Often it is questioned how does someone who is corrupt, preaches hatred of their fellow man, looks to divide rather than unite and possesses no compassion for others attract so many followers? The answer is simple. It is not the person themselves; it is the fact that their actions are a mirror into the true soul of those that follow them.
The first time I held you and looked into your eyes, I saw myself looking back at me only with innocence and optimism that has long ago been stripped from my soul. There is nothing I wouldn’t do for you, no lengths I wouldn’t go to protect you. Tears filled my eyes the first time I held you. Those around me took them as tears of joy, and make no mistake, the joy I felt at that moment was overwhelming, but sadly the tears also represented guilt, sadness, and fear. Guilt that I had brought you such a bright light into such a dark world. Was my desire to have a child selfish? Was I only thinking about my wants and desires and putting aside how this world will treat you because of the color of your skin. Sadness because I knew all too well how it would, that no matter how brilliant you may be, how much hard work you put in, how good a person you are, the challenges ahead of you will be daunting, challenges others will not have to face but will be there every day because of the color of your skin. Fear that one day my phone will ring or there will be a knock at my door, and someone will say to me the words that no parent should ever hear you have been found shot and killed—killed because of the color of your skin. How many more parents must, on what should be unquestionably one of the happiest days of their lives, look into the eyes of their baby and be consumed with worry that no matter how much they try, they will not be able to shield that baby from the ugliness that they will confront? How many more times must we mourn the loss of another bright light extinguished by hate. How many more times must our communities echo with the sound of grieving parents as they stand over the lifeless body of the child they once held in their arms before we say enough! I look back at your smiling face and the innocence in your eyes and see a bright future with unlimited potential ahead of you that they will try and deny you of. At the moment, I make you a promise that as long as there is my breath in my body, I will protect you and do everything in my power to ensure no one takes that away from you. My blood flows through you, I am responsible for bringing you into this world, and it is my responsibility to protect you from its hatred. Our bond is forever. You are my child, and I will always love you and be there for you.
There is no excuse for following or condoning the words of the ignorant be that in your actions or your silence.
COVID-19 is ravaging the nation, with close to 200,000 lives lost and countless more impacted by its long-term after-effects.
Unemployment is devastating individuals economically, with close to 30 million Americans relying on unemployment benefits.
Hunger is overwhelming families, with food security affecting over 37 million U.S. households.
Homelessness impacts our most vulnerable, with 1.5 million students classified by the U.S. Department of Education as homeless because of unstable living situations.
Now more than ever, we should be banning together under the banner of brotherhood, elevating the things that bind us together, cherishing our values, helping others, and holding each one close.
Sadly, in these turbulent times, our current leadership chooses to ramp up the message of hate, devaluing the lives of people of color, setting a tone of callousness and division. A tone that will never allow us to band together to nurture this nation back to health.
As our country slowly dies in front of their eyes, those who embrace racism have just one thought, hate. It is all that has ever mattered to them since they raided our land, tore us from our families, herded us together like cattle, and sold us as slaves. And their hatred only grows as our demands to live our lives in equality and dignity grows. As Mr. Spock would say, it does not make sense to expect sense from such a mentality is not logical.
On September 4, 2020, President Donald Trump directed federal agencies Friday to end diversity training programs, calling them “Divisive, anti-American propaganda a sickness that cannot be allowed to continue.” This decision comes amid a nationwide reckoning on racial injustice that Trump has adamantly opposed.
There is a reason Trump disparages those who would educate America on issues of racial injustice. Why he looks to paint those who do so as radical left-wing unamerican extremist, it is so he can easily mislead a segment of American society, to continue to tap into their ignorance and hate, to ensure that his lying and use of misinformation is seen as truth.
Because Trump knows that:
Misinformation leads to ignorance.
Ignorance leads to fear.
Fear leads to isolation.
Isolation leads to mistrust.
Mistrust leads to intolerance.
Intolerance leads to hate.
Hate leads to division.
And division ensures that we as Americans never band together as one but continue to fight each other over the crumbs he and his kind continue to toss us. It is to ensure we remain victims to ensure their way of life.
Matthew 12:25 New King James Version
But Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them: “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand. –
November 3, 2020, is election day. But it is not like any election day we have ever witnessed. This election day, we must wake with a single purpose, to go to the polls and take our government back from the charlatans who profess they have been elected to serve the people when the truth is they serve only themselves and the all mighty dollar. Individuals who have proven that they don’t care about our democracy or our lives if they interfere with their pursuit of wealth and power. We must remove those from the halls of government who preach hate and look to divide us—those who lie and are corrupt. We must vote to restore democracy to what it is meant to be – The voice of the people.
On November 3, 2020, we are voting for the soul of this county. We are the coalition of the righteous, and we must rise and defeat them before it is too late. We must show them that we are moving forward as one country, not backward. Forward to a country where:
Racism based on the color of one skin is fading away.
Discrimination based on one’s sexual orientation is vanishing by the day.
Disrespect of women is no longer accepted as one of society’s dirty little norms.
Bullying someone because they don’t fit into a box society says is normal is waning.
The division is being increasingly replaced by unity.
Exclusion is being increasingly replaced by inclusion.
Be it by mail or in person, early voting, or the day of, we must let our voices be heard loud and clear. The voices they are so desperate to silence and truly make America great
Donald Trump tweeted in response to the elegant and forceful rebuke of his character and presidency by former first lady Michelle Obama.
“Somebody please explain to @MichelleObama that Donald J. Trump would not be here, in the beautiful White House, if it weren’t for the job done by your husband, Barack Obama,”
To some extent, he is correct. In 2016 Trump pushed an agenda of division, hate, and racism. Several studies have confirmed that concerns about identity and race were the decisive issues in the 2016 election. Those Trump voters were motivated by racial resentment.
America is a complicated country, founded on the principle that all men are created equal while at the same time openly embracing slavery and allowing legalized discrimination until as recently as the 1960s. A country whose richness was built upon immigrants’ various contributions and whose diversity is one of its most vital qualities, yet still has a segment of its society that rejects that very diversity, segregating themselves in their communities afraid of the unknown from a different race or culture. For these individuals, eight years of an African American President was the final straw. His ascension to the highest office represented a clear and present danger to their way of life, signifying that they were losing “their” country.
Donald Trump seized on this resentment and fear. He used buzz words, advertising, imaging, and manipulation to create a reality designed to scare those who are gullible or know no better with the help of certain media outlets. But when one examines his talking points more closely and his actions since becoming President, it is clear he is not concerned with the good of the country but in merely increasing his power, wealth and promoting his agenda of hate. This strategy is not new; history has shown us that it has proven to be effective in the past. It was President Lyndon Johnson who once said:
“If you can convince the lowest white man he’s better than the best-colored man, he won’t notice you’re picking his pocket. Hell, give him somebody to look down on, and he’ll empty his pockets for you.”
Today, in 2020, Trump appears to have doubled down on his hate and division message to maintain his presidency, calling New York City’s decision to paint ‘Black Lives Matter’ on Fifth Avenue a “symbol of hate, exploiting the individuals who used the Black Lives Matter protests as a cover to riot and loot by mischaracterizing them as representative of the entire movement—showing images of young African American men engaged in acts of violence to scare his base into believing that all people of color are a threat to white America.
“Defining myself, as opposed to being defined by others, is one of the most difficult challenges I face.”
This is not reality, but when often repeated enough, perception often becomes a reality with some. Or as Carol Moseley-Braun once said:
Sadly, for the segment of this country who happily go along with this false narrative, unwilling to educate or open their minds to the concept of unity and their hearts to the idea of love, they are blinded to what the false narrative is really about. Nothing more than a form of control so that Trump can manipulate them.
However, the truth is what Trump and those who believe in his doctrine of hate and racism are afraid of this.
The image of young educated black men rallying around a strong, educated, successful black man of color they wish to emulate, to them this is ten times scarier than any image of violence could ever be. It is the reality that they truly fear.
Getting gas today I witnessed a bunch of young men of color casually tossing around the N word. In this summer of racial unrest where so many people of all colors, genders, religions and socioeconomic backgrounds have come together to demand racial equality we as a people still cling to the N word using the excuse that we have redefined it an made it our own. Wrong! It is and always will be a word of hate. I have posted this before and I will continue to periodically post it in hopes that some of my brothers and sisters that use it will take it to heart and eradicate that word from their vocabulary.
Carl's Place 