Hello Night Riders,
I have not posted in awhile, and I am happy to be back. It is important for me to blog but it is more important for me to write about significant topics, and things that are worthy of writing about. I have been slowly adding to this post for weeks, and finally it is ready. What better a day for this to be posted than on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. May his words and actions live on in the mouths and hands of today's people.
Miscegenation is a term that combines the Latin words miscere ("to mix") and genus ("race") . Miscegenation is very important to me, as it brings us closer to racial ambiguity, and hopefully, to racial equality.
In my life, I have not personally experienced harsh racism. When you're white, growing up in a predominantly white neighbourhood and going to school where the majority of people are white, there is no racism to be experienced when your skin is the same colour as the next person. However, the problem lies therein. It may foster an ignorant child to become a racist adult. There are various degrees of racism, and each and every form of racism is absolutely outlandish and offensive. After a recent discussion I had with a white male I was truly disgusted, outraged, embarrassed, ashamed and deeply offended by the way in which he spoke about the black race, and more so about my interactions and relations with black people. I do not want to make this personal, however this issue hits home for me. I have dated people of different races, and I know what my preference is (as I'm sure you do too). It is my belief that I will marry a black man, and have mixed children. I do not believe that I am closed minded as I have experienced what it is like to be with different races, cultures, and religions. Due to the fact that I have been half of an interracial couple in the past, and plan to be in the future, I am invested in the progression of acceptance to the mingling of races. To quote the great Martin Luther King Jr., "We cannot walk alone. And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead. [...] No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until 'justice rolls down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream' ". It is my dream to see interracial couples, all over the world, not only be accepted, but not have judgment cast upon them. A person should be able to do what they want to do, and be with who they want to be with, so long as they are not hurting themselves or others in the process.
People consistently ask me "When did you start liking black men?" or "Why do you like black men?". First of all, let's shut down the stereotype of "all black men have large penises". That is not the reason why people like black men, because it is a generalization. It is a generalization just as "all asian men have small penises" is. Some things, and some feelings, are unexplainable. Even as you begin to describe why something is, you may realize it cannot be encapsulated in the words that you can possibly say, and rather it is a feeling that just makes sense to you. I believe that people are often intrigued by those who are different from them. That is one of the reasons why I am attracted to black men. People have the power to teach others, and learn from others. How can I learn from someone who grew up the same way that I did? How can I be stimulated (mentally, emotionally, physically) by someone who is just like me? Most often, in friendships, and more so, relationships, people stay within their own racial, cultural, and religious groups, because that is what is easy for them, what is normal for them, what makes sense to them. What makes sense to me is soaking in differences, and seeing the beauty in what others have to offer. I am reading a book called Interracial Intimacies: Sex, Marriage, Identity, and Adoption by Randall Kennedy. In the introduction, he discusses people looking for companions in the personals of a newspaper, "A retired New York City police officer noted that he had restricted his search to white women because his going out with a black woman would have caused great stress between him and his "Archie Bunker neighbors." The police officer stated "I was looking to make life easier". This, for me, is not a good enough reason as to why I should be with someone who is like me.
In 1963, in his "I Have A Dream" speech, Martin Luther King Jr. said "the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination", and most unfortunately, nearly fifty years later we are still trying to progress forward and live in equality with our neighbours. I believe that interracial marriages, interracial relationships, and biracial/multiracial children are a beautiful thing - so long as it is for the right reasons. There could be a multitude of "right" reasons. Yet, at the end of the day, it ultimately should be the reason of unconditional love for the other person. In absolutely no way am I saying it is wrong to marry someone within your own race, culture and/or religion. However, I am saying that you should not do it because it is the easy way out. Do what works for you, do what you want to do, and not what society tells you is "right".
I will leave you with one of my favourite lines from Martin Luther King Jr., "Even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream".
I have not posted in awhile, and I am happy to be back. It is important for me to blog but it is more important for me to write about significant topics, and things that are worthy of writing about. I have been slowly adding to this post for weeks, and finally it is ready. What better a day for this to be posted than on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. May his words and actions live on in the mouths and hands of today's people.
Miscegenation is a term that combines the Latin words miscere ("to mix") and genus ("race") . Miscegenation is very important to me, as it brings us closer to racial ambiguity, and hopefully, to racial equality.
In my life, I have not personally experienced harsh racism. When you're white, growing up in a predominantly white neighbourhood and going to school where the majority of people are white, there is no racism to be experienced when your skin is the same colour as the next person. However, the problem lies therein. It may foster an ignorant child to become a racist adult. There are various degrees of racism, and each and every form of racism is absolutely outlandish and offensive. After a recent discussion I had with a white male I was truly disgusted, outraged, embarrassed, ashamed and deeply offended by the way in which he spoke about the black race, and more so about my interactions and relations with black people. I do not want to make this personal, however this issue hits home for me. I have dated people of different races, and I know what my preference is (as I'm sure you do too). It is my belief that I will marry a black man, and have mixed children. I do not believe that I am closed minded as I have experienced what it is like to be with different races, cultures, and religions. Due to the fact that I have been half of an interracial couple in the past, and plan to be in the future, I am invested in the progression of acceptance to the mingling of races. To quote the great Martin Luther King Jr., "We cannot walk alone. And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead. [...] No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until 'justice rolls down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream' ". It is my dream to see interracial couples, all over the world, not only be accepted, but not have judgment cast upon them. A person should be able to do what they want to do, and be with who they want to be with, so long as they are not hurting themselves or others in the process.
People consistently ask me "When did you start liking black men?" or "Why do you like black men?". First of all, let's shut down the stereotype of "all black men have large penises". That is not the reason why people like black men, because it is a generalization. It is a generalization just as "all asian men have small penises" is. Some things, and some feelings, are unexplainable. Even as you begin to describe why something is, you may realize it cannot be encapsulated in the words that you can possibly say, and rather it is a feeling that just makes sense to you. I believe that people are often intrigued by those who are different from them. That is one of the reasons why I am attracted to black men. People have the power to teach others, and learn from others. How can I learn from someone who grew up the same way that I did? How can I be stimulated (mentally, emotionally, physically) by someone who is just like me? Most often, in friendships, and more so, relationships, people stay within their own racial, cultural, and religious groups, because that is what is easy for them, what is normal for them, what makes sense to them. What makes sense to me is soaking in differences, and seeing the beauty in what others have to offer. I am reading a book called Interracial Intimacies: Sex, Marriage, Identity, and Adoption by Randall Kennedy. In the introduction, he discusses people looking for companions in the personals of a newspaper, "A retired New York City police officer noted that he had restricted his search to white women because his going out with a black woman would have caused great stress between him and his "Archie Bunker neighbors." The police officer stated "I was looking to make life easier". This, for me, is not a good enough reason as to why I should be with someone who is like me.
In 1963, in his "I Have A Dream" speech, Martin Luther King Jr. said "the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination", and most unfortunately, nearly fifty years later we are still trying to progress forward and live in equality with our neighbours. I believe that interracial marriages, interracial relationships, and biracial/multiracial children are a beautiful thing - so long as it is for the right reasons. There could be a multitude of "right" reasons. Yet, at the end of the day, it ultimately should be the reason of unconditional love for the other person. In absolutely no way am I saying it is wrong to marry someone within your own race, culture and/or religion. However, I am saying that you should not do it because it is the easy way out. Do what works for you, do what you want to do, and not what society tells you is "right".
I will leave you with one of my favourite lines from Martin Luther King Jr., "Even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream".
- Night Rider
