It is not the color of your skin or the shape of your lips or the way your hips sashay up and down the street, friend; it is the color of their power-hungry heart.
There is nothing wrong with you. Your skin is part of you. All of “you” is indeed a work of art.
Amongst the driving forces behind hate toward the darkly endowed, sits “power.” Power to rule. Power to control. Power to be superior, when in all reality, we are all more the same.
When “power” sees POWER, it meets up with “fear.”
In fear, “power” thirsts to be served, to be seen, and to be superior. It then must distinguish or set itself apart because, really, what is superiority if we are all more the same?
The case for superiority is made by majoring in what is different and being able to mass communicate that difference through a well-contrived narrative. It is this chess move for power by “power” that has deceptively weaved negative narratives and ugly biases about dark-skinned people into the very fabric of our society, for centuries long.
Black communities have internalized this injustice. So much so, dark has risen against dark in a sort of self-hate frenzy that has spilled over into community relations, where we spend our billion-dollar purchasing power, and in how companies advertise in our communities, along with the music and movies we create.
We have accepted the narrative that color matters because “power” says it does.
This has played out in the most simplistic of ways. We joke about who “undoubtedly” will be killed first in movies, or we hold our breath and wait for the reporter to communicate whether an offender is Black or white. We know that mainstream media is going to blast the dark face, but gently explain the happenings of a lighter face. We can expect every gory life detail of the darkly hued offender, from birth to present, but hear how the lightly hued “Johnny” had a terrible life, in a sick attempt at justifying a terrible act.
But…. what if color did not matter? What if our hearts were free of bias and judgement? What if we decided that the only social construct to subscribe is love?
Not some sappy kind of love that is solely centered on feelings, but a love rooted in action and commitment to equality and justice. Love that is not arrogant or rude. Love that does not insist on its’ own way. Love that does not rejoice at wrongdoing but rejoices with the truth. Love which bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things for all people. The type of love that never ends or fails. The type of love that equally and justly values people of every hue, all the time, in every social construct. The kind of love that approves mortgage loans on the merit of the applicant without taking into account skin color. The kind of love that considers job applicants on what they bring to the table and not what they look like. Love that stands at the helm of our justice system, in our pulpits, across color and generational divides, and yes even on the playground. The kind of love that understands that if everyone is not free, nobody is free.
The color of our skin is not what is best or worst about us. It is my heart. It is your heart. It is the love we share. The burdens we bear for others. It is the way we SEE people. The way we value them. All of them.
Besides, true POWER is not majoring in our differences. True POWER is not claiming superiority with emphasis on light and dark. The true “flex” of POWER is not having to flex at all or make demands. It is when you sit at a table with no name and no title, yet the table tilts your way because of what is inside of you. The true power “flex” was God in the flesh, who had ALL power, but laid his life down for the powerless to give them POWER while all of heaven was on standby. With one word, the King of all Kings could have had HIS way. He could have made demands of each of us, and with no compliance destroyed us all. Yet… while we were sinners, he died for us to choose him with no demand. Now, That is POWER.
So, what if color did not matter and “power” did not have its’ way? Would our world be a better place? Would the darkly endowed find justice? Without the hate, would they be embraced? Would more children have access to healthcare? Would our prison system not be full? Would there be less violence? Less suicides? Could we house the homeless? Release the innocent? Help the elderly? Honor the vets? Would our children learn to love even in knowing the truth about America’s history concerning the black race?
We do not have to repeat our history. We can choose to lay down our hate. If color did not matter, would we be a better HUMAN race?
Sharwin Wiltz-Boney is an entrepreneur, business consultant/coach, speaker and author who currently serves as President and CEO of a financial infrastructure management company that has operated in the Houston area for more than a decade. Utilizing the experience she has gained through business ventures and her very own life journey, Sharwin invites you into her Musings. Have a comment? Drop her a line at sharwin@sharwinboney.com.
