THE HARRY REID STATEMENT

As I read all the comments regarding the statements made by Harry Reid, especially from my black brothers and sisters, apparently we are failing to realize how we did/do the very same thing within our culture.

Some of us are old enough to remember the so called "Complexion Parties" where only the light skinned with good hair were invited. And there were private clubs also which were for the ligher skinned blacks. This is us discriminating against us over skin tone. Can that be called racism or just that thing within mortal man which make them want to be separate from others and thus feel better than?

Sometimes I wonder just how many of us care about the condition our condition is in and how to fix it? We still have some within our communities which try to degrade and make fun of another who does speak well and pay attention in class thus making good grades. Can we deny that this occurs and knowing that it does what are we collectively doing to correct this behavior?

"The white man is this and the white man is that and he is racist and he doesn't understand us and blah blah blah". Hey I have an idea, why don't we promote a 5 year plan of focusing on nothing but our own well being? Lets focus on cleaning up our neighborhoods and increasing our graduation rate while lowering our teen pregnancy rate.

Frack the white man for just a minute and focus our energy on being the best us we can be individually. Show the world and those we come into contact with the best of us and the best we can be and those who give the white man or any other individual power over them will take it back and know that any person is only as powerful as the power you give him.

There are those of us who have never ever gave any man that much power over our lives. We don't have control over what they think so why even bother? What we do have control over is our personal conduct and taking responsibility for our own lives. Doing that in my opinion makes the white man or any other critic not matter.

I discovered something a long time ago as I went into the corporate environment and saw that so many within it had never had any real interaction with black folks. In school we all know that we self segregate and unless you are part of a sports program, while surrounded by other cultures, there is little interaction.

So in contemplating this truth it became clear that I am the representation of not only myself but my culture as well. I have actually had one of my white supervisors say to me "You are a credit to your race." I didn't get insulted by that and replied "Thank you but more than that I want to be a credit to humanity." He actually was lost for words and hopefully I gave this one man something to think about beyond his limited experience.

Surrendering to the fact that I cannot control the thoughts of others or their perceptions I realize I can only present myself in the best light for all to see. Not a white person or a black person but everyone who looks upon me will look and see a "good man", an "intelligent man", a "decent man". Perhaps with that, one person at a time, I can change perceptions within my sphere of influence.

So I surrender to the fact that everyone is not going to get it. If we look at it in biblical terms did they not crucify One without sin? So life becomes much simpler when I take on the attitude of "Those who matter don't mind and those who mind don't matter".

In the corporate environment it has amused me that I have spoken to certain individuals on the phone for years without meeting them personally. At an event when we finally met I could see the surprise on their face to discover I was black, and as I stated, it was a source of amusement to me more than anything.

So I'll continue to be articulate and if that surprises someone then that shows they are very limited in social interaction and experience. Light skinned? Well I have dealt with that within my culture also and I didn't really pay them any attention and always thought that it was an ignorant and limited way to view another person so I'm not about to start paying attention to it now no matter who the ignorant person might be.