The First Generations of Power

One thing my mother told me, almost now ten years ago, was that if you had a child you wouldn’t be as outspoken as you are at your job. Mind you, in 1998, the time of my first panic attack, and my refusal to surrender to oppressive legalized white supremacy, also know as NCSSM, I was quasi immortal. Now some ten years later, those words finally are beginning to make some sense. I just completed my first attempt at my Ph.D. comprehensive examinations, (at this level it’s no longer just academic, it’s now a form of hazing) and I had to write a section on critical race theory. In doing so, I had to trace it back to the roots of colonialism. Taking no chances, I not only discussed colonialism but also tracked it to class domination beginning with Marx and Engles. The fulcrum was domination and oppression. As I wrote my answer, praying that I gave an intelligible response, I had to take a few steps back and survey past and current situations. Going back to the prophetic words of Dr. Ma, (including Neither a Borrower nor a Lender Be) I reflected on the work of Franz Fanon in his work Black Skin White Masks, he launches a discussion on dissent and race. In a nutshell he states that once an African man buys into the ideology of family, it symbolizes a form of social self castration for the simple fact that he looses the power of dissent. In contrast, the White man (who really has nothing to dissent about or for because he is of the dominant class) still maintains his power stronghold. Stupid question but I am going to ask it anyway: is this equitable. Of course not, but here is where I begin to finally get to my point. The first generations of power, by African American standards, in my opinion have run amok. Listening to Dr. Wife share her laments about the battles for power behind her onyx league “Ebony Tower” and then sharing like issues I have come to the following conclusion: We as a folk will not be satisfied until we have placed ourselves back into a state of servitude, physical bondage, and mental captivity. It as though the first generations of power are illiterate to the politics of power and diplomacy. Case and point: In 2004, right before I started my Ph.D. I was at a book signing for Dr. Michael Eric Dyson. I heard a question from the audience which basically asked why is it that the “black intellectuals” are not teaching or coming back to the HBCUs to teach. His answer came almost from a Redd Foxx stand up comedy routine. Some asked Foxx about going to Alabama. He said he wouldn’t even go to the hospital to get his mama out of the hospital. He would give her cab fare but damn if he was going. Well, Dyson responded pretty much the same way. I won’t teach at an HBCU because they want to pay the negro rate. When I first heard this, I was a little offended because I consider myself a product of the HBCU experience. A year and some change later, I posed the same question to Dr. Cornel West at NCCU. His reaction was even more telling. Do you know where I was the other day? I was in jail waiting to be bonded out because I participated in a march against the Iraq war. The people at Princeton could understand that, but at the HBCU, I might loose my job altogether. Another thing is that I don’t think too many students want to see Cornel West at 4:00 on Friday afternoon after five classes. I was still baffled. Why not teach at the HBCU. Now I know why, first generation power has run amok. In some cases the working conditions border the oppressive if not crossing the line all together. Buildings in states of disrepair, enrollment driven admission policies and worst, administration that cracks the whip as harsh as any overseer from the days of slavery: to me it’s as though we have recreated the plantation in hopes of turning out a non critical, incredibly passive post modern 21st century slave. I know that’s harsh but that’s really how I see it these days. Sure there is Howard, Morehouse, Spellman and possibly Hampton. These schools however represent the crème de la crème. At Howard we have not only a swimming team but a women’s lacrosse team as well. Howard and others I have mentioned are the marquis HBCUs which in some cases set the standard. That said, what is the standard? What is the standard for not only the quality of teaching and curriculum but what about the quality of life for the employee? At one institution, I took the time to ask a member of the custodial staff, if you weren’t doing this job right here, right now, what would you be doing. He stated he would be in political science. That took me for a loop but he said it. Now, where is the institution’s commitment to making that happen? Bleak at best I would say. In another situation, I observed that some J schools are training students to become employees in a business that has become less critical and more tabloid. In the political economy of capitalism, we are producing folks to be journalist, but that said, are we training them to be critical, influential powers of advocacy and change. No, at all costs, we must produce product. We must meet outcomes. In doing so, issues quality of life become secondary. The effect, we have become not only the slave but our own master as well. We refuse to step out of line because we are shackled to educational debt, mortgage debt, consumer debt, and so on. To step out of line and question our superior means we really put the bulls-eye on our chest while our supervisor loads the riffle. Again, I equate this to power run out of control. The sad part about the whole conundrum is this, we really can’t blame whitefolk this time. Yes, we observed and created our own institutions after their successful model. But the breakdown comes form forgetting that power in our antiquitc communities was something that was shared and never used to berate or objectify another. There was honor in being of service to your fellow citizen. One was not hired strictly out of nepotism, but because there was some type of apprenticeship and a genuine bond. Now it’s who you know and how you son and how you getting in and who’s the man holding me up (borrowed from De La Soul). Certainly we may be post modern, but our mindset as a folk all our own is Neo Colonial and this time not only are we wearing the black skin but also the black masks.

Can you See Me?

From what I understand, Whiteness studies is a strand of critical race theory. Critical race theory was born from critical theory which basically means the study of domination and the praxis of liberation according to Douglas Kelner. In critical race theory, the objective is simple. It centers on the historically marginalized in the United States and how the various structures keep power out from the marganlized. The structures at play pretty much are economic, social, legal, educational, political, and even medical. CRT is based primarily in the lived experience. Typically one must have "gone through" a baptism by fire or what some people call a consciousness raising. In my case, the experience which really changed my life was strangely my experiences with NCSSM. (for more in infomation please see previous posts) It was there where I experienced or better yet where I began to encounter the surreptitious dynamics of power and how powerless I was at the time. What was visible to me then and as well as now, is how whiteness and accessibility go hand in hand. When I first arrived at NCSSM, I was there with a Masters Degree in instructional technology. With a Master's I felt as though that I had some type of equality with whom I though were my colleuges. Ready to discuss theory, infuse technology current curriculum across the disciplines, I quickly humbled by the expectations of the dominant population. Go fetch is pretty much what my tenure resulted in. Go fetch this data projector, go fetch this slide projector, go fetch this, go fetch that. Never while I was there was consulted my ability to be analytical, but more so my physical abilities to support the dominant populous. In the words of my grandfather, for a while I thought I was walking in high cotton. As I grew more and more disenchanted, I realized that the high cotton was nothing more post modern plantation and I was one of the chattel. Despite the fact that I had an advanced degree, in the eyes of many of my White Folk counterparts I was their "boy." The porter. In some way I must have represented an anomaly because I quickly protested my treatment. Here is one example. One day in my office/equipment room I am working on my computer, playing around with Windows 95 and in comes gaulky looking white man who to this day still reminds me of bleaky buzzard. He came in and just took a projector like I wasn't there. I was floored. -- My reaction was direct,
"Excuse me but is there a reason you just walked into my space and stole a piece of equipment and not even say hello." His response was, "I'm in a hurry, I have a class to go to." It's here where I am thinking I'm in a professional setting but I'm not being treated professionally. -- Here was the problem, how do I let him know politely that there are boundaries and that I am not step and fetchit.
I paused and asserted myself minus a Richard Roundtree homage.
"I'm an easy person to get along with but you just can't come into my spot, not even acknowledge my presence and take my stuff."
"It's not your equipment it's the school's equipment."
"But I'm not a piece of equipment. If you want to borrow something or check anything out, you're going to have to go through protocol."
"I don't have time for this, I'm late for my class." in the back of my mind I am thinking, you're about to be late for your next birthday, but again, I chill.
"I don't want to delay you. That said, the equipment stays here."
"I beg your pardon."
"You're just not going to do this. I'm sorry but you are not going to do this, this way." Talk about dynamics of power and privilege. I mean this guy's actions were just straight up rude. Now where I came from, and HBCU, actions like this would get you quickly cussed out. In the backwoods of Palmer Springs, VA it might get you knocked out. But again I maintain, power and lack of power and elitism, Was it because I was black, was it because I was young, or was it because he was white, older, and an established member of the community. Don't know, don't really care. What I do know though is that I was slowly begining to understand what it meant to be invisible. I'm the blackest person in the room, yet I have no image, no shape or form in the eyes of this white man.

Microagression and WF2S

Before I begin, let me first of all take a moment to quickly say something that is totally a political. Recently there was an unexpected death in my family which as some folks know are the basis for the second type of Black Family Reunion. I mention this because one of my cousin's whom I had not seen in 20 years said that he actually reads my blog. _ I was floored to say the least.. So to that end I want to dedicate this entry not only to him but my cousin who passed away at the age of 40. -- Now on to business.

Flying back from the funeral, my flight was delayed. (Why should I be surprised in this day of the dysfunctional airline system) That said, I took an opportunity to continue studying for my comprehensives scheduled late this month. I was reading works by critical race scholars Richad Delgado and Jean Stefancic and I came across an interesting term; Microagression. According to their rendering, it represents a term from sociologist reflecting the sudden moments of dispiriting reactions to white (folk) oppression. In my speak, it's like the ice cold water hitting you in the face totally out of nowhere making you say DAYMUN. Many of us have experienced this but we just didn't have a name for it yet. What is important is that microagressions are not exclusively limited to people of color but more-so anyone who represents the traditionally marginalized. If you've read this far you might be asking, why is this important? I think for me, it is important because the microgression has the potential to become a macroagression if not contained at the start. My grandfather always said, Foolishness gets foolishness. Again in Russspeak, BS always becomes MS if not checked PDQ. To me, what is what whiteness represents: Unchecked BS which has been enabled to innocuously proliferate into the structures we live and are governed by with deliberate impunity. See it's easy for a white person who was born into wealth and social status to say and do virtually anything in America and instantly side step it. However, when potential first lady Michele Obama makes a statement, for the first time in my life I truly feel American, the statement is forensically analyzed. Why, could be because she is black and her husband is running for the title of “The Head White Man in Charge” also know as the President. I really wouldn’t have made too much of a big deal about this were it not for the fact that I have experienced a few of these episodes myself, so much to the point where I actually thought I was going through another acute case of WPFS (white people fatigue syndrome). Take for example one day when my son and I were leaving the parking lot. As I am trying patiently put him in his car seat, up comes roaring convertible BMW which barely misses us. I calmly keep my mind quiet and my words to myself because I know that coming from my lips will be a stream of absurdities. For some reason I recognize the social dynamics at play. This woman (white folk woman) and her teen age son simply did not see us. Again, I go back to the elisonian form of invisibility. Black people are just not visible to white folks. Because of that, the life of my son as well as mine are thrust into peril. In their minds, we just don’t matter. Needless to say I was fuming. To really go off and express myself the way I need to, not only just to get the frustrations and tensions off of my chest, but to constructively and directly assert our presence presents a serious challenge. At that moment, to go off and ackafool, (ackafool means to be exponentially belligerent abusive and threatening) places me at risk for being categorized as a stereotypical uneducated negro they see on TV. My family and I have worked too hard for me to wind up in jail for aggressively checking the glands of some Lilliputian Caucasian female I may never see in this lifetime again. So now that I have identified how microagression works when confronted by the asinine the question now turns to how to counter the microagression so that episode becomes a teaching episode. NOTE: word of caution—teaching is meant for ourselves, those who are opponents of white supremacy. Replaying the episode in my mind this is the approach I think I should have taken:

Approach the car and driver in a non threatening manner. (Hands may need to be above head)

Project in your voice a calm yet controlling tone. It is important that you control the situation on your terms.

Awareness. You should do your best to make the person aware of your presence. Something like this would be appropriate: “Excuse me, I am sorry to bother you but are you aware that you almost hit my son and me?”

Control the situation. The natural reaction could take a plethora of avenues so it is important that you maintain control of the situation. As they say something like I didn’t see you, your response should be in this manner. “I completely understand, I really do, these things happen. Were I in your position, I probably wouldn’t have seen me either. African Americans pose a serious problem for the inattentive driver especially at night.”

Transgress. In the traditional sense, one would think of transgression as being uppity. There is no need to be uppity as long as we can transgress with compassion through an educatory means. By this time the individual has been taken so far aback, your next words should drop them like a feather. Your follow up would be something like this. “I know it’s a bit of a bother, possibly a bit of an anomaly, but we are human, at least in the legal sense, very much like yourself. It would mean a lot to me and those who are like me if you would use your vehicle for it’s intended purpose as opposed to a vehicular weapon of mass destruction. Thank you for your time and have a good day.”

I sincely think that taking these five steps will certainly aid in the microagression cycle and really has the potential to defuse the acute cases of White People (now known as Folk) Fatigue Syndrome—WF2-S (White Folk Fatigue Syndrome)

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