Over at “Aunt Jemima’s Revenge” blog, a Blogger asked me to expand on a statement that I made. My statement was:
“The fact is, that Black women and men need to work together, with mutual respect and on equal terms. The Black man is a fool to be a chauvinist and specifically anti-Black woman, and the Black woman a fool to be anti-Black Man. Our destinies are entwined, simple as that, and I am tired of folks who want to put their head in the sand and posit otherwise, if Black women lose, WE ALL LOSE, if Black men lose, WE ALL LOSE.”
She replied:
“dj black adam, what do you think needs to be done as a group where black women and men are working together?”
Well, in proper Black Adam fashion (no I didn't go on a global rampage and destroy anyone I thought was abusing Black women and children, though I must admit the thought did occur to me...) I put the ole SHAZAM given wisdom of Zehuti to work on it, and came to the following:
I started with the presupposition, that in response to the Civil Rights movements focus on the overall Black community and lopsided focus on the plight of the “Black Man” during and after the movement, many Black Women became active in feminism. Understandably, if your collective social group is not addressing the needs within a sub grouping within that social group, that sub group will have to begin to focus inward.
That is the case with Black Americans in general, the greater collective of Americans often ignores the plight of Black Americans, therefore, the sub group (in this case African Americans) starts organizations and groups and movements to deal with the problem of the sub group. Within the African American community, the plight of Black Women is often ignored, which is the predicate for Black Women to begin to focus inwardly within their group. However, when the greater group collectively faces an outside threat, all subgroups are best advised to at the least congruently deal with that threat.
If the subgroup ignores or is indifferent to the outside threat to the collective, the whole group becomes at risk. For example, if the United States was attacked by another nation or group whose goal was death to Americans regardless of ethnicity, gender, religion or social class, all of those categories would be at risk and therefore must unify in order to deal with the problem at hand.
Conversely, all Americans should be defending ALL Americans regardless of ethnicity, gender, religion or social class in such a situation. This is analogous to the problem between genders within the collective of African Americans.
I fully understand that Black Women have unique problems that need to be addressed; I believe that Black Men as well as Black Women need to address these problems. It is not beneficial to Black Men for Black Women to be subjugated, and vice versa. The primary problem is that Black Men have to accept this actuality, that if one part of the collective is sick, we are ALL sick.
Conversely, Black Women have ignored their own problems in difference to dealing with this so-called “attack on Black Men”. This has been lopsided since the beginning of the African Diaspora, at first this was for survival, now it is to the point of the ridicules and inane. For example, in the case of R. Kelly, many Black Women are at the forefront in defending him (which is their right), to the point, I have seen Black Men shouted down by them at the suggestion of the possibility of his guilt regarding his alleged abuse of a young Black girl.
So, it seems Black women can and do speak up when they feel so inclined to defend a “brother under attack”. That in it self is not a problem, however; it would be most productive to defend those who deserve or NEED defense, not every Tom, Dick and Harry just because they are “Black” or can dunk a basket ball or sing a song.
Of course, the greater Black community is guilty of this as well. But, then we see when the victim is a Black girl or Woman, the Black Civil Rights hustlers leaders generally ignoring the situation, unless and of course if the alleged perpetrator is White. Which is only more of a reason why that Civil Rights funeral movement needs to be replaced by something alive. Something that addresses the needs of the BLACK FAMILY; Man, Woman and Child EQUALLY. In fact, the plight of Black Women and Children should be at the forefront. Again, this is congruent with (not in place of) any movement that is specifically for Black Women, Black Children, Black Gays, Black Lesbians, Black whatevers.
I don’t expect nor would not want ANYONE to not deal with what is going on within their subgroup, HOWEVER: it is imperative for the sub groups to support the collective AS IT IS for the collective to support the sub group, as well as for each sub group to support each group as best as they can. What competing interest do we have people? It is not beneficial for any sub group within the African American community to allow the abuse or subjugation of any other sub group, especially when that abuse comes from one of the other sub groups. Black men have an obligation to not only RESPECT, Black Women and Children, but to unequivocally SUPPORT them, and vice versa.
More to the point at hand, as to what movement needs to replace the archaic Civil Rights hustle Movement, is that Black Men and Women have an obligation to support each other and most seriously our Black CHILDREN.
Here are two major points that if dealt with, will definitely have a POSITIVE affect on the condition of Black Women’s issues as well as Black Men’s issues.
Education: Curriculum, simple as that. Black Women and Men have to demand accountability from their school systems. Demand a curriculum that will allow Black children to be competitive when they go off to college.
If we can protest for R. Kelly, the Jena Six, Genarlow Wilson and even Ronald Isley, we can PROTEST for our children to get a better curriculum.
Morality: We cannot go into every home and make families comply in regard to teaching their children about our history, basic morality, etc. however we can raise the community STANDARD that we have allowed to become dominated by lowest common denominator base filth.
Those of us with power need to provide alternatives in media for Black children, educational programming, family programming, news programming, and better films. Those of us who have not the financial ability to start networks or production companies, etc., need to make clear the need for this AND show the financial benefit from somebody doing this.
A lot of us complain about BET, if we support a new network or show that we will, perhaps an alternative will form. Sex needs to be addressed also. Our religious centers and schools often teach young girls to respect their bodies, and some even give lipservice to boys about this also, however; at the same time Black Males give a “boys will be boys” type of pass to young men AND Black women do the same often venting anger at young black girls for getting pregnant.
Black mothers, grandmothers, sisters and aunts of young Black boys often blame the girl solely for getting pregnant and try to help protect their sons from any responsibility or their actions. Bottom line, Black men need to step in and show by example that Black boys (their sons, brothers, cousins, etc) need to be responsible for the results of the choices that they make. This whole Baby mama – daddy mindset has become acceptable as a social standard, we must reverse this.
This is up to Black Men and Women. Black women would endure much less misogyny and sexism if Black MENand WOMEN gave a better example to their SONS and daughters, women need to stop ACCEPTING certain behavior from not just the men they are dating or marrying BUT further STOP enabling such behavior in their SONS and instilling the acceptance of this behavior in their daughters, it is just that simple. Black Men and Women can affect their overall problems, if we start at the source, OUR CHILDREN.
This is just a start people, you know I'm just saying, what say you all?
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