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You gotta understand what finding out the real history if America is like for black ppl. Before that NOTHING MAKES SENSE.
Remember that we are also fed the same bullshit about how noble and good America has always been. You know, except for that one thing...
Most black ppl in the south where I grew up at least knew how heinous slavery was. I’ve heard about people learning it “wasn’t that bad”.
But in school we would talk about the poor conditions of slaves without linking it to the conscious decisions if white ppl.
Slavery was just “how things were”. Nobody’s fault. Except perhaps a few evil men who started the trade. Nobody asked them to of course.
The conscious decisions of white ppl didn’t come into play until the movement to end slavery. They suddenly realized it was wrong.
And then we should proud of Lincoln and them because they freed us. But also don’t be mad at the South, cause... reasons.
This is the actual message we are given as children. It makes no fucking sense. We KNOW this. But it’s hard to find answers in your own.
When you find out the real history, things fall into place pretty quickly. But you’re left with a massive campaign of active deceit.
We know that we are capable of holding ppl accountable for their immoral actions. We all learn how evil Hitler’s Germany was.
So basically we understand that America has *chosen* not to blame anyone for what it did to us. Again, conscious decision from white ppl.
And we know it’s an active choice because it requires work. Not least of which is the pervasive campaign of historical coverup.
So when you hear us talk about how America is terrible and Whiteness is dangerous, it’s not just words.
This is not an abstract thing. White supremacy actively chooses to destroy ppl. It always has. It’s still happening today.
Keep this context in mind when you think about what we’ve done to the Middle East in your lifetime.
Watch what’s happening in Puerto Rico. Listen to our Muslim friends when they talk about what they’re going through.
White supremacy is still pervasive and we are still subject to it’s ravages. White ppl in power today are capable of all of this.
This is why black people don’t trust a lot of what we’re promised. And why we are always prepared for things that might seem “far-fetched”.
This is why we told you that if we weren’t vigilant, that Trump could win. Trump is the latest in a long history of dangerous Whiteness.
I’ve struggled with this for a long while. I’m also susceptible to the concerted effort to make people believe these things are unlikely.
We’re meant to hear “collusion with Russia” as conspiracy theory. We’re meant to assume nobody would really enact massive voter suppression.
But slavery actually happened. Jim Crow actually happened. Redlining actually happened. These things are not far-fetched.
Nothing is far-fetched when it comes to White Supremacy and what it will do to preserve it’s dominance.
How would we approach politics today if we all understood and accepted the full history of what Whiteness is capable of?
