CHAPTER NINE
The team followed Sister Owa through a labyrinth of racks to the museum area. She stopped and outstretched her arm, her eyes holding a fusion of excitement and reverence.
"This is why we're here," she said proudly. "We went through all of this and still we found goodness in the world worth surviving for."
Marlene nodded and looked around the team, her gaze settling on Shabazz. "And I'm now oh soooo clear that this is why we were shunted from pillar to post today. We were supposed to come here to remember what Sister Owa said, as well as to probably get used to that feeling of being on the run again-but not to give into the group dissension or the fear."
The team's senior seer allowed her gaze to rake each member slowly with compassion. "We'veall still been trying to process the poison out of our minds, even our Neterus, white baths notwithstanding. Look at how we've been acting, talking to each other on the team, going over old mess and vibrations that we'd already learned not to do from the school of hard knocks. We got infected, people, and had to shake it off to unify-once again . . . it's not a learn-it-one-time-and-you're-done type of thing. Unity requires ongoing maintenance, just like marriages and relationships are ongoing work. If we had gotten into those other locations, maybe we would have missed the lesson . . . the Creator makes no mistakes-Ashe."
"Ashe," Owa said quietly. "And maybe we needed you all to come to let us know that the thirty-plus years we've been at the struggle have not been in vain . . . there really is hope on the horizon-some light in this dark tunnel we've been in."
Quiet affirmations rippled through the group as Owa began walking. The team fanned out slowly as members peered at the horrific scenes of bondage on the walls, mute as they passed each exhibit, reading placards with hands pressed to hearts, some shaking their heads, not even realizing their bodies were moving in such a manner.
Oppressive silence, except for the recorded sounds of the museum, kept Guardian voices at bay . . . those eerie sounds were reminiscent of human captivity and the daring attempts of escape against all odds, reenacted in a cacophony of barking bloodhounds, the sounds of wailing, some spiritual hymns, an auctioneer's rabble. But as the team gathered around some of the artifacts, murmurs of sheer disbelief finally spawned a sudden ricochet of conversation.
"Oh, my God," Krissy whispered, her fingers grazing an iron collar. "We'd been told about this in high school and read it in the books we had to read for class . . . but they actually put this on a human being's neck."
"This is barbaric," Bobby said, his eyes wild. "They really did this to people . . . Imean, I read it, but . . ."
"It was never a part of your reality," Inez said, no judgment in her tone. "Unless it affects you directly, most people don't think twice about the things that have happened here or anywhere else in the world. In some parts of the word, things like this are still happening. Check Darfur."
"It ain't about continuing to fight among ourselves, though," Shabazz said, looking around the group and making surethat old cultural wounds didn't bubble up and simmer over within the team itself. "That's evil's old con-to get otherwise decent people to act like animals toward each other for greed, gain, lust, power . . . y'all know the deal. Then get people to justify it by calling another group primitive, or heretics, or somehow making them the scapegoats. This is one holocaust among many." He shook his head and walked deeper into the exhibit.
Owa nodded, her voice patient and firm, as she picked up very tiny manacles. "This was for the babies, the children. Look inside. There are spikes so that if you turn your head it will hurt. These are bits used for mouthpieces, like you'd bridle a beast of burden."
A collective gasp cut through the group. Heather rushed over to touch the small iron shackles and then stooped to let her fingers trace a small burlap sack that had been worn by a child.
"How could anyone . . ." Heather whispered, her eyes filled with horror and pain. "Me father was from Ghana . . . a hundred years ago they might have captured him and put this on him. Me Scottish mother could have been flogged and driven from 'er home for simply loving him and making me? They would have put these shackles on me as a baby . . . sold me away from her." She peered up at the group, bewildered."Babies?Children as young as our Ayana?"
Jasmine was right by Heather's side and she squeezed her shoulder. She looked over at her sister-in-law, Krissy, and opened her arms to invite the embrace. "This is why we came here, Marlene is right. We needed to remember what we're fighting for and to never bring the fight between us as a team, no matter what. It's so easy to forget, to slip back into old patterns and old ways and to shut the grim world out-like that's over there and I can't do anything about it . . . but we have to do a little bit, any way we can."
Dan squeezed his wife's hand as he squatted down beside her. He gazed at Heather and then glanced up at Jasmine, agreeing. "My people have a saying, Never again. As long as this type of atrocity is allowed to happen to any people, then all people are at risk."
Tara nodded and quietly threaded her arm around Rider's waist. "My Cherokee people were in this, as well as my African American ancestors . . . it is all a bloody trail of tears."
"But the babies," Marj whispered thickly. "If what's coming next is more evil than this . . . we must all come together and take a stand. Don't people get it?"
"I read about it, knew about it, but this is just . . ." Berkfield shook his head and wiped his palm over his scalp. "I had buddies back on the force who were as ignorant as me. If people saw, were educated, they couldn't hide from the truth. If they didn't think that'sthose people, but thought in terms of-holy Christ, that'sany people, ya know?" He looked around the group with a pained expression. "I used to hear guys say, 'Well, shit, that was way back then and I personally didn't have anything to do with it.' But I'm like, yeah, you didn't, directly . . . but you need to recognize that it happened, that you maybe got a leg up because it did, and be respectful of the people who lived this or any other horror like it. I wasn't popular in a lot of places. Then I'd get to thinking about a lot of stuff I saw in the criminal justice system that I'll go to my grave unable to reconcile. When I see stuff like this I wonder why God didn't just send a thunderbolt a long time ago to be done with it. I bet He wanted to just nuke this joint, seeing this kinda thing."
"Yeah, well," Carlos muttered. "The jury's still out on that end-it-by-the-fire-next-time prophecy. The Man Upstairs might just have had His fill, who knows?"
Carlos rubbed his jaw and landed a hand on Berkfield's shoulder. "Regardless, you can't take the guilt on for every person who can't see-just like none of us can. Prejudice comes in all colors, man . . . I'm fromL.A. . . . ask me how I know. You gothombres poppin' homeboys, who smokin' whites, who flat-blasting Asians, who can't stand East Indians, who at war with Pakistanis, who hate being mistaken for Middle Eastern, who battling Russians, who can't stand skinheads, who hate Jews and g*ys and everybody pretty much, and cops gunnin' for everybody who don't look like them, feel me. It's insane. You didn't start the madness and you're out here with your life on the line trying to fix it. So stop lacerating yourself as you do this walk through, bro. That's not why we're here." He motioned to Krissy and Bobby with his chin. "Same goes for you young bucks.Ain't about that." He glanced at Rider next, and let his gaze settle on Marj and Richard Berkfield. "We allfam and this exhibit is just an example we're supposed to learn from. But we ain't casting aspersions."
"Definitely not," Damali said, watching quiet relief edge through the team. "We're supposed to learn from every culture, every shred of human history, and to pass this one by in our own backyards after going around the world learning, is crazy. We have to be honest and ultimately face our own inner demons right here before we try to step to whatever global conscience. Last stop, charity and healing begin at home . . . and there's a lot of drama we need to atone for here in the good ole U. S. of A."
"True dat," J.L. said, raking his hair with his fingers. "Especially if this joint is one of the big three superpowers in the last days and times, man . . . and you-know-who might make it number one and only . . .all of this bull gotta get accounted for and redressed. Can't sweep it under the rug and then wonder why we've got bad karma bubbling to the surface."
"True, young brother.Every ethnic group represented here," Owa said, "and many more that we do not see, have been abused at the hands of evil . . . but as you look at this exhibit, the one thing that evil cannot abide is healing. If the common people from every land stopped believing the lies and joined together to help each other and to believe in the fundamental good of all, we could stop this thing." She held up the small shackles and rattled them like Shaker beads. "It is time for people to wake up and unite! This isn't a black thing, a white thing, a Native American thing, an Asian thing, or a Latino thing, or whatever . . . this is a human issue.Fundamental human rights. That's why we're here."
"Ashe," Damali murmured as she stood before a mock tree that was laced with a disheveled mannequin hanging by a noose. "Enough. When I see this, I sayenough . How many inquisitions, wars, despotic leaders, or oppressive regimes until the planet wakes up and says, enough?" She ruffled her locks up off her neck. "How do we get people to just wake the hell up?"
"We got a saying down South, baby girl . . . ev'ry shut eye ain't sleep. People know, but they scared and ain't steppin' up 'cause the mess is hittin' 'em five ways from Sunday. Lotsa folksis in churches, temples, and mosques-folks be praying, trying to figure out what to do, because they feel it closing in on 'em. Butthey know time is short and bad change is coming . . . feel it in they gut, they bones, can't get no peace. Everybody ain't crazy. Uh-uh. We jus' don't hear about them, 'cause you-know-who got the propaganda machine going." Big Mike smoothed a huge palm over his bald scalp. "I'm from Mississippi, and I know, D. A noose ain'tno joke." He turned and pointed to the speaker system. "The sound of them dogs got the hair standing up on the back of my neck."
"DNA-level memory, baby," Inez said quietly before she turned to Dan. "I've been to the holocaust museum inD.C. . . . the room of baby shoes." She closed her eyes. "All those little shoes . . . they actually put people in ovens. We have to remind people that this world is worth fighting for-there are children that have to inherit something worth living for . . . we can't let the darkside just take it without a fight."
"We're gonna help 'em remember, 'Nez," Carlos said, rolling his shoulders. "Because, I for one have had enough, too, like D said-and hell no, we ain't going down without a fight."
Marlene looked at Owa and smiled a sad, weary smile. "I think this was the battle pep talk our team needed. Much better than a sermon-'cause you can show folks better than you can tell 'em." She glanced around the team again and spoke matter-of-factly and with no judgment in her tone. "Even before the airwave poison, we were getting frayed, people.Fractured in our mission.Self-absorbed due to our own individual issues. But that's not why we're here as Guardians and Warriors of the Light."