Dodging Sticks and Stones As I was preparing for my final week of college, which is a very stressful thing to do, I could not help but get caught up in the latest media controversy. The latest controversy includes the NBA and former L.A. Clippers owner, Donald Sterling. As I became amazed by what actions I saw taking place, I stopped and wondered about the past of not only this man but other men. When I stopped and thought about it, I was amazed by several factors: the lack of attention paid by the NAACP, the lack of ethics by the accused, and the lack of the law and the lack of respect for freedom of speech. Growing up as a young black man, my father taught me many things which transformed me into the man who can write these blogs. Often, he taught me about my black ancestry. One thing that always stuck out and irritated me was the impact that people in power had and how they treated my ancestors. How men like Jim Crow would go on personal record to belittle not only the black culture, but anyone who supported the reform. How idols like Reggie Jackson and Martin Luther King Jr. fought for equality in every sense, and personally, I think we are scores past where we were when those men were fighting for our freedom. Black men and women, and women in general, can vote, own property, be seen as serious figures in the community, and can even choose to lead companies, households, or both. However, these days I find that we, as Americans, are missing something: The ability to have a socially unacceptable opinion. We are so concerned about offending someone that it’s a crime to even have a thought without jumping through five thousand hoops to make sure that nobody is offended. Now, before anyone who is reading this thinks that I agree with what Sterling said, you should that I don’t. I am appalled by his opinion but at the same time I feel that he should be given the right to think the way that he wants to. What he said doesn’t affect me because I do not let it. People have gotten so bent out of shape due to his actions and I do not understand why. The way that I see it, the words of Donald Sterling and like-minded individuals are nothing more than a rock or stick being thrown at me. If you choose to dodge the stick, it can’t harm you. However, it is when you choose to let the stick or rock hit you that you allow it to do damage. So by choosing to let it affect you, you are letting someone who has no control over you have full control over your mind and everything that you do. Instead of letting them control you, every human needs to do the following: shrug it off and go on! Yes, it may offend you, yes it may hurt your feelings and yes it might upset you, but by letting these things affect you, even on a superficial level, is letting the offensive comment win. We, not only as humans, but as strong black men and women, have been through hell and back and to let the ideology of ONE MAN affect us so deeply is sickening. How did we evolve from the downtrodden to the ones looking for reasons to complain? When did we start letting words break us down and control us again? I am so sick and tired of giving other people power over me so I decided a long time ago to stop. Yes, I am human and I do slip up, but racism remarks will never get me. I love myself way too much to let it affect me. And next time you want to criticize someone like Donald Sterling, don’t forget that everyone of every race, creed, and gender have all made social mistakes that we have been able to forgive. Instead of looking for an excuse to hate someone or finding a reason to be mad or to letting a word have such a crippling power over you, decide to not let it affect you. YOU carry on the legacy of our ancestors who have done so much to help us be where we are now. IT IS NOT THEIR WORDS THAT MAKE SOMEONE A MAN OR WOMAN, BUT THEIR ACTIONS. #writtenrecords #Ogyinaeshands
Posted on: Wed, 07 May 2014 16:55:22 +0000
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