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vicarzUrgh - just cut out of a "Juneteenth" presentation. Fo yooz white folk - Juneteenth is the celebration of the arrival of troops in Galveston, TX, 2.5 years AFTER slaves were supposedly free, to enforce the law. It seems like an angry 'celebration' to me, noting the difference between the history books and reality.
The presentation was kinda cool - but as usual religious overtones abound. I'm left with a series of incomplete thoughts.
I perceive the whole thing, the celebration, as a very negative thing. At the same time I think it's valuable to hang on to negativity. You remember the pain that preceded your life, that formed you, the pain you want to prevent others having to suffer. If you forget, white-wash, and move on - you face the dangers in the future. At the same time, just living in the past and dwelling on the negative prevents you from dealing with realities today - tainting everything with anger. Yesterday's sins do not justify today's - though they might help explain them.
Once again god is laced throughout every song, church is laced through the mannerisms. God? God is the one who allowed people to be put into slavery in the first place. It's insane to me that the slaves took on the gods of their captors. It's insane that god is always the strength of the underclass, of the downtrodden. In the middle-east, god is the reason it's cool to kill civilians based on where they are from. God justifies blowing up people in supermarkets. God is the root of all evil in the world today, right? Isn't evil just god's hand-puppet? Why do people who 'lose in life' cling to god? Hasn't he failed them - shouldn't they move on? There are other gods! If there is one god, there are other ways of worship, other thoughts and theories about its nature. There is reality and science, the absence and flat-out rejection of god. There is humility in theory, learning to live with amigbuity and theory as well. Ugh, god everywhere. God is anger and rejoicing...it makes no sense to me.
Negativity can be a source of culture strength. I like the 'salad' (each distinct taste makes the whole better) analogy of the US better than the 'melting pot' (everyone blend in to form one whole with no distinctions) concept. I like the differences between blacks, whites, hicks, urban, hispanics, but then again I don't. It's fun playing with the differences, but some people get too wrapped up in them. Identity shouldn't be just your sub-culture, but then again it seems to me it should be some part. It's funny finding that balance where your subdivision matters enough to be a strength, but not so much it's a hinderance.
Never mind that I feel funny being the only 'white guy' in a room of black people.
The presentation was kinda cool - but as usual religious overtones abound. I'm left with a series of incomplete thoughts.
I perceive the whole thing, the celebration, as a very negative thing. At the same time I think it's valuable to hang on to negativity. You remember the pain that preceded your life, that formed you, the pain you want to prevent others having to suffer. If you forget, white-wash, and move on - you face the dangers in the future. At the same time, just living in the past and dwelling on the negative prevents you from dealing with realities today - tainting everything with anger. Yesterday's sins do not justify today's - though they might help explain them.
Once again god is laced throughout every song, church is laced through the mannerisms. God? God is the one who allowed people to be put into slavery in the first place. It's insane to me that the slaves took on the gods of their captors. It's insane that god is always the strength of the underclass, of the downtrodden. In the middle-east, god is the reason it's cool to kill civilians based on where they are from. God justifies blowing up people in supermarkets. God is the root of all evil in the world today, right? Isn't evil just god's hand-puppet? Why do people who 'lose in life' cling to god? Hasn't he failed them - shouldn't they move on? There are other gods! If there is one god, there are other ways of worship, other thoughts and theories about its nature. There is reality and science, the absence and flat-out rejection of god. There is humility in theory, learning to live with amigbuity and theory as well. Ugh, god everywhere. God is anger and rejoicing...it makes no sense to me.
Negativity can be a source of culture strength. I like the 'salad' (each distinct taste makes the whole better) analogy of the US better than the 'melting pot' (everyone blend in to form one whole with no distinctions) concept. I like the differences between blacks, whites, hicks, urban, hispanics, but then again I don't. It's fun playing with the differences, but some people get too wrapped up in them. Identity shouldn't be just your sub-culture, but then again it seems to me it should be some part. It's funny finding that balance where your subdivision matters enough to be a strength, but not so much it's a hinderance.
Never mind that I feel funny being the only 'white guy' in a room of black people.
