THE STRENGTH OF THE BLACK MAN

                                               The Strength of the Black Man

The Black Man and Strength definitely go hand in hand, and so many of them never hear the words of how great they are, not just as men, but as our black men. The black man wears a target on his back daily, as he is abused, accused and refused. We take the plight of the black man for granted not realizing that from the day he is birthed into this world there are many assumptions placed on his back.

There are some black men that never complain they just endure and exist, while others crumble and run away under the pressure placed upon their shoulders and back. Do we ever truly comprehend the journey a black man takes just to survive in Our World? Black men are feared, ridiculed, avoided and plagued as the criminal element in our society. These men have to endure and always be the pillars of strength or they are cut down into a million pieces.

I remember the first time that I witnessed my father cry; it was because his oldest brother passed away, and I was literally astonished to see tears come out of my father’s eyes. I had never ever seen my father cry before and I couldn’t believe it, I really believed that after a certain age men no longer cried. Men were just always meant to be strong and to see my father’s tears it meant that he had a weak point. It broke my heart to watch my father cry and all I remember saying to my little brother was, daddy is crying. I felt so much closer to my dad at that very moment because it sort of humanized him for me that he could feel pain and weep.

You know growing up many of us was taught that the best thing was to find a good, strong and loving man; like Boaz in the bible. Boaz was strong, he fed Ruth, and he protected her and made her his wife. So when you think of strength you do not think of a man crying; it is just unthinkable, especially due to their upbringing and pride. Men are taught to withhold their emotional feelings and to avoid being in touch with their inner most feelings, because it revealed weakness. The funniest thing ever is that as women we complain that men do not display enough emotion, and that they tend to hold back on their sensitive side and are not vulnerable to us as women. Men are taught one thing growing up, and are expected to display the very thing that were taught not to feel, how confusing.

If I were a man I would be completely confused as to my role in this world, especially as a black man. Black men are feared automatically because of the color of their skin, and they are always the first to be investigated and accused. Could you imagine always being the prime suspect of any crime? They are pulled over by the police daily; they are shunned by many folks that fear them due to the color of their skin and appearance. The saddest thing of all is that when some of them achieve a certain status and believe that they have more than proven themselves to be productive and progressive elements in society, somebody always tries to step in and inform them that they are still just Black Men.

We can agree that some black men do not live up to our expectations of them, but again some of them tend to suppress their true feelings, which include:

v I have been trying so hard, but I cannot find a job, they will not hire me

v I don’t like who I am because self hatred is embedded in me.

v I have so much anger built up inside because of how I am treated by society.

v I want to scream and cry, but I refuse to wear my heart on my sleeve and appear to be a punk, I am a man

v Nobody will ever truly understand what I go through, I hurt just like anybody else

v I do not want my children to see me as a failure that is why I stay away

v I cannot take care of myself, how can I take care of my family

v You are all better off without me

 

And the list continues. We are very judgmental when it comes to our Black men and they have so much to work through and deal with in society. We are not making excuses for the black man, we are just trying to tip toe in his shoes and comprehend his journey through his eyes.

 

Being Black in America can be a tough pill to swallow, but being a black man in society can be the whole medicine cabinet. I applaud all black man that are still standing strong and not just surviving but making it in this world.  We know that your burdens are heavy and we want to be there for you to help transport some of the weight until we are all in a better place. We want you to know that giving up is not an option and that we are in this battle together. We will not walk away and give up on you, as we are all learning about your journey and plight.

 

 We have to take the time to love our young black boys and help them to become Productive, Progressive and Proud Black Men. We have to be there for them with our ears, love and comprehension

 

Yes it’s true, WE LOVE OUR BLACK MEN AND WE LOVE THE STRENGTH THEY POSSESS.

Sharlene R. Prince