BLACK HISTORY M O NTH 1999
P ace C6
„ ttBKUARY-IO , 1999 • R . ; « * « »
A DIALOGUE ON RACE SERIES
Race And Diversity
B> F loyd R. C ruse
As one that has been involved in
the ongoing challenges o f equality in
the job markets and fairness in the
media, legal system, housing and
social services, the complexities o f
the issues fail to fall into one or two
categories.
There are many models or theories
(paradigms) being advocated as cures
for the mental illness o f racism and its
legacy o f bigotry and bias. The core
o f the struggle that has brought us to
this point is found in the belief that
one person, group or gender is supe
rior to another. A fter years o f en
trenchment this behefhas finally met
its match.
But, what could match the tenac ity
and venom o f the superiority move
ment with its privileges and rewards
for certain groups? The challenges
come from an old axiom which says
that "behavior is based on b elief’. If
we believe something to be true, our
behavior follows accordingly.
What we have is not only a con
cept o f racial superior but also values
superior. What most people o f color
and women find most disturbing is
the requirement to assimilate in vari
ous forms. This Assimilation require
ment has its effects both in the physi
ological and psychological aspects
o f a person.
Physiologically, the effects range
from stress to high blood pressure in
an attempt to deal with the alienation
created by not measuring up to the
requirements. Psychologically speak
ing, self-hate, distrust, inhibition and
“ looking out for number one” atti
tude become the norm.
One o f the ways to look at this
enigma could be through a human
rights training program developed
by the USDA entitled “A Life Style
Analysis". In the analysis, behav
ioral characteristics are placed on a
continuum with the extremes o f be
havior represented as Black and
White, not to be confused with skin
colors, (however, inevitably, mention
o f these two colors are immediately
associated with skin colors.)
These characteristics are not con
fined to any ethnic groups even
though people o f color do fall pre
dominantly under the Black lifestyle
as described below:
Lifestyle Analysis
White
Black
Honesty (self) Dishonesty
Individualism
Sense
ofCommunity
Non-emoting
Emoting
Non-feeling
Feelings
Inhibited
Letting it
all hang out
Uptight
Free
from. And what o f Ebonics?
Using grammar that may sound
lazy, or sloppy can be cute if one is
just learning how to speak English.
Sometimes in illness, recovery may
require a slow building again to mas
tery o f language. If you are of the
culture that has promoted Ebonics,
when you hear it spoken, what is the
intent behind it’s usage? True, it may
be a form o f a foreign language, and
yet is it really? Ebonics can be a way
o f saving or holding on to cultural
identity. What is the effect on others
that may not understand, even o f the
same culture?
Going back to those who speak a
foreign language, those within that
particular language are able to com
prehend at least the basic meaning,
the simplest ideas being offered by
the one speaking even though some
words might be used differently. The
thought being, the language is still
understood by those hearing with
out much difficulty or explanation
needed. The same can be true for
belief that race is the primary determi
nant o f human traits and capacities
and that racial difference produce an
inherent superiority ot a particular
Lazy
B y K eilisi G y an F reeman
Communication has been the main
stay o f our society. It has been the
glue that has kept the wheels o f in
dustry moving forward. Conversa
tion has been the way history has
been transferred from one generation
to the next. Ideas, dreams, hopes life
and death have all come about by
means o f expression. Each culture
has its particular flavor that blends in
and out of a “mainstream” ofcommu-
nication.
Those who have mastered a for
eign language find joy in using that
skill to the fullest. Using a second
language has been a way to better
sel f and to allow the mind to compre
hend faster and create new synapses
that further memory and understand
ing. Traits o f sluggishness and seem
ing laziness are removed in order to
makeway forcrispenunciation. Struc
ture o f tenses has been sharpened in
order to create clear understanding
o f thoughts and remove any ques
tions that might arise.
Some languages such as French
have variations in sound o f words
and how a tense is used. This indi
cates the region that the person
speaking may have come from or the
type o f industry in the area. This may
be true for a majority o f the European
languages. It is not a negative for the
language. It is more an identifier of
the area from which the speaker comes
Ebonics.
The point being, there is a matter of
perception that may be given by those
speaking Ebonics, especially in this
society where racism is still a covert
and sometimes overt matter. A clearer
understanding o f ’racism’ may be the
place to start this portion o f our dis
cussion.
In “Merriam W ebster’s Collegiate
Dictionary”, racism is defined as: "a
race.”
In his well-known speech o f 1963,
Dr. King used the phrase, “ .. the con
tent o f his character...” In a society
that is quick to judge on the first
visual impression, that has a history
o f oppression o f the black commu
nity, and still has factions that be
lieve in "inherent superiority o f a
particular race,” thus the inferiority
o f another, what is another way of
somehow minimizing those beliefs?
Communication and expression.
In learning to speak Ebonics, I might
gain habits o f lazy speech and my
mind becomes sluggish in using proper
English which is vital for advance
ment in this society, who am I to look
to with question? I could say my edu
cator. They didn’t have my best inter
est at heart in giving me a tool that
could be a hindrance to me rather than
a help. If 1 choose to keep those habits
in the "name o f cultural difference,"
even though I have the opportunity to
get the correct habits, then who is at
the point o f question? Only self.
Beauty is in the ear of the listener.
The crux of the matter is this: We
live in a society that is quick to judge.
First impressions mean so very much.
In a nation where being Black can be
an immediate strike against, the only
way is to overcome that by sounding
Ambiguity
Unable to deal
with am biguity
W hen we are referring to the
word H onesty, we are not speaking
about whether or not a person steals,
we all will steal under the right cir
cumstances (e g.: to save a life) here
the reference is to being up-front
about who you are and what you are
about In the American culture, this
has been a privilege associated with
power and maintained through fear.
It is also a gender issue where women
were and are encouraged to keep
their mouths shut and don’t rock the
boat.
Sense ofCommunity ¡«defined as
having care and concern for those
other thanyourow nim m ediatefain-
ily or friends.
Em oting is defined as the expres-
sionofemotions. It is referring to the
process ofgetting in touch with your
feelings and being aware o f them
intelligent. 1 offer this experience. 1
work on the phone quite a bit. Re
cently, I was working with a Public
Relations firm. Because I choose to
speak properly, the person 1 had been
talking to had no idea 1 was African
American until a co-worker shared
that with him in conversation. I still
find it amazing that how 1 sound has so
much to do with the impression that
others have o f me.
I take pride in using proper grammar
when the situation calls for it, and 1
love to share with those who speak
like I do, more in the vernacular. I don’t
want to come across as two-faced in
this question o f Ebonics and racism.
Both forms o f speaking have their
place. Both are beautiful to each lis
tener. To some, it is a foreign lan
guage. To others, it’s a form of judg
ment that can be used not only against
the speaker, but can be used against
the entire ‘race’.
Racism is a po w er relationship
betw een groups based upon color.
It is a group concept and occurs
w hen one g ro u p has so m uch
pow er that it can force another
group to do w hat it w ants. Its
purpose is the uneven and unfair
distribution o f pow er, privilege,
land and w ealth to W hites. C o n
trary to the argum ents o f co n ser
vatives, racism is not fundam en
tally about individual actions and
beliefs. T he concept o f racism did
not exist until the 16'” C entury
com m ercial enslavem ent o f Blacks
began. B ecause B lacks as a group
do not have the pow er, the black
race has no racists, only B lacks
re-acting to racism .
A ny co nstructive look at race
m ust be based upon an analysis o f
history. It is an exam ination o f
history that tells w hy the race
issue exists, how it cam e to be,
the social law s and custom s that
form the legacy that w e see today
in disparities b etw een B lacks and
W h ites. A s e rio u s d isc u ssio n
would also seek to quantify the
harm that w as d o n e to B lack
people. T he uninform ed opinions
and m isinform ation that usually
ch aracterize racial d iscu ssio n s,
result from an unw illingness to
exam ine history and to approach
the topic intellectually rather than
emotionally.
Race by definition refers to a
group. Blacks as a group w ere
subjected to the cruelties o f sla
very and Jim Crow apartheid. It
w as because they w ere m em bers
o f a group that B lacks w ere en
slaved, lynched, castrated.
B lacks are the only planned,
involuntary, non-im m igrant group
in A m erica. Ethnic groups, by
definition are im m igrants. Ninety-
nine percent o f this natio n ’s im
m igrants have been non-black and
they have received privileges, hos
pitality and access to resources
that Blacks have never received.
The race issue is the uncorrected
legacy from slavery. The discrim i
nation that im m igrant groups may
experience does not equate to the
stru ctu ral, historical legacy o f
Blacks in the U.S. that continues
today.
The original E xecutive O rder
that established A ffirm ative A c
tion issued in 1965 by President
Lyndon Johnson, w as intended as
corrective action for Blacks. G ov
ernm ent actions and responsibil
ity do not apply in the sam e w ay to
any other groups. ‘H ispanic’ is a
fabricated race. It includes all those
w ho speak Spanish, regardless o f
their country o f origin - Spain, El
S a lv a d o r, M exico, C u b a. T he
Spanish language has never been
enslaved, castrated, lynched or
econom ically exploited. The cir
cum stances o f Hispanics, Asians
or any other immigrant group can
not be equated to that o f Blacks.
Ethnic groups chose to come to
this country. Even native A m eri
cans are in a different category
than Blacks. M ost Indian tribes
ê
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Floyd R. Cruse
that strike without warning, not let
ting you know where they are com
ing form unless you really infringe
on something they value very much,
and then releasing all, being passive
and very individualistic.
My inner feeling is this, it 1 feel
comfortable using proper English
all the time, because it serves me,
than I will use it. If I choose to use
Ebonics as a matter o f having tun
and a change in expression, then I
will use it. It becomes my choice to
accomplish a desired goal.
I could go crazy worrying about
others’ impression o f me. I need
not give others a weapon to judge
me in a negative way, and then cry
foul when they do. If Ebonics cre
ates an impression I don't want to
hold for myself, I find another way
of speaking. If someone speaks
differently about me, I allow them
their way without being harsh or
judging them. 1 realize they may
judge me because 1 sound differ
ently in their ears also.
The choice is yours along with
the measure of success you want
in your life.
Keilisi Gyan Freeman
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The Issue Of Race
B y D r . C laud A nderson
and how they affect your deci
sion making.
Next is the idea o f L etting It
All H ang O ut, analogous to a
person unencumbered by what
others think. Imagine an intoxi
cated person singing to them
selves and walking down a street,
in their own world not bothered
or worried about how they look,
think or feel.
Next is the act o f feeling Free.
And finally. A m biguity, or the
ability to deal with change.
These characteristics are liken
to snakes. Those in the Black
lifestyle are like Rattlesnakes,
they sound o ff when their values
are infringed upon, they let you know
where they are coming from, they are
up-front about who they are and
generally very expressive. Con
versely, the White lifestyle is liken
to a Cobra, who ’ s attributes are those
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Dr. Claud Anderson
were slave holders and the United
States governm ent has created
numerous governm ental policies
and com pensation efforts for In
dian tribes.
For centuries, this nation ’ s “Gov
ernm ent of, by and for the people"
did not include the Black race.
W ithout governm ent support, nei
ther slavery nor Jim C row segre
gation could have long endured.
The governm ent has apologized to
all other groups to w hom it has
committed offenses, except Blacks.
Yet, Black A m ericans have borne
the burden o f every obligation this
nation has had since 1619.
Racial equality for Black in
A m erica begins with an apology
and acknow ledgem ent from the
governm ent that millions o f Blacks
w ere w rongfully used and killed.
Econom ic justice and reparations
m ust naturally follow.
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