Written by: The WEbMAster Randy Hudson
Contents List Page For Other 2003 - 2005 Former "SAY WHAT " News Articles
Subject: Februarys BLACK HISTORY MONTH - I Survived
February is known today as Black History Month, but it should be renamed "African History Month " ! I remember back in the days if a Black Man called you a African, you were ready to start fighting ? If someone went to jail, the family bore the shame of the convicted felon and when asked where such and such was ? The family head held down in shame, would make up some excuse and say that the person went down south to stay with relatives, provided you didn't know what had really happened to the incarcerated person now in prison.
During the 1950's - 60's growing up inside of East New York Brooklyn most of my neighbors were White I lived next door from a Jewish family named The Alpers who moved out when the Hood became to Black for them. Their were about five Hispanic Families that lived within my NYC Housing Authority Project and my friend George Johnson who lived on Milford Street, the Johnsons were the only family that lived in the Hood that came from Jamaica West Indies. When I use to go to Saint Georges Church in Bed Sty Brooklyn I use to think it was very odd that African Americans were actually fighting each other. Seeing a number of street fights I always use to speak to both of the brothers after they fought on the street and say. Hell if you guys want to fight, Hell we need help over in East New York Brooklyn with The CRESCENT STREET BOYS, THE JOHN GOTTI { THE MOB BOSS } NEW LOTS AVENUE BOYS, THE PINE STREET BOYS, and Oh Yeah CRAZY LOUIE who lived in the first SPOOKY GREY HOUSE on the left with the lawn all dirty and uncut as you exited and walked south back towards our N.Y.C.H.A Cypress Hills Projects on Euclid Avenue from the IND A Train Station between Pitkin and Belmont Avenue's. CRAZY LOUIE just happened to be a white guy, if CRAZY LOUIE was a BLACK or African American guy, I would still this same story so don't even start to call me a racist because it is a true life story. People are not born with hate, it is a learned behavior inherited from family members or from friends or relatives.
When ever you got off at the IND A Train Station at Euclid Ave, before you walked up the stairs you had to turn around and make sure you stuck your head out and looked up before you walked up the staircase that exits onto the Pitkin & Euclid Ave Street level, " WHY " ? Because those of us that happened to be Black that lived within the ENY neighborhood knew CRAZY LOUIE knew you had to. Or risk possibly being hit on the head with a fully loaded garbage can loaded with stinky trash, spat upon, called NIGGER or/and might be punched in the mouth by CRAZY LOUIE himself. YES, CRAZY LOUIE ruled fear in to the hearts of Black people at The Euclid Avenue IND A Train Station like a toll gate you had to pass. If CRAZY LOUIE was in the house, you could pass for free but, he might still open the window and shout " NIGGER " and start spitting at you for no reason at all. CRAZY LOUIE never really scared me, he was more like a pest that buzzed around the train station entrance staircase to me because every time I went to the train station I use to carry my CRAZY LOUIE iron pipe up my sleeve just in case he ran out of the house and attacked me and I had to pay him his toll, " WACK RIGHT ON THE HEAD, ITS GOING, GOING, GONE, HOME RUN " but he never bothered me ! I saw him occasionally, he gave me dirty looks but he never really troubled me. Maybe it was because I was six feet tall trim and fit lifting 180 pounds over my head and looked like The Jolly GREEN GIANT with muscles, or should I say " The Jolly Black GIANT With Muscles " Smile ? Anyway I knew how to box and feared no one, fear was part of learning how to box and learning how to deal with that fear and turning it into a force to be reckoned with, but putting up with a pure nut like CRAZY LOUIE was a whole nother story. Especially when I was in my, YES, BOY SCOUT SUIT or Sunday vines, three piece dress suit going or coming back from Church.
My brothers and I always use to tell my Mother to take the B 10 Bus now called The B15 Bus to and from Church when we were not with her because we did not want to have to go and knock on CRAZY LOUIES Door, drag him out into the street and flat out murder him for beating up my only Mother. CRAZY LOUIE never attacked my mother when she did go to the train station Thank God or I would be in prison right now for murder. But their were other teenage women and male adults in the neighborhood that felt CRAZY LOUIES RAGE and were savagely beaten enough to be hospitalized. I always prayed that no one in my family or friends would experience CRAZY LOUIES or anyone of the other white gangs in the neighborhood rage. When Black History Month comes around each year, I always reflect and think back on how growing up through the 1950 - 60's inside of East New York Brooklyn how we ever made it through.
I survived all of the racism and hate directed towards me, I survived all of the words " NIGGER " daily hurled at me, and I survived all of the unanswered questions fighting inside of me. I survived all of the misread words between the lines and the lies they formed during that time, I survived all of the days I thought would never end on time, and I survived without contracting AIDS which killed 95 % of my friends who've given me, great rocking chair memories, I survived not going to Jail beating the statistics and hearing the screams " I'am Innocent ", Why Am I Doing In Jail ", I survived The Hatred, The Greed, The Jealously, The Racism, and The Need To Be? I survived the up's the downs, the headaches, the heartaches, and the clowns. But most of all I survived through my community work, I've helped East New York become a better place! Remember It Takes an Entire Community, " JUST TO RAISE ONE CHILD " ! Watch for our registration date for our
2004 SHOWSTOPPER Summer Basketball Tournaments
LOOK For Our Team Registration Date In March 2004 ............
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