The New Civil Rights Movement
Charles Blow, New York Times Columnist, at Brown University September 17, 2015
Yesterday evening I had the pleasure of hearing Charles Blow, writer for the New York Times, speak at Brown University on what he called “The New Civil Rights Movement”. This was such an interesting lecture because there was so much to cover in such a short amount of time. It was apparent that Mr. Blow knew that every person had a topic on the forefront of their minds and he wanted to touch on them them all.
When Mr. Blow began, however, he started with a topic that I do not think any of us suspected. He announced that yesterday, September the 18, 2015, was the 60th anniversary of Emmett Till's murder. He then began to explain the conditions of the time, the “reasons” for his attack, and the emotions and thoughts his mother must had experienced to have an open casket funeral for the world to experience. This set the tone for the speech, but also for the condition of the world as Mr. Blow has experienced as a writer. Blow went on to explain that Emmett Till's murder was the spark that ignited the Civil Rights Movement. Rose Parks was at a meeting discussing Emmett Till and violence towards the black community the day before she, supported by the NAACP, decided to stand her ground on bus segregation. He went on to quote Rose Parks saying many have stated that she was tired and did not want to give up her seat, and though that was true, she was not physically tired; she was mentally tired of the condition of her reality as a black person in America.
Blow goes on to suggest that the murders that have happened lately, like the murder of Micheal Brown, sparked the same feelings in the current generation. my generation. Blow continues with that fact that black Americans, and all people color in our nation, are fed up with the condition of their reality and want to see a change. Blow also noted that the response, and violence, that has been led by the various Police Departments is not helping or defusing the issues in most situations. Adding, one point that seems obvious, but might be over looked, that so many of these problems that have ignited “The New Civil Rights Movement” have been set off in the North. Blow then stated that “The North needs to learn how to deal with their racism”. Many of the places where problems are arising are places where diversity has been welcomed, but not present until recent years. Now that diversity has shown it's impact on their communities, they are afraid and reacting, not communicating, and, in many cases, not thinking through their actions.
Mr. Blow did talk about solutions. His main solution was simple and , to many, self explanatory. When he was asked by a student how can we get involved in [the Black Lives Matters'] movement that is “leaderless”, he responded with education. Blow went on to explain that we have the most influence on the people in our sphere of life. That when people are talking about local events, facts, and issues and are incorrect, we need to correct them; they need to be our focus. He also pointed out that in order to change the future we, as a nation, need not to be historically illiterate. We need to know our history. He ended on a a quote that has been accredited to Zora Neale Hurston, “If you are silent about your pain, they will kill you and say that you enjoyed it.”
