HAPPY B-DAY AMBER!!!!

Let me first start off by saying HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY SISTER AMBER!!!!!! I MISS YOU!!!! And if you have time now or later I hope you may consider reading the following that I hope you will find intellectually stimulating or atleast I did. I want to warn you that this is a long 1st draft and that I didn’t read over this after I typed it. If there are any corrections or errors in facts that I stated please note them as a side note. Thanks. Chad
This post may be found boring to some, but after class and consideration all day I thought that wanted to share the knowledge that I gained today. With hopes that it might spark some interest in you to do your own research on this area and come up with maybe a more educated view on the issue. Ok with that said let me try to define this complex issue that has been of importance and of great discussion for hundreds of years throughout USA, North and South America, Africa and around the world. I guess the underlying issue is Racism, or maybe the idea that (and these aren’t necessarily my views but views of people that I have come into contact with) the hole affirmative action is overplayed. That people of color who had ancestors who everyone will admit had terrible things happen to them, but that maybe it has been long enough and that the generational thing has played its course and that at this point everyone should be on a level playing field.
With these two views brought to the surface I now do not want to chose a side on what is right or wrong rather I would like to look at the aspect of why this had to be an issue in the first place. I would like to go deeper than this, deeper than the terrible things that happened in the USA and in other places with the slavery (not to belittle this, but rather to look at another situation that I believe greatly affected the people of color or Africans in particular that is a part of their heritage that I for one knew little or nothing about).
First lets look at 1899 to 1902 the Afrikaners (or Boers who were white Dutch settlers who were at first just supposed to be there for the ships and stay out of trouble but ended up making their way into the outskirts of the coast) were in a fight against the British. In this war 500 Afrikaners killed 12,000 of the British. Giving the Afrikaners a feeling at the time that they were in some way chosen by God to lead Africa. There had been unrest all the way to 1948 when the Nationalist Party comes to power on an apartheid platform (which is what Archbishop Desmond Tutu who is onboard spent his whole life fighting for equal rights for all). During this time until 1994 the white South Africans were in charge of the nation. Which to me is very interesting because they made up only 14% of the population. 14%, as our professor asked well how were they able to do this and in that sense do the offal things to the colored people for all of this time. He then pointed us back to the notion that the Afrikaners (the whites) believed for a very long time and were determined that they were somehow Gods chosen people to rule South Africa (Note: In no way am I supporting this notion rather pointing out a previous idea that was brought up).
During this time they told all people of color that they had to live in certain territories called “homelands” according to their ethnicity chosen by the government. This area given to the colored people who made up the other 86% (some state at least 70%) of the population were only aloud to reside in 13% of the land of the entire nation the rest was designated white only. Now with that said it would be 14% of the population being white taking up 87% of the land!
Well what about the non-whites traveling outside of their homelands, they had to be pre-approved and must carry with them pass books. These passbooks must be kept current, they must be surrendered to the proper authorities whenever asked to, and finally they were only aloud in the white only city for up to 72 hours.
So what happened a group formed called the ANC (African National Congress) and others first tried to get equal rights and stop the apartheid through non-violence protests following Gandhi in India. And in 1960 the Sharpeville Massacre occurred where police fired on demonstrators which resulted in 60 deaths and more than 170 wounded non-whites all shot in the back. This was a turning point and an end to the non-violent protests. Later Nelson Mandela who was a leader for the equal rights, was imprisoned for alleged terrorists activities. He spent many years in jail and was once given the opportunity to get out but he would not until there was equal rights given. Eventually he was released and was elected President and for once the black majority was able to be truly represented. I do not say this because Nelson Mandela from was black but because my research leads me to believe that he represented and stood for what the majority of South Africans wanted.
I type all of this to say, that I challenge you to do your own research and come up with an educated opinion for yourself not just an opinion. I challenge you to question with weather people of color many of whom came from South Africa to serve others around the world under horrible conditions for years had trouble at home as well. And even now with the AIDS the way they are today did they ever or to this day get a fair shake. Well I know that life isn’t fair, and I know there are many “people of color” who are now Americans first, or South Americans first not South Africans. But I know for me it definitely but things in a different perspective.
And at the very least made me appreciate my homeland and think of how lucky we are to be Americans. How much God has blessed us to have and to be able to do the things that we do on a daily basis. Especially considering what others our age our color, people of different ages and colors are going through today, went through yesterday, and have gone through in the past.
In closing God Bless America, God Bless my friends and family, and I challenge you to try to strive to have educated opinions and opinions of your own in the future and not just go along with the status quo.

God Bless.

Chad