This weekend, I was bombarded by so many coincidences that I realized I must be over the target. I’ve been busting my butt on these videos for Black History month, and in so doing, I found my niche, my place in Lubbock.
I have to embrace who I am, and who my people are. I have a skill set that will help produce something they seem to need: The hope that comes from realizing you are not forgotten, and that you have backup.
Knowing we have backup give us the strength to act. That’s what Ancestors are for. They speak to us through the memory of their deeds, and watch us from the confines of old pictures.
And we must not let anyone use the memory of our Ancestor’s struggles to keep us enslaved by anger, fear or shame over the past. That’s not what these memories are for.
No, I believe we need to reach back and take strength from those who came before. We need to follow the examples they set.
I spent time this Saturday taking pictures on Chatman Hill, a neighborhood on “the East Side”. It’s named after Dr. J.A. Chatman, who was one of the first black doctors in Lubbock. He literally built the backbone for Black Health Care, not just in Lubbock, but in the whole South Plains region.
This is the example we follow. This is what Black History is for.
I don’t believe in coincidence, so I’m not surprised that the will of the people is depleted at the same time the environment around us looks like a blasted waste land.
One thing we really need are places and events for us, that are accessible and that work. These are the places where we create culture. Culture is what keeps us bonded and moving in the right direction.
I plan to soon open just such a place…a people’s studio. A place for people to learn how to create their own shine. (I just wanna put that in the air, right there…)
We must cast off the temporary blindness and delusion created by following the current thing: CRT, Gender craziness, victimhood.
These are snares that will only sap our strength, and dissipate our energy. There is nothing to be gained by following any kind of marxist, collectivist script. That whole thing is just a dark religion in disguise.
It demands conformity, and makes us strain at your gnats while ignoring our own faults.
That said, we must not dwell on differences; this is the time to support each other. When you see someone working in the wilderness who doesn’t share your beliefs, but who is traveling your direction, you must travel with them, not find fault with their method of navigating.
Thankfully, I did find pockets of joy, mixed in with the rest of it, while I was out navigating this weekend: Kids in low - income homes next to Dr. Chatman’s Hospital, gleefully running and playing in the street, like we used to.
Little old ladies, coming out the front door, questioning shrilly who I was and what was I doing with that camera? (“Jus’ checkin’. It’s all kinda craziness goin’ on,” she said.)
We must look for these pockets, get inside them, and move around joyfully, while doing our work. I have realized this is my work:
To document our lives and create digital content that lets my people know they have help. And that help is within them, just like the blood of our Ancestors.
I’ve been bumping these two albums all week end:
This “Where I’m Meant To Be” by Ezra Collective is right on motha-bleeping point!!
And that Big K.R.I.T is really punching through with lyrical brilliance and emotional potency.
I love it! Wen we are quiet within our sphere, it is then, we here da whispers. You have da wisdom, now use it to da best of 'your' ability. You've found it... now Live To Live.