A Black Man Votes

Do you know that meme that depicts how dusty the hood is when Democrats are in the White House, then a picture of how dusty the hood is when Republicans are in office? Except, you guessed it, it's the same picture both times. Nothing changed. As a southern boy who grew up in a lower-middle-class Black family, I concur with the idea that nothing fundamentally changes in working-class and poor households, no matter which party is in the White House. It's a damn shame because our brightest Black leaders were shouting the same thing over 60 years ago. I'm an Independent. I've mostly voted Democrat as about 88% of Black male voters usually do, according to 2018 midterm exit polls. There's been talk lately that Black men vote selfishly, and somehow, we are not for the countries betterment. However, these numbers don't support that theory. While it is factual that Black women vote at higher rates than we do, it's Black people as a whole who hold the party up. We know that Black women have always been on the right side of history, from Harriet Tubman to Fannie Lou Hamer to Tamika Mallory. They hold this entire planet down. With that said, the Democratic Party owes Black people in a major way. According to exit polls, 82% of Black men and 94% of Black women voted for Clinton in 2016, while 63% of white men and 53% of white women voted for Trump. Now tell me again, who needs a good tongue lashing? Latinx support for Clinton was only in the '60s as well. I think that when the Democrats do better, support will be better. They suck right now. There's no wonder the calls to allow a third party have grown. The Democratic Party has become Republican Lite, while the Republican Party has become The 4th Reich. Both the Republican and Democratic establishments do share the same undying loyalty to special interest groups, billionaire donors, and corporations that pay them. Clearly, I'm not a fan of either party or their 2020 presidential candidates, but one guy wants to punish journalists he doesn't like, and the other doesn't. One of them wants to jail his political opponents, and that same cantaloupe-colored clown labels human rights activists as terrorists, but NOT murderous white supremacists like Dillon Roof and Kyle Rittenhouse.

Donald Trumps' father, Fred, was a Klansman. That's what we're dealing with in 2020 America. A racist, narcissistic conman with a rap sheet that stretches back to the '70s. The guy who was sued by the Nixon Justice Department. A lawsuit which is still one of the most significant ever brought in history for housing discrimination against black people. Trump is the guy who called for the execution of 5 young Black and Latino boys, the Exonerated 5, and still hasn't apologized after they were found to be innocent and released years ago. That's what he thinks of our lives. That guy is U.S. President. I mean, this dude sucks so bad at business that he couldn't even flip the 400 million dollars, 413 million to be exact, his daddy gave him into a billion. Most billionaires don’t start with close to that amount. We have rappers who grew up in the projects that are now billionaires. Guys who started with 40 dollars and this fool couldn't do it with 400 mil. But somehow, after sinking dozens of business and several bankruptcy’s, he's looked at by many as this great businessman. We all bought into the lie at some point or another. Now the United States is a global laughing stock. And rightfully so. With Trumps takeover of the Republican Party he completed their move to the extreme right. I think a reckoning for this country was long overdue, and it will continue, no matter what happens on election day. I don't think we want to see what this evil idiot has planned for a 2nd term though.

Our first presidents were slave owners. Descendants of slave owners and offspring of the KKK have been running our government forever. We finally got one in higher office who was stupid enough to say the quiet parts aloud. We must face the fact that we are at odds with weak-minded individuals who have more power than we have. They are fighting to maintain that power. We are not only at odds with white nationalists, but with an Oligarchy. There’s too much money in politics and too much power in too few hands. These people are not interested in sharing or providing any equity. If you're Black, Latinx, Muslim, LGBTQ, a poor person of any race, or anything other than rich and powerful, you are the problem. If you stand with marginalized groups, you are the problem. If you're a working-class or poor woman, they want to control your body. Now every marginalized group has opportunists and sellouts—the ones who'd sell their teen daughter to Jeffrey Epstein for a seat at the oppressors' table. We should condition ourselves to know this fact. We have to cut those who hurt their own communities for self-gain out. In the Black Community, there's a little word that starts with a C and rhymes with spoon we use for those folks. See Daniel Cameron, Ben Carson, and Candice Owens for reference.

Is it not disturbing how many state-sanctioned murders we’ve witnessed? From Emmett Till to Breonna Talyor and George Floyd. White Supremacists with and without their shiny slave patrol badges have terrorized Black people for years beyond slavery. These are the thoughts that occupy my mind before I go out for a neighborhood jog. Will I be the next Ahmaud Arbery or Trayvon Martin? And what if I take one of them out in self-defense? Will I die in prison for it? Would I even make it to the jail alive? My rights as a Black man are always on the ballot, from judges or prosecutors who may be deciding my fate to propositions that will affect my daily life. So, when I encounter folks, especially other Black men, who proudly proclaim, "I don't vote!" I don't get the logic. I don't jump right to the "Our ancestors died for our right to vote brotha!" line either, because it's unfortunately ineffective. Many feel too far removed from the struggle. What does seem to make sense to those who try to position themselves in a higher moral position is the word taxes. Oh, you can't escape them good ole taxes! The IRS doesn't care about your "moral high ground." You want to buck the system by not exercising your right to vote, but you pay taxes. That system is thriving as it feeds on the fruits of your labor. Every time we buy something or get paid, we pay taxes. Our tax dollars pay for our government, infrastructure, multi-million dollar settlements to victims of police violence, and a host of other things in this country. I vote because I want my say in how my money is spent. I'm already paying into a Social Security fund that I'll never see a dime of. And if we’re being honest, many of our ancestors were warriors and activists. Many of them did die so that we could have the luxury to either lazily enjoy freedoms they never had or exercise the rights we now have as citizens. Doing the later is the least we can do.

What's funny to me is that the neo-liberal Democratic establishment knows that lower voter turnout helps Republicans. And folks aren't excited because there are no policies being pushed that will actually change their lives. Still, they keep forcing candidates on us that no one is excited by. Even the older folks who tow the party line aren't excited. Excitement is how you bring out non-voters and new voters. Almost half of the eligible voters in this country don't vote. I think that is a byproduct of the choices they've been given or lack thereof. Kind of goes back to the message in that Democrat v Republican hood meme I mentioned earlier. In countries like the U.K., where there is at least an illusion of more choices, voter turnout is higher. Let's be honest. Joe Biden was one of the worst candidates in the 2020 Democratic Primary. Other than the fact that he is, of course, Mr. 94 Crime Bill, he didn't win one debate. He hasn't run an inspiring campaign at all since he won. And how you allow Trump to shame you on issues like socialized medicine, which he just received at Walter Reed Hospital, during a pandemic is beyond me. Biden did win their debates on substance and because he was arguing with a child. And hey! He was Obama's VP, right? I truly believe that if Drumpf had handled the pandemic better, we would absolutely be facing four more years of this administration. Since February, he just hasn't been able to get out of his own way. And prayer hands emoji for that! Because Biden would have stood no chance. Thanks to the Democratic establishment coming together to demolish Bernie Sanders' vibrant campaign in the primaries, this is where we are. The President had to rack up over 200k Covid deaths to be in danger of losing to the Dems. That says a lot about where both parties are, and it's not a good look for either. At least Bidens VP pic is better than Hillary's lame Tim Kaine pick. Kamala definitely has her issues, but she's sharp. And if Jamal Trulove(video link below) can back her for VP after his ordeal on her watch as CA Attorney General, I can. I, like most Americans, am tired of having to vote against someone, though. Mitch McConnell is the vilest thing in government, even beyond this president. He has exploited the Senates majority more than any Senate majority leader in history. McConnell and conservative Republicans unlike these liberal Democrats understand power. When they have it they take full advantage of it, to the detriment of most Americans. By prioritizing the filling of a Supreme Court seat, just a week before the election, over Covid relief for millions of U.S. citizens, they remind us again that power is what they care about most. They make perfect villains, but Democrats need to provide candidates we can vote for and believe in. Instead they fight progressive Democrats every chance they get. My question is, what good is the very slow incremental change that the Democrats favor if Republicans can come right behind them and destroy the progress that has been made? Obamacare is a good example, but there are many more. At this moment The Squad excites me as it continues to grow. I'm looking forward to more AOC's, Jamaal Bowmans, and Cori Bushes entering congress with fresh ideas and the will to fight for the people.

So no, I'm not just voting. My vote is only one of the tools I utilize. I bank Black; I feed greedy corporations less and less of my dollars as I support more Black businesses bolstered by my participation in The Blackout Coalition. I tell Black stories, and I encourage others to do all of the above. I’m also encouraging my people to focus on voting locally and statewide. I look forward to helping create and or supporting a Black Party. A party that will lobby for the demands of the Black community. Any party that wants our vote will have to meet our demands. History has shown that when Black people are doing good, everyone else is good. I plan to remain vigilant because, as the former Ohio State Senator Nina Turner says, "We've got two dragons we've got to slay. The dragon of neo-fascism and the dragon of neo-liberalism." In that order. We need Trump out of the way; then, we can push the Biden administration towards already popular legislation like marijuana legalization and Medicare for All, as well as game-changers like a Green New Deal and Reparations. I want to help motivate Black people across the diaspora to become more financially and politically literate. I am a filmmaker and musician, but beyond that, I'm a father and uncle to 3 beautiful Black boys. We have to raise a new generation that is more financially intelligent, more politically savvy, and more community-minded. I'm starting right here and now. I do want to leave you with two quotes from two of our greatest leaders. They both had two different philosophies that were beginning to merge before they died, but their feelings on Liberals, whether they be white or Black, mirror my feelings today. And though these are my feelings, I'll always exercise my right to vote. We're up against a lot more than most people realize. So, like Floyd Mayweather at the end of his career, I'm going to work to afford myself the privilege to select the opponent that I feel I can beat.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. - From his "Letter from Birmingham Jail" (1963)

"First, I must confess that over the last few years, I have been gravely disappointed with the white moderate. I have almost reached the regrettable conclusion that the Negro's great stumbling block in the stride toward freedom is not the White Citizen's Council-er or the Ku Klux Klanner, but the white moderate who is more devoted to "order" than to justice; who prefers a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice; who constantly says "I agree with you in the goal you seek, but I can't agree with your methods of direct action;" who paternalistically feels he can set the timetable for another man's freedom; who lives by the myth of time and who constantly advises the Negro to wait until a "more convenient season."

Malcolm X (1963)

"The white Liberal differs from the white Conservative only in one way; the Liberal is more deceitful, more hypocritical, than the Conservative. Both want power, but the White Liberal is the one who has perfected the art of posing as the Negro's friend and benefactor and by winning the friendship and support of the Negro, the White Liberal is able to use the Negro as a pawn or a weapon in this political football game, that is constantly raging, between the White Liberals and the White Conservatives. The American Negro is nothing, but a political football."

The Black community must stay in the game, but not as anyone's "political football." It's time to take our rightful place as owners in this league.

References and Companion Videos

https://amp.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/nov/07/exit-polls-high-turnout-young-voter-surge-democrats

https://www.facebook.com/shaunking/videos/769870650482783/

https://youtu.be/cIJIbTNbu0g

https://youtu.be/YuJJhz3Sm1I

https://youtu.be/DON1R2Agrgo