UI Meme of the Day, A Daily Series…

Little upfront disclaimer: I am not a fan of “sir” Charles Barkley.

It isn’t personal, it’s his “public persona” that bothers me. Not that I really give a fug what he says or does, but only because he just does all these crazy things to get attention, and usually the wrong attention for the wrong reasons. So when it comes to putting “street cred” over all else, he doesn’t have much room to talk, he does it himself.

However…

One would think that with Barkley’s every waking moment would come a revelation that will live on with his legacy. We know he’s not a “Dr. Martin Luther King”-type, but his actions and words will forever be branded on the psyche of America’s conscience. This stuff follows him to his grave.

That’s why when I heard what he said about Black people’s major problem being other Black people, I had to stand down on that one and step aside.

The truth is that out of 100 white people that I may have met in my lifetime (and there were plenty more than that because I worked in corporate and small business America for more than 30 years), but if I met 100, about 97.5 of them were what I, and every Black other person that I know, would call a pure no-doubt-about-it skin color racist.

Only 2.5 of them I would absolutely vouch for under oath in a court of law that they are NOT racists, and I will gladly say how I know it. But for the sake of “credibility,” I’ll give a couple of them a benefit of a doubt and round that 2.5 up to a solid “3.”

When it comes to Black folk, though … honestly, flip a coin.

***

Ipsy-dosy, because there is a 50/50 chance of another Black person being an honest person to deal with and confide in and do business with. If you go in, you go in hoping they don’t “pull no mess,” and take you down the tubes with them.

Yeah, it’s that serious.

That said, there was not much of a point in sweatin’ “Sir Charles” on this one.

Black folks THESE DAYS often do give one another more grief, let-downs, put-downs, and hard times than a white person may have even thought about IN RECENT HISTORY.

Make it plain: IN RECENT HISTORY.

It often seems like we, as a people, did a better job of sticking together and toughing out hard times when slavery and discrimination were LEGAL.

It’s a shame to have to say it, but it seems the only thing that makes us start looking at one another for reasons of good purpose and community and inspiration and love is when white folks put the HIGHLY racist pressure on. When that happens, it’s like watching Godzilla eating power lines. The more electricity they ply on the Monster, the stronger and bigger he gets.

Many of us have had more issues out of non-supportive parents and relatives, and ugly-acting folks on our streets, and in our schools and churches than we’ve had to deal with any racist whites on a regular daily basis, and this has got to be reconciled.

Without that reconciliation, the Trust Factor is still out the window, and it stays out.

We no longer have a choice about this matter of working overtime for “street cred” and treating each other like purely anonymous ‘shyt’ while we’re at it. Get it together, or leave it alone.

REFERENCES

Charles Barkley, this one’s for you: