, you’re not special, you’re not special!”

I never said I was a special “nigger” in the room. I simply said many of those who are called Maroons,  a name the British first called escaped enslaved Africans in Jamaica, do not refer to themselves as Maroons. Many of us come from different tribes and even speak different dialects and practice different tribal customs. We are Tribal African people, not Maroons.

I was shocked hearing “nigger” thrown at me so maliciously and flippantly. The word traveled in slow motion across this so-called sacred Black space called Sankofa.

Haile Gerima’s anger and toxic ego was on full display.  I don’t know Haile Gerima. Had never met or even heard of him before Saturday night at Sankofa. When I go to the Café it is usually for a topic I find interesting and meaningful to my own life and pursuit of storytelling and documenting.

During previous visits I spoke to several of the staff there who handled speaking events about having a talk on the word Maroon. I also wrote to them requesting the opportunity to speak about my I Am Not Your Maroon campaign to educate about the word that, similar to the word “nigger” also carries its own trauma and inhumanity for Tribal African people. They never took me up on the offer. However, when I saw that I Am Maroon was going to be a book talk, I didn’t hesitate to attend. I wanted to know more about the book and why the author called himself Maroon. I also wanted to engage them as an actual so-called Maroon.

I left Sankofa with a heavy heart and disappointed spirit. This so-called safe space for Black people and Black stories was not safe at all. That evening I experienced a café and book store that defended sharing misinformation and disinformation. And one led by a man who labelled me a bragger who sees herself as a “special nigger among negros” for not wanting to be called a Maroon… a run away slave.

After the event was over, I stayed seated for a few minutes gathering myself, my thoughts and my exit plan. As people made their way to the stage for signatures, an older gentleman came over to me and apologized for Haile Gerima’s behavior. He said it was uncalled for and told me briefly about his character and hot temper. It was the old excuse line, “this is who he is, he’s always like this and I’m sorry that happened to you.” As I made my way to the exit one of the HU professors came over to shake my hand and greet me because she had never met someone from Suriname before. In the small talks, I saw an opening. There, the moderator and a few other elders had circled around Haile Gerima. They were gleefully speaking and engaging, as if this man didn’t just call me a nigger in front of them. It was like the standing ovation Will Smith received at the Oscars after slapping Chris Rock for no good reason. During his tirade the old man threw an insincere and hallow apology my way, called me “sister” a few times and said we could speak further after the event because after all, he was happy to see a “sister” from Suriname at the event.

I quietly took my exit.

Sankofa on Georgia Ave in Washington, DC claims to hold sacred the stories and history of Black folks and their experience. Enter at your own risk though and never forget, “Don’t say you’re a special nigger in the middle of Negros. You’re not special.”

Campaigns to eliminate to use of the word Maroon to describe a People are not new. And neither is the hostility and push back against this long standing movement. And the pushback is not from white people, but from Black folks who are not called Maroons and burdened with the stigma it carries. This fight is no different than the one Malcolm X poignantly spoke of when he described the difference between the house Negro and the field Negro. And like Malcolm, I too am a field Negro. Just don’t call me Maroon. And if the great orator and writer James Baldwin can say to his American oppressors, I Am Not Your Negro, so too can Tribal Africans in the Americas say, I Am Not Your Maroon.

 

Jeanette Lenoir, Founder, ePluribusAmerica

Vandals Strike Iconic Jackie Robinson Statue Ahead of Black History Month

Leave a reply

A prized Jackie Robinson statue was stolen from a public park in Kansas by thieves who sawed off the bronze sculpture, leaving behind the iconic baseball player’s feet.

The brazen theft slammed by officials as “horrendous” and “disgusting” took place just one week before the start of Black History Month. “More than frustrated, I am angry to see that this has happened,” said Wichita City Council member Brandon Johnson. “This was disgusting. This should never happen.”

According to news reports the thieves struck sometime during the night at the League 42 baseball fields in McAdams Park, which is also home to the Jackie Robinson Pavilion. Surveillance footage shows at least two people topple the hefty statue and load it into a silver pick-up truck. City officials theorize the criminals are planning on selling the beloved statue as scrap metal. The sculpture cost the city upwards of $100,000 to install in 2021.

“A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives,” Jackie Robinson

“It has a huge impact in regards to the history of our community, the history of baseball, what Jackie Robinson really means and this step is actually the opposite of everything that Jackie Robinson stood for. So it’s just appalling to me,” said Troy Houtman, the Director of Parks and Recreation.

According to Houtman, the park has been dealing with a string of vandalism in recent months, and officials are offering the opportunity to return the iconic statue “no questions asked.” “We move on and repair this statue. Hopefully, they’re wise enough to do that and bring the statue back so we can make the repair. If not, I think we’ll find some other actions might occur,” said Houtman. The Wichita Metro Crime Commission offered a reward of up to $2,500 for tips leading to arrests and another $5,000 for tips that lead to the statue’s recovery.

Update:

  • Charred remnants of the stolen Jackie Robinson bronze statue were found Tuesday inside a trash can at a Kansas park, officials said. Pieces of the statue were dumped in the garbage and lit on fire at Garvey Park in Wichita, a police spokesperson said during a press conference streamed by KWCH. 

Serenading The Consciousness And Condition of Black People In America

Leave a reply

Jason Aldeen’s song is missing the chorus his ancestors played

 

BY JEANETTE LENOIR

“The prejudice against us is not because of our color, it is because of our condition. If we must have justice, we must be strong. If we must be strong, we must come together. If we must come together we can only do so in the system of organization.” – Marcus Garvey

Country singer, Jason Aldeen took his anti-Black Klansmen spirit to the airwaves, and just like Trump’s call to “Make America Great Again,” majority of the nation is standing up to salute his dog whistle. Sadly, he lacks even the most basic knowledge of American history responsible for the sociological patterns, symptoms, Black condition and “inappropriate behavior patterns” or “the Rodney King syndrome” as described by Dr. Claud Anderson in full manifestation. Instead, he has chosen to express the privilege it is to be White in America, as those who were forced to build this nation under the brutality of chattel slavery are now “free” to enjoy some of its bounty … or flip the table like a scene from reality television. Let’s break down his small town views and ignorance feigning expression reminiscent of the Key & Peele skit titled, Country Music.

Try That In A Small Town

Sucker punch somebody on a sidewalk
Carjack an old lady at a red light
Pull a gun on the owner of a liquor store
Ya think it’s cool, well, act a fool if ya like

It’s true, we’ve seen numerous incidents of criminals wreaking havoc across the country. Our society is on full HD display thanks to our powerful media industry. Many of these images we see and read about show mostly Black people committing these types of crimes. And this strategic maneuver has been done deliberately by the media since the birth of this nation. What they won’t show or talk about? The sucker punches thrown at Black people trying to get an education, cast their vote, look for work, or the hounds they released to tare the flesh off of women and children, the poisoning of livestock, the swindling of their hard-earned pay, and the bombing of their little girls in a church.

Mourners outside funeral services for Carol Robertson, one of four girls killed in the 1963 bombing.

“By the time I was 10 or 12, I just wished to God I was white, you know, because they had food to eat, they didn’t work, they had money, they had nice homes. And we would nearly freeze, we never did have any food, we worked all the time and didn’t have nothing.” – Fannie Lou Hamer

Mainstream media also fails to highlight the numerous incidents of carjacking of innocent Black people, even old ladies, who had managed to scrunch up enough money to pay-off a car they desperately needed to rebuild their families’ lives after emancipation and during the great depression. And there are numerous historic accounts of guns being pulled on Black store owners who’s perceived “success” was so deeply offensive to their White countrymen, academics have coined this phenomenon as “white rage” to describe their outright refusal to tolerate any Black person doing better than their former enslaved status.

Cuss out a cop, spit in his face
Stomp on the flag and light it up
Yeah, ya think you’re tough

Well, try that in a small town
See how far ya make it down the road
Around here, we take care of our own
You cross that line, it won’t take long
For you to find out, I recommend you don’t
Try that in a small town

This part of the song should remind of the march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge, today a National Historic Landmark that was the site of the brutal Bloody Sunday beatings of civil rights marchers, including the late Congressman John Lewis. They were cussed out by cops who spat in their faces; symbolically stomping and burning the flag America says stands for freedom and democracy, and a beacon of hope for the rest of the world. John Lewis was marching for voting rights for Black people, a fundamental right denied to them, not just by Congressional action and inaction, but by state sponsored terrorism from unformed officers, White mobs and Klansmen. This took place in a small town, Selma, Alabama, and Aldeen is absolutely right, they didn’t make it down the road. They didn’t even make it across the bridge to meet the other side of the road. The cops took care of their own White people that day by beating down Black folks who dared to cross their racial line. And it didn’t take long for Black Americans to find out what truly goes down in small towns across America.

Even the Green Book became necessary to allow safe passage for Black folks in small towns. It became “the bible of black travel” during the era of Jim Crow laws, when open and legal discrimination against Black people was the American way, duly noted in Aldeen’s country howl. The south may have lost the Civil War but history and Aldeen’s crass tune makes clear that the country is still controlled by White racialists who voted for our last president who ran to, “Make America Great Again” for them.

Got a gun that my granddad gave me
They say one day they’re gonna round up
Well, that shit might fly in the city, good luck

Try that in a small town
See how far ya make it down the road
Around here, we take care of our own
You cross that line, it won’t take long
For you to find out, I recommend you don’t
Try that in a small town

The Second Amendment continues to be a contentious national debate. We’ve seen numerous incidents where race was a factor—Philando Castille, Alton Sterling, Breonna Taylor, Tamir Rice, Walter Scott—of the law being applied, and the loud inaction or response to these cases from the powerful NRA makes this also clear. This isn’t a new line drawn in the sand, as race has always been a factor in the application of the gun law. Case in point; Cliven D. Bundy and his militiamen took up arms against the federal government and were backed by the NRA who called the confrontation, “a proper, legitimate, lawful response to illegitimate, unlawful exercise of government power.”

And here’s another reminder of our divided America: The Branch Davidians and the siege at Ruby Ridge, had Wayne LaPierre, longtime NRA head honcho whaling in defense of those he sees as true Americans, “If you have a badge, you have the government’s go-ahead to harass and intimidate, even murder, law-abiding citizens.” Miraculously LaPierre lost his voice when Philando Castille was gunned down by a cop despite being a licensed gun owner. The only difference is that he was Black and the law was never considered with him in mind. “The National Rifle Association is America’s longest-standing civil rights organization. Together with our more than five million members, we’re proud defenders of history’s patriots and diligent protectors of the Second Amendment,” reads the official NRA statement. Imagine the audacity of that assertion.

Since the inception of the right to bear arms, the law was never intended to include Black people; it was intended to keep guns out of their hands. And White mobs have a long documented history of using guns “granddad gave” them to stop Black people from crossing racial lines in their fight for justice, freedom, access and equality.

In her book, The Second; Race and Guns In A Fatally Unequal America, Carol Anderson writes, “Even for the NRA, Black people did not have Second Amendment rights. A broken treacherous rights landscape, of course, has always been the reality for African Americans. We know that the 15th Amendment, the right to vote, was undercut by poll taxes, literacy tests, violence and understanding clauses for nearly 100 years and unfortunately, since 2013 has come under assault again. Similarly, the amendments covering the justice system, the 4th, 5th, 6th, and 8th, have offered little to no protection for African Americans because of numerous Supreme Court decisions that have imbedded racism and racial profiling into policing, trial procedures and sentencing. But the Second Amendment charge for a well regulated militia and the right of the people to keep and bear arms offers a particularly maddening set of standards where race is concerned.”

She continues, “There’s almost an eerie silence on this particular amendment, which its advocates call central to citizenship. That silence is not accidental. The 18th century origins of the right to bear arms explicitly excluded Black people. South Carolina encoded into law that the enslaved could not carry or make use of firearms or any offensive weapons whatsoever, unless in the presence of some White person. Moreover, the states various militias had the power to search and examine all Negro houses for offensive weapons and ammunition. In Delaware there could be no valid earthly reason that any bought servant or Negro or mulatto slave be allowed to bear arms. Georgia was even more direct, not only were Blacks forbidden from owning or carrying firearms but White men were required to own a good gun or pistol to give them the means to search and examine all Negro houses for offensive weapons and ammunition. The distinction was clear; citizens had the right to keep arms, the slave did not.”

“Revolution is never based on begging somebody for an integrated cup of coffee. Revolutions are never fought by turning the other cheek. Revolutions are never fought on love your enemies and pray for those who spitefully or despitefully use you. And revolutions are never a wave playing we shall overcome. Revolutions are based on bloodshed. Revolutions are never a compromise. Revolutions are never based upon negotiations. Revolutions are never based upon any kind of tokenism whatsoever. Revolutions are never even based upon that which is begging a corrupt society or a corrupt system to accept us into it. Revolutions overturn systems.”– Malcolm X

Full of good ol’ boys, raised up right
If you’re looking for a fight
Try that in a small town
Try that in a small town

Try that in a small town
See how far ya make it down the road
Around here, we take care of our own
You cross that line, it won’t take long
For you to find out, I recommend you don’t
Try that in a small town

Try that in a small town
Ooh-ooh
Try that in a small town

Don’t kid yourself; Aldeen is right, small towns are “Full of good ol’ boys” who are always looking for an unfair fight with those they’ve been too comfortable terrorizing with each new generation learning the tricks to tie their lynching ropes. This is how they take care of their own. Ahmaud Arbery lost his life to these same “good ol’ boys” in a small town in Georgia where the likes of, Gregory McMichael, Travis McMichael, William Bryan Jr. and even Jason Aldeen howl to burning crosses at night to feel supreme human.

“The white man prefers to keep the black man at a certain human remove because it is easier for him thus to preserve his simplicity and avoid being called to account for crimes committed by his forefathers, or his neighbors.” – James Bladwin

Nonetheless, Black people must also take account of their part in the global enslavement of Africans, the racial struggle and dominance by Whites. From Africa, throughout the middle passage and into the New World, Black people have consistently taken part in their peoples own misfortunes and subjugation. Africans were instrumental in the slave trade, even trading manila currency with Europeans and Arabs in exchange for sending captured Africans to their enslavement across the globe. There’s even an account of a 19-year-old African male stopping a slave ship revolt on a slave vessel called The Eagle, and taking a machete blow to protect his White captures. Upon arrival, “he was rewarded and recognized for it and he personally benefitted at the expense of his own people,” said Dr. Claud Anderson in his lecture, A Road Block to Empowerment. And believe it or not, the first person to own a slave named John Casor for life in America was a free Black man from Angola named Anthony Johnson who came to the colonies in 1621 aboard the slave ship James after his capture by Portuguese slave traders. He even acquired land under the Headrights system.

After the assassination of Malcolm X ordered by the man he once worshipped, Elijah Muhammad, who led the Nation of Islam (NOI) from 1934 until his death in 1975 said, “The way I see it, Malcolm is the victim of his own preaching. He preached violence and so he become the victim of it. So Malcolm met with just what he preached. This death of Malcolm, god himself had something to do with that. And I think the people will learn that this was some work of god himself.”

Evidently, the god Muhammad prayed to didn’t see fit to plague Whites for their crimes against humanity, but somehow this so-called god is responsible for the killing of one of the greatest Black leaders America has ever known. Malcolm X sought to lead his people to freedom like Moses led his people from the Pharaoh, and true to Black conditioning, the NOI made sure he didn’t succeed.

And these stories and historical accounts aren’t unique to America. Africa has its own sins to atone for, including the murder of Patrice Lumumba, the first Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. He was killed by his own people by order of the Belgium’s, and even America and Great Britain played a role in his assassination. His crime? He spoke out about the suffering of African people at the hands of their European oppressors. In other words, the truth he spoke to power made him a threat, even to his own fellow Africans desperate for personal power and a seat next to their oppressors, or a place in the master’s home. In 2022, Belgium returned Lumumba’s tooth after holding it as a trophy for 61 years, similar to a serial killer keeping items from their victims to mark and reminisce of their evil.

“Dead, living, free, or in prison on the order of the colonialists, it is not I who counts. It is the Congo, it is our people for whom independence has been transformed into a cage where we are regarded from the outside… History will one day have its say, but it will not be the history that Brussels, Paris, Washington, or the United Nations will teach, but that which they will teach in the countries emancipated from colonialism and its puppets…a history of glory and dignity,” – Patrice Lumumba

The dignity Lumumba talks about has yet to arrive. Just look around you and take in the state of our American culture. Last week, two White males, 38-year-old Daniel Walls and a 17-year-old, were arrested and charged with Civil Rights intimidation for posting Ku Klux Klan recruitment flyers outside of three Black churches in Columbia, Tennessee. A Black “influencer” who goes by the name Sassy Trucker is being held in Dubai for the ratchet behavior she’s known for on social media. And the other latest embarrassment is called Carlee Russell, a Black woman who created a kidnapping hoax for attention. Not only did she lie, she made sure to ask for thoughts and prayers from real victims of this particular crime. And to further stick her finger in the nation’s eye and worsening the stigma for Black folks, she made sure to crack a smile in her mug shot. Making matters even worse, a dozen Black teens have just been arrested for a unprovoked brutal and horrific attack on a Black man at a gas station, followed by indiscriminate shooting with automatic weapons. This is our America today, despite the blueprint left by Black giants like the Black Panther Party who started the school lunch program and fought against police brutality.

Jason Aldeen’s melodic words certainly sting, but he’s serenading the consciousness and condition of Black people in America. The only missing chorus is the role his White ancestors played in the shaping of our divided nation. Similar to Florida under Ron DeSantis who is feverishly working to rewrite history to make slavery look like a benefit to Black people, Aldeen’s country tune separates itself from truth too, like oil refuses water.

“You can’t do anything by legislation, it takes education. The White men in this country need to be reeducated so that his behavior patterns towards non-whites will change. And the Black men in this country also need to be reeducated so our behavior pattern and attitude toward ourselves will change.” – Malcolm X

 

The naked truth about the state of America.

—

ePa Live_02252023

ePa Live: Racism & Technology In The Age of AI, Cultural Theft & Social Devaluation

2 Replies

ePa Live Guest:

  • Dr. Niyana “KoKo” Rasayon, MA., PhD., LPCC, Behavioral Neuroscientist; Associate Professor, University of the District of Columbia

Dr. Rasayon has authored two books that build on social neuroscience, “Reality Check: A Manual for the Hue-man Octahedron & The Mystery of Melanin, and The Awakening: OMG The President is Black”. His Master’s thesis examined the psychological characteristics of vegetarians & non-vegetarians. He is a Board-Certified Fellow & Diplomate in Afrikan Centered-Black Psychology. Dr. Rasayon has taught psychology for 16 years, three of which included courses in the U S Pentagon. Dr. Rasayon also completed the first EEG (brain waves) study on culture and learning styles among Afrikan-Amerikan males at Howard University. His work, programs and books can be found at: www.eyesofmaat.com.

This Saturday we will discuss his work, the impact of technology on the brain, healthy ways to co-exist with technology and why Black people are disproportionately and negatively impacted by algorithms and facial technology.  Join the conversation, like, share and subscribe! If you missed it, no worries, check it out below.

American Racism Wears Prada

Leave a reply

BY JEANETTE LENOIR

Truth said, I am the peace Malcolm X needs to rest. I am the justice Assata said was our duty to fight for. I am the dream Dr. King dreamed. I am the strength of our enslaved ancestors. I am the eagle that soars across this land of the spiritual Indians. I am the strange fruit Billie Holiday sang of. I am the, Still I Rise, Maya Angelou awoke in us with rhythm and rhymes. I am the arms, the legs, the heads and the torso of all those brutalized by European greed and inhumanity. I am the mighty riches of Africa. I am the wisdom of Imhotep. And by way of unwavering truth, I shall reign like the peace brought by Akhenoten. Tell the world about me. For I am the truth denied by Sen. Tim Scott and all those who cowardly spew the dangerous and boldface lie that America is not a racist country.

Derrick Chauvin Killed George Floyd in front of the world. With his knees on Floyd’s neck, this white cop deliberately squeezed the life out of a Black man’s body, just like his ancestors have done for centuries.

America is a racist country.

Eric Gardner was selling loose cigarettes on the street to help care for his family. NYDP officer Daniel Pantaleo choked him to death despite his gasps pleading “I can’t breathe” piercing the air he needed. The officer was rewarded for his contribution to our Black holocaust with a goody bag full of benefits, from tactical legal delays to avoid accountability to a promotion and a hefty pension.

America is a racist country.

Officer Kimberly Potter said she mistook her gun for her taser when she shot Daunte Wright at close range during a traffic stop. This highly-trained officer with more than 20 years on the force thought so little of this Black man’s life, that she opened deadly fire to strike him down, and with the audacity only afforded to white supremacists, turn around and dismiss the incident with an “oops” we did it again response.

America is a racist country.

Ahmaud Arbery went for a jog in his neighborhood. He was stalked like prey by his racist countrymen and shot like a bandit in the street. Apparently, these grossly unkempt looking white men took serious offense to this Black man running and killed him for sport. They killed him because he was Black. They killed him because they hate Black people. They killed Ahmaud because they could. They killed Ahmaud because they bought the lie drummed into their skulls by their forefathers that Black people are less than human-beings and unworthy of humanity. And for months while his family grieved his loss, elected officials desperately tried to hide evidence to protect these monsters “rights” to lynch and terrorize Black people as they have done since the birth of this nation.

America is a racist country.

Birth of a Nation should be recommended viewing for Sen. Tim Scott and all those who knowingly disrupt and disrespect the spirits and the sacrifices of our Black ancestors who bravely wore their masks to hide their suffering for the likes of Sen. Scott to find his way and his place in this country. His words cut deeper than a scandalous lie. They bring a soul-shaking shame that blankets all those who have suffered tremendously in the world for simply being born Black.

America is a racist country.

Trayvon Martin was killed for being Black, too. Compounding the injustice of this tragedy, the low life that killed the teenager was found not guilty. He celebrated adding another Black body into the pit of our on-going bloody Holocaust by auctioning off the weapon he used to kill Martin for $250,000.00.  He sold his weapon just like Europeans sold our stolen and enslaved people on the auction block.

America is a racist country.

Walter Scott, Freddie Gray, Tamir Rice, Phillando Castille, Breonna Taylor, Botham Jean … they were all unjustly murdered by overzealous and over militarized G.I. Joe show-offs playing cop. Their victims never asked to play the deadly role in the movie set of their disturbed minds that casts Black people as disposable objects.

America is a racist country.

After the heinous and bold killing of Ramarley Graham in Brooklyn, NYPD officers gave his executioner, Officer Richard Haste, The Blue Salute in front of Graham’s grieving family as he sauntered out of court after a judge dismissed manslaughter charges against him. Law enforcement circled their wagon, upholding the culture of our dehumanization in America. Graham was executed in his grandmother’s bathroom for smoking weed, running away and trying to flush it down the toilet. Haste busted down the door and shot him like a rabid animal. After the shooting he stood outside the young man’s building, smiling and laughing, as his family grasp the reality of yet another senseless killing. Fast-forward ten years later and guess who will benefit the most from the legalization of the weed this youngster was murdered for?

America is a racist country.

Slave labor built America and the White House but Black people still live as second class citizens in the most powerful country their ancestors built under the cracks of whips and the devastating brutality of slavery.

America is a racist country.

The Trail of Tears, Jim Crow, Red Lining, Black Farmers, Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment, Black soldiers coming home from war, The March on Washington.

America is a racist country.

Dylann Roof calmly killed nine Black people worshipping in church. He was peacefully arrested, fed and cared for like a newly hatched chick. Go read what this country did to Black liberation groups like MOVE and The Black Panther Party. Many of these freedom fighters were killed and some are still languishing in jail. For what? Standing up against American terrorism. They demonized and tortured them. So much so, one would never know the Black Panther Party started the school lunch program.

America is a racist country.

Kyle Rittenhouse walked right past police, still holding the AR-15 he used to murder two Black Lives Matter protesters. He was given a standing ovation by elected officials in his home state who hailed him a hero for killing two protesters marching for Black people’s human rights. Racist celebrities and politicians donated hundreds of thousands of dollars for his defense, took him to bars to celebrate his kill despite being underage, and they’re still protecting him like a battle fatigued warrior for white supremacy.

“God bless. Thank you for your courage. Keep your head up. You’ve done nothing wrong.” And, “Every rank and file police officer supports you. Don’t be discouraged by actions of the political class of law enforcement leadership.” These testimonials came with donations from elected officials and police.

America is a racist country.

Dr. King, JFK, Bobby Kennedy, Medgar Evers, Malcolm X, Emmitt Till, George Stinney, Jr. … there’s not enough room on the internet to list the names of every person who has paid the ultimate price for European greed, inhumanity, vicious capitalism and imperialism.

America is a racist country.

John Lewis begged his country for civil rights and took a severe beating from KKK members cloaked in police uniform on the Edmund Pettus Bridge.

America is a racist country.

Fannie Lou Hamer wanted voting rights. She was brutally beaten by police and the Black brothers they forced to join in beating her. Imagine that for a minute. Sit in it. It’s the god awful truth of the matter. They locked her up, stripped her of her humanity, forced her own people to beat her, and eventually took her life. Today, conservative leaning states like Georgia, Texas Iowa, Arkansas and Utah are still enacting laws to keep us from voting or even protesting. “Republican state legislators are sponsoring a blizzard of new voting restrictions, advancing 55 bills in 24 states,” reports  Intelligencer. 

America is a racist country.

America’s founding fathers compromised that Black people were only three-fifths of human-beings all while declaring, “All men are equal” in The Constitution conservatives love to uphold as justification for their white-washed view of America and the world. They didn’t believe Langston Hughes when he wrote, Let America Be Again.

Sure, call me any ugly name you choose—The steel of freedom does not stain. From those who live like leeches on the people’s lives, We must take back our land again, America! O, yes, I say it plain, America never was America to me, And yet I swear this oath—America will be!

Yes, America will be. But today, the ugly truth is America is a racist country.

America built labor camps for Black kids and ushered in Jim Crow. And if you ever listen to recordings of former enslaved people recount their traumatic childhoods, you will hear the harsh truths only a coward can deny. Black people continue to endure the worst in our society. Why?

America is a racist country.

Mexico, the only country enforcing another country’s immigration policy targeting African migrants, is forcing Black people to stay in deplorable tent cities in their Southern borders, by denying them transit visas that would normally allow them to cross the country and migrate to Canada and the U.S., respectively. However, during Donald Trump’s reign of racist terror, when he announced his disdain for “shithole countries” he also  threatened Mexico with tariffs if they didn’t bow to his will to keep Black migrants from coming to America. Mexico obliged and is still enforcing these inhumane asylum laws that specifically target Black people. When asked about her upcoming trip to Mexico and the Northern Triangle, Vice President Kamala Harris said she does not plan to visit the region where these people are being mistreated and kept as war prisoners. The refusal to even take notice of the problem plaquing Black migrants is symbolic, tactical and evil.

America is a racist country.

Tim Scott is the seventh Black Senator ever elected to the Senate. Listening to his speech, one would be shocked to learn he didn’t come directly from George Washington’s epididymis. The sad truth is his grandfather, who helped raise him, was a victim of the racism he denies exists in America. He was a Black Holocaust survivor forced to pick cotton so white people alone can prosper. He must of worn a great mask.

Sen. Scott’s embrace and defense of white supremacy is embarrassing buffoonery. “Race is not a political weapon,” he reprimands the victims of racism, going even further accusing Black people of, “fighting discrimination with a different kind of discrimination.” Making the moment more revolting, he conjured up some Nikki Haley logic, mumbling that although America is not a racist county, he’s been followed around in a store and pulled over for no reason. No reason at all.

“They don’t hang you because you’re a Baptist. They hang you because you’re Black.” – Malcolm X

The shackles may have come off but the outrageous performance Sen. Scott put on shows them chaining his mind. Sen. Scott made it clear; he only sees white people and their narrative of the world.

America is such a racist country, Billy Holiday sang of its Strange Fruit.

Southern trees bear a strange fruit
Blood on the leaves and blood at the root
Black bodies swingin’ in the Southern breeze
Strange fruit hangin’ from the poplar trees

These words tell the truth of our people’s bondage and torture in America.

“We suffer political oppression, economic exploitation and social degradation, all of them from the same enemy. The government has failed us. You can’t deny that,” Malcolm X said.

Apparently, the privileged senator can.

So, we must continue to deliberately create the America we all want to experience. And drunk on the cool-aid Tim is not going to lead the way. He would have to see us from his ivory tower, first.

A Discussion On Race And Racism In Schools

Leave a reply

BY JEANETTE LENOIR

Tracey A. Benson and Sarah E. Fiarman have written a timely and important book tackling race and racism in our schools. The book, Unconscious Bias in Schools, A Developmental Approach to Exploring Race and Racism, dives deep into the real issues many young people and educators face in their learning and teaching journey.

It’s an uncomfortable truth and recognition this nation is facing from a different angle and platform. This time. A platform that buoys her children, woke to the harsh realities of the illusions presented by a seemingly secure and protective bosom: the ideals of America. But America has a lot to atone for and this atonement is not just being demanded by those directly affected by the stark inequalities and racism they’ve marinated in since the birth of our nation, but by those who have unwillingly benefitted from the principles that unapologetically and with the blessings of God–manifest destiny–gave more to one by way of brutality and stealing from the other. Are the chickens coming home to roost? Perhaps. Nevertheless, there are those who choose to fight these blatant inequalities in our schools like Dr. King did. Not with violence, but with intelligence adequately designed and explained with a roadmap starting from recognition to management and eventually change we can all finally believe in.

The discussion with Benson, an experienced educator, highlights the focus and intentions of this valuable book presented as a tool to challenge bias, race and racism in schools.

To learn more about Benson’s anti-racism work or to purchase his book click: here.

“The concept of unconscious racial bias helps decouple intentions from actions … Good intentions aren’t being questioned. It’s impact that comes under the microscope.” – Tracey A. Benson

Protests And Policy Is Key Toward Justice In America

Leave a reply

BY JEANETTE LENOIR

George Floyd’s little girl is right, he did change the world.

It’s been nearly a week since America started putting out riot fires ignited by an emotional tsunami when Floyd’s callous murder sent shock waves, still rippling, across the globe. The wails of agony and blind rage at the officers responsible, the racism that fueled his death, the oppressive law enforcement system and discriminatory government structure behind it all, is well known by all marginalized people. Especially Black people. And that’s evident in the different responses and reactions to these protests. Some are expressing themselves with violence, while others are taking a more peaceful and measured approach to address the long festering wounds of racism, police brutality, social and economic inequality. The devastating reality of bigotry and discrimination in America has finally come to a head like a boil ready for lancing.

And Floyd’s tragic death is bringing a broad coalition of protesters together to change the state of American society. Unfortunately, there’s no blueprint or manual for a people fed up to adequately respond to a Military obsessed government, putting protesters at risk of losing focus with infighting and disagreements on how to effectively carry out these demonstrations calling for change. Historians, in discussing the leadership styles of Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. frequently talk about the lather not having a cohesive strategy to follow through, a collective plan B, if the civil rights marches and protests didn’t prove effective. Gandhi, on the other hand, was effective in uniting Indians on a common course for autonomy from British Rule and were ready to raise the stakes with a plan B, changing their clothes, in other words, using their collective economic powers to fight their oppressor. If Americans want the outcome of these protests to be fruitful beyond the capital B in the new Black, we will need a similar strategy to address institutionalized racism and reform policing.

The momentum created by these protests must energize grassroots campaigns targeting the specific issues highlighted during former President Obama’s town hall meeting on Wednesday. From stopping the practice of choke-holds, deescalation tactics, to implicit bias training. These policies are already in place for law enforcement communities to implement. A recent article in The Atlantic highlights the groups and independent commissions that have provided specific solutions to address police misconduct in America. “Prior tragedies have resulted in a string of independent, blue-ribbon commissions—Wickersham (1929), Kerner (1967), Knapp (1970), Overtown (1980), Christopher (1991), Kolts (1991), Mollen (1992), and the President’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing (2014)—to make recommendations for meaningful change that could address police misconduct. These groups have developed well-reasoned conclusions and pointed suggestions that are widely discussed and enthusiastically implemented—but only for a time. As public attention shifts, politics moves on and police-reform efforts wane. The cycle continues unbroken.” The solution, like the Ten Commandments has been written, but the resolve of politicians to act is still MIA because they can count on protesters losing their way and their will to keep fighting. It’s become the standard of American uprisings. Or, maybe, the fire next time, as laid out by James Baldwin, is here.

Despite the uniqueness of the global protests sparked by Floyd’s death, the risk of apathy and lack of persistence remains a real threat to real change that’s desperately needed. In addition to police accountability, community action at every level addressing systemic racism, through fostering diverse relationships that lead to creating policies based on real-world experiences is sorely needed. Therefore, change must include a more diverse Congress, as well as state and local leaderships. Marginalized folks, especially Black people, have to run for local offices and community boards, just like Black leaders during the early part of the civil rights movement have urged us to do. Moreover, it’s incumbent on all of us to hold those in power accountable to meet a changing nation’s demand for a better country, because it’s going to take a society-wide approach to address our structural challenges rooted in racism.

“It was absolutely clear that the police would whip you and take you in as long as they could get away with it, and that everyone else—housewives, taxi-drivers, elevator boys, dishwashers, bartenders, lawyers, judges, doctors, and grocers—would never, by the operation of any generous human feeling, cease to use you as an outlet for his frustrations and hostilities. Neither civilized reason nor Christian love would cause any of those people to treat you as they presumably wanted to be treated; only the fear of your power to retaliate would cause them to do that, or seem to do it, which was (and is) good enough,” wrote James Baldwin in, The Fire Next Time.

(AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)

Black people are the CEO’s of enough is enough dot com. We’ve been in this sunken place for far too long. The difference of this moment in time, is that finally, the housewives, taxi-drivers, elevator boys, dishwashers, bartenders, lawyers, judges, doctors, and grocers have had enough, too. And not just here in the U.S., but across the world. It is our collective belief in American culture and humanity, at least the promise of it, that is forcing this broad coalition of protesters together this time, some with the need to speak with violence. And that is to be expected when our common understanding of right and wrong, our written and unwritten rules of how we treat one another, our human contract, is continuously violated by those with the most power. The 400 year old violation of our humanity has been vicious and egregious, so much so, that our president saw fit to pepper spray his way through peaceful protesters chanting, “Black Lives Matter” to hold up a bible he doesn’t respect for a photo-op he doesn’t need in front of a boarded up church closed to parishioners. Tragic can’t sufficiently capture this posturing.

The only thing that can passably contextualize his strange movements is this passage in The Insane World Of Adolf Hitler by Chandler Brossard, “It is not in the least surprising that Hitler, who, incidentally, had been born a Roman Catholic, had a highly confusing and contradictory relationship with churches and Christian concepts in general. His actions and words denied the existence of a God, yet the fact that he constantly referred to himself as being “guided by Providence,” and “chosen from on high,” indicates that at least in some ritualistic—or opportunistic part of his mind he really did believe in the divinity. Clearly, this motivated his famous assertion, in the late thirties, before a screaming, chanting wild-eyed Munich audience of thousands, “I go the way that Providence dictates with the assurance of a sleepwalker.” Donald Trump surrounds himself with sleepwalkers, steadily building casual racist pressure under the guise of religion, similar to how Hitler used and abused religion to turn his fellow countrymen against each other, leading to the Jewish Holocaust and WWII. We can’t let that happen again.

Malcolm X said Americans must speak the same language in order for us to understand each other. Thus, it’s time to speak with our protests, money, and our votes, similar to what Gandhi did for Indians and what Rosa Parks did for African Americans with the Montgomery bus boycott. Major companies taking bold actions to fight racism by firing bad employees, ending police contracts with private businesses, firing and charging offending officers, creating opportunities for more minority upward mobility, making strong public statements, and following through with measured transformation, are the changes we need to see. The strong anti-racism reaction from Ben & Jerry’s is the modern leadership this moment needs. Calling for the dismantling of the culture of white supremacy is powerful and refreshingly honest. It recognizes long standing Black pain and suffering. And Citigroup, Netflix and Microsoft making strong statements against racism and discrimination, including the global protests in solidarity against Black oppression in America has been deeply inspiring. A hopeful sign that the winds of change are finally blowing again.

This transformational change will build if marginalized people and their allies continue this fight against a common enemy: racism, police brutality, and growing inequality. Senseless violence doesn’t always discriminate or give rise to passionate protests. Even so, little Black girls like Gianna Floyd are the chief victims left behind when Black fathers are murdered by the police, and Black mothers like Wanda Cooper continue to dominate the fields of grief with the disproportionate loss of their Black boys, like Ahmaud Arbery, to racial violence. Black women like Breonna Taylor still fit perfectly into a certain dimension, an unholy space poignantly expressed by Malcolm X when he said, “The most disrespected person in America is the Black woman. The most unprotected person in America is the Black woman, the most neglected person in America is the Black women.” This has to be reversed, too. These sacrifices are changing the world, but it falls on all of us, rooted in a common belief in humanity, to ensure their deaths, and all those who have met similar fates, are not in vain.

And because the media plays a significant role in narrating our human story, a call for sincere adaptable action on their part, must be part of the restructuring of a more balanced and just America. We can start with condemning the Philadelphia Inquirer recent offensive headline, “Buildings Matter, Too.” George Floyd changed the world, his little girl said. Although he didn’t intent to, through these protests and call for racial equality and policy changes, may the goodness and mercy that comes from his tragic death finally make way for all people to dwell in a better world forever.

What Does A Better America Look Like To You?

Leave a reply

BY JEANETTE LENOIR

America is under construction. A job mostly taken up by our young people determined to fix an evil system constructed for the set back of an entire group; black folk. We are in the eye of the storm of these protests raging across the country. Unfortunately, the despair of the streets is at risk of turning a just cause—racial justice, social and economic equality, ending police brutality—into a fight for the preservation of white supremacy and the protection of all the worldly possessions of the out of touch elites. Even though economic inequality and racism are the main reasons we’re here.

While our “president” can only call out for more violence against the oppressed from his chicken bunker, rather than lead in a time of crisis, America’s young people are fighting for the world they want to see beyond their phone and television screens and social media. This generation is demanding change rather than accept the obligation to swallow the illusions of America so many of us have for so long. There is no magic cure to end racism. America won’t flip like a pancake. But, these protests and the people showing up for them, is the hope we need to see rise like dough left over night. Because we have bread to break people; with each other. We need a solid strategy and effective policies with T-Rex teeth ready to bite anything that comes between Americans desperate for change and a more just and equal country. And unfortunately, we can’t depend on Donald Trump or his entire losing team to set the table to address the real threat of racism, social and economic inequalities, police brutality and blatant discrimination that has created a zest pool for the drunk rich and ignorant poor that benefit from these societal ills. That includes all the rich and powerful people, CNN’s Don Lemon called out, who can afford to look away as if America isn’t burning in their backyard, too.

“White people gained the world but lost something. And that’s their ability to love their children,” James Baldwin said. The fire next time is upon us. Just like he said it would be without addressing racial inequality. Many of the young people burning and looting are the children of these white people who chose to gain the world by oppressing black people over loving their children and teaching them to love the world and their fellow man. The price tag for greed is humanity’s highest cost. Nonetheless, change is upon us. And it’s up to each and every one of us to work to push our country toward a better trajectory. And what does that look like? We asked.

What does a better America look like to you? 

In Part 1, we spoke to Nura from Eritrea. During our interview she was accosted by a lone MAGA supported holding a large American flag in front of the White House. The man yelled, “go back to your country!” You can see the exchange in the video below.

Part 2 of the George Floyd protests in DC shows protesters at the White House. Those we spoke to were asked the same question. What does a better America look like to you?

Part 3 starts when an agitator, the man in a grey t-shirt riding away on his bike, after allegedly telling protesters, “go home little girls.” The video shows him clearly making a get-away after spewing his disdain for the marchers. They gave chase but he was able to get away, but not before passing our camera and saying, mischievously, “I don’t know what they’re angry about.” He knew exactly what they were angry about.

Part 4 are the photos taken at the White House protest.

It’s Time To End The Black Holocaust In America

Leave a reply

BY JEANETTE LENOIR

The systematic killings of black people in America has turned into a Holocaust. Just count the bodies. All of them. From the start of the African Diaspora, through Emancipation, Jim Crow, and the Civil Rights movement. Millions of black people have met brutal ends for no other reason than for being born black. Today, our killings are carried out by racist white supremacists and law enforcement backed by our government. There’s just no other way to describe the ongoing lynching’s and brutality inflicted upon African Americans. Just because we’re not being openly marched to gas chambers or kept in concentration camps doesn’t mean we’re not dying in mass numbers by the hands of police officers emboldened by a government who refuses to recognize our humanity and rightful place in the world, let alone America, which owes its black citizens so much of its glory and might.

Lynchings in America

And Donald Trump and his posse are steadily paving the way for more unjust killings and atrocities only black people seem to know intimately. The “oops, we did it again, wrong house” is played out and starting to look more like a covert strategy to exterminate black people. One by one. Steadily and strategically. I have no more tears  to cry, as I live with pain and grief for the family of the latest victim of police brutality: Breonna Taylor. We are at war with deputized individuals, trained to battle us as if we’re in Fallujah. Taylor was in bed. Never suspecting her brutal demise would be carried out by government officials who took oaths to protect and serve all Americans. Evidently, the three-fifths compromise, the solution to count three out of every five slaves as one person for legislative representation, is still in play when it comes to the number of black people who are killed by the police or vile racists. Today, it could be that killing 3 black people out of 5 that have been victimized amounts to 1 death. Our lives are not valued. This is evident everywhere you look. From small town America to big cities like New York and Las Angeles. While the NYPD is handing out masks to white sunbathers in Central Park during COVID-19, gently warning them to exercise social distancing rules, they’re beating the hell out of black people for the same offense. There truly is no justice. Not yet, at least.

Ahmaud Arbery

Comedian Dave Chappelle discussed the brutal killing of Emmett Till during his show recently. He made some important points about how the tragic event of Till’s death led to the world seeing the brutality inflicted on blacks by whites in America. He said it led to many changes and liberties we as Americans enjoy now, hence his celebrity and packed shows with diverse audiences. He’s right. Times and circumstances have changed. We no longer drink from different water fountains, ride in the back of buses, or hang from poplar trees for no reason other than being black. But Emmett Till had to die a horrible death for some of these changes to happen. Many, many others did too. And, the killings of black people haven’t stopped. Ahmaud Arbery is the latest example of a good ol’ fashion American lynching by some inbred, backwoods hillbillies who hate black people for being…you guessed it, black.

Breonna Taylor

And Breonna Taylor is yet another awful example of our over-militarized law enforcement who kill us like battlefield combatants. If our disproportionate killings are not an active Holocaust, I don’t know what is. According to some historians, the African Diaspora and the subsequent slave trade ended in the deaths of over 30 million black people. Now add all the other bodies onto that pile from Emancipation to today. That’s a lot of black people who have unjustly met tragic ends. The killing methods has changed but not the body count. I understand the point Chappelle was making. But how many more of us need to die to finally bring about lasting change? How many more black bodies does America need to satisfy its thirst for our blood? And racism still shows its ugly head in every sector of our society. Case in point, Senator Mitch McConnell can blatantly lie about the first black president not leaving his successor a pandemic guide and telling him to “shut up” when he’s asked to give his opinion on the Trump administrations’ handling of the COVID-19 pandemic without any repercussion or rebuke from his “dear colleagues.”

Lynchings in America

Trayvon Martin

Taylor’s brutal death happened in his state; Kentucky. And McConnell has yet to humanize Taylor because he’s too busy trying to call Barack Obama an “uppity nigg*r” with a dog whistle we all know and understand very well. And yet, despite taking arms to fight countless wars for America, here and abroad, most white people remain idle. Watching. Seeing black people come home from wars to face racist brutality for a country many of them died for, they remain still. Accepting this shameful display of hate and calling themselves Christians. The German people watched and sat idle, too. Today, many just feign shock that in modern society racism still exists. Some take to social media to vent and share their outrage but quickly get back to Netflix and the life they enjoy despite the inequality we all know exists. That police still kill us disproportionately. That we’re still denied jobs, access to adequate healthcare, equal educational standards, curriculum and schools, or even healthy foods and an environment. We continue to bear the brunt of the cost of industrialization when rich corporations are given passage by our government to pollute the areas we live in, allowing companies to burying their toxic and cancer-causing waste in our backyards and pollute our water. Some whites certainly grieve, fight and even die with us for justice and change but clearly, not enough to make a real difference of our unequal American lives. So I have no more tears left to cry for my people, as I continue to bear witness to our systematic killings of which I can only call by its dirty name: a Holocaust.

Emmett Till

George Stinney, Jr.

Rodney King

Lynching in America

Isaac Woodard

Lynchings in America

Israeli newspaper, Haaretz, interviewed Marcus Rediker, author of, The Slave Ship: A Human History, where he discussed, “floating concentration camps and why the black community should never forget.” It’s worth a read. Included in the report was this discussion: “Before he won the Best Picture Academy Award for “12 Years a Slave,” director Steve McQueen accused Hollywood of ignoring the subject of slavery. “The Second World War lasted five years, and there are hundreds of films about that and the Holocaust. Slavery lasted 400 years and yet there are less than 20 films about slavery in North America,” McQueen said, in an interview with the British paper The Voice. “We have to open our eyes and look at it and other people have to acknowledge it.” The black community, he added, must remember slavery in the same way the Jews remember the Holocaust. “They believe in the saying ‘Never forget’ when it comes to the Holocaust, and I think we should be the same when it comes to slavery.”

Rediker was also asked if, “Israel’s Holocaust Remembrance Day could act as a model for remembering slavery in the United States. And he answered, “I think it would be absolutely impossible in this country, because the majority of the white population is utterly opposed to reparations and would not like to remember slavery in any way that might lead to economic and political conclusions. The difference is that the people who want to remember in Israel are in charge in the government. John Conyers has for many years proposed, at the beginning of each Congress, a bill to study the effects of slavery in American history. And every year, it’s voted down.”

Reuben Stacy lynching

Medgar Evers

American lynchings

KKK lynchings

1925 lynching

Comedians Key and Peele joked about Negrotown, once. I laughed and thought nothing else of the “utopia for black people.” Looking back, perhaps that’s the only solution left for us. Maybe we do need a Negrotown, where the duo joyfully sang, “you won’t get followed when you shop, you can wear your hoodie and not get shot, no white folks across the street in fear, no trigger happy cops or scared cashiers. And loan applications can’t get turned down, [because] you’re always approved in Negrotown.” Art imitates life. But the brutality and killings we experience are real. Perhaps to save our lives and finally stop the Holocaust of African Americans, is to find our way to Negrotown. McQueen’s suggestion to adopt the Jews saying, “Never forget” when it comes to slavery is ideal, but we must first break out of our bondage and finally stop the black Holocaust in America.