This morning on the Rickey Smiley morning show I heard a caller say, "I had to learn to be passive". I don't think he realizes how powerful this statement is. It basically means that I have to change who I am if I choose to survive. This sounds a lot like what may have been the mindset of slaves who really couldn't see the light at the end of the tunnel. I can't be the strong African Chief with my own language, way of life practices and beliefs I was created to be. No I have to keep my head down do what I am told and not make a fuss, to survive.
Steve Harvey stated that he now has to tell his son to turn on the dome light in his car whenever he is pulled over for something as small as a routine traffic stop. This does little good during the day. I can recall a teacher in my sons 5th grade class who would pass messages to me through the assistant principal because as he put it, "she seems intimidated by you, did you guys have a run in"? I had met the woman once at parent teacher conferences. she avoided eye contact with my son, who by the way, is calm, quiet and is only interested really in Anime and Wrestling. He's incredibly shy and quiet except around me and my family. He is now 6ft 1 245 lbs and I have to tell him if you want to live past an encounter with the police (you can be walking down the street and they can stop you, reason not needed), you have to act like a fraction of the young man you are.
I' m not saying ALL police officers are bad, that would be just as ignorant as saying all black men are aggressive, they are not. I keep hearing people calling in to the radio stations stating, "what we as a community" have to do. I hear about people asking that people not shop Black Friday as a show of solidarity. It's a good idea, but I'm realistic. You're asking people who make barely enough to survive to not shop the one day of the year (outside of tax season) they can get some of the things they want for prices they can afford? Really? When we have people that they can relate to on t.v. living a life style they feel they should have as well? Let's keep it 100. Some of these shows have people that remind you of the people on your block or in your family and have similar backgrounds as you. But they are in shows where they live lavish, behave badly, are constantly disrespectful towards each other and being treated disrespectfully by their significant other for the sake of, survival.
Here is what I have to do:
-teach my children to be productive citizens and not create lives they cannot provide for before they are married and settled.
-teach mine (and their friends, my nieces, nephews and other youth I have influence over) that the value of a person is based on the love in their hearts, the common sense they display, the amount help they provide to those in need and the amount of empathy they display for those that don't have.
-give to those I can assist either through my time, knowledge or gifts (financial and non)
-live with the respect, honesty and dignity I would hope to have the people living around me would display as well
-don't take what I haven't earned, don't ask for what I don't need and work for the things I want
-pray
just my thoughts
sheewan
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