Now hold on... give me a chance to explain myself. I don't claim to be a Negro whisperer of sorts, but I can give some insight on what's going on and why. Here is my best shot.
There are several factors into play here. A lot of folks are waking up and seeing the bullshit for what it is. It seems that those who see what's going on are younger. But the thing is, we have to look at previous generations in order to ask ourselves why Black people haven't waken up yet. We have a generation of Black folks who are older and they vote straight ticket regardless of whether or not the candidate on their side is worth anything or not. This gets done on a local level as well as federal. This is why a lot of Black people voted for Hillary Clinton despite her track record. It's like a lot of folks said, "Bill Clinton was in the White House already, so we know how this goes. He's family. He's cool because he got head under his desk. He got down with his saxophone. He's basically one of us. That means he's Black. Hillary is a woman, and so am I, so that means I should vote for her too."
These are the people who chide people for not voting because, "If you don't vote, you deserve what you get.", while conveniently not knowing what they voted for themselves.
These people had kids, and taught those kids. Those kids grew up and voted as well. They grew up with the following ideals: Get a job, pull your pants up, get an education, go to church and make that money. Then nobody could tell you shit...until you get pulled over. There are many generations of folks who still use this thinking and instill it into their kids to this day. If we're smart, look good, work hard and have the financial backing to do all of that and raise kids in affluent neighborhoods, then we will have it made...until we get pulled over...or harassed in a store... or have the police called on us for looking suspicious, etc. This line of thinking encompasses the middle and upper class Blacks including celebrities, which becomes evident as soon as money comes in and stays long enough. Some people dealing with poverty will tell their children these things in hopes they will do better than they did.
All under a post racial America where the president is Black, so the hope is kept alive for those who figured they'd sit down after Obama was elected.
Then you have those born into generational poverty. Unfortunately, these are the folks who are the least informed. Not because they aren't educated, but because they have a whole lot of other things to worry about. In a lot of cases, they're worrying about mental illness, addiction (in some cases) having clean water to consume (Flint, and many other cities across America), transportation, and are really having a hard time trying to eat and live. This means they might not have the necessary things to obtain an ID to vote, let alone know where to vote and how to. They have to secure their lives from day to day before they can do anything extra. These people might also have children to feed as well, and they're doing what they can in order to live. We must also factor in mental illness. This is something a lot of people gloss over. Mental illness touches everybody, but the hardest hit are those who are poor due to lack of resources being available for treatment.
All three groups of people regardless of what economic rung they fit on will find the time to grasp as much information they have access to. Unfortunately, this is where mainstream media takes the stage, and right now, mainstream media looks like a big ass remix of The National Inquirer that also tells you what to like, how to act, and what defines a so called "American". The reality of the situation is that a lot of people are struggling to work and keep jobs, are trying to find other jobs, are trying to get out of debt, pay fines, bills, etc, so a lot of folks have to take what they can get outside of trying to exist in this capitalistic society, and if that means watching TV then so be it for some folks.
These people may or may not be religious. If you put religion in the mix, then that's a whole new thing. They're also getting taught how to act, how to dress, what's good, and what one should like. This is why politicians show up at churches for speaking purposes. Its a way to get their foot in the door and influence people who normally wouldn't be paying attention to the rest of the media outlets too closely due to other factors in their lives.
Then there's that American individualistic attitude (I got mine, what's wrong with you) that's killing us. I consider that residual blowback from living in this country (The States). Folks can't help it because it's been bred into all people born in America, as well as folks from overseas due to mass media broadcast from day one.
Now don't get me wrong. I am not excusing anybody for anything. I'm stating situations that could explain why Black folks don't seem to be waking up.
That being said, I must say one thing. I have to face it... this has been a long and hellish road. Waking up is not fun. It's easy to stay asleep, or play woke by dropping knowledge cloaked in supremacy, I mean, after all, that's exactly what respectability politics are about, right? I don't think there is a definitive point where one could say they've arrived. The only thing I think that could get us to wake up is recognizing duality. That means a thug could also be a devout Christian, and a stripper could raise children, a member of the NOI could have an addiction, and a weave wearing woman could be woke. A man in saggy jeans could have a doctorate, and a CEO could be hood as fuck, etc, and nobody would treat them like shit because they don't fit into an easily digestible image.
They would just be seen as Black regardless, and the sooner we get past all of that, then we can finally live.
We have to let people have their things that don't "look right" sometimes. Don't come at them with the "You sleep coon ass Negro" type rhetoric because nobody wants to listen to that, and cussing them out won't turn them on to learning new things. Love them anyway and show them some things in the process. Accept them for who they are, and if they listen, then that's wonderful. If they don't and they stay away from you, then they'll come around sooner or later. It's impossible for people to not have things that conflict with their own selves. As long as they aren't hurting and destroying others, then they should be fine.
No comments:
Post a Comment