Remembering George Floyd - The Day America Died

... If you are silent, you are complicit ...

Names of the Dead taken into custody by the Police

The idea of a fair and just Utopian Democracy may ever be a dream

in the politics of societies saying one thing but doing another.

- R.E. Slater

Love of Things over Love of People
by R.E. Slater

When we place things over people we get "law and order" societies unwilling to show compassion to those who need help, who need equality and justice, to be seen and heard. Yes, I am speaking to those societies which do not consider Black Lives Matter (BLM) as worthy enough to be seen over the objects and assets of their lives.

Though I might advocate for non-violence and respect of property my main concern is for my brothers and sisters who are less important to society than buildings, cars, and shops. So, let me speak directly then to WHITE concerns over rioting contra the propaganda machines that won't speak to it short of calling in the police, National Guard, and military. Mind you, no repentance. No compassion. But a self-interested protection of things over people.

The Boston Tea Party

The dream of America began at a riot we know as "the Boston Tea Party". It said the American Colonials had had enough of oppression. It said, "the injustice of our position is wrong and we're going to do something about it." Thus, America was born against insufferable British colonialism.

However, at the ratification of the US Constitution the dream stopped at privileged landowners whose Constitution did not go far enough to respect and honor all people, sexes, races, and nationalities. It needed to be adjusted, to be amended, to include the polypluralism it hinted at but hadn't fully enacted.

What happened next? Historically, the NYC white ghetto riots; the Civil War against slavery; the cruelty of the KKK and Jim Crow laws for a hundred years; the Depression and loss of worldly goods of the 30s and 40s; LBJ's social reforms and MLK's Civil Rights marches of the 60s; more enforcement against these marches by institutions bearing clubs, water hoses, and trained dogs to harm and brutalize by WHITE hatred and suppression.

Calls to Action

ver these more recent past decades as "Rodney-King-like" deaths mount up over and over and over again, words are exchanged, things are done, but dominant white cultural attitudes still continued. Along with the deaths of Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd, and a host of recent Blacks, Latinos, Asians, Gays, and Transgender assaults, killings, jailings, maxed-out prisons, poverty, low education, low job opportunities, and other tragedies.

When we bend a knee at the football stadium we bend our knees together. We don't fire the player. Call them names. Tell them their unpatriotic and undeserving of WHITE America by denying their right to demonstrate against WHITE privilege.

We use every means necessary - including the church pulpit - to stand up to white bigotry, racism, and discrimination. And we don't stand mute on social media and news platforms uttering dehumanizing slurs and racial ideologies dripping with WHITE privilege about thugs, property is more important, Blue Lives Matter, and self-serving injustices like that.

We stand up for those who can't stand up for themselves. We shout from the rooftops our support and solidarity with those dying at the hands of a system making it even harder to live under the laws of those stacking the courts and creating policies against non-whites.

Silence is an evil. Media sloganeering and slandering is another great darkness. Disinformation, deflection, blaming, gaslighting, and lying testify to a compassionless state of apartheidism. We join the war with our brothers and sisters by standing up to racism and social injustice. We say something. We do something. We march and cry and suffer with our family. In the end, we re-enact our solidarity as true Americans all the way down to our revolutionary roots! 

R.E. Slater

May 31, 2020
rev. June 6, 2020

Now or Never!

by Unapologetic Black Men

We're not Thugs

We’re Educated

We’re Doctors

We’re Innovators

We’re Lawyers

We’re Entrepreneurs

We’re Survivors

We’re Mathematicians

We’re Nurses

We’re Profeesionals

- UBM

Be prepared for the consequences that come with racial profiling,

discrimination and the murdering of Blacks and Latinos by Police.

A way of healing Black and White communities alike

is to share acts of love with one another. We cannot

enter a Promised Land overflowing with honey and

light if we do not enter it together.

𝐏𝐈𝐓𝐘 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐍𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍

Adapted by R.E. Slater

from American poet, Lawrence Ferlinghetti

who adapted it from, Khalil Gibran

Pity the nation

whose people are sheep,

whose shepherds mislead them,

whose saviors are money and power.

Pity the nation whose leaders are liars,
whose sages are silenced,
whose bigots haunt the airwaves,
whose medal-of-freedom winners are racists.

Pity the nation that raises not its voice,
except to praise its murderous conquerers,

acclaiming bullies as heroes,

whose rule comes by force and oppression.

Pity the nation which knows
no language but its own,
no culture nor relgion but its own,
no wisdom but its own racists logic.

Pity the nation whose breath is money,

which sleeps the sleep of the too well fed,

living life as a waking dream,

content and at ease to tragedies around.

Pity the nation,

Oh, pity the people,

which allow their rights to erode,

their freedoms to be washed away.

"My country, tears of thee,
Sweet lands of liberty,
Of thee I sing,
Let Freedom ring!"

- res/lf/kg

Marian Anderson Sings at Lincoln Memorial

Marian Anderson, contralto, was denied the right to perform at Constitution Hall by the Daughters of the Revolutions (DAR) because of her color. Instead, and at the urging of Eleanor Roosevelt, Harold Ickes permitted her to perform at the Lincoln Memorial on April 9, 1939. Songs: (a) The Star-Spangled Banner, (b) My Country, ‘tis of Thee

Patriotic Song Lyrics

"My Country, 'Tis of Thee"

Lyrics written by Samuel Francis Smith

My country, 'tis of thee,

Sweet land of liberty,

Of thee I sing;

Land where my fathers died,

Land of the pilgrims' pride,

From ev'ry mountainside

Let freedom ring!

My native country, thee,

Land of the noble free,

Thy name I love;

I love thy rocks and rills,

Thy woods and templed hills;

My heart with rapture thrills,

Like that above.

Let music swell the breeze,

And ring from all the trees

Sweet freedom's song;

Let mortal tongues awake;

Let all that breathe partake;

Let rocks their silence break,

The sound prolong.

Our fathers' God to Thee,

Author of liberty,

To Thee we sing.

Long may our land be bright,

With freedom's holy light,

Protect us by Thy might,

Great God our King.

---

Additional verse to celebrate Washington's Centennial:

Our joyful hearts today,

Their grateful tribute pay,

Happy and free,

After our toils and fears,

After our blood and tears,

Strong with our hundred years,

O God, to Thee.

---

Additional verses by Henry van Dyke:

We love thine inland seas,

Thy groves and giant trees,

Thy rolling plains;

Thy rivers' mighty sweep,

Thy mystic canyons deep,

Thy mountains wild and steep,--

All thy domains.

Thy silver Eastern strands,

Thy Golden Gate that stands

Fronting the West;

Thy flowery Southland fair,

Thy North's sweet, crystal air:

O Land beyond compare,

We love thee best!

---

Additional Abolitionist verses

by A. G. Duncan, 1843

My country, 'tis of thee,

Stronghold of slavery, of thee I sing;

Land where my fathers died,

Where men man’s rights deride,

From every mountainside thy deeds shall ring!

My native country, thee,

Where all men are born free, if white’s their skin;

I love thy hills and dales,

Thy mounts and pleasant vales;

But hate thy negro sales, as foulest sin.

Let wailing swell the breeze,

And ring from all the trees the black man’s wrong;

Let every tongue awake;

Let bond and free partake;

Let rocks their silence break, the sound prolong.

Our father’s God! to thee,

Author of Liberty, to thee we sing;

Soon may our land be bright,

With holy freedom’s right,

Protect us by thy might, Great God, our King.

It comes, the joyful day,

When tyranny’s proud sway, stern as the grave,

Shall to the ground be hurl’d,

And freedom’s flag, unfurl’d,

Shall wave throughout the world, O’er every slave.

Trump of glad jubilee!

Echo o’er land and sea freedom for all.

Let the glad tidings fly,

And every tribe reply,

"Glory to God on high," at Slavery’s fall.

*Copyright: Lyrics © Original Writer and Publisher 



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"American Dream" by Monique Chalk
Monique Chalk Original, live at Home, NYC 1982

The Day the Universe Changed

Today's post-truth societies writes its own narratives based

upon its own agendas. Jesus said to love one another. If our

beliefs are not humane, or humanely enacted, then we are

not loving one another.- res

Episode 10 - Worlds Without End: Changing Knowledge, Changing Reality

Song - The Lost Day (Remastered 2004) | Artist - Brian Eno

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George Floyd's Death Site Set on Flames

The President of the United States, Donald Trump, calls Black protestors "Thugs"

but White demonstrators packing guns and weaponry who are chafing at Covid-19

Stay-at-Home orders from "that woman in Michigan" he calls "Very Good People."

For seven days Black Lives Matter Protestors Stormed America (May-June, 2020)

Protests over George Floyd's death while in police custody spreads to Europe, Australia, Ireland,
and around the world showing with demonstrators in the USA | CNN's Nic Robertson reports.

For seven days Black Lives Matter Protestors Stormed America (May-June, 2020)

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Red and yellow, black and white, they are precious in his sight... 

Lyrics

Jesus loves the little children,
All the children of the world,
Red, brown, yellow,
Black and white,
They are precious in His sight,
Jesus loves the little children
Of the world.

Jesus died for all the children,

All the children of the world,

Red, brown, yellow,

Black and white,

They are precious in His sight,

Jesus died for all the children

Of the world.

Jesus rose for all the children,

All the children of the world,

Red, brown, yellow,

Black and white,

They are precious in His sight,

Jesus rose for all the children

Of the world.

Songwriters: Donna J. Krieger / George F. Root

Jesus Loves the Little Children lyrics ©

Warner Chappell Music, Inc,

Universal Music Publishing Group,

Music Services, Inc.

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Is America a Christian Nation?

Not On Your Life!

by Rance Darity

June 1, 2020

God only made one Christian nation, and guess what, it is an international body of brothers and sisters from every nation, kindred, tongue, and people.

And it can only be so, because Jesus loves red, yellow, black, and white. The same can never be said about America.

I know some of you worship America, it’s written all over you. And yet this is a pagan practice. If Christian theology teaches us anything, it teaches we become what we worship.

Rance Darity

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Woes to Scribes and Pharisees

Luke 11:37-54, KJV

1Then spake Jesus to the multitude, and to his disciples, 2Saying, The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat: 3All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not. 4For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers. 5But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments, 6And love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues, 7And greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi. 8But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren. 9And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven. 10Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ. 11But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant. 12And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.

13But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.

14Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation.

15Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.

16Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor!

17Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold? 18And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty.

19Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift? 20Whoso therefore shall swear by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon. 21And whoso shall swear by the temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth therein. 22And he that shall swear by heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon.

23Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone. 24Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel.

25Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. 26Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also.

27Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness. 28Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.

29Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous, 30And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. 31Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets. 32Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers. 33Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?

34Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city: 35That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar. 36Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation.

Lament over Jerusalem

Luke 13:31-35, KJV

37O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! 38Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. 39For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.

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Minneapolis Police Murder George Floyd

[warning: graphic video]

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Suggested Books to read about Racism

Rather than air our regularly scheduled episode, we felt it was important to step back and promote educational resources by people of color. It is crucial for white folks to learn more about the racism and injustice so many in our country face and work to dismantle the systems that perpetuate it. Please read, watch, and listen to some of the following.

- The B4NP Team

Articles

• Ibram X. Kendi’s Articles in The Atlantic

• The 1619 Project Articles in The New York Times

Books

• Me & White Supremacy: Combat Racism, Change the World, & Become a Good Ancestor by Layla F. Saad

• How to Be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi

• Trouble I’ve Seen: Changing the Way the Church Views Racism by Drew G. I. Hart

• I’m Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness by Austin Channing Brown

• The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander

• The Cross & the Lynching Tree by James H. Cone

• Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson

• Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates

• The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin

Videos & Movies

• 13th by Ava DuVernay (Netflix)

• I Am Not Your Negro

Podcasts

• The 1619 Project Podcast

• Codeswitch from NPR