Afrophobia and Proper Negro Stress
Thoughts on the irrational fear of Black people and the cost Black people pay
The reason why this is a frustrating existence, is because we have a sizable majority who actually believe that as a reality, and in turn will not listen to your concerns. It’s the allegory if Plato’s Cave. The problem lies in the fact that the majority of the 77.9% are chained in the cave living an illusion while only the majority of the 13.1% are free to understand reality as it exists. In life, the 13.1% suffer a level of undue stress that the 77.9% does not. The majority does not listen to the minority. And the majority who are chained in the cave are the ones who makes all the rules.
I learned to read at an absurdly young age. I also learned how to speak more so from television than my own environment. In turn, I spoke proper beyond those of who made my surroundings. I always been the “smart guy”. I’m not sure how old I was, but I do remember I was in elementary school as a fourth grader when I was fully cognizant of the stereotype of the dangerous black male. Of course, what I did from there was simple; from then on I put forth a consistent effort to NOT fit the bill. I was the bookworm, the smart guy, the brains, the analytical, the inventor, the cerebral, the engineer, the maker, the black and nerdy. Kinda.
What I realized as an adult reflecting on the path I took explicitly, is that at a young age I was fully cognizant of white fear of my skin tone. It’s not a matter of knowing right from wrong, it’s a matter what white America thought of me. From then I knew what Afrophobia was. I was around nine or ten as a fourth grader, and that’s a young age to be thinking of socio-psychological matters if you ask me. In being socially aware since ten years of age, I now realize that I put forth conscious effort to be the “proper negro”.
There’s also a problem with being the proper negro: In some circles and geographic locations in the States, I’m considered the “uppity negro”. I got into a lot of fights in school for being the smart guy; fake thugs thought of me as a form of prey. I also was always judged as sounding or talking white. I was neither black enough for black acceptance nor proper enough for white acceptance. If I were president, numerous folks would flat out wish that I fail. In times of American Slavery, my bookworm ass would have been deemed non slave-able, and subsequently the first one killed. The proper negro thus becomes a stereotype within itself.
Afrophobia is the irrational fear/paranoia of black people, or any of the peoples of African origin. While the term is relatively new, this proper negro/afrophobia phenomenon is actually quite old. This sociological phenomenon stems from Slavery times when blacks lived in a state of infinite terror, and had to act jovial and child-like in the face of whites — or suffer the fate of death. So understand that this isn’t anything new at all. I like to add the fact that even a black person can suffer from Afrophobia, so do not misconstrue the matter and think black people are immune.
Fast forward to modern day: With old white men killing young blacks left and right due to their irrational fear and demonization of a skin tone, I often wonder precisely how proper must a young black male be to survive. Wearing a hoodie? Stalk him and kill him. Loud music? Provoke a fight and kill everyone in the truck. One fellow wrote in prison a motivation to change social behaviors with his murderous violence. Perhaps to survive legislated white fear, one must wear bright colors all day, talk in a high-pitched voice, always smiling, equipped with a bow-tie three days a week and giant glasses just to be deemed harmless to white people…
You see the bottom line is this — if I am black and you’re white, no matter what in America, before anything I am forced to ease your irrational fears FIRST before anything else. No one else has to do this. You fear me and we all know it, and it doesn’t matter if I’m trying to be intimidating or not; my color and voice intimidates you alone. Afrophobia is a huge sociological burden; I have to take care of your dumb ass before you take care of me. Case in point: each time a young black child is murdered in Florida, the dead black victim is put on trial. The kid — from Travyon to Jordan Davis — has to practically be Steven Q. Urkell to… not deserve to die.
Why are the victims put on trial? Why must we prove that a child is an angel when they get murdered by actual menaces to society? How come the character of a child comes into play, but not the murderer’s? Proper Negro Stress, is the fatigue blacks suffer when we infinitely have to put up the stress of trying so hard to be deemed harmless. PNSD is what accomplished Afro-Americans feel when they are stopped by police because they were driving while black, and how famous or affluent they are it doesn’t matter. PNSD is the reason why Geordi LaForge is tired of having to stick his hands out of the car when he’s stopped, practically over-exaggerating safe behavior to police. PNSD, happens when we play the game for a really long time to all of a sudden realize that we aren’t free. Sometimes I want to wear a bandana. I want to wear a hoodie. I want to listen to music. Though I never sag my pants, I may want to wear baggy jeans. It doesn’t mean I’m dangerous. Simply put, we get tired of catering to your irrational, paranoid afrophobic delusions. God bless the fact that people through social media are speaking out. The hashtag #DangerousBlackKids was trending, mocking society’s pathological fear of black people. Be sure to check that out.
The main problems with the proper negro routine are numbered at two: [1] The proper negro may deem themselves “better” than the rest all to be reminded that they too can be shot, killed, profiled, kidnapped, mutilated or deemed a thug anyway, and; [2] it doesn’t solve the problem of afrophobia, and at large it only perpetuates it; instead of not trying to be what someone irrationally fears we should focus on the fact that there’s nothing to fear at all. We are people too. This fear creates a double-standard when law allows it, thus, the fight for equality is still on. Facing fear, solves the problem of fear… kinda like how facing problems, solves problems. To face it one must acknowledge it first, then talk about it. Honestly.
Each time in America, when that 77.9% listens to the 13.1%, and realize they were wrong, we make progress. American Slavery, was wrong. Jim Crow and the lynching postcards and all the racial violence surrounding that, was wrong. Voter suppression and anti-amalgamation laws… were wrong. Each time you listened to us and realized you were wrong, we ALL — black, white, or otherwise — made progress. You need to wake up from that cave, and address reality as it stands. Denial isn’t a valid platform to solve the problem of your pathological fear of black people.
