Why Is It So Hard For You To Understand?

I can't believe I'm having to do this again.

Ok white friends, I’m about to lay some hardcore truth on you right now, and many of you are not going to like it. Some of you are going to get immediately defensive. But before you receive this from an emotional place, I encourage you to stop, re-read this post, do a little bit of research about casual racism and white privilege and then come back and re-read the post again. After that, if you still want to comment, please feel free.

Ok, here we go....

Many of you are the problem. Many of us have been the problem at some point. Yes, you read that right. Many of you are the reason why these riots are happening. Many of you are the reason why it’s come to this. This is especially true if you’ve ever (but especially in the last week) said any of the following;

1. “It’s awful but...” - No. No buts. In the English language, the word “But” is often used to deflect or to justify behavior. Police murdering black people in the street is awful. Period. End of discussion.

2. “I support the movement but not these disruptive protests...” - No, you don’t. Right now, the movement is taking the form of disruptive protests. They’re the same thing. You either want police to stop murdering black people in the street, or you don’t. If you do, then support the protests — even if you find them disruptive and frustrating — because that’s black people fighting for their lives.

3. “All lives/White lives matter too..” - no one said they didn’t. The conversation is specifically about black lives right now because police are murdering them in the street. Until police stop doing that, and White people stop dismissing it, it’s not “All lives matter,” it’s “MOST lives matter.” It’s not “ALL Lives” until Black Lives Matter too. Stay focused.

4. “There are good cops...” - No one said there weren’t. There are three categories of cops; Good cops, bad cops and complacent cops. Good cops are marching with the protesters. They’re sharing the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter. They’re trying to change the system from within the system. There are many levels of Bad cops. The most obvious one is those officers that are murdering black people in the street. Bad cops are also sharing the hashtags “blue lives matter.” Bad cops are trying to shift the focus. Bad cops don’t stop their colleagues when they murder black people in the streets. Complacent cops just show up, follow orders and try not to take sides. Complacent cops are bad cops.

5. “I don’t support the looting and destruction...” - no one says you have to, but please stop acting like looting nullifies the entire protest. And definitely stop acting like looting is “just as bad.” That’s like comparing someone stealing your car to someone murdering your child. They’re not equally bad. Stop pretending they are. Police murdering black people in the street is definitely worse than robbing a Target.

6. “Just because I’m white doesn’t mean my life has been easy...” Of course not. Everyone struggles. But being white has never been one of those struggles. Being poor has been a struggle. Being a woman has been a struggle. Being gay has been a struggle. But being white has never been a struggle. The same can’t be said for people of colour. I could go on and on about white privilege, but it would be so much easier if you educated yourself instead. This isn’t about how you, a white, cisgender, straight man has suffered in your life. This is about police murdering black people in the street. Stop trying to make it about you.

7. “I really wish they would protest peacefully...” - of course you do. They’re easier to ignore that way. People of colour have been peacefully protesting for hundreds of years. It hasn’t been all that successful. The reason riots and violent demonstrations work is because it makes people — especially white people — uncomfortable. We can’t ignore them when they’re waving torches in our faces. It scares us. It puts us on edge, which is precisely where we need to be. People only pay attention to the extreme. If you have trouble recalling a single one of the hundreds of peaceful protests that BLM held across North America last year, but you can still recall, with crystal clarity, the 1992 Los Angeles riots, then you’ve just proved my point.

8. “I don’t see color...” — Congratulations, you’re lying to yourself. Of course, you see color. And that’s good! Black people want you to see their color. Their colors are beautiful and the very foundation of who they are. If you don’t see their color, then you also don’t see their culture. If you don’t see color, then you erase their very identity. If you don’t see their color, then you also can’t see the pattern of violence they’re confronted with every day. If you don’t see color, then you’re blind to more than just racial injustice. You’re blind to the world.

9. “They shouldn’t have committed a crime...” - This one is a big one for me. Consider me triggered. A boy who steals a can of pop from a 711 does not deserve to be shot in the back three times. A man illegally selling CD’s on a street corner doesn’t deserve to be shot to death in front of a record store. A man who runs a red light does not deserve to be shot while reaching for his registration. This isn’t about their crimes; this is about bad policing. Stay on topic.

10. “Black people kill white people too...” yes, murderers exist in every race and walk of life. But that’s not what we’re talking about. We’re talking police brutality, and the reality is, black officers are not murdering unarmed white men in the street. That seems to be almost exclusively white officer behavior. Stop gaslighting.

*Additions based on comments to this post;

11. “Black people kill other black people...” - Yes, they do, just like white people kill other white people and Latinos kill other latinos etc. Crime related violence does not adhere to any imaginary racial boundaries or allegiances. But, we’re not talking about criminal violence right now. We’re not discussing drug violence or gang violence or sexual violence or domestic violence or bar brawls or whatever random type of violence you’d like to bring up. The conversation is specifically about POLICE BRUTALITY. Say it with me. Police. Brutality. Any other form of violence you bring up is entirely irrelevant. Please stay on topic.

12. “I support black people, but I can’t support the violence...” — In other words, you would prefer people of color continue to be murdered by police, rather than have them rise up violently against their oppressors. Got it. That’s not support.

13. “It’s not about race. We are all human beings...” yes, except people of color often aren’t treated like human beings. For instance, they’re being murdered in the streets like animals. On video. While people watch. While people do nothing.

14. “The looting and arson distract from their message. It’s their fault for not controlling it...”  If you’d like to lay blame, how about we start by blaming the police who frequently murder unarmed people of color. If they didn’t frequently murder unarmed people of color, the protest wouldn’t be necessary. The protest wouldn’t have turned into a riot, the riot wouldn’t have turned violent, and looting wouldn’t have happened. Blaming the oppressed for not better “controlling” their social unrest is asinine.

15. “More white people are killed by cops than black people. Here are the statistics...” - I love when people do research! Thank you for that! But those stats that you’re proudly flashing around aren’t an accurate reflection of the issue. According to data, there are approx. 234,370,202 white people In the United States. Comparatively, that same data states that there are 40,610,815 “Black” Americans. So, when your stats show 1,398 white people have been killed by officers since 2017 and only 543 Black people, what those statistics really show is .0005% of white people were killed by police in those 3.5 years, while .0011% of black people were killed by police. That means black people were killed at a higher rate. 220% higher, to be exact. Math has no racial bias. Those aren’t great stats. Stop using them to defend your position.

16. “Black people commit more crime...” - Do they really, though? According to data released in 2017, there were 475,900 black prisoners in state and federal prisons and 436,500 white prisoners. That’s a difference of about 9%. So for argument's sake, let’s say those numbers are an accurate reflection of the amount of crime committed. If people of colour commit only 9% more crime, why are they killed by police at a rate of 220% higher?

17. “Well, the same stats you mentioned shows that even though they’re only 12% of the population, they commit 54% of the crime.” - Good Catch! You’re right. But those numbers don’t actually reflect the amount of crime committed. That’s why I said to assume they’re correct. Those numbers only reveal how many people are incarcerated. The reality is, while those numbers are all we have to go on, they don’t tell the complete story either. In the United States specifically, socioeconomic racism, which was designed to keep POC in poverty through district red-lining, lower quality of education and other systemic obstacles, is a huge component. Thanks to redlining (look it up) and other zoning and banking practices, the quality of education in “black” neighborhoods are significantly lower, which means the average income for POC in those neighbours is lower and the unemployment much higher. Also, thanks to redlining, the unemployment rate, and lower-income rates, crime in those neighborhoods tends to be higher. That means those neighborhoods are patrolled by police more often. Thanks to racial bias, POC are followed, stopped, harassed and arrested more frequently than the white people who live in those same neighborhoods. What all of this means is that, when POC are arrested more frequently, they often can’t afford fancy lawyers to help them. They usually end up with Public Defenders, who are often overworked, and they often encourage POC to plead guilty in exchange for less time. Then there’s the fact that, because white people make up 73% of the population, they also tend to make up a bigger percentage of Jurors. There’s lots of factors to consider. So don’t assume that just because they make up 54% of the people in jail, that they make up 54% of the crime. The entire system is broken. That’s part of the problem.

18. “You’re promoting violence and destruction, shame on you...”. - I don’t remember encouraging anyone to riot. I also don’t remember encouraging anyone to loot or commit arson. The truth is, looting and arson is certainly not my preferred form of protest. But it’s important to remember that protesters haven’t committed most of the violent behavior. Civil unrest tends to cause chaos and confusion. That chaos provides the perfect opportunity for poor-intentioned people to do poor-intentioned things. That doesn’t mean the civil unrest should stop. I don’t condone the violence. I just don’t think it should dominate the conversation. If you want to focus on the violence, try focusing on those officers who’ve killed POC in the street. You’re focusing on the wrong violence.

If any of you are guilty of saying any of the above, then I have unsettling news for you. YOU are the reason it’s come to this.

YOU are the reason peaceful protests haven’t worked.

They haven’t worked because YOU haven’t been listening.

YOU haven’t been learning.

These violent riots are happening because YOU have left people of colour, no other choice.

These riots are happening because no matter how people of colour have said it, taking a knee, marching the streets, bumper stickers, Banners, signs, or chants, YOU still don’t get it.

That doesn’t mean you’re bad people.

That doesn’t mean you’re racist. It only means you’re white. And that’s not a crime, any more than being black is.

The difference is, police aren’t going to shoot you in the street for it.

You Gon' Learn Today

It's no accident that:

You learned about Helen Keller instead of W.E.B. DuBois

You learned about the Watts and L.A. Riots, but not Tulsa or Wilmington.

You learned that George Washington’s dentures were made from wood, rather than the teeth from slaves.

You learned about black ghettos, but not about Black Wall Street.

You learned about the New Deal, but not “red lining.”

You learned about Tommie Smith’s fist in the air at the 1968 Olympics, but not that he was sent home the next day and stripped of his medals.

You learned about “black crime,” but white criminals were never lumped together and discussed in terms of their race.

You learned about “states rights” as the cause of the Civil War, but not that slavery was mentioned 80 times in the articles of secession.

Privilege is having history rewritten so that you don’t have to acknowledge uncomfortable facts.

Racism is perpetuated by people who refuse to learn or acknowledge this reality.

You have a choice.

Gouda Lovas: Dub Shack BBQ Presents Smoked Cheese Dip

Someone has to smoke the gouda.

This is likely one of the easiest recipes I will ever share, and once you try it this way, there may be no coming back. This is inspired by Meat Church of Waxahachie, TX.

Ingredients 

1 lb. Velveeta block cheese, cubed into 1/4" pieces

8 oz. Murray's Smoked Gouda cheese

(2) 15 oz. cans of Rotel or diced tomatoes, undrained 

1 lb. ground beef, cooked and drained ⭐

(1) 12 oz. can of cream of mushroom soup (trust me)

SPGO! The Beef Rub

⭐ You can also use any meat you choose - I've made some BOMB queso with ground deer and brisket (different cooks, but nevertheless...). Just make it your own. 

Of course, this helps if you have a cast iron pot since this is going on the smoker; leave the stainless steel cookware in the house:  Your wife and wallet will thank you. Since this recipe is a dump and go (who knew in the BBQ world?), all you have to do is follow the aforementioned instructions and light the cooker! 

1. Assuming you have already cubed the cheese, dump all of the ingredients into the pot you plan on using. If you're curious about SPGO! The Beef Rub, it is merely kosher salt, black pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder.  You can stir them all together and let the tomatoes, ground beef, cheeses, and soup mingle among each other. 

2. Once your cooker reaches 350 degrees - this is a fast cook - bring the pot to the indirect side of your two-tone fire and add a few Maplewood chunks to the burning charcoals for a kiss of smoky flavor. 

3. Check every fifteen minutes, stirring as needed. One thing I learned is that Velveeta has a significantly higher melting point than Gouda cheese.

4. When it is done to your satisfaction, pull it off the cooker and immediately serve with chips!

Toldja it was easy! 

Smoked cheese dip can become one heck of an icebreaker as it is easy to share among groups as easily as it is consumed at home watching the Last Dance on Netflix again. Be safe out there, be good to each other, and remember that every day is a GREAT day for Dub Shack BBQ! 

Hi, I'm Token!

For a large part of my own life, I was either the only Black person in the group or one of a small number of faces like mine. From learning at an awkward age of how to navigate the world as seen by my paler friends and classmates through Cub Scouts, the rigors of the pre-AP life, and even the privilege of sorts that there were some things I can get away with things that otherwise would have landed me in detention – or worse, detained in the principal’s office or the back of an early ‘90s Caprice sedan, my tokenism has opened doors that certainly would have been shut  despite the advocacy of my own parents, the neighborhood, and even the larger community as a whole working together. To this day I can still find myself drifting off to the lyrics to “Don’t Speak” by No Doubt as easily as the reverberating bass notes from “No Diggity”, the seminal Blackstreet classic from the same time period; why neither 2Pac nor Biggie find themselves getting heavy airplay is beyond me save for how both artists’ songs are randomly selected on Spotify.

Up until a few months after my 28th birthday, I was the token Black friend.

Look for this and more this week from Hi, I'm Token on AD&AD. #token pic.twitter.com/2YglLA0bhq

— A. Cedric Armstrong (@cedteaches) June 15, 2020

You know, the one who always found himself in the group of white people, an outlier in a world that as eagerly as I was accepted (and welcomed into) I could be as swiftly ostracized as just one of those Black guys they saw on TV or a stereotype of their own insecurities. This is NOT an indictment of all of my relationships; the bros from high school and my tribe in college gladly saw me as more than just a checkmark to fill a quota box and as we navigated the journey together and separately, our bonds have defined us in ways invaluable to all parties involved. As a darkly humorous twist on my own employment situation for a certain nonprofit I spent a year with (and one that inevitably led me to a deep depression), I would joke around in staff meetings introducing myself as Token. It never happened around the students as I conditioned myself to minimize my own real blackness to present a perpetually smiling team player to my own detriment – and eventual breakdown. 

Down since Day One. Not pictured:  Jason, Mansul, Josh, V. Lo, Chad, Ben.

For a large number of Black readers and people who have known me since elementary school, these words are not really a surprise save for the depression. My words hopefully are a deeper insight of both the blatant and covert ways racism have made me the man I am today from being told I’ll never be Black enough for (fill-in-the-blank) to being followed around a Gap store where the sales associate was reluctant to let me try on a pair of standard fit jeans to how my own connection with God parallels in both Black and white spaces.

Growing up in Conway in the 1980s and 1990s, we seemingly were afforded a quality education due to all of us residing in the 72032 zip code; it was years later when I found that to not be entirely accurate from other classmates’ experiences in what should have been a similar thing across the board. Why is this so important to note? Simple:  Not everyone had a stable home life. Not everyone who I played basketball with during the summers at the Boys and Girls Club or McGee Center had the structure at home nor the village of responsible adults there to not only protect the young boys and girls but also the desire to encourage us into varying interests such as Scouts, band, or a chill day to read in the library away from the squeaks of sneakers and basketballs and the arguments that would have had us run out of the gyms for the particular day.

Yet the outward perception of a diverse community was only a mirage.

Ask me what happened when the other Cub Scouts in my den mysteriously quit midyear and I found myself a Bear Cub without a den, or when some parents began treating us as the exceptions to the rule sometimes calling us the affirmative action Cub Scouts. Thankfully, I landed with a group late that year and my final den (yes, I stopped after Webelos – I knew band among other activities, would conflict with becoming an Eagle Scout. Besides, I wanted to have some sense of regularity like everyone else) stuck it out for the Arrow of Light ceremony.

Even back home in the ‘hood, I knew I was always going to be an exception – for better or worse.

As I got older, I began to find myself in circles that I either did not know anyone aside from the previous summer of mowing lawns in their neighborhoods or purely based on my academic exploits as a gifted and talented student. Having a passing resemblance to Steve Urkel didn’t help my cause, but a Black male who wore glasses and spoke with a mainstream (read: spoken proper English) inflection automatically meant that I did not quite fit one world neatly, and this skin was fairly obvious to everyone else. I am not saying that I denied being Black, just that over everything else including the new nerd label, it was certainly a thing. I also recognized a bit of privilege that most of my counterparts did not possess:  While I (and most of my neighborhood) grew up in two-parent homes, my mom did not work full-time outside of the home until my brother’s senior year of high school when the national retail outfit opened a store in the southwest part of town and was looking for a department manager. As an aside, being more nerd and affable good guy who could toot a trumpet a little bit led to entry into extracurricular activities with which I became fairly involved and more comfortable in whiter spaces than the chocolate one called home got the proverbial ball rolling.

I was so used to being the only Black face around (or one of a few) that the microaggressions that I recollect in the rearview were those that never truly offended me because I wasn’t around them:  Obviously, some things that occurred in suburban schools that would not have existed in darker spaces such as a somewhat blind eye to white students using the N-word and visible Confederate flags in the hallways yet those eyes became eaglelike when it came to the sagging jeans and Malcolm X t-shirts. I guess being fully assimilated into the mainstream was supposed to be my protectorate from being needled into time-wasting beefs. (Due to my normally calm demeanor, I never threw hands on-campus, and the one time I did put up my dukes – on the basketball court in the ‘hood mind you, led to the only whooping I really took.)

To open my own eyes to a world much bigger than the books I studied and shed a bit of the nerdy image from childhood, I found myself intentionally seeking out black friends since I needed the sense of community in college. Let us say it did not quite work out as I had envisioned:  My doppelganger who became an eventual good friend was a visible member of the school’s largest white fraternity, eventually becoming chapter president. Like my years back home, other black students looked upon me with first disdain and distrust only to grudgingly accept me likely because of who my mentor and roommate are. I was perceived as the whitest black guy in the room; at that level, I found myself slinking away from the community to the tribe of friends that have been my closest peers for the past twenty-two years and counting; ask “where da bird at?” and they would likely say that question is the blackest thing they ever heard me say.

If you knew me in high school - or even, the college years before I pledged. Hell, I even heard it a couple of years ago. pic.twitter.com/MvzNuPeOhB

— A. Cedric Armstrong (@cedteaches) April 27, 2020

As with all things and rising levels of education, employment statuses, housing situations, and so forth, the need to assuage white people’s fears slowly began to grate on me. Why, me? Having to make them comfortable with my very presence as more than just the guy who they could check off on their quota box of having a black friend was a crappy feeling – and much of it came to a head February 2007.

A number of you know the story, and for those who do not:  Avon Mountain is one of the most dangerous stretches of highway in New England on dry days, and doubly so on snowy ones. Not seeing the sign that said, “no right on red”, I made a right turn at the red light; immediately, two of Avon’s finest pulled me over and hell broke loose. From my own prior interactions with law enforcement back home, I knew to roll my tinted driver’s window down and show them my empty hands. Since my administrator was a native of the nearby town and in the backseat, she had me drop her window first for them to see I had passengers. I presented both officers my driver’s license, registration, and insurance; despite that, I was told to exit the car. Come on, this Black man is taking over Avon, Connecticut in a red Hyundai Santa Fe with Arkansas plates, specifically those of my alma mater and fraternity bracket. Be real. That was the longest twenty minutes of my life, and when I was finally released without a traffic ticket or warning, I was so shaken that I was ready to quit the teaching gig and move back home. That – and other incidents – led to a depression that set for most of that year long after I had moved back.

Lesson learned:  Being token did not exempt me from being Black in America. All it did was cloud my mind into thinking I was exceptional when the majority of this nation saw my skin first before anything else, and so-called liberal New Englanders were as hateful as their conservative Southern brethren can be – and have been toward Black people.

When it came to my dating life, I tell people all the time my wife is the reason why I came back to Black women. Sure, we had met freshman year at the U and I am certain she knew how I felt about her, but 1) we were young; and 2) she was the only sister I felt genuinely cared about me. Also, I was deep in the OJ life:  If the woman was not white, she was not getting a second look from me. Even as I lived with dry D, I still had the audacity to exclude a large segment of women who may have wanted to throw the cookie at me solely because they were not what I typically interacted with and/or desired. As accurately as the fact that black females did not give a damn about me beyond the dollar bill (and that General Chemistry textbook that was required at the freshman level), I treated those dismissals as reason enough to expect that my babies would be tan instead of chocolate. Like I said, I simply did not travel very well in Black spaces, and to the women reading this, I profusely apologize. Even the perception of denying familial dignity was simultaneously wrong and contrary to how I was reared – with as strong a woman as my mother is and the implication that my girlfriends could not come home if they couldn’t use my comb, I still did it.

What is pretty safe to say is that I get invited into conversations of race, and depending on the friend, I can either go into depth or speak in generalities to the group. I would prefer to share in detail but for those people who still see me as the guy in the quota box “he’s my Black (friend/neighbor/coworker/whatever convenient reason necessary to excuse my racist comment on Facebook”), please refrain from viewing me in that context. If we have not gone out for beers in the last few years or conversed via text or phone call, then keep my name out of your mouths.

For the friend whose father asked me my connection to her then-husband (several years ago), I am used to answering it the way I did as if he forgot I was in her first wedding. It was not a big deal except I guess coming from that part of the state, having a close Black friend is unheard of.

This guy:  co-conspirator of shenanigans of all shapes and sizes since freshman year and a damn good dude

Eleven o’clock on Sunday morning is still the most segregated hour in America of the week:  We know why. Everyone who really knows me at least acknowledges the role that the Black Baptist church has had in my life from lower elementary school to the present day in the diaconate, but what if I told I briefly attended Congregational services for the year I resided in Colebrook before I found Mount Calvary Baptist thirty-one miles away in Hartford? Nothing against the fifteen-minute sermon with hot coffee and still-warm Dunkin’ Donuts following the service, but I kind of felt like I was more of an exotic entity than a human. I won’t lie and say the brevity of worship was not a draw so I could go home and watch the Patriots during the afternoons yet the expectations of mainline churches is assimilation – and in some locales, maintaining the status quo in learned (and preached) coded language.

Hate is not only taught at home, but it is also justified in the church:  It has been for at least the past 400 years through slavery, Jim Crow, and the mental gymnastics employed to this date to defend the imagery of a blonde haired, blue-eyed Caucasian Jesus, which is dispelled in Revelation 1:14-15. Below is the text:

His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire.

And his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice as the sound of many waters. – Revelation 1:14-15

I told you that does not sound like the image passed on from one generation to the next but remember, the slaves were not allowed to learn to read – death was their punishment for that level of comprehension as their masters only viewed them as property. Also, their tomes were only preselected to keep them childlike in perpetual servitude. With that bit of knowledge, why do we still remain ignorant of our Creator?

For a better explanation, read 1 John 4:20

It is in part why I have felt a bit uneasy about unity services given that so many of my so-called Christian brothers and sisters huddled around their skin folk more closely than their spiritual kinfolk during the last presidential election despite all of us knowing what the current occupant symbolized to a nation of immigrants both voluntarily and stolen. As a consequence, they revealed that their god is white supremacy. These days it seems to be a more stilted effort in emulating what the Church looks and feels like – one group is giving it their all in advancing the conversation and developing the relationship as more than an odd connection while the other merely views it as entertainment.

Lemme keep it a buck for the people in the back:  I am constantly grateful with the genuine white friends I grew up with, and I hope they have learned as much from me that I have from them over the years, and for each passing day, we all can continue to advance the world one moment at a time. Is it all groupthink? No. I would like to think of my friends as more of the panel on the Jim Lehrer hour on PBS than the cast of Fox News.

Another graphic preview of "Hi, I'm Token" coming to AD&AD #token pic.twitter.com/cRYaaoRfMR

— A. Cedric Armstrong (@cedteaches) June 15, 2020

I will NEVER turn my back on Black America, not even when it may be financially beneficial (see Candace Owens). NEVER. PERIOD. You will still bump Roddy Rich and Lil’ Wayne or Cardi B, enjoy watching Dave Chappelle and his comedic roast sessions, and revere Razorbacks athletes as long as they don the crimson and white, but will you be willing to ride for us when it is less than convenient?

When the dust settles, I wonder if we will change – or did I waste my time trying to bust through stone walls?

Wanna see something? Come back in a few days to read "Hi, I'm Token!" from AD&AD! #token pic.twitter.com/YG0Rh3mD4x

— A. Cedric Armstrong (@cedteaches) June 16, 2020

The Come Up

Buy a house and get a 15 year fixed mortgage.

When you start your job, get an HSA account not FSA and get the high deductible health insurance. It will lower your tax bracket and the money is yours to use. You also earn 40% in most cases after 10k!!!

Never buy a car brand new! I’ve watched Escalades go from 100k (new) to 35k four years later. 

Get you an LLC (incorporate your name!!) and run it as an S Corp. Remember Jay-Z quote “I’m not a Businessman I’m a Business Maaaaaaaan....” let that sink in. 

Build business credit! The loans are bigger and the interest rate is lower. 

Get a business bank account (in most cases this costs around $500 to start). Some people got two stimulus checks (one from Trump and one from the SBA). 

Go to Jr. College first and transfer into a four year college (unless you have scholarships to mitigate the costs) as a Junior. 

Don’t major in Art or history  (no disrespect to Art/history majors). School is a power move you must be able to secure the bag. Majors in STEM will always be needed, are in high demand and the skills can directly help the black community. 

Get with your peers from your graduating class and others together at homecoming on one day for two hours to plot and strategize how we can move our communities forward (commerce, politics, education, etc...) 

Give 10% to of your yearly income to your local HBCU (whether you went there or not). If you want to support Black People, support Black Business and Black Institutions of higher Education. 

Get life insurance (term and whole life) for you and your children as soon as they are born (one thing is for sure is we will die...might as well leave your kids something extra!). The sooner you get it, the cheaper it is. And you can borrow against it to fund certain projects. Also, the ones that pay out dividends are the best! They normally are associated with the market (money market accounts). 

Get the people in your immediate family to save collectively! If 10 people save $500/month, that’s $60k every year. You could buy 3 starter homes every year and in 4 years all ten of you are home owners. Buy on the same block or neighborhood if you can...this way you control the value of the homes (remember Monopoly!). 

Inappropriately Appropriate

Dear America:🟨🟧🟥⬜️⬛️🟪🟦🟩🟫

When we served you as slaves, you abused us, starved us, sold us and called us lazy.

You treated us inappropriately.

When we ran away, you came and captured us. Cutting off life and limb.

You treated us inappropriately.

When we were emancipated, you put on sheets and raided our homes, raped us and lynched us. 

You treated us inappropriately.

When we separated ourselves, grew and became our own thriving communities of Tulsa, Rosewood, Mound Bouyou, Colfax and Atlanta, as a nation you sanctioned the bombing of our communities, the burning of our homes and businesses, the brutalizing of our men and the  blocking of us on every turn. 

You treated us inappropriately.

When we sat down, you told...no demanded us to stand up by dragging us off the buses, off the streets and out of our homes.

You treated us inappropriately

.

When we marched peacefully and unarmed, you sent out the national guard, the fire hoses and the dogs.  You bombed our churches and assassinated our leaders. 

You treated us inappropriately.

When we wore dashikis, afros and our natural hair, you fired us, derided us and called us names for not immulating your standards of beauty.

You treated us inappropriately.

When we kneeled, you didn't address the issue. You simply rewrote the narrative, called us unpatriotic...and demanded we stand. 

You treated us inappropriately.

With each demonstration against your racism and malfeasance, you have labeled our actions, "inappropriate."

 But, in all of the years of our rebelling, fighting and protesting, you have never once acknowledged or changed YOUR inappropriate behavior.

Now, here we are....again. You kill us and then think you have the right to tell us how to respond to the pain.

After doing everything possible to be freed, even a trapped animal will chew off it's foot to save it's life...and not a single animal who understands will call it ," inappropriate."

So in final desperation, we protest, loot and burn down the village to be freed from your racist abuse.

And, your response is to call out the military...not to protect us or our communities...but to protect your racism from our "in appropriateness" in responding to it.

Please know this:

Until you appropriately surrender and give up your racism and racist behaviors, we will continue to protest... being appropriately inappropriate. 

Signs of a Passive Racist

We see you. 

1. If you claim to mourn the murder of George Floyd while simultaneously showing more outrage for the loss of material things, then you are not an ally and you have failed to understand the significance of what is happening in the world right now. Why aren’t you this openly outraged when white people riot for winning or losing a sporting event? Does it suck? Yes, but we will recover. Innocent people dying sucks more.

2. If you are using MLK quotes to allude to the idea that he changed the world solely through peaceful protest, then you are excluding a major piece of history. And if you think that the Civil Rights Movement was not met with violence, then you are delusional. Did you forget that he was assassinated?

3. If you have found yourself using anything similar to the phrase "violence never solved anything", then you must have conveniently forgotten the history and foundation that this country has been built on. When is the last time our military showed up in the Middle East to peacefully protest? If violence never solves anything, why are police officers inciting violence on peaceful protests across the nation? They were literally macing elected government officials yesterday.

4. If you have ever made reference to #BlueLivesMatter and/or #AllLivesMatter, why do you only use this rhetoric when we say Black Lives Matter? We know that the lives of police officers matter because we’ve seen them protected and acquitted time and time again for murdering innocent Black people. If you are angry because you feel like ‘good cops’ are being targeted, why haven’t you been equally angry when ‘good black people’ are still being racially profiled and killed by those sworn to protect them? No innocent life deserves to be taken, but this is not a competition to see whose life matters more. Although if it was, I think that past and current actions have shown us a clear answer.

5. If you were outraged that Colin Kaepernick took a knee during the national anthem in peaceful protest against police brutality, why do you think that peaceful protest is the answer now? Clearly that did not help. You all still did not get it. Hopefully you weren’t one of the people rioting and burning your Nikes when they endorsed him afterwards.

6. And lastly, if you’ve found yourself saying, “I can’t be silent anymore” – please please please ask yourself why you’ve made the decision to EVER be silent about the mistreatment or murder of an innocent person. 

Nothing in this post is up for debate. If you find yourself feeling offended or defensive, check your privilege and educate yourself.

Nothing Ordinary About It: Dub Shack BBQ Does Taco Tuesday

My very first real job (not counting mowing lawns with my grandpa) was Taco Bell way back in 1995. As a result, I picked up an obvious nickname from my high school classmates:  Taco. Over those two years and thousands of tacos, burritos, fajitas, nachos, tostadas, and Choco Tacos, I did pick up some additional skills such as work ethic; speedy customer service; and even adapted to the night shift as we closed the joint on the corner of 3^rd and Oak streets each Friday and Saturday night around 3 am. You may wonder what this has to do with barbecue, and I will gladly share that:  It is today’s menu.

Where it all began #nothingordinaryaboutit @tacobell pic.twitter.com/FoU9SoWFgP

— A. Cedric Armstrong (@cedteaches) May 31, 2020

For what has been the better part of the past quarter-century, tacos have become my default comfort food. Tragically, the double decker taco has gone to the graveyard of great 90s fast-food options.

If you are just going to make ground beef crunchy tacos, then you might as well head back to the kitchen and stand with your pack of McCormick’s taco seasoning packet in front of the oven. For everything else, keep reading and light your grills!

Seriously, light your grills. I should not have to tell you that again.

To get some of those epic Dub Shack BBQ tacos, I’ll make them in a few different ways – and all in the 6” softshell flour tortillas.

BBQ Tacos

Pulled pork or chopped brisket

Pickle spear

Cotija cheese (Taco blend cheese works as well)

The OG BBQ sauce, formerly known as Big VI

Shrimp Tacos

12 oz. medium or large shrimp, in herbs and garlic marinade

Sour cream

Lettuce

Pico de Gallo

Taco blend cheese

Chicken Tacos

Chicken breasts, in Italian dressing as marinade

Guacamole

Pepper mix

Pico de Gallo

Cotija cheese

Fish Tacos

Tilapia filets

McCormick’s Baja Fish Taco seasoning mix

Sour cream

Pepper mix

Tomatoes

Notice that each taco has a different starting point – and in the case of the brisket or pulled pork, reread I Like Big (Pork) Butts and I Cannot Lie or B is for Brisket for how I smoke both meats before pulling, slicing, or chopping them. This is supposed to be an easy way to make dinner during the week or at the very least, an appetizer for the biggest freakin’ block party ever post-coronavirus. If you choose to make chicken or shrimp tacos and have never marinated either one, here is a tip:  Plan ahead and refrigerate after mixing the meat and marinades for at least half an hour but no more than two hours. You do not want to accidentally end up cooking the shrimp or letting the wet stuff overtake the taste of chicken which will be eventually chopped.

What make each type of taco similar? The use of the grill and a cast iron skillet. If you so happen to own a griddle, that will work out for the pepper mix; just do not overcook them.

Using that awesome two-zone fire you have already built, let us start with the chicken. We are not looking for those beautiful crosshatches like the ones we like on our steaks since the breasts are going to be chopped up and inside of tacos, so cook them until they are done. PLEASE DO NOT DRY OUT THE CHICKEN BREASTS, especially if they are of the boneless variety! Once finished, set them aside and let us move forward to the tilapia.

Tilapia tacos cook even faster than chicken. PAY ATTENTION. Once done, cut into ¼ to ½” cubes.

When it comes to shrimp tacos, cook them in the cast iron skillet. Place a half-stick of butter and allow it to melt before adding the shrimp, turning to opaque. If the shrimp is still translucent, it is not done; if it ends up cooked to a circle, then you have overcooked them. With these crustaceans, the name of the game is cooking them to the letter C. As you finish them, place in a separate platter, and cook the peppers (if that is your prerogative for that night) as the package states.

When it comes to dressing your tacos, make them your own and share with family, friends, and anyone who drops by with Corona or the beer of the occasion. Every day is still a GREAT day for Dub Shack BBQ – enjoy it and each other!

Dub Shack BBQ Does Deer Meatloaf

Just out here trying different things. Today, I'm trying my hand at deer meatloaf.  The recipe is below:

2 lbs. ground deer 

2 lbs. ground beef (for you know, fat content)

1/2 medium onion

1/2 green bell pepper

Basil

Salt

Black pepper 

Garlic powder

2/3 cup bread crumbs 

IPA of your choice (I used Lost Forty's Dirt Surfer)

Ketchup (I used my own OG BBQ sauce)

2 eggs

Mix it all together and form loaves. Since your PK is already set up for 2-zone fire, drop two cherrywood chunks for smoke. At 30 minutes, check the meatloaf for color - if it's to your liking, wrap it. Otherwise, go another half hour.

Normally meatloaf cooks at 350 for 60 minutes but I went a little longer due to the ground beef mixed in. 

Pull it from the PK at 160 degrees and let it rest before devouring! 

Enjoy it with an IPA and other comfort food - tonight is my night to cook dinner for the missus and little one.

This Is War

If there is no other period in our lifetimes to rise and be counted, now is the time.

This is your POTUS declaring war on Black America. 👇🏿 pic.twitter.com/5JBXoymH4h

— A. Cedric Armstrong (@cedteaches) June 1, 2020

I’m not talking about those who have cast their lots with shucking and jiving, invoking platitudes that do not improve the present situation, and assorted levels of cooning for a system that was never intended to help us in any way, shape, form, or fashion – you can stay where you are. I know what my eyes have seen, and my ears have heard, so do not try it.

He was talking to you negropeans and religious right types #mlk #BlackLivesMatter #GeorgeFloydProtests #AhmaudArbery #BreonnaTaylor pic.twitter.com/zHxTBlF4f0

— A. Cedric Armstrong (@cedteaches) May 31, 2020

Since war has been declared on us, how do we fight back – to win? Not everyone can serve on the frontlines; we must find our lanes and really accentuate our strengths for the victory. For example, if you cook, find a way to help feed our fighters as they will need all of the sustenance they can handle to return to the battle stations; since I write professionally, I will continue to document the experience wholly and honestly as we know 1) the victors get to tell the tales; and 2) white America has done such a masterful job of telling only their side even when it can be easily debunked that a lie is the cause of mass destruction, resulting in thousands of Black lives lost. Disagree? Look 200 miles west of here to Tulsa. Next year marks the 100^th anniversary of the Tulsa Race Riots, and their city’s leaders keep trying to minimize their roles in the genocide. As recently as 2001, county officials were still trying to cover up the events of the fateful week as they indicted their own relatives and other prominent citizens of the era.

A word from Brother Malcolm #thisiswar pic.twitter.com/ffIITA4uGu

— A. Cedric Armstrong (@cedteaches) June 1, 2020

As teens, my brother and I were prepared for the onslaught of what the world would do to us growing up Black in Conway, Arkansas – don’t let the stock diversity images of smiling folks fool you, my hometown has a shitty relationship with our neighborhoods and in general, our skin. [Shout out to the real ones who grew up in Friendship, Salem, Gold Lake, Cowtown, Caney, Chateau, Conway proper, and the ‘hoods I may have missed who know EXACTLY what I’m talking about.]

How were we prepared?

Dad taught us to strategize our moves, and Mom prayed over us each morning.

Since Dad was already off to work by the time we woke up in the mornings for school, Mom gave us a Scripture to prepare us for war once we stepped off the porch of the little white house in the curve. That text is Ephesians 6:10-20, and as I revert to the 90s of being covered in the Blood of Jesus but not necessarily protected from bullies both in the ‘hood and on-campus, this is the King James Version below:

10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.

11 Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but also against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

13 Wherefore, take unto you the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having the breastplate of righteousness;

15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;

16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all of the fiery darts of the wicked.

17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Sprit, which is the word of God:

18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

19 And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel,

20 For which I am an ambassador in bonds:  that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.

Before anyone says, “Brother Deacon just said a mouthful”, let me explain line-by-line what you just read. Also, if your pastors and men of God are not making their presences known as spiritual leaders rather relying on the by-and-by Beatitudes or outright dismissing the events of the world as social justice warriors stepping out of their lanes, then you (and I) may need to find a place that is truly feeding us real meat versus the sugar high from falling out all over the aisles.

In verse 10, Paul implores the church of Ephesus to stay strong in the faith and to be prepared for whatever comes their way. How does this relate to Black America? More than you think. By maintaining our faith and hope in God despite enduring a systemically unequal society, change can occur albeit at a glacial pace. When we put on the whole armor of God, we acknowledge that that we are engaging in warfare which the terms are not known to us nor shall we expect a fair fight but rather guerilla warfare which there are no rules. Only once we know that the wiles of the devil (v.11) constitute an ideology of supremacy at all costs are we able to go to war.

For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but also against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. – Ephesians 6:12

Verse 12 above could very well be the most critical reason for entering battle. We must know not only who we are fighting but also why we are putting up our dukes. On the ground level, police brutality symbolizes flesh and blood; Black people have had to put up with the blue line since slavery [study the history of slavecatchers and how they later became law enforcement before you get too butthurt in the comments]. We also must contend with discriminatory laws and social contracts that negatively impact us and their residual effects for years to come. For example, in The Banker, Bernard Garrett (played by Anthony Mackie) returns to his Texas hometown to purchase the community bank and as soon as he does, the Black residents suddenly are able to receive loans without having to sacrifice their life savings to update properties, establish small business, and so forth. The case eventually finds its way to the Supreme Court where Arkansas Sen. John McClellan of Little Rock McClellan High School fame plays his racist hand to not only force Garrett to surrender his assets but also send him to prison as an example of what happens when Black people push for progress in the banking sector. I will not divulge the remaining details of the film, but it did lead to the Fair Housing Act of 1968 that outlawed racial discrimination in obtaining housing and loans for businesses.

Yesterday, I watched The Banker - great movie if you haven't seen it yet. It gave me some inspiration to keep pushing but also showed me something that some of you might find controversial: I can't think of a single AR senator who has EVER given a damn about black folks.
1/

— A. Cedric Armstrong (@cedteaches) May 3, 2020

Here in 2020, we still wrestle against the rulers of the darkness of this world. Our more conservative associates label them the Deep State or Antifa, and even have the audacity to call Black Lives Matter a terrorist group! More than Donald Trump, Mike Pence, Mitch McConnell, Vladimir Putin, Benjamin Netayahu, and world leaders with the mentality of me > we, dark money still exists [See the US Supreme Court, Citizens United, Soros, Koch, Walton, DeVos, etc.] in American politics – and nowadays, foreign leaders have entered the pay-to-play game to maintain white supremacy at all costs as the United States devolves into an oligarchy.

You cannot tell me Congress or even our state legislatures have our best interests in heart:  Check their voting records and histories of inflammatory statements. Not only would you be surprised (Arkansans are used to Hammer, Clark, Garner, Rapert, Ballinger, Hester, Irvin, etc. but it does not mean they can be excused for one good deed in a lifetime of hatred, of which they are notorious for perverting the Gospel to their own means. Also, note their deafening silence during this hour.)

All them “my country is great if you don’t like it you can leave!” mfs got REAL quiet this weekend.

— slickass🦸🏻‍♂️ (@S_Lucas27) May 31, 2020

Once the whole armor of God is on, stand proudly! Here is how you rise proudly, taken from verses 14 through 17:

14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having the breastplate of righteousness;

15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;

16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all of the fiery darts of the wicked.

17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Sprit, which is the word of God:

In the ancestors’ days, the practice of temperance – abstaining from alcohol and other intoxicants – was passed on for us to remain on guard at all times. Sometimes that literally included keeping our pants up! It is kind of difficult to run and hold up our sagging britches. Therefore, these tormentors do not care about our respectability as we wear our Sunday best to prevent an assault because they lack both morality and the value of our own humanity. As we revisit verse 15, it indicates that we control the direction of our feet:  Tie your Jordan Brand sneakers or footwear of choice for we do not know the direction we must traverse. Once we look deeper at the text, we also recognize the elements of Matthew 10:14 where we shake the dust off our feet if the message does not get across. Cursing someone out or slandering them to convey our point is simply being extra and contrary to how we should conduct ourselves in war. In verses 16 and 17, the interpretation is not toting a literal Bible everywhere despite the fact of most of us having downloaded the app to our smartphones as much as taking the time to protect what we consume and having the wisdom to know that not everything good to us is good for us.

And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake the dust off your feet. – Matthew 10:14

God ain’t put us on this earth to get murdered.

We see 🇺🇸. They wanted haircuts, lukewarm tea, and the right to kill Black people instead of being cooped up at home with their families. pic.twitter.com/9bFxsnDh6P

— A. Cedric Armstrong (@cedteaches) May 27, 2020

Again, not everyone has to be on the frontlines of war:  Some of us must strategize, and others have strengths that need to be utilized such as organizers, logistics wizards, policy professionals, and so forth. The saints still matter – and need to be protected for they are the ones who constantly pray for us and our wellbeing as we endure storms together and/or apart from their own battles in this journey we call life. Lastly, verses 19 and 20 are our official marching orders:  We are now properly armed; let it be known that this war is for the Lord and He will be credited with the victory. DO NOT BE ASHAMED OF WHAT YOU POSSESS. THE ENEMIES WILL USE YOUR WEAKNESSES TO THEIR ADVANTAGES.

If there is no other time to stand up and be counted, now is the time. Be safe our there.

I love all y'all.
Be safe.
❤🖤💚

— A. Cedric Armstrong (@cedteaches) June 1, 2020