Yes , it is . Unfortunately, there will be no end to this . Human beings are just that , hatred and prejudice are inculcated since birth. Do I feel hurt , oh yes , at 7 yrs old . It still sting up to this day 50+ yrs later , So fresh deep fried, it still burn . I pray to high heavens that karma do strike them back , And my karma God always responded , just not in my desired timeline.
What Blacks need to realize is that it doesn't matter about feeling like you don't matter aquire some power and it wouldn't matter if they like you or not with power they can't harm you....whites can hate you and harm you and do it EVERY DAY you know why because they have ALL the power.
I was a newspaper delivery boy, in Philadelphia, in the early 60's and delivered to a black neighborhood. I got to know my customers very well and was treated like a 12 year old boy should be treated...with respect and guidance! Till this day, I am proud of the way I was brought up in my white Irish family and was taught to look upon all human beings as equal and to be respectful! We are all the same. We are put here without choice and will answer to God how we treated his creations! Be kind!
At some point Irish people weren’t considered white in America........ sounds shocking. ..this attitude also existed in England in days gone by (hopefully not anymore).
@@davem16able I read about that. I believe it said that, in England, there were far more deaths, than births, then it said, Greece and France, became a part of that "family." More is better.
george Fitter: Same!! They technically aren’t family by blood but they’re my family. They’ve been in my life since I can remember & are there if I ever need anything. I grew up with gay men & women, all different skin colors, trans men & women among ppl from all walks of life. I always thought this was life growing up, that it was everyone’s life growing up that family/friends wasn’t just white until..... middle school. I didn’t know racism, sexism, anti-LGBTQTII+ existed till then. The day I first saw racism I came home so confused, my mom told me & I was still so incredibly confused... I didn’t get why skin color &/or who someone loved mattered so much. I cried so hard cause I didn’t understand why so much pain over something that is part of who someone is & didn’t think it should matter that much. Kids ARE NOT born racist or sexist, etc. they’re taught. Please be safe!!
This is Professor Roger Wilkins, one of my favorite freshman and then senior year college professors. You taught me invaluable lessons that I continue to apply to my life today. Thank you for changing my life. RIP Prof Wilkins.
@@jg0037 bigotry and racism comes in all colors and creeds man.. no need to point fingers at whose the biggest.. I grew up in LA county my fams roots are deep all over the area and I can honestly say you're right and wrong at the same time. Ten respeto compa y no generalices a un grupo porque luego tienen toda la razón de defenderse.
Salam, what is most disturbing is that most people only think it is whites against blacks and everyone else. This is not true. I am a Muslim of Caucasian descent and have been treated no different than those of color my entire life till this day. Alhamdullilah Oppression is color blind. And so is Allah's justice. Wow! Keep your white women, now that is a reverse racist comment if there ever was one. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Sad that it is so superficial. I traveled to Georgia in the 90's with my mulit-cultural child and an African American teenager, on our way to Disney world. We stopped at a cafe and was immediately escorted to a table in the back by the toilets. Seeing that there were many tables that were open I summoned the Manager, who was a White man, and expressed my distaste of our table. "That's what you get." He said to me as he looked at my children. Well, I told him, "Then I guess you wont get this green money from this White woman." And I took "My Children" out of that filth and moved on. Alhamdullilah If any child is in my charge they ARE my child, no matter where they come from. Just to clear that up for people. This is the way of Islam, and there is no other way. A way of life I walked before calling myself a Muslim. Alhamdullilah
When he said, “we had a profound faith in the “decency of white Americans” that when they saw the effects of racism things would change and change quickly across the nation. I no longer have that faith.” That was too real.
That was so real. As a black mother with a son I worry so much about him. And my girls also . You always want to try and give people the benefit of the doubt but it’s sad that it still hasn’t changed.
He said that a long time ago. If you do not have faith of the ''decenty of white Americans'' is that mean that whites have reasons to be afraid of black people because of the lack of trust and then be called racist for it?
@@francinel8154 He wasn't pointing to individual white people, but there is an aggregate of whites who have shown their colors today. Do YOU think they will change or just be accepting tomorrow? Where do you think Blacks feeling of the racists around them have come from? What have Blacks been trusted with? Some whites keep businesses, unions, groups all to themselves. Many businesses without a Black in them in a predominately Black area! Not blackballed, just kept out. Then the "pull yourself up by your bootstraps" CRAP comes out. What say you?
@@DaveSParty I hope he did not pointing to individual, or put all the white in the same basket I should say. The rest of your comment, I agree with you.
I'm "white," but there has been a message of mind your business for decades, whites are told that it's not our business, to stay out of it, so a lot of us just go on trying to make a living and survive like everyone else and stay in our lane. On the other hand, people seem to yell at white people to do something, I don't have magic white people powers, I'm the same as everyone else, I can vote, that's about it. We have to stop voting for the same dinosaurs that been sitting in office for decades upon decades not doing a damn thing. Don't think because we're quiet we aren't supportive, we just don't know if we're supposed to say anything.
Diane Silva These are memories that you can't erase. Look at Congressman John Lewis, it's been 55 years since the March on Selma and you could still see the pain in his eyes. These are indelible scars!
And he was probably shielded from the worst of the hurt with his solid middle class status. I'm not trying to take anything away from his hurt, but, if it hurt him THAT badly, imagine how it felt for those that didn't have his protections.
I am now 49 and have four children whom are young men (African-American). This has been to this point in my life, the most profound interview that I have ever seen and I will be sharing it with everyone I know and making sure that my four young African-American Boys see this and understand the scope of what and ,whom they are witnessing.
Never forget, lest we fall into the same trap, we’ve come too far and change didn’t just happen automatically, many were sacrificed along the way. They paid the ultimate price! This generation has a duty to protect the little that’s been achieved, find their own purpose and continue to change the life of a black man and woman! One generation at a time, we shall overcome!
If just 10% of Mr. Hoffmans audience hits the like button” this would at least push the story up in RUclips’s algorithms. Might not get all “Americans” to watch but would certainly show up on a huge number of RUclipsrs suggestions to watch! So everyone watching please HIT THE LIKE BUTTON !
well then get to work VIRAL this Jah mon hipster talk walk the walk post up on your socials share like you care Wave yor hands in the AIR Party UP the truth may prevail
Why is history not a focus in highschool. More and more I'm realizing I learned next to nothing in those classes. The majority of what I've learned about history is from interviews and lectures here online.
Academic history text is written to be objective, with the objectivity often from the perspective of the victor or the government of the day. This leaves little room for perspectives from both sides of the times. Thats we grow up passing into adulthood believing we are the good guys. This is very important if the state is to produce docile, comforming and blindly patriotic citizens.
His honesty is beautifully brutal and crystal clear, every american should be required to watch this from age 6 to 100. Speak the truth and the light will heal us. Thank you
Truth be told we are in a better place but not by much. Now the racism is subtle. The flying of the Confederate Flag, police brutality toward the Blacks, the stand your ground laws, growing numbers of Nazi sympathizers all indicate strong support for Race hatred toward Blacks. The good news is the youth standing strong and taking risks to make us a better country.
Actually, it gets worse: telling their descendants it never happened. This is how places like Southlake, Texas "educate" the descendants of racist, genocidal eras.
He spoke at 72y/o and died at 74y/o of Dementia, these are priceless memories that you captured. Blessings to you and thank you for sharing this amazing human being’s recollections. Hopefully we all learn something.
Chris Page Phew! I kept computing his age in 1989 and kept thinking there's no way he was 72 years old then when he appears to be in his 50s in this video.
I am listening to him with tears in my eyes. As a 39 year old black American woman I see my fathers and my grandfathers hurt and frustrations in him. I see my own hurt and frustrations in this man's words. May he and my forefathers continue to rest in peace.
Thank you for your comment. If your resources allow, I would sure appreciate your using the THANKS button under any of my videos including the one you have commented on. It is something new that RUclips is beta testing and would mean a great deal for my continuing efforts. David Hoffman filmmaker
It was the forefathers who suffered most. They had no escape. The fight is up to us Americans to educate ourselves and families. No one can take that away from you. This man is someone anyone would want to have as a dad, a brother, uncle, etc, so absolutely proud of him, may he rest in God's Peace.
THANK YOU Mr Hoffman for interviewing a man with such prestige. As 55+yr old African American woman, this interview is still ever so real today, on another level, against my African American men (husband, sons, brothers, nephew, etc). We have keep praying and making a change.💔🙏🏼🙏🏼
As a 30-year-old black man raising a child in 2020 born in 89. One I needed this and didn't know it. two, the depths of how this man is exspressing himself is awakening. the visceral nature of his facial expression speaks volumes over his words. The pain and struggle and journey hes been on to deliver this interview with such honesty is really refreshing.
No disrespect but this is the problem with blacks we are so spread out with our history, our thought process but I'm glad you know now raise your kid knowing their history but still moving forward.
No disrespect but this is the problem with blacks we are so spread out with our history, our thought process but I'm glad you know now raise your kid knowing their history but still moving forward.
@ISaidIt 2 I am a Native woman and would like to add that we also have this issue. We are all taught to believe we are few and few are insignificant. We are taught we all had similar struggles in order to minimize what our ancestors endured! I praise those people of color that embrace their history and strive for a common future, for those from all walks of life. May the Creator guide us all along our paths, clearing the fogs of ignorance and giving us the strength to strive on in grace.
History shows that the oppressor has always been the Democrat Party, not just because someone was born white. I agree that knowing the true history is the most important thing so you can know what to look out for, and I don't mean the re-written distorted history they teach in school.
I don’t think he died with pain in his heart. He just recounted his experiences as a black man in America. We all have stories to tell from that generation.
True statement. What I can't comprehend, though, is how some people can look at another human being and clearly see how similar we all are, but yet think anyone is less than or doesn't measure up, or is somehow not worthy of basic dignity and respect....how do we not understand we're all the same?? It would be different if we were talking about someone with 5 heads and hooves instead of feet, wings on their backs and 8 arms.....but we're talking about humans with one head, two eyes, two ears, one nose, one mouth, two arms, two hands, two legs, two feet, 10 fingers, 10 toes, equal intelligence, equal abilities, and we're stupid enough to focus on superficial qualities like level of melanin in the skin, difference in hair texture, and very slight facial charachter differences??? Come on, human race....I KNOW we're smarter than THAT.
@@Don.tKillTheMessanger Yes, becouse laws and nobody is talking about being open racist again. Now with Donald Trump laws are still there but racist open opinion have came out again.
"We had to believe in America more than other people did, in order to have any hope, in order to live, in order to not go crazy.." this... is amazing 👏
No we had to belive in Christ. Christ was always the center of our lives because only He knew what it was to be rejected, tortured, persecuted and murdered just for being who you are; because your God given identity. No one knows this more than Black people.
People can say what they want but drugs in black communities are the new slavery agent the 80s introduced coke like never before our government was in on it .
I Wish that today's revolutionaries understood that. BLM maintains that white people are born racist. Imagine ! Blood guilt! No one is guilty of having a particular skin color.
That’s so crazy, how sad. I was in high school in the 70’s and dated a great guy. He happened to be black. My grandparents wouldn’t allow us to stay together. Broke my heart, they didn’t even give him a chance. I’ve never been treated with as much respect & care as that young man treated me. Racism is so ignorant.
My girl was black, her father liked me, but her mom and sister hated all whites We were even told before we went, "no zebras here" She cried like a baby in the car, and the father told me not to mind, he'd welcome me.
David Hoffman is absolutely one of the most important documentarians of the 20th/21st centuries Your style,allowed this man to tell his story in his own way
He has bitterness but he also does not realize how many - significant - areas where black & white did very well in building a good community with much interaction & acceptance of each other. This man’s victim hood is palpable. Actually sad to watch. I wish he could see the statistics today - tells a different story.🤷🏽♂
@@davisholman8149 you see individual whites may be well-intentioned and work with richly melanated persons but as the White Nation and laws it was and still is segregative and oppressive-minded towards other races esp the richly melanated. Straight facts.
"For the record, prejudices can kill... and suspicion can destroy...and a thoughtless, frightened search for a scapegoat has a fallout all of it's own - for the children and the children yet unborn. And the pity of it is that these things cannot be confined to The Twilight Zone." Rod Serling
I sent this video to my two white grandsons in Arkansas. They are sharp, aware people who may be able to pass this on to other white maturing kids for their growth and enlightenment. Thank you. Lu
Thank you Mike for your comment. If your resources allow, I would sure appreciate your using the THANKS button under any of my videos including the one you have commented on. It is something new that RUclips is beta testing and would mean a great deal for my continuing efforts. David Hoffman filmmaker
Roy Wilkins wasn't nothing but an elitist uppity negro doing the yte man's bidding. When Fannie Lou Hamer the mother of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party was gearing up to speak at the 1964 Democratic convention he was heard saying, "that old big woman needs to sit down somewhere " because she was from the lower class sharecropping communities. He had the nerve and audacity to look down on this angel of a woman. That's all I needed to witness. He was an uppity bougie arse negro so we need to stop crowning these fallible elitist.
Why? We’re already taught about racism in the 50’s and 60’s. We’re taught that Democrats instituted Jim Crow and fought against abolition. We already know there was discrimination. What has this video revealed that hasn’t already been taught in schools?
Erroneous Monk Sometimes we need to hear the stories of others and listen. When we listen we may hear that the issues didn’t end in the 50’s and 60’s. Please know that this is not political. It’s not a Democrat nor Republican problem. It’s a human problem. It’s an issue of power and the desire to retain power.
When I went got to first grade my best friend was black we were friends till he died 3 years ago. We had no Idea we were one of the first integrated classes. I will cherish his friendship forever.
My dad tells a story sometimes of when he was a street cop in B-more. One of the only black cops in his precinct. It was the 80s and he chased down a runaway suspect and caught him. The guy gave up and didn’t resist arrest. When a white cop came by in a paddy wagon, he goes up to the suspect and kicks him in the face. My dad stepped in and defended the suspect. My dad was never treated right by his fellow cops because he stood up for his fellow man. Now he works in internal affairs.
I wish more people could hear what this man has to say. I’m not black, but his words and honesty touched me and I felt his justified hurt and anger. He was a poet
The opening story about jogging brought back my worst memory. I’m not American, I live in Canada and back in the 90’s I believed Canada didn’t have the issues I saw south of the border. I was wrong. I was in my late teens, and wanted to get in shape and foolishly decided to go for a jog around a park. I jogged less than 40 metres when a policeman threw m to the ground. He stood on me and accused me of dealing drugs. I tried to explain I was only going for a jog. He looked down on me and told me I don’t jog. Being overweight, I was humiliated. Another officer soon after showed up and they let me go. It was a full decade later when I retold the story that someone pointed out the racism (I thought my treatment was due to being overweight). I mean it’s Canada and my whole life to that point I was shielded from racism from friends and neighbours. 25 years later I’m still overweight and I’m still afraid to go for a run.
Well you and I can go for that walk, or run whenever you want. I hate that you had that experience. My Father was a good cop BTW for 30 years plus. And he would hate reading this as well...
I am surprised too! If Canada had slavery I'd bet it was outlawed long before America's & they certainly didn't have a civil war over it. But as we saw from the way white people in the North reacted when former slaves moved up in waves, you can be racist even if you were against slavery.
We weren't taught about the prosperous black communities that were destroyed in Tulsa, OK, (Black Wall St) Rosewood, FL, Wilmington, NC, Seneca Village, NYC or the seven black representatives in Congress at the turn of the century. All people can prosper if given economic access.
I grew up in a country town in Pennsylvania. I was taught to fear black people. My father was extremely racist. I was in 10th grade and sat behind a guy that was black. I noticed no one spoke to him. He didn't seem scary and I felt ignorant and ashamed because I had never spoken to him either. I finally tapped him on the shoulder and asked if he had a pencil I could borrow. I had to chase him down to try to give it back. I continued to speak to him and we became friends. I would seek him out at the school dances and have to talk him into dancing with me though it would be away from the dance floor. Two years later a boy I had known since kindergarten warned me (people are talking) ! I am proud I did not care what anyone thought and we remained friends. Wherever he is I hope he is doing well 💕 My friend Arthur (Art) proved he was just like anyone else and opened my eyes and my heart! That was 1972
When I first moved to south LA, July, 1976 for a job for my late husband, being 8 mos. pregnant I had to use the bathroom, again. He waited in the car as the kids slept, in the parking lot. I walked up to a Union 76 gas station/restaurant & as I approached the door about the same time as an elderly black lady she stepped back as I opened the door. She waited for me to go thru, I said, "mam, you go 1st, you're my elder." She hesitated, looked @ me surprised & it dawned on me I was now in the deep South. "Please", as I motioned & stepped back a step to allow her thru. I went off to the counter to ask where the restroom was. As I opened the bathroom door I heard the elder lady telling her black friends, as if amazed, that a pregnant white woman opened the door for her. That broke my heart 💔 as she was my elder & should of expected to have a door opened for her from a younger person. Color should of never been an issue. Wake up people...nobody should feel inferior due to just how they were born that they had NO control over. "It's not the tone of a (wo)man's skin that counts....it's the tune of their heart that is best measured." HUGS2U all 💓.
As an African American woman, this brought tears to my eyes for two reasons: the story you shared of the encounter with the elderly woman and that the experience brought tears to your eyes. Thank you for sharing🙏🏽 continued blessings on you and yours ❤️
@@PNWOlygurl66 It rips @ my soul, regardless the prejudice, to see people treated crudely. I'm a survivor of various abuses (my father & others were pedophiles) & I'm still living with the repercussions @ 73. I am alone tho I've 4 children & 9 grandchildren...because of lies/gossips by the perps. I would literally be punished if I associated with anyone of color, as a child. My late ex, mentioned in my comment, was Filipino hence my fair skinned baby, who 'passed' as white, my relatives taught her that I slept with a white man tho married to 'the Filipino', (they stole them twice & would call them 'tween after school & me home from work to berate/belittle me & they shattered my mother/child bond....that's the worst crime of all) to tell them gossip so I wouldn't be believed about them (didn't want my children abused). Point: No matter what I survived & it was horrible, I still knew it was wrong to hate...especially for something a person couldn't help, like their genes. I know what it's like to be hated just because I existed (should of died 7 times) so being white was a horrendous suffering for me..., how bad was it for people of color? That boggles my mind, it has shattered my soul. 💔❤
Imagine how many people this happened to and those that were put in jail but didn’t have the money to get out. David, I wish you could post a message to all black people in a community, ask them their experiences and post more. Thank you.
You talk about that like its past tense. This treatment is still very much in effect. The only difference is I don't think they say 'boy' much anymore.
Same. I live in a neighborhood now that my relatives couldn't even walk through. My uncle told me a story about when he was young coming to cut a ladies yard over here and was confronted and treated horribly by the police.
This man recalling his story admitting to how we "believed" things would change.....only to fast forward all of these years later and see NO changes still really speaks volumes to the elephant that has been in the room for over 400 years!
😶🌫️😐😑😐😬😬😬 dammitcantstopmyself, I'll bite. 🤦♂️ 🙋♂️ Hi there, maybe-neighbor. *I am not* looking for an internet fight, truly... but, _no changes_ you say?
@@asicsjohnson Hey. I hear you. I don't think it's fair to say 'no' changes. But I'll explain it to you as I did in a comment of my own under this same video. If I had to walk a thousand miles, as an example, I could stop at mile 500 and acknowledge how far I've come, while simultaneously accepting that I still have a long way to go. I hope that makes sense. And thank you for watching this video and asking questions and wanting to educate yourself on these sorts of topics. It's very much appreciated. 🙏🏽❤️
@@asicsjohnson take a look around, then again if it doesn't affect you it's not a reality to you, it only comes off as a complaint, but go off I guess neighbor 🤷
"We had to believe in America more than other people did." That got me. He lost his innocence and grew his cynicism. Can't blame him really. What happens to a dream deferred, after all? I wonder what he thinks of things now. Thank you for sharing this important testimony. I really hope what we're going through is an important turning point in our country. I hope we keep up the fight and don't let less important things distract us from what matters. We must do better. We have to be better.
Hi. I stumbled upon this interview. His talk about our curly hair and dark skin make me think about the fact that today we are still emulating with the lashes, nails, and weaves.
Many of us have a story to tell. Many of us are college graduates, “religious,” volunteers in our community, family-oriented, law abiding. But we are targeted because we are Black. I’m so thankful that at 52 years old, I’m alive to see meaningful discussions taking place. Thank you for sharing this David Hoffman. 💕
My belief is that when one says "...because I am Black." is putting the problem or blame for being persecuted on yourself because your skin tone is very much your own fault for choosing that color- Prejudice people thinking🤪 🙄As if one had a choice in the matter🕎 When in fact the problem is in the heart of the😱 prejudice people So I prefer saying They hate me without a Cause ✡ or They hate me because they are prejudice🕎 This is making it clear the blame is placed where it OBVIOUSLY belongs ✝️
I am a 55 year old African American. Went to mostly white schools. College educated. Home owner. Business owner. Traveled to 22 countries including Morocco, Egypt and Gambia. And though America offers many opportunities, it sh*tty the way they treat African Americans to the current day.
The thing I feel most proud of in my life is that even as we are white & lived in the south, my parents taught me not to be a racist, that I didn’t teach my children racism, & they do not teach racist thoughts to their children. From my two parents to their 12 grandchildren & many great grandchildren I have never heard racist language. May there never be any!
I remember in 1962 sitting in my catholic school math class, this nun snatched my pristine math book and gave it to the Puerto Rican girl who lied and said I stole her book. I told the nun it was not hers, but she wouldn’t listen to me because the girl was crying and as soon as she got my book and the nun grimaced at me, the girl stopped her fake crying and laughed at me. I’m 64 years old now and I just started thinking about that because it hurt me so badly. I was only 6 and the nun was so mean to us black kids. A few years later, in 4th grade, I had a crush on a white boy and told him and he told me, “you’re too black for me”. That was another crushing blow. But, I’m not looking for pity because I believe in the laws of Karma. Turns out, I don’t think the book stealer amounted to much in life and the “crush” turned out to be a wife beater.
I’m so sorry that happened too in the afterlife these memories will not haunt u I promise that when u did it will be like waking up from a deep sleep and u will be at peace and god will get u justic
It hurts so bad watching this, I'm crying. My Daddy never raised me to act like those people. I'm 62.My only girlfriend I Loved, was black. (RIP) I miss you Shirley.
This is one of those uncomfortable bits of film that people need to watch and hear. What an eloquent man. I live in the UK so no idea you could not try on clothes - never crossed my mind. Interestingly same here but not so blatant they would pretend they did not have your size when you could see it or just hassle/follow you so you left and did not buy in their shops. A famous black brit singer recently shared how she went to a shop in SW London and a woman told her she could not touch the things in there, when she could see everyone else touching it. Oppression on a daily basis has a massive impact on mental health.
My grandmother told me about how she had to know her shoe size as she was growing because you cant try on or return the shoes. You could fight in the military but you could not be equal.
Grew up in the deep south til I was 10, in the mid-sixties ... never ever "knew" a white person until we moved north, only interacted briefly with the clerks in the stores... in my city, we could only go to the county fair on 2 designated days out of the week... we couldn't try on any clothes in the store, never used a water fountain, rode the back of the bus... we had to go in the back door of a lot of businesses (including the [white] doctor's office, which had two waiting rooms...) one in the front for whites and one in the back for us. White people could wait in the back, but we couldn't wait up front.... never did see that front room, ha ha... Even though the law was previously passed to desegregate schools, none were... I went to a nice elementary school, all black. Matter of fact, at one point when I was pre-school, we lived directly across the street from a school, but my sister (of school age) could not attend, ha ha. It was all we knew, until we moved north and suddenly I was one of only 3 black students in an all white school. As children do, you adjust, but never ever "really." My parents were both college-educated professionals, and my father was a U.S. veteran. So what.
@@teamanthony6557 I think it helped us as black people access and achieve things that would've been denied, or difficult to attain otherwise, meaning opportunities, jobs, some aspirational things in life... I also think that it's very important to really know a variety of kinds of people in order to see the world more clearly, not just our own "ideas" of them... good or bad. I am grateful for those things, yet I always feel somewhat "other," and guess I always will, unless I'm in a black "atmosphere." Racism changes who you are, or could or could've been, even if you don't know it at the time. I feel more comfortable around "fam" even though my closest friends are varied in race. I believe that black people could not've been forced to stay separate and be AS successful in America (as much as we've been allowed to be) without integration... it wouldn't have been allowed... remember Tulsa...we have to be a part of the WHOLE package to fully take advantage of what our ancestors helped build...
@@lblair2 Same story as yours. My older sister told me about my father who wanted his daughters to have patent leather shoes for Easter. She told us that the white clerk refused to sale my father the shoes. My sister being 8yrs old couldn't understand why my father began to tear up. As the tears fell from his eyes she tried to comfort him. People who haven't lived like this have no clue how demoralizing this is. I'm 61yrs young and I was a child of 4 or 5yrs old at the time. Our father shielded us as much as he could....fast forward now I see just how hard it was for us.
I sat for about 30min trying to express the emotions I felt listening to this interview. This is truly one of the greatest interviews I’ve ever heard-so deep and profound and so relatable. This is one that just resonates with me and I know my mind will be occupied for the next couple of days just pondering and mulling over some of the content in the video. Thank you, really enjoyed
I am Caucasian, and grew up in a small Midwest town. I remember the racism, and could never understand how people could be so ignorant and cruel, simply because the color of ones skin. Thank God I was able to move away from that hatred and ignorance.
If anyone suggest that this video be shown in Schools today, they would condemned and said they were indoctrinating the kids & BANNED from the schools!! Shameful. The far right political party & their followers would be ready to fire any teacher or administrator who would allow it to be viewed in their school! They would deny that these things Ever happened; and certainly isn't happening now! SMH!!!
You did like most white people do, you run from it , which does not help. To help you must stand your ground, arm and arm with those who are being hated just for being who they were born to be. 🤷😔
@@MichaelTurner856 Kindness is natural / divine, niceness is man-made construct. Someone who is kind understands life, the other one is being trained to become good. In other words nice people are usually fake, but real true people are kind from their essence. Niceness can be an attempt to fool you.. many people are like this.. godly people who have true love are kind without any effort to be so.
“Black people were always super Americans. We had to believe in America more than other people did. In order to have any hope, in order to live, in order not to get crazy.” Roger Wilkins
@Sunamer Z How do you know what I'm oblivious to? We've not had any conversation or communication of any kind, so where do you derive your opinion from?
On second thought, I don't care what you think, what language you_(attempt!)_ to speak, or what message you're trying to convey. My bad for giving you even this much time.
@Sunamer Z Damn! Sounds like you couldn't _wait_ to say that shit! Do you feel better now that you have? Your entire statement is so dated, overused, and basically just a bad rerun. Get some new, original material, something authentic, you know, something that _you_ actually thought up. By the way, I speak one language, English-the only one that counts, for me anyway. Sounds like you need a refresher course. Just sayin'..... ps. Just a tip-you should probably leave the comic book references out of your little speil. It's not helping at all.....
" Black people were always super Americans. We had to believe in America more than other people did. .. in order to have hope and not go crazy" Roger WIlkins
Roger Wilkins died at 85 years old on March 26, 2017. Great interview. I've watched it a few times. It just goes to show that as much as things change,the more they stay the same. A change of heart must accompany experience before lasting change occurs. The hearts of MANY people in this country have not changed. He talked about the South,but black people from Northern states can recount similar stories of experiencing racism.
I'm not black, I'm not even American and this interview brought tears to my eyes. I knew it was bad in the southern states - everybody does - but to see such a personal perspective is very moving. I'm going to show this to as many people as I can. R.I.P. Mr. Wilkins and thank you for telling your story. Thank you, Mr. Hoffman as well.
Trust me, the country as a whole is the same north or south it doesn't matter which one you are in when it comes to that🤫brings a quote by malcolm x to mind about anything south of Canada is THE SOUTH!
@@kparran79 Oh, I've never heard of that quote. Thanks for helping me learn something new about a very important issue. I hope you have a great weekend, Ms. Parran! 🙂
I'm not American and I will do the same. I knew there was a lot of racism in the US but so much? I am appalled! How is it possible for human beings to be so cruel and stupid?
He spoke from the heart so intelligently. The pain still simmering beneath his skin never forgetting his struggles and the struggles of many like him. Socially aware and emitting his self pride tormented like many of us who have refused to be invisible. Refusing to be invisible even to this country that has never truly admitted to seeing us. I see him respectfully as a symbol of strength. His family was very blessed to have such a man like him. Much respect.
Carol Newman this racism practice existed as late as 1990s in America, when I tried to purchase my home, I got an appointment on the phone, but when I arrived there from work it was no longer available when she saw my brown skin, but I did not take it lying down.
God knows no white people have ever been mistreated by public servants or authorities. Never been enslaved either, except when african muslims enslaved them in the 1600's, 1700's and early 1800's.
Guess what- they FOUGHT to get free. I don't mean fighting gandhi style, either. They loaded up on warships, that they built, and sailed into the slave-catching waters and took it to the africans. Before you know it, the africans were willingly signiing a treaty, just to get the white fighting men to stop punishing them. In this world, force is the most respected currency.
Its 2022 and we get to listen to him speak. Astonishing,he doesn't know but his words are and will move into the future and that is a heck of an accomplishment. Thank u for this
One of the most eloquent things that I have seen recently. The gentleman is spot on in so many arenas of the existence of this plague. Thank you for putting this up. I will share this with anyone who will watch it.
J J Which means we all come from the same mitochondrial eve. That also means there’s no such thing as black and white or any other race on a genetic level. We’re all brothers and sisters and hen it comes to our cells. It amazes me to think that all of the humans on Earth today descended from a single woman that lived just few hundreds of thousands of years ago. ALL of us, from one woman. Race is a social construct that we, as a society, have decided exists, but it has no basis in evolutionary science.
@Will Rogers Yes true, some of us are late arrivers having been genetically modified to create a newer version or copy from the first earth inhabitants. What does it matter if most of us are all mixed up...Thank God we have a DNA that trumps all others which is the Holy Spirit thanks to Jesus delivering us from false gods who interfered with creation, some of whom many still worship today as they did in the past whether knowingly or not, Illuminati, Hitler, etc. Not all are predisposed to a naturally loving nature due to this interference & this is evident by the destruction & greed prevalent in the Earth. Nevertheless, in the end, it comes down to choice.
@@curtispittman2870 Could have fooled me. If thats true, I would imagine biblical scriptures are irrelevant as well, or any other lessons in life. So to you sir, I say ,"have many seats".
Curtis Pittman I don’t know you, your ethnicity, your experiences etc but it’s obvious that you are consciously out of touch with “Life”! It’s obvious that you do not have any friends outside of your ethnicity and if you do they are just as lost!
Had the Caucasian stayed in the caucus mountains n left indigenous peoples alone we wouldn’t have the problems we have now!!! Remember The Europeans came to Africa n America n Australia n India n any n every place where there were people of a different race n kidnapped the people taking them to other lands or exploiting n oppressing them in their own land!!!!
@Katrina Morningstar 'We' Caucasians??? Alright 'Karen'. Your comment reeks of self entitlement ignorance and petulance!Your comment isn't even offensive, it's ridiculous. Please take the time to read 'Your' real history. And don't just glamour yourself with the beautiful lies. I dare you to seek and read your ugly truth. 'We' Caucasians 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣. Hilarious!!!
I am a white man from a middle class family outside of DC and I lived in NYC for 14 years, most of it during the height of stop & frisk. I grew up heavily involved in the DC punk scene and into my young adulthood would still often wear outwardly "punk" clothing...both as a statement and as what I was most comfortable in. I lived all over NYC, from Bushwick to Forest Hills, Lower Manhattan to Astoria. It was in Astoria, usually at night, in winter, while walking with my black Carhartt jacket with the hood pulled up covered in punk rock patches, that I would be stopped by plainclothes NYPD officers on three separate occasions, the most terrifying of which was when I had my headphones in and the music turned up loud so I didn't see them coming until they piled out of an unmarked car and had thrown me up against a brick wall. Each encounter was roughly the same...they would pat me down, shout at me, and then inform me I had "matched the description" of someone involved in a crime. However every single time, as well, there was the moment they pulled down my hood. The moment they saw my skin color. And you could see it in their eyes...the brief disappointment that melted almost immediately into rage. Rage that I had wasted their time. Rage that the facade of stop & frisk being a "fair" practice about "safety" had been exposed. Of course, they had to complete their script. How I "matched the description" of a suspect. But you could tell they were going through the motions. I didn't match the description at all. I was always let go immediately, unceremoniously. They were just a bunch of ignorant thugs with no uniforms, no patrol car, who couldn't tell the difference between two very distinct "urban" styles of clothing. I believed stop & frisk was an assault on liberty before these experiences happened to me, but after experiencing this I acutely understood for the first time the panic and fear...the dehumanization that accompanied each incident. And what I couldn't get over was exactly what Mr. Wilkins says here... If it hadn't been for my get-out-of-jail-free card...my skin...any one of those three incidents could have ended very differently for me.
Glad you highlighted your experience. Should be more comments, but as usual it will go mostly ignored. In one eyeball and shut out of the mind. It usually takes one to actually feel one dose of someone else pain or discomfort, before one can give it's credence. It's rarely mentioned that lots of people live the "long as it's not me" thinking. Appreciate your post let's hope more come across it..
Thank you for filming and posting this. I am so sick of people not wanting to talk about this. It makes the pain fester like a person experiencing PTSD and never getting couseling. You can't change people's hearts with laws.
I have a grandfather who’s a dentist who looks very similar to this man another middle class black male they are close in age he told me a lot of the same stories
freeganjustin my great grandmother is 108 and still pushing buddy so what does him being 103 have to do with anything this man has passed God bless his soul even tho he was a lawyer had great success you can still see the pain in his eyes the hurt of not being excepted in society
Such an incredible interview. His passing is such a great loss. His children are so fortunate to have had him as a father. Thank you so much for sharing it with us.
Roger Wilkins was a great human being, civil rights leader, history professor and journalist. He was born in 1937 which would make him 57 at the time of this video - not 72. Mr. Wilkins died in 2017 at the age of 85.
The entire Un-United States of America should have to watch this heartbreaking interview. This man was SO phenomenal. So painfully & needlessly strong. Everyone should be sharing this everywhere!!!
Mr. Hoffman, Thank you so much for taping this. I am glad that you had given him a voice. I am so sorry that he had to be subjected to hate and racism. I am so sorry that ANYONE had been subjected to it. I cared or would care for every black person born. I wish I could have hugged those little girls and boys that had been shouted obscenities to. I would let them know that I gave a damn. I give a damn now. I always will. As far as integration...everyone deserved to be treated with kindness and respect and I am so sorry that these people didn’t get that. I understand what you’re saying about wanting to finally be treated that way. If I were you I would have hated to be around ANY white person. Me... I would rather be around the black people. When I was 11 in 1970, my best friend was black. I loved her very much as my friend and to me she was my sister. That’s the first time I ever made a bad grade was in the 5th grade. She and I both got a D in conduct because we had so much fun together we laughed all the time, and it was our fault: Not because of her color, but because everyday we were having to be told to stop talking. We were having too much fun. I am blessed to have known her. Joyce I will always love you sister. I don’t care what anyone says. Thank you for naming your baby after me. You are an angel sent from God. I will remember you even if I get Dementia. We grew up and like All my other friends, gone our separate ways. I do miss that precious soul. She was an amazing person. Black is Beautiful. Joyce is Beautiful. God Bless everyone and stay safe. 💖💖💖💖💖
Even as a child, I saw integration as a way to shut up Black people. It was a farce. The bussed us to a white school and put us in the same segregated classrooms as in the hood. The classroom had simply been moved to a white school with the same students and teachers as the Black school. Whites came to our neighborhood school for only one year and that was it. We got up extra early to go across town and sit next to each other and be taught by the same teachers as the Black school. It was the silliest crap I had ever seen and I was very resentful when I discovered this. I was 7 at the time and it wasn't something my parents had to tell or show me.
Yes, starting with "Boy" is the first sign of disrespect. Had he not have credentials on him they would have kept up their make-up story about someone that was reported to them.
As a person who spent most of his life living in ex-soviet republic, I find it amazing that social issues in US such as racism and inequality are in center of social attention, whereas in our culture we are most concerned about organized crime and corruption. Wish you all guys the best.
I am from Nigeria and the farthest I have ever travelled is to Ghana. His narration was so vivid and I felt the sadness even though I couldn't relate to it. I wish all the black race can just come together and build.
Very DEEP and moving. I'm 51 years old as of this year. I was born in 1971 which means I was born ONLY 6 years AFTER the law making segregation unconstitutional passed. Well as I grew up during the 70's, 80's and 90's (New York City) it was clear to me through experience or observation; that not all White's changed their hearts and minds when the law did. A Black coworker of mind told me a White person this year in 2022 told him to "STAY IN HIS PLACE NIGGER."...and NO it wasn't an "oldman."
We were born in the same year . I live in Colorado where it’s pretty progressive where I live and I experienced racism from police a few times . Especially in Aurora. A traffic stop where they immediately pull their guns in you . The passive aggressive behavior of some whites in public spaces . Just yesterday my son and I went to the Apple Store to get his iPhone checked and we waited a long time like everyone else . As the technician was speaking to us , a white women interrupted us and started to talk to the technician as if he wasn’t taking to us . I immediately stopped her and asked her why are you interrupting us and she looked at me and immediately apologized. In the back of my head I wanted to fly off the handle . Would she have done this if we were white ? I doubt it but he audacity of this woman and her trying to implement some privilege and to act like we were invisible. I wanted to go off but the look in my face and eyes let her know I wasn’t going to play that game with her . She stepped back and apologized and she better have .
Powerful, truthful, sad and appalling. Our history school books must be corrected. A shameful past and present. Together is better! Thank you Rodger and David.
Im a Hispanic who serve my country I’ve deployed to the Middle East I’ve always considered myself a patriot to my country i love my country, Well out in town i was stoped by a teenage girl who asked me in a very disrespectful obnoxious tone “excuse me do you speak English” i was angry with this kid but I wasn’t going to yell at a kid so I sighed out of anger and walked away and i could hear her say to her friends “that’s what i thought Pedro” then i looked back ready to yell at her and i seen her friend hit her on her shoulder, she then said “what?, they’re not supposed to be here in the first place” she said “they’re” meaning Hispanic, brown skin, not white, It doesn’t matter what i do for this country in the eyes of some white people, not all, but some, i know they will never except me as American and in their eyes I’m just Mexican despite the fact that ive never been to Mexico I’m a 4th generation America most my family today cant speak Spanish including me, I know not all white people think the same way but it really hits your gut when you have to experience racism
You are American. You are more American than they ever will be because you understand what being American actually means. We are a land of immigrants. We are a built by the blood, sweat and tears of people of color. There would be no America without people of color. Whether it be the natives whose land we stand on, Africans & others who worked the labor that powered the first economies or the Asians, Hispanics and others who built the railroad. The idea that these patriots put so much work in for a country that treated them so poorly, just shows you they are the absolute top Americans. Every war America has fought in, has had people of color. To fight for a country that treats you unfairly is the ultimate act of loyalty. People of color will be the majority in America in 2041. It is time to stop caring what whites think. They are products of European immigration and many are from poor European families. The greatness of America is that it is ever-evolving. We can start taking power back by demanding equal and fair representation on media & Hollywood. Soft power as in popular culture is extremely important into changing how people view Americans of color. We absolutely have the power to force this through our dollars.
I agree as a fellow Hispanic citizen! We are actually the real Americans here, we were always here and we have built this country with our bare hands and didn’t take anything from anyone! We are the best people, but we have been discriminated against, oppressed and repressed by the land grabbers, liars, thieves, criminals who took anything and everything they wanted to, REAL HISTORY NEEDS TO BE TAUGHT!
@@goldsmithstudent But ironically the next sentence was "through our dollars" that sounds like capitalism and free market principles. Like boycotting Nike products. 😊
I am Irish, my husband is Nigerian. My childrens skintone is the same as this mans. I could not imagine my children being treated this way. My husband is a runner. He luckily has never been abused by police, but I am always in fear for my husband and children. We humans are capable of such animosity and horror towards one another it breaks my heart.
@@uyoebyik given the jogger killed for jogging while black while trump was prez, given George Floyd, Brianna Taylor, and so many others, are you saying you don’t believe it is still a problem?
"No matter how much respect and recognition whites show towards me, as far as I am concerned, as long as that same respect and recognition is not shown towards every one of our people in this country, It doesn't exist for me - Malcolm X
The landscape has changed completely. Pretending thos is still the 1950's or even the 1970's, is very damaging. It creates dispair and ensures that there will always be a steady income stream from the predators that live off of. Black misery and poverty.
![I.N "HALLUCINATION" | [Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/n5B5q1Hwt_U/mqdefault.jpg)
"The worst thing you can do to another human being is make them feel they don't count" those were POWERFUL words
So much of society acts to make a person feel invisible!
Yes , it is .
Unfortunately, there will be no end to this .
Human beings are just that , hatred and prejudice are inculcated since birth.
Do I feel hurt , oh yes , at 7 yrs old .
It still sting up to this day 50+ yrs later ,
So fresh deep fried, it still burn .
I pray to high heavens that karma do strike them back ,
And my karma God always responded , just not in my desired timeline.
and what you must believe about yourself in order to find it necessary to do that to another
On the strength.
What Blacks need to realize is that it doesn't matter about feeling like you don't matter aquire some power and it wouldn't matter if they like you or not with power they can't harm you....whites can hate you and harm you and do it EVERY DAY you know why because they have ALL the power.
I was a newspaper delivery boy, in Philadelphia, in the early 60's and delivered to a black neighborhood. I got to know my customers very well and was treated like a 12 year old boy should be treated...with respect and guidance! Till this day, I am proud of the way I was brought up in my white Irish family and was taught to look upon all human beings as equal and to be respectful! We are all the same. We are put here without choice and will answer to God how we treated his creations! Be kind!
Thanks for sharing this, Parents play a big part in ending racism.
At some point Irish people weren’t considered white in America........ sounds shocking. ..this attitude also existed in England in days gone by (hopefully not anymore).
@@davem16able
I read about that. I believe it said that, in England, there were far more deaths, than births,
then it said, Greece and France, became a part of that "family." More is better.
Same I was brought up to respect everybody regardless of what colour they were
george Fitter: Same!! They technically aren’t family by blood but they’re my family. They’ve been in my life since I can remember & are there if I ever need anything. I grew up with gay men & women, all different skin colors, trans men & women among ppl from all walks of life. I always thought this was life growing up, that it was everyone’s life growing up that family/friends wasn’t just white until..... middle school. I didn’t know racism, sexism, anti-LGBTQTII+ existed till then. The day I first saw racism I came home so confused, my mom told me & I was still so incredibly confused... I didn’t get why skin color &/or who someone loved mattered so much. I cried so hard cause I didn’t understand why so much pain over something that is part of who someone is & didn’t think it should matter that much. Kids ARE NOT born racist or sexist, etc. they’re taught. Please be safe!!
This is Professor Roger Wilkins, one of my favorite freshman and then senior year college professors. You taught me invaluable lessons that I continue to apply to my life today. Thank you for changing my life. RIP Prof Wilkins.
Condolences to you and all who knew him.
What an amazing fortune it must have been for you to have had Prof Wilkins as a teacher. ❤️
Thank you Professor Roger Wilkins for sharing your brilliance with the world . God Bless You 🙏 💕🙏💕
David hoffman was incorrect about the age when roger wilkins died.He died at age 85 not 74.
“The worst thing you can do to a human being is make her or him feel like he doesn’t count” beautifully said.
Yep....many Whites feel that way today
@@bjn3536 way to completely miss the point. white people have had more say than black people in this country for hundreds of years
@@diabeticdizzle1902 Fake News
It's happening with rising ageism.
@@bjn3536 🙄 You have white people to thank for that.
When you sit down and let people tell their stories, you realize it’s not hatred that a lot of black people feel. It’s hurt and betrayal.
Duh
BLACKS are most racist !, since 1955 ! Greetings from compton, CALIFORNIA, originally " los ranchos de la familia Dominguez".
@@ahamed6702
I wish i was !.
@@jg0037 bigotry and racism comes in all colors and creeds man.. no need to point fingers at whose the biggest.. I grew up in LA county my fams roots are deep all over the area and I can honestly say you're right and wrong at the same time. Ten respeto compa y no generalices a un grupo porque luego tienen toda la razón de defenderse.
Salam, what is most disturbing is that most people only think it is whites against blacks and everyone else. This is not true. I am a Muslim of Caucasian descent and have been treated no different than those of color my entire life till this day. Alhamdullilah Oppression is color blind. And so is Allah's justice. Wow! Keep your white women, now that is a reverse racist comment if there ever was one. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Sad that it is so superficial. I traveled to Georgia in the 90's with my mulit-cultural child and an African American teenager, on our way to Disney world. We stopped at a cafe and was immediately escorted to a table in the back by the toilets. Seeing that there were many tables that were open I summoned the Manager, who was a White man, and expressed my distaste of our table. "That's what you get." He said to me as he looked at my children. Well, I told him, "Then I guess you wont get this green money from this White woman." And I took "My Children" out of that filth and moved on. Alhamdullilah If any child is in my charge they ARE my child, no matter where they come from. Just to clear that up for people. This is the way of Islam, and there is no other way. A way of life I walked before calling myself a Muslim. Alhamdullilah
When he said, “we had a profound faith in the “decency of white Americans” that when they saw the effects of racism things would change and change quickly across the nation. I no longer have that faith.” That was too real.
That was so real. As a black mother with a son I worry so much about him. And my girls also . You always want to try and give people the benefit of the doubt but it’s sad that it still hasn’t changed.
He said that a long time ago. If you do not have faith of the ''decenty of white Americans'' is that mean that whites have reasons to be afraid of black people because of the lack of trust and then be called racist for it?
@@francinel8154 He wasn't pointing to individual white people, but there is an aggregate of whites who have shown their colors today. Do YOU think they will change or just be accepting tomorrow? Where do you think Blacks feeling of the racists around them have come from? What have Blacks been trusted with? Some whites keep businesses, unions, groups all to themselves. Many businesses without a Black in them in a predominately Black area! Not blackballed, just kept out. Then the "pull yourself up by your bootstraps" CRAP comes out. What say you?
@@DaveSParty I hope he did not pointing to individual, or put all the white in the same basket I should say. The rest of your comment, I agree with you.
I'm "white," but there has been a message of mind your business for decades, whites are told that it's not our business, to stay out of it, so a lot of us just go on trying to make a living and survive like everyone else and stay in our lane. On the other hand, people seem to yell at white people to do something, I don't have magic white people powers, I'm the same as everyone else, I can vote, that's about it. We have to stop voting for the same dinosaurs that been sitting in office for decades upon decades not doing a damn thing. Don't think because we're quiet we aren't supportive, we just don't know if we're supposed to say anything.
I could still see his hurt, after all his accomplishments in life.
His accomplishments says something about him not his color!!
Diane Silva These are memories that you can't erase. Look at Congressman John Lewis, it's been 55 years since the March on Selma and you could still see the pain in his eyes. These are indelible scars!
The experiencd never goes away.....
And he was probably shielded from the worst of the hurt with his solid middle class status. I'm not trying to take anything away from his hurt, but, if it hurt him THAT badly, imagine how it felt for those that didn't have his protections.
Graham Herbert I started to respond to your ignorance. Lol, your not even worth it.
I am now 49 and have four children whom are young men (African-American).
This has been to this point in my life, the most profound interview that I have ever seen and I will be sharing it with everyone I know and making sure that my four young African-American Boys see this and understand the scope of what and ,whom they are witnessing.
Never forget, lest we fall into the same trap, we’ve come too far and change didn’t just happen automatically, many were sacrificed along the way. They paid the ultimate price! This generation has a duty to protect the little that’s been achieved, find their own purpose and continue to change the life of a black man and woman! One generation at a time, we shall overcome!
Thank you
I wish every "American" would seriously watch and listen to this video.
If just 10% of Mr. Hoffmans audience hits the like button” this would at least push the story up in RUclips’s algorithms. Might not get all “Americans” to watch but would certainly show up on a huge number of RUclipsrs suggestions to watch! So everyone watching please HIT THE LIKE BUTTON !
Gregory Edward 👍 👍 👍 👍
mark mark - you ought to try living it ! !
well then get to work VIRAL this Jah mon hipster talk walk the walk post up on your socials share like you care Wave yor hands in the AIR Party UP the truth may prevail
I did. I hope people really do LISTEN
I sat here and tried my best to write out a good, heartfelt response. I have no better words than these. Thank you for sharing this with us.
The end kills me...where he goes back and it's worse than before. Hope he watching what's happening now and keeping his fingers crossed.
It is very painful.
I’m with you, and all I can say, is ditto. ✌️💜🎵🙏🏻
Watched a lecture from Marcus Rediker (look him up) and I immediately felt like I live in a nightmare! This only perpetuates that feeling. God PLEASE!
@@Ifelovv May I please ask which lecture?
Why is history not a focus in highschool. More and more I'm realizing I learned next to nothing in those classes. The majority of what I've learned about history is from interviews and lectures here online.
And we know that those who do not know history are doomed to repeat it.
Academic history text is written to be objective, with the objectivity often from the perspective of the victor or the government of the day. This leaves little room for perspectives from both sides of the times.
Thats we grow up passing into adulthood believing we are the good guys. This is very important if the state is to produce docile, comforming and blindly patriotic citizens.
History that happened yesterday is not being recorded accurately or responsibly today.
MrPhil360 this is willful to hide what was done to the minoritys groups like indians and blacks. It's results of the estrutural racism.
And you are right to educate yourself reading diferent books, and seeing interviews in the internet.
Bless you Roger Wilkins !! Thank you for your govt service to our nation!!
Your story will never be forgotten!❤
His honesty is beautifully brutal and crystal clear, every american should be required to watch this from age 6 to 100. Speak the truth and the light will heal us. Thank you
Elizabeth Papadopoulos Yeah, he’s a hell of a good speaker!
agreed
Metro Gartley was their existence. The overwhelming majority of white people don’t care if you are black, brown or what ever.
I'm sharing this as much as I can!
Truth be told we are in a better place but not by much. Now the racism is subtle. The flying of the Confederate Flag, police brutality toward the Blacks, the stand your ground laws, growing numbers of Nazi sympathizers all indicate strong support for Race hatred toward Blacks. The good news is the youth standing strong and taking risks to make us a better country.
"The worst thing you can do to a human being is to make them believe they don't count"
Actually, it gets worse: telling their descendants it never happened. This is how places like Southlake, Texas "educate" the descendants of racist, genocidal eras.
Absolutely
Have you heard of torture?
@@driveronehundrednine3225 Would you torture someone you valued? Torture is what you do to people who don't count.
@@Scott-vc8oi I mean you're spouting facts. So I agree with you. What's your point
He spoke at 72y/o and died at 74y/o of Dementia, these are priceless memories that you captured. Blessings to you and thank you for sharing this amazing human being’s recollections. Hopefully we all learn something.
Chris Page Phew! I kept computing his age in 1989 and kept thinking there's no way he was 72 years old then when he appears to be in his 50s in this video.
@@iuaislamf I was calculating too. It wasn't making much sense.
@Chris Page yes in deed.
@@richardmullins44 that’s what wiki is showing also.
@@iuaislamf That's why we "as Afrikan Black People need to tell our story and not his-story (the European white people)
This needs to be shown in every school and colleges in America.
Nope. Critical race theory. This type of education is being banned all around America.
Like that’s gonna to change anything 🙄
@capoislamort100 It may touch someone to learn more about this subject!
The bigots won’t allow that
Would never happen. Many whte people don't want their children to know their legacy of shame.
I am listening to him with tears in my eyes. As a 39 year old black American woman I see my fathers and my grandfathers hurt and frustrations in him. I see my own hurt and frustrations in this man's words. May he and my forefathers continue to rest in peace.
Thank you for your comment. If your resources allow, I would sure appreciate your using the THANKS button under any of my videos including the one you have commented on. It is something new that RUclips is beta testing and would mean a great deal for my continuing efforts.
David Hoffman filmmaker
🥰❤️
It was the forefathers who suffered most. They had no escape. The fight is up to us Americans to educate ourselves and families. No one can take that away from you. This man is someone anyone would want to have as a dad, a brother, uncle, etc, so absolutely proud of him, may he rest in God's Peace.
THANK YOU Mr Hoffman for interviewing a man with such prestige. As 55+yr old African American woman, this interview is still ever so real today, on another level, against my African American men (husband, sons, brothers, nephew, etc). We have keep praying and making a change.💔🙏🏼🙏🏼
We fought and always will fight these terrible unjust ed.PERIOD.
Good on the interviewer for letting the man express himself without interruption....
They say ignorance is bliss.Ignorance is also dangerous and makes it easy to feed people dangerous lies.
To be racist is not to be ignorant to be racist is to
be arrogant.
How can ignorance be bliss??
WELL SAID
@@MYSTICGOW1 they say ignorance is bliss because what you don't know does not hold you accountable for it.
Ignorance is a blister! Waiting to pop!
When truth arrives, it bursts and burns, a lot!
I am so sorry that this beautiful mind had to die of dementia. That is really cruel. I'm glad you preserved his story and his legacy.
It is appointed by God once to die and that's for everyone for sure.
It's a real tragedy that this man had to die the way he did. May God have mercy on his soul.
Stress Racism is recognized as a public health disease
Africans been killing Africans since the beginning of civilization. Harp on something new.
He is not the only story. Every Black person you see has had the experience to this day! 2024
As a 30-year-old black man raising a child in 2020 born in 89. One I needed this and didn't know it. two, the depths of how this man is exspressing himself is awakening. the visceral nature of his facial expression speaks volumes over his words. The pain and struggle and journey hes been on to deliver this interview with such honesty is really refreshing.
No disrespect but this is the problem with blacks we are so spread out with our history, our thought process but I'm glad you know now raise your kid knowing their history but still moving forward.
No disrespect but this is the problem with blacks we are so spread out with our history, our thought process but I'm glad you know now raise your kid knowing their history but still moving forward.
@ISaidIt 2 I am a Native woman and would like to add that we also have this issue. We are all taught to believe we are few and few are insignificant. We are taught we all had similar struggles in order to minimize what our ancestors endured!
I praise those people of color that embrace their history and strive for a common future, for those from all walks of life.
May the Creator guide us all along our paths, clearing the fogs of ignorance and giving us the strength to strive on in grace.
History shows that the oppressor has always been the Democrat Party, not just because someone was born white. I agree that knowing the true history is the most important thing so you can know what to look out for, and I don't mean the re-written distorted history they teach in school.
I’m sad for Roger that he died with such pain in his heart. He seemed like a good guy who just wanted to provide for his family with dignity. RIP
: Roger was not the only one that felt that way, believe me.
I don’t think he died with pain in his heart. He just recounted his experiences as a black man in America. We all have stories to tell from that generation.
I'm wondering how he would have felt to see Obama in the White House and if you were to interview him today 2023.
You can see the pain in his face
What do you mean he seemed like a good guy?🤔
"Man fears what he does not understand, and what man does not understand, he will seek to destroy"
(Native American saying)
💯💯💯💯💯
So smart peoples!
Eli Sianez Yeah ur right THE WHITE MAN...
True statement. What I can't comprehend, though, is how some people can look at another human being and clearly see how similar we all are, but yet think anyone is less than or doesn't measure up, or is somehow not worthy of basic dignity and respect....how do we not understand we're all the same?? It would be different if we were talking about someone with 5 heads and hooves instead of feet, wings on their backs and 8 arms.....but we're talking about humans with one head, two eyes, two ears, one nose, one mouth, two arms, two hands, two legs, two feet, 10 fingers, 10 toes, equal intelligence, equal abilities, and we're stupid enough to focus on superficial qualities like level of melanin in the skin, difference in hair texture, and very slight facial charachter differences??? Come on, human race....I KNOW we're smarter than THAT.
Eli Sianez Without W.U.K (wisdom understanding Knowledge) its ALL FUTILE! U can lead people 2 Knowledge but u CANT make them think🤔
I am black and I would never ever would live in a country like america in those times. Black people then were so brave.
Things have only changed on a superficial level. Ppl don't always act the same, but they still think the same.
@@Don.tKillTheMessanger Yes, becouse laws and nobody is talking about being open racist again. Now with Donald Trump laws are still there but racist open opinion have came out again.
I'm so grateful I wasn't born in America...just such a dreadful mindset in the past.. I wouldn't want to be there now either..😢
It’s a wonder that they are still a sane people, having to be always swimming with sharks!
I would of never survived then. I would of definitely been killed.
"We had to believe in America more than other people did, in order to have any hope, in order to live, in order to not go crazy.." this... is amazing 👏
Totally agree
Nikkun Haklali
This is true
💯
No we had to belive in Christ. Christ was always the center of our lives because only He knew what it was to be rejected, tortured, persecuted and murdered just for being who you are; because your God given identity. No one knows this more than Black people.
Racism is a vile disease. That man had a good soul. Breaks my heart
People can say what they want but drugs in black communities are the new slavery agent the 80s introduced coke like never before our government was in on it .
I Wish that today's revolutionaries understood that. BLM maintains that white people are born racist. Imagine ! Blood guilt! No one is guilty of having a particular skin color.
That’s so crazy, how sad. I was in high school in the 70’s and dated a great guy. He happened to be black. My grandparents wouldn’t allow us to stay together. Broke my heart, they didn’t even give him a chance. I’ve never been treated with as much respect & care as that young man treated me. Racism is so ignorant.
Very sad indeed. I bet he was an awesome and sweet guy. 💜
@Chakra #5 what are you talking about?
My girl was black, her father liked me, but her mom and sister hated all whites We were even told before we went, "no zebras here" She cried like a baby in the car, and the father told me not to mind, he'd welcome me.
@Chakra #5 troll!
@Chakra #5 Do you just make things up just to get a reaction?
David Hoffman is absolutely one of the most important documentarians of the 20th/21st centuries
Your style,allowed this man to tell his story in his own way
Thank you.
David Hoffman filmmaker
His ability to express himself passionately in such controlled anger is amazing
Age relaxes the heart.
He has bitterness but he also does not realize how many - significant - areas where black & white did very well in building a good community with much interaction & acceptance of each other. This man’s victim hood is palpable. Actually sad to watch. I wish he could see the statistics today - tells a different story.🤷🏽♂
Yes. Excellent communication.
@@davisholman8149 you see individual whites may be well-intentioned and work with richly melanated persons but as the White Nation and laws it was and still is segregative and oppressive-minded towards other races esp the richly melanated. Straight facts.
He's a decent actor.
David you have an invaluable archive of American History.
"For the record, prejudices can kill... and suspicion can destroy...and a thoughtless, frightened search for a scapegoat has a fallout all of it's own - for the children and the children yet unborn. And the pity of it is that these things cannot be confined to The Twilight Zone."
Rod Serling
I sent this video to my two white grandsons in Arkansas. They are sharp, aware people who may be able to pass this on to other white maturing kids for their growth and enlightenment. Thank you. Lu
🙏🏼 thank you for sharing that truth
@@louisadigrazia1285 Thank you for doing what you can where you can! God bless you! 💜
TheLeen61 ~ I remember that episode.
@@CreoleLadyBug A true classic that rings so true even today.
He was one of the greatest treasure's that I have seen in my lifetime. RIP Mr Wilkins
Thank you Mike for your comment. If your resources allow, I would sure appreciate your using the THANKS button under any of my videos including the one you have commented on. It is something new that RUclips is beta testing and would mean a great deal for my continuing efforts.
David Hoffman filmmaker
Roy Wilkins wasn't nothing but an elitist uppity negro doing the yte man's bidding. When Fannie Lou Hamer the mother of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party was gearing up to speak at the 1964 Democratic convention he was heard saying, "that old big woman needs to sit down somewhere " because she was from the lower class sharecropping communities. He had the nerve and audacity to look down on this angel of a woman. That's all I needed to witness. He was an uppity bougie arse negro so we need to stop crowning these fallible elitist.
This needs to be played in American history classes
I concur.
For what? So that nothing continues to happen?
You mean it isn’t?
Why so you can have more excuses why you're not getting head in life
This has no "need." It's a video.
This should be preserved in our national archives and taught/shown in schools.
Excellent idea!!!!
MarshieFire X Agreed. I myself can break down everything he says and teach a class!!! So can Dr Jane Elliott 👍🏾
Why? We’re already taught about racism in the 50’s and 60’s. We’re taught that Democrats instituted Jim Crow and fought against abolition. We already know there was discrimination. What has this video revealed that hasn’t already been taught in schools?
Erroneous Monk context and attachment to a subject that text cant give
Erroneous Monk Sometimes we need to hear the stories of others and listen. When we listen we may hear that the issues didn’t end in the 50’s and 60’s.
Please know that this is not political. It’s not a Democrat nor Republican problem. It’s a human problem. It’s an issue of power and the desire to retain power.
When I went got to first grade my best friend was black we were friends till he died 3 years ago. We had no Idea we were one of the first integrated classes. I will cherish his friendship forever.
❤❤❤
🍪
So sorry for your loss
Condolences 🌹🕊🌹
Bless you both
KM Hemmans The RUclipsr
My dad tells a story sometimes of when he was a street cop in B-more. One of the only black cops in his precinct. It was the 80s and he chased down a runaway suspect and caught him. The guy gave up and didn’t resist arrest. When a white cop came by in a paddy wagon, he goes up to the suspect and kicks him in the face. My dad stepped in and defended the suspect. My dad was never treated right by his fellow cops because he stood up for his fellow man. Now he works in internal affairs.
The corruption still goes on. My friend Sgt. Djossou Charlotte Mansah is still standing up.
Thank God for dad! God bless him.
Thankful your dad was there.
I wish more people could hear what this man has to say. I’m not black, but his words and honesty touched me and I felt his justified hurt and anger. He was a poet
The opening story about jogging brought back my worst memory. I’m not American, I live in Canada and back in the 90’s I believed Canada didn’t have the issues I saw south of the border. I was wrong. I was in my late teens, and wanted to get in shape and foolishly decided to go for a jog around a park. I jogged less than 40 metres when a policeman threw m to the ground. He stood on me and accused me of dealing drugs. I tried to explain I was only going for a jog. He looked down on me and told me I don’t jog. Being overweight, I was humiliated. Another officer soon after showed up and they let me go.
It was a full decade later when I retold the story that someone pointed out the racism (I thought my treatment was due to being overweight). I mean it’s Canada and my whole life to that point I was shielded from racism from friends and neighbours. 25 years later I’m still overweight and I’m still afraid to go for a run.
Please don’t be afraid to go for a run!!
Well, try walking - you take care of you. Do not someone else who is ignorant interpose themselves into your life...
running, swimming, eating ....it doesnt matter what you are doing because racists see your presence as the problem itself
Well you and I can go for that walk, or run whenever you want. I hate that you had that experience. My Father was a good cop BTW for 30 years plus. And he would hate reading this as well...
I am surprised too! If Canada had slavery I'd bet it was outlawed long before America's & they certainly didn't have a civil war over it. But as we saw from the way white people in the North reacted when former slaves moved up in waves, you can be racist even if you were against slavery.
We weren't taught about the prosperous black communities that were destroyed in Tulsa, OK, (Black Wall St) Rosewood, FL, Wilmington, NC, Seneca Village, NYC or the seven black representatives in Congress at the turn of the century. All people can prosper if given economic access.
Add to that, "The opposite of poverty is not wealth. It's justice"--Bryan Stevenson
So what exactly changed from that time. Can you please provide more references about this issue?
Correction: All people can prosper if they take advantage of their opportunities.
@@davidpatton906 ahh but the opportunities available are not always equal. There lies the problem.
History is told by the victor. When history is white washed, what do people of color have to aspired to become?
I grew up in a country town in Pennsylvania. I was taught to fear black people. My father was extremely racist. I was in 10th grade and sat behind a guy that was black. I noticed no one spoke to him. He didn't seem scary and I felt ignorant and ashamed because I had never spoken to him either. I finally tapped him on the shoulder and asked if he had a pencil I could borrow. I had to chase him down to try to give it back. I continued to speak to him and we became friends. I would seek him out at the school dances and have to talk him into dancing with me though it would be away from the dance floor. Two years later a boy I had known since kindergarten warned me (people are talking) ! I am proud I did not care what anyone thought and we remained friends. Wherever he is I hope he is doing well 💕 My friend Arthur (Art) proved he was just like anyone else and opened my eyes and my heart! That was 1972
❤❤❤
Bless you for your bravery and goodness! 🙏🏽
Good for you to listen to your own intuition.
Wow I was born in 1972. Those were some different times. Beautiful story.
God bless you
What a beautiful human love story ❤
He died of dementia. That's just heartbreaking for any person or family. 😢
@Fuert Neigt what year was this filmed
This was in 1989 - he was in his late 50s then. He died three years ago at age 85.
That is really sad
The stress of systemic hatred
Sofia M HE WAS 74 WHEN HE DIED OF DEMENTIA😢
When I first moved to south LA, July, 1976 for a job for my late husband, being 8 mos. pregnant I had to use the bathroom, again. He waited in the car as the kids slept, in the parking lot. I walked up to a Union 76 gas station/restaurant & as I approached the door about the same time as an elderly black lady she stepped back as I opened the door. She waited for me to go thru, I said, "mam, you go 1st, you're my elder." She hesitated, looked @ me surprised & it dawned on me I was now in the deep South. "Please", as I motioned & stepped back a step to allow her thru. I went off to the counter to ask where the restroom was. As I opened the bathroom door I heard the elder lady telling her black friends, as if amazed, that a pregnant white woman opened the door for her. That broke my heart 💔 as she was my elder & should of expected to have a door opened for her from a younger person. Color should of never been an issue. Wake up people...nobody should feel inferior due to just how they were born that they had NO control over. "It's not the tone of a (wo)man's skin that counts....it's the tune of their heart that is best measured." HUGS2U all 💓.
Benjie Benjamin This made me cry! Things need to change now 2020!
This is what Malcolm X touched on, “who taught u to hate the colour of your...”
As an African American woman, this brought tears to my eyes for two reasons: the story you shared of the encounter with the elderly woman and that the experience brought tears to your eyes. Thank you for sharing🙏🏽 continued blessings on you and yours ❤️
@@PNWOlygurl66 It rips @ my soul, regardless the prejudice, to see people treated crudely. I'm a survivor of various abuses (my father & others were pedophiles) & I'm still living with the repercussions @ 73. I am alone tho I've 4 children & 9 grandchildren...because of lies/gossips by the perps. I would literally be punished if I associated with anyone of color, as a child. My late ex, mentioned in my comment, was Filipino hence my fair skinned baby, who 'passed' as white, my relatives taught her that I slept with a white man tho married to 'the Filipino', (they stole them twice & would call them 'tween after school & me home from work to berate/belittle me & they shattered my mother/child bond....that's the worst crime of all) to tell them gossip so I wouldn't be believed about them (didn't want my children abused). Point: No matter what I survived & it was horrible, I still knew it was wrong to hate...especially for something a person couldn't help, like their genes. I know what it's like to be hated just because I existed (should of died 7 times) so being white was a horrendous suffering for me..., how bad was it for people of color? That boggles my mind, it has shattered my soul. 💔❤
I love you for your empathy and concern. Thx u
Love what you're doing with this what an honor by you of Mr. Wilkins.
Thank you, Mr. Hoffman. We need more like you.
Imagine how many people this happened to and those that were put in jail but didn’t have the money to get out. David, I wish you could post a message to all black people in a community, ask them their experiences and post more. Thank you.
You talk about that like its past tense. This treatment is still very much in effect. The only difference is I don't think they say 'boy' much anymore.
The stories that my parents and my grandparents told me still hurt my soul to this day. Let alone, my own experiences.
Would you mind sharing the stories
Right
I’m sorry you and your family had to suffer with those experiences. Many blessings to you :)
Stop letting it hurt your soul. Ask yourself, why do people hate? They hate you because they hate themselves.
Same. I live in a neighborhood now that my relatives couldn't even walk through. My uncle told me a story about when he was young coming to cut a ladies yard over here and was confronted and treated horribly by the police.
To know that this amazing, intelligent,eloquent, articulate human being died of dementia is absolutely tragic.
This man recalling his story admitting to how we "believed" things would change.....only to fast forward all of these years later and see NO changes still really speaks volumes to the elephant that has been in the room for over 400 years!
Exactly.
😶🌫️😐😑😐😬😬😬
dammitcantstopmyself, I'll bite. 🤦♂️
🙋♂️ Hi there, maybe-neighbor. *I am not* looking for an internet fight, truly... but, _no changes_ you say?
@@asicsjohnson Hey. I hear you. I don't think it's fair to say 'no' changes. But I'll explain it to you as I did in a comment of my own under this same video. If I had to walk a thousand miles, as an example, I could stop at mile 500 and acknowledge how far I've come, while simultaneously accepting that I still have a long way to go. I hope that makes sense. And thank you for watching this video and asking questions and wanting to educate yourself on these sorts of topics. It's very much appreciated. 🙏🏽❤️
You better preach 👏👏👏
@@asicsjohnson take a look around, then again if it doesn't affect you it's not a reality to you, it only comes off as a complaint, but go off I guess neighbor 🤷
"We had to believe in America more than other people did." That got me. He lost his innocence and grew his cynicism. Can't blame him really. What happens to a dream deferred, after all? I wonder what he thinks of things now. Thank you for sharing this important testimony. I really hope what we're going through is an important turning point in our country. I hope we keep up the fight and don't let less important things distract us from what matters. We must do better. We have to be better.
To be better, teach, model, 'show' LOVE to all; follow Christ's example he set for us
@@vernonwhite4124 That's so sad. Thanks for letting me know.
anyone else tear up when he talked about his daughter's beautiful hair and skin? What a privilege to watch this man and hear him speak
Hi. I stumbled upon this interview. His talk about our curly hair and dark skin make me think about the fact that today we are still emulating with the lashes, nails, and weaves.
No
@@Blando7887 You're JEALOUS obviously. That's what your hated is really about, your JEALOUSY
This is real
Many of us have a story to tell. Many of us are college graduates, “religious,” volunteers in our community, family-oriented, law abiding. But we are targeted because we are Black. I’m so thankful that at 52 years old, I’m alive to see meaningful discussions taking place. Thank you for sharing this David Hoffman. 💕
My belief is that when one says "...because I am Black."
is putting the problem or blame for being persecuted on yourself because your skin tone is very much your own fault for choosing that color- Prejudice people thinking🤪
🙄As if one had a choice in the matter🕎
When in fact the problem is in the heart of the😱 prejudice people
So I prefer saying
They hate me without a Cause ✡
or
They hate me because they are prejudice🕎
This is making it clear the blame is placed where it OBVIOUSLY belongs ✝️
@@marshaelloblack7639 We are targeted for hatred BECAUSE we are black! Stop tiptoeing around this truth.
It is dangerous to forget the past. Thank you for this monumental documentary.
4 REAL .. our past will LIVE INFINITELY 🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿
I am a 55 year old African American. Went to mostly white schools. College educated. Home owner. Business owner. Traveled to 22 countries including Morocco, Egypt and Gambia. And though America offers many opportunities, it sh*tty the way they treat African Americans to the current day.
You still there?
I’m here in the DC area, but planning to return to Gambia to start a business and buy a home. By the way, 1 American dollar = 48 of theirs!
@@videxvid What's the quality of life like and acceptance of African Americans? Thank you for your input!
The thing I feel most proud of in my life is that even as we are white & lived in the south, my parents taught me not to be a racist, that I didn’t teach my children racism, & they do not teach racist thoughts to their children. From my two parents to their 12 grandchildren & many great grandchildren I have never heard racist language. May there never be any!
Yes, it is. And it's horrifying.
I wish I could have met him. There was so much wisdom in this man.
I remember in 1962 sitting in my catholic school math class, this nun snatched my pristine math book and gave it to the Puerto Rican girl who lied and said I stole her book. I told the nun it was not hers, but she wouldn’t listen to me because the girl was crying and as soon as she got my book and the nun grimaced at me, the girl stopped her fake crying and laughed at me. I’m 64 years old now and I just started thinking about that because it hurt me so badly. I was only 6 and the nun was so mean to us black kids. A few years later, in 4th grade, I had a crush on a white boy and told him and he told me, “you’re too black for me”. That was another crushing blow. But, I’m not looking for pity because I believe in the laws of Karma. Turns out, I don’t think the book stealer amounted to much in life and the “crush” turned out to be a wife beater.
Krazie Genius ur heart is as hard as a rock
I’m so sorry that happened too in the afterlife these memories will not haunt u I promise that when u did it will be like waking up from a deep sleep and u will be at peace and god will get u justic
@Linda Love, forgive all and God bless you and much love to you
Linda Love what a great story. Amazing the things we remember as children and how we felt and the needless pain it caused. Thank you for sharing
@Krazie Genius my arse more like krazie idiot!
It hurts so bad watching this, I'm crying. My Daddy never raised me to act like those people. I'm 62.My only girlfriend I Loved, was black. (RIP) I miss you Shirley.
That snappy-nappy will always make you comeback.
@@aarondigby5054 🤣😅
Indeed, racism is learned behavior.
@@aarondigby5054 what does that mean?
@Len Wyman Amen!
This is one of those uncomfortable bits of film that people need to watch and hear. What an eloquent man. I live in the UK so no idea you could not try on clothes - never crossed my mind. Interestingly same here but not so blatant they would pretend they did not have your size when you could see it or just hassle/follow
you so you left and did not buy in their shops. A famous black brit singer recently shared how she went to a shop in SW London and a woman told her she could not touch the things in there, when she could see everyone else touching it. Oppression on a daily basis has a massive impact on mental health.
My grandmother told me about how she had to know her shoe size as she was growing because you cant try on or return the shoes. You could fight in the military but you could not be equal.
Grew up in the deep south til I was 10, in the mid-sixties ... never ever "knew" a white person until we moved north, only interacted briefly with the clerks in the stores... in my city, we could only go to the county fair on 2 designated days out of the week... we couldn't try on any clothes in the store, never used a water fountain, rode the back of the bus... we had to go in the back door of a lot of businesses (including the [white] doctor's office, which had two waiting rooms...) one in the front for whites and one in the back for us. White people could wait in the back, but we couldn't wait up front.... never did see that front room, ha ha... Even though the law was previously passed to desegregate schools, none were... I went to a nice elementary school, all black. Matter of fact, at one point when I was pre-school, we lived directly across the street from a school, but my sister (of school age) could not attend, ha ha. It was all we knew, until we moved north and suddenly I was one of only 3 black students in an all white school. As children do, you adjust, but never ever "really." My parents were both college-educated professionals, and my father was a U.S. veteran. So what.
@@lblair2 do you think integration helped black people?
@@teamanthony6557 I think it helped us as black people access and achieve things that would've been denied, or difficult to attain otherwise, meaning opportunities, jobs, some aspirational things in life... I also think that it's very important to really know a variety of kinds of people in order to see the world more clearly, not just our own "ideas" of them... good or bad. I am grateful for those things, yet I always feel somewhat "other," and guess I always will, unless I'm in a black "atmosphere." Racism changes who you are, or could or could've been, even if you don't know it at the time. I feel more comfortable around "fam" even though my closest friends are varied in race. I believe that black people could not've been forced to stay separate and be AS successful in America (as much as we've been allowed to be) without integration... it wouldn't have been allowed... remember Tulsa...we have to be a part of the WHOLE package to fully take advantage of what our ancestors helped build...
@@lblair2 Same story as yours. My older sister told me about my father who wanted his daughters to have patent leather shoes for Easter. She told us that the white clerk refused to sale my father the shoes. My sister being 8yrs old couldn't understand why my father began to tear up. As the tears fell from his eyes she tried to comfort him. People who haven't lived like this have no clue how demoralizing this is. I'm 61yrs young and I was a child of 4 or 5yrs old at the time. Our father shielded us as much as he could....fast forward now I see just how hard it was for us.
I can feel the pain in his voice in his eyes but he still had his pride.
I sat for about 30min trying to express the emotions I felt listening to this interview. This is truly one of the greatest interviews I’ve ever heard-so deep and profound and so relatable. This is one that just resonates with me and I know my mind will be occupied for the next couple of days just pondering and mulling over some of the content in the video. Thank you, really enjoyed
I am Caucasian, and grew up in a small Midwest town. I remember the racism, and could never understand how people could be so ignorant and cruel, simply because the color of ones skin. Thank God I was able to move away from that hatred and ignorance.
If anyone suggest that this video be shown in Schools today, they would condemned and said they were indoctrinating the kids & BANNED from the schools!! Shameful. The far right political party & their followers would be ready to fire any teacher or administrator who would allow it to be viewed in their school! They would deny that these things Ever happened; and certainly isn't happening now! SMH!!!
Good for you! Moving away from racists. How nice.
Amen, my God bless your soul.
Where did you move to, to get away from vile racist people, the moon??? How is the air up there???
You did like most white people do, you run from it , which does not help. To help you must stand your ground, arm and arm with those who are being hated just for being who they were born to be. 🤷😔
Roger was an extremely nice man. I met him and his wife many times here in Delaware where they retired . Amazing couple. As nice as can be.
I'd say he was kind. Kindness comes from the heart. Nice comes from manipulation.
@@backerjet6761 What? Please elaborate
@@MichaelTurner856 Kindness is natural / divine, niceness is man-made construct. Someone who is kind understands life, the other one is being trained to become good. In other words nice people are usually fake, but real true people are kind from their essence. Niceness can be an attempt to fool you.. many people are like this.. godly people who have true love are kind without any effort to be so.
“Black people were always super Americans. We had to believe in America more than other people did. In order to have any hope, in order to live, in order not to get crazy.”
Roger Wilkins
@j a .....Please shut up. Please.
@Sunamer Z You expect to have a serious conversation with that kind of sentence structure??
@Sunamer Z How do you know what I'm oblivious to? We've not had any conversation or communication of any kind, so where do you derive your opinion from?
On second thought, I don't care what you think, what language you_(attempt!)_ to speak, or what message you're trying to convey. My bad for giving you even this much time.
@Sunamer Z Damn! Sounds like you couldn't _wait_ to say that shit! Do you feel better now that you have? Your entire statement is so dated, overused, and basically just a bad rerun. Get some new, original material, something authentic, you know, something that _you_ actually thought up. By the way, I speak one language, English-the only one that counts, for me anyway. Sounds like you need a refresher course. Just sayin'.....
ps. Just a tip-you should probably leave the comic book references out of your little speil. It's not helping at all.....
" Black people were always super Americans. We had to believe in America more than other people did. .. in order to have hope and not go crazy" Roger WIlkins
@Harry Hatesu awww...your comment enforces our point. 👀🤦♀️😂
Erica Windear 🤣🤣🤣
@Harry Hatesu geez you're an idiot 🤦🏻♂️
@Harry Hatesu ppl are not blaming anyone for the past, but for what is going on now, that mirrors the past!.
One of the points that hit straight into my heart! 🥺
Roger Wilkins died at 85 years old on March 26, 2017. Great interview. I've watched it a few times. It just goes to show that as much as things change,the more they stay the same. A change of heart must accompany experience before lasting change occurs. The hearts of MANY people in this country have not changed. He talked about the South,but black people from Northern states can recount similar stories of experiencing racism.
I'm not black, I'm not even American and this interview brought tears to my eyes. I knew it was bad in the southern states - everybody does - but to see such a personal perspective is very moving. I'm going to show this to as many people as I can. R.I.P. Mr. Wilkins and thank you for telling your story. Thank you, Mr. Hoffman as well.
Trust me, the country as a whole is the same north or south it doesn't matter which one you are in when it comes to that🤫brings a quote by malcolm x to mind about anything south of Canada is THE SOUTH!
@@kparran79 Oh, I've never heard of that quote. Thanks for helping me learn something new about a very important issue. I hope you have a great weekend, Ms. Parran! 🙂
@@kparran79
Well said sis
I'm not American and I will do the same. I knew there was a lot of racism in the US but so much? I am appalled! How is it possible for human beings to be so cruel and stupid?
Check out "Jim Crow of the North"...free on youtube
He spoke from the heart so intelligently. The pain still simmering beneath his skin never forgetting his struggles and the struggles of many like him. Socially aware and emitting his self pride tormented like many of us who have refused to be invisible. Refusing to be invisible even to this country that has never truly admitted to seeing us. I see him respectfully as a symbol of strength. His family was very blessed to have such a man like him. Much respect.
As a black American myself, the fact that racism still exists here is ridiculous. This testimony is a gem
Ajie What??? The fact that racism exists here is ridiculous, educate yourself, you sound ridiculous.
We gon be alright ✊🏽🥺
Carol Newman this racism practice existed as late as 1990s in America, when I tried to purchase my home, I got an appointment on the phone, but when I arrived there from work it was no longer available when she saw my brown skin, but I did not take it lying down.
It's insane that because of a color we choose to hate.
@Jan J Sorry, the narrative is off for you.
This should be shown in every school and talked about, so children now can understand.
The white man will call it CRT
WISHFUL THINKING
This what the “woke” agenda bull!?$t that conservative media does not want white people to know
It’ll never be shown now since it’d be considered “CRT”. Disgusting the direction this county is taking.
SO glad to have him discuss the horrifying intricacies of daily living under segregation. Well said all around, what a treasure Roger Wilkins was!
A testament to his legacy that in 2020 his experiences are mirroring what's going on now!
DAMN you can still see the pain running thru this man..... what ah shame what we have been through
RIP Roger you were and still are a great American!
Indeed
I want to say he's a great black man. Being American is ambiguous.
@@Emy53 I second that! Thanks for the correction.
God knows no white people have ever been mistreated by public servants or authorities. Never been enslaved either, except when african muslims enslaved them in the 1600's, 1700's and early 1800's.
Guess what- they FOUGHT to get free. I don't mean fighting gandhi style, either. They loaded up on warships, that they built, and sailed into the slave-catching waters and took it to the africans. Before you know it, the africans were willingly signiing a treaty, just to get the white fighting men to stop punishing them. In this world, force is the most respected currency.
Made me cry when he said "they don't know what glories are in my achievements". 😥
Its 2022 and we get to listen to him speak. Astonishing,he doesn't know but his words are and will move into the future and that is a heck of an accomplishment. Thank u for this
One of the most eloquent things that I have seen recently. The gentleman is spot on in so many arenas of the existence of this plague. Thank you for putting this up. I will share this with anyone who will watch it.
Good interview David you let him talk and think and express his thoughts as they came up that was excellent.
Powerful. Makes me reflect on Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs - how can one self actualize if he fears for such a basic need as safety?
yes.
Karen Mczeal-wells Karen (how fitting), do you even know what you’re talking about?
T York she’s referring to black peoples being the first humans & first human race. Which is true, proven by European scientists using DNA.
J J Which means we all come from the same mitochondrial eve. That also means there’s no such thing as black and white or any other race on a genetic level. We’re all brothers and sisters and hen it comes to our cells. It amazes me to think that all of the humans on Earth today descended from a single woman that lived just few hundreds of thousands of years ago. ALL of us, from one woman. Race is a social construct that we, as a society, have decided exists, but it has no basis in evolutionary science.
@Will Rogers Yes true, some of us are late arrivers having been genetically modified to create a newer version or copy from the first earth inhabitants. What does it matter if most of us are all mixed up...Thank God we have a DNA that trumps all others which is the Holy Spirit thanks to Jesus delivering us from false gods who interfered with creation, some of whom many still worship today as they did in the past whether knowingly or not, Illuminati, Hitler, etc. Not all are predisposed to a naturally loving nature due to this interference & this is evident by the destruction & greed prevalent in the Earth. Nevertheless, in the end, it comes down to choice.
I feel Rogers pain through my own experience as a young child from the Caribbean and landing in the UK in the 50s, thank you so much for showing this.
This brother’s life story is truly heartfelt and powerful!
When you don't understand what is going on in our country today, all you have to do is go back to our history. Amen, Roger Wilkins
Those who control the present, control the past and those who control the past control the future.
George Orwell, 1984
Memories.......
@@anthonykindle9377 this is 2020 not 1955
@@curtispittman2870 Could have fooled me. If thats true, I would imagine biblical scriptures are irrelevant as well, or any other lessons in life. So to you sir, I say ,"have many seats".
Curtis Pittman I don’t know you, your ethnicity, your experiences etc but it’s obvious that you are consciously out of touch with “Life”! It’s obvious that you do not have any friends outside of your ethnicity and if you do they are just as lost!
Roger was a brilliant man, how he managed to rise to his position. It took intelligence, determination and 'grit' I wish I knew him.
Had the Caucasian stayed in the caucus mountains n left indigenous peoples alone we wouldn’t have the problems we have now!!! Remember The Europeans came to Africa n America n Australia n India n any n every place where there were people of a different race n kidnapped the people taking them to other lands or exploiting n oppressing them in their own land!!!!
Every white person needs to see this! So much respect for this man! Thank you
Sara Goyer
Should be everyone .
Prejudice and hatred isn’t confined to skin color.
He's a strong RACIST!!!!!
@Katrina Morningstar 'We' Caucasians??? Alright 'Karen'. Your comment reeks of self entitlement ignorance and petulance!Your comment isn't even offensive, it's ridiculous. Please take the time to read 'Your' real history. And don't just glamour yourself with the beautiful lies. I dare you to seek and read your ugly truth. 'We' Caucasians 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣. Hilarious!!!
i agree... it is important to know history accurately... thank you for doing this interview🧡
I am a white man from a middle class family outside of DC and I lived in NYC for 14 years, most of it during the height of stop & frisk. I grew up heavily involved in the DC punk scene and into my young adulthood would still often wear outwardly "punk" clothing...both as a statement and as what I was most comfortable in. I lived all over NYC, from Bushwick to Forest Hills, Lower Manhattan to Astoria.
It was in Astoria, usually at night, in winter, while walking with my black Carhartt jacket with the hood pulled up covered in punk rock patches, that I would be stopped by plainclothes NYPD officers on three separate occasions, the most terrifying of which was when I had my headphones in and the music turned up loud so I didn't see them coming until they piled out of an unmarked car and had thrown me up against a brick wall. Each encounter was roughly the same...they would pat me down, shout at me, and then inform me I had "matched the description" of someone involved in a crime.
However every single time, as well, there was the moment they pulled down my hood. The moment they saw my skin color. And you could see it in their eyes...the brief disappointment that melted almost immediately into rage. Rage that I had wasted their time. Rage that the facade of stop & frisk being a "fair" practice about "safety" had been exposed. Of course, they had to complete their script. How I "matched the description" of a suspect. But you could tell they were going through the motions. I didn't match the description at all. I was always let go immediately, unceremoniously. They were just a bunch of ignorant thugs with no uniforms, no patrol car, who couldn't tell the difference between two very distinct "urban" styles of clothing.
I believed stop & frisk was an assault on liberty before these experiences happened to me, but after experiencing this I acutely understood for the first time the panic and fear...the dehumanization that accompanied each incident. And what I couldn't get over was exactly what Mr. Wilkins says here... If it hadn't been for my get-out-of-jail-free card...my skin...any one of those three incidents could have ended very differently for me.
Wow!
Interesting 🧐 Punk in late 70’s early 80’s in London has a close affinity with black culture, and were despised by the establishment!
Glad you highlighted your experience. Should be more comments, but as usual it will go mostly ignored. In one eyeball and shut out of the mind. It usually takes one to actually feel one dose of someone else pain or discomfort, before one can give it's credence. It's rarely mentioned that lots of people live the "long as it's not me" thinking. Appreciate your post let's hope more come across it..
Thank you for sharing your story. Well told
You lived to tell it would've been different with someone who was black.
Thank you for filming and posting this. I am so sick of people not wanting to talk about this. It makes the pain fester like a person experiencing PTSD and never getting couseling. You can't change people's hearts with laws.
I have a grandfather who’s a dentist who looks very similar to this man another middle class black male they are close in age he told me a lot of the same stories
This guy would be 103 if alive today.
@@freeganjustin6699 Ok
This story is from the 80's
lmatthews39 what’s your point
freeganjustin my great grandmother is 108 and still pushing buddy so what does him being 103 have to do with anything this man has passed God bless his soul even tho he was a lawyer had great success you can still see the pain in his eyes the hurt of not being excepted in society
Such an incredible interview. His passing is such a great loss. His children are so fortunate to have had him as a father. Thank you so much for sharing it with us.
Roger Wilkins was a great human being, civil rights leader, history professor and journalist. He was born in 1937 which would make him 57 at the time of this video - not 72. Mr. Wilkins died in 2017 at the age of 85.
Born in 1932
We need more black human beings like him. Education is everything
He probably couldn't have bore to see what has happened during this administration.
Wikipedia says Mr. Wilkins was born in 1932, btw. 57yo. Anyway, deep respect & I’m glad to have this interview available.
Blam8o I can actually go into Wikipedia and change that if I chose to.
The entire Un-United States of America should have to watch this heartbreaking interview. This man was SO phenomenal. So painfully & needlessly strong. Everyone should be sharing this everywhere!!!
I agree
If you are racist, watching this is not going to make one bit of difference. White supremacy and oppression is way too deeply ingrained in society.
Mr. Hoffman, Thank you so much for taping this. I am glad that you had given him a voice. I am so sorry that he had to be subjected to hate and racism. I am so sorry that ANYONE had been subjected to it. I cared or would care for every black person born. I wish I could have hugged those little girls and boys that had been shouted obscenities to. I would let them know that I gave a damn. I give a damn now. I always will. As far as integration...everyone deserved to be treated with kindness and respect and I am so sorry that these people didn’t get that. I understand what you’re saying about wanting to finally be treated that way. If I were you I would have hated to be around ANY white person. Me... I would rather be around the black people. When I was 11 in 1970, my best friend was black. I loved her very much as my friend and to me she was my sister. That’s the first time I ever made a bad grade was in the 5th grade. She and I both got a D in conduct because we had so much fun together we laughed all the time, and it was our fault: Not because of her color, but because everyday we were having to be told to stop talking. We were having too much fun. I am blessed to have known her. Joyce I will always love you sister. I don’t care what anyone says. Thank you for naming your baby after me. You are an angel sent from God. I will remember you even if I get Dementia. We grew up and like All my other friends, gone our separate ways. I do miss that precious soul. She was an amazing person. Black is Beautiful. Joyce is Beautiful. God Bless everyone and stay safe. 💖💖💖💖💖
I pray to God that you guys cross paths
That is a heartfelt comment. I can hear the sincere love come through. Much energy to you.
🌷🌿🌸🍀
Both of you girls sound like lovely souls. I am happy both of you were blessed to know and love each other❤❤❤
Even as a child, I saw integration as a way to shut up Black people. It was a farce. The bussed us to a white school and put us in the same segregated classrooms as in the hood. The classroom had simply been moved to a white school with the same students and teachers as the Black school. Whites came to our neighborhood school for only one year and that was it. We got up extra early to go across town and sit next to each other and be taught by the same teachers as the Black school. It was the silliest crap I had ever seen and I was very resentful when I discovered this. I was 7 at the time and it wasn't something my parents had to tell or show me.
This is a very moving interview. Thank you for sharing this man’s powerful words.
I see a constant theme here like family guy did it as well is whenever a officer says boy it’s usually never good
Yes, starting with "Boy" is the first sign of disrespect. Had he not have credentials on him they would have kept up their make-up story about someone that was reported to them.
Beverly Beverly except when you’re young
Joyce Jameson well it can be used in s good way like me and the boys 😁
Joyce Jameson it’s definitely gotten better right I mean definitely after the 60s
@@gmg9010 you think that 💩is FUNNY?
As a person who spent most of his life living in ex-soviet republic, I find it amazing that social issues in US such as racism and inequality are in center of social attention, whereas in our culture we are most concerned about organized crime and corruption. Wish you all guys the best.
@j a I'd say racism and inequality are what society is paying the most attention to rn, though they aren't actually our biggest problems.
@j a
Wealth inequality is like.. In the top 5
@j a Thanks for making me more informed.
Get really for the next Soviet Republic...
Limey Figdet - Lol, says a white person
I am from Nigeria and the farthest I have ever travelled is to Ghana. His narration was so vivid and I felt the sadness even though I couldn't relate to it. I wish all the black race can just come together and build.
@@Dnice50000 wat?
Well said..
& much respect 🇺🇸✊🏿
Thank you and God bless Africa!
That would be really great. Just the thought alone is awe inspiring.
It would have been wonderful because our skins color is the enemy of the western world. Sad to see humans are this way.
Very DEEP and moving. I'm 51 years old as of this year. I was born in 1971 which means I was born ONLY 6 years AFTER the law making segregation unconstitutional passed.
Well as I grew up during the 70's, 80's and 90's (New York City) it was clear to me through experience or observation; that not all White's changed their hearts and minds when the law did.
A Black coworker of mind told me a White person this year in 2022 told him to "STAY IN HIS PLACE NIGGER."...and NO it wasn't an "oldman."
We were born in the same year . I live in Colorado where it’s pretty progressive where I live and I experienced racism from police a few times . Especially in Aurora. A traffic stop where they immediately pull their guns in you . The passive aggressive behavior of some whites in public spaces . Just yesterday my son and I went to the Apple Store to get his iPhone checked and we waited a long time like everyone else . As the technician was speaking to us , a white women interrupted us and started to talk to the technician as if he wasn’t taking to us . I immediately stopped her and asked her why are you interrupting us and she looked at me and immediately apologized. In the back of my head I wanted to fly off the handle . Would she have done this if we were white ? I doubt it but he audacity of this woman and her trying to implement some privilege and to act like we were invisible. I wanted to go off but the look in my face and eyes let her know I wasn’t going to play that game with her . She stepped back and apologized and she better have .
I’d say the 130+ people who dislike this video are the people he’s talking about. They still exist...😑
EXACTLY
Tim Toz YOU NAILED IT ‼️
I am sure that 130 persons dislike what happend and the rest like the video because it is telling us important things about racism that is destraktiv.
Goodness! It’s over 200 now... how sad and hopeless...
They've gone up to 206
😢
Powerful, truthful, sad and appalling. Our history school books must be corrected. A shameful past and present. Together is better! Thank you Rodger and David.
Im a Hispanic who serve my country I’ve deployed to the Middle East I’ve always considered myself a patriot to my country i love my country,
Well out in town i was stoped by a teenage girl who asked me in a very disrespectful obnoxious tone “excuse me do you speak English” i was angry with this kid but I wasn’t going to yell at a kid so I sighed out of anger and walked away and i could hear her say to her friends “that’s what i thought Pedro” then i looked back ready to yell at her and i seen her friend hit her on her shoulder, she then said “what?, they’re not supposed to be here in the first place” she said “they’re” meaning Hispanic, brown skin, not white,
It doesn’t matter what i do for this country in the eyes of some white people, not all, but some, i know they will never except me as American and in their eyes I’m just Mexican despite the fact that ive never been to Mexico I’m a 4th generation America most my family today cant speak Spanish including me,
I know not all white people think the same way but it really hits your gut when you have to experience racism
thank you for sharing your experience and your service to our country.
David Hoffman-filmmaker
You are American. You are more American than they ever will be because you understand what being American actually means. We are a land of immigrants. We are a built by the blood, sweat and tears of people of color. There would be no America without people of color. Whether it be the natives whose land we stand on, Africans & others who worked the labor that powered the first economies or the Asians, Hispanics and others who built the railroad. The idea that these patriots put so much work in for a country that treated them so poorly, just shows you they are the absolute top Americans. Every war America has fought in, has had people of color. To fight for a country that treats you unfairly is the ultimate act of loyalty. People of color will be the majority in America in 2041. It is time to stop caring what whites think. They are products of European immigration and many are from poor European families. The greatness of America is that it is ever-evolving. We can start taking power back by demanding equal and fair representation on media & Hollywood. Soft power as in popular culture is extremely important into changing how people view Americans of color. We absolutely have the power to force this through our dollars.
@@culture04dc DID YOU SAY FORCE??? Thats not American!! Thats communism!! You better pray to God that dont happen
I agree as a fellow Hispanic citizen! We are actually the real Americans here, we were always here and we have built this country with our bare hands and didn’t take anything from anyone! We are the best people, but we have been discriminated against, oppressed and repressed by the land grabbers, liars, thieves, criminals who took anything and everything they wanted to, REAL HISTORY NEEDS TO BE TAUGHT!
@@goldsmithstudent But ironically the next sentence was "through our dollars" that sounds like capitalism and free market principles. Like boycotting Nike products. 😊
More Roger Wilkins, please. He is the embodiment of what it means to be American.
Search his name on my RUclips channel. You may find other clips.
David Hoffman filmmaker
This is the lived experience of a large swath of blacks in 21st century America. Very little has changed.
David, wow! I'm so glad you shared this and SO sad 💔 too...
I am Irish, my husband is Nigerian. My childrens skintone is the same as this mans. I could not imagine my children being treated this way. My husband is a runner. He luckily has never been abused by police, but I am always in fear for my husband and children. We humans are capable of such animosity and horror towards one another it breaks my heart.
He's talking about the 1950s in the south
@@uyoebyik Don't pretend this country has changed soooo much... The south is still f*cked up
@@uyoebyik given the jogger killed for jogging while black while trump was prez, given George Floyd, Brianna Taylor, and so many others, are you saying you don’t believe it is still a problem?
DON'T YOU WORRY LADY GOD WILL SOON remove all wicked people from this earth.
Your probably indoctrinated them to racism. Whites will get in trouble if they don’t follow the rules. So stop playing you know the rules.
My granddad is still alive at 92 years old I can only imagine the stories he would have to tell growing up in Chicago in the 30s and 40s
Cody Young He lives In Chicago and I live in California unfortunately
Call him.. I'm sure he'd love it and you and we would all be better off from a real life experience. 🤗
This is one of the most heart felt beautiful story of black history that made me cry. Thank you for sharing.
"No matter how much respect and recognition whites show towards me, as far as I am concerned, as long as that same respect and recognition is not shown towards every one of our people in this country, It doesn't exist for me - Malcolm X
Now that is true leadership
💎🙏🏽
In his voice ✊🏾
Facts
The landscape has changed completely. Pretending thos is still the 1950's or even the 1970's, is very damaging. It creates dispair and ensures that there will always be a steady income stream from the predators that live off of. Black misery and poverty.