In The Shoe Of Miss #Dolezal

A majority applauds her. Some consider her a villain. Me, I call Rachel Dolezal “An Ultimate One-Woman Revolutionist.” To those who applauded her, to those who cursed her, I would say that it was all the consequence of her revolution. I call her a revolutionist because a revolution is most definitely a radical undertaken to alter a certain course. Rachel Dolezal took the most stringent approach in her attempt to participate in the struggle of the Negro being.

When the news erupted, my initial reaction was that she simply wanted to live as a black person. I could not figure anything wrong with that; except of course that she may have violated the law by lying to maintain the blackness. I had yet to learn much about her background, her life, and her work in the black community. After I had arrived to know more about the life of Miss Dolezal and her position vis-à-vis the Negro race, I have reserved nothing but praise for her. And I would encourage her to consider any pitfall from this as a backfire of her endeavor.

What is the best way to understand the suffering of another human being than to experience the suffering yourself? Perhaps if the slave owners had subjected themselves to the experience of the Negro slaves, they would have had a change-of-heart that other human beings should not have been treated so inhumanly. Miss Dolezal went all the way to even alter her physical stature to adopt the Negro identity in order to live like a black person. We may never know exactly what might have pressured the lady to go that way. People have speculated that she is crazy, that she is a liar, that she is a phony, and all. Some of her action may force us to certainly empathize with the above. Her parents have described her as a pathetic liar; her adopted brother has painted a mentally displaced picture of her; and other people are just baffled by her comportment. Yet, what Miss Dolezal did was just trying to be as Negroid as Negro could be. She adopted a Negro identity and attitude; she altered her hair and skin color; and she joined the Negro person to live like one.

Many black females, and even black young men, have continually been trying through time to approach closer and join the Caucasian being. Throughout colonization and even to now, many black men and women have procreated with white individuals, and those kids have benefited significantly by having associated with their Caucasian progenitor side. More recently, we have seen black women crowning with long hair that sometimes makes it almost impossible to determine their race from behind. And more absurdly, many young black individuals have bleached their bodies to make them appear more light skin.

Miss Dolezal does not fit within the above disorder. She was in contrast on a mission to discover Black, to live black, and to fight on the side of the black person. Of course she could have done it some other ways, probably more effectively, that people could have comprehended her better and commonly accepted her. However, I guess she wanted to do it that way, or some way. She might have miscalculated the eventual outcome; bu,t that was what she wanted – to identify, live, and struggle like a Negro. With that, she certainly attained some highs and lows. (1) She received a scholarship to Howard University. Well, perhaps she would be capable as a white woman to obtain financing for her education some other ways. (2) She has been a professor of Afro-American Studies. She could be a professor of any other subject of her liking. (3) She became head of a NAACP chapter. It is very likely that she could ascend some other echelon. (4) She was also Head of some police order. Likewise, it is claimed that she was victim of hate crime and other abuses.

Now, Miss Dolezal, a Caucasian woman, entered the Negroid shoe not for the superficial aspects that most Blacks have done, (white privileges, better skin color and hair style). She appears to have had a deep sense of wanting to experience the life of the black person and to fight along side of him. She stated that she expected her strategy to fire back. Anyway, that was what she wanted to do. She did it. Most often, that is the way a revolution ends. You win some; you lose some. Miss Dolezal has now been somewhat derided over the media. Nevertheless, she would remain that one white woman who had gone so far as to enter the Negro’s skin to fight along with him.

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By E.C. GRANMOUN
E.C. Granmoun is the Author of: "The Social Worker"  ebook, amazon.com

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The Red Cross’ Fiasco In Haiti Goes The Haitian Way

When the earthquake of January 12, 2010 occurred in Haiti, the tiny and impoverished island nation automatically became the focus of the rapacious media. Some people took it as a natural catastrophe. Many considered it a punishment for the cursed land of voodoo, zombies, and demons. No matter what, the most astonishing sentiment was the outpouring of grief and support: (1) People from everywhere, from all denominations of life sprung forth to collect aid for the population in difficulty; and (2) so many God-loving individuals willing and ready to offer the necessary assistance to booster the Haitian people back to normal existence.

It did not take long for the benevolence, sentiment of helping and giving to recede, however. Haiti and its misery; its hundreds of thousands of people under tents; its down-ridden mountain tops; its piles of garbage; its young men and young women in the infernos of the slums; all the dreams of repairing Haiti; and its incompetent, ignorant, and corrupted leaders under the strong arms of imperialism; they all reentered the shadows. There was one new sphere to the phenomenon yet. It was the news about how much the poorest nation of the Americas was being abused and exploited by the so-called good Samaritans. And, one of these major villains was the Red Cross. Recently, the headlines about this organization’s squandering money destined to help victims of the earthquake were plentiful. One of them read, “How the Red Cross Raised Half a Billion Dollars for Haiti and Built Six Homes,” by Justin Elliott, ProPublica, and Laura Sullivan, NPR. Above the title, they showed a couple of minuscule shacks on dirt ground with two kids and their bikes and a woman.

The recent news should not be surprising.

Back a couple of years earlier, the bell had already rung. The controversy was about a plan of the Red Cross to construct a luxury hotel and conference hall with money that was donated to help poor and displaced Haitians. Therefore, as everything else in Haiti, the aid organizations arrived and maintained the same irreconcilable mentality of chaos and fiasco of Haiti.

According to the above article, “The Red Cross received an outpouring of donations after the quake, nearly half a billion dollars.” And for an institution with a reputation of successful philanthropy in the American society, the Red Cross has failed badly in Haiti. In fact, it is mentioned that the Red Cross used the Haitian crisis as a mere opportunity for fundraising; and, the organization has claimed success publicly. But, on the ground in Haiti, and according to verifiable records, it has shown that “the charity has broken promises, squandered donations, and made dubious claims of success.”  For instance, (1) they said that they have given homes to some 130,000 individuals. Investigative reports could account only for 6 newly built homes. (2) They offered an ambitious plan to “develop brand-new communities.” None was built.

Why the organization failed so badly?

The investigators pointed out some common issues. (1) A dependence on outsiders who did not even speak the Haitian language. (2) Discrimination against Haitian workers and job applicants. (3) Organizational lacking of developmental project expertise. (4) Too much overhead costs. The Red Cross itself has admitted that the event in Haiti was a trying moment for them. One project manager stated that the reason why a certain project failed was that they “didn’t have the know how.” Another blamed micro management from Washington D. C. that caused everything to take “four times as long.” Another major issue the organization raised for the failure of completing projects was the difficulty of clearing land titles in Haiti. The investigation has revealed however that the Red Cross has simply done a very bad job.

They wrote. “Instead of making concrete improvements to living conditions, the Red Cross has launched hand-washing education campaigns…,” these were “not effective when people had no access to water and no soap.” And, when the cholera epidemic broke out a few months after the quake, “the biggest part of the Red Cross’ response – a plan to distribute soap and oral re-hydration salts – was crippled by “internal issues that go unaddressed,”…”

The Red Cross’ fiasco in Haiti goes the Haitian way.

I remember in college how they instructed us that American business people  and officials would break the law once they were out of the United States territories. They would act according to the norms and vices of their host countries. The moment of the earthquake in Haiti proved such an American tendency. When the disaster had just struck, the world came in mass, painting a picture as if Haiti was going to be rescued forever. After a little while, however, it was the big question. What happened to all the money that had been collected? The answer was muddied.  Haiti remained in its misery; a mass of people had not exited the tents; and those who had found the badly constructed shacks were rejoined the same life of misery in the slums and ghettos.

Many nations, particularly the big so-called friends of Haiti had promised much money. That likewise has remained controversial. The donors have claimed they have already given out much. Haitians officials and critics have not agreed to the claim. No matter what, the philanthropists, the organizations, the mercenaries, all have come and gone. Many players, Haitians and foreigners, have cashed out majorly. It is the Haitian way. There is no law, no rule; everything goes the corrupted way. In fact, the reporters pointed out that it has remained a norm for the organizations to botch “delivery of aid after disasters…” Therefore, in Haiti it should not be surprising. It has gone as always – the Haitian way. 

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By E.C. GRANMOUN
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E.C. Granmoun is the Author of: "Big Bully Country: A Novel"  ebook, on amazon.com

This Electronic Age Reveals the Young Men in Peril

One young man dead; the police to blame; Baltimore erupted into flame; such has been a common affair in the black communities in the great United States of America - Florida, New York, Missouri, New Jersey, California, South Carolina, and on and on. Some children are in peril. A nation remains divided. What is going on? Who is to blame? I recall one day I was picking up some food at a tiny café in Little Havana Miami. I overheard some White Hispanic officers, a half dozen or so, talking about how they despised young black males. I was terrified. They had one familiar argument. The young black men had an attitude. I went my way. They went their ways. Yet, I felt that young Afro men in America were facing an uphill battle.

It is about 20 years later that I am writing this blogpost. In the white house, there is a half-black-half-white president of the big white men’s country. People should mistake that the relationship between Black and White in the United States must have highly improved. It in contrast, appears to have deteriorated. During the last few months, or at best the last couple of years, a rash of cold murdering of young black men by the police all about the country has proven that the issue of race in the United States is still to be reconciled. 

This murdering of young black men by police should not be taken for anything new in this country. In fact, the mistreatment of poor Blacks here has ever remained a common affair. In general, black people in the United State have been kept a degenerated and deprived mass. No wealth, no suitable education, no well organized structure to serve the Negro interest, people of African origin here are left in a conundrum of societal inefficiencies that have held them captives of their white Caucasian compatriots, as destined from their backdrop of slavery. It is not a surprise that the young black men have developed attitudes, and the police the keeper of the dungeon have brutalized them. However, the new age of social media has brought to light what used to customarily be done in darkness.

Young black men in America have always been more exposed to the injustice of racism. Ever since slavery, where such young men were lynched for the mere fact of looking at a white female; or when they were condemned for crimes committed by other people; and, the actual brutality of the law enforcement on them simply for the fact that they are Negroes. Black people here in general have suffered most often silently under the racist system that has marginalized their race. No one wants to condone any illegal actions of the young black folks. Yet, it as criminal for the white police to go about massacring them mercilessly. 

Everything was done in the dark until cameras started to branch out on all standing structures, and individuals with smart phones and tablets were ready to snap a picture of any action at every joint, every angle. I remember Rodney King, with his face all bulged up, and all the protests in Los Angeles and all across the country. Then, there was no more, as if the police had stopped brutalizing black men. This was 1992, the age of camcorders. Today, is the age of social media. Not only that a camera is posted at every angle of our activities, the network of people are up and ready to transmit with the tapping of a finger to every corner of the globe and even up into the heavens. Nothing is hidden; no place is too far.

Hence, the peril of the young black men in the United States is exposed. Not only that, this society incarcerated the Blacks in slavery for centuries; not only that these Blacks were abandoned to failure by the exploiting and racist society at liberty; now the young black men have been revealed to have been suffering extreme discrimination, brutalization, and even extermination by the judicial institutions of the country that not only render false judgments to imprison the young black men, but also allow the brutal racist police forces to exterminate the young men. It is no longer a secret. The electronic and social media society must have clearly acknowledged.

E.C. Granmoun is the author of "The Social Worker" ebook on amazon.com 
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Always Keep Your Mind and Your Eyes on Your Child

A child is dead and a dad is behind bars – sad story that one would not wish to hear. When I am walking about with my social worker’s mindset and I observe a parent walking in front with a child behind, it automatically rings the alarm bell. This parent does not take 100% charge of the child. Those are certain criteria that the child welfare worker considers when investigating the family environment. Very often you hear that a child is dead from heat exposure after having been left in the vehicle by a parent. Your heart is tearing apart thinking about the suffering that such a child must have gone through to meet his or her demise. And, such incidents that could have been averted.

This father James Koryor, as reported by NBC News, is arrested on “suspicion of manslaughter and child abuse…” It obviously appears to be a case of negligence of him. Detectives revealed that he went to the liquor store, “bought a bottle of gin, drank it on the way home and fell asleep inside his house.” All along, there were two children of his in his care. At the end, the younger one, 2 years old, was found unconscious in the vehicle and died in the hospital. His 5-year-old brother either exited by himself or taken by his father. Surely one could detect gross negligence here. The father went out to buy liquor with his children, he got drunk on the way home with the children still in the vehicle, he lost his sanity, and he abandoned his responsibility of the children. According to the police, the younger child "struggled to get out of the vehicle before dying."

Now, even though this father was overly negligent, we all still need to take note. For, in many other cases we have heard relatively sane and stable individuals who have forgotten their kids in vehicles and who have suffered the same ill fate. We are living in a highly pressurized and even inflated society. People are usually on the run, and occupied by a multitude of activities. People’s minds are often full with worries about all different types of concerns about life. And often time, it gets to some certain degree that people have lost control. Perhaps you and I have already developed the skills that would keep us away from such a tragedy. Yet, we must have a message for the others. Always keep your mind and your eyes on your children.

As the social worker, it beeps when I observe a child walking behind the parent. When I say that your eye should always be on your child, I mean that you have a certain attitude that you must develop to make sure that you cannot forget your child. Number one would obviously be to not get drunk with your child in the car. Number two, which must in reality be number one, you should keep such a close watch on your child that the possibility that you could forget him in the car should be zero. When I am caring for a child, I automatically know that I am the protector of the child. (1) I know that I have to provide for this child in my care. (2) I know that there are things that I must refrain from doing with this child around. (3) I also give the child his limit, particularly of what he should stay away from and what he should not do. And, we all would be safe. 

When relatives in the home asked the older sibling for the smaller one, he responded that he was sleeping. They automatically assumed that the child was in a room somewhere.  With your mind and your eyes on your child, it is very unlikely that you would undertake any activities, allow the child to undertake any such activities, or to forget the child long enough for such preventable tragedy to occur. The lesson to learn is. Do not assume. Make sure to check and verify when you are not sure. We don't want to waste our little love ones.

  

E.C. Granmoun is the author of "The Social Worker" ebook on amazon.com 
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Children and Firearm

One of the responsibility of the social worker is to make sure the home environments present no danger for the children. When you go for a home study; or, every time you arrive for one of the monthly visits, you have to check that the homes offer a suitable atmosphere for the children there. There are foods, electricity, running water, ventilation, enough room space, etc. But, the issue of safety, how do you measure that? The social worker has to make sure that there is no electrical wire exposed, no paint is peeled off  the walls, nothing is too precarious placed that it would fall on a child, no knife or anything like that or poisonous or dangerous material is at the reach of children. But what about when you see such a headline: “Florida Boy, 12, Kills Brother and Self.” Your stomach cringes.

The worse part about it, the boy had access to a firearm that he utilized to kill his younger brother, 6 years old, and his sixteen-year-old brother was shot in the leg and survived. How does a twelve-year-old get his hands on a firearm? What is the role of the custodians? What is the role of the society? Could the social worker foreseen such a danger?

Recently, there has been so much publicity about the gun issue. Several individuals, particularly young black men have been killed by others with a firearm. The perpetrators have often claimed the "stand-your-ground" law, which literally gives people who own firearms the right to kill others that they may consider threatening to them. This has brought up the argument against the much availability of weapon in the communities. Yet, our major concern at the moment is the fact that the twelve-year-old could get access to a gun and arrive to shoot his brothers with it.

The parents must beware. If you choose to own weapons, you must be ready to take responsibility for their safety in the home. Anybody who purchases a weapon, you must take charge of it. In the home, in the vehicle, it is yours and yours only; and, nobody else should be able to assume control over it. You were the one who felt that you could handle it and went out and buy it. So, don’t count on anybody else. Especially when it concerns children, there is no excuse. Children are not logically sound enough to handle weapons. They may see it as a toy. They may not know yet the level of damage it could inflict. So, it remains on you the custodians to make sure that the children never have access to weapons, particularly firearms. There have been so many instances where parents have cried because they have been careless and allowed the children access to weapons. It should not be; or, let it be no more.

The freedom to bear arms in this country is extremely liberal. No one would wish to infringe upon another’s rights. Still, this society needs to take a careful look on how this easy access to firearms is affecting certain ethnic groups. And, the social workers, there is not too much to do under such a circumstance. When you go inside the home, you check for all abnormalities. Yet, usually, the gun would not be sitting around openly. You would most likely miss it. You could pass the message, however: If you have a gun, make sure the children are not able to get to it. At the end, the whole safety concern rests with the custodians or parents. If you don’t have necessity for a gun, do not even acquire one. If you have to, make sure no child could lay hands on it. And, don’t allow people with guns to bring them near your children.

E.C. Granmoun is the author of "The Social Worker" ebook on amazon.com 
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Watch Out For The Bad Kids Who May Not Appear So

A young man and his mother are dead. The killer, another young man that the son had befriended. The murderer declared that a, “Voice in [his] head told him to do it.”

A lot of times you are at home and afraid to venture out. And at night, you check every joint of the home to make sure that you and your family are sleeping in security. What about when the criminal is a friend? What about when the criminal is inside?

The murdered individuals here appear to be from a normal modern family environment. There is no mention of a father, but the mother is in her early fifties and a nurse at an area hospital, and her son is a twenty-year-old. These people were very likely having a-okay-life. Then there was this other young man who penetrated their home and sat at their dining table. One night, he shot both dead. He destroyed this seemingly normal life.

Watch who is coming to dinner. We are not supposed to be prejudiced. Yet, this makes you wonder what level of precautionary measures you must consider vis-à-vis people coming into your home. The young murderer proclaimed that voices in his head had caused him to act so cruelly. This is a very critical aspect to consider. Usually, we look at people in term of race, religion, social rank, and the like. Particularly, these days in our ghettos, we want to stay away from the young kids with ‘nasty’ dreaded hairs, dropped down pants, and those plated teeth. We usually think that they would mug us. Which, they often do.

The young man with this “devil” inside his brain that would tell him to kill his benefactors is usually overlooked. Such kids most often do not fit the profile of terror in their appearances. You would have to go inside their brains; which people often ignore even when the signals are clear. Then you end up with this kid killing his friend and his mother. And, you have the shootings in the schools, in the shopping malls, and in any place where there is a mass of people.

Such kids are often more menacing to most of us, since they often appear to be no threat, and we pay no attention. And, they most of the times inflict greater scale of damage. They are difficult and even almost impossible to discover beforehand. They are among us. They are often no different from us. Most of the times they possess no distinct characteristics like our kids in the ghettos. So, we intermingle with them, and go about our business - until they strike. It is at that point, and only then that we know we had such a danger lurking around. It is too late. The worst has already happened. The damage is already done.

What can we do? Watch out for the unusual signs. Normal kids usually conduct themselves as good young citizens. They listen and follow their parents, their teachers, and other positive figures, and do what is right. In addition, they would concentrate on productive, positive, and optimistic matters. Kids with problems are often not so mentally stable. They may not be so respective of their parents and their teachers; they may not be so productive; and, they may be occupied with issues of illusion. Our best bet is to watch out for signs of stability, when allowing certain kids in our homes.  

E.C. Granmoun is the author of "The Social Worker" ebook on amazon.com 
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Break Barriers And Be Happier

Generally, the human being is limited in his ability to develop and satisfy his own existence.  There is a song that says, “Life is what you make it.” Most people are often not living to their maximum potentials. What is the reason for that? We are often tied up by certain obstacles, whether natural or societal, that limit us from developing our full potential for happiness. Although law and order, rules and regulations, and morality and ethics are important and sometimes even mandatory in our daily lives, we sometimes have to learn to break the unnecessary boundaries that have often kept us from living to our fullest extent.

We come into existence, limited and bounded by nature, society, government, religion, family, and more. As children, we are totally dependent upon our parents and others for even remaining alive. We develop with all these restraints and become adults. Most of us tend to remain attached to them until the end of our days. And, many times they are keeping us from fulfilling our best lives. Our goal is to break away from the barriers and go on to live a full and happy life.

Escape the Common Obstacles

It is our life. We have to live it. In order to live fully, we must navigate with agility within the rims of the following five most common obstacles to human liberty:  Nature, Society, Government, Religion,  Family.

Beware of Nature

Nature is our best friend. In fact, nature is our mother. Likewise, nature is our worst enemy. The human being comes into nature helplessly. Without assistance from others, a child would not remain in existence more than a little while. This odd relationship with nature composes the first restriction in our lives that we must break. Nature restricts us in one place; we are born into a certain family, in a nation, and within a specific geographic area. Often, we feel that we can never win our liberty from this natural phenomenon which sometimes renders us very unhappy. Certain measures we could take against this bizarre relationship:

We must learn to break the ties – Since the beginning of their existence, the human beings have been battling nature for freedom. We have moved from the rudiments of the cave, to the luxuriousness of palaces today. We as individuals have simply to recognize that we are free to explore, experiment, and do whatever is right to live fully and happily.

Stretch out and touch the world – Individuals today are no longer members of their own small nations alone. Technologies have brought us together in what we may call a “mega society.” We no longer have to sit in the little corner where nature placed us and be unhappy. We have the option to reach out into the greater world’s environment and benefit from its resources.

Get up and go – This is our world. Christopher Columbus left us a great lesson. He and his men traveled across the Atlantic and landed in an unknown place. Today, we could do better. People could simply jump on an airplane and go across the world. Still, you find other people who risk their lives with small boats across miles of ocean, and others walk miles of land to gain a better life. If you are not happy where you are, you always have the option to try some other place.

Society and Government

Rid yourself of certain societal norms – We understand that our societal nature has ameliorated our condition. Yet, when it comes time to break away from certain cumbersome ways of our society, do not be afraid to do it. This is your life. If it makes you happy and it is right, go for it.

Watch out for the government – Not all laws, and rules and regulations, are right all the times. Nobody should do anything illegal. If you consider the government is wrong in some way, you may consider protesting. Why not even go into politics to challenge things?

 Always do the right thing – Nobody ever wants to break any laws. As a citizen, you could always run to the justice system, but don’t do anything illegal.

Religion Is Always a Conflict

Do not be disturbed – Since the dawn of our days, religion has been a controversial topic. Never allow it to be a problem for you. It would never go away.

Choose carefully – You have the option to choose your way of living. If you are going to choose a certain religion, make sure to choose something that you think you like and you would be happy with. You could always change, if you need to. It is only to consider that some other ideology better fits what you consider your next life to be.

 If you are an unbeliever, that’s okay – If unbelieving is what makes you happy in this life, why not? It is your life.

The Family Is the Backbone of Your Life

Love and respect – This doctrine is one of the primary means to a happy life. Our family is the one that has generally been there for us all along. Always give them the exceptional love and respect that it deserves.

Do not be too attached to the family. Yes, we love, respect, and honor our family. But, we must also recognize that we have a life of our own. We cannot substitute that of our family for ours. That means, at times, we must live and let go.

Move away from the general norms of the family. When we are born into a family, we tend to live according to its ways. We should strive to break away from the family setting as we gain maturity.

Those are some of the common barriers to our happy existence. By trying some of these measures, one would certainly experience a more rewarded life.

E.C. Granmoun is the author of "The Social Worker" ebook on amazon.com 
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