There are several things I want to say about this Ferguson situation after having had the opportunity to reflect on my own thoughts in addition to reading several Facebook posts of people within my friends list. Having had the opportunity to serve on a jury, I can personally attest to the fact that conflicting eyewitness accounts make it extremely difficult for the judicial process to move forward. The only way I felt comfortable in delivering the decision I did was as a result of evidence submitted into the official record that ultimately withstood scrutiny. Since I did not serve on this jury and did not have the opportunity to hear any of the evidence, it wouldn’t be proper for me as a rational and objective observer to come to the conclusion that this jury mishandled this specific case. However with that being said, it would also be improper for me not to recognize the numerous occasions in which black men have not received due process under the law. America has had a history of challenges when it comes to racism, prejudice, bigotry and the state sanctioned laws that supported those beliefs. From the times when the first African slaves were brought to America’s shores in 1619 to be sold as if they were nothing but property to the subsequent days of the three-fifths rule, the one drop rule and the Tuskegee experiments, Blacks have been subjected to a multitude of purposefully engineered social situations that limited their full and equal social participation in American society. One poster (who was not black) brought up this notion of “the race card” and several of this person’s friends (most of which were not black either) chimed in and subsequently agreed with the poster’s message. As stated previously, I was not there so I cannot come to a definitive conclusion about the guilt or innocence of the officer in question and whether race was a definitive factor in the officer’s decision to discharge his weapon. However when I can walk into a store and not be greeted by the employee at the door (even though I made it a point to smile) but the non-black person that comes in immediately behind me can be greeted with a warm welcome, it is evident that some people in America will not let me forget that I am a black man. When I walk down the street wearing a U.C. Berkeley alumni sweatshirt and the first questions out of people’s mouths are “did you play football?” or “Are you a Cal fan?, it is evident that some people will not let me forget that I am a black man. Some people ask themselves why can legal immigrants come to this country and be successful while African Americans continue to get the short end of the stick when it comes to employment, education, housing and access to a host of other criteria necessary for socioeconomic mobility. For those that may be unaware of America’s immigration policies after World War 2, the State Department (with the consent of Presidential Administrations) created several pro-immigration policies particularly toward European, Asian and Middle Eastern immigrants. These policies were created so that America could not only bolster its European American population, but so that it could also expand its economic presence in these countries so as to promote American business overseas. So this means America said “We will allow your citizens to immigrate to the United States if you allow American businesses access to your marketplace.” As America felt that it had nothing to gain by allowing blacks a similar level of socioeconomic access, most blacks were simply not allowed this access due to the fear of competition by those in mainstream America. So what is the point of all of this you ask? My point is that history cannot be ignored or swept under the rug. We (black men and women) are not making these stories up using our over active imaginations. Have you ever stopped to think why public schools teach their students so much about European History but spend very little time discussing Asian, Middle Eastern or African History? Have you ever stopped to think why whites are 5 times as likely to use illegal narcotics but blacks are several times more likely to be convicted of the same offenses and given harsher sentences upon conviction? Unfortunately more than 70 percent of American’s over the age of 25 do not possess a four year college degree which means that the curriculum received in high school (especially public high school) was extremely limited and did not prepare most of its students to be critical thinkers. At the end of the day it is not about the blame game or “playing the race card” as some people have suggested. It is about recognizing the truth of history as an avenue toward understanding the current context of cultural relations in America. Crimes against humanity have been committed against blacks in America for centuries. My late father knew what it was like to live in Biloxi, Mississippi during the Jim Crow era. He knew what it was like not to be able to go to the lake to swim like the other kids because of the color of his skin. Although some of the laws have changed, the legacy of America’s cultural history cannot be washed away simply because we are in the era of America’s first non- white President. There is no question that we have come a long way but we have a long way to go and it is up to all of us to create a new legacy that future generations can be proud of.
Posted on: Tue, 25 Nov 2014 08:58:47 +0000
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