The story behind Freddy T.
In 2018, I flew from Tokyo to South Bend, IN for an educational gig and I teamed up with Fred Teague who was my boss and mentor during the project. He insisted that he take me to lunch before we started any work together and I could tell that we were feeling each other out. It didn’t take long (like 5 minutes) before we dropped our walls and we were speaking candidly about our lives. I learned that aside from the amazing research and education work he was doing as a community engagement leader, he’s also a poet and a rapper named Freddy T. And after spending time with him and his wife and his friends, I got to know a lot about where these lyrics were coming from.
So before we finished our work together, we collaborated on this music video for his song: “Just Bein’ Black”. Scroll below the video for some words from Freddy T.
“Out of one voice comes many.”
A message from Freddy T.
My inspiration for “Just Bein’ Black” was the culmination of my experiences as a Black man. Feeling like when the police pull up on the side of or behind me, something is going to happen. I remember being pulled over just because my friend in the back seat looked back at the police. That was suspicious enough to pull us over even though there was no true probable cause. I've had multiple friends killed by police and watched similar situations occur where that wasn't the case, where more restraint was demonstrated.
Just the realization that the crib I was born in dictated my life's experiences and my influences. Being convicted of a crime and getting more time than the person next to me for the same crime just because of who their family was. Watching somebody cross the street just because we're not the same race. Or to walk by somebody in a car, and hear them lock the doors. The stigma associated with the color of my skin makes me not trustworthy. To make matters worse, the same stigma that made me untrustworthy, caused me to not trust. Scared to go to the doctor because of experiments like the Tuskegee experiment.
Even in prison, white privilege is still evident. We are not the same even though we both committed crimes and have a D.O.C. number. It's sad knowing that just being Black, I can't just go to any neighborhood or county without ending up questioned, arrested, or dead. Just being ignorant with regards to one's rights, and dealing with an overworked, underpaid Public Pretender ( Public Defender) can be the difference in the amount of time a Black man will receive. Being born in a crib with a spork as an eating utensil vs a silver spoon has its advantages. I could write a book about “Just Bein’ Black”.
George Floyd. Ahmad Arbery. Breonna Taylor.
I believe That the killing of George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery was motivated by hate and the killing of Breonna Taylor was motivated by Incompetence and fear.
George Floyd's murder was the most heinous. To put your knee on another human being's neck with your hand in your pocket was evil. I believe the connection between them was a motivating factor in how he treated and ultimately murdered him. Even the investigative process is totally different. If I'm suspected of murder and there's probably cause, I'm arrested immediately and sitting in jail while they investigate.
Without the video in the case of Ahmaud Arbery, his killers probably would have never seen a jail. I've sat in jail over a year for a crime I didn't commit, victim statements confirmed I wasn't the person involved, but because I couldn't pay for a lawyer, didn't have bond money, and dealing with a public pretender, I had to wait it out. Eventually, the case was thrown out due to no evidence, which was evident in the beginning.
Yet, George Floyd's killers (3 out of 4) are still free, because the Civil Servants "want to get it right". That's a joke.
“The game was created for us to lose. Some of us just figure out how to win against all odds.”
“Just Bein’ Black” is a snapshot of the issues black people deal with soon as they walk out the front door and it's even worse for a black man. The game was created for us to lose. Some of us just figure out how to win against all odds.
It also clearly indicates that there are good people in every race including mine. Get to know me before you pass judgment. I'm a witness that if given a real opportunity, black people can be the most loyal, hardworking people you'll ever meet. I work for an awesome organization that hired me based on the content of my character, and what I could bring to the table, despite the color of my skin. Diversity can be an amazing asset professionally and personally. Wars get waged because you're not like me. What would happen if we looked for similarities in each other instead of differences?
If we believe in the same God, why is your interpretation different than mine?"
"And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love.” - 1 Corinthians 13:13
-Fred Teague (aka Freddy T.)