Written by Cucu Wesseh, Editor-in-Chief
Historical Narrative
The West African Nation of Liberia emerged from a settlers colony of former slaves established in 1822 to Africa`s first independent Republic in 1847. Liberia began as a philantropy project organized by a group of Christian abolitionist, who formed the American Colonization Society -the A.C.S. The concept of the A.C.S. was based on an idea of support for the voluntary migration of free African-Americans back to Africa.
Political Map of Liberia
Dehumanization and Slavocracy
Slavocracy is a socio-economic structure predominantly controlled by slaves and plantation owners. As a direct result of the Trans-Atlantic trade, colonialism, and neo-colonialism, millions of Africans were instrumentally forced into plantation labour in the “New World”.
The socio-biological characteristics of humans as relational creatures suggests our common craving for grouping and belonging. Thus, the historical trajectory of dehumanization of a people by being stripped from their original identity is not only wrong, but essentially judged as evil.
White supremacy” was and still is the distorted ideology embedded in a supremacist mentality of one race over another; the enslavement and exploitation of more than a million Africans accross the Atlantic. For four centuries the English colonies situated on the Southern shores of North America, Canada and the Caribbean Islands benefited directly from human rights violations, a phenomenal inhumane slavocracy and exploitation of slave labour.
Racism in fact is not just the by-product of white supremacist ideology, but a subsequent culmination of ignorance and fear and a psycho-emotional detachment from the broader community of humanity and an holistic understanding of our tangible commonalities in life; therefore, coerced to adapt an unconscious bias and false reality.
In my opiion racists are scared and fill with fear, loss and emptiness that are often associated with a skewed understanding and purpose human relationships. I also believe racists as individuals with experiences of potholes in life; who has an experience of rejection and/or dejection.
In other words, a racist is an individual, who in my opinion is most likely challenged by identity crises, low self-esteem and mental weakness, a lack of belonging to a beloved community; thus, forced to live the illusion of a “manufactured consent” based on false pretext and notion.
Psychoemotional Evidence, Oppression, Injustice
An ”unexamined life is not worth living” and psychological potholes are features or phases in our lives trajectory that we tend to resent and detest. Our potholes can invariably nudge our path if not treated and dealt with appropriately. Thus, as a result of vulnerability, our psycho-emotional experiences may potentially circumvent our pathways.
Potholes are indeed manifested in instances of trauma, abuse, neglect, unemployment, and other hurdles. It’s also an apparent impact of unresolved mental health challenges associated with the psycho-emotional shreds of evidence of rejection, dejection, oppression, and injustices.
Ironically under certain circumstances; social privileges can, unfortunately, transition into or amount to potholes with enormous propensity to disrupt the life of individuals and/or society. Specifically, the recent saga of racially motivated police brutality, and cruelty is the event leading to murder and death of the late George Floyd. Thus, a vivid manifestition of psychoemotional evidence of oppression, injustice, racism, criminal justice malfunction and failurre as well as absence of balanced rule of law…
Advocacy – Pursuing Equality And Freedom
“Sick and tired of being sick and tired”.
Fannie Luo Hamer’s (1917-1977) epitaph reads her famous quote: “I am sick and tired of being sick and tired”. It unveils a painful, but impactful journey, and her travail in face of adversity. It portrays the complexity and depth of her struggle for equality.
On October 4th of 1963, Emperor Haile Selassie addressed the General Assembly of the United Nations. The excerpt of empreror Selassie`s historical and symbolic speech reads as follows:
“That until the philosophy which holds one race superior and another inferior is finally and permanently discredited and abandoned; That until there are no longer first-class and second-class citizens of any nation; That until the color of a man’s skin is of no more significance than the color of his eyes; That until the basic human rights are equally guaranteed to all without regard to race; That until that day, the dream of lasting peace and world citizenship and the rule of international morality will remain but a fleeting illusion, to be pursued but never attained; And until the ignoble and unhappy regimes that hold our brothers in Angola, in Mozambique and in South Africa in subhuman bondage have been toppled and destroyed; Until bigotry and prejudice and malicious and inhuman self-interest have been replaced by understanding and tolerance and good-will; Until all Africans stand and speak as free beings, equal in the eyes of all men, as they are in the eyes of Heaven; Until that day, the African continent will not know peace. We Africans will fight, if necessary, and we know that we shall win, as we are confident in the victory of good over evil.”
These truths are as pivotal today, as they were in 1963. Further more within the current context of global protest in America, Europe (United Kingdom, Belgium) and elsewhere against the lionization of statutes and monument of former slaves owners and human traffickers.
Despite the prevailing circumstances then and now; the content of Emperor Selassie’s speech is paramount to the current reality of race relations specific to the context of recent police brutality intentionally in violation of the rights of African-Americans in the United States and Blacks in Europe and other parts of the World.
Psychosocial Narrative; Anger, Fear, Hate
The historical narrative and genesis of systemic racism in the United States is characterized by and constitutes a deeper global evil and failure of human civility and moral decency. Thus, systemic and structural racism with all its supportive white supremacist infrastructures are consistent with practice of injustices in the context of an unjust status quo.
America`s criminal justice system is currently under tremendous pressure and demand for implementation of substantive structural reforms in policing, community engagement and policy reforms. The unfolding resilience of a momentous social movement advocating for the dignity, value, and worth of ”Black Lives” is a manifestation of our common chalenge and existential threat to the peace and security of humanity, social and economic progress.
Gradual, but radical as it is; the global advocacy and demand for a paradigm shift is affecting the current level of discourse and debate over concerns for social civility, morality, human decency, and value for black lives in America. Undoubtedly, there is a sudden growth and spark in a disparity of views and reactions to the global Black Lives Matter protest movement.
This momentum has jetted off in America and is gaining traction in the world since the gruesome, insensitive and inhumane murder of George Floyd on May 25th by a Minneapolis police officer.
Unattained Emancipation
In terms of Human Capital Development for freedmen in the deep South of the United States of American were more interested in the expansion of economic opportunities, and access to education for themselves and their children. Despite this hitherto aspiration and desire for freedom has never been fully attained; the pursuit for ultimate equal access to self-realization, personal growth and development persists to date.
The full realization of equal rights and justice for all with specific emphasis on black people in America and the World over is an overwhelming dream to be achieved to its maximum potential.
Historical records provide evidence and proof that during the early and mid 1920s, immigrant caucasians; arriving in New York disproportionately enjoyed better and more advantage of benefits over former Black slaves; who were considered freedmen of colours.
Also worthy of mention is the fact that during this particular time the resident pupolation of New York was predominantly inhabited by a population comprised of 97% whites or Caucacians.
Comparatively, Children of caucacians immigrants were relatively fifty (50) times more likely to prosper from investments and benefits in education compared to their counterpart – (African-American children in 1860 South Carolina) because of prejudice and racial injustice.
Global Human Trafficking Trajectory
Hatred on the basis of racial segretation is indignant, because it is (my opinion) bred from ignorance and a seemingly sociological construct of disconnect between major or significant races (Black and White) based on their ethnicity.
In terms of race relations, the fact that hatred prevails and persists today is a manifestation of the sinful nature of our broken society and the falling nature of humankind.
The 1921 attack and destruction of Greenwood District, an affluent African American business community, was intentionally destroyed by white supermacists, who were envious of the economic progress and achievements of former slaves or enslaved people.
As early as 1914, the total revenue accumulated in the state of Alabama was derived from convict leasing, which consisted 20 percent.
Jim Crow and Neo-slavery Narrative
The term “Crow” is historically a racial slur used in reference to blacks; slaves and freedmen alike. Jim Crow served was and still is an alternative continuation and prolongation of slavary and constituted a legitimate component for practices of neoslavery. Hence, the phenomenal Jim Crow Law associated with the Deep American South.
The highly acclaimed civil rights lawer and justice advocate asserts that Republican politics and policy of “war on drugs” that began in the early eithties spawaned a system of orchestrated “mass incarceration” – a massive system of racial and social control) perpetrated by the Criminal Justice System of America.
The historical narrative of segregation in America stems from the so-called ”Segregation De Jure”, which otherwise legitimizes segregation by jurisdiction or by enforced segregation laws, i.e. ”Black Codes” or vagrancy law.
During this period of American racial history there was an orchestrated attempt and pursuit to separate blacks and whites. They promote segregation as constitutional, and advancing mendacious claim that segregation in effect offered separate, but equal opportunities to both blacks and whites.
Good Hope, Good Heart and Good Will for Mercy
“Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Hebrew 11:1, NKJ)
The future of America’s Race relations is characterized by brokenness and dire straits. Thus, shaping the future of race relationships in American society and the rest of our world requires an embrace of mercy, seriousness, commitment, a value judgement and acceptance of the Christian faith and Bibliocentric approach as the only sustainable solution into the future.
A deliberate approach to, understanding and application of mercy to heal a nation in distress is needed. The recognition of our collective human brokenness as a falling generation is pivotal in adopting a proactive stance to ”Hating sin and loving sinners”. This is done while ”fighting injustice, but yet engaging and/or staying in contact with perpetrators of injustice across a broader spectrum of society… “
All Lives Matter is the absolute truth upon which all arguments and fights battling Racism should embody. According to Dr. Tony Evans the phenomenon of Black Lives Matter is a subset of `All Lives Matter’. He laments that this perspective is embedded in the Christian Bibliocentric truth that Humans are created in the image of a righteous God.
The Black Lives Matter Movement is a manifestation of frustration and long standing anger at a defensive and unchanging status quo. Martin Luther King jr. once said “Riot is the language of the unheard” as well as the result of reviving faith in a righteous God, Human Resilience expressed as a hitherto reaction to fatigue and tiredness of an oppressed people of African descent. It is a resistance to a systemic order of routine injustice perpetrated by a ”manufactured consent” and construct of social injustice and racial prejudice in America.
Sadly, the painful reality and truth of ”systemic racism” in America as well as the structural characteristics of its Criminal Justice System on the premise of racism is neither exclusive nor limited, or confined to the shores of America. On the contrary, this phenomenal dysfunction and ill-intended Criminal Justice System is apparent in Europe and Australia.
Despite dangers of eroding into a tyranny of the majority; shaping the future for a common good depends on the collective ability of all to see the impact of our actions in terms of a collective response.
Experiencing compassion from individuals least expected of displaying characteristics of love, peace, joy, kindness, goodness, gentleness and subsequent components of the fruits of the spirit.
I believe that overcoming brokenness and embracing mercy is inspiring and impactful capable of being transcendental, transformative life-changing, socially empowering and revolutionary.
Overcoming brokenness and embracing mercy is inspiring, impactful, transcendental, transformative life-empowering and revolutionary…
The author is a regular blogger and works as psychosocial professional with the Espoo Municipality as ell as Sunday school teachr and study facilitator at United Community Church. He is the Editor-in-Chief of Think Africa since November 2018.
