Saturday, July 5, 2014

Post Racism? Yeah...Right

In the past week I've heard more than once that we live in a post racism society. I do understand how caucasians and other people of color condone this theory because of their ignorance of what’s going on in the black community. I've also concluded that African Americans who express the same opinion have either miraculously not experienced racism or choose to ignore it. Be that as it may, racism still exists here in America and all over the world.

On January 20, 2014 we officially celebrated Dr. Martin Luther King Jr's birthday, in all 50 states for only the 14th time. Although the observance campaign began in 1968,  the holiday was not signed  into law until Ronald Reagan did so in 1983. It was not officially observed in all 50 states however, until the year 2000. A black man who not only championed the struggle for civil rights in this country, but advocated the striving for human rights all over the globe Is denied equitable recognition with folks like George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, for 32 years, because of the color of his skin. So when he’s nationally recognized in 2000, is this when post racism began?

Well if we’re going to be realistic, we must admit that it couldn’t have begun then because Donald Sterling, in 2014, has dispelled that notion with a publicized phone conversation that demonstrated, among other racist aversions, his loathing of the minorities occupying his rental properties. Was his being banned from the NBA the beginning of post racism? Hell to the naw, racism in today's world is as pervasive today as it was 50 years ago. 

There are 20 known white nationalist organizations in the United States,16 in Germany, 8 in Canada, 6 each in England and Russia, and others scattered all over the globe. Be they overt or covert, millions of Sterlings still exist and we continue to support institutions that allow them to flourish. So called minorities make up 30% of the population in this country and comprise 60% of the penal system. 

Let's face it, black folks spend more money than any other ethnic group and ever since Rodney Allen Rippy appeared in the 'Jack in the Box'  commercial in the early 70's the advertisement world has been inundated with black faces that coerce us into spending our income. The same principle applies to the movies, the recording industry, television, and sports venues. Not only because we spend more money but our presence in these industries draws more money. 

Black on black crime is spoken of in every setting, yet even the mention of white on white and white on black crime, practiced in this country since its inception in 1776, is virtually unheard of. We focused on the racism inherent in the Trayvon Martin case of 2014, yet we act like police detention and brutality administered to young black men has nothing to do with racial profiling.

I challenge every person who feels we are in a post racism period to go to any black neighborhood on this planet, and ask any black person if they’ve experienced racism in the year 2014, either overt, covert, or otherwise. I guarantee that at least 7 of 10 will say yes. If you don’t want to accept this challenge just give me a holla and I’ll give you brand new occurrences like the one with the young African American lady who swore up and down to me a couple of weeks ago that racism did not exist, and was recently confronted on the street by a middle-aged Caucasian who told her to go back to Africa. 

Racism is still alive and poppin ya’ll, and unless we each do our part, by speaking and acting in the truth that we are all equal, albeit some of us are in unequal circumstances, post racism will always be just a dream deferred.

I’ll holla…

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