What is it with us? Why do we kill each other at a rate that’s disproportionately higher than that of other people? Sure, we’ve heard the excuses before – that we’re prone to crime, violent by nature and poor and oppressed – but what are the real causes?
Here we are, in 2003, countless articles & news reports later, and our precious communities are still in a state of distress. It seems the problem of black on black crime doesn’t seem to be improving, but rather steadily getting worse by the day. But what’s really going on?
It’s apparent to this observant eye that more often than not we’re acting out the way we’re expected to act — that is, fulfiling a role in society that has been decided upon and encouraged by people other than us. All we need to do is look at the television or listen to the radio to experience the sobering statistics or the self-hating bullshit that now passes as black entertainment on the evidently racist major networks to confirm this fact. Thuggishness and gangsterism, misogyny, brutality and ignorance have become synonymous with black life in the eyes of many, both inside and outside of our communities, as a result of both our actions and of corporate Amerikkka’s sanctioning and glorification of negative imagery and behavior. Our worst attributes are always awarded, paraded and celebrated by those whose job it is to keep us in a state of distress. Harsh, you say? Hardly. Fear of non-whites is big business in Amerikkka, and shows like COPS and virtually any news broadcast aid in the manifestation of that fear and the acceptance of it’s remedies – increased police presence, new prison construction and the passage of tougher laws. Besides, do you think black life really matters to them? That they care if we kill each other off?
Understand that our focus and priorities need to change, and that nobody can be relied upon to care about us but us. This should be obvious to all of us by now. Things that many of us seem too often to be concerned with (game, pimpin’, the life, etc.) are of little importance to others. So let me say it for the record – fuck game. Do you think the bank, the phone company or a prospective employer care about game? Care about pimpin’? Life goes on without it. And while game may make you cute in the eyes of shallow folks, nowadays what you know is more important than how you look or act. Contrary to popular belief, nigga-slick is out of fashion. Only through education and hard work will we move beyond simply surviving to success.
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But back to the point. While the violence we see and hear on TV, films, and in black music remains a contributing factor that keeps us on our self-destructive path, it is by no means the sole reason. Many of us have a pent-up rage that easily triggers aggression — aggression that often results from a combustible blend of cultural and racial baggage that many of us carry.
To Read more go to his web site: guerillafunk.com
