If you haven't seen it yet check it out right HERE; it'll make you laugh, definitely. But what really needs to be checked is the mess that lies beneath. What is it? It's a list compiling all the Stuff Educated Black People Like - like the ever-so popular "First Fridays," for example. #14 states that "this is the day that upscale events are held so educated black people can mingle among others of their social ilk. These events usually have themes, allowing educated black people to purchase new designer clothing to fit in." I laughed. So the blog itself is not exactly "the mess" (because it's satyrical in nature, making light of true perception - sometimes reality - and, for the most part, is actually entertaining), it's what is being implied (which is, keep it real, pretty much true as well) that is "the mess."Disagree if you'd like, but we have a huge problem with unity. Unity (or lack thereof) is THE underlying issue contributing to the continual degradation of the black community in the United States. Without delving too far into Slavery, A History there was a point in time when dark & light skinned slaves were pitted against each other & thus convinced that there was in inherent difference between the two - a difference in worth & esteem, intelligence, culture, etc. But while these ideals continue to permeate the psyche of Black America, we have opened a new means of classifying and dividing the masses that actually transcends the notion of color (for real?): the Educated vs. the Uneducated, the EBPs vs. the UEBPs.
The blog renders many of the idiosyncrasies of EBPs...I particularly liked entries #3 Baked Chicken, #11 Turkey Bacon/Sausage, & #12 Barack Obama. & I mean, they are all entertaining in prose; however, #4 Natural Hair, #13 Talking About Uneducated Black People, & #14 First Fridays, in particular, really speak volumes about the self-destructive classism growing in our communities. My advice - be true to you, do what you gotta do to get up, & say what you gotta say because we're all entitled to our opinions. BUT remember, at the end of the day we are ALL as good as our "weakest link." Black folk have to live with a legacy, a legacy that is mostly defined by our apparent homogeny. & because we are defined & bound as such, we're gonna have to break loose of those chains together. There is no other way around it.
Stuff Educated Black People Like was created in good humor, and for that it is well appreciated, no doubt...but while the content's universal validity can be debated (after all we ARE all different), I do know one thing EBPs hate - EBPs absolutely hate being mistaken for UEBPs, but guess what? so do UEBPs. No advanced degrees (#7) or business cards (#8) are gonna fix racism. Not a chance.So be true to you, do what you gotta do, & say what you gotta say - the truth is the truth & it's our duty to keep it real. BUT at the end of the day, if you're an EBP who isn't being true to the reality of your heritage, who isn't doing what you gotta do to uplift our black community along with yourself, & who isn't speaking up for & out to the people who weren't as keen, lucky, or privileged as you were in their pursuits of joining your ranks...unfortunately you're strengthening the divide. I LUHV us, but we all, the proclaimed EBPs & UEBPs alike, need to wake up & move up together.
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