You are still missing my point. Nobody (at least me) is criticizing black folk for not being charitable. The studies do show that we tend to be more charitable than whites (this is something that I want to believe, but like any other study I would like to see how they measured it). What I am simply saying is that “charity” is something that should come from everybody to everybody. That is why I brought up the “successful black company giving charity to poor whites”.

Criticize Blacks for not helping out internally. Then criticize Blacks for helping out internally. And people wonder why stress issues exist in the Black community?

Again, this stress is self induced. All of these hidden rules and expectancies that we have in our own community will drive anyone insane. Living out here in Cali, I can’t tell you the amount of blacks that I have come across who used to live back east who just took the atitude “screw the whole thing and let me live my life”. Then of course they are criticized for trying to be white because they now live out here. We miss out on so much like skiing, surfing, rock climbing, hiking, etc. all because WE perceive these things as being white (a.k.a. race denial). As far as I know, there is no other race that does this.

Getting back to my point about giving to poor whites…

Growing up, my family would regularly visit elderly people in our community–some were black, but many of them were white. These were people that family members would not even give them the time of day. We would also deliver food from time to time to poor families (poor rural whites included). Again, where was the “white” calvary for them?

I get very sick and tired of hearing Revs , bishops’, etc. etc. preach the same dagone message about helping “…the least of these” in our community. But what they really mean is just helping our own. Nothing wrong with that at all. But I think that if we really want to see real healing between whites and blacks, just as whites have been regularly giving to our needs (weather they wanted to or not), we (blacks) have to intentionally include their needy in our “charity” as well. Again, not saying that it has never been done (because I have seen it on a very small scale), but we need to increase these instances.

Although I think that the mico-loan scenario is achievable in the black community, I find it very hard to hold our race up against let’s say Asian groups who practice this regularly. The difference is they have a direct link to their culture that goes all the way back to their homeland. You can say that it is built into their culture –both here in the US and abroad. Although blacks during the post slavery days had a form of this mindset, it was institutionalized racism in this country that kept us from doing it. Although for the most part in today’s environment in this country we could continue where OUR elders left off, it would really take some time for it to become a genuine part of our culture. This is why I think it is unfair to make those kind of comparisons. Our generation missed the opportunity. This is why we are raising our kids to become more community-minded than we were growing up.

I think that it is great when I hear about people like Oprah and Danny giving to people in Africa. What is unfortunate is that WE pidginhole ourselves when it comes to charity (if it was discovered that these two people gave more to let’s say to poor Russian children, they would be blasted by US for not “keepin’ it real”. Never mind not looking at the two incidents as two separate circumstances with different needs–we just focus on the dollar amount).

I have learned a long time ago (thanks to my parents) that if I see someone in need, then I should do what I can to help them regardless of color. Personally, my experience with helping poor white folks has helped me to learn how to forgive them as I used to have a lot of anger towards them. I say, forget the critics and help ALL that need it.

Excuse me?

“We” put “ourselves” in this trap?

When Blacks don’t help out other Blacks, folks like D’Souza point out other groups that DO help each other out. D’Souza said Blacks should act like Jewish people and immigrants who form groups and creating micro-loan groups. But, they do it within their group. D’Souza criticized Blacks for the low amount of times a dollar circulates within the Black community.

D’Souza criticized Blacks for lack of charity/non-profit work and giving. Yet, when the numbers were examined, Blacks actually help out MORE than whites.

Talk about a double standard and a gigantic cluster mind game….

Criticize Blacks for not helping out internally. Then criticize Blacks for helping out internally. And people wonder why stress issues exist in the Black community?

Danny Glover and Oprah Winfrey gives money for schools in S. Africa and other African countries, adn they are criticized for doing it and “ignoring” Blacks in the U.S.

Tom Joyner has raised $30 Million (?) for the UNCF, and he’s criticized. But then Black students are criticized because they don’t finish college. But critics ignore that funding issues are the primary reason why, NOT affirmative action.

This is my point (unless I am missing a point you are trying to make). This is a trap that we put ourselves in.

Black “leaders” will regularly talk about the plight the white poor in Appalachian areas, but you will never see them going to bat for them (staging protests against businesses like coal companies who milk them for years and leave them high and dry–I do believe some of our folks have been up there to talk to them, but as far as I know that is as far as it goes). Its been real easy for us to conclude that because they are white, whites should take care of them. But then again, we are all Americans. Why not use some of that “We shall overcome” juice with them?

Lawd… And then Blacks get critized for not “helping Blacks”. Ya can’t win fo’ losin’.

I know you didn’t intend for it to come out that way, but that’s the way it reads.

Or are you changing them whenever someone has posted something you don’t have a reply to?

John L.

John L.

I’ve seen it numbers of times. You just have to be willing to look for it.

I know of blacks helping whites get employment, housing, blacks helping homeless when they are white BUT you will not see this depicted in our own media. *help* (generally speaking) from our community usually goes to help our own. You will rarely hear of a black church giving money to help white Appalachian people, but it is quite common to see white orgs. giving to blacks. I think the reason why you do not see the “blacks helping non-blacks” story (I’m thinking along the lines of a black organization giving specifically to non-blacks) is because in most cases it is a rarity. I mean, when is the last time you heard of a successful black company specifically targeting its tax-deducted giving to impoverished whites?

This year the Black Achievers program handed out over $800,000 in college in financial aid…but the local paper didn’t’t even cover it, resulting in a storm of protest.

And what’s more, several of the paper’s top management attended the function.

White (assuming) media not showcasing black achievement? This is been my contention with MSM for years. You notice how MSM is now “spanking itself” for running with the wild stories that were coming out of N.O. I personally saw only a few heroic stories covered by MSM out of the N.O. area. My personal sources tell me that there were MANY heroic acts and plenty of selfless giving on the behalf of blacks helping blacks—but again MSM passed right over them. This is why I have been pissed off at our own media for not bringing us these stories. Instead they wanted to critique on MSM’s performance.

And since whites have controlled the media for much, much, much longer than People of Color, which group has the longest history “of placing more of an emphasis on the bad things?!”

Doesn’t matter. Why do WE (our media) feel the need to follow suit?

White media emphasizes our bad points and our media does the same thing. This is wrong across the board and NOBODY is justified.

JCL: When has the white media ever depicted Blacks helping whites…or even Blacks helping themselves?!

The paper I write for last year studied how the local white-owned paper depicted Blacks. The most frequent depiction, 167 times, was of “a white person helping a Black person.”

This year the Black Achievers program handed out over $800,000 in college in financial aid…but the local paper didn’t even cover it, resulting in a storm of protest.

And what’s more, several of the paper’s top management attended the function.

So why in the world should Blacks help white American with its self-promotion campaign of beneficient, benefactor to the world.

Duane: “These officers do a lot of great things in the community, but you will never hear her publicly acknowledge it”

JCL: Isn’t it like that generally, in that the good teachers, social workers, polticians never get any press, just the bad apples?

Echoing Darkstar, “Why do you *only* deride such behavior when it’s by Blacks?

Duane: “Why would someone in their right mind work with someone that is going to talk more about your faults than your successes?”

JCL: She’s sure had an excellent teacher, in that whites themselves have historically only illuminated the negative acts of Blacks while excluding our accomplishments and contributions.

And since whites have controlled the media for much, much, much longer than People of Color, which group has the longest history “of placing more of an emphasis on the bad things?!”

Looks like you need to take another week.

John L.

JCL: As long as “slavery” is the point of comparison, any condition above that would qualify…my standards are a lot higher.

As we climbed, did the rest of American society stand still? Nope.

We own 1/2 of 1% of all the wealth.

So whether it’s a master-slave status; landlord-tenant status; or a sell-consumer status, we’re still in the subordinate position.

“Interestingly,” during slavery more white men were hanged for killing Blacks than any other period of Amerikkkan history.

JCL