The gnawing persistence of white supremacy in America
The Tuesday Talking Points
I often wonder why racism in the form of colonial exploration, exploitation of lands and mineral wealth, and the enslavement and genocide of people of color in Africa, Asia, and the Americas were perpetrated for nearly five centuries among white Europeans who claimed to be followers of the peace loving Jesus of Nazareth? What caused so many “Christian” whites to deem so many millions of colored people "inferior" or "sub-human" and subsequently subjugate, humiliate, discriminate, and far too often, eliminate the same?
***Yesterday was the 36th observation of the Dr. Martin Luther King Federal Holiday and, after watching a few speeches and documentaries in remembrance, I find it important to note that this powerful man of peace was ridiculed, lied on, spat upon, beaten, stabbed, brutally arrested and harassed 24/7 by local police and FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover's minions.
I find it interesting how King’s "popularity" today was nothing of the sort in his day, when “friends" and foes alike questioned his life's missions to end Jim Crow segregation, economic inequality, and the war in Vietnam.
I would be remiss if I did not note that while Dr. King's life is often reduced to sound-bytes about love, forgiveness, and "content of character," that far too many white characters of low cunning—and their Black sycophantic lackeys—manifested hatred and condemnation that haunted King to his very last moments. Hatred and condemnation, I remind, fomented by deeply entrenched systemic racism and blatant white supremacy from those who, like their ancestors that I mentioned in the first prong, have little to no respect for our SHARED humanity...
*** I also sometimes wonder what America would look like today had Dr. Martin Luther King chosen his original path of becoming a lawyer? Or, had he defied his father, Rev. Martin Luther King, Sr., and chosen to marry his white girlfriend becoming a college professor in New England?
Or, even after becoming the most famous civil rights leader of his era, had his adjunct sociology professorship at Morehouse College morphed into becoming the school's president, as he and his mentor, Morehouse President Emeritus Benjamin Mays, had openly discussed?
We may never know; what we do know is that King, shown below shooting pool and in another frame, in a rare moment of relaxation with his ace, Rev. Ralph Abernathy, sacrificed so much for so many in his all too brief 39 years of living.
For the above-stated reasons and more, I, and we, should be eternally grateful...
***Many of my readers know that Dr. King's I Have a Dream speech was delivered at the "March on Washington" in August of 1963, but how many of you realize that the full name of that event was the "March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom?"
When I look at the above poster and to its left, march organizer and legendary civil rights leader Bayard Rustin, what stands out to me is that nearly 60 years after that momentous occasion, Blacks in America STILL lag behind whites as far as employment is concerned.
Why is that so?
I am no economist and will not pretend to be one in this blog, but I am a realist and realize that the Black unemployment rate currently is at 7.1 percent, compared to a white unemployment rate of 3.2 percent, according to the latest figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
I also realize that it doesn't seem to matter if there is a Democrat or a Republican in the White House, that this employment gap has stayed relatively fixed over the past 60 years despite promises from both sides of the ideological spectrum to ameliorate this dilemma.
Something tells me that had Dr. King lived to see his 94th birthday, that he would have been most displeased and reflected such in his remarks...
*** One of the few things that I despise about the MLK Holiday is when those who claim to not be racist, but are comfortable with public policies that detrimentally impact people according to race, start quoting Dr. King as if he would have sided with such policies that widen socio-economic gaps—while denying justice!
Exhibit A: Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), a man who is considered to be a "moderate" Republican by many, but whose comments in the run-up to the King Holiday that President Joe Biden "had imputed sinister, even racist, inclinations” to Republicans who oppose Democratic measures like the John Lewis Voting Rights bill, has him sounding like his racist and racism adjacent conservative kinsmen. Romney added, "So much for unifying the country and working across the aisle…"
So, the problem with Romney's pithy statement is that there can be no unity where one side advocates measures that will dilute ballot access to millions of people of color. None! I mean seriously, how can folks like Romney listen to speeches about how Dr. King fought for the 1965 Voting Rights Act, and then take the lectern in Congress or in local statehouses and push for measures that erode that very law?
It makes no sense, and it does not make the president "a divider" when he calls out the GOP on their desires to limit early voting hours, prevent food and drinks in voting lines, eliminate absentee ballot drop boxes, all the while asking for three and four different identification cards for those simply desiring to cast their ballots! Such acts are morally corrupt and if saying so makes me a "divider," then so be it—I will continue to divide and advocate for equal ballot access for all citizens desiring to vote and be heard!
In Memoriam
The Hobbservation Point extends its most sincere condolences to the family of General Charles E. McGee, a Tuskegee Airman and retired Air Force brigadier who flew combat missions in World War II, Korea, and Vietnam. Gen. McGee, 102 years old, died this past weekend at his home in Bethesda, Maryland.
Rest in eternal peace, Sir!
Thank you for subscribing to the Hobbservation Point—have a wonderful Tuesday!
The new Virginia governor did the same thing. Made a statement and used King's name in a manner that distorts true intentions. Great commentary.
There is a recent book called "Brothers in the Beloved Community" about The Reverend's deep friendship with Vietnamese Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh. Check it out!