A Message from the Average Black Person

To Whom It May Concern:

Greetings. My name is Elon James White. I'm Black.

I write this letter on behalf of a lot of people that fall into the category of Average Black People. (Yes, I capitalize it, as if it were a title.) I do not claim to represent them because that would be absurd. I really, truly don't. I don't even represent my circle of friends. At any point in time one of my Black buddies will, in fact, tell me to go to hell when speaking on concepts of race, politics, or religion.

I do, however, qualify as an Average Black Person. I am neither a part of the Black intelligentsia, nor do I fall into the category of your garden-variety street Negro. A lot of folks see Black people in one of these two categories. Normally, let's be honest, it's the latter.

I don't qualify.

I do come from "the Hood." That's right. I am a born and bred Brooklynite raised in the middle of Bed-Stuy. If you aren't familiar with Bed-Stuy, perhaps you have never listened to gangster rap. You're probably also unfamiliar with Jay-Z, Biggie Smalls, or the thousands of songs that yell out "Brooklyn!" and then give a shout-out to Bed-Stuy. It's fine. Just understand that Bed-Stuy has a primarily negative connotation and for many years was used in boasts to gain respect or fear because it's an incredibly violent environment.

In other words, you could get shot, son.

Speaking of which, I am the son of a single mother. My father is in prison. My grandfather was a pastor and I grew up in the church. I, without shame, also enjoy fried chicken, watermelon, ribs, and orange soda. I can have an incredibly in-depth debate on the best five MCs ever. My credit isn't great and I've been shot.

With facts like this I qualify as a stereotypical Black person right?

But I am also a computer programmer. I've been known to quote Nietzsche. I, on occasion, host dinner parties where I serve five-course meals, including a specialty of mine, White Truffle Tilapia (it's delightful). I have the entire John Williams discography and wear a backpack that is emblazoned with the Thundercats insignia.

Those with one half of that story shake their head at the sheer mass of stereotypes I carry. Then those with the other half question if I even understand the Black experience at all. Some refer to me as someone who "made it out." I currently live in Crown Heights. Some say "You're not like the others." Most people I interact with are very similar to me.

I am an Average Black Person.

So, as an ABP, I have a few requests:

Media.
Please stop referring to blacks as a monolith. I can't possibly express to you the different types of Black people that exist. We neither move as an entity, nor do we move as three or four entities. For every Sharpton, there's a Steele. And for every Sharpton and Steele there are a hundred folks in the middle. What we share is a past, which on occasion helps shape our view on things. Also? Obama is not a unicorn. Please stop acting like Obama and his family are magical in the Black community. Just because some of you may not have seen a Negro like this doesn't mean they don't exist. Lots of smart black folk living with their smart mates and their cute smart kids. So please remember. Obama? Not a unicorn. Black people? Not one voice: I don't care what the supposed Black leaders try to claim.

Supposed Black Leaders.
Please stop speaking for us as if we were a monolith. This is not the 1960s. We don't need a Martin Luther King, Jr. or a Malcom X. You speak for yourselves and your view on what's happening. You also can't police black people. There isn't an us. Are there issues within the Black community? Absolutely, but it's not everybody as much as it is certain groups, most time classes that are in need of help and focus. Hence you can't speak for "Blacks." There are people who need your help and don't want you speaking for them. Oh, and for the love of all that is holy, could you please stop critiquing Obama simply to show you aren't drinking the kool-aid? I get it. You're sugar-free. Got it.

Critics Of Obama.
Hey, um...guess what Black people are not? A monolith. We are not holding Obama on a pedestal. Some critique him harshly (and personally I feel unjustly) and others love him. This is the case with every president. Obama is not the spokesperson for Black people. He is a symbol of hope. He is a symbol of opportunity in a land where opportunity for us seemed nonexistent. He's a symbol of a fight where people cried and died and sacrificed in order for the opportunity for him to exist. But his actions are his actions and have to be judged. Just not four months after he walked in the door with one of the worst clean up jobs in the countries history. You may critique him without critiquing Blacks' ability to critique him.

The hypocrisy of saying we are not One, and yet speaking for the exact group for which I just emphatically denied exists, is not lost on me. Perhaps there are Black people who absolutely want to be spoken for and referred to as if we were one big team. I acknowledge the possibility, but if this was the majority people like Dyson and Smiley would be way more important, and let's be honest: they aren't. I hope that my message is clear. After reading this, the next time you talk to a Black person you can feel comfortable in now knowing with every fiber of your being that you have no clue what they think or feel based on their skin color.

But if they're wearing a Soulja Boy shirt you may disregard this essay and judge them immediately.

Follow Elon James White on Twitter: www.twitter.com/elonjames

Comments

[queotic]

Hilarious, intelligent and TRUE! Thank you sir.

[Bashley]

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU for this article! I'm inner city born and bred, and love living in the city, and am often looked down upon by white counterparts that live in the suburbs. It doesn't matter that I choose to live in a nice neighborhood, am finishing my degree, have good credit, no kids, can swim, read, great with computers, the list goes on and on of the things that surprise them about me. I'm also hurt by how people view our teens. I have white friends who walked around in "hip hop clothes" or had a punk rock look, dyed hair, cut themselves, and a few girlfriends who have "Gone Wild". It's a phase for them. For us, it's our lifestyle. I want to be treated fairly in this world, and be viewed the same as anyone else.

[DuskyJewel]

THANK YOU, THANK YOU!

I am a 39 year old Black woman from Colorado and you have expressed what I have said, thought and felt for years. I am a Suburban Black chick as at home with Funkadelic as I am with the Ramones. My parents were married when I was born (but are divorced) and I am college-educated. However, I also love my Kool-Aid (with sugar poured from the bag) and chitterlings.

However, I am often expected to fall into some stereotype of an "Oreo" or "Hood Rat". One or the other. Rarely is it presumed that I can have a myriad of experiences and tastes and preferences. I am often seen as the resident voice of "Black people" ... a mini-spokesman as it were.

Anyway, well said :-)

[LovesMusicLikesToSing]

Well, d@mn . . . we could be twins ( with a quick exchange of the Ramones for the Bee Gees or Ambrosia or Air Supply ~_^).

I do get tired of being expected to fit a particular mold (by Blacks and whites, alike) when I have an abundance of likes and dislikes, opinions, perspectives, policies, and beliefs that are not necessarily guided by race or culture.

Your post was great. Well-written and, for me, very close to home -- right down to the sugary Kool-Aid and 'chitlins.'

[KofTX]

One of the best articles on the Huff. Great Job! I'm with you 100%!

[gladys46]

This is a very interesting piece .. I agree in part ! Just one excepton ... white America is a monolith ! When it comes down to it ... they're just white !!!

[Elon James White - Huffpost Blogger]

I'd argue no and I believe its a known FACT they aren't normally looked at that way by reasonable people. Imagine grabbing Dr. Phil and asking him to speak for White America. The concept is Laughable but yet its done with Black people all the time.

[gladys46]

Ha. The concept is laughable, however, white america is not color blind, that's an apology when they say that they are. Before you (the general you, or the ABP) think, speak or perform your skin is the consideraton being considered by monolingual white America !

I would not want "Dr. Phil" to speak for me, how could that be possible ?

[ladybastet]

I really enjoyed your article. Thank you so much for writing it and sharing it with us. =)

[Niasia]

Oh thank you thank you! My birth mother was a heroin addict and died from AIDS. My adopted family was great but my father's alcohol and drug addictions didn't help! Any time, we could come home and have no electric or gas! Yet I work for a well known publishing company now and have Bachelor's Degree from a NY City University ( SJU) ! Some Caucasions meet me and say " you speak so well" like it is a surprise. I am not an anomoly. I am the ABP!!! On the flip side when some black people meet they are thrown off by my supposed "white girl" accent...but then as they get to know me they say...oh you are cool or you really are from the hood huh you just went to college? I tell them I had the craziest life but look who I am today! Too funny! This article was great!

[Brillig]

When Caucasians say "you speak so well" it is code for "you speak human well for a monkey"

Why on earth do white people believe they have dibs on good speech is beyond me....however, obviously black mouths are formed differentl­y.........­......?

[IGNSTHMD]

sarcasm aside. I would assume white people still view assimilation as putting effort into a universal (or entitled) form of self-worth. I would assume again that this is resultant from white privelage in the form of condesention where the pinacle of white entitlement is the standard for all achievement.

[Spangie]

That's certainly not the outlook of all white people, obviously. :)

[TheColouredEuropean]

The funny thing is, on the Internet, the racists all write horrible English. Grammatically incorrect, and the spelling is just ... wrong! And I'm not talking about SMS-English either, I'm talking about those in the forums and the blogs, etc. There's nothing funnier for a non-native speaker like myself to correct the English grammar of racists and other extreme right wingers! ;)

[toyboat]

I so loved that article. Like you have lived on both sides of the proverbial fence. I grew up in the projects of SF California but my mom shipped me off to school were I was 1 of 5 black kids. I rec'd a better education than I would've got had I went to school in the City. I have some of the stereotypical makings, my mom was a single parent, both parents abused drugs (& both got clean) my father & numerous other male relatives of mines are or have been imprisoned, I got knocked up as a teen ager & have a teenage daughter, & I could go on & on. At the same time I am a high school graduate, I love to read & am one of the smartest people that all my friends know (not to toot my own horn) & am studying to recieve a masters degree in Business. I really hate when black people say I talk or act white & I hate even more when white people don't expect me to be as smart or well spoken as I am. I can kick street knowledge & talk politics & I move well in any circle. People act like we're some collective pack of wolves rather than millions of individuals w/ millions of different views. Yes I love 2Pac, but I also love Nirvana too lol

[TheColouredEuropean]

Nirvana and 2Pac are soooo nineties, however. Just kidding you, Nirvana is quite cool, but as a Seattle band it's not such a stretch, culturally. If you loved Garth Brooks or any none-Dixie Chicks country music, now that'd be something! ;)

[fiftyseven]

I like you. You are right on in your observation of the silliness of categorizing people. When will the media understand this? It seems everyone has to be described in a way that is comfortable and familiar to what the media perceives as its audience. We should just put down our phones and computers and whatever and -- this won't be easy -- actually talk to a person. It's our only hope.

[OtayPanky]

This post is cute but disingenuous.

Human societies typically have a majority, which has most of the power and the money, and one or more minorities. The minorities are typically exploited, oppressed or otherwise routinely denied the privileges of the majority.

In order to get their fair share of the pie, or a bit of justice, they have to band together as a corporate entity and speak with a corporate voice - first to get the attention of the majority group, and then to effect social change.

In our society, the majority is heterosexual Christian white males of Euro descent. Minorities include blacks, women, homosexuals, Jews, native Americans, Asians, Hispanics, etc.

While individuals in these minority communities have individual voices, the communities have intellectual and social leaders that - rightly or wrongly - speak for the community as a whole.

That's just the way it is - and it's naive to think it could be otherwise. This isn't the Age of Aquarius. And the majority-minority dynamic is just as ubiquitous in other parts of the world as it is here.

The real lesson for minority communities is: Aim for what is achievable. Don't squander your energy or your moral ammunition on unachievable goals, because you'll simply be ignored. Example: Expecting (or demanding) reparations for the financial injustice of slavery, discrimination, disenfranchisement. It's just not going to happen, for blacks, females, or whatever.

[Elon James White - Huffpost Blogger]

Thank you for your advice for us minorities.

But that is my EXACT point. You just stated that as if demanding reparations is a BLACK thing that ALL blacks do and are wasting our times doing it. Its NOT. You can decide that you would prefer to look at Blacks and Women and Gays as single entities but it doesn't mean that those groups should decide to give up and accept being lumped together for the purpose of it being easier.

[ladybastet]

Your words just inspired tears of appreciation to come to my eyes. :_) Thank you for that.

*hugs* Bless you.

[ladybastet]

Your words just inspired te ars of ap preciati on to come to my eyes. :_) Thank you for that.

*hugs* Bl ess you.

[Sabreen60]

There has never been one leader to speak for the 40 million Black Americans. As a young person in the 60's we had Malcolm who spoke for some, MLK who spoke for some, the Black Panthers, the Pan-Africans, etc. Then we had individualists who took a little something from everybody.

There is nothing disingenuous about the article and simply calling it "cute" reeks of arrogance. You are entitled to your OPINION. But make no mistake - it is simply YOUR opinion.

BTW, you may be right about reparations. But the Japanese got them and so did the Native Americans. You paint with a very broad brush.

[cash29]

I agree. But a correction: Native Americans were never paid reparations and this is a common myth because I get asked all the time. Some tribes have business ventures that create enough profit to send checks to individual tribe members. The vast majority of the tribes are living in third-world conditions on reservations. We have special rights ONLY on our own reservations, because they are considered sovereign nations within the U.S. The government does not write us checks, we have to pay taxes like everyone else, and every tribe is very different with its own culture/re­ligion/lan­guage and distinct regional history with whites (some have reservations, many do not).

I'm off my soapbox, thanks!

[mjtaylor22]

Why does it seem like u just said stay in your place, do go for the gold, do what u know you can.

Also from what u said, that would mean Rush speaks for all Caucasian people

But that would be a silly and truly ignorant thing on my part if I believed such crap

So why would you or anyone think that Jessie, or rev al, or tavis speaks for all of us whenever they speak,

Our social economic status and day to day concerns are just as diverse as any race or nationality.

I hear what you said on reparations, but they also said We would never have a Black president

And in my life time when I thought our nation could not do it.

IT IS DONE MY FRIEND IN THE WINK OF AN EYE


I BELIEVe EYOUR POST IS DISINGENIOUS

[Niasia]

Aim for what is acheivable?!? Well they tell us all the time what they think and want us to acheive! You AIM for what you want and believe in. I came for a drug addicted mother I was born drug addicted. I had behavioral problems and so on. So many people in my youth categorized me and dictated who and what I could be! They made me think I I was only able to go so far! What if I aimed for what was the "perceived" acheivable! So many times I wish I could see those very people agian and show them who I became, against ALL odds! There is no set "acheivable" goal! You make your own destiny! I hope you don't live by your own advice pal!

[bowthai]

You say that minorities need to band together to 'get their fair share', but I'm not clear what this means. Mr. White's point is that there are disparate voices in the black community, and I dare say in all minority communities; they are just as diverse as the majority and deserve to be recognized as individuals. Your statement assumes that these minority groups want or need the same thing. Just one of the ways that the so-called Asian community, for example, can be divided is between East Asian immigrants, who tend to be of a more professional class, and newer Southeast Asian immigrants, who are often though not always refugees. The problems each group faces requires a separate corporate voice, as you call it.

Also, why is it that minority communities are the ones who need a 'real lesson'? This seems to imply that there is something minorities don't understand, that they should be more accommodating in some way. Why do minorities need to learn to overthrow discrimination and its related problems? Shouldn't it be incumbent upon the majority to be more understanding, to learn a lesson about minorities? Isn't the continued exploitation and oppression, as you say, of minorities due in large part to the power structures created and upheld by the majority?

[marsglow]

I am a white middle-aged woman from the South. I supported and voted for Obama, and I agree, Obama is not a unicorn, and I love that. I wish the media would learn it. Thank you for your wise words.

[Hotchkiss74]

You go!!! Thanks - not to take away from your elegant and timely writing - but I think we'd all agree this is just common sense. We do ourselves a huge disservice by letting the "old" media continue to act like morons and portray everything in simplistic terms that defy reality. Thank you for this article - may everyone in the U.S. read it. (By the way, should you - Mr.White - want a new way to get your word out - check out www.goldmail.com Post and email Audio-Visual messages to the world - for all of $9/month! Square business.)

[BlueByou]

I am a black female. I listen to rock. I listen to rap. I prefer Sublime.
I am a registered Democrat but I will vote for the best person for the job. I

[GameGuru59]

This continues today. With our (America's...we can agree that we're part of the group "America", right?) racist education system that was supposed to have be reformed in the 50's, it is plain to see that the black people are still not receiving an adequate education. Most schools are funded by local tax dollars, and obviously poorer areas do not have the funds to attract good teachers nor better equipment.

So in conclusion, in a sense, there are two "black Americas" simply because white people split our (or I and other people of color's) ancestors into two general groups. I understand the sentiment that everyone is an individual, I'd rather listen to a video-game sound track before I listen to a rap album (although T.I. and B.o. B. are growing on me). But to deny the existence of certain trends within the black community that do exist is to hinder the progress we can make as a people.

White people are always going to group us, at times to their peril. It's part of being a minority.

[Elon James White - Huffpost Blogger]

Of course their are trends and even at times the majority of of any minority will all believe one thing but because this can happen is not reason to assume it happens all the time. Minority doesn't equal and shouldn't equal an accepted stripping of individualism when its deemed reasonable by others.

[GameGuru59]

I agree to an extent. The media should not strip us of individualism because of their assumptions, but to some extent I think this is because the nature of the "old media" (radio, television, newspapers) cannot facilitate individualism as well as "new media" can. They can't help it really. On old media, you have to have an Al-Sharpton or Jessie Jackson because you can only devote so much air time to the subject and you have to have some kind of perspective. On the internet, temporal restrictions are removed, an everyone can speak for themselves, that's what makes it so excitinf.

I think the majority of the media is careful enough to the point I'm not offended. With the definite exception of Fox News, I believe the media points out that Al-Sharpton (for example) does not speak for all black people effectively enough for my sentiments.

[IGNSTHMD]

what about identification?

[IGNSTHMD]

people can identify in groups and others may repond to such a corroboration or fraternity

[GameGuru59]

...

While I know everyone is an individual and blah, blah, blah... It's simply a fact that when "our" (or my and other black people's ancestors were enslaved) the children that the master had with the slave had lighter skin, and thus often worked inside the house because they looked more like master.

In many cases the children the master had with the slave were so light that they could pass as white (or at least they weren't dark enough for whites to really care), and across the south there were many schools set up specifically for these children (because they certainly weren't going to let them attend college with the "pure" whites). Thus, the lighter skinned black people were simply more educated that the darker skinned blacks and were more prepared for the post-slavery economy.

The darker skinned people worked in the fields and received no education what-so-ever. In fact many blacks stayed on their master's plantations in de-facto slavery as sharecroppers until the 1950's (by which time sharecropping was outlawed in almost every state). These black people were unprepared for a post slavery economy and had fewer means by which to earn a living.

[Aesthete]

My late, ebony-skinned father broke away from the system you describe and functioning as an individual, got his education---all the way to a Ph.D. at a time when opportunities for nearly all blacks were a joke. The more white-skinned people on my mother's side were the ones who stayed on the plantation after slavery was abolished.

[GameGuru59]

Please don't think I'm saying that this is a rule or something. It's just historical fact that slave masters did not educate the slaves they weren't related to in some way. Of course people can rise above hardship, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't understand the underlying reasons behind certain trends.