There really are other things I considered writing about today. In politics, there’s Trump and his pledge to pardon bad actors from the January 6, 2021 coup attempt, one Republican candidate encouraged supporters to go to the polls locked and loaded, while another, urged partisans to unplug voting machines if they saw anything they didn’t like. On the flip side, a GOP Senator praised a prospective Biden nominee for the Supreme Court. Also, a Democratic senator had a stroke, jeopardizing the Party’s hope for attaining a 50+1 majority for measures or initiatives President Biden of Leader Schumer might hope to get through the Senate. In sports, we are in the fortnight pause leading up to the Super Bowl, the widely acclaimed GOAT, Tom Brady officially announced his retirement, via Twitter, and my personal favorite, Andrew Wiggins was named a starter in his first NBA All-Star Game. Congratulations Cuz! However, I get lots of pushback from people who aren’t interested in politics, and who couldn’t care less about sports. After surveying the contemporary topical landscape, it occurred to me, one of the subjects, people find less appealing than politics or sports is…oh yeah, race.
Timing is everything. Yesterday just happened to be the first day of February, A.K.A. the introduction to Black History Month (BHM) – 2022. While I appreciate the tributes and observances associated with BHM, I am quick to note that I, as are all Black Americans, am Black every month, and the reality is, BHM is for White people. We know what we brought to the party.
So, as it happened, yesterday, the start of BHM, over a dozen HBCU’s, that’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities for the acronym challenged, received bomb threats. The list is even longer if those recently receiving threats are counted, but yesterday’s victims include, Alcorn, Coppin State, Edward Waters College, Fort Valley State, Howard, Jackson State, Kentucky State, Mississippi Valley State, Morgan State, Rust College, Spelman, Tougaloo College, the University of DC, and Xavier. Howard was peppered with a double dose, also having received a similar threat Monday.
Other HBCU’s receiving threats in recent days are Albany State, Bethune-Cookman, Bowie State, Delaware State, and Southern. All the threats are being investigated at this time. While no bombs have been found, the threats had to be taken seriously, and have proved to be the source of major disruptions across all the affected campuses. Typical response measures due to threats of this type are shelter in place/lockdowns, on-line classes only, and postponed classes. In the face of no bombs found, which is without question a good thing, it would appear the tactics were intended to instill fear and intimidation, at the very least.
I understand there are those who feel weary from what may seem to them, a never-ending discourse on race. If so, consider the experiences of the students at those 19 colleges and universities. This is just the latest in a seemingly never-ending torrent of aggressions, micro-aggressions, and other slights. “Black History Is American History: Welcome to Black History Month - 2022!”
I’m done; holla back!
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For more detailed information on a variety of aspects related to this post, consult the links below:
https://www.cnn.com/2022/02/01/us/hbcu-bomb-threats-tuesday/index.html
https://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com/2022/02/black-history-is-american-history.html
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