By Dr. Yaounde Olu
The United States recently marked the 94th anniversary of the birth of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., who was assassinated while fighting for racial equity and human unity. Since his assassination on April 4, 1968, Black people have made significant progress, but they [we] have also regressed in some areas due to neighborhood foes.
Who are the Black community’s foes? Many people believe that the real oppressors of Black people are the so-called “Illuminati.” “White people,” others would remark. As a consequence, it is nearly impossible for any Black individual to achieve any degree of achievement without being accused of Illuminati involvement.
Those who are not accused of being members of that shadowy, enigmatic organization are accused of being “sell-outs.” Oprah, Tyler Perry, and pretty much any other Black person who has achieved some level of success is charged of being anti-Black; of being foes of Black people. People are genuinely skeptical of Black achievement.
There are currently a number of social media writers whose primary source of income is “exposing” various and sundry Black people for a variety of bad behaviours. Almost EVERYONE has been “outed” for some alleged infraction. One of the most tragic outcomes of this tendency is that almost all of Black popular culture is entrenched in tearing each other down, in self-destruction. This is readily apparent when listening to singers’ music.
Dissing…denigrating other Black people pervades gangsta’ rap music. The term “Niqqa” is exceedingly common. At one time, and even now, those who liberally use the word claim to have altered its meaning; that it is now a term of endearment. However, if you listen to the majority of rap tracks, you will notice that it is rarely, if ever, used positively! We then become offended when others use the term, which is completely irrational.
Consider how much of what is creatively produced conveys good ideals as a means to measure the health of the society. When not on harming one another, the emphasis is mostly on low-value ideas. Love, friendship, matrimony, and self-help are rarely emphasised. Money, power, machismo, misogyny, narcotics, homicide, and items related to them, on the other hand, tend to get the most notice.
Black males who contemplate love in connection to women are regarded as “soft.” Consider this: how can the Black community advance if all of the current memes emphasise the polar antithesis of positivity? The ideals that have the most adherents in our societies are linked to how much money someone has…money translates into a person’s worth.
What this all implies is that the African American community in the United States is in a bind; they [we] profess to want to advance while working against it. The present ideals held in high regard by a significant number of our youth are money and power; that is the mantra. Of course, this is the belief system that many of our high-ranking politicians share.
Finally, we are engaged in a battle of ideas. We must accept that we cannot succeed in our desire for a prosperous life while simultaneously accepting a slew of negative memes. We can’t accommodate two bosses at once.
What must be recognized is that this challenge exists, and that in order to improve our collective situation, we must adopt new ideals.
We must first determine that we have worth as human beings apart from the quantity of money we have. Furthermore, we must learn to value EACH OTHER; we must learn to collaborate for shared objectives; and we must truly internalize the concept that unity is the path to success, and without it, we will fail. We must recognize that the acceptance of bad ideas must end, and that we must learn to respect positive ideas.
Finally, we have to understand that WE are our own worst rival, and that changing our group fate will not be feasible unless we change our collective behavior. If we can do that successfully, no outside enemy will be able to beat us! A Luta Perpetua.