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| News from the hood. June, 2007 |
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| THE TOP STORY |
Influx VS Original Black Williamsporters
Almost invariably, a discussion of African-American solidarity turns negative. “Black people can’t get their act together,” is the general consensus.
Negativity looms large in the consciousness of many African-Americans. Rather than expressing a can-do attitude, we are bombarded with a thousand reasons why something cannot be done.
Recently, I was involved in a spirited discussion about the recent history of Williamsport and the perceived disrespect experienced by black Williamsporters.
I said the purpose of this newsletter is to bring the African-American community together. I want to see a healing among the original blacks and the influx of black newcomers. There is a lot of resentment on both sides. Now is the time to come together.
Both groups have suffered from racial discrimination and injustice. Both groups have known the experience of being locked out of the American mainstream of wealth and prosperity. The influx of blacks from the large cities and the descendants of the black settlers of the region have common roots of an historical past.
Yet, we continually bicker among ourselves. We classify ourselves as “crabs in a barrel”. We denigrate each other. We deny our common-ness.
We do not trust each other.
When the railroad left town in the mid-sixties, Williamsport began a slow economic decline. The 80’s and 90’s were an era of greedy acquisitions and mergers in America. Many small cities like Williamsport suffered during those years. Large-scale businesses dried up and moved away. The good paying factory jobs began to disappear. Then, in the mid-nineties, there was an influx of blacks from the inner cities.
Initially, native Williamsporters welcomed the newcomers with open arms. But that soon changed as one person who described the situation said, “Some of the influx crowd messed things up. We need to accept our responsibility in that.”
According to some the “influx” brought an increase in crime. One fellow said, “When I came here many years ago, there was only one murder! Now, we have two or three per year!”
Another person said, “Hey! I am not buying it! I am an American. I can live anywhere I want. These things were bound to happen. Don’t blame me.”
Perhaps Williamsport was overdue for a dose of cold, hard reality. Every major city in the nation has been struggling with the affects of poverty and neglect for over 100 years. W.E.B. Dubois in 1899 described how blacks were denied access to jobs in Philadelphia.
He wrote, “In the Negro’s mind, color prejudice in Philadelphia is that widespread feeling of dislike for his blood, which keeps him and his children out of decent employment, from certain public conveniences and amusements, from hiring houses in many sections, and in general, from being recognized as a man.”
An historian wrote this about DuBois’ work, “He was certain that the race problem was one of ignorance. And he was determined to unearth as much knowledge as he could, thereby providing the "cure" for color prejudice. His relentless studies led into historical investigation, statistical and anthropological measurement, and sociological interpretation. The outcome of this exhaustive endeavor was published as The Philadelphia Negro. "It revealed the Negro group as a symptom, not a cause; as a striving, palpitating group, and not an inert, sick body of crime; as a long historic development and not a transient occurrence." This was the first time such a scientific approach to studying social phenomena was undertaken, and as a consequence DuBois is acknowledged as the father of Social Science.”
In order to come together, we must understand our past. We need to recognize the factors that shaped our condition. We must acknowledge the harm that was done and our complacency in it. The impoverished black ghetto of Philadelphia is the result of a social, political and economic exclusion by a white power structure. Blacks in Philadelphia did not make any substantial social progress because they were restricted from doing so.
In Williamsport, blacks were also expected to mind their place. They lived in the “Browntown” section of Williamsport. Recently a friend described what life was like for a black teen in the 1970’s. “We better had not crossed Hepburn Street or else we got our butts beat!” he said.
In many ways, Central Pennsylvania reminds me of Alabama, circa 1965. Those attitudes that DuBois complained about in 1899 still exist today.
It is important for African-Americans to come together in a spirit of brotherhood. We need recognize that we are in the same boat. Our dark skin tones unite us. Let the healing begin. We can do it!
| Related links:
For more information on the landmark sociological study "the Philadelphia Negro" go to:
http://teachingamericanhistory.org/library/index.asp?document=1141
For more information on WEB DuBois go to:
http://www.duboislc.org/html/DuBoisBio.html
Are crime rates soaring? Check out this news article:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070521/ts_nm/usa_crime_dc
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