Why Do We Need A Blackout Day?

Okay, so I talked to a friend of mine named TeAndra a while back and she brought something up in our conversation that I hadn't thought about before.  Why do we have to have designated days to support black-owned business?

I think back to stories from the 50's and 60's that my father shared with me years ago.  He said that every weekend, black people would frequent a spot in Jackson, MS in an area now known as the Farish Street District.  Farish Street was a black community and there were a lot of black shops and restaurants in that area.  That area thrived from the black dollars that went into it. 

Fast forward to after the Civil Rights Era.  No more colored water fountains.  No more colored-only entrances.  All of that stuff abolished.  And that was the origin of the collapsing of black businesses in the Jackson area.  Black people started taking their business to white establishments and ultimately stopped patronizing their own.  That area of Jackson has been struggling ever since it can't seem to come close to recapturing what it once had.  

Now, if you fast forward to present day, we have what some people call "black out days".  We use black businesses so infrequently now that we have to remind the world to take a day to patronize a black-owned business.

How sad is that?  Why do we not support our own.  And don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that black people should not support people of other races, I'm just trying to figure out why we appear to be the only race of people who don't keep our dollars within our communities.

We approach black businesses in one or two ways: 1) we want some sort of hook up or discount.  And 2) we have a zero tolerance for anything that we interpret as bad customer service.

C'mon, people.  Let's stop being stuck on stupid.  There's a reason why you've heard of different parts of major cities devoted to certain ethnic groups.  You've heard of Chinatown, Little Italy, and things of that nature.  Why isn't there a well-known community in every major city predominantly serviced by black-owned businesses?  I ain't never heard of Blacktown.  

Well, that might be offensive to some, but the point I'm trying to make is: stop being on a short fuse when it come to black-owned businesses.  There are a lot of professional people out here who just want to make a living like everyone else, but they can't do it because your expectations of them is unreasonable.  Give them the same level of patience you give the rest of the world.

We still go to fast food restaurant chains regularly and put up with bad attitudes from the moment we place our orders.  We still go to big box superstores with 20 registers and only 2 of them are open and will sit in line long enough to play out all of your Candy Crush lives.  But let a black-owned business be 1 minute late or forget to take the tomatoes off of your hamburger order and it's, "man, I can't stand black folks.  They don't do anything right!  I ain't ever coming back!"

Is that how you really feel?  SMH.

Gotta Love Homegrown Talent!

Track & Field star, Bianca Knight

So, I'm minding my business and doing a little grocery shopping when I hear someone calling my name from the other end of the aisle.  It's a college homie of mine named Calvin.  It's been a couple of years since I've last seen him.  I walk up the aisle to chat with him and notice a young lady with him.  It took me a second, but then I recognized her.  It was Olympic gold medalist, Bianca Knight.  I'd blogged about her 7 years ago when she won gold in the 4x100 meter relays in London.

Calvin was her track coach in high school and introduced me to her.  She was very friendly and I was able to make small talk with her for a few to see what she was doing now. 

I thought that it was funny to randomly bump into someone I was so proud of for representing my state and winning the gold seven years ago.

Here's the blog from August 2012 below:

The young lady, who literally raced to stardom in my neighborhood's backyard, is now an Olympic gold medalist! 

Bianca Knight will not only be bringing home a gold medal, she'll also bring home a world record. The U.S. Women annihilated a 27 year old East Germany record as they finished the 4x100m relay in a blazing time of 40.82 (record was 41.37). 

(continue reading here)

@MidKnightDreams Do Come True!

Bianca Knight flashes her Gold (Source)

The young lady, who literally raced to stardom in my neighborhood's backyard, is now an Olympic gold medalist!

Bianca Knight, affectionately known as @MidKnightDreams on Twitter, will not only be bringing home a gold medal, she'll also bring home a world record. The U.S. Women annihilated a 27 year old East Germany record as they finished the 4x100m relay in a blazing time of 40.82 (record was 41.37). 

Her high school coach, Calvin Bolton, was proud of her in the local news interviews as well.  He is a Coldwater, MS native who stayed a few doors down from me in college at Mississippi Valley State University.

People gathered at her school, Ridgeland High School, to view her accomplishment in the auditorium and they were not disappointed. Bianca, who runs the turns on the track almost better than any other American, helped extend a lead for the U.S. Women which led to the world record.  The media pretty much had them pegged for a silver because of the recent dominance of the Jamaicans, but the U.S. Women took the lead and never looked back.

Jamaica took silver with a national best 41.41 time.  Despite having 100m Gold medal winner Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and 100m Bronze medalist, Veronica Campbell-Brown, on their team, it wasn't enough to overcome the Americans.

Props to Bianca, Allyson Felix, Camelita Jeter and Tiana Madison for returning the relay team to glory and for being the first-ever under 41 seconds.  They erased bad memories of botched hand offs over the past couple of Olympics and got the gold for the first time since 1996.

The under-10 year old girl who used to beat older boys in foot races in my friend's neighborhood has turned her fantasy into reality.  The Mississippi teen who broke tons of state records at my city's school  is now etched in the history books.  The Texas Longhorn who left school early because she felt destined for greatness is now an Olympic gold medalist.

This is what the Olympics are about.  Pride in your country.  Despite how jacked up the U.S. can be at times with racism, sexism, and any other "ism" that comes to mind, for 40.82 seconds, all of that was gone.  Not only am I proud of my homegirl, but I'm also proud of the other three ladies for representing my home country.

Mayor McGee, fire up the parade plans. Ridgeland is having a party!

Tiana Madison, Carmelita Jeter, Bianca Knight and Allyson Felix

We're Pulling for You, @MidKnightDreams!

The waiting is over and the Summer Olympics are here! Although I don't need motivation to watch these games from start-to-finish, I do have extra incentive this year: four athletes with Mississippi ties are competing in track and field events!

Bianca Knight - Women's 4 x 100m relay participant

First of all, my favorite of the bunch is Bianca Knight. I'll admit that I'm slightly biased towards her since she graduated from high school less than 1/2 mile from me.  A former co-worker of mine used to tell me about how she would race the boys in the neighborhoods of Rankin County and embarrass them.  She officially started racing at the early age of 12.

She first received national recognition when she was named the Gatorade 2006 National Girls Track & Field Athlete of the Year.  After a short stint as a Texas Longhorn, she turned pro and started working on a way to bring home a gold medal for the U.S. team.

We're pulling for you, Bianca!

Now, despite the fact that the remaining people on my list were not born in Mississippi like Miss Knight, they did attend local universities.  Here are my other incentives to stay glued to my couch for T&F events:

Michael Tinsley (Jackson State Univ.) - Men's 400m hurdles

Brittney Reese (Univ. of Mississippi) - Women's long jump

Isiah Young (Univ. of Mississippi) - Men's 200m

What is your motivation to watch the 2012 Summer Olympics in London?