From the Mother of a Young Black Son

Until now, I have been silent because I have not been able to get my emotions in check since the Jordan Davis verdict.  Another young black child, with a promising future has been slaughtered at the hands of a white man, who claims he “felt” that his life was in danger of being harmed by a young black male.  All under the “Stand your ground” law which says that you can provoke an encounter and still use lethal means to defend yourself.  This is basically justified murder, which in some cases encourages an open season against the young black male. This law has a stark resemblance to the “Casual Killing Act of 1669, which states that a slave can be killed by his master, and that the slave’s death shall not be accompanied by a felony. Jordan and Trayvon are not the only children that have died in such “Stand Your Ground” cases.  In Florida alone at least 26 children or teens have fallen victim as result of this abominable law.

We are seeing this same scenario repeatedly, giving mothers of young black males the deep sense that their sons are no longer safe and that society has failed them. When my 14 year old walks out of the house every day to school I ask for God to shield him and we  pray that he returns safely and does not encounter someone who doesn’t agree with his choice of music and decides to do something about it, or someone that feels that because he is wearing a hoodie in the wrong neighborhood, like Trayvon Martin, that he’s “up to no good.” It is the Emmett Till case resurrected and replayed, again and again, like a scratched phonograph, just in different forms.

As a mother of a young black son, I need to know what to tell my child.  I cannot have him walking in fear, but at the same time I must prepare him for the reality that he could become a victim of “EWB” or Existing While Black. Instead of him focusing on things such as doing homework, playing sports, applying for college, enjoying time with friends his age, spending time with family, and having his first date with a girl, he has to focus on surviving on the streets and looking over his shoulder, every time he leaves the security of his own home. A piece of his innocence and childhood is stolen, just because of the color of his skin.

As I recently watched the ever so gracious 20/20 interview with Davis’s parents, who though they had done everything right, tell the story of how they endured sitting in their son’s trial only to result in a “hung jury” on the charge of murder, I literally sobbed. These are our children, and when one is slain, we all feel the pain, and a tiny piece of us is pinched away and mashed until it pulverized, never to be regained. No parent should have to smell and hold their child for the last time as they lay in coroner’s office, bloody from being murdered in cold blood. And no parent should have replace the usual discussion about the bird’s and the bee’s, with that of the possibility of being gunned down just because they are young, black and feared in this society.

It is obvious that one of the major dilemmas in this country is that we have fostered the thinking that black lives don’t matter.  The punishment for taking a black life does not parallel the punishment of killing a white individual. There are too many jurors who wish to remain neutral, because they don’t want to speak the truth about the overwhelming existence of racism.  It has quickly become a “moral dilemma”.  This nation has not reached the point of voicing the acknowledgement of racism because it is too” uncomfortable.” No one wants to return to that dark place, but in all actuality we are all here, in the dark, unable to see the hand in front of our face, almost full circle, and knee deep in the trenches of racism. It’s just in another model upgraded to Jim Crow 2.0 perhaps?  Most people desire to remain in neutral position.  However, we can no longer afford to remain neutral, because our children are dependant upon us speaking the truth and doing what is morally right by them.  According to Dante’s Inferno, the hottest places in hell are reserved for those who have been faced with a moral dilemma but made the decision to remain neutral.  Let’s begin to tell the truth about what is happening to our young black children.

Tonight and every night, I will hug my son, kiss him, and tell him that I love him. In addition, I will begin the healing process by telling him the truth with tenderness and empathy. It is what is owed to him and all children and it is what necessary in order for us to begin to regain their trust.

Thank You for Reading,

Angel_ahhh

Dear God,

Please help the children of this world.

They are hurt and hurting and are crushed beneath the weight of our insanity.

Please bless the children, and awaken us before it is too late.

Amen

~Mariane Williamson – Illuminated Prayers