By Warren Ballentine
After viewing the murder of Mr. George Floyd, Mr. Ahmaud Arbery and hearing about the murder of Ms. Breonna Taylor, America in its existing state, the status quo, has finally stood up and decided to take action. You have celebrities, organizations, and corporations screaming, “Black Lives Matter!”. This is all wonderful, however the question we should be asking ourselves is, “Will they let us compete?” I speak of competition because in order to bring about real change in America we must be allowed to compete. That is the question of the moment. It is the question, once answered, that will make all the difference in the lives of countless Americans of color. It is the question that must be addressed as a direct result of this movement in order to ignite advancement of our people.
Slavery
The institution of slavery that enslaved thousands of Africans, stealing from them their dignity, natal descent, and humanity continues to plague the African American society today. The benefits White slave masters and their descendants gained from our enslavement are many, but one of the most important benefits gained was the positioning of Blacks not being able to compete. Only 14 percent of white people were slave owners, the other 86 percent were not. However, that 86 percent received a de-facto benefit due to not having to compete with us for jobs, land, education, or anything else. Because we could not compete, this led to several advantages not afforded the Black community. Whites were able to grow generational wealth and create legacies that still thrive today. Consider Tulsa, Oklahoma and the massacre that happened in the Greenwood District, Black Wall Street, in 1921. Those people had their businesses insured, but because of the massacre being classified as a race riot they were denied over 2 million dollars. Due to the law in Oklahoma and the language written in the insurance policies residents, businesses and landowners received nothing which changed the trajectory of those who survived, their descendants, and the community itself. Overall, in our country, systemwide processes are in place designed to keep us from competing.
Civil Rights
The Civil Rights Movement of the mid 1900s was a struggle for social justice, challenging Jim Crow laws in order for Black people to gain equal rights under the law. Although the 50s and 60s and the work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. are most associated with the Civil Rights era, the late 30s and 40s cannot be excluded. The Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters (BOSCP) organized and led by social activist and publisher, A. Phillip Randolph, fought for an agreement with The Pullman Company in 1937 that secured better working conditions and wages for Black porters. This agreement was the first between a union of Black workers and a major American company and it encouraged future strides towards equality. In the 1940s the Black community demanded equal employment rights and an end to discrimination in the military. These actions prompted Presidential executive orders that opened national defense jobs, government jobs, and addressed discrimination in the armed services. This time in history dedicated to the advancement of our people through nonviolent protests and civil unrest grounded in the promise of the 13th, 14th and 15th amendments spanned over three decades and urges us to ask the question, “What did we gain?”. It is our due diligence to answer this question because of the injustices, systematic racism, and racial tensions we observe today. We gained equality. Equality in its purest form prompts us to think of fairness, impartiality, and righteousness. However, equality does not give us all the tools we truly need to compete, equity does. I can best illustrate this by using the example of two people trying to look over a fence to watch a baseball game. If the fence is 6 feet 3 inches and one person is 5’7’’ and the other is 6’1’’, giving them both a 4 inch box to stand on is equal but will not give them an equitable experience. The 6’1” individual will be able to see over the fence clearly and enjoy the game. However, the 5’7” individual will still not be able to see over the fence and will miss out on the experience in its entirety. Giving each the 4 inch box was equal but not equitable. This describes the plight of the African American in the United States today. The need is for equity. The Black community does not want pity or handouts. What we need is the opportunity to compete. This can be accomplished if we work to change the laws that continue to oppress us and encourage inequity.
Unjust Justice System
The legal system impedes your opportunity to compete. A young person at nineteen who gets into legal trouble and is a nonviolent offender found guilty or who pleads guilty could have a record for life. In some states you are able to expunge your record, but this could take anywhere from five to ten years to complete. In that period of time you can’t compete. Every time you fill out a job application and you have to answer yes that you have ever been convicted of a crime, your status as a candidate for the position ends. In many states, you are also unable to vote due to your circumstance. How are we able to compete if we are constantly being prosecuted? The legal system itself is a trillion-dollar system. The way the system is set up, you could be innocent and still be dragged through the court system and the court of public opinion. I speak this truth as a person who’s been through it, who’s been attacked, who’s been falsely accused because someone wanted to make a name for himself. Everyday there are police, district attorneys, and others in the legal system who lie. We have all witnessed this through the release of police reports written by officers in the George Floyd case in Minneapolis Minnesota and the 75 year old Martin Gugino who was pushed by police in Buffalo, New York. In both cases police lied on reports not admitting to the true events caught on video resulting in a murder and a brain injury. How many times have police lied and district attorneys moved to prosecute based on lies? What would have been the outcome of the atrocities we have become so familiar with these several months without a video? Without the video, what does America believe? Ultimately, we must be able to compete. Without equity, we are like hamsters on a wheel. Every so often we have big marches, protests and we yell, “No justice no peace!”, but in the end nothing changes. Trayvon Martin was murdered in 2012 and eight years later we still have “Stand your Ground” laws in over thirty states in the United States of America. Until we understand that the legal system is the key to dismantling institutionalized racism, we will continue to bump our heads against the wall. We attribute insanity as to doing the same thing over and over again expecting different results. We must do something different starting with a dismantling of the legal system as we know it. We need a legal system that does not target us, incarcerate us, and systematically destroy us and our communities. We should not be put in situations with trumped up charges causing us to make choices that will affect the rest of our lives. When confronted with a deal of probation or the possibility of a five year sentence, ninety-nine percent of the time we choose the deal. This is what the legal system wants us to choose rather than put up a fight. This deal causes you to have a record for life which stops you from being able to compete. Lastly, I say this to everyone especially to the judges and district attorneys. Do what’s right. You know that some people are innocent and are being overcharged. When you have a case in front of you, even if the jury finds a person guilty, if you know they are innocent based on evidence don’t shackle them for life. Don’t take away their ability to compete.
Is America so afraid that if we compete, we are going to be great? If you look at our history in this country from being brought here on slave ships to the securing of Civil Rights, we are a powerful resilient people. In the face of adversity, we have overcome time and time again. Are you afraid America that if we are afforded the opportunity to truly compete that this America will not be the America you know? Without us there wouldn’t be a you. We are America. Let us compete.
