Part 1
I was born in 1937. It is now 2013
Thru-out my years of living, I have been called
Colored, Negro, Black, and African American.
And I personally cared less about what others
called me, as long as they called me for dinner.
During my lifetime, and despite all the tension
between Blacks and Whites, I could not develop
a hateful attitude toward all White people
based on the negative experiences
of my ancestors and/or other Black people.
After all, I went to school with White people.
I always lived and worked with and around White people.
I respected them, they respected me in return.
IMO! The mindset of too many Black people
in my community was anti-White people,
so I knew I had to develop me a mindset of my own.
Here’s my story about how I gave myself a “mind-set” make-over.
MY BLACK AND ME
Part 2
Me, Myself and I, we took a simple 3-step approach.
STEP 1 …
I included in my perception of White people these “4 truths”:
1 … Before and during Slavery times,
there were the “good” White people,
and there were the “bad” White people.
At the same time, there were the “good” Black
people and there were the “bad” Black people.
2 … The “bad” people, both Black and White,
were responsible for Slavery and Jim Crow evils.
3 … The “good” people, both Black and White,
were responsible for trying to, and ending
Slavery and Jim Crow sins.
4 … Now-a-days we are all privileged to enjoy the
progresses the “good” people, both Black and White,
have made to produce equality for Black African
American citizens, and they still continue to work at it.
STEP-2 …
Once I included the Black man’s share of the blame for
the Black man’s misfortunes into my thought process,
well, instead of feeling bitter because some White men
didn’t like me, I felt inspired to be a “better me”.
STEP-3 …
Being a “better me” included closely looking at the
“man in the mirror”and asking questions, such as …
Am I one of the “good” people?
Am I part of the problem?
Am I all that I can be?
Am I good at what I do?
Do my mistakes hurt others?
Do I always play fair?
Do I always make good decisions?
Can I do better?
And so on …
Those questions made me understand
how to treat others who had imperfections
because I had imperfections too.
My self-evaluation also taught me that I
should learn to earn the respect, the
favors, the goodwill, etc, that I wanted
from other human beings.
Yes, I realized that I could learn to earn it!
So I started practicing my earning techniques on
my own family, in my own hood, simply by ….
STRIVING TO BE ALL THAT I COULD BE WHILE TREATING
OTHERS THE SAME WAY I WANTED TO BE TREATED.
It worked pretty good. Just as I planned it, I earned myself
satisfied respect from the Black man and the White man, and
I continue trying to earn it today.
Sincerely,
Ms Ruth, 01/12/01
Non Angry Chocolate Chick 