BOOTSTRAPS: THURGOOD MARSHALL

No one who rises to the highest heights in their life does by their own individual merits, or efforts. It is always a team effort that encompasses the rise of individual or the group to greatness. You may even hear tell of people making the statement that they and they alone pulled themselves up by their own bootstraps. You must dismiss that statement because it is a fallacy.The total illegitimacy of the statement provided by a person who feels that he or she alone is responsible for the success they have experienced in life has absolutely no merit.

Most prominently heard saying this are white people who said the secret of their success is that they had the individual willpower to overcome all the odds faced to reach personal success. That is simply a falsehood. In every aspect of life, we depend on others to support our dreams and aspirations. In many ways, the collective growth of minorities in this nation is even more surprising because legitimately many, especially African Americans are born into a situation where they don't even have boots to wear. Yet alone boots that have straps to pull on. 

So, on this particular Thursday morning I illuminate the words of Thurgood Marshall when he said quite emphatically that you owe your success to the support of others. We as a race of black people who were degraded, denied and ignored by the institutions of white supremacy as well as the supreme branches of government of this nation. We must depend on each other if we are to simply survive yet alone thrive. If we lift each other up, maybe just maybe each one of us in our communities will have enough bootstraps to hold onto while we attempt to reach the highest pinnacles of success. What we must do is just keep reaching together not alone.