Young African American Males in Crises:
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| There is much concern in the Jacksonville (FL) community about crises affecting young African American males - especially, the low high school graduation rates and the high murder and arrest and incarceration rates. I have some thoughts about young African American boys and men - older men, too - that may seem far-out that I share with you here. During slavery times and later, African American men were not needed to carry on the species. As European American men raping African American womyn was standard. The myth of the hyper-sexualized African American male was perpetuated by truly hyper-sexualized European American men. European American men were scared African American men would act the same ways toward European American womyn that European American men behaved toward African American womyn. All the while, African American men dared not defend African American womyn without severe, deadly consequences. How disempowering and maddening that is! An Audre Lorde or a Maya Angelou poem states: "...we were never meant to survive." That's what I think of when I think of my African American brothers, fathers, uncles, cousins, children, and grandchildren: they "were never meant to survive." Maya Angelou stated somewhere, somehow, that she wasn't expected to amount to much as an African American womun; so, consequently, she decided she was free to be anything she wanted to be. As she was never meant to succeed. And, African American men and boys killing each other are "succeeding" wildly...by White Supremacy standards. They know they are not wanted or trusted in U.S. White Supremacist society. And, so, they kill each other, fulfilling a White Supremacist fantasy. In another way of looking at this phenomenon, this is the height of love for self and the "other," fulfilling Jesus' commandment to love the enemy. For deep down in our collective, societal subconsciousness, young African American men and boys will hurt - even sacrifice - themselves (and African American womyn and girls) in order to not hurt the enemy (take their anger out on European Americans of whatever age - which has grave consequences). As is often the case, persons may tend to be harsher toward themselves or their family members than towards those not in the family. We "take it out" on those we love the most, as the saying goes. There is something very beautiful and affirming about the low high school graduation rates among young African American men. For they are saying with these actions that they refuse to "succeed" in finishing high school and going to college or joining the workforce full-time and, therefore, "succeeding" by U.S. standards. We know that to "succeed" in this cut-throat corporate system, one must fight others to get ahead, back-stab co-workers, endanger one's health (mentally, emotionally, and/or physically) or that of others in this country or on another continent in sweatshops, factories, or fields. And, these brave young people are saying with their lives: we will not bow to "success" as our society has defined it; we will not participate in enslaving others or ourselves. And yet, they - and we - are at a seeming loss as to what to do next. Martin Luther King Jr. was killed not for advocating African American and European American unity, but for advocating the TRANSFORMATION of this country's economy, military, values and destructive ways of being and of operating in the world. He was not merely advocating that African Americans and European Americans should be able to shop or eat at the same establishments - without harrassment. He was advocating that these establishments (and people) not be in the business of exploitation and greed in the first place. These young African American men who are not graduating from high school are refusing to "succeed" (make a buck at any cost) and exploit their brothers and sisters in two-thirds world countries - and in two-thirds world conditions in this country. Concentrating on them and not on what young European American men are doing who "succeed" in high school is failing both. The anger of young and older African American men and boys is not developed in a vacuum. But, what about the anger of young - and older - European American men and boys? How many African American mass murderers have we heard of? The transformations happening mostly "below the radar" of mass media and pundits in this country (i.e. the Occupy Everything Movement) reminds me of a line from a Holly Near song: "The meek are getting ready!" ~ Annually, for the past 3 or 4 years here in Jacksonville, a large collective of organizations, businesses, schools, etc., have welcomed about 500 or so people of most ages - mostly African Americans - gathered for a day of explaining, strategizing, sharing, learning and inspiring under the banner: "Saving Young Black Males for Jacksonville's Future." I attended the first gathering. The U.S. Navy was tabling out in the foyer. Will we ever wake up to the fact that the U.S. military is a massive killing machine? As Holly Near sings in another of her songs: "Do we think they (young African American men) are good at cutting other people down?" So, sign them up for the military, since they're so good at killing each other! U.S. White Supremacist Society makes life so brutal for African American males - encouraging them to kill each other and/or incarcerating them into the Prison Industrial Slavery Complex through the War on Drugs - excuse me, I mean really the War on African Americans. I weep for my brothers (and sisters) of darker hues on a near-daily basis. Ah, yes...but they "were never meant to survive." So, let my life's longing and work be an antidote to that despair. For I love my African American brothers. Please, join me. With deep concern, Wendy Clarissa Geiger |