The Gospel Truth Magazine February 2019 | Page 11

answer; a day that reveals to him, more than all other days in the year, the gross injustice and cruelty to which he is the constant victim. To him, your celebra- tion is a sham; your boasted liberty, an unholy license; your national greatness, swelling vanity; your sound of rejoicing are empty and heartless; your denuncia- tion of tyrants brass fronted impudence; your shout of liberty and equality, hol- low mockery; your prayers and hymns, your sermons and thanks-givings, with all your religious parade and solemnity, are to him, mere bombast, fraud, decep- tion, impiety, and hypocrisy -- a thin veil to cover up crimes which would disgrace a nation of savages. There is not a nation on the earth guilty of practices more shocking and bloody than are the people of the United States, at this very hour.” To now see us now celebrating the 4th by shooting guns into the air without re- gard of where bullets would land, “What would they say?” What would Stokely Carmichael say about the gun violence that plagues the black community after he declared in his speech on Black Power, October 29, 1966 that “Black people cut themselves every night in the ghetto– don’t anybody talk about nonviolence.” What would W.E.B. DuBois say about our lack of participation in voting or not even exercising the right to vote after having declared in his Niagara Move- ment speech, “In detail our demands are clear and unequivocal. First, we would vote; with the right to vote goes every- thing: Freedom, manhood, the honor of your wives, the chastity of your daugh- ters, the right to work, and the chance to rise, and let no man listen to those who deny this.” When we witness what some call “Wheels up Guns down” where bik- ers wreak havoc upon the streets of South Florida causing unsafe travel upon com- muters. “What would they say?” When there is apathy and insensitivity among African Americans. What are we shout- ing back to those who died for our free- dom? The Bible clearly states, “look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.” (Philippians 2:4). As we celebrate Black History month there is a grave need to not only remem- ber the expensive sacrifices that have af- forded us the rights, freedoms and privi- leges that we enjoy today, (though we have yet a long way to go) but to build upon those sacrifices. We have to shape our efforts, lifestyles and mentality after the models and examples given us by the freedom fighters of our past. Doing this will begin to cultivate greater opportu- nities, eradicate injustices, establish a promising future and restore a dignity among African Americans! What would they say? Follow Moderator Barber on social media @PastorBarber2 @PastorBarber2 johnnybarber2.wordpress.com facebook.com/johnnybarber2 -Rev. Johnny L. Barber, II Moderator Johnny L. Barber, II is the youngest elected Modera- tor in the history of the Florida East Coast Baptist Association. He humbly serves as Pastor to the Mount Sinai Mission- ary Baptist Church in Miami, Florida. 1. The past cannot be changed. 2. Opinions don’t define your reality 3. Everyone’s journey is different. 4. Things always get better with time. 5. Judgments are a confession of character. 6. Over thinking will lead to sadness. 7. Happiness is found within. 8. Positive thoughts create positive things.