Where ya goi’n boy? Big Mo kept on walking because he just wasn’t in the mood to be dealing with some redneck cracker on a hot and muggy afternoon. He had just finished putting in another long hard day’s work at the plant and the only thing on his mind right now, was getting home to his wife and kids, taking a shower and sitting down to have a nice home cooked meal. After that he would go out on the front porch, enjoy a nice cool drink, watch the kids play around for a while and celebrate with his wife before calling it another day. But before he could even entertain any of that, he had to deal with this irritating ignorant cracker…
Hey nigger, you hear me talk’in to ya? I said where ya goi’n boy? Big Mo was in a hurry and making long strides, trying to put some distance between the two of them as he wanted to reach the bus before the confrontation he knew was imminent had caught up with him. He could see the bus pulling up to the stop but he was just not close enough to get on and avoid what was coming. Damn, he thought to himself, out of all the days to possibly be late getting home for dinner, why would it have to be this day. You see this day was also a special occasion for Big Mo and his wife Mattie because they had been struggling and working extremely hard to save every penny that they possibly could and were soon to be the proud owners of a new home and this would be the night for them to celebrate.. It didn’t matter that he still had to rely on public transportation to get around because ownership of a home is what he and his wife, Mattie had always dreamed of for them and their children. It would be a step up the ladder and also give them a sense of security but the most rewarding part of it all is that it would be theirs..There just weren’t that many Black folks during this period who owned their homes but they would be one of the few that did. Yes, this was indeed a momentous occasion and cause for celebration…But, first things first…
Big Mo came to an abrupt stop, whirled his huge frame of a body around and glared with a look of disdain and annoyance directly into the eyes of his insolent pursuer and said, what you want with me? I ain’t doing nothing but trying to get home to my wife and kids. Unfortunately Big Mo wouldn’t make it home this night. He had dared question a white man and did so in a manner that was considered challenging to the authority and superiority of this nobody cracker. A heated exchange between the two would ensue and it would draw the unwanted attention of other white folks. As fate would have it, things began to escalate and not to soon afterwards a mob of curious and angry white men would gather around and the instigator would accuse Big Mo of being an uppity nigger who needed to be taught a lesson. They would collapse around Big MO, beat him down and take him out to the woods to string him up and there his lifeless body dangled, hanging from a tree just like a piece of fruit on a branch.
Big Mo would not be celebrating with his wife tonight, he wouldn’t be sitting down to enjoy his dinner with his family, he wouldn’t be sitting out on the porch sipping a cool drink while his children played nor would Big Mo and his family ever have the experience of owning their own home.
He would never live to breathe a breath of air another day in Any-town USA. All because of the ignorance and racist vile that has permeated the air throughout American society and has profusely stained it’s soil with the innocent blood of ( far too many to count ) black men and women in this country. This is a short story that is all too reminiscent of what it is like to be a dark-skinned person living in a white dominated society. This short story is a prelude to the longest story that has been played out time and time again in this white dominated world in one way or another.
Let’s just fast forward 100 years plus and here we are where we find ourselves still experiencing the same racist vitriol. The perpetrators today are in the uniforms of Law enforcement throughout this so-called land of the free and the brave and justice for all (only pink skinned folks). Whether it is walking, driving, jogging, shopping or playing in a department store or park with a play gun, having the dark skin is an open invitation these days for harassment, police abuse and possible death. Just the mere suspicion of guilt by law enforcement or any white citizen today, ( just as it was back then ) seems to cause enough suspicion to justify the murder of many an unarmed dark skinned woman or man….It appears that we most definitely have gone from the noose to the bullet and we can’t seem to shake it….We can pray for all those innocent Black lives who have left this planet so abruptly at the hands of racism and their families, but praying and marching and protesting just isn’t enough. We must feel a compelling duty to eradicate our society of this viciousand insensitivity to human life on both sides of the paradigm…Are we capable of honestly taking a look deep within ourselves and really question who we really are as a dark-skinned people and what is it that needs to be done to eradicate our society from the grips of a sinister indifference as it pertains to the lives of dark skinned people all over the world. We can pray to the most high for strength and courage but eventually it comes down to the will of the people and what they are willing to do in order to achieve an equitable and lasting change.
So the question is; what are dark skinned people ready and willing to sacrifice in order to accomplish this goal because anything substantially meaningful definitely comes at a cost!! The cost has been paid many times before from the period of slavery and the (underground-railroad and abolitionists) to the forties, fifties and sixties (civil rights and voting rights groups and integration proponents) and the seventies (black power and black nationalists groups) and now.
Radical Change requires Radical Action
We are all Big Mo’s, Mattie’s, their family and some of us just might never make it back home.
Written by; Alton DeVeaux Jr. (5th Generation African)
Hello and blessings to all of you… Man, you know it has been a little while in between posts , but hey it has not been for a lack of desire to write as much as it has been lacking the spark. Every now and then I experience a lapse because I slip into a period of what I can best express as zero gravity… I am here, my senses are functioning and the thoughts are circulating however the process from the mind to paper is a being of it’s own…With that said though, I always have a few thoughts that are in draft form but have yet to be completed. This is one of them… Initially the title was going to be (Humans Need Comfort) but as I began to think and write, it dawned on me that comfort is just one element in the equation and only scratches the surface. We are an extremely empty species and our emotional needs go much deeper than that.. However, for this piece I want to talk about the need we have for comfort and how we will search endlessly for it and try almost anything that will bring that one ever elusive quality to our life. With every tick tock of the clock, every passing day, week, month and year, we are on a constant journey or quest if you will, seeking comfort. …
This particular topic has been swirling around in my mind for years and now I feel that the time has arrived for me to finally speak on it. As you can see, the title to this piece is (WORDS) and I’m going to speak about the power that people give them.. What exactly are words except a means of which we communicate and interact with one another for whatever the purpose may be. They are fundamental and primarily essential to our understanding and learning but otherwise are not relevant…However, there are those people in the world who understand the power that words can have and will not hesitate to use them as a tool to divide, control, manipulate and exploit… So Beware!
Welcome, you have now stepped into the realm of truth and hopefully you will enjoy the read and become another enlightened soul…
Human values are the principles, standards, convictions and beliefs that people adopt as their guidelines in daily activities. Principal human values are the foundation on which professional ethics are built. They are a set of consistent measures and behaviors that individuals choose to practice in the pursuit of doing what is right or what is expected of them in a humane society. Most laws and legislation are shaped by human values. If a country professes freedom, equality and justice for all as well as high moral family values then the leader of this country should embrace and reflect those same principles and values…
Now I for one am extremely aware of the pervasive and ubiquitous nature of hypocrisy in the makeup of our species and our society… I am aware of how it courses through the arteries of the most unaltruistic of our kind and lends itself to malevolent folks who promulgate self-serving agendas. I also understand completely how the process/action which is not seen (thought) allows compromise to maneuver and manipulate many people’s sense of values and principles which in turn open the door for hypocrisy to take root and flourish..If we paid closer attention to the behavior and actions (not rhetoric) of said folks who demand our steadfast adherence to these fundamental values/principles we would acknowledge their blatant hypocritical posturing and require the same of them. Unless of course we choose to be swept up in a wave of ignorance and denial ourselves for whatever reasons…Which of course is exactly what the trumpeteers have elected to do!!
Welcome, this truth should speak to the hearts and souls of all people but mainly to my dark-skinned brothers and sisters with whom I hope my words will resonate deeply with..
The greatest hindrance to any one person being able to pursue aspirations and succeeding in life aside from those obstacles that have been systematically placed in their pathway is the propensity for procrastination, a lack of faith in our ability and fear. Of course I’m not referring to those folks who may have some form of physical or mental disabilities that may or may not be an impediment, but primarily to those of us who are in complete control of all of our faculties. I thoroughly understand what the ramifications and impacts of racism, bigotry, xenophobia, discrimination, sexism, injustice and other forms of practiced oppression may have on a person’s psyche. I get it, but in this country does it determine who we are and where we go in life? If not, then why on earth do so many of us settle for it?
Firstly and foremost let me personally acknowledge and congratulate you brother on what has been an outstanding and stellar world of fame career as one of the most prolific and premier wide receivers to ever play in the NFL. You have no doubt established your place in the upper echelon of professional athletes and in the annals of NFL history as one of the best to have ever played the game. Personally I am enormously grateful to have had the privilege of witnessing your astounding athletic talent and contribution to the game…. So I ask, what do you need the NFL Hall of Fame for?
Secondly, I have been trying to figure out for the longest time why some of the most highly accomplished African/American (Black) athletes as well as actors and entertainers have this incessant need to be recognized by white America for their achievements and success? What the heck is that all about? Is it because they have been conditioned to do so and don’t really recognize it or is it just ego? More than likely it’s a combination of both!!!
Why do folks need these white established/invented institutions to serve as an acclamation and final exclamation point on ones professional career and level of greatness? What purpose do they really serve?
As far as I’m concerned, these institutions are another form of mental and emotional enslavement (although they weren’t intended to be) for our brothers and sisters and others. Since when does any person (esp. one of color) need the affirmation of another to rate or validate their contributions or the level of their performance? Whenever a person buys into that type of mentality, they have placed themselves at the mercy of those who have invented the process as well as those who vote ( most of whom are white). These puny pompous people with their nomination/induction process and ceremonial event revel in the thought that their otherwise meaningless existence at this particular time has some relevant power (it does not). Only if you subscribe to the process and recognize it as valid.
White folks created these institutions of so-called prominence, acclaim and fame so that they can decide who meets the standard of excellence (something they’ve also have manufactured) and who has the honor of gracing its walls and corridors for folks to gawk at in wonderment. It is a part of the conditioning process that occurs very early in one’s life.. Rewards for Excellence.. Man it is all so pretentious and subjective and actually when it comes down to it, it means absolutely nothing in the grand scheme of life, the world and the universe…
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For most, I guess it serves as the final stamp of approval and recognition (from a select group of people who have probably never played a down) and just maybe one last widely publicized and nationally televised stroke for the ego. Oh please, please, please I need some stroking…What do you mean, I’m not worthy to be inducted into the Hall of Fame? Really???
Well, most of us seem to need a pat on the back for a job well done.. Although it’s gotta be a huge disappointment when it doesn’t come through. But hey, that is exactly what one has to expect when one relies on others to validate who they are and what they have accomplished.. You are now at their mercy and most of them are recklessly intoxicated with that notion… It’s gives them what they perceive as the power to validate or not. Which I guess can be a crushing blow to most. Personally, I wouldn’t give a crap or give them the pleasure…Just my pennies worth!!
Just a final note; I am all for excellence. Yes, be the best that you can possibly be. Do not settle for mediocrity and let your body of work speak for you, not someone else’s standard of excellence..
