after the Trayvon Martin verdict came out. i was PISSED! although i was shocked about what the decision had come to be, i was shocked about what this said about how those people in particular viewed BLACK LIFE and particularly BLACK MEN.
i saw Fruitvale Station last night. also pissed me off. so i guess all this is kind of fresh on my mind...
many of the people i spoke with about the Martin case or the people i saw making comments about the case, mostly black people, had many of the same sentiments as me. although i believe many of the black men i saw making comments about it were mad about it...it almost felt like they were accepting of it. expecting it. and therefore not nearly as outraged as one may expect. it is sad and concerning to me.
but it is black women that brought so much attention to the Martin case and were so out raged (IMO). yes, even me. pissed. disgusted and horrified by what it must feel like to be a BLACK MAN IN AMERICA.
fucked.
is probably an understatement.
we worried that one day our children could be a Trayvon case. a victim to a "just" system where murder was legal based on law. remember Jim Crow?
it just made us angry, but i think black women spoke so loudly, firmly and honestly about it. how we were STANDING BY THE BROTHERS. supporting them. rallying for them. protecting them. ALL of them. because it was necessary. and it is.
BUT.
what about us? black women.
between music disguised as art and the mentality of some black men that perpetuate the stereotypes, lack of positive imagery and language about black women and carry it forward to young men...disgusts me.
how did we make it OUR business to support ALL of them (no matter what) and then for us to be reduced to women who are hard headed, difficult to get along with, demanding and not open minded (just to name a few things i have heard). how did we get reduced to this? why is it so difficult to PUBLICLY see a BLACK MAN speak positively about black women?
again, not all. but those that are the mouth pieces of our negativity in our backyards, communities and public platforms make it difficult to NOT BE BITTER.
it concerns me that as we get older...it will be difficult to see black men standing alongside black women in the same way we would DIE to do the same for them. and i am just not speaking in the realm of positioning ourselves in our communities but also in relationships.
our neighborhoods are dying without our example. our faces. two. as parents. we are dying. and i have, honestly, heard black men say, "you all too closed minded. you did to date outside your race." which is anyone's prerogative.
but are we wrong that we want to see UNITY in our community the same way you see it in an Asian, Pakistani (or similar descent) or Hispanic community? they STAND together.
it just breaks my heart sometimes. and even makes me angry.
but if nothing else, i trust this: WE, as black women, have a gift and a curse to love them (yes, you) no matter what. and most of will. we will continue to raise black men the best way we know how, we will continue to dominate on college campuses and we will continue to rise professionally. we will keep doing that.
and hopefully one day it will be appreciated.
