When I began my journey to acquire the skill necessary to become a competent survivalist, I traveled the country, studying with the best in each category of expertise. In each category, wilderness survival, urban survival, survival first aid, firearms, and several other related disciplines, I was almost always the only Black American and always the only person from New York City in the class. By extension, the moment I walk through the door or sit down in the classroom, the first feeling I get is that I am not welcome. This energy most often came from other students and sometimes the instructors. New York City is a liberal, democratic city in a blue state, and it has a large population of Black Americans and other ethnicities. All of these classes took place outside of New York City.
In contrast, survivalism and guns are overwhelmingly the domain of the white, conservative, red state, and republican types of people. After a few hours or a few days, someone would eventually approach me and ask, "How did 'you' find out about this training?" Of course, I always got a good laugh out of that. I expected this to be my experience and was determined to get the most out of every lesson. These were critical life and death skills, and nobody would dissuade me from mastering them.
Unfortunately, this is the reality of life in the United States. This misguided belief that "those people do that and my people do this" is not only narrow-minded but can prove to be fatal. Fortunately, I have always been an exception to the rule and counter to my expected culture. Growing up in New York City in the '80s, the streets expected you to be something easily understood and identifiable. While the "War on Drugs" exacted draconian treatment from the police, the "Crack Wars" made any outsider a possible threat that needed to be eliminated. Thankfully, I never succumbed to peer pressure or the even more powerful cultural pressure to be and do what was expected. That unique character flaw has served me well and possibly saved my life on several occasions.
Sun Tzu said, "Never be where your enemy expects you to be."
I say, "Never be 'what' your enemy expects you to be."
I understand that everyone is not built like me and may find it very difficult to learn from, let alone pay people with whom they have monumental ideological and political differences.
This moral dilemma presented itself in college when I took a class called "American Film, American Myth." It was my absolute favorite class throughout my entire college career. I actually received university credits for watching films in class! The professor would break down the movies and highlight aspects unique to American culture, politics, ideology, and constructing myths. For example, we broke down the films The Searchers (1956), Dirty Harry (1971), and Star Wars (1977). I was blown away when the professor revealed how the stories and imagery contained serious social, ideological, and political commentary.
Then we watched the silent film The Birth of a Nation (1915), originally called The Clansman. Widely considered the first great American epic film. It dramatizes the rise of the KKK after the American Civil War. My professor explained that this was the first time he could present the film in class because up until then, the only businesses that sold the film were owned and operated by white supremacists. He did not want to support that ideology morally or financially. I deeply respected that decision. This example illustrates how the vast majority of "City People" in general and Black-Americans, in particular, feel about preparedness and survivalism. Unfortunately, that perception leaves many vulnerable to life-threatening situations when society goes off the rails, which seems to be a never-ending state of being in 2022.
We moved from terrorist attacks (9/11/2001) to hurricanes (Sandy 2010).
We now grapple with:
A Global Pandemic (2020)
Capital Insurrection (Jan 6, 2021)
Monthly mass shooter massacres (2022)
Supply chain disruptions (2022)
Stock Market and Crypto Market Crashes (2022)
Double-digit Inflation (2022)
A massive increase in crime (2022)
Record breaking evictions and homelessness (2022)
Possibly the beginning of WWIII Russia-Ukrain (2022)
People living in big cities better push outside their comfort zones and realize that no culture, political system, or ideology has a monopoly on practical survival skills. Hope is not a strategy. When hope, delusion, and emotion enter the boxing ring with reality, reality is undefeated and always wins by KO.
Until next time.