(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . A poem of hope on MLK Day, as we work through the 3rd level of racism [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.', 'Backgroundurl Avatar_Large', 'Nickname', 'Joined', 'Created_At', 'Story Count', 'N_Stories', 'Comment Count', 'N_Comments', 'Popular Tags'] Date: 2023-01-16 Overcoming racism is saying no to the ego and its senseless need for perceived superiority. Today, mindful of the MLK holiday, I woke up with this phrase: the burden of eyes. And it became this. Let’s make this the last generation That frequently suffers The burden of eyes Casting out icy judgement For nothing more Than pigment Instead let’s make our eyes Full of silent understanding Supportive not denigrating Offering the camaraderie Of impending overcoming Be the beacon That splits a pointless night With eyes that say You are valued Your challenges Are understood As best as an outsider can. Eyes that say The weight is lifting Day by day Person by person And those that Judge through arrogance Will be the loners. Those that Judge through fear Will be the outcasts. Because denial of their folly Will not be enough. The stain on their souls Will be judged Not by ignorant imagination But by damning truths That expose Entrenched weakness Lazy hearts Unwilling to open For no good reason at all Other than The darkness of skin As white men and women Let’s present the eyes That give a mental high five That say, “I’m one of the other ones, The ones in rising numbers Who can’t know all But can know why To give you The benefit of the doubt Because it’s The right thing to do.” Eyes will smile Both black and white Side by side The overcoming may not be Universal But the momentum will be clear Change for the better Is winning The alliance is growing Glance by glance _________ Any of us who have black friends know the truth in these words, past, present, and future. We are in the third level of racism against African Americans. The first was when racism could not be resisted because the repercussions could be lethal. The second, made real by the civil rights movement in the 1960s, was when racism was proven to most of us to be a hateful scourge with no place in modern, compassionate society. For African Americans, fighting back in rhetoric and body language was not only allowed, but a reasonable response - pushing back against blind force. The third phase, brought to bear through the heartless cruelty that killed George Floyd, is one where the whole picture is made clear, where truth can no longer be painted over. Justice is coming, and the need for true equality is now a cause with tangible steps just ahead. Society will lead the way, and through the generation now coming of age it will be done. Right now, institutional racism exists, with black men disproportionately incarcerated, with career advancement a shallower curve than talent and ability should warrant. Now is when we can and should change this. Late in the third level, African Americans won’t feel the need to resist impending judgement because it will be a rarity on the streets and in the store aisles. By the next decade, legislation and society will have turned the corner because at the state and national levels, racists will be the one lasting minority. They will be judged not by the color of their skins, but only by the darkness of their hearts. Let each Martin Luther King Jr. holiday moving forward be a day to honor the man who, at the leading edge of the second level of racism in its infancy, embodied the spirit that the third level would hold dear nearly 60 years later. And Dr. King also embodied parts of the fourth level of racism, when judgement itself is no longer a reflexive distraction. This will not only be the case with race, but also with xenophobia, misogyny, and the loathing of the LBGT+ community. Also by this point, America will know the truth in how the fomenting of these types of hatred was a useful weapon in getting folks to vote against their best interests, essentially a tool to keep taxes low on billionaire GOP donors. Defunding the IRS to protect wealthy tax cheats is the legislative Job 1 for the new House leadership. Let that be the evidence that history will point to as the beginning of the national recognition that racism for the benefit of greed has been the strategy all along. [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/1/16/2147580/-A-poem-of-hope-on-MLK-Day-as-we-work-through-the-3rd-level-of-racism Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/