Edd’s MANtra: Black on Black Hate Crime

While hanging out on Facebook at work the other day – don’t look at me like that, it’s my job to be on Facebook, don’t be jealous – I stumbled upon a very interesting NPR post that a friend shared on her wall.


The column, entitled “Stop The Black-On-Black Hateration” by Michel Martin, took a look at recent barbs famous black folks are hurling at each other. Boxer Bernard Hopkins recently called Washington Redskins quarterback Donovan McNabb a “house slave.”


For those not in the know, the slur reflects back to slave times, when those who worked inside homes were considered privileged and cozy with “massa,” while the less fortunate slaves toiled outside.


I don’t understand how you can be a “privileged slave” – at the end of the day, you’re still a slave, right? But I digress.


Hopkins questioned McNabb’s blackness because he had a middle-class upbringing. According to him, McNabb has “a suntan, that’s all.”


And let’s not forget the drama that occurred a few months ago between ex-University of Michigan basketball star Jalen Rose and black Duke University ballplayers, specifically former player Grant Hill. Rose pointed the finger, calling Hill and friends Uncle Toms and saying they were removed from the “true” black experience because they grew up in functional households.


When did being black mean growing up in a broken home?


Now, the black experience has always been defined by struggle. But after scratching and clawing for hundreds of years to achieve equal footing with other Americans, it’s extremely counterproductive – and downright stupid – to criticize our peers who have reached their goals a bit quicker that we have.


Martin’s column called for African-Americans to finally squash the crab-in-the-bucket mentality and stand united for the good of our culture. And I won’t hesitate to agree – to a point.


For years now, I’ve been called a hater – from most of you, in fact – for sharing my unpopular views about some of black America’s most revered celebrities. I’ve often been chided for “tearing down our own” and I’ve often mentioned the mindset in the black community that we should never openly criticize one another. Make no mistake, disparaging someone because they enjoyed a more advantageous upbringing  is detrimental, but no one – not even our own – is immune to constructive criticism.


I think Tyler Perry’s films are horrible and as a high-profile African-American filmmaker, he should set a higher standard. I think both Al Sharpton and Bill Cosby have their hearts in the right place when they spout their loud-mouthed rants, but they both need to pick their battles more wisely. 2pac is revered by many as a revolutionary but besides a couple of “positive songs” mixed in with his gangsta garbage, where are the physical fruits of his labor? I ain’t buying it.


Labeling someone a house slave because their road was less rocky that yours contributes nothing. But constructive criticism of our more prominent members hopefully will encourage an ever greater level of responsibility.


I guess I don’t really have a problem with constructive Black-On-Black Hateration. I hate because I love.