Living on the black plantation

 

During slavery, and from the 1800's through the 1980's, the concept of family was tight knit, strongly woven, and the envy of most cultures. The African American family unit survived in spite of unimaginable cruelty and adversity. It is only recently, during the last thirty years, that the African American family became dysfunctional and lost its direction. One has to think for some twisted reason we do not feel whole because in many cases we allow others define us.

What has happened to the Black community in America? How did we go from singing We Shall Overcome to singing Superman That Ho? When did our priorities change from fighting for the right to vote to not voting at all because, “One vote doesn’t matter?” How did a people who came from such strong and courageous roots become commercialized and oblivious to their current state of being? In 2008 the Black community is still enslaved and we do not even recognize it. The children of our community are increasingly having babies, killing one another, and dropping out of school. In Chicago alone by April 7, 2008 twenty-three CPS students had been murdered and that number continues to rise. However, it seems as though only a hand full of people are actually concerned with our race’s future.

 

Our Community as a whole is becoming more divided, disrespectful, inconsiderate, and unconcerned with each passing year. Our children are becoming more uneducated, angry, and unmotivated, but we feel that it is more important to discuss the fact that Nas came out with a CD entitled Nigger than exchange ideas as to the fact that our young men are dropping out of school and ending up in prison before they are even twenty-one. We can argue all day about how disrespectful it is for “good” Black men to date outside their race, but we cannot initiate new innovative programs to keep our youth off the street and out of gangs. We can complain hours on end about how “The White man” is keeping us down, but on Election Day we cannot find enough strength within us to go to the polls and vote.

 

Black women raise children, too often alone, and the bitterness that difficult task creates causes some women to make derogatory complaints against men in general, tainting their daughters and shaming their sons. Also, it seems that black women do not often hold their sons to as high a standard as their daughters, making them further vulnerable. If proper behavior is not modeled for young people, they have difficulty fulfilling those expectations. This creates the perfect ingredients for the dismal situations to occur in our community. She went on to add that a lot of that has to do with our values, and the lack of knowing the importance of loving our communities, our families, and ourselves.

 

The Feminist Movement: Backed by liberal white women to fight for the equal rights of women; the same rights most black men had yet to fully be granted. A lot of black women got lost in the rhetoric of how men were keeping them down, losing sight of the fact that black men were down there with them. To this day, the power exchange and infighting among black men and women, is sadly considered the norm, a tool enumerated by Willie Lynch

 

The Black Church: Many churches have lost their way. The business of religion is bankrupting our communities. Many churches are not touching the lives of those outside of the church most in need. Just like back in the day when it was the design of slave masters, who did so much wickedness to use this as a tactic by offering a bible and in most instances nothing more than pain and a promise of a better life to keep us in line. This is not the same as faith which was necessary to survive our struggles.

 

  http://www.blogtalkradio.com/sisterthundershow/2014/09/30/living-on-the-black-plantation