MISTAKEN IDENTITY?

Last Lecture: 'To Whom It May Concern': Mistaken Misidentity...

Mistaken Misidentity:

To Whom It May Concern:

Last Lecture:

I decided on this title, because, it reminds me of the day-to-day 24/7 events in Vietnam, in regards to that 'bullet with your name on it'; yet, most of us were not that apprehensive about 'that bullet', because, the one we were vigilant, and even hypervigilant, about was the one with 'To Whom It May Concern' on it!!! My commentary on this is to remind fellow citizens, consumers, and constituents just how much suffering there is in the world, and that there is a way to 'create' healing: We must dialogue about why America decided not to address 'desegregation', yet, opted to refer to it as 'integration', and thus, 'busing'? And it is possible that I may become more than a thorn in the 'collective side' of the 'status quo' who are hesitant and/or incompetent to cover a deeper concern; one that goes deeper into the 'feeling realm' of pain, suffering, and death. We must pray for the 'misplaced', the desperate, and the downtrodden people of the earth, and "put on the full armour of Jesus that we may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, were with we shall be able to quench all fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God"; and become like a child full of 'wonder' to gaze into the mysteries of my, your, our 'inner life'...

What does it mean to be a person of color in America? Do Americans know that Ethnic Cleansing and Racial Profiling are the same?: And my response or answer goes something like this; I was born in Waxahachie, Texas on December 19th, of 1948 (on May 14th, of 1948 Israel was made a state, but not Jerusalem or Palestine) and grew up in Fort Worth, Texas. My early years were spent in Malakoff, Texas with my Maternal Grandmother, and because of 'Big Momma' I experienced these years with a different mind and perception than that of my comtemporaries. Their experience was within the fromwork of the 'south'; like, Texas, Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, etc. My experience was broaden because 'Big Momma', Texana (Thomas) Redic, had taught me that the 'South is everything southern to the Canadian border'. My grandmother once talked to me about being able to read; that in school I would be taught to read what was written and what was in writing, but, that I, also, needed to learn to read nature and other people, and when I was able to do all four, then I truly knew how to read. I remember she always called me 'manchild' or by my Christian name; James. Now, when my mother returned for me, we moved into the city of Fort Worth, Texas, and my first encounter with "separate, but, equal", I was among many young males, I was the only Black male, vying for yard work, and, while doing the work, the White male, yelled out, "boy, come here"; I heard him and did not move, as I had never been referred to as 'boy'; either, by my name, James, or, as, 'manchild', so I did not answer, but, lost the job, because the white man thought I was being 'uppity'.

My perception and experience of Jim Crow and Segregation was readily met with an attitude that this was mistreatment and it was not right and very Spiritually wrong, yet, my grandmother always encouraged me to stand valiant for principle and for the truth, and to strive to protect those weaker than myself or to stand up for those who could not stand up for themselves (Romans 12:2). I was able to read by the age of 3, and the Bible and the Webster dictionary of the time was given me by my grandmother, because, I did not like the books of the 'era', as they had nothing, for or with, me or my people (my people are all people). I remember her asking me "who are you?", and when I answered, "I am James Edward Johnson", she said, "and don't you ever forget that; your I Am is from the Heavenly Father, and James Edward Johnson is from your earthly parents". She followed this by telling me about Jesus Christ, and when He was asked "who sent you?", He answered, "I Am sent Me". Anytime during this ‘sojourn’ of ‘growth and maturity’ one must be able to establish, develop, and maintain the ‘spirit’ of being ‘invulnerable to ego’ & ‘invisible to self’; this is what I call ‘discipline in the school of God’, as one must stand (Ephesians 3:11-21), understand, over understand, and discern not just their I Am, but, also be capable of perceiving another’s I Am, even when that person who is perceived does not know their own I Am. And now, I am moved to write the following account, as a testimony from my experience, and it is intended an effort to be about our Father's business, for the importance of Bible doctrine is very important and cannot be overemphasized (Psalms138:2).

The intent and motive, here, is to find a way to ease the pain which just might eliminate pain, suffering, and poverty which will eventually reveal our 'collective passionate nature'. Why does America continue to do 'bu$ine$$' with China when the 'products' from there are found to be contaminated, and our Food and Drug Administration appears to be incompetent to deal with the situation in regards to 'Homeland and National security'. It is acknowledged that this present administration borrows from China to continue the 'war on terror' in Afghanistan and Iraq; where are the fund$ for the War on Poverty, it seems so 'unrighteous' for the United States to have to do this? How is this 'good business' for the American people? Is this the kind of 'foreign policy' we Americans have to conduct to have a 'quality of life'?
We are on the edge of something, and it involves overcoming illusion vs. prayer from the 'Lords of Illusion', like 9-11, media consolidation, and everything after that; everything. For many generations, many people are 'sifted, tracked, marginalized, and disenfranchised' from acquiring or achieving the necessary necessities for the American Dream. I had the experience of finding out about 'editions' of books; I met white children, my age and grade, who had 6 and 7 edition books, my books for the same classes and grade was 3rd and 4th edition books; upon returning to school the next day, I asked about this difference, at first, I was 'teased' for not knowing about 'editions', yet, when I asked the question, "why don't we have the same edition as the white children?", I was told to go to the vice-principal's office which I did; he stated that the reason was 'we' had a different budget, and our budget did not allow us to purchase the same books, but, 'their' old books for the same curriculum; it was the 'law of the land': mandatory compulsory education, Jim Crow and Segregation.

About 40years are so later, I return to Texas and on the front page of the paper are the two words "Unequal Justice". Now, this stands out to me in my 'soul of souls', for my leaving Texas is based on an element of unequal justice. The article is an analysis by the Star-Telegram which states that, in "Tarrant County the ability to afford an attorney is quite often the difference between serving a sentence behind bars or out in the community"; this means that many citizens, consumers, and constituents are coerced into the Pri$on-Indu$trial Complex, but, not into colleges or universities, or into the military-indu$trial complex when there is a war to be fought. My experience with a similar element of unequal justice came when I joined the Army in 1965, on July 11th; the recruitment banner was 'join the Armed Forces for upward mobility toward the American Dream'. Guaranteed was a contract; that what you signed up for was what you would definitely get. I joined in downtown 'Cowtown', after passing all the tests and signing all the papers, the Army sergeant (he also signed my DD214) stated he was out of contract papers, yet, by writing the agreement on regular notebook paper, the contract was still binding; when I arrived at Fort Polk, Louisiana, all of the 'White boys' had the correct contract papers, some others and myself had only our notebook paper which was quickly thrown into a metal barrel, and I was not allowed to retrieve it; I was treated very harsh and physically rough when I went against 'direct orders' to sit down and not try to get my papers, my evidence.

I still went to Vietnam, the same as those whites with the 'correct contract papers', yet, I was assigned a Military Occupational Status, as I did not have a contract. I spent the night and next day in lock up, and was told this incident would be on my record; if it is, it is my proof of being violated by the United States of America's Armed Forces, Army branch, and by its' representative, supposedly a man of 'integrity, dignity and honor'; I am thankful I did not die for this country.

When I was about 6 or 7, I experienced the following phenomenon; there were two families; one White and one Black, and each had applied for welfare. The case worker authorized a relief check in the White father's name, but, the check for the Black family was put in the Black father's wife's name along with the stipulation that as long as the Black father was not in the home she would receive a check in her name until her children were 18 years old. The Black family lived in the projects on the eastside of Fort Worth, Texas; the White family lived in the downtown, Belnap part of Fort Worth, Texas, since this was the 'era' of Jim Crow and Segregation. And this is the reason, I chose to vote for Mr. Obama, as I feel I must behave according to what brought him to where he is today; and not only I, but, all Americans must do whatever it is that is 'creative, constructive, and positive'.
When it comes to the 'issue of race', we must accept and face the challenge of communication and dialogue, with the goal of overcoming the pain and suffering which inhibits our healing; our healing comes from President Lydon B. Johnson's statement that, "America must accept and embrace miscegenation".

If we truly believe that our 'Resurrection hope' transforms lives, and transformed lives transform the world, we must focus our prayers, compassion, and hope; and apply our volcanic reserves of passion and primal desire to wisdom, patience, and optimism which allow all to be able to see through public and private limitations, for, we are in an 'era' which is plagued by war, disease, global warming, hunger, famine, 'global disasters', under education, and a sinking economy; we must not be discouraged, “for we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places”.

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