Stephen A. Tillett - Stop Falling for the Okeydoke: How the Lie of Race Continues to Undermine Our Country

Advance Praise for Stop Falling for the Okey doke

You hit the nail right on the head!

Bishop Felton Edwin May (Retired) of the United Methodist Church

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This book is a very personal and powerful examination of the lie of race that has served those in power well throughout our history and right up to the present day. This overt yet invisible political sleight of hand has been used to divide us and subvert the ability of the vast majority of us as citizens to work together to achieve our common interests. Rev. Tilletts warm and accessible approach dispels pervasive myths and untruths and illuminates the history, science and politics of this destructive lie. His book is a rousing call to wake up and stop falling for the okeydoke. As my father Howard Zinn said: when we organize with one another, when we get involved, when we stand up and speak out together, we can create a power no government can suppress.

Myla Kabat-Zinn (daughter of Dr. Howard Zinn, author of A Peoples History of the United States)

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I have known Stephen Tillett for many years, and he has been making big moves all his life. He has been a change-agent in college, serving as pastor to diverse congregations, as a military chaplain and as a community leader where he serves as an NAACP branch president. And now he is leading the way again with this incredible book! Read it, then share it with friends and family! You will see why Stephen continues to lead, even on the challenging topic of race! This book is leading edge thinking and it will have a big impact on America and the world!

Dr. Willie Jolley, Best selling author of A Setback Is A Setup For A Comeback and Achieving Greatness with An Attitude of Excellence

STOP FALLING FOR THE
OKEYDOKE

How the Lie of Race Continues to Undermine Our Country

STEPHEN A. TILLETT

STOP FALLING FOR THE OKEYDOKE

HOW THE LIE OF RACE CONTINUES TO UNDERMINE OUR COUNTRY

Copyright 2017 Stephen A. Tillett.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

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Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery Thinkstock.

ISBN: 978-1-5320-2229-6 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5320-2231-9 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-5320-2230-2 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2017907309

iUniverse rev. date: 05/22/2017

CONTENTS

To my children, Drew, Lena, and Sophia. Our children are the living messages we send to a time we will not see. (Postman, 1984) I have the hope that the world in which youand your children, after youlive will become a more decent and familial place where people truly will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.

I offer special thanks to Lena for the birthday gift of Howard Zinns A Peoples History of the United States. It served as inspiration for this project and introduced me to history I never knew!

Thanks to my Momma Bear, Bernice Johnson Tillett, for using your nonpareil proofreading skills as a retired English teacher to help me bring this project to fruition.

I also dedicate this book to the memory of my father, Malcolm Tillett, for sharing his love of history with me. I love it to this day. Thanks, too, for all the debates on the issues of the day. I miss you and hope to make you proud.

Last, but certainly not least, I thank my sweetie, Sherita, for her support, encouragement, suggestions, and, most of all, patience with me as I took over / converted a spare bedroom into another office dedicated to making this long-held dream a reality. Thank you for giving me a peaceful place to be creative and complete this project that has meant so much to me. I love you to life!

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Wali Uqdah, Jr, photography, and for inspiration with the cover concept.

Martin Gesis, model, and for getting the cover concept and bringing it to life.

Duane, Kevin and the Alphagraphics team for the cover art.

Thanks to family, friends and colleagues who took the time to read drafts of this book and offer constructive observations and encouragement. Thank you Akeda, Alice, Barbara, Derek, Felton, Michele, Natalie and Sherita.

Myla Kabat-Zinn for your generosity of spirit and encouragement.

Dr. Willie Jolley for your support and wise counsel.

Dr. Unnia Pettus of Pettus PR, LLC for your nonpareil public relations support.

Dawn Jones and 29Eleven Media for your graphics skills and website design, etc

Many thanks to the editors, production and promotions staff at iUniverse for helping to bring this publication to fruition and presenting it to the world!

FOREWORD

I am and will forever be grateful for you thinking enough of me to read your manuscript. Needless to say, Timeless! The artistry of woven truths orchestrating melodies of words burst within the innermost bowels of my soul. At times my spirit shouted, Write My Brother - You Better Write, You Better Preach, and Speak The Word!

Your thoughtfulness and intentionality was very present throughout, which I appreciated. The inclusion of specific historical facts and statistical data secured fidelity. The inclusion of graphs also provided greater depth and clarity. When I reached the last two pages and started reading a song I had never read or heard; it truly summed up the very essence of your book. Last but not least, every ethnicity should be able to relate because at the end of the day, we are all one race.

As MLK stated so eloquently and you reiterated to be truth

Our aim must never be to defeat or humiliate the White man, but to win his friendship and understanding. We must come to see that the end we seek is a society at peace with itself , a society that can live with its conscience . And that will be a day not of the white man, not of the black man. That will be the day of man as man.

I would highly recommend STOP FALLING FOR THE OKEYDOKE to readers of all genres and ages. Although some may differ as it relates to all ages but if a child can read this book, he/she would challenge their vocabulary, fluency, comprehension and dispel untruths in many of their textbooks.

KEEP WRITING!

Dr. Akeda Pearson-Stenbar

Professor at Bowie State University

President and CEO, Premier Training and Professional Development Services

PREFACE

I have been very fortunate to live a life that has exposed me to any number of different experiences. Beginning with the privilege of growing up in a country that was shedding its dejure segregation, I was exposed, both in the neighborhood where I grew up, and the schools that I attended, to a more diverse expression of humanity. My career as a pastor and a military chaplain, combined with experiences as a chaplain to a football team and having played sports in high school and college has given me a more comprehensive exposure to the fundamental essence of who people are and how and why they are the way they are. Had my exposure to others been limited to what I saw on television and in media, I would have had a fundamental misunderstanding about human nature in diverse ethnic groups.