Some Sense and Much Nonsense
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the editors' views or any agency, organization, or employer. Based on my experience, research and knowledge, my statements are in good faith and are only for informational purposes. Please research and follow up on all claims for yourself.
While browsing historical newspapers, I ran across a common editorial tagline/phrase titled "Some Sense and Nonsense." I found this interesting, so I explored the papers for more content and uses of this tagline. The content mainly included comical stories and exciting tidbits about everyday people and events. Sometimes it also had the author's quick and short opinions about events and happenings during that time. For instance, the Monitor, a newspaper geared towards African Americans in November 1922 (almost 100 years ago), reported on a speech delivered by Marcus Garvey. The article's title read "The Provisional President of Africa Talks Foolishly." Then it says, "Marcus Garvey delivers address which contains "some sense and much nonsense" and virtually thanks south for lynching." So today, in celebration of historical voices and opinions, I thought I would use this phrase to capture some history and thoughts.
First, let's look at the difference between "sense" and "nonsense." We make sense of something when we use our biological senses, which include sight, smell, hearing, touch, and taste, to perceive the world. So, based on the Oxford dictionary, when someone says a person's actions, words, or conduct makes sense, they are saying that it is "intelligible, justifiable and practical" as "they" perceive it. When someone says something is nonsense, they are saying it doesn't make sense as they perceive it; they may use words like: that's crazy, foolish, baloney, bullshit, etc. As we work, play, and live our daily lives, we are constantly determining if the information we are taking in makes sense or not. So, I am not surprised that many books, songs, movies, and other published works use the phrases "sense and nonsense." To digress a little, I believe there are platforms built on the idea of "sense and nonsense" like TikTok. I perceive it, there is some great content on TikTok, but there is also a lot of nonsense.
Now back to Marcus Garvey (1887-1940). Born in Jamaica 22 years after the Civil War in America, Garvey, who traveled extensively, made his way to the United States in 1916. He communicated with both Booker T Washington and W.E.B Dubois as he became a prolific activist, publisher, and entrepreneur, who spoke out on behalf of African Americans during the Jim Crow Area. He founded and became the first president of the Universal Negro Improvement Association, which he started a chapter in New York in 1917. Garvey essentially wanted (and this is an oversimplification of who he was) African Americans to unify and establish an independent nation in Africa. As the article mentioned above shows, in 1920, Garvey identified himself as the "Provisional President of Africa." The article provides several quotes from this speech, and the author deems some of the content sensible and some nonsensical. Here are some of the quotes, and you can judge for yourself.
Garvey said:
"So long as you remain a pauper race, dependent upon another race, just so long will the world despise you. This is not social equality; I don't want to associate with a man who doesn't want to associate with me."
"God never created the white man superior. The white man made himself superior. God is not responsible for your condition. God is our spiritual overlord, and you are responsible for what you are."
"Some negroes believe in their religion so blindly that they expect it to provide breakfast, dinner, and supper for them, but I know that if I don't get up and hustle, the Lord will never provide for me. "
"Don't hate the white man just because he despises you. He despises you because you are after something which [he believes] belongs to him."
The discovery of this phrase and article provides food for thought about some of the nonsense happening in our community and society in general. We can certainly apply Garvey's comments about self-respect, personal responsibility, work habits, and hate to our high crime rates and economic and social conditions today. I don't know about the President of Africa thing, and some of the quotes are without context, but many of Garvey's comments make sense to me. In looking at the Grand Rapids Crime Map for last week, July 14-July 20, 2022, there were 343 incidents reported, including 109 assaults and 63 vehicle thefts. These numbers are nonsense because we are better than this. We need to take personal responsibility for ourselves and our children. The Kia Boys... teenagers and young adults stealing cars and committing other crimes... are somebodies' children. Children and teens with guns and causing havoc, including mass shootings, etc., is dangerous. I know parenting is hard because I am a parent, and Lord knows I don't know what my child is doing 24 hours a day, but this is crazy, foolish, baloney, bullshit, and something has to give.
Trying to make sense of the senseless crime is nonsense; we need to take personal responsibility and call out the nonsense when we see it, even if it is in our homes.
Reference: The Monitor. (Omaha, Neb.), 03 Nov. 1922. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers.
Lib. of Congress. Sophia Brewer (M.L.I.S.) is Collection Development and Serials Librarian, Grand Rapids Community College; Co-President of the Greater Grand Rapids History Council; member of the Grand Rapids Study Club and serves on the Grand Rapids Public Library, Board of Library Commissioners (Elected 2016-2021). She is a former Head of Programs, Grand Rapids Public Library and former Branch Manager, Madison Square Branch, Grand Rapids Public Library Congresswoman
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