Your comments please

[DBlack]

I saw a recording of the speech Bill gave to em. I was taken back by it very much. Yes, his speech was empowering to the acheiving female from a personal and selfish perspective. While ranting about the condition of the black man, where were his words of encouragement to our sisters to be strong both for themselves and us, their brotheren?

Bill Cosby is once again grandstanding, providing plenty of redmeat to all those looking for reasons to loathe our culture or divisions therein. Never it seems, does he go deeper than the surface to speak of the white man and what ill Amerikkka as effected upon us and how to overcome them. While he flames his own people, he continues to give Whitey a pass.

[Jackson]

@Jamesfrmphilly and soulbrotha, you two gentlemen represent two dominant schools of thought in so far as discussion about the state of the African American community is concerned. I'm wondering if i am one of the only people who thinks that the two thoughts can be reconciled. The truth of the matter is that i agree with you both. I think it's imperative that the youth are informed that the negative notion that blacks are the inferior other is a construct by white supremists and that it holds no water. Youths have to be made aware that they aren't inherently inferior as the result of being black.

Whilst its important to reinforce self worth in the youth i think that it is equally important to have people know that ultimately the power lies in their own hand. It's important for community leaders, mentors etc to teach the youth that no matter what their background is, they can CHOOSE a better life for themselves, they can make much out of little. Personally i get weary of hearing that all the problems of the black community are as a result of white people. I acknowledge the role played by racism but i think that at the end of the day, black people have to step up to the plate and hold themselves accountable where and when accountable. The fact that 70% of children grow up in fatherless homes cannot be blamed on white people. During the era of civil rights movement, 80% of black families were headed by both parents, today that number has declined to 30% if not slightly lower.

The sad thing is the largely tattered state of the family in black America is what i believe to have had such a negative impact on our communities. What went wrong? Some articles i read somewhere said that it has just become more and more acceptable in the black community for people to have children out of wedlock, marriage apparently is not seen as important by most black people. Our own approach and attitude to family is what is hurting us. This street masculinity which is equated with black masculinity is what encourages the crimes, the drugs, the irresponsible behaviour, the notion that to be a man one must have a multitude of sexual partners etc. This masculinity will thrive for as long as homes in black communities continue to be fatherless.

The media is ablaze with the worst possible portrayal of black people and particularly, the black man. It is no secret that the media for the most part is white run and that their portrayal of blacks reinforces negative stereotypes about us. However, when a black man chooses to go out and commit that crime which results in him being just another statistic and which places him on our television screen, it is not the fault of the white media, that he is on that screen . IT IS HIS FAULT. In other words, whilst the media works overtime to show an ill portrait of black people, i feel as though often, black people who act irresponsibly are the ones who add fuel to the fire by their actions.

I believe that the only way to undermine a stereotype is to not give it substance. I think black people just have to do better. White supremists are not going to wake up any day soon with the desire to embrace black people, we need to embrace ourselves and we need to exercise better choices. We need to reconstruct the foundation which is almost nonexistent in our community, the foundation of a strong nuclear family. One will find that after its reconstruction, it will be a safe haven for our youths, it will be a place from which they can learn the importance of hard work, from which they can derive that sense of self worth. White people cannot stand in the place of this reconstruction, only ourselves, by having a negative attitude toward the nuclear family can.

At the end of this year i plan on joining a project which will enable me to mentor some inner city youths during weekends etc. I want to mentor young black males and i look foward to teaching them that ultimately the power is in their hands. I look foward to heping them remove any negative perception they have in their minds which are a direct result of the identity the supremists in this country have ascribed to black men. I hope to help them paint a different picture in their minds about who they are and what they can achieve if they CHOOSE to. Anyone who loves our community shouldn't just criticise it, do something to effect the change that you want to see. :)

Originally Posted by Jackson

At the end of this year i plan on joining a project which will enable me to mentor some inner city youths during weekends etc. I want to mentor young black males and i look foward to teaching them that ultimately the power is in their hands. I look foward to heping them remove any negative perception they have in their minds which are a direct result of the identity the supremists in this country have ascribed to black men. I hope to help them paint a different picture in their minds about who they are and what they can achieve if they CHOOSE to. Anyone who loves our community shouldn't just criticise it, do something to effect the change that you want to see. :)

Now that's what I'm talking about! People getting involved instead of running their mouths all day. More power to ya Jackson. Need more like you. And I agree with the rest of your post as well. We all have choices and unfortunately some of us make some very bad ones and that can't be denied. Now while I'll admit that in the end we all have choices to make and it's up to us to make good ones, I also recognize that when you trace the root of our problems as a community, including the choice to turn to a life of crime, it's my belief that it all goes back to white supremacy. That curse is still wreaking havoc and we can't ever forget the part it has played in our history and continues to play in our lives as a community everyday.

[Jackson]

@Ran Ran, thanks man. I decided that i wanted to get involved because i had become sick and tired of being sick and tired concering what's happening in our communities. That's why i thought of joining a programme whereby i can work with the youth that need guidance, during the weekends. I'd love to do it full time, but i've got a great job lined up and being a new graduate and all, i plan to get my grown and sexy on by working in my field until i get a business project off the ground. Money, when used properly can be an effective tool where implementing change is concerned. I don't believe in just giving people handouts, rather i believe in empowering people. I believe in that saying, "give a man a fish and he eats for the day but if you teach a man to fish, he’ll eat for a lifetime".

[jamesfrmphilly]

Originally Posted by Jackson

@Jamesfrmphilly and soulbrotha, you two gentlemen represent two dominant schools of thought in so far as discussion about the state of the African American community is concerned. I'm wondering if i am one of the only people who thinks that the two thoughts can be reconciled. The truth of the matter is that i agree with you both. I think it's imperative that the youth are informed that the negative notion that blacks are the inferior other is a construct by white supremists and that it holds no water. Youths have to be made aware that they aren't inherently inferior as the result of being black.

Whilst its important to reinforce self worth in the youth i think that it is equally important to have people know that ultimately the power lies in their own hand. It's important for community leaders, mentors etc to teach the youth that no matter what their background is, they can CHOOSE a better life for themselves, they can make much out of little. :)

this speaks to my mantra: the white man is the problem, the black man is the solution.

i totally believe that all our problems have been as a result of the white devil.
i also believe that we will have to pull our own self up. no one will do that for us.
we will do it by freeing our own minds by ourselves.
uhuru.

Well Jackson do your thing. I plan to get involved in mentoring within the next couple months myself after I make a big move. I think it's important for us to stop talking and typing and get involved. And I've always loved that saying about the fish.

Jamesfromphilly, 100% right on.

[thinkslow]

I do not care what Bill Cosby says. And isn't he the guy responsible for the 'cosby show' and 'a different world'? I'm just saying

[Samoon]

IMO--I think that most hold valid viewpoints here. When I read this post, the ONLY thought that I saw in the forefront of my thinking was, "personal accountability." I am going to separate the "messenger" (Cosby) from his own personal transgressions because I believe that the focus here SHOULD be on the problems that we as black people continue to face as opposed to, "the pot calling the kettle black." I could care less about Cosby's transgressions, I think that his "views" would not have been taken as harshly as they have been, had Cosby offered up a "bullet plan of sorts," (and his donations are noted here) that is, what he could have brought to the table in terms of being pro-active for the plethora of problems that we, as black people continue to face. Bottom line? Cosby spoke the truth. Unfortunately, many are not "trying to hear that," or worse, will not face up to their own failure inasmuch as personal accountability for the "ills" that continue to plague our communities. This is not a personal attack or affront to anyone here, let me be clear. One of the biggest culprits in black culture and dynamics, has been the continual "sugar-coating" and "sweeping/ignoring negative ills under the carpet", thus allowing negative cycles to continue. This illustrates no more than a, "shared group mentality" at it's worst when individuals cluster in the supporting of "habits and behaviors" that we KNOW are hurting us as black people. This, coupled with the agendas and operatives of racism as we are all too aware of. I do find it very disturbing, however, when we continue to see behaviors like these that make you go hmmmm?

* Pookie is continually in and out of jail...yet this behavior is "celebrated" when Pookie is released? WHY is this type of behavior accepted? At all? Make me understand?
* A parent that has a son/daughter/"other" in the home that they are aware is in the drug game. Yet the parent turns a blind eye?
*Black-on-Black crime. When one black person murders another, unfortuntely, this has become, "business as usual." Not one of us should ever be this desensitized when it comes to what is happening in the black community. When law enforcement murders one of our own, black folks want to cry, "foul!" This just in? Neither "murder" is a cut above the other. Both are morally WRONG. An individual's life has been "stolen." Bottom line, this society has not and will not value black lives---we SHOULD value one another. I KNOW that we as black people are more than capable of "pulling ourselves up by our boot-straps" and surging forth as a people. Especially if we DO have concerned individuals ARE stepping up to the plate, armed with a plan to assist in being pro-active.

Regardless of gender, ANY individual can aspire to attain personal success. Granted, there ARE more black females on average, that are graduating from higher education than ever before. Personally, I find that no contention in Bill's encouraging these sistas to go forth in making their own impression in the world, for these will be the legacies that they will leave behind. And, as a brother-friend shared with me, "Cosby's speeches are merely "cause and effect" at work here (and a wake-up call) that is, identifying the causes and the AFFECT that unacceptable behaviors continue to have in black communities. All, be well.

[jamesfrmphilly]

Originally Posted by Samoon

"personal accountability."

when the white man takes personal accountability, i will be right behind him in the line.............

[Samoon]

@ James. I understand your position--indeed I do. For clarity for ME? I look at "personal accountability" from my OWN (black) ranks. I don't expect any snake of any color to clean up their house--we should be busy cleaning up our own.