As most of you know, at least those of you who have read my book, The 400-Year Holocaust: White America's Legal, Psychopathic, and Sociopathic Black Genocide - and the Revolt Against Critical Race Theory, I discuss very fervently and intentionally the ways in which White people have been programmed (and have also participated in perpetually training others, both White and non-White), to be antiblack. In essence, to be American is to be antiblack (read the book if you haven't already done so).
As I watched and reflected on recent incident concerning pro-football athlete Terrell Owens, and the White woman who expressed concerns over his blackness, I could not help but reflect on the many experiences I have had in my career and professional life; White women reporting mine or my other Black male colleagues' behaviors or disagreement with their views, which made them feel "uncomfortable" or "unsafe". The incident concerning Christian Cooper, immediately registered in my mind, in the context of female-to-male assault. The way that Amy Cooper, the White woman in that matter, could not stand being corrected by a Black man, that she then took to her phone to lie to the police. In both instances, concerning Owens and Cooper, we clearly see that once the White women observe that they are not escalating the situation where law enforcement immediately assumes their side, they begin to assert their most powerful weapon, tears.
This made me think about the lies of George Zimmerman, who pursued a young 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, a child who was walking home eating Skittles. It is clear from what Zimmerman expressed during his trial (contrary to what he can be heard telling the dispatcher who initially ordered him to stand down, before he took it upon himself to proactively hunt and kill Martin), that his intentions were to murder the young child.
How about Sandra Bland, who was driving from an interview which has just taken place at a university in Texas? The law enforcement officer escalated the situation so he could justifiably assault and arrest her. He brutally attacked and traumatized her, which can also be seen clearly and heard on the video. Days later she was found dead in her jail cell.
Dejerria Becton, the 14-year-old Black female teen, who can be seen being thrown around in a two-piece bathing-suit, by a law enforcement officer who escalated the situation with her and her friends, after they were instructed to leave a pool site where a larger group of Black teens were being discriminated against, because there were "just too many of them".
My heart still grieves for George Finney (and his family), a 14-year-old Black child who innocently admitted to seeing two White girls (in an attempt to help the search), during a regional search for the girls who had gone missing days prior. Although he had nothing to do with their disappearances, he was convicted of their murders and sentenced to the death penalty. Yes. George was electrocuted.
Most of us are familiar with Emmett Till's depraved murder, which was sparked by Carolyn Bryant Donham, a White woman who lied on Till (later admitting she lied on him). Her lies led to her husband, Roy Bryant, and his half-brother, John William Milam, kidnapping 14-year-old Till, and brutally murdering him.
The diabolical, unrelenting nature of Whiteness, White supremacy, and anti-Black racism/bias must continue to be named and evaluated by Black people. The same step must also be willing to be taken by anyone who considers themselves allies. As Toni Morrison says very eloquently states this interview about White racism, "It's like a profound neurosis that no one examines for what it is. It feels crazy. It is crazy." Dr. Alvin Poussaint, former Dean of Psychiatry at Harvard, said more that 50-years ago, that "White racism is a mental illness". I happen to agree with him, and so many others who have made the same claim.
We must also investigate and continue to learn how these cultural phenomena have been cultivated and baked into American society. My body of work examines these realities, both in my book, as well as courses I teach and have taught: Understanding the Roots of Racism and Bias - Antiblackness and Its Links to Whiteness, White Racism, Privilege, and Power (UCSF); The Roots and Lingering Effects of White Supremacy and Antiblackness in American Culture and Institutions (Mayo Clinic); The 400-Year Holocaust: Unlearning and Addressing Antiblackness... - (12-week learning series); Unlearning and Addressing Antiblackness, White Supremacy, and Racism Leaders Fellowship (16-week program).
The unfortunate amplification and documentation of America's homicidal and genocidal nature towards Black people, must continue to be chronicled for future generations. As it was James Baldwin's, Ella Baker's, Malcolm X's, MLK's, and others like Fannie Lou Hamer's duties to shine a light on the American way of White supremacy, White racism, and Antiblackness (which they had learned about from their own experiences and the observable experiences of the larger Black community, during a time when American institutions conspicuously designed Antiblackness and White supremacy into laws, and touted them as cultural values), like others before them, Black people in this generation have a duty and responsibility to carry the torch forward. This will enable future generations to understand the true nature of White America.
I could say so much more, and yet I feel as though I have already written more than I intended to write in this moment. I will close with a few additional quotes that I often reference in my courses and other writings:
“There are days, this is one of them, when you wonder what your role is in this country and what your future is in it. How precisely you’re going to reconcile yourself to your situation here and how you are going to communicate to the vast, heedless, unthinking, cruel white majority that you are here. I’m terrified at the moral apathy – the death of the heart – which is happening in my country. These people have deluded themselves for so long that they really don’t think I’m human." - James Baldwin
“Moreover, as it emerged, the concept of Whiteness was premised on White supremacy, rather than mere difference. White was defined and constructed in ways that increased its value by reinforcing its exclusivity. Indeed, just as Whiteness as a property embraced the right to exclude, Whiteness as a theoretical construct evolved for the very purpose of racial exclusion. Thus, the concept of Whiteness is built on both exclusion and racial subjugation. This fact was particularly evident during the period of the most rigid racial exclusion, as Whiteness signified racial privilege and took the form of status property.” - Cheryl I. Harris, Esq.
“It is important to remember that not only did the white male oppress Black people; so too did the white male’s wife, daughter, and siblings as well as the white female in general. Since families owned slaves, white wives and their children also owned them, and they could be passed down as inheritances. White men and women bossed and oppressed Black people. The white woman was fearful of the black male because of the strong taboo against any form of equality in their relationship. Therefore, it was just as important for the White female as it was for the White male to keep the black man {and woman} in his place.” - Dr. Alvin Poussaint
“In their relationship with the Black race, Europeans (Whites) are psychopaths, and their behavior represents an underlying biologically transmitted proclivity with roots deep in their evolutionary history. The psychopath is an individual who is constantly in conflict with other persons or groups. He is unable to experience guilt, is completely selfish and callous, and has a total disregard for the rights of others. One of the best methods that can be used to measure the psychopathic traits of the White race is observing and analyzing their universal overt behaviors and attitudes towards Black people.” - Dr. Bobby Wright
“I think we must understand that there’s no such thing as objective truth, that White people use the institutions to accomplish White purpose. The White purpose is to maintain a power position and keep everybody else in a powerless, subordinate type of position. That’s the institutions’ purpose. That is the way it functions and how it functions, and we have to realize that everything that schools teach is designed to fit into that purpose. The schools teach, not objective truth but what the White man wants to project as truth." Albert Cleage
A very deep and continued examination and critique of these issues is necessary. Please join me in the 12-week or 16-week virtual learning series beginning September 13th, if you can.
May you experience the peace and prosperity that you deserve.