(ThyBlackMan.com) It is understandable that we need air to breathe, and food to sustain strength. As a people more of us are coming to understand we need to address mental health and begin the process of healing from past pain to move forward in a safe healthy manner. More black men and women are coming to terms that we are beautiful, and we have worth, as we are. Many are embracing their hair, skin, body, and brilliance. We are letting our voices be heard and learning to walk in the greatness of our culture. All of these things are necessities if we are not only to survive but thrive as individuals and a people.
However, while all of this is happening our people are still in a state of oppression. We are still fighting for the basic right to live without being abused by the system that sustains this country. Our women are missing and dying, our men are facing the police and dying, and our children are succumbing to the pressures of racism in places like school and they are dying. Black love is indeed beautiful, it is revolutionary, and it is absolutely necessary. No, we can’t help who we love but as we come to love ourselves, we much begin to embrace each other.
Black love is how families are built, and how a community can be sustained. When we learn who we are and why we should love ourselves we give ourselves permission to see the greatness in each other. Black men are not weak, and black women are not crazy. Somewhere along the lines of our oppression we bought into the stereotypes given us about who we are to each other. There were systematic attacks on black men and women, as the know existed in slavery, designed to destroy our love which would destroy our communities. No one will ever understand the oppression we face in this country like us.
There are times we find it hard to explain the plight to other people of color because their perspective of us has been jaded by white America. The factors that contribute to our plight in this country are often ignored when looking at the oppression we still face. When our children are killed it doesn’t just affect black mothers…it also affects black fathers. Its in this pain that we holler out and wail for the loss of our legacies. This is not a battle we can fight and win without black love. The greatest strength we have is our ability to love each other and create beautiful strong legacies from that love.
When black men and women free themselves to love each other, it is revolutionary because there is nothing we can’t achieve. Our children reap the benefit of seeing and learning from that love. Families are built that fortify and people, end even if one if us is taken there is a foundation of self-awareness and love to sustain the community in that time of loss. There are answers to poverty, gang violence, gun violence and self-hatred that can be found in black love. Granted, the majority and black men and women that marry are married to each other despite what the media would like us to see and believe. However, there is more to our love than merely getting married. Black people must understand we need each other to survive. No other group of people can reproduce us fully, but us. Our population suffers not only from violence against each other and being killed by racism; our numbers suffers when we can’t see the love in one another.
As we continue to come into our own, we can’t just stand in solidarity while loathing each other. We can’t heal a community while fighting one another and playing by double standard rules. We can’t grow when we are not standing together to raise our children as one. Black love is needed to keep each other alive. There is a special strength and wisdom in a black woman that will only speak to the soul of a black man.
There is a special strength and protection in a black man that will only speak to the soul of a black woman. Black love is more than just romance its about being one together and allowing that love to radiate light to our community. It is also a powerful weapon against our adversary. Black love will always be a necessity verses merely a preference. It is fueled by our ability to love self, and see our own self-worth in each other.
Staff Writer; Christian Starr
May connect with this sister over at Facebook; https://www.facebook.com/christian.pierre.9809 and also Twitter; http://twitter.com/MrzZeta.
