THE YOUNG BLACK MAN'S PERSPECTIVE
This isn’t designed to be a politically correct article. It is simply a tell it like it is from a Young Black Male’s perspective kind of article.
So If I hurt your feelings along the way… too bad.
I spent my whole life in the south which should indicate that I know a fair amount about the Southern Black male psyche. I have evolved from being a SLAVE INTO A HUMAN in just 10 years. Some do it quicker… Some never make it… I am talking about a 21st century slave FYI
Very quick background…
Step up to the plate… I’m from Birmingham Alabama… if you don’t know... Watch an episode of The 1st 48.
Strike One…
Kicked out of high school in 9th grade for kissing a white girl.
Strike Two…
10th grade ... Family split up over infidelity and alcohol related issues. I move to VA away from my childhood and father.
Strike Three...
“Arrested” at 19 but charges dropped and expunged from my record after I hired a $2000 lawyer to get the case dropped. ALL over a gram of weed…
You're Out…
“Arrested” at age 24 for suspended Driver's licence… MIND YOU… my licence was suspended for a “following too close” ticket … BTW… THAT TICKET wasn’t the result of an accident.. THE COP JUST WANTED TO GIVE ME A FOLLOWING TOO CLOSE TICKET BECAUSE THE JERK IN FRONT OF ME WAS GOING 40 MPH IN THE FAST LANE ON HIGHWAY 20... ANYWAY…. I had paid the ticket online, but they issued a Failure to Appear .. anyway… “clerical error” … which lead to a warrant for my arrest. So…. this...routine traffic stop turns into.... A night in jail… pictures, fingerprints, full strip search, and a TB shot in my arm. Plus… the nasty food, the handcuffs, and the humiliation… yea?? Not fun.
My Clients
I am a 28 year old BLACK music producer in Atlanta Ga. I work with rappers, thugs, whatever you want to call them…. That’s who I WORK with.
These “gang-stars” that I work with rap about drugs, money, sex, infidelity, crime, no religion, cars, clothes, pimping, killing, stealing, and let’s not forget “lying”... You know… how they rap about being all alone with a stage full of goonies just like them. I get it... You don’t. But I do.
The reason WHY they rap about all that stuff…look…. I’ll get into that psyche in later articles, but for now just know that THOSE are my CLIENTS and I understand them and love them just like you love yours. OK, MOVING ON….
I Changed The Title of This Article
I CHANGED the name of this article to THE YOUNG BLACK MAN’S PERSPECTIVE… because I am going to follow up with a series of articles like this.. Because apparently… young black men from the hood are unable to write or speak “proper English” … so I’ll just end a few stereotypes and just say thank you for your interest and be prepared to be amazed by every article and music video.
The FIRST title was BOY.SLAVE.NEGRO.BLACK.HUMAN … but that was a little too much I guess.
The REASON for the FIRST title WAS because I was born a BOY only to become a
… SLAVE…. Define slave: someone who is legally owned by another person and is forced to work for that person without proper pay. Then…
…. A Negro… is what I became after I identified who I was in the place of society…
….then I LEARNED how to T.R.I.
T.R.I.
That just means having the proper {TOOLS.RESOURCES.INFO} to TRY
and a Black MAN is what EMERGED OUT OF TRI ‘N … so that the world can finally…
Consider me HUMAN…
WHAT IN THE WORLD AM I TALKING ABOUT ?????.....
LET ME EXPLAIN ….
We will start the day I became a SLAVE …the day I turned 18 years old.
Now at this age … you should have the basic human skills to do simple things such as read, write, and apply math and critical thinking skills. You should also have some kind of moral compass or basic understanding of responsibility depending on your parents… Well, I had all of that and some…. Add to that list talent, religious, athletic, handsome coupled with high communication skills, popular, musical, charming, and interview ready. COME ON MAN… sounds like I’m talking about a movie star right? He should be able to get any job, and go to any college right?? RIGHT? Wrong….
I’m not talking about a movie star… I’m talking about what every young black male HAS to be in order to even be CONSIDERED for college or a regular paying job.
If you think I’m kidding … go to McDonalds next time you have a chance and pick up an application. Among the questions they ask you is can you travel. Now if you don’t have a car, you’ve got to leave that blank, and if you leave anything blank…. You might as well not even fill it out because your application will get skipped for someone who does have a car … with a 2.5 GPA in high school.
Enslavement
The point I’m making is… I was the “model” student with no record of wrong doing, and when I graduated high school …. I became a SLAVE to everything Slaves are slaves too…. Fast food, video games, weed, sex, fun, money, food, gas, social media…. I MEAN HOW COULD NOT????
I had to have a place to stay right? I had to have something to eat right? I had to have something to do right? All signs point to JOB… which is just TIME SLAVERY...
side note Maybe that’s why it’s called a JOB.. you know… like the guy from the Bible?
[Job is presented as a good and prosperous family man who is beset with horrendous disasters that take away all that he holds dear, including his offspring, his health, and his property. He struggles to understand his situation and begins a search for the answers to his difficulties.]
First Job
The Moment I acquired my first job, I was no longer a boy under momma’s roof… I was a SLAVE…. Not only to the corporation I worked for, but to many other corps that I would soon learn all about SUCH AS COMCAST, SHELL, PUBLIX, GA GAS, POWER, GARBAGE, RENTERS INSURANCE, INSURANCE, CREDIT CARDS, CELL PHONE, CAR NOTE, TRYING TO GO OUT AND HAVE FUN, AND THE NEED FOR HUMAN INTERACTION SUCH AS FACEBOOK, TWITTER, INSTAGRAM ETC…
After a couple of years … of making it work… as a use to be boy … Now...new slave, I realized that there were LOTS of OTHER SLAVES TOO!!! I’m talking WHITE slaves, BLACK slaves, MEXICAN slaves, and even GAY slaves. And at that point, I realized that I wasn’t just a SLAVE … I was a NEGRO… the worse kind of SLAVE to be… and had to GET OUT ...ALIVE
WHY WERE WE THE WORST ? You might ask….
From Negro to Black
Well, the MEXICAN spoke two languages which was more valuable, and also inadvertently more money in their pockets... White slaves were the managers which lead to more money for them, and the gays kissed a$$ so much that they were always NEXT UP for the big PROMOTION. Aka more money.
So I EVENTUALLY GOT VERY UNcomfortable in the NEGRO skin I was in, and started to assert my attention on how to become more than a NEGRO. The answer lay in EDUCATION ... So after I completed college and obtained my B.S. in Audio Engineering, I became BLACK.
NOW finding a Job wasn’t so hard anymore…
GRANTED… the jobs are ONLY 10-15 dollar an hour jobs, but the level of difficulty of actually getting a job was lowered greatly.
I also educated myself about other cultures, and the meaning and history behind being black. I learned to speak a good amount of Spanish, and using my education, I learned how to save money, and what to spend it on…
Now … as a BLACK male,
I own TSA Networks (An Artist Development Company)
I have a College Degree
Wife and two kids
2 cars and a house
A little money and I’M A LITTLE CLOSER TO FINANCIAL FREEDOM … SO I THINK …
From Black to DavidL
But Most importantly …. When I meet someone…. They remember my name…David L. because NOW they see me as human… and not just some black negro with a slave last name given to his family 100 years ago.
Phase 1 …. This is just the beginning …
Good Job.
True the new slavery is working 50+ Hours a week just to make ends meet and pay your bills while all the shareholders and people high up in the corporations sit back and relax on a beach. If you don't get a degree anymore you might as well get on that hamster wheel and work for $8 dollars and hour for 50 hours a week for the next 45 years................
love this post keep up the good work
I fucking loved this article man. Had my attention the whole way through. When you talked about rappers talking about those things - it's because that's how Hip Hop started out, as a way for the youth to talk about what they're going through and for others to also uplift the youth. I don't find it that great when some rappers talk all that stuff up but have never actually been through it, lying about it etc unless they're doing it in a way to empathize, uplift or give people a voice. I recently made a spoken word piece - it's not that well presented but it talks about some of the struggles. I'm not from America but I feel like we're all connected in ways. Still new to spoken word so I'm working on the craft. And thanks again I really enjoyed your story.
What an in depth perspective from a Black man in America! Well thought out and laced with TRUTH! The truth is sometimes something people don't want to hear. However if we want to follow a dream sleeping and believing lies, then we will never be awakened to the truth.
Congratulations @iamdavidl! You have received a personal award!
Happy Birthday - 1 Year on Steemit Happy Birthday - 1 Year on Steemit
Click on the badge to view your own Board of Honor on SteemitBoard.
For more information about this award, click here
Congratulations @iamdavidl! You received a personal award!
You can view your badges on your Steem Board and compare to others on the Steem Ranking
Vote for @Steemitboard as a witness to get one more award and increased upvotes!