Starting today No Warning Shots Fired.com launches a daily news commentary by TRUTH Minista Paul Scott on youtube
http://www.youtube.com/nowarningshotsfired
The first edition is below:
No Warning Shots Fired News 7/12: Obama's Trip to Africa on youtube.
Showing posts with label Reparations. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Reparations. Show all posts
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Black-Jewish Relations Under Obama
Black Jewish Relations Under Obama:
Reopening Old Wounds
Paul Scott
April 21st is Holocaust Remembrance Day, a day set aside to remember the the Jews who suffered under the Nazi regime. No one can fault an ethnic group for honoring the deaths of millions of its brothers and sisters. However, as a descendant of those who experienced their own African Holocaust I find myself, selfishly, asking "what about us ?"
My feeling of unapologetic, self centeredness has become more pronounced in the aftermath of the Obama Administration's bowing to Jewish pressure and deciding to boycott the UN World Conference Against Racism, an event that would have, initially,allowed issues important to African Americans such as reparations and the Trans Atlantic Slave Trade to be presented on the world stage. This was especially hurtful to a black community that had the misconception that the nations first African American president would give their issues a fair hearing.
For many blacks, this opened up an old wound; Jewish issues taking precedence over African American concerns.
Very few people argue over the death toll of six million Jews during their Holocaust, however for African Americans it is much different. The number of African people who were brought to America is conservatively estimated at 40 Million. How many Africans perished during the 400 years of the slave trade and the following years of European colonialism the world may never know. Reason being, the concern for people of color pales in comparison to concern for people with white skin.
There is only room for one "most persecuted" group and the Jews aren't sharing that spotlight with anyone.
Some of the best critiques of Black-Jewish relations were written by Harold Cruse in his books "Crisis of the Negro Intellectual" and "Plural but Equal." Cruse points out that contrary to popular belief, there was no real African American-Jewish alliance prior to 1913. It was not until the trial of Leo Frank, a Jewish man, convicted for murder based on the testimony of a black man and later lynched by a white mob that Jewish Americans developed any solidarity with the plight of black people. Prior to that the Jews were just as ambivalent towards the plight of blacks as other white folks.
But this fact is not discussed for fear of being labeled an anti-semite.
Black anti -semitism is , in itself, a misnomer. If you look at the actual definition of a Semite, it can apply to members of many ethnic groups of the Afro-Asiatic world; a fact that is conveniently left out of discussions.
If anything, African Americans are Jew phobic. There is a fear, whether real or imagined that if you say anything against Jewish people, something very bad is going to happen to you.
Part of this fear is theological.
Since the enslaved Africans, in this country, were forbidden to read the Bible, they were unable to develop a theology that placed their struggle in the context of the Divine Being's master plan. Therefore, any group that claims the title of "God's Chosen people" is readily accepted by African Americans, without question. This places them at a distinct disadvantage when dealing with other cultures which have historically made their culture synonymous with their religion.
The fear has also been socio-politically based.
There is a fear among African Americans that being labled an "enemy to the Jews" could result in anything from losing a political office, getting evicted from one's home to being blacklisted by any industry having a high Jewish ownership.
Whether real or imagined, these fears are not, totally, without precedent and the animosity over the control that many believe Jews exert over black lives remains.
Despite the good that Minister Louis Farrakhan and the Nation of Islam have done cleaning up drug infested, black neighborhoods any positive comments about the ministry are blocked by charges of anti-semitism. In the political realm, Rev. Jesse Jackson had his presidential runs of the 1980's severely impacted by the charge. Also during this period, politicians such as former Chicago political aid, Steve Cokely, lost his job because of charges of making anti-Jewish statements.
Black entertainers have been affected, as well. At the top of his popularity, "the King of Pop" Michael Jackson was dethroned by Jewish activists for mouthing the lyrics "Jew me, sue me" on the controversial song "They Don't Care About Us." Also, many believe that it is more than a coincidence that the top rated Arsenio Hall Show was canceled shortly after the appearance of Min. Louis Farrakhan on the program.
As uncompromising as Hip hop claims to be, even it has been impacted. During the late 80's, the rap group Public Enemy came under intense scrutiny for comments that group member Professor Griff, allegedly, made that offended Jewish leaders. Even Sean "Puff Daddy" Combs had to censor the lyric "stack chips like Hebrews" from the hit record "All About the Benjamins." The irony being that calls from African American women for rappers to recording misogynistic lyrics fall on deaf ears.
While the calls often go out to open channels of dialogue between the black and Jewish communities, this cannot be done without open and honest communication. Before we can move forward, we have to heal the old wounds of the past. This can only be done by cultural education which must begin with an African American community that has little knowledge of its own history.
Unfortunately, the African American scholars who have been capable of bringing historical clarity to the issue like Dr. Tony Martin and Dr. Leonard Jeffries have, themselves, been demonized as anti-Semites.
On April 21st millions of Jews will repeat the phrase, never forget!" Unfortunately, for African Americans, we cannot forget that which we have never been allowed to learn.
Paul Scott writes for No Warning Shots Fired.com He can be reached at info@nowarningshotsfired.com or (919) 451-8283
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Facing Racism on Facebook
Facing Racism on Facebook:
Boycotting the US Boycott of WCAR
Paul Scott
"What we have here is failure to communicate."
Although this is a classic line from the movie "Cool Hand Luke," it could also be used to sum up the feelings of many Americans in regards to the boycott of the upcoming UN World Conference Against Racism by the United States and several other countries.
On April 20, nations will gather in Geneva Switzerland to discuss racism and its many degrees of ugliness. However, the US has announced that it will boycott the event because of the possibility that topics such as Zionism, reparations and the Trans Atlantic Slave Trade will be on the table.
Why would a nation that has just elected its first African American president do such a thing?
Perhaps the reason is that since we haven't had the courage to have an open and honest discussion of race within our own borders, we are hesitant about airing our dirty laundry before the world.
Philosophers have long posed the question whether or not man has the capacity for self condemnation. In the case of the Obama Adminstration the answer is, obviously, no.
Even though, Attorney General Eric Holder raised eyebrows a few months back when he chastised America for being a nation of cowards when it comes to facing race, it seems that the scope of his criticism was limited to home grown racism. Even when the issue of race is discussed domestically, the discussion is usually unbalanced. Either one practices racism or is the victim of the practice and the victims of racism have been people of color.
Historically, the US has never taken too kindly to the efforts of those who had the audacity to attempt to expand the struggle of black people beyond the borders of America.
One only has to look at the governmental persecution of such black leaders as Marcus Garvey and WEB Du Bois, who sought to place the plight of African Americans within a Pan Africanist context.
Also it is more than just a conspiracy theory that even though Dr. Martin Luther King's stance against the Vietnam War and Malcolm X's threat to bring the Civil Rights struggle before the United Nations may not have, directly, contributed to their early demises, the actions did result in increased federal surveillance of their activities.
The interconnectedness of America's Civil Rights movement and the global struggle for African Independence cannot be denied. The Civil Rights movement was effective, largely, because of the struggles of African nations against European colonialism. Also, the end of Apartheid was, at least, partially due to the efforts of college students who fought for the divestment of American interests from South Africa.
As African Americans, we have a right to sing our blues before the world about the problems that we still face in America such as disproportionate unemployment and police brutality without our voices being drowned out by government bureaucracy.
To have a country that is the home of millions of the decedents of the worst atrocity known to man (the Trans Atlantic Slave Trade) refuse to participate in a discussion about racism is not only an insult to the present generation but to our ancestors whose bones lie at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean.
We must boycott the US boycott of the World Conference Against Racism.
And how do we do this?
Our children have shown us the way.
Almost every American teenager is involved in some sort of Internet social networking via Facebook, Twitter, youtube etc, which gives them the ability to connect with other teens around the world, at will. We must use this new media to circumnavigate the blockade to global fellowship imposed by the US government.
While countries are meeting in Geneva April 20th -24, we must engage in a great global conversation using the tools that we have readily available; laptops, iPhones, etc to raise the issue of racism and its global impact on oppressed people. No Warning Shots Fired.com has already set up a social network group on Facebook called "Time to Face Race."
So, yes Mr. President, Americans will take part in the World Conference Against Racism; if only in cyberspace.
Paul Scott is a minister, activist and blogger who writes for No Warning Shots Fired.com. He can be reached at (919) 451-8283 or info@nowarningshotsfired.com
Boycotting the US Boycott of WCAR
Paul Scott
"What we have here is failure to communicate."
Although this is a classic line from the movie "Cool Hand Luke," it could also be used to sum up the feelings of many Americans in regards to the boycott of the upcoming UN World Conference Against Racism by the United States and several other countries.
On April 20, nations will gather in Geneva Switzerland to discuss racism and its many degrees of ugliness. However, the US has announced that it will boycott the event because of the possibility that topics such as Zionism, reparations and the Trans Atlantic Slave Trade will be on the table.
Why would a nation that has just elected its first African American president do such a thing?
Perhaps the reason is that since we haven't had the courage to have an open and honest discussion of race within our own borders, we are hesitant about airing our dirty laundry before the world.
Philosophers have long posed the question whether or not man has the capacity for self condemnation. In the case of the Obama Adminstration the answer is, obviously, no.
Even though, Attorney General Eric Holder raised eyebrows a few months back when he chastised America for being a nation of cowards when it comes to facing race, it seems that the scope of his criticism was limited to home grown racism. Even when the issue of race is discussed domestically, the discussion is usually unbalanced. Either one practices racism or is the victim of the practice and the victims of racism have been people of color.
Historically, the US has never taken too kindly to the efforts of those who had the audacity to attempt to expand the struggle of black people beyond the borders of America.
One only has to look at the governmental persecution of such black leaders as Marcus Garvey and WEB Du Bois, who sought to place the plight of African Americans within a Pan Africanist context.
Also it is more than just a conspiracy theory that even though Dr. Martin Luther King's stance against the Vietnam War and Malcolm X's threat to bring the Civil Rights struggle before the United Nations may not have, directly, contributed to their early demises, the actions did result in increased federal surveillance of their activities.
The interconnectedness of America's Civil Rights movement and the global struggle for African Independence cannot be denied. The Civil Rights movement was effective, largely, because of the struggles of African nations against European colonialism. Also, the end of Apartheid was, at least, partially due to the efforts of college students who fought for the divestment of American interests from South Africa.
As African Americans, we have a right to sing our blues before the world about the problems that we still face in America such as disproportionate unemployment and police brutality without our voices being drowned out by government bureaucracy.
To have a country that is the home of millions of the decedents of the worst atrocity known to man (the Trans Atlantic Slave Trade) refuse to participate in a discussion about racism is not only an insult to the present generation but to our ancestors whose bones lie at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean.
We must boycott the US boycott of the World Conference Against Racism.
And how do we do this?
Our children have shown us the way.
Almost every American teenager is involved in some sort of Internet social networking via Facebook, Twitter, youtube etc, which gives them the ability to connect with other teens around the world, at will. We must use this new media to circumnavigate the blockade to global fellowship imposed by the US government.
While countries are meeting in Geneva April 20th -24, we must engage in a great global conversation using the tools that we have readily available; laptops, iPhones, etc to raise the issue of racism and its global impact on oppressed people. No Warning Shots Fired.com has already set up a social network group on Facebook called "Time to Face Race."
So, yes Mr. President, Americans will take part in the World Conference Against Racism; if only in cyberspace.
Paul Scott is a minister, activist and blogger who writes for No Warning Shots Fired.com. He can be reached at (919) 451-8283 or info@nowarningshotsfired.com
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Appeal to Hip Hop Nation
Appeal to Hip Hop Nation:
Support World Conference Against Racism
Paul Scott
Ask any Hip Hop head about the genre's impact on the world and he will wax poetic for hours about how kids in Japan are break dancing and how children in Africa know the words to the latest lil Wayne song. But ask him about the role of Hip Hop in fighting for the rights of the globally oppressed and the silence is deafening.
With the far reaching impact of Hip Hop across the planet, one must ask why few have spoken out against the probable boycott of the upcoming World Conference Against Racism by the United States.
According to news reports, the US and several other countries will not attend the conference because of concern that issues such as Zionism, Reparations and the Trans Atlantic Slave Trade may be topics of discussion.
To have a country that is the home of millions of the decedents of the worst atrocity known to man refuse to participate in a discussion about racism is not only an insult to the present generation but to our ancestors whose bones lie at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean.
We have a right to sing our song before the world about the problems that we still face in America such as disproportionate unemployment and police brutality without our voices being drowned out by government bureaucracy.
You would think that a Hip Hop movement that has ,vehemently, opposed censorship would have their ambassadors on the front line demanding that the masses be heard. But no. There has been hardly a peep from the hardcore defenders of free speech.
Why?
Because contrary to popular belief and the anti-intellectual nature of some of their lyrics, rappers ain't stupid. They know who to mess wit'.
So why does a movement that has prided itself as being "neva scared" wet its collective pants at the thought of addressing global oppression ?
There has always been a certain amount of danger in black folks getting involved in international issues. One only has to look at the governmental persecution that black leaders such as Marcus Garvey and WEB Du Bois faced when, through Pan Africanism, they tried to expand the struggle of black folks beyond the shores of America. Also, it is more than just a conspiracy theory that Dr. Martin Luther King's campaign against the Vietnam War and Malcolm X's threat to bring the Civil Rights struggle before the United Nations hastened their early demises.
The fear of getting out of the Hip Hop sandbox and stompin' with the big dogs is not just limited to the Hip Hop movement but to Civil Rights organizations, as well.
So, it has been safer to confine ones concerns to the domestic not the foreign. In the case of the rapper, it is much safer to restrict your "beef" to another black man instead of the forces that oppress you both.
As much as many of the Hip Hop artists accuse the Civil Rights leaders of being soft, in reality, they both have the same end game strategy; total integration into the system. That is why the goals and objections of even the most "gangsta" rappers have not differed much from the status quo.
When criticized about their lyrics, some rappers are quick to claim that they are victims of society. Wouldn't the anti-racism conference be a perfect opportunity to expand Hip Hop's narrow definition of victim-hood to include the global victimization of African people? This would be a perfect opportunity to show the homies that the issues facing "tha hood" are microcosmic in relation to the issues facing black people, worldwide.
It is imperative that the Hip Hop community uses its collective resources to demand that the Obama Administration send representatives to the conference in Geneva beginning April 20th. It was not enough to register thousands of poor and oppressed black folks to vote in 2008. If, in 2009, the issues facing those people are still ignored the various voter registration drives were a waste of time and energy.
Hip Hop must truly become what it was initially meant to be, the voice of the oppressed.
Forget all the tough talk and street swagga. Until rappers can speak out against things like the boycott of the World Conference Against Racism, like James Brown said, they are just talkin' loud and sayin' nuthin...
TRUTH Minista Paul Scott writes for No Warning Shots Fired.com. http://www.nowarningshotsfired.com/ He can be reached at (919) 451-8283
info@nowarningshotsfired.com
Support World Conference Against Racism
Paul Scott
Ask any Hip Hop head about the genre's impact on the world and he will wax poetic for hours about how kids in Japan are break dancing and how children in Africa know the words to the latest lil Wayne song. But ask him about the role of Hip Hop in fighting for the rights of the globally oppressed and the silence is deafening.
With the far reaching impact of Hip Hop across the planet, one must ask why few have spoken out against the probable boycott of the upcoming World Conference Against Racism by the United States.
According to news reports, the US and several other countries will not attend the conference because of concern that issues such as Zionism, Reparations and the Trans Atlantic Slave Trade may be topics of discussion.
To have a country that is the home of millions of the decedents of the worst atrocity known to man refuse to participate in a discussion about racism is not only an insult to the present generation but to our ancestors whose bones lie at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean.
We have a right to sing our song before the world about the problems that we still face in America such as disproportionate unemployment and police brutality without our voices being drowned out by government bureaucracy.
You would think that a Hip Hop movement that has ,vehemently, opposed censorship would have their ambassadors on the front line demanding that the masses be heard. But no. There has been hardly a peep from the hardcore defenders of free speech.
Why?
Because contrary to popular belief and the anti-intellectual nature of some of their lyrics, rappers ain't stupid. They know who to mess wit'.
So why does a movement that has prided itself as being "neva scared" wet its collective pants at the thought of addressing global oppression ?
There has always been a certain amount of danger in black folks getting involved in international issues. One only has to look at the governmental persecution that black leaders such as Marcus Garvey and WEB Du Bois faced when, through Pan Africanism, they tried to expand the struggle of black folks beyond the shores of America. Also, it is more than just a conspiracy theory that Dr. Martin Luther King's campaign against the Vietnam War and Malcolm X's threat to bring the Civil Rights struggle before the United Nations hastened their early demises.
The fear of getting out of the Hip Hop sandbox and stompin' with the big dogs is not just limited to the Hip Hop movement but to Civil Rights organizations, as well.
So, it has been safer to confine ones concerns to the domestic not the foreign. In the case of the rapper, it is much safer to restrict your "beef" to another black man instead of the forces that oppress you both.
As much as many of the Hip Hop artists accuse the Civil Rights leaders of being soft, in reality, they both have the same end game strategy; total integration into the system. That is why the goals and objections of even the most "gangsta" rappers have not differed much from the status quo.
When criticized about their lyrics, some rappers are quick to claim that they are victims of society. Wouldn't the anti-racism conference be a perfect opportunity to expand Hip Hop's narrow definition of victim-hood to include the global victimization of African people? This would be a perfect opportunity to show the homies that the issues facing "tha hood" are microcosmic in relation to the issues facing black people, worldwide.
It is imperative that the Hip Hop community uses its collective resources to demand that the Obama Administration send representatives to the conference in Geneva beginning April 20th. It was not enough to register thousands of poor and oppressed black folks to vote in 2008. If, in 2009, the issues facing those people are still ignored the various voter registration drives were a waste of time and energy.
Hip Hop must truly become what it was initially meant to be, the voice of the oppressed.
Forget all the tough talk and street swagga. Until rappers can speak out against things like the boycott of the World Conference Against Racism, like James Brown said, they are just talkin' loud and sayin' nuthin...
TRUTH Minista Paul Scott writes for No Warning Shots Fired.com. http://www.nowarningshotsfired.com/ He can be reached at (919) 451-8283
info@nowarningshotsfired.com
Friday, February 27, 2009
NWSF Bullet: Rappin' About Reparations
You can talk about some things in America when it comes to race; dead Civil Rights leaders, desegregation etc but when it comes to talkin' about the dreaded "R" word, all bets are off!
According to news reports, the United States will not participate in the upcoming UN World Conference Against Racism unless some changes are made to the conference's final document including, according to the Associated Press, "language on reparations for slavery."
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5h-NABlEjaGSsDBh_qdpdNmX7V6VwD96K620G0
What tha....?
This is not the first time that the US has pulled out of the World Conference on Racism, remember they got ta steppin back in 2001.
http://www.npr.org/programs/specials/racism/index.html
You mean to tell me that even with a black president in the White House, the issue of Reparations is still taboo?
There have been many African Americans who have dedicated their lives fighting to have the United States pay the victims of the African Holocaust something for their pain and suffering and to have the US take a chill pill on a meeting to discuss the issue is a diss to everyone with black skin.
Also, this announcement coming during Black History Month is another slap in the face.
Why don't you just call me the "N" word and slap me with a piece of fried chicken?
And you mean to tell me that President Obama is OK with this?
I mean, it's cool to give fist bumps and chill at basketball games but come on...
I'm just saying, someone is dangerously close to gettin' his Brotha's card snatched.
I can't put all the blame on the Prez, though. The real tragedy is the failure of African Americans to stand up for issues like Reparations.
We can get outraged because of a cartoon with a monkey but when it comes to dealin' with something with some substance, we bury our heads in the sand.
Just as millions of black folks organized to get people to vote for a black man, we must now organize to insure that issues such as Reparations are no longer ignored.
We owe it not only to ourselves but the millions of our ancestors whose bones rest at the bottom of the Atlantic.
According to news reports, the United States will not participate in the upcoming UN World Conference Against Racism unless some changes are made to the conference's final document including, according to the Associated Press, "language on reparations for slavery."
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5h-NABlEjaGSsDBh_qdpdNmX7V6VwD96K620G0
What tha....?
This is not the first time that the US has pulled out of the World Conference on Racism, remember they got ta steppin back in 2001.
http://www.npr.org/programs/specials/racism/index.html
You mean to tell me that even with a black president in the White House, the issue of Reparations is still taboo?
There have been many African Americans who have dedicated their lives fighting to have the United States pay the victims of the African Holocaust something for their pain and suffering and to have the US take a chill pill on a meeting to discuss the issue is a diss to everyone with black skin.
Also, this announcement coming during Black History Month is another slap in the face.
Why don't you just call me the "N" word and slap me with a piece of fried chicken?
And you mean to tell me that President Obama is OK with this?
I mean, it's cool to give fist bumps and chill at basketball games but come on...
I'm just saying, someone is dangerously close to gettin' his Brotha's card snatched.
I can't put all the blame on the Prez, though. The real tragedy is the failure of African Americans to stand up for issues like Reparations.
We can get outraged because of a cartoon with a monkey but when it comes to dealin' with something with some substance, we bury our heads in the sand.
Just as millions of black folks organized to get people to vote for a black man, we must now organize to insure that issues such as Reparations are no longer ignored.
We owe it not only to ourselves but the millions of our ancestors whose bones rest at the bottom of the Atlantic.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Reppin' for "Rap" arations
Reppin' for "Rap"arations:
Survivin' tha Hip Hop Holocaust
Paul Scott
"But then again I got a story that's harder than the hardcore cost of the holocaust. I'm talking about the one still goin' on. "
Can't Trust it-Public Enemy
I turned on the TV one evening just in time to catch the middle of a rant by an irate reporter fussin' about how something or another was the worst atrocity to happen to mankind. I thought that baby girl was about to have a total mental meltdown as she passionately argued about people in tha hood dying because of years of being abused and how that it was time for decent Americans to stand up and demand amends...I was just beginning to think that white America finally got it and they were about to apologize for the horrors of the 400 year treatment of African people in this country. But naw, she wasn't talking about the Transatlantic Slave Trade, she was just sharing her gripes about Hip Hop...
Every since the media found out that Hip Hop CD sales were down a few years back and their cash cow was finally running out of milk, there have been numerous shows about the "evil empire" of Hip Hop and how it is destroying the moral fabric of this country (as if a country built on slavery and cotton picking had any moral fabric to start with) . Talking heads from Paula Zahn to Anderson Cooper transformed themselves into hip Hip Hop historians, like they were really walking around in 1982 with boom boxes and Kangols.
The Don Imus comments of 2007 only added fuel to the fire of anti-hiphopism, as the culture was now the reason for racism. But if Hip Hop is really the scourge of society that white America claims that it is, then shouldn't somebody, somewhere be breaking a brotha off a lil somethin'?
It is time that we hit the entertainment industry up for some "Rap"arations.
While some folks who have dedicated their lives to securing compensation for the descendants of our enslaved ancestors may consider this statement almost sacrilegious, there is a strong connection between the two struggles. Just as our ancestors were stolen from Africa and exploited by slave traders, Hip Hop was stolen from Africans in America and exploited by CEO's of major corporations. Our failure to teach our young people about this correlation has been one of the major drawbacks in our addressing the Hip Hop dilemma. Our children have no knowledge of the complexity of the Black liberation struggle, so when we use words like "mentacide", "colonialization" and Maafa, we might as well be talking Greek instead of Swahili.
Our people, in general, also lack a thorough knowledge of history so it is impossible for many to conceptualize the scope and severity of the Maafa and that impedes their ability to connect the dots between the past and the present. However, with a knowledge of our history one would be hard pressed to ignore the relationship between the atrocities of 1619 and the condition in which we find ourselves in 2009.
Either the Hip Hop Holocaust is part of the legacy of the Transatlantic Slave Trade (Maafa) or just another phase of a holocaust that never really ended. Even the most hard core Hip Hop head cannot deny the fact that the corporate exploitation of Hip Hop has had a devastating on African people world wide. From the gun shots flying through hoods across the country courtesy of impressionable young Brotha's who think that killing a Black man is a rites of passage in St. Louis to the five year old Sista in South Philly who thinks that all she will ever be is someone's bitch to Brotha's and Sista's in Sierra Leone who think that "nigger" is a universal term of endearment based on the bootleg CD's that took the round (middle passage) trip back across the Atlantic, our people are suffering while white men in business suits get rich.
We demand "Rap"arations!
While the major focus of the demand for "Rap"arations will be, of course, focused on the entertainment industry, in reality, there are many people "eatin" off not only the exploitation of Hip Hop but also the death and destruction in the Black community. From the malt liquor companies who used rappers to push their "genocide in a bottle" (40 oz Malt Liquor) in the 90's to the blood diamond merchants on the African continent making millions from tha bling, they all owe us "Rap"arations.
Even the clothing companies who have made young Black children think that in order to be hip, they have to wear $200 sneakers that cost $12.50 to make are liable. How many young Brotha's and Sista's are in the grave right now because they refused to give up the $400 jacket to a stick up kid who just had to have it?
Time to pay the piper!
The argument that many white folks keep parroting for not paying reparations is that "no one alive now has suffered from slavery." This is not true in the case for "Rap"arations, as there are victims of the Hip Hop Holocaust in 'hoods across the planet, from the mother of three trying to make it on her own while her man does a 20 year bid to the father who saw his son take his last breath courtesy of a drive by from a Brotha who was acting out a rap video. We have all been touched.
Give it up or turn it loose!
The black community should demand "Rap" arations from the Fortune 500 companies that have made their fortunes from the suffering of African people. The victims of the Hip Hop Holocaust should contact the mega corporations like Viacom, Universal, EMI, Time Warner etc to demand that they issue former apologies (admissions of guilt) for the role that they have played in the destruction of the black family. These corporations should give substantial reparations to health, education and other social programs to help remedy the damage that they have created.
This is 2009 and we ain't talkin' about 40 acres and mules, we're talking youth programs and schools.
Paul Scott writes for No Warning Shots Fired.com. http://www.nowarningshotsfired.com/ He can be reached at (919) 451-8283 info@nowarningshotsfired.com
Survivin' tha Hip Hop Holocaust
Paul Scott
"But then again I got a story that's harder than the hardcore cost of the holocaust. I'm talking about the one still goin' on. "
Can't Trust it-Public Enemy
I turned on the TV one evening just in time to catch the middle of a rant by an irate reporter fussin' about how something or another was the worst atrocity to happen to mankind. I thought that baby girl was about to have a total mental meltdown as she passionately argued about people in tha hood dying because of years of being abused and how that it was time for decent Americans to stand up and demand amends...I was just beginning to think that white America finally got it and they were about to apologize for the horrors of the 400 year treatment of African people in this country. But naw, she wasn't talking about the Transatlantic Slave Trade, she was just sharing her gripes about Hip Hop...
Every since the media found out that Hip Hop CD sales were down a few years back and their cash cow was finally running out of milk, there have been numerous shows about the "evil empire" of Hip Hop and how it is destroying the moral fabric of this country (as if a country built on slavery and cotton picking had any moral fabric to start with) . Talking heads from Paula Zahn to Anderson Cooper transformed themselves into hip Hip Hop historians, like they were really walking around in 1982 with boom boxes and Kangols.
The Don Imus comments of 2007 only added fuel to the fire of anti-hiphopism, as the culture was now the reason for racism. But if Hip Hop is really the scourge of society that white America claims that it is, then shouldn't somebody, somewhere be breaking a brotha off a lil somethin'?
It is time that we hit the entertainment industry up for some "Rap"arations.
While some folks who have dedicated their lives to securing compensation for the descendants of our enslaved ancestors may consider this statement almost sacrilegious, there is a strong connection between the two struggles. Just as our ancestors were stolen from Africa and exploited by slave traders, Hip Hop was stolen from Africans in America and exploited by CEO's of major corporations. Our failure to teach our young people about this correlation has been one of the major drawbacks in our addressing the Hip Hop dilemma. Our children have no knowledge of the complexity of the Black liberation struggle, so when we use words like "mentacide", "colonialization" and Maafa, we might as well be talking Greek instead of Swahili.
Our people, in general, also lack a thorough knowledge of history so it is impossible for many to conceptualize the scope and severity of the Maafa and that impedes their ability to connect the dots between the past and the present. However, with a knowledge of our history one would be hard pressed to ignore the relationship between the atrocities of 1619 and the condition in which we find ourselves in 2009.
Either the Hip Hop Holocaust is part of the legacy of the Transatlantic Slave Trade (Maafa) or just another phase of a holocaust that never really ended. Even the most hard core Hip Hop head cannot deny the fact that the corporate exploitation of Hip Hop has had a devastating on African people world wide. From the gun shots flying through hoods across the country courtesy of impressionable young Brotha's who think that killing a Black man is a rites of passage in St. Louis to the five year old Sista in South Philly who thinks that all she will ever be is someone's bitch to Brotha's and Sista's in Sierra Leone who think that "nigger" is a universal term of endearment based on the bootleg CD's that took the round (middle passage) trip back across the Atlantic, our people are suffering while white men in business suits get rich.
We demand "Rap"arations!
While the major focus of the demand for "Rap"arations will be, of course, focused on the entertainment industry, in reality, there are many people "eatin" off not only the exploitation of Hip Hop but also the death and destruction in the Black community. From the malt liquor companies who used rappers to push their "genocide in a bottle" (40 oz Malt Liquor) in the 90's to the blood diamond merchants on the African continent making millions from tha bling, they all owe us "Rap"arations.
Even the clothing companies who have made young Black children think that in order to be hip, they have to wear $200 sneakers that cost $12.50 to make are liable. How many young Brotha's and Sista's are in the grave right now because they refused to give up the $400 jacket to a stick up kid who just had to have it?
Time to pay the piper!
The argument that many white folks keep parroting for not paying reparations is that "no one alive now has suffered from slavery." This is not true in the case for "Rap"arations, as there are victims of the Hip Hop Holocaust in 'hoods across the planet, from the mother of three trying to make it on her own while her man does a 20 year bid to the father who saw his son take his last breath courtesy of a drive by from a Brotha who was acting out a rap video. We have all been touched.
Give it up or turn it loose!
The black community should demand "Rap" arations from the Fortune 500 companies that have made their fortunes from the suffering of African people. The victims of the Hip Hop Holocaust should contact the mega corporations like Viacom, Universal, EMI, Time Warner etc to demand that they issue former apologies (admissions of guilt) for the role that they have played in the destruction of the black family. These corporations should give substantial reparations to health, education and other social programs to help remedy the damage that they have created.
This is 2009 and we ain't talkin' about 40 acres and mules, we're talking youth programs and schools.
Paul Scott writes for No Warning Shots Fired.com. http://www.nowarningshotsfired.com/ He can be reached at (919) 451-8283 info@nowarningshotsfired.com
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