Racism...ugly in all it's forms!

If you know me at all you know that I hate bigotry and racism in all it's forms. Whether it's a white person making rude racist remarks about any minority or even a member of a minority group making fun or rude remarks about a white person. So yesterday when a "friend" posted this status on Facebook, I was really enraged that she would think it's okay to say what she did. 

My friend's post read "Happy 'White people stole land from native American Indians and are still mistreating them' day or in other words 'thanksgiving.' 

 My response to her racist rant was "seriously?" I am an eighth Cherokee and possibly a sixteenth Creek, and I don't feel that the "white people stole land from Native American Indians and are still mistreating them" at all. Last time I checked Native Americans are welcome to come and go and live on reservations or not live on reservations. They have educational opportunities that equal and somewhat rival those of white people. So I am a bit offended that someone of color would remotely say something this stupid. 

Her response was "Don't be mad at history Rachel."; I am not mad at history. I am mad at the ignorance surrounding history and what Thanksgiving exactly is. So yes, I did decide to write her a lengthy response on how racism is ALIVE and WELL among Americans of EVERY color and how I felt that it is very unfair that if a white person says anything at all about race, we are immediately labeled as racist; but if a minority, and in her case a person who is supposedly of "African" descent says anything it's suddenly "Okay!" 

When will the race baiting stop? My favorite movie quote is from Kevin Costner's Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves; A little girl (Sarah Alexandra) asks Azeem, a Muslim (Morgan Freeman) about his face, in the way all children do. "Did God paint you?" Azeem replies laughing "Did God Paint me? For certain..." Then the girl asks "But Why?" Azeem lovingly says " Because Allah loves wondrous variety."

For me, this quote says more about the human spirit than anything we can remotely say today about humanity. You see God didn't create people to hate one another it's a learned act. That little girl was curious as to why Morgan Freeman's character Azeem was different and he explained it in a way that amazingly anyone can understand..."God loves variety."

God didn't create just ONE race and then all others came from it. God didn't BLESS one race and curse another.

He created us all one and we are to LOVE one another, not race bait; not send out hate filled messages to anger people.

Racism is a heart issue; it's learned. It's taught by parents who post this garbage on the internet stating that certain holidays are there because White people stole land from Native Americans. We ignore the fact that those "White people" gathered their belongings and moved 3500 miles from home to live in a place that wasn't friendly to them, a hostile environment where they could worship God the way they felt was best and honorable. They struggled that first winter in 1620, when they arrived on the shores of Plymouth, Mass. and didn't have enough provisions to feed themselves or their families. Many of them died, due to not having proper medical care, and no ability to feed their families. Then in 1621, they met a group of Native Americans whom they befriended and they taught these white people how to grow corn; dig a mound, place some seeds in, throw a fish on top for fertilizer and let God bring the harvest. That harvest was so great that they had plenty of food that they set a day aside to give the creator of the universe thanks, and they invited their new friends to join them.

I doubt that the early pilgrims saw that the Wampanoag were extremely different from themselves. I mean sure they had different beliefs and dressed according to the season; while the pilgrims dressed modestly, usually wearing the same clothing style year around. But instead of dwelling on the differences of the Patuxet native American and others of the Wampanoag tribe; they focused on giving thanks to God for the bounty they had. That small group of Englishmen and women thrived and more would come to the New World in the 1600s; including my own family in 1682, on one of William Penn's Ships, The Amity. However, my family didn't steal land from Native Americans; instead many of them lived side by side with their native neighbors learning from them. 

One thing that I find most people who race bait forget is that Western Civilization has eradicated slavery. The end of slavery was purely a movement of Christians. Men like John Wesley, John Newton, William Wilberforce all spoke out against slavery. 

Another fact that people who race bait forget is that slavery is alive and well in Africa today. Men, women and children are traded in Northern Africa today, by Muslim slave traders.  Slavery isn't a "White issue." It's an every man and nation issue. 

My point to this entire thing is...yes, many people were wronged during the American Slave trade; however, instead of race baiting an American society because you feel that you have been unjustly served in life based on your  skin color; instead of getting mad because someone you don't like is president; instead of running off at the mouth and alienating people, start learning to fix the problem, don't add fuel to a fire that needs to stop burning.