The Civil Rights Movement Was The Wrong Move -- Part 1
77The following is an excerpt from “BEFORE THE MAYFLOWER -- A History of the Negro in America, 1619 to 1964”, by Lerone Bennett, Jr. (Published in 1966 by Penguin Books, Baltimore, MD):
“ … There were 64 (lynchings of blacks by white mobs) in 1918 and 83 in 1919. More disturbing than the number was the increasing sadism of the mobs. The Mary Turner lynching of 1918 was undoubtedly one of the most barbaric acts ever committed in a civilized country. Though pregnant, the Negro woman was lynched in Valdosta, Georgia. She was hanged from a tree, doused with gasoline and motor oil and burned. As she dangled from the rope, a (white) man stepped forward with a pocket-knife and ripped her abdomen in a crude cesarean operation.
“ ‘Out tumbled the prematurely-born child’, wrote Walter White (a newspaper reporter). ‘Two feeble cries it gave and received for answer the heel of a stalwart man, and life was ground from the tiny form'."
The number of lynchings in 1918 and 1919, and the “Mary Turner lynching” represent what Valdosta, Georgia, as well as the remainder of the “Old South” were all about. Up until just a few decades ago, that region of the U.S. was, in fact, a barbaric place.
From colonial times until well into the 1960s, the American South was a place in which black people were routinely beaten, hanged from trees and set on fire by white mobs. In addition, the Ku Klux Klan and other “night riders” ruled the country sides and towns, blacks were required to be subservient to every white they encountered (even including little white children), and black pedestrians were often required to yield the sidewalk to oncoming white pedestrians.
Also in the “Old South”, blacks were confined by law to “colored schools” and “colored communities”, and were not even allowed to use the same public water fountains and restrooms as whites. In what few situations blacks were allowed to use the same facilities as whites, blacks were always required to “go to the back door” or to “sit in the rear”.
By the mid-1950s, the time had become ripe for blacks to rise up against the oppressive, humiliating and deadly system of the “Old South”. By that time, a very large and growing number of southern blacks had decided that they were not going to take it any longer and their rage and frustration ignited a massive “black movement” like none ever seen before.
The incident that grew to symbolize the beginning of that movement occurred on December 5, 1955, in Montgomery, Alabama. On that day, Rosa Parks, a black Montgomery woman, decided on an impulse that she would not yield to an “Old South custom” that required black passengers on municipal buses to give up their seats to white passengers. Defying the custom, Parks refused to give up her seat to a white man and she was promptly arrested for doing that.
Immediately following Parks’ arrest, the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr., whom at the time was the pastor of Montgomery’s Dexter Avenue Baptist Church, organized the city’s black residents to boycott the municipal bus service in protest of its segregated policies.
Lasting 13 months, the boycott ended on December 16, 1956, when a federal court ordered Montgomery’s buses integrated. By federal decree, the bus service had to end its policy requiring blacks to “sit in the rear” and to give up their seats to whites.
Even more significant than its victorious conclusion, the Montgomery bus boycott touched off a massive confrontation between blacks and whites that rapidly spread across the entire South as well as much of the remainder of the U.S. In no time, many regions of the country were consumed by racial strife and unrest.
While carrying out what came to be known as the Civil Rights Movement, thousands-upon-thousands of blacks, along with thousands of whites and others, attacked racial segregation and discrimination with an endless parade of public demonstrations, protest marches, sit-ins, boycotts and “Freedom Rides”. And from 1955 to the mid-1960s, a very large number of the protesters were arrested, many were injured and scores were killed.
On July 3, 1964, at the height of the movement, American blacks were provided with what many called the “Prize”. On that date, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which was essentially a federal law that guaranteed blacks equal rights. Specifically, the act contained sections banning discrimination in voting, employment, housing, education and public accommodations.
Today, the vast majority of Americans believe that the Civil Rights Movement and all that was gained through it are the best things that ever happened for the nation’s black society.
Well, I have a different take on things. I believe that the massive black struggle of 1955 to 1964, or the Civil Rights Movement, caused black society to go backwards instead of forward. The long procession of public demonstrations against segregated schools, communities, businesses and other facilities only caused blacks to squander vast amounts of resources on the pursuit of a “dream” that was both impossible and unnecessary to achieve.
Hey, that’s not true, you may be thinking. If not for the Civil Rights Movement, blacks would not have gained equal voting rights and they would still be fair game for white lynch mobs.
Once again, I must say that I have a different take on things.
So far as blacks having equal voting rights, they might as well be living under a one-party dictatorship. The group votes only for Democrats and it is allowing “African-American leaders” and socialist white liberals to call all of the shots for them.
Furthermore, the Ku Klux Klan and other racist elements may not be lynching blacks anymore but, presently, more blacks are being lynched than at any other time in U.S. history -- and every one of today’s lynchings are being carried out by blacks’ “own people”.
You do not have to take my word for it. Just tune into the evening news any night of the week or glance through your local newspaper once in awhile. By doing one or both of those things, you will find that blacks are lynching other blacks on a daily basis through drive-by shootings, car-jackings, execution-style homicides and murders during the commission of robberies, forcible rapes and incidents of domestic abuse. You will also find that black youngsters are constantly blowing away rival gang members and snuffing out other black kids just to take such things off them as sneakers, gold necklaces and jackets.
And what do you think all of the black drug dealers in the “black ghettos” are?
I will tell you what they are. They are present-day slavers. Those thugs are in the same league as the white slavers who transported millions of black Africans to the Americas and sold those people to the highest bidders. The only difference is the white slavers of the past made huge sums of money by selling blacks and forcing them to work without pay while today’s black drug-dealing slavers are making huge sums of money by shackling as many blacks as they can to “crack ’n smack”.
So, even though blacks have gained equal voting rights, equal access and federal protection from being brutalized by white lynch mobs, blacks are presently living under a self-imposed dictatorship in which many of them are being strung up, beaten to death and set on fire -- by their “own people”.
Stay tuned for Part 2 of The Civil Rights Movement Was The Wrong Move.
To read The Civil Rights Movement Was The Wrong Move -- Part 2, click below:
http://hubpages.com/hub/The-Civil-Rights-Movement-Was-The-Wrong-Move-Part-2
To read The Civil Rights Movement Was The Wrong Move -- Part 3, click below:
http://hubpages.com/hub/The-Civil-Rights-Movement-Was-The-Wrong-Move-Part-3
To read The Civil Rights Movement Was The Wrong Move -- Part 4, click below:
http://hubpages.com/hub/The-Civil-Rights-Movement-Was-The-Wrong-Move-Part-4
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Ralph, everyone knows that the best way to make people get along is to put a gun to their heads and demand that they play together.
I wonder why there is so much brown on brown murder and drug dealing south of the border, down Mexico way. If you ask the Mexicans, they would say,lack of education, poverty, and the lack of jobs. Same thing that cause Black on Black crime. What was the cause of White On White crime in Ireland and corsavol and Eastern Europe?
Hi Feenix! I like your comparison of present day drug dealers with slave traders of the past. As ususal, you have great information to share! I am looking forward to part two. I really appreciate your perspective on things.
Ralph Deeds, it's a "black thang" -- so, you don't understand.
junko, Mexican-on-Mexican crime, white-on-white crime, etc. are separate subjects from the subject of this hub.
If you think that comparisons should be made between black-on-black crime and the self-destructive crimes that take place in other societies, then YOU should write a hub about it.
Feenix, Black Rappers Rap shameful and degrading black lyrics for money. What is your reason for writing degrading words about your people, money or exceptance?
junko, I'm an Uncle Tom and a sell-out. So what do you expect?
Dexter, thank you very much for your kind words. And if nothing comes up, I will post Part 2 tomorrow.
Another cost of the compelled equality was the death of Black entrepreneurship. Madame C.J. Walker was one of the richest women in the world and was far and away the wealthiest Black woman in America. Her empire was based on the manufacture and sale of beauty products for Black women. Black communities sunk their roots deep all across the country and focused around themselves. Negro League Baseball is an example of the economic success Blacks were capable of when left to their own devices.
The occasionally violent crowds that marched across the country worked in contrast to the system well established and working on behalf of Blacks. The Brown v. Board of Education decision was at least if not more significant than the Civil Rights Act.
Hi feenix,
We’ve touched on this before, and I agree with your assessment. When over 50% of all murders are committed by less than 5% of the population and it is black on black, when 75% of all black births are out of wedlock, when most black kids never get a high school diploma, and when most black children now grow up without benefit of a father in the home, how can anyone claim civil rights was a success?
Martin Luther King would be appalled at how his dream turned out!
I look forward to part two.
An Uncle Tom, Sell out ,and self hater I would add. But that's o'k,It takes all kind of people to make a world.
uncorrectedvision, thank you for your insightful and brilliant comment.
Actually, though, you're stealing a little of my thunder. I am going to cover some of the points you made in Parts 2 and 3 of this hub :-)
Yassuh, junko, I's really beez hatin' mahsef.
Will, yes I am repeating myself a bit here. But I had to do so in order to lay the foundation for the points I will make in Parts 2 and 3.
And the statistics that you cited are right on.
So the new stepin' fetchit is the rapper? He fulfills a stereotype and makes boat loads of money. There is a great idea for a series of hubs. Black Cinema and Blacks in Cinema.
I have no desire to argue against your opinion but there is one glaring factual inaccuracy in your hub. Rosa Parks did not protest "on impulse." Her protest was planned and she had the support of Martin Luther King Jr. before she even refused to give up her seat. Your version is the "legend" we are often presented by pop culture but it is simply untrue.
uncorrectvision, rappers are the present-day Stepin' Fetchits, hmmmmm. I like that and it is a great idea for a series of hubs.
Robephiles, I am well aware that Rosa Parks' "protest" was not carried out on an impulse. However, I decided to state it that way (which is the way it's stated in most of the history books) because if I had not, I would have had to expose her and MLK for the communist agents they were.
I know you fell off the wagon, after that comment. Pull it down, Feenix.
junko, I think you're one of those "people, places and things" that I'm supposed to avoid.
Thanks feenix. I won't say I enjoyed your article but I did find it both interesting and educational as well as being more than a bit disturbing. I look forward to parts 2 and three. Take care.
Peter, thank you very much for your comment. Quite frankly, I like your hubs more than I do my own. It is just that I am not a nice fellow like you are, so I am always driven to do such things as "stir the pot" and get other people's ire up.
feenix - there are many out there who do not think I am so nice. People on hubpages are generally nice but my blog, where I sometimes 'stir' like cement mixer, gets me hate mail and threats. It is like water off a ducks back these days.
Peter, you are right to let it be like water off a duck's back. And for what it is worth, you are one of my favorite people and writers on HubPages. I consider myself to be quite fortunate to have you for a "hubfriend".
Feenix: I cannot agree with your title on this topic.
I believe that God decided, as he decided with the Hebrews in Egypt that enough was enough.
With the Hebrews He chose the time, the place and the person to lead the Hebrews out of Egypt and that leader just happened to be a son to Pharaoh himself, Moses.
God is patient but just and when He says enough is enough, that's it. God chose Martin Luther King Jr. to lead God's children out of bondage not wanting any of His children to be seen as or treated as slaves or anything less than a free child of Almighty God.
God chose the time, the place, the who, the why, and the how, to free these people from tyrany in the US. God still has a few battles like this to take care of throughout the world, but His Will, will be done sooner or later all man will be free.
Dave, thank you for taking the time to read this hub and for your thoughtful comment.
I do not have to tell you that Satan is sly and cunning. And because he is that way, he frequently makes "wrong" look like "right".
Satan can never alter God's desired outcome. God always has the last say for everything. I agree we can be blinded to things just like Paul was blinded or like the two on the road to Emmaus on the day of the resurrection, but God's truth will always be right there for all to see.
Feenix, while I'm not in pure agreement, I haven't read the whole story. In my life I've seen 3 kinds of racism and there exists no other name for it. There was the white hating black thing, I saw first hand the segregation and water fountain type stuff while visiting Alabama, Tennessee and Missouri at an age I understood "it was" just not "why". I was at a place, Neelyville, Missouri and I spose I was 6 or 7 and they gathered rail road ties there from the saw mills and loaded them on trains moving them where ever. There was this huge black man gave me a nickle and asked me if I'd buy him a bag of peanuts in the corner store. I didn't know he wasn't allowed inside. I said sure and did it and he bought a Coke out of a machine, the nickle machine where you turned the crank and could have anything you wanted as long as it was a Coke. He sat down took a hit off the Coke to make room, then poured the peanuts in it. I thought that looked cool so I went and got a bag of peanuts and then a Coke, copied him and piled up on the bench with him and started talking to him about the great idea, I liked it. He got nervous as a cat and told me I ought not sit with him, and I asked him why? he told me it was a black bench, I could clearly see it was just a wood bench and told him nope it's not, it's a brown wood bench and he laughed at me. Then the store owner came out and hollered stuff about what was going on, quite colorful language. My dad and uncle heard it and then saw me and my uncle told the owner to shut up and get inside and my dad came and sat down with me, I remember the painful look in his eyes as between him and the other man tried to explain pure non-sense to me, I remember it like yesterday. When I finished my Coke, my dad apologized to the man for me not knowing any better and hoped it didn't cause him any trouble. I shook his hand called him mister and thanked him for the great idea, I think of him every time I put peanuts in my Coke. There was good that came from the rights movement.
Later on, the mining town I grew up in was Mexican and whites, the grocery was owned by these little Chinese family "Ollie Hing" I thought the braided beard thing and pony tails along with the hats sans a brim were cool and there English sounded cool too. Then the first and only black family came to town and had 3 kids, every body wanted to be their friend, they were new and unique. Looking back I see that as a form of racism that ran parallel with the many whites who voted for obama to shut up rev Jackson and others who make a living off the race card,[whole nuther hub to hit that issue and brand of racism] Finally the 3rd type was one day in college, I was busting ass to make lunch and another class, I went through a door not looking back or holding the door and a black dude began berating me for not holding the door for black people, just wasn't true but he was hell bent on character assassination by poor me the black guy. He was unaware that my service in the Marines had me standing shoulder to shoulder with all and any race that wore our uniform and just what it all meant[again a whole nuther hub]
I get what your doing here and your thought on it, to a point. So there is a taste of my thoughts, that there was both good and bad that came from the rights movement, I hold in reserve some thoughts, while I hear you out on the rest of your story. I've walked the streets of NYC and experienced multi racial people from everywhere that one can think of and believe that racist folk need that experience, if for nothing but to find that all of us were part of a mix that were scattered from "Babble" way back when Noah and his crew went incest on each other and we come from there, regardless of race or tongue, peace, dust
Thank you for your excellent Hub, Feenix. I personally loath black politicians because THEY failed black people. They had the power to INSTRUCT black people in a way that, yes, would have caused many more lives and hardship but would have kept the dignity of black individuals within the race. I hate to hear people talk about black progress on an individual basis, yes, people of a given race are respected as individuals but they have to be respected as a race. We as black people no longer care about respecting the race, it is everyman for themselves and it shows!
Lynchings, denial of the right to vote, housing discrimination, job discrimination, discrimination in college admissions were/are a "black thang?" Your avatar implies that you are African American, but you sound more like a red neck to me???If you are black you strike me as an Uncle Tom of the worst kind. The voting rights act, the civil rights act have noting whatsoever to do with "black on black" crime. Locking blacks up and throwing away the key for possession of crack cocaine or marijuana, poor inner city schools and failure to pass and enforce handgun control laws have a lot more to do with the conditions that you have pointed out.
@ deeds, your full of crap on the stance of hand gun control, that only effects the honest folk, bad guys no matter the skin will have them anyway. I carry 24/7 with a license to do so, I have to pay for my second amendment rights, just like my black honest hard working non felon friends do. Where were all the supposed armed red necks when Giffords was shot in the face? I could go on, but your set in your opinions here and your going to get slapped down at every turn why don't you go somewhere that likes your stench?, 50
Hi Feenix,
There is no doubt that the CRA did not lead to the fair society that its framers intended. But I don't think you can blame the CRA for that. The reality is that the SE was enagaing in apartheid, in violation of both the DOI's "equal value" principle and the Constitution's Equal Protections Clause. While constiutional constructionists, such as myself, may "knee jerk" argue that the federal government has no enumerated power to regulate social interactions, the fact is that the SE was violating the DOI and Constitution, giving the federal government the legal right to pass what in essence was a nullification law to prevent state abuses.
The most egregious abuses by bigots in the offending states would never have been stopped without federal police intervention made possible by the CRA, since operant local police forces were often on the side of the offenders. We might still have the worst of these abuses going on today were it not for the CRA and the federal intervention it made possible.
The seemingly intractable problem is that a long history of abuse by whites, and denial of decent educational, employment, and infrastrucural assets to blacks that whites have enjoyed over the decades, has led to a pattern of anger and feelings of helplessness that get passed from generation to generation of black families. The result has been something like what happens in prisons, where big fish eat the little fish. White bigots have been replaced by black gangs, but the victims are still blacks who don't have the means to escape the danger areas where the contemporary abuse is taking place.
Essentially, my point is that the CRA is not the culprit here. The real issue is that the CRA, by itself, was not enough to resolve the problem. The CRA merely broke the back of overt racism. But it did nothing to to remediate the latent effects of the former racism, including weakened self esteem, low educational levels, dysfunctional families, and hopelessness brought about by decades of abuse and denial of opportunity. History simply repeats itself because the damage to the adults is passed on to the children via poor upbringing, because the parents were made dysfunctional by the abuse and neglect by society in general. This damage is then passed on from generation to generation, because there is nothing in place to remediate it.
So, the key question is: what remediation would be effective in breaking the cycle? The progressive solution of massive expansion in redistributive benefits has not been effective. While of course in many cases it has prevented homelessness and starvation, it has had the perverse effect of cementing the preexisting feelings of helplessness and dependence. Breaking free requires personal spirits of hope and independence, along with access to decent quality and afforable education so mobility and quality employment are within grasp. But how to achieve all this in the face of daunting city budget deficits, offshoring of jobs, and a severe dearth of quality social services to help black parents overcome their own damage from past abuse and avoid passing the damage onto their children is a major dilemma.
I guess perhaps I raise more questions than answers. But as bad as things are, I think they would be worse were it not for the CRA. The CRA broke the back of abuse by radical right wing posses and their co-conspirators in the local police, and made it possible for some blacks to achieve the American dream. The problem is that the solution was only partial, and nobody seems to know how to resolve the latent effects of what the CRA addressed.
Stu
Dave, you are right. Satan can never alter God's desired outcome. But he certainly can make a pest of himself.
50 Caliber, I enjoyed reading that account of what happened to you when you were a little boy.
Also, I largely agree with what you commented. There were many positive aspects to the Civil Rights Movement.
Well put, Stu.
Wow, Guanta, what a cool comment. You said a mouthful. You pointed out the problem and that is, a number of black individuals are highly respected, but as a group, blacks are hardly respected at all.
@ Stu
That was a honest and sincere post you just posted, I believe. It did raise more questions than answers,but the answers depends on America's recovery. If God heals this country and it's economy, the haves must share with the have-nots, and African Americans have-not more than others. United we stand, divided we fall, bottom line.
Ralph Deeds, BINGO, buddy. I am an Uncle Tom of the worst kind. I ain't nutt'n but a foot-shufflin' boy who's a-scared o' da mahsahs.
Stu, the truth is the various Civil Rights acts were never needed. The only thing that has ever been required is for the federal government to enforce the U.S. Constitution.
What I am saying here is since there are no special federal provisions for white people in this country, I do not want any special provisions for myself.
Just as every one of whites' rights are guaranteed by nothing other than the U.S. Constitution, the same should apply to me because I am as American as any white American is.
Feenix, I largely agree with you on the Constitution, but a black friend pointed out to me that black people were originally recognized as a portion of a whole person like 2/3rds or 5/6ths, I don't recall but that needed changed or perhaps still does. peace and love, dust
feenix,
You know I am a huge admirer of your work and some of the comments you got ehre were not surprising, especially considering the source--I have had the displeasure to interact with a few of those folks as well. I look forward to the next parts as well.Like I have said before, it is now up to the black community to work toward solving the problems within their culture instead of looking for others to blame. Black on black crime is part of it, but there is also a disdain toward becoming educated, as other blacks may call you an "Uncle Tom" for "talking white". Can't wait for your next installment, THANKS!!
feenix,
You are talking over a couple of heads here. Granting special privileges and protections to a select class of people is another way of saying that they are incapable of making it on their own. It's a a racist, low expectations, pat on the head.
The nation as a whole, and all segments of the population would be far better off without such programs at the federal and state levels. We should administer to the truly needy only at city and county levels. Put everyone else on notice that they are both capable and expected to make it on their own.
So much needed to be changed. I agree the result is not what one would wish for and not what most fought for. Heartbreaking things happened and are still happening. Why? Because love and compassion are still missing.
Hi feenix, interesting article and I wanted to weigh in.
You said: Today, the vast majority of Americans believe that the Civil Rights Movement and all that was gained through it are the best things that ever happened for the nation’s black society.
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I would have to say that CRM is one of the best things that have occured in regards to the black community. It did not solve every problem, but to allow us to begin to solve problems that only we could solve, it was necessary foundation.
As far as I am concerned, until the CRM, the Dred Scott decision, a century before Rosa Parks, was pretty much the way the country operated in regards to Blacks. This was a "Dred Scott" nation. It did not matter how hard you worked, it could be all burned down, lynched, and utterly destroyed with impunity by the other side out of simple jealousy. Without basic protections, what is the point of trying to build anything?
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Well, I have a different take on things. I believe that the massive black struggle of 1955 to 1964, or the Civil Rights Movement, caused black society to go backwards instead of forward. The long procession of public demonstrations against segregated schools, communities, businesses and other facilities only caused blacks to squander vast amounts of resources on the pursuit of a “dream” that was both impossible and unnecessary to achieve.
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I don't blame the CRM as a cause of our going backward because as I said before it was essential to establish a foundation of basic rights before we had any hope of progress. The CRM is not an impediment. The shortcomings of our community are not because of the CRM. No one has told us to ignore the value of education, self reliance, and civil behavior because of the fact we have CRM. It is a lot like "George Jefferson" or the guy that wins a lotto ticket, does than mean that you really know how to properly use the resources suddenly made available? Now that the chains have been removed from our ankles, they must also be removed from our minds. I have lived on Indian reservations and seen the pattern of self destructive behavior prevalent, even though they receive federal compensation for resources that the Government uses. They are the only minority outside of our own that seem to have these problems on a massive scale. I do not claim to know, but it all runs much deeper than what appears on the surface and certainly needs to be rooted out before progress is possible.
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Hey, that’s not true, you may be thinking. If not for the Civil Rights Movement, blacks would not have gained equal voting rights and they would still be fair game for white lynch mobs.
Once again, I must say that I have a different take on things.
"So far as blacks having equal voting rights, they might as well be living under a one-party dictatorship. The group votes only for Democrats and it is allowing “African-American leaders” and socialist white liberals to call all of the shots for them."
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The point here, feenix, is that I have a choice. I can decide. You are not being disenfranchised or coerced. It is up to us to think for ourselves and make our own decisions based on what each of perceives is the better course. If we are being mislead then we are the ones that are making that choice and can choose to make a different choice. This is always preferable.
As always feenix, best wishes and I will see you around the hubs! Cred2
50 Caliber, yes back in the 1850s, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that blacks were 3/5 human beings. However, the 14th Amendment wiped that out.
Sheri, thank you for your comment and support. I knew you would understand the point I am trying to make.
Will, your most recent comment is a grand-slam homerun. In just a few paragraphs, you said what it took me a whole hub to say.
Credense2, I was beginning to worry. I was thinking the worst, like maybe you had been kidnapped by a bunch of beautiful ladies in hula skirts.
And do you know something, my friend? You remind me of Mr. Walker, my 10th grade English teacher. I mean, like, that dude used to really take apart my attempts at writing. Similar to what you do, he would critique each of the paragraphs I wrote.
Well, feenix, nice to be missed. As for the hula girls, I would not be so lucky! Or as far as my critiques, I want to stay organized and not lose a train of thought. As you say, we aging sages have to take it a bit more gently.
Credense2, it warmed my heart when I saw that you had finally arrived here.
And by the way, Mr. Walker is my all-time favorite teacher. Because of him, I gained a deep love for reading and a strong desire to be a writer.
feenix, in my opinion, you missed the mark in directing your criticism at the civil rights movement and legislation. You could be more persuasive if instead you had examined LBJ's "war on poverty" and "great society" and the effects of the welfare dependencies they created on black families. I don't know enough about it to state an opinion, but many others have pointed to welfare as a factor in many of the inner city problems. Excessive criminal sentences in the "war on drugs" for possession and use, as I mentioned above, also unfairly stigmatized large numbers of blacks amd contributed to the problems which you have mistakenly attributed to the civil rights revolution and legislation. Deficiencies in public schools are also a big factor in the equation. School achievement correlates quite closely with family income and resources devoted to education.
feenix
rated this up, awesome and useful.
I always felt that the government was the biggest racist of them all. They are the ones that want to know the race of everyone. Why should that be important for them to know.
The Constitution sans amendments didn't address the race as a problem. They also didn't make any provisions for women either.
Strange when the colony states were the ones that forced the blue laws so that Sunday was a day of worship, and most of the stores were closed. Apparently the religious ones also didn't care about the women.
I agree with you that the government didn't wind up helping the blacks, and I believe that have made it so that the blacks didn't progress, as did the immigrants.
Foreign immigrants especially from Asia, the asians weren't treated that good here either, focus on education and getting good jobs. They have been in this country for a lot less time than the slaves, yet they have made progress that the blacks didn't.
Also time to remind the liberals here that the Democrats were the ones that forced the country into war over slavery, and they were also the reason that the CRA needed to be created in the first place.
Thanks
Thanks Ralph, Stu
Hi Feenix,
You are correct that the CRA was redundant. But the feds needed a shove to actually enforce the DOI and the Constitution. It's analogous to the state immigration laws that are coming on-board. If the feds were really doing their job, these laws would not be necessary.
Stu
Hi 50,
The original ratio in the Constitution was 3/5. But that was changed to 1/1 in an Amendment.
Stu
That lynching double murder - I'll have to get back later. I couldn't read past that with any degree of comprehension.
It might be better for Americans that our hatred isn't so often self loathing these days - we're only taking it out overseas instead.
Ralph Deeds, your slip is showing.
By telling me how I should think and what my views should be, you are demonstrating that, in your heart of hearts, you are a white supremacist.
You are showing that you believe that because I am black, my way of seeing and addressing things is inferior to yours. Or that because I am black, I am not as smart and logical as you are.
OpinionDuck, brilliant comment. Absolutely brilliant. I especially liked what you said about government always wanting break us down by race.
And thank you very much for your vote.
Wesman,
"We" don't have any self loathing; Obama loathes his own country. Our overseas adventures, which are propping up future satellites for Iran, are not the fault of the American people. It's the fault of an administration that hates its own country, and is on a perpetual apology tour to radical Shiite ideology. Obama even hires frontmen for radical Shiite groups to very sensitive posts in the administration, and uses taxpayer funds to support "community activities" of radical Shiite groups that are undoubtedly funneled to terrorists.
The sick reality is that Obama only views Sunni terror as a threat, because that has been the main source of terror against the US, so far. But Obama's pro-Shiite stance has cost us almost all of our historical allies - Israel, moderate Arab states, and central Europe, all of whom have been serious victims of Shiite terror.
When we need help, who'll be there for us?
NOBODY.
Stu
Stu, based on the way I see things, there was never anything to enforce.
In my opinion, I am not being denied my rights under the U.S. Constitution when various whites refuse to share a toilet stool with me.
Also, I am not dependent on government to protect me from angry white mobs. If a group of whites, or blacks for that matter, come after me, they do so at their own risk. I am always ready, willing and able to defend myself, even if it comes down to using a firearm to do so.
Dear feenix, I can't comment on American politics but I know the effects of governments treating immigrants like children. You keep on telling people they're at a disadvantage and it will become their raison d'etre. I believe you're on the side of the Angels, as my father likes to say.
Lizzie
Hello, lizzieBoo,
Thank you for your comment and it fits right in here. Unfortunately and similar to what you stated, government here in the U.S. has created, and is continuing to create, a whole society of helpless little pups that are dependent on government for nearly every aspect of their lives.
Things are getting so bad here that the country might have to change its national symbol to a statue that resembles the one in Rome of Romulus and Remus sucking on the teets of the female wolf.
Interesting take on this one. Blacks in the country had to do something to protest the inhumanity and hatred installing itself into the very society. It was the CRM or outright war. As I commented on your other hub, the most valuable thing the we lost in integration was control of our own economy. Civil rights didn't go far enough and it excluded access to the necessary capital to truly rebuild ALL of the community, not just an equal right to sit in a restaurant or a movie theatre. I can do more for unemployment with a business loan that the federal government can get done with 99 weeks of chump change. Job creation in this country is still very much a white thing and it didn't used to be that way. Young men couldn't work for their fathers with their pants pulled down past their behinds or they'd wear a boot in the shorts! I disagree with the premise that it was all a waste of time though. We just didn't go for the right stuff.
ElderYoungMan,
I will be the first to admit that my statement the Civil Rights Movement was a "waste of time, money and lives", was melodramatic. But I chose to say that in order to drive my point home.
And, besides, I was born and raised in Hollywood, so what do you expect? ;-)
(chuckle!)
True true. I've been know to be a bit on the intense side out here. ;-)
Will,
I'm glad you liked that.
ElderYoungMan,
You'll always be cool with me but just keep in mind that guys like you and me cannot afford to get to be too "intense".
You know, it's all about the hypertension thing.
Deep breaths! It's only an opinion ;-)
Wow. Hats off to you. New to Hubpages and checking out some hubs. Yours stood out and so did your comments in response to some readers.
Hello, ExLeftist,
First welcome to HubPages. Second, I am very pleased to have made your acquaintance.
And, yes, I really do stand out around here. ;-)
Picked up this site on google, pg 6. After reading your hub here, feenix, honestly , I found it to be mostly angry. Actually, deep-seated anger toward white people. In this regard, you are - IMO- a typical black male. Sorry to say, but nothing really interesting or informative in this hub.
Also, I have researched the alleged Mary Turner lynching and have found nothing to substantiate the veracity of the “story.” The New York Times archives and the 'Chronological History of the Negro’ (published 1969) makes no reference to the Mary Turner lynching. Nor do they make any mention of the “riot” in Valdosta, Georgia. Hmmm. Seems to be a load of fiction. I also checked the census for Valdostra, GA, for 1920. The population was apprx 9000 . About 900 were blacks. Today , there are apprx. 25,000 blacks in Valdostra, GA. Point is, that about 70% of Valdostra blacks MIGRATED there since 1920. And you want to infer that white people in Valdostra were so despicable and wicked? Doesn’t fit. Like I said, the riot and Mary Turner lynching appears to a tall-tale --to demonize white people (yawn).
As for the quote you attribute to Walter White, the ONLY sites that come up when I pasted that quote of yours in google search…were all YOUR sites feenix. Hmmm
Also, Walter White worked for the NAACP. He was not a newspaper reporter.
“Well, I have a different take on things. I believe that the massive black struggle of 1955 to 1964, or the Civil Rights Movement, caused black society to go backwards instead of forward. The long procession of public demonstrations against segregated schools, communities, businesses and other facilities only caused blacks to squander vast amounts of resources on the pursuit of a “dream” that was both impossible and unnecessary to achieve.”
The quote above is the only thing in your Hub I can agree with.
I have also created a web site on google chronicling black male predatory attacks on innocent white people since forced integration was created in 1964 (Violent Crimes: Black on White - White on Black). It‘s become quite popular. 1st page. If you want to immerse yourself in victimization … just google my site (over 2250 white victims --and adding more daily)
Oh.... This is going to be good!
Young man, looks like Feenix ain't white enough in spirit.
Feenix, so any white person who disagrees with you is a "white supremicist?" That's baloney.
S Leretseh,
Actually, when it comes to the account given in this article about the "Mary Turner Lynching," you leveled your attack on the wrong source.
You should advise the well-known black scholar, Lerone Bennett, Jr., and the highly-reputable publishing company, Penguin Books, of your findings.
As I stated at the beginning of this article, I obtained the information about the lynching from the book, "Before the Mayflower," written by Lerone Bennett, Jr. and published by Penguin Books, Baltimore, MD.
In fact, I quoted what was written in the book, word-for-word.
And that brings something to mind. Instead of merely "googling" the New York Times archives, why didn't you also look up "Before the Mayflower" and Lerone Bennett, Jr.?
Anyway, I have been writing on the internet from the 1990s to the present, and during that period, I have been "discredited" by your types on numerous occasions.
And do you know what? I accept attempts (like yours) to make me look bad as something that comes with the territory.
Oftentimes, fame is a bitch.
Hey, EYM,
I strongly suspect that "S Leretseh" works for the Obama campaign.
In fact, due to the fact that I am publishing a number of articles in which I am tearing Obama a new one -- and thousands of people have read them with more coming every day -- and also due to the fact that I am not through with Obama yet, I am going to catch a whole a lot of flack between now and November.
But I can deal with it. As a matter of fact, I thrive on being under siege.
Yo soy un guerro. I'm a warrior.
junko,
Because you are so "country," most of the time, I don't know what in the hell you are talking about.
Deeds,
I'll tell you what's baloney. It is your putting words into my mouth and trying to paint me as being something I am not.
The truth is, you are one of those bleeding-heart white liberals who believes that all negroes should be in love with you, because, after all, you have helped some of them get good jobs, and also because "some of your best friends are negroes."
And because I am not one of those grinning, tap-dancing "darkies" who is constantly heaping praise on you for being a "friend of the negro," you are desperately seeking ways to "neutralize" me.
S Leretseh,
I just did a little "googling" of my own, and discovered the following, which tells all about the "Mary Turner Lynching":
@Feenix-This guy is a bunch of angry wind. He showed up on my blog on the Greenwood OK massacre to explain to me how a murder justified the burning of the whole section of the city and all of the deaths that resulted as well. I still don't think he's figured out that nothing justifies what happened. It takes all kinds I suppose. @Junko-I could not have come up with a better challenge than these two. Hesterel is a paper thin dud though. It's too bad.
Yes Young man. I notice he deals in drive-bys and ambushies only, he have no intellectual stamina to engage in debate.
Ralph Deeds Level 6 Commenter 11 months ago
Yours is an extreme "minority" opinion not shared by many whites or blacks. What should blacks have done, kept their heads down and tolerated discrimination which was prevalent in the north as well as the south. You are focused on real problems in black inner city communities, but you ignore the great progress that many blacks and other minorities have made as a result of the civil rights revolution and laws passed as a result of courageous people like Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King and others. I participated in the civil rights revolution in a major U.S. corporation which had a long standing policy of non-discrimination but which had an equally long standing practice of discrimination. I witnessed and participated in the dramatic changes that occurred as a result of the revolution. In 1960 the company I worked for had exactly zero black secretaries, engineers or skilled tradesmen. In the headquarters the only blacks were a couple of elevator operators and a few janitors. Since then there have been several directors, quite a few vice presidents and plenty of engineers, secretaries, skilled tradesmen, accountants and managers. In my college class of 2,000 there were exactly two African Americans--one girl and one outstanding football player. As a result of the civil rights struggle and legislation the college began for the first time recruiting and admitting talented minorities until the percentage reached a level much closer to the level in the US population. Your conclusion is focused on problems which are real but not attributable to the revolution in civil rights but rather to poverty, drugs, white and black flight to the suburbs and other factors which have little or nothing to civil rights battles and legislation.