Psychologically, and Socioeconomically-Let Go Of That Slave Mentality, Part I
Although Black people in the United States have tremendously made strides educationally and socioeconomically in the past 4 decades. Before the 1960s, there was a small Black middle class; however, as a result of the Civil Rights movement and its varied programs, there were Blacks from the lower socioeconomic classes become middle class and better. Blacks were found in positions of prominence and power. Blacks become prominent producers, lawyers, professionals, Miss America winners, and executives.
However, despite the inroads that many Blacks made into the middle and upper classes, there are still some Blacks who are still in the lowest end of the socioeconomic classes. There are Blacks who can be aptly described as disenfranchised and powerless. There are Blacks want to be rescued and believe that because they were enslaved, want to be compensated.
Yes, there is still racism, either overt and/or covert. Yes, Blacks have a harder time reaching that glass ceiling. However, some refuse to let this negativity deter them from succeeding and reaching their potential. They use those obstacles as a can-do moment. Vanessa L. Williams stated that racism was an impetus to her success. Many prominent Blacks encountered racism; however, that racism did not discourage them from attaining their respective goals.
There are a few Blacks outside who still believe that because they were enslaved, they are somewhat inferior and they are nothing. They have a can't attitude and are totally fatalistic towards life and achievement. Many of such Blacks believe that being Black and successful are totaly antonyms. They are of the school that outer society is conspiring against them. So they live in the failure mode.
Then there are other Blacks who strongly inculcate their children into being latter day slaves. They tell that children that they have limitations. They discourage their children from achieving and living their dreams. They impart to their children that no Black person has ever achieved such heights, to stop "that fantastical, wishing thinking" and "to grow up and settle for a secure, regular job." They inculcate their children to be workers, instead of being professionals and/or to own their own businesses. Such people further indoctrinate their children with the premise that school is within certain limits. Education is not viewed as important to them. In fact, they view tertiary education and beyond as a total waste, the main thing is survival and to get a job, any job will do.
Yes, there are some Black parents who limit their children into their particular psychology. Of course, there is racism but many Black people in the United States do not succeed because of their own volition and psychology. They subconsciously believe that as Blacks, they are on the outside and will never be part of the American process. They also have remnants of the slave mentality and believe that they are just worthless n------------rs. Black people in the United States must adopt a more positivist psychology and have love for themselves as a people in order to achieve and succeed beyond their wildest dreams. I am a proud Black woman( I am crying as I am typing this). My advice to my people, Please discard the slave mentality, love yourselves, get the highest education possible, no infighting/separation, help and rebuild our communities, respect our men/women/children, stop the overreliance on organized religion, and recognize/attain your own power. Let's discuss this in detail.
Wow! I, definitely feel your anguish. But I don't see any way out of this dilemma. Sorry, but there are some things that are firmly in place, and the possibility of those things being eliminated is improbable. The number one scourge on the black community is religion. Black people are so dependent upon religion, that they cannot emotionally or psychologically detach themselves from it. There is a church on every corner in the black community, yet progress is regressing, while blacks adamantly laud the "grace" of a white God. Secularism is absent in the black community as it seems that blacks will only accept clergymen to be our leaders...worthless con men(Jackson, Sharpton) who do nothing but perpetuate the abject conditions of the community.
Why should I be told to slavishly worship a God, when that God has kept me at the very bottom of the socioeconomic ladder? I think I should hate such a God, but these leaders tell us that we should worship it. They also tell us that this God loves us so much. Oh yeah? Then why does this God's love not help us move up on the ladder? They also tell us to just believe and pray, and we will achieve whatever it is that we desire, but that has not, and never will work, because it is a complete con.
And ignorance is a virtue in many black communities. I remember my daughter being picked on in school, by the other black kids, because she spoke properly. Since ignorance has been established as superior, my child, and other intelligent black children, felt "inferior" and the only way they could fit in was to dumb themselves down. This is an egregious infectious tragedy.
Then there is Chicago, which has brought great shame upon the nation and the black community. The president and first lady are from Chicago. They should be ashamed of their city, and what their people are doing. It seems that the only time black "leadership" gets involves is when a white kills a black, but there is no reason to be alarmed when blacks routinely slaughter each other.
I have no hope left.
Totally agree. In many Black communities, education and improving oneself is indeed derided. Black children who are smart are viewed as nerds without street smarts and they are picked on. I remember in my elementary school, I was one of the smarter students and I was routinely picked on. In fact, many of the smarter students were picked on by the other students. I was called "white girl" by the other students because I came from a more affluent background and spoke properly. I also liked classical music.
You are correct that many Blacks have an overdependence upon organized religion. This is quite evident in my maternal side of my family. They slavishly believe in the church and their minister; however, many of the female members routinely have unplanned pregnancies and are in poverty or near it. They complain about their socioeconomic situation but are too lazy to do anything about it. They continuously express resentment at those of us who strive to improve ourselves educationally and socioeconomically. Yes, they expect the more affluent members of the family to support them and give them a helping hand. Now, who told them to be in the situation they are in of their own volition?
Yes, in many Black communities, there is a church on almost every corner; however, the state of those Black communities psychologically can be described as atavistic. Also, in many Black communities, there is a SEVERE DEARTH of bookstores. Hmmmmm.............. Repeat, a DEARTH of bookstores-it is widely assumed that Blacks do not read and/or value reading and knonwledge. There is a plethora of bars and churches but seldom any bookstores? In Caucasian communities, there are bookstores and bookstores. The measure of intelligence and awareness in a communities is measured by the number of bookstores. A lack of bookstores in many black communities is an indicator of the intellectual apathy in many Black communities.
Many Blacks want to be rescued and lifted..............They elect to be passive victims of their particular fate. In such communities, the school system is abysmal because many Black parents fail to be actively involved and to participate in their children's education. They believe that participation in the educational system is NOT their job yet they wonder why their children are being railroaded and are slated for failure. They need to be more active in their children's lives if they wish to succeed.
Many Black parents inculcate their children with the premise of failure and limits. Many Black children are taught that because they are Black, they must accept the crumbs and the refuse of life. They are taught that they "can only go so far" and "to put and shut up." This inculcation is a remnant of the slave mentality and indoctrination. Many Black parents further teach their children blind obedience which is inconclusive to developing critical thinking and judgement which are essential components to functioning and thriving in a postmodern, postindustrialized society.
Also, there are Blacks who hate themselves and view themselves as inferior and relegate themselves to this psychology or rather pathology. They accept whatever negative situation they are in, believing that they are utterly powerless to improve it. Instead of assessing and improving their particular situation, they use opiates, whether it is psychological, spiritual, and/or physical to assuage their particular pain and/or angst.
You have addressed Chicago. Detroit is virtually Dante's ninth circle of hell. No one in his/her right mind would venture in Detroit right now. Although there are Black people who have made strides and improvements, there are Blacks who have remained poor and are part of the underclass. Many of our Black young people have a be damned attitude. I do not know what these young people are thinking. Having goals and aspirations to a higher education and a career is not on many of their minds at all. They seem to want to easy way to riches via sports, the entertainment business, and/or rap music. I am now nonplussed. Studying, learning, and education seem to be 4-letter words to many young Black people. Lil Wayne seems more of a role model than Dr. Bill Cosby. Alas..........
GM, my sentiments exaclly. While self promoting I would really like your take on a couple of articles that are relevent to the theme
http://credence2.hubpages.com/hub/One-P … ica-Part-I
http://credence2.hubpages.com/hub/One-P … ca-Part-II
While the 'man' played a role as to how and why we got here, we certainly play more that bit part as to how we stay here!
To getitrite and Credence2, thank you ever so much for your enlightening responses. They are greatly appreciated and enlightening.
Most of what you've written is Apropos. There are however certain circumstance which prevents some people from achieving the goals you have outlined.
There are some people who once have been wronged can never get over such events as I have seen some older people having gone to their grave filled with the dislike and distrust of those or those people who have controlled their lives.
Brainwashing people also limits a person's ability to achieve and so after some period of time when conditions have improved those people cannot move beyond the understanding that has been drilled into them. If perhaps you have seen the movie "Roots" where one younger slave was telling an older male slave born into bondage about making every effort to escape in order to obtain freedom and the older slave could not understand the importance of being free.
I still support your approach I do however believe there are some people who have been affected to the point of not being able to get over their pain.
And this negative image ,that the black community has been very instrumental in perpetuating upon itself, is very far reaching. That's the reason why Forest Whitaker was stopped for shop lifting, and Professor Gates was thought to be breaking into his house. That's the reason I get stopped, while driving, for no apparent reason. I don't blame the cops, because I DO fit a profile. I will stop fitting that profile when the image changes. And it is the black community's responsibility to change that perception...but we seem compelled to do everything in our power to strengthen that negative image.
When young black people started calling themselves n---ers right in public, where was the outrage? How is it that we have allowed this to erode all of the things that we fought for back in the sixties and seventies? Calling themselves n---ers in public, and in songs and movies, has become chic, but the reality is that this has done irreparable damage to our image. People are laughing. There is no other race of people who will disgrace themselves like this, but they all will purchase rap music to see black people act like completely immoral fools...with no pride, no dignity, or conscience.
I didn't come from a background of privilege. My parents never even looked at one of my report cards. My mother never read to me, because she probably couldn't read. OH, but she went to church every Sunday. My father, although present in the home, was never a father at all....and was a one dimensional abusive disciplinarian...never even taught me how to ride a bike, or throw a baseball.......nothing! When I finished high school, they wanted me to become a sharecropper like they were, having no idea that I was one of the brightest students in the local school. Placing no premium on education, they assumed my only worth was in "cropping tobacco.....as a life long career.
So who was to pull me up and out of this abyss?. ME! I had to do it. And if I could do it, I am not listening to any excuses coming from failures.
In fact I have written a book about my experience, and it provides proof that anyone, no matter the circumstances of their beginnings, can achieve something in a country like America.
A lot of the people can't afford to send their children to private schools.
I know that for a fact. Even though many poor and working class Black children attend public schools, their parents have to become more proactive in order for their school system to better educate the children and prepare them for the outer society. Many poor and working class Black parents are not active participators regarding their children's education.
When there are PTA meetings and other teacher-parent conferences, there are only a few poor and working class Black children present and involved in these conferences but not enough. If enough poor and working class Black parents become involved in their children's schools and cared, the quality of education in these schools would drastically improve.
Nice original post.
I absolutely love it. I really enjoy the topic of race issue, and have a very unique perspective on races (that I won't go into). But I definitely agree that the slave/worthless/zero achiever mentality is the biggest obstacle for blacks.
That being said?
I'd axe every single program that celebrated or helped out individual races rather then the ultimate race: Human race. NAACP-good program in the beginning but now operates to remind folks that things can be uneven. B.E.T. Affirmative Action. Any scholarship that is based on individual races. Indian's First Nation Status.
There's a poster on here called Barefoot-something that writes about virtual slaves. Pretty much anything that makes a race into a virtual slave is bad. It makes the race think it's entitled to something, because of some past wrong. So instead of forgetting about it, the Indian's First Nations Status or Affirmative Action or pick-your-poison helps out the race, but imparts resentment. I mention Indian's First Nation status because I believe not allow Native American's to fully integrate into our nation has been worse then small pox covered blankets...same thing with things that point out we are different.
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