This Is Bigger Than Me: A Call to Action

Last year if you would’ve asked me about my thoughts on Kaepernick kneeling during the national anthem, I would’ve given you a 20-page dissertation on racism, injustice, and police brutality. I would've premised my argument with a thorough discussion on patriotism and how it relates to sports, with the overall goal of making you FULL aware of your hypocrisy if you failed to respect his right to kneel. Trust me. By the time the conversation was over, you would’ve either loved me or hated me.

Today, it’s different.

Going around in circles and beating a dead horse, trying to explain to a fish why water is wet is just too much. It’s completely counterintuitive. It’s starting to look a lot like the “arguing with a fool” part that Proverbs warns "wise men" not to do (Proverbs 26:4). It's a waste of my time and I’m so incredibly beyond this phase.

Let me explain.

History speaks for itself. The cancer of injustice has eaten at the very heart of America ever since a group of European settlers illegally entered someone else's territory and chose to commit grand theft, capital murder, and aggravated kidnapping. No normal, thinking human being can refute that. Yet and still, modern history has proven that minority groups still get the short end of the stick while a lot of people choose to be ignorant to the distribution of that "stick."

As a young black woman, I identify heavily with the experience of living in America as a black American, understanding that the intersectionality of other socio-economic factors are at play, as well. My experience as a black American is different from other black Americans. As true as that is, there are certain inescapable truths that are consistent no matter which black individual you speak with. We all experience variations of racism in all of its forms.

It's always been like that.

As millennials in a world full of social media and immediate access to a plethora of information, we can finally censor ourselves from modern-day and historical realities, something that our ancestors (and by ancestors I mean our parents and grandparents...not too far removed from us) could not do. Lynching seems distant, police brutality is just another episode of Infotainment television, and “fighting” for justice is just another word for uploading a 10-paragraph response to a stupid person’s Facebook posts (*raises hand* I'm guilty).

We have to do better. We have to do more, but we also have to be conservative with our energy.

Let me be clear.

As an African American woman, I cannot afford to respond to every semblance of ignorant rhetoric. I cannot afford to give life to every dead thought that is spewed from a racist, demon-controlled, delusional individual. I cannot afford to become emotionally invested in dead conversations with a sour-individual who has all the time in the world to sit on a couch and dissipate hateful rhetoric. I cannot afford it. We cannot afford it.

The cost is too high.

Instead, take that time to educate yourself. Know what’s happening. Figure out how those in power keep justifying what they’re doing. Identify patterns. Don’t waste your energy on going back and forth with some random lay person that is easily persuaded by ignorance. It's a distraction (...and that's a sermon to myself before anybody else!)

There’s too much on the line.

My ancestors fought and endured every form of disgusting prejudice and physical assaults imaginable. I stand on the shoulders of great people who have fought for me to get here. I understand, now more than ever, that I’m here to keep running with the baton.

We've heard the references to Ecclesiastes 9:11...the race is not given to the swift nor to the strong but to the one that endures to the end. 

…and isn’t the story of African American history one of endurance?

How sweet it is to know that the blood of field workers is running through my veins. How sweet it is to know that God chose me to come through a bloodline of people who had enduring spirits that only God HIMSELF could gift. How sweet it is to know that I am birthed from a heritage of fighters and hard workers. How sweet it is to know that I get to author a chapter of an already acclaimed story of trials, faith, and triumphs.

Listen. I got stuff to do and I got a ways to go before I can just NOT respond. It's hard, but I can’t get caught up in emotionalism. You can’t get caught up in emotionalism.

Yes, it’s very angering to see that a lot of what our ancestors fought so hard to kill is still alive, but we can’t get caught up in that. We have to conserve our energy and redirect it to methods that will further the cause. We have to write books. We have to study. We have to start accountability groups. We have to teach our younger siblings what’s what. We have to become politically engaged. WE HAVE WORK TO DO!

It’s so much bigger than us and we have a part to play....all of us.

Our ancestors realized that they weren't just fighting for themselves. They weren't just fighting for their families. They were fighting for the little black kid they didn't know. They were fighting for the young black kid that hadn't even been born. They understood the key:

This is bigger than me.

We're now faced with the same challenges. The game hasn't changed. It's tough, but if you study the system and understand the complexities of our story, you'll find little codes that identify every move the "Trumps" of the world will make.

We've seen this all before and it’s past due for us to realize it.

We have work to do.