Ignorance Is Defined in RI as a “Personal Opinion” - Raymond Two Hawks Watson

Ignorance Is Defined in RI as a “Personal Opinion” - Raymond Two Hawks Watson

I have had the great displeasure over the past few days of debating that special type of ignorance called “a Rhode Islander’s personal opinion." The discussion has focused on GoLocalProv’s recent article on the current state of homeownership in the Black community being equivalent to rates in the 1960s.

For those of us who frequent the comment section of local news and media highlighting raced-based issues, the dialogue has been everything you can imagine when it comes to Rhode Islanders and their opinions on race. So much so that I was graciously informed that the historical facts that I was sharing did not matter, that I was just living in the past and playing victim, that I only had half the information, that I did not know the whole story, and that I was just making excuses for the Black community because Latin-Americans and Asian-Americans have been able to do better.

It’s been amazing. Particularly because less than a year ago the City of Providence commissioned a highly detailed report—of which I was a contributor—articulating the historical experiences of Providence’s African heritage and Indigenous communities a.k.a. the Black community which undoubtedly have directly and negatively impacted the current state of black homeownership in Rhode Island. Specifically, the government endorsed and implemented policies of urban renewal that devastated and dislocated Black families in Providence through eminent domain; redlining which denied Black families loans and funding to maintain or improve their homes; and of racial covenants which legally restricted sales of homes to Black families. All these policies were government endorsed and funded, took place less than sixty years ago, and were targeted specifically at Rhode Island’s Black community… but apparently, in this debate, this information simply doesn’t matter in a discussion about homeownership rates for the Black community in Rhode Island.

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Respectfully, to my knowledge none of the experiences that I just detailed were ever wholesale endorsed or visited upon the Latin-American or Asian-American communities of Rhode Island by the Federal or State governments. While I am fully acknowledging of the persistent and unique challenges faced by the Latin-American and Asian-American communities in Rhode Island, I am at a complete loss as to why or how bringing up their experiences is either relevant or appropriate to a dialogue about the rate of homeownership for the Black community in Rhode Island.

Unfortunately, this is a dialogue I engage more often than I would like to admit when addressing issues that are specific to the Black community in Rhode Island. There always seems to be an attempt to undermine or dissipate the focus. It gets to be supremely frustrating primarily because in many instances it’s just a veiled attempt to discredit the historical and contemporary challenges that the Black community in Rhode Island has faced.

I’m here for it, though. If you value historical accuracy and truth, aren’t afraid to face up to the entirety of Rhode Island’s legacy, respect the diversity of community experiences that collectively comprise the Rhode Island narrative, and want to make a better tomorrow for all Rhode Islanders, you should be here for it too. At this point, it’s embarrassing to the collective Rhode Island community, and it will not stop until Rhode Islanders decide to put an end to it.

Remember, this is Rhode Island. For every successful change of the official State name to cultivate a more informed, engaged, and respectful Rhode Island community there will always be a Rep. Morgan lurking in the background waiting for the chance to point the finger at her black friend who doesn’t speak to her anymore clearly and solely because she’s white… which is obviously the reason why Critical Culture Theory has got to go. SMH.

in 2022 let’s cut the malarkey. Let’s show some respect for the specific Black experience in Rhode Island. Let’s make not being willfully ignorant a Rhode Island thing.

Not that you care, but that’s my three cents on the topic.

Two Hawks

 

Watson is a civil rights leader in Rhode Island. He has an accomplished career in business. He is the founder of the Providence Cultural Equity Initiative. Watson holds a Bachelor's Degree in Political Science from Union College in NY, a Master's Degree in Community Planning from the University of Rhode Island, and is a current Juris Doctorate Candidate at the Roger Williams University School of Law. Watson is also the recipient of the Rhode Island Foundation’s 2016 Innovation Fellowship.