Why do you think you're better

Why do you think you're better than others?

So yesterday was Juneteenth, which is now a federal holiday in the United States. This date commemorates the emancipation of enslaved African Americans. Deriving its name from combining June and nineteenth, it is celebrated on the anniversary of the order by Major General Gordon Granger proclaiming freedom for enslaved people in Texas on June 19, 1865.

Now I know that there is still racism in this country, but I never realized it was this bad. Maybe because I am like Tinkerbell, and I have always just seen a person's heart. To me, if you are a good person, if you are kind, caring, and compassionate, that is what counts. 

My mother grew up in Harlem, for God's sake, so I never saw racism in my home. I was lucky enough to be brought up in a town that had families of color. We had Jewish families, we had Spanish families, mixed raced families, and we even had gay families. This was in the late 60s and in a small town, so it was rare that we were not closed-minded about these things, as many towns across our nation were. 

We didn't judge a person by the color of their skin. We saw their hearts, we saw their kindness, and they were our friends. It was an incredible place to grow up in, and maybe because of that, I thought the rest of the world was like we were.

My very first best friend was black, my "Uncle" who was our family friend was black. Hell, I even go to a black church, so this has never been an issue for me. Unfortunately, I was wrong. Not only does the rest of the world still have racism but I realized that it is also in your own backyard. 

With so many friends and family showing their true colors on social media, it is shocking to realize how many racist were hanging out in their closets for so many years.

I remember meeting someone online. He was mixed race, and he seemed nice, so after a few emails, we decided to meet at the beach. As we are walking and talking, he starts off by telling me his mom was Italian and his dad was black. Then he asked about my church I go to and when I told him about my church, he responded that he would never go to my church because there were way too many blacks in one place, and that he didn't want to hang out with ghetto people.

Hello? He didn't just say that? I told him he was sadly mistaken if he thought my church was ghetto! I have met some of the kindest, sweetest, which, most, which I giving, smartest business people there. He had no idea who went to my church or what they were like, and yet here he was prejudging them.

Well, right away, we are off on the wrong foot, insulting my church? Oh hell no, I am definitely not feeling this man, but I am polite, and we keep talking. He goes on to tell me how his dad is an ex NBA basketball player and how he played for a professional team in another country. He tells me how rich he was, how people always stop him, and recognize him on the street. Now come on, really? Does anyone you know here watch Swedish basketball? Okay, buddy, keep dreaming.

I am getting more put off by the moment and as I tell him "Oh really, well money doesn't matter, I walked away from a marriage with lots of money, and I know for a fact that money doesn't make you happy" He looks at me like I have lost my mind, oh yeah, this date is going downhill fast.

Until it imploded when he asked me if I was married to a white man. I told him yes, a Jewish man. Now he proceeds to tell me how Jews own the world, they think that they are all that, that they are not chosen people.

"Let me tell you how it goes," he says, and I'm thinking, "Oh, go right ahead because if you haven't dug your grave already, this will really do it." "Please go on," I say.

"It goes whites, then Jew's, then blacks, then Indian's and on the bottom of the barrel are Spanish people."

He did not just say that???

And with that, the date was over for me, but before I left him standing there by himself, I turned and said.

"Oh, by the way, I guess I didn't mention that I am half Puerto Rican."

He stood there with his mouth open, then he said as I turned and walked away. "Oh, are we leaving?"

I said, "No, I am," and with that, I walked away.

Wow, I remember thinking. It's a good thing I didn't dress up for this date! I am still in shock, I have dated a lot of losers (okay, no smartass comments from the peanut gallery), but this one took the cake.

Now I tell you this story for a point, did he really think there was more white blood in him than black? Was he mad at the rest of the world for this reason? I don't know what his problem was, but I know he was a racist, as stupid as that sounds.

What I have never understood is that it doesn't matter what color you are, cut us, and we all bleed red. When we die, we all go to the ground. We all become dust. Doesn't matter what color you are, it doesn't matter how much money you have, it doesn't matter who you love, we are all the same, so why can't people realize this?

No one is better than anyone else. Money doesn't make you better, and your color doesn't make you better. Your "rank" in society doesn't make you better. What makes you a better person is how you treat others, period. Yes, I have been learning a lot of lessons these past years, but the one I keep learning over and over is what I will put up with and what is definitely not okay!

Being an out and out racist is not okay. Treating people like trash is not okay. Being okay with the way black people have been treated for years is definitely not okay.

So today, my friends, on this special day, that acknowledges the horrible abuse Black people have suffered. My last thought is what I always say at the end of every blog. Be the change you want to see, it starts with you. Love thy neighbor, like you love yourself because in the end, we are all just children of God.

"Be the change you want to see"

@TreadmillTreats