AHMAUD AUBREY - TRAYVON MARTIN 2.0

AHMAUD AUBREY - TRAYVON MARTIN 2.0

AHMAUD AUBREY

 

Malcolm X once suggested that one of the problems of America revolves around what to do with its teeming mass of black people. A people once prized as economic powerhouses and beasts of burden were suddenly "free". Malcolm said this existential problem stems from the fact that, "…they don't want us here". The industrial revolution that black labor helped to birth finally rendered black people expendable. And like lost sheep, we have been wandering in the wilderness of Americanism unsure of our worth and even less sure of our survival. As it is, blacks might as well turn into vapour and float away into oblivion, they will not be missed - well, except maybe for a few entertainers and sports personalities. White societies are generally uncomfortable with the fact that the embodiment of their lies and cracked soul still haunts them in the person of black people. 

What happened outside Brunswick in the state of Georgia a couple of months back suggests that the killing of innocent or presumed guilty black people goes beyond bigots in police uniforms - ordinary citizens on a whim can, and do act patently racist. Mr Aubrey was jogging down the street of his neighborhood when the McMichaels (a father and son duo) decided to hunt him down like some wild animal that escaped from the zoo. In fact, escaped wild animals enjoy better treatments than those meted out to black people perceived to be "threatening", no matter their age, sex or position in life. The reason these killers gave for pursuing Mr Aubrey was that he looked like the person suspected to be responsible for burglaries in the neighborhood. To White bigots, all black people look alike and this assumption lies at the heart of the accusatory tag of "you people" when reference is made to some suspected malignancy that blacks are supposed to be responsible for. These vagabond pair from hell pursued Mr Aubrey in a truck. They shouted at him to stop so they can question him and of course, he did not cooperate. Cornered and unable to escape he fought back. While the younger McMichael struggled with Mr Aubrey, the father stood on the bed of the truck with his gun at the ready, just in case the struggle below did not go their way. Shots rang out during the encounter with two shots hitting Mr Aubrey in the chest and a third nipping his wrist. Mr Aubrey staggered away and collapsed to the ground seconds later due to the mortal wounds he sustained. To complete the tragic scene, the killers had a close friend follow the truck to record the encounter - something they later showed to their ilk and boasted about. The recorded video of the execution which was released about two weeks ago, sparked an outrage that led to the constitution of a so-called grand jury to determine if the father-son-friend killer squad were worthy of prosecution. Before now, these "respectable" people had been going about their normal lives unmolested since February of this year.

If you follow mainstream media, the events surrounding Mr Aubrey's death are quite similar to that of seventeen-year-old Trayvon Martin in 2012. First, the suspicion that you are up to no good because you are black and doing what normal people do (going to a store to buy skittles and drinks for example), then a fatal encounter with some hate-filled, usually gun-wielding oaf, then the failure of law enforcement to act in favour of the victim citing some horrible "stand your ground" or "right of self defence" BS. Finally, there is a concerted effort to dig up dirt on the victim in order to paint the victim in bad light. In the case of Mr. Aubrey; first, a District Attorney recused herself due to so-called conflict of interest and another law officer declared the killing "lawful" after watching the video of the encounter between Mr Aubrey and the killer squad. At that point, the case appeared to be slowly fading, especially with the COVID-19 pandemic taking primal place in the news. But brazenness of the atrocity continued to generate ripples in the media until the ugly Kraken of preternatural injustice was forced from the bowels of Americanism by the graphic aforementioned video to universal outrage. A lawyer representing the killers released the video thinking the killing was justified. He was dead wrong. 

Black people refer to racism in America and other white dominated nations as "institutional" but a closer look at racism suggests it is "national". Racism exists, not only within the Police, Judiciary, Healthcare, Government, or Educational systems but also within the society as a whole. The potential for racism is everywhere because it lies at the base of the pyramid upon which the "prosperity" of the nation rests. Your neighbor, teacher, pastor, a passerby or colleagues at work may determine that there is something suspicious about you and call the police or gossip to higher authorities. Tamir Rice (12 years old) was innocently playing with a toy gun in a public park when a "good Samaritan" called the police - the kid was eventually murdered seconds after police arrived because black people and guns (even toys) should never go together. A black Yale student was taking a nap in one of the common rooms when another student who was white, called the police to embarrass her. Two years ago, Police surrounded a surprised group of black people leaving an Airbnb because the neighbor thought they were burglars - during daylight! Examples abound that would fill a book when discussing how blacks always seem to make white people uncomfortable. They seem to feel safe only when they call 9-1-1. And cops seem to relish such encounters because it brings out the real reason they joined the force - bullying. Some of these encounters never end well for the black people involved despite being innocent in a so-called free country.

In the case of Mr Aubrey, just as in the Trayvon Martin case, those involved in the killings did not wait for the Police (even though the Police were contacted in both cases) but took the law into their hands because they had guns. The confidence these killers had in justifying their actions lies in the fact that killing a "suspicious" black person has been normalized by a system that views black lives as of less value than that of a dog. 

Without real power, community or organization black people will continue to have the experience of their slave ancestors in modern garb. We are murdered senselessly because no one really cares and it is easy for people to get away with killing us in the most brutal manner. We desperately need community or communion in unity without which we are simply game birds in the English meadows during the hunting season. Yes, we may not be wanted "here" but for the moment, "here" is all we know and it's either we live "here" in peace or helped to leave with full compensation for four hundred years of unpaid labor and tyranny.

jrotimibgood@gmail.com

THE TWO AMERICAS

The Two Americas

THE AMERICAN DICHOTOMY

There were two women, one white and the other black. The white woman is wealthy while the black woman is of modest means and had a criminal record. Both women, according to prosecutors broke the law in their respective cases. The white woman was accused, and convicted of offering bribes ($15,000) in order to raise the SAT scores of her daughter while the black woman was convicted for "illegally" voting about three years ago. 

The black woman's action was deemed illegal because she voted while on a court ordered supervisory probation. The black woman claimed she did this in ignorance and the vote was thrown out anyway. But the prosecutor had other ideas. He convinced the judge that the black woman's previous convictions proved she is a potential lawbreaker. The judge obliged and handed the black woman a 5-year prison sentence. Yes, you heard that right, five years in a United States prison for voting inadvertently. A few days ago, the wealthy white woman got a grand total of 14 days in prison for offering bribes to influence the examination results of her child. 

The white woman is actress Felicity Hoffman and the black woman is Crystal Mason. Though Crystal Mason is out of jail on appeal, she spent several months in jail and the conviction affected her family so adversely that their home was on the verge of foreclosure. Crystal now relies on charity to stay financially afloat. The case of the two women represents the two Americas many non-white people, especially blacks have to deal with all their lives. One America works and appears specially made for whites while the other not only does not work for non-whites but also seeks to destroy them. And there are hundreds of such barefaced judicial genocide in the "land of the free and home of the brave" 

WEB Dubois once said, "The problem of the twentieth century is the problem of the color line". Whether you are talking of wars, poor education, poor medical facilities, poor infrastructure and ineffective leadership the people who suffer the most are the non-whites of the world. The most obvious contrast in color between people in America is that of blacks and whites. Being black increases the likelihood of getting killed, maimed, incarcerated, disrespected and most importantly criminalized in the eyes of society for the slightest infringement - even an inadvertent one. Innocent blacks; whether adults or kids, men or women, young or old suffer egregious injustices, not just in America but also in the western world. In addition to Crystal's case described above, another black, homeless woman, Tanya Mcdowell was recently sentenced to five years in prison for using a friend's address in documents submitted for her son's school admission. Obviously, the authorities would prefer the kid become a drug mule in the neighbourhood so he can end up in the labour camps called prisons. 

The power relationship between whites and blacks has not changed significantly in the past seven hundred years. When it comes to black lives in a white world, blacks are considered less than human.  A prominent US official once called racism and its attendant oppressiveness an American "birth defect". Cases such as described above are many but only a few are exposed for what they are - an organized institutional racism that is based on fear and pseudoscience. The system is rigged, and trying to get justice while living in the same space with a White Supremacist culture has proven difficult for hundreds of years. If Blacks are obviously not real citizens of the United States it is time to move to where black citizenship is free - Africa.  

jrotimibgood@gmail.com

Xenophobia In South Africa Has A Deep Reason - Injustice

Xenophobia In South Africa Has A Deep Reason - Injustice

Xenophobic Attack in South Africa

Africans are among the most self-loathing and least accepting of each other as a people on the planet. They would rather accept, invite, fete and betray each other to foreigners who don't look like them than foster togetherness with each other. We compete for the white man's attention, adopt his ways and seek his approval even when it is evident that white Neo-liberal economic oppression is the main cause of the problems on the continent. 

In the past couple of weeks, black South Africans have besieged businesses belonging to other Africans, wounding and killing some of them.  South African citizens appear to think that the prosperity of those they define as foreigners has been at the expense of indigenes. This short-sighted idiocy is encouraged by dishonest and xenophobic political leaders and state officials  who try to maintain the illusion that South Africa's economic inequalities will be ameliorated once other Africans doing business in the country are eliminated - literally.

A few decades ago, black South Africans were treated less than human in the land their ancestors had lived for millennium. They were segregated into what amounted to ghettos and mainly interacted with white apartheid South Africa as farm hands and house helps. South Africans became refugees in surrounding countries and the fight to end white domination of the country was possible through the generosity of many African nations. After the end of apartheid and installation of black majority rule, there was no concerted effort to address the injustices perpetrated against blacks during the apartheid era. The egregious evil of apartheid (which only ended on paper) was swept under the rug through a cockamamie "truth and reconciliation" nonsense. This essentially meant that all the atrocities of the army, police and judiciary were forgiven after confessing to their crimes before the "reconciliation" committee. In contrast, after the Second World War, at the Nuremberg trials of NAZI officers, there was no truth and reconciliation - just truth and judgement. The atrocities of apartheid parallel those of the NAZIs but was shamelessly condoned by the so-called "developed" world. But more importantly, most of the white sociopolitical structures that kept blacks in an inferior position were left intact. Access to land and upward mobility through gainful employment remained a pipe dream for blacks in the so-called townships. 

Because very little was done to integrate the majority of black people into the "new" South Africa, they were frustrated, and anger at the system continued to simmer just below the surface. First, no real justice was served for black people at the end of apartheid - probably because of a political trade-off acceded to by the leaders that took over from the apartheid regime. Second, some irresponsible black leaders at the end of apartheid sought to deflect the real reason for black disenfranchisement by subtly suggesting and allowing xenophobic attacks on black foreigners. This has led to a deep rabbit hole that may eventually lead to a civil war. Julius Malema, the EFF leader has consistently warned that the anger exhibited by black South Africans against foreign Africans may later degenerate into an unpredictable internal conflict in the future as economic conditions continue to deteriorate for blacks. 

Today, without justice, hope or real freedom, black South Africans vent their frustrations on those least able to fight back - other Africans. Most of these Africans are self-employed and contribute to the local economy. Black South Africans appear to have no motivation to go beyond the satisfaction of basic needs. They have become envious of the fact that so-called foreigners are filling some of the local business void. But if truth be told, the real problem is that post apartheid economic emancipation of black South Africans has not gained any traction. 

A common problem of black on black interaction when economic survival is an issue is the failure to seek cooperation and harnessing potentials for the common good. This destructive and self-defeating attitude is a reflection of our colonial past of "divide and conquer" that was imposed by whites. But which was subsequently entrenched by indigenous leaders who took over from the departing colonists. 

Xenophobic attacks on other black people in South Africa is totally uncalled for when the white architects of economic misery in the country live rich and protected lives. Because the culprits of injustice appear untouchable, black South Africans have turned on other blacks because of self-hatred and fear. The whites and their black collaborators keep the flame of xenophobia alive so that black South Africans cannot see the light of truth. Today, the country of Mandela is notorious for murder, preternatural violence against women and armed robbery. The armed struggle against apartheid has degenerated into a self-destructive debacle and attacks on black foreigners are a symptom of a deeper reaction against a disquieting sense of injustice.

Until the historical injustice, barefaced thievery and genocide that culminated in the institution of apartheid in South Africa is fully addressed the country will continue to work for whites and their black cohorts while the majority poor blacks will keep asking the wrong questions, getting the wrong answers that result in wrong actions. Other Africans, no matter the propaganda, did not cause the problem of South African blacks - the blow is coming from the white fist inside the velvet glove.

jrotimibgood@gmail.com

RUGA: THE END GAME

RUGA: THE END GAME

A FULANI HERDSMAN

When southern and northern politicians talk about nationalism, patriotism or the Nigerian state, it is very important to understand that the two groups are not speaking of the same thing. Northern politicians, especially what is generally referred to as "core north" or Hausa/Fulani usually think Nigeria begins where their interest is taken care of and ends when such interests are threatened. They also understand the politics of numbers and methods of dominance far more than the rest of the country. The north, with active British help, consolidated its power structure shortly after the country's independence. This has made the "north" the dominant socio-political power in Nigeria. The RUGA issue, which should have been a strictly private economic affair under state and federal regulation, has become a potential reason for social upheaval - because the economic survival of a predominantly northern (Fulani) anachronistic tradition is being imposed on the rest of the country.    

All over the country, the activities of so-called Fulani Herdsmen have resulted in killings, kidnappings, farmland destruction, rapes, wholesale genocide, and territorial annexation. The suggested establishment of whole towns (including schools and hospitals) to accommodate what is essentially a personal business in every state of Nigeria is suspicious. The president appears to be a major advocate, or at least a willing enhancer of this unscientific imposition. Traditionally, leaders from other parts of Nigeria have proven totally incapable of any meaningful opposition to northern designs on Nigeria because they lack a cohesive and focused raison d'être. Southern politicians are for the most part, crippled by internecine mischief and a propensity for self-defeating compromise with northern powers when the price is right.

When the idea of establishing Fulani settlements across the country with financial help from government was proposed, many were against it. This was because of Fulani Herdsmen antecedents in the country - their violence, hegemonistic tendencies and brutal suppression of indigenous populations that stand in their way. High level opposition to the idea of Fulani settlements (RUGA) came from a few southern politicians and pundits who did not quite trust the government's motives. The question is why government was either silent or flippant about the murderous actions committed by herdsmen over the years and then suddenly proposes the establishment of Fulani "towns" within each state of Nigeria to ensure "peace".  The RUGA initiative appears to be a well-orchestrated ultimate goal of the present government. They obviously condoned Fulani attacks on innocent lives across the country to ultimately justify RUGA establishment in order to help "solve" the security situation. The RUGA initiative was finally "suspended" due to an unprecedented outcry from Nigerians who saw the dangerous traps non-Fulani citizens were being led into.

It has however become customary that when the north fails to get its wish, it tends to try making life difficult for other citizens of the country. In the RUGA case, leaders of the Fulani arrogantly gave a sitting government 30 days to rescind the suspension of RUGA or face "dire consequences". Now, if a group other than Fulani had uttered those threats, the army would be mobilised to crush it. If it was IPOB (a pressure group from the southeast) for example, the military will come up with ideas to intimidate, imprison or kill people that are peacefully protesting. The general outcry against the establishment of RUGA projects in the southern states of the federation discouraged any compromise by some of their fence-sitting governors.

Given the myriad problems facing Nigeria, the apparent importance accorded Fulani settlement is unsettling. Ignoring or being flippant about the rights of other Nigerians to life and livelihood while promoting traditional cattle holding is unacceptable. The citizenship rights of Nigerians cannot be equated to cattle rights, no matter who is raising them. From the utterance of ultra conservative northern leaders, Fulanis apparently think they have exclusive rights to land across West Africa. Nigeria is particularly prized because of the Hausa/Fulani socio-political dominance that guarantees control of the country's resources. Professor Wole Soyinka recently said that the present government of Muhammadu Buhari, does not have what it takes to govern Nigeria. While this is a correct assessment, the goal of the northern oligarchy has never been to run a country but to run after selfish interests at the expense of the country. Except in very few cases, the north has always had its way while the rest of the country have their say or play dumb for crumbs.

jrotimibgood@gmail.com