More Bad Noose

Coming to a city near you..



I don't know about you but I'm patiently waiting to receive mine.

Maybe I'll get one early one morning when I open up the door to my office. Perhaps I'll see one hanging from a lamp post outside of my window. Maybe I'll find one when I open up my locker. Perhaps I'll be driving past a construction site and see a couple of them hung across a forklift. Maybe I'll be opening up a package and find one lovingly placed just underneath the tissue wrap. Or perhaps I'll be fortunate enough to see one draped gingerly around the neck of a statue.

Yesterday, two African-American NYC Parks employees, one of whom happened to be suing the City for discrimination, found nooses wrapped around the collars of their clothing. This is the latest in a string of post Jena 6 march incidents involving nooses used against blacks in a threatening manner. Certainly, this isn't anything new. Historically, demonstrations of black solidarity and demands for justice, or perceived strides in black equality have always been met by fearful intimidation tactics on the part of those who seek to entrench themselves in the white supremacist status quo.

The unimaginative bigots responsible for hanging these nooses know exactly what they're doing. They seek to disrupt the social equilibrium of their black targets. They know that some noose recipients will be shaken but most will be forced into a position in which they become distrustful of nearly all of the whites with whom they work or fraternize. They know that black people will begin to question the significance of even the most innocuous comment or act by a white person. Further, they realize that dimwitted copycats will follow their example and begin decorating offices and lockers around the country with similar objects of hate.

Whatever the case, I suggest that my black readers be on the lookout for their nooses. You can expect them to arrive shortly after you challenge institutional racism to any degree or assert your right to be treated with respect. My hope is that you'll be able to recognize the sheer cowardice of the act and regard it for what it is: a manifestation of pure, unadulterated fear.