Views on race in America (from a mixed breed Heinz 57 American)

I need to start off this blog with a disclcaimer, I don't see race, or ethnicity...why?
Because my Dad is white, His ancestors came from England and Scotland, and my Mom is half Chinese (her grandfather came from China), and is also half Hispanic, (her mom's maiden name was Martinez)

And so...I'm a mixed breed Heinz 57 American, which is true of a lot of Americans btw.

I've also met quite a few racists in my 56 years on this rock called earth,
When I was touring around the Country hitting almost all 48 lower states in a Christian rock band,
I met white racists in the south...but, I also met Hispanic racists once at a Christian conference (Spanish Speaking) at the Los Angeles Convention center. The extreme racist the trumpet player and I ran into was a Pastor (Imagine that) who angrily confronted us horn players, and said what are you doing here? You don't belong here!!.

Now, I know that not all Hispanic Pastors are racist (and my guess is that most of them are not), and I know not all people from the southern U.S. are white supremacists, that would be a generalization, that would be ludicrous to think that...

I remember the early 1970's as a teen, where the nation had just come through some extremely tense
times, the turbulent 60's had just ended, and the euphoric and materialistic 80's had not hit yet.
I was a Sax playing kid performing in H.S. and college Jazz ensembles, where we were playing
music from Buddy Rich, Count Basie, Maynard Ferguson, and Quincy Jones.

Musicians I was around at that time were much less likely to be racists or have prejudicial
tendencies...why?, because we learned the history of Jazz, Funk, Rhythm and Blues as kids
(at least I did)

We already knew that much of the music we were playing in Jazz ensemble was written by American Blacks, or by composers who were likely inspired by Black Musicians like Louis Armstrong, or Herbie Hancock, or Count Basie, or any number of Black American composers.

I knew from a pictorial History of Jazz huge book we had in my parents house, and that I cut out pictures from for a school report in fifth or sixth grade, that most American music derived from the Black Spirituals, the gospel music of slaves, and those who were servants in mostly white farms and estates, and then was translated later to Bessie Smith, John Handy, Louis Armstrong, and many others, who then translated that to Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Glenn Miller, and Tommy Dorsey in the 1940's
Who then translated that to Little Richard, Fats Domino, Charlie Parker and Miles Davis in the 1950's, who then translated that to Elvis Presley, Dave Brubeck, James Brown, Roland Kirk, The Beatles and Rolling Stones, and Aretha Franklin in the 1960's, who then translated that music to Rick James, Earth Wind and Fire, Yes, Led Zeppelin, Jeff Lorber Fusion, and a teenage Sax player growing up in the suburbs of Denver during the 1970's yours truly...

And on and on to today skipping thousands (please forgive me) until we come to Snoop Dog, Jay Z, Lecrae, Dirty Loops, Korn, Wynton Marsalis, Dave Koz, and Gerald Albright...

I made a record for a large Gospel label in in Nashville back in 1995, and when I was recording that record, one of the tunes chosen was Andrae Crouch's "Jesus is the Answer"
The Executive Producer of that record walked into the studio and said "Dave, don't put this Andrae Crouch song on the record."
To which I said, "No, It stays, Jesus is the answer stays." and it did...
I had reasons for insisting that Andrae Crouch tune stay on my record and it had to do with race...which I knew in the 1990's was still an issue even in the church, where Sunday Morning to this day is still the most segregated hour of the week...

My point in all of this is that Musicians of whatever color, whether it's the black musicians touring with Duke Ellington and Count Basie in the 1940's who had to stay in the "Colored" parts of hotels because of segregation, to today's musicians and artists like Kirk Franklin or Trombone Shorty, or Maroon 5, or little old me that's just the Sax Player have been working in close quarters with every race, color, creed, ethnic origin, or belief system for decades...

We have to...in order to make a living as a musician, you have to perform with, and get along with every race imaginable...

But having said all of that, I've held my conservative Christian beliefs and mores, and convictions through decades of performing with a LOT of people that don't see things the way I do, from my conservative Christian, and Christian rock band Compatriots in the 1980's, to touring with a multi racial Christmas tour (New Young Messiah) playing with and backing up BeBe and CeCe Winans, Israel Houghton, and Ron Kenoly, to show bands where I am currently the ONLY white (looking) person in the band...

My view on race is this...we're all created in God's image as the Bible says, the extremely tense times we seem to have gone back to, and in my opinion created purposefully to divide, reminiscent of 1970 (to me) is a sign that those of us who hold to the teachings of Jesus, have a lot more work to do...

I'm just the Sax Player...