(ThyBlackMan.com) Be as separate as the fingers in the things that are individual to you but in things common to us all as a people, we must join those fingers as a fist under one God, one aim, one destiny. ~ Booker T. Washington
Preceding the Hip-hop era African Americans intuitively gravitated towards unification. The political and economic unification of Tulsa, Oklahoma (Black Wallstreet) and other 20th century alliances manifested the power of Black unity. Unfortunately, since the 1960s there has been a fluctuation in attitude towards unification; accordingly, since the 60s and the advent of integration, Black America…as a group…has retrogressed.
Individualism has replaced unity. Certainly, since the 60s individual achievements has been unparalleled, unmatched, prompting many in the white community to wonder out loud…what more does the Black community want? Equality and social justice are what Black America seeks.
What individualism accomplishes is the political and economic independence of an individual not the group; stresses individual initiative, actions, and interest…not the group. Contemporary African Americans have allowed themself to be bamboozled with the accusations of being monolithic; therefore, refraining from any pursuits of group unification.
When it comes to individual needs we can be as separate as the fingers on a hand, but when it comes to common goals for us…as a group…we should make a fist and become ONE (unification). There’s strength in numbers, everyone but Black folk seem to understand this. Failing to understand that when in pursuit of common goals, it behooves us to be monolithic.
Japan, sustained the trauma of two atomic bombs, rose from the ashes becoming a world leader in modern day technology. How was this possible? They may have been physically defeated in war but were never MENTALLY defeated. They maintained their Asian and Japanese continuity, nationalism, and Spirituality…united in thought.
Use of the N-word (nationalism) isn’t used in the Black community for the fear of being ridiculed and labeled as racist, in other words African Americans aren’t GIVEN permission to use the term, therefore, the term isn’t used. Conversely, the N-word n**ga flows like honey from Black folk mouths, just as they have been programmed to do. Thank goodness, not all African Americans are so weak minded as to allow themselves to be manipulated.
Trump proudly proclaims himself a nationalist, and there’s nothing wrong with it, it doesn’t portray racism, but it does portray unity and identification with your own kind, something all groups do, with the exception of African Americans who have been bamboozled into thinking it is racist to do so. The last thing the American ruling class wants to do is encourage the unification of African Americans. They refuse to bring African Americans closer together but rather extracts the unity from us thereby destroying our ability to thrive as a unit. At some point we need to stop snoozing open our eyes and recognize how we are being played.
The recent actions by NBA players, and other athletes using their platform to protest the killings and murdering of African Americans by the police serves as a monumental step forward. To mute the oppressed has always been in the best interest of the oppressor. When a Black voice is raised to oppression those who are comfortable with our oppression are the first to criticize us for daring to speak out, wanting control as to where, when, and how we are to do it.
The recent police shooting of Jacob Blake and all other senseless shootings of unarmed Black people is reprehensible and an abomination. Many white Americans decry these cowardly acts, but far too many are supportive of the police actions towards Black America.
The sociopolitical program and concepts of the Reagan’s administration exemplifies most white Americans attitude towards African Americans: Never speak ill of Black people in public. Only speak the negative when you know where you are and who you are with. ALWAYS put your “personal self-interest before justice” for Black folk.
A hidden truth is that although the United States Government portrays itself as the leading ethical and moral authority of the world and professes equal rights for all American citizens, its oldest and most important objective has always been an unyielding commitment towards the preservation of its White dominance and control.
This objective has always directly correlated with the necessity to suppress the advancement and growth of its Black population. Because if the U.S. government treated its Black population in a manner which does not promote its interest of maintaining White dominance and control…this would render the U.S. Government diametrically in opposition to itself. Therefore, it surreptitiously uses every conceivable means and opportunity to suppress its Black population; even those that trample upon its own stated ethical values.
Accordingly, the ruling class does not bring Black/African Americans closer together but conveniently extracts the unity destroying the ability to thrive as a unit.
How can Black people work out their own salvation? It involves a change in belief or mentality to be followed by a corresponding change in behavior…signifying a mental emancipation, liberating Black people from the chain of traditional falsehood, which for centuries have incarcerated them in the prison of inferiority complex, world humiliation and insult. This brings us to the elephant in the room.
As it pertains to the pursuit of equality and social justice, question must be asked of NBA players and all other professional athletes are you “Playing to Win” or are you just “Playing to Play?” This question is not directed to just our professional athletes but to all prominent African Americans with a platform who have no problem with Black America’s embrace of the N-word…the elephant in the room.
Black people are looked upon as being less than human, this is not hyperbole it is American history. Before our lives can matter to anyone else, they must first matter to us. That means our choices must matter.
NBA players making demands of NBA owners does not go far enough, demands should also be made of themselves. There is irony in NBA players protesting social injustice but have no problem embracing the vile, evil racist term n**ga which is ghetto vernacular for n**ger. The N-word is associated with brutal social systems that denied our humanity. It marks us as things, not people. One of the greatest powers in the world is the power to define reality and make others accept it, even when it is to their disadvantage. Exhibit A…Black/African Americans.
The uncomfortable truth must be confronted: Absent the internalized oppression of those who called white men and women their masters, “n**ger” would not be a part of black folk’s lexicon in this 21st century. Black folk are reclaiming it not from bigoted white folk but from our ancestors via trans generation, who, sadly, deemed their blackness a badge of inferiority…as they had been…terrorized to do.
White folk browbeat and mau-mau our ancestors into eventually accepting a supposed inferiority. This was part of a campaign of mental terrorism, no word conveyed the depth of this internalized oppression more than “n**ger” designed to make us think that we are less than them. The word n**ger/n**ga serves as a self-refueling, self-generating psychological conduit to…mental enslavement.
By the majority controlling almost 100% of the income, wealth, power, businesses, resources, privileges, and all levels of government, Black America has been socially engineered into a position of that of a permanent under-class whose only salvation is economic independence, self-empowerment, which can only be obtained through unification…not individualism.
Our oppressor knows this…which is why his greatest fear…is that someday we just might suddenly WAKE UP and see the light. Anytime you allow former slaver-owners to define you—as oppose to defining yourself—you are not serious about anything, and the oppressor knows it and thus have no respect for you because you have NONE for yourself. Embracing the N-word—a word that symbolizes unadulterated evil, the butchering and slaughtering of millions of our ancestors—makes a FOOL out of the user…and the entire Black race…for allowing the word to fester within its community.
Oppression cannot be overcome by simultaneously sympathizing with the oppressor. Being afraid to meet obstacles head on as a UNIFIED group, refusing to stop using the N-word is sympathizing with the oppressor.
African Americans embracing the N-word gives us the wrong self-image and wrong self-definition. Voluntary usage of the pejorative term reinforces a 400-year-old historical belief that we are fair game to be abused and misused. Many prominent African Americans, such as Shaquille O’Neal and Charles Barkley, are proponents of the N-word which make their employers feel very secure and content.
However, if they were to abruptly stop using the pejorative term and wanted to use their platform to encourage other African Americans to refrain from using the N-word their employers would suddenly become insecure and deeply concerned. Shaq and Charles being of no further use would then find themselves in the unemployment line.
We all are victims of an historical experience of which we had no control but from this day forward we can control our own fate destiny if we so elect to do so.
All things are possible! Who…you are is limited only by…who you think you are?
Staff Writer; H. Lewis Smith
One can follow Mr. Smith on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/thescoop1.
