The C•O•W•S• began July with a visit from Gwendolyn Valencia Lee's son, André Robert Lee. We discussed his documentary film (The Prep School Negro), Clarence Thomas, and George Zimmerman's trial. Mr. Lee's comments on Ms. Rachel Jeantel were appreciated and important. #ANTIBLACKNESS
When I think about the responses people had to her, you know, there's so much pain associated with so many people. For one, White people just couldn't take her. It was just too much. That guy, Mr. West, the criminal defense attorney, in a sense we almost can't criticize him too much cause he was just doing his job. You know? The job connected to the political system, the justice system is another long story. But his job was to destroy her and make her look... to take her credit away. That's his number one job, and he did it so well. It just so happens that we had this heavyweight, dark-skinned, African-American woman - young woman, who had never been in this environment.
I think about my community. When I first went to Germantown Friends School, you know, people made fun of me because of the way spoke. And my mother was a heavyset black woman. And people in our community [black people] made fun of her. And she had her own issues that were never connected to that. So when I looked at her, and I saw how much power she had up on that stand. You know? Cause she wasn't taking no stuff! You know? Part of me wished that she had been trained a little bit to deal with the pressure of being in court. But the other part of me saw how free she was. She had a level of freedom that was almost too much for the world to take.
I've had friends say things like I wish she was more articulate. And I'm like, what's that about? What's in you to say you wish she was more articulate? She was so strong on that stand. But I think when I'm getting my connection with the Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome and the story, was that I think that the observation that many people had about her and the criticism people had about her, were connected to folks' own personal pain. They looked at this heavyset, dark-sinned woman who didn't speak "proper english" and they were ready to come at her and destroy her because she was embarrassing and terrible. And needed to be more articulate. And needed to be more clear.
And I said, for me, she is like a character out of an Alice Walker novel. She is so free. She is so free. And she didn't want to be there. But she was there. Yes, I wish she understood the court system a little bit more beyond what she sees on TV. But she had her own personal existence. She had no desire to be there, but she was forced into that spotlight and that space.
The author of this blog does not support the popular belief that interracial relationships represent progress, the demise of Racism. White Supremacists/Slave Masters/Segregationists have been sexually engaged with non-white people for centuries. Miscegenation and White Supremacy are compatible; history reveals them to be frequent companions. Gus has invested a significant amount of time and energy studying these tragic arrangements; his conclusion is that sexual intercourse with a White person/Racist Suspect has disastrous ramifications for the non-white person involved - and a substantial number of non-white people who have a good deal of contact with either members of the interracial tandem. Integrated bedrooms/back seats have delivered us a menagerie of fascinating terms(Octoroon), exotic looking people (Jennifer Beals), interesting flicks (Watermelon Man) and a White House full of Obamas. Sadly, Injustice, White Supremacy remains. And the non-white people who get it on with White people, are especially SADD.
SADD:
SPACE for Non-Racist White people. Sexual intercourse symbolizes an intimate bond between two individuals. People naturally tend to develop a greater awareness and consideration for the person whom shares their bed. For non-white people with a White sex partner, this mandates that they conceptualize Racism in a manner that allows for Good White Folks. That is, White people who definitely don't do anything to participate in the System of White Supremacy. As with snack chips, it's generally difficult to stop at one. The non-white person who has convinced themselves that there is at least one White person who is not complicit with Racism/White Supremacy, tends to find other such White people. As their White sex partner will come to represent their most penetrating and trusted relationship to White people, this Suspected Racist will profoundly shape how this Victim perceives White people at large. Ramifications? These non-white people will be intolerant of any analysis of Racism which assumes or suggests that every White person is a participant in the System of White Supremacy. All White people would mean that their White partner is no exception; this is unacceptable for the maintenance of the non-white person's integrated relationship as well as their sanity.
Illustration: The C.O.W.S. w/ Dr. Eddie Moore, Jr (May 2009).
SADD:
Racism becomes ABSTRACT.
ABSTRACT: [adjective] A) thought apart from concrete realities, specific objects, [PEOPLE] or actual instances. B) expressing a quality or characteristic apart from any specific object, [PERSON] or instance. C) difficult to understand.
ABSTRACT: [verb] A) to divert or draw away the attention of. B) to consider as a general quality or characteristic apart from specific objects, [PEOPLE] or instances.
The System of White Supremacy is designed to befuddle non-white people. Our continued subjugation is the supreme evidence of our counter-racist deficiencies. Engaging in sexual intercourse with a Racist severely hampers the ability of non-white people to remember that Racism is a product of White behavior. "The Problem is White People." Non-white people with a White partner are frequently able to admit that Racism persists. However, they will posit that Racism exists because of laws, statues, codes, customs, chance... anything, anyone but the White people they're seated with and smooching. When White people address terrorism and crime, they make certain that everyone remembers that there are specific individuals to blame. Terrorists create Terrorism. Criminals create Crime. This flawless logic dictates that if Racism/White Supremacy endures, living, breathing Racists/White Supremacists (White People) are responsible. Sexual intercourse with a White person demands that the non-white person reject any discussion of Racism that implicates White folks - especially the White person who sees them naked.
Illustration: The C.O.W.S. w/ The Oreo Experience (January 2010).
SADD:
DEFENDING White people. Chancellor L. Williams' Destruction of Black Civilization offers a phenomenal dissection of how White Supremacists have used miscegenation to establish a Buffer Group. This non-white Buffer can be used to protect White Supremacists and their interests. Non-white people with a White sex partner, White baby momma/daddy or White mother and father are directly related to Suspected Racists; that is, they cherish an intense emotional bond with a White person whom has been trained to perceive and relate to non-whites as inferior. Conversely, non-white people are conditioned to cater to and comfort White people. Engaging in sexual intercourse with a White person, conjoins the non-white person's interests with a representative of the global network of White Domination. Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Audre Lorde, Tiger Woods, Halle Berry, Alice Walker, Frantz Fanon, Lorraine Hansberry and James Brown have talked about, worked against and suffered from Racism. But will they indict their White sex partners and/or spouses? It has been this author's observation that such Victims staunchly oppose any non-white person who suggests that all White people are culpable, at minimum, Racist Suspects. The Victim's tireless defense is motivated to preserve White Innocence. Their indefatigable effort must simultaneously vindicate their own intelligence and ability to accurately understand and function on a planet dominated by White Supremacy... while bedding down with a Racist Suspect.
Illustration: The C.O.W.S. w/ Dr. Nell Irvin Painter (June 2010).
SADD:
"DIVIDED loyalties". Those two words came directly from a Victim of Racism who has a White spouse. This Victim indicated that having a White spouse restricted her attempts to counter-racism. Divided Loyalties. Meaning the non-white person has an allegiance to a White person whom is most likely a Racist. This erodes the non-white person's ability to accurately assess the System of White Supremacy. This author has observed these non-white people minimize the impact and pervasive nature of Racism/White Supremacy. They will remind other Victims that: Slavery was over 100 years ago. You can't blame all White people. And that Racism is not the only form of abuse in the universe. Gus has witnessed this degenerate to where the non-white person with a White sex partner is accusing other non-white people of being Racist; they contend that suggesting that White people be regarded as Racist Suspects is comparable to the KKK and segregationist. This author can only surmise that the intimate and emotional bond of sexual intercourse has infected the reasoning of these Victims, rendering them acutely sensitive to anything that sounds like an indictment - or less than perfumed commentary - concerning White people in general or their White partner specifically. Conquest often accompanies division.
Illustration: The C.O.W.S. w/ Cheryl Judice (February 2010).
If the reader took in Lakeview Terrace, this author may sound like the reincarnation of Abel Turner - Gus suspects that was one of the main objectives of the film. SADD has far reaching implications, should not be accepted without serious investigation and could be incorrect. However, I challenge the reader. Scrutinize non-white people who are sexually involved with White people. For starters, access their willingness to admit and dialog about Racism. Evaluate their understanding of the System of White Supremacy and what - if anything - they are doing to earnestly challenge it. Make your own conclusions.
Extra Credit: The C.O.W.S. w/ Dr. Mwalimu K. Baruti Part II (April 2010).
