STUCK IN TIME
It wasn’t that long ago…
It wasn’t that long ago (the 1960s to be exact) when my parents grew up adhering to “For Coloreds Only” signs at the water fountain. When my inquisitive mother asked her mother why these signs even existed...why the “coloreds” had to drink elsewhere. I’m sure she innocently wondered why their beautiful brown skin was viewed as a threat or a public nuisance every time they walked outside.
It wasn’t that long ago when those same parents became the first integrated class at Richardson High School in 1970, amongst reluctant peers. Can you believe that my PARENTS — not my grandparents or great-grands — were among the very FIRST black students at my own alma mater, Richardson High School (in Richardson, TX)?
It wasn’t that long ago when they saw the term “black-on-black crime” (sometime in the late 1970s) become a popular saying used by the masses to further vilify our communities. Have you ever heard the terms “white-on-white crime” or “Asian-or-Asian crime”? Probably not, right? It’s been proven that most crimes are committed amongst people in close proximity to each other. Our neighborhoods are still segregated in some areas, we still mostly hang out with people that look like us — thus logically resulting in crimes against our own.
It wasn’t that long ago (1971, to be exact) when my parents witnessed President Richard Nixon declare the “war on drugs” — which effectively criminalized drug abuse and possession instead of categorizing it as a national health issue. It was, of course, a thinly veiled attempt to fight against black and brown communities as a retaliation for the Civil Rights Movement, since apparently (in his mind) black and brown people were the only ones abusing drugs.
It wasn’t that long ago (1994, to be exact) when my parents watched their vote for President — the smoothtalking, debonair Mr. Bill Clinton enforce a crime bill that skyrocketed the prison population that we see today. One that enforced Three Strikes and Mandatory Minimums policies that targeted black and brown people and effectively, bussed them into the prisons by the boatload. {{Clinton later acknowledged how his decisions negatively affected our community and maybe were a “mistake” on his part.}}
It wasn’t that long ago (2016 to be exact) when their daughter (yours truly) went on a date with a handsome black guy and he drove us to a popular restaurant in Harlem. On the way there, I accidentally directed him to go down the wrong part of the fork in the road and he swerved a bit when I realized my error. Unfortunately, 2 nearby white cops immediately pulled us over. My date produced his license and registration, they checked it and then made him get out of the car in bone chilling 20 degree winter weather. Forced him to open the trunk while they searched his belongings and interrogated him for what seemed like a lifetime. As it all unfolded, I scarily texted a friend asking if I should record the interaction. He (another black man) told me “no don’t, that’ll just piss them off.” So I settled for just giving the friend my location instead...in case anything happened to us that night and our story couldn’t be told. My date wasn’t a criminal, he didn’t do anything wrong. But his brown skin driving a BMW at night in Harlem made him a target. Eventually, the menacing cops found nothing and finally let us go.
——
Racism doesn’t have one face, one lone manifestation that we can tackle and eviscerate easily. It’s a pervasive evil. One that permeates the entire infrastructure of this country and so many others. It has plagued me, my family and friends, likely all black people that I know and love. None of this is ancient history and it’s frighteningly still affecting us blatantly and harmfully — through daily violence and quieter, more systemic measures.
So what’s next? How do we dismantle such a heinous, egregious system? We break it down, brick by brick, petition by petition, vote by vote. In city council meetings in your community, school board meetings, voting booths and corporate boardrooms alike.
Black people didn’t deserve this treatment, this unjust system. No one does. So what’s your role in making sure Black kids and grandkids don’t have to be beaten down by it too?
*The inspiration for this post came from my recent viewing of “13th” on Netflix (by brilliant filmmaker, Ava DuVernay). I waited years to see it because my heart couldn’t take the message. Now, I deem it as required viewing by everyone in this country. The images, the themes, the conversation is necessary to view and absorb. Now is the time.*
**Main image is not my own. Sourced from visual-therapy.com*
