First, let me say that my writings, editorials and opinions are not new. They represent ideas and concepts as old, and sometimes older, than the subject itself. The goal of a given essay is not to present Out-Of-This-World information to you, but to give you access into how I see and/or understand a thing.
To me, being Black in America is about being born into the newest racial group on earth. I think of being Black in America as a fledgling racial group. A racial group that is in it’s infancy, struggling to crawl in a world of runners.
Let me make a distinction, Being Black in America, is not the same as being from Africa in the USA. Most readers of my blog already understand the difference, so I will try not to patronize. Being Black in America means, to me, being the descendant of Africans that were forcibly removed from their home, brought to the Americas, enslaved by a different group in order to extract labor, under conditions that were, at best, humilitating, at worst, murderous.
Blacks in America (Black folks) were stripped of all the tools and customs that define a culture. Faith, language, sovereignty, independence, awareness, and literacy were carved away from Black folks in order to subjugate.
It was not until the 1870’s when Black Folks were granted a constitutional right to few cultural tools and customs. And, it was not until the 1960’s that Black Folks were finally granted the constitutional right to all cultural tools and customs. In my mind, this is the decade that Black Folk could begin to understand themselves as a Racial group separate from the context of another group.
To me, the 1960’s represent the Birth of a Nation.
***Let me be clear. I don’t aim to radicalize. I seek only to frame the discussion. Adjust the optic. Present an alternate construct.***
If belief is suspended, and a flight of fancy is granted, we can perceive Black Folks as cultural infants. Just like an infant, the culture of Black Folks is in a state of maturing. If belief is suspended, and a flight of fancy is granted, we can view Black Folks as cultural natives. The culture of Black Folks is in a state of evolution.
There are steps that must be taken. Steps that are impossibly difficult, because Black Folks must mature and evolve, while trying to beat back a steady diet of subversive and institutional prejudice and racism. A system of denial that exiles Black Folks from the teachings and instructions necessary to grow. Imagine attempting to plead your innocence while in prison. Especially when all of the evidence required is outside of the institution and beyond reach.
These are tall asks, because to ask Black Folks to compete at this level is to ask a baby to run or a native to build a supercomputer.
Stay tuned for the Solution.