Comments

2

I used to have a few cats, one black, one soft and fluffy, and some siamese.

My guess is they just are different. I remember the black cat acted kind of the way you referred, we called him Nimrod the Mighty Hunter, he kept trying to teach us how to hunt. The other one was very hydrophobic, didn't like him as much.

Mind you, both cats were Canadian, so maybe this is regarded as aberrant behavior in the States.

3

You don't believe in giving pets NAMES? This requires further explanation, because it is deeply weird and suggests something off about your attitude towards pets in general - depending, of course, on why. Most people name even working animals. You do realize, that even if you call them "Cat 1" and "Cat 2," those are names? And no, I don't think you hate your cat because it's black. Some cats are just difficult to like. They come in all colors.

4

Some breeds of cat enjoy water. One of my cats routinely frolicks in the shower with me, umprompted. I suggest clicker training.

5

I didn't name my cat (r.i.p.) either - there seems no point to it. Cat will never know what it is. There was only one, so "the cat" was adequate for practical purposes in conversation with other humans.

The sun and the moon don't have names either.

6

Good Evening Charles,
I read your entire post. The rhetorical question you pose as the title of it is intriguing. I don't believe you hate your black cat. I believe you subconsciously like the black cat. Else, why would you keep, feed and tend to a critter that you loathe?

Regarding the negative perception of young black males in today's America you might have a point. I'm reminded of something the Rev. Jesse Jackson once remarked "There is nothing more painful to me at this stage in my life than to walk down the street and hear footsteps... then turn around and see somebody white and feel relieved.”

I also can't help but think of the suspects in yesterday' shooting. The crime is wanton destruction of human life no matter the skin tone. It's quite a mess all around.

For me, I see no room at all for the negative perception or self-hatred. I see both the perps and the victims as humans first. The former (the perps) if convicted deserve whatever punishment is warranted under the law. The latter deserve redress and care.

That's all.

7

If you had "not-black cat" first did you always refer to it as that? That would seem a bit odd. This sounds like a flaw in your story.

8

I had a black cat named Pepe. I’m white and I live in Lis Angeles, which I may naively see as a post-racial community. I loved Pepe more than I love myself. He died in October. He was 18. i an also a psychologist. I think your poor cat has had brain damage. If you cant be kind to him, you should look for another home for him. If I was presented with another black cat, I would take him or her in a minute!

9

I think the word you were reaching for at the end there was "inculcated".

10

If a black cat should cross your path, any other cat can reverse the spell. Just ask them.

11

Charles - this deep dive into your subconscious is fascinating, and while now I am an attorney (42 years at last count) I actually have a degree in psychology, and I am fighting an urge to put you on a couch and send you a bill! Please - continue (and how do you feel about your mother?)

12

Internalized racism is insidious, facing it jolting and often unpleasant. May we continue to strive to judge animals not by the color of their integument, but what decisions they make with it.

No matter what self-fulfilling prophesies we instill in each other via demonized culture, everyone has the power to change the narrative and expectation. But it has to come from within first, unless it is restricted from without, which it is for insatiable greed with human commodities aflame with preabolitionist world views from hijacked blood feuds and long-buried hatchets exhumed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JJK23IItdu0

13

I'm not 100% sure but this might be the dumbest thing Charles has ever written.

14

@13
That was my immediate reaction as well.

Charles, there is a galaxy between Black as a colour (what your cat's fur is) and Black as a distinction ... and a designation that was chosen to be a point of pride (as in "Black is Beautiful" and its ilk). Your skin is definitely not the colour of your cat's fur, even though you call yourself Black, just as my skin is definitely not white; if it were, I'd be an Albino, but I fall into the category of White based on pinky-beige skin.

It should come as no surprise - except to you - that some cats jump and like water while others do not.

You must have run out of topics to tackle. Poor nameless cat.

15

Seems like a lot of space for just one family, comrade.

Why do you need that huge single family home when other people are sleeping outside?

16

Sometimes a being that is black also is a jerk. It is a big universe. Everything’s possible.

17

Coming soon: Do I Hate My Cat Because Car Culture?

18

Uh, cats do know their names. They may not choose to come running when called, but they recognize the sounds associated with them. There's been study of this.

The sun (Sol) and the moon (Luna) have names too.


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