WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?

I was watching old footage from Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in his last speech to the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), “Where Do We Go from Here?” This was probably King’s most militant speech during the last year of his life and…the title of his posthumously published book. Ok, aside from it being a speech and a book title, I believe it’s something that our present-day Black society needs to consider strongly. No, this ain’t 1967, but in 2014, I think Dr. King is still pushin our asses to ask ourselves the difficult questions of not just how our society is being defined, but how we live in it, our future, and how we connect with each other. What do we value?

A dude I kinda like, Yasiin Bey (used to be Mos Def), best captures my point. In his creative come-back to Jay-Z and Kanye West’s cut, “Niggas in Paris” called, “Niggas in Poorest” he ends the song by begging us listeners, “Don’t get caught up in no throne,” and he says this shit nine times…hell, he shoulda said it nine more. Besides that bein a fine piece of artistic shit, Bey is doin more than just flippin Mr. Carter and Mr. West’s hit album on its head for the sake of what a lot of folks think is a ‘diss record.’ Bey is getting at the fact that many of us Black folk seek and are defined by the very trinkets and shiny things that are mentioned and celebrated in “Niggas in Paris.” Understand?

 Might as well keep goin…..what’s really fucked up and really damaging to us are the ones who have the ability to help, even on a small scale, but won’t because they want to protect their “alleged” class status like a goddamn government secret. I’ll give you an example. Remember back when it was a whole lot of folks signin petitions or writing letters in support of Trayvon Martin as a show of solidarity. I know of one group of Black men, who belong to an organization founded to help provide positive engagement within the Black community, who said they weren’t interested in writing any letters or signin no petitions because the Martin case had nothing to do with them.  Damn hypocrites!

 These types of Black folk are more dangerous than any racist. They suffer from the Pharisee Complex. They’re defined by their nearness to white power and perceived privilege, and to hell with us regular niggas who dare to compromise their happy little bullshit world. This is just one example of how time and time again; we turn our back to the voiceless, while watering down the integrity of our communities and any movement for justice. A lot of them fools want to be seen as “down for the cause” and “real,” but when you need just a lil bit of help, they start acting real white…….but one step better than that of their oppressors. In the Book of Luke, when Christ chastises the Pharisees he unequivocally mentions their love for the “uppermost seats and the synagogues and greetings in the markets,” which ain’t no different than them fake brothers and sisters who want to be recognized as “important” in church, in their communities, etc., but just ain’t willing to do the work required for the respect. The thought of servant leadership is lost on em.

 I now return to Dr. King’s question, “Where do we go from here?” We must first determine where we are. Hum? Then we need to beware of the ones who try to offer the new fangled illusion of hope, change, and empowerment, but only want to associate in the abstract. Yea, rhetoric is good for inspirin folks, but after the rallies are over, and the shit that’s important to our community are no longer part of the 24-hour news cycle, we need the brilliance, creativity, passion, and imagination of those brothers and sisters willing to do the work required to pick up where our ancestors left off. We need those who are ready to fight for justice for our people and our communities…but remember as Yasiin Bey says, “Don’t get caught up in no throne. I’m out!

My Appeal to Black America . . .

The media constantly bombards us with negative stereotypes of us Black folks….meanwhile….there are many Black folks doing and saying things to advance our race everyday, yet you hardly hear about that at all. Hum? We live in a culture that is transfixed and mesmerized with material gain and celebrity bullshit. Instead of striving to be citizens who can change the climate of these turbulent times, we seek to be idols of worship. We’ve been ignored for so long; we’re satisfied with just being heard—regardless of the message. Hum?

 It has become popular for Blacks to glorify this much distorted idea mainstream America sells back to the Black community.

Pre-Civil Rights Black entertainment had a very different vibe back then. The idea of the loveable Coon is what was celebrated. Black men were consigned to buffoonery and women were reduced to mammies if they were to be successful in the industry. Post-Blaxploitation led to a different type of Negro…the gangsta or the Black bitch!! This type of menacing depiction of us Black folk was not tolerated before integration. We Black men were often emasculated because the imagery of a strong Black man was way too threatening for the mainstream. Even our Black children had to subscribe to this bullshit.

The first two kids to play “Buckwheat” in Our Gang (The Little Rascals) were cast as female pickaninnies (Carlena Beard and Willie Mae Taylor). Even though the most popular Buckwheat (Willie “Billie” Thomas) was a boy, they initially still made him dress as a girl. Hum? At one time pop culture would only accept us Blacks happily finding thrills on Blueberry Hill; now Universal is releasing CD’s with that monkey Lil Wayne talking about beating pussy like Emmett Till.  Emmett Till is the 14-year-old child who was beaten to death in 1955 by a couple of rednecks for allegedly whistling at a white woman. How soon we forget our plight that now it’s commercially and socially acceptable for us to tarnish our legacy for a few pieces of fuckin silver. The gangsta or the Black bitch is allowed to channel their rage….at will…as a spectacle for the entire world to see. Damn!

Yesterday’s tommin is today’s blingin. We too busy ballin’ and poppin’ bottles to elevate mindsets.

The desire to be a star took the place of any moral responsibility this ugly asshole showed towards a violently murdered child and his remaining family. While I know there is good to be found in almost any circumstance, I’m afraid this won’t inspire any youth not knowledgeable about Emmett Till or why making his beating similar to having sex with a woman is offensive to do anything but repeat or try to top this bullshit.

While the non-minority (the new white) corporate structure is behind funding such garbage, at this point, Black America is primarily to blame. We Black Americans have far more opportunities now than we used to, but for the most part, use them for entirely the wrong reasons. When we do have our own TV shows, record labels and radio stations, we tend to only enable the violence and ignorance.

The shackles of slavery have long come off, but we have yet to shake the vestiges of servitude.

Today, select members of the Black American community have enough money, power, influence and intelligence to really change the pattern, but most are too caught up in the system and their own personal fame to reflect on where they came from. This is what post-racial America looks like. Not only is it OK to pretend not to be Black in a country which never lets you forget, but you can actually desensitize yourself to the point that you no longer have a historical conscience. Hum?

The river of blood that washes the streets of our nation flows mostly from the bodies of our Black children. 

Black America doesn’t want its own houses. We want to be up in massa’s house. We only see ourselves through the lens of colonialism. We collectively have yet to figure out who we are outside of white supremacy. Black America only feels valid or successful if massa pats us on the head and tells us we done good. We measure our success by the same system that was designed to oppress and divide us.

Black America has been kept away from a piece of the pie for so long that all it takes is a corner of the crust to catapult us into a state of oppressive amnesia.

So, now that we have a lot more free time on our hands in an era where we stay attached to electronic devices that allow us to fetishize our fame on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, please take a few moments to think about what it is to be a Black American!!

Dear Mr. President, We Black Folks Want the Last Two Years!!!!

Dear President Obama:

I feel compelled to write you this letter because of various developments in your Presidency. A Presidency, which for the record, has been declared officially "over" by most folks on the right, and from the majority of white people. I know that you officially have almost two years left to go, but fuck it, most of those folks in America have already made up their minds about you, and, for whatever reason, they just ain’t feelin you anymore. Hope and changey…they ain’t. Shit, your approval rating stands at 41% and your disapproval ratings stand at 52%. Then there’s this number: 54%. That's the amount of people here in America who don’t believe you can do the job you were elected to do.

But enough of that shit!  I’m sure that you’re well aware of these numbers and the mood of the country. Personally, I don't think that you’ve been any worse than all of the other Presidents that led this country. The Dow is at record levels; unemployment is down; Osama is dead, home values are going up; you brought back an economy that was fucked up; we’re finally closer to having a better health care system; and you pulled the troops out of Iraq as promised. (Please don't go back.) But all of this means nothing to the typical American, the narrative has already been painted by the right-wingers, and most (not all) of the masses are buying into it.

But here’s the good news: Your approval rating is not below 13%. Why is this good news? Because that’s approximately the percentage of Black folks in this country, and I’m pretty goddamn sure that if you were to poll Blacks folks, your approval ratings would still be in the nineties. This is in spite of the fact that you’ve pretty much ignored us Black folks and tried to be the President for all of them other Americans. That was probably an honorable and well-meaning pursuit, but as I’m sure as hell that you should’ve learned by now, some people are just never satisfied, especially the right! Sadly, you’ve surrounded yourself with Ivy League bootlickers and Washington politicians, whose lives are lived in that crazy political fishbowl in and around Washington. These people don't care about the things that you should be caring about. They’re there to enhance their careers and move on to the next cushy ass job, so they would never tell you what I’m going to tell you now.

Again, the good news: You have almost two years left to work on issues that primarily concern us Black folks. This is the time to do the shit! Fuck the rest of America, they’ve already moved on from you. Time to serve the people who are pushing your approval ratings to 41%! And as bad as that seems, trust me when I tell you, it could be worse.  Mr. President, I need you to start using the White House to talk about things like an unfair justice system as it relates to Black folks in this country. Hell, Red Neck Rand Paul of all people is talking about it; it's time you do the same. I need you to start talking about the high unemployment rate for us Black folks, and the need to focus on job training in Black communities as well as investment dollars to start small businesses that can hire some of these folks once they get the proper training. You can't just give lip service to helping Black folks and have token meetings with the outta touch Congressional Black Caucus to address these issues.

I need you to go on “inner city hood” tours and spend time in places like Gary, Indianapolis, Detroit, Cleveland, Houston, Kansas City, New Orleans, and Memphis. Walk the streets of these cities (Trust me; you’ll be safe as hell! Gangbangers will assist the Secret Service if they need them to.) And let the main stream media follow you every step of the way. They need to see that there are parts of this country that could be mistaken for Baghdad or Damascus. (I’ve seen NBC’s Richard Engel in every war torn country in the Middle East, but I ain’t ever seen him in Chicago's Englewood neighborhood on a Saturday night.) It's time to start talking about gun violence and the killing of young Black men by other young Black men. It's not enough to get on television every time there’s a school shooting in the white population and wag your finger at the NRA and remain quiet at the bloodshed in the streets of our cities on any given weekend. I have a lot more, but I’ll stop now, because I know that you don't have the time to read everything that I want to say. Let's face it; you’ve been a little busy these days. Just think about what I said. These folks can't hate you anymore, and no matter what you do for them they won't be satisfied. Besides, what the hell are they going to do if you go Black? Impeach you?

Sincerely,

The Angry Black Man

Winning the Lottery & Reparations??

I’m still working through my thoughts on brother Ta-Nehisi Coates' piece on slavery reparations. If you haven’t seen the video, it’s on this blog.

As I wrote previously, I’m blown away by the comments that ‘The Case for Reparations’ has caused over at the Atlantic magazine and other sites across the Internet.

If you need any more verification that white supremacy remains a real force in American life, all you have to do is read the comments regarding ‘The Case for Reparations.’ The Internet is one part of what I call "the backstage" of modern American racism. It’s a space where people act out publicly what their (semi)private thoughts actually are.

Now, take the next giant step. Those racists are your neighbors, friends, colleagues, and possibly even your family members. Meditate on that motherfuckin fact for a hot second!  

For white folks, the above is a thought experiment. For us Black folks, it’s a matter of life and death. Most of the reaction to Coates’ essay is the old standard, white racist, "color blind" talking-points. As a result, they’re uninteresting, just an expose’ of what white folks really think in post civil rights America. Damn!

 But, and I said but…. There’s one up-and-coming thread in the comments against Coates' essay that deserves our attention. The racists are suggesting….be they active or passive, intentional or accidental, or just drunk on white privilege and the white racial frame….slavery reparations (or for the countless of other state sponsored crimes against Black people in America) are not a fuckin "lottery".

Reparations, in any form, really means acknowledging that a crime has taken place, and said victim (us Black folks) should be made whole, both materially and financially, as well as through the moral gesture of an apology. That ain’t gonna happen!

The lottery is a random win. The lottery is fun. The crimes against humanity that was hundreds of years of white on Black slavery across the Atlantic, more than one hundred years of Racial Apartheid in the United States under Jim and Jane Crow, and then decades more, into the present, of continued institutional white supremacy, is not fun for us Black folks. It’s more than slick. Using the word "lottery" to describe slavery reparations is really an act of violence through language against Black folk’s humanity.

When the justice claims of us Black Americans are compared to a damn game, and the money that can come with winning it, white racists and their allies are disrespectfully dancing on the graves of our recently dead, the long gone dead, and those of us in the present whose life chances continue to be depressingly impacted by white supremacy. I know white people don’t feel empathy towards Black people. And maybe that’s the point? If you don’t feel any sense of empathy or humanity with Black people then why would a person not spit in the face of their lived experiences by reducing their justice claims to a "lottery"?