We see the white supremacists in Virginia, U.S., yesterday. We see their presence all throughout Canada, Europe, Australia, and everywhere else they are openly displaying their violent, a-historical, and racist presentations. We have long histories of being exposed to, threatened by, and attacked by these people. So, there's nothing about what happened yesterday in Virginia, U.S., that surprises us about them. They are behaving as we expect them to. Nothing else.
What's harder to digest are the contradictions coming from many of you who consider yourselves progressive folks, siding with the forces of justice. I'm talking about being shocked these people exist? Raising questions about why the police don't respond to "protect" anti-racist protesters? Being upset that the police side with these people? The characterizations that white supremacy and the U.S. are somehow incompatible? And the assumption by far too many people that if you confront these violent elements who have a 500+ year history of demonstrating their complete lack of humanity, that you can do that without a plan and without regard for the violence they will undoubtedly direct against you and protections they will receive from the state for doing so.
Of course its great to stand up against racism, every time, but what are we standing up for? Are we standing up to eradicate the problem once and for all, or are we standing up because doing so permits us to feel somewhat better about living with the problem?.
I remember when I started out in this movement. A brash 17 year old with lots of strong emotions and absolutely no analysis. So, I understand that. The inhumanity and inequities of this society are definitely going to generate strong emotional reactions. In fact, I would be concerned if you didn't have an emotional reaction to all that is going on. Still, we should be in this to win, not just co-exist with white supremacy. Our future generations deserve better than this and I don't know about you, but I don't want them to go through the challenges I've experienced. So, winning is and should be the objective. And, if we are ever going to win, we will have to temper that emotion with logic and reasoning. The reason this is so important is because if we continue to rely on emotion that places us in a permanent position where we are consistently reacting to our enemies. Clearly, we need to move to establishing the terms of battle and not just strictly reacting to reactionaries. If you still don't understand the reason this is important, just ask yourself why it is that the forces of justice are always the ones suffering the losses in the midst of the confrontations? We are always the ones getting arrested, getting beat, getting killed. And, even if some of them suffer some of that, our numbers of suffering are always and historically greater. And not only that. We consistently come out of these confrontations with no clear victories e.g. we've done nothing to prevent the white supremacists from coming out tomorrow if they decide to. In fact, there is strong evidence that these confrontations with them are directly correlated to their subsequent attacks against brown folks, LGBTQ, etc. (take note of the young African who was attacked and beaten badly by several white supremacists yesterday in Virginia). The reason for this is because they have the system on their side because they represent all the values of this capitalist system. It was built and is maintained on white supremacy. So, when they come out, all the resources and values of this system are at their disposal. The police are often members of their ranks and at the very least, they are sympathetic to them because they all see protecting capitalism as their objective. If you are going to be serious about overcoming these odds, clearly, a different approach is needed.
Instead of you brown activists recognizing the above, you come out each time, reacting to them, with little to no planning. You come out relying on emotions, completely disregarding the danger that places you and all of our people in. You actually come to greet violent white supremacists with no plan, little to no training, and no idea how you will respond when all the forces on their side start to move against you and people who look like you. And despite the fact you have resources within your communities that have always been there to help you get ready, you continue to completely ignore that despite the clear evidence your approach is not working. I was deeply upset from seeing that young African brutally beat by white supremacists in Virginia yesterday (it triggered my feeling from being hospitalized the same way when I was 14) just as I was upset by the young white woman who lost her life along with the other folks who were injured. But, I was even more upset because despite the fact there is no way to ensure everyone's safety at any type of demonstration, there are things that could be done that could possibly mitigate the possibility of injury and death if more security measures, training, and planning were in place. People often say history is repeating itself. Anyone familiar with the laws of dialectics knows it isn't possible for history to repeat itself because material and the conditions it exists in are constantly changing. It is possible though for us to have some accuracy in predicting outcomes based on history, but for whatever reasons, many of us seem completely committed to ignoring these effective tools that can steer us to victory. Now, I admitted I was there when I was 17, but the difference, and the reason I'm saying what I'm saying now, is because when more experienced organizer/activists came to me to work with me, I humbled myself and listened to them. They clearly knew more than I did and I acknowledged that. And, we didn't have the mass sources of information that are available today. I'm NOT saying anyone needs to listen to me. There are a multitude of perspectives out there to study. African people have plenty of organizations and if you are African (for example) and you are serious, there is no way you should be out there before you have completely familiarized yourself with the perspectives of those like you who were out here doing the work before you. Look to the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement. The Nation of Islam. The African People's Socialist Party (Uhuru Movement), of course, my All African People's Revolutionary Party, and many others. Join those groups. Or, if you don't think they are sufficient enough, start your own group with your own study process and your own planning for how to attack the problem. That's what I'm saying.
Finally, its time for you liberal white people to either take a dump or get off the pot. Stop pretending like you are on the side of justice as it relates to white supremacy while you continue to perpetuate this lie that these white supremacists are some sort of separate entity from the values of this capitalist system. There is absolutely no question (and this is ill refutable) that the foundation, walls, ceiling, and floors of the U.S. are built with and reinforced with values and history of violent white supremacy. How can you people even look at yourself, then look at the Indigenous people of the Western Hemisphere, and call yourself a person for justice? Every step we take in this hemisphere is filled with the blood of the Indigenous people. If you live anywhere, whether you pay rent, mortgage, or even if you sleep on the streets, you are benefiting from the murder of the Indigenous people and the theft of their self determination. And, every time you see an African, wherever they were born, you are facing the reality of colonialism and the slave trade that killed millions of us, completely traumatized us in ways that are as evident today as they were in the 1500s, and created the wealth of this society. So, there is absolutely NO difference between what this country represents and those violent white supremacists in Virginia yesterday. Actually, they are simply the scab being exposed from the wound that has been hidden from those who refuse to see it.
When you attempt to substitute and impose your emotionally driven version of what you unscientifically wish the U.S. was over the reality of what it is, you do ill reversible damage to the suffering we face from this backward system. And, you demonstrate for all of us to see that you are not our ally. You are in fact as much our enemy as the people in klan robes. Its time for you people to grow some estrogen and start telling the truth. This is a backward, disgraceful country and all that's happening now is your relatives are exposing what we have been telling you for centuries. You either need to get serious or we will view you no different than we do your brother and sister wearing the sheet. In many ways, the harm you are doing us is worse than what your family is inflicting upon us.
So, for those white people who protest , do it. But, start planning so you can start coming out of these things with clear victories. There are plenty of people who can help you plan once you lower your egos long enough to see them. Join organizations and stop gliding through this reality on individualistic vessels fueled by your personal trauma and dysfunction. Its unfortunate if that's your reality, but that isn't going to help us win anything. And for African and other brown people, stop showing up there at these things blind and with no plan. You are the targets here. Don't you get that? How can you continue to do this without knowing who has your back and what your options are? You are setting yourself and the rest of us up for danger. Instead, join one of our many organizations who know how to fight white supremacy. I realize its not the adrenaline rush you are looking for, but if you really want to win and stamp out white supremacy, and not just do something to help you feel good about living under white supremacy, you must realize a change of approach is needed. In other words, you have to get more disciplined and step up your game.
History isn't repeating itself. But, the definition of insanity is definitely doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different outcome. And history requires us to affectionately and resolutely point that out.
What's harder to digest are the contradictions coming from many of you who consider yourselves progressive folks, siding with the forces of justice. I'm talking about being shocked these people exist? Raising questions about why the police don't respond to "protect" anti-racist protesters? Being upset that the police side with these people? The characterizations that white supremacy and the U.S. are somehow incompatible? And the assumption by far too many people that if you confront these violent elements who have a 500+ year history of demonstrating their complete lack of humanity, that you can do that without a plan and without regard for the violence they will undoubtedly direct against you and protections they will receive from the state for doing so.
Of course its great to stand up against racism, every time, but what are we standing up for? Are we standing up to eradicate the problem once and for all, or are we standing up because doing so permits us to feel somewhat better about living with the problem?.
I remember when I started out in this movement. A brash 17 year old with lots of strong emotions and absolutely no analysis. So, I understand that. The inhumanity and inequities of this society are definitely going to generate strong emotional reactions. In fact, I would be concerned if you didn't have an emotional reaction to all that is going on. Still, we should be in this to win, not just co-exist with white supremacy. Our future generations deserve better than this and I don't know about you, but I don't want them to go through the challenges I've experienced. So, winning is and should be the objective. And, if we are ever going to win, we will have to temper that emotion with logic and reasoning. The reason this is so important is because if we continue to rely on emotion that places us in a permanent position where we are consistently reacting to our enemies. Clearly, we need to move to establishing the terms of battle and not just strictly reacting to reactionaries. If you still don't understand the reason this is important, just ask yourself why it is that the forces of justice are always the ones suffering the losses in the midst of the confrontations? We are always the ones getting arrested, getting beat, getting killed. And, even if some of them suffer some of that, our numbers of suffering are always and historically greater. And not only that. We consistently come out of these confrontations with no clear victories e.g. we've done nothing to prevent the white supremacists from coming out tomorrow if they decide to. In fact, there is strong evidence that these confrontations with them are directly correlated to their subsequent attacks against brown folks, LGBTQ, etc. (take note of the young African who was attacked and beaten badly by several white supremacists yesterday in Virginia). The reason for this is because they have the system on their side because they represent all the values of this capitalist system. It was built and is maintained on white supremacy. So, when they come out, all the resources and values of this system are at their disposal. The police are often members of their ranks and at the very least, they are sympathetic to them because they all see protecting capitalism as their objective. If you are going to be serious about overcoming these odds, clearly, a different approach is needed.
Instead of you brown activists recognizing the above, you come out each time, reacting to them, with little to no planning. You come out relying on emotions, completely disregarding the danger that places you and all of our people in. You actually come to greet violent white supremacists with no plan, little to no training, and no idea how you will respond when all the forces on their side start to move against you and people who look like you. And despite the fact you have resources within your communities that have always been there to help you get ready, you continue to completely ignore that despite the clear evidence your approach is not working. I was deeply upset from seeing that young African brutally beat by white supremacists in Virginia yesterday (it triggered my feeling from being hospitalized the same way when I was 14) just as I was upset by the young white woman who lost her life along with the other folks who were injured. But, I was even more upset because despite the fact there is no way to ensure everyone's safety at any type of demonstration, there are things that could be done that could possibly mitigate the possibility of injury and death if more security measures, training, and planning were in place. People often say history is repeating itself. Anyone familiar with the laws of dialectics knows it isn't possible for history to repeat itself because material and the conditions it exists in are constantly changing. It is possible though for us to have some accuracy in predicting outcomes based on history, but for whatever reasons, many of us seem completely committed to ignoring these effective tools that can steer us to victory. Now, I admitted I was there when I was 17, but the difference, and the reason I'm saying what I'm saying now, is because when more experienced organizer/activists came to me to work with me, I humbled myself and listened to them. They clearly knew more than I did and I acknowledged that. And, we didn't have the mass sources of information that are available today. I'm NOT saying anyone needs to listen to me. There are a multitude of perspectives out there to study. African people have plenty of organizations and if you are African (for example) and you are serious, there is no way you should be out there before you have completely familiarized yourself with the perspectives of those like you who were out here doing the work before you. Look to the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement. The Nation of Islam. The African People's Socialist Party (Uhuru Movement), of course, my All African People's Revolutionary Party, and many others. Join those groups. Or, if you don't think they are sufficient enough, start your own group with your own study process and your own planning for how to attack the problem. That's what I'm saying.
Finally, its time for you liberal white people to either take a dump or get off the pot. Stop pretending like you are on the side of justice as it relates to white supremacy while you continue to perpetuate this lie that these white supremacists are some sort of separate entity from the values of this capitalist system. There is absolutely no question (and this is ill refutable) that the foundation, walls, ceiling, and floors of the U.S. are built with and reinforced with values and history of violent white supremacy. How can you people even look at yourself, then look at the Indigenous people of the Western Hemisphere, and call yourself a person for justice? Every step we take in this hemisphere is filled with the blood of the Indigenous people. If you live anywhere, whether you pay rent, mortgage, or even if you sleep on the streets, you are benefiting from the murder of the Indigenous people and the theft of their self determination. And, every time you see an African, wherever they were born, you are facing the reality of colonialism and the slave trade that killed millions of us, completely traumatized us in ways that are as evident today as they were in the 1500s, and created the wealth of this society. So, there is absolutely NO difference between what this country represents and those violent white supremacists in Virginia yesterday. Actually, they are simply the scab being exposed from the wound that has been hidden from those who refuse to see it.
When you attempt to substitute and impose your emotionally driven version of what you unscientifically wish the U.S. was over the reality of what it is, you do ill reversible damage to the suffering we face from this backward system. And, you demonstrate for all of us to see that you are not our ally. You are in fact as much our enemy as the people in klan robes. Its time for you people to grow some estrogen and start telling the truth. This is a backward, disgraceful country and all that's happening now is your relatives are exposing what we have been telling you for centuries. You either need to get serious or we will view you no different than we do your brother and sister wearing the sheet. In many ways, the harm you are doing us is worse than what your family is inflicting upon us.
So, for those white people who protest , do it. But, start planning so you can start coming out of these things with clear victories. There are plenty of people who can help you plan once you lower your egos long enough to see them. Join organizations and stop gliding through this reality on individualistic vessels fueled by your personal trauma and dysfunction. Its unfortunate if that's your reality, but that isn't going to help us win anything. And for African and other brown people, stop showing up there at these things blind and with no plan. You are the targets here. Don't you get that? How can you continue to do this without knowing who has your back and what your options are? You are setting yourself and the rest of us up for danger. Instead, join one of our many organizations who know how to fight white supremacy. I realize its not the adrenaline rush you are looking for, but if you really want to win and stamp out white supremacy, and not just do something to help you feel good about living under white supremacy, you must realize a change of approach is needed. In other words, you have to get more disciplined and step up your game.
History isn't repeating itself. But, the definition of insanity is definitely doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different outcome. And history requires us to affectionately and resolutely point that out.
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