When you think about black America, the first thing that pops up in your head will not be a critical analysis of the movie “A Soldier’s Story”. When you think about the future generation and where our African American culture is headed, you don’t necessarily think about a fictional character named Sgt. Walters. The world constantly changes, with each day symbolizing a fresh start; and each night promising a bright future. But what if I told you that the future of our culture as black people is spiraling into a stream of unforgiving impulses, senseless killing, and the overtaking of the mindset of an unambitious drive. Historical milestones that where carved for our upbringing, are filled now with the deceitfulness of our youth, the scamming of our brothers and sisters just to get ahead, and the devaluation of our culture; in which feeds us with lies that your only as successful as the clothes you have on your back and the shoes you have on your feet. There was a time we had a culture that was rich... pure… painted with vivid yet unexplained images of freedom, liberty, and promise.
Those days might just be over…
Meet Sgt. Walters, a fictional character in a movie that depicts live events around a time of struggle for the African American race. The movie shares a touching, yet graphic description of the level of discrimination and intolerable abuse that our culture had to endure way before we set foot within the likes of Martin Luther king and others. I have had the opportunity to actually watch the movie and found the particular character (that being Sgt. Walters) to be a character of many faces. And that’s not depicting the depth of his character, nor is it describing his many incidental encounters with the black race, but it is his character himself that brings a sense of uncertainty to the viewer, leaving you unable to explicitly pinpoint your feelings on the subject matter.
And that subject is the problem with black America…
I know you guys are wondering by now what about this particular character that makes the average individual engage in deep critical thinking and asses its life in which may or may not be reflecting on the very words that coo me out of Sgt. Walter’s mouth? It is his intake on the black race and its perceived attitude towards the “more dominant” forces of the Europeans and French during the time of war. Within a particular part in the movie, he had come across a newly acquired individual named C.J who is making friends with the others. In his despise, he reminisced on a particular time where he witnessed black people devaluating their own race. He stated:
“You know the damage one ignorant Negro can do? We were in France in the first war; we'd won decorations. But the white boys had told all those French gals that we had tails. Then they found this ignorant colored soldier, paid him to tie a tail to his ass and run around half-naked, making monkey sounds. Put him on the big round table in the Cafe Napoleon, put a reed in his hand, crown on his head, blanket on his shoulders, and made him eat *bananas* in front of all them Frenches. Oh, how the white boys danced that night... passed out leaflets with that boy's picture on it. Called him Moonshine, King of the Monkeys. And when we slit his throat, you know that fool asked us what he had done wrong?”
Through this quote, I realized that the character was not only offensive, but also relatable to the situation at hand. What I find wrong with the quote was the fact that he himself was African American and thus is devaluating and turning his own race against each other through verbal abuse and fatal killings. But he also depicted today’s generation decline and the culture that continues to be devalued. In this day and age, the black community is not together. Instead, they kill each other over shoes, scam each other for shoes and clothes, and have no real ambition outside of high school. This culture is suffering and with no relief, I feel almost like where hurting ourselves. Sgt. Walters also noted that we can’t let the black race be cheated out of honor, that honor begins with respect; which is lacking in today’s time. We suffer from so many problems in our community and when asking a young black man what they’re wishes are, they simply reply: “a big booty hoe and a lot of cash”. Now, I’m not saying that everyone has that mindset, but there is a growing trend in new artists, new money makers, and a new wave of future stars that strive for the wrong things. The term “King of the Monkeys” most explicitly describes the new generation of lazy, unambitious, males and even females who strive for the here and now instead of the future. We need to encourage our youths that the power of their education and brain is better than any materialistic thing that you obtain.
Truth is.. The more you respect yourself, the less barbaric we become…
Be the leader of a revolution and not the King of the monkeys…
