SANTA FE-- The surest way to eliminate racism is to raise expectations, the Rev. Al Sharpton said Friday.
"Don't let anybody tell you what you can and cannot be. To fit people into social boxes is not the way we made history," Sharpton said. "My single parent, welfare mother raised me and my pastor raised me to expect to be something."
What he became is a civil rights leader and orator of such power that he had both Republicans and Democrats applauding him during his 40-minute speech on African-American Day at the Capitol.
Sharpton spoke to the state Legislature about self-reliance, hard work and fair play. He said a lack of motivation enables racism and unfairness to exist.
For instance, Sharpton said, if he turned mean, raced from the rostrum and knocked somebody down, he would be at fault. But if he came back a week later and the person he attacked was still on the ground, blame would shift.
"Even if you're not responsible for being down, you're responsible for getting up," Sharpton said.
He said February, Black History Month, was an appropriate time to expose lies fostered by music, videos and movies.
He said it was a myth that "thug life and street life are somehow our culture. That is not our culture. Black history has never been about how low we could go. No matter how far down we were, we found a way to get up."
He said the message of Black History Month should be "Let's make history." Too many Americans, he said, achieve nothing.
"The hardest job any minister has is to preach the funeral of an irrelevant person," Sharpton said. "We're supposed to get up and hallucinate a life that you supposedly lived. Most folks never did anything that we can talk about."
Sharpton said the measure of any person is his deeds, not how many patted him on the back.
"What can they say about me? What did I stand for? What difference did I make?"
Those questions should motivate every person to make the country better, fairer, more prosperous, he said.
Posted By: Siebra Muhammad
Saturday, February 12th 2011 at 3:39PM
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