(But in my defense, my reply was too long and I didn't wish to leave a whole blog post in your 'comments' section.)
The question of 'where are all the Black leaders' was brought up and few had any solid answers.
My answer is simple;
There are no Black leaders because there are no enemies big enough to require them.
That's not to say that there are no social, political and/or economic ills facing Blacks in America today - only that all off these problems can be solved by the 'victim' themselves.
(And please don't get me started on how it is that many Blacks identify as one form of victim or another. That's a whole other post.)
What are the issues facing Black America today?
High crime rates, the lack of employment and/or education, redlining, single parent homes, ....
All of these problems (and all others which harm Black people) can be solved by Black people - and most of the time at the local level.
In 'Sicillian', Christopher Lambert's character becomes jaded as he realizes that those he fought to free from oppression never really wanted freedom - what they really wanted was cheaper bread.
I think that's the case with many 'oppressed' Blacks today.
Most will complain about the results of their poor decisions yet few will do the work and make the sacrifices required to make things better.
Many will boast about being a Boss, King, Queen, Diva yet few are even in control of their own lives and conditions.
Some will state that we are still slaves in America today. But there is a problem to this thinking - we are free to just walk away from any job, city or even the country itself if we so choose. What slave could do that? (Now, a slave to the debts of our desires is a slavery of our own making.)
I had a talk with a local pastor and he commented that my small town Blacks lacked 'Class'. This caused a commotion with several of his flock as many pointed out what type of cars they drove, what types of clothing they wore, where and what they ate, to which fraternities they belonged, and where their homes were.
I agreed with the pastor and told his church members that they made the same money as those thought to be members of the establishment but that they lacked the education and culture required to sustain a Black middle-class.
That most of them thought about themselves and their status but few were willing or able to create a lasting change for those who were not as smart, wealthy or good-looking as themselves.
I told them that their comfort inured them from the reality that most of them weren't shit.
A Black Leader?
Sure, when we have problems that we cannot solve on our own.
4 comments:
E. Franklin Frazier Black Bourgeoisie - Accept no substitutes.
The so-called black middle-class is not rooted in a substantive, multi-generational mercantile tradition. Consequently, it has never accumulated the collective wisdom or wealth to assume the paternal mantle of an elite benefactor class which undertakes the uplift of the "race" as it's highest calling and primary identity.
Four generations later, sadly, ain't a dayyum thing changed, and negroe public intellectuals sound like fifteen year old boys making up excuses for bad choices. I know you've listened to the crazy talk that comes gushing out of a fifteen year old to account for his own stupid, ignorant, and impulsive behavior after the fact.
That most of them thought about themselves and their status but few were willing or able to create a lasting change for those who were not as smart, wealthy or good-looking as themselves.
I told them that their comfort inured them from the reality that most of them weren't shit.
That's it right there.
Vic78
I am in no positions to speak on what ails the black community, but I will say this, yes, people (of all colors) need to take responsibility for their actions and proactively work to better themselves and their own situations.
That being said, I have observed, and there is data that reinforces my observations, that the consequences of bad behavior are not the same across race and income. In other words, both white and black, rich and poor, people do some real stupid things. But the consequences of those stupid actions are not equal for all those people. So in reality black people who do stupid things normally suffer greater consequences than white people who do the same stupid things.
This becomes real trouble when those in power do not recognize this inequity and stand in the way of progress. For the most part, white people are the ones who hold power (both politically, legally, and economically).
Where there is room and need for a leader, is in the effort to sway those who are in power to both understand, and allow efforts, to level the playing field-to ensure more equal consequences-etc. But there is such a predominance of white power (in all of the areas I mentioned) that it may not matter what black leaders or black individuals do, the power holders must make an adjustment, the white majority must make an adjustment, for the efforts of any responsible black person to matter in the grand scheme of things.
- Damn, Craig...! MORE homework?
- Dylan - There is no need for Godzilla because Monster X doesn't exist. It's easier to say that The Illuminatti are working with the IMF to keep Blacks down with help from the Ford and Rockerfeller foundations and the World Bank. The problem with this is that most Blacks will not ever directly deal with any of these entities. These groups may have influence but little power. The only real power given to then is given by their victims (and most often willingly). Some Blacks will search for hours reading about Rap's connection to the Illuminatti instead of searching for affordable home loans. By doing ones own work many of these problems will never arise in ones life. I don't feel sorry for dope boys who get caught up, they knew the game going in. Life isn't fair and no one owes you anything - that's all one needs to know. Those are the rules to the game - and regardless of ones present condition, he should play accordingly.
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