(ThyBlackMan.com) Statistics reveal that victimizations of African Americans from violent crime such as murder, rape, sexual assault, burglary and robbery are committed by African Americans. We live with these facts and to a certain extent accept them.
But what if these crimes were committed by whites on our community? What would be our response? Would it be outrage, anger, rage, and the call for justice and retaliation? If so, then why is it not the same reaction from our community against our own? 
We are tolerating these atrocities. We allow the mayhem and the carnage to run rampant in our neighborhoods. It is nobody’s fault but ours. We are to blame.
The National Crime Victimization Survey and the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting Program declare an ordinary crime becomes a hate crime when offenders choose a victim because of some characteristic (race, religion, ethnicity, religion or association) and provide evidence that hate prompted them to commit the crime.
So when a black person kills another black person, is that a hate crime? About 56 percent of hate crimes were motivated, at least in part, by racial hatred, according to the study, and most were accompanied by violence. So the question is: Do we hate ourselves?
It appears some of our young people are consumed with self-hatred. Self-hatred is very sad because it is an erosion of the soul. If someone becomes an expert in self-hatred, they will become very creative at finding ways to torture themselves to such a degree that the punishment becomes an avenue of comfort, and as a result they will find relief by torturing others.
The youth are our liberators, but some, a pitiful small percentage, are killing us off. They are killing our future leaders. Nationally, homicide is the leading cause of death for black young men ages 10-24, and the second leading cause of death for black women ages 15-24.
We must stop the racial hatred of ourselves. Black people sell drugs to other black people, and steal from other blacks, and hurt other black people. We make babies out of wedlock and we do not listen to or respect our elders. We kill other black people. It’s time to stop the madness.
Should we blame gangs to take the focus from our own failure? To stop gang violence, citizens need information, support and community activism. These tools remain viable options in combating the problem locally. Some local organizations have taken on the task, such as Better Family Life, The Organization of Black Struggle, United African People’s Organization, The Nation of Islam and other Islamic communities, as well as Christian churches and Jewish synagogues. They need our support.
Would education improve our self esteem? All Americans need to know about Ida B. Wells, a community organizer, grassroots leader and journalist who was a precursor of the modern Civil Rights Movement; Dr. Daniel Hale Williams, whose achievements as a cardiac surgeon helped to revolutionize the field of medicine and humanize its practices; Fannie Lou Hamer, a voting rights activist who used her powerful voice to raise the cause of equality and freedom; Charles Drew, the first black surgeon to serve as an examiner on the American Board of Surgery; Mary Mcleod Bethune, an educator and activist who founded what is now Bethune-Cookman University; and Paul Robeson, a celebrated actor, athlete, singer, writer and civil rights activist.
The accomplishments of these black heroes can help us all realize how scores of black Americans overcame obstacles in order to reach their goals. Perhaps with this knowledge, self-hatred would fade away and the violence would halt.
Written By Bernie Hayes
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