Black Friday

Sorry people no sales here. Black Fridays is a post dedicated to the advancement of human integration and the elimination of segregation(line by Jon). The events that took place in downtown Columbus, Ohio last night woke a beast that should never need to see the light of day. Many years after the emancipation proclamation slavery still exists. The physical chains have been traded in for a form of mental captivity. I am no black supremacist but for the rights of decent people I will go the distance.

My friends and I decided to go have a nice night on the town far from the turmoil filled trap. In Columbus I had heard from many minorities that the city hides a prejudice agenda below the surface but I had a hard time believing such things. In an attempt to mingle with the Short North population I experienced stone cold rejection with no rhyme or reason. Me and some friends attempted to walk inside an establishment: Brothers Bar and Grill( http://www.brothersbar.com/) with a supposed mixed crowd. Dressed business/casual trying to enter a place where the norm seemed to be tank tops, flip flops, shorts, and flat-billed hats I caught a glimpse of that evil that was supposed to have died with the civil rights movement. Me and my friend had hats on so in an attempt to show IDs and enter the bar first thing the bouncer said was no flat-billed hats. Instead of being confrontational i said hey you and my sister go ahead inside I will take the hats back to the parking garage and place them in the car. Not expecting this the bouncer and supposed boss man realized they had not gotten rid of me so easily so attempting to quickly put up another roadblock they decided to tell my friend that his pants were to baggy. It would be one thing if he was wearing cargo pants which can be considered bit baggy for high end club attire but he was wearing straight cut khaki pants so now my confusion led to curiosity. I am not one to jump to conclusions and pull the race card which so many African Americans are happy to do I always assume positive intent. So I said "excuse me sir I have some questions then, because I live close by and would like to patronize your establishment." This seemed to have angered my oppressors. My cool was the most important thing to maintain because so often this form of fire must not be met with fire. It is the hopes of such folk that young black men react in a manner which would allow the to label them " Savage" in front of authorities and institutionalize them. This being a concept I am to aware of I avoid it at all costs. In my eagerness to understand what in my attire had broken the bars dress code the bouncer and boss man made the biggest mistake they failed to give a valid reason as to why I was not granted entry. Their quick response "You attitude is in violation of dress code". This was the straw that broke the camels back. I understood that I had just become a victim of a hate crime. Crimes against humanity are crimes that must never go unpunished. I simply explained to my oppressors that what they did tonight was wrong and that they will answer to their god when the time comes. My friends proceeded to call it like they saw it an act of racism but these two men began to ignore us and allow the wasted youth and lost causes in. People with no sign of self control and borderline public belligerents were allowed entry just to add fuel to the flame that was building inside of us. A completely under dressed and highly inebriated Asian male said to my sister " They not letting us in?" and she replied no you can still get in and that is when this man said the truest statement of last night "Oh its a black thing". His nonchalant statement hit heavily in my soul. He was right and this made me disheartened with the state of society and how we have made it okay to single out and undermine groups of people based on false notions and unexplained hatred.

As I wandered off to find another spot to take my business my friends were still upset at what had just taken place. An older African American saw my frustration and stopped to chat with me. A gentleman named Thomas David said " Brothers is a place that is not welcome to brothers. Don't spend your hard earned money to fund racism take your dollars elsewhere. Brothers Bar is a place that embodies the plight of humanity." His kind words put my mind at ease.

I have spent twenty six years of my life creating an environment in which I am proud to live in. to allow two weak men to shatter this dream I constantly seek to sustain would show weakness in the links of my chain. To these gentleman I simply wish their bloodline to be purified in the form of mixed relatives. The world will soon be a complete melting pot and no bloodline will be solely based on one group of people. It is how things must be due to the lines of love being drawn based on human interaction and not on the basis of ethnicity or origin. I am saddened that in our attempt to enjoy some of the life we have left we still must face the struggle our ancestors faced when attempting to eat or drink in certain businesses not to long ago but everything in the dirt must eventually see light, and every dog has his day. All I ask is that we treat each other as equals and force ourselves to be colorblind regardless of the prescription of our glasses or the solidity of our eyesight. I am a human before anything i just happen to be born with a certain pigment and I do not believe this should determine my life it is simply a fact of life and I should be treated with the same respect as any other man. It is my form of silent revolution that I will not support any establishment in which any race can be denied just on basis of race or false stereotypes and I hope this may inspire you to take up arms in the fight for your cause or silent revolution. Any opposition that makes it to the doorstep of the savage leader is not met with opposition it is met with serious thought in order to understand the deeper meaning. God didn't want me to support those who attempt to institutionalize my people and I thank him for such an opportunity to decide in the face of such an unfortunate event. Until next time keep it LYM.

Obama, Civil Rights, and the Disagreement Between the Two

Obama declared his support for maraige equality 

during an interview with ABC's Robin Roberts

On Wednesday, May 9, 2012, much of America was taken aback when President Barak Obama spoke in support of the right for couples of the same sex to be legally married in this country. The media went on a frenzy analyzing the situation from every possible angle. And much of America experienced a sigh of relief, and some bouts of excitement even, when they heard the news. Even a Fox News analyst spoke about the issue in terms of being on the right side of history. Its safe to say that many of us are all caught up in the excitement of having POTUS’ support for equal rights, however what many seem to not realize is that this does absolutely nothing to further the cause for equality in our country.

For starters, the only reason Obama felt the need to come out with his statement was because VP Joe Biden backed him into a corner on the prior Sunday when he went on Meet the Press and expressed his support for equal marriage rights. By doing so, Biden opened the floodgates of scrutiny to the President’s less than satisfactory past attempts at dodging the issue. Prior to Sunday, Obama was able to get away with saying such things as his views are “evolving” as he “wrestled” with the issue. But as pressure mounted, Obama finally gave in just three days after Biden’s comments. So its important to note that it was not of his own volition that came out with this statement, but was simply pushed to do so.

Regardless, these recent events beg the question, what does this mean for progress in the uphill battle of equal rights in this country? The answer is a plain and simple NOTHING. Obama, after expressing his support for gay marraige, clearly stated that he believes the issue is one to be addressed at the state level. Obama once again has washed his hands of the issue by leaving it to the states to decide. Coincidentally, North Carolina voted on a Constitutional amendment to ban same sex marriage just the day before and showed us all how clearly capable we are of dealing with this injustice at the state level by enacting the ban it into law.

The leader of the free world, arguably the most powerful man in the planet, supports marriage equality, but does not think it is important to enact federal legislation to ensure the rights of same sex couples. By leaving it to the states, Presdent Obama has accepted the status quo, and admitted his lack of interest in pursing this problem head on. It seems a bit disheartening, seeing as how Obama is a direct beneficiary of the civil rights struggles that our nation has endured, yet does not see it of any importance to pay it forward and make a real difference.

Its not surprising that Obama’s stance on civil rights is a not very clear given the fact that his stance on basic Human Rights is one that needs revaluation as well.  We cant expect for a President to stand up for the rights of an overlooked people in his own country when he has approved a multi-million dollar weapons shipment to the Bahraini government which just recently vowed to crack down harder on its civilian protesters many of which have been killed by government forces. But I digress.

If my historical knowledge serves me well, had Abe Lincoln’s famous speech been called the “Support of Freedom Proclamation” instead of the Emancipation Proclamation, and in it he said that the issue of slavery was best left for the states to decide. I am quite sure that I would not be writing this from below the Mason Dixon line, and that Barak Obama would not be sitting in a position with the power to deny this country the progress it so sorely needs.