If these multi-national corporate maniacs don't find a way to wipe out humanity before than, I have to wonder what folks 250 years from now will think about this time period in history. I have to think they will review the course of events and shake their heads with amazement once they realize how many utterly insane people are taking up so much space in this period, and why the vast majority of reasonable minded people continued to permit them to do so. Think about the blatant contradictions that are staring us straight in the face today. The Americas were conquered 500+ years ago through brutality and systematic violence. To justify this wanton and unprecedented terrorism, the clearly fraudulent belief that Europeans are better was created. That myth has been manifested in every institution that emerged from our subjugation (industrialization and the development of capitalism) e.g. organized religion, school - all schooling, and all other political, cultural, and social institutions that are maintained today. With this completely dysfunctional backdrop, it shouldn't surprise anyone that someone as arrogantly flippant as Bill O'Reilly could say something as stupid as the slaves who helped build the White House were well fed and comfortable, or whatever foolishness it was that spilled out of his mouth. We don't even need to spend one second attempting to challenge his stupidity. What I mean is Bill O'Reilly speaks for the aspirations of European people who are drastically upset - pissed off - simply because they don't have the privilege and comfort they have enjoyed on the backs of oppressed peoples for centuries. So, none of those soft and unbalanced people are qualified to make an assessment of the brave and courageous people who suffered through the transatlantic slave trade. Bill O'Reilly and his ilk, were they to have to endure the treatment our ancestors received, wouldn't have lasted five minutes on any plantation.
Ironically, O'Reilly's stupidity isn't even the most glaring contradiction. Michelle Obama's speech, from which O'Reilly's comments were actually based, offered an equal amount of contradiction. Trust me, I get the emotion involved in being able to articulate that some of our people have reached the other side of fence. We can enjoy the benefits of the White House instead of just being the oppressed hired, or unpaid and oppressed, labor force. Still, the message her statement sends our youth is that our objective for achieving humanity and progress is to reach the highest levels of the oppressive and imperialist system, as if the echelons of power within the U.S. are something that we need to aspire for. In other words, the key to our freedom is using the master's system to achieve the highest levels of prestige within it. Audre Loude's often repeated refrain that we cannot use the master's tools to achieve our liberation clearly dismantles that sentiment. And, Mrs. Obama's assertion that the example of her family's experience illustrates how great this country is would be valid if the criteria of greatness was based around a token representation of progress. Clearly, tokenism can never represent anything else except what it is - a hollow symbol of progress for a very small and inconsequential amount of us while the masses continue to suffer.
On that question of tokenism, to bring that point home even clearer, we should discuss some of the even more glaring contradictions on display during the last two weeks of the Hollywood shows produced for the demopublican parties from Cleveland and Philadelphia. In this environment where everyone recognizes that the legacy of white supremacy must be discussed, and many of us know it must be dismantled, both conventions are committed to keeping the discussion at a very controlled minimum. Yes, I saw the mothers of those killed by police terrorism speaking last night, but without a movement behind them that can hold Mrs. Three Strikes accountable on any level, than all we have are moving and wonderful speeches. Meanwhile, beyond these speeches, the fundamental issues of systematic oppression are not even on the convention agenda. And yes again, we know that the republicans didn't even bother to have people giving speeches on police terrorism, but we should be far removed beyond giving cookies to people just for being a little less of a rapist than the person across the room. Speeches don't equal policy and they definitely don't equal qualitative and quantitative change.
Some examples of those core and fundamental issues. Its interesting that the conventions are held in Cleveland and Philadelphia. These two cities each have predominantly African populations. Cleveland is 53% African and Philly is 43%, but you wouldn't know it by watching these conventions. Not just by who's there, but by what the focus is. Philadelphia has the most overwhelming innercity poverty in the continental U.S. and Cleveland isn't far behind, yet no mention of this poverty or any programmatic thrust to do anything about it. None of the propaganda surrounding either convention is talking about any of this either. Instead, they are talking about the fact police shootings have increased by 80% without even explaining to you that the reason police shootings have jumped so much is because so few police get shot that even a token jump in killings, as we've recently seen, will blast the numbers upward. Again, no focus on the core poverty Africans are facing and the reasons why. Not even from the democratic party so many Africans love. So far, they haven't even demonstrated enough respect for us to at least give a shout out to the African Methodist Church, which was the first church started by Africans in the U.S. (that's why its called African and not Black or African American. We were not confused about who we were or where are interests lie then like we seem to be today) 200 years ago this month in Philadelphia, not far from where the convention is taking place.
Please don't misunderstand and think this is a complaint about what they are not talking about at these bourgeois party conventions. We know enough about our movement for justice that we realize that the only reasons the mothers of police terrorism victims are speaking in Philadelphia is because of the pressure applied by the greater movement against the bourgeois parties. So, the democrats get no credit for that. Instead, it goes to the activists and participants in the struggle for justice. That's why instead of being so concerned about what the bourgeois are doing in the conventions - where a millionaire is running against a billionaire for the right to screw you further - you should pay more attention to what's happening outside those conventions. The mass protests taking place in Philadelphia this week and in Cleveland last week are the real stories. Even those of you who preach in support of bourgeois electoral politics cannot refute that the strongest weapon you have to facilitate change within the system is the masses mobilized to bang against the system to hold it accountable to us. That movement is being struggled around outside the conventions, not inside. That's great work taking place in those protests and in all the protests taking place. There's also outstanding work taking place to build revolutionary institutions to bang against the system for long term and uncompromising change - revolution. The efforts outside the conventions helps that work as well.
So, instead of being angry at Bill O'Reilly today, I actually appreciate him reminding those who want to forget that this country has always been a slime bucket of crime, oppression, disrespect, and misinformation. And, the illusion of freedom (at the expense of everyone else in the world) is the only thing the bourgeois have left to control the minds and aspirations of European working class people. The utter ridiculousness of O'Reilly's statements, and the fundamental lack of logic in Mrs. Obama's comments when confronted with analysis (which you won't get on television) actually reveals what we already know. The bourgeois are desperate because they know our time has come. And, they also know that if our time has come, that means their time has also come.
Ironically, O'Reilly's stupidity isn't even the most glaring contradiction. Michelle Obama's speech, from which O'Reilly's comments were actually based, offered an equal amount of contradiction. Trust me, I get the emotion involved in being able to articulate that some of our people have reached the other side of fence. We can enjoy the benefits of the White House instead of just being the oppressed hired, or unpaid and oppressed, labor force. Still, the message her statement sends our youth is that our objective for achieving humanity and progress is to reach the highest levels of the oppressive and imperialist system, as if the echelons of power within the U.S. are something that we need to aspire for. In other words, the key to our freedom is using the master's system to achieve the highest levels of prestige within it. Audre Loude's often repeated refrain that we cannot use the master's tools to achieve our liberation clearly dismantles that sentiment. And, Mrs. Obama's assertion that the example of her family's experience illustrates how great this country is would be valid if the criteria of greatness was based around a token representation of progress. Clearly, tokenism can never represent anything else except what it is - a hollow symbol of progress for a very small and inconsequential amount of us while the masses continue to suffer.
On that question of tokenism, to bring that point home even clearer, we should discuss some of the even more glaring contradictions on display during the last two weeks of the Hollywood shows produced for the demopublican parties from Cleveland and Philadelphia. In this environment where everyone recognizes that the legacy of white supremacy must be discussed, and many of us know it must be dismantled, both conventions are committed to keeping the discussion at a very controlled minimum. Yes, I saw the mothers of those killed by police terrorism speaking last night, but without a movement behind them that can hold Mrs. Three Strikes accountable on any level, than all we have are moving and wonderful speeches. Meanwhile, beyond these speeches, the fundamental issues of systematic oppression are not even on the convention agenda. And yes again, we know that the republicans didn't even bother to have people giving speeches on police terrorism, but we should be far removed beyond giving cookies to people just for being a little less of a rapist than the person across the room. Speeches don't equal policy and they definitely don't equal qualitative and quantitative change.
Some examples of those core and fundamental issues. Its interesting that the conventions are held in Cleveland and Philadelphia. These two cities each have predominantly African populations. Cleveland is 53% African and Philly is 43%, but you wouldn't know it by watching these conventions. Not just by who's there, but by what the focus is. Philadelphia has the most overwhelming innercity poverty in the continental U.S. and Cleveland isn't far behind, yet no mention of this poverty or any programmatic thrust to do anything about it. None of the propaganda surrounding either convention is talking about any of this either. Instead, they are talking about the fact police shootings have increased by 80% without even explaining to you that the reason police shootings have jumped so much is because so few police get shot that even a token jump in killings, as we've recently seen, will blast the numbers upward. Again, no focus on the core poverty Africans are facing and the reasons why. Not even from the democratic party so many Africans love. So far, they haven't even demonstrated enough respect for us to at least give a shout out to the African Methodist Church, which was the first church started by Africans in the U.S. (that's why its called African and not Black or African American. We were not confused about who we were or where are interests lie then like we seem to be today) 200 years ago this month in Philadelphia, not far from where the convention is taking place.
Please don't misunderstand and think this is a complaint about what they are not talking about at these bourgeois party conventions. We know enough about our movement for justice that we realize that the only reasons the mothers of police terrorism victims are speaking in Philadelphia is because of the pressure applied by the greater movement against the bourgeois parties. So, the democrats get no credit for that. Instead, it goes to the activists and participants in the struggle for justice. That's why instead of being so concerned about what the bourgeois are doing in the conventions - where a millionaire is running against a billionaire for the right to screw you further - you should pay more attention to what's happening outside those conventions. The mass protests taking place in Philadelphia this week and in Cleveland last week are the real stories. Even those of you who preach in support of bourgeois electoral politics cannot refute that the strongest weapon you have to facilitate change within the system is the masses mobilized to bang against the system to hold it accountable to us. That movement is being struggled around outside the conventions, not inside. That's great work taking place in those protests and in all the protests taking place. There's also outstanding work taking place to build revolutionary institutions to bang against the system for long term and uncompromising change - revolution. The efforts outside the conventions helps that work as well.
So, instead of being angry at Bill O'Reilly today, I actually appreciate him reminding those who want to forget that this country has always been a slime bucket of crime, oppression, disrespect, and misinformation. And, the illusion of freedom (at the expense of everyone else in the world) is the only thing the bourgeois have left to control the minds and aspirations of European working class people. The utter ridiculousness of O'Reilly's statements, and the fundamental lack of logic in Mrs. Obama's comments when confronted with analysis (which you won't get on television) actually reveals what we already know. The bourgeois are desperate because they know our time has come. And, they also know that if our time has come, that means their time has also come.
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