WHAT IF THERE WERE NO BLACK PEOPLE IN THE WORLD?
Author Unknown
This is a story of a little boy named Uchechi, who woke up one
morning and asked God, "What if there were no Black people in the
world?"
Well, God thought about that
for a moment and then said, "Son, follow me around today and
let's just see what it would be like if there were no Black
people in the world. Get dressed and we will get started." Uchechi
ran to his room to put on his clothes and shoes but there were no
shoes and his clothes were all wrinkled. He looked for the iron, but
when he reached for the ironing board, it was no longer there.
You see Sarah Boone, a Black woman, invented the ironing board and
Jan E. Matzelinger, a Black man invented the shoe lasting machine.
"Oh well," God said, go and do
your hair." Uchechi ran in his room to comb his hair,
but the comb was not there. You see, Walter Sammons, a Black man,
invented the comb. Uchechi decided to just brush his hair, but
the brush was gone. You see Lydia O. Newman, a Black female invented
the brush.
Well, he was a sight, no shoes, wrinkled
clothes, hair a mess without the hair care inventions of Madam
C.J. Walker. Well, you get the picture.
God told Uchechi, "Let's do the chores
around the house and then take a trip to the grocery store."
Uchechi's job was to sweep the floor. He swept and swept
and swept. When he reached for the dustpan, it was not there. You
see, Lloyd P. Ray, a Black man, invented the dustpan. So he swept
his pile of dirt over in the corner and left it there. He then decided
to mop the floor, but he mop was gone. You see, Thomas W. Stewart,
a Black man, invented the mop.
Uchechi thought to himself, "I'm not having any luck."
"Well, son," God said. "We should wash the clothes and prepare
a list for the grocery store."
When he was finished, Uchechi went to place the clothes
in the dryer, but it was not there. You see, GeorgeT.Samoan
a Black man, invented the clothes dryer.
Uchechi got a pencil and some paper to prepare the list for the market,
but noticed that the pencil lead was broken, as well he was out of
luck because John Love, a black man, invented the pencil sharpener.
He reached for a pen, but it
was not there because William Purvis, a Black man, invented
the fountain pen. As a matter of fact, Lee Burridge invented the typewriting
machine, and W.A. Lavette, the printing press Both were Black Men.
So they decided to head out to the market. Well, when Uchechi
opened the door, he noticed the grass was as high as he was tall.
(remember your high top)? You see the lawn mower was invented
by John Burr, a Black man.
They then made their way over
to the car and found that it just wouldn't go.
You see, Robert Spikes, a Black man, invented the
automatic gear shift and Joseph Gammel a Black man, invented the supercharge
system for internal combustion engines. They noticed that the
few cars that were moving were running into each other and having
wrecks because there were no traffic signals. You see, Garrett A.
Morgan, a Black man invented the traffic light. Well, it was
getting late, so they walked to the market, got their groceries and
returned home.
Just when they were about to
put away the milk, eggs and butter, they noticed the refrigerator
was gone. You see, John Standard, a Black man, invented the refrigerator.
So they put the food on the counter. By this time, they noticed it
was getting mighty cold. Uchechi went to turn up the heat and
what do you know, Alive Parker, a Black lady, invented the heating
furnace. Even in the summer time they would have been out of luck
because Frederick Jones, a Black man, invented the air conditioner.
It was almost time for Uchechi's father to arrive home.
He usually took the bus, but there was no bus because its precursor
was the electric trolley, invented by another Black man, Elbert T.
Robinson. He usually took the elevator from his office on the 20th
floor, but there was no elevator because Alexander Miles, a
Black man, invented the elevator. He usually dropped off the office
mail at a nearby mailbox, but it was no longer there because Philip
Downing, a Black man, invented the letterdrop mailbox and William
Barry a Black man, invented the postmarking and canceling machine.
Uchechi sat at the kitchen table with his head in his
hands. When his father arrived he asked, "Why are you sitting
in the dark?" Why? Because Lewis Howard Latimer, a Black
man, invented the filament within the light bulb. Uchechi quickly
learned what it would be like if there were no Black people in the
world.
Not to mention if he were ever sick and needed blood
Charles Drew, a Black scientist, found a way to preserve and store
blood which led to his starting the world's first blood bank.
And what if a family member had to have heart surgery. This
would not have been possible without Dr. Daniel Hale Williams, a Black
doctor, who performed the first open heart surgery. So if you
wonder, like Uchechi, where we would be without Blacks?
Well, it's pretty plain to see,
we could very well still be in the dark! And that's just a few of
their inventions.
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