Not the color of skin.. but the content of character...

palides2021 · Jan 16, 2023

Great writing, @JaniceM ! I came across Maya Angelou's speech to a graduating class the other day (researching her for my class) and thought I would share her inspiring speech with you all (by the way, she had married a Greek, hence her last name was Greek):

hollydolly · Jan 16, 2023

Becky1951 said:
HA she was probably talking about me.

No Becky...not you..

JaniceM · Jan 16, 2023

Becky1951 said:
HA she was probably talking about me.

or maybe me?

hollydolly · Jan 16, 2023

JaniceM said:
or maybe me?

Not you.. Janice..

JaniceM · Jan 16, 2023

hollydolly said:
Not you.. Janice..

That's good to know.
But if there's a racist creep on here who makes remarks like that, I wouldn't want anything to do with the individual.

JaniceM · Jan 18, 2023

(I was reminded of something I wrote around 7 years ago.. I believe it's appropriate to add onto this thread)

Not only do most of us have adult-aged kids, most of us also have grandchildren. Because of this, we need to take a good, hard look at “the way things are these days” and decide without any doubt the younger generations deserve better.

As Yogi Berra said: “It ain’t over til it’s over.” Whether they directly participated or not, older generations knew wrongs could be changed and mistakes could be unmade. If individuals in previous generations were capable of making changes in the best interests of future generations, so can we.

At the very least, we have the responsibility to try.

ohioboy · Jan 18, 2023

The Magic Penny

I found a penny on the walk,
Remarkably, it began to talk.
Old Abe was crying in misery,
About the evils of Slavery.

"There's an empty coffin, death reloads.
Skins burnt deep with cattle brands.
Headstones, gravestones trimmed with blood,
My black brothers were drug in mud."

He wiped his tears and closed his eyes.
I know that honest Abe was wise,
I guess I imagined it all,
As the tale seems way too tall!

palides2021 · Jan 18, 2023

ohioboy said:
The Magic Penny

I found a penny on the walk,
Remarkably, it began to talk.
Old Abe was crying in misery,
About the evils of Slavery.

"There's an empty coffin, death reloads.
Skins burnt deep with cattle brands.
Headstones, gravestones trimmed with blood,
My black brothers were drug in mud."

He wiped his tears and closed his eyes.
I know that honest Abe was wise,
I guess I imagined it all,
As the tale seems way too tall!

This is a remarkable poem @ohioboy and has much meaning! I could picture Abe Lincoln and the "evils of Slavery" and the ending was good: "the tale seems way too tall." Did you write this? If so, good work!

ohioboy · Jan 18, 2023

palides2021 said:
This is a remarkable poem @ohioboy and has much meaning! I could picture Abe Lincoln and the "evils of Slavery" and the ending was good: "the tale seems way too tall." Did you write this? If so, good work!

Yeah, a condensed version here. Thank you!

palides2021 · Jan 18, 2023

ohioboy said:
Yeah, a condensed version here. Thank you!

Wow! You have to share more!

ohioboy · Jan 18, 2023

palides2021 said:
Wow! You have to share more!

Ok, but now it is time for my beauty sleep! That may take a year or so, ha!

FastTrax · Jan 19, 2023

You nailed JaniceM. Straight up an to the point. Thnx.

Pepper · Jan 19, 2023

@ohioboy is hiding his light under a bushel of law!

JaniceM · Jan 19, 2023

FastTrax said:
You nailed JaniceM. Straight up an to the point. Thnx.

Thank you

1955 · Jan 19, 2023

I think if we survive ourselves will eventually become one race, the race of mutts. But given the way humans act we'll still be judged base on some other factor.

JaniceM · Jan 19, 2023

1955 said:
I think if we survive ourselves will eventually become one race, the race of mutts. But given the way humans act we'll still be judged base on some other factor.

Your vocabulary is out of line. Human beings are not dogs.

hollydolly · Jan 19, 2023

JaniceM said:
Your vocabulary is out of line. Human beings are not dogs.

I didn't see 1955's remark as referring to humans as canines.... rather that he was stating that we'll all end up as one big Human melting pot, indistinguishable from each other

Victoria · Jan 19, 2023

Wow, I never could understand racism. It just doesn't compute in my brain how anyone can think color matters. And the stupidity of people is mind boggling. What most people think of as race anyway is really culture. People say someone is acting black or acting white, you can't act dark skin or white skin, no, people take on mannerisms of certain cultures. What people think of as race is solely culture. God created Adam and Eve, two people. He did not create races, man created race. God created one race, the human race. The rest of the details were filled in by climate in different areas of the world. People's features took on certain characteristics as a survival mechanisms against harsh weather conditions. Melanin to protect from sun rays and tightly curled hair to protect the brain from the sun. Pale skin to survive against very little sun and harsh cold winters. Sun exposure creates pigment in skin, even in the palest of skin, it's just temporary, but that shows the sun is the reason for dark skin. The rest is down to culture.
Before travel was possible, people were isolated in their own regions and developed their own cultures. Culture is like language, it doesn't make sense unless you grew up in it. So once people started traveling and seeing other cultures, it didn't make sense to them and they developed ideas, fears and superstitions based on that. "Oh they look so different and their culture is so different, they must be inferior." Dumbest thought process in the history of the world.

Victoria · Jan 19, 2023

1955 said:
I think if we survive ourselves will eventually become one race, the race of mutts. But given the way humans act we'll still be judged base on some other factor.

We already ARE one race. There's no such thing as race. What most people think is race is really just culture. Culture is not genetic.

hollydolly · Jan 20, 2023

Victoria said:
Wow, I never could understand racism. It just doesn't compute in my brain how anyone can think color matters. And the stupidity of people is mind boggling. What most people think of as race anyway is really culture. People say someone is acting black or acting white, you can't act dark skin or white skin, no, people take on mannerisms of certain cultures. What people think of as race is solely culture. God created Adam and Eve, two people. He did not create races, man created race. God created one race, the human race. The rest of the details were filled in by climate in different areas of the world. People's features took on certain characteristics as a survival mechanisms against harsh weather conditions. Melanin to protect from sun rays and tightly curled hair to protect the brain from the sun. Pale skin to survive against very little sun and harsh cold winters. Sun exposure creates pigment in skin, even in the palest of skin, it's just temporary, but that shows the sun is the reason for dark skin. The rest is down to culture.
Before travel was possible, people were isolated in their own regions and developed their own cultures. Culture is like language, it doesn't make sense unless you grew up in it. So once people started traveling and seeing other cultures, it didn't make sense to them and they developed ideas, fears and superstitions based on that. "Oh they look so different and their culture is so different, they must be inferior." Dumbest thought process in the history of the world.

Actually I think that people who haven't travelled. who haven't been to other countries and witnessed a different cultrue.. who haven't enjoyed the History, the geography, the food, and the hospitality of other cultures, are far more likely to be afraid of other races.. Ignorance is no excuse I know, but however we think of it.. there can be no other reason..

FastTrax · Jan 21, 2023

JaniceM said:
One example: I've always been behind the times with movies etc., so it wasn't til around a year ago I happened to catch a movie about the late pastor Vernon Johns. One scene especially put an awful knot in my stomach, because it was too familiar.. it was the scene where Pastor Johns ordered glass after glass of lemonade, and the waiter broke every glass.

I can't even imagine the impact of something like that on any person, but my father was only a child when his experiences occurred. There were restaurants that claimed they served 'everybody' and 'everybody' was welcome.. but what it came to was the waitress standing by the table while they ate, then breaking the dishes in front of them afterward. I guess the message was their money was good enough, but they weren't.

Another example: I was recently reading a book with interviews, and one interview reminded me of a relative. The person who was interviewed said he would not 'pick one' because to do so would mean dismissing the rest of his heritage as if it didn't exist.
For the same reason, my great-grandfather refused to sign up for the Native American rolls. When asked what he was, he replied he was 'Cherokee and Colored.' (I hadn't heard that last word used in a racial context since I was a kid- not until recently that is).

Here ya go mi amiga.

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mildred-loving-800-115dc72e00a34fcc8b0463805bc70d5c.jpg

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JaniceM · Jan 22, 2023

FastTrax said:
Here ya go mi amiga.

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www.census.gov/topics/population/race/about.html

www.justice.gov/archives/usam/eousa-resource-manual-70-racialethnic-codes

www.refinery29.com/en-us/2021/12/10779552/interracial-relationships-black-women-whiteness

www.familyminded.com/s/interracial-celebrity-couples-inspire-diversity-d8671558a3424a3d

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethnic_group

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miscegenation

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-miscegenation_laws_in_the_United_States

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mildred_and_Richard_Loving

www.time.com/4552130/loving-movie-racial-passing-history/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interracial_marriage

www.imdb.com/name/nm0249291/

www.imdb.com/name/nm1550948/

https://m.imdb.com/title/tt4669986/fullcredits/cast

www.deepfocusreview.com/reviews/loving/

www.imdb.com/title/tt4669986/awards

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loving_(2016_film)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loving_v._Virginia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ruth_Negga

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joel_Edgerton

https://en.wikipedia..org/wiki/List_of_accolades_received_by_Loving_(2016_film)

I haven't had time to check all of these yet, but will.. thanks!!!