“’ Going down with the sinking ship’ is an idiom that means to stay committed to a fairling cause or situation, even when it seems hopeless, often implying a sense of loyalty or responsibility, similar to how a captain on a ship would stay onboard until the very end in a disaster.”

The tradition has been that the captain always goes down with a sinking ship. He has a responsibility to his passengers, and their duties require them to ensure that everything has been done before abandoning ship even if it means their final departure from this earth when the ship submerges.

Coming off the November 5^th election, when we examine where America is today and how we are to forge ahead, I am reminded of a quote from Dr. King.

Harry Belafonte relates this interaction with King and quotes him as saying, “I’ve come upon something that disturbs me deeply. We have fought hard and long for integration, as I believe we should have, and I know we will win, but I have come to believe that we are integrating into a burning house. I’m afraid that America has lost the moral vision she may have had, and I’m afraid that even as we integrate, we are walking into a place that does not understand that this nation needs to be deeply concerned with the plight of the poor and disenfranchised. Until we commit ourselves to ensuring that the underclass is given justice and opportunity, we will continue to perpetuate the anger and violence that tear the soul of this nation. I fear I am integrating my people into a burning house.”

Yes, it will take some time to decompress and re-strategize as we move forward.

The election results struck a heavy blow to those of us who had hoped our nation was further along and moving closer to the fulfillment of the American dream, for ALL people. But I can’t help but wonder if America has proven itself to be a burning house on the verge of imploding, or a sinking ship prepared to take all of its occupants down, only to save the captain and his crew, quite the opposite of the tradition.

The momentum seemed to be in our favor. We felt that righteousness was on our side and that evil, wrongdoing, and hatred would be punished, proving that no one was above the law.

We saw what we imagined was our Ship of Hope, heading toward the dock, with a new crew on board, ready to take us forward. We celebrated our diversity and growing acceptance of people from a variety of backgrounds. Perhaps we could finally seal the deal of yielding to the better angels of our nature.

But just before our ship docked, we watched in horror as it burst into flames.

“Oh, the humanity.”

Our hearts sank with that ship.

November 5th seemed like something out of a Friday the 13th sequel, where Jason refuses to die and keeps coming back to threaten our peace and well-being, and possibly even our very lives.

But we have a broader base of diversity and defectors from the other side this go round. We’ll fight back against the crazies and the insanity that pose a threat to our democracy and our brothers and sisters who will be targeted. We stand together and we fight together. There are more chapters to this book.

Our ancestors have carried us this far and this is no time to give up but to carry their legacy further. Let’s look at what we have accomplished up to this point and continue to build upon it.

As far as our sister Kamala Harris is concerned. She ran a great campaign in a short period and has made history as our first Black and Asian female VP. Technically our first Black and Asian female president if just for about an hour and a half while Biden was having a colonoscopy. So there is that.

Yes, this can get really bad. Time will determine how bad.

It appears that clear vision and common sense are not even on the table, therefore we can’t tell what will come next. The guardrails are gone, and we have a 34-count felon directing the train. What could possibly go wrong?

We just have to stay united, grounded, and avoid drinking the Kool-Aid.

Those of us who have been on the lower end of the caste system have been through worse and have survived with less. That’s what keeps us hopeful. We now have more numbers collectively from diversified backgrounds and more proven allies ready to support our cause for justice and equal opportunities for EVERYONE, NOT JUST FOR SOME.

Others on this train of disaster will eventually get their wake-up call, as they have yet to realize that their heads are destined for the same proverbial chopping block.

They have simply chosen to ignore ALL of the warning signs and flashing lights reading DANGER! DANGER!. They followed the shiny object listened to the lies of a proven pathological lying con man and purchased the snake oil.

So it is what it is, and will be what it will be. We just can’t give up or fall into despair, and depression

There’s more work ahead. But our folks have been here before and this is nothing new. And we’ll be just fine at the end of the day. But we will have some tough times ahead yet nothing that we can’t overcome together.

We must certainly unpack and consider what the results of the election mean on a larger scale and where this nation is headed. The cards may have already been dealt. Time will tell to what degree we have really changed. We’ll see. We have been forced to face a painful reality that is already being put into place right before our eyes. This election was a litmus test, one which we failed miserably.

But the upside is that the line in the sand did reveal who is who.

How much has really changed since the 60’s? And at what level? Or are we still playing political whack-a-mole?

So, where do we go from here? Obviously, we are not nearly as far advanced as we had thought or hoped. The rest of us know better and have been trying our best to educate folks to these realities that were right in front of their faces so that there would be NO excuses. So there are none. It’s very clear and the writing is on the wall. There is nothing to celebrate here…for ANYBODY, just as a burning house or sinking ship brings no pleasure to any of its occupants. Some just have yet to realize that the ship is sinking, and the house is burning.

There are NO excuses. We got the message loud and clear and it was a real gut punch that many did not see coming, and those are the ones that hurt the most.

So perhaps we change our tactics for advancement. Perhaps we revise some of the strategies of the 60’s and increase the volume of our voices via boycotts and other forms of protest, standing as a united front with our proven allies. Perhaps we work on doing more for ourselves within our own communities, of which I am always a proponent.

Perhaps some of the last words of Dr. King are worth reconsidering here in 2024.

Belafonte ends his story with this. “That statement took me aback. It was the last thing I would have expected to hear, considering the nature of our struggle.”

He recalls asking King, “What should we do?”

King replied, “Become the firemen. Let us not stand by and let the house burn.”

Allow this to become our motivation, NOT our discouragement.