April 5, 2022
Gary A, McAbee
Welcome to What’s Black: Things We Need to Watch by Gary A. McAbee. What’s Black is a monthly update about things of interest for black people to watch, discuss, and actively interpret. The time is now for all of us to get involved. These are conversations we need to have, and we will have these conversations. In this issue, there are some of the things we need to watch in April 2022…
Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson is almost on the Court
After days of confirmation hearings, it looks like Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson is on the way to being appointed to the Supreme Court. Of course, her opponents and detractors put her through the wringer during her confirmation hearing. Hidden in some of the questions was the idea that she was soft on crime, and more likely to sentence defendants on the basis of their race. It’s an old trick: trying to show that a black person is sympathetic to another black person who breaks the law. The good news is Judge Brown Jackson wasn’t having any of it. Instead she kept her composure and impressed many during her hearings. She even convinced a few Republicans to break ranks to support her nomination. It will be great when we can finally call her the first African American woman to serve as a Justice on the Supreme Court.
Supreme Court Justise Clarence Thomas has some explaining to do.
Speaking of the Supreme Court, Justice Clarence Thomas has a problem. His wife has been in cahoots with people hell-bent om proving that Donald Trump won the last election. In fact, Ginni Thomas exchanged texts about changing the outcome of the last election and others about supporting the Jan 6th insurrection. Why does this matter? It matters because her husband Clarence is on the Supreme Court. How do you think Justice Thomas would have voted on any Supreme Court case that involved Trump and the legitimacy of the election? Now I don’t know if Justice Thomas should resign, but I do know this exposes a serious conflict of interest for him and his wife. There is no doubt his wife influences his thought processes, which could infiltrate his court decisions. There is the problem! We should be watching to see what further investigations prove and what it means for Justice Thomas.
Wait, in 2022 we still didn’t have an anti-lynching law to make lynching a federal crime?
You might have missed it, but President Biden signed the Emmett Till Antilynching Act of 2022 into law. After 100 years and over 200 attempts at passing such legislation, we finally have a law. The shameful part is it took so long and so many attempts for this to become a law. So we have to ask who opposed this legislation for so long. Of course, we can start to look south, and to members of the Republican Party. In fact, when the House passed the bill, 3 Republican southern lawmakers STILL opposed it in 2022. They wonder why we don’t vote for them! They claimed the law is unnecessary, yet it is proven that lynching still happens in America. The good news is their opposition has finally been broken, so this piece of legislation can become a step in the right direction to prevent lynching in America. It is far overdue and definitely good for our county.
I thought he isn’t a good leader for young black men. Juwan gets it right.
As we know, March Madness refers to the college basketball tournament to crown a national champion. In this year’s tournament, Coach Juwan Howard led his Michigan basketball team. Remember, just a month earlier Howard was suspended for a post-game altercation with coaches from an opposing team. He was labelled as the villain, and many questioned his ability and authority to remain as Michigan’s head coach. Fast forward to the tournament when Michigan upset Tennessee. In the post-game handshake line, a Tennessee played cried uncontrollably. Howard saw this, and took the time to embrace and console this player from the other team. It was a moment of humanity that did not go unnoticed. Howard was praised for this gesture, and he proved that he is worthy of leading young men by coaching the game of basketball. What a difference a month makes. Thank you, Juwan, for being a positive role model after all.
Will Smith thought he slapped the devil. He should slap himself!
While one role model got it right, one did not. The event between Will Smith and Chris Rock at the Oscars will live on forever. Will Smith will be stained forever. Chris Rock will be stained forever. None of it should have happened. Smith showed an incredible loss of self-control on the biggest stage imaginable. In one minute he emasculated another black man, perpetuated the stereotype of the angry black man, and nearly ruined the first Oscars presentation produced by a black director. He gave our critics all the ammunition they needed. For that alone, he should be ashamed. Sometimes in the black community, we have disputes. Some of these disputes should be handled in house. We don’t always need spectators. We need answers and solutions that only we can provide in certain situations. Will Smith broke this, and several other codes we live by in the black community. Not cool will, definitely not cool.
Chris Rock will need a lot of understanding and support.
Far too many people talked about Will Smith’s role in the Oscars incident while ignoring Chris Rock. He has become the butt of all jokes- how ironic. He has become the subject of meme after meme that will be circulated online forever. He will be remembered as the man, make that the black man, who was slapped and punked at the Oscars. I can only imagine what he must be going through. Now he has disclosed his childhood issues of being bullied and harassed, and it makes this incident seem even more callous. Chris Rock needs our help. In our society men, make that black men, are not supposed to show weakness or share our emotions. This is wrong on so many levels. Yet our society wants us to soldier on and suffer in silence. Hopefully, one slap changed that. Now, as black men, we have to open up and let our feelings out. We also need to support each other during these times of need. Chris Rock deserves it, and we should provide all the support he needs as he deals with this situation.
As you can see, April 2022 promises to be a month where we will push our agenda, and meet opposition along the way. What else is new? This is why I started What’s Black: Things to Watch. We need to be aware of issues that affect us and our progress. We need to be more vigilant to protect our best interests. We need to be involved in the ongoing struggle for equality, exercising our fundamental rights, and our ability to live and be successful American citizens. As you can see, we are far from where we need to be. That’s why I will see you in May 2022…
Review… What’s Black: Things We Need to Watch for February 2022
Review… What’s Black: Things We Need to Watch for March 2022
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