By Joe Brock
There is no easy way to have this discussion, start this discussion or see to it that this discussion becomes the epicenter for change in our society, so I’m just going to do it even if that means doing it the hard way.
I’d like to start off by saying first and foremost to any white person brave and bold enough to get past the title of this article and who’s still reading, thank you. For whatever your reasoning is for reading this I am choosing to believe it is in the name of broadening your horizons and further educating yourself on racial equality or in our case, inequality. Thank you for showing an interest in the subject because that is how we truly set our end goal at creating real change, if everyone has an interest in it, not just black or brown folks, everyone. So, in the name of unity, I ironically start off by singling you out, so thanks and let’s move on shall we.
Let us start off with a simple question. Who knows what it is like to be black or brown in America, raise your hand? Everyone who’s black or brown may put their hand up, EVERYONE ELSE must never ever ever raise their hand when that question is posed, ever! That is the most important point to stress first and foremost, unless you live in the skin you will never truly know the fear, anxiety, stress and/or struggle that comes along with it. But I would like to quickly digress from that point because the overall point of writing this and anyone reading it is most certainly not to have black or brown folks seem like victims or encourage any of us to play that role, the powers that be do that for us more than enough already. What I mean by that is simple, in this county, and in this society, black and brown people serve the agenda better when they cry victim to slavery and oppression, claim to be oppressed and seek to live off handouts from the government; and live in the hood and stay below the poverty line. It does not serve the establishment well if all of a sudden one day black and brown folks realize they no longer have to remain an oppressed people, they no longer have to accept that the dark history we are taught is the only history we are ever allowed to have or ever going to have. I would go so far as to say that Kanye West had a solid point and we all missed it because he stepped out of line, and little do we know that deep down we’ve all been wired and brainwashed to not do that. Don’t step out of line, don’t go thinking for yourself and having any crazy ideas of solidarity, and most certainly don’t abandon your political party views because they’ve always been there with a government assistance program when you needed it the most. You know what most of those assistance programs are? A slap in the face, it’s their way of saying “here take all this as a handout because we look down on you and we don’t think you’ll ever make it on your own without this help.” Not to mention they don’t ever want us to believe ourselves that we can make it in this world without welfare and free college, any of us are just as capable as getting it all on our own just like any other white kid out there, it takes time, patience, hard work and the belief in yourself to get it done. Simple as that, it’s the same for all humans no matter what the damn color of your skin is, but they dont want us to see it that way because when the day comes that we all realize we don’t need them as much as they want us to, the establishment falls.
But for now, this is the world we live in, and we haven’t had that mass awakening yet right now we are witnessing a full blown assault on an entire people, one by one by one by one. One news story after another, it’s become sickening. This is not to race bait, it’s not to spread propaganda, I’m simply calling out the bullshit. Because until that great awakening does happen we exist where we exist right now, in a country where as of this moment it is no longer 100% safe to be a person with black or brown skin, we do not feel SAFE! That needs to be understood, it needs to be addressed, this conversation needs to be had and the voices of folks need to be heard. Now more than ever, I’ve read and seen a lot in the last several weeks about some white folks who don’t believe white privilege is a real thing or that being black or brown in america isn’t as serious as we all try to make it seem. I need you to know how much of a crock of shit that is. White privilege doesn’t just exist, it runs WILD, and I for one see it on a daily basis in the world around me. It’s sickening and it’s a disease just like racism itself, but people who display white privilege believe that because they aren’t necessarily racists their privilege isn’t an issue. It is, and it’s just as much of an issue to boot. If we are to ever see equality and peace in our time then people of all color have to stand for what’s right and fight for the lives of oppressed people, even if you’re not one of them, don’t use privilege to ignore the issues and pretend like they don’t exist just because they don’t exist for you. That right there is the biggest mistake anybody with white privilege makes, the biggest. It is time to acknowledge these things, it is time to do more than just protest and then have those protests be overrun with rioting and looting so yet again everyone misses the point. It’s time to start calling each other out on these things from the ground up and all of us making the changes collectively and together as one. We will never see the change we all so desperately desire unless black people, brown people white people, asian people, indigenous people all come together as one and acknowledge the mistakes that have been made and the racial injustices that have occurred in this country, a country that was founded on principles to erase all that from society in the first place. We started America to run away from oppression and look at what we’ve let it become, the very epicenter for racial divide and oppression.
The time for change is now, the time for education and realizations is now. Being black in America isn’t fun, it’s not some joke or beefed up dramaticized fairy tale. It’s a nightmare, and the only way it will ever become the American dream they constantly try to sell to the rest of the world is if we all come together and make it a better place for everyone collectively. That is the only way. Black and brown folks have a part to play in all this too, it’s not just white people and I can’t stress that enough. If we no longer want to be oppressed in this county and have our kids only taught of the dark and daunting history our people have endured then we must teach them ourselves. Even some of us need to be taught another point of view and learn of the true riches and glory in the past of what our people were other than just slaves in America. There is more to know, more to learn and more to uncover so that we may plow into our futures with bright and fresh new outlooks of what it means to be black and brown, how truly special it is. We are the key to our own peace and quiet in life, if we are to break free of the chains, we must be the ones to break them, and then we must be the ones to lead the way toward educating our fellow men and women of other skin colors as to why they can never; and will never be allowed to put us in chains ever again. There are ways to get to where we want to be and create the life we all want to live, we will have to lead the way, and my brothers and sisters trust me, we are more than capable. Look at all we have endured until now, and I challenge you all to remember everyday that which matters most, we are still here! Change is coming, but it must start with YOU.
Yes!!!!!!!!!!