Tag Archives: race

A Bag of M & M’s

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In the 1994 film: Forrest Gump, the lead character Forrest Gump (played by Tom Hanks) says: “My momma always said life was like a box of chocolate. You never know what you’re going to get.” Well, that may very well be true, but have you ever thought about the fact that the issues of race and skin color are like a bag of M & M’s?

I grew up, eating M & M’s and even today, I will occasionally indulge myself with a small bag. Now, the interesting thing about M & M’s is that they come in all different colors and two main types. You can get the ones with peanuts on the inside (my favorite) or the ones that are just chocolate on the inside. But whether they are just plain chocolate or peanuts, they come with a candy coating of reds, blues, greens, yellows, and other different colors. But here is the real interesting thing about M & M’s: No matter what color they are on the outside, they are all the same on the inside! In fact, even with the different coloring of the outside, they all taste the same! You can’t taste the difference between the reds and the blues or the greens and the browns! In fact, you could have a bag of M & M’s, all the same color and if you were blind-folded, you couldn’t taste the difference between that bag and a bag with assorted colors! Why? Because there is no difference! All M & M’s are exactly the same! The chocolate on the inside taste exactly the same and the candy-coating on the outside taste exactly the same! The only difference in M & M’s is the color on the outside, which, as far as taste, makes no difference at all!

Well, differences between the various races of people are like the differences between the M & M’s! We come in various different colors on the outside, but we all are exactly the same on the inside! We live in an age of advance medical technology. Organ transplants occur on a daily basis! Medical technology has demonstrated, too many times to deny that there is no structural or any other type of difference between the heart of a Black person and the heart of a White, Latino, Asian or person of any other ethnic group! All of our internal organs are the same! All of our blood-types are the same! The only difference is the color of our skin, the texture of our hair, the slant of our eyes, the structure of our cheek-bones, and some other minute details that really don’t matter.

So, what’s the big deal? Why is race and skin-color such an issue? When we boil it down to the essence and peel away all of the artificial excuses and fallacies, the real issue is fear. As humans, we naturally tend to fear what we perceive to be different and is unknown to us. But, the fear can be alleviated by knowledge.

When it is all said and done, we all are just like a bag of M & M’s! We have different coloring on the outside, but we are exactly the same on the inside! We have different skin-coloring, but we all have red blood! Our internal organs are the exactly the same! That’s why doctors can transplant the heart or lungs of a Black person into a White person or the liver and kidneys of a White person into a Black person! We are all the same physically, mentally and spiritually! When we all are ready to acknowledge that, the racial issues in this country will dissipate to a great degree. Most of the racial problems in America today are fueled by ignorance and fear. There is a connection between the two; ignorance breeds fear and fear impedes the acquisition of the knowledge which would eliminate the fear.

There is also a lot of historical baggage that we must sort out! But that’s another post for another day! I just wanted us, for this post, to look at a bag of M & M’s and learn from them! Can you imagine what it would be like to go to the store and all the M & M’s were bagged according to their colors? All the greens in one bag, all the reds in one bag and all the yellows in one bag. I don’t know about you, but I wouldn’t like that! I like all those different colors bunch together in one bag! I know it’s just psychological because, like I said earlier, they all taste the same! Even in the candy coating on the outside, there is no difference in the taste between the red coating and the yellow coating! But it’s just more pleasing to the eyes to have that variety of colors! A bag of all green M & M’s or all red M & M’s would be a boring bag! Perhaps that is what our Creator was thinking when the various races and ethnic groups were created. Variety is the spice of life! Just like a bag of all red M & M’s or all green M & M’s, life would be boring and dull if we all were exactly the same on the outside!

There Is A “King” In All of Us!

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Every year, during the month of February, we pause to celebrate Black History Month. It is a time in which we focus on the accomplishments and achievements of noted Black historical individuals and Black people in general who sacrificed much for the advancement of African-Americans and people in general. One such individual who paid the ultimate sacrifice at the hand of an assassin’s bullet was Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Therefore, no Black History program is complete without a rendition of Dr. King’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech and the giving of the “Martin Luther King, Jr., Life-time Achievement Award” to some worthy contemporary person who has dedicated their life to Civil Rights and seeking justice and equality for all people.

Now before I go any further, I am not against celebrating Black History Month! I am not advocating that we quit remembering Dr. King and other historical figures who sacrificed so much for the advancement of civil rights in this country and the world. That’s not my point at all! What I am suggesting is that we stop being so infatuated with their accomplishments that we forget that each one of us has also been called to do something significant in our own generation! They did what they were called to do then, we must do what we are called to do now!

We live in a different world than that of Dr. King and the Civil Rights era, therefore, it seems highly unlikely that there will be or even can be “one” individual who can be “the leader” of a movement. This is unsettling to some people because they are looking and waiting for a savior or a superman to save them and the race: They are looking for another Malcolm X or Dr. King! But actually, we don’t need another Dr. King because there is already a “king” in all of us! 

In Genesis 1:26-28, we read: “And God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.’ So, God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. And God blessed them, and God said unto them, ‘Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.” (KJV) We were created to have and exercise dominion; that’s kingdom authority, over the earth! There is a “king” in all of us! We keep waiting and looking for help to come from an outside source, when God has already placed all the help we will ever need within each of us! But we will never exercise our dominion until we seize control. And how do we seize control? One of the ways we can seize control by letting go of the “victim mentality” and by accepting and taking responsibility for our own lives!

Now this is not to accept, excuse, or even deny the existence of overt oppressive racism in America by blaming the victim! No! Racism in America is still very much alive and well today! If you don’t think so, just read the media reports of some of the emboldened racist actions within the last couple of years! To those sympathetic White people who insist they shouldn’t be blamed for the past and that racism is history and that Black people should just “get over it,” You are right! You should not be blamed for the sins of your fore-fathers. But it’s really hard for Black people to “get over it” when some of your “cousins” are keeping the sins of your fore-fathers alive this very hour by displaying nooses, spray-painting the “n-word” on LeBron James’ gate and practicing racially bias policing and unjust sentencing toward Black defendants in the justice system and in the courts every day! You are mistaken, racism is not history; it’s current events! Even today, for some White people, it doesn’t matter how much money a Black person may have or how educated, famous, or cultured they may be, at the end of the day; they are still Black! Still Black? Yes! Still Black, as if that’s a sin or a mark of inferiority! As if that’s something that a Black person could or would want to change, even if such a change was possible! 

But I’m digressing now, so let me get back to my point: There is a “king” in all of us! We cited Genesis1:26-28, where God gave man dominion over all the earth and over all the creatures of the earth. But if you look at the text closely, you might note that God never gave man dominion over other men! (That’s why racist theologians and others tried to suggest Black people were not human!) There is a “king” in each and all of us, but the kingship is not to be exercised over other “kings” but rather over one’s environment and circumstances of life.

The racial problem in America would come a long way toward being solved if the White “kings” would understand and accept the fact that the color of their skin does not make them any better than others! Skin color doesn’t make us any better or worse; it just makes us different! The racial problem would also come a long way toward being solved if those White kings who accepted and understood this would be determined to educate rather than just passively tolerate those who didn’t! This is especially true of White Americans who profess to be Christians! Racism would dissipate to a much greater degree if those “White Christians” were truer to their biblical calling than to the standards and cultures of some of their social and country clubs!

And in the meantime, the Black “kings” must realize and adopt the mantra: “If it is to be; it is up to me!” Quit looking for another “Dr. King, Malcolm X, or even the government for salvation! The best way to resist the victimizer is to refuse to play the role of the victim! It’s simply not fair, nor is it an accurate assessment of the truth to blame the “White folks” for all of our problems! Sure, racism does play a significant role in some of our ills, but there are some ills that are maladies of our own making! No! The best way to collectively lift the race is to not expect “one” man or woman to do it, nor to spend an inordinate amount of time and energy trying to fix the blame on other folks. No! The best way to elevate a race is for each individual to do his or her part in accepting their responsibility to elevate their own social and spiritual consciousness. The best thing you can do for me is to be the best “you” that you can be! The best thing I can do for you is to be the best “me” that I can be! All the while, realizing that my being my best me doesn’t make me better than you; it just makes me a better me than the me I used to be! And our being the best “us” involves being all that God created us to be!

At the end of the day, Dr. King was right! “We must learn to live together as brothers, or perish together as fools!” And for those who believe in an after-life in Heaven or Hell: What kind of Heaven is reasonable if we mistreat our brothers and sisters down here and then expect to live in harmony with them in Heaven? And talk about Hell! It sure enough will be Hell, to hate and mistreat someone on earth and then have to spend an eternity with them in Hell!

 

More __________________ Than Christian?

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christian-more-likeOne of the major problems with many who would claim to be Christian in America is that in most cases, they are more of something else than they are Christian! For instance, there has been such an uproar lately about the silent protest being led by Colin Kaepernick of the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League. In order to call attention to the disproportionate number of shootings and killing of Afro-American people by the police, Kaepernick kneels instead of standing during the playing of the national anthem before football games. But there are some people, many who claim to be Christian, who are absolutely infuriated by the Kaepernick’s protest! They are more upset by his protest than they are by what he’s protesting about! They claim he is being unpatriotic and un-American! Seriously? This country was founded on protest! Duh! History 101! But my real point is that whether you agree with his methods or not is really beside the point! But to be more upset over his protest than by what he is protesting against proves the point of his protest! For many people in America, standing for the national anthem and respecting the American flag is more important than the lives of some American citizens!

Now, I used Kaepernick’s protest as an example, not to belabor the issue of Black Lives Matter versus Blue Lives or any other lives mattering. The fact that there is even a debate or a contention about lives mattering in the first place is an indication that to some people, “some” lives don’t matter! No! I used that example to illustrate the point that for many so-called Christian people in America, their Christianity takes a back-seat to their prejudices, biases, politics, economics, gender, and race. They are more Black than they are Christian! They are more White than they are Christian! They are more liberal than they are Christian! They are more conservative than they are Christian! They are more Republican than they are Christian! They are more Democrat than they are Christian! They are more American than they are Christian! They are more _______________ than they are Christian! 

However, if you are more _____________ than you are Christian, then perhaps your Christianity is suspect! Biblical Christianity supersedes all human categories and distinctions and demands that all who would espouse it be as one! Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane prior to his passion: “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me” (Jn. 17:20-21 ESV).  The “these only” Jesus referred to were his present disciples and the “those who will believe” were all those who would ever come to believe because of the testimony of his disciples. Jesus prayed for the unity of believers. In fact, the prayer suggested that unity of his believers was to be the proof to the world and the cause for the world to believe that God sent him! So, according to this passage, the fact that so many “Christians” are more something else than they are Christian is evidence that they may not be Christians at all! At least, not Christians as Jesus calls Christians to be! For Jesus calls Christians to be unified, not by their race, creed, color, political affiliation, nationality, or politics, but rather by their faith in him!

The Apostle Paul wrote; “For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.” (Gal. 3:26-28 KJV). According to this text, all of the issues that divide us have been obliterated in Christ! So the fact that they are yet dividing factors suggest that we have not completely submitted ourselves to Christ! We are more ____________ than Christian! God, help us to repent! The racial issue in America will never be resolved, the political in-fighting will never stop, unbelievers will never really believe until those of us who claim to be Christian are indeed more Christian than _____________!

When Will Enough Be Enough?

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unarmedWhen I was a child, my parents taught me to always have respect for the police and the system of law and order. Therefore, in the cases involving police killing armed suspects, I always have had the tendency to give the police the benefit of the doubt that those killings were justified. However, as of late in our country, there has been a rash of police shootings of unarmed Black men! But even when I first heard of these shootings, my natural instinct was once again to give the police the benefit of the doubt and reason that these people were shot because the police felt threaten or feared their lives were in danger.

But then, I thought about it! Aren’t police officers supposed to be trained? Aren’t they supposed to be trained to deal with volatile situations such as those that have dominated the news in recent years? Although it is a potentially deadly situation anytime there is an armed suspect, I couldn’t help but notice the difference in the police’s attitude and actions when it is a white suspect as opposed to a black suspect. For example, a few years ago, a young white man sat in a church in South Carolina and murdered nine people in cold blood! When the police caught up with him, they calmly apprehended him, didn’t throw him on the ground and didn’t even rough him up! In fact, they put a bullet-proof vest on him to make sure he wasn’t shot by any snipers and even stopped to get him something to eat on the way to jail! I honestly doubt they would have treated a black suspect with such respect!

And then, there are the recent cases in Baton Rouge and in Minnesota where those young Black men posed no obvious threat, yet they were shot and killed! Now I understand, the police may be a little scared and naturally suspicious of young Black men, but the statistics bare out the fact that more police are shot and killed every year by White men than by Black men! And if the police are really that scared, how can they really serve and protect the rest of us? That’s a recipe for disaster; a scared man with a gun! You would think having a gun would give one the confidence to handle the situation appropriately!

But the thing that really tipped the scale for me was the shooting of Charles Kinsey by a police officer in Miami. Kinsey is behavior therapist who works at a group home in Miami. Police had received a call about a man with a gun walking around threatening to kill himself. When police arrive on the scene, Kinsey laid down on the ground, on his back with his hands raised in the air. Sitting beside him was an autistic patient (the man with the “gun.”) playing with a toy truck! Kinsey explained to the police that he was a behavior specialist and that the man was autistic and had wandered away from the facility, that what was in the autistic man’s hand was not a gun, but a toy truck and that he was trying to retrieve him. Picture this! He’s lying on his back with both hands in the air! He verbally explains to the police what the situation is! The autistic man is sitting in an upright position, playing with his toy truck! Yet it is the black man, laying on his back with both of his hands up, that the police shoots! They claim the shooting was a mistake, but if  there was any mistake to have been made in that situation, wouldn’t it have more likely been shooting the autistic man who was sitting up playing with a toy truck? That would have been a more reasonable “mistake” because the object in the man’s hand could have been mistaken for a gun! But how can you mistakenly shoot an unarmed man lying on his back with his hands in the air right beside the man with the object in his hand? To add insult to injury, after Kinsey was shot, they rolled him over and handcuffed him as he lay bleeding from his wounds! When he asked the police officer why did he shoot him, the police officer reportedly said that he didn’t know! I would suggest that even if they really felt it was a mistake, they wouldn’t have treated him the way they did after they shot him! Thankfully, Kinsey survived the shooting and someone was filming this, but it makes one wonder; how many other times innocent people have been shot and killed and the police covered it up because no one was there to film it?

I read about this incident on a news website that said: “The incident illustrates the edgy mood of US police and the nation in general after the police ambush in Dallas that left five officers dead and another similar incident Sunday in Baton Rouge, Louisiana that killed three.” But I beg to differ! Yes! Police and the nation are on edge, but this incident was not an illustration of that! If such were the case, then the man with the object in his hand would have been shot! But it was the black man, lying on his back with his hands in the air that was shot! So this incident is not an illustration of police edginess in view of what happened in Dallas and Baton Rouge! It is, however, an illustration of the systemic racism and racial profiling that is so pervasive in this country!

America has a serious race problem that has tainted and tipped the scales of justice and the due process of law! To ignore the obvious will not make it go away! We must deal with it! How many more, Black men and police officers will have to die before we do? When will enough be enough?  

Update: Since the original writing of this post, it has been reported that the police said the officer who shot Mr. Kinsey in the leg was actually aiming to shoot the autistic man! Likely story! At any rate, even if he was, he should be fired and in addition to charges of attempted murder, he should be prosecuted for poor judgment, not listening, and being a “bad shot!”

Diamonds On Black Velvet

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diamonds on black velvetIf you walk into any jewelry store, you will notice that most of the jewelry, especially the diamonds, are laid out on black velvet. The store does this because the black velvet or any dark background provides a contrast that accentuates or brings out the brightness and beauty of the jewelry.

Well, I was meeting with a group of clergy the other day and we were discussing what the church’s response should be to the recent racial tension that has gripped our nation because of what happened in Baton Rouge, Minnesota, and Dallas. As we sat there, it occurred to me that the fact that we were sitting there, discussing what we “should” do was an indictment against us because of what we haven’t been doing! Let me show you what I’m talking about:

The Apostle Paul wrote to the Philippians: “Do all things without grumbling or disputing, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world.” (Phil. 2:14-15 ESV) Jesus said to his disciples: “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.” (Matt. 5:14-16 ESV) Do you know when light shines the brightest? When it is surrounded by darkness! I used to think that the stars only came out at night. But the scientific truth is that the stars are shining all the time! But we are only able to see their brilliance and beauty at night because of the darkness!

What am I saying? I am saying that the best response for the church and for any Christian in light of what is happening in our nation is not to do anything extra or special, but to just simply be what Christians and the church suppose to be in the first place! Be a city that sits on a hill that cannot be hidden! Be a bright light in a dark place! Shine like stars; brightly lighting up the sky on a dark night! In the midst of the darkness of racism, hatred, and gun violence, those who are truly Christians shine like stars on a dark night! The real followers of Christ are so different from the world that they contrast like diamonds on black velvet!

The problem with the church has been that, all too often, the church has been trying to be “like the world” in order to attract the world! But our calling is to be different! When you “be” like something, you actually become that! While the church is trying to be like the world to attract the world, the world really wishes the church would actually be different because the world is sick of itself and really doesn’t want to be the way that it is! The world is hungry for something authentic and real! The world is hungry for the Living Bread! No! Our calling is to be a stark contrast to the world! Our calling is to be like stars shining on a dark night! Our calling is to be like diamonds on black velvet!