I remember way back when I was younger I was playing in the basement of a duplex type apartment somewhere in northern Massachusetts. It was some type of vacation from elementary school so that meant I was back and forth from New Hampshire and Mass. I would spend the time mostly with my Cousins.
Being poor had its advantages in the mind. I had a very active imagination, well I suppose I still do otherwise I wouldn't have as much fun doing what I do.
Back to the point.
It was three of us playing some superhero world game. We were wrestling, clanking wooden rods and those L-shaped curtain rods they use in townhouses as weapons and staffs. I always felt like part of being a kid was the certain ability to just get away and today that would change entirely.
I'll set up the scene.
One of my cousins was to accompany me on the futon we had down in the cellar and pretend that my other cousin had appeared out of no where. He was supposed to be Raiden from Mortal Kombat. He had chosed this becasue he just assumed htat he would be the most powerful of us all..
Yeah, he was THAT guy..
Now, what I haven't mentioned yet, is the fact that my cousins are both half black and look the part. Being around them literally my entire life made it a trivial fact. I didn't care that they were black. It had never come up in conversation; I didn't love them less or treated them differently. They are my family and that is pretty much all I saw.
As we get back to the story just about where one of my cousins had just "lightning-bolted" out of nowhere. We were basically portraying the stoner type we just aware of it yet. See this new guy was supposed to come in need of help from two warriors and since we were the best of his terrible situation, he would bestow upon us magical powers. Basic poor kid shit, but hell it beats being one of those fucking kids that are subtly brain-damaged by video games. Anyways, I looked at him and in my "surprised" state I remember turning to my cousin and in character saying, "hey man there's some black kid in a basketball jersey that came from no where."
Yeah, that's an uncomfortable conversation.
To me though it didn't seem like such a terrible thing. I was just describing him. I wasn't calling him out on being different, certainly was not my intention. But that was clearly the offense here. I remember my other cousin had gotten up and walked in the others place and asked me what color he was. Still confused I had mentioned that he was more of a coffee/caramel tone.
Needless to say that this led to an adults attentive intervention. My aunt had stuck me in the bedroom to think about the actions I did not understand.
And there it was. That was the first time I ever learned that calling a black man or woman so was very frowned upon. The only thing that the timeout gave me time to do was try to fix my associations. To this very day I am obsessed with racial fueled humor whether its from the moth of Richard Prior, Bill Burr, George Lopez or Daniel Tosh. It all feeds into one appetite and that is where my humor comes in. I don;t think of anything as hate unless it becomes personal, even then hate is such a strong word, most of it is to get a rise out or to strike emphasis in a less than intelligent way but that is what speaks to me.
I'm not the most intelligent fucker around but I know some shit. I am probably too observant in my world. I try to see everything for what it really is. Maybe that is where I get stuck.
Looking back on what happened with Dave Chappelle breaks my heart. That a few assholes in ties and shit go on and ruin a good thing based on ignorance and greed. As I reflected upon the menacingly hilarious scenarios Chappelle's show ensnared audiences with, I wondered why I had not looked more into the end of the series; What led to the burial of Chappelle's show? Then I read about an interview where Dave mentions the taping of the controversial Racial Pixie sketch, and how someone in the studio had "laughed in a way that made him feel uncomfortable". I couldn't imagine it, but then again I could. I know what my realm of comfort is and to exceed that would surely instill some sort of discomfort and anxiety that could cripple me. being a public icon as he was the extrapolated effect seems unbearable. After the straw that broke the camel's back in the form of an excited patron at a stand up event shouting "I'm Rick James Bitch", Chappelle broke down.
Some people live for years and sometimes their entire lives in a struggle against living expenses and barely making any money to survive if at all. I grew up in shit neighborhoods with dealers and runners on every corner. I was afraid to walk the 7 yards to get to the closest convenience store to get junk food for the neglectful parent that I was so lucky to have. Why does race have to be such a big authority on the way we interact with each other?
Don't get me wrong I totally get it. Being Hispanic isn't easy but I never let that get to me. By no means do I understand the level of hate and evil that comes with the brutal history of slavery. The point I try to get across if any is that think about that shit before you start listening to some Caucasian "Urban Specialist" that appears on some news segments talking about statistics that are skewed to begin with. I've actually met African Americans that are prejudice against other races. It all just blows my mind.
Lets try this out for a second. If we concentrate more on say, doing the things that mattered most to ourselves instead of following a pack of hyenas with the illusion that they are wolves and be our own Alpha Males we can make our marks in society instead of just reinforcing the stereotype society has laid out for us. Dave offered that to us for a brief moment in comedy history and for that I thank him. We all complain about the negative events in our lives not fully understanding that we are apart of that society that makes it impossible for these ideas to survive.
It only takes one...
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