Shifting gears...
After posting a week of Black History I decide to meet at the round table to debrief. It is difficult to watch, and listen to some of the things being said.. wasn't it? When the topic of race comes up there is always tension on both sides. Most times individuals immediately go back to Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King to show how one ought to deal with the memory or slavery or any other discriminatory practice of yesteryear. The thing is while these men are now touted as amazing change agents they faced a terrible blow in speaking about injustice. King was murdered despite his commitment to peace and Mandela was imprisoned for most of his young life - over 20 year. At Nelson's death people from around the world spoke of his greatness - CNN made me nauseated with their dedications. Some try to paint Bob Marley as this peace loving dude "one love, one heart" not knowing how disgusted he was with the inequality he saw in the world. Despite the fact that his daddy was a white man, he identified more with his black mother and her mother's mother. For all intent and purpose he was probably murdered too. So what is the point?
His Emperor Haile Selassie said:
“Until the philosophy which holds one race superior and another inferior is finally and permanently discredited and abandoned, everywhere is war and until there are no longer first-class and second-class citizens of any nation, until the color of a man's skin is of no more significance than the color of his eyes. And until the basic human rights are equally guaranteed to all without regard to race, there is war. And until that day, the dream of lasting peace, world citizenship, rule of international morality, will remain but a fleeting illusion to be pursued, but never attained... now everywhere is war.” Bob Marley did not say these words only popularize it in his song,
― Haile Selassie I (He too suffered and begged the united nations to help him when Italy persecuted his country)
We see wars- verbal, psychological, physical... warfare. What can we do about it? Do we refuse to have these conversations, even the ones that make you uncomfortable? Do we stick our head in the stand and pretend terrible things happen in society and people are wounded by them.. How important is reconciliation without forgiveness. Can we go on without forgiving others.. but is it possible to forgive when there is denial or a complete dusting away of the wrongs by many who would rather just hold hands and sing Kumbaya.
At this point if I keep posting slave stories I would be insulting my own people so will examine the psychological effect the past have on the mentality of black folks... e.g. bleaching, violence, men and women declaring why they hate themselves and love the other. Look at powerful black people who change the landscape etc. show the ways in which some white men and women refuse to be a part of a system that oppressed others and so on. Stay tuned ...
http://youtu.be/4XHEPoMNP0I Bob Marley
http://youtu.be/ft82mF-N57w His Emperor Selassie
