Why Black People Must Become Allies With Russia
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“Don’t let somebody tell us who our enemies should be and who our friends should be”
-Malcolm X
Most people would agree that being in an abusive relationship for 4 years is unhealthy and toxic. If somebody you love is in that situation you would tell them to leave. Well black people have been in an abusive relationship with America for 400 years. America has shown us who they are for 400 years. Believing we can change the hearts and minds of people who make up majority of the system, is delusional.
On paper, all the same practices that oppressed black people during Jim Crow, still exists today.
We have to start looking at living in America as swimming in shark infested waters. If you know sharks live in the ocean, you are taking a risk by getting in. If we know this country was built on racism, and is run by racists, then we are taking a risk by simply living here. So when a cop kills a black person, or a city shuts down schools in a black neighborhood, or a bank denies loans for black people, that’s just a shark being a shark. You can’t change the nature of a shark, you just have to get away from the natural habitat of sharks.
Until we as black people get it in our head or at least begin to think about separating from the system of America, then we must accept that racism is just not urgent or a big enough issue for us. If we think racism is going to go away in America or that black people will achieve equality in America we are delusional. I don’t want to live in a country where, we have to make calculated decisions of “we just gotta get X amount of ppl to vote for Democrats so we can take control of the house/senate” …just so that millions of people can get health care to prevent them from dying. This is not a normal way to live or operate in a society.
A portion of black people believe we should not move back to Africa because our ancestors helped build this country. I can understand that, but if we will not move back to Africa then we can set up our own nation within America. It would be similar to what Native Americans have with their reservations. In nearly every city in America black people are segregated to one section of town. Why not just make it official?
This is where Russia comes in. At a time when black people are getting killed for minding our own business while doing daily activities, it is clear we need protection. In 2016 Russia wrote out a plan to help fund a homeland for black people within America as well as our own military. It was called “Development Strategy of a Pan-African State on U.S. Territory,” showing their plans to help fund a homeland for black people within America, as well as fund our own military. Does Russia have ulterior motives? Probably… but so what? It is more than America has already done for us. We were promised 40 acres and a mule and were never given it.
This is not the first time Russia tried to provide black people with our own nation. In the 1920s, a Black Communist named Cyril Briggs was promoting his plan for a “colored autonomous State” in Western states like Nevada. In the 1950’s former black communist testified before Congress that Russia was trying to build a “negro Republic” in the south as early as the 1920's.
In 1968, Black activists including Betty Shabbaz(Malcolm X’s wife) formed the Republic of New Afrika.
Their plan was to pick 5 states in the South as territory. Jackson, Mississippi was chosen as the capital of their nation.
The RNA began acquiring land, but then.. the FBI. Similar to every story of every black organization during that time, the RNA was crushed by the FBI’s counterintelligence program.
Whether you believe black people should build a relationship with Russia or not, hopefully one can agree that we need “outside” help.
Before his death Malcolm X was trying to turn the struggle for “civil rights” into a international humans rights issue. He spoke to African leaders at a conference in Cairo, Egypt asking them to bring up charges against America at the United Nation.
Officials believed that if Malcolm X was able to get one African Government to bring up the charge at the United Nations, the United States Government would have trouble on their hands. If you are at a store and an employee is being rude or disrespectful, you usually will ask to speak to their manager. The United Nations is the manager.
According to international law/the United Nations, all races of people have the right to form their own government. The United Nations also states that races forming their own government is a basic human right.
“Whereas the right of peoples and nations to self-determination is a prerequisite to the full enjoyment of all fundamental human rights”
“The General Assembly recommends that: 1. The States Members of the United Nations shall uphold the principle of self-determination of all peoples and nations.” (UN General Assembly, The right of peoples and nations to self-determination, 16 December 1952, A/RES/637.)
The United Nations concept of self-determination was initially created for colonized groups of people, which includes African Americans.
Colonization is defined as “the process of one group of people gaining political control over another group of people.” Europeans from America colonized Black people when they brought us to America and enslaved us. To this day we are still under the political control of Europeans. The United States Congress, who decides the laws for Americans, is 77 percent white.
Unlike most colonized populations, African Americans are “double-colonized.” Most colonized people are colonized in their homeland. African Americans were stolen from our homeland, shipped to America then colonized in America. We still remain colonized to this day.
African Americans have been so colonized and displaced, that we, (along with the other descendants of Africans who were exiled around the world during the Atlantic Slave Trade) are most likely the only people who have to take a DNA test to find out what country we are from. If any group deserves self-determination, it should be African Americans.
Self-determination and the necessity of land, go hand in hand. As stated, self-determination is the right for a group of people to form their own government. In order for a group of people to have their own government they need land for the government to function on. Without land there is no self-determination.
International law states that all we need is just one country to recognize African Americans as a tribe/nation of people, in order to get our reparations. As of right now, Russia is the country that has shown the most interest in doing it.
The reason why the killers of Ahmaud Arbery were able to get away with murder for 74 days( and still might) is because we do not have autonomy.
The D.A. which is apart of the higher government (America) prevented the killers from being arrested because one of the killers used to work with her. If we had autonomy, our “own government” would be able prosecute racist individuals who kill us.
It is worth noting that two of the most prominent black activists in history, Paul Robeson and WEB Dubois viewed Russia as an ally, and also were working towards bringing our struggle to the United Nations.
We need to stop trying to “re-invent the wheel.” Malcolm X was killed for laying the blueprint for how black people should achieve equality. Any solution that does not include bringing our case for reparations and self determination to the United Nations is just a band aid. If we do not do this, racists will continue to kill us.
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