To Be Self Righteous....

self-right·eous (slfrchs)
adj.

1. Piously sure of one's own righteousness; moralistic.
2. Exhibiting pious self-assurance: self-righteous remarks.


self-righteous·ly adv.
self-righteous·ness n.

I am ashamed of a few things right now. Bare with me as I go through this...

I am ashamed of The University of Alabama. I hang my head at the very thought of the imperialist attitudes displayed as a result of the Homecoming festivites of years gone by. The black community at UA has often felt that the University of Alabama Administration had no commitment to making us feel welcome in a bastion of white privilege. We now see how true that is.

I am not a race baiter. I am not one to simply throw out the race card in the interest of gaining attention or embarrassing others into action. However, the racist undertones of the ENTIRE homecoming celebration are too hard to ignore. Moving the Ying-Yang Twins to a completely different venue for the homecoming concert while citing "logistics issues" as the reason is utterly ludicrous. A has been country singer and a rap group with more crossover appeal than the "thug rappers" that everyone decries them as, would not draw any more of a crowd than Lynrd Skynrd did 5 years ago. In fact, they would be LESS appealing.

The conclusion MUST be made that, the presence of an act that wasn't a part of mainstream, southern, traditionally white music scared the university into forcing a move of the concert.

I am embarrassed by many of the students at my alma mater. I am embarrassed that in all their self-righteousness they cannot see some of the more blatant attempts to railroad black students on their own campus. They accuse us of self-segregation. This goes deeper than all the black kids sitting together in the lunchroom or all the black organizations keeping to themselves. This is deeply seated in the 40-plus years that black students were not allowed to participate equally in the homecoming festivities at The University of Alabama. 3 years ago, I personally sat down with other students and Dr. Witt and told him to his face, "There are two separate homecomings at this university. A black homecoming and a white homecoming." 3 years ago, I saw this happening. 3 years before, someone else saw the same. 30 years ago, is probably when it began.

So, in their self-righteousness the students and administrators who felt that the move was the proper thing to do make it a point to turn the tables and call the traditional homecoming stepshow, "self-segregation", suggesting that the NPHC change the date and/or time of the stepshow to accomodate the homecoming concert. Well, one thing about that is that the 9 traditionally black fraternities and sororities that make up the NPHC have a long tradition of stepping which dates back to our roots in Africa. The NPHC at The University of Alabama has a long-standing tradition of hosting this stepshow as a way for black students, who were segregated from the rest of the campus community, to celebrate homecoming. Now that the University is "pandering" to the black community (often on subpar levels)we are supposed to throw away our traditions?

I'm ashamed of some of the students at my alma mater for another reason. To justify this racist action of the administration, they point to the senseless killing of a bright university student and veteran of George W. Bush's War on AmerIraq. To blame this murder that occured two and a half hours after the concert and miles away from the concert is simply a logical fallacy. These are the same people that make racist jokes about the concert, call us separationists and self-segregators. Their ignorance makes them laughable....and dangerous. I am ashamed of them for disrespecting the memory of this young scholar and patriot who was so full of promise by using his death to further their own racist ideology. I am ashamed that they are allowed to be self-righteous comfortably because no one will call them the cowards they truly are....mostly because they hide behind computer screens, titles, badges, and hoods.

I'm ashamed of myself. For not rearranging my schedule to go support Tiffany Minnifield in the protest she organized. I'm ashamed of myself for not speaking out on this sooner. I'm ashamed of myself for allowing this sort of underlying racism to fester under my watch. I'm ashamed of myself for being emotional about the progress of Americans on the racial front. I'm ashamed of the crimson blood that pumps through my veins right now as I sit on the enemies campus, a tide of tears being held back only by the anger I feel by reading the Crimson White. The articles. The comments.

I'm ashamed to say Roll Tide....
I'm ashamed because obviously....The University of Alabama is ashamed of me.


--SE7EN