Mark Robinson Slave Talk. Really?

What in the world is going on? Why in the last decade we have heard several people saying, "Black people were better off in slavery?" I'm Black and I am SHOCKED, (clutching my pearls shocked.) but White America, those who are on the side of human rights, are OUTRAGED. How does the Black community feel?

If you believe this blog post is going to attack those who have said such racist things, you will be WRONG. This post will be asking the question, "What is the Black community doing or not doing that make people believe such things?" 

The first instinct is to go into a tirade. I did. But upon reflection, I began to wonder how far has the Black community advanced since slavery. Being a FREE people is what happened when slavery ended. But after a war was fought and a presidential declaration proclaimed, did the Black community FREE themselves in their MIND from the TRAUMA of slavery? I will do a later post about the aftermath of trauma in the Black America after slavery. Yes, there is such a thing. Many professionals say the Black community still carry PTSD from slavery.

Let's begin with some of the statements regarding slavery and Black people in the 21st century. Mark Keith Robinson, a Black man, is an American politician serving as the 35th lieutenant governor of North Carolina since 2021. A member of the Republican Party, he is the nominee for governor in the 2024 North Carolina gubernatorial election. “Slavery is not bad,” Robinson reportedly wrote. “Some people need to be slaves. I wish they would bring it [slavery] back. I would certainly buy a few.” If the criteria for being able to be bought is being Black, then he needs to look in a mirror. Even with this offensive comment, Robinson says he will remain in the race and has the full support of the Republican party.

Ron DeSantis, governor of Florida, in an attempt to remove what he refers to as "Woke" history in schools, he pushed “anti-woke” public school curriculum on Black history. Specifically, Florida’s teachers are now required to instruct middle-school students that enslaved people “developed skills which, in some instances, could be applied for their personal benefit.” This was just in July 2023. This implies today's Black people do not have skills.

Ron DeSantis may have been trying to get schools to teach what many White people believe or want to believe. He is not alone in erasing American history. Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley declined December 2023, to say slavery was a cause of the Civil War, arguing instead that it came down to “the role of government.” This is a former South Carolina governor and former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. One would think she would know American history. 

When Michele Bachmann, a Republican, signed a pledge while running for president in 2011. "Say what you will about slavery, at least the 'peculiar institution' kept Black families intact." That's according to a "marriage pledge" signed recently by GOP presidential aspirant, Michele Bachmann. The pledge Bachmann signed this week is sponsored by The Family Leader, an Iowa-based group of Christian social conservatives. The "Marriage Vow - A Declaration of Dependence upon Marriage and Family," attempts to buttress its argument that "the Institution of Marriage in America is in great crisis" with statistics and scholarly citations. Here's one such attempt:

"Slavery had a disastrous impact on African American families, yet sadly a child born into slavery in 1860 was more likely to be raised by his mother and father in a two-parent household than was an African American baby born after the election of the USA's first African American President."

The above statement is clearly saying Black families are no longer a nuclear family even though Black people were not part of a nuclear family during slavery.

Why do these people believe Black people were better off in slavery? Let's LOOK at some stats.

As of September 6, 2024, the unemployment rate for Black or African Americans in the United States was 6.1%, which is lower than the long-term average of 11.43%. This is higher than the overall unemployment rate of 3.7% and the jobless rate for white Americans of 3.5%. Black people and native Americans have the highest unemployment rates among all racial and ethnic groups identified by the census. Asian Americans and white people have the lowest unemployment rates.

As of 2022, the educational attainment of Black Americans is increasing, with more Black adults having earned a bachelor's degree or higher. Bachelor's degree or higher 26% of Black adults aged 25 and older have a bachelor's degree or higher, up from 14.5% in 2000. Black women have made faster gains than Black men, with 28.9% of Black women having a bachelor's degree in 2022 compared to 22.8% of Black men. Some college 32% of Black adults aged 25 and older have completed some college but don't have a bachelor's degree. High school or equivalent. 42% of Black adults aged 25 and older have graduated from high school or earned an equivalent certificate, such as a GED. 

• Black students are more likely to attend public institutions than private ones, with 67% of Black students attending public institutions in Fall 2020. Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) are also important for Black students' success, with nearly 76% of enrollment at HBCUs in Fall 2020 being Black students. 

In 2022, 52.9% of non-Hispanic white adults in the United States aged 25 and older had an associate degree or higher. This is compared to 39% of Black or African American adults, 32.2% of American Indian or Alaska Native adults, and 29.5% of Hispanic or Latino adults.

In 2023, the median annual income for Black households in the United States was $56,490, which was the same as in 2022 and the lowest among all racial and ethnic groups. This is based on income intervals of $2,500, with medians that fall in the upper open-ended interval of $250,000 or more being plugged with "$250,000". According to recent data, the median annual household income for white people in America is around $89,050. This is based on figures for "White alone, not Hispanic" demographics.

According to recent data, approximately 37% of Black children in America live in a household headed by both of their biological parents. This means that around 37% of Black households in the US are considered two-parent families. In 2022, 4.15 million Black families in the United States had a single mother, which is 48% of Black children. This is an increase from 1990, when there were 3.4 million Black families with a single mother. In 2023, 47.5% of Black children lived without a resident father, which is the lowest proportion since 1973 and the number since 1984.

According to a March 2020 Current Population Survey, 21% of white children in the United States live in single-parent households. This is compared to 67% of white children who live with both biological parents, and 6% who live with a biological parent and stepparent. In 2023, there were about 6.65 million white, non-Hispanic families with a single mother in the U.S., which is a slight increase from 1990.

According to FBI data, Black people account for approximately 26.6% of total arrests in the United States, with a significantly higher percentage in violent crimes like murder, where they represent around 51.2% of arrests; however, it's important to consider factors like socioeconomic disparities when interpreting these statistics. In 2019, Black people made up 12.2% of the U.S. population (U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey). Blacks, however, represent 26.6% of total arrests, including 51.2% of murder arrests, 52.7% of robbery arrests, 28.8% of burglary arrests, 28.6% of motor vehicle theft arrests, 42.2% of prostitution arrests, and 26.1% of drug arrests. Black residents also have the highest level of incarceration rates of any racial group. As of 2019, Blacks were incarcerated in local jails at a rate of 600 per 100,000 U.S. residents, which is more than three times the rate for Whites (184 per 100,000 U.S. residents).

This is not a pretty picture of the Black community. Don't get me wrong, the statements people have made saying Black people were better off during slavery is offensive and degrading. That said, the Black community is NOT doing well. We are not engaged in our lives, communities, or country as a whole.

The number of Black eligible voters in the United States is projected to reach 34.4 million in November 2024 after several years of modest growth. But while Black women make up a higher percentage of women who vote, Black men make up a smaller percentage of overall men who vote. That data shows Black women’s participation in election is about 10 percentage points higher than Black men. Doesn't the Black man say it's hard out here for them? Voting DOES bring change. Slowly at times but surely.

As of January 20, 2021, there have been 1,994 members of the United States Senate, of which 11 have been African American. There currently are 57 African American representatives and two African American delegates in the United States House of Representatives. About 2,400 people have served as governors in U.S. history, but only six have been Black. Truth be told, WE DON'T RUN ANYTHING. But we can do better than this.

At one time in history, Black people fought tooth and nail to have the right to vote and to be educated. Those who fought for those rights took advantage of them with pride. Our children were able to dream of a better life. The Black community quit dreaming. We have said and show our children it is too hard. We have slipped down a rung on the ladder.

A group of people who also had a hard path in America, the Hispanic population. How are they doing?

As of July 1, 2022, Hispanics made up 19.1% of the U.S. population, or 63.7 million people. This makes Hispanics the largest racial or ethnic minority in the country. As of the third quarter of 2023, the employment-population ratio for Hispanics in the United States was 64.2%, which is higher than the 60.5% ratio for the entire country. This is also higher than the pre-pandemic level of 64.0% in the third quarter of 2019, while the U.S. ratio was 0.5% lower. In 2023, the median income for Hispanic households in the United States was $65,540, which is the same as in 2022. 

Hispanics are taking advantage of education. High school graduation in 2021, 88.5% of Hispanics ages 25–29 had graduated from high school, up from 58.2% in 1996. College enrollment in 2021, 2.4 million Hispanics ages 18–24 were enrolled in college, up from 1.2 million in 2005. In 2022, 21% of undergraduate students in the country were Latino. Bachelor's degree attainment in 2021, 46% of South American Hispanics and 35.9% of Cuban Hispanics had earned a bachelor's degree, compared to other Hispanic groups. However, 11% of Hispanics over age 25 have a bachelor's degree or higher, compared to 17% of Black people, 30% of White people, and 49% of Asian Americans.

Their family unit is more secure. In 2019, the American Community Survey found that 56% of Latino children in the United States lived with two married parents, and 11% lived with unmarried cohabiting parents. This means that about two-thirds of Latino children lived with two parents who were either married or cohabiting. Hispanics have a dream, and their children are called DREAMERS. What are Black children called?

These statistics are SHOCKING! What IS happening to the Black community? It is as if we have FORGOTTEN about OURSELVES. If we are not shaping our future by VOTING, seeking higher EDUCATION, supporting our FAMILY unit, then others will do it FOR us. 

We scoff at the idea of SLAVERY ever happening again, but here are people longing for a return to those days. The days when others did the labor for them for FREE while they prospered. A time when they could FREELY call another HUMAN less than. Our ancestors suffered, persevered, and rose above being LESS THAN. They KNEW they were more. Capable of what any other FREE person could do. It WAS NOT EASY for them.

Donald Trump having a second presidency will take minorities closer to SLAVERY make no mistake about it. On the internet, I read many Black men saying they are not going to vote because they are angry over one thing or another or their vote doesn't change anything. They have STOPPED reaching for CONTROL of their lives, the POWER of HAVING a say. They have stopped DREAMING. 

Yes, Black people have come a long way but who has said where we are is the END? As a community we all need to reclaim our DIGNITY to the point no one would DARE say we were better off as slaves or during slavery. 

It is easy to point at those longing to MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN but as a community, we have to make Black people great again. In is in our power to do so. But we must do it.

I'm Black Irish

    

    Do you know your ethnicity breakdown? Are you afraid to take the DNA test because of what it my uncover in your bloodline? On the popular television show, Finding Your Roots, people are shocked at their family history. Many secrets are uncovered, some to be proud of and some to feel ashamed about. For Black people, there was a time they passed for WHITE. 

    Between the eighteenth and mid-twentieth centuries, countless African Americans passed as white, leaving behind families and friends, roots and community. To pass as white in the antebellum South was to escape the shackles of slavery. After emancipation, many African Americans came to regard passing as a form of betrayal, a selling of one’s birthright. When the initially hopeful period of Reconstruction proved short-lived, passing became an opportunity to defy Jim Crow and strike out on one’s own. By the dawning of the civil rights era, more and more racially mixed Americans felt the loss of kin and community was too much to bear, that it was time to “pass out” and embrace a black identity. 

    There are thousands of red-haired people who look forward to celebrating their connection to their ancestral land of Ireland. But, not every person with Irish blood has the glorious mane of red hair nor the luck of the Irish.

 Prayer of Saint Patrick                                    

Christ be with me, Christ within me,                   

Christ behind me, Christ before me,

Christ beside me, Christ to win me,

Christ to comfort and restore me.

Christ beneath me, Christ above me,

Christ in quiet, and in danger,

Christ in hearts of all that love me,

Christ in mouth of friend and stranger.

    I don't know much about the festive celebration of Saint Patrick's Day. No more than the lovely color green pops up everywhere and there are a bunch of green stem wares, cups, glasses, and mugs for sale indicating a bit of drink is to be had by many.

    When Ireland claimed former President Obama as one of their kin no one was too shocked. After all he was biracial, and his Irish ancestry could easily be linked to his Caucasian mother. Even though people weren't necessarily shocked, it was still a little odd to see a Black Irishman.

    Fast forward to the genealogy craze brought about by the affordability of Ancestry.com allowing individuals to discover their ancestral DNA. I jumped on this DNA train because I had been tracing my family's roots for many years. I inevitably hit a wall as most Black Americans do when tracing their family roots. The wall where our ancestors were counted as property and not as named humans. If any records during the early colonization of America are found, Black people would be listed as male or female without a given name.

    When my results were finished, I ran to my computer excited to see the breakdown of my ethnicity. I swear, every Black person believe they are full of Native American DNA, and I was no different. My results showed, NO NATIVE AMERICAN DNA WHATSOEVER! It was a little bit of a letdown if I am to be truthful. I don't know why many Black people, including me, want Native American ancestry unless it makes us feel more like a part of America sharing the blood of its native people. To have a more pleasing legitimacy to this land. Hold up! Wait a minute! What's this? IRISH?! Yes. Irish.

    How did that happen? Of course, we know White slave owners had sex (raped) Black female slaves, but that DNA usually shows up as European. Where did this Irish I have come from?

During the time of slavery, Irish people immigrated to America. The official British legal terminology used for the Irish was "indentured servants" whether the servants in question had willingly signed the indenture contract to emigrate to the Americas or were forced to go. In any other forms, those transported unwillingly to America were not considered to be indentured. This included political prisoners, vagrants, convicts, prostitutes, or people who had been defined as "undesirable" by the British government. Penal transportation of Irish people to America was at its height during the 17th century. Most relocations were for various felonies such as highway robbery, vagrancy, burglary, and horse theft. Penal transportation was a general practice across all of Great Britain, and not limited to the Irish specifically. These were the offences most often punished with transportation for men in the 1670s, though for women it was theft. They were then subjected to forced labor for a given period when they arrived in the Americas or Australia.

    As these Irish indentured servants worked side by side with Black slaves. White landowners saw their labor inferior to the slave. It was said one Black slave was worth ten Irishmen, so it was of no consequence if an Irish man or woman died in the harsh working conditions and disease of rice fields in the South. The female Black slave and female Irish indentured servant outlived their male counterparts. When a female, Irish or Black, was widowed she was paired again with a male whether Irish or Black to ensure the production of more workers for the landowner through having children, hence the Irish ancestry of many Black Americans and vice versa. The indentured Irish servant could be freed after four to nine years of service if they survived. Whether they were free to take their children or the person they were in relationship with along with them was doubtful. Even if the Irish person chose to be free, they were still treated badly by other whites due to once being a criminal and then indentured servant.

    I must also add that there were Irish people who immigrated to America in the 18th and 19th centuries who were fleeing caste oppression and a system of landlordism that made the material conditions of the Irish peasant comparable to those of an American slave. The Penal Laws regulated every aspect of Irish life and established Irish Catholics as an oppressed race.

    There you have it. The history of the Black Irish American. It did not take a lot of digging to find this information and answer the question of my Irish DNA. The answer to the question as to why the Irish drink so much beer/alcohol is a harder nut to crack and not too many people are even trying to crack it.

    So, paint your face green, grab a pint, hug a buddy, and sing an Irish ditty with your colorful friends and relatives. Now for some more info on this green day you may find surprising.  

    The words "Saint Patrick" can be heard of course, but the little leprechaun is seen about more so than the saint. Many people all of a sudden claim to be Irish or at least date someone Irish to garner full participating in the fun of the celebration. I have eyed the eye-catching tee shirts on sale during this time with varied clever sayings, but believed no one would take me serious in my Irishness. I don't believe many Black people celebrate their Irish ancestry, but do enjoy the drinking. Why do people "drink" on this day? St. Patrick's Day first started to honor Saint Patrick on the anniversary of his death. 

    The Christian people held a great feast for which Lenten food and alcohol restrictions were temporarily removed, therefore drinking has become synonymous with the holiday. Christians of various traditions, who have voluntarily undertaken the Daniel Fast during the season of Lent, would consume Lenten suppers made from vegetables, fruits, lentils, beans, seeds, and nuts, with meat, lacticinia, and wine being excluded (Daniel 10:3).

    Many Black people don't celebrate Saint Patrick's day to events that happened in the past. In 1834 a mostly Irish mob in Philadelphia rampaged through the Black district. By the time they subsided, two Black people were killed and many beaten. Two churches and upwards of 20 homes were laid waste, their contents looted or destroyed.

    Black workers had traditionally been an important part of the waterfront workforce in New York, Philadelphia and other northern cities, as well as Baltimore, Charleston, New Orleans and other Southern ports. In 1850, Irish laborers in New York demanded the dismissal of a black laborer who was working alongside them.

    During the strike of 1852 and again in 1855, 1862 and 1863, Irish longshoremen battled Black workers who had been brought in to take their places. The underlying cause of the New York Riot of 1863 misnamed the Draft Riot, was the employment of Black workers on the docks. According to one historian, in Philadelphia, as in New York, "Irish gangs not only drove Blacks out of jobs, they also served as surrogate unions." There, the race riot of 1849 and the longshore strike of 1851 were simply different tactical phases of the same struggle.

    In August 1862, a largely Irish mob in Brooklyn attacked the Black employees, chiefly women and children, who were working in a tobacco factory. The mob, having driven the Black employees to the upper stories of the building, then set fire to the first floor. The factory was allowed to reopen only when the employer promised to dismiss the Negroes and hire Irish. This history of the Irish and Black people is relatively unknown so the view of abstaining from the celebration by Black people is not based on these events. They just do not relate to being Irish.

    The most distinguishable thing associated with St. Patrick's day besides beer, is the color green. It is not a wimpy shade of green but a healthy robust shade of green and you will get pinched if you are found on this day not wearing anything green.

    Originally, the color associated with Saint Patrick was blue. Over the years the color green and its association with Saint Patrick's day grew. Green ribbons and shamrocks were worn in celebration of St Patrick's Day as early as the 17th century. It is said St. Patrick used the shamrock, a three-leaved plant, to explain the Holy Trinity to the pagan Irish. It was an effective prop in getting them to become a Christian.

    All of the luck stuff soon became a part of the festivities. There is the luck of the Irish I have heard and had no idea what it meant:

    The "luck of the Irish" is BAD luck, as any reading of Irish history will document. The phrase 'luck of the Irish' was probably used in a sarcastic form when first used. Some trace the origin of the phrase to the U.S. where, during the exploration for gold in the West, there were a high number of Irish people who got lucky, and found their "pot o' gold" in the gold fields of California, or were equally prosperous in silver mining. So, now you have the pot of gold.

    Luck of the Irish does owe its origin to the U.S.A.. When they arrived, they were very disliked, treated badly, despised and hated. When the Irish had any kind of success most Americans at the time didn't think the Irish were capable of such successes, so they called it luck. Hence the term "Luck of the Irish".

    What does the church think about this once pagan group of people who turned from their pagan ways and embraced Christianity?: Christian leaders in Ireland have expressed concern about the secularization of St Patrick's Day. In The Word magazine March 2007 issue, Fr. Vincent Twomey wrote, "It is time to reclaim St Patrick's Day as a church festival." He questioned the need for "mindless alcohol-fueled revelry" and concluded that "it is time to bring the piety and the fun together."

    So, as people raise their glass to drink and celebrate the greatness of the Irish people, a robust, overcoming minded people, let us remember the mission of one brave man later to be called Saint Patrick and his desire for the gospel to be spread to a people he came to love.