The Birth of Obama and the Death of Till

People often ask if the United States of America is ready for a Black president. The answer is a resounding "No." and I will write another blog later to explain why. This one I will keep short.

1st we speak of the United States of America as if she is this "entity" off in the distance. We, all of us, are the US of America. There are still too many people who are saying that they simply will not vote for someone who is Black. Why did Obama lose his last 5 or so contests. Because they were last (do you really believe that he would have won West Virginia or Tennessee if they were first) and because these states are 95% white with folks who are poor and blame Black folks for their plight. They are angry and take their anger out on the Black folks. Lest we forget that this is the place where just last year a Black woman was kidnapped, held hostage, repeatedly raped and tortured by a group of white men and women. And yes, they said they kidnapped her because she was Black.

2nd and most importantly, we have forgotten the significance of August 28. Yes it is the day that Barak Obama gave his speech. It is also the 25th anniversary of Dr. King's I have a Dream Speech (Of course you noticed he did not mention the name Dr. King). But it is also the 53rd anniversary of the death of Emmett Till.

Rosa Parks indicated that she was inspired by Emmett Till. Many say that the true beginning of the Civil Rights Movement was the death of Emmett Till. I am sure part of the reason that Dr. King chose the day he did is because of Till's death.

For those who don't know, Emmett Till was a 14 year old boy from Chicago who went to visit relatives in Money, Mississippi. While there, he allegedly said something such as "bye baby" or possibly even whistled, at a white woman. For that, this 14 year old boy, was taken from his home in the middle of the night. Beaten, tortured and killed. His body thrown into a river.

Although it was known who took him from the home, although there were eyewitnesses, the 12 member, all-white, all-male jury took just 67 minutes to acquit those arrested. The jury even joked that they would have gotten to their verdict faster had they not stopped for soda.

Till's mother insisted on an open casket. The significance of this was that Till was grotesquely disfigured from the beating and being in the river. Many said that she should have a closed casket because of how badly he looked, so much so that the mortician could not fix his face. Nevertheless, Till's mother wanted the world to really see what happened. Till's mother did not want the American people to forget or to dismiss, the beating and torture of a 14 year old boy.

Apparently, the US of America has already forgotten. And that, my friends, is just another reason that the people of America are not ready for a Black president.