Ho-Boing

Plog Number 97

Ho-Boing

Hello Ploggers another installment of Reclaim. I am hoping that you are all doing well and living in PEACE. I am thinking that we are in a holding pattern with any real change in Reproductive Rights. The Republicans control the House and they will not support codification of Roe. Joe Biden is known for reaching across the aisle but it will be a shock to me if anything gets done at all. As I lament the election in regards to Abortion rights I am looking forward to other strategies than the general election.

But I am very fortunate to belong to both the female sex and the black race. Being in that demo gives me the chance to meaningfully comment on issues that affect both. But for this plog I want to write about my Maternal Grandfather. He lived from 1897-1974. He and my grandmother lived in Weir, Mississippi. His name was Lester Miller. He and my grandmother had a fish 🍴 restaurant that was a success. He and my grandmother had 7-8 children. They eventually left Mississippi to seek their fortunes in the northern part of the country. Before they left for the north my grandfather helped young black boys to leave the south. How did he do this you ask? He did it by Ho-Boing!

The 🚪 dictionary definition of a Hobo is a wandering or homeless person, one illegally traveling by rail 🚂 or penniless unemployed bum. There are numerous definitions of the word, some good and some bad. But as we learned with the word "Picnic" words can take on new meanings. But in my grandfather’s case it was very good. My grandfather was known to “Hobo”, using the word as a verb. He helped many young black men by Ho-boing. He helped these men to exit the south so they could relocate in the north. He knew that life was better in the north for black people. My grandfather lived after the civil war and during the Jim Crow era. I faintly remember him as being very calm and quiet. But I am thinking he was an example of “Still water running deep”

But back to Ho-boing. My grandfather knew how to hop on trains for travel. This mode of transport is eluded to in the very definition of a Hobo. He would gather young men who wanted to escape to the south. They met and he accompanied them via open railroad cars to the ↕️ north. Once he got them there, he would come back to Mississippi and live with his family. He made numerous trips back and forth in this manner. It stands to reason that he was stealthy, intelligent and compassionate for the youth in his community. He took a risk with getting caught as a stowaway on a railroad. There was an M&M Railway route from Mississippi to Missouri. That railway 🚈 line was chartered in 1853. This route may have been the very one my grandfather used to transport the young men to the north. These Hobo rides were a big part of Northward Expansion for blacks. They were also central to the transition from field to factory. I have heard this story my entire life and I am proud ❤️ to tell it. I have a love for heroic 👏 Harriett Tubman and her work ON 👣 FOOT doing what my grandfather did on a train with only the moon🌙 and 💫 stars to guide her. Both were brave, inventive and made things happen without a lot of money. They used what they had. My grandfather was not a big man and he was born with only 9 fingers, but he was swift and strong. Such an incredibly 💪 strong and smart person.

So this plog is a homage to the Hobo-ers in our country. A homage to my grandfather. RECAIM