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Problem in trying to teach racism - it's hard
9 Jul 2008, 19:36
If you have not walked in the path of someone who has been oppressed it is hard.
Daily I go through something online or offilne, and it is not necessarily my race but my gender, my education and class.
Through my group (last.fm group) I had a shared an incident where someone left me a shout which read, "you are pretty big on this black power stuff."
I took offense because:
1. black power stuff? - what do you mean by that
2. black power philosophy was echoed by the Black Panthers which was preached by Malcolm X. I do not succumb to that philosophy because I do not believe one race is better than the next. I feel we are all equal if we can attempt to talk and share honestly with one another.
3. I am into African American activism which is dealing with a variety of issues such as appreciation of my culture through the arts, politics sports, and what makes up my life.
I am not one to be categorized like all of you here. We are all unique and blessed with so many blessings. I do not despise the young person who addressed me because that is how he sees the world but we are from 2 different generations.
---> I was in high school when the kid was born.
---> I have walked many moons on this earth before he was born.
---> I saw the Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday become a national holiday before he even existed.
--->I marched at the South African Embassy against apartheid in 1984 before the young man existed.
[Yes, at the age of 10 I almost got arrested for my activism:
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,955362,00.html]
I speak from experience and not from a reactionary point of view. I am a lifetime member of the NAACP (since 1984) which is the authority when it comes to dealing with civil rights issues of people within the US.
When I speak through my blog, I am speaking about issues in the USA. I try to make this clear that you know that I am talking from my perspective from the USA.
I appreciate all the support I have received from my group and even the inquisitive discussions which in turn allowed you to see a problem that you may not have been aware of here in the states. Living the life of someone who is a minority is hard if you do not have self-love and respect for self. If you do not have a community of like minded individuals you feel lonesome and worthless. Many activists have felt like this but fortunately I have my parents who share with me their woes of walking with Dr. King and many others in the 1960s; however, it seems this history is not being taught or some people do not have an interest for they say well slavery is over. Not to sure how I can address all of this.
I do not mind sharing and caring but just know that I am one individual who shares from my heart and that there are a plethora of blogs for you to consider. I appreciate anyone who reads or even cares to read what I say because this path that I am walking down is extremely hard.
Thank you for your time.
Good Video to help you on your path to understanding racism if you want to understand it:
Entire film can be accessed here:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/divided/
Also this is how I feel when I see images of Aunt Jemina:
Daily I go through something online or offilne, and it is not necessarily my race but my gender, my education and class.
Through my group (last.fm group) I had a shared an incident where someone left me a shout which read, "you are pretty big on this black power stuff."
I took offense because:
1. black power stuff? - what do you mean by that
2. black power philosophy was echoed by the Black Panthers which was preached by Malcolm X. I do not succumb to that philosophy because I do not believe one race is better than the next. I feel we are all equal if we can attempt to talk and share honestly with one another.
3. I am into African American activism which is dealing with a variety of issues such as appreciation of my culture through the arts, politics sports, and what makes up my life.
I am not one to be categorized like all of you here. We are all unique and blessed with so many blessings. I do not despise the young person who addressed me because that is how he sees the world but we are from 2 different generations.
---> I was in high school when the kid was born.
---> I have walked many moons on this earth before he was born.
---> I saw the Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday become a national holiday before he even existed.
--->I marched at the South African Embassy against apartheid in 1984 before the young man existed.
[Yes, at the age of 10 I almost got arrested for my activism:
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,955362,00.html]
I speak from experience and not from a reactionary point of view. I am a lifetime member of the NAACP (since 1984) which is the authority when it comes to dealing with civil rights issues of people within the US.
When I speak through my blog, I am speaking about issues in the USA. I try to make this clear that you know that I am talking from my perspective from the USA.
I appreciate all the support I have received from my group and even the inquisitive discussions which in turn allowed you to see a problem that you may not have been aware of here in the states. Living the life of someone who is a minority is hard if you do not have self-love and respect for self. If you do not have a community of like minded individuals you feel lonesome and worthless. Many activists have felt like this but fortunately I have my parents who share with me their woes of walking with Dr. King and many others in the 1960s; however, it seems this history is not being taught or some people do not have an interest for they say well slavery is over. Not to sure how I can address all of this.
I do not mind sharing and caring but just know that I am one individual who shares from my heart and that there are a plethora of blogs for you to consider. I appreciate anyone who reads or even cares to read what I say because this path that I am walking down is extremely hard.
Thank you for your time.
Good Video to help you on your path to understanding racism if you want to understand it:
Entire film can be accessed here:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/divided/
Also this is how I feel when I see images of Aunt Jemina:
