Monroe Dispatch - No Struggle, No Progress

By Eddie D. Gillis

In last week’s column, this reporter wrote of how things, despite what some will say, are going from bad to worse in this nation and the world. For those of us who read The Dispatch on a regular basis, you know that I end my editorials with the phrase, “Remember, the world is watching. So is God”. The ending to my editorials came to me “in a thought”, as there are not many editorials that end in a phrase reminding us that no matter what we do, He is watching. The singer, Bette Midler also did the same in a song called “From A Distance”, reminding us that we can receive spiritual guidance not just from preaching. This reporter wants to use his editorial ending phrase as a warning to let us know that time is short, as the main theme of last week’s editorial was to remind us that the glass is half empty and is losing more as we get closer to the Second coming. Things truly are going from bad to worse, as the bad news overshadows whatever good news that we may hear. One example of things going from bad to worse, is the worsening of race relations in America. There is a reason why this nation in the northern hemisphere is called “America” and not the “United States”, is because there “is no United States”. At least not in the way the original settlers may have hoped that it would be. Perhaps that is because this nation got off “on the wrong foot”. How can a nation expect to receive the full blessings from God if it subjugates people who are flesh/blood just like them, but have the “wrong” skin color. We are told that the early settlers fled from religious persecution, but did something very un-Christian like by putting Black people in slavery, as it took a war to free them. Another example of these united states (America” at that time, not being united. Wasn’t the war also called, “the War Between the States?” God was watching then, as nor does He slumber nor sleep. War has always been a divide in this nation, not just from race, but also of economic and class divide. Race is now being used as a “trump” card (figure that one out). Because if everything else fails, there is always the “race” card that is being played more often by those who want to wield influence with those who identify with their way of thinking. Modern day media personalities, politicians and sadly some religious leaders use it to their advantage. Remember, God is watching. The glass is half empty.

The other day, this reporter saw an article that did not surprise him. It was an article that highlighted how race relations in America has worsened, as a poll showed that white people feel that they have been “discriminated” against more than any other group in the last five years. From that poll, white people that responded to it, say that more discrimination has happened to white people than to Black and Latino Americans. It is of interest that the poll covered a five-year span, as we know who was in power in the White House three of those five years. We also know who spearheaded the birther movement against a person who became president. They were silent then. In over two hundred fifty years up until that time, all of the presidents were white, as well as those people who “held the political, economic and social levers” of powers. It took numerous laws just for Black people and other groups to be able to participate in “the American experience” of living one’s dream. One very seldom (if at all) hears about “Black privilege” anywhere in this nation, but our white brothers and sisters are being discriminated more than other racial groups. As this reporter has said often, it is the old “us vs. them” card that is being played, as more people who have not only walked a few feet and not a mile in any Black footsteps, are being led by those who want to cling to power. It has always and will be, about who has the power. Remember, God is watching. The glass is half empty.

The glass is half empty and is losing more of its contents each day. Don’t expect anything good to come from the results of the poll. It will cause people to see each other as enemies, instead of looking for solutions. It has reached every level of society, as the more divisive the nation becomes, the farther away from common ground will be realized. The glass is losing more of its contents because a “tear” in the bottom of that glass, which could be seen as man’s humanity towards one another deteriorating pass the point of the glass being emptied and no one wants to repair the bottom of the glass to prevent the loss of its contents. In every nation’s history, there is a point where it “crosses God’s line” where He will allow that nation to lose its splendor and greatness. America is no exception. Other nations are described by their ethnicity whether they are from Africa, Europe, South America and by the country that they represent. Only in America were their many ethnicities that were upended by those who wanted a land to themselves and took what they wanted. Now there are those who say that they are being discriminated against more. The ones who were here first didn’t start the fire. You can’t fill a glass with a hole in it and expect it to keep what is in it. Remember, the world is watching. So is God.