The American way of life has been secured by and with the ability of persons to oppose an opinion of another person. Often issues are so substantial that one manner of attack is easily repelled and the issue at hand gains measurable strength. There are many ways to attack certain ills of our society and not all of us are equipped to fight in the same manner. I am one who believes in an orchestrated military surgical attack……if called for.
The issues with the state of Black America offer no such call for said attack. We have so many problems in their manifestations and varying degrees of understanding that we need ideas from every front.Our great history tells us that we don’t all have to think alike to show progress. Case and point: In learning more about W.E.B. DuBois and Booker T. Washington, I understand that one simple solution for such sorrowed people fits not!
These two gentlemen giants were often not in agreement on ways to improve the lives of their fellow African-American. This was wonderful in that it fostered needed debate about
1. Moving toward industrial education and receiving acceptance slowly by white America almost through osmosis.(BTW)
OR
2. The duty of the Negro to DEMAND voting rights, equality, and the education of Negro youth according to their ability with a greater value on the study of liberal arts.(WD)
Mr. DuBois was quite radical in his ideas at the time and Mr. Washington was anointed “black leader” my white America since his philosophy was non threatening and told us to be patient until they accepted us. I don’t find any of these to be particularly offensive as, in my humble opinion, there was a need for both. This need probably was different regionally (South/North). This is to say that Black America was and is in such a bad way that we needed and need help in more than one way. We need leadership in more than one way. We need black liberal and we need black conservatives. Malcolm or Martin? Both!
These different manners in attacking the same issues that befall our community are relevant to differing segments of our society.We weren’t all called to be soldiers in the form of Malcolm and we weren’t all meant to be as compassionate and forgiving as Martin. It is said that a young person who is a conservative lacks compassion and an older person who is a liberal lacks a brain. I don’t know any of this this to be true, but I do know that our fight is not with one another. My problem is your problem, even if we have different ways to attack it. When we all thing exactly alike we become a collective group teetering on intellectual and emotional non-growth. We don’t all have to think alike but we do have to stop fighting one another when we disagree. There are many ways to get you home…….chose one, my way may not be yours. We just need to get home!
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