In the face of hate...what do you do?
Do you condemn it?
Do you run from it?
Do you fight it?
Do you pretend that it doesn't exist?
Do you say "that's unfortunate"...but breathe a sigh of relief that it didn't happen in your town or city?
or do you say nothing?
Like many of you, I watched the horrific, racist, and terroristic events that transpired over this past weekend in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Hatred and bigotry spewed out right before our eyes.
Those scenes reminded me of the stories that I heard my parents tell me as a child. I heard stories about the Klan and what they thought about me and my people. Growing up in the South, you knew what it was. You knew what that confederate flag looked like. I remember my mom showing me places in my hometown, Florence, SC, where she couldn't go as a child. She showed me the places that had the "back entrance" for black customers. She even showed me where there were signs that read "FOR COLOREDS" that were posted over the water fountain. At the age of 10, I remember thinking "wow, they had it real bad back in those days."
Fast forward 34 years later...and you see me trying to explain this to my 10 year old son. I never thought I'd see anything that resembled the Jim Crow south. But it's on my tv screen. How do you explain that to a little black boy? How do you explain a world that you never thought you'd see? It's simple...you do what your parents did...you arm him with the truth.
Race is the 400 pound elephant in the room. It's in the room and most people want to ignore it. But they can't. Not only can they not ignore it, but many walk past it as if it doesn't exist. People seem to be "begging to have a discussion about race" but do they REALLY want to talk about it? No. They don't. And they few who want to talk about it, only want to talk until they begin to get uncomfortable. So, you can miss me with the attempts to talk. You either do or you don't. There is no in between.
I'm not surprised that these fools took to the campus of the University of Virginia. It's much safer for them there than it is Hampton Roads or Richmond. Am I surprised that these fools would come out and act this way? No. I am a little surprised that they didn't have their masks on. That's bold! Then again, their fearless leader has put the battery in their backs and given them the juice to act this way. I've often said that I don't worry about Chump...but I worry about the 50M people who voted for him. Many of those folks were in that crowd thinking of what they could do to scare folks. Those people may be the principal at your kid's school or the dude who you need to help you get a mortgage. These are the real domestic terrorist.
I couldn't help but also think about my big cousin. He's a UVa alum from their law school. His wife is an alum from the medical school. They have 2 kids who have recently graduated from there. Their 3 child...she will be attending school there this week. I pray for them...and I pray for her. They shouldn't have to deal with this. But here we are. She is armed with the truth. She will be just fine.
Lastly, I go back to my original statement. What are we going to do? More importantly, what are YOU going to do? Truth be told, most of the push needed for the Civil Rights came from white people who grew tired of watching black folks on tv every night being sprayed with fire hoses and being attacked by dogs. How far away are we from those days? If this current administration has anything to do with it...we are moving closer to those days. So...again...what are you going to do?
If your decision is to sit and do nothing...or say nothing...you are just as bad as those fools on tv. Your silence speaks volumes....
