Our Reality

It has been 50 years since the Kerner Commission report. This came about in the midst of rebellions in America from 1963 to 1968 (i.e. Philadelphia and Rochester had rebellions in 1964, we remember Watts in 1965, there was many in Cleveland and Chicago in 1966, and there were some in Newark plus Detroit in 1967. There were the others in 1968 after the King assassination). It was a time of massive changes in America. To understand the rebellions, we have to look at the time period back during the 1960’s. First, there was a post-World War II economic boom, but that expansion wasn’t enough to end poverty and oppression in America. That is why the New Frontier and the Great Society social programs existed as a means to address economic complications that transpired in American society. By the 1960’s, West Germany and Japan improved its economy (via help from the Allies from World War 2 ironically). It competed against America for cars, certain metal materials, and other resources. There was the Vietnam War which increased inflation and there was the massive deindustrialization of urban centers. This deindustrialization was part of jobs being stripped from the cities and placed into the suburbs and rural areas (for production) by corporate interests. Those, in the urban communities, especially among the poor, suffered a great deal of lax schools, lax wages, and desperation from a socioeconomic standpoint. Police misconduct triggered the many rebellions of the 1960’s as well.

The Kerner Commission report accurately mentioned that racism, economic exploitation, and segregation were contributing factors to the rebellions. Capitalistic exploitation continues to harm lives to this very day just like back in the day. People suffered overcrowded neighborhoods, substandard housing, and police harassment plus violence constantly. This commission was chaired by Illinois Democratic Governor Otto Kerner. The report was about 600 pages. It called for a solution that was far reaching. It wanted the creation of 2 million new jobs, 1 million would be created by direct government spending, 6 million housing units, and the expanding welfare system (to increase more people eligible for it). It wanted a guaranteed minimum income for all Americans and more funding for city schools equal to wealthier schools. Could you imagine someone proposing this in 2018? That is taboo today, but many people even back then had the sense enough to realize accurately that large investments are necessary to help the poor and the oppressed. The sad part is that there has been no massive social or political reform in the federal level (on a massive scale) since the 1960’s except a handful of items. Medicare, Medicaid, the Civil Rights Act, and the Voting Rights Act all came about during the 1960’s. The imperialist war in Vietnam resulted in failure and it caused pressure on the dollar. Today, the majority of the wealth in America is owned by the wealthy few and the working class struggle for the basic of legitimate necessities. That is why we have to understand these realities in order for solutions to transpire.

Recently was the Birthday of Sister Jackie Joyner-Kersee. She is 56 years old. Legendary describes her career in the track and outside of it. She is a heroic black woman from East St. Louis, Illinois who captivated the world not only with her excellent athletic ability, but also with her philanthropy. She is one of the greatest athletes in human history in performing multiple sports in the highest level. That is why people call her the greatest woman athlete of all time. She played basketball and did track and field at the University of California in Los Angeles. During the Olympics, she won 3 gold medals, 2 bronze, and one silver from 1984 in Los Angeles to 1996 in Atlanta. She won four gold medals in other world championships. The heptathlon and the long jump were her specialties. Always giving back, she invested Internet access to low income people, she promoted equality for women, and she has given her time to help out her own community in a myriad of ways. Her husband is her former track coach Bob Kersee. She is a great role model and a human being who always promotes excellence in her life. Her Jackie Joyner-Kersee Foundation has helped the lives of tons of people.
I wish Sister Jackie Joyner-Kersee more Blessings.

As time goes on, society refashions or evolves. Yet, the same principles of progressive thought and human dignity meanwhile remain indefatigably. Our axiom believes that all humans are born equal and have the right to equality without exception flawlessly. Not to mention that we embrace diversity as human beings are diverse in many ways. This diversity never denotes innate human inferiority, but innate human intrinsic value plus total equality. I believe in progressive taxation since we have massive economic inequality in the world currently (as a product of reactionary, abhorrent economic policies). Not to mention that the super wealthy have record wealth accumulation and power. Studies from the numerous reports including specific sources have documented this reality. Poverty is caused not by poor people. Poverty is caused by the injustices of unfair wages, discrimination, unfair prices, health care issues, working conditions, discrimination, and other evils. That is why it is purely necessary for policies to exist that will benefit the public community interest (and the collective people) beyond individual interests. I believe in democratic freedoms. That means that the right to assemble, the freedom of religion, the freedom of the press, and the freedom of speech ought to be promoted and protected universally. Workers deserve collective bargaining and other economic rights. The role of government is not to benefit the limited few in its machinations. The role of government is to promote the general welfare which is advantageous (or beneficial) to the masses of people (i.e. the African American community, women, immigrants, the poor, the middle class, the farmers, all of the labor community, etc.). It is also vitally important to enhance our environment. We desire fundamentally clean water, clean air, flourishing forests, and strong urban, suburban, plus rural communities. We want people of every color to live in communities filled with great universal health care, quality education, compassion, and spaces for recreation plus other forms of enjoyment.

Not to mention, we seek an end to police brutality, and justice shown to black communities in America plus globally. That is precisely why the Black Lives Matter movement is correct to advocate the end to racism & the overtly destructive prison industrial complex. Wealth ought not to be centralized among a few corporations governing the political interests of America. It ought to be given to the wide spectrum of the human family equitably. Solutions revolve around both governmental action among all levels of government plus work done by us in our individual communities (plus by other institutions). There is a difference between legitimately distributing wealth and power fairly as possible to the people and nefariously extending wealth to a specific class or the super wealth to the detriment of everyone else. These hallowed, excellent precepts of economic, racial, and social justice are opposed to the evils of Imperialism and Empire. We desire democratic freedom to extend worldwide. Social justice is a powerful, transcendent credo to live by.

By Timothy