Real Truths

Nothing will be easy and we do face an uphill battle. We know that we are up against various forms of inertia. Yet, we can't lose faith. Our ancestors suffered much worse than we do, yet they fought and ended overt slavery in multiple nations worldwide. If our people can survive the inexpressible cruelties of the Maafa, slavery, etc. then we can surely win this struggle for our liberation. Women should always have their humanity and dignity valued. Men also should have their dignity valued. Black people in general should be more united and fight oppression. We have to be revolutionary minded and we are in a war for our liberation. I will always love Africa and I will always respect my heritage. In my view, in our lifetime, we won't see the reformation. It may take 30-50 years from now at least for the liberation to occur in my view. We just have to keep going at it, educate people, and help people. We care. We show that we care on what we do (via helping our community, loving our people, and be active in forming solutions) and treating our neighbors as ourselves. Many people have an obvious ignorance about Africa. Ignorance about life unfortunately has been glamorized in Western society. I would not be surprised if Ellen refuses to apologize or clarify her statements, but we have the right to defend Africa and our people regardless. Too many Americans embrace a stubborn arrogance that denies the interconnectedness of humankind. Many African cities and locations have modern amenities, mass transit, and other forms of great technological development. Ghana is a beautiful nation in West Africa. Ironically, I have been studying about Ghana a lot. Ghana is a nation that has a great importance in the pan-Africanist movement. Kwame Nkrumah (who was a great leader and visionary) was a great leader of Ghana who opposed imperialism. He wanted Africa united and free. Our great heroes like Malcolm X, Dr. King, Maya Angelou, etc. visited Ghana before. We are all of black African descent, so our struggle is ONE. WE ARE ONE PEOPLE. Ghana's economy is greatly growing now and Ghana has the highest per capita income in the region of Western Africa. We should be political Independents. Our people have a great legacy of being against imperialism, of being for civil rights, of being in favor of economic justice, desiring an end to police brutality, and being for self-determination.

This is a great, inspiring story. The story of Festus Ohan should be used as an example of how human resiliency is ever present in the globe. Even when others lied and said that he would never graduate from college, the young man continued onward in his goals despite adversity. Despite obstacles, he graduated from UCLA and many medical colleges want him to go into them. Being a doctor carries a huge responsibility and it is very valuable, because any work that is done to better humanity positively is always a work which should receive massive respect. So, he should pursue his dreams and he will make an excellent doctor. If folks want to get married and have children, they should take their time and make sure that their relationship is based on love, rationality, and real principles. A man and a woman being together for a righteous reason is a true blessing in the world. I believe in love and human beings should find compatible mates as well. Too often, fathers have been denigrated in a vicious fashion (especially by the mainstream media). Hopefully, this will change in the future. We ought to respect the great value of fathers and mothers. Women have every right to celebrate Father's day with men. A stable foundation is so key in maintaining a strong household. A family filled with altruism, almsgiving, a cooperative spirit, and true love can reach others and inspire others to achieve their own full social potential. Also, in civilizations, a strong foundation can maintain democratic rights for people, it can preserve a strong infrastructure, and it can cause great prosperity for humanity. I know countless fathers in real life who stand up for real solutions, who are leaders, who care for their families, who are teachers, who are great clergymen, and who just handle their business in everyday life. Much of the young African American youth (those in Generation Y and Generation Z) are increasingly showing diversity in their interests and in their talents (from stake boarding to loving sci-fi). There are tons of black people loving sci-fi culture. Yes, we have to do what we can to educate people on the truth that African Americans are not to be totally placed in a specific box. Sci-fi is extremely popular in our society. Creativity, mysteries, and philosophy all accumulate in the fabric of sci-fi. Malia having a lot of experience is definitely beneficial for her in the long term.

People have the right to know why Iraq is being torn apart. ISIS has seized Mosul or Iraq’s second largest city. The sectarian violence in Iraq has increased to a level never seen in years. The Guardian even reported that Iran has sent Qasem Soleimani or the commander of an elite division of the Revolutionary Guard (along with other advisers) and 2,000 troops. This was done as a means to shore up the Shia dominated central government in Baghdad. Turkey is contemplating action in defense of its personnel kidnapped by ISIS from a consulate in Mosul. This situation has been greatly caused by the 2003 invasion and occupation of Iraq not the absence of U.S. troops back from 2011. ISIS can about in about 2006 as an offshoot of Al-Qaeda in Iraq. The leader of ISIS is Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. ISIS is a reactionary group. They want a reactionary theocracy in Iraq and Syria. This situation has grown because of the corrupt policies of Nour al-Maliki. Al-Maliki has done a poor job in maintaining an unified Iraq. Many of his policies have been authoritarian against the rights of Shias, Sunnis, and the Kurds. The Iraqi Army even in Mosul have detained people, arrested people, and killed people. So, ISIS has exploited the bad policies of al-Maliki as a means to gain support. ISIS so far has not imposed its harsh version of Islamic law in the conquered territory. ISIS has called for the indiscriminate murder of Shias that stand in their path, which is evil. We know that before this, Sunnis have used nonviolent resistance against Iraq’s central government. Maliki has refused to integrate the Sunni Awakening Councils into the Army; maintained the anti-Baathist law, implemented after the U.S. invasion for use against remnants of Saddam Hussein's regime, to target all Sunni political forces, and went after Sunni politicians and leaders with accusations that they support terrorism. The Sunni population across Iraq responded by fighting for their rights with mass demonstrations and sit-ins throughout 2013. At one point, important Shia leaders like Moqtada al-Sadr, who have their own grievances against the Maliki regime, expressed solidarity with these Sunni protests and threatened to organize demonstrations of their own.  Al-Maliki has responded to this by using repressing, torture, mass arrests, neighborhood sweeps, etc. This caused the growth of ISIS not the withdrawal of American troops. Iraq should not be some Shia autocracy. Iraq should be al inclusive of Shias, Sunnis, and the Kurds. Even before 2003, Iraq has suffered Western sanctions that killed over 1 million Iraqis. Also, in the 21st century, U.S. forces have aided Shia and Sunni forces in Iraq for various reasons, which is similar to a divide and conquer strategy. Imperialism is the problem not the solution. There must be independent Sunnis, Shias, and Kurdish coming together in forming a political solution.

Many articles about Brazil deal with many issues. First, we have to acknowledge the great value of the Afro-Brazilians in the world. They are more black people in Brazil than in the United States of America. Second, we have to condemn anybody trying to go into Brazil to seek some sexual exploitation of Brazilian women. Many who go there believe in the lie that there is some superiority of non-African American women, which is a disrespectful lie. The truth is that a woman is a woman. A woman has diverse interests and they are deserving of respect and dignity. The truth is that African American women have great value and their worth should never be degraded by anyone at all. Men have diverse interests too and they are deserving of respect and dignity. Brazil has grown economically in recent years, but Brazil has experienced massive economic inequality. That is why Brazilians are protesting in Brazil during the World Cup games. Capitalistic exploitation of Brazil has been very common. Brothers and Sisters have experienced classism and racism in Brazil too. It is important to note that not all African American men go into Brazil for lust or for some illegitimate purpose. Some Brothers go into Brazil to sincerely research, to study culture, and to understand Brazil in a progressive fashion. Likewise, we have to express empathy to our Brothers and our Sisters suffering in Brazil too. This article has made a thought in my mind. There is a website called “Black Women of Brazil.” You can google it to check it out. I have looked at the site for many months in order for me to gain understanding about our people internationally. It defends black women and black men too. It also defends black children in Brazil. Therefore, we should be conscious of these issues, we have to condemn misogyny (that some embrace under the guise of “dating”), and we must have solidarity with our people globally. It is very important to note that all people deserve equality and justice. Non-Americans should not be made scapegoats for all of the problems in America either. I reject xenophobia and I believe in love for black people including love for humanity in general. Black people globally deserve justice. There is nothing wrong with visiting or living in Brazil, but folks have to do it for the right reason not the wrong reason. There are a lot of Afro-Brazilians fighting the good fight. They need our respect and our support. One Afro-Brazilian Sister who is my hero is Benedita da Silva, who has defended the rights of our people for decades.

There are a lot of words on black capitalism and the self-help philosophy. There is nothing wrong with black people helping themselves. Also, there is nothing wrong with black people collaborating with each other in forming solutions either. There is nothing wrong with humanity in general working together in fighting for genuine social change either. In my view, black capitalism is wrong, because capitalism historically has exploited humanity and it has caused inequalities in the world. We know that black political power overtly have grown in the decades since 1968, but unemployment and poverty are serious problems in the black community. This reality tells me that political power without economic power is not liberation at all. Now, the question is what kind of economic power do we need. We don’t need some economic power within the confines of the capitalist system. More black businesses mean nothing without workers’ rights, economic justice, and living wages. We need political action as a means to have justice too. We should never acquiesce to the wickedness of the status quo. We must have full civil, political, and human rights. Black workers must be emancipated. Also, the poor and the homeless should be given dignity and their true rights too. Housing, health care, education, etc. are human rights. It is very important to advance black dignity and the great value of black humanity. Also, we have to fight for a better world where humanity is treated fairly (and economic justice is established). So, we know that class and racial oppression are linked. Economic solutions alone can never eliminate racism. Racism must be eliminated by a struggle against racism itself. So, black people have every right to advance progressive self-determination. As we see, the main beneficiaries of this system has been a select black bourgeoisie not the masses of black people at all. The sons and daughters of many of the black businessmen typically became government functionaries and middle-level corporate managers. In 2014, we live in the era of terrorism. We live in the end of the Presidency of Barack Obama. This era still shows how racist and vicious American capitalism has been. We have a very key role in the development of this nation and we are entitled to justice, power, and equality. So, we should not only fight racism and class oppression. We should care for the environment and be anti-imperialist. We should continue to understand issues and help our neighbors.

By Timothy