I still have yet to understand how two individuals can be living completely separate lives, inflicting no harm on anyone, and yet one party finds the need to attack the lifestyle of the other.
This speaks to larger issues happening in the world (i.e. Christians vs. law-abiding Muslims, gay marriage, ect.), but honestly, I am talking about the little stuff right now.
A man wearing a Speedo on the beach. A woman allowing her young son to grow his hair down to his shoulders. A person living off the grid.
As far as I see it, as long as no undue harm is being imposed on other individuals, I have no right to be speaking poorly about another person's life choices. So what if the elderly man wants to wear a speedo on the beach?? Let him live. (Additionally, I'm sure there are many who would speak against me wearing my bikini on the beach, so I'm in no position to attack anyone else's beach bod.)
Another thing that deters me from doing this is energy.
Here's something that most people wouldn't guess about me: I am extremely lazy. Not in the sense that I won't do work and other things that need to get done, but in the sense that I will strategically plan in order to minimize the amount of energy I have to expend on a feat. If I need to go above and beyond, no problem. But the moment I feel that there is no need to do that anymore, I withdraw that energy.
This being said, I tend to be picky with what I put my energy into. And in my mind, judging people for their lifestyle habits is not one way I want to use it.
Those are just my most recent thoughts. Let me know if you have any thoughts about this!
Saturday, July 16, 2016
Thursday, July 7, 2016
RIP Alton Sterling, Philando Castile
Last night, I went to sleep with a lot on my mind, and at the top of it, two words: Alton Sterling.
This morning, I woke up to find another name: Philando Castile.
There's something wrong in this country.
We just celebrated another US Independence Day, and as I scrolled through my Instagram feed, I couldn't bring myself to like the pictures of groups of cis white males sporting beers and American flag shorts. Because the only ones who truly enjoy those freedoms that our nation was founded on, are people who look exactly like them.
Apparently, it isn't enough to have systematic barriers against our education, employment, housing, and standards of living in general. No, there has to be systematic barriers against our mere existence; with the law enforcement officials being the ones playing judge, jury and executioner.
Regarding specifically the two cases that just occurred in these past few days, they both allegedly involved the victim carrying a firearm.
And perhaps I am mistaken, but isn't that the same issue that so many Americans have been arguing about? The "war on guns"? Did the NRA forget that killing an individual simply for having a weapon is also an attack on Americans' right to own a firearm? Or did I forget that the amendment that the organization bases its existence on is a decree that, in its inception, only applied to the white men that occupy the nation...?
When considering our state of racial affairs, I can't help but to look at other recent systematic killings of specified groups of people--think Rwanda and Burundi with the Tutsi, Iraq with the Kurdish people, Bosnia with its Muslim population, ect. And a common aspect of them are that these systematic killings were for the most part sanctioned by some segment of a government, be it the ruling party or a revolutionary administration. However, this doesn't seem to be the case with the occurrences in the United States. It is terrifying to think that it isn't a political regime or campaign that is carrying out these killings, but individuals...which lends itself to say that it is the culture that is the driving force of these heinous acts. To me, that means that something is wrong with the way the American culture views people of color, specifically the black population. Of course, what is happening in our nation is nowhere near the scale of what happened other nations like the ones I named above (unless you are counting the mass incarceration of blacks); but from my perspective, the resemblance is striking.
My head hurts and my heart aches.
This morning, I woke up to find another name: Philando Castile.
There's something wrong in this country.
We just celebrated another US Independence Day, and as I scrolled through my Instagram feed, I couldn't bring myself to like the pictures of groups of cis white males sporting beers and American flag shorts. Because the only ones who truly enjoy those freedoms that our nation was founded on, are people who look exactly like them.
Apparently, it isn't enough to have systematic barriers against our education, employment, housing, and standards of living in general. No, there has to be systematic barriers against our mere existence; with the law enforcement officials being the ones playing judge, jury and executioner.
Regarding specifically the two cases that just occurred in these past few days, they both allegedly involved the victim carrying a firearm.
And perhaps I am mistaken, but isn't that the same issue that so many Americans have been arguing about? The "war on guns"? Did the NRA forget that killing an individual simply for having a weapon is also an attack on Americans' right to own a firearm? Or did I forget that the amendment that the organization bases its existence on is a decree that, in its inception, only applied to the white men that occupy the nation...?
When considering our state of racial affairs, I can't help but to look at other recent systematic killings of specified groups of people--think Rwanda and Burundi with the Tutsi, Iraq with the Kurdish people, Bosnia with its Muslim population, ect. And a common aspect of them are that these systematic killings were for the most part sanctioned by some segment of a government, be it the ruling party or a revolutionary administration. However, this doesn't seem to be the case with the occurrences in the United States. It is terrifying to think that it isn't a political regime or campaign that is carrying out these killings, but individuals...which lends itself to say that it is the culture that is the driving force of these heinous acts. To me, that means that something is wrong with the way the American culture views people of color, specifically the black population. Of course, what is happening in our nation is nowhere near the scale of what happened other nations like the ones I named above (unless you are counting the mass incarceration of blacks); but from my perspective, the resemblance is striking.
My head hurts and my heart aches.
Friday, July 1, 2016
Just Say It: I'm Black
This post is in reference to something that I have taken a notice of in the recent years. On more than one occasion, when in conversation and some other person is talking about a classmate or a professor that I don't know, or can't remember the name of a celebrity, I do the most sensible thing that would be likely to result in a proper identification: I ask them to describe the individual.
This often happens:
"Well...he is tall. Pretty built, but with lean muscle. He has black hair, and has a big booming laugh."
But then, when speaking of a different person, the same person may use the following description:
"You know, tall lanky white guy, salt-and-pepper colored beard, always wearing a cowboy hat? You've definitely seen him; you can't miss him." [Points to those who know who this is describing.]
Do you spot the difference in these descriptions? When it comes to black people (and perhaps this could be expanded to any other visible ethnic/racial minority), there seems to be a hesitation to call the person 'black'.
Perhaps this is a result of the advancement of political correctness in our American society. And that's not to say that political correctness is a bad thing; but I do speculate on why it has created such a hesitant environment in regards to race that, from what I have experienced, is rather one-sided.
So here's my two cents on the topic.
First of all, I want to assert that it is not offensive to call an individual black. While I reject the concept of race, it is an ever-present part of our society that I can disagree with, but cannot ignore. Despite the fact that I identify as Nigerian, the American government decided decades ago what I was to be categorized as, and that's the box I fill in for every document that inquires about my racial background: 'Black'.
Secondly, don't try to avoid saying 'black' by saying 'African-American'.
This is one misconception that I think Americans have. They get so used to the idea that 'African-American' is the politically-correct analog of 'black', and thus identify all black individuals with that term. But not ever person living in the States is an 'African-American'; there are black people from all parts of the world. And sure, if we trace back far enough, all blacks are of African descent, but if we are using that calculus, then we all are Africans, regardless of skin color.
Let's be sincerely honest here. Black people don't have a problem being called black. It's the other historically-charged slurs like nigger, coon, darkey, and others that we find problematic, as well as the association of our demographic group with stereotypes like uneducated, poverty, crime, ect. And FURTHER, it is the implications of these stereotypes that are most crippling for the black community--that is, the numerous deaths of black bodies by the hands of law enforcement; the heafty jail sentences dealt disparagingly to black law offenders; and others.
So here's what I'm saying: don't shy away from the term. In my opinion, it isn't offensive, so there shouldn't be any fear or hesitation in calling people who are black, 'black'. And if you still aren't comfortable with that, you can do what is even better than what I've called for here--and that's simply asking the person, "What do you identify as?" That avoids any mix-ups, and is sure to make both parties comfortable with the term used to address one another.
Thanks for reading, and make sure to share and comment!
This often happens:
"Well...he is tall. Pretty built, but with lean muscle. He has black hair, and has a big booming laugh."
But then, when speaking of a different person, the same person may use the following description:
"You know, tall lanky white guy, salt-and-pepper colored beard, always wearing a cowboy hat? You've definitely seen him; you can't miss him." [Points to those who know who this is describing.]
Do you spot the difference in these descriptions? When it comes to black people (and perhaps this could be expanded to any other visible ethnic/racial minority), there seems to be a hesitation to call the person 'black'.
Perhaps this is a result of the advancement of political correctness in our American society. And that's not to say that political correctness is a bad thing; but I do speculate on why it has created such a hesitant environment in regards to race that, from what I have experienced, is rather one-sided.
So here's my two cents on the topic.
First of all, I want to assert that it is not offensive to call an individual black. While I reject the concept of race, it is an ever-present part of our society that I can disagree with, but cannot ignore. Despite the fact that I identify as Nigerian, the American government decided decades ago what I was to be categorized as, and that's the box I fill in for every document that inquires about my racial background: 'Black'.
Secondly, don't try to avoid saying 'black' by saying 'African-American'.
This is one misconception that I think Americans have. They get so used to the idea that 'African-American' is the politically-correct analog of 'black', and thus identify all black individuals with that term. But not ever person living in the States is an 'African-American'; there are black people from all parts of the world. And sure, if we trace back far enough, all blacks are of African descent, but if we are using that calculus, then we all are Africans, regardless of skin color.
Let's be sincerely honest here. Black people don't have a problem being called black. It's the other historically-charged slurs like nigger, coon, darkey, and others that we find problematic, as well as the association of our demographic group with stereotypes like uneducated, poverty, crime, ect. And FURTHER, it is the implications of these stereotypes that are most crippling for the black community--that is, the numerous deaths of black bodies by the hands of law enforcement; the heafty jail sentences dealt disparagingly to black law offenders; and others.
So here's what I'm saying: don't shy away from the term. In my opinion, it isn't offensive, so there shouldn't be any fear or hesitation in calling people who are black, 'black'. And if you still aren't comfortable with that, you can do what is even better than what I've called for here--and that's simply asking the person, "What do you identify as?" That avoids any mix-ups, and is sure to make both parties comfortable with the term used to address one another.
Thanks for reading, and make sure to share and comment!
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