Hiya Peeps,
After briefly scratching the surface in my two previous blogs regarding negative male/female social behaviour I have been talking to friends and family members about possible solutions.
My musing have left my head swimming with old timey sayings like 'back to basics' or 'In order to love each other, we must first love ourselves'. People of African heritage are in crisis. In this fine city we are academically, financially, some what better off than previous generations until you consider the advances of our counterparts and realise that actually we are failing. My thinking is that we are not actually emotionally, pschologically or spiritually healthy enough to embrace and enjoy success the way that other groups are doing. I am not talking about the off the cuff break out star. I’m speaking of a Diaspora rich with success.
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| We can do it! |
Blah, blah, blah you say. This subject is tired and has been picked to death. But just like any infant that lacks understanding, self discipline and self control. We must continue to issue instruction until a real process of change has begun. I often wonder and despair at our condition and wonder if we will ever rise up? The evidence thus far suggests a big fat NO. Where can we start?
- Self respect, familial respect and Community respect For the love of ourselves can we just stand up and take personal responsibility for our success and failures? Our shit is stinking real bad. But in order to begin the mammoth task of a clean up operation it would require that we stop talking, stop bleaching, shucking and jiving and, actually assess our condition and make movements toward change.
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| Nothing says community action like the Panther's |
2. We are not strong enough for interracial love
Until we can satisfactorily respect and love each other as black men, women and children then we have no business engaging in relationships that cause further strain on the community.
When we produce biracial children we owe them the opportunity to embrace all parts of their cultural heritage. Parents of biracial children must recognise that this element of diversity must be nurtured by presenting the opportunities for cultural teachings, and practises. However what is actually happening in many cases; in the city, is parental absence. Or the presence of an African heritage parent that is operating in self hate and choosing to ignore their heritage altogether.(choc ice?) This produces confused children who are not white enough or black enough; causing further displacement not for all? But for many.
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| It starts and ends with us |
3.We need the option of our own schools
We have a social responsibility to our children who are not getting adequate parenting to provide a safe space where they can not only survive but thrive. With teaching practises that actually work for our children. For those children that are performing well, we can incorporate some continuity between home and school. Where all of our children are treated as just that and running the streets like wild beasts is no longer an option. A safe haven where, academic studies are supported by life skills, like personal hygiene, financial management, and nutrition and SELF LOVE.
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| Mary Ann Shadd Opened a School in Windsor for Black Refugees in 1850s |
Only the fittest will survive and save us from ourselves and it is not going to be the choc ice! Maybe we should take a leaf out of Marcus Garvey's book?
ReplyDeleteHmm, again an interesting blog Coco. Got me thinking hard.
ReplyDeleteMy thoughts? The human condition is a complex one and i'm not sure whether the problems of the black race can be attributed to colour. Class maybe and the fact that as human beings all races are in a constant competition for perfection, maybe.
Anyway, my opinion on your points.
1. Community. The problem is there is no real black community. There are a lot of black people/ people of colour 'in' the community but where is the will to come together?
2. Barack Obama's parents would disagree.
3. Parents need to take responsibility for teaching their children history if schools aren't. There's not a thing stopping anyone teaching their children about black history. It's too important to leave it to mainstream schooling.
I think the reason mainstream black schools have been largely unsuccessful boils down to the fact that our assimilitation into UK society is deep. Of course, this is no bad thing. Jewsish schools flourish because of their shared religion, culture and customs. There is simply no mainstream 'black religion'. If there was maybe they'd work.
As you pointed out, the issues are complex and answers often not easy but part of me has always believed that we as a people can't move forward until we stop looking back and start taking responisibility for our individual actions...