The State of My Black America

After seeing The Dance tonight, my girlfriend and I dived into a particularly deep conversation that led us to worry about the state of our black America. The conversation in our car ride back home was a rather thought-provoking one full of passion and concern. It's not often that we go speak about the issues plaguing our race, but after seeing The Dance, we really had no choice but to talk about it.

It's past my bedtime, but I can't go to sleep without putting down in words how inspired, amazed, and thankful I am for the opportunity to see The Dance. (If you haven't already, click on the link to view the website.) To give you a little background info, The Dance is a 2 man educational play about minstrelsy. What makes this play unique is that not only is it a play that teaches you about minstresly performed as a minstrel show, but it was written, produced and performed by a pair of young, talented, intelligent, well-spoken black men. Men my age to be exact! I'm laughing out loud a little bit right now because it's sort of funny and bothersome that I have to point out that these young, 20-ish men are intelligent, well-spoken and educated. But I digress. (I actually might not need to label that as a digression, but we'll see if I come back around to addressing that issue.) But what absolutely NEEDS to be pointed out is that the play has been awarded with Best Playwright of the Year by the NAACP! Congratulations guys!! =)

What I truly enjoyed about the play, other than the high quality of talent, was the amount of educational tidbits I received regarding minstresly. I thought I knew about minstresly and black face, but I had no idea. I had no idea where it truly originated from or how it connected to today's videos, rap songs, and cultural influences. I knew from certain eduational programs and the movie Bamboozled by Spike Lee what minstresly was all about, but I had no idea that we're still performing as minstrels today in our videos, tv shows, and movies that portray what the powers to be (usually white, rich men) want us to portray. They want us to be the gangsta, the drug-addicted female, the rolling-her-neck ghetto girl, and the fried chicken eating black greasy family. How is that not mistrelsy? It's amazing what we do for the "Almighty Dollar" as the performers so appropriately called it.

So after seeing such a powerful piece of work, J. and I began to feel a little guilty (as you always feel after seeing a conscious piece that inspires you) about the music we listen to and the artists we support . We started discussing the power of a good beat, and our obsession with drums which of course relates back to music of Africa, call and response powers, etc. We went futher by discussing rappers such as Lil' Jon and Young Jeezy and the power of money. It was amazing how it all tied together. We also talked about how lost and ignorant our black communities are. How we ride with the wave instead of fighting against it, in fear of being deemed 'different'. Our communities are so unaware of what they're being fed. It's directly affecting their lives, their decisions, their money, their experiences, etc. It's like we're puppets in this whole money-making machine. Hence, minstrelsy. We plug into the system, and do what we're told for a little, measely dollar.

I'm sorry to stereotype, but I'm just being real...When I see these men with XXL white tees, chains around their necks, and platinum in their mouths, I get sad. I mean, I know why. I understand why they do what they do. (Lack of exposure, unaware, ignorance, media influence, etc.) ut still I want to know why their happy . As J and I said tonight on our way home, they make you want to put your arms around all of them, embrace them, and tell them that it's going to be alright.

To come back full circle, I just have to say that it feel so good to see young African-American men doing their thing. The passion, energy, talent, and education of those men meant a lot to me. I believe it's fair to say that more black females than males seek and get higher education, or any education for that matter. It was wonderful as a black, intelligent, educated, young woman to see a pair of equally as educated men join or lead the ranks. Thank you for standing with the vast amount of young women who hope for more educated and passionate black community. Thank you for being a part of that number.

So after being so inspired, it's now my turn to figure out what my action will be. Well my first action, to share my experience with others, has already begun with this blog. Like I said, I knew I couldn't let my head hit the pillow before writing about this and hopefully educating all and any readers that cross my page. The next thing I would like to do is share this play with as many interested groups, schools, programs, etc. as possible. The play needs to be seen!

The state of my black America can be so much better if we remember that education is the key AND embrace what we learn. The state of my black America seems dismal, and it might even be just that. But when there are individuals like Aaron and Jason whose passions are to expose our young ones to American education often not spoken about, I am warmed and appreciative. So please check out The Dance and spread the word. It's the least we can all do.