Category Archives: Family

Rereading Richard Wright’s Black Boy

Posted on July 12, 2024 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

When I first read Richard Wright’s Black Boy more than 40 years ago when I was a teenager, little that I knew about literature,  I thought the writing was superb.  I was doing a little writing then and thought Wright … Continue reading →

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A Fourth of July Day Lynching

Posted on July 5, 2024 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

For Norris Dendy 07.04.1933 (Clinton, South Carolina) To the Negro, what is the Fourth of July? A picnic celebration with family and friends Not a day to be beaten, not a day to die! On this celebration of Independence,  still … Continue reading →

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Daddy Dearest

Posted on February 22, 2024 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

My father, a Native Southern Son, was born in the same month and year Negro History Week was established. Then, we were Negroes. Thirty-four years later, when I was born, we were still Negroes. When my father died at the … Continue reading →

Posted in Black Shadows and Through the White Looking Glass, ezwwaters, Family, Fatherhood, Fathers, Lest We Forget, race, raising black boys, Relationships, Slavery | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Virginia on My Mind

Posted on August 19, 2023 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

There is something that keeps drawing me back to Virginia.  Although my father was born in North Carolina, he grew up in Virginia and returned there in 1946 after he was discharged from the segregated U.S. Army.  He was drafted … Continue reading →

Posted in Black Shadows and Through the White Looking Glass, ezwwaters, Family, Fatherhood, Fathers, Genealogy, Growing Up, race, Slavery | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Remembering My Father as I Remember Maceo Snipes, Black Veteran, Shot to Death After Voting in Georgia Primary — July 18, 1946

Posted on July 19, 2023 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

As a teenager my father, a Native Southern Son (NC and VA), was drafted to serve in the segregated U.S. Army during World War II. Shortly after he was honorably discharged from the Army in 1946, he moved to Brooklyn, … Continue reading →

Posted in Black patriotism, Black Shadows and Through the White Looking Glass, crime, ezwwaters, Family, Fatherhood, Fathers, Growing Up, Lest We Forget, Murder, Politics, race, raising black boys, Relationships | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Mommy

Posted on March 31, 2022 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

Some people have a fear of growing old.  Some people die young.  Those who fear growing old, methinks they wouldn’t want the alternative, dying young.  Dying young shortens the timeline to fulfill dreams, to see the world, to see your … Continue reading →

Posted in being a teenager, Black Shadows and Through the White Looking Glass, ezwwaters, Family, Lest We Forget, Mother's Messages, raising black boys, Relationships | 3 Comments

Aunt Willie

Posted on March 30, 2022 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

Aunt Willie My Aunt Willie is the cool aunt, the cultured aunt. When my mother passed away when I was seventeen, Aunt Willie became the closest thing to a mother I had. She never forgot my birthday, to this very … Continue reading →

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“We Are Family!”

Posted on March 17, 2022 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

If you have been following my posts, or you know my family, then you know that I have three sisters.  Jeanette Waters, the Matriarch, of course, you know, from my tribute to her.  Today, though, I want to uplift my … Continue reading →

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She Invited Me into the Red Tent

Posted on March 16, 2022 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

Shawnee Benton Gibson has a special place in my Hall of Heroines, for two reasons.  First, we share the same Born Day, different years.  I can always expect a call or a text from her on our special day!  How … Continue reading →

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My Two White Sisters

Posted on March 14, 2022 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

One day, when we were kids, Mommy made a Pronouncement: “Today, you are going to meet your white relatives.”  I don’t recall meeting our white relatives (maybe I was traumatized), but I remember this pronouncement.  I was still innocent, and, … Continue reading →

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