Let's talk about what it's like to be a black person in the US....

Summary

In a reflective video, the creator examines the profound differences between understanding racial statistics and truly comprehending the black experience in America. The speaker shares a personal anecdote that inspired deeper contemplation on cultural identity, particularly how slavery and systemic racism stripped black people of their heritage. Through an informal, yet thought-provoking analysis, the speaker contrasts the inherited cultural roots many white individuals have with the lost ancestral link of black Americans. This narrative highlights the non-physical scars of slavery that continue to affect the collective psyche of black communities in the United States.

Highlights

• The creator reflects on how a derogatory comment led to deeper insights on cultural identity issues faced by black Americans. 🗣️
• Slavery stripped black Americans of knowing their ancestral origins, unlike many white counterparts who have a clear heritage. 🔄
• Black cuisine and traditions, sometimes seen as cultural staples, often arose from oppressive circumstances. 🍲
• The struggle for black identity in America includes overcoming a history where basic humanity was denied. 🚫
• Black Panther provided a meaningful connection to cultural roots, which is largely absent for many African-American individuals. 🚀

Key Takeaways

• Understanding numbers doesn't equate to understanding experience. 📊
• Cultural identity is a deep-rooted connection influenced by heritage, often lost for black Americans. 🌍
• Food and traditions often born from necessity, not heritage. 🍽️
• Slavery's non-physical scars continue to impact black people's cultural identities. 🔍
• Movies like Black Panther resonate due to their portrayal of ancestral connections. 🎬

Overview

Have you ever been hit with an online comment that really made you think? Well, that's exactly what happened in this video, where the creator delves into an unexpected lesson on racial identity in America. A seemingly insulting remark sparked a deep conversation about cultural roots and identity loss, especially among African-Americans whose ancestral ties were severed by slavery. It’s a compelling discussion about privilege and empathy.

As the video unfolds, the creator uses storytelling to bridge a gap in understanding. By comparing the easy-to-define cultural identities of many white Americans with the obscured heritage of black Americans, the audience is invited to realize the magnitude of what was taken during slavery. This isn’t just about statistics; it’s about the personal and shared narratives that were lost, and the echoes they leave in daily life today.

From the cuisine born out of necessity to the films that inspire a sense of belonging, the video masterfully portrays that cultural identity is more than just a background detail. It’s a foundational element of personal identity and self-worth. By intertwining personal anecdotes with broader cultural critiques, the video pushes viewers to explore beyond the surface and empathize with a history that continues to shape lives.

Chapters

• 00:00 - 01:00: Introduction and Response to Insult In the introductory chapter titled 'Introduction and Response to Insult,' the speaker, Beau, addresses the unexpected widespread reach of a Nike video he made. Originally intended as a joke for his regular viewers, the video attracted an unexpected audience of hundreds of thousands who were unfamiliar with his style of suddenly switching topics. As a result, he received numerous insults in the comment section. Beau takes the reactions in stride, implying the backlash was manageable and worth the broader exposure.
• 01:00 - 02:30: Understanding Black Experience Beyond Statistics The author reflects on an insult made about their intelligence, which led them to ponder the challenges of truly understanding the black experience in the United States. They acknowledge the difficulty, if not impossibility, of fully comprehending this experience from an outside perspective.
• 02:30 - 05:00: Cultural Identity and Heritage This chapter discusses the complexities of cultural identity and heritage, particularly focusing on the challenges faced by minority groups. It highlights the limitations of understanding cultural dynamics through mere statistics or terminology, emphasizing that true understanding requires deeper engagement with the experiences and systemic issues faced by these communities. The chapter touches upon the disparities in the criminal justice system and economic inequalities, which contribute to the injustices they endure.
• 05:00 - 07:00: Impact of Lost Cultural Identity The chapter seems to explore the deep-seated issues of cultural identity loss particularly concerning black individuals in the U.S. It indicates that understanding the equality gap and the numbers related to it doesn't necessarily translate to understanding the black experience. The discussion highlights a common misunderstanding that the legacy of slavery is purely physical, whereas the chapter suggests that the repercussions on cultural identity and history are profound and often overlooked.
• 07:00 - 09:00: Addressing History and Moving Forward The chapter titled 'Addressing History and Moving Forward' seems to focus on the connection between people's ancestry and their current cultural identity. The transcript indicates a discussion around understanding cultural backgrounds, particularly in relation to European countries like Ireland, Scotland, England, Germany, Italy, Greece, and France. The idea is to infer cultural traits or preferences, such as the color of gravy, based on one's heritage.

Let's talk about what it's like to be a black person in the US.... Transcription

• 00:00 - 00:30 well howdy there internet people it's beau again so that Nike video that went a little bit wider than I expected a lot of people saw it that I didn't count on I was supposed to be a joke for you guys that normally watch this didn't count on the extra couple hundred thousand people seeing them but I'm glad they did because you know they don't know the way I talk they don't know that I intend to switch what I'm talking about in the middle of a video so a lot of them saw the first few seconds took off the comment sections started insulting me it's all okay was all worth it because
• 00:30 - 01:00 one guy and his insults got me thinking and I had time to think about it cuz I was coming back from coming back from town that's like 40 minute drive the insult was that I was my IQ was two points higher than a plant and that I needed to ask if I could open my hick mind and understand what it was like to be a black person in the United States no I can't neither can you neither can
• 01:00 - 01:30 you I know right now there's some white ally out there learning the terminology but that's a no I understand no you don't you may you may get the statistics you may understand the numbers you may get that you know there there's a huge disparity in the criminal justice system and because of that it translates into more unjust violence of being visited upon them you may get that you may understand that there's a huge income
• 01:30 - 02:00 equality gap you may and you may get that that translates into the lower standard of living lower health care you may understand all of that that mean you understand what it's like to be black in the u.s. means you get the numbers maybe you understand a little bit of the history see is way deeper than that because you know when we think about slavery we think about the the physical costs of slavery and they're horrible no doubt but I think today what's more
• 02:00 - 02:30 relevant is something else where are you from not in the US were you people from odds are if you're white you know Ireland Scotland England Germany Italy Greece France where you from and based on your answer I can tell you all kinds of things about you I can tell you whether your gravy is red brown
• 02:30 - 03:00 or white I can tell you what kind of booze you probably drink tell you what kind of food you eat tell you what cuss words you use translates into a lot of things the values you instill in your kids the jokes you tell the biases you have my kids four years old
• 03:00 - 03:30 he's four years old if I look at him and I say who he's gonna go up the rock now if you're Irish you just laughed your anglish probably got a little mad because that's part of your cultural identity if you're not even one of those you have no idea what that means four years old kid doesn't know where Ireland is cooking point to that on map but it's already starting to get ingrained in him he's already being able to take pride in that cultural identity why don't we have
• 03:30 - 04:00 Bantu pride Congolese pride why don't have that see the sociologists you know they like to point to black pride and say oh well it's a healing endeavor so you know black people can get together and they you know they they can join in that struggle that's a cop-out that is a cop-out that's a whitewash of the reality the reality is that slavery ripped that from them they have black
• 04:00 - 04:30 pride because they don't know I don't know it wasn't in the slave owners interest to keep track of the cultural heritage of his property so that cultural identity that shapes you it does think about it think about how much of what you are as a person is linked to your your heritage like that stripped away gone and it got replaced it got replaced
• 04:30 - 05:00 you know down here in the South especially out in the country you don't do a black kitchen somebody he's gonna know how to cook hog trials and chitlins pigs feet sit down here that scene is black cuisine that didn't come from Africa not the way pasta or shepherd's pie came with us that came from the plantations that's what the slave owner
• 05:00 - 05:30 threw away and left at me they endured that for so long it became part of their culture thank you heard for so long they got good at found a way to make it flavorful no I can't understand what it's like to be black in the u.s. I can't understand what it's like to have my cultural identity stripped away and replaced with the knowledge that when my granddad was
• 05:30 - 06:00 a kid people didn't think he was human or that what is seen is my cuisine it's because we got good cooking trash that's gonna affect a people a collective people on a very deep level you know when you say get over it we're a long way away from that we're a long
• 06:00 - 06:30 way from getting over slavery yeah physical scars they feel they have cultural ones you're still there because it's gone we stripped away just vanished in the air I really want you to think about how much of who you are as a person comes from the old country and then imagine what it would be like if
• 06:30 - 07:00 you didn't have that and if what it was replaced with wasn't love with the red white and blue cuz the red white and blue didn't love you it wasn't that long ago guys there are people alive today dealt with the dealt with some pretty horrible stuff and it's getting better but it's not solved
• 07:00 - 07:30 that that problems ongoing and it's gonna stay ongoing for a while you know I've seen people say that they're not african-american that they're just American I love it good for you I cannot wait until the day comes when all of us just leave those national identities behind and we're just people but that's a long way off and until then we're
• 07:30 - 08:00 gonna have to address our history and while we may find it uncomfortable to address our history because we don't like it we don't like the things that our people did understand there some people don't know theirs they don't have that source of pride to reach back to I actually think that's why I had that black panther movie did so well because it's just just like you
• 08:00 - 08:30 know just like every every European ethnicity has that origin myth you know I gave them that so it's just a thought it's something to think about when you have convinced yourself as a white person that you truly understand what it's like take a step back
• 08:30 - 09:00 it goes a lot further than to have heaven to have a talk with your kids about how to deal with cops your entire cultural identity was ripped away anyway y'all have a nice night thanks for the insult is it it gave me something to think about