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What’s a “Safe
Black?”
By Roy Douglas Malonson |
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It seems that our May 25-31, 2005 front-page
feature (“Black Role Models Needed: ‘Safe African Americans’ are
endangered”) struck a nerve, insofar as Michael Harris, the host of
“Person-to-Person,” the Greater Houston area’s most controversial talk
show, not only read the article on air, but continued to discuss it with
his callers. If you’re asking, “So what?” you haven't tuned into
Person-to-Person that’s aired from 8 a.m.-12 noon Monday thru Friday on
KCOH (1430 AM) radio. Harris has no shame in his game when he routinely
uses articles from the Houston Chronicle, or TV news reports, rather
than perusing a Black newspaper, to select topics that he considers are
worthy of discussing with his mostly Black radio audience.
We Must Understand, it was a big thing for Harris to choose a topic from
African American News & Issues to discuss. Not to mention inviting the
writer to call and explain himself. An e-mail later validates: “I caught
about 5 to 8 minutes of your conversation with Michael today. I missed
the beginning of the phone call. First and foremost, I am glad you were
able to, not only speak on the show after Mondays' talk, but to have the
rules bend for you so you could speak two days in a row was very
impressive. I just pray that I can hold true to my decision to stay
clear of all talk shows, other than to listen in from time to time.
Uncle Bud, my hopes and my prayers will always be with you. You're a
crazy old man that can't be replaced by anyone, and I love you like
family- Kenneth ‘Poor Boy’ Dawian.” “Insofar as our old African warrior
is first to admit that he drifts into The Outer Limits of decency, we
re-read his article. Perhaps, we’re prejudice (when it comes to our
writer’s Black perspectives), but we found nothing offensive in the
article, unless one fails to grasp the concept of what mainstream
America calls a “Safe Black.” Especially since the article ex-plained
why the designation could mislead one to believe that the writer was
cunningly comparing upward mobile, patriotic Blacks--that pledge
alliance to the flag of the United States-- to Harriet Beecher Stowe’s
fictional slave character in her Uncle Tom’s Cabin. In addition, when
you think about the docile slave who would die to protect a White child,
you realize that he really was no different from many loyal Black people
in 2005 America.
We Must Understand, there’s no sane reason why career oriented Black
males should be offended if corporate America considers them safe enough
to make them supervisors and board members in their enterprises? Isn’t
that what Black parents and educators have been preaching to their kids
for years? Isn’t that where Bill Cosby is coming from? Fact is, an even
better question is what’s a “Safe Black” from a political correct White
person’s perspective? On one hand elitist African Americans teach their
children to conduct themselves like educated, honest, well raised, good
people. On the other hand, they consider it an insult to be considered a
safe person by White America. It’s no wonder why Black youths are so
confused and "throwed off.” Denial aside, African Americans can’t have
it both ways. As the old folks use to say, “You can’t hunt with the
hounds and run with the foxes.” Or was it, “You can’t have your cake and
eat it too.” Either you are an angry Black person who’s ‘mad as hell and
ain’t gonna take no more,” or one that conforms and performs to the best
of your ability. So why apologize for striving for success? You know and
we know that very few Black businesses will hire young people with
dreadlocks and self-anointed Black Muslim names. Even if it’s only an X.
Surely, you agree that it’s bad enough for kids to be burden with some
of the creative names that their parents give them. What we’re saying
is, it’s ridiculous to call White employers racist if they don’t hire
kids who walk into an interview with their caps turned backwards and
their pants hanging off their behinds. Need we even discuss why our
provocative dressed young women might not get a job? Yes, we fully
understand that (from a Black perspective) there’s a lot more to being
considered a “Safe Black.” Even so, the same rules apply to any
ethnicity. Cutting to the chase, would you hire a person that scares
you? You don’t have to answer that question if you truly have a problem
with being called a “Safe Black.” |
