Sue Silverstein has been talking to me about Kah-teen Rucker all semester, she pestered to meet him, but our paths never crossed. Today, visiting Bishop Gibbons, a handsome, charismatic, 17-year-old junior and art student, approached me in Sue’s classroom and offered his hand.
He smiled this radiant smile and said he was Kah-teen and was looking forward to meeting me. He was different, confident, and full of poise. Many high school kids are shy around strangers, especially strangers like me. He wasn’t.
He spelled out his name and said he would compete in this weekend’s Saratoga Comic Con character contest as Hunter the Redeemer, a noble hero in Disney’s wildly popular TV show The Owl House.
He said that Turner was a good guy, fighting to save the soul of a fallen hero who was drawn to the dark side.
I saw that he wanted to show me his costume.
I think it’s great that Sue would permit him to be creative about his culture and interests rather than be told what kind of art he must produce. This costume was art to him, and he was on fire making it.
I looked at the show online tonite; it is pretty great. I had heard of Owl House but knew little about it.
Kah-teen is impressive; Sue says she is one of the most creative and gifted students she has ever had.
She was right. He’s got it all; he is all about charm, charisma, and confidence. He’s a born creative.
He says he plans on going to college to study agriculture. “The world needs a lot of food,” he says. Maria says she could see him walking down the runway at the Met Gala one day. I was thinking more of a Superhero movie; he has that steely look and a charming smile.
H says he’s worked feverishly on his costume, which he eagerly showed me. He made the mask and the outfit by hand.
I invited Kah-reem to visit us at the farm, there is agriculture all around us, and he would love seeing the produce the Amish and other farmers grow every summer. My county is all about agriculture.
I hope he comes.
I enjoyed taking his portrait,; he is somebody the camera likes and radiates feeling when he looks at the camera. it was fun getting to know and another beneficiary of Sue Silverstein’s magic; her class is where creativity grows.
Good luck this weekend, Kah-reem. I made him promise me he would let me know if he won the contest. He’s worked hard for it.
Just FYI, a white person like you calling a black person “articulate” is considered a slur. I am African American, and I HATE hearing that patronizing word.
Tyrone, I am well aware of that consideration; thanks. The word is not in the blog now.
But I consider this idea and your language short-sighted and offensive. I understand the term is offensive to some people (not everyone by any means), so I removed it from the blog version as soon as I read it back.
Facebook doesn’t reflect changes in the blog. It isn’t in the blog version.
As a writer, I find it Orwellian that someone who doesn’t know me or Kareem is scolding me for referring to an articulate person of any race or color as being articulate.
Is the idea that no African American person can be described as “articulate by someone who is not black?” Governor DeSantis is jumping for joy. He doesn’t have to ban a thing. “People like you” will do it for him.
That is a Stalinist view of truth.
I dislike political correctness; it often borders on the fascistic and erodes freedom. It is increasingly popular on the left and the right. It never works.
I consider the phrase “a white person like you” blatantly racist. How ironic, especially in this context.
You have no idea who I am or what I am “like,” or even what color I am, for that matter.
Racism and stereotyping won’t stop racism and stereotyping.
Racism is all too real and getting worse, it seems to me, and I respect that even if I disagree with telling other people – or me – what to say. I believe my job as a writer is to tell the truth, not ban words you don’t like. I never tell anyone else what they should write or say.
I’m not sure I did the right thing by removing that word, although I get no pleasure writing words you “hate.” In America in 2023, somebody hates everything somebody like me writes.I get messages like yours daily and mostly write about blowers, dogs, and spirituality.
I’d have shut down years ago if I had listened to them or written according to what everyone liked. We are a nation of aggrieved people and victims. African Americans have real and fair grievances.
If you care, I “hate” being told by strangers on social media who don’t know a single thing about me what to say.
Do you really think this benefits an African American youth as charismatic and impressive as this young man?
He and his family have no complaints about my piece, and they thanked me. I hope to write about him again, and never to describe how intelligent his or as impressive he seems is like a deliberate lie and an incomplete picture.
If he objects, I won’t do it. If you object, I don’t much care. I’m not bound by words you hate.
I will be sure to ask him and respect his wishes.
It may be something I need to avoid, but it’s also pure censorship to fight bigotry. Truth is the loser when censorship prevails. As we see in Florida, bigotry wins, as Governor DeSantis demonstrates daily.
He loves telling people what words to use and wants to ban all the words he hates, including “lynching” and “racism,” as do more and more Americans and black history has vanished from school curriculums all over that state. You are doing exactly the same thing as he is; you’re not yet governor.
People should read about kids like Kareem of any race or color – they are remarkable.
I do not believe African Americans in Florida benefit from censorship by deploying your idea from the left. Books there that refer to black Americans in any way are being banned, even by African American Nobel prize winners like Toni Morrison.
This is a valuable conversation but a foolish and unproductive way to have it. We should be talking and listening to one another, not going after writers by hitting them with jerking knees.
It is by no means a universal view that calling a black person articulate is offensive. I don’t believe many African-American writers would support your insulting message.
I took it as a compliment and a reference to his young age not race.
Thanks, John; one reason for that is that it was not a reference to race in any way. Tyrone decided to make it one.
wowow very attractive guy….
That was a wonderful interview with and for my son. He is serious about farm life and I hope yal connect soon, because his interest in farming is a life he has never lived literally.
Thank you!
Thanks, Keisha; I much appreciate your good words and your son. I love the line about living literally..you did a great job.
Keisha, you and your son are welcome to come and visit the farm anytime, we’d love to see you.
Jon, I know you refuse to edit, but you could at least endeavor to get people’s names right. It looks disrespectful and condescending to see them misspelled multiple times in a single blog post. Be better.
Caralyn, I have a better idea.
Get Lost.
Since I’m not good enough for you, go pee in someone else’s garden and don’t return.
You are not good enough for me. The people who post here are decent and thoughtful.
You have no right to demand anything of me, and I have nothing to apologize to you for. Your message is disrespectful, condescending, offensive, and, if you care, inaccurate. If you return, I will proudly ban and block you, my new and long overdue policy for social media jerks.
I trust you can decipher my message. I had no trouble editing it.