March 23, 2012
Just turn on the news in any of the United States of America’s 51 states and you will find negative images of minorities. The beautiful Native American people and their culture has been reduced by the media to a bunch of welfare receiving, casino boat owning, drunkards living on a reservation. When the fact is, this is far from the truth. The Indigenous people of the Americas are a strong people and it is an outrage to witness such ridiculous stereotypes and misinformation regarding their rich history.
Let us not forget the Latino community who has been labeled as enemies of American culture, threats to the economic growth of Americans, and alien invaders who are taking over the galaxy. This is also a harsh false depiction of the brave and strong Latino community. How dare you patriotic extremist disrespect such a rich and wonderful culture? The story of the Latino people migrating into America is a story of courage, triumph, and a portrait of a better America.
Although the beloved Asian Pacific community is often seen as smart and hard working there is a negative shadow that demonizes even their plight in America. They are type casted in entertainment as people who in general speak little to no good English and are martial artist, sweat shop workers, racist mom and pop store owners, or computer geeks. The Asian Pacific community as in every other culture, is filled with layers and a broad spectrum of qualities. There is so much more to being an Asian then what is described in the American Media experience.
America’s has discovered a new frienemy in the very misunderstood Middle Eastern community. After 9/11, various acts of terrorism, and notorious groups like Al Qaeda there has been a dark cloud casted over the Middle Eastern community. The media paints them all as evil, dangerous, terrorist connected, and haters of America. My question to those who prescribe to this notion is this, if this is true why would they flock to America? The truth is this,the Middle Eastern community comes from a place where the resources are not controlled by the elite. Namely, their crude oil but they also have a rich culture like all of us full of historical contributions, witty ideas, and inventions.
Last but definitely not least, is the unbreakable black community. They have been hunted by barbarians every since the beginning of slavery and still in the present day. Stripped of their land, culture, language, wealth, resources, and identity in order to break their spirit. Slave masters and founding fathers built their present day ideology and the empire of America on the backs of black slaves. Imagine if the holocaust never ended where the Jewish community might possibly be today.
Well the black community doesn’t have to imagine because they are still living in it. To understand the black experience is to live it out everyday. No matter how many rap albums you consume, no matter how fly your fashion is, no matter what athletes you know, and no matter how many black people you have met, none of that will truly afford you the black experience. How does a 17 year old boy windup dead after making a simple snack run you say? Trayvon Martin is nothing new to the black community unfortunately. In fact, for them it’s just more of the same painfilled nightmare that has become their American experience.
Some say that you have to take the good with the bad. Well I say, that the black community embraces the good but also understands that a great deal of bad will follow them. In fact, the bad will supercede even those around them who are considered to be minorities. Well why would you say such a harsh thing like that you say? Based on tangible facts not opinion there is no one, I mean absolutely no one more hated in America then the black community. The mass media machine scandalizes the image and name of the black community before the world everyday without giving it a second thought.
Their propaganda and grandiose delusions have not only falsely depicted the black community as a whole, but I suggest to you that the media and in some sense the American government has committed both hate crimes and acts of terrorism. If the constitution of American was currently on trial and we compared the evidence and witness of the black community, then the constitution would be prosecuted in the court of law.
We must recognize the true crisses that has tarnished the growth and vitality of America. We are suffering from one of the largest moral deficits in recent American history. To ignore the impact of the great moral bankruptcy in America on society at large would be an utter travesty. This is why we started the “Heal The Hood Now Campaign”. As we take out the time to look at ourselves in the mirror and look at America for what it is not, instead of for what it portrays to be, then we would be able to usher in positive change.
What I suggest, is not solely focused on policies and laws although that is very relevant. I believe that if we work together to orchestrate a unified effort to improve the American experience for all, then we could create a better America. For some of us the very idea that America could be better is foreign, and to those of you who share this view I say this, please look outside of yourself. We intend to do more than just spark a dialogue, but to move practical solutions into action.
Going forward, I will reveal a vatiety of practical solutions in every new blog posting.
I pray that we will began to reconcile (Heal our Hoods) communities, and engage with each other respectfully. The thing is, we don’t have to carry these burdens alone in silence. Trayvon Martin is our present day version of Emmitt Till. No matter who you are, what your ethnic background is, or what you assumed happened, America was attacked that night when the injustice that is the cold blooded murder of Trayvon Martin was allowed. If we are really patriotic in America and truly believe in our justice system, we have to hold it accountable when it falls short of our expectations of what justice truly looks like.
Remember, you are Trayvon Martin, I am Trayvon Martin, and the entire U.S.A is Trayvon Martin. Today, it’s a black kid but if we don’t demand justice for Trayvon right now tomorrow it will be your child who becomes the victim. Well you might say I don’t have children so why should I care? You should care, because it could have been and still can be you or someone you love next.
Below is an article on Trayvon Martin just in case you haven’t been following the story.
If you are interested in joining the heal the hood movement please email us @ cloudnationmedia@gmail.com or healthehoodblog@gmail.com.
Professor of Law, Florida International University
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Race and the Trayvon Martin Case...
Posted: 03/23/2012 12:25 am
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As the tragic events leading to the death of an innocent young man, Trayvon Martin, illustrate, race remains a matter of great debate in this country, and sadly a matter that all too often is associated with the abuse of power. In the matter of the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, we do not have the repeated story of a white police officer, or officers, shooting a young unarmed African-American male.
We initially had a story a story of a white neighborhood watch member following, stopping, and eventually killing young Trayvon. But now, there are added complexities, news accounts are making a great deal of the fact that classic debates concerning race are a bit more complicated in this matter because the father of the accused, Robert Zimmerman, points out that his son has a Hispanic mother. The question several news accounts now raise is whether the fact that Zimmerman is part Hispanic changes the racial nature of the story.
