Kicking in the door : An introduction of sorts

Well, you may not know me but I know you very well. You are the type that wants to see if there is anyone out there that can help you find yourself out in the cold vastness of cyberspace. You want to know if there is anyone else who thinks like you or acts like you or does the things that you do so you don’t have to feel like an outsider anymore.

Well as an introduction let me just say that I’m not like you; I am you. I am everything that you think I am because I exist however you think that I should. Sure, we may sometimes have a difference of opinion but how often is it that you agree with yourself without hesitation? That would be quite scary to know that you are that impulsive but that is also me sometimes.

So with the formalities out of the way then, lets get down to business.

I literally stumbled across this wonderful publication (YBP Guide) while searching for something that I no longer remember. The essence of what I was searching for, however, was most simply familiarity. Somehow, even in the digital realm of the Internet, we still seek out those who are most like us starting with the most insignificant qualifying factor which is of course, our skin color. Now I will offer no up front apologies to anyone who is offended by the following statement because, like I mentioned earlier, this is how I feel and apparently you as well but I love my people. Even on the web I will sometimes go out of my way to find others who share my similar heritage and background. There is somehow, encapsuled within these printable characters on the dull gray screen, the substance of our race and entire history. It makes me feel good to know that the person who encounters my digital presence will be like me and understand what I have gone through (even though I personally have not experienced it).

In reality it really doesn’t mean a thing. Even if you have an digital image of someone emblazoned on your desktop as a dancing neon screen saver that doesn’t make them any more “black” then just their name taped to the outside of the monitor. For some reason we want our “Blackness” to transcend technology itself and recreate that which we suffer from already in the real world. Why are we drawn to one another the way that we are? Why does it matter what color the fingers are that tapped in these words. This all points to something even deeper. It all points to something as old as civilization itself. We still possess the primal urges of our forefathers. We still believe that there is safety in numbers even if the only numbers are ones and zeros.

When is the last time you walked into a room (in the real world) and made a mental calculation of how many others like you were there? How often have you left a place due to the fact that you were the minority in that situation? Count the number of times you’ve made a comment or turned your nose up in disgust at your own peoples’ questionable behavior because you were in “mixed” company but barely even payed notice when it was just “us” present.

That is the real world but what about the web?

Have you ever gone out of your way to find out the race of someone in a chat room? Have you ever made it a point to announce your cultural background on a forum or message board? Do you always or often search for your own race on various social networking sites and scoff at the people of different backgrounds on site like Black Planet or The Latino MySpace.

Is it pride or insecurity?

Are we looking for comfort or competition when it comes to our own people and why does any of this matter on the web of all places?

Can you imagine what things will be like in the near future? In a time where almost all communication will be instantaneous. Do you think factors such as race, religion, age, gender and sex will have any bearings on our preferential treatment of each other? Will that make us better or worse?

Sorry to drop all of this so close to the new year but I figured if I did it now maybe some of us would come up with a few added list items to add to our resolutions. I just wanted to leave you with these questions as food for thought as we continue to digest our Christmas dinners and prepare for the New Years Eve party’s to come. Will the new year bring about more blessings or headaches?

Not too much longer before we find out.

Until next time.

~Tigga76

P.S. Thank you Fred for giving me a shot. I hope this is a good introduction and to the rest may you continue to have a happy holiday.

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