After all the controversy surrounding the issue of Michael Jackson and racial identity, leave it to the everlasting genius of the man to depart world by giving it the flat out Blackest cultural event ever recorded. And it was a beautiful thing to see.
All it needed was someone falling across the casket crying and an usher telling everyone to leave so the next funeral could come in to bring it all the way home. But for all the madness ramped up by the media and fans treating passes as if they were golden tickets from Willie Wonka, the end result was pure, tender, heartfelt, wonderful and appropriate. God and Michael were praised unapologetically and confidently without fear of ratings or reprisals. It was brilliant.
Prior to the event, the expectation in the press was that the private emotional moments would happen out of camera range at the private service at Forest Lawn cemetery, with the memorial at Staples Center being a commercial, concert-oriented way for the fans to connect. Yet when report came in that the casket would indeed be carried to Staples Center and it would be placed it front of the stage, there was an immediate sense that we might be getting something other than a tribute show. That sense was correct.
It was, in fact, a real, true funeral in the Black tradition. And while it was broadcast around the globe to an estimated 2 billion people worldwide, one wonders if viewers in Belgrade, Prague, Beijing and Tokyo felt the nuances that some of us felt. If Usher walking to the casket didn’t send you back to your aunt/mother/grandma’s home-going, you may have missed some of the beauty of the moment, even as you enjoyed it thoroughly.
On CNN, Anderson Cooper and Soledad O’Brien smartly took themselves out of the conversation early and let the event speak for itself. It quickly became clear that if Parker House tools, fried chicken, greens and a drunk uncle are not part of your funeral tradition, it was best not to speak.
Al Sharpton, unscripted as he would be in a pulpit, reached out to the children in the defiant way you only see at a Baptist memoriam when the deceased “had issues” and he killed it. Brooke Shields was beautiful and funny. Jennifer Hudson and Usher made the office cry. Smokey Robinson, who doesn’t look a day over 50, reminded us that he, Berry Gordy and the rest of the Motown crew were only children themselves when we loved them first. Jermaine made us remember he can really sing and he did it in a way that showed not just talent but bravery and strength. Marlon broke us down and called for a lasting peace. Paris finished us off. Michael was above all, Daddy.
We’re done now. Those of us who loved Michael and have passed him on to new generations can be satisfied that we are keeping a legacy. The Jackson family took control of their brother’s image and left us with the memory we needed to move on.
Come back to EbonyJet.com regularly for photo updates from the memorial and the day’s events.
