In the wake of the deaths of Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna Bryan, there have been extreme variances of interactions; some of which have moved me to write this article.
I do not know where to begin. We have monuments dedicated to white men - presidents, governors, supreme court justices, congress-people army generals and many more...… who owned people, sanctioned the rape and brutality of black women and men; instituted such practices (which became cultural norms) into our society, developing a culture we now refer to as American culture; and the legacy of this country which we regard as of one of the most profitable institutions of all time: American chattel slavery.
These men, regarded as forefathers developed the first Rape Law for enslaved black, mulatto, mestizo and indigenous women in the first slave codes (Slave Code of Virginia 1704/05) which read: "The regulations as to the white race on the subject of intercourse cannot and do not apply to slaves. Their sex is promiscuous."
And we continue to learn about, celebrate, uplift and uphold all the great things that these men did to "build and develop" American culture and society as we know it today. We also continue to elect men who continue to rise above the ideals and realities of any semblance of accountability. And yet, the narrative of black men as bruts, rapists, beasts and animals continues to be developed and controlled by mainstream white and white-adjacent society to overshadow the Donald Trumps (Brett Cavanaugh's and Brock Turners.....and many more) of society; who openly profess that as long as you have money women will allow you to do anything to them?!
Until we can reconcile the degrees of injustice exists in this country regarding implicit bias and cultural racism built on principles of antiblackness, we will continue celebrating the greatness of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson (who stated - "I consider a woman who brings a child every two years more profitable than the best man on the farm"), James Madison, Andrew Jackson, James Monroe, James Polk.......and the likes of millions of other presidents, founding fathers and upstanding members of communities who legitimized, sanctioned and perpetrated unfathomable abuses leading to the violent culture we survive today; we will continue isolating, vilifying and villainizing black men as the cultural predators of this nation (i.e. Will Brown, John Hearfield, Kobe Bryant, etc.); continuing the warped narratives and realities of cultural oppression. I will not be complicit.
At some point, this country must come to terms with and reconcile its past and present and take a deep look at what its values and ideals really are. It is not freedom, justice or equality; rather deleterious and treacherous in its purest form.
As Toni Morrison stated during an interview with Charlie Rose in 1992, "white people have a very serious problem (racism) and they should start thinking about what they can do about it. Take me out of it."
As I said when I began the initial
post....I do not know where to start (or end).