What of the game was letting our neighborhoods and schools go to hell and mostly importantly, letting our economic structure disappear after those "good white folks" decided and (were sometimes "dragged kicking and screaming,") into letting us enjoy the rights that were given to us in the Constitution?
One of the weird things about segregation was that (mainly through necessity,) we were forced to have our own businesses, taxi services, grocery and hardware stores, even hotels, but once integration became a reality, it seems that black people lost their entrepreneurial spirit. We went from wanting to own business, to being content with "good jobs with benefits with large private companies and in the public sector and wanting to join "Mr. Charlie'em" as soon as possible. I understand that the riots that took place in America during that era had a lot to do with this, but it seems that if we applied the tenacity and focus that was used to get the Civil Rights Act passed, we could have gotten the funds necessary to rebuild our communities by forcing insurance companies to cash out to the owners of those business.
Also, I want y'all to think about your grandparents for a minute. Why Rex? What's does my Granny and Pa Pa have to do with this? Well, let me personalized this. My grandparents were always "ahead of the curve," so to speak in terms of seeing where the neighborhood was going. When my grandparents saw that the Southside of Richmond was becoming fucked up and not a good place to raise children, they moved to what was then an all white subdivision in San Pablo. I guess you can say that my maternal grandparents were the "Jackie Robinson," of the neighborhood.
The thing is, what my grandparents did was replicated all over America in during the 50's, 60's, and 70's by other working and middle class blacks. At the one hand you want your kids to grow up in a positive and safe environment with all of the positives of suburban living, but were our grandparents were in their choice and being selfish by not staying in historically black neighborhoods to maintain a balance. Did they owe it the community to stay in the neighborhood and show youngsters (i.e. our parents,) positive relationships, kids going to schools, people going to work, home ownership and things of that nature?
One of the weird things about segregation was that (mainly through necessity,) we were forced to have our own businesses, taxi services, grocery and hardware stores, even hotels, but once integration became a reality, it seems that black people lost their entrepreneurial spirit. We went from wanting to own business, to being content with "good jobs with benefits with large private companies and in the public sector and wanting to join "Mr. Charlie'em" as soon as possible. I understand that the riots that took place in America during that era had a lot to do with this, but it seems that if we applied the tenacity and focus that was used to get the Civil Rights Act passed, we could have gotten the funds necessary to rebuild our communities by forcing insurance companies to cash out to the owners of those business.
Also, I want y'all to think about your grandparents for a minute. Why Rex? What's does my Granny and Pa Pa have to do with this? Well, let me personalized this. My grandparents were always "ahead of the curve," so to speak in terms of seeing where the neighborhood was going. When my grandparents saw that the Southside of Richmond was becoming fucked up and not a good place to raise children, they moved to what was then an all white subdivision in San Pablo. I guess you can say that my maternal grandparents were the "Jackie Robinson," of the neighborhood.
The thing is, what my grandparents did was replicated all over America in during the 50's, 60's, and 70's by other working and middle class blacks. At the one hand you want your kids to grow up in a positive and safe environment with all of the positives of suburban living, but were our grandparents were in their choice and being selfish by not staying in historically black neighborhoods to maintain a balance. Did they owe it the community to stay in the neighborhood and show youngsters (i.e. our parents,) positive relationships, kids going to schools, people going to work, home ownership and things of that nature?
