One kid ago when I lived in Chicago, I took my kids to Pottawattomie Park for kid's yoga class. The Potawatomi Indians were one of nine tribal groups living around the Great Lakes according to the history provided by the park district's website. It states, "The tribe was nevertheless forced from the area after the Blackhawk War of 1832."
No, this is not another opportunity to mention the championship Blackhawks and one of the best summers of my life going from Mt. Shasta to Boston to New York and back to Missouri. Instead, I come to share some lessons.
While at the field house every week the kids noticed the artwork in the chandelier contained swastikas, yep, those highly recognized symbols of Nazi hate. What we learned that day was that the swastika predates Hitler. It is a Native American symbol used in a lot of artwork. Swastika is Sanskrit, meaning "well-being."
Symbols are used to represent something else. They are a quick reference to remember a message or an event. I have a dreamcatcher tattoo to symbolize my Native American heritage, the name of my husband's first company, and that I have the power within me to keep negativity away. Three meanings for one symbol.
I have another tattoo of the symbol that Prince used as his name for a time. Though the glyph, has an ancient meaning, for me, it again symbolizes three things: an artist's right to own the property they create, the fact that I am a huge fan of Prince, and a story about my grandmother leaving the house to go see an R rated movie which happened to be Purple Rain. I see this story as her small act against her own oppression, again one symbol with so many meanings.
Some of you may be surprised to learn that I have a confederate flag right here in my living room. It is on a piece of artwork that shows the book, Gone with the Wind which is my favorite movie of all times. The extent of contradictions that exist in my world are too vast even for me to write about. However, it is safe to say, I am not from the south, nor am I a racist white extremist. I am intelligent enough to know what the prominent meaning of the flag as a symbol is. It was used to convey a preferred time and way of life in American history. Unfortunately some extremists used this symbol to label their hatred against those whom they believe sparked a change to that way of life. And yet here it is, a symbol of hatred in my peace filled home.
Here's a story within a story. My mother took me to the movies to see Song of the South. I loved this movie, and the memory of her taking me to the movies has of course stayed with me. It is a love that I share with my children and now my reader audience as often as I can. One kid ago, I searched high and low for a copy of this movie so I could share it with my kids. The story of Brer Rabbit, like Scarlet O'Hara, always able to think their way out of a jam speaks to who I am as a person. Hattie McDaniel, the first black Oscar winner is in both movies, but I'll stop with all the God coincidences and try to make my point.
When I first moved to West Plains, MO. I had no concern for racism because those of us who grew up in Chicago know what brazen racism is capable of. It is with Chicago confidence that I do most things including doing a u-turn in my car when I saw a store sign that said "copies of Song of the South for $5." I parked right in front and went in to buy my copy intending to show my kids the movie that night with some popcorn. The store was like a museum of sorts. It had Gone with the Wind movie memorabilia which I loved, but it also had Aunt Jemima cookie jars, confederate flag cookie jars among other things, and lots of negative stereotypical memorabilia.
The store clerk was as nice as can be and we had a great conversation while I looked around and took it all in. It may not have shown on my face or in my demeanor, but I was shocked that the movie I loved was for sale in this type of establishment that clearly stood for a certain way of life in America. I made my purchases and then went home to do some research. I learned that Song of the South and Gone with the Wind were movies that were heavily protested by the NAACP. I learned that Hattie McDaniel, along with the other black actors from the movie, was not allowed in the theater where the film premiered in Atlanta on Peachtree street. Might I add that Margaret Mitchell, the author of the book, Gone with the Wind was hit by a car on Peachtree street while crossing to go see a movie many years later. She later died from those injuries. After doing my research, I put the movie away in storage and my kids have never seen Uncle Remus tell stories about Brer Rabbit.
Please don't mistake me as a black woman who is impressed by the actions of the NAACP. I think their time has come as well. An organization without the forethought to take the words "colored people" out of their name does not represent me. PBS has done more for the advancement of black people from my point of view. Forgive my digress, but the conversation of race has covered a lot of areas in the headlines lately. Clearly it is all connected to a greater agenda.
I didn't show my kids the movie because I didn't have the energy to create a whole lesson plan around what I learned to ensure they walked away with the best understanding of cultural images with regard to racism. This was something I had to do for my kids with other movies, TV shows, rap music, commercials, and even cartoons. It can be exhausting raising forward thinking citizens. With that said, adults are supposed to already have been raised. Intelligent adults know how to gather information, read, and interpret data to make a discerning decision for the good of society. And that is why you will see less and less of those symbols that are not good for a global society. No matter their intended purpose the predominant intention is what matters.
A short time after my initial visit I did want to give my sister and husband a history lesson so I took them back to the store to show them around. Maybe I just wanted the store clerk to see the progress that my family represents, who knows. Well the store was gone, not moved, but gone.
I am fond of another symbol that stems from a checkered past. I wear the sign of the cross as jewelry, and it will become part of my next tattoo. The cross was a tool used to crucify Jesus, a man of peace and love believed to be the son of God. Jesus taught the world that there is no separation between us and God, and for daring to do that in a world that profits from separation, he was crucified. So why do so many people see the symbol that was used as a death tool as a source of inspiration? Believers of Christ accept the account that Jesus rose from death which demonstrates that the cross had no power over him. Thus Christianity was born, then remade to fit into religious parameters that do what religion does, separate. Having said that, some still see the symbol of the cross as proof that Jesus lives or that his teachings live. It has become a positive symbol. The greater power behind a symbol will always be the victor in the battle of interpretation.
The confederate flag must not be made in America, sold in America, or displayed on property used for the care and keeping of America. As an American, you can keep it on your cars, on your front porch, and even in your living room like me. The way of life that supported oppression lost The Civil War and is now gone, not moved, but gone with the wind.
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