Love of Self Part II: Money Talks - AN ASIDE

Even ignoring the four centuries of slavery, during which millions of Africans were not compensated for their involuntary labour, the United States still has a horrible and continuing track record of maintaining the disparity between white money and black money. The infamous and quite ridiculous Jim Crow laws made it nigh impossible for black people to commingle with white Americans, far more to own or earn any type of wealth or asset until their supposed abandonment in 1967, when the Supreme Court ruled that anti-miscegenation laws (which prohibited interracial marriage) were unconstitutional (see Loving v. Virginia).

So why is there still a disproportionate number of impoverished African-Americans in the United States? Why are our newsrooms overflowing with stories of poor colored people being victimized, brutalized, and marginalized by white people? After these laws were removed, one would hope that, at last on a level playing field, black people would pounce upon the opportunity to finally build productive communities for themselves and 'catch up' to the Caucasian majority who, only moments before, considered them disposable property. (They did pounce. But hold on. There's more.)

Firstly, one must understand that Jim Crow laws were a blatant form of racial discrimination wrapped up in legislature. Though they were officially removed from the law books, the mentalities of those who had instituted them did not vanish; indeed, they were merely incorporated into less conspicuous policies. For instance, financial institutions maintained strict policies concerning the approval and interest rates of loans and mortgages for black people, often preferring to borrow money and sell land/housing to poorer white people than richer black people, and this trend continues into the 21st century (see Wells Fargo, Associated Banks, etc.). The practice of racial segregation in the physical or obvious sense may have disappeared as 'Whites Only' signs were taken down, but the trend of separating communities based on race has continued without cessation throughout the States. Redlining continues to be a serious issue, as potential homeowners are denied loans and housing in predominantly white neighborhoods, forcing them to perpetuate overcrowding in poorer areas that quickly deteriorate into slums. In these ghettos, jobs are scarcer and pay lower wages, crime is higher, violence is common, policing is either too harsh or too remote, education is dying for lack of resources, and debts continue to pile as short-term loans (often marketed by paid black actors) charge outrageous amounts for late payments.

Sign in Montgomery, Alabama

Less affluent area in Baltimore.

Secondly, and in the same breath, do not for a second think that black Americans did not attempt to escape the system that switched its form of enslavement. If you've never heard of the Tulsa race riot or the MOVE bombing, I don't blame you. I hadn't heard of them myself until a few weeks ago. But I do urge you, Dominicans, to discover what happened, as no self-respecting history textbook is going to mention these events. These describe major terrorist events in America that certainly are not as renowned as the 9/11 attacks.

BLACK WALL STREET (15:38)
In Tulsa, Oklahoma, there existed a prosperous black community in the Greenwood area, home of several black multimillionaires. This 'Black Wall Street' consisted of "21 churches, 21 restaurants, 30 grocery stores and two movie theaters, plus a hospital, a bank, a post office, libraries, schools, law offices, a half-dozen private airplanes and a bus system". (Wikipedia) Predicated by outrage over a false 'black man rapes white woman' accusation (see lynching), a mob of white people descended upon the Greenwood community, setting fires and dragging non-compliant blacks behind vehicles. When the National Guard finally stepped in, they rounded up black people into detention centers while firebombs were being dropped from airplanes onto the black businesses. By the end of it all, 1471 homes had been destroyed, up to 300 black people had been killed, what amounts to $15 million worth of property had been lost, and the richest black community in America was gone forever. It is even said that Tulsa law-makers thereafter tried to prevent the Black Wall Street survivors from rebuilding on the land that had been burnt down. Black Wall Street has never been restored.

MOVE - LET THE FIRE BURN
The MOVE liberation group was a revolutionary commune that resided in West Philadelphia. Founded by John Africa, the group's members all adopted new names with the surname 'Africa', were opposed to technology and traditional religion, followed a strict diet, and kept to themselves, except for when they "staged bullhorn-amplified, profanity-laced demonstrations against institutions that they opposed". (Wikipedia) After living in a fortified compound on Osage Avenue for four years, they were met with several charges and indictments stemming from neighborhood complaints, leading to an armed standoff with the Philadelphia Police Department. Police ordered non-MOVE residents who lived nearby to evacuate their homes for the night but later dropped several bombs that resulted in the deaths of 11 MOVE members, including five (5) children, and the destruction of more than sixty (60) residential buildings (leaving approximately 250 people homeless). Firefighters, who had spent the afternoon trying to flood the building, were given the famous order to "let the fire burn". One MOVE survivor even stated that police fired shots at the people trying to exit the burning building.

Yes, indeedy. So far, every time African-Americans have attempted to cleave themselves from the system designed with their oppression in mind, those same oppressors lash out in a jealous rage, fearful that an independent, unified black race will cause their great country to collapse. THIS is the legacy that predates police shootings of unarmed black men and the prison-industrial complex that plagues America, which boasts the second highest incarceration rate per capita in the world. It is also a legend that sparks self-hatred and feeds into non-profitable habits, which is why the white-owned FOX network receives millions of dollars from its hit show Empire, popularized mainly by black people.