An Apology–What Happened to the 40 Acres and a Mule?
By APOOO • Jul 30th, 2008 • Category: Thinking Out Loud •
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Black folks are on the minds of folks lately. Lets see, in June, Obama got the Democrats nod for Presidential nominee. Last week over 2MM folks watched Blacks in America. This week the House of Representatives issues an apology.
The Cohen resolution does not mention reparations. It does commit the House to rectifying “the lingering consequences of the misdeeds committed against African-Americans under slavery and Jim Crow.”
The House “apologizes to African-Americans on behalf of the people of the United States, for the wrongs committed against them and their ancestors who suffered under slavery and Jim Crow.” …..
It says that Africans forced into slavery “were brutalized, humiliated, dehumanized and subjected to the indignity of being stripped of their names and heritage” and that black Americans today continue to suffer from the consequences of slavery and Jim Crow laws that fostered discrimination and segregation.
I don’t know about you, but as for me, who is this apology for? Is it to make black folks stop complaining about racism in America? Or, is it to make white folks feel good? Am I supposed to jump up and down and say, ‘thank you Mr. Charley for acknowledging that your ancestors tormented, harmed, killed, stole and mistreated my ancestors?’ Am I supposed to accept this apology and forgive you and your ancestors for treating animals better than you treated my grandparents, great-grandparents, great-great–grandparents and the list goes on. Does this apology speak for the racist bastard that vandalized my home–not once-but twice–and never apologized? Honestly what does an apology do for me?
Can I take it to the bank and make good on all the back pay owed to my ancestors for working for you for FREE FOR over 200 YEARS? Can I make claim to the 40 acres and a mule that was promised but later reneged on? Or can I finally ask for reparations?
Hmmm…just what exactly is this apology worth…is it even worth the paper that it’s written on?
Oh–and is it just me or–does anyone else find it suspect that the same week the House is issuing an apology, McCain stated that affirmation action should be banned.
McCain backed a proposed amendment to the Arizona Constitution that would ban “preferential treatment” on the basis of “race, sex, color, ethnicity or national origin.”
“I do not believe in quotas,” McCain said on ABC’s This Week With George Stephanopoulos. “But I have not seen the details of some of these proposals. But I’ve always opposed quotas.”
CLICK HERE to read more about McCain.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
APOOO wants to know what are your thoughts on ‘the apology.’
Will it make a difference for black folks living in America?
What about the timing? Does it seem suspect? Does anyone wonder or question why at the same time that the House is issuing an apology…McCain supports an affirmative action ban? In other words, does the apology mean okay we admitted it…now can we move forward and get rid of preferential treatment since we’ve placated you people apologized now.
Do you even care? Why or why not?
Share your thoughts.
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Ten years ago Clinton visited Africa and apologized for slavery. This represented a relaxation and an awareness of teh issue of the ages. I believe that the Congressional apology to African Americans has a place, which support reparations, in some form. Before a court case can be won, one or the other has to be found guilty or admit guilt.
After the Second Woorls War, many Jewish family memebrs were entitled to reparations of their family wealth. Some of this wealth had been held by CitiBank, and Chase among others, and teh interest rates had increased small amounts into vast treasures. My family it has been found is from the Durant Plantation in South Carolina. I was able to find this out within the past several years. An apology opens the door, and we must do the rest.
You laugh because it seems un-doable, but the Jewish families did it and remember Alex Haley, was the first to determine his family tree, and now it is available to us all.
myspace.com/originalwriter
The timing kills me.
This ‘apology” coming around the time when a strong possibility of a Black U.S. president, plus the affirmative action ban of McCain – who is still calling Obama an elitist (NOW McCain compares Obama to Brittany Spears and Paris Hilton and naming specific foods the man eats(arugula, expensive dark chocolate, etc.)…
This apology is thin to me because with everything going on and the fact that diversity is highly visible now more than ever, they are trying to be ’safe.’
“Black folks are on the minds of folks lately. Lets see, in June, Obama got the Democrats nod for Presidential nominee. Last week over 2MM folks watched Blacks in America. This week the House of Representatives issues an apology.”
Don’t forget about this month’s issue of the All Black edition of the Italian Vogue only after umteen decades of Black models.
But seriously, apologies doen’t mount to a hill of beans when it comes to Jim Crow, slavery, racism and discrimination. Show me the money, the mule, and the land! THEN and ONLY THEN will an apology be accepted and forgiven.
Our ancestors are owed their dues for building up this country. Not only where they not paid and beatened like animals during slavery, but, then white america had the nerves to treat them like the plague when slavery was abolished? Oh hell no! An apology alone will not do. This “nonbinding symbolic” gesture means NADDA, and I hope Black folks will not sit back and simply say “ok all is forgiven”.
I’m speechless. The first “biracial” presidential nominee has literally been attacked by every name in the book. Then they decide to give an apology. What are you apologizing for? Then decide to ban “affirmative action”. It sounds like hypocrisy to me. You’d be a fool to ignore the unfair treatment received by blacks. Again…this is who they want to be our President because they’d hate to see someone of a brown complexion in the seat.
This election has nothing to do with color. True, it’ll make history to see a man of color as the first black President. However, this election means life to North America. Bush and his greed for more wealth has ended many young lives for the sake of changing government elsewhere. Instead they’ve forgotten the importance of government in our continent. Mccain will be the signature on the death certificate for our country. This is why it’s important for those who believe in a change to register to vote. For every name that they’ve called Barack, is what Mccain is guilty of. He’s an elitist. He feels superior over those who don’t fit his description.
Overall, this doesn’t surprise me. A man such as Mccain would show his true colors in the midst of a lie. Do we deserve reparations or an apology? Yes we do. They’ve given the apology. To ask for repartations is lunacy. They’re not gonna give us a thing if we don’t demand it. We’re dealing with greedy politicians that don’t care about anyone, especially black people. They’ve been taught their entire lives to hate us.
Don–I’m not laughing and we can trace our family history on my father’s side of the family. My great-great-grandfather…a plantation owner…made sure his ‘half breed’ kids got their due…and they’ve been prospering ever since.
Lisa–I agree SAFE!
T. Avery–Sis I’m feeling you about this non-binding symbolic gesture. Puhleeze. Oh and I’m blogging at that Italian Vogue also…you know I’ve got something to say about it…lol.
Kourtney–So true:
What ya’ll said !!!!!
Hey Linda!
this just in…
Ludacris has a new rap song/video praising Obama while calling hillary a bitch, gw bush mentally retarded and mccain a paralyzed something…they blast clips on Larry King Live a few moments ago. I was in another room, I did not even bother to walk in the room where the tv was…
Lisa that’s just crazy!
Hey Yasmin,
I was leaving a comment about this on Bev’s page. As I have said before this apology isn’t gonna change race relations in America. Only home training and changing the way people think will do that. As far as suspect is concerned, I don’t know about that. McCain is full of shyt anyway and I don’t believe a word that comes out of his mouth.
All I could think of was the statement that Chris Rock made during one of his comedy bits. He said(and I’m paraphrasing here) that to Black folk, America is like an Uncle who molested you as a kid then later on paid for you to go to college. We are doomed to this love/hate relationship.The damage has been done. An apology is simply a statement that doesn’t mean anything unless there are actions behind it. It will take generations to erase the mental damage that has been inflicted upon the African-American community, and the sense of entitlement that Whites hold.. Unless America is invested in changing the mind sets of both Black and Whites, and all who fall in between, nothing will come of it. It has taken us hundreds of years to get to this point it will take just as long to get to any true healing.
Dayum but true. And Raven I feel you on the hundreds of years…unfortunately not much is going to change during our lifetime…but then again as I look back and realize that I was born on the tail end of segregation (ain’t that a blip), came of age during integration, and that my grandparents saw things happen that made them marvel and wonder…just maybe anything is possible…
xoxo
Drea–yep hatred begins at home…but so can love…maybe folks will practice more of the latter.
An apology is only good if sincere but you know what? I’m not holding my breath, As far as reparations, I never bought into being compensated monetarily (is that a word?)
One time I heard one of my genealogy members say that genealogy can be so expensive and that they need to open the records up to us, black people and we shouldn’t have to pay for all the stuff we need to find out about our history. I listened, I didn’t have much to say, kind of pondered, didn’t know if I agreed. But a couple of months ago, this woman came to the genealogy meeting and said she and her cousins went to stay in the plantation house in Virginia that her ancestor lived and worked on, that is now and Bed & Breakfast. The newspaper did a story ane the white family of their surname, former slaveowners descendants, came out to mee them and gave them so many documents, stuff she had been looking for. I got an ephiany in the meeting. That is reparations! Giving us our history. White families are sitting on goldmines with letters, slave schedules, wills, birth, death and marriage documents. So, apology is nice but give me my history.
I’m a capitalist and a business major…and while I have my own…I have always been pro-reparation…even have a lot to say on the issue…but right now I don’t have the time to debate it…maybe I will do a blog on it one day. Stay tuned. LOL.
Personally, I’m unimpressed. Every few years or so, the American government or one of its number apologizes to people of color for something. Racism continues, thrives healthily, is even avidly preserved, and yet despite all these apologies, nothing is actually DONE.
Ankhesen there are some folks who have received apologies and reparations–Native Americans have casinos…and Japanese Americans who were held in concentration camps doing the 40s also received restitution.