"Regardless of your color."

No, NOT "regardless", GAWD, I'm sick of this. This piece didn't say Latinos, Asians, gays or any one else. It said BLACKS. There is in fact a UNIQUE situation that blacks and ONLY blacks are in and it has to do with the fear all too many whites have of ethnic miscegenation--in other words, the irrational fear that the world's gonna come to an end if your (great, great) grandchildren look like Tiger Woods or Halle Berry or Ice T or Mariah Carey. I'm sick of this "Oh, I'm color blind, now let's skip through the tall grass like the Eloi from HG Wells The Time Machine and ignore everything" attitude. The price of liberty is ETERNAL vigilance and when you forget history it repeats itself--whether you want to deal with it or not. For the record, the Greenpeace version of FDR's New Deal could hire everybody--illegal immigrants, ex-convicts, trailer park trash, everybody--given the sorry state of the environment, there'd be more than enough work for everybody ...

"We've all heard stories where courage overcomes. How about we stop blaming everything and everyone and take accountability for our own lives?"

No one's blaming "everything", we're blaming the criminal lack of investment. We need a Greenpeace version of FDR's New Deal; an eco-friendly jobs program (such a thing would kill two birds with one stone--take out poverty and polution in one, fell swoop). Now, how can you AFFORD to go through the ghetto and hire blacks with a living (NOT mimimum) wage with such a program? "Stories where courage overcomes" ain't gonna do the trick, son. You're going to have to tax the rich and cut the military--so whenever blacks hear about Enron's shenanigans or how we're spending THREE HUNDRED MILLION EVERY DAY WE'RE IN IRAQ, guess what? We get pissed off, and rightfully so. And no, Oprah and Michael Jordan, etc. can't afford to do it on a MASS scale, so don't even go there ...
"Accountability"?! To paraphrase Spider-Man, with great power comes great accountability ...

"Yeah its true we have injustice. Is that ever going to change? Should we ever expect that to change?"

Hell yeah we should expect that to change! One hundred years ago, kissing a white woman in public was a death sentence for a black man--now it's taken for granted. One hundred years ago, women couldn't vote--now they run for office on a regular basis. Ralph Nader once said people have been controlled all throughout history by having their expectations lowered--you're not trying to lower our expectations, are you ..?

"Maybe the only thing we can blame is ourselves."

Are you going to get a check from the Republican Party for saying that? Are they paying you to let them off the hook?

"Primarily where you spend your money has absolute impact on this world."

What money, genius? POVERTY is the issue here and if you're poor ... Look, I'll be the first to admit that blacks have no business buying expensive-ass Nikes, but that bling-bling lifestyle is being promoted by certain-not-all rap videos. Rap videos COST MONEY to produce (high six figures to low millions), therefore, if the goal (and it should be) is to COUNTER the influence of those videos (more free speech, NOT less), WHO'S GOING TO PAY FOR THOSE COUNTER VIDEOS??!!! Yeah, that's what I thought ... funding the arts the way a commie would is the only answer, which means you MUST obligate the rich to invest (via the pen &/or the sword). I'd direct such a video TONIGHT, but I'm not going to half-ass do it with a cell phone camera in the name of impressing you or the Protestant work ethic. Fund me--the same way this illegal occupation of Iraq has been funded--and thy will be done. Otherwise ...

The root cause of all this seems to be unreasoned anger - taught by people in pain to their children from the cradle on up. Obviously the anger is frequently justified and equally the pain is real for all oppressed people. But violence is also obviously counterproductive. The response to injustice needs to change. Think gun control. Think education. Think two-parent families. Think the teachings of Martin Luther King and Ghandi. Those are lessons to be learned at home & practiced a lifetime. Many of the true victims of society respond with unreasoned anger and violence that only perpetuates the victimization and does nothing to change it.

No, the root cause it racism and classism. All else is are results.

The 'root cause' as described in the comment (N) above is blaming the victims. And, that 'anger' is the source of all African Americans problems. Sounds like a Ronald Reagan commercial to me.

The AP article is stating that more programs to educate African-Americans are needed, not more programs to incarcerate them, like the Rockerfeller drug laws and selling jail stocks on Wall Street.

Children cannot get a good eduction if they have health problems and go to really bad schools. African-Americans do not manufacture guns nor do they import drugs. Why are we NOT doing something to stop these 2 factors at the source? The majority of drugs in this country is consumed in white sub-urban societies but more African American go to jail for drug offenses. Why?

Why are there so few African American senators when there are so many that are qualified to do the job? The leadership of this country is an old boys network and they benefit from the poor and downtrodden.

Let's create more opportunities for jobs and education for African Americans. Let's rebuild the cities like they once were when they were largely white cities without kicking out their African American populations.

This idea is very interesting: "...expanded use of all-male schools emphasizing mentoring and longer class hours." Most black male children have no father figure in the home to emulate in terms of responsibility and employment. Perhaps all-male schools and mentoring (presumably by male teachers) would help many of these kids to reach their potential. I wonder if this has been tried anywhere.

'The past is not dead, it is not even past.' This country is reaping the bitter harvest of years of slavery, Jim Crowism, and the persistent, insidious lie that if people are poor or oppressed it is their own fault.

John Calvin is dead but the Robertsons and Falwells, never tire of reminding us that God rewards the good with wealth and all the poor have to do is send them some more money if they want to be wealthy too.

Not surprisingly this theology is strongly supported by the rich. With one lie they are assured of their divine right to what they have and absolved of any responsibility for sharing their wealth with those who, overworked and impoverished, created that wealth.

Everyone's needs are different and this is a society that doesn't empower people. Regardless of your color. We've all heard stories where courage overcomes. How about we stop blaming everything and everyone and take accountability for our own lives? Yeah its true we have injustice. Is that ever going to change? Should we ever expect that to change? Maybe the only thing we can blame is ourselves. This world is only getting smaller in terms of usable resources and population growth. You all pointing fingers at each other will only turn into a rain of bombs. Turn that off please and take accountability to the decisions you make in your life that keep people stuck. Primarily where you spend your money has absolute impact on this world. The sooner we all act with accountability the sooner we can get on the fast track to some amazing human creations and perhaps you will all sleep better.

"The root cause of all this seems to be unreasoned anger ..."

This is far more offensive than any comedian or radio show host spouting some slur in the heat of the moment. How dare whoever said this imply that the answer is for blacks to be masochists--silently tolerating this apocalypse all so whoever said this can feel let off the hook?! Anger? If you didN'T feel anger upon reading these horrid stats, facts and figures, there'd be something wrong with you!

"... violence is also obviously counterproductive ... Think the teachings of Martin Luther King and Ghandi."

King, Ghandi ... or Mandela, right? Well, if it wasn't for Cuba sending troops to Angola to fight the spread of apartheid in the late 1980s, Mandela never would've been freed from prison. How do we know this? Because one of the first things Mandela did once he was free was head straight to Cuba to THANK Castro for sending those troops! Look it up! It takes BOTH pacifists AND militants, and I'm really getting sick and tired of this whole, "which path is the best" spiel ... if it wasn't for the Black Panthers, Dr. King never would've been taken seriously--good cop, bad cop ...

"Regardless of your color."

No, NOT "regardless", GAWD, I'm sick of this. This piece didn't say Latinos, Asians, gays or any one else. It said BLACKS. There is in fact a UNIQUE situation that blacks and ONLY blacks are in and it has to do with the fear all too many whites have of ethnic miscegenation–in other words, the irrational fear that the world's gonna come to an end if your (great, great) grandchildren look like Tiger Woods or Halle Berry or Ice T or Mariah Carey. I'm sick of this "Oh, I'm color blind, now let's skip through the tall grass like the Eloi from HG Wells The Time Machine and ignore everything" attitude. The price of liberty is ETERNAL vigilance and when you forget history it repeats itself–whether you want to deal with it or not.

"We've all heard stories where courage overcomes. How about we stop blaming everything and everyone and take accountability for our own lives?"

No one's blaming "everything", we're blaming the criminal lack of investment. We need a Greenpeace version of FDR's New Deal; an eco-friendly jobs program (such a thing would kill two birds with one stone–take out poverty and polution in one, fell swoop). Now, how can you AFFORD to go through the ghetto and hire blacks with a living (NOT mimimum) wage with such a program? "Stories where courage overcomes" ain't gonna do the trick, son. You're going to have to tax the rich and cut the military–so whenever blacks hear about Enron's shenanigans or how we're spending THREE HUNDRED MILLION EVERY DAY WE'RE IN IRAQ, guess what? We get pissed off, and rightfully so. And no, Oprah and Michael Jordan, etc. can't afford to do it on a MASS scale, so don't even go there …
For the record, the Greenpeace version of FDR's New Deal could hire everybody–illegal immigrants, ex-convicts, trailer park trash, everybody–given the sorry state of the environment, there'd be more than enough work for everybody …
"Accountability"?! To paraphrase Spider-Man, with great power comes great accountability …

"Yeah its true we have injustice. Is that ever going to change? Should we ever expect that to change?"

Hell yeah we should expect that to change! One hundred years ago, kissing a white woman in public was a death sentence for a black man–now it's taken for granted. One hundred years ago, women couldn't vote–now they run for office on a regular basis. Ralph Nader once said people have been controlled all throughout history by having their expectations lowered–you're not trying to lower our expectations, are you ..?

"Maybe the only thing we can blame is ourselves."

Are you going to get a check from the Republican Party for saying that? Are they paying you to let them off the hook?

"Primarily where you spend your money has absolute impact on this world."

What money, genius? POVERTY is the issue here and if you're poor … Look, I'll be the first to admit that blacks have no business buying expensive-ass Nikes, but that bling-bling lifestyle is being promoted by certain-not-all rap videos. Rap videos COST MONEY to produce (high six figures to low millions), therefore, if the goal (and it should be) is to COUNTER the influence of those videos (more free speech, NOT less), WHO'S GOING TO PAY FOR THOSE COUNTER VIDEOS??!!! Yeah, that's what I thought … funding the arts the way a commie would is the only answer, which means you MUST obligate the rich to invest (via the pen &/or the sword). I'd direct such a video TONIGHT, but I'm not going to half-ass do it with a cell phone camera in the name of impressing you or the Protestant work ethic. Fund me–the same way this illegal occupation of Iraq has been funded–and thy will be done. Otherwise …

http://www.lasvegascitylife.com/articles/2004/02/04/scorched_earth/fear_no_evil/fearnoevil.txt

http://coanews.org/tiki-read_article.php?articleId=1541

I have little doubt that the all-male schools that these people are advocating would include heavy use of the paddle. The higher rates of corporal punishment and child abuse among african americans is one of the root problems here, and it dates back to slavery. As it is, when there is corporal punishment in schools, boys get it more, with the black boys coming in first; but they are also mistreated at home. Children need schools that are non-punitive, democratically run by them, and which are truly safe, sympathetic places to learn. They do not need a bunch of preachy, self-righteous (profanity) out to forcibly intrude into their lives as "mentors" in military-inspired schools (which is what they would be, since we aren't talking about advocacy from a masculist or men's studies perspective, which make a school free from sexism towards males where they were allowed to fully develop their feelings.) As it is, same-sex schools are just as good as abstinence-centered sex ed is, and often created from the same right wing perspective. I mean honestly, not even allowing opposite sex school-friendships is supposed to support the creation of "two parent families?"

Look I'm not trying to argue with you and it is obvious your emotional about the whole subject which can never really give you neutrality, but I hear you.

The problem I'm having reading your criticism is that you are deameaning american people by saying they have no choice to live otherwise, and that public services aren't enough and should be bigger. Do you think that changing this current administration is going to change something as far as equity for all? And so what if this article only wants to talk about African-Americans. We are all in trouble and thats great that we have the newest stats and results about what is plaguing African American men, but how about Arab men, or Latino men, Asian men, or African Men??

The problem is not going to be allievated by more government programs which mean more government control which means bigger government and more holes for the money to get lost down the cracks. How is this going to help out African American men?

I am a no, to more government services plain and simple. That is ridiculous to expect money from that already taxed machine and only serves to keep them in business. I'm no republican by the way...and your judgements are so many I might think to call you God if you hadn't brought up the need for more government involvement...

Actually, yes; more government programs are going to help. In social democratic nations, there are no ghettos, no slums, or millions of minorities dying in the streets because they have legislation that helps out everyone.

I work with an Italian that told me that Italy's public healthcare wasn't even used by the middle class because of the types of practitioners available to free healthcare. Do you feel safe about opening your body up to a poorly trained albiet public healthcare worker?

The point here is that you feel just fine about lower class Americans not being given the opportunity to judge themselves whether public health care workers are really qualified, or not. I would prefer subsidized housing in good areas (a country with only good areas to live in) than being homeless; I would prefer free education as opposed to being in personal debt for decades as opposed to the probably reality of not even being able to get a job with benefits with my degree; I would prefer, again, guaranteed benefits if I become unemployed as opposed to ending up having to live outside in the elements. Everyone should have these protections, because it is impossible for everyone to earn them otherwise.

I don't feel fine about low income Americans that do not have proper health care and education as well as housing. My point, is that it is not enough, and your putting yourself in more positions where you cannot have the liberty of getting out of those INSTITUTIONS. On the contrary I am deeply moved at the inequity of our society. And just because I disagree with how you make the change or how low income communities are saved from being dispaced doesn't mean I'm OK with leaving low income families and communities stranded in hell.

Currently I'm working on a project that has nothing to do with the government and everything to do with empowering people that don't have the skills, money or what have you to rise above low income. And I hope this project will be a glaring reality for YOU when you read about it. This problem has absolutely nothing to do with the government. This is way more personal and personally affecting than to put this beast in the hands of Wanton government officials.

I can't help thinking of more public housing projects the government puts funds into in order to allieviate the low income divide. Have you read anything Johnathan Kozol wrote? Look him up. Public housing projects are not the answer my friend.

For some reason, what I'm posting is not getting online. It seems that MeBeMe is an anarchist or a libertarian--in other words, they'd just as soon see the complete absense of government. That's fine, but that doesn't change the fact even in a world without a state, we'd STILL be obligated to help our fellow man.

Let me try this one more time: You asked, "we have the newest stats and results about what is plaguing African American men, but how about Arab men, or Latino men, Asian men, or African Men??"

First, those stats exist. Second, if a Ku Klux Klansman could choose who his daughter brought home, he'd pick Chow Yun-Fat/Siddig El Fadil/Antonio Banderas LONG before he'd pick someone as dark as Wesley Snipes, so the darker you are, the more hell you catch. Fact is, dark-skinned have it the worst, period. Third, why are you so threatened by the focus being on black Americans?

And thats why we clash because your trying to label me. Does that work for you? Should I call you a low-income African American sympathizer? Or maybe I could call you a liberal?!

WTF! I am neither a Libertarian nor an Anarchist. I'm not communist or any other label. It is ignorance to relate with anyone with labels so why are you using them? You can try to fit me into your square holes but I an Octagon pal so I'm not going to fit in your damn box. And you need to get off the every white man is your enemy. Your prejudice speaks volumes of unsaid anger and resentment which I might add is being sent to the wrong person in the first place. You've got a chip on your shoulder about this? Maybe you should get more involved with your community instead of whining about what the government isn't providing you.

http://www.kkk.bz/coming_white_genocide.htm
great link. Thats helpful for this conversation and makes alot of sense! I've just upgraded you from prejudiced to racist.

Yep, you're threatened alright ... if I was one of the X-Men, I suppose my mutant power would be to spot fools like you from a mile away ...

"And you need to get off the every white man is your enemy."

Did I once say "every" white man? No, but I'm also not going to waste space listing the good white folks either? Why? Because whites already own a MASSive media establishment that's specifically designed to make them feel good about themselves and I'm not going to feed into it any more than I'd give Goliath steroids before he went up against David. As much as I love Superman, you've got an extremely powerful character that's supposed to be an alien from another planet and yet he just so happens to look white? Ask an anthropoligist what the Vegas odds are on an extraterrestial looking even remotely Human--let alone white, so again, whites have their asses kissed enough as it is. Hence the focus on black Americans you seem to be so threatened by ...

"It is ignorance to relate with anyone with labels so why are you using them?"

It's called political SCIENCE, son, so it'd be ignorant NOT to use labels. Going without labels is as bad as that whole "I'm colorblind so let's skip through the tall grass like the Eloi from HG Wells The Time Machine and ignore everything" attitude. So, I suppose during science class it didn't matter to you if acids and bases were labeled properly, huh?

"Maybe you should get more involved with your community instead of whining about what the government isn't providing you."

Was the late, great Molly Ivins "whining" when she wrote her columns? But hey, maybe you've got a point. Maybe I should give up on the pen and pick up the sword--maybe that'll help my community more ..!

Me.Be.Me, you don't seem to understand the difference between subsidized housing and housing projects/the projects/ghettos. In fact, there is a lot of things that you really don't get; like the fact that you are openly spouting libertarian philosophy. Further, it would be much better if the government already provided everyone with equal status so that you wouldn't have to bother with your project; you could go do something else.

Saab Lofton hasn't said that every white person is the enemy; but clearly ones that are racist or who simply don't give a damn about the social conditions of african americans are; and that seems to include you.

"I've just upgraded you from prejudiced to racist."

So if a Jew points out Nazi propaganda that makes that Jew a Nazi? You're the one not making any sense. I listed that site as evidence--proof that that is in fact what's on a white supremacist mind. I didn't list it cause I like it!! Oy!

The mere fact that you had a problem with me simply citing that site goes to show you're an Eloi, you really think life is as simple as skipping through the tall grass dealing about nothing. I wonder though, whether this colossal disregard applies everything--or only the struggle of black Americans ...

I think the main problem facing black communities is the use of mass incarceration under the guise of the "war on drugs". Someone earlier pointed out the rampant drug use within white communities (and I'll include legal prescription drugs in this as well), yet it is mostly black men being locked up for drug offenses (followed closely by Latinos). All drug transactions aren't carried out on street corners, so let's dispel the notion that black men are caught more often because they distribute openly.

You can't lock up most of the men living in a particular community and expect the community to thrive. Non-violent drug offenders permeate the criminal justice system, and it is destroying the stability of the black family. What's truly infuriating as a black male is hearing conservative whites constantly harping about things like illegitimacy, yet ignoring that there has been a thirty-year program designed to lock up as many black men as possible, taking away the traditional bread-winners and role models in black communities. And we know the criminal juctice system has always reserved it's harshest treatment for black male defendants (rates of incarceration, death penalty sentencing, length of imprisonment, etc.), regardless of past criminal record compared to their white couterparts.

If you lock up most of the black males, it only stands to reason that many young black males are going to gravitate towards the men who have returned from prison and are up to no good. Prison culture has seeped into many black communities (especially the overly-baggy clothing). It's very depressing and it gives one a feeling that the only way for black people as a whole to get out of this spiral of incarceration is to remove ourselves from situations in which we'll face judgment at the hands of whites who seem to instinctively mete out the harshest punishment to black men.

Yes, this is radical, but at this point, I don't see any other way to look at it. We'll never be treatly fairly in this society. Period.

Well you two have fun working on getting funding from the government.

I don't choose to make change and transformation occur from working with the government. I put more stock in the people of my community:
here let me put this label out for your ego (predominately hispanic, african-american, american indian and minority white)
just incase you THINK I'm living in a white suburb.

And I'm not threatened by you. I'm blown away and maybe a little frustrated that your so hurt by a debate for less government. But certainly not threatened by your emotion. You wanna fight anyone that disagrees because your right? Glad your not the Prez. Go get your sword son, go and make peace then, sonny boy.

There is two sides to the coin. I was raised to respect all people regardless of color and race. I am a "white" man with my own business with a clientelle about %33 "black". I get along with them just fine.
My problem comes with me being a white liberal, and I live next door to a "black" man who is a local primary school administrater. I live in the most illiterate city in the US, Stockton, Ca, and the guy drives the hugest oil burning Ford 4 X 4 a whole mile to his goverment job each day. He wears tye-dyes and calls himself "an old hippie" though, so I guess he's justified. The last I checked our country was invading countries full of dark skinned people for oil. I guess he hasn't made the connection yet.
Also I know an old girlfriend in Oakland who had a child with a "black" man who was a retinal surgeon, and he refused to pay child support of even have any contact with his son. She had to take him to court to pay support. The guy makes 500K a year. What gives?
So my point is that I think "black" men can be there own worse enemies. It's a shame.

"If you lock up most of the black males, it only stands to reason that many young black males are going to gravitate towards the men who have returned from prison and are up to no good. Prison culture has seeped into many black communities (especially the overly-baggy clothing)."

Very good point. Nicely put.

I myself am like Urkel--I guess you could say I'm a black nerd. Thing is, that prison culture you described is what's considered cool, so something needs to replace it--quickly, or else ...

Problem is FUNDING its replacement. Since I never say no to something without saying yes to something better, one thing I've been saying since Day One is that blacks are usually put into two catagories, clowns or beasts. But just as the Green Party supercedes both the Democrats and Republicans, the savior/superhero archetype rises above both the clown and beast image (Why else is a SAVIOR like Jesus falsely depicted as white?). Therefore, I propose that DC Comics comes up off the means for there to be a Green Lantern movie whereby it's John Stewart (and not the white Hal Jordan or Alan Scott or half-white Kyle Rainer) as Green Lantern. I'd cast Taye Diggs as John Stewart and DC could do a lot worse than to hire my broke ass to write the screenplay. I bring all this up because with any luck, this would catch on with the black masses and AT LEAST compete with that prison culture that's so dominant ...

"What's truly infuriating as a black male is hearing conservative whites constantly harping about things like illegitimacy, yet ignoring that there has been a thirty-year program designed to lock up as many black men as possible, taking away the traditional bread-winners and role models in black communities."

Nice! Outstanding! Perfect, flawless ...

"We'll never be treatly fairly in this society."

Never say never. I'll die like a samurai trying to see to it we're treated fairly. Honor demands no less.

I will tell you the single most important thing that blacks need is an opportunity for a good, safe education. I have spent a few years in various jails and I will tell you that the vast majority of the people in prison or jail never had a chance. All of then were uneducated. Many were very smart and clever and quite talented, but unfortunately, for most of them, jail was more like home. They had been institutionalized. Almost none of the inmates I knew were High School graduates.
Again, I don't want to say that education is THE answer, but in my eyes, from what I have seen and experienced, if the blacks were afforded an opportunity to have a better education – forced – to be in school, then we would begin to see some changes in a generation.
I have met some of the most intelligent, funny, talented, quick witted people in my life in jails or prisons. It's past time to make them get an education.

Malcolm X said that "you can't have capitalism without racism"

capitalism will never solve the issue of racism. Due to the struggles of the black working class in this country they cannot apply this divide and rule tactic in the way they have historically with such success. So they use it in all sorts of less overt ways. In Northern Ireland they couldn't use color, so the Catholics got the worst housing, the worst jobs etc.

In the US, the most succesful tool for dividing and weakening working class resistance has been racism along color lines. I would have to say that the black American man has been among the most maligned individuals in history.

I remember when I first read Robert Williams' book, Negroes With Guns. He got involved in the struggle as a former marine and I think it was around mobilizing fro blacks to get the use of the public pool.

But he describes a scene in a car as they were being chased by whites. They fled past the cop station and as they looked they saw them laughing.

This country had a system of apartheid in the holy Christian south and it is the legacy of racism in this country that is the cause of the present situation. Affirmative Action was the sulition that came from the white racist bosses courts. The great struggle of the black youth in the civil rights movement that forced these changes demanded equal and civil rights not quota's.

I should clarify that while afffirmative action will never solve the crisis that this article describes and is very divisive, I would not oppose it. When I ran for city council in Oakland CA I offered instead a real alternative. For whites in particular, opposing Afrimative Action with no alternative puts you in the camp with the racists. What do we do about 200 years of white affirmative action? Do we now live in a non racist society so AA is not needed? I think not.

Malcolm X was in the UAW for a while. Had the union leaders fought racism correctly he could have emerged earlier as a great working class leader but was cut down by the state (with at least the acquiessence of Farrakhan and the NOI) as he was moving in this direction.

Capitalism cannot solve poverty. When their interests and their system is threatened, the capitalist class will always resort to racism, sexism, and other forms of class division that weaken workers and our ability to fight back.

As a socialist I accept this. However, this does not mean I do not advocate public spending. There should be massive public expenditure on housing, transportaion, education etc. Look at all the jobs this creates. There is money everywhere but the illegitimate owners of the wealth we create will not use it to solve the crisis that society faces.
But I have no illusions that we can win this. A mass movement may temporarily make some gains. But the system of production itself has to be changed.

In the social democratic countries where workers parties once existed there is a more human friendly existence but that is also being whittled away as the leaders of the workers parties and the trade unions have capitulated completely to the ideology of the market.

What empowers us is collective action and using the power of the working class to prevent them from instituting their business as usual phony solutions to a problem they have no intention of solving.

The subprime mortgage collapse is another example of institutionalized racism in housing.

Read African Americans will bear the brunt of the collapsing subprime mortgage market at:
http://laborsmilitantvoice.org

I agree with amandla. It's the Drug War/ Private Prison complex that is most responsible for this black holocaust.

Black church leaders are made complicit in the white attacks on the black community and in promoting drug gang warfare by accepting public and private funding from the drug warriors. They further stoke the drug war fires and their community pays the price.

Black politicians like Charley Rangel who promote the WOD as a re-election tool are also guilty the killing and incarceration of young black drug entrepreneurs trying to escape McJobs, the formation of drug gangs and of the death of innocents from stray bullets. Such politicians who keep drug demand high and supply low are the best partners of drug cartels and mafias.

Reparations, reparations, reparations. Do not be afraid of it. This article is all the more reason why I support it. Not that a lot of the problems the black community faces aren't from within. I think there are a number of factors at work here. Class plays a role as well. But I think racism and the legacy of slavery, Jim Crow, and discrimination compounds things in a unique way.

"Therefore, I propose that DC Comics comes up off the means for there to be a Green Lantern movie whereby it's John Stewart (and not the white Hal Jordan or Alan Scott or half-white Kyle Rainer) as Green Lantern. I'd cast Taye Diggs as John Stewart and DC could do a lot worse than to hire my broke ass to write the screenplay."

How about a Black Panther film? Or maybe one of the Milestone characters from more than a decade ago?

"Because whites already own a MASSive media establishment that's specifically designed to make them feel good about themselves and I'm not going to feed into it any more than I'd give Goliath steroids before he went up against David."

Most whites don't own that though. It's just the elites, and they're not looking out for my best interests either nor do I feel that they're making us feel ok. If anything our mass media constantly makes ALL of us feel as if we're not good enough, i.e. we need to be thinner, more muscular, have bigger sexual organs and secondary characteristics, have more money, etc.

"As much as I love Superman, you've got an extremely powerful character that's supposed to be an alien from another planet and yet he just so happens to look white?"

You have a point there. However, Icon, a black character from the aforementioned Milestone line came from another planet too. The Silver Surfer (Norrin Radd) looked a little too human also.

It's been said that Superman is a metaphor for the Jewish experience given that his two creators, Siegel and Shuster were Jews. Not to mention the fact that he was invented back in the 30's.

how is it when blacks have no opportunties, a guy from senegal who is blacker than most blacks in this country, can come here, learn english, drive a cab, save enough money to start a buisness, and wind up with a nice house, enough money for his kids and family, and being well liked in a small rural community, and own his own auto parts store?

if black is a handicap, isn't being black, poor, and english illiterate even worse?

there's no lack of opportunity. there is a lack of willingness to do quit complaining and get on with it.
if all this makes it impossible, how come this guy could do it?

MtnGoat, thanks for the bootstraps story. Try reading Angela Davis' autobiography. As a teenager, she entered a shoe store and spoke French to the white clerk. The clerk was very welcoming and asked her where she was from. I think she named a francophone Caribbean nation. Anyway, she knew from friends that this same clerk had shown racist disdain for them. Just as the clerk thought he had sold a pair of shoes to Angela, she switched to her real African-American tongue and said laughing (paraphrase), "I'll never buy shoes from a racist like you."

The man from Senegal worked hard, I'm sure. But there is an element of the "exotic" in foreigners who happen to be black, whereas an African American is subject to a white supremist prejudice that is in the collective conscience and subconscience of "decent" white folk, even and especially the liberal ones. Please, read Angela Davis and Malcolm X.

All leftist groups should sacrifice a single day from their hectic schedules in this year, and join in implementing a one day boycott of gasoline. Nothing influences the capitalist racist classist establishment more effectively than unity of mass action. Of course, it is the oppression by the reckless establishment that keeps blacks and all people down. So let's stop bickering and let's put that puppy dog on its leash right now.

"how is it when blacks have no opportunties, a guy from senegal who is blacker than most blacks in this country, can come here, learn english, drive a cab, save enough money to start a buisness, and wind up with a nice house, enough money for his kids and family, and being well liked in a small rural community, and own his own auto parts store?

if black is a handicap, isn't being black, poor, and english illiterate even worse?

there's no lack of opportunity. there is a lack of willingness to do quit complaining and get on with it.
if all this makes it impossible, how come this guy could do it?"

He wasn't born here. You cannot compare the experience of African Americans with those of immigrants. African Americans were brought here as slaves. It's different.

You can name all the immigrant success stories you want. But for every guy from Senegal that starts up a business and "makes it", there are ten other immigrants who are working in menial jobs for little pay. The man from Senegal took a risk which most people even in this country can't afford to take. I'm glad he made it and is well-liked in his community. But his story is sadly atypical.

"The man from Senegal worked hard, I'm sure. But there is an element of the "exotic" in foreigners who happen to be black, whereas an African American is subject to a white supremist prejudice that is in the collective conscience and subconscience of "decent" white folk, even and especially the liberal ones. Please, read Angela Davis and Malcolm X."

But foreigners are subject to prejudice also aren't they? Exotic? I don't understand.

I also resent this notion that whites all deep down feel that blacks are inferior to them. And how does a "white supremist prejudice" manifest itself in a white liberal? Why is it that I do not feel superior to non-whites? Or do I and just don't know it? Which is really odd. I don't say that to feel self-righteous. I just don't get it. I certainly don't feel that blacks are not as smart as me. I know that's not true. A friend of mine in high school was valedictorian of his class, and he was black. Why is it that I've known so many dumb white people and smart non-whites? Again, maybe I'm different. I really don't know.

Of course blacks are equal to whites...as soon as Obama got near the power he sold out the people just as fast as any white politician. The guy who sang "cop killer" is now a cop on tv. Michael Jordan got filthy rich having slave children make his shoes, and black children murder each other for them. Tiger Woods gives a big smile as he plays at golf courses that do not allow blacks to play, save for him....silence...count your money

It is shameful that so many African Americans forget where they come from the minute they get a sniff of money or power. They have the microphone, the forum... and remain silent which is a real crime given the systematic, disgusting manner in which African Americans who aren't blessed with freakish athletic ability are repressed.

America is still soaked in racism...but today the scum who perpetuate it are smart enough to not use the firehoses when the tv cameras are on ( they learned from the 60s ).

To deny that racism exists today is to admit a serious vision problem of consciousness

"All leftist groups should sacrifice a single day from their hectic schedules in this year, and join in implementing a one day boycott of gasoline. Nothing influences the capitalist racist classist establishment more effectively than unity of mass action. Of course, it is the oppression by the reckless establishment that keeps blacks and all people down. So let's stop bickering and let's put that puppy dog on its leash right now."

what does the above mean? Is it serious? What would be accomplished by the numerous left groups that exist in this country boycotting gasoline for a day? They have practically no influence among the working class and boycotts are pretty ineffective anyway.

Does the author believe we live in a society free from opression and racism? Why are most pilots men? Are they more adept at this skill than women? Why do most doctors not come from families where the main breadwinner is a janitor? Is it because Janitors produce children that don't have the capacity for such skills?

Is this what the author of the above believes? If so, say it.

I once read that the percentage of blacks on death row in one of our states was 66% while percentage of blacks in US society is about 13%. Does the author of the above believe this statistic is due to blacks being more prone to crime? More violent? Then say so. It is a racist position but let's hear it.

Even if the 66% were all found guilty, this confirms the existence of a racist justice system. Anyone with an ounce of brain matter knows that the courts favor those with money. Money wins in this society. What's that if not an indication of the existence of classes?
If you don't take this position the only other answer is a racist one.

And the example of an immigrant working hard and making it is a flawed argument for reasons others have made clear. It's much like saying nicotine can't cause cancer, "I know a guy who smoked 60 a day and lived until he was 80." It's a bit childish.

Many immigrants have money already, and often have jobs set up for them through government and non-profit programs. Some are even lured here by unsavory businesses. I heard of a report that African americans are less likely to trust African americans businesses than Euro/caucasian american businesses. The same can be said for certain women during the protests for voting rights and education, or the women who couldn't dream they could drive a car, but actually pay less in insurance because of their lower risk. You even see some classism? between African americans and Africans. As far as being Halle Berry, I think odds are 50,000 to 1, unless we are referring to acting? I know there are some programs where I live that teach auto mechanics. I think if there were more jobs that could support a family and opportunities existed for those who were not good at sports or gorgeous (me&me). Colin Powell, do I remember correctly about his being education (GI Bill)? Manufacturing used to be a good source of jobs. I wish my schools would teach more about the people who fought for the rights of us all. History shouldn't be that stale.

I love these forums. You people make me feel not so alone in my views. Wow.

I remember when I worked in a hospital and noticing that most of the doctors came from affluent families. And it was taboo to bring that up in discussion. They were treated like gods too. No one like to talk about money.

We do have a racist justice system. I used to work with a kid, a white kid who suckerpunched a cop in a nightclub. This kid is a real SOB, and thusly we were hoping he'd get thrown in jail. I mean, he punched a cop. Brawled with him.

We later heard that he showed up at the magistrate with his grandma. He never did any time.

He punched a cop.

And he's white.

Could you imagine what would happen to a black kid who jakked a cop's jaw?

As long as we have a privileged class brought about by a broken capitalist [consummer] addicted,immediate gradification society, we will continue to slide down a rat hole to our altimate demise.

"I also resent this notion that whites all deep down feel that blacks are inferior to them. And how does a "white supremist prejudice" manifest itself in a white liberal? Why is it that I do not feel superior to non-whites? Or do I and just don't know it? Which is really odd. I don't say that to feel self-righteous. I just don't get it. I certainly don't feel that blacks are not as smart as me. I know that's not true. A friend of mine in high school was valedictorian of his class, and he was black. Why is it that I've known so many dumb white people and smart non-whites? Again, maybe I'm different. I really don't know."

To be white in our society and deny racism in oneself is disingenuous. I was born white and learned white supremacy in a white supremist society. It is in my subconscious mind whether I want it there or not. The best I can do is learn to become an anti-racist racist. The beginning of understanding for a white anti-racist is the admission of racism within oneself and the realization of unearned white privilege in society. Many self-proclaimed liberals who are white just cannot let themselves go there. Read Frantz Fanon and find the difference between a well-meaning white liberal and an anti-racist white radical. I'm still in the process of educating myself. I know I'll never get there completely.

You can not make anything good from the rot it was created. The things that were done to the original peoples set the way this country does things.
You lie and murder and treat people of color inferior and then try your best to justify your actions with your religous dogma. My people are still living on reserves (jails) and some live in extreme poverty oh but that is thier fault they do not want to travel to cites and join the lost masses of asses all the while the white elites are living in thier gated communities waiting for the black hoards or the hispanic gangs to come and get thier stuff.
Lets face facts america is a lost cause YOU CAN NOT BUILD ANYTHING GOOD FROM THE LIES AND THEIFING AND MURDERING YOU DO AND HAVE DONE not to mention the polution we have all caused. Justice for all what a joke! It a racist place period!

Here's my thinking on this:

Our whole society is terminally, hideously rotten through and through. No one in this society is empowered to fulfill their most minimal potential, either economically or in terms of human dignity and inwardness. Our society is a comfortable prison for the affluent (if getting your ego off through the possession of possessions makes for comfort), an uncomfortable prison for the poor, and a literal prison for--usually--the really poor.

Here's a link that I think aptly describes this:

http://www.dissidentvoice.org/Jan07/Bageant08.htm

Socializing people to fit into this society successfully, and demanding that they be given more opportunities and tools to do so is exactly what we DON'T need.

We need a different kind of society altogether, one that values each human individual and that does not require proof of worth and dignity, and even humanness, in coin--and plenty of it. We need a society in which gain is not considered the purpose of life--in which the purpose of life is the sheer joy of living it in the company of people we love.

The "unreasoned anger" comment--the first comment on this thread--certainly pisses ME off. There's plenty of reason for anger. And the reasons for anger are far greater and deeper than most people care to consider.

None of us, whether we are black, white, or anything else, are living our lives as anything more than the livestock inmates of a factory farm that stretches from sea to shining sea. Focusing on our relative positions within it seems about as germane to the situation as it would be for us to seek to fatten ourselves more efficiently than the caged hen in the neighboring cage in the factory farm.

The root of the problem is poor manners and anger control. The in your face mentality does little or nothing to encourage people to better themselves.
It may be easier to buy a guns,booze,drugs etc. then it is to get a job. Giving up is not trying.
A black women asked me why we are not killing each other like her people do. I think because we do not have the time to care about our neighbors disrespecting us and looking at us the wrong way.
They seem to get so intense about the smallest insignifigant things. They need the drama to add to their otherwise, dull lives.
If the community and people do not create standards for the people to live by- people just will not care.
Why can't people help each other instead of tearing each other down?
They always say "No one will gimme." Well don't waste your time waiting.

I have a brother, he has had involvement with the police department since 11, now he is 62, still has problems. He has been caught with drugs, murder, driving while drunk, driving drunk without a license, driving drunk using drugs without a license. This list goes on and on however he has never really spent much time behind bars, guess why? He is white. Our parents died he was 18 I was 10, I went to boarding schools and I was the minority and am more then thankful about my experience, the best lessons I have learned about life is from people of color and different countries, my brother went on to commit murder while drunk and drugged only spent 2 years in prison, but had a history of violence arrests, drug arrests, drunk driving arrests and a history of domestic violence a mile and half long according to the court records, but his skin is white, guess what, he did not spend time in jail, never more then a few hours until the murder. The people whom I spent my years with however never had such a luxury, some were sent up just for yelling at a teacher! Yet my brother never even spent a day in jail when he knocked out the neighbors fathers front teeth, 3 weeks before he turned 18. He beat up his high school consular his junior year and got transfered to another high school, no jail time, nor court time even. I know from life it was his skin color, period otherwise he would still be behind bars. It is all about the color of your skin period. As much as anyone would like to think different, it ain't so.

"... there's no lack of opportunity. there is a lack of willingness to do quit complaining and get on with it."

"The root of the problem is poor manners and anger control. The in your face mentality does little or nothing to encourage people to better themselves."

These two quotes are pure evil, period. Each lets the rich/powerful off the hook by divorsing them from their obligation to invest and each quote denies the problem just as a Nazi would deny the Holocaust ...

http://coanews.org/tiki-read_article.php?articleId=1541

Horatio Alger was a child molester. The man who coined the phrase "pull yourself up by your bootstraps" was an admitted pedophile, so don't ever tell a black man to risk getting hit by a car a la Will Smith's The Pursuit of Happyness just to get a job. CREATE JOBS! A Greenpeace version of FDR's New Deal would be a good start. Professor Howard Zinn's A People's History of the United States said it best, "While some multimillionaires started in poverty, most did not. A study of the origins of 303 textile, railroad and steel executives of the 1870s showed that 90 percent came from middle- or upper-class families. The Horatio Alger stories of 'rags to riches' were true for a few men, but mostly a myth, and a useful myth for control."

... there are only two alternatives to being inyourface (as I am): One, join the DLC ...

http://www.lasvegascitylife.com/articles/2004/10/14/opinion/fear_no_evil/fearnoevil.txt

http://coanews.org/tiki-read_article.php?articleId=1744

Two, go out like Che, and since the DLC's a joke and since I'm too wimpy/cowardly to follow in Che's footsteps, I'll remain INYOURFACE! Those on the wrong side of history should be GRATEFUL I don't follow in Che's footsteps since they'd be my first targets if I did! The pen ... the sword ...

http://coanews.org/tiki-read_article.php?articleId=1479

The plight of American black men is disturbing but I often think of the difference between the lives of American-born blacks and recent immigrants from Africa. The Africans are just as black as the Americans but don't seem to experience the same problems. This would seem to indicate that the differences are perhaps more cultural and psychological than racial or based on skin color alone.
There are also differences among black Americans who grow up in the same neighborhoods. Some become gangstas and some go to college. Parents, grandparents, teachers, and other mentors and role models certainly play a role but personal choice is also a factor.
We cannot change history or eradicate racism,but we can make choices about how we think and how we live our lives.
It is an incontrovertible truth that all individuals have the power to make choices no matter what their history is.

Is a SINGLE person in this discussion who is a black man, who grew poor in a dilapidated neighborhood and faced job discrimination and racist cops at every turn, where the only viable entrepenurial activity is the illicit drug business?

If you arent. Then SHUT UP!

How many of you have been (walking or on the bus, nor driving) in any of US's poor black neighborhoods in the past month or so? If you havent, then SHUTUP!

If you are, please, we want to hear from you.

But, if your name is Bill Cosby, please don't say anyone can get out of the Philly Kensington ghetto, or Homewood or Garfield here in Pittsbrugh, and become a millionare like you did. What you did required a whole lot of luck and talent and reasonably stable loving family.

As a white male, I never forget the advantages my white skin and middle-class upbringing gave me - that allowed me to achieve comfort and security in spite of being from a disfunctional family and not particularly smart or hard-working. If I was black and grew up in Homewood, I have no doubt I would be dirt-poor and would have spent my best years in prison.

correction:

first sentence should be: "Is a SINGLE person in this discussion a black man..."

Chicago,

good observations. I likewise have a brother who has had run-ins with the law over drug-related crimes all his life, but never spent more than a jail sentences - his white skin getting him off every time.

and dux,

You seem to be in denial about this thing called racism. The obvious explanation for the deferences you describe is that most Africans (outside of South Africa) didn't spend their youth in an environment of toxic racism, and glaring disparities of wealth and opprotunity.

Stable family life, and an extra individual gumption certainly helps but african americans need 10 time the gumption I ever had, to achieve half the economic security I have. There is a word for such a situation condition - UNJUST.

How can one grow up in a racist society and not exhibit racist ideas at times. However, there is a difference between a racist idea and someone beign a racist.

We all have to combat racist and sexist ideas. In the last analysis, ideas have a material base but the ideology of the capitalist class, individualism, selfishness has its effect. Humans have the potential to be loving, collective and express great solidarity. we also have the potential to be individualistic and selfish. capitalism rewards the latter. They control society. The dominant ideas in society are theirs and are brought to us through the media, the schools, the pulpit. And they are echoed by the labor leadership.

Look at sexism. I remember at work once when I heard two guys, a black dude and and white one. And they were talking about women in the most degrading way. Had the brother heard two whites discussing blacks in this way he'd have gone off.

As Malcolm X said, you can't have capitalism without racism. The minority that control the production of and the means of distributing the necessities of life that we create through our interaction with nature will always fall back on racism, sexism, communalism or other forms of division when the working class is moving forward and on the offensive.

The white liberals shouldn't feel guilty. They're a sorry lot. I remember growing up and I was taught that the Jews controlled the British economy, they owned the banks and all the land.

Then I found out that it was Protestants that owned all the land and most of the banks. Being an English Catholic, I was just happy it wasn't us; we were a minority. (I saw the light and am an avowed atheist).

I was so proud when I could challenge my dad's view of the world.

But the religion of the ruling class is not the point. Most protestants own nothing. It is the social role that matters primarily. Most whites are poor. I would not deny that in a society where the ruling class is white, they have offered whites a deal that, due to the failure of the leaders of the workign class to combat racism, most have taken.

I remember when our county here was offering a bid for a janitortal project. I remember the black contractors going to the meeting of the supervisors to beg to give it to them. One phrase stuck in my mind. They could get the workers cheaper, one contractor said. They gave it to a union minority contractor, a woman I think.

Now at the time, Union wages and benefits were around 35% above non-Union. Most of the janitorial workers were black or other minorities; a Union job would have been a great step forward for many black families. Was the black small business man was happy that the black workers wee getting a better deal with a Union job with benefits. No, "I could have gotten them cheaper" he tells the big business politicans, mostly white ones. So much for racial solidarity when it comes to class interests.

In Chinatown, the Chinese employers take the most brutal advantage of chinese workers who are new arrivals and whose job opportunities are limited due to language skills. No national solidarity there.

Class matters.