Responsibility as an African Black Person

Saturday, July 27, 2003
by Ras Benjamine

Time again to blaze up the fire! Cause the fire is for the purification.

I remember posting a question on the 8th of July here on this forum regarding WHY Africa still presently remains in a mess even though we are "free"? WHY can't we as Africans unite? What can we as Rastas do for Africa? I got a lot of credible comments and thanks to all those who contributed. I am still digesting those comments! Here is what I make of the situation. Some of it you will agree some you wouldn't.

Responsibility, what is responsibility? The ability to chose our response "Response –Ability"?
The state of being responsible, accountable, or answerable, as for a trust, debt, or obligation? The social force that binds you to your obligations and the courses of action demanded by that force?

What is my responsibility? Well this question is always one of the first asked by youths as they become aware of racism; social, economic and other imbalances between the West and rest of the world, it is the question ask by black youths concerning the deplorable state Africa and Black people are in today! However, the vast majority of people, black or white, would be only too glad to throw off all responsibility, and cast it on anything rather than themselves. That this is in fact self-humiliation causes them no concern here. In this respect many are really remarkably humble and modest, but only so that they can go on living all the more merrily and unscrupulously. The reality however is serious and inexorable! What a man sows he will reap many times over! These few words holds and conveys much more than many a person thinks. They correspond minutely and exactly to the actual process of the reciprocal action resting in creation. No more appropriate expression could be found for it. Just as the harvest yields a multiple of the seed. Thus man bears spiritually the responsibility for everything he does. This responsibility begins already with the making of the resolution, not just with the accomplished deed, which is simply a consequence of the resolution. And the resolution is the awakening of an earnest volition! As Capelton said on one of his tracks from album More Fire:" The whole universe is created on the power of thought and the breath of life- speech, verbal…the word transferred goes out and it takes on flesh and life! "

As demonstrated above it is clears that the mind and volition is everything. As a man thinketh so he is! There are concrete evidences pointing to the fact that inferiority complex, colonial mentality and mental slavery constitute the core problems of development in Africa. One such evidence is the shameless and mindless robbery of our struggling African people by her "leaders" on a daily basis just to invest in foreign countries (even though those countries consider our people worthless, and in some instance, the "most corrupt" species in human race). They have completely destroyed and poisoned the minds, the souls and the thought processes of over 90% of African leaders and elites to the point that the only thing making sense to them is a total destruction of their own people! Specifically, we know quite well that if "A" can control "B's" mind, "A" automatically controls "B's" money, his wife, his children and every other thing that belongs to "B."

Willie Lynch syndrome, I personally remember clearly when I was growing up in Africa being thoughtlessly taught (and children are still being thoughtlessly taught today), that "oyibo bu ndi muo," (white men are naturally spirits)," "oyibo bu agbara," (white men are wizards by nature), and "America ilu oba" (which suggests that white man's country is naturally the land of kings). Similar phrases such as "dan bature," (which implies that white men are by nature civilized), and "or buter" (which symbolizes the natural lead of white men) are very common all over Nigeria and Africa! I was thoughtlessly taught (as children are still being thoughtlessly taught today) that almost anything "black" is inherently evil. In fact, to our "educators," it is perfectly okay to use the word, "black" (the ascribed name to people with African decent), to describe evil. In accordance with this teaching, a bad person is the "black sheep of the family," and should be "black listed." In accordance with this teaching, illegal market is "black market" (as if only black people do business in such market). In according with this teaching, Satan (no one has ever seen) is "black" in colour. In fact, to our "educated" teachers, frequent use of "black" to describe evil demonstrates a mastery of the "Queen's English," deserving an "A" in English essay composition. What an education! Pure mis-education indeed leading simply to low self-esteem. By comparing the leadership styles of African leaders and nonAfrican leaders, one also observes another handiwork of inferiority complex/lack of self-confidence. Specifically, one notices that while nonAfrican leaders wisely refuse to invest their countries' money and resources in Africa, by practicing "charity begins at home," most African leaders are very proud to invest African money and resources in nonAfrican countries. Why? In their miseducated minds, Africa is "unsafe heaven," while "America ilu oba" - the safe heaven. What a lack of self-confidence! What a leadership! It is a pity!

I overderstand that the minds of well over 90% of African leaders have been tragically hijacked by inferiority complex, colonial mentality and mental slavery to the point that they have sold their birthrights to foreigners. This understanding that the mind is EVERYTHING and that the minds of most African leaders are in foreign banks] goes far beyond nominal academic degrees, certificates, and bogus titles (that are often paraded by most African leaders and elites whose definition and understanding of the word, leadership, stops at titles). Only the enlightened minds understand the scheme of things in this creation and therefore act and react accordingly in every situation.

Quite simply we are the laughing stock of the rest of the world and It has become a fair game for Western journalists to report Africa as violence-prone and this has been reinforced by African themselves, creating a culture of self-contempt "at home" and throughout the African Diaspora. Respect is earned, and to earn respect, one must respect oneself. While most of these reports are exaggerated and lay open how the West itself, not only plundered Africa both during slave trade and colonialism, both of which lasted for almost 700 years, but suppressed African culture, thus stifling its inner growth.

Currently, most Africans on the continent today erroneously feel that with all the opportunities available to post-slavery Africans in the Americas (particularly the North), that they (post-slavery Africans) should be in a better position than they are presently. On the other hand, post-slavery Africans feel that since Africans rule themselves, that they should get their act together and stop emigrating in droves to compete with the few opportunities available to them (post-slavery Negroes) in the Americas. In addition, since most of the information that both peoples receive comes via habitually biased channels, they are ignorant of either side's positive achievements as they are relentlessly subjected to negative stereotypes of each other. This cross-pollution by traditional media outlets results in a situation whereby most post-colonial Negroes feel that post-slavery Negroes are violent and indolent, while the post-slavery Negroes feel that post-colonial Africans are nothing more than inhabitants of a jungle replete with wild animals. Neither group comprehends the level of psychological abuse that the other has been subjected to and which still influences present-day behaviour, choosing instead to dwell on the delusion that both evils are now "over". The result as we see today is an African culture simultaneously polluted and rapidly decaying. We have no doubt been the recipients of a heritage of a prostitution and exploitation that is only comparable to a modern day harlot plying her trade with as much gusto that she can muster in the face of the dehumanising nature of the chore. Our ancestors bequeathed a legacy of dissonant manipulation of each other as can be seen from the slave trade onwards. No matter how much we cry and shout about reparations and apologies for the Slave Trade, it does little however to obscure the fact that Africa gave up her sons and daughters willingly to Europeans just like a harlot offers up her wares. Africa invited European domination and exploitation on herself by stagnating her society and abilities in the unsophisticated shifting-cultivation-mentality of her technological and scientific complacency. The continued cry for foreign investment to offset the vagaries of the Slave Trade and exploitations of colonialism, and other sundry forms of reparations, is akin to a harlot's children growing up and demanding that their mother's customers, despite their mutually consenting agreement at the time, should pay them damages now for ignominies suffered by their mother in the past.

Therefore these vestiges of pain and shame can and must be transformed into progress. I as a Rasta will not keep quite and wish things away but urge us as Africans and black people that this situation should not deform us black people permanently but should burn us with new anger, fire and new resolves for a resurgent Africa. Much of which is displayed here on this forum! , It was indeed African labour that was used in the construction of the Americas and post-Renaissance Europe, and the construction of colonial capitalism in Africa not for the benefit of Africans but colonizing Europe. We Africans need to be aware of the ex-colonialists intrigues to thwart Africa's resurgence. Most importantly our resurgence in Africa should not be hooked to American dollar democracies or the British Pound or European Euro but rather capacity building rooted in Africa for Africans! But all this is only possible, if we take up the challenge and dare to imagine a different Africa. Africa must dare to dream big and to imagine a united Africa in a federal structure for this century. What a man sows he will reap many times over! So Africa will always receive back greatly multiplied what she in her own intuitive perceptions awakens through her own people and sends out, according to the nature of her volition.

Many argue that Africa cannot dream big because of her many ethnic differences and the fact she has perhaps lost her ways forever. But we Africans, black people must realize that uniting for a common cause does not mean abandoning and denying our cultural or linguistic dissimilarities, but rather reaffirming and acknowledging our cultural and social affinities. It does not mean obfuscating the reality of our differences, but instead utilizing the range of our multiplicities and stop stumbling over each other, striving to imbibe the ways of an alien conqueror!

Our endeavours must be geared towards an overriding aspiration for renaissance, not for our progenitors or ourselves, but for the beautiful ones not yet born. We owe it to the millions of Africans yet unborn to break the cycle of despair and penury that has become synonymous with our society otherwise we will and are being forced into extinction as a race. Posterity is a harsh raconteur; she tells tales with subtle bias and disdainful slurs, altering succeeding accounts until the original narrative resembles the final analysis in name only, and even that may change.

We must author our own epic, script our own history, and in so doing force posterity to record our own truths. We have been divided for as long as our collective memories can recall, since our ancestors roamed free our African society. The divisions and sub-divisions have not served us well, if anything they have rendered us impotent to prevent the wanton decimation of our society. It is time to reverse the mind-set that we can survive independent of each other, we have to realize that we can be inter-dependant and still survive. A confederacy does not mean a wholesale merger, nor does it mean that we have to be smothered by the proximity of our united front. It means that we are a loose confederation of similar (not homogenous) peoples within a larger society faced with the ills of a common history and the cruelty of a shared reality that cares little for political correctness. We are one, not because we want to be one, not because we share a common ancestral homeland, not because we share a common race or skin colour; we are one because we have been stigmatised by the insanity of man's cruelty to black man. We share a heritage of blood, toil, tears and more blood, at the hands of our conquerors, but increasingly at our own hands, even as the crime has changed from genocide to societal suicide.

So where does this new future lies? It lies completely with the liberated and enlightened African minds. That is, for Africa to record meaningful growth and development like other continents, her affairs MUST be run by those Africans who have risen above and beyond the following related fundamental enemies of Africa, namely, inferiority complex, colonial mentality and mental slavery. Only those enlightened Africans understand, beyond any shadow of doubts, how these three enemies of destruction constitute the super destroyers of the present day Africa.

As many idrens here read this many no doubt will wonder what am advocating really, African creation of wealth, European style? Well not quite, simply cast your mind back to pre-colonial Africa, the holder of wealth was more predisposed to using it to the benefit of his society rather to have it just for the sake of having it. However, Europeans did not corrupt the idea of wealth per se; they simply exposed the reality of its hypocrisy for all to see. In other words, there is little use for wealth beyond fostering more wealth and guaranteeing economic survival for oneself and that of his offspring. Creating a better life by being able to purchase the best material comforts that life could offer became an obsession and was celebrated, whereas it was frowned upon in traditional African societies. Ostentatious displays of wealth arrived in our society the minute we discovered the Whitman's material goods and technological innovations. Our previous notions of righteous wealth acquisition for the "betterment" of one's society went out of the window, along with all other notions of selfless service to the community and the time-tested ideas of decent and moral uprightness as esteemed members of the society. Africans need to restore this notion of pre-colonial wealth albeit with technological advance. As an African I personally believe that there is only one Creator, one God, and hence only one Power, which streams through all that exists, animating and furthering it! This pure, creative power of Jah Flows continually through the whole creation lies in it and is inseparable from it. It is to be found everywhere in the air, in every drop of water, in the growing rock, the struggling plant, the animal, and naturally also in man. There is nothing where it would not be.

And just as it flows through everything, so it also streams unceasingly through us as human beings. Now InI are constituted to resemble a lens. Just as a lens collects the sun's rays streaming through it, and passes them on in concentrated form, so that the heat-giving rays, united on one spot, singe and set on fire, so man by virtue of his specific nature collects through his intuitive perception the power of creation streaming through him, and passes it on in concentrated form through his thoughts. According to the nature of this intuitive perceiving and the thoughts connected with it, he thus guides the self-acting creative power of Jah to good or evil effect!

And that is the responsibility, which InI must bear whether you black or white! Therein also lies InI's free will! Evil is brought about with the same pure Divine power as good. And it is the kind of use made of this uniform power of Jah, left to the free choice of each one that bears within it the responsibility, which no one can escape. Since there is only this one Power of Jah, the mystery of why in every serious final struggle the darkness must retreat before the light, evil before good, is also cleared up. If you guide the power of Jah to the good, it remains undimmed in its original purity and thereby develops a much greater force, whereas with the dimming into the impure a weakening takes place at the same time. Thus it is the purity of the power, which in any final struggle will always work effectively and be decisive.

For many here in the west, including Christians, this Political/Economic system of so-called democracy is the only true one. But the Rasta knows, that Babylon system is going down. Because it was built on a false foundation, but I ask the question, was racism perpetuated against Africans- for economic reasons? Maybe economic motives cultivated them initially, but they were nurtured and nourished by the fertilizer of racist logic. The fundamental dogma that I believe drives racist reasoning is not simply hate; I think it is much more than that. I think that it is a genuine deep-seated conviction in the superiority of one race over another. It is a warped conviction, yes; but I believe that its proponents truly have faith in it.

Can this system of democracy continue to hold, in which Africans are victims? Well I don't think so, democracy where Africans Nations are "development countries" and my African people inferior? I have yet to read a bible scripture, which supports this Babylon system. H.I.M on racism: until the philosophy, which holds one race, superior and another inferior are destroyed and the colour of your eyes and skin insignificant there will be war. The Rasta man's war is against racist, mental slavery of black people and colo-mentality. The Rasta man says that black people are beautiful people where Babylon says they are ugly people. The Rasta man says that black people are God's chosen people because Jah always takes the side of the sufferer where Babylon says the white man is Gods chosen because they are so blessed by material richness and global power. The Rasta man wants to remember slavery and use it as a teaching and Babylon wants us to forget slavery and act like it has never happened. Until the racist Babylon philosophy of white superiority has been destroyed there will be war. War in the east, war in the west, War up North, War Down South!!!

Every right implies a responsibility; every opportunity, an obligation; every possession, a duty.

What is your responsibility as an African black person?

Response 1: Responsibility as an African Black Person
July 27, 2003 - by Princess Tracey
Response 2: Responsibility as an African Black Person
July 27, 2003 - by Ayinde


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