Sometimes it is necessary to face the truth about situations that will provoke anger. We (the United States and, by extension, the world) are in a time of crisis. These are dangerous times, and it will be important for the Black community to develop a game plan to successfully navigate the ongoing tide of change.
One of the first things that we must realize is that we are connected with other Black people all across the globe. However, for the most part, we insist on being culturally myopic; we only see that which is in our immediate surroundings. There’s nothing wrong with that, per se, but it shouldn’t stop there. Black people everywhere are facing some of the same obstacles, yet people insist on shifting blame for our circumstances to local and/or national politicians.
The one truism that is becoming more evident as we continue to evolve on this planet is that we are the greatest influencers of our surroundings. In other words, what happens outside of us is a direct reflection of what is happening inside of us. The sad fact is that if we continue to behave the same way, we will continue to attract the same circumstances. For example, everywhere that Black people reside, there tends to be significant social and economic mayhem. This is because we take ourselves with us wherever we go. Whether it is crime and poverty in inner city American communities, the slums of Haiti, or the challenges faced by the entire African continent, we seem to be at a disadvantage. Africa seems to be on the brink of losing all of its natural resources through investments by the Chinese and others. Foreigners have come in to take control of that which we have refused to control ourselves in what is beginning to look like “neo-colonization.” If things keep going the way they are, the richest continent on Earth will no longer be seen as the home of Black people.
This is common behavior. Very often we are more concerned with things that separate us: skin tone, economic status, neighborhood turf, and other artificial barriers that keep us apart, rather than unifying to find solutions to our problems. All the while, power brokers, white and otherwise, are positioning themselves to control EVERYONE. For some reason, we continue to ridiculously blame carnage on a city Mayor or the president or school superintendent, all of whom have changed while the problems have remained the same! President Trump has threatened to send the National Guard to Chicago in order to reduce the incidence of Black on Black murder. Caveat emptor: may the buyer beware! The presence of the National Guard in the Black community will not bode well for the community, whatever some may think.
Conversely, we often give a pass to those who are creating the havoc in our neighborhoods. Even though it is possible (according to some conspiracy theorists) that there are others outside of our communities who are actually committing some of the murders while disguised as Blacks, it is also true that many of the perpetrators are not only known, but are protected by community residents. “Snitches get stitches” is a common community refrain. But that shouldn’t keep us from making those who are committing the crimes accountable for their actions. Pookie and Ray Ray are known, yet they are sheltered. Truth be told, they are enemies of the Black community. Couple this with the fact that there is a continual hemorrhaging of Black businesses from our communities and the picture of powerlessness is complete.
The way things are today, if our collective behavior does not change, the Black community will go the way of the dinosaurs. With all of the Black Power that we have demonstrated as evidenced by Black successes in every field of endeavor, it does not seem to be enough to convince us to work together to change our circumstances. We must stop squandering our Black Power through negligence generated by self-hate. No one will save us BUT us! A luta continua.
