“I feel that we as Americans are all equal and held together by a common thread. Like a treasured beaded necklace of different colors held together on a string, we are held together by our necessities and our circumstances and our humanity. Every color helps to make the necklace beautiful. We can never be a totally separate entity! Americans of all colors are so integrated that if we hurt one, we hurt all. Just like that necklace of treasured beads, leave one out and the gap is seen. Break the chain and many of us are lost.”
I believe in America and its ability to evolve.
I for one am and always have been in line with Martin Luther King's Dream as you can tell from my statement of belief. I continually chase the dream.
His dream and the fact I was a home-schooling parent wanting a history book applauding contributions of all races are the reasons I put together Beads on a String America's Racially Intertwined Biographical History. It is amazing to me how long it took some people to agree to recognize a holiday for such a person Controversy over having MLK Day.
If each of our histories were celebrated everyday and our children were taught to value all histories, contributions, and differences we wouldn't have to wonder what Dr. King would think about us today. His dream....my dream would be fulfilled. We live in different times and we now play on a different game field from or ancestors and we need different tactics to fight the causes of today. Beads on a String chooses not to be about a certain color, but about a certain Nation. Learn more about the book.
America as a nation has many problems and yet what other country in the world can attest to the fact that people or dying to be here? There is a dream in their heart to be a part of this great nation and to live in the land of good and plenty as a member of one body. So why do we keep the line of separation as a constant reminder? The hyphenation, which line that separates all races and the word American.
The elimination of the hyphenation that is placed to distinguish White Americans from African (Black), Chinese, Arab, Indian, Japanese and every other race would be an immense triumph for Americans. That hyphenation continues to put a space between the races that are naturally born and the races that have chosen to become Americans. And we are that, Americans that have contributed enormously to the growth of the great United States.
Why is all of the hyphenation and hatin' going on in America? Why is such a distinction made before we are labeled Americans? African (sorry I don't come from Africa.) Arab, Asian, Black, Chinese, Hispanic, Native. I don't see anything about White-American or European-American. Who made this 'hyphenation' up and why are we accepting a line that separates us? I feel that we as Americans are all equal and held together by a common thread. Like a treasured beaded necklace of different colors held together on a string, we are held together by our necessities and our circumstances and our humanity. Every color helps to make the necklace beautiful. We can never be a totally separate entity! Americans of all colors are so integrated that if we hurt one, we hurt all. Just like that necklace of treasured beads, leave one out and the gap is seen. Break the chain and many of us are lost.
I believe that there are no pure races in America. Once Africans loved and integrated with Native Americans and the White man brought the first boat of Black slaves to America and raped their women, the 'pure' races were put to an end because nine months later, some woman had the first mixed baby. This integration happened again and again within all races. We are such a mixed breed in America that it has become hard to distinguish one race from another just by looking in a face. Some Blacks were so light skinned that they married into the White race and no one knew and may never know. Light to White skinned babies were being born and no one knew if they were Black or White and it did not and does not matter because they were born into the human race. Once free, they became American citizens. As does anyone born into this country, or anyone that chooses to come into this country and become an American. How many pure races are living here? From what we see, love among the races is flowing freely. Don't forget what happened to our fore-parents. Let us not repeat it. Let go of what happened in the past. I am not saying that there is not prejudice in the world. What we are saying is that when we are fighting for a 'cause' we must remember we are fighting the system and not a person. We have to be diligent in collecting facts, have an unbreakable, unbeatable plan, and remember that all of our foes may not be of one or the opposite in color or race.
Pay attention to the present. What we consider 'small things' is happening daily in the schools; on the jobs; in the government. Pay attention so that we don't step back in time. Stop trying to benefit from the past. Everyone that was involved in the mayhem and destruction of the families and the souls of the slaves are dead. We cannot charge nor punish them with anything and if we attack we may hurt our own. We take a chance of destroying an uncle, aunt, cousin, brother because roots run deep. We cannot change the past hurts, but we can change the present laws. The heart of man has to be dealt with by God. We should not dwell on the past. It stirs up hatred in young hearts that should only know peace. We know what happened to our fore-parents. Let us not repeat it.
Take for example things that have happened just this past week--
Each of these actions and words uttered from these people has the potential of pushing us back in time to a place where America was pure hell for minorities, the disabled and women.
It is time for America to let go of the past and heal itself. The grieving period should have been over and the healing started. If we can get past and start fresh we can heal.But every year, old wounds are torn open by the words Black History Month, or Asian Heritage Month and so on and so forth. Really I don’t see a Caucasian History month (even though many will say that history is reported on the daily, but to be fair Why don't we teach the children about America's History with everyone included? To me it seems as if only a few Black people are pulled out of the closet, dusted off the shelves and paraded in front of America as if to say, 'this one wasn't worthless', this one wasn't stupid'. Why is it that the 'black' is in capital letters? Is it to point out that a person of color has a brain or is it to pronounce to the world that we have pride? If there is so much pride in America for Native, African, Chinese, Japanese, Indian, Iranian-Americans and other 'hyphened Americans, drop the hyphen and pull together and teach our children that every bead has a purpose and should be celebrated. If we do--
1.Prejudices Will Die. Education can bring unification.
2Understanding: You would become more tolerant to the feelings of others.
3.Surprise: You would be amazed at the everyday things that were invented by more than one race.
4.Sharing: You will be able to teach the youth of today to value other's opinions.
2Understanding: You would become more tolerant to the feelings of others.
3.Surprise: You would be amazed at the everyday things that were invented by more than one race.
4.Sharing: You will be able to teach the youth of today to value other's opinions.
Those who have never had to deal with racism may never truly understand the hurt in our spirit just as we are sometimes unable to accept or trust the white flag waved in our faces. We spend our days playing hopscotch or hide and seek with our true feelings it is a wonder frustration has not burst out all over. I feel the problem continues because we do not know each other’s histories or how close we are tied together. How can ‘they’ know ‘us’ when we as Americans are only celebrated once a year? How can ‘we’ know ‘them’ when they are applauded everyday and we sit to the back (mentally) and wish? Why can’t we celebrate African Americans or better yet, all Americans every day of the week? The book Beads on a String-America’s Racially Intertwined Biographical History is America’s first interracial history book. It is the first and only book to bring America's great melting pot of ethnicity together within one binding and tells their story of how individuals of different races contributed to America. It will be a great asset to the educational system as well as in the lives of people of the world. It has been long awaited.
1 comments:
Amen to what you've said here and there is so much in this post. I in agreement about the annoyance with hyphenations. I really find it difficult to use terms like African-American because like you say it's been a long time since any of their ancestors even set foot in Africa let along came from there. I can't call myself an Irish-American because my ancestors came Ireland over two hundred years ago and since then they've mixed with Cherokee, German, and I don't know what other backgrounds. My wife is an U.S. citizen and she's very proud of the fact. If someone is curious she'll say she came from Ecuador, but she never says she's Ecaudorian-American and we never fly an Ecuadorian flag like some of the locals here fly Mexican flags.
Very insightful and indepth post. Hope you do very well with your book--it sounds like it has some important messages to impart.
Lee
Tossing It Out
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