OUR VOICES: We don’t have complexion protection

By: Kenneth L. Hardin

My 3rd eye is not blind nor is it impacted by glaucoma, cataracts or suffer from any type of retinopathy that would affect its acuity.

I’ve never viewed this perceptive ability as manifesting through the oft reflected physical forehead anomaly, but rather an internal detector where I can seemingly wade through verbal excrement, and recognize realities others can’t, won’t or are afraid to see.

People have credited me for having the courage to say things others are thinking or are afraid to give voice to out loud. It doesn’t take courage to refuse to be silenced or relegated to a subservient position.

We’re not negotiating our freedom papers anymore so what harm can we do? You just have to be willing to accept the consequences and repercussions associated with stiffening your spine.

I didn’t have to put artificial tears in the orbital cavity resting on my face to recognize the incessant subjective excrement being pushed out as “news” on the national front over the last couple of weeks related to the California wildfires.

Like the rest of the Country, I was saddened by how the windblown flames decimated many wealthy upscale west coast neighborhoods and communities.

I’m in no way trying to minimize the deaths and property destruction there but where was all this outpouring of sympathy and wall to wall slanted media coverage designed to force us to feel sympathy and heartbreak for the privileged porcelain Hollyweird few when skinfolk were catching the same hell and even worse in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina?

The relentless double standard hypocritical reporting was so manufactured, its ordinary nature caused residue to flow out of that third eye, drip down my face and leave a stain on my good shirt.

After learning a well-known actress even started a GoFund- Me campaign while suffering through the inordinate amount of attention placed on privileged celebrities who don’t look like me, others like her cluelessly flaunted and showcased their complexion protection in front of cameras bemoaning their financial losses while many will reap the insurance benefits.

I contrasted it to the people of New Orleans Lower 9th Ward, who suffered five days being forced to wallow and survive in widespread death and destruction while the President flew high above looking out of his government airplane window taking photo ops.

I’m not trying to be cold or insensitive, but I can’t find the sympathy I’m being force fed to have for these rich celebrities when the flood victims were condemned, criticized, ignored and received little understanding and compassion after the hurricane.

Let’s see if the media calls these celebrities refugees in their own country like they did those in New Orleans. Maybe Kanye will find a mic and remind the newly minted victims of nature’s wrath of what it felt like back in 2005.

I just hope they don’t get the equivalent of Puerto Rican paper towels thrown at them after the upcoming inauguration side show.

With the depth of destruction and the demographic it was inflicted upon, maybe that complexion protection will extend to others on the rainbow spectrum and we can sympathize evenly moving forward. It’s shameful my 3rd eye has to work so hard every day just to stay on top of these things.

I’m just happy it works in great tandem with my mouth in saying what it sees without the limitations of a filter.

Kenneth L. (Kenny) Hardin is a member of the National Association of Black Journalists.