“Let No Man Pull You So Low As To Hate.”

Cover Photo: The Lorraine Hotel. 

By Suzana Ward                                                                                                                                                                                                                      Fine Artist and Author of Happy Great Day® Self-Care Habits to Create A Beautiful Life

This article was originally published on February 18, 2019, but it had to be rebuilt — because in 2025, a cyberhacker who gained access to my passwords stole digital art, hunks of text from blogs, precious photos, notes for future articles, sketches for apparel, and plenty more. I started over quietly, selling my fine jewelry designs and working night and day to rebuild the brand. It took eight months to feel like myself again and to trust my voice.

To everyone who has subscribed and to the indie bookstore owners who have sold my book: Thank you. It was a long time before I could even look at this website without feeling violated. Your support reminded me that people can still be kind. I promise you that I will try my absolute best to pay that feeling forward.

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I treasure the experience of growing up in a family that appreciated people of all colors and faiths. 

After living in LA for a decade, I moved back home to the deep south. On the West Coast, I made many lifelong friends, some of whom have now returned to their home countries. Savannah, Georgia, is not nearly as diverse as LA. Now, five and a half years later, I’m still adjusting to the culture shock of coming back. The “Jewel Of The South” is the most visually beautiful place I’ve ever seen. But East Coast racism hurts my heart. For a while, I served as Chairman for the Savannah Board of Realtors’ Global Unity and Cultural Diversity Committee. Sadly, that experience and many others caused me to realize that Southern culture will never be color blind in my lifetime.

“Mama Love” has proudly told me that, when your dad was a teacher at Armstrong College, he didn’t always get enough summer classes, so one year he went over to Savannah State College to pick up extra teaching hours. Back then, Savannah State was an all-black college, and Armstrong was all-white. Your Daddy was a deeply good man who stood up for human beings of all colors. But there was almost no mixing of blacks and whites at the time.

The newspaper actually ran a front-page story with a photo of your father on the first Sunday after he started his new job at Savannah State. I can remember attending church that day. None of the parishioners would look us in the eyes. Not one single person in that sanctuary spoke to us.

Years later, Martin Luther King became famous. But when your father had just started teaching there, I’m telling you, white and black people didn’t even sit in the same restaurant together.

We were all really proud of your “Aunt Merry Joys” and Uncle Goodloe, too, when they marched together for civil rights in Selma, Alabama.

Honey, don’t ever forget that you come from a family that believes in treating others with respect. Like Martin Luther King said,” Let no man pull you so low as to hate him.”

I will never forget touring the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, Tennessee. A visit to the Lorraine Hotel also haunts me. (Pictured). — Martin Luther King was shot and killed on the balcony, by the red and white wreath.

Elvis Presley sang “If I Can Dream” to convey his longing for compassion and a brighter future after the assassination of Martin Luther King Junior:

This article is lovingly dedicated to the eternal optimists who envision a world transformed by love and hope.

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Stay tuned for interviews with inspiring men and women who share incredible strategies for living joyfully. As we explore diverse views, our mission is to promote light-heartedness and foster understanding across perspectives, transcending division.  

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