40 acres and a mule?

[PM_Mama00]

Someone please tell me these are a joke?

I wasn't gona post on here, for obvious reasons, but after reading these I am so apalled (spelling) that an America would ask for all this! We want, we want, we want.... How bout working for all that?

And #9... what about the two cracked out African American men who robbed the purse off my mom's shoulder in broad daylight? Who were chased on a high speed chase, almost wrecked a police cruiser, drove up someone's lawn, and were found with crack pipes and cocaine residue in their car? Should they be set free?

And the Native American thing about going to a State college for free... I don't agree with that one either.

I'm so glad that not every person of a minority race feels the same about this 10 point thing. What a way to make urself look like a joke.

I'm Italian American. I want all mafiosos to be freed from prison, because they are Italian or Sicilian. I am oppressed because of this, and I will gladly take 1 thousand dollars for those who are in prison, or those Italians who have been killed by the mafia. Thank you.

[Dionysus]

Originally posted by PM_Mama00
Someone please tell me these are a joke?

And #9... what about the two cracked out African American men who robbed the purse off my mom's shoulder in broad daylight? Who were chased on a high speed chase, almost wrecked a police cruiser, drove up someone's lawn, and were found with crack pipes and cocaine residue in their car? Should they be set free?

No, they should not, if so, that would be an awful case of PREJUDISM!

[Senusret I]

Way to go. I totally agree with you.

Originally posted by Optimist Prime
I believe in reprations. I don't think you should be mailed a check personally, but I do feel that innercity areas, regardless of the majority color, because in order for an individualistic society to progress fairly, everyone should start from the same place. If you get ahead it should be because of your own efforts, not becase you were too poor to afford breakfast so you fail at life and never make it, or because you live off your parents grandparents wealth. Nothing in that list is communist. Democratic Liberal Socialist maybe, but not Communist. The Black Panthers are not a red army. Under communism you wouldn't have the Black Panthers only Communist party.

[KSig RC]

Isn't it interesting to look at the different ways of viewing these points?

What if we extended these points to all people - for instance:

"We want freed all people unjustly imprisoned."

"We want freedom, and self-determination for our communities."

"We desire full employment."

"We want decent housing for everyone."

"We desire free health care for those who need it."

These are made by simple, subtle changes to the wording to make them more universal - and no one could possibly disagree with the morals behind them, to my mind . . . right?

However, I don't think that reparations for slavery makes any of these happen, directly, so it therefore doesn't make sense to my mind. Giving somebody X dollars doesn't make them more educated or give them better job skills - however, opening the pathways to acquiring these things can come through money, so concentration on those efforts seems more appropriate.

Changing the system that ends with whites on top and blacks on bottom is the goal, not giving somebody a small amount of money to play with.

[PotentialPledge]

Originally posted by KSig RC
Isn't it interesting to look at the different ways of viewing these points?

What if we extended these points to all people - for instance:

"We want freed all people unjustly imprisoned."

"We want freedom, and self-determination for our communities."

"We desire full employment."

"We want decent housing for everyone."

"We desire free health care for those who need it."

These are made by simple, subtle changes to the wording to make them more universal - and no one could possibly disagree with the morals behind them, to my mind . . . right?

However, I don't think that reparations for slavery makes any of these happen, directly, so it therefore doesn't make sense to my mind. Giving somebody X dollars doesn't make them more educated or give them better job skills - however, opening the pathways to acquiring these things can come through money, so concentration on those efforts seems more appropriate.

Changing the system that ends with whites on top and blacks on bottom is the goal, not giving somebody a small amount of money to play with.

BRILLIANT...I totally agree with you.

[Rudey]

All the different groups you mentioned are totally meaningless in regards to your argument.

-Rudey
--I wanted to discuss this issue but nobody here would even care.

Originally posted by KnowledgeEternal
American Indians, to this day are compensated for something that started almost 100 years before slavery became rampant in the US. If you are a registered Native American you can go to any state school free of charge. I don't know how Jews have been oppressed in the US. Some Japanese people were put into camps during WW2 were they treated as slaves/lynched? No. As a matter of fact, the US dropped two H-Bombs on Japan and then turned around and gave them all the money to rebuild their country in addition to rewriting their constitution and redesigning many aspects of their govt.

Personally, I am against giving every African American a check for X amount of money; but I feel that saying their claims are unsubstantiated is ridiculous.

[sugar and spice]

I wrote a debate-style paper in high school on slavery reparations, and I agree that they're just ridiculous. And it'll never happen -- there are too many loopholes where people could just walk in and be handed money.

However, I do think that the idea that Optimist Prime proposed is both more realistic and a better solution.

[PotentialPledge]

I care.

[Kevlar281]

40 acres and a Bentley

[Betarulz!]

Reparations for me are a touchy subject...I guess that I'm against the handing out of money directly to individuals, but I am strongly in favor of investment in depressed communities. As a sociology major, I've done a lot of reading on the conditions that exist in primarily minority neighborhoods, and found some telling statistics. The most telling one in my mind is that unemployment is the single biggest factor in crime rate for all races, and further that whites and blacks have the same incidence of crime among the employed populations and the unemployed populations - ie. that the crime rate among employed whites and employed blacks is almost exactly the same (within statistical values of error), as is the rate among unemployed whites/blacks. Simply put, the creation of jobs can lower crime rate undoubtedly.

However other issues are very interconnected. Namely education and the discrepency between academic programs at suburban schools and inner city schools. Education brings up even more issues about testing bias, and tracking systems and teacher expectations and so on and so forth...

I find it very unfortunate that some people are unwilling to hear crys of help in their fellow humans. As KSig RC pointed out so eloquently many of these demands are actually universal wants/need/desires.

Finally I think that everyone...no matter your political affiliation should determine how they can be a better human being. We, as greeks, often talk about reaching out to other GLO's, and working together to improve the image of the Greek System, and I'm sure that many rituals are based on this type of mutual aid and the helping of others in doing the right thing. Why can't this extend out to the others in our communities, states and our country? We can do all the philanthropy we want, but until we as voters elect people who want to create real change (and not just the candidate with the most cash) I cannot believe that any of these demands will ever be accomplished, nor will there be very many steps of progress to achieving them...

<steps off of mini soap box> As you can see it's hit a nerve with me...if anyone wants more information try PM me and I can give you some places to get information.

[FHwku]

i saw the thread title, and i thought it was a coincidence because yesterday or before i was watching C-SPAN. i saw the National Black Farmer's Association have their Rally for Black Farmers.

does C-SPAN do a lot of stories on mules and congress?

[AKA2D '91]

Originally posted by Imus


I think whites should seek reparations from blacks.

PUHLEEZE, you all brought us here! It's your fault. Ya should have left us alone and not brought us on those ships.

Shoot yourself for that one!

PLUS, we do not have any money. All you will get are clothes. (you really do not have a clue, do you?)

For clarification: go to my post re: the Black Teen pageant for the definition of "you", so folks will not get it twsted.

ON a serious note: I see that the educational system (history teachers) have failed some. Did they not teach the unit that explores the 40 acres and a mule concept? No, it's not a joke, it's a serious matter. I guess the teachers just went to the part where the Civil War was over and the Emancipation of Proclamation was signed and Abe Lincoln was assassinated and that's it... oh well...

[Rudey]

In a large magnet public school in Brooklyn, I learned about 40 acres and a mule. But this was in the college level AP US History class since I never took the normal class.

-Rudey

Originally posted by AKA2D '91


PUHLEEZE, you all brought us here! It's your fault. Ya should have left us alone and not brought us on those ships.

Shoot yourself for that one!

PLUS, we do not have any money. All you will get are clothes. (you really do not have a clue, do you?)

For clarification: go to my post re: the Black Teen pageant for the definition of "you", so folks will not get it twsted.

ON a serious note: I see that the educational system (history teachers) have failed some. Did they not teach the unit that explores the 40 acres and a mule concept? No, it's not a joke, it's a serious matter. I guess the teachers just went to the part where the Civil War was over and the Emancipation of Proclamation was signed and Abe Lincoln was assassinated and that's it... oh well...

[AKA2D '91]

*bravo*!

[Rudey]

Originally posted by AKA2D '91
*bravo*!

I can also touch my nose with my tongue and run real fast...real fast.

-Rudey
--Bows as people start clapping all around!