Black Americans CANNOT be Democrat or Republican!

Ronald Reagan

Historically politics has never been kind to Black people. The very nature of politics is rooted in racism. White Europeans claimed complete control of the political process in America at the expense of native americans and especially Blacks.

Strong Black voices that advocate for Black issues are rare in the political realm. This exclusion of voices who advocate for Black issues is a bi-partisan effort. Democrats and Republicans have both benefited from the political silencing of Black Americans.

The current presidential primary campaigns feature a variety of candidates and only one of them offers any agenda for Black issues. Black Americans have a strange loyal historical relationship with Democratic Party. The inner workings of these political parties make it counter productive for Blacks to support either party.

Bill Clinton

Politicians are friendly and associate with each other regardless of their political party alignments. They live in the same neighborhoods, dine together, entertain together and their kids go to the same schools. When they perform theatrics in the media to divide and deceive the country’s working class and poor it is insincere. The party lines are superficial in the past they have actually switched views.

Not one president Democratic or Republican has EVER focused on Black interests at any point in history. Below are four politicians past and present that many black people hold in high regard and consistently support, yet they have been detrimental to Black people’s existence:

Abraham Lincoln

• Alleged to have freed enslaved Africans in america, actually did not free slaves. He did not free slaves in the North but freed slaves in states that had succeeded from the union which he had no jurisdiction over at that time.  Lincoln also attempted to negotiate a deal with confederate to allow them to keep slaves for 40 more years if they would end the succession.  He had no interest in slaves well being.

John F. Kennedy

• When protesters for Civil Rights in Alabama were being brutalized by law enforcement, racists and other white supremacist,  Kennedy claimed he did not have the authority to send troops in to help the Black protestors.
• He then sent troops to Alabama to act as peace makers after the Blacks had demonstrated their ability to defend themselves.

Bill Clinton

• 1994 Omnibus Crime Bill included 3 strikes Policy, children as young as 13 being prosecuted as adults, $9.85 Billion for new prisons, federal guideline sentencing and more negative policies.
• The JPI report reveals that 225,000 more Blacks were incarcerated under Clinton than under President Reagan.
• Charter School boom created under his administration. Charter schools would eventually monetized Black children’s educational failures for private corporation profit.

Hillary Clinton

• Was well aware of the policies that her husband implemented during his presidency and never spoke out against them.
• 5 of her campaign bundlers work for lobbying and law firms that CCA and other private prisons employ.

Barack Obama

• While national unemployment has improved under his presidency black unemployment has remained the same and at times increased under his presidency.
• Since President Obama’s first day in office the CCA and The GEO Group have been awarded $1.7 and 1.8 billion dollars in federal contracts, respectively.
• Poverty level of black people has continued to increase under his presidency.
• On the 40th anniversary of her arrest, the FBI suddenly put Assata Shakur on the Ten Most Wanted Terrorists List. The reward for her capture has been doubled to $2 million.

The Party name is irrelevant they are both the same for Black people

Blacks are in a familiar yet very awkward position.  No matter who they vote for, they will not benefit and likely will suffer.  Kanye West once famously said “George Bush doesn’t care about black people” a more accurate phrase would have been “Politicians who support white supremacy (seems to be 99.9% of all politicians) don’t care about black people”. Republicans continue racist rhetoric in the media while Democrats are worse as the play the role of the fox in sheep’s clothing, deceiving blacks with policies that always have negative long term impact.

Voting as a singular strategy to create economic change is absolutely worthless and voting exclusively democrat is not only worthless but insane. We have had voting rights since 1965, 50 years and our economic and social conditions are no better.

Economic empowerment comes from specific actions. Blacks must engage in these actions:

1. Release any default political affiliations and identify yourselves as independent.
2. Understand that voting is worthless without money and a lobby group who will transfer the money to politicians in exchange for support of the black agenda.
3. Vote as a unified group for an Independent party.

The above action points rely on an agenda to serve as the reason for the action points. The below agenda is one that I would suggest for Black people It does not speak for all Black people but its a good start.

Black American Agenda

1. Negotiate a reparations agreement for Black Americans that involves land, tax breaks, free education, control of certain resources and support for HBCUs as the core of settlement.
2. Abolish 21st Century Slavery with the removal of the 13th Amendment Clause, that allows legal slavery.
3. Enforcing the The Black Freedman Indian Treaty of 1866.
4. Create Affirmative Action-like plan specifically for black people.
5. Reconstruction of Public School Education.
6. Reconstruction of legal and law enforcement system.

This is one part of revolution yet a very necessary part. This process has to be part of the Black movement.

Obama & Politicians say they care about ending Mass Incarceration…Prove it.

It was great to hear President Obama speak to the issue of Mass Incarceration, Federal Sentencing Guidelines and Mandatory Minimum prison sentences. This speech was an important message and stepping stone towards solving one of America’s oldest and most racists practices, that of excessive penalties for black crimes. It was also very encouraging to hear that ending mass Incarceration has bi-partisan support.

The speech and political rhetoric are important but definitely not the end game. If the president and members of Congress are serious about this issue it will take bold actions. Old policies/laws/amendments will need to be changed. New polices/practices,  laws and amendments will need to be created. New methods of policing will have to be employed. All law enforcement is in need of new approach to policing and new training to carry out policing. This would be a huge reversal of  ideology in the legal system and law enforcement.

If,  and this is a HUGE “IF”, President Obama and the other politicians are series about ending mass Incarceration then there are specific changes and new implementations that they can create. The bullet items below are items that would directly lead to ending Mass Incarceration. And cresting equality

– Correct the 13th Amendment to abolish ALL slavery, even the prison industrial complex. Make all private prisons illegal. Private prisons encourage illegal policing practices.

– Eliminate all mandatory minimum sentences for non violent offenses or make all non-violent mandatory minimum equal to each other. Drug possession for first second and third offense should be the same as a DUI offenses.

– Creation of a police review boards that consists of citizens with power to review cases such as the ones that have received mass media attention over the past 2 years and make recommendations.

– Legalizing drugs to some degree and in legalizing drugs current illegal drug distributers who are black and brown should not be omitted from these opportunities.

–  Citizens need to have a systematic ability to request Department of Justice involvement when local and/or state investigations of law enforcement appears to be suspicious.

– Federal regulations that prevent states and local municipalities from creating racists laws and policies.

– SCOTUS review and all racial policies on record for any racial biases and correct them.

I am extremely skeptical about President Obama and any politicians commitment to end Mass Incarceration. This country has spent its entire existence trying to put black people in some form of bondage and it has been immensely profitable. I doubt their sincerity yet i will keep an open mind when I hear the rhetoric on this topic but I will be looking for facts. In the meantime blacks need to focus on creating  communities that can provide shelter against many of these injustices waged against black people.