s, Ogden, Utah, defying expectations. These are the ten young women that joined Coach C. Vivian Stringer in the NCAA championship game earlier this month. An improbable story of persistence, hard work and hope. The joy of their moment in the sun was robbed by the vicious words of Don Imus.Yesterday, Imus enjoyed his white privilege to say and do anything that he wanted with impunity. Today, Imus feels the pain of his words.
Imus now understands that there are consequences for actions.
Many are calling for a national debate on race relations. Perhaps the debate can begin with the recognition that there are always consequences for actions (or non-action). Women Walking in Wisdom blog shared a poem on her blog from a young Black girl expressing her views about Imus’ commentary in the form of a powerful poem. You can see the pain and anger in her message. I invite villagers to slow down for a moment to read this poem.
Let the national debate on race relations begin. What are your comments on the poem? On a larger scale ... how do you think we can engage one another here in the blogosphere on this discussion about race relations?Violent
By Yvonne EspinozaWe’re violent because this is all we know
You taught us this along time ago
We’re violent because you made us this way
You beat us naked, you hung our people,
Raped our kids and stripped us of our pride
And you now wanna ask why?
Give us a reason not to be
You can’t, it’s impossible
Because to give us a reason, you’d have to right all the wrong you’ve done
But you can’t and if you could then
You’ve only just begun
You’d have to beg for mercy, plead and cry
You’d have to feel the pain we felt
The pain that took lives
You go through the hardships,
The trials and tribulations,
The suffering, the heartache, the dying babies
You sit on a boat full of hundreds of sick,
Old people living to die
How about you dance to make money
Look ignorant on t.v.
Go to jail for nothing
Harassed because others don’t like what they see
Have your people get beat to death
By those who get paid to protect
You eat trash to survive
How about you watch your people and babies die
Get sold for a dime
Kill themselves because they don’t want to live this life
We went through it then and we go through it now
And you know it’s true, and you still ask why?
How dare you have the audacity
Who made you king?
Despite common belief and despite what you think
There is only one king, one God
And he walks with me, with us
The ones who were forced to live in grief
Who were cut, killed, raped and beat
Like animals, brainwashed to think like you
You hacked away, pulled and dragged us down
Until we didn’t want to be Black or Brown
We didn’t want to be Colored or Negroes
We wanted to be High, Suddity, White Folk
We thought if we looked, smelled, and act like you
We could live a regular life, and though we tried
You still continued to beat and lay us out
To hang us from our necks, to laugh at our bodies
You could never blame us for being this way
Because you taught us violence
So how dare you think of forming any kind of alliance
Now we know that two wrongs don’t make a right
But since we have none,
Why should we spare your life?
It’s your fault for all of this
And if you didn’t teach us violence
Then who did?
It couldn’t have been us
Because, remember, we’re ignorant!
You should be careful what you say
Because your words have power
Say it enough and it’ll come true…
I know you’ve heard of karma
God have mercy on you.
