Southern Teapot- Recent FB post

As most of you know, I am deeply proud of my Southern heritage. The words "y'all" and "yonder" are as sweet to my ears as the tea I drink is to my tongue. I fiercely support my local BBQ place as the best. And I can cook a pot of grits, buttermilk biscuits, and a pan of cornbread with my eyes closed.

My family on both sides has been here since the late 1600's. And many of them fought in the Revolutionary War, and then their prodigy fought for the Confederacy. A few of them owned slaves. Others fought in the war to preserve their way of life, and maintain state's rights. But most were the product of their time, I'm sure, and they viewed black slavery as a good use for an "lesser, and ignorant race of human."

The South was, and is still strong. We will not lose that strength by "giving in to the liberals" that want the Confederate flag removed from the state house grounds. We will gain strength by uniting with those that are not just offended, but hurt by the sight of it. Their family stories still echo with the sounds of a whip, and the cry of their great grandparents. Their picture albums contain scenes of a relative hanging by the neck from a tree. How many of us white Southern folks have the emotions those memories evoke each time we see the Rebel flag?

No, we can't give in to everyone's offenses. We will cave as a society. Maybe that is coming. Maybe this is a precedent. But, I'm not will to support anything that hurts my fellow Americans as much as the Confederate Flag's presence on SC State House grounds hurts so many. It's time to take it down, and put it in a museum as a dark reminder of a dark practice. 

The South is strong, but we used our strength to hurt. We shouldn't forget that, so do not banish that flag to obscurity. Put it on display in museums. Teach our children about it and speak of it as symbol of what misplaced loyalties and misused strength can do. Show all of our children, black and white and all other shades, that respect of all human life is part of God's commandment: Love one another.

 Love y'all! Teapot

Red and Yellow, Black and White Privilege, The Teapot's Shady Friends

God has brought many people my way. Sometimes it seems that if I sit and wait, willing to minister and serve, that people come to me unbidden, but all in God's timing.

One of these people became an "adopted" son. He is extroverted, loud, sometimes obnoxious, Dominican (hispanic and black), political, outspoken, and amazing. Oh, and the absolute worst? He's from NYC. 

But all that aside, he loves God, and he empathizes with other people of color and of non-European descent and the struggles they face.

To the irritation of some, he often speaks of "white privilege" and the lack of issues that privilege affords them. Honestly when I first saw this term in his posts, I rolled my eyes. No, I thought. The race issue is dead or at least dying. Let it be. You're just stirring up trouble.

As I read on, and in subsequent conversations with him, I learned more about what he meant by "white privilege" and what it really means to a Christian of color. It pops up in movies as jokes. Remember in Men in Black II? Wil Smith's character, J clicks a remote and a realistic robot driver pops up behind the wheel. K, his partner asks "Did that come standard?" J answers, "No, it came with a black guy, but he kept getting pulled over."

The fact is that racial profiling still occurs. It's something light-skinned people don't really have to concern themselves about on a day to day basis. And while you and I might not be racist, we can't even begin to think that everyone feels the same.

I'm not saying that there are not hate-mongers of all colors. Oddly enough, racism crosses all ethnic, social, and cultural boundaries. No matter our skin color, we all bleed red, and we were all born sinners.

And I'm not saying that we can make up for the years of slavery that the ancestors of my friends suffered through by any means. But I can realize the impact that the mindset from that time has on today's treatment of people of color. 

So what am I saying? Don't assume that because a black/hispanic/dark-skinned/non-caucasian talks about white privilege that they are racist or angry at all white people. Realize that they must deal with a part of our culture, that light skinned people have not faced, at least not in this country, in this generation.

I am thankful for my friends of all shades. Being raised in the deep South, and very, very white, and just barely old enough to remember what a big deal integration was, I have become, in God's timing, pretty much color blind. Ignorance and hate come packaged in all shades of skin. But so does love and graciousness. Notice a friend's skin color for one reason: to help you realize one of the struggles they may face each day.

Glow in the dark white, with a lot of "shady" friends,
Teapotjan