Friday, December 11, 2015

"The Lord makes the rules, Mandingo. You know that."


Sarah's mind once again slipped wistfully into the past, to that One Hot Summer in 1957 in Madison County...

"Miss Sarah, I has a secret to tell you..."

"You can trust me, my Mandingo."

"Miss Sarah, I now got a gun."

"No, Mandingo, no! Madison County has strict gun laws!"

"I know: no Negro can own, possess or even touch a firearm under penalty of Death."

"So why would you do such a thing?"

"Because if the white folks take to lynching me I can defends myself."

"But if you defended yourself from a lynching they would surely lynch you for that for sure."

"It's like the Negro can never win in this world..."

"The Lord makes the rules, Mandingo. You know that."

"Miss Sarah?"

"Yes?"

"If the white folks in town tried to lynch me you would stand up for me, right?"

"Oh, my silly Mandingo: you know I couldn't do that. The folks in town would call me a nigger-lover."

"But I am a Negro, and you love me, right?"

"I love you as a Negro in private, my Mandingo. But in public..."

"You can't be a nigger-lover."

"I'm glad you understand, my Mandingo.

"I understand a lot, Miss Sarah, but what I understand sometimes don't make no damned sense...


I am Laslo.


http://althouse.blogspot.com/2015/12/wapos-fact-checker-bestowed-its-highest.html

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