Event organized to enlighten those behind Philly Mag's 'Being White in Philly' piece
Jenice Armstrong, Daily News Columnist
NOW - let's note this is my satirical edifice to what I consider a poor coverage of an event being spearheaded by obvious political and lobbyist efforts by the Knight Foundation to in some way make satire out of the socioeconomic plights of the United States indeed in 2013. We are a nation, not a city or region, that is mired in a flu-like sypnosis (yes not synopsis) trying to hide from or anesthesize the wound so that we can no longer feel its hurt. It hurts both side: it hurts the emotions of the blacks but the unhappy feeling it must leave on the whites who hate. But that's the sympton/path to solution.
Now let's get at a few other things, starting with the people she interviewed to talk worthless shit for the benefit of an interview:
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Organizers hope Philadelphians of all races will turn out next week for an event at Love Park called “Being in Philly.” The gathering, scheduled for 4 p.m. on March 20, is in response to a controversial Philadelphia magazine cover story called “Being White In Philly.” In the piece, based on anonymous interviews, Robert Huber makes the claim that white people are afraid to talk about race for fear of being called racist.
The article has a lot of problems, many of them well documented already. But the first-day-of-spring event isn’t so much to address the issue of bad journalism but to present another view of what’s happening in Philly.
“The goal is to have an intellectual dialogue and discourse that promotes a positive outcome and interactive cultural understanding,” Chris Norris, a lead organizer, told me last week.
Organizers also hope to bring Huber, the author of ‘Being White in Philly,’ to Love Park to introduce him around.
(Yes - that would make for good sport to fuel a potential race riot)
“To introduce him to organizations like Rising Sons and to introduce him to the Black Male Engagement Project that the Knight Foundation is spending millions and millions of dollars on to change the narrative in this city and Baltimore and Detroit. (Really?? "spending millions and millions of dollars"...to change 'what' narrative?)
To introduce him to people like Gregory Walker (founder of the Brothers Network)…Gregory Corbin and Solomon Jones. That’s the goal. Not to make him feel scared, to make him feel like there’s going to be an angry black mob waiting for him. That there’s going to be intellectual black men waiting with open arms to embrace him because, hey, he needs a hug. “ (Can we get any more crass and condescending? Not to mention no white person believes that that's gonna happen? 'Breaking news: A man was just mugged by a black male, age...')
Organizers hope Philly mag will respond by writing some sort of piece of follow up to Huber’s piece.
“We want to encourage Philly magazine to write a part 2 (called) being a Philadelphian. Not being white. Not being black. But being a Philadelphian. That’s really important,” pointed out Rashaun Williams, 18, a Temple University sociology and history major who's helping organize the gathering.
HA!!! An article such as that is actually what Philly Rag used to write in the late 70s. They got off their mission sometime after the mid-80s. And off their rocker in the 90s, somehow believing they were the message in this town. Way too overblown by the nouveau rich of the Philly region, most all white. Yeah right bitches...
In addition to all that, organizers say there will be free musical performances and a water ice giveaway. Editors at Philly mag also have been invited. (Ooooh yummy....we sure can't wait for that! Only the sheep will survive, which is but almost all of the Philadelphia Happy Valley anyway.)
BOTTOM LINE: PHILLY WILL ONLY UNDERSTAND WHAT IT'S LIKE BEING WHITE WHEN THEY UNDERSTAND WHY BLACKS FEEL THE WAY THEY DO AND WHAT IT FEELS LIKE TO BE BLACK IN PHILLY. FUNNY NO ONE GETS IT: THE REASON THERE IS SO MUCH GUILT IS BECAUSE PEOPLE HAVE SOMETHING TO FEEL GUILTY ABOUT.
YEARS, DECADES, CENTURIES OF CREATING CLASS/RACE/ECONOMIC DIVIDE, WHITE PEOPLE STILL HAVE THE BALLS TO ASK "WHY IS THIS SO?" AND YOU ARE THE EDUCATED ONES? YOUR ONLY EDUCATION IS TO DENY THE TRUTH AND LEARN TO RATIONALIZE YOURSELF AROUND, OVER, UNDER AND EVEN THROUGH THE TRUTH SO LONG AS YOU DON'T HAVE TO ADMIT TO IT. BUT IT'S THERE, NEVER GONE, YOU HAVE TO FACE IT SOMEDAY, IN FACT EVERYDAY, UNTIL YOU DO SOMETHING TO STOP IT FROM BEING THERE.
March cover of Philadelphia. WHITE letters on BLACK background. Appropriate.
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