Faith, blog host of Acts of Faith in Love and Life, linked to this AMAZING blog post in one of her recent comments at another blog. It's a MUST-READ-right-now sort of post that shows just how relevant and real scripture can be when properly explained. http://swordofgoliath.blogspot.com/2009/07/jezebel-darling-who-lied-to-you.html
Too many of us read our various scriptures as if they were fairy tales with no relevance to real life. And that's the handful of us who bother to actually read the scriptures we claim to believe in. Most of us don't read, and depend upon our various ministers, imams, etc. to spoonfeed us their understanding of God's Word. Here's the part of the post that sent shivers down my spine:
"One of the worst things that can happen to any woman is to get involved in any way with an Ahab.
. . . The Ahabs are mind bending, heart breaking, and soul eroding opportunists. Ahabs can spot your low self-esteem in high heels from across the room. Ahabs can see beyond the make-up, weaves, highlights and fake skin tones. Ahabs can see the size 22 mind inside the size 2 mini. Ahabs can see all those things and will use them to their advantage. Ahabs will use you to kill off your support system and kill off his enemies."
This behavior pattern is REAL. The same way God's warning to Lot and his family to NOT look back at Sodom and Gomorrah as they were fleeing was real. These are stories about humans that describe various types of human behavior patterns. People haven't changed; and their behavior patterns haven't changed. These are repeating patterns.
The point of relaying the stories of past people(s) is so that we'll recognize the patterns when we see them play out in our own lives. If God made the scriptures a catalogue of all the various past, present and future manifestations of various human behavior patterns, these books would be endless. Those who read and believe the scriptures are expected to use pattern recognition in their discernment.
This is what I hoped to remind people of when I went on a rant during a previous post:
"I was amazed by the 'shocked, shocked I say' outrage about the latest atrocity on Black Exploitation Television. I hesitated to say this before for fear of giving offense, but I feel compelled to say it openly now: I feel that this particular outrage (the apparent airing of child pornography during the 2009 BET Awards show) was yet another sign.
There were those people who could still be lured to turn back and look upon Sodom/BET. Just like Lot's wife looked back at Sodom in the Bible. She was supposedly running from the impending destruction of Sodom to save her life. But then she looked back; and was turned into a pillar of salt. I guess the point of that story is that, in order to survive, she was supposed to run away from that place and NEVER look back.
I believe that the disgusting spectacle that BET tricked these folks into watching (with false promises of some sort of tribute to Michael Jackson) was a warning that God gave out of His mercy. One of the FINAL warnings that will be given about the folly of continuing to "look back" and consume popular "Black" culture. For ANY reason whatsoever.
. . . I would strongly urge folks to STOP looking back at "Sodom":
Don't look back at BET-Sodom.
Don't look back at the "White Girl Song"-Sodom that Sara talks about in her latest post.
Don't look back at the Internet Ike Turner's blogs-Sodom or YouTube-Sodom.
Don't look back at entertainment products from DBRBM-Sodom.
Stop looking back at Sodom! God has let you slide for now. In His Grace, He has granted you a few more moments to make it out to safety. A few more moments to get clear of Sodom. But eventually you will be turned into a metaphorical pillar of salt if you continue to look back at what He does NOT want you to take in. You can't run forward while looking backward!"
I've been amazed that more people haven't identified BET, "Messence" magazine, and the rest of that material by the labels used in scripture to identify their prototypes. The only thing that's new about these modern negative messages are their formats. The message these entities are promoting (calling people toward abasement, degradation, and ultimately death) is NOT new. It's a very old message modeled on a very old template. And from a very old source.
Believers: Are you ready to stop being a passive spiritual consumer? Are you ready to read and study God's Word as an active student who's looking for the parallels with modern circumstances?
Are you ready, willing, and able to get real with your faith tradition's scripture?
An effort to stand for justice and oppose the "ruinous traits" listed by Muslim scholars in all their forms: rancor, unhealthy attachments, malice, jealousy, vanity, stinginess, avarice, cowardice, indolence, arrogance, ostentation, heedlessness, anxiety, depression, and oppression.
Thursday, July 16, 2009
21 comments:
Thanks for stopping by! {excited waving}
Please understand that this is not a free speech zone. Profanity and hate speech are not welcome and will not be posted. This blog seeks to foster a courteous, reasoned exchange of ideas. I would ask that before posting, everyone (myself included) seriously consider whether the proposed comment helps or hurts the cause of opposing the ruinous traits listed on the masthead.
Please feel free to add your input to any post at any time. There's no "expiration date" for the issues that are discussed here. I welcome, value, and learn from your contribution! Thank you in advance for your cooperation and your input.
I think that if we would grasp the reality that those who are mentioned in our scriptures, are not superheros. That was not the goal of the writers who wrote the experiences, testimonies, and stories as life lessons.
ReplyDeleteI asked God's forgiveness for watching that cable station (don't want to type its name). The shock wasn't surprise at what I saw, but at how much of it and how intense it felt. I felt assaulted and battered. I had to also forgive myself because I felt like I had placed myself in a postition to be battered. There was no excuse for the dysfunctional behavior and there was no reason for me to venture in a known "high crime" area wearing a rolex with my arm dangling out the window of a brand new Benz with a large sum of money in my hand. It makes no sense.
In fact I recalled what you said about weighting evil, to do so means that you have to put your hands on it; you have to touch the evil and thusly you become contaminated by the evil.
Life lesson learned the hard way.
Hagar's Daughter,
ReplyDeleteYou said, "I think that if we would grasp the reality that those who are mentioned in our scriptures, are not superheros. That was not the goal of the writers who wrote the experiences, testimonies, and stories as life lessons."-
Exactly. These were human beings struggling with the same basic issues that continue to this day.
Guuurl, I've got my own mess that I have to repeatedly ask God's forgiveness for. We all have our own unique mix of individual vulnerabilities.
As we speak, there are a number of things that I'm doing right now that I KNOW "don't make no sense." (slipping into Ebonics here---LOL!). Here's just one ridiculous example--I recall whining to my now-retired imam about certain things. He quietly asked me "Did you make the morning prayer?" Of course, the answer on most days was/is "No" because I'm not a morning person; and I habitually wait until the last split second to get out of bed for work in the mornings.
He chuckled and said, "So, basically each day you decide to wait until AFTER you've been hit in the head to put on God's armor of prayer?" I said, "Yep." And so this pattern continues today. I'll think a few quick thoughts praising God. But to actually stop, and take the time to make salat in the morning. Ummm...usually not. I let that go until later in the day. Until after being exposed to whatever happens once I walk out the door.
This is self-defeating and trifling on my part. But...we press on! LOL!
Peace, blessings and solidarity.
I'm glad you featured this. You were quick to recognize it's value. You also did talk about how we got suckered into watching BET. I've let my subscription to Messence expire and will not be renewing it again and I wrote them a letter telling them why and how harmful they are to black women. I still don't think we're connecting the dots because there's too much fog in the room. The fog of shared history of oppression and having so few avenues of cultural expression. We have to be in charge of creating life-affirming, compelling creative works for ourselves.
ReplyDeleteI think that if black congregations in churches really want to follow God's word closer to the letter then we'd start to see more marriages, less OOW children being born, and less hypocrisy and judgement when it comes to LGBT people.
ReplyDeleteThey have the power to turn things around, so they should do it!
Faith,
ReplyDeleteTHANK YOU for bringing this blog author and post to everybody's attention!
I had already cancelled my subscription to Messence. But I did buy one last issue (the particularly FOUL June 2009) to use as Exhibit #1 when talking to other BW about why they need to cancel their subscriptions. There are a LOT of us who have subscriptions out of habit (from back in the day), but haven't actually sat down to read the mess in years.
So far, the women I've shown the articles to during my anti-Messence campaign have been shocked and appalled. Several have canceled their subscriptions after actually reading that madness.
Yes, I agree that the ashes and fog of shared oppression is obscuring at lot of AA women's view of reality. But, that will clear. One way or another. As they see increasing numbers of other AA women living fulfilling lives AWAY from the DBRbm zones, they'll catch the hint. Some of them will perk up after they've sustained a few more body blows from the DBRs.
I've accepted that fact that most AA women (just like most AAs in general) are simply not going to make it. I did my part to sound the alarm. My conscience is clear about those who are casualties of their own poor choices.
Faith, you've also done your part (and then some!). That is all anybody can do. God respects free will; and so do I.
__________________
AK,
Part of the problem is that most Black "believers" are spiritually and mentally lazy. Therefore, they are perfectly content making false idols out of their clergy. And they are content with being "spoon fed" by their clergy.
To put it more accurately as the blogger I linked to in the post has done: These people are COMPLACENT, not CONTENT. As she points out, there are various counterfeit versions of things that Satan promotes. Complacency is the counterfeit version of contentment.
Peace, blessings and solidarity.
I enjoyed the reading of that blog about Ahab & Jezebel. The previous blog entry that she has about complacency though - that one is fire - it is so true. I have often told my friends that the complacency spirit is THE biggest theif, soul crusher, and LIAR that exist. Complacency is literally and figuratively a silent soul/spirit killer. That blog entry is so on point for so many bw.
ReplyDeleteThis is why so many bw argue about facts/stats that are in their faces about marriage, some bm, the bc, single mommyhood - complacency. A lot of folks get contentment and complacency mixed up but a quick read of this blog entry would clear a great deal of folks up. I too got them mixed up for a while. THIS is why so many BW are asleep. It is easier to be complacent than to face your fears, your past choices & decisions, and YOUR current life. It is easier for them to remain complacent, so they defend whatever "it" is instead of putting in the work and making the changes that they need to.
"I've accepted that fact that most AA women (just like most AAs in general) are simply not going to make it. I did my part to sound the alarm. My conscience is clear about those who are casualties of their own poor choices."
ReplyDeleteDITTO 1000%
Organisms either adapt to changed environments or die.
People have free will. If BW willfully choose to not exercise their free will for their betterment and that of their children (and most wont) they will continue to suffer and eventually die.
Years before their time.
Often alone.
Like you said Khadija, God does accept free will. Who am I to argue with God?
If most black mothers willfully choose (due to an outright refusal - even AFTER knowing theirs a better way - to follow basic norms of societies the world over by choosing men to father their children instead of sperm donors) to be a part of the growing permanent underclass, there's not a darn thing anyone - including myself - can do about it.
It's not my job to save anyone from themselves.
I rest GOOD at night knowing I did what I could.
I predict the black OOW birth rate will continue to grow and reach 90% if not more within our lifetime for sure.
Eighty-three percent of births to black mothers from Springfield take place out of wedlock. Statewide, 79 percent of births to blacks involve single parents.
http://www.sj-r.com/homepage/x108134838/
Births-by-unwed-mothers-rises-in-Springfield
Regardless, the beat will go on for the rest of us not suffering from the social ills that a 70% OOW birthrate naturally creates.
I'm at peace and will continue to be regardless of the chaos out there.
I have GREAT respect for those black single mothers who admit that single parenthood is NO bed of roses. Those few who've made a vow to themselves (and their children) to ONLY deal with respectful, marriage minded, & family oriented men regardless of "race" in the future.
There is no shame in making mistakes in ones life. We all do. We're human. The shame is whem one doesn't LEARN from their mistakes and continues to repeat them.
Thanks to you again Khadija and blogger affiliates for yet another excellent thread.Quite simply we must live the word in order to get our blessings.So many of us have been LIED to and told that if we just believe in our mind and hearts that God is we will be saved and delivered.We know that the devils and demons know that God is and they still disobey him and won't be saved.Thankfully not all of us believe in that LIE we know that "FAITH WITHOUT WORKS IS DEAD".The blessings of the lord are for his children.His children are those that OBEY his word.People say things like God's mercy endures forever not understanding that it does'nt mean that his mercy endures towards them,as an individual, forever.There is an appointed time in all of our individual lives where God's mercy WILL run out towards us.At some point,on God's timetable, we're supposed to OVERCOME and "lay aside the sin and weight which does so easily beset us".That scripture implys that where as God won't put more on us than we can bear we will.We are carrying too much and causing ourselves to fall by the wayside.In the words of Erykah badu Bag ladies let it go, let it go, let it go,let it go...You gone hirt your salvation draggin all them bags like that.
ReplyDeleteCan I get an AMEN!!
ReplyDeleteWonderful post!
A favorite passage with the pastor of my old church was "The Virtuous Woman" and he would compare the scripture with women in our church. According to him, we did not measure up in the least because we had attitudes, were lazy, etc. and we should strive to be like the biblical version so we could get mates.
Never mind that most of the "mates" that we had to choose from were unemployed DBR's with bad backs and no scrilla to speak of...
I casually mentioned to passa that the Virtuous Woman's husband was a landowner, a man with not only means but a man that had high stature. The same went for the Husband in Song of Solomon. Sooo, when the slobs that were trying to pass themselves off as "men" started to be more like that Biblical standard, well, you'd see more Virtuous Women....
Haven't been back since...
Keep up the great posts!!
Wow Khadija great link. I found the blog very valuable and the author eloquently expressed how these toxic individuals ruin lives. Personally I believe Ahabs are more dangerous than the obvious Ike Turners because they manage to trick women into believing that they are the good guys. These men are sneaky, manipulative, and often run away when confronted with their garbage. If I had to choose I would rather deal with a Jezebel or an Ike Turner because you can spot these types of demonic individuals a mile away. Ahabs require a little more discernment. These men are the quintessential cowards and spineless people my father warned me to stay away from. What’s frightening is that so many women fall for Ahabs thinking that they actually have a good man.
ReplyDeleteAs for BET, I recently called my cable company and requested that they block that channel from coming up at all on my television. The manager at Time Warner said he will look into it. In fact I encourage people to limit the amount of time they watch television. Most of the programming on TV is garbage anyway, not just on BET but everywhere. Besides so much time is wasted watching television when that person could use the time to cultivate meaningful relationships with other people, participate in activities that will enrich their lives, or just go outside and smell the fresh air (or if you are in LA, smell the smog LOL). Nevertheless BET, Essence, and many of the other forms of media out there are sharing poisonous messages to keep people mentally enslaved. Honestly I don’t’ even see the point of having a subscription to Essence when I’m getting awesome information from blogs like this one.
From a spiritual perspective, most people, especially Christians are too lazy to research and have a clear understanding of God’s messages. The Bible isn’t just a bunch of feel good stories. You are supposed to learn from the lessons and apply the concepts to your life. In my honest opinion people choose to be kept in bondage because they lack the discipline to dig down and work on their flaws. Analyzing your short comings and fighting to overcome them is no easy task. It requires honest self reflection and the willingness to cut out the rotten pieces in your life. No one expects perfection, Lord knows I’m far from perfect, but don’t just sit there and accept mediocrity in your life. Sadly folks can’t even get the BASICS right such as treating fellow man with respect and dignity, taking care of your family, take responsibility for your children. We will never evolve as a human race if we can’t get the basics together.
I also wanted to share this link. I believe since the topic is on Ahabs, it will provide some valuable common sense advice that has been shared on this blog before.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.aish.com/d/w/48955756.html
Ten Ways to marry the wrong person
With the divorce rate over 50 percent, too many are apparently making a serious mistake in deciding who to spend the rest of their life with. To avoid becoming a "statistic," try to internalize these 10 insights.
#1. You pick the wrong person because you expect him/her to change after you're married.
The classic mistake. Never marry potential. The golden rule is, if you can't be happy with the person the way he or she is now, don't get married. As a colleague of mine so wisely put it, "You actually can expect people to change after their married... for the worst!"
So when it comes to the other person's spirituality, character, personal hygiene, communication skills, and personal habits, make sure you can live with these as they are now.
#2. You pick the wrong person because you focus more on chemistry than on character.
Chemistry ignites the fire, but good character keeps it burning. Beware of the "I'm in love" syndrome. "I'm in love" often means, "I'm in lust." Attraction is there, but have you carefully checked out this person's character?
Here are four character traits to definitely check for:
Humility: Does this person believe that "doing the right thing" is more important than personal comfort?
Do I want to be more like this person? Would I like my child to turn out like him or her?Kindness: Does this person enjoy giving pleasure to other people? How does s/he treat people s/he doesn't have to be nice to? Does s/he do volunteer work? Give charity?
Responsibility: Can I depend on this person to do what s/he says s/he's going to do?
Happiness: Does this person like himself? Does s/he enjoy life? Is s/he emotionally stable?
Ask yourself: Do I want to be more like this person? Do I want to have a child with this person? Would I like my child to turn out like him or her?
#3. You pick the wrong person because the man doesn't understand what a woman needs most.
Men and women have unique emotional needs, and more often than not, it is the man who just doesn't "get it." Jewish tradition places the onus on the man to understand the emotional needs of a woman and to satisfy them.
The unique need of a woman is to be loved -- to feel that she is the most important person in her husband's life. The husband needs to give her consistent, quality attention.
This is most apparent in Judaism's approach to intimacy. The Torah obligates the husband to meet the intimate needs of his wife. Intimacy is always on the woman's terms. Men are goal-oriented, especially when it comes this area. As a wise woman once pointed out, "Men have two speeds: on and off." Women are experience-oriented. When a man is able to switch gears and become more experience-oriented, he will discover what makes his wife very happy. When the man forgets about his own needs and focuses on giving his wife pleasure, amazing things happen.
#4. You choose the wrong person because you do not share a common life goals and priorities.
There are three basic ways we connect with another person:
chemistry and compatibility
share common interests
share common life goal
Make sure you share the deeper level of connection that sharing life goals provide. After marriage, the two of you will either grow together or grow apart. To avoid growing apart, you must figure out what you're "living for," while you're single -- and then find someone who has come to the same conclusion as you.
This is the true definition of a "soul mate." A soul mate is a goal mate -- two people who ultimately share the same understanding of life's purpose and therefore share the same priorities, values and goals.
(you can read the rest on the link provided)
Enigma,
ReplyDeleteYou said, "Complacency is literally and figuratively a silent soul/spirit killer. That blog entry is so on point for so many bw.
This is why so many bw argue about facts/stats that are in their faces about marriage, some bm, the bc, single mommyhood - complacency. A lot of folks get contentment and complacency mixed up but a quick read of this blog entry would clear a great deal of folks up."-
Oh yes, reading her blog entries would QUICKLY clear away a lot of confused, complacent thinking. Facing unpleasant facts and realities is not fun; and it requires some sort of response. In other words, it requires WORK. And who wants to be bothered with all of that? In the short run, it's so much more comfy to engage in magical thinking.
___________________
Felicia,
You said, "Regardless, the beat will go on for the rest of us not suffering from the social ills that a 70% OOW birthrate naturally creates.-
The beat will go on for the rest of us as long as we're careful to stay clear of the underclass members---including the articulate, educated ones---; AND keep them (and their madness) out of our areas and away from our loved ones. Especially keep them away from our impressionable children.
Many more painful events and circumstances are heading these underclass members' way. And instead of changing their behavior to ease the pain caused by their choices (stop condoning/enabling OOW, etc.), they will blame YOU, ME, and any other AA who refuses to live like a savage. They will also blame AAs who refuse to make excuses for savage lifestyle choices. As you said, everybody makes mistakes. The thing is that these folks don't want to learn from mistakes---they want to justify continuing to make them.
Bottom line: The permanent underclass members (including their articulate, educated cheerleaders) will try to take the rest of us down with them once they figure out that they're drowning.
It's time to start getting clear of such people.
Part 2
ReplyDeleteTruthPrevails,
Thank you for your kind words; I truly appreciate it. You said, "In the words of Erykah badu Bag ladies let it go, let it go, let it go,let it go...You gone hirt your salvation draggin all them bags like that."-
True that.
______________________
Tracy,
Thank you for your kind words about the post; I truly appreciate it. What you're mentioning is yet another problem---too many of us take our spiritual information ONLY from the views and words of MEN.
As far as I'm concerned, this is AS dangerous to women as only reading scriptural commentaries from White slaveowners is for Blacks.
BW are generally NOT seeking out commentaries or translations done by female religious scholars. Nor are we reading and comparing multiple translations of our scriptures (for those of us who don't have the time or inclination to learn the original language of our Book).
It's our own fault when this type of willful, negligent, laziness sets us up for spiritual abuse as women.
________________________
Muse,
Yes, I agree. For a woman who is seeking quality, the OPEN enemy is in many ways less dangerous than the hidden sniper or the imposter. In such a scenario, it's easier to avoid the open enemy. But this only applies to the woman who believes that she can "afford" to hold out for quality.
Most AA women believe that they must make do with the rotten, maggot-filled scraps that are tossed their way in the all-Black relationship market. Many AA women are settling for OBVIOUS Ike Turners and trying to convince themselves that these males are worthy.
You said, "What’s frightening is that so many women fall for Ahabs thinking that they actually have a good man."-
Yes, it is frightening. From the broken-spirit-woman's perspective, Ahab IS considered an improvement over the OPEN Ike Turner. Because Ahab is "killing them softly." {shudder}
You said, "Besides so much time is wasted watching television when that person could use the time to cultivate meaningful relationships with other people, participate in activities that will enrich their lives, or just go outside and smell the fresh air (or if you are in LA, smell the smog LOL)."-
I agree.
Thanks for the link!
Peace, blessings and solidarity.
Khadija, Great post. I followed the link and thoroughly enjoyed her defining of that story. And I know she is right on in her break down of Ahab and Jezebel.
ReplyDeleteTo your post, here's the problem. People are "believers." Bob Marley once sang "Brothers we should know and not believe..." It took me a lot of years to gain an understanding of what that meant (I'm still working on it). To Know vs Believe is a great river to cross. The believer will not read, but wait for the Pastor or Imam to "feed" them. The believer will meet an Ahab or Jezebel and "hope" he or she will become the man/woman they dream of. The knower will spot Ahab the minute he opens his mouth and begins to spew his verbal wrath. In fact an Ahab will flee for the Knowing woman. The believing male will become and maintain his Ahab status. The knowing man will have grown past being a pouting "wuss" or will have never become one in the first place. I pray we become knowers and one day leave the believing behind.
Ensayn1/Victor,
ReplyDeleteI hear you. When discussing matters of faith, I try to stick as close to possible to the terminology and forms of address used in the Quran.
Many verses are addressed to "believers" ("O you who believe! ____________"). As you noted, "belief" and follow-through are two different things.
I believe (yes, a deliberate tacky pun---I couldn't resist---LOL!) that it's dangerous to deviate from the clearly-defined, KNOWN earlier terms. Let me give a secular example:
Messence magazine has started doing an apparently yearly feature on what it calls "Do-Right Men." Well, the more this was discussed on various blogs, the more people realized that there didn't seem to be any real criteria to being referred to as a "Do-Right Man."
From their interviews, these men did NOT sound as if they were ultimately looking for wives. Nor did they even sound as if they were looking for "serious" relationships. Some of these men apparently already had girlfriends. But yet Messence was encouraging BW to celebrate and respond to these men as if these men were ELIGIBLE BACHELORS.
I realized that Messence had done yet another "bait and switch" on its readers. It was encouraging BW to respond to these men as if they met the criteria of being eligible bachelors (men who are called such because they are interested in and eligible for MARRIAGE), when these men never verbally signed-on to the "eligible bachelor" package. With this verbal bait and switch, Messence was encouraging its readers to pin eligible bachelor hopes onto men who were just looking for a good time (some of whom were already hooked-up to somebody else).
This sort of "bait and switch" is often what happens when we get away from traditional, KNOWN terminology and start using new terms. People are then free to define these new terms however they wish. Such as so-called Do-Right Man versus what it takes to be an Eligible Bachelor.
So, this Messence example is one reason why I'm saying that it's safest to stick with the already clearly-defined and known terminology when discussing certain things.
Peace, blessings and solidarity.
Khadija, Respect to the utmost. You are absolutely right and correct. I understand and overstand your point. There is a time and place for such.
ReplyDeleteMLAR!
Respect and Guidance!
Ensayn1/Victor,
ReplyDeleteI don't know if it's so much being correct; for me this is more about being cautious! LOL! I've been deceived by the verbal bait & switch in the past---so I'm currently "once bitten, twice shy" about certain things.
Much respect and guidance back at'cha! *Smile*
Peace, blessings and solidarity.
What I love about your blog and style is that we can agree or disagree (there is no disagreement in this case), but we know the larger goal is for the uplift of Black women, then for the uplift of humanity. Because I know until our women are lifted to the next level and this is a must, none of us, that are not part of the "permanent underclass" mindset (I think you have coined something of value in that phrase) will rise as we could.
ReplyDeleteI had given up watching BET awards or anything on BET. I had given up on just about all magazines be they "Messence" or "E-Bunny" or rags of their ilk years ago. And it was due in part to their dirty bate and switch tactics to bend the minds of people. They have become no better than the music industry darlings that are given so much coverage on their pages. So I really feel your caution and thats why I felt you are right and correct because there is a time, place and forum to discuss "known" and "unknown" terms to attempt to build them into our (meaning us who follow your blog and those in this circle.)
Respect and Guidance.
Ensayn1/Victor,
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for your kind words about the blog and style; that means a lot coming from you! I'm trying to emulate the style of the SUCCESSFUL movements that I'm aware of.
Specifically, I'm trying to follow Elijah Muhammad's instruction to "study the successful man." In the case of social movements that changed millions of people's mindsets, I would say that the Islamic movements have demonstrated the most long-term success. Movements such as the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) have changed the mindsets of entire countries.
One of Hassan Al-Bana's (the MB founder) organizational principles was for his activists to pool their efforts together in agreed upon matters and to excuse each other from participating in what they disagree upon. This was very wise on his part.
You mentioned "E-Bunny". {chuckling} Yes, the first step is to turn away from that mess. However, ultimately we're going to have to start producing alternative, life-affirming content of our own. This is another thing that I've learned from studying political Islam. Lebanon's Hezbollah has an entire mass media infrastructure of its own with a television news station and newspaper(s).
I agree that getting at least some of our women (and their children) out to safety is imperative. As you noted, even those of us who avoid the abyss of permanent underclass status won't be able to rise to our full heights unless there's a critical mass of other survivors.
In order to reach our full potentials as AA individuals, there simply has to be a functioning, loose-knit AA tribe of some sort, even if it's very small in numbers. Those remaining SANE AAs must begin to connect with each other in mutually supportive ways for this to happen. Even if it's just a handful of us forming this loose-knit tribe (as opposed to the millions of hip-hop-crack-house-values mutants who are now the vast majority of AAs).
The Jewish people are a good example of how quality is MUCH more important than quantity in determining a tribe's fate.
Peace, blessings and solidarity.
Where are some of these places that black women can go? Are there places in the US or overseas that we can go? Many non-blacks are leaving too. On youtube people are talking about Asia as a refuge for whites, but what about AAs?
ReplyDeleteAnonymous,
ReplyDeleteYou asked where can BW go?
Where did these BM go:
Amiri Baraka, Kofi Annan, Charles Barkley, Harry Belafonte, Billy Blanks, Julian Bond, Taye Diggs, Father Divine, Frederick Douglass, Julius Erving (Dr. J), Frantz Fanon, Marvin Gaye, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Gregory Hines, Rick James, James Earl Jones, Quincy Jones, Martin Luther King, Jr., Reginald Lewis, Thurgood Marshall, Major Owens, Sidney Poitier, Adam Clayton Powell, Prince, Richard Pryor, Lou Rawls, Lionel Richie, Dennis Rodman, Seal, Russell Simmons, O.J. Simpson, Wesley Snipes, Clarence Thomas, Melvin Van Peebles, Ben Vereen, Herschel Walker, Walter White, John Edgar Wideman, Billy Dee Williams, Montel Williams?
It seems to me that all of these BM found non-Black areas within the US where they could live with their non-Black women/wives.
Where do unknown, and non-rich BM go when they marry non-BW? Wherever they go, we can go there too.
Where are non-AA Black folks living in this country? Why is all of this so "mysterious" ONLY as pertains to AA women? We can live where all these other people at various economic levels are living in safety and peace. Including going to where gainfully employed BM go to live with their non-Black wives.-
Peace, blessings and solidarity.