Saturday, February 19, 2005

Black History Month Has to Go!

As you all must know by now, February is Black History Month. I find that in itself to be incredibly ironic or something. You do know that February is the shortest month and the only month that doesn't have a consistent number of days. Conspiracy? Yep, I think so. Hey let's give the black race a special month where that is when we talk about "their" history. Then we won't have to even assume that "Black History" is really just history.

Come on, am I the only one that thinks this is crazy? With this mindset, we can always exclude history that involves people of the black race for the whole year until February and then we can just jump on it for the shortest month of the year. Sounds like one of those Democrat programs. Don't just cover the black race like they are human, let's seperate them 'cause we know if blacks are assimilated, then they will expect to be treated the same way as everyone else. Let's just set aside a special time to talk about "them".

Okay, I am not Black, but I am not stupid either. The people I see on a daily basis are a very good racial mix because I work for an architecture firm that is minority owned. We have a racial make-up that is close to 50-50 black/white. I live in a metropolitan area that has pretty much the same racial divide. I can honestly say that the people I have spent my entire life around are a racially diverse group and I can also say that the only differences that I notice are the varying amounts of pigment in our skin.

Anyhoo, Black History Month is a travesty. I think that the sooner we get to the point of doing away with it, the sooner that we can achieve a true color blind society. I am against anything that draws attention to our differences according to physical traits over which we have no control. The similarities of all people are the things that need to be highlighted.

And to drive my point into the ground, here are the links to people who think like me.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Deroy Murdock

Dr. Thomas Sowell

Oh, and guess what? They are all not white.

UPDATE: Another irony occurred right after I posted this article. My Google ads popped up with a link to Indian Bloggers. Funny shizzle.

UPDATE DEAUX: My friend Curtis agrees with me on this issue. It was great to him this weekend, he always has such cogent arguments, but he is on the wrong side of the juicing issue, if I do say so myself.

UPDATE RELOADED: I have been scouring the web for more on this debate and I happened upon this BLOG. Man, they have done their homework. (Hat Tip: The Black Republican) And check THIS out!

UPDATE REVOLUTIONS: Nzyme, I too like the corn pone, hip-hop, r&b, Mexican food, etal. Don't care much for the greens though, I would rather have the black-eyed peas.

My point is that if the histories are separated, the continuity of the learning experience is diluted. History operates on a chronological timeline and all of the points are linear. If we set aside one month of the year for our kids to study "Black History", we take that history out of its context. Our children began to segment their history rather than seeing certain events in the proper context. They fail to connect Dr. King with the turbulent times of the Vietnam War, which I see as incredibly relevant.

Oh, and I have determined from this point on that May is Women's Month. Not history, mind you, but it shall be the month from this point forward that men shall bow down and serve everything that women want. Then men will get the remaining eleven months for the same purpose.

UPDATE DAMMIT, NO MORE MATRIX MOVIES: This keeps getting more and more involved but I shall persevere. Found THIS tidbit about gun control and, yes, Shirley, it has to do with the topic at hand. (Hat-Tip: The Mulatto Advocate)

LAST UPDATE: For your information, it was Claudette Colvin that was the first black to get arrested for not giving up her seat. She just wasn't a good defendant for the desegregation issue because she was fifteen and pregnant. Sorry, it's the truth.
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24 comments:

Paul Mitchell said...

I whole-heartedly agree with your sentiments, Nzyme. I have experienced first hand the contradictions that are American History at this point in the game. With the further dilution, revisions, and out-right distortions that are prevalent in our schools today, it's a wonder that schoolchildren don't think that Rosa Parks was the first to refuse her seat on a bus or Christopher Columbus discovered the United States. Oh, wait, they do think that.

I absolutely, positively don't want to offend anyone in this discussion because I am not saying that my opinion is the only valid one. I am trying to start an enlightening discussion between friends who obviously are after the same things regardless of race, sex, religion, or number of limbs.

And I would thoroughly enjoy the oportunity to work on a history project such as you describe. Drop me an e-mail, let's get busy

Wayne World said...

I don't agree with your remark about Democratic program. If it was/is left up to republicans, they would do away with the topic of slavery all together and only teach the kids that we are all equal.We never were and might never will be equal in the minds of whites.Contrary to what Republicans want to say , slavery did happen, on a massive scale,they were not "voluntary immigrants" as they want to relable slaves as!I wish we did'nt need to have a black history month, but as long as bigots and racists live and rule, it is unfortunately necessary to document and teach all about true history!

Anonymous said...

Okay, I dogged Dean on his racist media strike-out but I agree with this one. History is history. Why don't Native Americans have their own month? And what about Scots and Irish and and and and...

duh...

no-brainer.

Paul Mitchell said...

Man, this is great. Thanks all for posting.

On with it, I can't understand why anyone would think that this is not a Democrat idea. I am pretty sure that anyone with any grasp of history would KNOW that the party of the KKK was the Democrats. And we are not talking about that long ago. As a matter of fact, the Dems were staunch race lords during the Civil Rights era.

They even have an ex-member currently serving in the House. Robert Byrd ring a bell with anyone? LBJ, the President suring the time, was an avowed Segregationist.

Anyway, us folks that were here first, yes, that's me; don't want a month. Just let us have our casinos and keep us free from Social Security (as long as we don't wander off the reservation) and we are happy.

Wayne World said...

Just because you work with, and are cool with some blacks does not solve the race issue! It might be a non issue in your mind, but that might be because you do not experience discrimination due to your race.Affermative action was put in place to help offset and correct some of the wrongs imposed on blacks and other minorities.It was not meant to punish you for being white!I'm sure Whites would like us all to forget and pick up the story from now, leaving blacks wondering why they are born disadvantaged. However, blacks need to know what occured and why it happened and why they are not on the same level as whites on a whole. If they are not taught this, they can easily attribute their disposition to inferiority or some other false reason!

Paul Mitchell said...

And thanks for the link, Nzyme. I ordered the book. I'll keep y'all posted. Thanks for the comments, y'all are great.

Paul Mitchell said...

In response to soundboyz; I never want anyone to forget exactly what the ones before us had to endure. And I never meant to imply that there are not race issues to be tackled, what I am saying is that we have tried this particular way for 40 years and obviously there are flaws in the way that we are approaching the issues.

I am not now and have never been black so I do not see things from that perspective. However, I do see things from a minority perspective and can honestly say that assimilation into the melting pot has worked wonders for my esteem. I no longer look at circumstances with the red-colored glasses that I formerly wore.

And, I vehemently disagree that Blacks are not on the same level as Whites. And you would have to agree that Lincoln thought the same way. He was a Republican, by the way. And the Republican Party was founded to fight against slavery. I can't figure out how revisionists have changed that.

Wayne World said...

One last thing I would like to clear up is that the Democratic party was once the Republican party. This is a common trick used by Republicans to confuse the issue! What happened was that all the members of the Democratic party that was associated with racism left the party and switched to the Republican party because when blacks earned the right to vote, blacks joined the democratic party. So, to clarify, the present republican party was the democratic party during slavery and segregation, then they switched to the Republic party when blacks were given the right to vote and joined the Democratic party. The "Dixiecrats" as they were commonly reffered to, stated their reason for switching parties was because they would'nt be in the same party with "NIGGERS"!

Wayne World said...

I do however have to apologize for assuming that you are white. I also want to clarify that when I said that Blacks and whites were not on the same level on a whole , I did not mean as human beings, I meant as a result of slavery, Jim Crow, segregation and racism.This shows how great black people are, they faced all of that and they still suceed and continue to progress!!One last thing, your people received reparations from the government due to the injustices the Native Americans faced , so it is only Right and FAIR that black Americans also be compensated for the atrocities and hardships they have, and continue to face!

Paul Mitchell said...

Sorry soundboyz, not correct. Strom Thurman was the only one that changed parties. The rest of the racist scum have stayed behind in the Democrat party. And the rest of the Dixiecrats fell back into the fold to wait for LBJ to finally come to power.

I really didn't want this to disentigrate into a Reps vs. Dems debate, (that is a completely different topic) but....I think that Blacks have given up on actually trying to change anything in poitics and turn on anyone that doesn't toe the party line.

My point: Clarence Thomas, the most powerful black man holding a government position is regularly labeled an Uncle Tom by the Black Community. Dr. Rice, our Secretary of State is ridiculed by her own family for serving in the Bush administration. There's something worng with that, if you ask me.

Oh, and Ronald Reagan gave us Dr. King's federal holiday.

Paul Mitchell said...

Oh, and where's my cheese? I have not received one single penny from the fed. Nor, would I ever take it in a million years. I earn what I have and have knocked the top off my son's head every time he brings up free college tuition for Indians. (Dammit, I refuse to call myself Native American)

Wayne World said...

You might not have personally received it, but your people were given reparations in several ways. I don't have to get into detail with you. Whether you choose to utilize them or not is your business. They were granted for the injustices faced by the Indians.It's funny, you refuse to use the term Native Americans , yet you were exactly that.You would rather use the term Indian, which was given to your people as a result of misidentification by white people. Blacks don't disagree with Condaleeza Rice and Clarence Thomas because they are successful, or that they work for whites , or that they are Republican, they don't agree with them because of their policies and their ideologies.Nice try.

Paul Mitchell said...

I am not 'trying', I am saying that these two people are at the top of their game. I am trying to encourage an open-minded debate about racism and achieving a color-blind society. I have links above that can offer further substance to my arguments. And I would never try to convince you that your thoughts and opinions are failures on a global scale.

And I sent you mail on the formatting issue. I format at least once every two months. Keeps the tool clean, you know.

Wayne World said...

Hey Two Dogs, You sent the mail to DjXplicit my blogmate, he was the one with hard drive issues, but I thank you and I'm sure he thank you too. I enjoy this type of spirited debate and I know that neither one of us have all the answers. However, it's good to discuss.

Anonymous said...

Soundboyz...what of the fact that slavery of Blacks began in Africa? This does not change the issue, but the point is...where does the issue end? It certainly did not begin here. Have you ever wondered how different it would be if Blacks, Whites, Reds, Yellows, etc. began to change their thoughts about the way they fit into society and how they will be received, in other words, believing the best about self first, expecting the best about self first and from there expecting the rest of the world to do the same...is this not the true end to all racism/fear?

And Two Dogs...are you serious...Indian, huh? Love it...

Paul Mitchell said...

Man, this is the best blogging day for yet! Yep, I'm Cherokee. I probably wouldn't turn in my card if it was some ass-kicking tribe, but we were mathmeticians, dammit, how can you be proud about that when all the other tribes were fighters? I am just joking around.

Anyway, I found another link to an article that might interest some.

Go HERE, RIGHT NOW!

Wayne World said...

This is in response to anonymous' post.First I would like to say that they are correct in stating that slavery did not begin in America, however slavery did occur in America on a wide scale and to merely state that it also happened elsewhere, does not excuse the fact.Secondly, I don't think that it's the blacks or the Reds or the yellows that have a problem with being accepted as is, I think the problem stems from White racist who cannot accept others as equal.To think that the problem stems from minorities who views of themselves as lesser than is putting the blame on the victims.

Paul Mitchell said...

Thanks for coming back, soundboyz. I will be the first to admit that racists exist in a big way here in our country. However, I think that we have made great strides in my home state that others haven't made.

We have a huge advantage over other places where seeing a black man in the coffee shop is a rare occurance. I hate to point to the people on a National stage and say "Look at this!", but for instance Howard Dean said just two days ago that the only way Reps would have that many Blacks in attendance was to get the hotel staff in the room.

If that ain't racist, I just don't know what is.

Anonymous said...

Hey Soundboyz...

AnonybaNONy here. Nowhere did I express the crazy notion that the problem stems from minorities viewing themselves as lesser. Read my post again. And notice that I included whites. None of what I expressed diminishes the truth of racism in any context. The core of racism, besides fear, is an inability to reach beyond the reality of a physical body as the defining proof of being and of value. Our actions, our energy, our attitudes, our spirituality comprise the "other" body of being that one person is and is what I was pointing to...as a woman I can understand a measure of the frustration of "ism"s of several varieties.

Peace...

Wayne World said...

Hey Anonybanony, you are correct. I did misinterprit your post, and I apologize. I agree with you 100%. If human beings could get past the physical and realize that there is a inner that defines us all, then there would be no racism. However ,This seems to be a major hurdle for many .You are very deep!

Anonymous said...

Deep Shmeep...jus' call me lil bo peep...I go from serious to silly in .11159 seconds.

Or something like that.

Great blog!

--AnonybaNONy

Wayne World said...

Two Dogs....I'm starting to understand you more and more each passing day. You seem like a Armstrong Williams, someone who believes in everything Republican and will do anything to make Democrats seem like they are Republicans and visa-versa!That could never work on a large scale because people who are Republican, are that way for specific reasons,while Democrats are who they are because they believe in justice and equality for real.People are not stupid , for the most part, you can't trick people into believing that Republicans are not who they are. It is plain to see.And by the way, you were right , only a few Dixiecrats switched when Blacks were given the right to vote. The rest switched long before when the slaves were freed and all the ex slaves joined the democratic party.The democrats were the party of the KKK then they all switched to Republicans, and it's been that way ever since!

Paul Mitchell said...

Damn, soundboyz, you figured me out. I am like Armstrong Williams, another conservative, black man abandoned by "his" people.

I am most definitely conservative in the sense that I want an almost non-existent Federal government. I am against all Federal Programs except for the funding of a military. I do not want anyone to tell me how to raise my boy unless I ask them. And last, but definitely not least, I want to choose what to do with my own damn money.

That said, I do not now, nor have I ever supported the platforms of the Democrat Party. No, Shirley, it ain't the Democratic Party. I have never uttered the words, "That's how it is in a Democracy." in regards to the United States of America, cause we ain't no damn Democracy and never have been. It's a Republic, read the Constitution. And there are some guarantees in it, if you didn't know.

And here we go, if the Black community would simply take an open-minded approach to what benefits them as American individuals, they would surely come to the conclusion that every last one of the Social programs that have been forced on us in the last thirty years has done nothing but keep the Black race and any other minority DOWN that accepts the Federal government's alms.

I am from Mississippi, the State that gives more per capita in charity than any other state while still maintaining the second lowest income. Try to explain that to the millionaires in your party. Al Gore gave $350.00 in charity while he ran for President on an adjusted gross income of over 3.5 mil.

Dig your head from the sand, people. You've been conned. Don't you recognize card-sharps when you see them? I am cetainly not saying that Republicans are not shysters, but damn, 85% of the Black population voted for a multi-multi-millionaire that has had one job that lasted 6 months. The rest of the time, he has been in Congress and not even attending for the votes. What the HELL could he possibly understand about the plight of any Racial minority?

My last point is this, the ONLY people that were members of the Ku Klux Klan that are currently serving in any government capacity are Democrats.

Sorry, didn't mean to flip out, but SNAP!

Anonymous said...

I really find the whole Black History month as a slap in the face. I celebrate my African American Heritage EVERYDAY! Our history is "AMERICAN" history. I have read: Lies My teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong, and I also sugguest everyone black and white check it out.