Today, I write to assuage the ache in my heart with words. In the aftermath of the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr., I came across a profound image that I have since been unable to find. It depicted a group of Afrakan Americans holding signs calling for justice and honoring the slain civil rights leader. However, one sign, held by a young Afrakan American man, stood out from the rest. It read, "You better kill all the blacks." The audacity and defiance of this young man's message is both jarring and courageous. In a time of such great upheaval and violence, it took great courage to write such words on a board, as if to say- why don't you get on with it already, I see you too white Amerikkka. This image is a powerful reminder of the complexities of the human experience and the challenges of fighting for equity and justice for all.
"YOU BETTER KILL ALL THE BLACKS"
I presume, he did not mean to say as an identified 'black' himself to kill them all. Rather, it was a political statement about the unity of the many 'black' people in the face of oppression. The barbaric notions of race, control, and oppression have a long and bloody history, and it is clear that they have not yet been eradicated. The political agenda of those in power has often been to kill off or control the 'black' race, and this agenda has been carried out through a variety of means, including through violence, economic exploitation, and social control. Was (is) the political agenda to kill off the 'blacks' or is it simply to survive the ferocious system of capitalism built on the backs and bloods of the so called 'coloureds, blacks, and negros'? Ain't it strange to live in a world that normalized and normalizes death by means of politico-economic, socio-physical, biological and chemical warfare on an entire group of people based off phenotype or geographic location. The kidnappings, rapes, hangings, destroying, burnings, bombings, and killings of 'black' people have been forgiven and forgotten, and this is due in part to the technological boom, social control, and distractive mechanisms that constrict our ability to act with sense and reason as a collective consciousness.
Perhaps, the blatant acts of dishonor are over in this time and replaced with a more concealed yet deadly version where you can work for the 'white man' or 'woman' and it be alright because you have a higher wage, with a home and maybe even your 'white' wife or husband. After all, race is a social construct and does not matter at all. Yet people were and are killed for it. The times we live in are filled with delusions and agendas that state their intentions for justice and peace, but our entire lives are situated on unsustainable living. We must wake up to the reality of our situation and work to create a more just and sustainable world for all.
How many are killed to create the technologies we hoard and harbor? How many of us do not think much about it? No matter the distance between the continents our lives are inextricably intertwined, despite the various languages spoken, or complexion in our skin. It has always been so. From the enslaved people of the Americas to the caste-ridden Indians to the aboriginals of Australia, countless people have been killed, disregarded, and degraded in the name of progress. These atrocities- are not just historical footnotes. They are the foundation upon which our modern world is built. The land we live on, the resources we use, and the technologies we rely on are all stained with blood. We must never forget the cost of progress and always inquire "for whom?" There wasn't just enslavement in the Americas but all over the world. Indians had been enslaved and had their own version of Jim Crow called the caste system. India's land was colonized and exploited but also the minds that inhabited those lands for generations to come. In Australia, the diverse aboriginals (Koori, Murri, Nyungar, Arrernte, Pitkantjatjara, Yolngu, Palawa etc.) that inhabited the land for at least 65,000 were killed, dismissed, and debauched as if their culture was inferior to another because someone said so. Their case seemed similar to the case of South Africa, in the sense, white settlers came to do the same thing and if they could have gotten away with it, they would have with no question. The assumption I would make is that even if it meant killing the South Africans, they would and then that would lead to "kill all the Africans"..."kill all the blacks".
In my travels, I have been struck with the mesmerizing diversity of the many wondrous colors all throughout the world of people that would not be labeled "white". The very notion of labeling people based on color is a witless way to describe groups of people that are neither the color white or the color black. Yet, I am not sure which is worst, labeling people based off a color that is seemingly not accurate or a location as if we are bounded to the place we are born. Calling someone black or white is like calling them purple or the sky yellow, or the trees white as clouds in a summers day- it is absurd. It disheartens me randomly most days on the consciousness of this world. To be created out of such beauty and to walk the Earth with such a limited vantage point. It's sad isn't it? What concerns me most is the masses' inability to do something meaningful about the injustices in this world by our own creation or silence (fear). There's a scripture that I have to remind myself at times when dealing with the so called 'white' race and their institutions:
"For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places."
כי לא נלחמים בשר ודם, כי אם ברוחות, ברשות, בנסיונות העולם הזה, ברוחות הרשעה שבמעלה
Ephesians 6:12
It is with great sorrow that I write this, as I know that these recollections and memories are ingrained in the minds of many others. We pretend that there is no epigenetic trauma to be dealt with, not only as a race or group of people, but as the entire world. Epigenetics is the study of how environmental factors can cause changes in gene expression without changing the DNA sequence itself. These changes can be passed down from one generation to the next, and they can have a significant impact on health and well-being. This trauma can be caused by a variety of factors, including enslavement, prisoners of war, racism, and institutional violence. Enslavement or prisoners of war (POW) is a horrific experience that has caused immense suffering for millions of people. Enslaved people were subjected to physical and psychological abuse, and they were often denied basic human rights. I write with curiosity and inquisitiveness on the potential link between epigenetic trauma and mental health conditions such as depression, bipolar disorder, poverty, schizophrenia, alcoholism, drug use, etc.
The globalized influence of the principalities of evil that have corrupted our schools, governments, communities, and homes. The people, however, are the ones that permit this great corruption of evil, are we not? We allow the hungry to starve, the righteous to burn, the children to stray, the wars to be fought, the women to be hated, the men to be raped, the homeless to remain beggars and the elders to be forgotten. What moral aptitude exists in our social consciousness with a society like this? The huge divide between the wealthy and poor broadens, and yet the people revel in it or so it seems.
I am often angered by the systems, institutions and people that uphold them. This includes those in positions of power, such as the Vice President of the United States, who has upheld inhumane laws (truancy law) that disproportionally incarcerates more Afrakans in America and Latinos. Even so, it could be that she only wanted to survive in her environment and be accepted by it despite what was immoral. Then my anger may shift to the cowardice professors that know no truth nor knowledge but they are accepted to guide the next minds of the future. Although, it is more a guidance for the future minds to remain in the same box ascribed to them. Be that as it may, the anger that I know very well is irate at all the madness and chaos in the world that is standardized, sometimes it could be an acquaintance, for their ignorance. Or the parents of a child that does not realize their child is watching and imitating them in school. Whatever the case, I dare to say, evil principalities have become uniform and common across nations. This is due to the illusory reward of fiat money and other material possessions, which some people have come to value more than the pursuit of happiness, freedom, and life itself.
In the new age of technology, I find this world quite backwards and filled with misfortune within mankind. I do not know any other creation on this planet that has caused such catastrophe. It may be so because it simply does not exist. What creature is creating atomic bombs or chemical dioxins to be used elsewhere, impacting the environment and its inhabitants all due to perceived resources or geo-politics? Or what creature creates categorizations of people based off the color of the skin, the width of their nose, the size of their head, the fullness of their lips, discriminate and oppress them ceaselessly by any means necessary? It does not exist. Humanity is the only creature that is capable of such destruction and cruelty. We are the only creatures that wage war on each other, pollute our own planet, and oppress our fellow humans. We are the only creatures that are capable of such great evil.
Aren't we meant to give more to this world than wretchedness?
It is daunting to consider the words, "you better kill all the blacks". Sometimes, I wish we as beings of light nurtured our eternal will to fight for justice, harmony, peace, and union. In truth, many of us have settled in acquiescence to just be comfortable despite the cost and abominations worldwide- the cost are our immortal souls. Whether in the form of laws, policies, chemical dealings, armed warfare, etc. There are so many unspoken terrors and torments that continue and the silence makes it all the worst. There are so many things to be said but I shall leave it here for now.
Nonetheless, I have not forgotten, I will not forget, I shall not forget. The struggle shall continue in my lifetime and onwards until there is unity, peace and justice within our collective consciousness by any means necessary.
Write what that means to you below in the comments section.