Why We Are Here

As a middle aged middle income southern white male, I have lived a mostly sheltered and entitled life. Life hasn’t been easy. I am middle class only somewhat and only recently, but I have earned at least double the minimum wage most of my life, and sometimes several times that figure. But I have never, not one day in my life had to fight to the fight for a good life with the challenge a Black man faces, every day, every moment, because he was born with dark skin.

As someone who grew up in and around Montgomery, Alabama during the 1960s-1980s, I knew of incidents and anecdotes about horrors that occurred to Black folks, especially in the bad old days. But I knew things were much better by the 1970s. They even created a national holiday for Black folks. Yep, I was very happy we had a MLK Day, though except for the short period I worked as a government employee, I was never given the day, and most places let Black employees off, if they wanted to use a personal day…..

Then we elected a Black president, and my entitled white heart was overjoyed. Not only because on merits alone President Obama is, and was one of the best most decent, and smartest person’s to ever hold that office, but because of what it said about America, and how most of us were truly moving towards a more perfect union.

I knew of the garbage a small section of the public spewed about our president and about race, but they were certainly in the minority.

Then Trayvon Martin was murdered, and then Michael Brown, and then Freddie Gray, and then, and then, and then it got to the point where I had to listen to some of my Black friends who said, in so many ways, we were not better off than in 1954, maybe not better than 1854. I hope they are overstating the case. But the truth is, America is a dangerous place to be a person of color, even in 2016.

I care a great deal about human life, by it several cops gunned down in Dallas, be it hundreds of Black people gunned down every year in this country. I care for them, and I care for us, U.S. We need, in fact, we MUST become better than this. We need every living breathing man, woman and child to be able to contribute to their fullest to meet the challenges of the next 100 years.

We cannot achieve the greatness we must, if nearly half of America goes to sleep every night not knowing if a cop will kill them or their child. We must stop the barbaric existence, NOW, not later. Of course 90% of the fight will have to come from Black people fighting for their rights, but the 10% we white people can offer is critical. A large number of white people must stand up and say:

“This will not stand!”

Without this, it will be hard to stop this reign of terror that stretches back to 1865.

That is why we are here. We hope that is why you are here. If enough of us raise our voices, this will stop.

If you have any thoughts or suggestions on how we can be more effective, you can reach us at: checkerswhite4color@gmail.com, or better yet post it as a response i the blog so more people can see it.