Page 4 - Florida Sentinel 12-6-19

Editorial/Column
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A Colt 45 And A Limp Wrist
Billie Dee Williams re- cently admitted that he is gender fluid. It is a classifi- cation under the LGBTQI banner that the 82-year-old movie star says defines him feeling both male and female.
Those who may not be fa- miliar with Williams might not understand why this news is such a big deal. But to the generations who grew up watching the man, affection- ately known as "Billie Dee," seduce millions of Black women through films such as Lady Sings The Blues and Mahogany, this revelation is mind-blowing.
We are talking about a man who epitomized the very image of Black male masculinity. A man who's silky voice and smooth demeanor not only made it seem cool to drink a Colt 45 Malt Liquor beer in a club, but who set the standard for how Black men carried themselves around women for decades. Before there was Denzel Washington, before there was an Idris Elba, there was Billie Dee.
This is a man who could have very well been my step-
grandfather, father or uncle depending on which female member in my family met him first. And now, after over 50 years of being THAT dude, Billie Dee has decided to come clean and let us know that he was never that guy at all.
Personally, I'm just glad that neither of my grandmoth- ers are around to witness Bil- lie Dee's coming out party. It would break their hearts to know that the man who they admired, adored and probably fantasized about their entire lives considered himself a girl at times and didn't mind sleep- ing with boys.
To me this is the worst part of the story. It isn't that Billie Dee is gay, unfortunately, that's the new normal. It is that he lived this lie and sold a fake image for so long.
I can only imagine the number of relationships that were ruined back in the day because of women who wanted their men to act and look more like Billie Dee. They just did- n't know that Billie Dee wanted a man like himself, as well.
Right now, I'm not sure how many more of these shocking adult gender reveals I can handle. Every year it seems as though there's an- other brother being exposed as a fraud.
Richard Pryor, Quincy Jones, Malik Yoba, Tank and now Billie Dee? At this rate it's hard not to wonder which icon will disappoint us next? Should we begin to pre- pare ourselves for the sight of Sidney Poitier standing next to Dwyane Wade's son on a float in the 2020 Pride Pa- rade?
Now that the closet door appears to be off the hinges and leaning against the wall, I can only imagine who may come strutting out? Tyler Perry, perhaps? Eddie Mur- phy? Will Smith? Jamie Foxx? LL Cool J?
I mean, there's been specu- lation surrounding the sexual- ity of all of these individuals. If any of the rumors are true, with the environment the way it is currently, it may not be long before one of them also feels inspired to hop onto the rainbow colored bandwagon.
In the meantime, I'm going to try to deal with the sad real- ity that strong, Black, male, heterosexual, role models are slowly becoming extinct. Mal- colm X, Muhammad Ali and Ossie Davis must be spinning in their graves....
Reality On Ice is © by the Florida Sentinel Bul- letin Publishing Company. You can contact Mr. Barr at: cbarronice@gmail.com.
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What Do We Tell Our Children?
any of us can testify to our parents telling us to
say “please,” “thank you,” not to lie, steal, cheat, or tease, and not to bully other children. There is no doubt that many of us are struggling about what we should tell our children and grandchildren today about standards of behavior in their personal and pro- fessional lives when they grow up.
We must explain to our children and grandchildren why they shouldn’t lie when America’s adults appear not to care if our President tells lies constantly (13,000 lies and counting), sometimes for no reason.
Must we now tell them that it is ok to bully people and call them names? Should we tell them that it’s ok if they are married or in a committed relationship they can cheat and pay people not to talk about it?
Moreover, what shall we say to our children when they ask us, “Is it alright to ask people to dig up dirt on people they don’t like, or people who will run against them for class president, school king or queen, or peo- ple who compete against them for jobs, dates, or sports?”
Shall we tell them it’s alright to hire people to do work for them and don’t bother to pay them their money? Will we be able to tell our children they should not tease or mock other children with disabil- ities or who are different?
And by all means, don’t forget to tell them they should pay someone to dig up dirt on anyone they don’t like.
These are questions and behaviors we must ask whether they are appropriate for this millennium.
If so, we will stop being America.
Making Progress: Turtle Style
“Be not afraid of going slowly, be afraid only of sEtanding still.”
Chinese Proverb
mpowered Greetings.
Today, I want to highlight a few life lessons we can learn from the turtle. Individuals, organizations and governments around the world seek to make progress toward a bigger, better and brighter future. When we observe the turtle, we can begin to understand that progress isn’t always quick and easy. Progress can be slow, but steady.
In order for a turtle to get to where it’s going it has to take risks. It has to extend its neck out of its shell. To make progress in achieving your goals, you must come out of the shell of your limited beliefs and experiences and take the risk of exploring other possibilities. Risk is a
requirement for growth. Without risk your progress will be hindered.
Predators have difficulty clutching and crushing turtles with their jaws because of their dome shaped shell. There will be people that will want to victimize you, prey on you and try to destroy you for their own gain. However, if you hide yourself in the cleft of the rock called Jesus, they will not be able to crush the destiny God has in store for you.
It is said that turtles have exceptional night vision. Even when you are at your darkest moments in life, you must maintain exceptional vision. Despite what it may look like, you will succeed as long as you stay focused. Dark days and distractions will come, but they will not be fatal if you remain focused on your vision.
No matter how slow your progress may be, keep it steady, because today’s
progress was yesterday’s plans.
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