Election Victory Raises the Perception of a Black Man’s Worth
By Sis. Shauna Jamieson- Carty
At the end of the day, Brother Joseph Thompson is a husband who loves and appreciates his wife, a father whose concern for his children and grandchildren knows no end, and a Christian filled with hope, joy, and faith in God. Yet, while he was growing up, there were times when his life experience caused him to question his own worth. Like the time when his three cousins were killed by white men and there was nothing Brother Joe and his family could do about it. It was hard for him to imagine then, that a little black boy would grow up to win the presidential election in 2008.
“Today, I’m flabbergasted that the President of the United States is (going to be) a black man,” said Brother Joe. “If I was 15 years old and somebody told me, it would be too far fetched.”
Brother Joe was born in Georgetown, South Carolina in 1938, and grew up at a time when a white person could take a black person’s life and there was nothing the grieving family could do about it.
“As I was growing up, I don’t remember any white person living there. But they would visit to invoke fear,” Brother Joe said. “I’ve had a cross burned in the yard of the house I grew up in.” His father and uncle owned 65 acres of woodland and they would sell timber to the International Paper Company. They engaged in business, but they didn’t have the right to vote, nor could they use the justice system for their family’s protection.
A common pastime for boys was to go to the woods where they would hunt with rifles they got from their family. Brother Joe used to go to the woods with his cousins, but he’ll never forget one time when he stayed home. On that day, his three cousins never returned. Their family found their bodies punctured with gunshot wounds and tied up to a tree. They believe that his cousins were killed by a group of white men who were drunk and out hunting. These experiences left Brother Joe feeling that there was nothing equal about whites and blacks. They didn’t have equal rights and opportunities, and they were not treated equally by the law.
“In your mind, you said this is never going to change,” said Brother Joe.
As a young adult, he got involved in trying to bring about change. He went to live in Newark in 1958, where he met Brenda Dorsey who would later become his wife.
“When I came here, they were organizing the March on Washington, D.C.,” said Brother Joe. He and Mrs.
Thompson joined the men and women who marched on Washington on more than one occasion. He grew a beard
and an afro as a sign of protest, and briefly became a Black Panther.
“You were such a standout when you became a Black Panther that your life became vulnerable,” Brother Joe
said, explaining why he didn’t remain a member of that group for long.
Brother Joe and his wife had four children: two girls and two boys. He went with his oldest son Jay to vote
at Borough Hall in Roselle on Election Day.
“I vote. That’s something that was very vital to me because I remember when I couldn’t,” said Brother Joe.
“My father couldn’t. My mother couldn’t. I wish they could be alive today to see this new president. It would be like a gift.”
Brother Joe feels optimistic about the future, and the impact that the first African American President will make. “It’s gonna get better for blacks in this country. It’s gonna lift black people’s mind about where they are and what they have accomplished.”
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