By now, Heit and I are used to people being offended by what we say, write, or post in images. Part of what we do, however, is cultural criticism–examining and relaying our collective conduct, and making what we feel are honest assessments of that conduct.
People Are Offended By The Truth
People are often offended because this sort of critique does not FEEL good, but that is the challenge. We’re asking people to ask themselves things like, “Why am I comfortable calling loss of life of my own people tragic, while referring to others I view different from myself (in whatever capacity) as “collateral damage?”
Or, “Why do I think someone’s life is worth less just because they live in a different country?”
Or, Why do I feel that lives are worthless unless they share my color, religion, flag or creed?”
Of course, people rarely state their views like this, but their support for certain politicians, corporations, religions, point to these types of beliefs at their core. You see, you cannot say in one breath you want peace, yet in the next utter support for those bringing everything BUT peace to the world’s doorsteps. Supporting and defending a politician includes defense and support of ALL their deeds–drone strikes, assassination lists, and other acts.
Collateral damage as an example
For instance, people have trouble reconciling themselves as Obama supporters, which in turn means they support the deadly drone strikes too. They are in denial about the effects of their choices on other people, so they gladly use terms that help them to feel better about the reality.
Almost every time we post a photo, or say something about the innocent people killed by drone strikes, we hear this term “collateral damage” brought up. Collateral damage is a term people feel extremely comfortable using because it dehumanizes innocent people to make war, and their deaths as a consequence, more palatable.
What SHOULD offend you, but doesn’t
The most common response to these questions we pose is denial–people do not want to accept the truth of the circumstance, and them being complicit in it. Thus, backlash and anger are often the consequence of simply asking the question by holding the mirror of truth to their own faces.
People are offended by us for posting photos of dead Palestinian babies. Why not be offended by the Israeli soldiers, funded by U.S. tax dollars, who bulldozed them?
People are offended by us asking whether Obama has done enough for Blacks or the poor, but they find no offense in him telling us to take off our bedslippers and stop complaining about the circumstances of Black America, or failing to even mention the off-the-chart murder rate of his own adopted home town (Chicago). And, mums the word about the rate of Black joblessness being practically double that of the national rate. Why not be offended by those things, or that Obama came and left Chicago without a word about crime at a time when the murder rate there was higher than Afghanistan?
People are offended by us pointing out the hypocrisy of religious people regarding Obama’s endorsement of same-sex marriage, and Chik-fil-A’s opposition to it. Yet, we don’t see activism from those same religious people when it comes to drone strikes, homelessness, and other more critical issues.
People are offended because we continue to call out Black media for failing the people who rely on them for news. They expect us to give them a pass simply because they are Black like us–wrong. Why not be offended by the low-quality B.S. that Black media is passing off as news? Or why not be offended because they have chosen to place money over brains, thus continuing to usher Blacks en masse into B.S. beliefs and misinformation?
We will continue to challenge your axioms!
These are only a few examples of the ridiculous outrage over the things we choose to discuss. Nevertheless, we hope that these types of questions will be an impetus for reflection on the most basic level. What people do with it beyond that is up to them. In the end, we should all do that which we as individuals decide we must do. It’s not for me (or anyone else) to dictate the cause that someone else should fight.
That said, we will not stop telling you the truth. We will not be quiet just to make you feel better. We will not simply smell and enjoy the roses while ignoring the world falling down around us.
We will continue to fight to keep you aware of the injustices that need your attention. Someone must call attention to these things, and we’re not afraid to be the dissenters of mainstream propaganda.
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