I WATCHED IT HAPPEN - part 2

Well the tale meandered a bit, as is my wont, but if I tried to stay strictly on topic I'd never get anything written (as my butterfly mind tends to flutter from flower to flower) and sometimes in the end it all seems to make sense.

When I arrived in VA my initial delight was somewhat tempered by the fact that there was an obviously racist attitude still entrenched albeit dismissed even by its victims as "Oh he don't really mean that, Mike. Its just his way of talking."

That was said by Greg, the odd job man employed by a local farmer who had offered me Gregs services with these words "I'll lend you my ###### (N word if the software deletes it) only don't spoil him, he'll work all day for a six pack no need to offer him any money."

Then after a while I further discovered how several poor black communities were housed in the most appalling run down shacks and trailer parks which, as a teacher, I discovered when I had to make contact with my students parents or guardians.

Its no wonder the child doesn't do their homework when they're expected to do housework and then stay out of sight whilst the adult 'guardian' earns money by providing sex. In fact a few of my students went hungry on weekends when there were no school meals available and I only found this out by going to their so called homes to find out what the story was.

By and large the white majority knows full well about this disgraceful disparity between Us and Them but turns a blind eye on the situation. Worse still they seem quite happy to accept things as 'thats the way they like it' and theres little or no public discussion about inequality, even in the various white church congregations because separation exists even within religion!

It would be too easy to fly off the handle and make loud noises, about this situation but it won't make you any friends on either side because the relationships are far more complex than they seem and many a person like Greg will not thank you for making trouble and more than a few white employers, should you make a disparaging comment about their workman, act as if their help are family members that you have been rude about!

Keep your eyes and ears open and your mouth shut until you have learned the ropes, and that will take quite a while, otherwise if you rush in like a bull in a china shop you can expect to be ostracised at least and possibly worse.

None of this is an exaggeration but its a condensed view of what actually takes time to encounter and many never do especially if they prefer not to.

Now remember this is an outsiders view, if you were born and grew up there you'd probably never realise there was anything untoward about the situation because the various small rural communities tend to sort things out in their own way such that at first sight the visitor might never suspect there was anything unpleasant about that society.