Letter from former student

 

The Modern John Henry -different tune, same old song

Many know the story of John Henry, famous in Black folk ballads. The story describes a strong black man, pitted against a machine, who died "with his hammer in his hand." John Henry, for decades, has been a symbol of Black masculinity and defiance, resistance, and perseverance. It is a story of a man who refused to submit but constantly needed to prove himself worthy rather than being rewarded. Finally, in a constant battle against a racist system that continually tried to suppress him, oppress him, and reduce him to an object -he faces the ultimate test -man against machine. And in his final struggle against a steam-powered drill, this hero won the battle but lost the war as he collapsed, driving the last steel drill into rock two steps ahead of the machine. 

Sherman James and associates 1983 adapted the story into a psychological construct -John Henryism-  to characterize a "strong behavioral predisposition to cope actively with psychosocial environmental stressors" (James 1994, p. 163). According to James' formulation, three characteristic features were associated with this construct: (1) efficacious mental and physical vigor; (2) a strong commitment to hard work; and (3) a single-minded determination to succeed. In this chapter, I want to discuss how what can only be called unsung warriors, heroes, and heroines who have had to navigate toxic racial environments as they consistently strove to pave the way and be successful while often carrying tremendous weight. Particularly, I will discuss those who have been successful but, even after repeated successes, must continually prove themselves "worthy" to be in white spaces. Such individuals are constantly suspected and overly scrutinized rather than being applauded and encouraged by society, and they are often ridiculed, punished, and negatively characterized. If they dare to speak out, they are more likely to receive sanctions, condemnations, and marginalization. Because of their burdens, both on and off the job, they are more likely to obtain lower performance evaluations, promotions, and job security.   And so, as they work longer and harder, the stressors increase, even while their productivity continues or even increases. The modern John Henry and Henrietta, with papers, pen, and computer in hand, thus have increased health risks, a higher likelihood of being isolated, impoverished, and suffering physical and mental incapacitating illnesses, and death. Let us begin.

Unsung Warriors -The Single Black Matriarch

 

 Warrick Dunn constantly praises his late mother, Betty Smothers, a single mother who worked as a police officer in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to raise six children. But unfortunately, her life was cut short on January 7, 1993, when two robbers ambushed her while she was working off-duty to escort a businesswoman to make a night deposit. And at 18, Dunn was left to raise his five younger siblings. In 1997 Warrick Dunn signed a multimillion-dollar contract to play professional football with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but he never forgot the mother who got him there.

Mothers like Betty Smothers are not some rare breed but part of the success stories of millions of kids. Kids without these unsung warriors would not have had a chance. It is no accident that Black mothers have been forced to bear the brunt of parenting from the beginning of the African's presence in America as the Black family and black men have been constantly attacked. The system of slavery required slaves, and it was created to break the spirit, the foundation, and the community of the Africans. And while the Africans were enslaved, the family distorted, and the community displaced -they never became a slave, the family survived, and the community endured. Through all these assaults, one figure -the Black matriarch stands tall. She provided the spiritual glue, the grit, and the love that uplifted the child and the man, encouraged the community, and sustained the family.   

 Ironically, this iconic figure has historically and in contemporary times been criticized and shamed for being a very strong warrior.   In the past, she has been many things from mammy, Jezebel, and Safire. However, more recently, she has been labeled the welfare queen, the domineering matriarch driving off the black man, or simply the black angry bitch. These terms and designations are part of the anti-black response to the Black WarriorQueens' success, courage, and deliberate refusal to accept defeat for herself, her kids, and her family. 

During slavery, one of the chief tactics to destroy the Black community was to destroy the Black family. Select Black men were often forced to have sex with multiple Black women, much like the breeding of animals, to produce prized slaves. Sex was, therefore, a reward to those Black men and women deemed worthy of such rewards. But, like other animal stock, the fathers were not needed and were often sold as quickly as the pregnancies were confirmed. Black men, therefore, became disposable in this system. Although discarded, that did not mean that Black fathers and mothers did not do their utmost to preserve contact. Records demonstrate that one of the most pressing needs of Black mothers and fathers during reconstruction was to reconstruct their families. Records also indicate that absent this, the extended family of grandparents (mothers and fathers) and a whole system of what has been called "fictive kinship" came into being to preserve and maintain fully functioning families in the Black community.   The system survived reconstruction but was almost immediately under attack in the next wave of anti-black racism.

The next wave of anti-black racism, under the guise of uplift and welfare, again targeted the Black family and the relationship between Black parents and their children. Under the welfare system, the presence of a Black man in the family meant either reduced or no subsidy payment. Therefore, in a strange game of hide and seek, Black men were noticeably absent when the social worker came to check on the family. These Black men who were also being denied jobs and careers in a white-male-dominated labor force became easy targets for the increasingly hostile, militarized industrialized penal system that came into being. The cradle-to-prison pipeline, fueled by a fierce war on drugs and crime, targeting Black men meant that the prisons across America were soon filled with Black men, while in the community, Black women were forced to take on both the roles of mother and father. 

As Black women stepped forward to preserve the family and community and support her imprisoned partner -she was further vilified as the welfare queen. The Black welfare queen, who chased her man away, had multiple babies by multiple men to increase government subsidies. All the while, this mythological welfare queen refused to work but continued to have unprotected sex producing 6,7 or 12 children. In the billions of dollars, the scam of the welfare system is not the result of the "welfare queen" but doctors, lawyers, and insurance companies. The "welfare queen" does not exist; she was a myth created by politicians such as Ronald Reagan and the crazed drug dealers for political gain. 

Today, the leading cause of the feminization of poverty, particularly in the black community, is a result of men falling for the oke dope, finally buying into the anti-black rhetoric found in the most blatant forms of hip-hop. Hip-hop stars such as Snoop Dog referred to Black women as bitches and hoes. These messages were most recently featured in Rihanna's Super Bowl performance as she sang, "Bitch better have my money." Yet, through it, all, the Black matriarch, these unsung warriors have persevered, continued in their war against the anti-racist system, and continue to raise strong Black children.