Watch “Hebrews 13:8” on YouTube

The Legacy of Martin Luther King

Martin Luther King is being honored today across the US. MLK is a trending topic on social media, news outlets are rehashing stories about the Civil Rights movement and publicizing community events to honor the fallen leader. Martin Luther King’s story is amazing and absolutely heroic. But I feel like his legacy is being tarnished and Whitewashed.

Martin Luther King was a man that was beaten and imprisoned because of his protests against a tyrannical White supremacist government. He was a Black man that fought for the rights of Black people and was surely motivated by concerns about the future of his own Black family. He put everything on the line and died for his people. His movement was successful and created real and positive changes for Black Americans.

But we in America still live in a White supremacist, European centered culture. Everything has to be not only accessible to Whites but centered around them. That is made very clear by the historical retelling of MLK’s life. He is said to be a man that wanted to bring the races together and bring about harmony in America. He is also portrayed as a Confucius like figure. I think that narrative is a lie to get White Americans to buy into his legacy.

First of all when you talk about race relations in America you need to think of hammers and nails. Whites are the hammers. Blacks are the nails. The hammers like to act as though there is an ongoing disagreement between two parties on equal footing. That has not been the case. Blacks have been getting hammered since the origins of this country and the Civil Rights movement just asked to give Blacks a break. Give them a shot at the chance to pursue happiness.

When mainstream media talks the accomplishments and goals of Dr. King they act as if he simply wanted Black and White people to hold hands and sing kumbaya together. He was not the simpleton that history and the mainstream media make him out to be. He was a freedom fighter for Black American people that had suffered centuries of oppression in the US.

He fought for displaced people that did not truly have a country of their own. He fought for descendants of African slaves that were prisoners of this country. Dr. King did not fight and die simply so Blacks could have White friends or land a date with a non Black person which is the story that is being sold across the world today through the American media and American public schools.

The same thing has happened to Nelson Mandela. He was a brave freedom fighter that fought for Black people in South Africa and won basic rights. Mandela is also being marketed as a Black man that dreamed of a rainbow nation and wanted to bring about so called racial reconciliation. This version of history is a lot easier for White people to digest because they are not confronted with their own past.

Since Donald Trump was elected as president in the US I have observed that the media sympathizes with racist notions that affirm White supremacy. The media typically portrays Whites as heroes or victims. The stories of the Civil Rights movement can not be accurately told and still portray Whites as heroes or victims. So the truth is being rewritten.

This disingenuous retelling of history is damaging to all Americans. There is no way that White supremacist ideas will ever change if they are not confronted. White Americans refuse to do the soul searching necessary to bring about the cultural changes necessary to bring about the racial reconciliation that they pay lip service to every year.

It’s also dangerous to Black people because it gives them the message that your prosperity lies in other communities. Most African Americans do not really want to be independent from White tyranny and they don’t believe that Black communities can be self sufficient. The bogus retelling of history reinforces the notion that Black people need other communities, especially Whites to survive.

I’m very unsure of what is being taught in American schools today. But I urge everyone to seek out information on the American Civil Rights movement. Remember to focus your attention of the Black community because those are primarily the people that stood up to American authoritarianism and made modest gains in order to improve their lives, communities and the futures of their children. As a Black American woman I am grateful for their struggle.

MGTOW

A few months ago I ran across MGTOW pages on You Tube. MGTOW is an acronym for Men Go Their Own Way. I don’t consider myself to be a feminist so I listened to what these men have to say with an open mind. These men make some valid points in their videos.

I do believe that feminism has given some women unrealistic expectations of life and of men. I have observed women being very selfish and demanding in relationships. These women have grown up being told they are worth it and they are princesses by companies that want to sell fantasies to women. I also don’t think that society respects decent men the way it should.

I had the experience of working in the jewelry retail business for about eight years on a part time or full time basis. I observed a lot of self entitled, selfish, materialistic and delusional behavior while I was in that business. I understand why some men decide to not marry or date women.

However, after running across enough MGTOW videos I came to realize that these men were just making excuses to hate women and they themselves were quite delusional. First of all, if a person decides they don’t want to be bothered with someone or something they just quietly walk away from it and go on with their life. They do not form a band of brothers and focus on the people that they claim to not want to be around. MGTOW is obsessed with women and they see women as enemies. They don’t focus on having satisfying lives as single men.

And these men have not actually walked away. Time and time again I heard MGTOW use the term pump and dump. So they are actually involved with women enough to sleep with them. They must be hooking up on dating websites or bars in a string of one night stands or they are lying to women long enough to sleep with them and not speak to them again. They claim to be successful men however all this pumping and dumping sounds like a lot of time consuming, life complicating work to me.

MGTOW has a very strange obsession with youth. They believe that they become more valuable with age and women become less valuable. When I say they are interested in young women I mean very young. MGTOW thinks that women are over the hill by the time they are twenty five. I have read many You Tube comments where men in their forties prefer to date nineteen year olds and men in their fifties date women in their mid twenties.

I understand being attracted to youth and beauty. However it usually takes youth and beauty get it. I hate to break it to you fellas out there but women are attracted to youth as well. If you are a mature person think back to when you were twenty and how old you thought thirty was. I was not interested in men that old when I was very young and I don’t think most women are unless the man is super charming, uncommonly attractive for his age or unless there is a financial incentive.

But wait, I thought MGTOW men didn’t like women that are gold diggers! It sounds to me that these men waste their young years when they have the opportunity to organically and without complications win over a young bride and wait until they are old men to try and date someone that wants a sugar daddy.

When I hear of old movie or rock stars in their sixties dating much younger women and having more children I figure that they are smart enough men to know the game. They are trading money for youth and beauty and the opportunity to have more children. I don’t think any of those men think that their young lovers would be by their side if it wasn’t for the money and prestige. There are indeed May-December romances that are true love but it’s not the norm. And even if the man is not wealthy he probably still is generous with his money and indulges his young girlfriend in exchange for her attention and affection. At least I hope so. If she’s not she’s not too smart.

MGTOW men make it a point to explain to people why they are single. Perhaps some women just chose not to marry or just never found what they wanted in a partner. I am forty three and there are opportunities for relationships for women my age however there is not a lot of incentive to start the relationship.

It’s not likely that I will be starting a family at this point unless it was through adoption. And there are so many more variables to consider in relationships as you get older. Careers are more developed, there are children, grandchildren, aging parents and health issues. Everyone has baggage and it gets heavier with age.

People have joked about cat ladies but has anyone said they are unhappy? They are not the ones on You Tube complaining. If anything they are just enjoying themselves and watching cat videos. Perhaps spinsters decided to go their own way long ago and quietly go about their lives which is what MGTOW needs to do.

MGTOW’s ugly behavior over shadows any of the valid points they have. And the attraction that these middle aged men have for teenagers makes them pretty darn shady. They are a bit delusional about the women they have access to as they age. I wrote a piece once about the number one rule of dating. That is people date and marry their equivalent or there is a trade off of some sort i.e. wealth for youth and beauty. I respect anyone’s choice not to marry and or have children male or female. But it’s your choice.

Golden Tate

I was born and raised in the metro Detroit area and I became a football fan because of the Detroit Lions. They are one of the least successful teams in the entire NFL but they will always have a soft spot in my heart. If it wasn’t for them I don’t know if I would enjoy football today. Golden Tate was one of their star players over the last few years. He was surprisingly traded last season to the Philadelphia Eagles and they made a good run for another Superbowl appearance but they fell short against the Saints.

I can’t say that I have ever been a fan of Golden Tate particularly. If he wasn’t a key player on one of my teams I don’t think I would know him. But today I feel close to him and it’s because of this quote.

I have never played a sport competitively. I haven’t played sports for recreation much either. But I do know what it is like to feel like you have payed dues and you are ready for success. I also understand the fear that time is slipping away until you are in a different stage in your life and you may never have the opportunity to realize your dreams.

Golden Tate is only thirty which is young by most accounts. But as a professional athlete especially in a rough sport and playing a very physical position someone like his is more aware of time than most of us.

We all go through up and downs in life but after learning lessons, having false starts and paying dues you are ready for success. Whether it be a Superbowl ring, your own career success or relationship success you continue to work towards it and hope for the best. You run out of patience for situations that have little potential or that have a very uncertain outcome.

As you get older you become smarter and you learn what to look for in various situations. You’ve learned what red flags to look for that may make something a bad investment in your time and you’re not afraid to say no thank you and walk away never to look back again. As you get older you learn to value your time and even more important your energy. You become laser focused and you learn to assert yourself and ask for what you want.

My advice to anyone that is young that is reading this is to learn these lessons early and focus on whatever goals and targets you have. There will be distractions, dead ends and detours but don’t waste your time on things that you don’t really want. The most important thing to do is to learn what that is.

Youth offers opportunities that maturity often times does not. That is a failing of Western society. But even if your goals are not youth oriented like winning a Superbowl ring keep in mind that we all have limited time. Have a goal, make a plan and figure out how to get there while time is on your side.