Nowadays
I’m sure almost most people are familiar with the outrage of Chick-fil-A
condemning of gay marriage, or homosexuality in general. Familiarizing myself
with this issue over a year ago I admit that the current rise of outrage and
media coverage is quite overrated but then I saw the picture shown above. Such
a photo speaks volumes about the African American community. Why are we always
the portrayed as the lap dogs of wealthy white patrons? Now I’m sure that Chick-fil-A will never
publicly endorse such a photo but I’m also quite sure that a picture of white
church goers raising their poisonous chicken contents to the sky won’t surface
on the internet any time soon. My issue with the image touches on two key
points: The stereotype of black and chicken and also the Black community tie to
Christianity.
I
will keep my rant about blacks and chicken to a minimum, as I’m sure everyone
is familiar with the connection. My only question is why? Do music, recorded
fist fights, and the high crime rates of our community not hurt us enough that
we have to pose for pictures praising chicken? Okay, you might say that the
picture isn’t about glorifying the chicken, it’s about supporting the chain and
though you may be right, the picture does paint an image that isn’t easily
escaped.
Now
onto my second issue; time has continued to prove that whatever issue the Christian
based church seems to have with a subject, most of the black community is sure to
jump on the bandwagon. My issue with the black community backing the decision
of the Chick-fil-A is how once again the bible is being used as a weapon. Not
too long ago the bible was being used as a weapon against the African American
community. Sure it allowed us to get married, but it also enslaved and
humiliated us. I may not be the most religious person in the world, but I
thought the purpose of Christianity was to spread love not to oppress.
I’m
not going to tell anyone what to spend their own money on; but I will point out
that it is foolish to support any person/event/venue that isn’t supportive of
you. Chick-fil-A’s true intentions will come to light soon, and when it does I
hope a lot of people reevaluate their faith and their beliefs. The picture
prompts an interesting question, “have the oppressed become the oppressor” or
are we slowly sliding backwards.
