CIVIL UNREST

There are those that would have you forget that this country was founded on civil unrest and violence. There are those  that would have you believe that the events leading to this country’s  Revolutionary War were inane and non-violent in nature when in fact the opposite is true.  Digs and all kinds of  shade have been thrown at the protesters in Baltimore, Ferguson, NYC,  Oakland, and elsewhere aided and abetted by the media. Invoking the imagery of the “thug”  to describe ALL protesters and to diminish the serious problems that are the underlying causes of so much civil unrest in this country right now.

SONS OF LIBERTY

Early in the summer of 1765 in Boston,  a number of shopkeepers and artisans who called themselves The Loyal Nine, started preparing for taking action against the Stamp Act. These weren’t the leading men of Boston, but instead workers and tradesmen. The Stamp Act was passed by the British Parliament in 1765 and resulted in taxes being levied on any piece of paper that was used by the American Colonists. Newspapers, Shipping Papers, contracts, any legal documents, licenses and even playing cards were subject to this tax. The money was earmarked for troops that were stationed in the Appalachian Mountains. The colonists were upset by the idea that up till that point taxes were used to promote commerce and in this instance they were being used to raise monies for purposes that the colonists had no say so about and the precedent of taxes being created outside of the colonies for various reasons was seen as a road they did not wish to go down.

This group which is by some fondly remembered as the “original patriots” engaged in various acts of civil disobedience and violence.

In August of 1765 they hung an effigy of Andrew Oliver – Commissioner of Stamps with a boot sticking out of it with a devil. A symbolic reference to the Earl of Bute. When the local sheriffs were ordered to remove this display they declined to do so as crowds had gathered and later that evening would commence to throwing stones at Oliver’s house while the occupants were still in there. Eventually they would set fire to and ransack the house through the rest of the night. Included in that evenings activities were beheading the effigy and setting that on fire also.

In an ongoing show of Civil defiance of the Stamp Act – newspapers even after the law went into effect refused to obtain the “stamp” and pay the tax associated with it.

Somehow with all the events and actions of the Sons of Liberty being well documented – it has somehow been overlooked in the rush to brand the current protesters as unruly mobs of thugs. The actual history of the founding of this country actually would encompass behavior that would  fall into that same category.

CINCINNATI RIOTS OF 1829

Between 1820 and 1829 the African American population in Cincinnati grew from 700 to over 2,000 causing great concern and fear  for the white, middle-class residents who they felt were
creating a hazard in their city :

“The rapid increase of our black population, is of itself a great evil, night walkers, lewd persons, and those who lounge around without any visible means of support,”

These residents actually petitioned local officials to remove the black citizens citing their poor living conditions were a “fire hazard”.  In the midst of this in 1826 a group of white men formed the OCS – Ohio Chapter of the American Colonization Society whose sole purpose was to spread misleading and defamatory propaganda claiming that blacks were a threat to society.

Sound familiar?

These lovely citizens also took it upon themselves to petition the local government to enforce a  “Black Code“. Enacted  originally in 1807 – this “code” required black residents to pay a $500 bond  which would serve as proof of their “respectability”.

In June of 1826 – notices were sent out to black residents that they had 30 days to secure the bond or be forced to leave the city.  Black residents already seeing the writing on the wall were already preparing to leave the city to re-establish their community elsewhere. While their original plans looked to secure property in rural Ohio to found their own city  things didn’t work out that way. in 1829 two representatives from the black community were sent to Canada to survey land for relocation and starting a new settlement. While they were away the local paper issued an ultimatum for the black residents to vacate the city immediately. A request for an extension of time was met with growing hostility of the local  white residents against the black citizens. From August 15th to August 22nd of that year mobs of whites attacked black homes and businesses. The police offered no protection from these mobs and the mayor refused to call an end to the violence.

– Charles P Wright Museum of African American History

ELIJAH P. LOVEJOY

A minister and resident of St. Louis MO, Elijah Parish Lovejoy was a very vocal abolitionist who used his pulpit as well as his newspaper to express his views against slavery and on abolition.  His printing press was destroyed  no less than three times by angry mobs who disagreed with his views on slavery and his abolitionist stance. After the  third time he moved to Illinois to continue his work there and set up his paper The Alton Observer to continue to express his abolitionist views. In 1837 his warehouse was attacked by a mob wielding guns – gun fire broke out and Mr. Lovejoy was killed in a hail of bullets.

White on White crime – who knew?

MEMPHIS UPRISING 1866

The evening of April 30th 1866 found four police officers walking down Causey Street encountering several blacks who they proceeded to force off the sidewalk. During this encounter one of the blacks fell and one of the officers stumbled over him.  This led to the officers drawing their weapons and proceeding to pistol whip the blacks there. The confrontation resulted in a stalemate and both parties withdrew. The next day another confrontation took place when several blacks were arrested on South street for being “boisterous and noisy”. This confrontation between some black soldiers and police resulted in one officer being shot in the finger and another officer being shot and later dying from his wounds.  The police withdrew initially but would soon return with reinforcements. They then proceeded to fire on a  completely unrelated crowd of blacks – shooting men women and children.

The city recorder – John C. Creighton, arrived at the corner of Vance and Causey Streets and told the white mob which had assembled there that they should arm  themselves and kill every Negro and drive them out of the city. That night Blacks were hunted down and assaulted, robbed and or shot by police, firemen, and any white citizen who chose to join in. Blacks houses were searched under false pretenses, and then set on fire. All met with little or no resistance by blacks.

On May 2nd a posse comprised of police and citizens would again commence to indiscriminate attacks on blacks in South Memphis. Men women and children were shot down without mercy and no quarter given.  Blacks were trapped in their homes that were set on fire by these mobs. Some were forced and or thrown into buildings and homes that had been set on fire. As the attacks usually occurred at night, many were shot in their beds. This mayhem continued till May 4th and probably stopped as most blacks by then had taken off to hide in the country.

The mayor of Memphis at the time:  The Hon. John Park – was excused for his lack of intervention and not actively trying to stop the riots by friends who claimed “he was too intoxicated at the time to realize what was going on”.

None of those who participated in these acts of incredible violence and mayhem have ever been charged even though their identities were well known.

SO WHO ARE THE REAL THUGS?

Again sound familiar? Why  this term is being  thrown around so cavalierly? Do people not know the history?

There are way too many examples of this throughout this countries history. Wrapped into the selective amnesia of a certain segment of this country is the convenient forgetfulness of the violence that they perpetrated upon anyone who got in the way of their Manifest Destiny.  They would brand people as thugs and forget the  Boston Tea Party – where material goods namely Tea were thrown overboard in a show of deviance against The Stamp Act and included the likes of

There are those  that would have you conveniently forget. The mainstream media has led the charge in branding those who protest against the inhumane treatment and conditions they are forced to live in as looters, thugs, miscreants and of no account and unimportant.

BALTIMORE AND BEYOND

There are many who want to say well that happened back then and it has no bearing on anything taking place right now.

Then  you have Ferguson, and Baltimore, Freddie Gray, Eric Garner, Darrien Hunt, Rekia Boyd, Miriam Carey, Michael Brown, Victor White III, Walter Scott, Sean Bell, Amadou Diallo, Kathryn Johnston, Eleanor Bumpurs, John Crawford III, Oscar Grant, Aiyana Jones, Johnathan Ferrell, Kenneth Chamberlain Sr., Andy Lopez

And to all the countless others who’s names we don’t know-their families and supporters…

So who tell me again, who are the REAL thugs…??

Stay Woke People….know your history…

Here is a good place to start:

Riots In The United States

Originally posted at The Good Black Woman

Yet, how are we to actually alleviate that struggle when there are laws and physical constructs in place to keep homeless people in struggle mode?

Back in April of this year, Pastor Rick Wood was ordered by Birmingham, Ala., police to stop handing out hotdogs and bottled water to the homeless in a city park [1]. This was something that he did on the regularly. However, since he had a “food truck”, he had to buy a $500 permit (or whatever the price may be) to serve food [2]. City officials said these kinds of rules are meant to protect the homeless from tainted or otherwise unsafe food. So, Birmingham actually felt that this rule would help anybody that would be receiving food from a “truck”.

Alas, this type of thing is what people from Gary, Indiana call “a bunch of bitch shit”.

Homeless People Get No Love In The U.S.

From what I understand, Pastor Wood’s situation is not isolated in any respect. More than 50 large U.S. cities have adopted “anti-camping” or “anti-food sharing” laws in recent years [3]. This has become a common practice among big cities. Mayor Bloomberg’s food police outlawed food donations to homeless shelters because the city “can’t assess their salt, fat and fiber content” [4]. Meanwhile, In Orlando FL, a group of activists lost a court battle against the city to overturn its 2006 laws that restrict sharing food with groups of more than 25 people [5]. Thus, this is a nationwide situation.

And that nationwide situation says this: homeless people are one of the scourges and eye sores of our nation.

Hatred for Homeless People  Goes International

The saddest part is that “unhelping the homeless” has become global. London has spikes in front of high rise buildings to prevent homeless people from sleeping in front of them [6]. This would come as a surprise to some of us. However, Canada has had the same spikes appear in their country to keep homeless people from sleeping in specified areas [7]. It is sad to see that the disdain for the homeless is an intercontinental eye sore.

Homeless Hatred Is Inhumane

Looking at things from an American perspective, this entire situation is despicable.

The main problem that I have with this is that none of these cities are actually trying to solve this costly issue. If you know that it costs more to keep people homeless than to give them housing ($10,051 to house them as opposed to $36, 065 to leave them on the street in Florida’s terms), then what would be the more sensible solution? If it is not a moral obligation for any of us, then fine. But at least consider the fact that homelessness is a financial one. Solving this problem would actually be financially smarter overall.

Even still, this matter speaks upon the bigger issue in America: classism. When you reduce human beings to the level of vermin, unwanted trash, or a plague that you want to wish away, then what does that say about our society? Poverty should not coincide with “lack of dignity and respect”. Our society has structures that keep people in the poor house. Once they reach rock bottom, we think that we should find it acceptable to “move them along” like unwanted, diseased cattle/chattel?

Ending For Homelessness

There are plenty of organizations out there fighting to end homelessness. Still, plenty of cities would rather take the time to “move the homeless along” and “starve them” than to help them. This, by far, is only exhausting us visually and financially. At some point, we need to make the better decision. We, as a nation/world, need to find people homes and keep them off the streets.

If not for a moral cause, at least for a financial clause.

We have Paul Ryan talking out of his ass that inner city (black and brown) men don’t want to work. We know he failed to correct himself trying to distance himself from the starting another fire of racism. We recognize coded language.

But the right’s bigotry continues.

Several days ago, a report from the Department of Education shows that racial disparities in suspension rates are evident to black children as young as four-years old:

Gaping disparities in how school discipline has been meted out has long been a department focus, but the new data show that those racial gaps start early: Black children constitute 18 percent of all kids attending preschool but account for 48 percent of all students suspended more than once, the new data show.

 

Earlier studies have found that these high suspension rates for black students — males in particular — exist among older students as well, Yale associate professor Walter Gilliam said.

 

The race gap “was bad then, and it’s bad now,” Gilliam said. “You don’t have to be able to split hairs to see how disproportionate it is.” Gilliam’s own research has found high expulsion rates among black preschoolers, but there has been little prior research on suspension.

 

Suspending young students is a controversial practice because 3- and 4-year-olds are unlikely to learn from that sort of discipline, said Laura Bornfreund, deputy director of early education at the think tank New America. For these children, “there’s no connection between what kind of misbehavior a preschooler did in class to being suspended,” so kids are unlikely to learn from their mistakes, she explained.

But for those on the right, suspending black male students, even those as young as four-years old, is only natural, at least according to Heather MacDonald, writer for the National Review, a right-wing, conservative website. MacDonald’s reasoning is familiar to a lot of people and conveyed by racists across the world. She pulls no punches reminding white people why they should fear and hate black men, including toddlers. The Daily Kos reports:

Actually, what [NAACP educational director] Ms. Smith-Evans should be trying to fathom is the black crime rate, which explains the school-suspension rate. Black males between the ages of 14 and 17 commit homicide at ten times the rate of white and Hispanic males of the same age combined. Given such high crime rates, what do the civil-rights advocates and the Obama administration think is going on in the classroom — docile obedience and strict self-discipline? In fact, the same weak impulse control that leads to such high crime rates among young black males inevitably means more disruptive behavior in school.

It’s the same old white supremacist babble that we’ve heard for generations.However, keep in mind that the focus is on four-year old children. But to MacDonald, black male children are born with the pension for senseless violence. So, it doesn’t matter if these are toddlers we’re talking about. And there’s no need to bring in the structural factors, including racism (I went there.) into the equation. To MacDonald, they don’t matter or rather, they don’t exist. Young black males will start fights, shoot people and rape your women just because they’re…black.

MacDonald doesn’t quit there. She mentions a 14-year old shooting a bus in Brooklyn, wounding a 39-year old passenger. She smugly wants you to guess the race of the teen, because the media dared not to:

…The New York media reported that a 14-year-old boy riding a bus in Brooklyn the previous night had opened fire on the bus and fatally shot an innocent 39-year-old passenger in the head. Did anyone doubt the race of the killer, even though the media did not disclose it?

Nevermind that this was a tragedy. Don’t worry about questioning why a young teen would do such a thing or what led him to shoot at a bus. Forget that race shouldn’t be a factor. MacDonald decided to write off the incident as proof of the inability of black men, assuming the teen was black, to control their urge for violence.

What’s causing this? MacDonald suggests that it’s the black illegitimacy rate, single parenthood, excess, unprotected black promiscuity and overall bad parenting that seemingly only black folks excel at as the cause for the high crime rate. In other words, black people are failures when it comes to raising their children, and that, along with their culture of gangsterism and poverty associated with merely having black skin, has led to the problems the black community face. Not racism.

Heather MacDonald is not alone in her obvious disdain for black people, nor is the right the only guilty party. (I’m looking at you liberals as well.) America has always had a problem with black people, especially after they were “freed” from slavery. Today, studies have shown that that problem can start to rear its ugly head when black children start learning how to walk. Much of society will not see black children as children. Certainly not the same way they see white children who can  as disruptive.

Due to white privilege (What else could it possibly be?), their white skin is seen as proof of their ‘innocence’. “They’re just kids, and it’s normal for kids to be rowdy and too playful.” But a black child acting the same way, they may likely say to themselves, “They’re going to end up in prison or dead.” And society’s broken systems and white supremacist mindset, as evidenced by Heather MacDonald’s own racist view of blacks, will funnel them to those two destinations.

The story was complete with visual references and the angle as presented was somewhat of an explanation as to why people in poverty make bad choices. Clearly, it resonated with a lot of people as the article went completely viral and it’s hard to find a Facebook timeline that hasn’t seen at least one version of this article. As it usually happens with stories which paint a picture of hopelessness and a brave soul struggling to live amongst the figurative rocks, like Tirado’s story, many people turned around after reading her article and donated to Ms. Tirado, with the best of intentions. To date Ms. Tirado has raised over $60K from a gofundme.com page she created after writing the piece.

Problem is the story as written was a discussion of Ms. Tirado’s bad choices and life lived in poverty when in fact, her life has been everything BUT poverty-stricken. Yes, I need Shirley Ceasar to come sing “Hold My Mule” right now….

Ms. Tirado grew up in a UPPER middle class family and attended boarding school. She currently lives in a house that her parents generously funded and footed the bill for. She is married to a Marine and has allegedly met President Obama once in person. She lists as occupation, freelance writer and political consultant going back to 2010. Oh and she attended boarding school growing up because of course that was what all middle class families did – send their kids to boarding school…..

“Hold my mule…”

If this is not the epitome of white privilege and an example of the systemic economic disparity in this country I will give completely up.

People were feeling some kind of way because they felt Miley Cyrus appropriated tweaking and is making bank of “black culture”? It’s ok though for this paragon of virtue to write about poverty and profit from it. How do these things get decided? Somebody let me know when the next “Important topic for black folks to get mad about” meeting is going to be held so I can be sure to attend.

In a country where an overwhelming amount of the populace has been brainwashed to believe that the majority of black and brown folks are collecting a welfare check and running off to buy Cadillacs, diamonds, and pearls this story sticks so deeply in my craw that I am choking on cuss words as I type this.

Let me just clear up things RIGHT up front… Those of you who are averse to profanity can click off now because there will be cussing

I can speak to poverty I HAVE lived it, I have been working-poor most of my life and I grew up in a working class family who did NOT have the funds to send me to boarding school even though academically I might have benefitted from it – instead, I attended a public school for Gifted and talented children.

Unlike Ms. Tirado, my parents (my father died when I was 14), could not afford to BUY me a house. I was happy enough for my mother who after working for fifty years was able to retire and buy the house of her dreams. My mother is now living on her retirement and pension and is taking care of HER own mother who also managed to buy a house of her own without the help of RICH parents. In fact, she was sending money TO HER PARENTS while saving up for the house she ultimately bought.

AS to the choices that she lied about in her article, I have had hard choices, I have had to live on potato chips for months because there wasn’t enough money to buy much of anything else. Choosing between paying a bill and eating is a regular occurrence. There are way too many situations where the choices are between bad and worse; and if you don’t develop a way to put all that into perspective, you can add mental health issues and hypertension to the list of negatives that go along with the list of so-called bad choices.

As far as the roaches story Tirado tells, not everyone who is poor has roaches…. it’s stereotypical bullshit that poor people are dirty and live in hovels. You would be surprised at how some people living in McMansions are REALLY living and what goes on behind closed doors. But stereotyping is easier and more fun so I see why she went there with that one.

To the millions of Americans of all ethnicities like myself who have not had insurance or seen a doctor in years I say, forgive her ignorance. In writing about her long-standing inability to get dental care even when she had resources available to her to get care but (made bad choices), it minimized the struggle that we all as uninsured go through in this country. Each day hoping the sniffle doesn’t turn into a full-fledged cold or that the stomach ache goes away and praying to never have to wind up in the emergency room. Or just walking around in pain hoping it goes away at some point.

It wasn’t bad enough that this out of touch, class-unconscious pseudo-progressive decided to write a pack of lies and pass it on as her own experience, she actually decided to profit from it assisted by those bleeding heart folks who read her story – published on one of the leading news blog sites and got out their credit cards, checkbooks etc. and sent her money to ease her non-existent poverty.

The system then did what it was supposed to. A writer with the level of exposure reserved for celebrities and other public figures, wrote a call to action and people acted and sent her money for a story that wasn’t really hers to begin with. For this I reserve a big fuck you to Ms. Tirado for feeling “entitled” to those donations even though it wasn’t actually Her OWN experiences she was writing about.

I am struggling to make ends meet with NO HUSBAND and NO children. I am gone 12 hours a day to work in an “at will” work state which means I can lose my job at any minute for no reason. I am at the same TIME attending college where I actually STOPPED looking at the student loan balances because it was making me sick to see how much those were racking up. Fuck you because I can’t even get money to help buy my textbooks or offset some of those student loans which I will probably be paying back for the rest of my life. But YOU write a fictitious story about your experiences with poverty and get $60k that you plan on taking a trip to Vegas with? Really?

I have never been to Vegas, I can’t remember the last time I went on anything remotely resembling a vacation – (2008 – spent weekend in Washington D.C.). Hell I have never been to Disneyland but this “well it’s not my fault that people took what I said out of context” trick is laughing all the way to the bank and collecting paper

See this is not our system. Black people did not create the current economic system in this country. We did not create a system by which a white woman can write a screed on poverty that she never personally experienced and get published on the leading news blog site on the net.

There are far too many talented sistas out here who can make Shakespeare sound like Mother Goose for that. None of them are getting the same opportunities for exposure. Heck those who are living in some form of poverty may not even have access to a pc to write in the first place. Some like me do not have wealthy family and friends to siphon money off to go buy a home or any other big-ticket items.

But the need was felt by this writer to compose this piece that speaks from the perspective of someone who has lived the struggle of poverty, when in fact that is not the case and is profiting from it on top of it.

If white America, and or the so-called public wish to know about the bad choices made by those in poverty just ask. There are PLENTY of us out here that would be more than willing to tell you from our OWN PERSONAL EXPERIENCE what its like living not even pay check to paycheck; not knowing where your next dollar is going to come from or what you will have to DO to get money to pay that bill, rent, etc.

As the environment deteriorates the local papers report of Federal funding and the plans to disperse said funds to the community.

If you didn’t know any better you’d think the people destroy their own environment. But how can the citizens of urban towns be held responsible for buildings, streets, and schools that decay due to age and neglect? Since when did citizens control public works projects…?

Can low class Blacks really be in charge of those who lack ethics and any semblance of public service?

Can low class blacks get recognition when they must seek it from a group of people who benefit from the unwritten beneficial rules of the haves?

The ignorance is deep rooted, generational and decisive. There is a system in place that allows the exploitation of urban Blacks and Latinos (and other poor) that benefits everyone on the hierarchy of importance with the people of color being the lowest on the totem pole of needs.

Nepotism is a favorite pastime among the ownership class.

Having the right connections, or resources, like white skin and a penis, can easily gain one a position of authority over other groups. Nepotism is a disease (or benefit of being the ‘in power’ group-depending on how you look at it) that makes every other level of society ill.

And this is why some Blacks from certain towns just don’t bother to play the game.

There is an invisible wall of exclusion that exists between potential, aspiration and impossibility.

Ethnocentrism is the belief that one holds in which the person (unlike the subject) projects their own experiences and expectations onto people (the subject) who is essentially unlike them. There is a different sets of circumstances and resources, yet those who view the world through an ethnocentric lens expect similar outcome from diverse starting points.

It’s one of my favorite social science terms, because I was aware of it before I knew these things had their own specific word.

There is no one to complain to when the culprit of whatever abuse suffered is by the hands of someone attached to someone way more important than you could ever hope to be.

And even better than that, an attempt at finding ‘justice’ for yourself through the normal channels may very well leave you targeted, in jail, or dead. Any attorney will tell you, a matter of justice and guilt versus innocence is all a matter of financial resources and perception.

It all depends on who you piss off, of course.

Of course, you can apply for certain jobs, you can attempt to purchase certain property and you can hope to achieve a high enough stature where the hope to escape from poverty and violence is within your reach, but sometimes it’s not. And sometimes you can’t, because you aren’t allowed to move up, or out, so instead you just stay put and hope for the best.

You get used to being in an environment surrounded by only one type of race. A slow paced one.

And you don’t really notice the Asian person, the Latino person, or the random illusive race tanned person when they first begin to frequent your hood.

But you dam sure notice the White folks, and everybody here knows… White men bring problems to Black people. No race likes to see White men frequenting homogenous non-White areas. We just don’t say it because then White folks get mad and you know how that goes.

Since when, I ask you, have Black people ever looked on with a smile on their face when they see White men suddenly interested in the lives of Blacks in general……..?

Plantation overseer, segregation authoritative figures……….same shit to poor modern Black folks.

Sorry to bust your bubble and make you feel like an outsider, but yeah, you are and no one asked you to come here.

Before you make a weak attempt at a joke, let me be clear, the presence of white people isn’t a magical cleansing of all things bad.

The presence of White people is usually a cause for alarm actually.

If White people are coming by and running through your neighborhood you can rest assured, its for no good.

Some folks here are under the impression that White men (in general) bring with them some magical form of protection and peace.

You can’t find a White man in a Black concentrated area when you need um, and you never could.

From slavery up until now, low class Blacks and the general White population have been segregated but for interactions with Whites playing the part of police, authorities, doctors, census takers, political representatives, or pastors that won’t do shit for us or our business owners other than figure out how to exploit us.

Being forced to shake hands with the devil is not conducive to human interaction among equals.

And I’m so sure that some white folks do mean no harm. They want to live and mind their business like anybody else, but the kind of White men that frequent Blackistan in the darkest hour are just as much predators as any Black man on the corner is presumed to be, if not more so.

Shit, when I see a White man approaching me, or wandering around the neighborhood, I look around for the presence of Black men. Those men would be my protection, because Black men, for whatever reason, will chase white men away in times like these.

Think I’m exaggerating? Maybe they’re protecting me so that they can abuse me instead? It’s hard to tell when you are a female.

I was recently accosted by a White man in a BMW as he slowly cruised down my block. He pulled ahead of me, and then stopped to look out the window of his car. I presumed he was looking for an address, until he asked if ‘he could drop me off somewhere’ and before I could answer, since I was in shock, he added insult to injury by finishing with ‘Are you hungry? I”ll take you somewhere and feed you and we can hang out?’

Had this been another time, and another place (same Tracy) I would have screamed like a banshee and hurled the nearest heavy object at his head. And I have very good aim.

I wear dresses down to my ankles, I am much slimmer than I am thick, I am walking down a tree lined, a day light bright, quiet residential street, one black away from the brand spanking new police station, but I am not safe from the White man from town.

He’s no different than the negroes that bother me every morning as I go for my sunrise walk. I wish they would all fall silent, and blind so that women can have some agency and peace while making our way in the world.

Since White men are allowed to come and go at will with the presumption of everlasting innocence by those people whom you call ‘authorities’, it’s easy for them to drop into the inner city hood to do their dirt.

What dirt is that, you ask?

White men from town come looking for certain things….

Low cost and easily accessible sex.

Abundant, affordable, and open market drug acquisition.

They come to take the things they want, like real estate, resources, or other valuable things that are ‘there for the taking’………

Ask the Native Americans, the Africans, the dam near anybody else, who comes to take from poor people of color?

White men from town……..

White men from town come looking for pussy.

Delectable, young, cheap and readily available for those with the time, money and desire to have their pick.

Dating isn’t about getting to know someone in the inner city.

Dating is about getting your immediate needs met.

Be it sex or food. ‘

Money or resources.

It’s no coincidence that traditional dates often revolve around food. And you may not see the connection here but read really slow so you can understand.

A male courts a woman by offering resources, one of which is the ability to feed her, and support her lifestyle, in exchange for her time, her body and her consideration.

Strangely enough, there seems to a consistent supply of ‘needers’ and those who have enough to spare.

White men cruise the streets of Blackistan looking for young girls (or boys which is becoming much more popular) desperate enough to be willing to trade their bodies for a meal. There’s no implied interest in anything besides using her for cheap and easy sex. When you come across Black women who are scared and suspicious of White men in general, remember my words.

White men in authority take advantage of their power and the perception of their complexion. Teachers, the police, coaches, religious figures, counselors, bosses, and a host of other people offer resources to ‘the needy’ through the barter of flesh.

When a White man wants something from a low class Black woman, it’s not often her hand in marriage, or her phone number for a date.

Black women are becoming passe in the White man’s pursuits.

“Car dating” is the white man’s new obsession, strangely enough the palate of these predatory White men is no longer satisfied by poor brown women, and now his interest, I see, has turned to Black males who are willing to be used so that they can eat for another day or two.

White men from town come looking for drugs.

Every one in my childhood home of Jersey City knew that the town was segregated.

You knew, because your family and friends discussed it openly, that Black people aren’t safe when they cross Kennedy Blvd towards West Side Avenue. Crossing into the ‘wrong side’ of the street may find you being pursued by an angry mob for sport, beaten and occasionally left for dead behind a shopping mall.

White kids knew not to cross Kennedy Blvd toward Bergen Avenue unless they didn’t value their lives. They would find themselves robbed of whatever valuables they had, and occasionally chased away but never killed, by the Black residents who kept the Whites from intruding.

Black people know not to kill White people.

The cops don’t come for us when we call them to save our lives but everybody knows that if there is a White person in distress the entire Black section would be on military lock down.

Calling 911 is a joke…..that wasn’t a song. Its a social reality when you are poor and black.

White men from town aren’t wanted in low class Black areas. We got enough problems already, and when do Black people benefit from White people coming to their aid? They bring diseases, lies, corruption, exploitation, death, and every White man has the power to take your life and go Scott free.

We know this.

We see enough of you when we go to court to stand for charges that may or may not even be real, given to us by White men from towns that are far from here, yet these White men travel to our towns to police as modern day cowboys. They drive around in the sweltering heat with windows rolled up, cool and carefree in air condition paid for by tax money, their dark shades on, and wry smiles on their faces as they make sure you see them seeing you. Because Niggas are always in need of being watched or else they misbehave!

They slow down when they approach, you hear them over your shoulder, they are the overseers, the modern day ‘law’ in old Western cowboy movies.

They are here but they don’t come when you call them.

Why are they here?

White men from town aren’t wanted in low class Black areas because with your face comes the reminder that you are here to pick among humans for your entertainment and consumption.

White men from town aren’t welcomed here because with you comes death, and destruction and no justification or redemption.

Everybody knows about you, White man from town, the only person not in on the joke is you.

White men from town may want to earnestly help, but just like the imaginary Good Black men go silent during discussions of Black male exploitation, there will need to be some White men who challenge those White men that are comfortable with keeping the needy needy so that they can enjoy the never ending fire sale of vices and the spoils that come along with the privilege of being preferred.

Speaking of which, watch the following before continuing:

That said, check out Don Lemon’s diatribe below:

So, are Tavis Smiley & Dr. Cornel West full of it? Is Barack Obama beyond reproach when it comes to the issue of poverty? More importantly, what exactly can he do to address the issue that directly impacts the lives of millions across the country negatively? Surely you have an opinion, right? So, check out the following episode as we break it all down on Madness & Reality Radio. Also, be sure to check us out every Wednesday night at 9 PM (EST). So, do check out the episode below; and, be sure to check out the show page and follow us for updates.

The Artful Dodger – or How NOT to get Drafted as told by Ted Nugent

 Let’s also stop the insanity by suspending the right to vote of any American who is on welfare. Once they get off welfare and are self-sustaining, they get their right to vote restored. No American on welfare should have the right to vote for tax increases on those Americans who are working and paying taxes to support them. That’s insane. (Read More)

While you are marinating on this, also know that the sentiment to eradicate Social Security and Medicare is real and not just some tin foil hat wearing topic on an obscure message board out in the internet. Paul Ryan, who was Mitt Romney’s  Vice Presidential running mate has as one of his major claims to fame a budget that guts both programs and this budget has broad support in the Republican party and with some so-called democrats who’s humanity is in question.

What Paul Ryan’s Budget Actually Cuts – and by How much -Washington Post

The Ryan budget, amongst other things, proposes changing  Medicare to a voucher program where people will get issued a voucher that they then can take and shop around to try and FIND medical coverage and care.

Det. Thorn: It’s people. Soylent Green is made out of people. They’re making our food out of people. Next thing they’ll be breeding us like cattle for food. You’ve gotta tell them. You’ve gotta tell them!

What I would like to know and what no one  who throws up these concepts has been able to explain is what happens to those people who are currently receiving aid to dependent children, food stamps, social security, or medicare when you gut these programs and there is nothing to help them.

What do people who have been on assistance for 10, 20 years or more who have no job skills, might be illiterate and have never had to balance a checkbook do if these programs are “gutted” or shut down completely. What happens to these people who suddenly have the rug pulled from underneath them with no means at all to find a job that will pay enough money to pay rent,  buy food  and transportation.

As one of the millions of Americans searching for a job with over 20 years of work experience, and unable to find employment right now, I would really like to know what people who  have no work experience who are suddenly forced to go “get a job” are supposed to do when they can’t and there is no help for them in the meantime to exist?

None of the rabid purveyors of shutting all the entitlement programs in this country down has ever come forth with a clear concise answer to this question.  Enormous amounts of vitriol are reserved for the ” lazy, moochers who will not take responsibility” – see Mitt Romney 47% speech to donors

I would like to say to Mitt Romney, Paul Ryan, Ted Nugent, Donald Trump and all the other  willfully ignorant and oblivious people who claim to be Americans – and that feel like an individual without a job CHOOSES to be that way; that a person  who isn’t working is LAZY; or even better that those  47% who don’t pay taxes should have their rights to vote and participate in the process of government that has a say in THEIR lives – if the direction this country is going in is not amenable to you and you are at your wits end  trying to figure out how to “FIX” the direction of this country – don’t stress yourself. Follow in the footsteps of those founding fathers you seem to invoke incorrectly at the most convenient moments. Since lack of funds are not an issue for you, I suggest you pool your resources and build a ship and provision it for a long journey. Then carry your asses away from this country and go discover another country where there are people living there already. Like you did with this one.  Better yet take Gingrich’s advice and take a rocket to the moon. Plenty of space up there for you, your bigoted beliefs, your intolerance and your lack of humanity for your fellow man.  Kindly take your inhumanity, greed avarice and ignorance and LEAVE.

So what does a campaiign that’s so obviously our-of-touch with the reality of Americans not having offshore bank accounts and such? You seek the best photo-op possible to show that you’re a man of the people. Yes, you go to a soup kitchen that’s charmed with the task of feeding the takers.

Yep, you do what Paul Ryan did, or do you?

The head of a charity in northeastern Ohio where Republican vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan and his family were photographed cleaning dishes over the weekend said Monday that Ryan was not authorized to be on the premises and “did nothing” while there.

Brian J. Antag, president of the Mahoning County St. Vincent De Paul Society in Youngstown, told the Washington Post that the Romney campaign had not asked to make the Saturday visit to the soup kitchen. He said that he runs an apolitical faith-based organization which has bylaws barring it from hosting political candidates, and that the visit jeopardized donations from private individuals.

“They showed up there and they did not have permission,” he said. “They got one of the volunteers to open up the doors.” Antag added that Ryan and his family “did nothing” while on the premises.

“He just came in here to get his picture taken at the dining hall,” he said.

Ryan was photographed cleaning “large metal pans that did not appear to be dirty” during a 15-minute visit, the Post previously reported. While television cameras rolled and photographers snapped pictures, the Wisconsin congressman discussed washing dishes while he was younger. He said he would get calluses on his fingers due to the heat from the industrial machine.

[…] When Ryan arrived on the site in the early afternoon, the kitchen was clean and the dining area was empty, according to a pool report. After his time in the kitchen Ryan spoke to homeless people outside the soup kitchen, but reporters were kept from monitoring the conversation.

The Romney campaign said the visit was designed to highlight the work of soup kitchen volunteers. As the video above shows, Ryan greeted five or six adults volunteers and two children before going back to the kitchen. (source)

For the past few months I’ve been wondering whether Mitt Romney has outsourced its campaign to Chinese midgets. After reading the above story, it has become quite apparent that they have. It’s either that or they’re not really trying to win. At any rate, it’s a damn shame they had to pretend to care about the poor for political expedience, when their proposed policies says otherwise. After all, haven’t they lied to us enough? Sorry, I’m not convinced; and, I won’t be until they start kissing black babies on the campaign trail. But being a lover of free stuff, maybe that’s too much to ask.

I found that Tavis is the most prolific corporate shill in the Black community, and he’s closely involved with some of the most exploitive corporations of working class people in the country. So I began to ask myself, how can his so-called concern for the poor and middle class coexist with his association with Walmart, Nationwide Insurance, and other corporate manipulators of the poor and middle class?

HERE’S A MESSAGE FROM A PRO-BUSINESS FRIEND OF MINE REGARDING NATIONWIDE INSURANCE.

“One thing that caught my eye was the picture of Nationwide because it’s personal. Sharon’s sister was blind-sided by a drunk, uninsured motorist. Donna had been paying uninsured motorist insurance though Nationwide for years. Donna was barely conscious in the hospital when a Nationwide rep showed up with a document he told Donna to sign because it would pay the ambulance fees (about $4-5,000). Donna had broken arms, broken ribs and other major injuries. Donna barely scribbled her initials and the guy left. Several weeks later, when she got out of the hospital, her bill was in the tens of thousands of dollars. Required Physical would add thousands more, all within her policy limits. Nationwide refused to pay, citing Donna’s initials on what she was told was the ambulance and ER bills. Donna was unable to have physical therapy and had to file bankruptcy. Like Sharon, Donna is an American Indian (Cherokee), lives in the country and knew/knows nothing about lawyers. By the time we found out, Nationwide’s weird statute of limitations had run out and they were legally “off-the-hook”. Donna is crippled and debilitated to this day.

“Nationwide IS NOT on your side. They are scumbags to be avoided AT ALL COSTS! You have my permission to use this if you wish to help your community. Tom”

I also began to ask myself how Tavis could possibly claim to be concerned about the plight of Black people, and then seek to pad his pocket by promoting R. Kelly, a man who became more famous for his alleged appearance in a graphic underground video of himself molesting a 14 year-old Black child, than for his musical ability? Sure, Kelly beat the case, but the video is still out there, and it is what it is (read here).

And then there’s Cornel West, a man who’s literally made a career of spewing the depth of his love for his people to anyone who will listen, for a fee. With West, it’s always brother this, or my dear brother that, yet, as badly as we need educators in the Black community, he has never taught at a school that more than 1% of Black people could afford to attend in his entire career? If he loves his people so much, why isn’t he teaching third grade in the hood, or at the very least, instructing young people at one of the many Historically Black Colleges or Universities? Isn’t teaching poor and middle-class students prestigious enough for him? Doesn’t he love his people enough to want to see them well educated? I guess not, because while his incessantly running mouth says one thing, his behavior says another. It seems that he would much rather preach us a sermon than live us one.

While it seems that West can’t inconvenience himself to the point of busting a grape when it comes to helping to educate Black children, he wants us to believe that he loves the Black community so much that he was forced to join forces with Ralph Nader and help to elect George Bush in the 2000 election. Bush won by 537 votes. The Nader-West coalition peel off 97,488 votes in Florida alone. But, of course, West only hepled to usher in the Bush-Cheney era, and the misery that it brought to the Black community, in the interest of political chastity, you understand.

But as horrific as that episode was, for me, its hypocrisy is more than rivaled by West’s mere association with Tavis Smiley. In this latest coalition, West reminds me of a guy running down the street ranting about fascism after just having lunch with Mussolini. But many Black people can’t seem to see that, because they’ve been so bedazzled by the hype over Cornel’s resume that even though he doesn’t make a bit of sense most of the time, they assume that he must be saying something so profound that their limited education is causing them to miss the point. But what point could possibly be missing when a man advocates that you become so disgusted with the Bogeyman that you should go out and elect the Devil? Dumb is dumb, even if it comes from Princeton.

So my distaste for these two individuals run far, far deeper than their criticism of President Obama. The fact is, I’ve written several articles criticizing the president myself – as I do with every president – but I make sure that my criticisms are constructive, issue-specific, and I ALWAYS make sure that I afford the president all of the respect that he’s due. But the thrust of Tavis and West’s criticisms of President Obama are neither issue-specific, nor constructive. In fact, in the case of Cornel West, his criticisms are not only less than constructive, but they hover around a level of immaturity approaching The Dozens. So for the most part, Tavis and West are simply running around saying, “This guy ain’t no good and he can’t be trusted,” under the guise of being concerned about poverty.  But if you listen closely, after you get past all of the misleading rhetoric and disinformation, you’ll find that the  bottom line is, they’re campaigning for the Republicans as a cure for poverty, and you don’t get no dummer than that.  So we’re dealing with one of two things here – either they’re two turncoats, or they’re so dumb that they shouldn’t be allowed to hold a microphone.

Thus, their mantra about “attacking the messagener” notwithstanding, I’d like to hereby assure both, Tavis and West, and the world, that my raging distaste for them has absolutely nothing to do with their criticizing Obama. My distaste for these two individuals is a direct result of what I perceive as a gaping flaw in their character. So I am far less concerned about WHAT they’re saying, than I am about WHY they’re saying it. Because it’s the “WHY” that’s so toxic to the Black community.

I’ve been around long enough to recognize that as African Americas, we’re products of the very same racist environment as White people. As a result, many of us are just as racist toward other Black people as any Hillbilly, and that’s exactly what I see in Tavis Smiley and Cornel West. I’ve never forgotten the very valuable lessons that I learned from the FBI’s “Cointelpro” operation launched during the sixties to destroy the civil rights movement.

During that time the FBI scattered turncoats, snitches, and provocateurs all through the Black community to intice us to destroy ourselves. I was just a kid, but I learned something I’ll never forget during that period – always keep your eye on the ones who are always looking, acting, and talking the most militant. That’s why Cornel West immediately got my attention. I also learned that a good rule of thumb when dealing with such people is to ignore what they say, and simply watch what they do. In that regard, what are Tavis and West doing at this very moment? As we speak, they’re campaigning in the battleground states against Obama, and for the Republican Party.

So it has long since become clear to me that these two are not the least bit concern about poverty. They’re simply using the term “poverty”as a convenient metaphor to misdirect the people. You see, once their criticism of President Obama backfired on them in Black community, Tavis and West had to find a way to spread their anti-Obama message without generating so much heat. So they simply started using the word “poverty” as a metaphor for “Obama,” much like the Republicans use the word “welfare” as a metaphor for “Black people.” So now, instead of saying, “Don’t vote for Obama, they just use the word  “poverty” to IMPLY that Obama’s presidency is inadequate. It’s an old psychological technique right out of the Republican playbook.

You see, Tavis and West’s motives are exactly the same as Herman Cain’s, but they’re coming from a different direction. At least Herman Cain was honest enough to come at us as a Republican, but Tavis and West are so arrogant that they think the Black community is stupid, so they’re trying to use reverse psychology. Where Herman Cain’s message was, “Black people need to start voting Republican so the two parties will have to fight for their vote,” Tavis and West are playing us stupid in a different way. They’re using militant rhetoric in order to get us to cut our own throats. They’re trying to make unsophisticated voters so disgusted with Obama that they don’t vote – and as every sophisticated voter knows, every Democrat who doesn’t vote translates into a vote for the Republicans.  So like I said, it’s Cointelpro, revisited – the use of Trojan Horses to divide and conquer.

Tavis and West are currently wrapping themselves in the legacy of Malcolm, Martin, and every other historic Black figure they can think of in order to send the message that Obama’s not being Black enough. Yet, in doing so, they know full well that it’s impossible for President Obama to become more strident in pursuit of exclusively Black issues, because then, the Republicans would use it as a weapon to tear away his White support – and he can’t get anything done without White support. Just imagine what the Black response would be if a White President said, “I’ve got to put things on hold for a moment so I can do something for White people.” Black people would go berserk, but essentially, that’s exactly what Tavis and West are demanding that Obama do – but again, just like the Republicans – they’re making their demand in race related buzz words.

So Tavis and West have President Obama in a position where if he continues to be the president of ALL the people, as he should be, they’re going to divide his Black support; but if he caters to their call for him to pay special attention to the Black community, he’s going to have two problems – congress is going to dig in, so he won’t be able to get anything passed, and beyond that, it’s going to divide his White support. So instead of doing everything they can to help improve the condition of the poor and middle class (Black and White), Tavis and West are playing silly, self-serving little games to divide the people, help the Republicans, and promote their own meanspirited agenda.

So why are Tavis and West playing these games when they know it’s hurting both the country, and the administration of the first Black President of the United States?

It’s simple – for spite. As I mentioned previously, since Black people are a product of the very same racist environment as White people, many Black people have attitudes that are just as arrogant, condescending, and racist toward other Blacks as any White racist, and this is clearly the case with Tavis and West. They think that they’re above us, and that we’re undereducated and politically unsophisticated idiots that they can play to their advantage.

You see, contrary to what they would have you believe, these two don’t love Black people – they think they OWN us. They don’t see us as people. They see us as a commodity to be manipulated, bartered and sold. That explains why Tavis and West are so upset with President Obama. When he went around them to get our vote, as far as they’re concerned he stole something from them.

.

Tavis’ Solicitation To Corporate Sponsors (like Nationwide)

“Tavis Smiley builds brand identification and strengthens your corporate image. Sponsors benefit from the “HALO EFFECT” of being associated with PBS and NPR and its mission to make a meaningful contribution to our community. Nearly 85% of consumers believe such HIGHER-PURPOSE, CAUSE-RELATED marketing creates a positive image for sponsors. And almost two-thirds of PBS viewers and NPR listeners are MORE LIKELY TO PURCHASE the product or service of a PBS or NPR underwriter.”

As for West, the man is greedy, immature, and petty. He complained because “The guy who carried my bags into the hotel” got tickets to the inauguration and he didn’t. Wouldn’t you think that a person who fights for equality would love the symbolism of a worker getting into the inauguration of the President of the United States? But not Cornel, he felt slighted and insulted – he felt that he was BETTER than the HELP. And when Dr. Melissa Harris-Perry got the job with MSNBC. Wouldn’t you think a man who fought for equality would love seeing another intelligent Black female voice getting national exposure? But not Cornel. He made a public statement, calling her a liar and a fraud. How did that promote the interest of the black community? And is that the behavior of an enlightened intellectual? I don’t think so.

We’ve got to bring this kind of petty, self-serving, Black-on-Black racism to an end. That’s why it’s time to boycott Tavis Smiley, Cornel West, and any corporation, product, or media outlet that’s associated with them. After over 400 years of manipulation, it’s time to send one message loud and clear – THE BLACK COMMUNITY IS NOT FOR SALE! And we’re not going to tolerate ANYONE thinking that they can walk around with us in their pocket.