HOT July – Part II – Three-Fifths

In the early 1900s and all the way up to the late 1960s, African Americans/Blacks had to fight for Fair Employment laws. Even then, the employment that was offered was unequal, with lower wages and fewer benefits, if any, than their white counterparts. Today, African Americans/Blacks are still attempting to recover from the numerous harms of economic set-backs that were foisted upon them from the government redistributing their share-cropper farms (a means of food and housing security in the early 1900s), stolen children and family members, destroyed wealth especially during the very real harms of Red Summer that followed the Great Migration. In fact, African Americans/Blacks are the only racial group in the entire United States still making less than they did in 2000! [16][17][18]

In the 1900s there were few education opportunities available to African Americans/Blacks. Many whites flatly refused to allow African Americans/Blacks into college and university classes, much less agree for them to be housed in residence halls and Historically Black Colleges and Universities were just beginning to emerge – (yet were not easily assessable in some geographic locations) roughly a half-century prior to the early 1900s.

This information makes it blatantly obvious that little has changed in America with respect to equal protected rights for all citizens. Admittedly, some things have changed, but not nearly enough to move the needle significantly in the right direction for complete parity of African American/Black citizens in America!

I posit that just like cognitive inertia, far too many potential Social Justice Warriors [SJW] stay stuck and unable to move forward with their solidarity, disdain, or outrage because they prefer a known captivity to an unknown freedom! This is how “they” (the haters) mess us up – don’t give in to it! Keep fighting the good fight. Now is the time for every SJW to step up and step out; show up and show out!

So, how do we move forward to effectuate substantive change and healing in the right, inclusive, just and equitable way?

First, we need to get comfortable being uncomfortable! It only lasts until you develop cognitive inertia in a good way – with comfort around discomfort. Paradoxical, I know, but we adjust and adapt to discomfort all the time, so why not now? Now is as good a time as any!

Then, we reaffirm our SJW vows to eliminate racism and inequality in our nation and call out politicians from certain states who overtly perpetuate divisive narratives! If you don’t believe any of this is political, glance through the 2025 Plan. If that content doesn’t scare the life out of you, please go see a doctor immediately because you are already un-alive!

Next, we must admit that these systemic harms were created centuries ago by white individuals for white individuals’ selfish greed and for the exact purpose these disparate inequities continue to elicit and maintain today – keeping Black and Brown individuals oppressed, stagnant, inferior, un-equal, and unprotected! This absolutely must change!

Next, we ensure that Black History is taught in our schools from pre-K all the way through four-year College, because Black History is American History and, with learning Black History, we simultaneously learn to revere and embrace it versus hiding its place in America’s History annals! Looking for great Subject Matter Masters (a/k/a Experts) – look for Ernest M. Crimm, III (on LinkedIn) and Lawrence Aikens (also on LinkedIn) – their “styles” are polar opposite, but their messages are resounding: Black History IS American History! Period.

Every American household should be mandated to take anti-racism courses – not performative check-the-box classes with open book quizzes – but courses that cover the history of wrongs from Stealing Africans, to Slave Trade Empires, to Colonization to present day – with or from Subject Matter Masters like Regina Jackson, Ashani Mfuko and Kim Palermo (all are on LinkedIn and all are amazing educators).

Next, we learn to trust each other (remember, these systems were created to instill distrust of whites towards melanated individuals and vice-versa, and the blatantly racist ploy has worked for centuries, just as it was designed to. How would you feel if you were on the receiving end of this? Think about that and let that sink in, because it’s easy to be dismissive and hard to “do the work” to transform wrongs into rights. Don’t you think it’s time to try something different? I mean, especially since the definition of “insanity” is doing the same thing over and over again, while expecting a different result). SMH

Understand that silence is equivalent to complicit behavior! If you don’t like how you see someone else being treated, have the self-respect and dignity to speak up and speak out about it. Again, if you were on the receiving end of what you see them receiving, you would want an ally or advocate, too, wouldn’t you?!

Advocate for more Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs)…we need many more in our country. Our brothers and sisters of color need these schools. Let’s be clear: this is about choices; not segregation. Educational choices (options) for our Black and Brown men and women are extremely limited, while the choices for white/Anglo students are quite limitless. Better still, donate financially to support HBCUs!

Businesses, corporations and human resource professionals, should be required to create “blind” interview options, so that all candidates are reviewed on merit rather than looks, so every qualified candidate gets a fair and equitable opportunity at gainful employment. [Same for banks’ loan officers interviewing applicants – “blind” that process so money is equitably loaned to Black/Brown applicants, based on merits, gainful employment, and credit scores.]

Next, we ensure that the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion niche is protected, lest our country return to the perpetuated modern-day lynchings – like George Floyd’s murder, which was the tragic- impetus of this country’s DEI movement – carried out by its policing entities, unchecked (DEI initiatives are now at risk of disappearing as rapidly as they popped up because of political factions and actions…and is methodically morphing towards total disappearance). DEI has never been about race! It is about equality – for all – something our country allegedly promotes yet fails miserably at demonstrating. We must implement appropriate checks and balances with transparency and with accountability! Corporations that do not comply with DEI initiatives should be black-listed [pun intended] and denied business license renewals until the business both (a) puts forth a DEI plan and (b) demonstrates adherence to that plan! Everyone else should stop doing any business whatsoever with that entity until they either go bankrupt or demonstrate a sound (and followed) DEI plan, lest we see more George Floyd-esk killings in our streets.

Full stop with claiming anyone’s physical features, over which they had zero choice to receive, makes them superior/inferior in any way. Full. Flipping. Stop!

Full stop with claiming white folks won some imaginary race. They never had a snowball’s chance in Hades of winning due to a still pervasive, systemic, racially unequal starting line! Another full flipping STOP!

Full stop with inculcating innocent children that they are better, worse, prettier, uglier, smarter, dumber, taller, shorter, fatter, thinner [you fill in the blank] than any other child. And public shame and humiliation upon any parent who poisons their child with these hostile lies!

Remember, our Creator made ONE race – the Human Race. God loves diversity! Did you know he created 43 species of sparrows – and 12 different human tribes – and we are more precious to him than sparrows?! And let’s start treating others like they are precious and belong – because they are, and they do!

Oh, and lastly, because our government is too incompetent to create a means or method for timely, generous, and long over-due reparations, the collective – that’s all of us, as a civilized society, working together – can and should figure out how to create reparation funds to begin righting the centuries of wrongs. We can and should implement a sliding scale set-aside “luxury item” surcharge for each state to mandate for purchasing luxury items (like McMansions, swimming pools, fur coats, 5-star Resorts, diamonds, etc.) and put that in a trust account and use those funds to begin repaying the generational wealth that was stolen and/or destroyed solely to prevent African American families from enjoying their hard-earned wealth thus dis-allowing them to pass it down to their children and grandchildren — over the past three, or four hundred years. By the way, it goes to the states to collect this and distribute it because states allowed these harms to happen in each and every inch of this country – no state has “clean hands” when it comes to the wrongs committed against Brown and Black men, women, and children. Not one!

Because truly, we’re not civilized until we right these wrongs…and until we stop treating America’s citizens like they aren’t Americans!