“We understand that, in our communities, black trans folk, gender-nonconforming folk, black queer folk, black women, black disabled folk—we have been leading movements for a long time, but we have been erased from the official narrative.”
Garza represents those that are underrepresented. In a time where the Black Lives Matter movement is all encompassing and present, other movements can seem to be led with a lesser hand or put on the backburner. Garza brings attention to these movements.
“to love and desire freedom and justice for ourselves is a necessary prerequisite for wanting the same for others.”
This is a beautiful statement regarding the the literal equality needed for true freedom to be established and successful. Garza's involvement in the community does not cover just the Black Lives Matter movement, but also stretches to the National Domestic Workers Alliance and queer and transgender rights. It is a beautiful thing that the Black Lives Matter organziation acknlowedges that strength comes from unity and that inclues all people of all backgrounds.
His killing was widely seen as a kind of political counterpoint—a reminder that the grip of history would not be easily broken.
Black people as a whole are a proud and dignified people. While the rest of America may forget or dismiss history and certain points in time, there is always another part of America which will not and like the article said they will not "be easily broken".
I continue to be surprised at how little Black lives matter.
I continue to have a curiosity for those that disagree with this. This is not to be confused with rage or pity or anger. For the sake of this excerpt; I am curious. I have heard many people- pesonally- that have made the infamous argument "ALL lives matter" and "Why do they think they're special"?. "They" do not. However, I never knew how to explain it to others without offending them in some way. I heard it eloquently said a year ago. "Lets say rainforests are endangered, people are threatening it and cutting down the trees and wild life. If a group of people recognize this and start trying to save rainforests they're not telling everybody that other forests and biomes are irrelevant or unnecessary, but rather it is an imminent problem that must be addressed before it gets worse or too late."
Yet America was not a melting pot in the eighteenth century, and it is not one today.
In accordance to beliefs, a cultural "melting pot" is an area, region, state that exists in harmony with people of many different backgrounds and ethnicites. However, I have once read that the phrase "melting pot" is the same as saying "love has no color" or "I am blind to color" in that these phrases do not celebrate diversity, but rather sameness. If I am blind to a persons color- their identity- what are they? Yes, they have their personalities and many could argue that there isn't more to a person than what is inside. I would argue back that the outside does matter. The outside is what- almost- caused Howe and his peers to go unnoticed had it not been for their honorable service. The outside is what forms a persons inside through compliments and backlashes, through appraisals and negative side eye glances.
Real Estate: None. Personal Property: 1 cow, 1 pig, 5 chairs, 1 table, 2 kettles, 3 knives and forks, 3 plates, 2 bowls, ax, hoe. Total Value: 27 dollars.
http://www.businessinsider.com/cost-of-living-single-people-2015-8 Attached is a link for a site that illustrates via graph/table what monthly and annual costs are for living in US major cities (as a single individual). In the article, Howe's life was essentially worth 27 dollars, for a family (not including food).
While the state saw to it that these people were free, it did little or nothing to provide for their new needs, and subsistence, employment, and housing were difficult to come by.
I find this statement interesting. If one looks up the definition of "free" the adjective form of the definition is: not under the control or in the power of another; able to act or be done as one wishes. However, the adverb form is: without cost or payment. Granted, the state making sure or seeing to it "that these people were free" is not associated with "free" housing or "free" help to find their way and naviagte through a lens they (Cato Howe and others) may not have known or remembered. This statement shows the lack of care for these men, especially as they had served alongside respected and honrable men. Men that were most likely cared for by the state in a better manner.
https://historicaldigression.com/2016/06/22/early-african-american-settlement-at-parting-ways-plymouth/ I found a great article discussing the main men in this article (plus a few more) that sheds more light on their lives (i.e. their living standards).
Summary: "Parting Ways" by James F. Deetz is an article about 4 black men and the records kept of them, or the lack thereof following the Revolutionary War. I believe this article is about more than just these men but more of how they served their country yet still had little to no personal records to show for it. This article unveils the perspective that America held towards not only African Americans, but all minorities and speaks of how little their service was cared about through lack of acknowledgment.
"Parting Ways" by James F. Deetz provided knowledge in regards to the lack of resources available on the history of slaves and minority groups. In class, we discussed in small groups how the absence of documentation and detail(s) not only shed light on the attitude towards minorities, but it additionally paralleled it. "Fragmentary written records give us a partial picture, lacking in important details.", is what Deetz can supply through research and history of Cato Howe and "his fellow blacks of Plymouth". Slaves were commonly given alternate names under their owners care and as "Cato" was a "common slave name", it rendered research fairly useless as no one person could determine if it was the Cato Howe they were looking for. This text has a very to the point, no-frills, dry style to it, yet it keeps me (and my small group) reading. The compelling part of this story for me is that these men (Cato, Quamany, Prince, and Plato), regardless of color, did so much for their country and lived their lives modestly. Yet, because of the color of their skin, they were unable to receive pensions the first time and even for Prince, unable to receive freedom.