-Caveat Lector-
Subject:
(en) THE REST OF THE NEWS(2)
Date:
Thu, 22 Feb 2001 22:19:29 -0600 (CST)
From:
Lorenzo Ervin <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
________________________________________________
A - I N F O S N E W S S E R V I C E
http://www.ainfos.ca/
________________________________________________
THE REST OF THE NEWS
by Lorenzo Komboa Ervin
THE FRAUD OF BLACK CAPITALISM (2)
Recently I wrote the first installment of my newspaper
column, wherein I criticized Black capitalism [and the
capitalist system generally], and the
attempt of some
individuals and groups to put forth small scale
capitalism as a way forward for the liberation of
Black people. I heard from many of you out there, some
praising me for the articles, saying it was something
that they wished that those in the Black leadership
would write and say such things about folks trying to
either make a business of the Black liberation
struggle, or offering a false image of economic
development under this system as a way forward for the
freedom of our people.
But, there were also critics, many of whom did not
even appear to understand what I was talking about,
who accused me of "trying to stop them from "making a
living", "or trying to stop Black people from
"expressing their creativity"[?], discouraging them
from starting small businesses, or from achieving
"financial independence", "economic freedom" and so
on. According to one guy I am even trying to stop "us"
from doing what the "White man is doing to be a
success." They praised Tony Brown, Matah, and the
other Black-faced economic programs, and defended them
from my earlier attack, implying that I was a bad guy,
traitor, or "just not with it". I am just not sure
that "it" is a good thing.
I want those critics to be clear that I am not
opposed to some individual entering the sales field,
starting a small business, credit union, or other
effort to make a living for themselves and their
families. I am opposed to our people being scammed in
the process by those who present this as the *only
way* we can get free. To me, this kind of argument
chains us even more to the political plantation, and
lays us open to exploitation by a new class of masters
selling fairy tales of economic riches. I'll just say
here that we are not fighting to replace the white
exploiters with a new class of Black exploiters; we
need to get rid of all of them, whether wearing a
Dashiki or Brooks Brothers suit.
First of all, who ever said that "what the White man
is doing" is such a great thing? I disagree that we
should emulate white capitalist businessmen, call it
a "Black thing" and then put that forward as "a path
of freedom." What the capitalist is doing [or has
done] is forcibly exploiting our labor , imprisoning
our youth, destroying the land and natural resources
of this land and the rest of the world, and other
crimes all in the name of "progress" and "profit."
Remember, Brother Malcolm X said: "...you show me a
capitalist, I"ll show you a racist..."
In condemning my position against capitalism and
defending U.S. imperialism, one Brother even asked
about "ghettoes and poverty" in Cuba. Well, my
question is why is it that in the richest country in
the world, that there is much more poverty,
inequality, and economic underdevelopment of the
Black community than anywhere else? I am concerned
with why these things exist in the United States
[where I currently reside], than I am about a small
country in the Carribean, underdeveloped because of
years of economic and political domination by the USA.
Then the Matahh folks tried to pressure me with a
variety of e-mails (and I can even remember
telemarketing phone calls some months ago when I lived
in Atlanta and Tennessee) to sell me on their
Multi-level Marketing plan to distribute products from
Black businesses by sales agents in the community. For
the life of me, I cannot see, [except for the "in your
face" Black nationalist veneer and guilt-tripping
rhetoric], how this differs from AMWAY or any other
MLM plan promising "financial independence." How are
we are supposed to be economically "liberated" under
this system without a struggle for Black liberation?
It is possible to profit from these plans, but as
individuals, and certainly not as a whole people.
I can make the same argument about Tony Brown's "Buy
Freedom" program, Farrakhan's "Clean and Fresh " MLM
scheme of a few years ago, and others not named here.
I don't oppose them for the individuals who are
engaged in them trying to make a living, but when
their leaders come forward and say to millions of our
people that we should all do this and that if we do
not, then we are "bogus", or "not serious about our
freedom" or some such nonsense, then I draw the line.
I do not believe that there is any separate path to
freedom due to Black trade among ourselves, nor do I
think there is any real "financial independence" under
the capitalist system. I acknowledge that a class of
Black entrepreneurs may arise [as indeed they have
arisen] who will profit from government contracts,
business deals, black retail and service companies,
and so on. These are individual Black business owners
who can make a living in small business corporations,
[which is why the late President Nixon created the
Black Business Development Centers in the Commerce
Department in 1969], but millions of Black people are
not going to be able to do that or be financially
"independent." One, they cannot get the capital from
the bankers [because of redlining of our communites,
among other things], and two, they may not have the
business connections or skills.
But it is not even as simple as that. We are not going
to *ever get free* under this system, whether by
economics or conventional politics, and it's important
we understand that. We live under a system of
capitalist-colonialism, not a mythical "free market"
from which you can "buy" your way out. But what this
Black capitalist program is really all about is an
attempt by elements of the Black middle class to
become a Black capitalist *ruling class*, and act as a
buffer for the white ruling class from the millions of
poor Black people starving because of this system, who
will one day overthrow it, joining millions of others
oppressed and exploited around the world.
The existence of Black business people, [or for that
matter Black politicians allied with them], has not
done a damn thing to help the millions of Black people
in the inner city, who are suffering from poverty ,
community underdevelopment, police brutality, and
other forms of opression. None of these so-called
business "plans" for Black capitalist "economic
empowerment" will touch the folks in housing projects
or the millions of youth in U.S. prisons, the millions
of homeless sleeping in the streets, or other poor
folks. They need a hell of a lot more than this.
But then again, these plans are not supposed to touch
them: this is a plan for a Black middle class element
who feel superior to the rest of us, and want to
hustle us out of our money in the name of some false
racial loyalty. Like capitalism generally, they want
to rise up at the expense of the Black working class
and poor. This is really a class issue inside the
black community itself.
It is not possible to have any form of *true* economic
independence, and then not have to engage in political
struggle against the very forces resposible for our
oppression. To tell folks that they can free
themselves by merely selling trinkets, African-style
clothing, insurance, stocks, starting a Black bank, or
*anything* that does not require us to confront our
oppressors is a scam in and of itself, [an apology for
white capitalist rule]. I feel that it holds us back
from freedom and liberation, and I don't care who
doesn't like it! Hey, I thought Booker T. Washington
was dead.
********
Subject:
(en) THE REST OF THE NEWS COLUMN (3 of 3)
Date:
Sat, 3 Mar 2001 23:56:51 -0600 (CST)
From:
Lorenzo Ervin <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Organization:
?
To:
undisclosed-recipients:;
________________________________________________
A - I N F O S N E W S S E R V I C E
http://www.ainfos.ca/
________________________________________________
THE REST OF THE NEWS
by Lorenzo Komboa Ervin
THE FRAUD OF BLACK CAPITALISM (3)
You know, everybody looks down their noses at poor
Black people. They fault them for their own poverty,
suffering and even deaths. They "lie, cheat and
steal," both the smug well-to-do whites and suburban
upper class Blacks say about the poor. They, of
course, feel themselves every bit superior to "those
people." If they hear about the mass of Black youth
now gone off [or going] to prison, if Black people are
homeless and living in the streets, or if they are
slain by a racist cop, then good enough for them!
"They deserve it" say the Black bourgeoisie, "they are
incorrigible" say the white politicians, or they "sell
drugs" say the Uncle Tom preachers. To all these
folks, the cops are "just doing their jobs" to stop
crime and keep them safe in their middle class
enclaves. They feel that "tough policing" is the way
that you have to handle poor folks. "Come and get 'em,
boss!"
Black TV commentator and conservative spokesperson
Tony Brown even says that the Black upper class has
"no responsibility" for the plight of the urban poor
and Black working people, and that we "cannot save
them."
He also says it is "useless" to fight racism, that
Black people should be working on Black economic
empowerment [most likely provided by his "Buy Freedom"
investment plan]. He further says, [as do many Black
and white conservatives] that two-thirds of Blacks
living in America are now in the middle class, living
comfortable lives "much better than our parents ever
did."
But think about this: today's Black middle class is
really equivelant to the lower or middle levels of the
traditional white working class of the 1960's. I mean,
just check it out: A Black man with a college degree
still makes only 75% of the salary of a white male
high school or trade school graduate, and Black women
only make 50-60% of that. Hey, some middle class Black
folks are now so poor or severely experiencing the
economic downturn due to the capitalist economy that
they may actually be back living with their parents!
After all, we are living through some seriously hard
times, which even affects the lower and middle Black
middle classes, along with the Black poor.
In fact, if any of the folks in the lower middle class
lose their weekly paycheck, they will likely find
themselves in the same place Black poor folks are: the
sidewalk. People are barely making a sustainable
income off what in an previous economic period would
be a decent middle class income. Even $50,000 does not
go very far these days for a family of four [!].
Because of the transformation of the capitalist
economy and more poverty, we have to rethink many of
these economic issues instead of just accepting Tony
Brown's, the white conservatives', or the government's
own arguments as to who is in the Black middle class
and therefore "doing good." Brown claims that Black
people have "hundreds of millions of dollars" coming
through our hands each week, and that all we have to
do is save it and use it for his "Buy Freedom" plan.
He chastises us for "blowing the money", which could
be used for racial uplift.
Well, most Black people don't have any disposable
income. It goes for rent or mortgage, food or
clothing, or other expenses to survive in a modern
society. Most people are not "living large," certainly
not enough where they have money to contribute to Tony
Brown's [or anybody else's] flawed "vision." The thing
about Black capitalism [and capitalism generally] is
that it uses myths, lies, scapegoating, confusion, and
even our own racial loyalty to scam us and pick our
pockets.
Like the old 19th century Black leader, Booker T.
Washington, Brown claims that we don't have to engage
in grassroots political struggle against racism or the
capitalist system. He and other Black capitalist
pitch-men in this period seem to feel that if we all
just work to get rich, then we will *automatically*
get respect from the white power structure and thus
end racism, [and by extension, poverty itself]. It's
not going to happen that way.
The answer is not Black capitalist entrepreneuralism.
We will not get free by "buying into" [or out of] the
capitalist system, no matter how many times Tony Brown
or some other capitalist scam artist says it. But
unfortunately, until this system completely caves in
or we wake up and take action to eliminate this
corrupt system, many Black folks will be fooled by the
idea that we can become capitalists ourselves to
employ one another or trade among ourselves as a
viable "Black market," and thus buy our way free of
this system. But it ain't happening. It defies the
laws of economics, politics, and even common sense.
It's opportunism and demagoguery for people like Tony
Brown to stand up and say this just to get our money.
We are going to have to *fight* this white system, and
nothing will change that. There is no easy way out.
But then I believe that Black radicals have to start
to speak up against such nonsense, when we know it
misleads the masses of our people, and provide an
alternative, a transitional program for *survival
pending social revolution.* I will begin to do that in
my next series of columns. I hope it will spark
discussion like these articles on Black capitlism have
done. More important is that I hope it will start more
grassroots organizing in the hood.
********
The A-Infos News Service
News about and of interest to anarchists
********
<A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/">www.ctrl.org</A>
DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER
==========
CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic
screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are
sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis-
directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with
major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought.
That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and
always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no
credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply.
Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector.
========================================================================
Archives Available at:
http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html
<A HREF="http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html">Archives of
[EMAIL PROTECTED]</A>
http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/
<A HREF="http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/">ctrl</A>
========================================================================
To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email:
SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED]
To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email:
SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Om
