 No one expected this. Innocent Masuku stands before the judges to try out for Britain's Got Talent and tells about himself. A South African man now living in London. His girl sits in the audience looking on. "That's my fiance," she shares with the man next to her. He's going to sing for the judges. "Are you ready," he says. Then he opens his mouth to sing, and out comes, Un uomo abbraccia una ragazza, Dopo che aveva pianto E ricomincia il canto, Te voglio bene assai Ma tanto, tanto bene, sai... Italian. Italian OPERA! "Caruso"...one of the most beautiful operatic choices he could make. And he not only sings it, but he COMMANDS the stage, with the fierce passion on his face that opera demands. And everyone stands amazed, mouths agape, because they didn't expect to see a brown man from South Africa singing opera.....let alone sing it soooo welllllll! A man embraces a girl After he cried And the singing begins again I love you very much But so, so good, you know It doesn't matter what culture you're from or how much melanin in your skin, THIS man is "Every Man" who has ever loved a woman "so, so good, you know." This is why I disdain the epithet some people inevitably shout, "CULTURAL APPROPRIATION!" Cultural appropriation be damned! Who "owns" the music as if to say "You can't sing it!" Who "owns" the language as if to demand, "You can't speak it!" No one! There is one lone Italian man on the panel of judges. Bruno Tanioli. Watch him in the video. When Innocent breathes out his first Italian words Bruno SPRINGS to the edge of his seat, his face stunned, his eyes almost disbelieving what he is hearing. As Innocent builds to the crescendo, Bruno mouths the song with him word for word, waiting to see. Would Innocent hit the notes of the famous refrain? And then it comes, with all the power and skill of a virtuoso...."Te voglio bene assai! Ma tanto, tanto bene, sai..." Bruno LEAPS to his feet, throws his arms up and his chest out in a triumphant, "AHHHHHHHHH!" fully embracing the mastery of the performer before him. THAT my friend, is a true Italian response! Spontaneous overt rapture! "AHHHHHHHH YESSSSSS! SING IT MY FRIEND!" It does not matter that you don't fit the "expected" description! Put it on! And celebrate the beauty of something different, that the world does not expect! Wear it, Innocent! You wear it well, my friend! - by Susan Parlato Revels Check out this marvelous video online at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R3lohRXjUCc 
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 Looking at this question in this Black Conservative Female Group post, I believe the answer is, people are discovering the ability to not only appreciate the outer beauty of the lesser or greater amount of melanin in someone's skin, but to look further and see the fellow human inside. People are discovering that while we can still acknowledge the difficult history of our nation and not erase or ignore it, we can move beyond the old negative tropes that separated us, and find the common ground, the common struggle of life, and fall in love.
It is time to stop using race as a tool to divide us: a liberal ploy that only fosters mistrust and discord, when behind closed doors in the privacy of their homes, they know, it is and can be different. But they chant the divisive race-baiting shibboleth anyways, stirring up the fears and angst of the populace below to propel themselves up the ladder of media attention, money, and power. It is time to stop being manipulated, and rise up to embrace a true and organic evolution of diversification and belonging, through genuine love and brotherhood. 1 Corinthians 13:4-7: 4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 8 Love never fails. By Susan Revels |
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