[Bgs-list] A little background on my vociferously argued points...

[Charles Baker]

Dear friends. I would like to say that during our friendly yet sometimes
contentious lunch conversations I will rarely speak on something unless
I’ve done the research beforehand. As an example ,over the last three years
I’ve read all of the books in the below screenshot as part of a book club
and discussing them with the book club members, often facilitated in the
discussion by a local expert often a professor from Furman or another local
university.

And for each one of these books I’ve read at least one other book on the
subject, more likely three or four. Why? I’m a bookworm and I love
learning. More likely than not I’ve also listened to hours of podcasts and
read a few or more articles on the subject as well.



In the discussions of these books not only am I usually the only Black man
in the room, I’m usually the only Black person or person of color period.
If you would like to join the book club I would be happy to have any of you
join, just let me know.

Back to today, I didn’t speak about Dabo specifically because I don’t know
much about him and really don’t care. I played football growing up, but
over the last several years I’ve watched less and less because I’ve come to
view it as a gladiator sport and I just can’t get with it like I used to.



In general, too, while I may become shall we say passionately loud about a
topic, I try to stick to the facts that I’ve learned. I also try not to
interject the personal into the conversation except I know that sometimes
people don’t empathize with a subject unless it has personally touched them
or a loved one. Sometimes you have to imagine if whatever the thing is
happened to you or yours. As an example, Dick Cheney was against gay rights
and marriage until his daughter came out of the closet.



All of this is not to say that I’m smarter than any of you. It’s just to
let you know that I don’t just make stuff up or strictly editorialize,
offer opinion. I would also like to say that I didn’t just come to the
protest party. I’ve been “in these streets” off and on since protesting
Apartheid at Yale in the early/mid 1980s. Which was successful after months
in getting Yale to divest investments in S. Africa (I was not a leader,
just a foot soldier). I look back on that as necessary but perhaps a bit
naive as we might have been better served working to break down the
remnants of American Apartheid that have continued to plague us to this day.


[image: image.png]




Charles H. Baker
864.990.1297
“Don’t be in a hurry to condemn because he doesn’t do what you do or think
as you think or as fast. There was a time when you didn’t know what you
know today.” — Malcolm X
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