As a black person I really appreciate Beau for what he does. I could say everything he just said and too many white people wouldn’t listen simply because I’m black. Beau knows the power he has looking how he does and talking how he talks, I really appreciate him.
There are some of us that looks forward to change. I’m sorry people don’t listen to you like they do people looking and sounding like Beau. One day, hopefully sooner than later, you will have the same opportunities that we do
Jordan, When I joined the Army in 1978 I was as racist as my step-dad, believing the same crap. Living and working with black people in basic training taught me an important lesson. When your life depends on the guy next to you knowing his stuff and knowing what to do, you very quickly learn to care more about his character, his competence, than his skin color. The black guy who knows his shit won't get me killed, but the other glow-in-the-dark white guy who screws around will get me killed. Not a complicated math problem. The 8 years I served reinforced that lesson. I served in peace time so the stakes were a LOT lower. The lesson stands. I think I have grown since that early lesson, and that basic fact is part of my world view. Don't give up, we CAN learn. Fast forward 30 years from my basic training and my formerly racist dad was introducing me to his black friend. They had genuine respect for each other. That said, I completely agree with your view on Beau. I learn a lot from his channel.
@@davidgagniere2923 I respect you for having the heart to change, there are people that harbor hatred in their hearts and would like to keep it that way, something in you clearly denied that path. Once your story becomes a common one, I truly do believe we’ll be past this nonsense. Thanks for the comment brother.
This short video has been a real humbling experience. I have a pretty good idea of what is still wrong with our current attitudes about race; it runs much deeper than the odd verbal insult or Confederate relic. But I am an old white guy who never suffered from racial injustice, and may well have benefited from it. That's why I must learn more about what I can do to help reverse this obscene tradition in our culture: systematic racism. I have had conversations with fellow whites who insist that racism ended in 1963, or so; it can only exist now as slogans repeated by ungrateful blacks (lazy), & hypersensitive liberal hippies, who only want to prolong an extinct problem to shame white folks, & gather virtue points. Convincing others to take a look at what's really going on, is challenging and slow; I am just winging it, and sometimes meet hostile people lurking beneath the polite face. Hey! It's Juneteenth weekend. Good time to read up on doing a better job of expanding my understanding and sharing it with others. Book suggestions are welcome. I read Colony In A Nation, by Chris Hayes. Definitely worthwhile. Peace!
It's not even equality; it's just _the prospect of equality._ Black people in the US are, as a whole, far from being equal to white people. If white American conservatives are bitching like this now imagine their screeching when they finally have to compete in equal grounds with minorities.
Indeed, and well said, Beau. The whitewashing of Dr. King’s legacy is designed to make certain people in power feel more comfortable. King knew what was up then, and what was located down the road.
More like four words long: "I. Have. A. Dream." Yes, but what about the rest of it?! Beau: "Maybe you all should do a little bit of reading and find out what that original vision really was because it's way more than just 'I have a dream'..."
Every MLK day my blood boils just thinking about how many fake politicians, etc that will misinterpret his words. His own niece Alvida is just as terrible, constantly using him to justify nonsense actions of trump and other republicans. It’s disgusting.
Or think that was his only speech/writing on the subject. I grew up hearing King on records at home & reading & analyzing his speeches in school. We watched Eyes on the Prize, too. I was a little young to stay up for Roots, but got to read Invisible Man & Langston Hughes in J/HS. Guess that'll all be banned in some places now, but maybe someone will slice it up into TikTok segments 😎👊
I used to be “that guy”. I’ll forever be indebted to my friend Khalid for helping guide me to a greater understanding, compassion, and realization of the continuing systemic injustice in America.
Amazing what you can discover when you dare to question your beliefs, logic and reason is in short supply these days. And that is not intellectualism, it is just removing the filter that distorts reality to fit beliefs. I feel sorry for the true believers, they have surrendered their ability to actually reason.
Amen!, Beau. And I am speaking as a White 70-year-old man who was raised on the Texas Panhandle Plains. And I grew up hearing the racial slurs, insults, and prejudice. I am glad I grew up, and left that pile of crap behind. My experiences in high school, the US Army, and by living different places, as well as getting higher education (which I have noticed the bigots also criticize in their stupid ignorance). People need the truth which comes through life experiences outside one's comfort zone, and years of study. You are correct, those who need the lessons do not want to change. Not even for the better.
It's not a coincidence that the same folks trying to regress America also don't want history or poli sci taught, are leaning on kids (esp poor/working-class kids) to eschew liberal arts education for more narrow, productivity-focused vocational training (whether plumbing or programming), and are rather contemptuous of having/seeking experiences beyond your own silo. The order of the day seems to be forcing the next generation to be no better than their parents', which sure as hell isn't how we make the country great.
I find our fellow service men and women either leave their respective branch enlightened or more bigoted. Traveling around the country and overseas can make a person realize they have much in common with all peoples or it cements prejudices. I grew up in Boston in some pretty "bad" neighborhoods. I was bussed from to school going from a predominantly black school to predominantly white school. My immediate family was Muslim but had mostly Christian family members. By the time I was in Jr. High many of students were Catholic or Jewish the same for high school as they were finally in the same city and school district. I left home after graduation to join the ARMY, spent 18 months in Korea and have lived in over 10 states. The only us and them I am concerned with are the poor and working class folks around the world and those who take advantage of us.
I'll second what Curtis said! I'm 72 and was involved in the Civil Rights movement during the 60s - traveled south to GA, stayed with a black family and put my own life on the line. My parents were terrified for my safety, but they let me go. The family I stayed with was in serious danger just having me stay with them - a young, white teenage girl living with a black family that also had black teenage boys? Oooo, that was not done! White folks involved in the struggle back then were walking with giants. The times of MLK - they were rough, and MLK didn't compromise, not even a little. Too many white folks today have an image of him that is a total fantasy. Beau has it exactly right - every single point he makes is spot on. White folks need to get over themselves and step up. It actually is easier than trying to maintain their comfortable ignorance.
Every time someone throws the "I have a dream" quote into a conversation, I kindly send them a link to Letter From A Birmingham Jail. They don't assassinate those who fight for the status quo. He's dead for a reason.
It was one thing to "agitate" Black folks, but as soon as he started talking about economic justice, they cut that shit right-quick. Bobby & Malcolm, too.
@@jackolantern7342 It's part of why you keep seeing the strong pushback against Labor from the same quarters. Segregation is still strong in some unions (bldg trades, particularly), but where/when they integrated, folks very quickly realized that it wasn't the Black/brown/Jewish guy, or woman, or immigrant, or gay person with their boot on the white working man's neck. It was never "Mr Sluggo", Bill - it's been "Mr Hand" all along 😂
As soon as they mentioned MLK I knew exactly where the video was going? Why? Because refuting this talking point was already eye-roll-inducing in how many times it's needed to be said long before I was born. We've been having the EXACT same arguments for longer than living memory not because they're insurmountable problems, but because the right refuses to admit they've been wrong the entire time. Because they don't care if what they have to say is true; only if it is accepted, by intimidation, force, and censorship if needs be. When they talk about "don't push your politics down our throat" it's projection of what THEY do when confronted with objective reality, as it has _always_ been.
I’m a 61 year old white woman from the South. When I was a kid I naively thought that America would have equity by now. I thought all the old bigots, and male chauvinist would have died out or at least be overwhelmingly out numbered by now. I’m sorry and embarrassed that equal rights aren’t a given at this point.
When I heard the first sentence of that the term that sprang to mind was white rage over "uppity" black people. That is what many of such commenters really think. Keep up the GREAT work Beau and every person of any race who takes progress toward real equality and justice seriously right now. I'm a white woman who is not afraid of other people fully achieving the justice that we all have a right to. None of us are free, if one of us are chained.
From a very black 60 plus year old male...I deeply appreciate every word that you expressed. They encapsulate America's only hope of avoiding becoming the latest, great empire to collapse on account of it resistance against the evolutionary imperatives of change.
B-BUT! What about all those poor dumpsters that are being hurt by this!? Maybe BLM are the REAL racists -- against dumpsters! WON'T SOMEONE THINK OF THE DUMPSTERS? More seriously: What you're talking about in the OP is solidarity! There are white people who are in the working class, who are disabled, who are sex workers, who are LGB, or who are T (I separated LGB and T because so many are willing to cut the T out of solidarity, and it's messed up, and also because, in a vacuum, LGB do have class privilege over T), and if we all sit here and try to fight our own little private fights as micro-classes, none of us are ever going to get ANYWHERE. The forces of capital know this. They aren't racist because they "hate black people" -- institutionally speaking, how people feel about people's skin color is meaningless. The problem is when people have the power to turn those feelings into policy. That's what capital did to break labor movements. They said that black men were stealing white jobs. They said black people want more than equality. They therefore acquired a mandate from their constituency to institute racism. This is why I define racism as an institutional phenomenon, not a feeling, or being a big meanie weanie "just because of color." (This is also one reason I've heard some black people express that they have some respect for overt racists, because at least they admit to their racism.) It's important to know the history of times things like this have happened. Since "I'm a white woman" (same) was addressed, it'll be important to point out that there were suffragettes who were racist as hell and wanted to exclude black people from the vote because they viewed enfranchisement as a zero sum. On into the modern era, there are white feminists who behave in such a way that they don't treat black women's issues as women's issues, thus driving black women away from mainstream feminism. It sucks. If we're willing to break our overall class as oppressed people into a bunch of micro-classes, capital and the establishment will absolutely help us do that. They expanded the construct of whiteness to include the Irish and Italians, after all, even though, at that time, nativists absolutely hated the Irish and Italians. Let's stop falling for it! ...and by that I don't mean resume hating the Irish and Italians, but don't draw arbitrary lines to separate classes who have the same interests.
@@susanr1903 A riot is the language of the unheard, so jot that down. But whatever you think BLM have been up to, I guarantee you've been ingesting right wing propaganda if you think that there is some violent organized effort.
Yes! My favorite geometric shape is a circle. It's has 360°. No degree is greater than or lessor than another degree. All of the degrees are truly equal.
Suppose your ancestors had been brutalized and deprived of opportunity and it is reflected in how they raised you. Then I come along with all the advantages my ancestors received and passed on to me. I can't treat you like an "equal" because we didn't begin as equals. The person who began with less must be given more so that he can become "equal" to the one who has never known the disadvantage of being born the wrong race . Then someday their children can finally consider themselves equals.
Tracey, this I can agree with. My hope was in the young of every race, but again, those filled with hate seem to gobble up young whites and continue. I must admit, every time my hope rises, something happens that takes it back down again. One day we will all grow up regardless. I just don't think it will happen in my lifetime. Things like January 6th says there is still plenty of work to be done. Especially while there are so many who think time can go in both directions while the world continues to go forward.
Patiently enduring the heart-felt ignorance of America. Beau, you are a national treasure. THANK YOU for saying this. I’d bet most of these “questioners” would change their tune if they spent a few months working alongside anyone they think down upon
In 2018 I worked as a Temp Construction Laborer. In 2019 I worked 3 months straight everyday because it was a large client(contractor) who needed between 12-20 laborers per day. If I showed up at 6:30 am and got on the list I was able to work every day. Had I showed at 6:55 am it may not have worked out that day. Myself and two black workers were usually at the top of the list. I am an accomplished finish carpenter, cabinet installer, handyman, craftsman---- jack of all trades. Never was I asked to do a more skilled job. Those went to Hispanic workers. There were usually about 200 workers on the project every day. I learned about selective employment priviledge in the heart of Silicon Valley. I was fired after 3 months in 2019. Break Violation. What is that? I was written up for not taking a break. I did take a break but they wanted an excuse to get rid of the old white guy who worked too hard. 😁 Yes. True. An agent in the Temp agency secretly explained that hispanic workers were complaining because I had "white privilege". He was a black man with an education.
For some reason, people seem to love pointing to MLK and quoting him, Without actually knowing what he said. Could this be because the average American learns American mythology instead of American history?
Mythologizing American history happened long before MLK, unfortunately. This only ever partial quoting of MLK is more associated with an intentionally-conducted ongoing effort to recuperate the image of every radical in order to make it support establishment interests. You can see it in Che Guevara T-shirts worn by white liberals, Ted Cruz playing Rage Against The Machine songs, and even Jesus Christ being treated as the guy who would vote Republican, carry an AR-15, and tell the sick and poor that he _would_ help them, but he doesn't want to turn them into dependents, and would rather they pull themselves up by their bootstraps.
It's because of the evangelical authoritarians, they want these beliefs taught at a very young age. because when taught at a very young age. people tend to take these beliefs with them for the rest of their lives.
@@musicauthority3516 It didn't work on me, but yeah, it does work on many, and it scares the hell out of me. What's funny about it is, if the evangelicals weren't so authoritarian about how they run the church, I wouldn't have questioned things.
I don’t get the obsession with “same-race” and “racial-pride”. I’m an old white Texas woman. Over the decades I have needed help on various occasions. Repeatedly, I learned that black people, brown people, and yellow people will step up and lend a hand in exactly the same situations that white people will smile sweetly, bless your heart, turn their backs, and walk away. It’s like white people (Texans?) must believe that Troubles are catching. I eventually got the message - the last place to turn to is someone who looks like me. And the thing is, we learn this lesson one white person at a time. Easiest way to learn it - get laid off - get sick-…
I relate to everything you said, way too much! Reminds me of this song by the late Warren Zevon, "Don't Let Us Get Sick": ruclips.net/video/ELe4vC3oM5E/видео.html I'm also an old white woman, born in Texas, 4th generation, and spent my first 39 years there. I left in 2001 and moved to California to keep my son safe. My dad suggested I move to California just before he was shot and murdered in his backyard on a Tuesday morning as he went to work in his garden. Most of my relatives are the sort who won't lift a finger to help anyone, but they will "pray for you". Like you, I found the kindest people usually have more melanin, and have nothing to gain from me. It's often the same here in California, but lucky for me, I now live in a place where white folks are the minority. I've been helped by wonderful people, like my friend, Bearhawk, who's Cahuilla, of the native California tribe. He found out I didn't have a good address sign on my very rural property (20 acres of mountain wilderness, a mile from nearest neighbor) so he made me a good, highly visible sign next to my driveway. It sure helped when the last wildfire raged through here and the fire department could easily see that sign through the smoke and come help us. My son and I were trapped and couldn't evacuate so we had to shelter in place. My friend, Andy and his wife Melinda invited me for Thanksgiving every year after my husband abandoned me here 7 years ago and moved in with his girlfriend. Andy's from Mexico, and they're the sweetest folks. Sadly, Andy died in 2020 from Covid. Meanwhile, the white folks in our small community were too busy gossiping that my husband left me because I'm white trash and a "lesbian", and because my son is mentally ill. I'm not, but there's nothing wrong with being gay if I was. I'm just not the feminine sort, and being tough has kept me alive. My son was diagnosed with schizophrenia while serving his country in the Navy. He was given an honorable discharge, but no one bothered to ask. Then there's the Chands, the wonderful couple from Pakistan who have this great little store in our town with lots of discontinued and overstock items, mostly food. It's a fun treasure hunt, and affordable! I bought 2 pair of brand new sneakers for $8 each last month. Our thrift stores charge more than that for used shoes. I met them 18 years ago when they sold merch at the local swap meet, and was thrilled when they opened their store. They are so friendly, in spite of how ugly some people have been to them. A couple of years ago, their windows were smashed and some a-hole spray-painted "N*gg*r" and other hateful crap all over the outside of their building. Stupid! They always greet me when I walk in like they are genuinely happy to see me, and it reminds me of how local stores used to be decades ago. I look forward to going there, I only go to town for supplies @ 3 times a month and they are usually my first stop. Previously, I asked them if they ever get food like crackers or cereal that is too far out of date to sell, or has weevils, or can't be sold for any reason to set it aside and I'd buy it for my goats. I keep goats to clear brush on our property and keep us fire-safe. They had some cases of 24 bags of ginger snap cookies that had expired 2 weeks before, so perfectly good, they sold me for $10 a box. Those retail for @ $2.00 a bag. Happy goats! Yesterday, they gave me 4 large boxes filled with chips, crackers, cookies, pasta etc. for free! Some of it's only a month or two out of date and still good for human consumption, all is good for goats. Kindest thing anyone's done for me in a long time. I'm poor, but I sew well, and sometimes bring them little gifts I make. I used to bring them fresh eggs from my chickens until I found out they are vegan. (oops!) They gave those eggs to someone in need. I'm bringing them some handmade bowl "cosies" next time. They are fabric bowl-shaped protectors that can go in the microwave to protect the hands from hot ceramic, and also helps keep food warm. I use mine a lot, and figure they might like them too since they practically live in that store. I told a neighbor about this wonderful store and it's owners, they sneered, said that they would never support "terrorists". OMG! The Chands are Hindu. I wouldn't care if they were Islamic, I've met lovely people who follow Islam too. How sad that people choose to hate, they sure miss out on meeting great people.
@@LazyIRanch Thank you for sharing all the wonderful people you've met, who've helped you. I've just gotta say, the kindest, most gentle person I've ever met was Ibrahim, who is Muslim. He was just as distraught on 9/11 as we all were, watching it unravel at work. He has a beautiful family and his children had perfect manners (I know, hard to believe, right?) and were beautiful people! I wish everyone had the opportunity to get to know people from other cultures. They'd find that we have more in common than not. People: Why I prefer animals.
The construct of whiteness is a crab-bucket. We often want everyone who is the same color as us to sink to the level that is deemed respectable -- don't break social conventions, don't defy the status quo, don't ever have any needs or be outspoken, and definitely, ABSOLUTELY never be different! We should all be helping each other (every color, every gender, every configuration of sex characteristics, every level of economic marginalization, and within and across every arbitrarily drawn line on a map) break through every ceiling of class. Alas, we so often fall back on "I'm glad I'm not a Gamma." (Huxley, Brave New World)
@@VitriolicVermillion I loved that book, and was surprised that my son's school didn't have it on their list of recommended reading. Neither was Orwell's "1984" or "Animal Farm" It's almost like they don't want kids to learn about what happens when fascists take control. I gave him those books to read, along with Kurt Vonnegut books. "Brave New World" was his favorite.
More like a propagandized or sanitized version. They reduce his life's work down to one part of a single speech then try to preach to people who acknowledge the rest.
I am also reminded of a quote from LBJ - "You do not take a man who's been in chains all his life, remove the chains, then expect him to run as fast as one who's never been in chains." The problem? We 'took' the chains off but left the system which exploited those chains in place. MLK wasn't just talking about minorities; he was talking about people in poverty. However, an additional problem is that Jim Crow and other segregationist laws created a system where a significant percentage of minorities are poor, then a system was created that punished poor people for being poor. It's a hololistic system which has cemented those who already had power and wealth into being able to retain both.
I'm old enough to remember when Oprah Winfrey earned one of the Color Purple's *11 Oscar nominations* (0 wins!), and lost it to Anjelica Huston for Prizzi's Honor. Now, that was a fun little flick, but compared to Color Purple, or Oprah's role in it? (I could maybe have understood Meg Tilly winning for Agnes of God, that was a good role.) Even when Oprah started her talk show, she had to largely self-produce, because none of the big studios wanted to take a risk on a Black daytime talk host. "How will it play in Peoria?" as the saying goes. So much Black entrepreneurship happens *in spite of* the system, not because of it.
I hear the same line about professional black athletes as well...completely disregarding the fact that far more black athletes are unpaid "student-athletes" who suffer massive physical harm early in life to put on an entertaining show for largely white audiences before they will ever make it rich if they ever make it that far. The ones who do make it that far are often ridiculed by their own black communities for being "sell-outs" and "fake black" because U.S. culture has made it unacceptable for a black person to succeed financially in this country... For all the idol-worship we do in this country, we do spend a lot of time hating those just like us, utilizing fake metrics to play catch-up with them like owning a massive truck or half a military armory to try to compensate for our own lack of worth in the eyes of our capitalist society. Perhaps if we considered wealth nothing more than a number, if we considered masculinity as something that can't merely be bought at a Ford dealership or a gun show, and instead focused more on the CHARACTER of a person, we'd be a bit further along with treating everybody as equals, regardless of their financial status, gender, sexuality, or skin color...
OK I'm black! And this is amazing to hear! Us being being "radical" is just us asking for EQUALITY. And yes full accountability on your part. You want all the advantages of us, but on the cheap politically, monetarily, and socially. For all we went through.. we just ask for EQUALITY. If it was you..you'd want revenge!
Speaking as a white American who has heard the petty whiny things other white Americans get vengeful about, I absolutely agree with you. Some of these people get angry that cops politely gave them a speeding ticket and not a warning when they get caught going way over the limit, and will never shut up about the indignity. Then when Black people protest about police mass murdering kids with seeming immunity, the same white people will scream about radicalism.
When I was younger, our parents set the goal for us to be "free, white and twenty-one" not realizing when the word white was inserted that we white folks were admitting that we had a level of emancipation not accorded to all. Good vid, Beau.
My parents always said to us kids, "I'm free, white and 21.." I was 50 before I realized it was an admission of freedom not afforded to people of color. I'm not sure they knew.
Okay I bother to look it up. 1963 movie by the same name about the trial of a black man accused of raping a white woman. But the phrase itself means that no one call tell you what to do; in other words freedom. So the phrase is really saying that to truly be free one has to be white. I’m grateful that I was never told that explicitly as a kid.
I've heard it said that white Americans better be glad Black Americans want equality and reparations, and not revenge and retribution. Seems like a sensible statement to me. Love & Light from Mississippi. Y'all stay safe and keep taking care of each other. ✌🏼💚 P.S. I'm right at the end of reading the autobiography of Malcolm X, and I snickered when you read the person's letter about people being "radical". I'm not sure they really know what that word means.
Here we are, Juneteenth [Eve] 2022, and the fear of "Negro revolt on the plantations" is still visceral some 5-6 generations later. Actual Black people have never been as scary as the spectre of the black-faced Erinyes in the hearts of white people.
I do! Which video was it, and have you seen the one where he’s like “I’m entirely too white to talk about this let me give up my chair for Wanda Sykes”? It’s hysterical
@@krejados1 the clip he showed was from the BLM protests after George Floyd's murder and the lady, one of the organizers of BLM was paraphrasing Trevor Noah's clip about America breaking the social contract with it's own. You should see both clips in full. REALLY POWERFUL ❤️ Trevor did an off the cuff post, unscripted and uploaded on response to Floyd's murder and the protests and the lady was caught on camera just in the right frame. Trevor measured and cool, her in the thick and heart of the moment...
@Reformed Conservative "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed." --Declaration of Independence--July 4, 1776
I feel like some people think the memory of MLK jr works like an UNO reverse card or something. Or like he's black Moses and the only commandment on the tablet says "I Have a Dream." They always want to interpret him for us so they can tell us when we're coloring outside the lines. It's so patronizing. They also tend to forget about Malcolm or how gun control was a response to the Black Panthers responding to police violence, so I guess it's not surprising. It's just, how can you seriously think you're in a position to grade a test you're not even close to passing?
They also tend to gloss over how Dr. King was almost universally vilified and loathed by white people while he was alive. Or how Martin Luther King Day didn't get observed throughout all of the United States until 2000. But now all white people want to pretend like they knew all along he was a visionary.
Someone once said all we, and yes I am a black male, a black Solider and a black police officer, sorry I digress. Here is a radical idea for that person who emailed you: “He should be glad that all we all want is equality, not vengeance.” Once again, have a nice day, take care of your family and then yourself, everything in moderation and have a positive difference in someone’s life today, please
He really does like using quotes from historical figures to disprove statements about them. I'll admit that there were moments where I thought he might have been quoting Malcolm X, instead, but my money was on MLK.
Why do I cry in 2022 when I hear the MLK speech? Because I know we are not even close to his dream yet. The day I stop crying, the day I can't think of a recent injustice to the black community is the day I say "hay, maybe we finally made it."...... But honestly, I fear I will be long dead before that dream comes true.
Honestly, messages like what you got are telling in how it reflects how well MLK has been - choice of words *very* intentional - whitewashed and his story set up as if it was a final chapter. It blinds us to the issues that linger today because we're taught that it was a thing of the past when no, it wasn't. It also allowed them to demonize anything but a standard that even MLK didn't achieve as insufficient - that they can't be anything but martyrs dying on the streets for their beliefs without resisting - without getting tut-tutted for any little failure of an impossible standard. It blinds us to history, and lets the deplorables continue their unofficial oppression and try to obscure the issues so they go unconfronted. And that's before we consider that most of the violence at BLM protests was either started by the police or others against the protesters, or were unrelated to BLM but certain groups try to lump it in so they can demonize BLM.
Nowadays we try to pretend that MLK was always a softspoken peaceful man and that the one speech was the major thing he did and its a nice cozy fairy tale of "that one nice black guy we can talk about respectfully." Which completely ignores at the time he was seen as a major public enemy by the FBI, jailed multiple times, hated by president Hoover , and that he was *murdered* before he turned 40. We have a nice clean fairy tale about the man as a "good example of how black people should peacefully protest" that ignores absolutely everything about him and what he suffered and went through..
That’s what is so frustrating “they” always throw out the “BLM destroyed our cities”. Yeah… NO. No city was even close to even 10% destroyed. Violence is generally instigated by the police and counter-protestors and about 95% of BLM protests were 100% non violent. Another very important fact that few people who didn’t attend these rallies know is that the BLM protests are explicit that the protests are non-violent, no arms should be brought and they tended to have First Aid stations. Since the Civil Rights Era protests are often met with violence not by the protesters so they anticipate their non-violent protestors being hurt so instead of planning that they’d have a cache of weapons they plan to heal the unjustly wounded.
“The truth is not always beautiful, nor beautiful words the truth.” -Lao Tzu May everyone here in this community go into the Summer Solstice with a balance of the necessary focus of a hawk & the awareness of the horse.
I grew up a bigot. eventually, I realized that I was wrong. And I felt proud as a result. I still do. But sometimes I still have to face the fact that I am SO ignorant in SO many ways. I hope that this growth on my part continues.
It’s hard but very rewarding work. I loved How to Be an Anti-Racist by Ibram X Kendi. It’s such a welcoming book, and the author provides not just facts about racism and other prejudices but shows the process of discovering racist ideas in ourselves and replacing them with anti-racist ideas and actions, using his own journey as an honest and humble guide. No blaming for having been given racism as part of your heritage but insistence on our responsibility to become anti-racist, to use our knowledge and power to help stop racism where we see it. It’s a very personal but also intellectually rigorous book and practical as shoes.
The most important thing any of us can do is try to be a better person today than we were yesterday. Good on you for being honest with yourself and working to correct it. Many people don't ever get to that point.
As an Indigenous citizen I want the same as you. Not to mention dna 🧬 says I’m African from 3 different countries in Africa , until dna 🧬 it was all just hearsay. Somehow the European racists seemed to view my family as part African by derogatory titles as a child.
Beau, exactly. Everytime black people get a couple steps forward towards equality, they are shoved back, often violently, at least one step. You talked about pools being filled in, whole towns have been covered by lakes. We all talk in horror of the Black Wall Street massacre, there have been many. This 'history' is carefully hidden! That is why some so fear CRT even though I doubt it covers all that. We do need radical change, for many reasons. 👍💖💙🥰✌
From a black woman, thank you so much for getting it. It's almost like you reached into my brain (and the brains of my fellow black people), snatched out all of my thoughts on our plight, and typed them up here.
@@ashakir622 Thankyou! I've only been learning more as I've gotten older. And a bit of Amber Ruffin? But, I was lucky in having an awesome Mom who took us away from our bigot dad and to CA. U got to see, first hand, though we were poor and my Mom faced misogyny, we had privilege my friends, few white, did not have. I saw it again in WA State. All back from 70s to now. Yet I've learned much right here from Beau and our great Peeps in chat! 🥰😘💖💙✌
I get so angry every time I think about everything I never learned and that it was done to make me compliant and take my agency to fight for people who needed me to speak up. People who needed me to understand what was real and what I was taught and I failed them. I failed to refuse my privilege. I failed to honor humanity that deserved every scrap of honor falsely granted because of the way I looked. And I despise them for teaching lies because I want the truth. And I finally have it. And it burns.
Y'all ever notice how absolutely badass and cool the things the right accuses "the left" of doing are? I WISH the Democrats were even a tenth that radical! Nobody is teaching CRT to kids. (And also, CRT isn't remotely what the right says it is.)
This hit home in an unexpected way for me as well. Only because that calling cannot be denied, it cannot be ignored. One may try to avoid situations in which they may be compelled to speak, but once you are called there is no escaping it. The agony is rooted in the clear understanding and forethought that the words about to be uttered will most definitely provoke powerful, capable and violently active enemies, both known and unknown.
With out Critical Thinking they will never overcome socialization , prejudice and opinions. CRY is another means for the Right Wing to Divide Truth and deflect from truth
Most of us don’t need that particular academic perspective, just education that includes all the history and all the current reality of differences in treatment and outcomes for various demographic groups, and guides kids to recognize and choose pro-social ideas and actions. Not coincidentally, that’s exactly what DeSantis is banning from education in Florida.
Brother there is one rule in internet fame...You KNOW you are making a difference when the haters come out!! You are helping a lot of folks wrap their mind around a lot of complex issues!! Just keep doing what you do!!
I literally had to argue with someone one that MLK was a radical for his time, and still would be radical if they fully taught what MLK said because poor people campaign was often ignored, and also violence from police was thing back then also, and the CRA did not fix everything and MLK wanted more change. One of the greatest crimes done to MLK was snatiation done to his message that get taught in schools.
They've been putting a lot of effort into throwing MLK's actual politics down the memory hole so they can claim him as one of their own for a very long time. It's downright Orwellian what they do to socialists' legacies in schools.
Not sanitized everywhere. Gotta say, getting a robust education on the Civil Rights movements (plural*) was actually better when we had a mix of more Black teachers [and Jewish, in my neck of the woods] and folks who were old enough to remember the era. We've arrived at the point where the majority of K-12 educators are too young to have lived that history, and often themselves don't have much education in it. * I remember learning not only about MLK, but about Malcolm, Stokely Carmichael, and the leaders of Black political thought going back to Booker T vs WEB DuBois. *And* we learned about feminism, Stonewall, the emergent Chinese & Japanese [mostly] cultural/rights movements, even AIM, and at least some of the many ongoing independence (there) and rights (here) movements of Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean. This was in like Gr 6-12. I think it's good for kids to learn about when people fought for improvement - and succeeded! It would help with the helplessness and apathy so many teens & young adults seem to suffer from.
@@mandisaw old enough to live through it. Those people are retired, thus more sanitation has happen since you been in school. Even black teachers will teach a sanitized version
It’s important to remember that prior to President’s Day there was George Washington’s Birthday and Abraham Lincoln’s Birthday. Both were bank holidays but only Washington’s Birthday was a federal holiday because the former confederate states refused to celebrate Lincoln’s birthday. They also taught a different version of the American Civil War in school that was based on the Lost Cause narrative and by the 1980s all schools across the country have reduced a great deal of history from the curriculum because it makes certain people uncomfortable and now as we’re seeing they’re editing even more.
I hadn't heard this particular quote from Martin Luther King Jr, I don't think, but it's a testament to the strength of his voice in his writing that I picked up on it being a quote almost immediately. He had a very personal and defined speaking and writing style.
DeSatan is calling a grand jury for the illegal immigrant "crisis" in Florida. The only crisis is not letting them come and better our country. Not enough labor? They are hard working people who just want a better chance at a happy life.
MLK's words have been around as long as Star Trek. And both his message and Gene Roddenberry's message have yet to be learned by a critical mass of society. I seriously don't know if they ever will be. But thank you, Beau, for making sure people know the educational challenge we face!
I have said this before, but when I was in AIT for the Infantry in the US Army, one of my Drill Sergeants told me to cut the black soldiers a little more slack, because they still remembered separate drinking fountains. I went to Basic and AIT in the summer of 1977, it hasn't been that long.
They're going to want more until they have true equality, that includes systemic racism ceasing to exist. They deserve it and every one of us should be fighting for them to get it. Yeah, it can feel uncomfortable losing our privilege but that's a ridiculously small price to pay to raise everybody to the same level.
@Enclave Equality for black ppl does not equate to white ppl losing. It just means that whites will actually have to compete rather than get a participation trophy handed to us just for being born with low melanin.
What, and you mean achieve things based on merit and not the handout of being born white? But that’s what black people do, it’s inhuman to hold whites to the same standards as blacks!!!!!!!
Ever hear that Zen saying, "First there is a mountain, then there is no mountain, then there is"? I think our society - all of humanity, really - needs to progress from "I don't see color" to "I see color" to "I don't see color" If you understand what I'm getting at.
Man that Patterson quote really brought a lot of the backroom talk to the forefront didn't it? Thanks again Beau for the clear talk to your audience, those who will fight the change, and those who need help opening their eyes
"Until the philosophy which hold one race superior And another Inferior Is finally And permanently Discredited And abandoned Everywhere is war Me say war That until there no longer First class and second class citizens of any nation Until the colour of a man's skin Is of no more significance than the colour of his eyes Me say war" Bob Marley War
😁you’re doing great beau! I’m seriously impressed. I wouldn’t have been able to read that message without scoffing, rolling my eyes and sucking my teeth the entire time, at least that’s what I did listening to you read it 😂receiving these messages means people are questioning what they’re told to believe. It gives me hope
As a Black American Man, I wish that white america could be as educated, open minded and understanding as you Beau. I subscribed to this channel because of your candor, I don’t see you as a white man. When I see you I see a human. Thank you for saying what you said.
That's the thing, isn't it? Every time someone starts pontificating about how racism has been fixed, black people have gone far enough, now they're asking for too much... they end up repeating the racist rhetoric from the time of the Civil Rights movement. And yet when people start quoting MLK, they either misquote him or quote him out of context. Just that - just that alone - ought to be reason enough to take a step back and think about the positions you're holding.
Beau, as a African American female and fan, your comments on this issue opens up for me a new perspective on racial profiling and the continued struggles we face daily. Thanks.
What I find most interesting in this very video is how poignant Beau's point is, which I am sure the writer of the letter missed. Beau pointed out how unwilling white people are concerning the need to re-educate themselves... ... while proving this by responding to a white dude with a white-washed understanding of the very same Dr. King that he his blatantly *miseducated* about. It is very obvious, at least to me, that the writer of this letter is very well-versed in American Mythology, and knows next to *nothing* about actual American History. This is why it is so important for white people to learn actual U.S. History and Black History (which is, by the way, a part of U.S. history). I hope someone learned something from this video.
I would leave that at US history. There is no US history or country for that fact without who are considered “black Americans” not a separate thing but the racists sure like to pretend they are. “Black” history should be integrated, weaved in and told just as it happened all year long and not relegated to February
@@cherryorchard5600 Agreed. 100%. You will get absolutely no argument from me. While I was just trying to "speak their language" in a sense, I do share you exact stance on this.
At 15 I left Philadelphia for the final time, and moved to FL to live with my brother, in a trailer park in Davie FL or "Redneck Davie". This trailer park had 1 black family, and everyone else was white. I was 15 and having lived with my mom in my black best friend's families home where we all coexisted in a loving atmosphere, I wasn't accustomed to the racist views held by not only the older generation but, my pears. I'd point lecture them on how they didn't have to proliferate the views of there parents, and grandparents. I'd point out that they had black people postered on their walls and, coming out of the speakers of their stereo's. Everyone they looked up to was black, and they _still_ referred to black people as "N words". I finally refused to hear it spoken around me. They'd slip and, I'd say "Hey man, I told you...not around me with that!" or you can leave. I've got friends in Ft Lauderdale I can hang out with, keep it up and, I'm not hanging out with you" Countless lectures on how "You know you don't really believe that Michael Jordan is a lesser person than you, you've got your poster on your wall, you won't miss a game, you listen to nothing but rap music and still you're using that word, saying that bull sh-t and, if you met any one of these guys you'd quit that sh-t in a heartbeat" I'm not sure if I changed anything really, just as Beau's response may not change this one man's views , in fact it sounds to me like he's/shes already made his choices and, probably won't read anything, won't become enlightened. So why respond , why should I have, and why should Beau? I think because we have to try. You can't _not_ respond regardless of whether or not you have an impact on someone's thinking. Just because it may fall on deaf ears, doesn't mean it didn't need to be said . It's commendable that Beau responds to the ignorant because, it had to be said! Regardless of the outcome, it bears repeating and, challenging people to come up. It's the hope that one of these approaches. One of these creative ways of speaking to a racist who may not even consider him or herself a racist, might plant some seed, turn on some light above their head . You gotta keep trying.
Can't be an equal if you keep pretending to come from a place of superiority, condescension, and patronage. If I am being honest with myself, I know this, and still struggle, sometimes I have to literally bite my tongue.
I had always thought that we as a nation had made a little bit of progress over the years, and then we had Trump and reality smacked me up side the head. We are as bad or worse than when King was alive, at least here in Texas we are.
So powerful - I did not realize that was a quote from MLK. John Oliver did a segment on race where he noted that Fox News frequently quotes MLK as a way to squash discussion of racial issues and the need to teach critical race theory in schools. I imagine the person who sent in this message took a page from their book.
Simply put if you can't understand why anyone that falls under the bipoc community "label" with law enforcement having qualified immunity and "city ordinances" with Jim crow era roots is looking out for their own communities you probably believe the police report matched the body cam footage
We love it when you kick ass , and level the playing field with your southern gentlemanly demeanor. My husband and I sit back close our eyes and listen the intelligent , wise words. Thank you Bo.
I don't know what it is, but some people on the opposite side always misconstrue, misinterpret, and misrepresent messages from their original meaning. It's been a common thing in recent years to hijack an idea and twist it into something completely the opposite of the original goal/meaning... and somehow the people who sabotage the messages speak louder/get their voices heard more than the original marginalized group. It's sickening.
I think it's something else. I'm just going to say it. Conservatives aren't human enough to understand human language. This would explain why conservatives don't understand what Rage Against the Machine is about. This would explain why conservatives don't understand MLK Jr's words. This would explain why they don't understand that the Empire was evil in Star Wars or the fact that the Jedi were pretty evil for lying to a boy so that he would kill his own father. I mean, Yoda or Obi-Wan should have told Luke because Luke had a right to know this deeply personal thing about himself and his connection to Darth Vader. I wonder if conservatives are defective humans who are incapable of the more deeper humane instincts and activities that are part of humanity. When Shakespeare wrote "You rocks, you stones, you worse than senseless things"... I get that. I feel those words. I've never met Shakespeare. I'm an American. I'm human enough to understand the meaning in those words. In contrast, I'm not sure that conservatives would understand that. Even if they lived in Stratford on Avon and drank tea. Maybe conservatives are not capable of that deeper humanity? Why else would they have such problems recognizing the humanity of black people or gay people or transpeople or well... any people? What's wrong with them? And why do we allow them to have a say when they can't play well with others?
Omg, that smirk on your face while reading that is PRICELESS.❤. Oh man, fact check truth bomb dropped. Mind blowing straight up facts. Love you Beau.🤯❤✌
This is one of the times I wish this video was longer. I always appreciate your capacity for brevity - I want to hear more. REPARATIONS IS ONLY THE BEGINNING
My question is what is wrong with wanting more? Do they not want more things in their life just as you do? More money? More happiness? More food to feed your family? Here's one they are always yelling about more freedom and more guns? So, why can our brothers and sisters of the darker persuasions NOT EXPECT more also in their lives? Should they be happy with the few little scraps that we allowed them to have off of our plates? (Urk my nerves to type that sentence BUT had to be said in my opinion, I can imagine a person as such stating that 😡)
It may choke you to say the words but it’s the truth and worse than table scraps. Look into a list of Southern Black foods. It’s all derived from some food “inedible” to the white man. Chitlins, hog jowls and my favorite collard greens. (likely a barnyard weed to whites)
Well that's the rub, isn't it? My family has more claim to the promise and bounty of America than most - we trace slave lineage back to a founding fathers [more accurately, his wife]. And yet there are still folks whose families just arrived in the past 70-odd yrs who will say to my face that Black people have no right to want more than is our current lot. If we built America, and bled for her, and died for her, then we surely are owed a fair opportunity to thrive here.
I find happiness in not wanting more. I don't have much money, but don't want more. I simply adore food, but as I am not malnourished, don't want more. Given those things, people just won't stop paying me more than I need to cook fantastic food for them. Cooking for people is something that brings me happiness. Let go of greed and enjoy what you have.
thank you. i did not know that was from doctor king. we have to change the education system in this country to include.... education. i watched this twice.
Who am I to tell someone they can't enjoy the SAME quality of life that I do? What if some one told you (and subsequently enforced) an inferior lifestyle to the one you want or actually have? People need to learn to treat others the way THEY want to be treated and just live.
Not for nothing, but white people lost just a smidge of [legal] privilege, and we're seeing, what, 30% +/- of America collectively lose their shit. Honestly, as a Black person, we seem to have gotten quieter/more modest with our demands (BLM was tame compared to the 60s/70s), and I suspect it's due to not being sure how white-hot violent things might actually get if we demanded *true* equality. I mean, I've heard folks sound grateful just to not get fired for wearing their hair natural - it's a *far* cry from open-carry in the street, old-school Panthers' style. 😅
@@mandisaw if you mean the legal privilege to discriminate against others, how is that a bad thing? But no; so far as this good Ole boy can tell, white people haven't lost a thing as others have gained. Not one darn thing...
The post racial America shows itself... We need a new economic and accounting philosophy that recognizes a standard of living for all people, environment / climate, health / safety, shared ownership of natural resources and social services. It's a change in the paper work. We either share this world or it is corrupt.
Keep on with the education lessons my brother. Your words and thoughts are beyond wisdom! If our country had more people thinking like you,just think about how far ahead of the game we really could be.if everyone could think and work as one unit,man the world could and would be in a better place. Thank you for your thoughts!
@@mip4422 I see your point. But the US could at least implement a social democracy like the many types we Europeans enjoy. Something that would give black Americans (a demographic disproportionately suffering from generational poverty) a much fairer shot at life. But nope. There's an obtuse, pathetically selfish chunk of the American people that would rather be flayed alive than paying a little bit more of taxes so minorities could stand on equal footing. And that chunk is mostly white.
right on Beau! this also applies to Native peoples, immigrants from countries where we fought our wars -Viet Nam, Central America, Mexico and women's rights !!! We still have a LONGGG way to go baby! Forward people.... overcome the hate- we have to work together for the good of ALL of us on this spinning ball we call home.
“Now I wanted to say something about the fact that we have lived over these last two or three summers with agony and we have seen our cities going up in flames. And I would be the first to say that I am still committed to militant, powerful, massive, non-violence as the most potent weapon in grappling with the problem from a direct action point of view. I'm absolutely convinced that a riot merely intensifies the fears of the white community while relieving the guilt. And I feel that we must always work with an effective, powerful weapon and method that brings about tangible results. But it is not enough for me to stand before you tonight and condemn riots. It would be morally irresponsible for me to do that without, at the same time, condemning the contingent, intolerable conditions that exist in our society. These conditions are the things that cause individuals to feel that they have no other alternative than to engage in violent rebellions to get attention. And I must say tonight that a riot is the language of the unheard. And what is it America has failed to hear? It has failed to hear that the plight of the n*gro poor has worsened over the last twelve or fifteen years. It has failed to hear that the promises of freedom and justice have not been met. And it has failed to hear that large segments of white society are more concerned about tranquility and the status quo than about justice and humanity.“
A neighbour of mine and I had one of our candid chats about race recently: Neighbour: I'm worried that you black people are going to go to the streets and have a race war. You guys keep bringing up the past and you're so angry. Me: Yeah, I see your point. Hey, tell me what race the Charlottesville guys were when that riot occured and that girl was killed? Can't seem to recall what they were chanting...Maybe you might remember... Neighbour: (Tumbleweeds in the desert silence).
As a black person I really appreciate Beau for what he does. I could say everything he just said and too many white people wouldn’t listen simply because I’m black. Beau knows the power he has looking how he does and talking how he talks, I really appreciate him.
There are some of us that looks forward to change. I’m sorry people don’t listen to you like they do people looking and sounding like Beau. One day, hopefully sooner than later, you will have the same opportunities that we do
Jordan, When I joined the Army in 1978 I was as racist as my step-dad, believing the same crap. Living and working with black people in basic training taught me an important lesson. When your life depends on the guy next to you knowing his stuff and knowing what to do, you very quickly learn to care more about his character, his competence, than his skin color. The black guy who knows his shit won't get me killed, but the other glow-in-the-dark white guy who screws around will get me killed. Not a complicated math problem. The 8 years I served reinforced that lesson. I served in peace time so the stakes were a LOT lower. The lesson stands.
I think I have grown since that early lesson, and that basic fact is part of my world view. Don't give up, we CAN learn. Fast forward 30 years from my basic training and my formerly racist dad was introducing me to his black friend. They had genuine respect for each other. That said, I completely agree with your view on Beau. I learn a lot from his channel.
@@davidgagniere2923 I respect you for having the heart to change, there are people that harbor hatred in their hearts and would like to keep it that way, something in you clearly denied that path. Once your story becomes a common one, I truly do believe we’ll be past this nonsense. Thanks for the comment brother.
This. And several folks want to “choose” who they hear the facts from. Now THAT’S privilege.
This short video has been a real humbling experience. I have a pretty good idea of what is still wrong with our current attitudes about race; it runs much deeper than the odd verbal insult or Confederate relic.
But I am an old white guy who never suffered from racial injustice, and may well have benefited from it.
That's why I must learn more about what I can do to help reverse this obscene tradition in our culture: systematic racism.
I have had conversations with fellow whites who insist that racism ended in 1963, or so; it can only exist now as slogans repeated by ungrateful blacks (lazy), & hypersensitive liberal hippies, who only want to prolong an extinct problem to shame white folks, & gather virtue points.
Convincing others to take a look at what's really going on, is challenging and slow; I am just winging it, and sometimes meet hostile people lurking beneath the polite face.
Hey! It's Juneteenth weekend. Good time to read up on doing a better job of expanding my understanding and sharing it with others.
Book suggestions are welcome.
I read Colony In A Nation, by Chris Hayes. Definitely worthwhile.
Peace!
Every time this topic comes up, I go back to something I heard on this channel: when you're used to privilege, equality feels like oppression.
Idk where that original quote came from, but I've got it on the side of a RBG coffee mug. ☕
It's not even equality; it's just _the prospect of equality._
Black people in the US are, as a whole, far from being equal to white people. If white American conservatives are bitching like this now imagine their screeching when they finally have to compete in equal grounds with minorities.
Nailed it good sir
Whoa. That. That right there,is truth.
That's a TYT commercial 😂
"He wrote that knowing you would exist today." MLK, master of the long, slow, retroactive burn.
Still the most dangerous Man in the USA and beyond. The uninformed misinformed and ignorant by choice are still terrified of his words.
👏👏
Indeed, and well said, Beau.
The whitewashing of Dr. King’s legacy is designed to make certain people in power feel more comfortable. King knew what was up then, and what was located down the road.
And a master of class solidarity!
@Crashed can y'all stop with this crap????
It's amazing how many people think the "I have a dream" speech is only like 2 sentences long...
Much like many people think that the 2nd amendment is just part of one sentence.
That's because anything longer than a paragraph and most Americans tune out.
Short attention spans and memories
More like four words long: "I. Have. A. Dream." Yes, but what about the rest of it?!
Beau: "Maybe you all should do a little bit of reading and find out what that original vision really was because it's way more than just 'I have a dream'..."
Every MLK day my blood boils just thinking about how many fake politicians, etc that will misinterpret his words. His own niece Alvida is just as terrible, constantly using him to justify nonsense actions of trump and other republicans. It’s disgusting.
Or think that was his only speech/writing on the subject. I grew up hearing King on records at home & reading & analyzing his speeches in school. We watched Eyes on the Prize, too. I was a little young to stay up for Roots, but got to read Invisible Man & Langston Hughes in J/HS.
Guess that'll all be banned in some places now, but maybe someone will slice it up into TikTok segments 😎👊
I used to be “that guy”. I’ll forever be indebted to my friend Khalid for helping guide me to a greater understanding, compassion, and realization of the continuing systemic injustice in America.
Well done. Glad you’re here. love this channel.
America is better for ever person whose mind is opened! Thank you!
Amazing what you can discover when you dare to question your beliefs, logic and reason is in short supply these days. And that is not intellectualism, it is just removing the filter that distorts reality to fit beliefs. I feel sorry for the true believers, they have surrendered their ability to actually reason.
I am glad you are not that guy anymore ❤️.
That touched me as a Black man Brother Clay
Amen!, Beau. And I am speaking as a White 70-year-old man who was raised on the Texas Panhandle Plains. And I grew up hearing the racial slurs, insults, and prejudice. I am glad I grew up, and left that pile of crap behind. My experiences in high school, the US Army, and by living different places, as well as getting higher education (which I have noticed the bigots also criticize in their stupid ignorance). People need the truth which comes through life experiences outside one's comfort zone, and years of study. You are correct, those who need the lessons do not want to change. Not even for the better.
It's not a coincidence that the same folks trying to regress America also don't want history or poli sci taught, are leaning on kids (esp poor/working-class kids) to eschew liberal arts education for more narrow, productivity-focused vocational training (whether plumbing or programming), and are rather contemptuous of having/seeking experiences beyond your own silo. The order of the day seems to be forcing the next generation to be no better than their parents', which sure as hell isn't how we make the country great.
Amen to ALL that.❤✌
I find our fellow service men and women either leave their respective branch enlightened or more bigoted.
Traveling around the country and overseas can make a person realize they have much in common with all peoples or it cements prejudices.
I grew up in Boston in some pretty "bad" neighborhoods.
I was bussed from to school going from a predominantly black school to predominantly white school.
My immediate family was Muslim but had mostly Christian family members.
By the time I was in Jr. High many of students were Catholic or Jewish the same for high school as they were finally in the same city and school district.
I left home after graduation to join the ARMY, spent 18 months in Korea and have lived in over 10 states.
The only us and them I am concerned with are the poor and working class folks around the world and those who take advantage of us.
I'll second what Curtis said! I'm 72 and was involved in the Civil Rights movement during the 60s - traveled south to GA, stayed with a black family and put my own life on the line. My parents were terrified for my safety, but they let me go. The family I stayed with was in serious danger just having me stay with them - a young, white teenage girl living with a black family that also had black teenage boys? Oooo, that was not done! White folks involved in the struggle back then were walking with giants. The times of MLK - they were rough, and MLK didn't compromise, not even a little. Too many white folks today have an image of him that is a total fantasy. Beau has it exactly right - every single point he makes is spot on. White folks need to get over themselves and step up. It actually is easier than trying to maintain their comfortable ignorance.
Me too. Texan raised by racists. But growth is still my goal.
Every time someone throws the "I have a dream" quote into a conversation, I kindly send them a link to Letter From A Birmingham Jail.
They don't assassinate those who fight for the status quo. He's dead for a reason.
Pungent truth👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾.
It was one thing to "agitate" Black folks, but as soon as he started talking about economic justice, they cut that shit right-quick. Bobby & Malcolm, too.
And yet, by doing that, they created the change they didn't want to happen.
@@mandisaw You know it. See, because now we're getting to the real stuff.
@@jackolantern7342 It's part of why you keep seeing the strong pushback against Labor from the same quarters. Segregation is still strong in some unions (bldg trades, particularly), but where/when they integrated, folks very quickly realized that it wasn't the Black/brown/Jewish guy, or woman, or immigrant, or gay person with their boot on the white working man's neck.
It was never "Mr Sluggo", Bill - it's been "Mr Hand" all along 😂
As soon as they mentioned MLK I knew exactly where the video was going?
Why?
Because refuting this talking point was already eye-roll-inducing in how many times it's needed to be said long before I was born.
We've been having the EXACT same arguments for longer than living memory not because they're insurmountable problems, but because the right refuses to admit they've been wrong the entire time.
Because they don't care if what they have to say is true; only if it is accepted, by intimidation, force, and censorship if needs be.
When they talk about "don't push your politics down our throat" it's projection of what THEY do when confronted with objective reality, as it has _always_ been.
👏👏
I had the exact same reaction.
I’m a 61 year old white woman from the South. When I was a kid I naively thought that America would have equity by now. I thought all the old bigots, and male chauvinist would have died out or at least be overwhelmingly out numbered by now.
I’m sorry and embarrassed that equal rights aren’t a given at this point.
When I heard the first sentence of that the term that sprang to mind was white rage over "uppity" black people. That is what many of such commenters really think. Keep up the GREAT work Beau and every person of any race who takes progress toward real equality and justice seriously right now. I'm a white woman who is not afraid of other people fully achieving the justice that we all have a right to. None of us are free, if one of us are chained.
I'm with you completely and totally.
From a very black 60 plus year old male...I deeply appreciate every word that you expressed. They encapsulate America's only hope of avoiding becoming the latest, great empire to collapse on account of it resistance against the evolutionary imperatives of change.
Amen
B-BUT! What about all those poor dumpsters that are being hurt by this!? Maybe BLM are the REAL racists -- against dumpsters! WON'T SOMEONE THINK OF THE DUMPSTERS?
More seriously: What you're talking about in the OP is solidarity! There are white people who are in the working class, who are disabled, who are sex workers, who are LGB, or who are T (I separated LGB and T because so many are willing to cut the T out of solidarity, and it's messed up, and also because, in a vacuum, LGB do have class privilege over T), and if we all sit here and try to fight our own little private fights as micro-classes, none of us are ever going to get ANYWHERE. The forces of capital know this. They aren't racist because they "hate black people" -- institutionally speaking, how people feel about people's skin color is meaningless. The problem is when people have the power to turn those feelings into policy. That's what capital did to break labor movements. They said that black men were stealing white jobs. They said black people want more than equality. They therefore acquired a mandate from their constituency to institute racism. This is why I define racism as an institutional phenomenon, not a feeling, or being a big meanie weanie "just because of color." (This is also one reason I've heard some black people express that they have some respect for overt racists, because at least they admit to their racism.)
It's important to know the history of times things like this have happened. Since "I'm a white woman" (same) was addressed, it'll be important to point out that there were suffragettes who were racist as hell and wanted to exclude black people from the vote because they viewed enfranchisement as a zero sum. On into the modern era, there are white feminists who behave in such a way that they don't treat black women's issues as women's issues, thus driving black women away from mainstream feminism. It sucks.
If we're willing to break our overall class as oppressed people into a bunch of micro-classes, capital and the establishment will absolutely help us do that. They expanded the construct of whiteness to include the Irish and Italians, after all, even though, at that time, nativists absolutely hated the Irish and Italians. Let's stop falling for it! ...and by that I don't mean resume hating the Irish and Italians, but don't draw arbitrary lines to separate classes who have the same interests.
@@susanr1903 A riot is the language of the unheard, so jot that down. But whatever you think BLM have been up to, I guarantee you've been ingesting right wing propaganda if you think that there is some violent organized effort.
I don’t need “more.” I want to be treated *equally* and have a *equal* chance to succeed and live.
100 percent!!!
Yes! My favorite geometric shape is a circle. It's has 360°. No degree is greater than or lessor than another degree. All of the degrees are truly equal.
I think you deserve equity too, honestly.
Suppose your ancestors had been brutalized and deprived of opportunity and it is reflected in how they raised you. Then I come along with all the advantages my ancestors received and passed on to me. I can't treat you like an "equal" because we didn't begin as equals. The person who began with less must be given more so that he can become "equal" to the one who has never known the disadvantage of being born the wrong race . Then someday their children can finally consider themselves equals.
Tracey, this I can agree with. My hope was in the young of every race, but again, those filled with hate seem to gobble up young whites and continue. I must admit, every time my hope rises, something happens that takes it back down again. One day we will all grow up regardless. I just don't think it will happen in my lifetime.
Things like January 6th says there is still plenty of work to be done. Especially while there are so many who think time can go in both directions while the world continues to go forward.
Patiently enduring the heart-felt ignorance of America. Beau, you are a national treasure. THANK YOU for saying this. I’d bet most of these “questioners” would change their tune if they spent a few months working alongside anyone they think down upon
In 2018 I worked as a Temp Construction Laborer. In 2019 I worked 3 months straight everyday because it was a large client(contractor) who needed between 12-20 laborers per day. If I showed up at 6:30 am and got on the list I was able to work every day. Had I showed at 6:55 am it may not have worked out that day. Myself and two black workers were usually at the top of the list.
I am an accomplished finish carpenter, cabinet installer, handyman, craftsman---- jack of all trades.
Never was I asked to do a more skilled job. Those went to Hispanic workers. There were usually about 200 workers on the project every day. I learned about selective employment priviledge in the heart of Silicon Valley.
I was fired after 3 months in 2019. Break Violation. What is that? I was written up for not taking a break. I did take a break but they wanted an excuse to get rid of the old white guy who worked too hard. 😁 Yes. True. An agent in the Temp agency secretly explained that hispanic workers were complaining because I had "white privilege". He was a black man with an education.
@@carefulcarpenter so they needed 12-20 labourers but had 200 Hispanics?
Seems likely
YES!
@@BeardiusMaximus day workers, but about 200 regular employees. Almost every large construction job consists of a mixture of both. ..
@@patrickjordan2233 Thank you for your clarification, Patrick
For some reason, people seem to love pointing to MLK and quoting him, Without actually knowing what he said. Could this be because the average American learns American mythology instead of American history?
Mythologizing American history happened long before MLK, unfortunately. This only ever partial quoting of MLK is more associated with an intentionally-conducted ongoing effort to recuperate the image of every radical in order to make it support establishment interests. You can see it in Che Guevara T-shirts worn by white liberals, Ted Cruz playing Rage Against The Machine songs, and even Jesus Christ being treated as the guy who would vote Republican, carry an AR-15, and tell the sick and poor that he _would_ help them, but he doesn't want to turn them into dependents, and would rather they pull themselves up by their bootstraps.
It's because of the evangelical authoritarians, they want these beliefs taught at a very young age. because when taught at a very young age. people tend to take these beliefs with them for the rest of their lives.
@@musicauthority3516 It didn't work on me, but yeah, it does work on many, and it scares the hell out of me. What's funny about it is, if the evangelicals weren't so authoritarian about how they run the church, I wouldn't have questioned things.
I don’t get the obsession with “same-race” and “racial-pride”. I’m an old white Texas woman. Over the decades I have needed help on various occasions. Repeatedly, I learned that black people, brown people, and yellow people will step up and lend a hand in exactly the same situations that white people will smile sweetly, bless your heart, turn their backs, and walk away. It’s like white people (Texans?) must believe that Troubles are catching. I eventually got the message - the last place to turn to is someone who looks like me. And the thing is, we learn this lesson one white person at a time. Easiest way to learn it - get laid off - get sick-…
I relate to everything you said, way too much!
Reminds me of this song by the late Warren Zevon, "Don't Let Us Get Sick":
ruclips.net/video/ELe4vC3oM5E/видео.html
I'm also an old white woman, born in Texas, 4th generation, and spent my first 39 years there. I left in 2001 and moved to California to keep my son safe. My dad suggested I move to California just before he was shot and murdered in his backyard on a Tuesday morning as he went to work in his garden.
Most of my relatives are the sort who won't lift a finger to help anyone, but they will "pray for you". Like you, I found the kindest people usually have more melanin, and have nothing to gain from me.
It's often the same here in California, but lucky for me, I now live in a place where white folks are the minority.
I've been helped by wonderful people, like my friend, Bearhawk, who's Cahuilla, of the native California tribe. He found out I didn't have a good address sign on my very rural property (20 acres of mountain wilderness, a mile from nearest neighbor) so he made me a good, highly visible sign next to my driveway. It sure helped when the last wildfire raged through here and the fire department could easily see that sign through the smoke and come help us. My son and I were trapped and couldn't evacuate so we had to shelter in place.
My friend, Andy and his wife Melinda invited me for Thanksgiving every year after my husband abandoned me here 7 years ago and moved in with his girlfriend. Andy's from Mexico, and they're the sweetest folks. Sadly, Andy died in 2020 from Covid.
Meanwhile, the white folks in our small community were too busy gossiping that my husband left me because I'm white trash and a "lesbian", and because my son is mentally ill. I'm not, but there's nothing wrong with being gay if I was. I'm just not the feminine sort, and being tough has kept me alive. My son was diagnosed with schizophrenia while serving his country in the Navy. He was given an honorable discharge, but no one bothered to ask.
Then there's the Chands, the wonderful couple from Pakistan who have this great little store in our town with lots of discontinued and overstock items, mostly food. It's a fun treasure hunt, and affordable! I bought 2 pair of brand new sneakers for $8 each last month. Our thrift stores charge more than that for used shoes.
I met them 18 years ago when they sold merch at the local swap meet, and was thrilled when they opened their store. They are so friendly, in spite of how ugly some people have been to them. A couple of years ago, their windows were smashed and some a-hole spray-painted "N*gg*r" and other hateful crap all over the outside of their building. Stupid!
They always greet me when I walk in like they are genuinely happy to see me, and it reminds me of how local stores used to be decades ago. I look forward to going there, I only go to town for supplies @ 3 times a month and they are usually my first stop.
Previously, I asked them if they ever get food like crackers or cereal that is too far out of date to sell, or has weevils, or can't be sold for any reason to set it aside and I'd buy it for my goats. I keep goats to clear brush on our property and keep us fire-safe. They had some cases of 24 bags of ginger snap cookies that had expired 2 weeks before, so perfectly good, they sold me for $10 a box. Those retail for @ $2.00 a bag. Happy goats!
Yesterday, they gave me 4 large boxes filled with chips, crackers, cookies, pasta etc. for free! Some of it's only a month or two out of date and still good for human consumption, all is good for goats. Kindest thing anyone's done for me in a long time.
I'm poor, but I sew well, and sometimes bring them little gifts I make. I used to bring them fresh eggs from my chickens until I found out they are vegan. (oops!) They gave those eggs to someone in need.
I'm bringing them some handmade bowl "cosies" next time. They are fabric bowl-shaped protectors that can go in the microwave to protect the hands from hot ceramic, and also helps keep food warm. I use mine a lot, and figure they might like them too since they practically live in that store.
I told a neighbor about this wonderful store and it's owners, they sneered, said that they would never support "terrorists".
OMG! The Chands are Hindu. I wouldn't care if they were Islamic, I've met lovely people who follow Islam too. How sad that people choose to hate, they sure miss out on meeting great people.
@@LazyIRanch Thank you for sharing all the wonderful people you've met, who've helped you. I've just gotta say, the kindest, most gentle person I've ever met was Ibrahim, who is Muslim. He was just as distraught on 9/11 as we all were, watching it unravel at work.
He has a beautiful family and his children had perfect manners (I know, hard to believe, right?) and were beautiful people! I wish everyone had the opportunity to get to know people from other cultures. They'd find that we have more in common than not.
People: Why I prefer animals.
I feel the same way when someone has national pride. I'm definitely a global citizen by choice, just an American by birth.
The construct of whiteness is a crab-bucket. We often want everyone who is the same color as us to sink to the level that is deemed respectable -- don't break social conventions, don't defy the status quo, don't ever have any needs or be outspoken, and definitely, ABSOLUTELY never be different! We should all be helping each other (every color, every gender, every configuration of sex characteristics, every level of economic marginalization, and within and across every arbitrarily drawn line on a map) break through every ceiling of class. Alas, we so often fall back on "I'm glad I'm not a Gamma." (Huxley, Brave New World)
@@VitriolicVermillion I loved that book, and was surprised that my son's school didn't have it on their list of recommended reading. Neither was Orwell's "1984" or "Animal Farm" It's almost like they don't want kids to learn about what happens when fascists take control.
I gave him those books to read, along with Kurt Vonnegut books. "Brave New World" was his favorite.
Excellent episode. Too many times people replace their idealized version of MLK for the real thing. Great to see you put them in their place
More like a propagandized or sanitized version. They reduce his life's work down to one part of a single speech then try to preach to people who acknowledge the rest.
If I actually quoted half of what MLK actually said to my students I'd lose my job.
And, as I understand it, MLK wasn’t the most radical activist at that time…
I am also reminded of a quote from LBJ - "You do not take a man who's been in chains all his life, remove the chains, then expect him to run as fast as one who's never been in chains." The problem? We 'took' the chains off but left the system which exploited those chains in place. MLK wasn't just talking about minorities; he was talking about people in poverty. However, an additional problem is that Jim Crow and other segregationist laws created a system where a significant percentage of minorities are poor, then a system was created that punished poor people for being poor. It's a hololistic system which has cemented those who already had power and wealth into being able to retain both.
@@maxwellderpin8477 when I was a kid MLK used be called a communist.
If I hear "Well look at Oprah" one more time, I am going to scream.
Ohh, you make it just too easy.
Well, look at.......
I'm old enough to remember when Oprah Winfrey earned one of the Color Purple's *11 Oscar nominations* (0 wins!), and lost it to Anjelica Huston for Prizzi's Honor. Now, that was a fun little flick, but compared to Color Purple, or Oprah's role in it? (I could maybe have understood Meg Tilly winning for Agnes of God, that was a good role.)
Even when Oprah started her talk show, she had to largely self-produce, because none of the big studios wanted to take a risk on a Black daytime talk host. "How will it play in Peoria?" as the saying goes. So much Black entrepreneurship happens *in spite of* the system, not because of it.
😂😂
Say it again,
but a little louder for the
people in the back!!
💜💜
I hear the same line about professional black athletes as well...completely disregarding the fact that far more black athletes are unpaid "student-athletes" who suffer massive physical harm early in life to put on an entertaining show for largely white audiences before they will ever make it rich if they ever make it that far.
The ones who do make it that far are often ridiculed by their own black communities for being "sell-outs" and "fake black" because U.S. culture has made it unacceptable for a black person to succeed financially in this country...
For all the idol-worship we do in this country, we do spend a lot of time hating those just like us, utilizing fake metrics to play catch-up with them like owning a massive truck or half a military armory to try to compensate for our own lack of worth in the eyes of our capitalist society. Perhaps if we considered wealth nothing more than a number, if we considered masculinity as something that can't merely be bought at a Ford dealership or a gun show, and instead focused more on the CHARACTER of a person, we'd be a bit further along with treating everybody as equals, regardless of their financial status, gender, sexuality, or skin color...
OK I'm black! And this is amazing to hear! Us being being "radical" is just us asking for EQUALITY. And yes full accountability on your part. You want all the advantages of us, but on the cheap politically, monetarily, and socially. For all we went through.. we just ask for EQUALITY. If it was you..you'd want revenge!
"You tore up the contract!" - Kimberly Jones.
Also: have you seen this? ruclips.net/video/aE8OqAtbn0s/видео.html
Speaking as a white American who has heard the petty whiny things other white Americans get vengeful about, I absolutely agree with you. Some of these people get angry that cops politely gave them a speeding ticket and not a warning when they get caught going way over the limit, and will never shut up about the indignity. Then when Black people protest about police mass murdering kids with seeming immunity, the same white people will scream about radicalism.
Revenge…there’d be car bombs going off downtown. Just name the city. Ka-blooey!💥💥💥💥💥💥
'Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never has and it never will...' Frederick Douglas
When I was younger, our parents set the goal for us to be "free, white and twenty-one" not realizing when the word white was inserted that we white folks were admitting that we had a level of emancipation not accorded to all. Good vid, Beau.
My parents always said to us kids, "I'm free, white and 21.." I was 50 before I realized it was an admission of freedom not afforded to people of color. I'm not sure they knew.
Does this phrase have a history? I’ve never heard this.
Okay I bother to look it up. 1963 movie by the same name about the trial of a black man accused of raping a white woman. But the phrase itself means that no one call tell you what to do; in other words freedom. So the phrase is really saying that to truly be free one has to be white.
I’m grateful that I was never told that explicitly as a kid.
@@tawnya0627 they knew
@@chriswilkerson4074- White, never incarcerated, and of legal age.
You will know when we have come far enough when we don’t have to have this conversation
'Nuff said👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👍🏾!
I've heard it said that white Americans better be glad Black Americans want equality and reparations, and not revenge and retribution. Seems like a sensible statement to me. Love & Light from Mississippi. Y'all stay safe and keep taking care of each other. ✌🏼💚
P.S. I'm right at the end of reading the autobiography of Malcolm X, and I snickered when you read the person's letter about people being "radical". I'm not sure they really know what that word means.
Here we are, Juneteenth [Eve] 2022, and the fear of "Negro revolt on the plantations" is still visceral some 5-6 generations later. Actual Black people have never been as scary as the spectre of the black-faced Erinyes in the hearts of white people.
Jon Oliver did a great segment expressing that very idea not too long ago. Do you watch Last Week Tonight?
I do! Which video was it, and have you seen the one where he’s like “I’m entirely too white to talk about this let me give up my chair for Wanda Sykes”? It’s hysterical
@@krejados1 I do. I think I recall what you're referring to, as well. I believe it was in the episode about environmental racism.
@@krejados1 the clip he showed was from the BLM protests after George Floyd's murder and the lady, one of the organizers of BLM was paraphrasing Trevor Noah's clip about America breaking the social contract with it's own.
You should see both clips in full. REALLY POWERFUL ❤️
Trevor did an off the cuff post, unscripted and uploaded on response to Floyd's murder and the protests and the lady was caught on camera just in the right frame.
Trevor measured and cool, her in the thick and heart of the moment...
“My political ideal is democracy. Let every person be respected as an individual and no person be idolized.” -Dr. Albert Einstein, 1930
@Reformed Conservative I am beginning to "report" this by touching the three dots.....and reporting... not that it does much
@Reformed Conservative "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed." --Declaration of Independence--July 4, 1776
I feel like some people think the memory of MLK jr works like an UNO reverse card or something. Or like he's black Moses and the only commandment on the tablet says "I Have a Dream." They always want to interpret him for us so they can tell us when we're coloring outside the lines. It's so patronizing.
They also tend to forget about Malcolm or how gun control was a response to the Black Panthers responding to police violence, so I guess it's not surprising.
It's just, how can you seriously think you're in a position to grade a test you're not even close to passing?
They also tend to gloss over how Dr. King was almost universally vilified and loathed by white people while he was alive. Or how Martin Luther King Day didn't get observed throughout all of the United States until 2000. But now all white people want to pretend like they knew all along he was a visionary.
😆😂😆 at "Uno reverse card" Well said!!
Someone once said all we, and yes I am a black male, a black Solider and a black police officer, sorry I digress.
Here is a radical idea for that person who emailed you:
“He should be glad that all we all want is equality, not vengeance.”
Once again, have a nice day, take care of your family and then yourself, everything in moderation and have a positive difference in someone’s life today, please
When I heard "I'll give you radical", I knew exactly what the punchline was going to be. Good job!
He really does like using quotes from historical figures to disprove statements about them. I'll admit that there were moments where I thought he might have been quoting Malcolm X, instead, but my money was on MLK.
@@seanheath4492 haha, same! I thought there's a good chance it'd be Malcolm X, but the effect wouldn't have been the same as with MLK.
Why do I cry in 2022 when I hear the MLK speech? Because I know we are not even close to his dream yet. The day I stop crying, the day I can't think of a recent injustice to the black community is the day I say "hay, maybe we finally made it."...... But honestly, I fear I will be long dead before that dream comes true.
And god forbid a black man has a decent house and makes good money.
Or a woman.
Honestly, messages like what you got are telling in how it reflects how well MLK has been - choice of words *very* intentional - whitewashed and his story set up as if it was a final chapter. It blinds us to the issues that linger today because we're taught that it was a thing of the past when no, it wasn't. It also allowed them to demonize anything but a standard that even MLK didn't achieve as insufficient - that they can't be anything but martyrs dying on the streets for their beliefs without resisting - without getting tut-tutted for any little failure of an impossible standard. It blinds us to history, and lets the deplorables continue their unofficial oppression and try to obscure the issues so they go unconfronted.
And that's before we consider that most of the violence at BLM protests was either started by the police or others against the protesters, or were unrelated to BLM but certain groups try to lump it in so they can demonize BLM.
Nowadays we try to pretend that MLK was always a softspoken peaceful man and that the one speech was the major thing he did and its a nice cozy fairy tale of "that one nice black guy we can talk about respectfully." Which completely ignores at the time he was seen as a major public enemy by the FBI, jailed multiple times, hated by president Hoover , and that he was *murdered* before he turned 40.
We have a nice clean fairy tale about the man as a "good example of how black people should peacefully protest" that ignores absolutely everything about him and what he suffered and went through..
That’s what is so frustrating “they” always throw out the “BLM destroyed our cities”. Yeah… NO. No city was even close to even 10% destroyed. Violence is generally instigated by the police and counter-protestors and about 95% of BLM protests were 100% non violent. Another very important fact that few people who didn’t attend these rallies know is that the BLM protests are explicit that the protests are non-violent, no arms should be brought and they tended to have First Aid stations. Since the Civil Rights Era protests are often met with violence not by the protesters so they anticipate their non-violent protestors being hurt so instead of planning that they’d have a cache of weapons they plan to heal the unjustly wounded.
“The truth is not always beautiful, nor beautiful words the truth.” -Lao Tzu
May everyone here in this community go into the Summer Solstice with a balance of the necessary focus of a hawk & the awareness of the horse.
Thank you.
Well said! Throw in the patience of a Saint and it's going to be a great summer! All the best!
Love this!
Etain approves of that message.
-Your Friendly Neighborhood Druid
I grew up a bigot. eventually, I realized that I was wrong. And I felt proud as a result. I still do. But sometimes I still have to face the fact that I am SO ignorant in SO many ways. I hope that this growth on my part continues.
Don’t hope. Make it so.
It’s hard but very rewarding work. I loved How to Be an Anti-Racist by Ibram X Kendi. It’s such a welcoming book, and the author provides not just facts about racism and other prejudices but shows the process of discovering racist ideas in ourselves and replacing them with anti-racist ideas and actions, using his own journey as an honest and humble guide. No blaming for having been given racism as part of your heritage but insistence on our responsibility to become anti-racist, to use our knowledge and power to help stop racism where we see it. It’s a very personal but also intellectually rigorous book and practical as shoes.
The most important thing any of us can do is try to be a better person today than we were yesterday. Good on you for being honest with yourself and working to correct it. Many people don't ever get to that point.
Beau, I can't stop listening to you. You say the uncomfortable truths with no apology. Thank you.
yep 👏
Yes as a Black Latina woman I want more. I want Trump and his enablers to be held accountable.
I want everyone to be held to the same level of decency!
. . . and so do I.
Amen!!! To be held MORE accountable 💯💯💯
As an Indigenous citizen I want the same as you. Not to mention dna 🧬 says I’m African from 3 different countries in Africa , until dna 🧬 it was all just hearsay. Somehow the European racists seemed to view my family as part African by derogatory titles as a child.
I as a privileged white male want Trumpopath and enablers all held accountable. Had enough of their narcissistic entitlement.
Beau, exactly. Everytime black people get a couple steps forward towards equality, they are shoved back, often violently, at least one step. You talked about pools being filled in, whole towns have been covered by lakes. We all talk in horror of the Black Wall Street massacre, there have been many. This 'history' is carefully hidden! That is why some so fear CRT even though I doubt it covers all that. We do need radical change, for many reasons. 👍💖💙🥰✌
From a black woman, thank you so much for getting it. It's almost like you reached into my brain (and the brains of my fellow black people), snatched out all of my thoughts on our plight, and typed them up here.
@@ashakir622 Thankyou! I've only been learning more as I've gotten older. And a bit of Amber Ruffin? But, I was lucky in having an awesome Mom who took us away from our bigot dad and to CA. U got to see, first hand, though we were poor and my Mom faced misogyny, we had privilege my friends, few white, did not have. I saw it again in WA State. All back from 70s to now. Yet I've learned much right here from Beau and our great Peeps in chat! 🥰😘💖💙✌
I get so angry every time I think about everything I never learned and that it was done to make me compliant and take my agency to fight for people who needed me to speak up. People who needed me to understand what was real and what I was taught and I failed them. I failed to refuse my privilege. I failed to honor humanity that deserved every scrap of honor falsely granted because of the way I looked. And I despise them for teaching lies because I want the truth. And I finally have it. And it burns.
2 steps
Y'all ever notice how absolutely badass and cool the things the right accuses "the left" of doing are? I WISH the Democrats were even a tenth that radical! Nobody is teaching CRT to kids. (And also, CRT isn't remotely what the right says it is.)
The fact that someone still has to fight for equality should be hint enough that it's not reached yet.
“The calling to speak is a vocation of agony.” This hit home…
This hit home in an unexpected way for me as well. Only because that calling cannot be denied, it cannot be ignored. One may try to avoid situations in which they may be compelled to speak, but once you are called there is no escaping it. The agony is rooted in the clear understanding and forethought that the words about to be uttered will most definitely provoke powerful, capable and violently active enemies, both known and unknown.
@@viktorkoalamos “You’d be a natural in politics. Why don’t you do more?” 😣🥶😬🫣 The pay is crap and it’s too dangerous🤷🏾
Oh my goodness !!! Without CRT they will never get it.
They don’t even get it with THEIR CRT (Causal Relationship Theory) so I’m not surprised that CRT doesn’t work for them.
With out Critical Thinking they will never overcome socialization , prejudice and opinions. CRY is another means for the Right Wing to Divide Truth and deflect from truth
Most of us don’t need that particular academic perspective, just education that includes all the history and all the current reality of differences in treatment and outcomes for various demographic groups, and guides kids to recognize and choose pro-social ideas and actions. Not coincidentally, that’s exactly what DeSantis is banning from education in Florida.
Brother there is one rule in internet fame...You KNOW you are making a difference when the haters come out!! You are helping a lot of folks wrap their mind around a lot of complex issues!! Just keep doing what you do!!
I literally had to argue with someone one that MLK was a radical for his time, and still would be radical if they fully taught what MLK said because poor people campaign was often ignored, and also violence from police was thing back then also, and the CRA did not fix everything and MLK wanted more change.
One of the greatest crimes done to MLK was snatiation done to his message that get taught in schools.
They've been putting a lot of effort into throwing MLK's actual politics down the memory hole so they can claim him as one of their own for a very long time.
It's downright Orwellian what they do to socialists' legacies in schools.
@@dynamicworlds1 I would count MLK more as socdem, rather than full out socialist.
Not sanitized everywhere. Gotta say, getting a robust education on the Civil Rights movements (plural*) was actually better when we had a mix of more Black teachers [and Jewish, in my neck of the woods] and folks who were old enough to remember the era. We've arrived at the point where the majority of K-12 educators are too young to have lived that history, and often themselves don't have much education in it.
* I remember learning not only about MLK, but about Malcolm, Stokely Carmichael, and the leaders of Black political thought going back to Booker T vs WEB DuBois. *And* we learned about feminism, Stonewall, the emergent Chinese & Japanese [mostly] cultural/rights movements, even AIM, and at least some of the many ongoing independence (there) and rights (here) movements of Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean. This was in like Gr 6-12.
I think it's good for kids to learn about when people fought for improvement - and succeeded! It would help with the helplessness and apathy so many teens & young adults seem to suffer from.
@@mandisaw old enough to live through it. Those people are retired, thus more sanitation has happen since you been in school. Even black teachers will teach a sanitized version
It’s important to remember that prior to President’s Day there was George Washington’s Birthday and Abraham Lincoln’s Birthday. Both were bank holidays but only Washington’s Birthday was a federal holiday because the former confederate states refused to celebrate Lincoln’s birthday.
They also taught a different version of the American Civil War in school that was based on the Lost Cause narrative and by the 1980s all schools across the country have reduced a great deal of history from the curriculum because it makes certain people uncomfortable and now as we’re seeing they’re editing even more.
The "Good Ol' Days" weren't good enough for a great many of us
You're right Beau. They're not demanding more, they're getting less.
I hadn't heard this particular quote from Martin Luther King Jr, I don't think, but it's a testament to the strength of his voice in his writing that I picked up on it being a quote almost immediately. He had a very personal and defined speaking and writing style.
Thank you, Beau. Great reminder of how far we haven't come.
We thought we had. Until political propaganda happens over the same 2 issues are used to get a vote, for the last 50 to 70 years.
You have my respect, sir.
DeSatan is calling a grand jury for the illegal immigrant "crisis" in Florida. The only crisis is not letting them come and better our country. Not enough labor? They are hard working people who just want a better chance at a happy life.
Deport desantis
@@patfrench8046 if you can get somebody to take him Cancun Cruz already has his bags packed.
2 for 1 deal.
I think that I’m even more afraid of DeSantis than I am of Trump.
@@shawnr771 what? Can we get rid of Cruz?
MLK's words have been around as long as Star Trek. And both his message and Gene Roddenberry's message have yet to be learned by a critical mass of society. I seriously don't know if they ever will be. But thank you, Beau, for making sure people know the educational challenge we face!
Oh hell, they've even managed to whitewash OG Star Trek--or haven't you heard the whiney chorus that the new shows are too "political"?
I have said this before, but when I was in AIT for the Infantry in the US Army, one of my Drill Sergeants told me to cut the black soldiers a little more slack, because they still remembered separate drinking fountains. I went to Basic and AIT in the summer of 1977, it hasn't been that long.
They're going to want more until they have true equality, that includes systemic racism ceasing to exist. They deserve it and every one of us should be fighting for them to get it. Yeah, it can feel uncomfortable losing our privilege but that's a ridiculously small price to pay to raise everybody to the same level.
@Enclave
Equality for black ppl
does not equate to white ppl losing. It just means that whites will actually have to
compete rather than get a participation trophy handed to us just for being born with low melanin.
I don’t know you but this comment shows you are my brother
What, and you mean achieve things based on merit and not the handout of being born white?
But that’s what black people do, it’s inhuman to hold whites to the same standards as blacks!!!!!!!
Ever hear that Zen saying, "First there is a mountain, then there is no mountain, then there is"?
I think our society - all of humanity, really - needs to progress from
"I don't see color" to
"I see color" to
"I don't see color"
If you understand what I'm getting at.
Man that Patterson quote really brought a lot of the backroom talk to the forefront didn't it? Thanks again Beau for the clear talk to your audience, those who will fight the change, and those who need help opening their eyes
This is another one of those Beau videos that I must watch more than once!
Yeah, the sneaky trick with the "hand in frame" bit means you gotta go watch it twice.
@@dougaltolan3017 yeah! When I saw that, I thought, "Whoa! This is the first time I've seen Beau gesticulate with a hand in the frame!"
Yes! Extremely well constructed. I had to watch it a second time to see the hand, and a third time just to enjoy it again.
"Until the philosophy which hold one race superior
And another
Inferior
Is finally
And permanently
Discredited
And abandoned
Everywhere is war
Me say war
That until there no longer
First class and second class citizens of any nation
Until the colour of a man's skin
Is of no more significance than the colour of his eyes
Me say war"
Bob Marley War
@@auntyfyah Yep! Unfortunately Haile Selassie turned into a a very cruel dictator afterwards.
😁you’re doing great beau! I’m seriously impressed. I wouldn’t have been able to read that message without scoffing, rolling my eyes and sucking my teeth the entire time, at least that’s what I did listening to you read it 😂receiving these messages means people are questioning what they’re told to believe. It gives me hope
And just think: he didn't even read us the bad parts!
I certainly hope the person who sent you the message watches this video to the end. And maybe reads the comments....
We need a labor party that can unite the working class and represent the "minorities". Together we're the majority.
As a Black American Man, I wish that white america could be as educated, open minded and understanding as you Beau. I subscribed to this channel because of your candor, I don’t see you as a white man. When I see you I see a human. Thank you for saying what you said.
That's the thing, isn't it? Every time someone starts pontificating about how racism has been fixed, black people have gone far enough, now they're asking for too much... they end up repeating the racist rhetoric from the time of the Civil Rights movement. And yet when people start quoting MLK, they either misquote him or quote him out of context. Just that - just that alone - ought to be reason enough to take a step back and think about the positions you're holding.
The protest songs from the 50s and 60s hit the same points and problems that we have today
My favorite MLK speech is his Vietnam speech. My teachers in my Republican county didn't seem interested in me learning that one though.
I grew up in a Republican county. It was absolutely excruciating
Beau, as a African American female and fan, your comments on this issue opens up for me a new perspective on racial profiling and the continued struggles we face daily. Thanks.
What I find most interesting in this very video is how poignant Beau's point is, which I am sure the writer of the letter missed.
Beau pointed out how unwilling white people are concerning the need to re-educate themselves...
... while proving this by responding to a white dude with a white-washed understanding of the very same Dr. King that he his blatantly *miseducated* about.
It is very obvious, at least to me, that the writer of this letter is very well-versed in American Mythology, and knows next to *nothing* about actual American History.
This is why it is so important for white people to learn actual U.S. History and Black History (which is, by the way, a part of U.S. history).
I hope someone learned something from this video.
I would leave that at US history. There is no US history or country for that fact without who are considered “black Americans” not a separate thing but the racists sure like to pretend they are. “Black” history should be integrated, weaved in and told just as it happened all year long and not relegated to February
@@cherryorchard5600
Agreed. 100%. You will get absolutely no argument from me. While I was just trying to "speak their language" in a sense, I do share you exact stance on this.
why do POC keep demanding more? because they have consistently been getting less.
At 15 I left Philadelphia for the final time, and moved to FL to live with my brother, in a trailer park in Davie FL or "Redneck Davie". This trailer park had 1 black family, and everyone else was white. I was 15 and having lived with my mom in my black best friend's families home where we all coexisted in a loving atmosphere, I wasn't accustomed to the racist views held by not only the older generation but, my pears.
I'd point lecture them on how they didn't have to proliferate the views of there parents, and grandparents. I'd point out that they had black people postered on their walls and, coming out of the speakers of their stereo's. Everyone they looked up to was black, and they _still_ referred to black people as "N words".
I finally refused to hear it spoken around me. They'd slip and, I'd say "Hey man, I told you...not around me with that!" or you can leave. I've got friends in Ft Lauderdale I can hang out with, keep it up and, I'm not hanging out with you"
Countless lectures on how "You know you don't really believe that Michael Jordan is a lesser person than you, you've got your poster on your wall, you won't miss a game, you listen to nothing but rap music and still you're using that word, saying that bull sh-t and, if you met any one of these guys you'd quit that sh-t in a heartbeat"
I'm not sure if I changed anything really, just as Beau's response may not change this one man's views , in fact it sounds to me like he's/shes already made his choices and, probably won't read anything, won't become enlightened.
So why respond , why should I have, and why should Beau?
I think because we have to try. You can't _not_ respond regardless of whether or not you have an impact on someone's thinking.
Just because it may fall on deaf ears, doesn't mean it didn't need to be said .
It's commendable that Beau responds to the ignorant because, it had to be said! Regardless of the outcome, it bears repeating and, challenging people to come up. It's the hope that one of these approaches. One of these creative ways of speaking to a racist who may not even consider him or herself a racist, might plant some seed, turn on some light above their head .
You gotta keep trying.
Can't be an equal if you keep pretending to come from a place of superiority, condescension, and patronage. If I am being honest with myself, I know this, and still struggle, sometimes I have to literally bite my tongue.
I admire your acknowledgment. Keep it up, we’re all a work in progress. I just do better every day.
I had always thought that we as a nation had made a little bit of progress over the years, and then we had Trump and reality smacked me up side the head. We are as bad or worse than when King was alive, at least here in Texas we are.
He set us back at least seventy years
Now I'm going to watch it again and take note of when Beau's hand is and isn't in frame. As he knew I would.
"It is WAY MORE than 'I have a Dream'!" Come on Beau, say so!
So powerful - I did not realize that was a quote from MLK. John Oliver did a segment on race where he noted that Fox News frequently quotes MLK as a way to squash discussion of racial issues and the need to teach critical race theory in schools. I imagine the person who sent in this message took a page from their book.
Also, did you see the LWT when Jon closed with Kimberly Jones' impassioned speech? ruclips.net/video/aE8OqAtbn0s/видео.html
Simply put if you can't understand why anyone that falls under the bipoc community "label" with law enforcement having qualified immunity and "city ordinances" with Jim crow era roots is looking out for their own communities you probably believe the police report matched the body cam footage
More than just a thought today, a little light was shone. Hopefully they see it and follow!
Beau at his best: telling white people what black people already told them over 50 years ago.
Thank you Beau. You are truly a gift to this crazy time in history.
Thank you for telling the truth.
We love it when you kick ass , and level the playing field with your southern gentlemanly demeanor. My husband and I sit back close our eyes and listen the intelligent , wise words. Thank you Bo.
I don't know what it is, but some people on the opposite side always misconstrue, misinterpret, and misrepresent messages from their original meaning. It's been a common thing in recent years to hijack an idea and twist it into something completely the opposite of the original goal/meaning... and somehow the people who sabotage the messages speak louder/get their voices heard more than the original marginalized group. It's sickening.
It's called "propaganda", and it's as old as time...
I think it's something else. I'm just going to say it. Conservatives aren't human enough to understand human language. This would explain why conservatives don't understand what Rage Against the Machine is about. This would explain why conservatives don't understand MLK Jr's words. This would explain why they don't understand that the Empire was evil in Star Wars or the fact that the Jedi were pretty evil for lying to a boy so that he would kill his own father. I mean, Yoda or Obi-Wan should have told Luke because Luke had a right to know this deeply personal thing about himself and his connection to Darth Vader.
I wonder if conservatives are defective humans who are incapable of the more deeper humane instincts and activities that are part of humanity. When Shakespeare wrote "You rocks, you stones, you worse than senseless things"... I get that. I feel those words. I've never met Shakespeare. I'm an American. I'm human enough to understand the meaning in those words. In contrast, I'm not sure that conservatives would understand that. Even if they lived in Stratford on Avon and drank tea.
Maybe conservatives are not capable of that deeper humanity? Why else would they have such problems recognizing the humanity of black people or gay people or transpeople or well... any people? What's wrong with them? And why do we allow them to have a say when they can't play well with others?
Omg, that smirk on your face while reading that is PRICELESS.❤. Oh man, fact check truth bomb dropped. Mind blowing straight up facts. Love you Beau.🤯❤✌
I love sassy Beau
This is one of the times I wish this video was longer. I always appreciate your capacity for brevity - I want to hear more. REPARATIONS IS ONLY THE BEGINNING
I saw it coming and it still hit hard. 😂 Nice job. 👏
He telegraphed it right from the getgo and that detracted nothing from the impact.
My question is what is wrong with wanting more? Do they not want more things in their life just as you do? More money? More happiness? More food to feed your family? Here's one they are always yelling about more freedom and more guns? So, why can our brothers and sisters of the darker persuasions NOT EXPECT more also in their lives? Should they be happy with the few little scraps that we allowed them to have off of our plates? (Urk my nerves to type that sentence BUT had to be said in my opinion, I can imagine a person as such stating that 😡)
It may choke you to say the words but it’s the truth and worse than table scraps.
Look into a list of Southern Black foods. It’s all derived from some food “inedible” to the white man. Chitlins, hog jowls and my favorite collard greens. (likely a barnyard weed to whites)
Well that's the rub, isn't it? My family has more claim to the promise and bounty of America than most - we trace slave lineage back to a founding fathers [more accurately, his wife]. And yet there are still folks whose families just arrived in the past 70-odd yrs who will say to my face that Black people have no right to want more than is our current lot.
If we built America, and bled for her, and died for her, then we surely are owed a fair opportunity to thrive here.
I find happiness in not wanting more.
I don't have much money, but don't want more.
I simply adore food, but as I am not malnourished, don't want more.
Given those things, people just won't stop paying me more than I need to cook fantastic food for them. Cooking for people is something that brings me happiness.
Let go of greed and enjoy what you have.
Or as my mom says - "I want my 40 acres in Midtown Manhattan" 😄
@@PegsFlamingoville I'm born, raised, & fed in South I understand completely.
The softening of MLK's image to make him palatable, soft and cuddly for us White folks is really nauseating.
Beau, you definitely get our struggle. Thank you and God bless you 🙏🏾 ❤️
thank you. i did not know that was from doctor king. we have to change the education system in this country to include.... education. i watched this twice.
Who am I to tell someone they can't enjoy the SAME quality of life that I do? What if some one told you (and subsequently enforced) an inferior lifestyle to the one you want or actually have?
People need to learn to treat others the way THEY want to be treated and just live.
Not for nothing, but white people lost just a smidge of [legal] privilege, and we're seeing, what, 30% +/- of America collectively lose their shit. Honestly, as a Black person, we seem to have gotten quieter/more modest with our demands (BLM was tame compared to the 60s/70s), and I suspect it's due to not being sure how white-hot violent things might actually get if we demanded *true* equality.
I mean, I've heard folks sound grateful just to not get fired for wearing their hair natural - it's a *far* cry from open-carry in the street, old-school Panthers' style. 😅
@@mandisaw if you mean the legal privilege to discriminate against others, how is that a bad thing? But no; so far as this good Ole boy can tell, white people haven't lost a thing as others have gained. Not one darn thing...
@@FAMUCHOLLY It's a good thing :) And yes, justice & decency aren't a zero-sum - there's plenty to go around for everyone
Spot On!
Right on, agree with this 100 percent!
You always give us something to ponder Beau. This one's a beauty.
I would suggest beginning with his book Why We Can't Wait. I love to use MLK to talk to white people. Most have no idea how radical he really was!
The post racial America shows itself...
We need a new economic and accounting philosophy that recognizes a standard of living for all people, environment / climate, health / safety, shared ownership of natural resources and social services.
It's a change in the paper work.
We either share this world or it is corrupt.
Keep on with the education lessons my brother. Your words and thoughts are beyond wisdom! If our country had more people thinking like you,just think about how far ahead of the game we really could be.if everyone could think and work as one unit,man the world could and would be in a better place. Thank you for your thoughts!
Straight to the heart of reality, in Canada, throughout the West!
I HAVE ONE WORD TO COVER IT ALL, NOW AND FOREVER!!!
!!!REPERATIONS!!!!
How would that even be possible with so many mixed people today?
@@mip4422 I see your point. But the US could at least implement a social democracy like the many types we Europeans enjoy. Something that would give black Americans (a demographic disproportionately suffering from generational poverty) a much fairer shot at life.
But nope. There's an obtuse, pathetically selfish chunk of the American people that would rather be flayed alive than paying a little bit more of taxes so minorities could stand on equal footing.
And that chunk is mostly white.
Which would be divided down through the blood line.
I cannot recommend enough that you all read "Letter from Birmingham Jail".
This gave me goosebumps,😍
"... and ask them why they've strayed SO far." That's just another version of 'know your place'.
I've heard this argument, and I've wondered if we're talking about the same MLK.
This was beautifully done, thanks Beau.
right on Beau! this also applies to Native peoples, immigrants from countries where we fought our wars -Viet Nam, Central America, Mexico and women's rights !!! We still have a LONGGG way to go baby! Forward people.... overcome the hate- we have to work together for the good of ALL of us on this spinning ball we call home.
Well done sir. ✊🏼
I had to watch this twice. The second time to look for Beau’s hand in the frame. Awesome as always.
“Now I wanted to say something about the fact that we have lived over these last two or three summers with agony and we have seen our cities going up in flames. And I would be the first to say that I am still committed to militant, powerful, massive, non-violence as the most potent weapon in grappling with the problem from a direct action point of view. I'm absolutely convinced that a riot merely intensifies the fears of the white community while relieving the guilt. And I feel that we must always work with an effective, powerful weapon and method that brings about tangible results. But it is not enough for me to stand before you tonight and condemn riots. It would be morally irresponsible for me to do that without, at the same time, condemning the contingent, intolerable conditions that exist in our society. These conditions are the things that cause individuals to feel that they have no other alternative than to engage in violent rebellions to get attention. And I must say tonight that a riot is the language of the unheard. And what is it America has failed to hear? It has failed to hear that the plight of the n*gro poor has worsened over the last twelve or fifteen years. It has failed to hear that the promises of freedom and justice have not been met. And it has failed to hear that large segments of white society are more concerned about tranquility and the status quo than about justice and humanity.“
A neighbour of mine and I had one of our candid chats about race recently:
Neighbour: I'm worried that you black people are going to go to the streets and have a race war. You guys keep bringing up the past and you're so angry.
Me: Yeah, I see your point. Hey, tell me what race the Charlottesville guys were when that riot occured and that girl was killed? Can't seem to recall what they were chanting...Maybe you might remember...
Neighbour: (Tumbleweeds in the desert silence).
Boom! People seem to have a very very selective memory ...
A prophet for our times