Ps29v11's Xanga

Racial Profiling - Part X

Wed, 22 Jul 2009 14:52:57 GMT

B"H

Last night my good friend Charles mentioned the current case of Prof. Henry Louis Gates being arrested

Harvard Scholar Henry Louis Gates Jr.

In this photo taken by a neighbor Thursday July 16, 2009 Henry Louis Gates Jr. center, the director of Harvard University's W.E.B. DuBois Institute for African and African American Research, is arrested at his home in Cambridge, Mass. Police say they were called to the home of Gates after a woman reported seeing a man try to pry open the front door. (AP Photo/Demotix Images, B. Carter)

and the allegations that this was a case of racial profiling gone wrong. I hope that someone such as Brother Ed Gilbreath, hint hint, will take this up on their blog since very few readers happen by here these days.

Even though I don't agree with a lot that Prof. Gates represents, he is nonetheless one of the most prominent Afro-American scholars at present. When a man of his stature is brought into the news via a controversial arrest, it gives pause to a lot of other lesser concerns. The thought goes through my mind just as I imagine it must also be on the minds of many others, "If this could happen to someone like him (Prof. Gates), then what hope is there for other lesser citizens such as myself?" I don't fear being a victim of racial profiling on a ordinary day, but there most certainly have been several situations when I felt quite vulnerable.

Once, several years ago when our family was driving in a rental vehicle in New Jersey, I was questioned quite harshly by a State Trooper and forced to stand outside the car in the rain for several minutes. The fact that New Jersey had a bad reputation for racial profiling of black males was never far from my mind during that ordeal. On another occasion, as we were driving north from Jackson, Mississippi towards Tenn., I purposely chose not to go east through Birmingham, AL with my white wife and face who knows what, even in the year 2004.

The current case involving Prof. Gates is far from a simple case of racial profiling. It is entirely possible that some of his own actions contributed to the errors on the part of the police.

"Police said Gates was arrested after he yelled at an officer, accused him of racial bias and refused to calm down after the officer demanded that Gates show him identification to prove he lived in the home.
Gates' lawyer, fellow Harvard scholar Charles Ogletree, said his client showed his driver's license and Harvard ID — both with his photos — and repeatedly asked for the name and badge number of the officer, who refused. He followed the officer onto the front porch as he left his house and was arrested there."

I do feel that if he was a mere average citizen, his treatment might have been far worse than it was and may not have resulted in any charges against him being dropped quite so quickly. In my mind this case shows that fame and celebrity status won't necessarily protect Afro-Americans from police harassment, but that same status may well have assisted after the fact and that is not acceptable.

Peace,

Shlomo

Heads-up: Heavy Race Related Topic Coming

Fri, 10 Apr 2009 19:37:58 GMT

B"H

"So much to do and so little time to do it." How often has that phrase been heard these days? I won't make any excuses for not posting here more regularly. Just this past week I was lead to several very poignant and pertinent posts through Brother Ed Gilbreath's site. I have been working on a very heavy post for quite some time now, but I have allowed other issues in life to jump their place in the line and thus this post has remained so far unwritten.

Blessings,

Shlomo

Remembering Dr. John Hope Franklin

Thu, 26 Mar 2009 21:25:19 GMT

B"H

Dr. John Hope Franklin

I sadly learned a few hours ago that Dr. John Hope Franklin passed away yesterday (March 25, 2009). I was first exposed to Dr. Franklin over 40 years ago when his book From Slavery to Freedom was assigned in the Afro-American History class my high school offered. Over the years since then I have often turned back to that classic work and used it as an authoritative reference work. Dr. Franklin was a scholar par excellence and his work has withstood the test of time.

I have often cited Dr. Franklin as the original source for the title of my work, Integration: Try It Again for the Very First Time. This concept, which I developed into a class I taught over 5 years ago, was taken from a quote of Dr. Franklin. In response to a question about the receding vision of racial integration Dr. Franklin said that “Integration has not so much failed as it has hardly ever been tried.” The point Dr. Franklin was making is that integration was a concept grossly misunderstood by both white and black America alike. I have made mention of this idea here several times so I won’t belabor the issue now. I am deeply indebted to Dr. Franklin, as are so many of us, and I want to call attention to his life and legacy for those who may not have previously been aware of him.

Blessings.

Shlomo

The Meaning of B"H

Tue, 24 Feb 2009 04:53:14 GMT

B"H

"Hey Shlomo,
"... I have been curious for some time about the way you start your posts with 'B"H.' After a little googling, and coming up empty, I'm even more curious.

Plodding for Him,

pew"

Hey PEW,

Thanks for stopping by and saying a few kind words, they are greatly appreciated. In regards to the abbreviation B"H, it's a Jewish thing.

B”H is an abbreviation for Baruch Hashem which, in Hebrew, means “Blessed be the Name” (or Blessed be G_d).

In the Black Church one oftens hears the expression, "First giving honor to GOD." This is usually followed by a holy "shout out" to the Pastor, the Deacons and anyone else present who may be deemed worthy of recognition. B"H - Baruch HaShem is the Jewish equivalent.

Thanks for asking, PEW. You can find additional information via Google if you include the keywords - a Jewish abbreviation.

Blessings,

Shlomo

A Nation of Cowards? - revisited

Sat, 21 Feb 2009 11:17:27 GMT

B"H

I recently made a remark on Brother Ed Gilbreath’s blog that I want to enlarge upon here. This past week the topic of race has once again taken center stage, but not always to a warm welcome. The context of Brother Ed’s blog on Wednesday was a speech given by Eric Holder, the new Atty. General. Speaking to a group of employees at the Justice Department who were celebrating Black History Month, Mr. Holder set many hearers of his words at odds by labeling the average American as a coward in regard to race relations.

"Though this nation has proudly thought of itself as an ethnic melting pot, in things racial we have always been and I believe continue to be, in too many ways, essentially a nation of cowards," Holder said.
Race issues continue to be a topic of political discussion, but "we, as average Americans, simply do not talk enough with each other about race."

(Photo and quoted text taken from Yahoo News.)

I think that Brother Ed does a great job of continually bringing issues like this to the attention of his readers and then engaging in lively conversation and dialogue. Surely here in cyberspace we can’t expect to change the heart of the Nation overnight, but I think we are seeing positive signs of progress, even though it may be painful at times. I highly recommend Mr. Gilbreath’s blog to everyone as he speaks ‘truth measured with grace.’ There are many voices addressing our current social situation, but all too few are able to offer words of hope and encouragement along the way. We need to understand not only what is wrong with our society and how we have strayed from the path towards the Celestial City, but is it possible to change our ways and make amends, and if so, how.

My dear wife and I recently had the pleasure of an hour of Brother Ed’s time for lunch. One hour was much too short a time, but hopefully, there will be other times in the near future. As I already knew from reading Reconciliation Blues , Mr. Gilbreath is a sensitive disciple of the LORD, and he always seeks to bring a message of healing and restoration when he speaks at various churches, colleges or other Christian events. I have featured Brother Ed here previously so I will simply say now that I pray his tribe will increase.

After I read the post and the initial few comments that followed it, I was immediately struck by two things. First of all, although Mr. Holder used a lot of inclusive language in his speech, it seems that one person felt that he was being divisive in referring to “…Black America and ‘this nation’ as in two separate entities.” Jonolan, as the author of this comment is known, described AG Holder as one who’s overall nuance is that of bigotry and separatism. I don’t think that Jonolan rightly understands either Mr. Holder or Black History. To consider America and her black inhabitants after the Civil War as separate entities was merely to follow the general sentiment of the country as was confirmed in 1896 when the Supreme Court handed down the landmark decision of Plessy vs Ferguson. Most Afro-Americans have felt a sense of otherness here in America, at one time of another, but during the era of Jim Crow segregation, legalized separation was the law of the land. I think Mr. Holder is correct to assert that in order to move forward and work together (social integration) for racial progress, we must become aware of the evils of our collective past which brought us to this awful place.

I don’t think that the view which Jonolan expressed is his alone. I fear that many others share the idea that somehow the race problem here in America was solved a long time ago and we need to stop focusing on it and just move on. An analogy that comes to my mind is that of the person who has a serious infection and yet refuses to seek professional help. Over time, the wounded area may appear to be healthy after new skin has grown in. The flesh may no longer be quite so sensitive to the touch and externally, all seems well. The truth of the matter however, is quite a different story. Under the surface, hidden from view, the old sore is still present and festering. By now a far more lethal threat has arisen and without some form of intervention, amputation or death may be unavoidable.

I believe our situation in regard to race, is serious, but not yet terminal. I think there is still hope that things can turn around and a brighter future is not out of the question. The crucial issue however, is, are we willing to make the kinds of changes required that would evidence a change of heart as a society. In this arena, I am skeptical at best, and generally pessimistic until proven wrong. My hope for the future lies within the parameters of the community of believers. The one essential item which the secular social engineers are missing is the ability to create new people. Only the power of GOD, which operates through the proclamation of the Good News, can produce changed lives and reformed communities. I don’t expect that we shall reform and repair all of our social ills, but I do believe we should expect to demonstrate a different atmosphere in our congregational life. Things here on earth should reflect the will of GOD, which is that His character would be demonstrated in the corporate life of His people.

When Dr.Martin Luther King Jr. spoke of the goals and achievements of the Montgomery bus boycott, he spoke first and foremost as a preacher of the Gospel and not as a social reformer. Writing in the Introduction of his book, The Beloved Community (How Faith Shapes Social Justice, From the Civil Rights Movement to Today) Charles Marsh says,

“Martin Luther King Jr. cast the achievements of the year in theological perspective. “It seems that God has decided to use Montgomery as the proving ground for the struggle,” he said; the “old order” is passing away, and “our church is becoming militant, stressing a social gospel as well as a gospel of personal salvation.”

Although a boycott was necessary in Montgomery to bring an end to discriminatory laws, King urged the church people in the movement to keep in mind that a boycott and its achievements do not in themselves represent the goal. “The end is reconciliation, the end is redemption,” he said, “the end is the creation of the beloved community.” P. 1

I believe that we would do well to follow the lead of Dr. King in seeking to embody the Good News in our actions as well as in our words. What we seek in our dialogue on the issue of race is not to revisit the past so as to foster guilt and shame on the part of our white brothers and sisters. Instead I believe that healing of our racial wounds is possible, but only if we are willing to face the past and repent. This repentance must include not only a confession for the evils of the ideology of white supremacy (slavery, Jim Crow segregation, the effects of cultural imperialism, the lingering benefits of white skin privilege, etc), but also forgiveness by those who were the victims.

Blessings,

Shlomo

A Praise Report

Thu, 22 Jan 2009 19:37:53 GMT

B"H

PRAISE GOD!!! Although I am now officially unemployed, the technicial agency I have been working for agreed to pay me the unused vacation hours I had accrued. This was quite a big issue these past few days as it seemed at first that those hours might have been forfieted due to a use or lose clause. I'm not a big consumer advocate, but in this instance I really thought that a case in small claims court was looming in our immediate future.

Thanks to all of you who prayed. I don't know what will be next for me and our family, but I truly feel that the LORD will provide for us and that is quite exciting.

Blessings for peace and love,

Shlomo and family

A short personal note

Sun, 18 Jan 2009 12:03:09 GMT

B"H

As most of my regular readers know, I don't often write many personal things regarding our family life. This information isn't exactly a change in that policy, but I thought that I should share this news.

Last Sunday evening I received a visit here at work from my manager, Christine. A lot of potential changes have been floating around this department for several months. I thought that Christine had come to ask some more questions or share a possible decision in reference to changing our schedules. As it turned out, there's going to be some changes in the schedule, but I won't be a part of it. After 8 years and 7 months my time here has finally expired. This coming Weds morning I will say my final goodbyes to the Northwestern NOC (Network Operations Center).

I started here in June of 2000 on an assignment from the technical agency I work for and was told that this would be a 6 month to perm position. If the University liked me and the work I was doing, they would hire me on after 6 months. Well, that never happened. For various reasons I have been retained as an outside contractor all this time. The pay has been good and the working environment pleasant, but working from week to week was sometimes stressful as I never knew if I'd still have a job this time the following week.

So now it's almost over. I'm not sure what the immediate future looks like, but I feel that we'll be ok. I have looked on the Internet for telecom jobs in this area and so far all I see is a few field installation positions. I'm sure I could do that kind of work again, but I'm not so sure about the driving from place to place everyday. I really need a site position where I go somewhere in the morning and stay there all day and then come home. At my age (almost 57), and without a college degree, things in the natural don't look very promising. I, on the other hand, basically feel that the LORD knows our situation better than we do and He will provide something in His time. I want to be faithful and responsible, but I think this will all turn out for the best.

That is all for now my friends. Please do pray for us and feel free to share any thoughts or job leads for either me, or my wife.

Blessings,

Shlomo

The Jonestown Tragedy - Thirty Years After

Tue, 18 Nov 2008 17:49:14 GMT

B"H

For the past several days there have been various news reports revisiting the story of Rev. Jim Jones and the People's Temple. For those who were too young to remember The People's Temple was a 1,000 + member church from the west coast which relocated to land acquired in Guyana, S. America. They were a cult which was started by the charismatic Jim Jones and hailed as a utopian community which embraced socialism and separatism and paranoia. Ultimately they met a tragic end wherein over 900 people died as a result of imposed suicide/murder. It has been described as the worst case of mass suicide in modern times.

CNN aired a 2-hour special this past Sunday entitled, Escape From Jonestown. Nov. 18, 1978 was the exact date, thirty years ago, when this terrible event occurred. I was 26 and I remember reading about it in the papers and seeing it on television. On their website they have several video clips of the show with reporter Soledad O'Brien interviewing several of the few (33) survivors of the event. Unless you are feeling especially strong I don't recomend the entirety of this presentation because it contains graphic footage from the actual massacre and some of my readers might find it hard to handle.

Among my many hobbies and side interests, apart from race relations and Church history, I have done a lot of research on our family tree. A little over two years ago while sitting with my Cousin Gloria, she mentioned some distant relatives I never knew, and said that they had perished in the Jonestown massacre. It is sad indeed to be included in modern history in this fashion. I pray for all my friends and family here, that they would draw near to the LORD and trust in Him with all their hearts. He is our peace and the author and finisher of our salvation. While we labor here to proclaim and participate in His Kingdom, we also recognize that His Kingdom is not of this world. I once heard in a teaching that the word utopia actually means nowhere. We are more likely to happen upon that elusive 'pot of gold' sitting at the end of the rainbow than we are to create a perfect community here among flesh and blood.

"To dwell above with the saints we love,
that will be bliss and glory.
But to dwell below with the saints we know,
now that is a different story. "
-source unknown

Blessings,

Shlomo

Wednesday, November 05, 2008

Wed, 05 Nov 2008 20:11:52 GMT

B"H

We Have Been Slightly Healed

Even though I don't hold to the notion that President-elect Obama will solve all of our racial ills, I do believe that merely by becoming our nation's next President he has already set in motion a course of events that will aid in our healing. The first level of healing that I believe we will experience is a restoration of hope.

Prior to this election, I don't think that most Afro-Americans actually believed they had a real stake in the American Dream. Surely there was real and sustained progress today in comparison to the horrors of the Jim Crow Era and legalized segregation and social exclusion. Surely there were examples of numerous Blacks who were now rich and famous, but this was not by any means the same Dream which most Americans aspired towards. Only one in ten thousand of the youth on the local basketball courts will make it to the NBA, and even fewer still will land a recording contract and earn fame and riches as a rap artist or a music legend. The American Dream that says, if you work hard and remain dedicated to the principles of self-sacrifice and deferred gratification, then no opportunity or goal shall long remain beyond your grasp. "You can do and be anything you want," is the standard refrain which usually fell on deaf ears.

With Barack Obama's success I believe that the Afro-American imagination has been slightly healed and started back on the path towards restoration and healthy hopefulness. There is a lot more work that remains yet undone. Past hurts and injuries will not simply go away by ignoring them. The prior policy of benign neglect has not been helpful, but rather has strengthened our sense of wounded self esteem and fortified our identity as perpetual victims. When we were faced with not only individual personal attacks, but also a systemic, and therefore institutional, assault via a string of legal decrees, we began to lose hope and our individual and collective psyche was damaged. The most potent aspect of this psychological wounding is known as internalized oppression (the situation where a victim agrees with his/her oppressor and sees himself as of lesser worth or value as a person).

Merely by acknowledging our former state of injury we are affirmed as real persons and thusly a slight healing can begin. In order to progress further we will need to find a means of remedy for the harm inflicted, but our proper starting place lies in facing the past honestly. Barack Obama has repeatedly stated that our national legacy of racial exclusion must be addressed and thus he speaks words of hope to the masses of black and other minorities. The hope is first hinted at by the clear statement that our Nation’s past actions were wrong and therefore need to be acknowledged as such. Such an acknowledgment would give a sense of dignity and worth to black people who were previously regarded as either 3/5 of a person or else mere candidates for chattel slavery (see the US Constitution Article One Section 2 and The Supreme Court Decision in the Dred Scott Case).

The second step on the path to a state of National Health and Wholeness is the forming of new partnerships, not built on the partisan divisions of the past, but rather on the realities of the present. E pluribus unum – out of many, one (people). Our National unity is presumed as the backbone and foundation of our ideals. Although there are many different ethnic groups represented in our country, we must no longer see ourselves as Red States and Blue States, as White Americans and Black Americans, as Latino, Asian or Native Americans. Instead we must recognize that we are the United States of America. I believe that Barack’s success gives hope and substance to this new/renewed vision of modern America. It’s not the America that has been, but rather the America that should be. I feel that President-elect Obama has created the possibility for our country to have a new and honest conversation about race, and other such divisive issues, and to therefore move forward into the future together, as partners rather than as partisans.

Blessings,

Shlomo

Overbooked? How about you?

Tue, 21 Oct 2008 18:50:28 GMT

B"H

So I guess it's time to get back to writing stuff here on my own site. Ha ha ha, some of my friends chide me because I say I want to write and here I have this forum and yet so seldom do I post anything on it. I assure you, I'm quite busy writing, but mostly I visit other sites and make long and sometimes unwarranted comments there. I have a lot of thoughts and ideas to share so what is the excuse for not posting here? Rather than answer that and go into a lenghty defense of a bad practice, instead I am going to simply start anew with this post.

At present I am reading through a number of books simultaneously, as is usually my practice. Every now and then, I pick up a book that really grabs me and I stick with it from start to finish. Unfortunately, that is often more the exception than the rule. I have hundreds of books in our livingroom and in my office and study areas. Someone once asked me if I had read all of these books and of course the answer is no. What is true however, is that I have read a chapter or more of nearly all of them. Here is what I'm presently working on:

The Blue Parakeet (Rethinking How You Read The Bible) by Scot McKnight
A Christianity Worth Believing In (Hope-Filled, Open-Armed, Alive-and-Well Faith For The Left Out, Left Behind, and Let Down In Us All) by Doug Pagitt
True Story (A Christianity Worth Believing In) by James Choung
The God of Israel and Christian Theology by R. Kendall Soulen
A Living Covenant (The Innovative Spirit in Traditional Judaism) by David Hartman
Abraham's Promise (Judaism and Jewish-Christian Relations) by Michael Wyschogrod
Rock My Soul (Black People and Self-Esteem) by bell hooks
Entering Jewish Prayer (A Guide to Personal Devotion and The Worship Service) by Reuven Hammer
White Guilt (How Blacks & Whites Together Destroyed the Promise of the Civil Rights Era) by Shelby Steele

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This is by no means all that I'm reading, which also includes numerous articles, posts from various blogsites, and the comments left by other readers. These books are not in any special order and some of them I have finished (those which have this symbol after them) and some I am using for research and reference material in some of the comments I write elsewhere.

Here are a few themes that I am working on:

Race Relations in the Church - Integration Revisited
Presenting the Narrative Story of the Torah as Essential to Christian Doctrinal Development
Combatting Anti-Judaism in Christian Teaching and Theology
Recognizing The Triumphalism of the Church Over the Synagogue as The Most Neglected Aspect of The Current Post-Modern Critique of The Manifestation of The Empire in Christendom

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If anybody wants to add any comments on either these themes or any of the books I am currently studying it would be greatly appreciated.

Peace and Love,

Shlomo