Pro Black: Separating Fact from fiction.

by Staff January 5, 2016 6 Comments Business News Opinion Relationships Weekly Columns

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(ThyBlackMan.com) It is a call for black people in this country to unite, to recognize their heritage, to build a sense of community. It is a call for black people to define their own goals, to lead their own organizations. ––Stokely Carmichael

Over the last four decades of attrition concerning our sense of community and self-preservation, there has been many active attempts to efface the political ideologies and intellectual discourse of our revolutionary communal activists, the likes of Huey P. Newton, Stokely Carmichael, Malcolm X, Assata Shakur, Angela Davis, Patrice Lumumba, Marcus Garvey, Bobby Seale, etc.

As the torch bearers of these great political giants who fought effortlessly for the advancement of our cause, it is important that we embrace a concept that calls for a more radical approach towards the uniting of our political, social, economic, and educational values as a people. One that makes us become “Pro Black” at the surface but also intellectually aware of the propaganda and brainwashing that is commonly crafted by the oppressor that lends its hand in making sure we downplay and destroy our own mental elevation.

The emphasis of this article is explain the beauty of self-love, self-knowledge, and mental liberation, as well as to disseminate the truth as to why its ok to be comfortable as a “Pro Black” or “Pro African” activist for our people. The disconnect for many about the term “Pro Black” is often clouded in a hail of smoke with rhetoric concerning anti-white sentiments, and ideologies that call for the respect of women as a prerequisite for being “Pro Black”.

In an effort to make light of the aforementioned realities I must present a case as to why we must not let, feminism, and or the so 2016-pro-black-black-community called hate of white people distort our perception of this historical movement. It’s obvious that since the 60’ and 70’ this philosophy has gotten lost in its translation as an original concept that is synonymous with activism. Activism, is classified as an effort to promote, impede, or direct social, political, economic, or environmental change.

Times have changed and so has the view concerning communal preservation, as we now have individuals who use the “Pro Black” label as a means to profit, hate other races of people for the sake of hating itself, and to express their disregard for the differing views of black love while still claiming to be “Pro Black”.

The truth is we must redefine the concept of being “Pro Black” in relation to what Manning Marable author of Living Black History, “How Reimaging the African-American Past Can Remake America’s Racial Future”, explains as an intellectual intervention. The founding ideology of “Pro Black” as a side caricature of Black Power reemphasizes the notion to keep the self-determination for people of African and black decent alive. “Pro Black” as a general concept means not being feminist, ridding our consciousness of European teachings, learning about the past historical movements and the current (Black Lives Matter Ideologies), as well as the promotion and peace towards one another.

Various renditions of this political ideology exist but that shouldn’t interfere with this powerful strategy, concerning the removal of the oppressive chains that have been placed on the consciousness of individuals of color. Noted Black Psychologist Na’im Akbar and pioneer in the development of an African-centered approach to modern psychology explains that “it is important to understand as a primary rule that the restoration of African consciousness is a process that must be accomplished by African people”.

We as a people must see to it that we help aid in the advancement of new social institutions, systems of accountability, and in this new era of self-preservation. This new era of self-preservation is about explaining that’s its ok to be “Pro Black”, and to embrace the many differing opinions that exist on this subject matter. Is it not ok to disagree and have differing opinions on matters that speak to our own personal growth and intellectual development as a race of people?

I think we can all agree to the fact we must eliminate the excuses that hinder the unapologetic love for our black heritage, and the self-preservation and our 400 years of extraordinary accomplishment here in America. It was George Washington Carver, the chemist who discovered 325 uses for the peanut that said “Ninety-nine percent of all failures comes from people who have a habit of making excuses”. So, it isn’t enough to point and blame those small pockets of our people who have hidden agendas, and represent their own self-interest. Now that we understand that those realities exist let’s focus on the broader issues concerning our future generations.

It is ok to be “Pro Black” and within your own power that helps to advance the social, economic, and political agenda, regardless of the level of consciousness you are representing within the movement. It is ok to say that you are “Pro Black” even if you carry a narrow minded view of its ideology. In moving forward, we must become egalitarians in terms of our belief in the social and economic equality of all people everywhere, but first with an emphasis towards our communal development.

In lieu of the aforementioned discussions the time has come for us as (Black Men) to continue in support of the advancement of our communal preservation and spiritual enlightenment. Regardless, of our spiritual or religious ideologies we must heed to the call towards the architectural development of our own social institutions. It’s time to do the work and creatively find ways to pool our physical, mental, and intellectual capital, in order to create a world that our forbearers realized and could see but wasn’t given access to enter into too. We are currently living our history and must organize in order to remove the hand of the oppressor out of our minds.

If we must have justice, we must be strong, if we must be strong, we must come together; if we must come together, we can only do so through the system of organization

––Marcus Garvey

Staff Writer; Tyrone Brackens

Official website; http://www.linkedin.com/in/tyronebrackens

6 Comments

Marque Anthony says:

January 8, 2016 at 1:58 pm

The key to our identity is in being able to recognize who we are and accurately label all cells, instead of allowing some other group to do it. Our actions will then begin to line up with a true and accurate factual identity, not a racist definition of something that we are not.

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Marque Anthony says:

January 8, 2016 at 1:55 pm

To Nwasha, You can say that black is more than a color but when people read the dictionary, that is the majority of what they see, understand and accept. That is a fact and you can simply check any mainstream American Dictionary. When people act or react towards African Americans, they often see the color black. When you were taught your colors growing up, you were never taught that black is more than a color. You were taught that black was a color in the crayon box. So the denial of all these things only makes the problem worse. You have been so brainwashed that you will call yourself something that you are not and accept a label that some other race has given you. And accept that label with all the negatives that come with it then wonder why we are treated the way we are. Wake up

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James Davis says:

January 8, 2016 at 12:39 pm

I contend that you are right in your comments when you say;

It’s time to do the work and creatively find ways to pool our physical, mental, and intellectual capital, in order to create a world that our forbearers realized and could see but wasn’t given access to enter into too. We are currently living our history and must organize in order to remove the hand of the oppressor out of our minds.

If we must have justice, we must be strong, if we must be strong, we must come together; if we must come together, we can only do so through the system of organization

––Marcus Garvey

Yours is a message written about often at this site; the need to coalesce around a plan or strategy that would result in African American economic success. However, to have a race wide initiative on the scale you are suggesting would require a national legislative effort. This is what a small ban of African Americans led by 1960’s and 1970’s leaders such as Dr. Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, Stokley Carmichael, Rap Brown, and Rev. C.K. Steele of Tallahassee, Florida, did when they attacked what you might call the hard structures of racism and were quite successful at dismantling those structures. This was the racism that we could often see such as, segregated schools, colleges and universities, lunch counters, hotels, and places of entertainment. Included in this category were Jim Crow laws that kept us from voting, and overt job discrimination. Also, attacked was the federal government’s neglect in spending money to address the issues of poverty when it came to African Americans which was generated in part due to racism. It was President Lyndon Johnson’s Great Society program that comprised legislation intended to improve education, health care, and housing and to reduce poverty and racism.

I said the above brother to say this, how serious are you when it comes to you supporting and organizing around a plan to move African Americans to the next level? Your message and your sincerity appear to be credible. However, where the rubber meets the road is in the doing. And that’s our problem ,,, we don’t do!

http://www.thefixthistime.com

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Ramses says:

January 7, 2016 at 1:12 pm

First of all let me say I cast my lot with Marque Anthony. We aren’t black We must really understand that the black man is a science experiment created by the white man who was originally black and beemed down to earth via the ancient mayans. Brother the connection to the African is the same as a tiger to its paw…we must lead in tow.

We must worship our African Gods in Egypt. Destroying the politcal Abrahamic Religons cherished fleet. That practices subserviance.

To smoke weed and finger each others vagina to our hearts content.

We are the warriors who transformed back into beasts, because Moses’ journey was incomplete…to the Talmud Africanized inside the native American…pantheistic spirits we go.

WE AREN’T BLACK WE AREN’T BLACK WE AREN’T BLACK

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Nwasha says:

January 6, 2016 at 4:53 pm

Black is more than a color. People who classify themselves as White chose to call us Black in contrast because they understood that Blackness represented our culture and the essential element that was needed to initiate all creation. Black in English has taken a negative connotation because the language includes the racist elements of its creators… but true Blackness as a culture is timeless and existed before Africa. That Blackness will go on into the future no matter what our land masses are called. #ProBlack ?

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Marque Anthony says:

January 6, 2016 at 1:15 am

Yes let’s separate from fiction. Here are the facts.
What’s sad is that we African Americans are still calling ourselves BLACK because Caucasian oppressors called us that to contrast their color and to assign to us all the negative things BLACK is equated with in the dictionary. The fact is, like it or not and believe it or not, YOU ARE BROWN and your car tires are black. You can say black is a culture but when they deal with you, they deal with you based on it’s definition – dismal, gloomy, dark, diabolical, treacherous, devoid of light.

WAKE UP AFRICAN AMERICANS. We do not call the Asian yellow man because he would not stand for it. We do not call the Native American a red man because he would not stand for it. We do not call the Hispanic man a brown man because he would not stand for it. And many Africans, Haitians and Jamaicans do not accept being called a color they know they are NOT.

Ironically, African Americans are the only ethnic group/race on the planet which allows ourselves to be called a color we are not, allowing ourselves to be defined by color, by someone else and to allow ourselves to be attached to a color we are not – a color they filled with negative denotations. Then we fight to help keep the lie in place.

Is it any wonder that cops treat us as BLACK people by the definition of dismal, gloomy, treacherous, evil etc? We will never rise and overcome as a people if we allow other groups to define us, to define us with a lie and we are sadly willing to help them. AFRICAN AMERICAN LIVES MATTER PEOPLE.

Black is the color of my car tires, not my skin. I am a family and relationship counselor who specializes in deprogramming African Americans from slavery mindsets.

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