Who's Zoomin' Who

So I used to work for a PR firm and our biggest and by biggest I mean money making clients were companies who had been sued for discrimination and were coming to our firm for damage control, crisis management, image restoration, etcetera, etcetera. A bulk of the image restoration included throwing fistfuls of dollars into minority communities. So for instance one company sponsored a green room at the NAACP Awards. Another company partnered with the Urban League and had a Wellness bus that toured the country and stopped in major cities where coloreds abided. And so on…

And while I understood in theory the whole quid pro quo thing that was happening, it kind of burned me up on the inside. And I would sing to myself (like for real sing aloud) ‘Who’s zooming who?’ And I sing that song now when I hear Cracker Barrel sponsoring something on the Tom Joyner Morning show. Or McDonald's giving out scholarships to coloreds to make up for the heart attacks Or Nationwide sponsoring Tavis Smiley’s Stand documentary. And so on…

And I can’t decide how I feel about this. Sometimes I’m upset that Black folk can be so easily bought. And then I remember that this is the American way and money talks, makes the world go round, and can drive some people out of their mind. Other times I’m upset that this seems to be all it takes to right the wrongs that you have committed. Sometimes I’m upset because I want Black people to stand on they own two without the white man’s help and hand outs. But then sometimes I’m like that’s right Black people get that money. Lawd knows we worked hard for it! But then sometimes I’m like, “but we don’t want no blood money! Who gives an f if you sponsored a green room! No one watches the NAACP Awards! If you wanna pay me to like you, put the reparations in my hand!”

And back and forth I go. Wondering where exactly is the line. If these aren't genuine actions, do they still matter? Does the fact that it's "benefiting" the community negate any wrongdoing that was done? I remember a Senior member at the PR firm urged us not to take this so personally and compared our jobs to defense attorneys. She would say, "It doesn't matter if we think or even know our client is guilty, what matters is getting them off." Raised eyebrow from Rum Punch. That's all that matters? So whenever I'm having my internal debate on this issue (which happens often when I listen to morning radio), I recall this statement. And it makes the scales tip just a little. And I know exactly who's zoomin' who.

That’s my time y’all! Happy Rum Punch Friday!