Racism Is More A Consciousness Than An Issue

In 1968, after listening to Fred Hampton, Chairman of the Illinois Chapter of the Black Panther Party, I decided to actively participate in the war on racism. As Chairman of Black Students for Black Action, at Lake Forest College, I was involved in the threat to take over the administration building if demands for a black studies program, black instructors, and a tutorial program for black elementary students were not met. The administration conceded and a major battle had been won.

My personal conviction continued to manifest itself in both subtle and obvious ways, but it shifted when I became the only black apprenticed millwright at the Chicago Assembly Plant. My realization that the white apprentices knew more about machinery than I did, simply because they had been exposed to it more than I had, suddenly alleviated the sense of inferiority that I had unknowingly harbored for many years. My consciousness then shifted from competing with others to learning more about myself.

It is no secret that racism still exists and that black people are the most publicized victims of  this illusionary reality. I call it illusionary because all the negativity associated with black folk permeates the lives of white and other folk as well. By traveling to different countries, and seeing the similarities rather than the differences, I have found how connected we, the human race, really are. It was a 'white' guy in Amsterdam named Wilbert de Joode however, that brought new meaning to our   'oneness'. He, through his sharing, illustrated how racism is not an issue but a consciousness. When we view our lives through the lens of racism, it hinders us from seeing people for who they really are. If we can shift our consciousness then race can cease being an issue. 

Wilbert's father left home when he was 4, and he said that he was very uncomfortable seeing him when his mother died 12 years later. Although his younger sister longed for her father's presence, they did not hear from him again until he was near death. Wilbert expressed an undeniable love for his mother, and was certainly hurt and disheartened by her unexpected transition. He was proud of how she had raised him and his two sisters on a meager income, while bothered by her always having a boarder in the home to make ends meet. I'd heard this same story countless times before, but this was one of those rare times that I truly felt a white man's pain.


Wilbert is a bassist who plays improvised jazz, which I define as spontaneous   synchronicity. During our recent stay in Amsterdam, he performed with my wife Nicole and two other musicians, Hamid and Peter. When I asked him to comment on their performance he said that each of the four instrumentalists sent their musical thoughts up to an invisible fifth player; who synchronized these thoughts, sent them out to the audience and back to the instrumentalists. This produced an ongoing circular energy that every one present was a part of and participated in. It didn't matter that Nicole and Hamid were black, that Wilbert and Peter were white, or that the audience was literally comprised of people from all over the world. What mattered was that each musician had something to say. These individual stories were perpetually received and synchronized by the 'one' storyteller, and then shared as 'one' story by all who wanted to hear (feel) it.


I had heretofore seen racism as an issue to be dealt with, instead of as a state of mind that can negatively influence my interaction with others. I am black nonetheless, and until racism is non-existent, I will continue to see things from a black man's perspective. That's my story, and I'm sticking to it. There are other stories however, in varied colors, and by allowing myself to hear them I can experience the 'oneness' that permeates the universe. My consciousness has been altered if not expanded, and now I can look forward to seeing myself as a part of rather than apart from the 'One' that is us all.

Thank you Fred Hampton and Wilbert de Joode for being you, and for helping me to see me.

Seeing Me In You

Everyone we look at and pay attention to is a reflection of us. 'We have to be it in order to see it'; so whatever we see in another, is an  exemplification of us in a perhaps exaggerated form. If we don't like what we see, it's an opportunity to work on our own shortcomings and defects of character. If we like it, then we have created an invitation to celebrate growth and illumination.

I had an opportunity to attend a rally and book signing hosted by Tavis Smiley and Dr. Cornell West Sunday afternoon, and realized that I am very proficient in pointing out what I deem as flaws in others. Cornell West and Tavis Smiley are two of the most intelligent, articulate and foresighted men on the planet, yet I entered their event with the preconceived notion of hearing a lot of rhetoric, without receiving a viable and solid plan of what to do next. I saw them in the same way I saw Jesse Jackson. He coined many wonderfully pertinent phrases such as "Down with dope Up with hope", but what he had done to visibly contribute to the long running, so-called 'war on drugs' remained a mystery to me. I maintained that same sense of talk and no action, during the rally's question and answer period, when the response to the question of "What do we do next?" was answered with the implication that it's up to each of us to configure our own course of action.

All of a sudden, while sitting there, I realized that what I was doing was focusing on someone else's seeming inadequacies. What I was actually seeing however, was the discontent I had with my own sense of limited, personal activity. I'm writing this blog on a weekly basis, and earnestly believing that something positive is being expressed. However, because of the limited response to the blog, I feel, at times, that I'm not doing enough. So when I envisioned Tavis, Cornell, and Jesse as being lax in their actions, I was really seeing an expression of what I deem as my own shortcomings. I had looked at them and seen me.

Through this blog I have attempted to awaken the consciousness of the readers, to recognize how we may unwarily inflict injustices on ourselves and one another. I am so grateful that my own consciousness has been awakened in the process, and I am now aware that knocking what others are doing or not doing is of no avail. When I view others through the lens of love however, things will inevitably get better in relation to the steps I take to make them better. Behavior does not change overnight but I'm going to purpose from this point on to respect rather than begrudge, to relate rather than compare, and to build up rather than tear down. Implementing these things will help me to keep in mind  that whatever anyone is doing now is all we can do now, because now is all we have. Let's not hate, let's appreciate ourselves and each other. 

Mr. Smiley and Dr. West recently traveled to 18 cities in 11 states to witness the rampant poverty that exists in this country, and have written a book entitled 'The Rich and The Rest of Us', to share their findings. I know that you, the reader, are doing what you can to improve the well being of others beside yourself. I am also aware that we, and people all over the world, are doing all we can from the basis of what we have to work with. Everyone has an opinion on how to do what's 'right' and I, for one, must at least appreciate if not support that opinion. It is only then that I can focus on what I'm doing, with the realization that together, in different ways, we can eradicate everything that does not embellish our collective well-being.


In retrospect I have recognized that Cornell, Tavis, Jesse, You and me, have been blessed with an opportunity to see ourselves in each other. If we don't like what we see than there's more work to do on our self. If we like it then we've all progressed to another level, and it's time for gratitude and celebration. Recognizing that a mirror is always available to monitor my progress, I'm going to do my best to do me, while respectfully allowing you to do you.  

What the World Needs Now Is You

Everyone on the planet has to deal with the concept of good and evil whether we believe in duality or not. Christians believe in God and the Devil, while Hinduism supports the belief that there is only good and that evil is only an illusion sparked by desire. Conspiracy theorists purport the Illuminati and Reptilians as contentious forces that have to be reckoned with, because their downfall is the only hope for mankind to experience more than a merely palatable existence. Whatever our personal belief, we all can agree on one thing, whether evil is the opposite of good or only an illusion, whether there's a concerted effort to alter or diminish our lives, our collective human condition can and should be made better than it presently is.

Truth, light, and love can collaboratively provide a means for bettering our condition, and practicing them in our everyday experiences will make a difference in not only how we co-exist with one another. Furthermore, our employment of these realities will give us renewed access to the unheralded beauty that our universe provides, allowing us countless opportunities to live lives of uncompromising well-being, peace and joy.

 The truth inherent in our present way of life, is that we react to situations rather than being proactive in our dealings with ourselves and one another. We respond to the conditions of others, who we deem as being better off, by getting upset. We focus more on what others have that we don't have, instead of looking at we do have and determining what we can do with it to better the lives of others, and our own lives in the process. We envy and talk about others because we're looking at who we think they think they are, rather than who we already are and who we're capable of becoming. We feel that we're being treated badly by others because we're more concerned with what we can get out of a situation instead of what we can put into it. The truth is that we want to be recognized as being right and want those who do not contribute to our 'needs' to know and admit that they are wrong. We'd rather be right than do right. We react on what's going on around us rather than actively seeking to do something about it.

We are all sources of light and we should purpose to bring that light to our every encounter with others. Rather than bringing disdain and disfavor to a conversation about Whitney Houston's drug use, or attitudes of malice and revenge to discussions of Travon Martin, maybe we should share our thoughts about the bigger picture. We can talk about on how drug trafficking and lax gun laws, perpetrated by the love of money might be what needs to be addressed and how anything else is only a distraction from the truth. When involved in more personal matters, such as confrontations with family, co-workers, and friends, instead of responding with bitterness and tears, maybe we should try and sense what the real deal and not take it personally. In most cases when people are experiencing discomfort, it has nothing to do with the person being lashed out at, they just happen to be there. We should try and offer what we think would resolve the confrontation and/or excuse ourselves from it. Negative energy fuels dislike and separation; and the concept of divide and conquer, whether purposed or not, will prevail if we don't stop focusing on being right rather than doing right. Light will uncover the truth and our bringing it will pave the way for everyone involved to be set free to love each other more.

Love is the realm of oneness that pervades our spiritual being, and needs to be made manifest, to a greater degree, in our secular existence. To become as one we must stay focused on our purpose for being here, that purpose being our attempt each day to make another person's life better as a result of having encountered us. Most of us seek fame and fortune, which opens the door to greed, lustful thinking, and despair. We look for a way out through a means of superficial gratification nd find ourselves addicted to a material substance or another human being, neither of which provides us with the love we were really seeking because we sought it through another means. Let's not look for the good and the bad, the right and wrong in our lives but find the joy even in the sublime. Making concessions rather than fighting back. Standing strong, while bending, as a tree in the wind. Let's offer hope where there was once despair. Let's make every effort to live that highly significant, little Sunday School ditty, ' This Little Light of Mine'.

Whether we believe in what's called 'duality' or not, of one thing we can be sure, evil can not exist in the presence of truth, light, or love. Each of us doing our part in putting them collaboratively into the universe, will serve to insure that the world had been made a better place as a result of our being here.


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Wake Up And See What's Real

There are two things that my father told me that I'll never forget. The first was: "Your boy, Abraham Lincoln didn't really free the slaves." The second: "White folks always say...Let that nigga sleep."   Now I was about 13 at the time, thought that he was testing my intellect, and certainly wasn't going to let him know that I had no idea what he was talking about. Today I am grateful to know that my father's objective was 1) to let me know that things are not always what they seem to be, and 2) those who want to maintain the status quo, will not awaken persons of lower hierarchical positioning to the

truth. 

Whether one believes in conspiracy theory or not, of one thing we can all be sure...the prevailing consciousness around the globe is: 'it's all about me'. Competition is the mainstay of that consciousness and we're competing in school,  in church, on our jobs, and even in our homes. Regardless of whether it's purposed or not by 'the powers that be', the prevailing consciousness is still causing us to focus on the I rather than the we.

The movie, 'The Hunger Games', depicted a futuristic televised event in which teenagers killed one another until only one remained. The media is a means of promoting thoughts on a grand scale, and this particular movie perpetrated the theory of 'survival of the fittest'. The universal truth is that we are all one and that our collective survival is dependent on collaborative efforts to support each other emotionally, physically, and spiritually. Now the movie was interspersed with scenes that reflected this sense of oneness, but it didn't seem that the producers' primary focus was on this truth. 

 Yeah, it's only a movie, but it's also a major box office draw attracting millions of viewers. My contention is that the movie is reflective of what appeals to us today...semblances of power, greed, 'all eyes on me', and 'I got to get mine'. Whether purposed or not, it supplants into the viewer's sub-conscious a thought that never leaves and might come to the surface at some point. That thought is that if this is what the future will be like, I'd better be prepared. Viewing the movie was another opportunity to see our societal state of mind, and subsequently, a catalyst for the writing of this blog.

While at the movie I noticed that most of the audience was under 30, and that many were intoxicated in some form or fashion. I noticed because I was intoxicated for a major part of my life, and it's second nature for me to see it in others. When I got high I was disillusioned, and the continued use of intoxicants kept me with a deaf ear to my true consciousness and what was really going on around me. Even when not intoxicated I was going through withdrawals and, figuratively speaking, 'this nigga was always sleep'. What about the viewers of this film, were they asleep as well?

Drugs like heroin and alcohol certainly have their negative effects, but the harmful side effects of even a seemingly harmless drug like marijuana might outweigh the benefits. After smoking weed one goes through withdrawal, and experiences some, if not all of the following symptoms: loss of appetite, headache, inability to sleep, nausea, aggression, irritability, anxiety, mood changes, and paranoia. They subside substantially after 2 or 3 days of not smoking, but remain, to some degree, for a much longer period of time.

Accompanying these symptoms is a detachment from what's really going on and a longing for superficial gratification. It becomes more of what can I do to make me feel good now, and less of how will what I do now affect what happens later on. If I get high on Saturday will I be completely capable of acing a test on Monday? Will getting high really make me more creative or merely raise my self esteem momentarily? Will intoxication make me more confident, or will it repress who I really am while expressing who I think I am or who I think someone else wants me to be? My hope is that our youth take advantage of the knowledge that's available to them, and make a conscious decision as to whether or not to use intoxicants.

Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes made 'Wake Up Everybody' popular, and I'm imploring all of us to manifest those words in our everyday lives. Let's look at all we do and understand that we have the obligation and the opportunity to make a difference in our lives and the lives of those around us. What we do inevitably affects those around us, and our intent should be doing what benefits all. Let's quit celebrating what seems to be and wake up to the joy in knowing and expressing what really is.

Thanks Daddy for exposing me to that option.



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