Recently, Michael Harriot, the writer, commentator, author of the New York Times best-seller “Black AF History: The Un-Whitewashed Story of America,” and self-described “wypipologist,” said in a post on X:
“To help propel white dairy farmers into the middle class, the US govt bought a billion lbs of cheese & stored it in bunkers. By the 80s, refrigeration costs were HUGE. So the Reagan admin had an idea: Let’s give it to poor ppl. And that’s how we got government cheese.”
‘Gubment’ Cheese
That post illuminated info also brought out in a 2018 History Channel website article, “How the US Ended Up With Warehouses Full of ‘Government Cheese’” that basically showed how the US government participated in affirmative action for white people (dairy farmers) at the expense of the health and well-being of the nation’s poor, many of whom were Black. What Harriot’s post didn’t mention, the US government is still at it; still providing affirmative action for white dairy farmers. In 2016, the “gubment” offered $20 million to buy more cheese. And the US currently has 1.4 billion pounds of cheese stored in a cave underneath Springfield, Missouri (Sounds crazy, I know. Look it up for yourself, or just check out this link).
Minimum Rage
In the book groundbreaking book “The Color of Law,” author Richard Rothstein reveals that this nation’s workers got the minimum wage (which brought hundreds of thousands of white people out of dirt poor abject poverty), but only because Southern elected officials whose votes were needed to pass the legislation demanded and received the concession that the minimum wage would go into effect expect in industries that were then (in the 1930s) dominated by Black workers. In other words, white workers received that foundational economic safety net because Blacks were literally and purposely denied that same economic safety net. Another way of looking at this is, Black workers’ pain, misery and discrimination literally paid for white workers’ economic safety net and security. Again, affirmative action for white people.
Hollywood Flops
I recently learned that Netflix is out of $55 million, because they gave an unproven director, whose only work on his resume was a film that lost millions of dollars (it cost over $100 million more to make than it earned at the box office), a $61.2 million budget. The director, Carl Erik Rinsch, allegedly blew much of that cash (at least $9 million) on five Rolls-Royce, a Ferrari, a $400,000 watch, and millions worth of furniture and clothing that he bought for himself.
Regarding the movie he was supposed to be making, he had nothing to show for his ‘efforts.” Here’s the crazy (or not so crazy) thing: this Rinsch dude had a reputation for being irresponsible, ghosting employers, and other traits employers would consider deal-breakers in interviewees. Yet, this dude had Amazon, HBO, Hulu, and Apple in a bidding war to get him to make his movie for them. Netflix swooped in at the last minute and “won” his services, then lost $55 million because dude who had proven himself to be unreliable and a creator of whack content came through with nothing.
And I don’t even have to tell you, Rinsch is white. He’s out there failing and screwing over these companies who swear they have no money to back Black-created content. Blackfolk in the industry who have a proven track record of producing movie magic and box office successes, have to go through hell just to be rejected, and then go start their own production companies.
But you best believe after Rinsch settles in or out of court with Netflix, he and others like him will still have their projects green-lit, and get gazillion-dollar budgets. You best believe those Hollywood white execs will continue to bet on unreliable, untalented, unproven white people over proven, credentialed, experienced Blackfolk (sounds a lot like the NFL and how they hire coaches and QBs). In other words, affirmative action for white people, a longstanding American tradition, will keep on keepin’ on.
Always Bet on Black
What does any of this have to do with Black communities in Houston (or anywhere, for that matter)? We have to stop being so soft-headed that we get defensive when folk who don’t see our humanity demonize affirmative action, as if it’s a solely Black thang, when
The solution: In all things and in all areas we better learn how to say and do what Wesley Snipes’ character in “Passenger 57” (John Cutter) said and did… “Always bet on Black”… unless it’s Daniel Cameron, Clarence Thomas, Candice Owens, Tim Scott, or that Black sheriff dude we used to see all the time during the Trump years who just disappeared from sight since then. But then again, they’re not Black, just darkly pigmented. So yes, always bet on Black. Create affirmative action (which literally means “positive steps”) for Blackfolk.
Like those many young, Black entrepreneurs who are using their businesses for personal economic empowerment and community service. Like the sisters and brothers who invest sweat equity into community urban gardens. Like the founders and volunteers of community centers like SHAPE. Like Ken Rodgers and Operation Love. Like Michelle Barnes and the Community Artists Collective. Like Tanya Debose and the fifteen million organizations she’s part of. Like SisterMama Sonya and anything and everything she does. Like all the organizations and individuals who create and run programs to service the needs of our people and the world.
And like members of the Black Press who catch all the flack directed at mainstream media, yet receive less than a millionth of the advertising dollars or investment and still seek to give Blackfolk the information and news they/we need and deserve. Shout out to www.WordInBlack.com!
Every other group unapologetically takes positive steps, and gives affirmative action to their group. We need to do the same.
