"Jack Johnson heard about the mighty shock...Mighta seen the black rascal doin' the eagle rock..." - Leadbelly
“The14th of April was a hellava day, it was the last time the 'Old Titanic' sailed away. They said that on the Titanic a 'N***** would never ride so when that motha fucka sank not a N***** cried.” – from The Great Black Jokes by Bruce Stafford
Dear friends,
About a dozen or more years ago, I sent a "Letter to the Editor" to the Boston Herald, because I was sick of the 1997 flick called Titanic being given so much publicity and praise. In the short piece, I mentioned the fact that when the news broke about that ship sinking, African American people danced in the streets by the thousands, and in the millions inside of their homes, just as they had when Joe Louis knocked out Max Schmeling in 1938, and when O.J. Simpson was acquitted in 1995.
Now, I must note here that the Herald had been printing my letters, many of them controversial, for about a dozen or more years, at the time. However, this time, they did something that had never happened before, and hasn't happened since: They sent me an e-mail asking for proof.
I obliged them with a brief bibliography, which included the Library of Congress reference number to the song on the link below by Huddie Leadbetter aka Leadbelly. They published the letter, the next day.
Moreover, what really troubled me was the fact that not a single one of the so-called "Black leaders"- that is, Farrakhan, Jackson, or the exposed FBI informant Al Sharpton, had anything to say about that movie. Please remember that the Titanic voyage was a super-racist enterprise! I mean, NO Black folks were even allowed to buy a ticket for it! This included the great Jack Johnson who was the Heavyweight Champion of the World (from 1908 - 1916). Neither the people who owned the Titanic or those on board wanted a Black person there. Not even a Black janitor on board. That's a fact!
And so, when Leadbelly sang his big hit song of that period, "Jack Johnson heard about the mighty shock...Mighta seen the black rascal doin' the eagle rock...", he obviously was referring to a dance called the "eagle rock". Yet, in our times, unfortunately, plenty of Black money helped make that movie do real well. SMH!
Finally, this just goes to show why African American History Month is so important. Because, it includes more people in the real story of our country, and, also, tells the story more truthfully. Besides, with all of the racists who supported the lying, opportunist Mitt Romney against Barack Obama, why would anyone be surprised about how African Americans reacted to the sinking of the Titanic? Ain't nothin' changed! Additionally, are we wrong to express the well-deserved resentment and hostility that we've acquired, over centuries, towards White Supremacy?
G. Djata Bumpus
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qe5tcr0yHN4
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