No, I'm saying you don't come in here where you have NO frame of reference and insult people who DO have that frame of reference and are having a conversation among others with that frame of reference. You are NOT in the position to tell me or anyone else that we need to get over anything since you have NOT idea how it feels to be us in this country living under circumstances dictated by the entire history of this, OUR homeland. You will NEVER understand and you need to get that through YOUR head and shut that mouth! You also will not call yourself confronting me for pointing that out to you and adding words to what I said to you. I make my points as clearly as I need to and if you don't like what I have to say in MY forum, there is the exit sign and I suggest you follow it.

Thank you Phasad, you said it: "frame of reference".

There have been numerous threads on GC lately dealing with race and they have gotten nowhere but deleted/locked/moved etc. because people like Alpha Frog come in and say things they have no BUSINESS saying.

Do you know what it's like to be black? Do you know what it feels like to have a strong sense of inferiority and not really know it until you are in the work force/married, etc. and the shit hits you in the face like a ton of bricks?

I can give you countless examples throughout my 42 years of living.

:rolleyes:

Re: COMPARISON
 

Although you & I are 'Caribbean' I am not Jamaican and you are not Bahamian. So I can't assume that 'you know what I'm talkin about' b/c we are from island nations. The Bahamas has been blessed in that we do not & did not suffer with the same level of racial oppression as African-Americans & Caribbean nations. So although we seem to be so much alike I don't know what it's like to grow up & live in Jamaica & you likewise with me in the Bahamas.

I am Black but where & when I grew up has a WHOLE lot to do with my views on race & race relations. Also remember that geographically the Bahama Islands are not situated in the actual Caribbean Sea & thus not really 'close' to Caribbean islands. So our cultures have more differences than similarities than say those island nations who were able to interact with each other.

I a nut shell I'm trying to say that being Black doesn't automatically mean that I know how hard it is to be Black etc. That's why earlier I didn't want to talk about stuff I know nothing about. I will never know what it's like being a Black American b/c I'm not. So I don't think I should go there. My Black experience growing up in the Bahamas has been just fine. My leaders have all been black (since our independance in 1973), our equivalent to the US vice president is a black woman, we represent about 85% of the country, so I truly can't act like I know what they're going through just b/c I'm black.

You want to do something that will not only make you (and us as a race) the "bigger person" and end some of this deep-rooted spiritual based racial animosity that a lot of folk here have been spouting off continuously?

FORGIVE THEM!

Don't seek or expect an apology from them, just humble yourself and forgive them and their ancestors for the wrongs and injustices inflicted upon you and your ancesteors. Be sincere, be humble. Just forgive them.

Once you do that, you can get rid of a lot of this spiritual trauma and move on with your life.

Otherwise, as far as your "You do YOU, let me do me." remark, I'll ask it again just for the sake of conversation:

Would you like some cheese with your whine?

Question: Is your forgiveness and move on point of view based in spirituality? If so, I think I can see how you developed your point of view?

I had "oppertunities" and I TRIED TO MAKE IT FOR MYSELF time and time again!! I did all the right things. I went to the white colleges. I don't have a black sounding name (first or last). I didn't put anything "black org" related on my resume. It should have opened doors for me BUT IT DIDN'T. I am from a working class family and the first in my family to go to college. I tried to FIND A WAY TO MAKE IT HAPPEN! Do you have any idea how ignorant you sound? Obviously not.

I'd show up for interviews and I know that they were surprised to see my face -- because I know how to sound and put that little "tilt" in my voice when they called me for the interview. When I got there I was NEVER offered the jobs that I applied and knew I was qualified for -- ALWAYS the entry level positions.

When I settled for the entry level position, I was tired of seeing the "Suzy" in the cubicle next to me get the promotion. I got tired of seeing "John" down the hall get an office with a window for a "new" position that I was well qualified for but it was never even advertised. I got tired of being asked to make copies for him (including his resume) in which I discovered he couldn't spell either!!

Try some of the posts on the latter part of page 11 and page 12, for openers, to say nothing of the subject of the thread and the content thereof on page 12(?).

It isn't much, but I hope it helps.

1. I agree
2. Probably cuz i went off on a tangent. Pls disregard that point
3. I will agree to disagree

BINGO!! Teena, you have just hit the jackpot, the grand and glorious jackpot!!

THAT is the reason why I am clashing with everyone in here, because they are looking at this from a paradigm entirely different from mine and thus, we will never see eye to eye (and why I refuse to debate certain people here).

Superior observation, Teena. Exceptional! Keep it up!! :)

Ok. Got it.


BTW.....Please dont be nice to be on this board. I dont want some of your 'hate darts' to hit me. I am doing good to dodge my own.

J/K:D

*LOL* Girl you a mess! :D

True story that happened a few years ago:

I was dating a woman from Kenya and we were having a discussion much like this one, and the more I spoke about slavery and racism in America, the angerier and more emotional I got.

My ex-Kenyan sweetie calmed me down (and mind you, that was a chore for her) by consistently telling me to stop fuming and harping about the past (At that time I was having a 90s "angry black man" flashback--I used to be a super-militant Africentric in my college days). She also said that the best thing I could do from that point forward was to move forward and work toward improving my life and the lives of others around me and associated with me.

Once I got over my big ego and humbled myself to her advice, in retrospect, it was one of the best pieces of advice she had ever given me, and I am a much better person for it and I thank her to this day for taking the time to help me out in that manner.

Just something to think about.

As much as you all like to think that I've said "Get Over It" I have never said that (and if anyone has construed what I have said that way, your reading more into it then what I'm actually saying). And I don't claim to know "how it feels to be you in this country". And I didn't realize that you were in control of the Delta forum. I have not name called or personally attacked anyone. I have presented my viewpoint and tried to do it in the most respectful way I can. If you have a problem with my viewpoint, then I can agree to disagree, but I will not be pulled into namecalling or personal attacks.

You can do all that "foregiving" that your advocating, and not turn a blind eye to the fact that these horrible things did happen, and that it has left a legacy that we continue to be penalized with. I can do all the foregiving I want, but I continue to be oppressed and victimized, it is really my fault? I can't change someone's view of me just because I want to..."I know that my ancestors were slaves and treated horribly and you didn't view them as human beings, but I'm willing to foregive you so you should just all that racism and bigotry go." I doubt that's going to go over well.

Rainman,

I'm just appalled that you are speaking on forgiveness, but yet have you done that towards the NPHC that you so passionately continues to speak out against? Don't understand what I mean? Let me break it down to you....

When you speak out against the policies/traditions/mindsets of the NPHC and its members on this board, should we then assume that you are bearing unforgiveness in your heart? If the answer is no, then why are you making this assumption about those on this board who chose to speak out concerning racial matters - that we are somehow harboring "unforgiveness" and "full of big egos" ? Obviously, speaking out against an issue and forgiveness are not related, right? Or is this only the case when you do it?

Have you forgotten that forgiveness applies to EVERYTHING in our life, not just those people or subject matters that we deem fit to deserve it.

Just something to think about while you are explaining why you are so "enlightened" and "different" from everyone else.

ETA: Teena, no one hates Rainman (well at least I don't) and shoot, and I don't necessarily agree with everything posted. But there is a way in which to get your opinion (even if its an oposing viewpoint) across in order to be heard.

^^That's a good point.