Can You Hear Me Now?

by with 2 Comments CultureFeaturedRace Relations

[New Contributor]

Remember the old Verizon catchphrase? Imagine if, you will, an entire country of disenfranchised African-Americans screaming that right now. Is anyone listening??  

Let me preface this with the fact that I am a White male. I know the privilege I was born into and I also know that simply based on my skin color I will NEVER know the level of anger felt by my African-American countrymen and women these last few days. Now that we have gotten that out of the way, I have one simple message to the masses protesting: “Burn this bitch down.”

If that sounds familiar to you, it should. Michael Brown’s stepfather uttered this phrase in 2014. Let me say that again for the racists in the back… TWO THOUSAND FOURTEEN. 

Here’s my point…

For all of you telling protesters that they are taking this too far, I would argue that they may not be taking it far enough. 6 years after Ferguson and the same shit keeps happening over and over and over again. When all the public outrage ends and the celebrities point their tweets in a different direction, the clock starts on the next injustice and the cycle repeats.

So I ask all of you (mostly White) people, what would you do?

You showed up to a government building with assault rifles because the government had the nerve to ask you to stay at home for the greater good. I shudder to think what would happen if suddenly the White race was consistently and intentionally targeted by cops for simply being White. So save your outrage. I say “burn that bitch down.” If you wanna hang your hat on the “Most cops are good” argument I say this: You’re right but there are enough bad ones that this brutality keeps happening, so I say “burn this bitch down’.” There are no more arguments to defend this behavior and if you have one, YOU’RE the problem. 

Can you hear me now??

Similar Read: Ahmaud Murdered… What’s Next? Who’s Next?

Black Man in America

by with 3 Comments CultureFeaturedRace Relations

[New Contributor]

A Black man in America has been called a nigger (spelling it fully because I won’t candy-coat this one to make people feel more comfortable) three times to his face as a racial slur, if you were wondering. Each time it was said by a uniformed police officer on duty.

A Black man in America has had guns pulled on him by police officers 4 different times. Each time thankfully ended with no gunshots. Each time ended in no arrests or charges. Each time, that Black man in America was unarmed.

A Black man in America has been arrested without being told why, only to have those charges later dismissed. That Black man in America was denied phone calls for over 24 hours and not told the grounds for the arrest. That Black man in America was later charged with a “blue law” enacted in the 1800s to combat tuberculosis outbreaks. “Blue laws” are laws that cost too much to repeal but are uniformly not enforced. That Black man in America was called a nigger during this arrest and told his people look good in cages.

A Black man in America has been detained as a child under 10 years old by police, while said police “investigate” criminal activity. 

A Black man in America has been pulled over for having a rear tire low on air. That same Black man in America has been pulled out of a car and detained while waiting to get a flat tire fixed by AAA during a snowstorm. That same Black man in America has been questioned about a souvenir bat from a baseball game, as if it were a deadly weapon. 

A Black man in America has been stopped in his car with his family by an unconstitutional checkpoint and threatened with unlawful tickets and searches in front of his child. When a complaint was filed by the Black man in America about that experience, the same supervising officer that conducted the checkpoint came to that Black man in America’s door to intimidate him into not proceeding with the complaint, waking his child during the late hour of 10 pm.

A Black man in America’s worst fear is police violence. Every. Single. Day. 

Every. Single. Time. He. Leaves. His. Home. 

Every. Single. Day. In. His. Home.

That Black man in America is me.

Similar Read: The Coronavirus Pandemic Should Be the Jumpstart to a Revolution?

AMERICAN NOIR

by with No Comment CultureFeaturedRace Relations

“Fuck you! You black asshole!” is what she shouted as she poured the contents of her alcoholic drink all over me.

I had just arrived at a crowded bar in midtown Manhattan to meet a few colleagues for happy hour after work. We were huddled in casual conversation when someone walked by and forcefully pushed me as they were walking by; so much so, that I bumped into my colleague standing across from me. Agitated, I turned around to the culprit and said, “You can say excuse me!”, to which she responded with the racially charged epithet mentioned above. An uncomfortable silence fell over my colleagues as they were aghast by her racially charged remark and wondered aloud if people “like that” still existed.

The story got worse from that point but those details are not important. What is important is that these racially charged moments of aggression are potentially lurking around every corner of the Black experience. I could tell of the time when I was in high school, walking home from basketball practice in my catholic school uniform, when two police officers jumped the curb and drew their guns on my teammate and I. I could tell of the time I was in Atlanta when a cop pulled me over in my rental car and said, “Boy, get me your [rental] papers, I want to make sure this is yours,” before I was then pulled over again less than 3 minutes later by another cop who told me that my headlights were not on (it was 2 pm). I could tell of the time when an ex-girlfriend’s roommate was disgusted that she let a Black man take a shower in their bathroom. I could tell of the time when I was at the Intercontinental in Mexico and the hotel manager said to my friends, “Your Black friend isn’t welcome here.”

All of those horrible incidents of racial aggression don’t add up to the constant barrage of racial microaggressions that occur on a daily basis in the Black experience. Psychology Today defines racial microaggressions as, “brief and commonplace daily verbal, behavioral, or environmental indignities, whether intentional or unintentional, that communicate hostile, derogatory, or negative racial slights and insults towards people of color.”

Standing at 6’1” with a muscular build, I have a comparatively large physical presence. Layered on top of that is the fact that I am proudly dark skinned, so you might better understand some of the microaggressions that occur in my daily Black experience. However, what some may seem to forget, is that before all of those descriptors, I am a hominid (i.e. a human) with dignity.

(Dignity…)

When I walked into business meetings dressed in a suit and got asked where I played football, I know it was an attempt to erode my dignity. When I conducted a meeting and was then asked where I received my education, I know it was an attempt to erode my dignity. Being chased down and emasculated by another visiting employee at my office, who didn’t realize that I also worked there because I was casually dressed, was an attempt to erode my dignity. Conversely, last night, while wearing a custom tux and repeatedly being asked security type questions is an attempt to erode my dignity. Having to suppress my frustrations in fear of being labeled an “angry Black man” while White colleagues have the ability to freely express their frustrations, is an attempt to erode my dignity. Not seeing any Black executives at the company by which you’re employed, is an attempt to erode my dignity. Being told, “you’re not like those Black people,” when you absolutely are just like your Black brothers and sisters, is an attempt to erode my dignity. Being told that you don’t sound like you were born and raised in Brooklyn because you’re well-spoken, is an attempt to erode my dignity. People that have told me that they, “don’t see race,” are attempting to erode my dignity.  Going on a date and being told, “I know I’ve put on too much weight when Black guys start hitting on me,” is an attempt to erode my dignity. Dating someone who says, “my family will never accept you,” is an attempt to erode my dignity. Seeing the recurring violence against Black bodies and the equally as divisive rhetoric that follows on social platforms, is an attempt to erode my dignity. If this reads as an overwhelming paragraph of experiences then just imagine living it every day.  

Then there are the psychological questions that begin to fester in my mind because of the racial climate in which we live. Constantly wondering if I am walking too close to someone thereby putting their feelings above my own, is a subtle attempt to erode my dignity. Sitting across from a new prospective client and wondering how does this person view Black people, is a subtle attempt to erode my dignity. Walking out of an interview and wondering if you will or will not get the job on the merit of your experience and not because of the color of your skin, is a subtle attempt to erode my dignity. All of these thoughts come in a flash but can tally up over the course of time to weigh on one’s psyche.

The experiences above are not shared by my White colleagues and friends and therefore we lack the equality that the Declaration of Independence illustrates. Ignoring this difference continues to marginalize our experience as humans with darker epidermis. Despite the aggressions and microaggressions lurking around any given corner, Black people across the diaspora are not victims, we are mighty victors in the face of an ongoing attempt to rob us of a dignity that we hold so dear. But we will not crumble to any perils that may be lurking around any corners because as Maya Angelou wrote, “I am the dream and the hope of the slave. I rise. I rise. I rise.”

Similar Read: Amy’s Gotta Problem

Amy’s Gotta Problem

by with One Comment CultureFeaturedRace Relations

There is an ire of intentionality behind white violence against black people. But white violence against black men has been at the forefront lately. As I write this post, America has just been introduced to another death of a black man at the hands of a white police officer. There’s something about the history of black oppression in this country that today’s news just lays on the thickest layer of grief a black person in America can feel. Although George Floyd’s life needs to be shared, this story, unfortunately, isn’t about him. 

It’s about Amy Copper and her attempt to threaten and likely kill a black innocent man. It’s deep. While Christian Cooper (not related) was in Central Park’s Ramble bird watching he noticed an unleashed dog. That is illegal in the Ramble and they have clear instructions on their website. He asked the dog’s owner, Amy Cooper, if she could please leash her dog. Among other things, unleashed dogs can harm other animals and humans. Instead of simply complying with a stated law, Amy decides to challenge Christian who then begins to record their interaction with his cell phone. 

It’s important to note that this was his single greatest weapon during this interaction. What ensued thereafter is beyond reproach. Amy begins to approach him and he asks her to back up and she points at him and threatens to call the police. What gave Amy the right to threaten police on an unarmed and non-threatening man? She clearly didn’t like that he asked her to leash her dog and used his race as a weapon to call the police. It was truly disgusting to witness via Christian’s video footage, but it was real. 

The threat of white violence utilizing police is disgusting. Amy emphasized that Christian was African-American in her call to the police. She said he was threatening her and her dog, whom by this time she was visibly chocking because she refused to leash it. Christian continued to record and posed no threat to her. Amy continued to Amy until finally leashing her dog and Christian thanked her and walked away. The ending shows that the police did arrive, but did not find Amy or Christian there because there was no real threat. There was only a disgruntled dog walker and a frustrated bird watcher who had an ugly interaction. 

But we can’t leave this topic without thinking of the many times a 911 call has been used as key proof in a case against someone. Amy, without hesitation, called and told the police an African-American man was threatening her life. As we think about how easily a false accusation could have caused this Black man to lose his liberty or his life it is truly infuriating. What’s infuriating was Amy’s disregard for his life. In a follow-up interview, she told CNN “I’m not racist. I do not mean to harm that man in any way.”

Amy calling the police was intended harm. Highlighting his race on the call was intended harm. Faking an emergency to call the police was intended harm. Having your dog unleashed in an area that is illegal was intended harm. 

Christian was simply asking Amy to comply with a stated law. Amy attempted harm and now expects her apology to suffice. This is trauma. This is black trauma. This is black male trauma. The Amy’s of the world must be stopped. And the Christian’s of the world must continue to record and share.

Similar Read: Are We Surprised?

Are We Surprised?

by with 7 Comments CultureFeaturedGen Z

It’s all over the news. Another black man was murdered. Two white men chased and shot Ahmaud Arbery in broad daylight and they sat peacefully in their home for months, without remorse or conviction for what they had done. Ahmaud Arbery’s shooting comes as no surprise to me but I, like many black and brown people across the nation, am grieving.

Amidst COVID-19, black and brown families are suffering – from physical health problems, hunger, distress, and many ailments brought by a long history of inequalities. However, Ahmaud’s shooting hit me hard. I often would try to stay fit by jogging outside my neighborhood. How do I know I won’t be shot like Ahmaud? My brother, a tall skinny runner who recently took up jogging outside, could have been a younger Ahmaud, a Trayvon Martin or Tamir Rice. The black community has no time to grieve. The black community must deal with the current pandemic AND the threat of white nationalism and violence. We are being hunted at the mercy of others, machismo wrapped in the enjoyment of killing prey and the prey happened to be an innocent man jogging. Words cannot describe the feelings surrounding his death. I am concerned but more so angry at those who turn their cheek to injustices. I am concerned that non-black communities are turning a blind eye to murder, with the same lack of remorse and convictions as the killers.

We live in a day and age where social justice is popular, acknowledging the strife of vulnerable communities is popular, and passively advocating for black and brown communities is popular as well. One post for non-black communities “should” be enough to show support. However, those who post are returning to their everyday lives and environments where black lives do not matter. They don’t have to matter and if they do, they are inconvenient and burdensome. The question is how are non-black and brown communities changing the discourse about black men and women in their own communities? What are they doing to curb negative views of black and brown people? How do they truly see us on a day to day basis? As we can see, perceptions are stronger than reality and black folk are perceived as dangerous.

The lives of individuals in power take precedent over ours. Even more so, is the view that racism only happens in the South and the South is to blame for these incidents. Don’t get me wrong. The South has had a long and complicated history with racism. However, I do not believe that racist acts and murders only happen in the South. If anything, Ahmaud’s murderers possess a white identity that is reflective of white people across the nation. That blacks do not belong, are dangerous, and they are beneath that of white folks. No matter their athletic ability and likeability, we are still animals, and nothing will change that. 

Similar Read: Justice for Ahmaud?

How Many More?

by with No Comment CultureFeaturedGen Z

I constantly find myself mourning people I’ve never met. The eulogies are the same, but with different names. This time, his name is Ahmaud Arbery, aged 25 and was about to be 26 on May 8th. 

He too fell victim to his skin, the same color as the chocolate that his murderers probably like to eat. Only in the form of candy is Blackness palatable to racism. 

Ahmaud was just out for his daily run. Many people do this; even through this quarantine people are still outside exercising. But isn’t the perception of Black boys and Black men running that they’re ‘usually running from something’? 

On February 23rd in Brunswick, Georgia, Gregory and Travis McMichael were playing vigilante the way George Zimmerman did. Boy and man alike, neither Trayvon nor Ahmaud ‘could have been up to any good’ just running or going to the corner store. 

The McMichaels saw a Black man running in their neighborhood, which couldn’t have been for a reason as innocent and simple as him exercising. 

There had been a series of burglaries in the McMichaels’ neighborhood. I can understand being suspicious of people coming and going that don’t live there. However, would they have pursued him in a truck with trigger happy fingers and guns had he been White instead? 

The way a person runs for leisure and exercise looks entirely different from someone running from a crime, or their death. I suppose it all looked the same to the McMichaels. So yes, Ahmaud was a Black man running from something alright. 

They were the ones armed and dangerous. The McMichaels grabbed a shotgun and a handgun before jumping in their truck to follow Ahmaud. Ahmaud was armed only with the prayer that every Black parent has: that he returns home the same way he left out. Alive. 

What baffles me is how long it took for the McMichaels to be arrested. Two and a half months after the incident, these murderers were just arrested on Thursday, May 7th, and charged with murder and aggravated assault. This only happened because a video of the murder was finally brought to light. 

What baffles me is how William Bryan, the man who took a video of the murder, took this long to turn it over to authorities. He let the McMichaels walk around as free men for two and half months more. He let Ahmaud’s murder almost be waved off as “self-defense.” 

I’m not saying that he and his family deserve the death threats that they’re receiving. I don’t know how I feel about him being charged with murder either. Withholding evidence in an ongoing investigation? That is something I’d charge him with because there is absolutely no reason why he felt it to be better to just hold onto this footage of Ahmaud’s last moments for months. 

I understand that he was afraid in the moment the murder occurred. I would be too. Just taking the video was probably the best he could do because he put his safety and his family’s safety first. But what about Ahmaud’s safety? What about the family that Ahmaud won’t be able to create because he is dead? What about the goals and dreams and aspirations that this man had that cannot be fulfilled? 

We have a right to be outraged. Racial profiling is continuing to cut down Black bodies. How many more need to die before it is safe for us to be Black and American? Will we ever be safe in our Blackness? Will we ever be American?

Similar Read: Ahmaud Murdered… What’s Next? Who’s Next?

Ahmaud Murdered… What’s Next? Who’s Next?

by with 3 Comments CultureFeaturedRace Relations

[New Contributor]

Over two months ago, Ahmaud Arbery was viciously attacked and murdered in cold blood. In America, where the African-American community has some of the highest rates of obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, and renal failure, he was doing his part to contribute to lowering the modifiable risks of those diseases by simply exercising. Instead of looking at this young man jog and being inspired to do the same or simply just minding their own business, George and Travis McMichael decided to stalk and murder him. In broad daylight, in the middle of the street, and while being recorded, his life was stolen. His future, his destiny, his goals, all snatched from his grip.

It’s pointless to ask why because we all know the answer to that question. This mentality of hate and discrimination is handed down from generation to generation like a family heirloom.  The feeling of superiority that some are taught comes with simply being born. The delusional concept that they were appointed by God to keep us in line and remind us of our place which is under their feet. What’s even more outrageous is the fact that Ahmaud’s mother was told by investigators that he was attempting to burglarize someone’s home and the owner of the home killed him in an attempt to protect their property.  A blatant lie to cover for their former colleague. The investigators knew there was video, his murderers knew it was being recorded. Yet both proceeded. It was not enough that the story of Ahmaud’s death began to circulate, it took the leaked video of his execution and public outcry to cause the D.A. office to send this to a grand jury. Instead of arresting and charging two callous cold-blooded killers, they sent it to the grand jury to allow them to make the decision.

In the same country where a 16-year-old Kalief Browder was arrested and jailed for three years with no bail hearing, charge, or conviction for allegedly stealing a backpack… this is a disgusting reminder of this country’s history. My people were considered three fifths of a person, seen as nothing more than property. People like George and Travis McMichael are comparable to patty rollers that were paid to hunt slaves and drag them back to their plantation and allowed to have their way with them until they returned. In fact, patty rollers are the precursor of what we now know as police. There’s no possible way for me to articulate my feelings after seeing that video. We’ve prayed, marched, sang, kneeled, and there is no end in sight. As a wife, mother, sister, daughter, aunt, and friend of Black men I’m not only frightened for them, but I’m exhausted from the worry. The attempted cover up from the D.A.’s office is sickening. The silence of our tweeting president is sickening.

What’s next is my question. However, what I fear most is the question, who’s next?

Similar Read: Justice for Ahmaud?

Why Do They Hate Us?

by with No Comment CultureFeatured

The Coronavirus pandemic has completely shut down the world. Way too many lives have been lost globally, yet here in the United States we have a narcissistic president that refuses to own up to his own failures and take responsibility for allowing thousands of Americans to die despite warning after warning. Loved ones are not allowed to say their last goodbyes and people are dying alone in hospitals and being placed in body bags just to be stacked in makeshift coolers. This can’t be how life goes from here on out, or is it?

Recent reports show that Black and Brown people are contracting the virus at a much higher rate, which has ultimately led to higher death rates in their communities as well. Yet again, you have the president of the US (that seeks to be the next dictator) pushing for all states to open up without regards to what medical professionals have suggested, which is for states to not remove their “stay-at-home” orders.

Trump initially stated he wanted to open the country up for Easter but that was walked down by Dr. Anthony Fauci. Then weeks later the report came out about Black and Brown people. Immediately, thereafter the president re-engaged the topic of opening up the economy. My thoughts are, the second the report was released, he saw the opportunity to allow this pandemic to kill off as many Black and Brown people as possible. How ironic knowing that the majority of Black people will vote against him in the upcoming election which could help lead to his demise. He’s gone as far as fueling his base to protest Governors to open up their perspective states, totally disregarding stay-at-home restrictions and social distancing guidelines. His supporters even argue that they allegedly aren’t affected by the virus so the state should be up and running. How is this going to help heal the world and bring people together? It won’t!

To add insult to injury, social media and actual news coverage is reporting that Black people are being banned and denied access into multiple establishments in China. They are saying and believing that Black people are the cause for this virus. How obtuse is that? Especially when all signs have pointed to the Wuhan science lab as the sole bearer of this horrible pandemic. That is baffling to me. This leads to my question of why do they hate us so much… even in a time of crisis?

I Don’t Believe In Voting Blue No Matter Who

by with No Comment CultureFeaturedGen ZPolitics

The first time I heard the phrase “vote for the lesser of two evils,” was when Hillary Clinton was chosen as the Democratic Nominee for the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election. I’m sure we all remember that enthusiasm for Hillary was low. She was widely disliked and many people were devastated at having to choose between her and Trump, but criticisms of her were immediately shut down by people claiming “she’s the lesser of two evils.” Basically, no matter how many valid reasons people had for rejecting Hillary, they had no choice but to shut up and vote for her because her evil was easier to swallow than Trump’s. Fast forward to 2020, and I’m hearing the same arguments all over again. Joe Biden is the Democratic frontrunner and his so-called supporters are out in full force, silencing any and all criticisms. They’re saying to “vote blue no matter who” regardless of his many faults because anyone’s better than Trump. I disagree entirely and I’m honestly sick and tired of hearing these arguments. There are many problems with this kind of mindset and I think it’s both harmful and unproductive to promote it, so here are the reasons why I don’t believe in “voting blue no matter who/voting for the lesser of two evils.” 

One reason I’m not okay with these phrases is because they encourage people to settle for candidates that we *know* are unfit to lead us. We deserve better and should demand better from our elected officials, instead of just throwing our hands in the air and accepting a candidate who is proven to be unworthy in every way, shape and form. Progress is what I seek, and I know that settling for the status quo will get us nowhere.

I can’t accept “vote for the lesser of two evils” because in terms of Biden vs Trump, this phrase suggests that Joe Biden is somehow less evil than Donald Trump, which is a lie. In fact, I believe that Trump and Biden are the exact same brand of evil, the only difference being that Biden wears a blue MAGA hat while Trump wears a red one. There are too many similarities between the two, one being that Trump and Biden are both racist. Trump has labeled Mexicans as criminals and rapists, was sued by the U.S. Department of Justice for housing discrimination against Black people, proposed a ban against Muslims, and referred to African countries as “shithole countries” (these examples hardly scratch the surface of his history of racism). Biden was good friends with white supremacist James Eastland and gave a eulogy at the funeral of segregationist Strom Thurmond. He opposed desegregating schools because in his own words, he didn’t want his kids going to school in a “racial jungle.” He called Barack Obama “the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean,” said that “poor kids are just as bright and talented as White kids” during an Iowa town hall, and helped write the 1994 Crime Bill that expanded mass incarceration in the U.S. 

Other similarities between Trump and Biden? They’ve both been accused of sexual assault/harassment/uncomfortable physical contact by numerous women. Trump has accusations from 20+ women, while Biden has eight, (and has also been seen on video inappropriately touching underaged girls and smelling their hair). Both have disappointing track records on LGBTQ+ rights, both have credible accusations that they’re mentally unfit to be president, both have worked for administrations that put kids in cages, and both are warmongers. Now that I’ve laid out all the reasons why Biden and Trump are horrible in pretty much all the same ways, how exactly is one better than the other? Swapping out one bigot in chief for another is not a win, giving me no reason to rally behind either candidate. I’m a marginalized person and my marginalized community will be harmed by both Trump AND Biden, which is why I cannot just sit down and “vote blue no matter who”—and anyone who tries to bully others into doing so is blatantly choosing their party affiliation over their morals.

It’s time to kill the idea that we should choose a lesser evil over another, and that we have to vote blue no matter who. I need people to realize that politicians work for us, not the other way around, so we shouldn’t give up our power by accepting less than what we deserve and by being afraid to demand what we need from them. I also need people to realize that Donald Trump is not the sole reason for all the evil in this country and that replacing him with Biden will not put an end to it. In reality, Trump is a product of the evil in the U.S. and in order to make real change in this country, we must dismantle the systems that allow him to thrive, not just focus 100% of our energy on him. Since people will always do what they want regardless, I’m not going to end this article by telling anyone who to vote for. But I will tell you not to allow the direction of the 2020 election to make you feel hopeless, because regardless of who’s in office—whether it’s a Democrat or Republican, whether you love them or hate them, there is work that needs to be done. We must stay aware, stay involved, and look out for our fellow community members, because in the words of my good friend and one of the smartest, most passionate activists I know, Brooke Solomon…

“No president is going to save my community.”

While electing a president is important, it is not the only way to create change. The power lies within us. Real change exists outside of electoral politics, and we need to be the ones to create it.

Similar Read: The Coronavirus Pandemic Should Be the Jumpstart to a Revolution?

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The Myth of the Line: The Dog Whistle in the Immigration Debate

by with No Comment CultureFeaturedPolitics

Why do we believe what we believe – and how do we know we believe it?  This may sound overly simplistic, and I certainly do not intend for this to cause offense, but merely wish to state clearly that which is on my mind.  In short, there are things which are both complex and complicated. These things require knowledge to form a position, or to verify that the positions we have already identified in ourselves are valid ones.  And to that purpose, in steps a philosopher.

Epistemology is a philosophical process. It is the investigation of the foundations of our beliefs to determine if they are justified ones, or rather just opinions we have elevated to moral certainties.  Epistemology comes from two Greek words “episteme” (knowledge) and “logos” (reason). There exist a plethora of matters where your answer is instinctively known to you. To explain to others how or why you came to your answer; however, that is the rub.  That is also the step where we are most known to fudge a little because while it is most certainly hard to be honest with other people, it is often hardest to be honest with ourselves. To be honest with ourselves we have to decide whether the pool of knowledge upon which we have based our opinions is a valid foundation. If we are to do that honestly, we have to answer these questions about our knowledge: what does it truly mean to know anything, how much can any human being know, and what does the sum of human knowledge look like?  

There are different kinds of knowledge.  When a philosopher uses the word knowledge he or she strictly means that you know something is factually true.  This is called factive knowledge. You know the Earth is round – or you should anyway.  You can factively know how to perform or accomplish a task, such as how to bake biscuits (procedural knowledge).  Or, you can factively know a human being, such as knowing your cousin James. You can factively know all kinds of things that are of no concern to a serious philosopher.

What an Epistemologist wants to know, study, and express, is called propositional knowledge. Propositional knowledge is something that describes, or purports to describe, what is in a declarative manner.  For example, George W. Bush is a Republican; the Earth is round; it is immoral to value one human life more than another; it is unethical to separate children from their parents.

What kind of knowledge is required for ethical decisions?  If you are a person of faith and are asked if you believe in God, your answer is easily come by: yes.  If asked why or to otherwise discuss the intricacies of your faith, you would gladly concede that it is a complex matter. You would struggle in a discussion with the non-believer to prove that you have a justified basis for your belief system. Whether you love your spouse, whether you are for or against the death penalty, how you believe we should treat the homeless, whether or not you’re a capitalist these are things you know, and they are expressions of your value system.  The expression of this kind of knowledge is most valuable to politicians too, because they use it to seek to align themselves with your value expressions.

Epistemologists need to know whether the truth about a particular issue can or cannot be known by any human, or you, or all humans.  Then they would need to know if, were it possible to know a truth, we do know that truth. Philosophers also need to know if knowledge can be obtained without experience, using only reason (a priori knowledge), or if one must experience a thing to know it (empirical knowledge). Epistemologists make this determination by looking at three conditions: Belief, Truth; and Justification.  This is how they examine and know whether you or I know something.

This is not meant to be an overly technical philosophical examination of the basis of ethical decision-making, but merely intended to reframe how we view the various debates we engage in when we are in a socio-political sphere.  There is, of course, a branch of Epistemology that asks how a group can know something and how it acquires knowledge. But, for today’s purposes, we will just look at the conditions for knowledge: Belief, Truth, and Justification.  

The first condition notes that knowledge is a form of belief.  If we do not think about something, we do not believe anything about it.  If we do not believe anything about it, we do not possess any knowledge about it.  I do not think about how men’s pants fit because I do not wear them. I have no opinions about the issue, I have not considered the issue, neither am I currently thinking about nor entertaining a position on the matter, and I have never done so.  I know nothing about the fit of men’s pants because I believe nothing about men’s pants.  

Taken to its logical conclusion we could assume that most people do not know anything about 90% of the public policy issues which make up the debates we watch our politicians undertake when they run for office.  Most people do not go throughout their daily lives thinking about trade deficits or food stamp policy. But you know what they say about making assumptions. 

You see, these beliefs you have in your head that you are actively working through or thinking about, those are only one kind of beliefs: occurrent beliefs.  But most of our beliefs are non-occurrent beliefs.  These are beliefs which exist somewhere in the static, bred through thousands of years of evolution and nurture.  We as human beings are inherently tribal. For thousands of years, we existed and survived in groups as against other tribal groups.  This American ideal of the melting pot where we can fight against our impulses to pit “us” v. “them,” is relatively new when measured against the sum total of human history.  In our most secret hearts, we still make far too many of our decisions based on tribal instincts. Our tribe tells us what the answer is, how the other side is wrong – and we are all too happy to repeat that answer.  Thinking critically can separate you from your social circle and it can thin you out from the herd. That is inherently dangerous. As part of this self-feeding cycle, we do not always reward critical and independent thought. Simultaneously, we do not value or provide people with, the two things they most need to think critically: time and knowledge.  Instead, our background non-occurrent beliefs continue unchecked.  That is where truth comes in.  

You have to believe something to satisfy an Epistemologist’s first condition for knowledge, but that not enough on its own since you can believe something that is not true – lots of people do.  The goal of any moral person is to try to amass a set of true beliefs, and discard those which are false.  If you cannot satisfy the second condition of knowledge – Truth – you cannot know that thing.  If you believe the Earth is flat you are incorrect. We can and do know that such a belief is not so.  You cannot actually know the Earth is flat because to know such a thing is not possible in this sense.  And if truth is subjective then no one can know anything.  

But what if you believe something, and it is true, but you had no rational basis for it – can you really be said to know that thing?  According to the third condition of Epistemology – Justification – you cannot. After all, of what good is that “knowledge” if you could not repeat the process to form knowledge again?  For a belief you hold to be knowledge, it must be both true and rationally based. The most famous example of this is called the Gettier Problem. If the clock on my desk stopped working at 2:00 am last night, and I did not notice when I came into work, I might later in the day decide to look at it to determine what time I ought to leave for my 2:30 pm appointment.  If I were, by pure chance, to look at the clock at 2:00 pm and see the clock flashing 2:00, I would presume it is time to leave and correctly, grab my stuff and walk out the door. But I did not have a rational basis for my true belief that it was 2:00 pm. If I had not looked up then, but instead looked up at 1:15 pm I would have seen the same thing and left early. If I had in the alternative looked up at 3:15 pm, I would have seen the same thing, left, and been very late.  All three of these conditions: Belief, Truth, and Justification, must exist for there to be knowledge.

Unless you are a politician.

If you are a politician, you are not really concerned with why we believe what we believe, or if those beliefs are true – you are only interested in how those beliefs might be used to your benefit.  There is no benefit in telling the electorate of today that those carefully considered beliefs they hold are untrue, that they; therefore, do not know anything.  There is much value; however, in knowing what the electorate believes and believes they know.  If you know their beliefs, it is easy to invoke and design reaction.  When both sides participate in this unconsidered approach to knowledge, our public discourse devolves from that of an honest and well-intended marketplace of ideas, to a free-for-all that takes place in 180-character punches intended to anger and fear-monger.  When our untrue beliefs are reinforced by those in power, it can make them feel true.  And if they feel true, and we are told our tribe is reasonable, then they also feel justified, whether they are or not.  Now our untrue beliefs have become two things: faux knowledge, and a campaign slogan.  

Were a person interested in examples of such things, he or she might take a gander at Texas, where the Governor says he will no longer allow refugees to settle, and the political right does not even bat an eye.  They know this is ethical and moral because they believe those people do not belong here, and they know it is true.  This is obviously perfectly reasonable and consistent with their group position on legal vs. illegal immigration.  Amongst themselves, their tribe’s motives no longer need to be questioned – it is clear from the “record” that they are right, well-meaning, and promoting The American Way™.

But how can that be? One of the most common refrains in the immigration debate that we hear from the far right is that they as a group are (and we as a society should also be) “ok” with immigrants, but only when they are legal.  “We want legal immigrants,” they say, and, “We just cannot support any policy action that would incentivize people to keep coming here illegally!” They expect that all these great and unwashed masses should “Get In Line!™” Ah – but refugees already have – they are legal immigrants. Somehow, the political right knows that refugees do not belong in Texas, but also believe that legal immigrants belong, and that both such beliefs are true.  But they cannot both be true.  It would seem then, from the vantage point of intellectual consistency, this action and reaction alike expose the right’s long-held position on immigration reform as one based in racial enmity disguised as a concern for the Rule of Law.  I’m not sure it will matter though, if no one cares about knowing, and only about believing.

Over the next few weeks we will cover different aspects of the immigration system, and whether we can know that something is, or is not, the “right thing to do.”  No side will be completely blameless in this discussion.  Diatribes ring hollow from those who are also complicit in inaction.  Most of the harshest accusations of immorality, after all, will come from career politicians from the left who have, over decades of woke compassionate public service, done nothing to better the plight of those they claim to care about.  But from all I’ve seen growing up on the border, and later practicing immigration law for 10 years, so many desperate people are being taken advantage of. Their plight gets worse and more desperate and we do not have a plan to fix it.  What is more, we do not appear care if we have one. We almost do not even want a plan. Because if we had a plan, if we fixed it, how will we raise money for the election? How can we scare people? How can we prove we are morally superior if we have to first admit our beliefs must be true to know the answer?  

If you are the one being talked about, not doing the talking (or the voting), there is little moral difference between Trump and Obama’s Congresses if neither one has helped you. The refugee crisis is not new, and it is not over.  Racism against Hispanics and Latinos is a serious problem, but it did not start with the shooting in El Paso, or with Trump, or Obama. We have a compassion problem, and a love of money problem too. Which is worse you might ask – to openly declare racial enmity for a group of people, or to vow to help that group, and then refuse to do so in order that one might have the opportunity to campaign again in 2 years on something solid? The ticket to re-election, after all, is not owning the solution, but owning the promise.  That I think, for the unaccompanied minors and families destroyed from excessive and pointless deportations, is a question of degree, not of culpability in general. 

Plans are complicated – a lot more complicated than making money off the backs of society’s most vulnerable by running for-profit prisons camps masquerading as shelters.  We are importing and exporting misery, and using it as a marketing tool. In the process, we have created a new form of slavery and slave trading. These illegal immigrants we banter about and judge live in our shadows – they have no rights, no recourse, and we get rich off their labor.  In the meantime, no one has made the line shorter, or made more lines. We sure do love $4.00 a pound organic strawberries though. No one on either primary stage has made you one iota safer, and no one has helped these poor people – these “least of these.” No one has even bothered to try.  Immigration reform is one of those things which is neither complex nor easy. But how we treat immigrants has an easy answer: we treat them as our neighbor, as we would want to be treated. Why? Because they are us. That is a belief, it is true, it is knowable, and can be justified rationally.

We have another belief we know to be true, that we like to say we arrived at after careful rational thought: that we all have God-given rights and that these rights do not come from government nor from our Constitution.  Rather these are our natural rights, and our Constitution merely enshrines them. America, we know, is great because it recognizes that concept.  There seems to be a new caveat however: non-Americans have fewer rights than we do. All animals are equal. Some animals are more equal than others.

These beliefs cannot be opposite each other and represent knowledge, because they cannot both be true, and cannot both be justified.  If you believe both of those things, you do not know anything at all about who belongs here.  Insofar as Texas has a governor who claims to be a Christian, but blocks refugee settlement – the settlement of LEGAL immigrants, we also can no longer pretend that we were ever really upset that they did not “Get In Line™ .”  We do not have to pretend we were only against illegal immigration, because it can no longer be said to be a true belief.  It is a dog whistle.  It always was. It was always a way to make some animals more equal than others, and we are not fooling anyone anymore. Except maybe, ourselves.