Spring 2023 Part 5

  

Conclusion (for Spring 2023)

To understand the present and the future, we have to look at the past. Back in 1968, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was unjustly assassinated. That changed the Civil Rights Movement forever. The black freedom struggle split into two major factions. One faction sincerely wanted justice for black people and the human race. They exist to this very day in early 2023. The other faction includes those who are compromised, embraced an exploitative form of laissez-capitalism that cares more for profit than economic justice, and those who were brought off by the corporate establishment (we know of their names). One of the many things that Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. had in common was their critiques of capitalism and their total opposition to American imperialism (like in the unjust war in Vietnam). If Malcolm X and Dr. King lived, they would have the power to unite the civil rights, anti-war, Black Power, labor rights, and other movements to attempt to have a revolutionary change in America plus the world. Therefore, we (who are black people) may have different ideologies, but we share the same goal of total black Pan-African liberation. After 1968, black people legitimately got the right to vote and access to jobs. Yet, the struggle for economic justice was not victorious yet. You can't end oppression without dealing with police brutality, poverty, economic inequality, health issues, educational issues, environmental issues, and other important political/social issues going on in the world. 

The National Black Political Assembly on March 10, 1972, tried to make change, but as time went on, some folks were co-opted by the establishment to advance the status quo. Maynard Jackson (mayor of Atlanta) in 1977 unjustly ended the Atlanta sanitation strike and fired workers to support business leaders and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The common myth promoted by the far right is that progressive policies have ruined many urban centers in America. The truth is that far-right, reactionary policies (advanced by both many Republicans and many Democrats) of gentrification, economic exploitation (enacted by big business for profit), lax regulations, environmental neglect, educational problems, poverty, the War on Drugs, mass incarceration, and overt discrimination in many urban centers have nothing to do with real progressive principles. That is why the world's largest corporations control the majority of the mass corporate media. The same forces who co-opted some in the Civil Rights Movement exist today to try to push a compromised agenda to the establishment (this elite includes both white and black people, but the vast majority of the 1 percent are not black people). The struggle faced much ideological confusion and overt opportunists who wanted to stir the movement into a more sugarcoated fashion (in opposition to the ultimate liberation of African people).

Dwayne Wong is a Pan-Africanist who created great literature about Pan-African issues. We know that there is colonialism and imperialism in the world. Yet, there is also a neo-colonialist culture that has manipulated people into loving the system of the oppressor instead of loving truth and honor. This struggle is international. Western support caused the assassination of Patrice Lumumba in the Congo, and in 1985, the U.S. government bombed the MOVE commune movement in cold blood. 1985 is not that long ago, and the bombing took place in Philadelphia. Freedom fighters are diverse. Many freedom fighters are socialists, nationalists, religious people, non-religious people, etc. That is why FBA and ADOS followers do a disservice by using personal attacks against black people who disagree with their nefarious xenophobic views. Dwayne Wong made many interesting, accurate points about Marcus Garvey. I don't agree with Garvey having a dialogue with many members of the Klan and on other issues, but Garvey was right on many issues. As Wong has documented, Marcus Garvey is right that he wanted to challenge his critics to produce institutions to develop the black community, Garvey is right to oppose racist Eurocentric beauty standards, and he was right to call Black Beautiful. Garvey came to America in 1916 and visited many cities and 38 states. He met Ida B. Wells and historian Edward Bruce. Garvey made the UNIA that had institutions employing, housing, and feeding African people in America, Haiti, Africa, the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, and all over the world. Malcolm X, Walter Rodney, Kwame Ture, Dr. King (who came to his gravesite in Jamaica before), Maurice Bishop, and other revolutionaries were directly influenced by Marcus Garvey. Although, there are no justifications for Garvey's errors though (like cursing out Jewish people [I reject anti-Semitism], using ad hominem attacks against his critics, calling himself and his followers the first "fascists," having negative stereotypes of Africa, etc. For the record, DuBois was wrong to use ad hominem attacks against Marcus Garvey too). Despite Garvey wanting capitalism to have regulations, he was an advocate of capitalism. Obviously, I have my critiques about capitalism. 

Amy Garvey, Augusta Savage, and Patrice Lumumba were black heroes who certainly inspire me to this very day in March of 2023. 

So, we have the recognize the complex legacy of Marcus Garvey (meaning he got many things right, and he got many things wrong). People like Kwame Ture, Malcolm X, Dr. King, Queen Mother Moore, and other human beings made contributions to the anti-colonial struggle and the organization of the growth of black liberation politics. We know of Garvey's imperfections, but he was right to advocate black self-determination in solving problems (as we have the strength to accomplish greatness). If you want to end imperialism and colonialism in the world, you have to organize and mobilize institutions and programs to address these evils. Part of that mobilization is uniting the poor and the working class to fight for economic justice, endorse legitimate unions, and reject capitalist exploitation. Marcus Garvey was certainly courageous to stand up for the dignity of black people, and he made contributions to the overall history of black people. Some people want to exploit Marcus Garvey's imperfections as an excuse for them to criticize nationalism in general. The truth is that Nationalism like Socialism can be used for positive change. For example, Patrice Lumumba was an African nationalist, who was one of the greatest, heroic black revolutionaries in history. Dr. King was a Democratic Socialist being a great revolutionary too. The situation is the objective of independence for humanity beyond just a title. Anyone can be called a title, but what is most important is to create a plan and a purpose in getting a redistribution of wealth and power to make the world truly filled with justice for all. It's just that evil people manipulate nationalism for nefarious purposes (in desiring some bourgeois, capitalist system) at times. We need to promote our black culture (in desiring the growth of black populations in America plus the world) and realize that class struggle along with black Pan-African activism makes sense to stand up for our freedom. You have to create a political, economic, and social program in order for us to cause black liberation. Also, black unity and Black Love are sacrosanct concepts to love and honor. 

By Timothy