Tag: Christmas

Santa Claus at Christmas

On By thewriterfredIn Black Culture, Black History, Blackness, History1 Comment

black-santa-clausThis Christmas, I’ve been giving a lot of thought to Santa Claus. Yes, Santa Claus. And for all of you who might think I am digressing to a time in my life when Mr. Claus was relevant, that is not the case. But I have thought about the jolly ole Saint Nick in relation to his symbolic meaning, and exactly where we are as a country this late in a very turbulent year. As I recall from my much younger days in the past, Santa Claus spied on all of us from his perch in the North Pole, and kept a record as to whether we had been naughty or nice. On Christmas Eve, as he loaded all the toys into his sleigh and fed the reindeer who would take him all over the world, he also reviewed the list of young folks whose chimneys he would come down and leave requested gifts, under the Christmas tree.

Using our creative imagination, let’s consider our country as one big kid who has been under surveillance by Santa and his helpers for the past twelve months. As early as January 2016, he knew there might be problems with this child. The bickering was getting out of hand, as the country prepared for what would be a nasty election. This was something that Santa did not condone. After all, he was always jovial and happy and wanted others to display the same demeanor all the time. One man in particular caught his attention. He sought the highest elected office in the country, and was willing to use bully tactics against his opponents to achieve his goal. According to Santa’s standards, he never made a stop at the homes where bullies resided.

The other person seeking the highest office wasn’t quite as bad as her opponent, but she also lacked the kind of values that Santa expected from anyone who would receive a visit from him. She often stretched the truth to cover up her misdeeds, especially with her use of emails. As of Christmas Eve, he wasn’t sure if she would get a visit from him because of the ambivalence he felt toward her.

trump-clinton-face-new-scandals-ahead-of-debate

Then there is the rest of the country, divided in support of these candidates.  Both sides were willing to step outside the bounds of civility in support of their candidate. In fact, grown men often went to blows in the heat of the battle. But according to Santa Claus, it should never have been a battle, but simply an election. They all lost a sense of comity, and carried on in a manner unsatisfactory to Santa. There was a slight possibility that the old man might just skip over the United States, and keep on South into Mexico.

santa-and-reindeer-2

But on second thought, as he prepared to take off, he considered that maybe his presence could make a difference and bring peace, love, and unity back to this country, desperately in need of help. Maybe he could influence this obstreperous child to change its ways, and help the occupants of this country to understand that they all have too much to lose to carry on in this manner. Maybe his presence for just a little while, on the eve of the birth of the person who came to earth to save mankind from its own self-destruction, would make a difference in how they treat each other, going into the new year. Maybe in 2017 they would all come to their senses, and realize this selfish and vicious behavior must end.

He thought he might leave gifts of a different nature than in the past. These gifts would be for a better understanding that we all must reach out, and do what is in our power to make sure that Santa returns every year. A gift to understand that it would be cruel and deplorable for the country to repeal Obamacare and leave over twenty million men and women without health care coverage. A gift to understand that it is necessary to raise the minimum wage, so that those at the lowest rung of the economic ladder might live more prosperous lives. Instead of the top one percent hording the resources, they should be shared more equitably among all the people. Santa could remind the country that Jesus left the message, “Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters, you did for me.”  Yes, Santa might be able to get us back on the right track, and live up to all the promises made in the United States Constitution that all men (and women) are created equal and should be treated as such. And that the values found in the First, Fourth and Fourteenth Amendments far exceed the perceived guarantees of the Second. Maybe, just maybe Santa Claus could bring all of us back to our senses and recognize we must give, “Glory to God in the highest and on earth, peace and goodwill toward men and women.” And we all will be better off as we head into a new year.

A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU ALL FROM SANTA CLAUS

AND

THE WRITER FRED AND FAMILY!

williams_family

An Unnecessary Attack on Christmas

On By thewriterfredIn Black Culture, Black History, Race1 Comment

It appears that one of the major goals coming out of the recent Million Man March, labeled “Equal Justice or Else,” was a call for Black America to boycott Black Friday and every shopping day throughout the entire Christmas season. This appears to be another attempt by Minister Louis Farrakhan and his followers to eradicate the celebration as part of the African American culture in this country. I watched and listened to one of the minister’s attacks on the manner in which most Black Americans celebrate the season. In his peroration, he claimed that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., wanted to boycott Christmas after the killing of the four little girls in the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church Bombing in September 1963, in Birmingham, Alabama. He then made the appeal for all us to boycott this year’s Christmas shopping season in the name of Dr. King. “I’m going to ask us in his name (King) to do something he wanted to do when they bombed the four little girls…he wanted to boycott Christmas.”

mmm

For a very long time I did a great deal of research on Dr. King for a course I taught on African American Political Thought at the University of Texas in San Antonio, and I never remember reading from any credible source where it is mentioned that he wanted to boycott Christmas. Since Dr. King was a Baptist minister, who sincerely believed in the teachings of Jesus Christ, I found it rather interesting that the minister made this assertion. Now I am sure that the minister would not make such a claim just to complement his call for a boycott, so if there is anyone who reads this post and can direct me to the passage where Dr. King called for the boycott, I would appreciate receiving it.

Santa-Claus-02-300x300In his speech, Minister Farrakhan continued to disparage those millions of African Americans who are Christians because of the manner in which they celebrate Christmas. According to him, the tradition of displaying a Christmas tree in your home with decorations is comparable to “practicing paganism.” He quoted from the Tenth Chapter of “Jeremiah” as evidence of his accusation. He then referred to gifts that families and friends exchange as foolishness. He claimed that we pay more respect to the “Big fat Caucasian who flies out of the North Pole with a bag full of gifts, and is supposed to come down a chimney that most homes don’t have, than we do to Christ.” The thrust of his message was that we spend money on gifts that leave us in the red after the holiday season, while the merchants make enough money to last them throughout the year.

He then talked about the amount of liquor and dope that is consumed during the holiday. Again, he accused us of placing more importance on the dope and booze than on Jesus. That makes us, according to Minister Farrakhan, part of a heathen and pagan practice.

I guess my question to Minister Farrakhan would be, is this kind of attack on his fellow Black brothers and sisters really necessary? I’m not sure whom he is referring to, but the friends and associates I know consume very little, if any at all, liquor and no drugs. I imagine there are thousands of Black families that celebrate the holiday and consume no booze or drugs.

My family, as is the case with thousands of other Black families, has a tradition of placing a Christmas tree in our home and I really do not appreciate anyone, Black or white, referring to me and all my brothers and sisters who do the same as heathens and pagans. I believe our race has suffered sufficient name calling over the decades that we don’t deserve it from one who considers himself a leader.

Finally, there are millions of beautiful Black Americans throughout the decades who have turned to Jesus Christ for sustenance and salvation, and their worship of Him  is real and necessary for them. Throughout the turbulent years of apartheid, mothers turned to the church and their minister when their husband was lynched or their daughters raped. The minister, in the name of Christ, provided them with the strength to make it through those terrible times. The Christian church has been the pillar of strength for our race since emancipation. The church continues to play that role. So the gifts bought at Christmas are not foolishness, it is symbolic of the love that our people feel toward Christ. It is the giving of the gift that counts, and for that reason it is not foolishness.

If Minister Farrakhan doesn’t believe in celebrating Christmas and doesn’t indulge in gift exchange, we as Christians have no problem with that position. And if the followers of the Nation of Islam want to celebrate Founder’s Day when they pay deference and respect to those held in high regard, we as Christians will wish them well. However, I think it is quite appropriate that we expect the same kind of respect from the Nation when we celebrate Christmas in the manner we choose.

african-american-family