ACTIN BRAND NEW

Settin' Black Folks Straight

I believe it was James Farmer who said, "segregation is a sin, because it keeps people from coming together." A few days ago I was sitting outside on the bleachers with a few of the guys after a good workout, After we laugh and talk about the things guys like to talk about, we began talking about the economy and our jobs. One guy asked, "does that gay guy still work there?" The other guy went into a rant stating that he wishes that they (gays) could have their own section in the country or planet to live on. We all laugh, but I instantly began to examine what he said. "Well there's San Francisco and Atlanta," I said just to force the small talk to continue. When we finally parted ways I began to think out loud on the way home. "Black folks have really lost it!"

We fail to realize that the same way we treat Gays, Lesbians, and Muslims is the same exact way we were being treated as a people since the first African slave planted his foot on American soil. We use the bible to justify these groups of people as second class citizens and a disgrace to the human race just as white people used Christianity and the bible to justify that blacks and Native Americans were inferior to whites. To think that in 2011 black people are not a target anymore proves that we as a people are ignorant enough to continue to go through life with these meager accommodations such as failing schools, poor housing, highest unemployment, inadequate health care, high crime rates, and etc. These issues that people were marching for still exist!

Why are we swallowing the same poison that continues to murder our culture? Why are we using the same hatred that we fought against on another group of people who want the same things that we want: freedom and equality. It is possible to live in this country along with Gays, Lesbians, and Muslims despite our many avenues of disagreements. I personally believe that marriage should be between a male and a female, but I am not going to force my belief on another, not hire them because of their sexuality, or not serve them at a restaurant because they are different. To say that these people need to be placed in their own separate communities is the same as the Native Americans being placed on reserves with horrible soil, Jews being sent to concentration camps to be tortured, whites starting new communities to get away from blacks, separating ourselves in the school cafeteria, sending black people to the slums or back to Africa. To add on to that, do not get me started on the black and white "Christians" choosing not to worship together. Doesn't that make us hypocrites?

The Civil Rights Movement as well as groups such as CORE, SNCC, and the Freedom Riders had the privilege of being a diverse group of people. Blacks, whites, Christians, Muslims, Jews, Gays, and even Hippies joined together for a common cause. Do not think for a second that this movement was always non-violent. Some people took time out of their schedule and risked their lives to save a people who were said to be barbaric, yet today it seems as if we have gotten so "high and mighty" and are acting like we have been free all of our lives. You do not have the luxury to act brand new when our needs are still not being met. We look down on Muslims and blacks who convert to Islam as if they are from a different breed. We tease them for having strict and healthy diets, yet it seems in general that black people always rank the highest in most if not all diseases.

We are only 13% of the population in America. Contrary to what we may think, the black elite in America is relatively small. Of course we are proud of the ones who are blessed to that magnitude, but we are still being misrepresented in the media. Yes, we have an African American president, but what we fail to realize is that the president may be the face of this country, but he does not run America! It has always been that way. We are not free yet! We do not have the right to deny another group their civil rights! We cannot give up on love!

So before you start to foolishly bash other people and embrace your brand newness, you need to check yourself! "Sweep around your own front door", because you may find out that what you are doing to other people fulfills the experiment that was started long ago when our ancestors came to America. They were forced to be Christianized and civilized according to white European standards. Now ask yourself, "Am I being a hypocrite, or is it that I just don't know any better"?