Remember September 11.

Today marks the 13th anniversary of the September 11th attacks. 9/11 was a somber day. Evil people committed terrorism against Americans which killed men, women, and children. I remember the day like it was yesterday. I was a Freshman in college when it happened. I came home and I saw the destructive images on television. Non-stop for numerous days, there was coverage about 9/11. It was a terrible day where people jumped to their deaths to escape the fire. Mosques were vandalized in an immoral way. People were on edge. Folks had a dazed look on their faces for weeks and even months afterwards. The whole country and the whole world changed. Terrorism and other words are permanently etched in our lexicon and in our consciousness. Now, we live in a new year and a new decade. President Barack Obama gave a televised speech on giving support to U.S. military airstrikes in Syria. He said that he will take certain actions of airstrikes, sending aid to countries to fund Saudi Arabia, so it can aid anti-ISIS military forces, etc. He said that he wants ISIS to be destroyed. The President’s speech advocated an open ended escalation of the U.S. military violence in the Middle East. ISIS is an evil, reactionary Islamist group. The White House is using the crimes of ISIS as a pretext to sending another 475 U.S. troops to Iraq, stepping up bombing of ISIS targets in Iraq, and preparing a cross border extension of the bombing campaign into Syria. The White House wants for funds for U.S. recruitment and training plus arming of “rebel” forces in Syria to fight both ISIS and the government of Bashar al-Assad. Al-Assad is allied both with Iran and Russia. Over a year ago, the White House failed to massively bomb the Assad regime making allegations of the use of nerve gas weapons that were later discredited. ISIS existed not only from al-Qaeda, but from the bad Western imperialist policies in the Middle East. Sunni and Shiite militias in Iraq defeated Al-Qaeda heavily, so they evolved into ISIS. ISIS has been aided by the CIA and U.S. allies like Qatar and Saudi Arabia. They have attacked the U.S.-backed puppet regime in Baghdad. Obama reiterated his policy that the US has the right to wage war against anyone, anywhere that it determines poses a threat to the “core interests” of the United States—i.e., the interests of the American ruling class. 9/11 was exploited by the ruling class as a means for them to execute the war on terror. We know that the war on terror has been based on lies, war crimes have come about from Western imperialists, and tons of lives have been lost. 9/11 should be used for reflection and inspiration to fight for justice. RIP to the victims of 9/11.


First, Ferguson residents have every right to voice their frustrations, anger, and disgust at the status quo. Tons of black people have been mistreated there and their voices have been disregarded by racists and the political establishment for years and decades. Rebellion in Ferguson was caused by the oppression against the citizens of Ferguson. The local government in Ferguson should be outright replaced with component, qualified, independent, and strong leadership. Voting is one tool. I have no issue with voting, but we obviously have to do more. We should establish more grassroots community development and form independent political & economic powerbases where communities can have immediate change. It is very inspiring to witness the strength of Brothers and Sisters speaking their minds courageously in Ferguson. Enough is Enough. This is a struggle for our liberation. The Black Panther Party was right to call the police as acting an occupation army. They have occupied America for a long time. The events in Ferguson, Missouri should wake up people to the militarization of the local police. The government has sent military equipment to local and state police for years and decades. We know that Michael Brown was extrajudicially executed in the street at high noon. We know that militarized police have caused havoc in black communities nationwide. Legal apartheid ended in the 1960’s, but the New Jim Crow is still around (where money is spent in the billions of dollars a year to mass incarcerate people, deny felons human rights even after they paid their debts to society, and treat the ghetto as a domestic colony). We have apartheid in other areas of the world today as well. Even, most of the members of the CBC voted against an amendment that would have halted Pentagon military transfers to U.S. police departments back in early summer. That is treasonous to put it lightly. These militarized weapons have been used to harass people and to make people feel like an occupied community instead of a real community.


Marriage should be taken seriously. Many people today want not only self-gratification, but some want a selfish individualism. That mentality has ruined some relationships. It takes time for a relationship to evolve into marriage. Men and women have to spend time with each other, communicate with each other, and share common values. There must be a collective realization that they need each other as a means for their love to blossom. Superficial relationships are too common and that is disappointing. I like the point that some have made about welfare. People should have concern about each other’s welfare. Each person in a relationship should build, communicate, work together, and express fun too. Having fun is a very important part of a loving relationship. There is nothing wrong with fun as in going into sporting events, shopping, going into parks, etc. Marriage is all about the connection too between a man and a woman. Both genders coming together as one have a very important significance. Even marriages take time to develop and grow as well. The focal point of a real marriage (or any relationship in general) is about true Love. True love is not about bigotry or the demonic energy shown by some (we know who they are), but it is about respect and true appreciation among men and women. Men and women should understand how very important character is. Not everything in life will be peaches and cream, but folks should not act like a tornado against people in response to situations. Life is too short, so it is common sense for people to communicate with each other. Not only that, people should be honest with their intentions and expectations. There should be folks sharing their values and inspiring each other to do the right thing. Many people act more righteous, society is better. People who have self-control issues need help and assistance to deal with their issues. Awareness and constructive action are necessary as a means for the world to witness a real change. A man should never be ashamed of being a man. No relationship will be perfect at every aspect, but abuse should be excluded from the equation. Abuse is evil and unjustifiable at any circumstance. Yes, a woman has the right to express a different opinion on issue. Women have great value in the Universe. Women are our mothers, they have worked on many endeavors of social change, and they have inspired the world. Also, men and women can come together on common ground to express their love, happiness, joy, and respect for each other. There are plenty of men who love women with the qualities of great intelligence, honesty, creativity, etc. A man does want a woman who is compatible as a true friend, an ally, a lover, and someone who just have a person's back. :) Love is beautiful. Love is a very powerful force in the Universe, which can transform lives, heal people, and change societies. One of the best ways to test the character of a person is when things go wrong not when things go right. When a person shows patience, strength, restrain, and reasonableness during moments of conflict, then that person has great character.


Malcolm X transformed his life. In real life, I have BOOKS on Malcolm X that recorded his words. Before his Hajj and after his Hajj, he expressed a lot of truths about black history, culture, and life in general. After his Hajj, he developed his spirituality more and wanted a stronger international coalition to make sure that America was made accountable for its mistreatment of African Americans. We knew what the source of racism was and exposed it publicly and privately. He supported the African revolutionaries and the movements of people of color globally who desired real revolution against oppression. He heroically exposed the hypocrites and the sinners that wanted to assault and kill him in public. He stood up to the evil designs of the FBI and the CIA. He supported the heroic Brother Lumumba and he exposed the political establishment in an uncompromising fashion. He was a brave man. We will continue to call out racism and call out those who spew it. Malcolm X has an ability to grow and to move forward. He did just that in his life. He broke away from the dogmas of Elijah Muhammad as a way for him to think for himself. He was free to think for himself and he had the courage and honesty to admit where he was wrong about something (and he stood up for the convictions that he was right all along). After his Hajj, Malcolm X became more revolutionary. He saw that racism was not just rooted in racial or color differences. He saw it as also rooted in economic, political, social, and cultural exploitation. Malcolm X called for the internationalizing the struggle for human liberation. Therefore, black people have the right to control our communities, but that is not enough. We should change society as a whole and reconstruct it only a truly non-exploitative basis (in order words, the whole structure of society must be radically changed, so justice can be a reality). Malcolm X was not a socialist, but he became was interviewed by socialists, he praised “The Militant,” and he critiqued capitalism in a strong way. Treating your neighbor as yourself is just plain commonsense. We know what the fruits of the spirit are. These fruits represent strength, joy, peace, faithfulness, self-control, humbleness, altruism, love, truth, and wisdom. Malcolm X was right in believing that women should have a strong education. He was right to tell the truth on black history and to advocate black people to express self-determination. We are black and we are beautiful. He was right that brotherhood is important to promote, but we shouldn't ally with people who reject that brotherhood. Therefore, Malcolm X spoke enumerable truths that we can respect.



We have to deal with reality. Both parties have long depended on large, corporate donations. By the late 1920’s, the top one-twentieth of one percent, which was less than 40,000 people owned 30 percent of all U.S. savings. The Great Depression came about. Since a large portion of the bourgeoisie’s wealth was maintained in stock, the crash of 1929 hurt the balance sheets of the wealthy. Four-fifths of the Rockefeller fortune disappeared. Corporate profits were $10 billion in 1929, but in 1932 there was a loss of $2.3 billion. The Rockefellers were still unimaginably wealthy. The New Deal gave a series of reforms that created a social safety net system. The reactionary capitalists denounced the New Deal. Yet, the bourgeois representatives used these reforms as a means to save capitalism in America in the midst of class struggle. There were thousands of labor strikes in the 1930’s alone. In 1934, there were more than 2,000 strikes. Among the most well-known ones were three citywide strikes in San Francisco, Toledo and Minneapolis. WWII also strengthened U.S. capitalism against its European rivals. The Cold War afterwards has shown the imperialism of the West and the horrors of Stalin’s bureaucratic rule. Immediately after WWII, unions were at their peak. The American economy reached its zenith by the 1960’s. U.S. imperialism’s defeat in Vietnam in the 1970s was both costly and embarrassing for the American rulers. The signal event of this union-busting was Ronald Reagan’s firing of the striking PATCO air traffic controllers in 1981. Last year, there were 16 percent fewer workers in unions than in 1983. Only 11.2 percent of private-sector manufacturing workers are today members of unions, which is worse than it was in the 1920s. Today, the bourgeoisie is made up of computer related industries like the robber barons of old. In American capitalism, the ruling class is heavily white while black capitalists are very small. The concessions given as a product of civil rights struggle came in response to the U.S. imperialist policies overseas. The government wanted to promote themselves as upright when they weren’t. The establishment allows the middle class and the rich of the black community to flourish while the poor has experience a widening of the income gap. True equality is not just about just treatment. It is about jobs, decent housing, and adequate schools. The working class and the poor should be the ones that can lead revolutionary change in society.


By Timothy