Don't take this the wrong way... I thought this was ironic, and genuinely funny!
Today is, of course, the Dr. Martin Luther King holiday. A federal holiday which, I remember, was strongly protested back when the campaign was in full swing. A LOT of White folks saw no need for it. (The picture of the man is rosy in hindsight, but he was hated in his day!)
Kathy, my wife, works in tech support at a cellphone company. The personnel are pretty much all Black while the management is largely White. She is at work today. They are mostly off.
I play music for a living. Tonight, Monday, I play at BB King's club. The band is pretty much all Black, while management and the mostly tourist audience is White.
There is an NBA basketball game being played here today. The players are... aww, YOU get it by now.
"Ain't this supposed to be our day? Well, why are we all workin', an' all the White folks (who didn't even want the Day in the first place!) are off?!?"
HiLARious! I'm not angry. I'm just saying...
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4 comments:
Interesting read, Derrick! I gotta ask you something- One, I"m surprised about the "line-up" at the club. You'd think that J/B lovers from all over the map would be in a place like that!
Other thing- Maybe it was Ebony and Jet got that ball rolling, but why capitalise the W's and B's? Color ain't nothing but a thing- It aint' national like Irish, Kenyan, or Greek, eh? Maybe the more we boost the color distinction the hard it is for folks to get over the "line." Ya think?
Thanks, Robert. I speak in general in terms of the line-up and the clientele at the club, but Memphis is a Black and White town, and so is the country. There are those of other ethnicities, but for the most part, those are the main two.
I have thought long and hard about the capitalization of the W's and B's. It is a personal choice meant to in some way emphasize the importance of the issue, and the significance of the two races who have had (and HAVE) such a contentious relationship. I agree that the colors aren't a nationality, but in America, we don't generally identify people by nation when walking down the street, etc.
Thanks for always stopping by. How's the music thing going with your daughter?
I'm in the embryonic stages of trying to record myself.
Well, I know the color thing is so ingrained here in the States. Hard to even hold a conversation about it in such a small space. I think you addressed it really well in your piece about your church.
On the music & daughter question, that daughter has her hands full with her 1st term of college and working. More interested in seeing her praying practice pick up before putting a lot more emphasis on clarinet, or..
(rambling blather ahead)
Speaking of music, do you just happen to know a drummer named Aaron Smith? I've been wanting to get back in touch with him, found his (neglected) myspace page, and somebody had left a note asking if he was still at BB King's. Never mind- I just looked it up, and there's one (of many!) in Nashville too. I knew the bro through church some years ago, and was reminded of him when you mentioned recording, that he might be one to talk with. Well, just in case you did know him, I figured I'd leave this speculation on here. Blessings on you all!
Thanks, Robert.
I went to the MySpace page you mentioned.
No, I don't know Aaron Smith, though I think I may have heard of him... Thanks again.
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