REPARATIONS - BLACK IN AMERICA
Posted by Bella at 8/19/2008 1:18 AM 
Categories: reparations, Lawsuits, AMERICAN SLAVERY, social networking, Inequality, Black in America, CULTURAL RENAISSANCE
Categories: reparations, Lawsuits, AMERICAN SLAVERY, social networking, Inequality, Black in America, CULTURAL RENAISSANCE
Good Evening, Everyone:
May All Of You Have A Most Blessed Week!!!
I know by now that most of you have heard about the series presented recently on CNN entitled "Black In America".
While "surfing the net" last week, I discovered a social networking site at www.BlackInAmerica.com.
This site was created by individuals who were interested in continuing the relevant dialogue that was
initiated by the television news report. This site discusses a wide variety of issues affecting African Americans in an "intelligent", "well organized" forum. It also gives individuals the opportunity to connect with African Americans from all walks of life in different parts of the country.
This weekend, I received a message from another member asking my opinion about a blog that was posted discussing reparation payments that should be made to African Americans due to the injustices that our ancestors suffered as a result of slavery in America. There's no question that the "brutality of slavery" wrecked havoc on the lives of our ancestors and is still impacting our "community psyche" as we speak. In fact, from my own personal experience as an African American woman, if somehow such payments were awarded to us, I would not turn them down depending upon what I would have to "sacrifice to receive them".
Here's my response:
"The research into this issue has been done by University Professors and Lawyers. It's not the lack of legal grounds that's preventing these lawsuits from being filed, it's all about financing them. Lawyers don't work for free and their time is very expensive. Some of the leading African American attorneys have contemplated initiating these suits but have not done so because they don't want to have to deal with the "negative fallout" that it would cause for their other pending cases. Our court system is not without biases and political agendas. Unfortunately, many of our own African American politicians simply don't have the "backbone" to support these suits and would do everything they could to derail them. The reality is that so many of our "so-called" educated, black bourgeois really couldn't care less just as long as they can enjoy all the "material trappings" of success for themselves.
Nobody cares about us as an ethnic group because "internationally" we don't value ourselves. What goes on in African countries absolutely "turns my stomach". The leaders of some of these countries should be tried as "war criminals" for the neglect and atrocities they have inflicted upon their citizens. These tyrants seize control primarily by force, siphon off all the wealth for themselves and their supporters and never distribute it fairly. The continent of Africa does not lack wealth! It lacks leaders with a conscience! Too many humanitarian organizations have raised substantial amounts of money to help ease the poorest African's plight but their self-serving political dictators always get in the way.
The bottomline is that we are not "unified enough" in "purpose and spirit" to make these purposed lawsuits a "reality". As a group of "oppressed", "stressed" and "depressed" people we are too content with "crumbs". What we really need is a "spiritual and cultural" renaissance because too many of us would not spend the money "wisely", if somehow we were to win reparations from the Federal government.
Too many of our young people have mistaken the symptoms of neglect, abuse and oppression for culture. This trend really scares me because too many of our young people simply can't cope with the stress of day-to-day living without destructively lashing out. Reparations would be wonderful but encouraging our young people to embrace life with a "renewed" sense of purpose would be even better!!! ""
My personal observation is that "money alone" will not solve all the issues afflicting our community. I won't argue that increased resources aren't needed within the African American community because they certainly are. However, the reality is that if you're going to wait around for a reparation check to put your life back on track, you'll never get anywhere.
Many years ago, Susan L. Taylor, the former editor-in-chief of Essence magazine mentioned in one of her editorials something to the effect that , "our community has to continue to progress regardless of who is in White House". In other words, we as a people and community can't always depend upon "the powers that be" to uplift us. Self empowerment is something that we have to make a concerted effort to encourage and sustain within our own community. Our ancestors did it in the past and we can "rekindle" that same spirit now. Sure times are hard, and financially the future is uncertain, but life, itself, is not promised to any of us.
Our community has the power to heal and move forward. We have to make commitments on a "personal" level to be the best that we can be in whatever we do. "WE'RE A BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE AND WE KNOW HOW TO SHINE!!!". All of humanity is a "WORK IN PROGRESS". WE AS A PEOPLE, HAVE THE POWER TO MAKE IT HAPPEN!
May God Bless All Of You,
Sistah Selah
May All Of You Have A Most Blessed Week!!!
I know by now that most of you have heard about the series presented recently on CNN entitled "Black In America".
While "surfing the net" last week, I discovered a social networking site at www.BlackInAmerica.com.
This site was created by individuals who were interested in continuing the relevant dialogue that was
initiated by the television news report. This site discusses a wide variety of issues affecting African Americans in an "intelligent", "well organized" forum. It also gives individuals the opportunity to connect with African Americans from all walks of life in different parts of the country.
This weekend, I received a message from another member asking my opinion about a blog that was posted discussing reparation payments that should be made to African Americans due to the injustices that our ancestors suffered as a result of slavery in America. There's no question that the "brutality of slavery" wrecked havoc on the lives of our ancestors and is still impacting our "community psyche" as we speak. In fact, from my own personal experience as an African American woman, if somehow such payments were awarded to us, I would not turn them down depending upon what I would have to "sacrifice to receive them".
Here's my response:
"The research into this issue has been done by University Professors and Lawyers. It's not the lack of legal grounds that's preventing these lawsuits from being filed, it's all about financing them. Lawyers don't work for free and their time is very expensive. Some of the leading African American attorneys have contemplated initiating these suits but have not done so because they don't want to have to deal with the "negative fallout" that it would cause for their other pending cases. Our court system is not without biases and political agendas. Unfortunately, many of our own African American politicians simply don't have the "backbone" to support these suits and would do everything they could to derail them. The reality is that so many of our "so-called" educated, black bourgeois really couldn't care less just as long as they can enjoy all the "material trappings" of success for themselves.
Nobody cares about us as an ethnic group because "internationally" we don't value ourselves. What goes on in African countries absolutely "turns my stomach". The leaders of some of these countries should be tried as "war criminals" for the neglect and atrocities they have inflicted upon their citizens. These tyrants seize control primarily by force, siphon off all the wealth for themselves and their supporters and never distribute it fairly. The continent of Africa does not lack wealth! It lacks leaders with a conscience! Too many humanitarian organizations have raised substantial amounts of money to help ease the poorest African's plight but their self-serving political dictators always get in the way.
The bottomline is that we are not "unified enough" in "purpose and spirit" to make these purposed lawsuits a "reality". As a group of "oppressed", "stressed" and "depressed" people we are too content with "crumbs". What we really need is a "spiritual and cultural" renaissance because too many of us would not spend the money "wisely", if somehow we were to win reparations from the Federal government.
Too many of our young people have mistaken the symptoms of neglect, abuse and oppression for culture. This trend really scares me because too many of our young people simply can't cope with the stress of day-to-day living without destructively lashing out. Reparations would be wonderful but encouraging our young people to embrace life with a "renewed" sense of purpose would be even better!!! ""
My personal observation is that "money alone" will not solve all the issues afflicting our community. I won't argue that increased resources aren't needed within the African American community because they certainly are. However, the reality is that if you're going to wait around for a reparation check to put your life back on track, you'll never get anywhere.
Many years ago, Susan L. Taylor, the former editor-in-chief of Essence magazine mentioned in one of her editorials something to the effect that , "our community has to continue to progress regardless of who is in White House". In other words, we as a people and community can't always depend upon "the powers that be" to uplift us. Self empowerment is something that we have to make a concerted effort to encourage and sustain within our own community. Our ancestors did it in the past and we can "rekindle" that same spirit now. Sure times are hard, and financially the future is uncertain, but life, itself, is not promised to any of us.
Our community has the power to heal and move forward. We have to make commitments on a "personal" level to be the best that we can be in whatever we do. "WE'RE A BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE AND WE KNOW HOW TO SHINE!!!". All of humanity is a "WORK IN PROGRESS". WE AS A PEOPLE, HAVE THE POWER TO MAKE IT HAPPEN!
May God Bless All Of You,
Sistah Selah
Really interesting topic raised
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Yeah, in my opinion, this is written on every fence
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