Not too long ago, I wrote a post about the dual souls of Black folk, a bit of a riff, if you will on W.E.B. DuBois (rhymes with joyce). I am revisiting this topic not only because of recent happenings in the news, and I’m not going to outline them here – I’m sure you’re more than well aware of them, but also to again examine my own feelings and thoughts about the whole “race” thing.

Believe it or not, but I was quite the revolutionary when I was younger. Armed with only a copy of The Autobiography of Malcolm X, I was determined to “Fight the Power” and all that cool revolutionary stuff. Don’t trust Whitey – they’ll try to fix you at every turn. Depend on your Black brothers and sisters – REVOLUTION!! (PS, Malcolm was such a much cooler brother when he came back from Mecca!)

And you know what I learned from all that? I learned that race is not always the case. (Take that Jesse Jackson). Skin don’t mean kin. Every white person is not your enemy, and every black person is not your friend. Racism is not in a hooded robe, lurking around every corner.

I write this because I see so many knee-jerk reactions to situations that upon closer examination aren’t exactly what they seem to be. We have to keep in mind that we are living in an instant-oatmeal society: Yes, the information we receive is quick, but is not always healthy or even right. It amazes me to see the stories come out on Yahoo – everyone is fighting so hard to be the first, that they rarely stop to think if they’re right, or if they even have the whole story.

The point that I am trying to make is that although I do not deny that racism exists, I don’t eat, sleep and breathe it. I don’t sniff it out in a look, a gesture or an imagined slight. That’s way too exhausting and fruitless. Who wants to walk around with a chip on their shoulder all the time? However, I will tell you that when I catch a whiff of the “R” word, I’ve got a look and a tone that will whip the offender to attention. A well placed level stare, coupled with the words, “Is there a problem?” as well as a careful examination of whatever transaction is taking place at the time is usually enough to dampen someone’s friskiness! In addition, I’m not above writing letters or speaking to managers.

I have noticed that I get a lot more so called “prejudice” from people of my own race. For example, I went downtown to get a dog license. The dog licensing area is on the way to the, ahem, children’s welfare area. So here I am, steeling myself to deal with bureaucracy and I walk into the building with my three little crew members in tow. I am walking with purpose, well, much purpose as you can have with a crew behind you.

Do you know that someone tried to direct me to the children’s welfare division? And not in a nice way either. More like, “You and yo kids need to be going back there.”

Readers, can I tell you? I stopped dead, turned to Ms. Secretary or whoever she was, and quietly said, “Pardon me? (pause…..) I’m here to get a dog license.” She had the presence of mind to stammer and look away. I wanted to tell her to get that greasy fish sandwich bag off her desk, but that’s a story for another day.

So there you go folks, a contemplative message from the goddess. Perhaps this might be better suited on one of my other sites, but hey, all’s fair right?