Marini
Posts: 3629
Joined: 2/14/2010 Status: offline
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quote:
ORIGINAL: DaddySatyr quote:
ORIGINAL: Greta75 “As a black person I deal with racism every day,” she said. “It’s a part of life. Nowadays I have become more fearful. I have never been afraid when it comes to race but now I am. And I don’t think I’m alone. I want to do my part to change things,” Moses told the Post. As an "old fat white man" (which I'm not but, as so many like to throw around as an epithet) I have become more fearful, also. Groups like antifa and BLM have made it very clear that I am a target for derision, if not full-out violence. The group specifically asks for white people who don’t have any nonwhite friends to attend. How about black people that don't have any white friends, either? Moses said that “many white people want to begin to cultivate relationships with black people but don’t know how to and this is an opportunity for them to feel comfortable.” Funny, when I wake up, I don't think: "I need to cultivate relationships with black people!" I will admit, at certain times in my life, to thinking along the lines of: "I've got too many negative people in my life, I need to cultivate relationships with good people!" (I'll get to an anecdote about that, subsequently) “The only way to change the divisiveness that’s going on is to be one-on-one with people. Policy won’t really change things, but forming relationships will.” Since posting the event on Nov. 12, the response has been “phenomenal,” according to Moses. She told The Post that people from all over the country have called telling her how excited they are and that they want the event to come to other cities. Yay or Nay to events like this? Tickets are $15 and proceeds will benefit the Young Urban Mediamakers. If all goes well, Moses hopes to make it a regular event in 2018 and hopes the “conversation on race continues.” Wow! 15bux to meet black people. If white people are willing to pay for this shit! It's ridiculous! Yea or nae? Well, because of that last little bit, at the end, I'd have to say: "I'm not sure." I have become very careful with whom I spend my money. I have never heard of these "Young Urban Mediamakers" so, I would have to do a little bit of research, first. Without the monetary consideration, and the inference that it is a necessity in my life, I'd probably be in, but there are other ways I interact with people. I think I've mentioned, here, a couple of times that my Friday (and some Wednesday) nights are spent at a pool hall with people who are invited to show up, pay no money, and just fellowship with like-minded people. I am almost always the only "white" guy there (I'm not white, as I guess I will keep having to tell people for the rest of my life). How did that happen? Well ... When I first moved to Pennsyltucky, I lived in a neighborhood where alleys run behind the houses. My building was a "triple" (three family dwelling in one building, but separate, fenced-in yards). My neighbors on one side were pill sellers and users and much younger so ... nothing in common, there. On the other side, I met those neighbors the night we were moving in. A lady, just a couple of years younger than I, her daughter (about 22 or 23, at the time) and the daughter's infant-toddler son. They were drunk and wreaked of pot smoke (Later I was to find out they were also selling METH and crack Cocaine). I was beginning to wonder about the neighborhood to which I'd moved. It seemed a lot like the one I'd left. Anyway, the guy that lived behind me seemed like a friendly enough guy (he always had a smile on his face). I saw him pulling into his driveway on his bike, one day (His driveway/garage was in the back of his house) and commented on what a pretty machine it was. I introduced myself. We started chit-chatting. Over the passage of time, I found out he was also a vet, he was old enough to be my (very) older brother, he was struggling to quit smoking cigarettes, he was in recovery. We socialized a lot, since we were both "retired" and played a lot of chess and pool and grabbed a lot of lunches, together. On nice days, we also hung out at the town square together. One night, as we were shooting pool, he told me he had a commitment to bring a recovery meeting to a rehabilitation unit that was very near by. He complained that these people had no evidence of how good life could be without using drugs or alcohol. It was a Friday night meeting so, I suggested he bring a bunch of people to play pool, after the meeting. He said: "Michael, these people ain't got no money." I said: "We do. Seriously? How much could it cost us? $30 each a week ... maximum ?" And so was born the weekly pool game where I am almost always in the minority. What's the point? Well, somewhere along the line, we stopped being neighbors and became friends, "bonded" by common interests. There was no color consideration on either of our parts. We treated each other as human beings and went from there. I find the premise of this "come meet a black person" to be faulty and, therefore, insulting. I don't believe that there are that many people (75%) that are so ensconced in a "racial bubble" that they don't know people of other colors. Remember: "78% of all statistics are made up, on the spot" (I wish I could remember to whom to attribute that, but I can't) Michael, you are a talented writer. This is a wonderful story, worth printing. Thank you for sharing. Bravo!!
< Message edited by Marini -- 1/4/2018 1:29:32 PM >
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As always, To EACH their Own. "And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. " Nelson Mandela Life-long Democrat, not happy at all with Democratic Party. NOT a Republican/Moderate and free agent
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