I’m crying as I write this because it’s been weighing heavy on my heart for the past five days. So I decided to speak now or forever hold my peace. There’s an image that I can’t unsee and thoughts that I can’t “unthink” that have been on replay this whole time. Let’s begin with the thoughts.
I left work early yesterday for a doctors appointment. Mind you, I’d just been there two weeks ago but today “felt” different. No, I’m not sick - thanks for being concerned. Just needed to follow up with another doctor. But this is what happened: as I was going in, I spoke to a Black lady who spoke back. My first thought was “that’s what Normal people do, they speak back.” But then I thought of the White lady at work who no matter how many times you speak to her, she won’t speak back. What she will do is mutter something under her breath, growl -yes, I’ve been growled at several times. Or she’ll even jump back as if you’re about to assault her.
As I’m leaving the doctors appointment, a young White lady speaks to me. As I’m heading to my car, an older White man speaks to me. What?! two in a row, what’s going on. Remember, I said I was just there two weeks ago and I spoke but no one spoke back. I decide to go to a big-box store before going home. There, a White couple speaks to me -both of them, not just her. Now I know something is going on. The only thing that comes to mind for this “change” is the image that I can’t unsee.
Let’s talk about the image. It’s nearing the end of 2018 and a young Black man was killed at a local mall during Black Friday. There were a lot of White suits that showed up at work yesterday and I figured it had to do with the way things were going to be handled with the death of this Black man. My coworker showed me the image of him that was posted on Social Media. No mother should EVER have to carry around that image of her child...EVER! Now I think I know the reason for the change. I think these White people speaking to me shows that there are White people who feel the pain and understand the hurt that racial profiling is causing in our State.
Then why am I crying? Because all day yesterday and even as I write this, I told my Father God that “I don’t like this (the death of that young Black man) and something has got to change.” I’m not crying because a few White people spoke to me -cause that’s not ALL I know. I’ve had White people in my life ALL my life. And here recently, I’ve had White people in my life whose birth certificates say they are as Black as I am. I’m crying because this Thanksgiving as God was reconciling me and my family and we were Enjoying each other’s company over food, games and fellowship, a Black mother lost her son who was out trying to get a Black Friday deal.
Listen to me speak. I think that as long as we continue to leave our homes on Thanksgiving Day looking for a “sale” that can easily take place over the whole Holiday season, then commercialism will continue to allow us to be killed for no other reason than we allow it #IdontdoBlackFriday. I’ve come to a place in my life where people are more important to me than the things I can buy at the mall on One particular day.
As for the platform of Social Media that was created so we could “speak” to each other digitally, it is now being used to assault not only peoples minds but their spirits. Therefore, I speak Peace to You: Nothing missing and nothing lacking. For those who don’t recognize what should NOT be posted or are only posting negative images in hopes of monetary gain, I pray you realize that Jesus paid the ultimate price for you. There really is no hurt that Jesus is not able to heal #letsdoSocialMediaright. If you can’t or won’t “speak” positively -especially when online, then DON’T.
