Before he was holding us down in Club Quarantine, I remember D-Nice as a member of BDP producing the song "Self Destruction". Almost 40 years ago, this was a rally cry against violence in Black communities. Today I am thinking about the song in terms of another detriment to our communities, the lack of our presence at the voting polls.
Early voting began in Harris County, Texas, and I've spent the past few days researching and putting my ballot together. However, I cannot help but to reflect on conversations I've had and my fyp highlighting the "justifications" for not voting. In these moments, I think of my Grandma who had a 3rd grade education and learned to read by attending church, reading the Bible. I think of the documentary, Eyes on the Prize and watching bodies beaten with billy clubs, attacked by dogs, thrown into cars, all in the name of Black Civil Rights.
Yet with straight faces and all the conviction that can be summoned, some of us are willingly gallivanting towards a path of self destruction, taking our communities down with us. I understand the frustrations that exist with the some of the policies that are coming out of Washington, DC. However, I'm equally appalled by some of the policies that are coming out of Austin, Texas and Harris County.
In a state with a $33 billion surplus, three independent school districts in Harris County are eliminating librarians. Mind you, several schools have already been operating without a campus librarian. SB 17 bans diversity programs in public universities. Currently 251 out of 254 counties in Texas are partially or fully designated as mental health professional shortage areas while 3.4 million Texans have a mental health condition.
Many question what the POTUS is doing for us, but what are we doing? In the 2023 Harris County election, 451,203 residents (17%) of all registered voters went to the polls. I am not saying that the voting systems and politicians are not without flaws, but this cannot be a continued invitation to turn a blind eye.
Our absence has severe consequences for us and future generations. So many people voiced their disdain when Deion Sanders left Jackson State University... now my timeline is very quiet about SB 2726 which seeks to shut down Jackson State, Mississippi Valley State University, and Alcorn University. Nikole Hannah-Jones reminds us: America would not be America without the wealth from Black labor, without Black striving, Black ingenuity, and Black resistance.
My life experiences allow me to understand the duality that James Baldwin talked about. It is exhaustive, it is upsetting, it is frustrating, and it is our privilege to use our voices in the face of injustice. In our quest to find our next great leader, do not negate your power.
"Mississippi Goddam" ~The High Priestess
Just try to do your very bestStand up, be counted with all the rest'Cause everybody knows about Mississippi, goddamn
I bet you thought I was kidding, didn't you?
Picket lines, school boycottsThey try to say it's a communist plotAll I want is equalityFor my sister, my brother, my people, and me
Yes, you lied to me all these yearsYou told me to wash and clean my earsAnd talk real fine just like a ladyAnd you'd stop calling me Sister Sadie
Oh, but this whole country is full of liesYou're all gonna die and die like fliesI don't trust you anymoreYou keep on saying, "Go slow"Go slow
Be about that life...
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