Reimagining Black Relations

Renowned Anthropologist Dr. Eric Montgomery walked us from the beginning of time through now.  He shared critical facts such as Out of Africa (OOA) and introduced us to the concept of "decolonization of minds". He mentioned key points, including - people are afraid of black people; blacks enslaved other blacks; the inaccuracy of the history of the world's first millionaire; and proffered solutions for blacks, whites, racists, and African nations.

"But the most important elephant in the room is, this is about class. By having poor white people or working class white people believe they are not Mexicans, they are not black, they are not that bad, that's the game. And the truth is, the same system oppressing those white people.... just like the hood girl, they are poor. By making them believe this black people are sucking dry the system..." Eric Montgomery

Duane Filey, Chief of Staff at Walmart, spoke about his experience as a black man, his keys to success and the shortcomings in corporate.

"For me, I've been in such a white world, I'm the only brother most of the time, that I've code-shifted so much, that I don't even know how to go back. I just do it 24/7 because..." Duane Filey

Vips Kapadia, a brown British executive and Chief Executive Officer of ThinqShift, spoke about his experience as an Indian Brit, and his perception on racism towards black people. He affirmed that nothing will help other than a more equitable distribution of wealth within a capitalist structure.

"Certainly when I was in my late teens, I did often find physically imposing black people frightening. Just viscerally, oh my God, I could be, I could be in trouble here" - Vips Kapadia

Dr. George Fraser, a global award winner with over 350 awards and citations around the world became a recipient of Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award under President Barack Obama in 2016. Dr. Fraser is the Chief Executive Officer of FraserNet Inc.

He called the black race to order, expressing their need to understand their roots as descendants of kings, queens, and warriors. He reminded them that the 400 years of slavery was just a blip, the history before the 400 years must be modeled, rekindled, and reported on, and seen by their children.

Dr. Fraser affirmed the need for blacks to demonstrate to the world who they really are - mothers and fathers of humankind who civilized the world. He asserted that, Blacks have a moral and spiritual obligation to live to this expectation, and cannot be less than excellence.

"Only white people can be mediocre and average. Black people cannot be mediocre and average in America. How do we know this? Donald Trump vs. Barack Hussein Obama...mediocrity personified" - Dr. George Fraser

Dr. Ward Ulmer, President of Walden University is confident our generation can make a positive change that will be felt by future generations. He believes that each and every person is a product of their upbringing, and considering we all came from the same place, it is not okay to be racist.

He asserted that, while he cannot control his white privilege, he can control whether he is racist or not. With the Walden community, he is committed to ensuring a safe, respectful, and open forum for people of all backgrounds.

"I think what makes this so raw, and so real, is, we saw a human being, being killed. We saw George Floyd killed" - Dr. Ward Ulmer

Belinda Kendall, Chief Executive Officer of Promise Media Group shared her insights from both spiritual and social perspectives. She expressed the uniqueness of law enforcement officers' relationship between blacks and whites, and shared her understanding of the historical significance of the badge.

Ms. Kendall reminded us to consider the impact of this racial discourse to both adults and children, particularly when they return to work and school. She is particularly concerned about the misunderstanding between "black lives matter" and "white lives matter".

"The number 1 selling car is either black or white, every dignitary has a black car, every young girl has a black dress, high class dinner are referred to as a black tie affair. There is nothing wrong with black until it gets on the skin" - Belinda Kendall

Allison Baird-James, Associate Vice Chancellor at UCLA Corporate Financial Services spoke about her multiracial family structure and some of their challenges.  She shared her perspective on white privileges, and her vision of advancing a united human race.

Allison is a white female executive, married to a black man, and they both raised three black men.  She hopes to visit Africa one day.

"It's not about white being treated less well, it's about blacks being treated equally well" - Allison Baird-James

We've experienced it all. We've heard it all. So what do we do now? Both black and white, and brown are in a state of bind - they are all in agreement that things cannot continue as it is, but how do we go forward? This is the purpose of Reimagining Black Relations. At the end of every episode, there will be next steps and talking points that can be implemented. The launch date is August 1 - subscribe now, to be ahead of the game.  Talk to you soon.