then things fall apart.
black americans are a uniquely undone people. we have an inate and indestructible ability to adapt and survive, but a tragic inability to collaborate within our own communities. it always comes down to self-preservation, ego, and counting the other cat's chickens before they're even brought let alone roost. if we keep haggling and struggling with one another then nothing will change.
we've come up with negative and competitive idioms: hater (jealous), flossin, ballin. we spend the most money in pursuit of empty vanities; conspicuous consumption for the sake of appearances; that space of adornment we've always inhabited (from africa adorned to the jazz age and hip hop). but behind the decoration and beauty are souls lost in the american wilderness; a displaced people who mimic an oppressive culture, yet still demand acceptance from that culture.
an elder once said to me, 'we got the singing and dancing down. so now what?' no one wants to give up anything, share what they do have, or do the work. we create black institutions grooming children for access to white institutions, which have the best resources, since our free and public ones have zero and are a mess of corruption and institutional inequality.
so we compete against ourselves and the establishment. all the paper in the world can not shield the children from being black in america. that is something they must always be aware of in any situation throughout their lives. that is the first thing a white person sees of them. second is how that child speaks. if they are articulate, that makes them more accessible. if they speak street, they are utterly inaccessible. david chappelle made the most on-point remark during an actor's studio interview, that '...black folks speak two languages: street and job interview.' (i laughed out loud with that one).
these young people can stay confined within the community and know nothing of the world. you have to experience hate and marginalization in order to clearly identify it. we can talk endlessly about the movement and what our grandparents and parents went through; they experienced it. this generation knows nothing of the overt, in your face, exclusionary tactics other generations had to live with and fight against.
even my generation, the 80s, had it so very cool. we were the first wave of cosby show and different world, black kids in college en masse, whose parents were educated or professional. the playing field had changed. we dominated popular culture and were fast becoming movers and shakers. jay-z, russell, sean, dre, lisa b., lisa lisa and the cult jam - all 80s generation, yet all were from the space of entertainment.
i'm both fascinated with and perplexed by the tweens, teens, and twans of the modern age. where are they at, really? they've appropriated 80s fashion (in often strange and baffling ways) but they're on a whole other level of being super advanced technologically. who the hell doodles in illustrator vector graphics for fun? they have to teach me how to use the newest generation of smart phones. they can text faster than i breathe. though their technical savvy is impressive, i wonder what lies underlies beneath? they can wii, but can they think?
perhaps they're wired more than not; faces to a monitor rather than inside a book; navigating narratives and character within their own imaginations. the pace of this new age has them hard-pressed to be ever be still. always doing, moving, clicking, and logging in. i'm amazed at how to them speed is more crucial than process. in my teaching, i try to drop a bit of buddhist teaching (or tao?) i learned from the dalai lama (or more precisely, bruce lee's kung fu philosophy) - that mastering the process is key to the path of perfection.
this may sound corny, but the solution lies in love. love begets love and it is the greatest weapon against hate and derision. we have to love one another better, even in the face of conflict, work with love's sister - acceptance and her brother, respect.
maybe then we can stop singing and start swinging.
mslisa
