Are you kidding me?

If watching the news interests you, you've probably heard about Autum Ashante; the seven-year-old African-American girl from New York City. She's stirred up a lot of dissension and controversy with her poetry, and is even being referred to as, "The Child Prodigy".
Now, you might find yourself inquiring as to whether or not this is a joke. Well, it's not, and if I had any money, I'd go all in on assuming you'd be shocked if you saw this girl in action, regardless of whether the shock would be admiration or agitation inspired. Before I go any further, read this snippet of her work:
"White Nationalism Put U in Bondage"
"Black lands taken from your hands, by vampires with no remorse. They took the gold, the wisdom and all the storytellers. They took the black women, with the black man weak. Made to watch as they changed the paradigm of our village. Yeah white nationalism is what put you in bondage. Pirates and vampires like Columbus, Morgan and Darwin."
She has concocted other pieces with similar militant tones, but this particular poem is the one receiving the most press coverage. I don't know about you, but I nearly fell off the treadmill when I heard her reading; when I heard these accusations pouring from this infant's mouth.
She's made appearances at both middle and high schools. At one in particular she addressed the black students within the group and requested that they stand up. She then commanded the white students to sit down because, as she put it, "This isn't for you." I was irked and simultaneously intrigued. I'll explain...
This girl, was ASKED to share her work. So at that I say, good for her. Have your opinions. Voice your beliefs, especially upon invitation. You can't be cross with her for that. It's not as if she's picketing on private property; gallantly thrusting signs that read, "The WHITE man has raped and pillaged the BLACK mans land" into the air. My point is that her chosen outlet isn't volatile, at least it wasn't until weeks after her performance. Either way, the first amendment, which belongs to the constitution that we Americans choose to live by, prevents us from persecuting her or the people now creating blogs that display messages of hate towards her.
However, my feelings of neutrality soon diminished as the story progressed. It turns out that little Autum is home-schooled by her father. She even nonchalantly mentions that her father "helps" her with these poems. Her actions scream naivety.
When discussing the fact that people were offended, she replied that she didn't understand why, because "What I'm saying is true." I then thought to myself, "Okay now I'm f**king pissed!" I'm a proud Christian and I can respect the alternate secular connotations so brazenly spread between her words, but I can't respect her labeling them as factual. Why? Because that's how wars start. End of story.
Could her father be any more irresponsible? This child, with not even a high school education, in a paragraph, publicly discredits both Christopher Columbus and Charles Darwin, and blames them both for the stolen lands of "her people" and even refers to them as vampires. Her educational ignorance alone is reason enough for outrage. The public has responded with everything from praise to death-threats.
CNN aired an interview in which the reporter was repeatedly interrupted after, and even in the middle of, asking controversial questions like, "Why do you think people would say you're a racist?" by Autum's father. I smiled when the reporter spoke up and silenced the father. I understand she's a child, but if you're going to get involved in the adult world, you need to be prepared to answer the adult questions. Her daddy can't speak for her. If he speaks for her, then her words are not her own. They're his. I'm increasingly beginning to believe that this man is employing his ability to brain-wash his daughter. To say he's influencing her, is a complete understatement.
Certainly, he's taught her to manipulate. Her words speak volumes about the destruction of her people and she assigns blame to people that are all white. Coincidence? I think not. You don't have to be a Black Panther, even though she opens with a pledge created originally by the Black Panthers, to be considered a racist. Yet when asked if she is one she replies, "Aren't I a little young to be racist?" Are you kidding me?
Kudos on your fine-tuned skills of manipulation, BUT understand that your impressionable mind is warped. You're not even old enough to realize how skewed this alternate reality your father has created for you is!
This little girl takes what her father says as absolute. It's psychological foreclosure! She's not even old enough to embrace the duty of all educated people to research these views and decide FOR HERSELF, if that's what she actually believes. She's completely sheltered and it's likely that she doesn't know anything about some of the other great tragedies of history, specifically the tragedies involving races other then her own.
What if I said in front of a room half occupied by black people, "I'm a proud white woman. I want my people, the white people, to stand. All the African-Americans can sit down. I'm not talking to you. Oh by the way, Martin Luther King Jr. was a hypocritical womanizer and Malcolm X was the most obtuse excuse for a loud-mouth follower ever known to man." I could've possibly signed my death certificate saying that. I don't believe any of that, but many White-Supremacists and members of the KKK do, so I used it as an example.
Hey, 1964 called and said they want their race card back!
Do I know what it was like to be a black woman in the midst of the days of legalized slavery? No. More to the point, do I know what it's like to be black in a time where slavery is no longer legal, but I am STILL an outcast because of my race? No. Do I know what it was like to be a part of any race, that during any time period was persecuted? No. Do I respect racial pride? Of course. Does racism still continue to this day? YES! But I'm sick of hearing entire races, including my own, being blamed for the choices of our ancestors who lived 100's of years ago. I have no remorse for people who use that as a justification for bashing people TODAY.
I pity this girl. She's been blessed with the potential for brilliance, and if all goes according to her father's devious, selfish agenda, her opportunitys will be squandered.
Thanks for reading.