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We live in a sad cruel world anymore. Some need to remember that God made us all. A person skin color shouldn't matter. There is good and bad in all races. People need to stop with all of the unnecessary drama and focus on what is truly important and that is our 1 precious life that God gave us that we should be enjoying and living to the fullest.
I think it's patronizing and condescending that there's even such a thing as "Black Lives Matter". No other group on this planet needs to convince themselves of this basic, core belief by having such a movement.
Damn, I didn't even know my thread was unlocked. There were things said from both sides I agree with. As Indentured Servant said, there's definitely systematic racism alive and well. But what I'm trying to figure out is how long can we ride that wave? It seems that we are literally looking for stuff to cry out "racism" instead of fixing ourselves. I can't really think of too many people that are doing anything positive for blacks (by blacks), just selling hope and "enlightenment" for their own financial gain. I gotta ask Indentured Servant something though, do you think integration helped us out? And any other fellow black people reading this thread, thoughts on that?
Missed this thread the first time around but I will chime in regarding integration.
I am black. I personally don't believe that integration by itself was of any benefit to black Americans in this country.
I do feel that the removal of legal discrimination in regards to housing and Civil Rights protections were of benefit but just by living with whites, I don't think that it did anything.
There as been data that has showed that the concept of black children equating being smart with "acting white" was not and is not present in a majority black school like it is in a more integrated, diverse school.
I also feel that the focus of so many Civil Rights leaders on actual integration as a means to gain "respect" (which Indentrured Servant described beautifully in a previous post in regards to black people never being respected really in this country anyway) was misguided. I don't think that they knew that they wouldn't be respected. We always hear that when you "work hard" and go to school and take care of your family/children then you will be respected as equal persons in our society but for many generations before and after civil rights legislation that has not been true in regards to blacks.
And FWIW, I also feel that too many black people have bought into the idea that we are "less than" whites and that they (many black people) hold the view that blacks are inherently inferior to white people.
In regards to your post above veezybell, and I hope you don't take offense but the bold above, IMO if you are black are very visible examples that you also hold the idea that black people are inferior to whites.
Personal reasons for this include as follows:
I do not think that I personally, as a black woman, nor do I feel that black people collectively need to do any specific things to "fix ourselves" in regards to "black culture" or "the black community." I know that we are a demographic made up of millions of individual people. I know that hte majority of those millions are hard working, law abiding, family centered persons who are decent, contributing members to society. As such, I do not feel we need fixing. I feel we need to focus on the fact that we are a majority of educated, hard working, law abiding, family centered persons and claim that instead of the dysfunction that society seeks to thrust upon us as a demographic
I know that there are MILLIONS of black people doing positive things for other black people. If there weren't in the past or weren't today, we wouldn't even be talking about BLM in this thread. also I KNOW for a fact that social activism is a HUGE part of "black culture." As black people, we are the conscious of America. Our actions in regards to fighting the good fight against discrimination, regardless of how miniscule you and others may seem to think it is, benefits the greater American society as a whole. If you don't know many black people doing good things in your neighborhood or city, it is because you personally don't associate with the right kinds of people or you are lazy and don't want to help in this fashion.
Wanted to re-post this comment as it is the basis for all the discussions in regards to BLM in my opinion
Quote:
Originally Posted by Indentured Servant
Here is the basic bottom line. If you RESPECT someone, then you will RESPECT what they are telling you. If you respect a PEOPLE then you will respect what the combined voices of the PEOPLE are telling you. When you do NOT RESPECT someone, then you will NOT RESPECT what they are telling you. When you do NOT RESPECT a people, then you will NOT RESPECT what the combined voices of those people are telling you.
What is Obvious is that there is a lack of RESPECT of and for black people, because none of what we ever say gets taken for its word and is respected. Thus, regardless of what we say as a people, efforts will be made to discredit it and us.....because there is no respect for us and there has NEVER been any respect for us in these lands. Its the same old opposing forces, this time around, as it has always been the last 300 years.
When black people speak up about an issue in this country, our view is not respected. We are seen as people who making excuses and as stated above, people seek to discredit us and our experiences because society views blacks as inferior and not worthy of respect.
People complaining about BLM see BLM as making things up and as such they do not respect this group. Instead they seek to mar the reputation o this group and to discredit them by demeaning them and associating them with violence (such as the many references to them calling for black people to kill police officers - which BTW is ludicrous being there is a lot of black police officers in the country and other non-white officers). Same thing was done to the original Black Panther Party. Same thing was done to Martin Luther King, Jr. who was classified as a "domestic terrorist" and had the FBI following him. It is always funny to me to see on these forums self-proclaimed whites espousing the idea that they respect MLK. He was not overly respected by white society during his lifetime. It is also funny IMO that someone mentioned earlier in the thread that none of the current organizers/protestors are like the CRM protesters. Jesse Jackson is frequently ridiculed on this board and was in this very thread, yet he was a follower of MLK Jr. and was there when MLK Jr. was assassinated. I personally don't like Jesse Jackson as much but when, I ask, did he all the sudden fall out of favor with you white conservatives who adore MLK. He was a staunch follower of MLK and still speaks the same old message for the most part as MLK did back in the 1960s. Black youth don't follow him today because as I stated above, many of us don't view some of the outcomes of the CRM - (i.e. integration) as having any benefit for us as issues that BLM are working on - police brutality and indiscriminate stereotyping of black people, has been ongoing for hundreds of years and continues to this day in our country.
Will also mention for the OP that black people in America have made a 180 turnaround in a large amount of statistics since the end of legalized racism in the form of housing discrimination and civil rights protection.
Black women are outpacing all women, even Asian women in regards to college entrance and matriculation. Black students on a whole in the past 5 years have graduation rates from high school almost equal to that of whites and greater than that of hispanics.
The majority of black people do not live in the inner city or in "the ghetto."
Many of the items spoken around here about "the blacks" are based on 1980s news stories that people saw and never moved away from.
Crime is less today even as OOW births have grown. Educational achievement has risen to the highest levels ever for blacks in this country even as OOW births have grown.
Contrary to what people think, the black middle class was not more numerous prior to 1965 or 1960. Prior to 1960 about 75% of black people lived in dire poverty. Today the poverty rate is about 25% so that is almost a complete turnaround.
I would respect BLM if they were an intelligent group of people but they are not. Go to their website and read some of their "demands". We demand this, we demand that but none of it involves any work on their part.
These people talk about Michael Brown as if he was some type of "role model". Let's be honest, the guy was a street level thug, it is a shame that he had to die but he mostly brought it upon himself.
Most of these Black groups are about victimization. I would respect a Black rights group if it was rational and composed of people who are actually intelligent, BLM just ain't it.
I would respect BLM if they were an intelligent group of people but they are not. Go to their website and read some of their "demands". We demand this, we demand that but none of it involves any work on their part.
These people talk about Michael Brown as if he was some type of "role model". Let's be honest, the guy was a street level thug, it is a shame that he had to die but he mostly brought it upon himself.
Most of these Black groups are about victimization. I would respect a Black rights group if it was rational and composed of people who are actually intelligent, BLM just ain't it.
No you wouldn't lol. People like you, as stated, always find a reason to not respect black people on the whole.
And until you and those who think like you admit that blacks are responsible for their status instead of blaming it on racism, nothing will change.
Until the members of your "community" stop killing each other without a second thought over any perceived "dis", nobody is going to take you seriously.
It is almost comical to see young black males taking part in these BLM rallies when you look at the statistics on the rate of murder they commit against each other.
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