Fear: An Open Call For New Leadership

I was raised black.

In saying that, I have to acknowledge the fact that I like to dance to my favorite song whenever it plays in my head. I like to laugh out loud (at times) when I am most embarrassed. And, I know that I will be watched everywhere I go - whether it is a corner store or an inaugural ball - because the world expects me to do something worthy of reprimand.

As a child, I often wondered why black history was omitted from the history books in school. Then, as I grew older, I learned that if all Americans were actually taught the true history of America, we would be forced to deal with the harsh reality of oppression that has lingered since slavery.   Even after being emancipated, people of color have remained enslaved by a legal system that seemingly thrives by denying a large populous of this country their civil and economic freedoms.

I sincerely doubt if half of this country's population even knows about the accomplishments of Black Wall Street, the massacure of over 10,000 blacks in 1921, or the Detroit race riots of 1863, 1943, and 1967.   In each case, countless lives were lost each time our community dared to advance in spite of oppressive boundaries that were intended to limit our community's potential.

Long ago, I realized that being "raised black" came with just as many precautions as it did freedoms.  Don't do this.  Don't do that.  I was free to enjoy gym class as long as I liked; however, I was not expected to excel in chemistry or math. I was free to stay after school for track, band, or football; yet, I was hardly ever asked to join study groups or eat my lunch at an integrated table. I was always expected to be the comical "life of the party"; yet, I was also the central focus at these same gatherings if something went missing or if the police were called.

I understood, at a young age, that the color of my skin came with added pressures and responsibilities. To this day, I tell my doctor that I do not have high blood pressure - I am just constantly under duress due to the things that I must deal with on a sub-conscious level at all times. Being black in America is an added "pressure" that his medical equipment could not compensate for, so the medical readings of my pulse may be higher than my counterparts who do not deal with my day-to-day dilemmas.Going to the store could be a death sentence for me – if I am in the wrong place at the right time.

Whenever I walk across a busy street, I still laugh as I hear car doors lock and conversations trail off into silence. When I walk into stores, I smile as attendants refuse to offer me service; yet, they follow me around the store pretending to clean up as they watch me. And still, when I walk into work, I hold my breath as I watch my co-workers become rigid if I interject an idea - thinking that I am being defensive or always seeing things from a racial standpoint.

But, along with this acute sense of self awareness comes an inherent awareness of my surroundings as well. I know that it has been two years since Trayvon Martin was gunned down and his murderer was acquitted of all blame. And, just like Emmitt Till, the four young girls from the church bombings, and the Atlanta children murdered in the 1980s –there is still no justice for Trayvon. I know that this same story of injustice is echoed throughout history because our current laws allow racism and acts of cruelty to become commonplace as crimes are committed against a great number of people simply because of their color.  

When the Martin vs Zimmerman trial began, I was one of the first to say that the accused would walk free. Co-workers were angry and friends voiced their opinions; however, I remained focused on the facts. Everything was hearsay and the only witness to the crime was the accused; therefore, nothing would ever become evident.

The same law that allowed Zimmerman - and most recently Michael Dunn - to go free had been used to unjustly prosecute some and acquit others in previous cases. And, the guidelines for first degree murder in Florida included vague language that could not be proven in a case where there was no second witness. In short, Zimmerman and Dunn had both won their cases even before the trial started. 

Realistically, there was no way to prove either man's guilt based on the guidelines of the law for premeditated first degree murder. Had the prosecution opted for second degree murder or manslaughter in either case, then a conviction would have been more likely.  My only questions are these: “Didn’t the prosecutors know that going into the case?” and “Were they just appeasing black America by going through the public circus of a trial before quietly sweeping these deaths under a rug?”

In recent months, a disproportionate amount of media has been focused on the injustices that plague the black community. From the public executions of Trayvon Martin, Jordan Davis, Renisha McBride, and Jonathan Ferrell to the civil injustices against Marissa Alexander, Chavis Carter, Kendrick Johnson, and CeCeMcDonald. And, have we forgotten about the brutal dragging death of Alfred Wright that was ruled as "accidental" even though his throat was slit, his eyes and teeth were missing and he was dragged behind a vehicle for miles?

Even President Barack Obama chimed in on the recent miscarriage of justice saying in the Martin case, saying, "If I had a son, he would look like Trayvon". But, what are we to tell our sons and daughters if - no matter how educated, complacent, and law-abiding that they may be - they can be killed for simply being black in America? 

Although protests have been organized to bring attention to the controversial Stand Your Ground law, very little effectual change has taken place. We continue to see cases that highlight the dysfunctionality of the American justice system every day.   How many more names must be added to this growing list of fatalities before we realize that there is a cultural war going on in America?  Nay-sayers would like to cloud your perceptions by introducing arguments that skew your judgment like “black-on-black crime” and “high incarceration rates”; however, these are both effects of the cultural war – not the cause.  Legislation without prejudice for color, culture, or economic might would resolve many issues but the old adage, “He who has the gold, makes the rules” seems to be the actual law of the land.

Now is the time for a civil rebirth.  Now is the time for a leader to emerge from the masses.  As we watch the civil rights leaders of our past generation slowly succumb to age, we need to reassert the energies of the national organizations that once held our communities together. Now, more than ever, we need to write our congressmen about having the Stand Your Ground laws removed from our judicial system.


We need to show a united front whenever protesting. We need a clear agenda and a plausible resolution. Marching down streets with signs and yelling at the top of your lungs is not a protest; that is defined as a demonstration. In order to successfully protest, we need to organize our efforts through a central organization that can readily account for the buying power of our communities across this nation.

The most effective protests interrupt financial forecasts of businesses who silently depend on the collective spending of a community. Then, change comes about because people are forced to become uneasy because they feel your "pain" financially and respond to your pleas. The "Occupy Atlanta" protests took place in areas that did not interrupt business, so they were visible, but ineffective. The bus boycotts in the 1960s crippled the transportation industry and forced one community's issues to be rectified because it effected everyone in some way or another.

Marching down the street with posters only impedes traffic.  Buying a bag of Skittles only helps to widen that company's profit margin. If protesters had, instead, asked the company to support them in their efforts because one of their customers was mercilessly killed, maybe the results would have been different. Quite simply, protesting without planning equals chaos.  But, organized chaos can create change.

It saddens me to know that more people are invested in knowing what NeNe Leakes thinks of Kenya Moore rather than knowing the laws that effect them and their children in their own state! But, if we were to organize, unite, and finally make plausible demands of the governing systems in America, then maybe - just maybe - we could enjoy the true freedoms of living in a land "with liberty and justice for all"....

Yes, #BlackLivesMatter....  But, alas, this is just ONE Man's Opinion.... What is yours?