America, home of the brave and land of the free; a country founded on the self-evident truths, that ALL men are created equal and that ALL men are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights such as Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness, received a bloody and horrific reality check that is down right disturbing, haunting, yet nonetheless true.

The tragedies of the 7 deaths: Alton Sterling, Philando Castille and the 5 Dallas Police Officers; that ironically occurred immediately following the nation’s Independence Day, reflects the integrated complexities of institutionalized racism and hundreds of years of slavery, white supremacy, white privilege and not only hatred against blacks, but self-hatred within the black community as well. It reflects the lack of accountability within our American leadership structures to be honest about our inherently racist American history and in being honest about our inherently racist American History, directly dealing with how the American Constitution, American law enforcement, legal system and politicians has perpetuated racism, discrimination and the innocent killing of black lives without due process of law.

Although disheartening, but true, the reality is that equal rights under the law and equal opportunity does not exist yet for Black Americans as a whole in America. It also does not exist for all races that are in the lower income brackets within this capitaliatic society. However, it is no surprise if you look at our history which clearly lays out the facts of the human beings, who created this nation and the way in which they decided to lay the founding bricks of our land.

Yes, we do have a black President who has been elected for two terms and we have come along way as a nation cosmetically, but we still have quite a ways to go to exterminate the deep seeded ignorance and evil and hatred that was birthed by America itself and still very much represents our American character as a society today.

When our forefathers said that every man was considered equal; the truth of the matter is, they were not talking about black men and black women or black children at the time. In fact, black people were only considered 3/5ths human. Whites legally were superior within the human race and they created an entire constitution that did not include the rights of Africans, now “politically and correctly” named African Americans, unleashing the biggest and longest nightmare of domestic terrorism and dividing an entire nation from then and clearly until now. ALL FACTS.

The lynching, raping, dehumanization, false accusation that lead to deaths (Tulsa Rape Riot of 1921 & The Rosewood Massacre of 1923 & Emmet Till) and the deterioration of the Black American family dates back to 1619; when the first batch of slaves sold into slavery by Africans were brought under the horrendous conditions of the transatlantic slave trade to the colony of Jamestown, VA by the dutch to aid in the production of tobacco and soon other crops such as cotton (cotton gin invention 1793), laying the beginning foundation of CAPITALISM. Black Americans built the economic foundations of this great nation on their backs with their blood, sweat, tears and lives that were valued no more than cattle and property at the time.

When the 4 million slaves were freed after the union victory in 1865, slavery technically was over but the tumultuous horrors and bestial aftermath of hundreds of years of hatred, murder and rape towards innocent black human beings were still underweigh of course. In fact, it was in 1896 that the Supreme Court ruling in the case Plessy v. Ferguson, continued to enforce racism and legalized discrimination by implementing JIM CROW LAWS declaring blacks and whites separate, but equal. However, this was another fallacy and delusion authored by our judicial system; for the schools, hospitals, railways and streetcars, theaters, public parks and other facilities were horrifically inferior to that of our white counterparts. Blacks BY LAW had to go through the back door because they were considered inferior to Whites, while whites went through the front. Blacks BY LAW had to sit at the back of the bus, while Caucasians sat in the front of the bus.  WHITE SUPREMACY.

After hundreds of years of legally not being able to read or write or vote or have a voice to seek any kind of justice, Black Americans were given an opportunity to go to school, but the schools resources and tools were subpar. It was not until 1954 in Brown vs. Board of Education Topeka, Kansas that separate but equal according to race was declared unconstitutional. This decision marked for many the beginning of the Civil Rights Movement that was lead by Black Americans and Caucasian Americans combined; and after many protests, marches and martrys such as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., resulted in the “Civil Rights Act of 1964 (which banned discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin in employment practices and ended unequal application of voter registration requirements and racial segregation in schools, at the workplace, and by public accommodations); the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (which restored and protected voting rights) ; the Immigration and Nationality Services Act of 1965 (which dramatically opened entry to the U.S. to immigrants other than traditional Northern European and Germanic groups) and the Fair Housing Act of 1968 (which banned discrimination in the sale or rental of housing)”.

Many people of ALL races lost their lives in order to create an environment of equal opportunity and racial equality not just for Black Americans, but for ALL people in America like our great constitution originally spelled out. However, just because the laws changed obviously does not mean the hearts and mental programming of every American instantly changed simultaneously. Just because Black Americans were declared not slaves anymore, did not mean that they did not have to heal and deal with the psychological and systemic adversary effects of the racial hierarchies of power instilled by FEAR, DISTRUST and ENVY as result of the Willie Lynch Letter in 1712.

As a consequence, you see the reflection and effects of racial disparities and  disenfranchizement within the criminal justice system, law enforcement, the public school system,  media and society in general even still today. And on top of that, we have always had to deal with the political agendas pushed by our bipartisan government filled with politicians that unfortunately sometimes are more concerned with getting re-elected than the American people and the future of American children.

And when reflecting on the tragic loss of ALL of the Americans who lost their lives this week, including the mentally disturbed American who ambushed the Dallas Police department as they were protecting the peaceful protestors of the BLACK LIVES MATTER initiative, I must admit that we all as Americans have failed in addressing some of the hard historical realities and complexities manifested in the dynamic and troubling social climate we ALL currently find ourselves in.

The terror of the residue left from ignorance, evil, hatred, bigotry, racism, sexism, classism, homophobia, neglecting those who have mental illnesses and our veterans and not appreciating, celebrating and honoring the good policemen and women that risk their lives every single day for our safety etc., has no discrimination; for when terror reigns on American soil, that terror rains in the homes of every single American, whether you are aware of it or not and whether it fits your political rhetoric or not.

So when people say I have no idea how something so tragic can happen in America, we must ask ourselves are we AWAKE and AWARE of our history and are we CONNECTED to our fellow American brothers and sisters from a humanity standpoint and commonsense perspective.

Even looking at the video where Philando Castille lost his life, everyone involved was a victim of racism, racial bias and white privilege, INCLUDING the officer who shot Castille. People are not born racists or racially bias. People are taught that by other people and systems and environments that perpetuate these ignorant ways of thinking and operating.

There is no coincidence that the historically racist hypersexualization and criminalization of the Black American Male as well as the objectification of the Black American Female (Hottentot Venus) is now pervasive throughout American entertainment such as rap and movies, etc. One could argue that this is merely the internalization of white sumpremacy or a reflection of the America we live in. Either way, in the face of such tragedy and senseless killings across the board of Black American males and females and policemen and women of whatever race, we ALL have to take responsibility and accoutability for the part we play in all of this. To my entertainers I do not wish to stifle your first amendment rights or creativity, but I do wish to gently remind you that the platform God has gifted you with and that fans heavily assist to maintain influence not just America, but the entire world. We all could be a little more conscious about our content and be a little more intentional about creating diverse narratives that are uplifting, educational and virtuous as opposed to creating narratives and imagert that are marketable.

As horrific ALL of the attrocities that struck our American soil this week have been, one truth that was pleasant to see was people coming to together and sharing the pain of the bloodshed of Black Americans, Caucasian Americans and Latino Americans. And for the first time as a nation in quite some time, we have been dialoguing about some very real and tough issues that impact EVERY SINGLE PERSON (Black, White, Asian, Latino, blue & purple) on American soil; whether you are Black or White; whether you suffer from mental illness or you are blessed to have a sound mind and whether you are risking your life as a police officer or a Black American walking in the streets of crime infested communities.

The reality is that we are ALL humans and if you were born in this AMAZING country like me we are ALL Americans. We ALL have hearts that beat and we ALL bleed red. And when calamity and terror strikes our homefront and those we love (Innocent or Guilty), we ALL are devastated, hurt and need healing. This is not a time to partake in propoganda and polarizing commentary of the complex and dynamic challenges AMERICA the beautiful continues to face. This is a time to:

1. WAKE UP
2. STAND UP
3. BE HONEST & AUTHENTIC
4. UNDERSTAND THAT OUR COMMONALITY IS OUR HUMANITY
5. BE KIND
6. PUT LOVE OVER EVERYTHING AND
7. BE COURAGEOUS & HAVE UNWAVERING FAITH

Because the truth of the matter is, we pay for our ancestors’ generational curses of evil, negligence, ignorance, selfishness and hatred. And we never know when our ancestoral debt is due for it has no conscious or bias.

So let us come together and be more understanding and aware of every community across the nation. Let us understand that our lives are not our own and be aware of what we are modeling for EVERY ACTION HAS AN OPPOSITE YET EQUAL REACTION.

Sending supreme love and blessings across this beautiful nation that needs prayer, healing and most of all, LOVE.

SOURCE:
http://www.infoplease.com/encyclopedia/history/jim-crow-laws.html
http://www.history.com/topics/black-history/slavery

💜Love & Light🌞,
Cristen M. Mills