Last week was all about the love and this week is more of the same, but today I’m focusing on the love of my people. Not all of my posts will be this long or deep (pinky swear), but I’d like to explain and hopefully get you to comprehend why I get so frustrated when people suggest we should ‘move on’ from slavery. I understand this subject may leave some feeling a tad uncomfortable but nevertheless, I’d like to address the big white elephant in the room.
Let me clear something up straight away: This isn’t a dig at all White people, I know there were slaves of different ethnicities throughout time, and I am fully aware that all lives matter BUT this is addressing the special breed of people who think they are better than Black people due to a sense of ‘White superiority’. This is addressing the ones who would either like us to forget, or would like us to go back and this is addressing the fact that BLACK LIVES MATTER.
You should already know the atrocities placed upon us back then, but if you don’t know, I suggest you get to know. Go check out Google or better yet visit The International Slavery Museum in Liverpool for a real up close look at the life and times of a ‘happy slave’ – and my they were happy!!!
Happy to be taken from their homes in shackles to be sold to a White man (if they survived the journey). Happy to be made to work like a dog and treated as such for life, FOR FREE. Happy to be tortured, abused, raped, lynched and murdered on a daily basis. Happy that they weren’t allowed to read or write or better themselves in any way without severe repercussions. Happy to have their children sold and sent away to whatever White man offered the best price, whilst the mother breastfed the children of the same people that sold her children.
Happy to be handed down like the family silver in a will. Not set free – but passed on to the next. Happy to have no fortune to hand down after years of backbreaking labour and even more happy to know it’s the fate that awaited their children. Happy to be told they are worthless and lazy and to be grateful that their master was so kind to allow them to live such a happy life, and the reward in Heaven for their years of blood, sweat and tears will be great if they are faithful servants and death finally grants them some relief. REAL FUCKING HAPPY! With all that on offer, wouldn’t you be!!?!?!?
It’s easy for David Cameron to say we should move on from the painful legacy of slavery. Easy because it wasn’t White people who suffered. Had the script been flipped I find it hard to believe he’d be so quick to offer up the same sentiment. They’d be wanting theirs and then some! “We” love a bit of history but are quick to sweep the dirtiest parts under the carpet. It’s all well and good to talk about and commemorate the world wars, but our war at their hands doesn’t get a mention.
Tell me something, if we were so worthless how come the trade was so great? If we were so worthless why were West India merchants and planters (posh names for slave traders and owners) paid millions in compensation for the loss of their ‘property’? Seeing as we are the lowest of the low why, when you could have granted us straight freedom and be rid of the bind, did we then have to continue to work for you, for free, for a further four years to pay for the privilege of “freedom”? Yes, it was painful David, but not for y’all! And moving on would be a damn sight easier if we were given even a fraction of what was well overdue. #JustSaying
We’ve more than earned the right to be compensated. Other races have received their reparations but we know that’ll never happen to us – not in my lifetime anyway – and the reason as to why is simple. Both here and in Amerikkka and for a Hell of a lot of White people in the world we will never be seen as anything other than the help. We are truly seen as worthless now because they cannot exploit us as freely as they use to and profit from us. REAL TALK!! What do you think happened to all the slave masters, traders, overseers and the like? They didn’t suddenly stop being racist sons of bitches because slavery was abolished. They went on to run things ensuring us n****s could have our so called freedom and guaranteeing it’d be a damn hard ride.
They’d made sure that their children had fun days out at the lynchings prior to the abolition of slavery and made sure the hate was passed on to the next generation and the next and the next and so it continues. The evidence is as clear as day, especially in Amerikkka. Anytime we try to build ourselves up, they knock us down. It’s funny how they managed to disband the Black Panthers yet the Ku Klux Klan are still in full force today despite the clear evidence of what they stand for and the crimes committed against us.
Don’t get it twisted either, the Black Panthers were not a bunch of terrorists. They were there to help their people and not scared to fight fire with fire. It didn’t scare them, but it damn sure scared a lot of white people. Seeing that given an opportunity we didn’t need them to survive and could do for our own, how dare we! We’re not meant to survive and thrive we’re meant to struggle; so let’s call in the overseers, my bad – the police and justice enforcers to set things straight. Job done!
It’s never been a fair fight and it never will be. What we need to do is understand this fully, and DO FOR US AND FEEL NO WAY ABOUT IT! There’s never an issue when any other race wants to support their people but it becomes an issue if we want to. Cast aside the notion that there is nothing to love in us, that our hair is too nappy, our skin too dark and to be accepted you must look like them. Having straighter hair and bleaching your skin will not endear you to their hearts. Underneath the mask you are still Black and your children will be too. Love the skin you’re in.
For those of us who are fortunate to have, help a brother out and build us up. To the stars who have the money and the power – use your platform to help inspire and aspire us to be a strong Black nation and stop bitching about the injustices of being Black – it won’t get you shit because they don’t want us to have anything. Teach our children OUR history so they are fully aware of the horrors we went through. Do you forget segregation ended just over 60 years ago? – that’s not that long ago.
Too dirty and worthless to sit with or eat with – but good enough to cook, clean and work for you and raise your children. Ain’t that a bitch! If you don’t know your history, you don’t know where you’re coming from and we must remember because the likes of Donald Trump are calling on those ‘good old days’ to come around again and should that happen it won’t be pretty, but I have a feeling this time around will not be quite as easy.
You want me to forget my history. I say forget you!🖕🏾
NEVER FORGET, Stay Blessed & #CelebrateLife
