Last Saturday, I had the pleasure of partnering with one of God’s angels right here on earth, Sandra Evers Manly. She’s gonna hate that I used her name but she’s just gonna have to get over it this time because this is a story that needs to be told in the midst of madness, in so-called white America.
Last Saturday, with the love and support of so many Black brothers and sisters we came together to host what we called a “Gathering of Love Luncheon” to support many of our seniors that were victims of the Altadena fire. We came together to reinforce the beauty of Black-on-Black love and to take a break from all the white-on-white crime we see daily in the news.
For you guys that don’t know her, Sandra is the president of the Black Hollywood Education and Resource Center and cousin of the late civil rights leader Medgar Evers – like her cousin Medgar, sacrificing herself for her people is in her marrow. A couple of weeks ago she asked if I could help find a location in Altadena where she could host a luncheon for a number of seniors that lost not only their homes, but a lifetime of memories in the fire.
As the Lord would have it, I had just been in Altadena partnering with old friends Drs. Anthony and Micheline McFarland of Lift International Church so when I asked them about hosting the luncheon at their church, they were kind enough to open their doors, not to mention the McFarlands also lost their home in the fire.
I was able to not only pay homage and serve my elders on Saturday, but we were all called to pull everything together on Friday, on the day we Black people were asked to not spend a dime outside of our own community. So, we needed to make a concerted effort to find Black businesses within the Altadena area that could support the event from rental equipment, balloons, copies of the agenda and the list goes on. This was a beautiful thing because it made us stretch and seek out Black businesses in the area and I loved every minute of it.
Another one of my assignments was to help secure volunteers to serve our seniors. I called on some of the most powerful Black people I know, Black people that love our people and are always willing to support our community.
I went through my Black phone book. I called Marty, Kathy, Devlin, Jasir, Rev. Buie (I’ve got to tell you about this brother) Melina, and a number of other beautiful brothers and sisters and they did not disappoint. These brothers and sisters showed up not only on time, but early and they all brought someone with them. We did what Black people do before we started to work.
We fellowshipped with one another, we laughed, talked to one another, and reinforced the beauty of being Black and the good feeling that comes with being there to serve and work for your people, that was like heaven on earth for me. When the caterer (a Black man) and all the other Black people showed up with all the different items and gifts that we were going to give to our seniors we all rolled up our sleeves and went to work.
I need to say this about my dear friend and brother Rev. Oliver Buie. I would be derelict if I didn’t bring this up at a time when as a people, we need to see more social justice pastors and less personal prosperity pimps.
Rev. Buie did what I’ve not seen many pastors do in my 68 years of life. He served the people. He did what Jesus would do, he didn’t dispatch members he showed up himself. He helped unload the gifts, stuffed bags, helped bring in the food and he served our seniors himself.
Please don’t get it twisted I’m not highlighting Rev. Buie because he’s a preacher. I’m highlighting him because he was acting like a pastor, not a celebrity looking for a photo op and he stayed until the end. I guess we need not ask him “What Would Jesus Do?” It’s clear to me he read the book.
We were blessed to feed over 150 seniors a home cooked meal, giving them gift bags with a number of items, clothing, $100 in cash, gift cards and a commitment of another $500 in cash next week. That’s right you heard me, over 150 of our seniors, Black seniors will receive a total of $600 in cash, grassroots money, Black dollars going to Black people, from Black people, totaling $90,000.
For everyone that showed up they had an opportunity to see firsthand Black-on-Black love, everyday brothers and sisters helping Black people, so why would I be afraid of wild out of control white people acting like devils. That’s why I say without question the devil does not scare me, cause all my hope, faith, strength and belief is in Black people.
To choose love and to choose to be Black (African) is to go against the prevailing values and the culture of America. So last Saturday as a people we chose to be African, we chose African values over American values, we chose to love our people.
We all heard our ancestors when they said, “I am because we are and because we are therefore I am” and by God’s grace we showed up Black and beautiful.
