wfmmm
5A
OPINIONS/Oe Ctarlsttt ^at
Thursday, December 15, 2005
African
Americans vs. the
new Africans
It’s time we find common
ground on common issues
It is time to begin a dialogue between non-immigrant
African-Americans, and people of African descent who
migrate to the U.S.A.
This dialc^ue is a long time coming and
very badly needed. The continuing misun
derstandings that emerge betw^n the
groups undermine our ability to act collec
tively and to cooperate on common goals.'
As such, we can be played against one
another.
If we think of African-Americans as those
who are the descendants of people brou^t
to the U.S.A. in chains between 1619 and
Bill
Fletcher
the mid 19th century, we are beginning with the wrong
assumption. Even prior to the rdatively recent wave of
immigrants from Africa and from parts of Latin America,
“African-Americans” as a group were never homogenous.
There were, of course, those who were brought here begin
ning in the 1600s, most of whom remained in indentured
servitude and later slavery, a minority achieving freedom.
Yet, in the early 1800s, another African population came to
the U.S.A. but under very different circumstances.
Cape Verdeans, from then Portuguese-controlled Cape
Verde islands (an archipelago roughly 500 miles west of
Senegal), migrated to the U.S.A. as fisherman, whalers
(and eventually bringing with them their families). Their
identity, for the 19th Century and much of the 20th
Century was linked to both Portuguese colonialism and a
very different experience as Black people in the USA. Yet,
over time Cape Verdeans began to influence and penetrate
into the evolving Afiican-American population.
Jazz artist Horace Silver (actually Silva), for instance,
was for many years seen as simply another Black artist,
with his Cape Verdean heritage completely ignored. Yet he
was emblematic of so many other Cape Verdeans who
helped to change what it meant to be an Afiican-
American.
By the early 20th Century, immigration firom the West
Indies began to increase and with it additional changes in
Black America. While there have been and remain tension
betwe^ West Indian immigrants and non-immigrant
African-Americans, the contributions of West Indians to
what it means to be an Afiican-American are overwhelm
ing. Great political leaders, including Marcus Garvey, but
also the recently deceased Shirley Chisholm, altered what
it meant to be Afiican-American. Indeed, over the 20th
Century the merging of the West Indian immigrant com
munities and traditional Afiican-American communities
brought with it cultural, political and linguistic develop
ments that would have been nearly inconceivable 100
years ago.
So, the lesson? Pure and simple, there are no pure and
simple Afirican-Americans. We are constantly imdergoing
changes as people fix)m different parts of the Afiican world
enter the U.S.A. The political, economic and cultural real
ities of the homelands of the immigrants differ vastly fi*om
what they encounter in the U.S.A.
In many cases, particularly when these immigrants orig
inate in black-majority lands, the demographics and racial
politics of the U.S.A. do not make a great degree of sense.
Yet, in time, irrespective of intention, they too merge with
the great river of black America.
None of this is to deny the national and cultural identi
ties of immigrants of Afiican descent. Rather, we must all
acknowledge that tiie historical lesson seems to indicate
that over the course of one or two generations, immi^ants
of Afiican descent (whether fixjm the Caribbean, Afiica, or
Latin America) come to play an important part in defining
what it means to be an Afiican-American.
If we can arrive at such a conclusion, we must then talk.
Immigrant and non-immigrant organizations of people of
Afiican descent need to, quite literally, sit down and begin
to educate one another. We must, in other words, com
mence a dialogue toward greater mutual understanding.
Through such a dialt^ue we can only get a better under
standing of how to work together here in the U.S.A.
Those of us fix)m the U.S.A. can get a better understand
ing of a much broader worid that does not end at the bor
ders of the USA. Perhaps with such a mutual understand
ing, we can reass^i our role in changing that worid.
BILL FLETCHER, is president of TransAfrica Forum, a
Washington, D.C.-based non-profit educational and organizing
center formed to raise awareness in the United States about issues
facing the nations and peoples of Africa, the Caribbean and Latin
America. He also is co-chair of the anti-war coalition, United for
Peace and Justice (wwwMmtedforpeaceorg). He can be reached at
bfletcher^transafiicaforum arg.
Leadership needs
obvious after
Katrina disaster
Hurricane response shows
what nation th inks of victims
Ron
Walters
What is occurring befoie our very eyes is a stark
reminder that what Kanye West said about
George Bush not caring about black people is tr^e
of the American political system as a whole at this
moment in history
Maybe you watched as I did, the anxgance with
which some black people fix)m New Orleans were
treated who testified before Rep. Ibm Davis’ com
mittee about what they experienced during the
hurricane and the botched relief efforts.
This display of incredulity on the part of some
member of Congress that sat on the conmiittee
illustrated that they may as well live on another planet when it
comes to their understanding of the ill-treatment that is meted out
to black people every day of their* lives. The only other explanation
for such resistance to the telling truth of these horrible experiences
in such vivid terms is that they were embarrassed that such things
happened inside the United States when they are attempting to
strike a pose as the icon of democracy to other people around the
^obe.
Thus, "Moma D” and others testified about black people being
held at bay with guns aimed at them by police and the National
Guard, that they experienced concentration camp-fike conditions
in the Superdome, that racist epithets were hurled at them, and
that, in fact, they were treated like the enemy in their own city It
seems not to matter whether they were Phi Beta Kappas, college
educated, land owner, working, tax paying, or all of the other cri
teria that conservatives lay down when they are challenging black
people to be like them. It only seemed to matter that they were
blak.
This fact, that the victims were predominantly black, seems to
figure into another disaster in the making. It is that this session of
Congress will end and no legislation will have been passed to deal
with the disaster.
No leadership for an urgent attention to this crisis can be found,
outside of the action taken by the Congressional Black Caucus
that put together a package of legislation that i*epresented all 42
members. No leadership in the White House is available. In fact,
the word is that Bush has not decided whether the federal gov-
emment will pay for the cleanup. That is to say, he has not decid
ed whether to stop trying to shore up his falling rating by trying to
pump up the war in Iraq as a "success” long enough to be respon
sible about the American Gulf
The insurance companies that were supposed to insure homes
against floods and high winds are jumping ship and in any case,
they will only cov^ a portion of a small percent of the damage.
The nature of the damage, for anyone who has seen even a little,
is so vast that it will take a Marshall Plan-size project of the fed
eral government to address the reconstruction. But, word is that
the Department of Defense and the Corp of Engineers have not
decided whether to rebuild the levees.
What? It is only six to eight months before the hurricane season
will be upon that region again and if the levees cannot be strength
ened in that time; people face the prospect of another season of
misery Thus, for the decision to languish about whether the fed
eral government will take responsibility for the reconstruction,
even for the question to be raised about who will pay, is a massive
rejection of responsibility, so deep and historically incomprehensi
ble that it cries out, why
Could the answer be that black people are the worst victims?
Where is the leadership? The newspapers show Bush exercising
leadership on making tax cuts permanent just now, figuring out
how to take money out of the treasury that will surely needed
for rebuilding the American Gulf. We should look the size of this
abdication of responsibility in the face right now. By doing so, we
help our leaders, and our fiiends, to take off the blinders and come
to the conclusion I have reached — this issue will have to be forced
onto the national agenda by direct action.
As a policy analyst, I believed - and have written - that
Hurricane Katrina forced open the doors of the house of poverty
and let all come in to see that the social policies of the last two
decades are not working. I had hoped that the discussion about
poverty would become nationalized and made credible by this act
and that possibly new policies mi^t be entertained. But I also
understood the determination of White nationalists to succeed
with their agenda, which meant that they would find a way to sub
merge the human needs under the rubble of materialism and
racial dominance.
They have been very successful and they have had the assistance
of the media, as the shift of American attention moves on to shop
ping sprees, and parties celebrating Christmas. We shouldn’t feel
much like celebrating this Christmas. But the season of Martin
Luther King, Jr. is coming and we should use it to figure out how
to move this agenda back onto the national stage.
RON WAITERS is Professor of Government and Politics at the University
of Maryland College Park.
What I would
do with the rest
of my life
Condemned killer sought
chance to make amends
with anti-gang choices
This column was written by
Viliams and made available to the
NNPA News Service by the NAACP as
Ibokie Williams awaited word on
whether he would live or die. On
Monday, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger
rejected Williams bid for clemency,
paving the way for his execution
Tuesday.
My name is Stanley Tbokie
Williams. I’ve been I’esiding on San
Quentin’s condenmed row for over 24
years. As a death i*ow prisoner, my
Stanley
“TCX)KIE”
Williams
testament to redemption has been met at times witli
condenmation and misinforaiation. Fortunately, it is
God who anoints with the oil of redemption. The for
giving God to whom I pray has sublimated me, himi-
bled me - and vicariously works through me.
In the beginning, redemption was an alien concept
to me. However, while in solitary confinement, duiing
1988 to 1994, I embai'ked upon a ti’ansitional path
toward redemption. I imderwent disciplined yeai's of
education, soul searching, edification, spiritual culti
vation and battling my internal demons. Though I
was loathed for being the co-founder of the Crips, my
redemption caused me to repudiate my gang leader
ship role, to repudiate any affiliation with the Oips
or other gangs.
Redemption has resurrected me fi'om a mental and
spiritual death. It symbolizes the end of a bad begin
ning as well as a new start. Being redeemed has
enabled me to reunite with God, reclaim my human
ity, find inner peace and discover my raison d’etre —
my reason to exist.
Recently I was asked if I am prepared to die. I
responded, “Fm prepared to live.” Though execution
looms like poisonous toxins, God’s gift of redemption
revivifies my life. I inhale ledemption and exhale joie
de vivre. That’s why I do not fear death. Socrates stat
ed while defending his life before court judges, “A
man who is good for anything should not calculate the
chance of living or dying. He should only consider
whether in doii^ anything, he is doing right, or
wrong, and acting the part of a good man, or of bad.”
I opted for good to assist the hopeless.
Consequently, my spirit deeds are exhibited in my
nine children’s books; my memoir. Blue Rage, Black
Redemption; my educational website,
www.tookie.com; my Internet Project for Street
Peace; and my Peace Protocol. All of my work is pred
icated on persuading youths and adults to not follow
in my footsteps. Still, my desire is to do more.
Recently I met with Bruce Gordon, president and
CEO of the National Association for the Advancement
of Colored People (NAACP). From that artraordinary
meeting came an historic partnership. Each NAACP
chapter will be working with me to create and imple
ment a violence prevention curriculum for at-risk
youths throu^out America. The partnership with
this nation’s oldest civil rights organization will pro
vide me with the structure and support to carry out
my vision of a gang-fiee America.
I know that to whom much is given, much is expect
ed. If Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger grants me
clemency, I will accept it as an obligation to society to
spend the rest of my life'working to reverse the cycle
of youth violence. It is my desire to help save society
finm producing more victims.
Here and now, I bear witness that God’s bequest of
redemption has replenished me with a mission and
revealed that the impossible is possible.
All of my work is
predicted on
persuading youths
and adults to not
follow in my footsteps.