Comments by Clera Agbotse Most recent public comments by Clera Agbotse https://nowcomment.com/users/99926 It's unfortunate things had to come down to color back in this time period but that was how it was. https://nowcomment.com/documents/250942?scroll_to=2289307 https://nowcomment.com/documents/250942?scroll_to=2289307 Mon, 25 Jan 2021 00:41:13 -0600 He is saying the only reason there isn't more conversation and rebellion against the cruel treatments is b/c black people have to be careful how white people see what they do. https://nowcomment.com/documents/250942?scroll_to=2289305 https://nowcomment.com/documents/250942?scroll_to=2289305 If more black people spoke out, whites would start getting mad and lynch mobs would congregate or the police would start getting involved causing more issues than before. Mon, 25 Jan 2021 00:41:13 -0600 It is good that the company in Memphis was larger and urbanized which meant more diversity in the workplace. Even though many conversations couldn't be had, it was a start for co-workers to see each other as just that instead of black and white(exposure). https://nowcomment.com/documents/250942?scroll_to=2289288 https://nowcomment.com/documents/250942?scroll_to=2289288 Unfortunately, this doesn't stop Richard from having to come up with ways to avoid any potential conflicts all from him saying two words as simply and polite as "thank you". Mon, 25 Jan 2021 00:33:12 -0600 It's a shame that something you are born with and should be proud of is also the reason you are physically attacked and targeted by people who hate you just because you're darker than them. https://nowcomment.com/documents/250942?scroll_to=2289264 https://nowcomment.com/documents/250942?scroll_to=2289264 Mon, 25 Jan 2021 00:10:03 -0600 It also shows that the white man's word was weighted more heavily than the black man's. His mother was trying to prepare him for times like this and to try to avoid them at all costs. https://nowcomment.com/documents/250942?scroll_to=2289260 https://nowcomment.com/documents/250942?scroll_to=2289260 Sun, 24 Jan 2021 23:58:29 -0600 Kofi said it perfectly. https://nowcomment.com/documents/250942?scroll_to=2289241 https://nowcomment.com/documents/250942?scroll_to=2289241 Sun, 24 Jan 2021 23:47:45 -0600 Its annoying white is the default description for someone who wants to learn more, annunciate their words, and dress properly. Speaking, looking or acting one type of way shouldn't be linked to anyone's color of their skin. Every individual is different. https://nowcomment.com/documents/250942?scroll_to=2289240 https://nowcomment.com/documents/250942?scroll_to=2289240 Sun, 24 Jan 2021 23:44:32 -0600 Richard already told the readers he was getting paid $5 a week. He could have simply taken advantage and continued to do the same amount of work. He wasn't exactly "tryin' t'...git smart", he was just trying to do what he was told was his job. https://nowcomment.com/documents/250942?scroll_to=2289225 https://nowcomment.com/documents/250942?scroll_to=2289225 It was his co-workers who flipped it and made it a racial issue. Even if they were getting paid more, they still found a reason to dislike Richard. Sun, 24 Jan 2021 23:34:36 -0600 I totally understand and agree with your comment. It comes down to black people having to code-switch which is where they talk differently when they are around different types of people. https://nowcomment.com/documents/250942?scroll_to=2289221 https://nowcomment.com/documents/250942?scroll_to=2289221 Examples being the speaker talking to a white man and trying to get a job vs his best friend who happens to be black or his mother. Sun, 24 Jan 2021 23:19:37 -0600 I agree with Julia about the "tough love" strategy of rasing a kid. Especially during a time where there was a different climate for when a black male was in trouble compared to a white male. It could be the same crime but different punishments. https://nowcomment.com/documents/250942?scroll_to=2289208 https://nowcomment.com/documents/250942?scroll_to=2289208 The mother felt the need to show her son, in psych what is called, a positive punishment over positive reinforcement. If you apply this type of parenting to the time period and how black men have always been the scapegoat for many things during a time where segregation happened, you will see that slapping him was a wake-up call. She wants her son to know that something that can cause such a burden for their family is unacceptable. By hitting him, she could only hope he stops and thinks before repeating actions that would cause her to hit him in the first place. Even if the kids were all playing together, imagine one of the white boys had been hurt and told their families. It wouldn't have been brushed off as boys being boys even if the boy who got hurt was the one throwing stuff, let alone glass over cinder. In a case like this, the mother probably didn't have money to pay for good lawyers like the white family, who would most likely have better jobs and pay, would. On top of that, the justice system at the time was and still is flawed in favor of one side over the other. The mother would rather go to a length like hitting her kid to show him what he did was bad and not to do it again. Sun, 24 Jan 2021 22:53:23 -0600