That Old Black Magic

It will certainly cause many women to do some serious soul searching about their real futures with Black men; and at last, cause Black men to rethink why they do what they do, often to the detriment of themselves and the women they love.

That Old Black Magic has already received written endorsements including those from Dr. Liaila O. Afrika (Author of African Holistic Health), Dr. Earl Ofari Hutchinson (author of The Assassination of the Black Male Image, Dr. Tyrone Powers (author of Eyes To My Soul: The Rise or Decline of a Black FBI Agent) , Former Mayor of Baltimore City Kurt Schmoke, Mr. Nate Howard (Producer: Maryland Public Television), Ms. Jeanette Davis-Adeshote` (author of Black Survival in White America) and actor, activist Mr. Ossie Davis.

Endorsements:

"This is a much needed work that tell Black men and women what they are doing right. It is a must read for all those concerned about charting a new path to gender peace and progress among African-Americans."-Dr. Earl Ofari Hutchinson, Author (The Assassination of the Black Male Image)

"D. Anne Browne pierces through the veneer of superficiality into the heart of Black male psyche and sexuality... Every Black man and woman should read and heed her advice."-Jeannette Davis-Adeshote`, Author (Black Survival In White America)

"I find in That Old Black Magic a cultural profile of us as Black people that is of inestimable value. Knowledge such as you provide is indeed the beginning of wisdom and power."- Ossie Davis, Actor/Activist

That Old Black Magic: Introduction

when I am good
you wag your love in my face
and give your brown-ness to me
As payment.
when I am bad,
you bring me down to what you are feeling
by whipping me with your eyes.
when it is all over,
you take me in your arms
And we deal with it.
when I am good,
you give your brown love fiercely,
nod your head in approval
and make me know that I am someone.

I love Black men. I love everything about them. I love the way they walk and the way they talk. I love the way they taste and the way they smell (most of the time). I love the way they sound and the way they look. I especially love the way they look. I love the tall ones, the short ones, the young ones, the old ones, the smart ones and the dull ones.

I love the good guys and the "bad boys," the nice men and the nasty ones, the shy and the fly ones. I love the preacher's sons and the momma's boys. I love every hue, every shade and every skin tone that they come in. I love them hairy or hairless, rugged or refined, GQ or gansta. For me, the Black man is the epitome of masculinity. He is the ultimate standard that all other men must meet.

It is the Black man who has consistently risen above his circumstances to defy the odds. As a Black woman, the roots of my admiration and love for Black men began with recognizing their proven ability to do just what they have always done; defy the odds.

I love Black men. I love them so much because in loving them I have learned some important lessons. While those lessons have not all been sweet, they have all filled me with the truth of who I am. Particularly in the eyes of America. Without those lessons, I would not have learned to do the one thing crucial to my existence. Love me. Black men, more than any other men have proven my worth to me through what they have done and been unable to do. It is because of Black men I know without hesitation or doubt, that I matter.

If I can accept the truth of my importance, they must matter too because I am nothing more and nothing less than what they have helped me; allowed me and even forced me to be. Black men have taught me that they are just as much a part of me as I am of them. I have learned that I can no more exist without them than they can exist without me.

My love for Black men is not the result of any delusions of their grandeur or romanticized notions about my race. On the contrary, I have grown to adore Black men. Like many Black women today, there was a time when I would not allow myself to view Black men in such a supreme light. Like many Black women, having total love for Black men was a learning process. Such a process exists for Black women today because the teachings of American society have consistently been of the "rightness" of Whiteness and the "wrongness" of being anyone else.

Perhaps, like other Black Americans, I had gotten so used to seeing White faces advertise the products I bought. I had gotten comfortable with seeing the names of White actors on the silver screens. I had gotten accustomed to hearing the voices of White newscasters feeding information to me about my world. I had forgotten that I mattered too. I was seeing the best of what I could be and have been, denied time and again. It somehow seemed reasonable to believe that the minor role that American society said I played was a natural one.

Fortunately for me, it stopped making sense that only White people were smart, romantic, brave and carried the American Express Card. In a way, America has forced me to love Black men and I do. My daily exposure to the media misrepresentation, commercial exploitation, social alienation and economic disenfranchising directed at all Black people eventually forced me to make an important attitude adjustment.

Instead of putting my time and energy into things that detracted from my social, economic and cultural uplifting, I began to focus on what was really going on around me. The most important change I made was in actively, deliberately and continually seeking to learn about the history of Black people everywhere, not just in America. My personal campaign to rediscover myself included reading books, talking with my elders and really listening to those persons committed to sharing historically accurate information about Black people with me.

It is largely because of that intellectual journey and the subsequent spiritual freedom which resulted, that I embraced those newly found truths. Not until then was I able to adore Black men so. I do not believe that every White person in America is a racist, but I do believe that every White person in America benefits from racism.

I do not believe that every Black person in America feels inferior. However, I do believe that every Black person in America has had to come to terms with their feelings of worth or worthlessness.

I also believe that there are enough White and Black racists in America to negatively influence the way that mainstream America consciously, unconsciously and subconsciously looks at Black people. Black people have literally and figuratively fought with America for centuries. In spite of the continual feuding, Black people have been all they could be and more.

In spite of America's resistance, Black people have been soldiers, muddied from the trenches of American hypocrisy. They have been warriors, bloodied on the battlefields of Eurocentric ignorance and fear. Most of all, Black people have been beacons shining brightly from the light of their strength, courage, wisdom, compassion and love for their families and for themselves. Even amid the loudest claims of our inhumanity, we continue to be as human as any persons can be.

There are those Black women who have given up on their futures with Black men. Reintroduction to the gigantic battle that all Black people have engaged in is an important experience for them to have. This is not to say that racism alone is the sole reason for what is considered the fall of some Black men. Racist or not, America has had the privilege of experiencing the very best of what Black people have had to offer.

There are those Black women who believe a man whom we have stripped of self-esteem can still function with confidence and courage. A reminder that we would all die without nurturing is an important dialog for them to engage in. No person can live to the fullest without the nourishments that love provides.

The love we have for ourselves and the love we believe other people have for us can make the difference between being productive and destructive. Any Black woman who cherishes her Blackness must be sensitive to the numbers of us who seem to be mesmerized by the high tech brainwashing America has induced upon us.

Any Black woman who loves herself cannot help from seeing those of us whom society has lulled into a sleepy mind- set. That mind-set has erased Black pride, love of self and respect for all Black lives. Now is the time to believe we can love ourselves even amid allegations that we are inferior people. Now is the time to respect ourselves in spite of the notion that we lack the capacity to do so.

Now is the time that we can celebrate each other as Black people within a society which defies us to be happy.

The purpose of this book is simple. It is to celebrate the Black man. It is to say to him what America has refused to say. That is, thank you. Thank you for your courage, strength, beauty and creative genius. Without the Black man, America would be nothing. Most of all, the purpose of this book is to proclaim that Black men do matter. Despite who you are, what you think you've achieved, whatever your goals and aspirations, the crisis of the Black man in America directly affects you.

Among other things, it has produced two fundamental questions. First, if Black women do not love Black men; who will? Second if Black women should not love Black men; who should they love?

The Power Of A Positive Self Image

White racism is prevalent in America in spite of the obvious contradictions and the compromising role it places racists in. To avoid compromise and remain in their perpetual state of denial, White racists place the blame of oppression squarely on the shoulders of the people they oppress. For example, a White racist will say that African Americans (as a race) should be in subordinate (social) positions because they lack the intelligence and/or ability to advance themselves.

All the while those same racists withhold the very means of advancement from African Americans (i.e., fair housing, unbiased access to education and equal employment opportunities). Since they stick to the system of racial privilege which they created, racists refuse to see themselves as instigators of racial inequality.

The racial privileges that all Whites enjoy are always at the expense of African Americans. Those privileges and are not limited to only "rich" Whites. Bender and Leone remind us:

"All White people in the United States have benefited from the structure of racism, whether or not they have ever committed a racist act, uttered a racist word, or had a racist thought (as unlikely as that is). Just as surely as Blacks suffer in a White society because they are Black, Whites benefit because they are White."

The structures of racism ensure that even poor Whites, by virtue of their whiteness will always be thought of as superior to any African American person. O'Reilly reveals how that sentiment was echoed during the Dred Scott case by President James Buchanan:

"He told southern friends in private that they would be pleased with the decision. They were. Five justices concurred with Chief Justice Roger B. Taney of Maryland that Scott, a Black man suing for his freedom, was part of a race ("beings of an inferior order") whose members had "no rights which any White man was bound to respect."

The notion of Black inferiority by Whites has withheld the tests of time. It doesn't matter who the African American person is or what that person has accomplished. White racism focuses entirely on what African Americans are believed to lack as a race. What African Americans deserve as people is not a consideration.

The first key to winning the war against racism lies in recognizing how important it is to be accurate in your perceptions. Specifically, your self perceptions. How you see yourself against the back drop of American society is fundamental to maintaining a positive self image.

There are a few fundamental truths which should not be taken for granted. The first truth is that what other people believe about you is not nearly as important as what you believe about yourself. The opinions expressed by other people will impact how you see yourself.

As long as you are alert and oriented, you are susceptible to everything being communicated. Of course, you will not remember everything that has ever been said or done by you or to you. Your conscious mind couldn't possibly hold all of that information. However, you subconscious mind may.

Your subconscious mind is large enough to bury years upon years of ideas and images. You may succeed in temporarily repressing and suppressing them on a conscious level, but the subconscious mind has a way of influencing self perception. So, opinions which do not contribute to your growth in a positive way must not be incorporated into your conscious definition of self.

The stronger and more positive your definition of self is, the better able you will be combat the subconscious information which is provided by the mainstream culture.

Generally, White America tends to look at individual African Americans as spokespersons for the entire race. That is, they tend to form an opinion about all African Americans based on their experience with only one or a few African Americans. The second fundamental truth to remember is that you are an individual. You cannot bear the blame or take the credit for what every African American does.

Some Whites will have an opinion of you even if they've never had first-hand exposure to African Americans. Their opinions will be based on factors which neither one of you will have control of (such as media bias) When this is the case, you should recognize that the basis for their opinions are not sound. Therefore, you should not allow those opinions to be funneled to you and subsequently imbedded into your levels of consciousness.

If your self image is a negative one, your actions will reflect that negativity. If your self image is positive, you will project that too. Strategies are a very necessary tool to combat the existing negative stereotypes, television reports and newspaper articles which threaten the image you project and the image you have of yourself.

The Dark Side of Black Love

A fuzzy integration of the sexual ideologies of mainstream culture has occurred within parts of the African American culture. This has negatively effected the way some African Americans think of their sexuality. In no other way is the worth of African Americans so loudly proclaimed as it is through their sexuality. The Black man's prowess is reluctantly heralded by White men and ultimately exploited by White America.

They equally revere the African American women's sexuality and sex appeal as "exotic." Although aspects of their sexuality have become the envy of White America, Blacks are not encouraged to see their sexuality in a positive light unless they can translate it into quantitative terms.

In response to White America's demands, African American women learn to think of their sexuality in practical terms. That is, they are taught to see themselves as objects and to focus on the material things which they can get through sex. They learn quickly that their bodies can become acceptable substitutes for currency or tools for bartering under certain circumstances.

Many African American males are taught (as early as an erection is possible for them) that the size, shape and performance of their penises make an indisputable statement about their manhood. Consequently, these males are encouraged to think of their sexuality in functional terms. That is, they define themselves according to the "will" of their penises and focus themselves on how well or how often they can perform sexually.

White America's obsession with the Black man's penis is fueled by the myths they created about his sexuality. In his discussion of "tall tales", Hutchinson comments:

"The myth of rapacious black male sexuality is still one of white America's most durable and deadly stereotypes. Contrary to popular view, it far predated the Atlantic Slave Trade. In the early 1500's, European explorers in West Africa were fascinated with black sexual practices. One explorer called the penises of Mandingo tribesmen "burthen some members."

Another marveled at their "large propagators." Later Shakespeare couldn't resist talking about those "lustful" darkies. The black Othello had goo goo eyes for the white Desdomana. As such, she was always in grave danger from "the gross clasps of a lascivious Moor."

Over the years, some African American women learn to identify and manipulate the male's negative sexual standards as a means of controlling him. These women teach African American men to revolve their value systems around what their penises can and cannot do. These sexual encounters are used as an opportunity to either withhold or surrender whatever the man wants. Thus, the penis becomes more than an appendage for African American men. The penis becomes a symbol of their power.

Some women encourage this symbolism by suggesting that the penis has power over them. Among African American men it is generally held that the bigger the penis, the better the man. Which implies to African American men that they will also have power over other men if theirs is the larger penis. Oddly, the majority of the confirmations and feedback about sexual performance which African American men feel are significant all come from women.

Although their instructions in how to satisfy them sexually rarely do. Eventually, if not at first, African American women play a crucial role in defining them sexually. In actuality, an African American man can spend his entire sexual career believing himself to be a satisfying lover simply because he may never have been told that he wasn't. If a woman does not tell him that something is wrong, he will assume that everything is right.

Typically, the details of a young African American male's sexual awakening are not shared with females. His education about "the birds and the bees" will usually come from another man (or other male peers) during his rites of passage from childhood to manhood. This is when he is told (usually by other men) what to do with his penis. During this time, the rules of mating and his training in how to satisfy a woman will come to him second hand (i.e., from another man); where much will be lost in the translation.

Occasionally, he may solicit instructions from a woman if he can do so without losing face. Sometimes, it will mean making himself the willing pupil of a consenting "older woman." His respect for her experience and technical expertise in sexual matters will allow him to maintain his manly demeanor while under her tutelage.

He may also use pornographic movies as source of anonymous technical advice as well as a means of sexual stimulation and release. However, using pornographic movies as a teaching tool is ineffective because the "teachers" are acting.

Those men who rely on pornography soon forget that the people being watched are performing for the camera. If he is thinking at all it is probably not about getting his partner's point of view. So, he ends up being a man who places credence in women who fake their passion. He forgets that the ecstasy he is made privy to is just acting and that the women in those movies are great pretenders.

Thanks to constant reinforcement throughout his sexual life, an African American man may firmly believe that his penis is what makes him a "real man." The importance of having a car, house, job, or education will never supersede the significance of having a fully functional, large penis.

An African American man whose worth revolves around his penis may lose his job, but still be able to maintain a sense of his manliness if a sympathetic lover reaffirms his manhood during the sex act. An African American man with little or no education can be convinced that he reigns supreme if he is reassured of his by his lover.

An African American man may fall deathly ill, but not believe himself to be incapacitated unless he losses the ability to complete the sex act with his lover. The African American man's penis is his crowning glory. He adores it and expects the women he shares it with to adore it too. He will share control of it only as long as he believes himself to be the one ultimately in charge of it.

While some African American women go about the business of pondering the practical aspects of their sexuality, some African American men concentrate more heavily on the functional aspects of theirs. When this is the case, the man's need to express his manhood will often manifest itself in a preoccupation with how well his penis works. In part, it is this belief system which often compels some Black men (particularly the young ones) to sire a multitude of children as tangible proof of their virility and confirmation of their manhood. Majors and Billson comment on the young male's motivations:

"African American males may consciously and unconsciously reinforce with their brothers the idea that sexual promiscuity and procreation are cool because they symbolize manhood. They also afford entertainment, recreation, stimulation and the pleasures of female companionship and adulation."

The significance of the African American man's penis can never be overestimated because of the enormous significance that he attaches to having one. His penis is an integral part of his identity. He believes that his penis makes an unforgettable statement about his individuality. He considers his penis to be an important extension of himself and his psyche. Often, he will place greater importance on how well "it" works than on how well he works it.

A man who has been told (throughout his sexual life) that his penis is superior to all others becausehe is Black may be encouraged to share it with women from other races. Under certain circumstances he may believe that his penis acts as a magnet which attracts women from other races to him. Of course, this would be a direct violation of America's most ardent taboo. West discusses this taboo and comments:

"On the other hand, Black sexuality between Blacks and Whites proceeds based on the underground desires that Americans deny or ignore in public and over which laws have no effective control. In fact, the dominant sexual myths of Black women and men portray Whites as being "out of control" - seduced, tempted, overcome, overpowered by Black bodies.

This form of Black sexuality makes White passivity the norm - hardly an acceptable self-image for a White-run society." Women from other races who validate his beliefs inadvertently become symbols of achievement for him rather than objects of affection to him. If he believes that he is an especially pleasing or accomplished lover to them, these women will eventually become little more than sexual conquests.

Then, his standards of excellence will be focused on having seemingly "unattainable" or "high society" women. Sometimes peer pressures motivate African American males to express their sexuality for the sake of its expression. Even if they are married. A man who is driven by his sexual urges to seek material success can be easily manipulated by a woman who is scrupulous enough to use her body (as well as his) as a weapon against him.

Women generally promote among themselves the idea that men are "slaves" to their penises because the male libido is "naturally" higher than the female libido. Armed with this "knowledge", some women are able to manipulate men into compromising their true feelings for the sake of the maintaining financial stability or social status demanded by those women. Depending on her agenda, a woman can use either her body or her money as means of control over some African American men with alarming success.

How To Make A Zombie

If you literally imprison a man and force him to live each day at the discretion of other people, he will eventually learn that he has no discretion of his own. If you take away his freedom of speech, thought, opinion and movement, he will eventually learn to do, think and say whatever will please and appease his captors. He will come to accept the whims of his captors as his own.

He will evolve into a person who functions purely from what his captors have determined is reality. He will define himself according to the definitions his captors have provided for him. He will accept, expect and eventually come to need what his captors have ordained as his purpose in life.

He will not believe he is capable of functioning without them because through time he has empowered his captors with the right to make choices for him. He will allow them to tell him how, why and when to eat, sleep, work and think. The passage of time with his captors will find him accepting that they and not he should have complete authority over his life.

Through coercion, trickery and/or brute force he will eventually relinquish his sense of personal autonomy without a struggle. When White America makes African American males victims of its justice system and penal institutions, they are in essence creating zombies. At the very least, the physical imprisonment of a man will guarantee his emotional imprisonment.

Understanding this helps to explain why people who have been incarcerated for lengthy periods of time have trouble transitioning back into a "free society". Multitudes of former inmates are unable to cope with a society which claims to encourage free speech and free thought.

Living harmoniously in a society which insists that people are responsible for their behavior, responsible for themselves and have no "keepers" is often too great an adjustment for them to make.

Imagine how traumatic it would be if you were stripped of all freedom. Then almost as suddenly, thrust back into society with those freedoms fully restored. Your imprisonment will have taught you that you do not deserve to be free. You will have been conditioned to believe that freedom is something which is not appropriate for you.

We call this type of mind control "institutional thinking". Social psychologist James W. Vander Zanden discusses the "institutional thinking" which dominates imprisoned men in his book Social Psychology. He attempts to explain what can happen to a man who loses his sense of self with these observations:

"Within institutional settings people come to see themselves as being absorbed of personal responsibility for their acts. They view themselves as "pawns" rather than as "originators of behavior". If they place any blame at all, they pin it on the institution, excusing themselves by the rationalization, "If I don't do it, someone else will" (De Charms, 1968; Kipnis, 1974)"

In the "outside world" we can also create zombies. We do this by applying themes of incarceration to our business, social and personal relationships. The moment we accept that the nature of our personal relationships should be constricting, limiting, stifling or confining is the moment when we cease to be partners for each other.

Instead, we become prisoners of one another. Any relationship which imprisons us is toxic. While in it we have only to look inside ourselves for the antidote. But the nature of toxic relationships will ensure that inside ourselves is the last place we'll look. Toxic relationships turn us into zombies by removing our desire to cure our ailing circumstances and by convincing us that a change for the better is not possible.

Loving Yourself From The Inside Out

In his book, Chosen, Not Cursed: Destiny of The Spiritual Ethiopian, author Jefferson D. Edwards takes the reader on a spiritual odyssey designed to provide insight and enlightenment about the Black heritage. In its preface by Judson Cornwall, the tone of the book is set with these words:

"To be enslaved because of choices made is one thing; to be in bondage because of religious or political convictions is another; but to be born in enslavement just because of our race is preposterous."

Cornwell is correct. It is preposterous that a person would automatically be judged on the basis of skin color. Yet, it happens every day. It happens so much to African Americans that some have accepted the claims that they cannot succeed in mainstream America, do not make significant contributions to their culture and are not worthy of being loved. White America often watches from the sidelines in shock and dismay when African Americans behave in self-destructive ways.

As they distance themselves from being co-conspirators to a racist agenda, liberal Whites protest too much about their role in keeping that agenda alive. It is difficult to discuss the realities of American racism with anyone unless there is a common frame of reference. Often between African Americans and White Americans there is no common reference point. Cornell West, author of Race Mattersmakes this point in the introduction of his book:

"Nearly a century later, we confine discussions about race in America to the "problems" Black people pose for Whites, rather than consider what this way of viewing Black people reveals about us as a nation. This paralyzing framework encourages liberals to relieve their guilty consciences by supporting public funds directed at "the problems"; but at the same time, reluctant to exercise principled criticism of Black people, liberals deny them the freedom to err.

Similarly, conservatives blame "the problems" on Black people themselves - and thereby render Black society misery invisible or unworthy of public attention."

So, while some White Americans are willing to listen to tales of discrimination, prejudice and bias few have actually experienced such things first hand. For the average White person, having white skin has never been an issue like it is for people who do not. White people typically spend their entire lives taking for granted the birth rights that come with white skin.

People who are born with white skin are never singled out for being White. They are never told that because they're White they will have to work twice as hard for half as much. They are not refused a drink from a water fountain, a meal in a restaurant or a seat on the bus because they are White.

People who are born with White skin do not have to surf the TV channels with their remote controls to find broadcasts of White people living in suburban neighborhoods, talking about science and technology or making the Fortune 500 List. At no time in their lives do White people question the rightness of being White.

They move about in a society they created and have full control of with the conviction that no peoples can ever, have ever or will ever be greater than they are. So, if White children grown into adults who cannot love themselves, it is not a consequence of their race.

A lifetime of privilege has found many White people (claiming to be) unable to understand why so many African Americans appear hell bent on destroying themselves. There are some White people who have never consciously committed a racist act. However, their complicity in America's racist agenda makes them just as guilty of racism as any skinhead or Klansman.

Their claims of ignorance about the depths of racism may sound like an act of contrition, but it is no defense. It takes a lifetime of complacency by White America to ensure a lifetime of pain for African Americans. O'Reilly provides insight into how this kind of complacency has been demonstrated in American politics:

"Southern strategy in our time remains what it has always been: the gut organizing principle of American politics. At root it is nothing more than a belief that presidential elections can be won only by following the doctrines and rituals of white over black. The pecking order has stayed that way through the death of slavery and Jim Crow, and notwithstanding Lincoln and Johnson our presidents have in nearly every other case made it their job to keep that order."

The notion that you cannot love yourself does not happen to African Americans because of an isolated incident. It takes a lifetime of isolated incidents to establish that type of self-destructive thinking. It takes a lifetime of having to suburban enter homes through the back door, a lifetime of illegal searches and seizures and a lifetime of being passed over for promotions for African Americans to doubt their importance.

It takes a lifetime of misinformation, alienation and disassociation from White Americans to persuade African Americans to stop insisting on their humanity. Since 90% of the world is non-White, it seems logical that the majority (as opposed to the 10% White minority) could cast the deciding votes against continuing the traditions of racial inequality and prejudices.

However, as we have seen throughout history, this is not so. It is our socialization which prevents us from acting out of self love. We are socialized to place a higher premium on material things than on human life. That is why our children kill each other for tennis shoes and leather coats. We are socialized to have the cars we drive and the neighborhoods we live in symbolize our worth in society. That is why our teenage drug dealing sons drive $50,000.00 cars and we insist that suburbia is better.

We are socialized to believe that it is better to look good than to be good. That is why we have plenty of time to have our nails sculptured, but no time to help our children with their homework. We are socialized to accept subservience. That's why we embrace our positions of employment and reject the advantages that come with being your own boss.

We are not socialized to cultivate our humanity because it interferes with the doctrines of capitalism. We are not socialized to ensure our cultural uniqueness because it contradicts the tenets of White supremacy. When we succumb to our socialization, we eventually learn to think of ourselves as lesser persons. Our socialization teaches us to hate ourselves. Jefferson reminds us:

"Culturally, as Black people, we have been taught that we are nothing. Our self worth has been little higher than zero on a scale of zero to ten. As a Black race, we will not progress in the spiritual lifestyle until we get rid of the bondage that smell of the old lifestyle of racism and oppression. There are some things that we have to unlearn and some things that we have to learn."

Learning occurs in all human beings whether they're aware of it or not. According to child psychologist Jean Piaget, by the time children reach age 7 they experience an increase in language and concept development. This is also when children are largely egocentric. This means that you can effectively teach a 7 year old to either respect of disrespect himself.

You can effectively teach a 7 year old the fundamentals of greed and charity. By age 7 children can discriminate obvious physical differences. By age 7 children have an increased awareness of other viewpoints. By age 7 the foundations can be laid in an African American boy to become a man who hates himself. In a telling interview with author Dempsey J. Travis, subject Wade Caldwell recounts a boyhood experience which exemplifies how at an early age we are taught to hate ourselves. Caldwell reminisces:

"When I was a youngster, Tarzan the Ape Man was my favorite hero . . . We went to the neighborhood theater every week to see the latest episode of that Edgar Rice Burroughs character, Tarzan. In each serial, there would always be a scene where beautiful Jane, whom Maureen O'Sullivan played, would have been captured by a tribe of African natives. They would tie her to a big tree, and do a war dance around her while beating jungle drums. We kids would sit on the edge of our seats, hoping and praying that Tarzan (Johnny Weismueller) would come and save her.

Just as the suspense reached a climax that was almost unbearable, we would hear this animalistic cry. The cameras would then focus on the tallest tree in the jungle, and there would stand Tarzan, a big half-naked White man with a butcher knife in his mouth. He would swing through the trees like a monkey, coming to save Jane. We kids would holler and scream, 'Get 'em Tarzan, go get 'em . . .

The biggest fight I ever got into in my life was about Tarzan. It started over who was gonna play Tarzan and who was gonna be one of the natives. I knew damn well I didn't want to play a native because all of the natives were short, pot-bellied Black guys with no muscles. Whereas Tarzan was a strapping muscular man and, I was determined to be Tarzan. Subliminally, the movie had taken over my brain and I was aware of little other than the fact that I didn't want to be a Black native.

It did not occur to me that I was Black and Tarzan and Jane were White. I fought for the honor to play Tarzan and I won . . . I got into another fight over Tarzan when I bet several of my little friends that Tarzan could beat Joe Louis. I knew Joe Louis was good, but I thought Tarzan was better. It never occurred to me that Tarzan was fiction . . .

Unfortunately, the media is so strong that most people go to their graves without ever realizing the difference between Hollywood and life in the real world."

What Caldwell discovered is that loving yourself from the inside out can't happen without help from the outside world. Someone, somewhere must reinforce our beliefs about ourselves. Someone somewhere must teach us to love ourselves. That someone must be us. We must begin at the beginning.

We must relearn how to love. Specifically, we must redefine our definitions of love. Hating another person or race of people is not necessary before you can love yourself. What is necessary is that you look at yourself and love what you see. There can be no true unity for us until it begins with us. As Jefferson points out:

"There is no need to talk about drawing the line and bringing unity with Whites when we cannot bring unity among ourselves. If we are warring on the inside, we will be warlike toward one another."

Before we were colonized and socialized by the Europeans, Black people had an innate understanding of right and wrong. They could distinguish between good and evil and base their actions solely on those distinctions because they listened to their hearts. They were not driven by guilt to keep their word or by shame to honor a promise. They were guided by a strong sense of integrity and not by a fear of rejection. Most important, they could love themselves completely and unconditionally.

They were not perfect and were not threatened by their imperfections. They lived their lives according to the God love which coursed through their veins. It was true then and it is true now that there is no greater love expressed or received than the God love which exists in us all. The God love resides in the inner vessel which we call the "soul." The soul represents the sum of our integrity.

Although we cannot dissect the soul under a microscope, split it like atoms or splice it like fragments of DNA, it is as real as any human aspect can be. The God love springs forth from our souls and ignites our decision whether or not to live by our convictions. If we allow it, the God love will fuel the conviction within us to love one another.

Centuries of conditioning have eroded our memories of the God love. Consequently, we have lost faith in our ability to know what is right to do without someone from a pulpit giving us directions. We have forgotten what has always been an integral part of us. That's why moving into this type of love is a challenge which is too great for some African Americans.

The social oppression, sexual exploitation and psychological enslavement which have been the mainstays of mainstream America have turned African Americans into amnesiacs. The true expression of the God love requires that we not only hope our love of self will heal us. It is the elevation of our sentiments from hopefulness to faith. Once we reach that plane, we are strengthened by the power of love and fortified by the strength of our convictions. It is the God love which inspires the conviction that we are all the same where it matters most. Once in place, we can love ourselves and love one another as ourselves.

This will not happen unless we make a concerted effort to make it happen. Whatever the age or station in life, the learning process must be reignited. We must develop the habit of reaffirming our worth.

Breaking the Cycle of Pain

What do you suppose really separates' Korean, Italian, Polish, Chinese, German, Russian or any other "minority" Americans from African American? The color of their skin? The texture of their hair? Their dialects? Aren't we just as smart? Aren't we just as culturally spectacular? Aren't we just as beautiful? Of course we are. African Americans can do anything, be anyone and create anything they want to.

Although they are no better and no worst than we are, other minorities seem to have "something" we don't. That something is racial pride. In spite of their minority status in America, other races seem to have maintained a sense of their ethnic pride and dignity. They seem to project a love of their cultural heritage and roots. They must surely lay the foundations of such pride at the moment of conception.

How else could some other races nurture the importance of racial pride in their children? How else could racial pride become just as much a part of a person's cultural identity and heritage as the physical attributes which distinguish them from other people? It must be that love of self begins at conception, is fostered during utero and is typified at the moment of birth. It must be that other races consider the birth of a child to be a blessed event; a miracle to be preserved. How else could the requirement to love yourself be interpreted as such a simple one?

On the surface, it seems like such a reasonable expectation for one person to have of another person. For a woman to have of a man. For a parent to have of a child. Simply love who you are. If other races can do that, we can too. If other races can insist that they have worth and value as human beings, we can too. If other races can stare unflinchingly into the eyes of racist America, we can too.

If other races can see the beauty in their culture and in themselves, we can too. If other races can respect the significance of their heritage and human rights, we can too. The moment of birth is just as good a place to start as any. In their book, 602 Ways To Build And Promote Racial Harmony, authors Tamera Trotter and Joycelyn Allen make an appeal sparked by the Los Angeles riots on April 29, 1992:

"We must search within the deep recesses of our hearts and souls to find the answers to questions asked by our younger brothers and sisters. They see their future as an endless struggle against racism and injustice. A future that is bleak and uncertain at best. One in which they are constantly judged based on skin color, economic status, and gender, rather than by merit. We must do all that we can to stop the continuum of hate and hopelessness. Therefore, we have channeled our energies in a positive direction. While we too feel the hurt and rage, we are empowering ourselves through education and awareness."

It is no secret that America is racist. We have so condoned America's racism against African Americans throughout the world that peoples from other races come to America believing that African Americans are people of the "wrong" color. However, in spite of White America's dubious distinction of being the African American man's worst antagonist, African Americans in general are becoming severe and vocal critics.

Growing numbers of us seem to be intolerant of African American men who do not appear to have the same business savvy, cumulative knowledge, intellect, paternal instincts, materialistic motivations, financial resources, sense of vanity, sexual etiquette or social skills that "other" men seem to have. These are dangerous comparisons to make.

Comparing African American men (or any other men of color) to the White man is like comparing apples to oranges. The perspectives and vantage points between them are at opposite ends of the cultural, psychological and spiritual spectrums. The psychosis of White racism against African Americans which ravages the Eurocentric thought processes automatically eliminates the possibility of all things being equal between them. In addition, Europeans have manipulated all of the factors which might adversely effect their showing to such extremes that even many of them have no idea which perspective is valid.

It is nothing short of ludicrous for an African American woman to compare African American men with White men when all the norms, rules and social controls belong to White men. That reality is perhaps one of the strongest arguments for African Americans to know their history. The cycle of pain is more likely to be broken when you know exactly what the obstacles of African Americans have been (and still are) and how African Americans have overcome them.

When you recognize the social, psychological and economic patterns that have been established to stifle the progress of African Americans and why all African Americans must fight to change those patterns, comparisons are not necessary. Hating White people in order to love yourself will not break the cycle of pain. However, knowing the role they've played in the lives of African Americans is necessary before self knowledge can happen. Without self knowledge, self love is not possible. Without self love, freedom from pain is not possible.

All African Americans; from the smartest to the dullest, from the most impoverished to the most privileged are permanently linked to one another. We cannot be ourselves as individuals without help from one another. America will not allow it. The truth of our interdependency comes clear whenever one of us makes a mistake or behaves in a socially unacceptable way.

Many times the negative acts committed by a single African American are considered a reflection of all African Americans. When one African American robs a bank, all African Americans become thieves. When one African American abuses drugs, all African Americans become drug addicts. When one African American man hits his wife, society sees all African American men as wife beaters. When one African American woman sells her body, society sees all African American women as whores. These kinds of generalizations have become an inescapable part of being Black in America. They set the stage for the negative preconceived notions that other people tend to have of us. When the negative actions of a few African Americans become a matter of public records, they adversely effect all African Americans.

This trickling down of negative perceptions hurt us, but it works well for racist addicts because it continually fuels them with the "proof" they crave to validate their false perceptions of us. The more negative we are toward them and toward one another, the more justified they believe themselves to be for their racist attitudes. It is an awesome and unfair burden for an individual to be viewed as the precedent setter for an entire race, but that is what each and every African American is expected to be.

For years, the racist factions in America have convinced themselves that we are inferior to them. They have also deluded themselves into believing that we are incapable of loving ourselves. To help perpetuate this, they close their minds to our obvious worth and pursued their on going crusade to elevate themselves at our expense.

In some ways, this has worked to our advantage. It has forced some of us to reassess our roles in American society. It has motivated some of us to face our pain, challenge the status quo and raise our standards of excellence. Most important, it has inspired others of us to analyze the quality of our life experiences. It is no small accomplishment to withstand the continual attempts of a narrow-minded group of people to invalidate all African Americans. Still, countless numbers of us have managed to do that.

Blacks loving Blacks is a well-kept secret in mainstream America. While there may be little profit in promoting the idea of racial harmony, increasing numbers of us are embracing it as the rule instead of as the exception. America has always done its best to ensure that African Americans and other peoples of color will always remain several notches below the nation's social, economic and political order of things.

The dehumanization of Africans Americans has been a long, atrocious, collective and on going effort by racist America. There have been countless African American casualties. The most tragic being the mind set of some African Americans today. Those who behave as though the spiritual and cultural conquering of Black people is just another chapter from America's brutal history. There are those who behave as though what happened to a race of people 400 years ago is too distant to be relevant.

The dehumanizing of African Americans is as all encompassing today as it was when the seeds of American slavery were first sown. Although the expressions of American racism are subtlely institutionalized, its 400-year-old goal remains in tact. Today it is just as important now for America to guarantee that no African American is ever considered a "real" American as it ever was. The consciousness of Americans has been manipulated so much that it continues to be too hard for an African American man to simply be looked upon as a man.

From the moment the first kidnaped African arrived on American shores, up to this very day, African Americans have been scrutinized, analyzed, criticized and demoralized by everyone; including some of us. The African holocaust which America calls "the slave trade," did not end with the murdering and enslavement of millions of people of color. That was just the beginning. The African holocaust not only continues, it thrives.

For decades America has justified its savagery against us by insisting that we are primitive. For years America has rationalized its bias against us by labeling us as unworthy. For centuries America has glorified our enslavement by convincing themselves that we are merely property. There is much for White America to learn.

The Masks We Wear

Every now and then we ask ourselves, "why." Why is it that so few African Americans seem able to progress in White society? Why is it that so few African Americans seem able to obtain their goals? Why is it that other people with seemingly "fewer" mental or physical capabilities can find wealth, run their own businesses, or head large corporations effectively?

The answer, in part must stem from how much self awareness, historical knowledge and cultural pride that other races of people promote between themselves. Having these things in place must surely be effective barriers against the often negative Western influences. Having self awareness eliminates the need to wear the masks society defines as "your face". Knowing your history eliminates the need to wear the masks society says you've always worn. Having cultural pride eliminates the need to wear the masks society says depicts your culture.

Given the natural abilities of African Americans, lack of economic independence, lack of leadership, lack or organization and lack of education are circumstances which should not be as prevailing as they are. To complicate matters, some African Americans maintain a "crab mentality." Like crabs in a pot of boiling water, some of us choose to invest our energies into pulling other African Americans down into the proverbial pot with them instead of helping them to get out of the pot.

The crab mentality is just another consequence of American White racism which fosters the attitude in African Americans which causes them to doom themselves and other African Americans for failure because s/he is Black. It is a convenient excuse not to maintain a standard of excellence and to demand excellence from others.

Think about it for a moment. As you enjoy the benefits of a middle class lifestyle, struggle to maintain a modest home, live day to day as a single parent or strive to achieve whatever you believe success to be. Who are you? No matter what social status you have achieved; as an African American your life is greatly influenced by society's interpretation of your worth. Authors Bender and Leone relate:

"Any White person, regardless of personal appearance, income and education, usually finds it much easier to establish credit, purchase better homes and initiate businesses than the average non-White person. To be White in the United States statistically means that police officers rarely harass you, that your life expectancy is significantly longer than non-Whites, and that your children will probably inherent property and social position.

Blackness in American racial terms has meant a hundred different insults, harassments and liabilities experienced daily, living with the reality that a Black university graduate will make less money in his or her lifetime than the average White graduate of secondary school; experiencing higher death rates due to absence of adequate health care facilities in one's neighborhood; accepting the grim fact that in 1990, a young White American male's statistical likelihood of becoming a victim of homicide is roughly one chance in 186, while a young Black male's statistical chances are one in 20."

Being in America is both a blessing and a curse. It is a blessing to be in America because of its claims to be the last bastion of freedom and democracy in the civilized world. Although such claims are largely mythical, as an American you are supposed to have rights and privileges not afforded to people living in "less developed" countries. However, freedom and equality was never meant to apply directly to African Americans.

Even though America's founding fathers proclaimed in their Declaration of Independence and Bill of Rights that all people (by virtue of their American citizenship) would be granted inalienable rights to justice, life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Abraham Lincoln was not the "savior" that American history has made him out to be. He wore the mask of "emancipator" to meet his political agenda. Contrary to what many people believe, Lincoln was not against slavery. He was very much in favor of it. His decision to abolish slavery was made reluctantly and in response to wartime demands.

In his book 100 Amazing Facts About the Negro (With Complete Proof) author J. A. Rogers states the verifiable fact that the American Civil War found Black Americans playing a role similar to that of America in the last World War. That is, both provided a balance of power that brought victory to the other side. Without the aid of the Black man, there might have been no United States now.

Abraham Lincoln said four times that without the Negro it would be 'impossible' for the North to win. This statement is all the more striking since Lincoln, in response to popular prejudice, steadfast; refused to employ Negro troops though the South was doing so. Instead, he wanted to ship the Negroes away and in 1862 had Congress to vote $600,000 to send the first installment to the Ile de Vache in Haiti. The colony ended in disastrous failure and Lincoln sent a ship for the surviving Negro deportees."

In spite of the Founding Father's lack of foresight, everyone can snuggle under the blanket of American democracy. In America, everyone theoretically has the right to speak freely, peacefully assemble and express their individuality as well as their affiliation with any group. These were some of the tenets which (on paper) served as the basis for a free society.

According to those ideals; as an American, no fellow American will fire bomb your car in protest of something that you have said. Ideally, a fellow American will not "black list" you for expressing beliefs which are contrary to those popularly held. As an American, other Americans will not deny you fair housing because of your age, race or sexual orientation.

No fellow American will attack your children because of your political belief or the cultural identity you choose for yourself and your family. No fellow American will deny you or give you inferior medical care because of the color of your skin. No fellow American will exploit you because of your affiliation with a particular ethnic group. This is the American ideal. However, as an African American you already know that the American ideal will not always include you.

It is as much a curse as it is a blessing to be a Black person in America because America's ideals have proven themselves to be just that; ideals. America is in denial. America likes to pretend that it isn't as racist as it is. To perpetuate the big lie of racial equality, equity and equal opportunity, America wears the mask of "the world's watchdog." As such, America focuses some of its energy on preserving the civil and human rights of peoples from other nations when it is politically advantageous.

The American government publicly condemns China for what it sees as human rights violations. Yet in America, African American males are singled out as crooks and criminals if they drive luxury cars or live in exclusive neighborhoods. The American government gives financial aide and resources to improve the literacy level of children Serbia. Yet, African American children are expected to attend dilapidated schools, pull lessons out of outdated text books and learn in overcrowded classrooms.

The American government can find the money to fund Bosnian peace efforts and send diplomats to mediate Arab-Israel conflicts, but it cannot keep the peace between people living on its shores. America may be the watch dog to the world, but it is blind to what is happening in its own back yard. Authors Majors and Billson discuss the racism and discrimination which have historically been directed to Black American males:

"Historically, racism and discrimination have inflicted a variety of harsh injustices on African American in the United States, especially on males. Being male and Black has meant being psychologically castrated, rendered impotent in the economic, political and social areas that Whites have historically dominated. Black men learned long ago that the classic American virtues of thrift, perseverance and hard work did not give them the same tangible rewards accrued to Whites."

Unmasked, few Americans will demonstrate a willingness to live up to the ideals that America claims to cherish. It has never been America's intentions to genuinely recognize and respect the human rights and abilities of African Americans. Nor has America's position regarding peoples of color ever been one of fostering true equality with them.

So, as an African American you can expect armed protests against contrary ideas you might express. You can expect organized boycotts against you by persons who would rather cling to the status quo instead of making changes for the betterment of all people. You can expect that the "good neighbor policy" may not be extended to you by some neighboring communities.

You can expect that your children may become the innocent targets of those whose political, social, religious or cultural perspective differs from yours. You can expect that there may even be persons who believe that they should not extend or enhance your life through the technologies of modern medicine. Further more, they may believe providing inferior medical care to you is better than not proving any treatment to you at all.

At some point in time and to some degree, you will be singled out. The collage of hidden agendas and secret motivations of this profit driven, racist society called America practically guarantees it. The financial, intellectual, sexual, moral, psychological and social exploitation of peoples of color happens as often as possible and by whatever means necessary. That is the American way.

Few Black Americans ever "make it" in America without enduring a disproportionate amount of compromise and sacrifice. By virtue of our Blackness, we typically have to work twice as hard for half as much as some other people. In order to get within arms' reach of the proverbial brass ring, it often takes almost super human creativity and perseverance. Often, when success comes as a result of excelling at "playing the game," our efforts still don't earn us the status of "equal." Some of us want equality so desperately that we willingly mask ourselves.

However, no matter how White we try to look, the features of our Blackness are overpowering. All of the perms, dyes, weaves, bleaches and colored contact lenses in the world won't prevent people from feeling uncomfortable about what's really beneath the masks we wear. We can change our hair, clothes, speech and spending, but we will still be Black. No matter how White we try to live, there is no escaping our Blackness. Moving from the cities to the suburbs will not make us less Black. It will only provoke Whites to move into suburbs which are further out and further away from us. When it is all said and done, we may try to live a "White lifestyle," but we will die Black.

American racism has caused some of us to become traumatized by our complexions. As a result, some African Americans who are able to mask their identities by virtue of their complexion choose to "pass" as a member of another race. Having this "ability" may help them better cope with racism. Still, having to change their masks in order to move in and out of a White and Black identity creates even more stress. Dempsey J. Travis discusses the subject of passing in his book, Racism: American Style a Corporate Gift:

"Between 1932 and 1952, more than five million white-complexioned Negroes chose to make a complete transformation from the Black world into the White world. During the two decades, thousands more tried living in two worlds, passing as White during the day to find and hold decent paying White-collar jobs and returning to their Negro neighborhoods at night.

The dual lifestyles locked them into a Jekyll Hyde conflict between their day world and their night world. A young woman, a Harvard graduate, who passed in order to hold an administrative position with a large White-owned firm, said, 'I'm not ashamed of my race. If I could be Black and still hold this job, I'd let everyone know right now'. Her attitude captured the sentiment of the hundreds of thousands of workers who in 1990 are White by day and Black by night."

Travis continues his discussion with recognizable examples of persons who have passed: "Actress Jennifer Beal was born in Chicago in 1963. Her mother Jeanne is Irish and her Black father Alfred was the prosperous owner of several south side Chicago grocery stores. Alfred died in 1974 and Jeanne, a school teacher, moved her family to an all-White North side community. From that day to present, Jennifer has never publicly identified with the Black community.

In contrast, Jasmine Guy, the female lead in Eddie Murphy's "Harlem Nights" and a star in Bill Cosby's television hit, "A Different World" is the product of a biracial marriage and has always presented herself as Black. At the other extreme, Prince, whose parents are Black, claims in his publicity that he is Italian." Poet Paul Laurence Dunbar was right. Sometimes we do "wear the mask that grins and lies."

Some of us will claim to be proud of our heritage, yet belittle one another. Some of us will claim to want to be treated with consideration and respect, yet disrespect ourselves. Some of us will claim to be "good Christians", yet are unkind and deceptive. We wear the masks. In doing so, we send mixed messages which confuse people. They are confused about how to treat us.

In the mainstream there is constant confusion. So many hidden agendas there. So much hypocrisy. So many masks. It is there where African Americans struggle the most with trying to please other people and with being accepted by them. In many ways, the mainstream culture is a dysfunctional environment for African Americans. It is a place where pleasing the "all seeing, all knowing, all powerful" Whites is just another attempt by some African Americans at validating themselves. It is a place where African Americans are the most insecure about themselves and most obsessed with making people like them.

Certainly, being pleasant and cooperative increases the chances of people liking us. Still, the reality is that we can't control other people's perceptions of us. We can only control how we perceive ourselves. We don't need other people to validate us. We can empower, affirm and validate ourselves.

Why We Can't Wait

We are all the same where it matters the most. Each of us is no better and no worst than the next. We are all linked together by the common thread of our humanity. We are all members of the same diverse, intricate, wonderful race; the human race. Being human is the tie that will forever bind us to each other. It is our "human-ness" which should be the basis for our tolerance of individual and cultural differences.

Instead, it is that same quality which has allowed many of us to view our tangible differences as justification for the segregation of our species. While in the segregated state we do not understand or see the value in individual and cultural differences. Eventually, our ignorance of one another has bred fears in ourselves. Ignorance and fear is what racism is all about. Racism extends itself far beyond being denied a job or entrance into a restaurant.

Racism against any peoples effects their very core of existence. Racism not only negatively influences the way people look at each other. It also negatively influences the way people look at themselves. To some degree, the technological advances of this century have given us an excellent opportunity to lessen our fears of one another. Thanks to our technological genius, we are not as restricted by physical boundaries and demographics as we once were. Going anywhere in the world is possible for almost anyone.

Theoretically, an Asian can enjoy the hospitality of the Amish. An Black American can debate religion with a Tibetan Monk. A Soviet Jew can have lunch with a Zulu chief. All these things are possible if we want them. Planes, trains and boats go further and faster than ever before. So, we do not have to allow our physical or philosophical differences to separate us. We do not have to allow our ignorance of one another to breed racist perceptions of other people or of ourselves.

We can also gain exposure to one another without physically crossing communities, state lines or continents. We do it every day by allowing our images and ideas to be sped across the air waves. Television, radio and the print media give us the power to share parts of ourselves and our ideas with everyone. Through our endorsement and consequent dependency on these vehicles of communication, each of us has assigned a great deal of power to the mass media. However, with great power comes great responsibility.

Our responsibility as consumers of information is to ensure that what we allow into our levels of consciousness does not turn us into lemmings led to a fate which the media has predetermined. If it is the intention of the mass media to supply us with useful and constructive information, they must extend themselves beyond being a tool for mass persuasion.

Those persons who recognize the persuasive powers of the media, use it most often as a vehicle for profit. For instance, the baker who buys a radio jingle intends for his catchy tune to motivate us to buy his baked goods. The car dealer who uses testimonials in his TV ad intends for the words of his "satisfied customers" to entice us into buying cars from him.

The spokesperson who uses photographs of orphaned children in his newspaper ad intends for the faces of children to inspire us to contribute to his cause. Largely, the media does persuade many of us to act and think the way that we do. So, thinking and acting responsibly is the only way to avoid making judgements and comparisons based on ideas which may be artificial. We can't wait for America to take responsibility for the damage its done to African Americans. We can't wait for the media to do the right thing.

The influence of the media has frequently been devastating for African Americans. The continual misrepresentations have encouraged us to think of ourselves as the most violent, least productive, least intelligent, most undeserving and less human of all peoples in this country. At times, the mass media has force fed its false ideas to us with such vigor that even some of us hold our own culture and people in contempt. This undercurrent of shame secretly felt distracts us away from recognizing our true human potential, realizing our valid historical significance and ultimately loving ourselves. We can't wait for America to change its approach to African Americans. We must change our approach to being Americans.

The segregated lifestyles of some mainstream White Americans are ones which have cast African Americans in predominantly inferior roles. Frequently, their false generalizations (which the media have reinforced) will not allow White Americans to think of African Americans as capable of success in areas other than servitude or crime. Consequently, those African Americans who achieve what White America equates with success are considered more as the exception than the rule of human potential. We can't wait for America to change its perception of us. We must change our perception of ourselves.

Many White Americans live out their entire lives without ever considering that African Americans can, have and do function in a capacity other than servitude. This has remained true for them in spite of the vast array of information to the contrary and the unlimited methods available to bridge the cultural gaps between people. Every African American knows when a racist exchange is happening because every African American has had a lifetime of exposure to them. The challenge that racism presents to Black Americans is not simply to identify racism. There is no challenge to identifying it. We must go one step better.

We can't wait for America to make racism go away. It won't go away because America was founded, developed and controlled by racists. It has never been in America's best interests to make racism go away. So, African Americans must do what America can't. That is, to develop strategies for rising above racism. When John Sweat Rock coined the phrase, "Black is beautiful," it was a bold statement for a Black man to make because he was making it in the 1800's.

As African Americans approach the year 2000, we must not ignore the beauty of being Black during the struggle to be seen by America as Americans. We can't wait for America to wake up and come to its senses. We cannot wait for White America to educate our children, validate or worth or save us from ourselves. We cannot pretend that American racism is just a scratch on an otherwise unblemished nation. Racism is a cancer. Until we come together to extract a cure, waiting will only give the cancer more time to spread.

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