Friday, March 30, 2012

We Are the Same, You and I

The Hoodie
A Mother's son wearing a Hoodie

The Black Male Code and stereotypes
Walk down any street in America and
    be judged
Jesus said, “Judge not…
    but who listens to Jesus?
Love your neighbor as yourself
    But the words of another echo loudly…
    “Who is my neighbor?
I was taught the code of DWB
    but a new code is appended...
    WWB.
What happened to Jesus saves?

I walk down a street and I see a Black male…
    our eyes meet
We nod in acknowledgement of one another
No words are necessary
No translator is needed
We are brothers
No one else will acknowledge me...
    like my Black brothers
Because to others, I am invisible
If I am seen, I'm often viewed as a threat.

Here is an innocent one, what say you?
Crucify Him, crucify Him!
A grieving mother weeps.
A father’s pride is stolen.
Another young life has been taken.
How long Lord? How long?

Am I not a brother to Whites?
Latinos are my brothers and sisters, yes?
Are not Asians my kinsmen?
Did not the same God create us all?
Who should I not love?
Fifty years ago, no one would dare complain.
In 2012, the thinking is, so what?
Just another ________!
Sprite claims, “Image is everything
    So it must be the Hoodie
    Is it the shoes Nike?

Am I more than just a piece of cloth?
Does a garment define who I am?
What is my life worth?
Don’t give me the scientific value…
What am I really worth?

Did Christ die for me…
    or did he simply skip over me,
    because of my clothes?

Am I unloved by God because of my skin color…
    or has sin robbed me of reason?


How many people will look at my sons and say,
    “No good”?
What dangers await my grandsons?
Are their lives in peril...
    simply because they are Black?

Maybe it's the tattoos...
    or the jewelry they wear
It can't just be the Hoodie

Belichick wears a Hoodie,
    but no one has shot him.
Geraldo says, "It was the Hoodie"
    so it must be true.
Maybe it was the Skittles
It couldn't just be the Hoodie
Bill Belichick

Spiritual Sunday'sNote: This post is linked to Spiritual Sundays (hosted by Charlotte).

4 comments:

a joyful noise said...

Thought provoking poem and so well written and stated. I would think a hoodie would keep your head and ears warm in the cold. I myself like to wear a knit cap that covers my ears. Perhaps I too should invest in a hoodie. I think Jesus would have liked one in his day!

Lynn said...

Jeremiah 17:9 states "The heart is deceitful and desperately wicked, who can know it?". The Lord saw this tragedy unfold. HE knows what "it" was. Only HE can bring the truth to light. Powerful, powerful thought provoking poem.

From The Heart said...

Great poem..great post.In my area all kinds of people wear hoodies..babies, young people,
middleaged..old people.God, who is all seeing, knows the truth. His will be done!

Charlotte said...

We are more racially divided in America today than any time since the 1950s. It's so sad and I think it is unnecessary. There are those who constantly stir up tensions between the races. This should not be so.
Thank you for sharing on Spiritual Sundays.
Blessings,
Charlotte