My Life | Part 3
The Racial Double Standard
A long time ago when I was a kid, any sort of double standard was frowned upon. Anybody exposed for advocating one standard for themselves and different rules for others was immediately categorized as irrelevant. So what the hell is going on here folks? What about Black on Black crime? The over whelming amount of Blacks are killed by other Black folks.
Somehow we’ve moved to a place where a double standard for my race is totally acceptable. Now it’s ok for Blacks making jokes about Whites but Whites better not joke about Blacks.
What’s even more troubling to me is that I can use that infamous “N Word” and White people can’t without being labeled a racist. I’m not the only one who can use it either. Any other Black person on earth can do the same thing and it’s still ok. However, nobody from a different race can do it and if they do, it’s considered hate speech. A Latino can’t use it and Asians better not try it either.
Black comedians at comedy clubs use the word in their stand-up routine and people in the audience throw back a drink and laugh. When my cousins say it while sitting around playing dominos, they consider it a term of endearment. At the same time, White people lose their jobs and have their businesses protested over the use of that word.
I think racial double standards like this do harm to Blacks and most of us don’t see it. The majority of Blacks are still employed by Whites. Do we really need to be offending or pissing off the people we look to for jobs? During days when the shoe was on the other foot, I didn’t like racism. Just because racism was allowed then, doesn’t mean it’s ok for us to do it now. Didn’t we learn anything along the way? Racial double standards are not good practices to circulate because my grandkids might need a job one day from the people we’re attacking.