Universally Speaking
Rahim Islam is a National Speaker and Writer, Convener of Philadelphia Community of Leaders, and President/CEO of Universal Companies, a community development and education management company headquartered in Philadelphia, PA. Follow Rahim Islam on FaceBook(Rahim Islam) & Twitter (@RahimIslamUC)
Rahim Islam
Brothers and Sisters, we must begin to push hard to achieve a real paradigm shift if we are going to have a shot at addressing the issues facing the Black community in America.
We are going to have to take a truly sober approach that is void of any one philosophy, ideology, and/or theory that in order to promote and/or establish unity within the Black community.
By paradigm shift, I mean a fundamental change in how our ancestors and the Black community will be represented and by whom.
I am not talking about some superficial description of unity where all Black people are all doing the same thing at the same time. That’s unrealistic.
The unity to which I refer is one of functionality, where representatives (leadership) from all segments of the community are working together around a common and collective agenda and doing business on behalf of the Black community. We cannot otherwise compete, let alone win.
LET ME SAY IT AGAIN – WITHOUT FUNCTIONAL UNITY AMONGST THE BLACK COMMUNITY, WE CANT WIN! WE MUST HAVE A PARADIGM SHIFT.
What could we possibly could be waiting for when you consider the state of the Black community? Where is the energy to unify the Black community or is that impossible?
We must wake up to our reality and stop looking at television.
We must look at our job situation; our finances; our families; our neighborhoods, etc. and then we will see the real story.
I have been screaming about the ramifications and the perpetual undermining of real Black progress by the disturbing imbalance of wealth and income disparities, coupled with the mass incarceration of Black men at epidemic proportions.
While there is limited individual and isolated economic growth amongst some Blacks, as a group, both locally and nationally, the Black community is losing significant social economic ground and the sad reality is that there is nothing in place now to defend and possibly stop this decline.
In addition, we now find ourselves in an environment with the following:
• Shrinking public resources, specifically in the areas of our greatest needs (i.e. health, education, social services, economics, etc.);
• Significantly diminished public opinion against the use of public policy and resources to correct the legacy of slavery (i.e. many previous ”affirmative action” gains are being challenged in court today);
• The Black community appears to be more disunited and too politically weak to mount any real challenge in spite of the fact that Blacks hold political positions;
• There is little or no evidence of any movement that is directly connected to the civil rights and/or political movement the 60s and 70s;
• The Black community lacks the very little organizational capacity to challenge many of the issues facing them;
• Media blitz of Black inferiority and the exaggeration of Black problems which cement the self-fulfillment prophecy. Many Black and non-Black Americans now believe this is “the way it is;”
• As a result of chattel slavery, Jim Crowism, and now the powerful industrial prison complex, along with a number of systems that reflect numerous structural deficiencies, the Black community remains very emotionally sick without the aid of any therapy, counseling, and reparations; and
• Few have championed a campaign against our cultural crisis, which continues to be weakened by self-destructive and abnormal behavior that is now being modeled by so-called Black entertainers and adopted by our youth.
This abnormal behavior has become normal for so many Black citizens that our collective immune system (culture) is under attack.
I asked you where is the organized effort to address the issues facing the Black community (i.e. mass incarceration of Black men; failed education system; demise of the Black family; increased growth of families and individuals living at or near poverty, etc.). There is none. Why?
I contend that too many Blacks, even those that are better educated, don’t know what time it is.
They don’t know their history, so they can’t know what’s going on.
Unless something is done now, the future of the Black community in America will be forever and permanently damaged.
No excuse is good enough for our community not making the paradigm shift that is needed to save ourselves.
Yes, this is going to be difficult because Black people have all of the individual and collective challenges that any other group has. No one is immune to the challenges of life.
Blacks have their share of good and bad within just like every other group. However, in spite of the fact that we have our own life issues, we still must overcome them and initiate a movement to support change for the future.
We have to strengthen our resolve to achieve functional unity.
I too have and continue to experience all of the struggles that one can achieve without dying and as they say “if it doesn’t kill you, it will make you stronger.”
Blacks should be the strongest people on the planet and we can’t allow the challenges of life to get in the way of what needs to be done to strengthen our communities.
Brothers and sisters, I’m no motivational writer or speaker, but it is my hope and prayer that you become motivated to follow this call to action which is motivated by faith and facts.
Some have equated organizing our community to “herding cats.”
Why do we have this negative distinction?
I’ve personally committed the balance of my life to doing just that – achieving functional unity for the Black community and I hope others will do the same.
When I’m feeling doubtful and overwhelmed, I ask myself where this passion comes from. Why me, and am I even capable of such a heavy task.
I’ve come to the conclusion that I will never know why, but this entire issue has forced me to study our condition in a way that I could never have imagined and the message that I convey to you is undeniable and irrefutable. I have both history and today’s conditions, which supports my position.
So I’m asking our Black leaders to support me in creating a cooperative leadership that takes into account our aggregated talents and strengths and minimizes our faults and weaknesses; a leadership that will serve with dignity and honor the future Black people; a paradigm shift that will BREAK THE PSYCHOLOGICAL CHAINS THAT KEEP US FROM BELIEVING THAT WE CAN DO THIS (BLACK INFERIORITY).
WE MUST KNOW MORE ABOUT OUR HISTORY AND THE MIND THAT HAS MADE US THEIR ENEMY.
Since the 15th century (past 600 years), Europeans have steadfastly held the belief that it is their divine right to rule and govern African peoples, ad infinitum.
Europeans have not only proceeded to colonize the entire Black world but, more importantly, they also have colonized information about the world – making Europe the subject of world history and the total defamation of Africa and African people.
Africa will forever be defined as the Dark Continent and its people as cannibals, savages, uncivilized, backward and primitive, devoid of knowledge and culture, with evil traits and desires.
Nothing could be further from the truth because Africa is the “Mother of Civilization” and has a recorded history of nearly 100,000 years with Africans being pioneers of science, religion, chemistry, mathematics, education, astrology, philosophy, architecture, agriculture, medicine, government, etc.
When you don’t know your history you become a victim of the media and educational blitz of white supremacy and black inferiority, which is maintained through their education and religious systems.
The primary weapon used by white supremacists to perpetuate and maintain the myth/big lie of European supremacy and white privilege, invincibility, and to maintain the myth/ big lie of Black inferiority and nothingness is education (miseducation).
The entire education systems was designed to subordinate, exploit, and create mental confusion and an absolute and total dependency of Africans on Europeans to produce people who would participate in the process of European colonial rule.
Blacks would participate in the process of their own oppression.
The secondary weapon Europeans have used to perpetuate and maintain the big lie is through religion.
Ask yourself, if you were the devil/big lie, where would you hide?
Religion is the perfect vehicle, because once religion becomes an acceptable tradition, a lie can then be covered within the spirituality of a tradition making it virtually impossible for anyone to question the validity of what’s being taught or question the lie. The big lie is that God, the Creator of the heavens and earth and everything in between, is white.
This lie was fabricated as part of white denial of its own heritage.
How can white people claim that Blacks are an inferior race while, at the same time, worshiping a person of color?
The Black man in America has received a double dose of emotional and psychological damage due to nearly 400 years of chattel slavery and Jim Crow terrorism, which produced a natural desire to be educated by a corrupted education system and a civil rights movement that produced the ultimate emulation.
Malcom X once said, “Anyone who takes their children to the oppressor to be educating is a fool.”
Isn’t this exactly what Blacks have done in America? So what were we taught?
We were taught a European- centered education instead if an African-centered education and the result is a stronger belief in white supremacy.
Black history, which most of us don’t know, is our connection to our ancestors.
As a people, we must examine how we got here and what these journeys looked like. We must examine how we survived and what that means to us today.
We must ask ourselves how our ancestors responded and at what costs.
We must examine how thoughts, beliefs, attitudes, and our overall feeling about “self” has been acquired.
Do we know why we think the way we do? We must also come to know that while we have a big role to play in the self-determination of Black people both individually and collectively, we have been victimized in the worse way possible and now we carry the burden of a “victim’s guilt.”
Knowing your true history is the only real anecdote for alleviating victim’s guilt and, if we are unable or unwilling to begin this pursuit, at least we should resist anything that could institutionalize our children who are being traumatized daily.
Sometimes the message is outright white supremacy (there are thousands of these messages) and you, by default, must represent Black inferiority.
Example: If you say that “white is right”, then, by default you are saying black is inferior.
Sometimes the message is outright Black inferiority and there are thousands of these messages, which, by default, infer white supremacy.
Example: if you say that you need a good education to get out of the hood then by default you are saying better educated people live in superior neighborhoods and white people are frequently better educated.
It becomes extremely hard to overcome the barrage of white supremacy and Black inferiority messages when you don’t have an independent education and religious source.
The paradigm shift must directly address the legacy of slavery (structural racism) and the culture of failure.
The paradigm shift must involve a strong and massive effort to de-Europeanize, de-mystify, detoxify, and de-brainwashing our subconscious minds and the rebuild a sense of Black pride (say it loud, I’m Black and I’m proud).
I’m not talking about a song; I’m talking about a movement towards selfvaluation and the pursuit of knowledge, restoration of the Black heritage and addressing our collective hurt and pain (therapy) which includes:
• Celebrating Excellence in the Black Community – This is why the Black communication tools are so critical (i.e. Black radio, newspapers, TV, etc.) so that we can promote and market the good that is taking place in our community;
• Support Black Cultural Organizations and Culturally Enriched Events – We must rally around and elevate our Black cultural organizations.
The strengths or weaknesses of these organizations reflect the position of their community.
Neighborhood festivals, music concerts, poetry, spoken word, barbeques, parades, etc. must be expanded and increased because all of them provide to the masses of Black people a sense of pride and comfort especially when there is an 24/7 bombardment of negative stereotypes of Black inferiority.
• Black Education Studies – We must have Black studies for children in our schools but more importantly, we must have an independent pathway for adults to study Black issues beginning with formal classes; book clubs; study groups; conferences, expert lectures, and group counseling for the hurt and pain that Blacks have been told to get over with.
• Address Structural Racism, Discrimination, and Bias – Working with all of our civil rights organizations (i.e. NAACP, NAN, etc.) to address structural racism and negative media stereotypes.
Today individual racism is very hard to prove because you must uncover what’s in the person’s heart.
However, institutions don’t have hearts but they reflect the climate and culture of its leadership and in addition to the racist outcomes that the institutions demonstrate, if there is obvious bias within the institution and amongst its leadership, this is must be challenged.
The paradigm shift for the Black community is a new approach to leadership.
Unfortunately, as part of the massive programming of white supremacy and, by default, Black inferiority, Blacks have downright rejected or have not supported Black leadership.
As part of our experience in America, we have been encouraged to suspect Black leadership.
Black leaders have not been able to work with each other.
This has existed since we’ve been in this country.
When we have supported Black leadership, it is because white media has approved them and we are made to believe its okay to accept them.
Black leadership must be independent and not beholding to anyone except the needs of the Black community.
I personally question anyone that calls himself a leader of Black people and isn’t prepared to speak out against oppression of Black people.
Even the human body is designed with leadership (we have a body with feelings and emotions but it is our head that is responsible for leading the body).
We must acknowledge that every people need leadership and even the leaders’ need leadership.
The Black community can’t survive without leadership nor can the Black leaders optimize their potential without collaboration.
Unfortunately, years and years of free agency, with no centralized system of accountability has led to everyone doing what he/she believes is right while functioning within an environment of systemic chaos.
This is why the conditions facing the Black community are increasing and, even more harmful is what we are passing down to the next generations as operational models of absolute dysfunction.
If we keep doing the same thing, we will get the same results (nothing).
We need a paradigm shift.
