Why Do Black people need Leaders.
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This is the question asked mostly out of ignorance or by those whites who wish to assert that Black folk needing leaders makes us inferior. When we look at all those who are called or referred to as Black leaders the one thing all of them have in common is they all fight for and speak to the interest of Black men and women in America. However, when the question is asked why “Black people need leaders” this question is suggesting something totally different. The questioner is suggesting that Black people are mindless, non-thinking individuals who allow a select group of men and women to think for us, never, considering that these individuals are one of us and is actually in tune for the most part with what we have to say thus they articulate it to those who need to hear it.
Depending on the objective of those calling into question the leadership abilities of Black men and women that speak to our interest, will determine the people they use as proof that there is no Black leadership and or that Black people are following people that do not speak to our interest as the questioner would or can.
Those that ask “why do Black people need leaders” will never ask; why does the U.S. need a President, Why do cities need mayors, or why do states need Governors. The answer to these questions is simple, these men and women are needed to represent the interest of those whom they govern, and here lies the problem. State interest, city interest and country interest while affecting us are not particularly our interest. History has proven this. In fact some issues that may be of importance to the majority population in any particular city or state may actually work against the interest of Black men and women. The degree to which our interests are similar, part of, or equal to city, state and country interest is based on the degree to which they benefit us or harm us.
Black people need leaders’ i.e. people that speak to our interest for the same reason cities needs mayors, states need Governors and this country need a President. Any criticism of Black leadership from those outside our community is laughable when we consider their leadership in Washington D.C. is all whores to special interest and they all have their price. The disgust expressed by the white media towards Jessie Jackson shaking down companies should be dismissed as racist and arrogance when compared with the absence of disgust expressed towards Congress men and women, being whores to special interest and their lobby. Next time you are asked or hear someone asking “Why do Black people need leaders” You tell them, we need leaders because the leaders of this city, state, and country do not speak to our interest and in many instances are diametrically opposed to our interest.
posted by Faheem @ 10/12/2004 01:30:00 PM
2 comments
2 Comments:
They consider black leadership to be self appointed and those who follow them unable to think for themselves. This is so prevalent a belief among whites that you would think that the got together in a meeting and concluded this. They think it is these leaders that are keeping us plagued by the “victim syndrome”, by controlling our perception of the existence of racism and white obstacles that confront us. As if we as individual do not have our own cognitive abilities of pattern recognition.
Regardless of whether a leader is self appointed or not, that does not mean people will follow you just because you anoint yourself as a leader or spokesperson. Thus, many self appointed leaders reached prominence due to self appointed followers, because they could relate to the message.
If so many whites have this erroneous assumption about the relationship between black leaders and the black masses who follow, were the getting it? The answer is revealed via the concept of “projection” in psychology. That is when a person simply projects out what is true of him or herself to be true of others. Thus, so many whites believe that blacks are blind followers because they are blind followers of their leaders. That is what they call patriotism. They are confident that whatever their leaders are saying is designed to bring them benefit…and that’s all they care about. Hence, they simply follow. There support of George Bush is a perfect example.
In my view the concept of the "Black Leader" will change. When you look for parallels in "White Leadership" often it is associated with some type of business or technological effort.
Bill Gates, Ted Turner, Warren Buffett and Steven Spielberg come to mind as I think about who might be thought of as a "White Leader". All of them has fame that rests atop of their perceived intelligence and ability to formulate an innovative business or amass a large amount of wealth and thus they are seen as visionaries.
While I believe there will always be space for someone who is a "civil rights leader" in today's age African-Americans and others who find themselves outside of the economic mainstream (white collar folks calling the shots) will be looking toward those who can create employment and economic growth.
In my view no Black Leader has come close to what Marcus Garvey has done with respect to employing masses of Black people along with a great vision of helping themselves by developing a certain economic infrastructure here in America, transplanting themselves and simply doing what they already know how to do but doing so in another land.
As much as I dislike many of their messages I have to say that some of the Hip Hop millionaires are the closest of an example of Black individuals being at the helms of multi-million dollar entities. In their own way they are by passing the normal corporate structures and building their own. I would like to see them leverage their great wealth and being to purchase businesses that employ folks in the very manufacturing jobs that have been lost. Instead while most of these guys have clothing lines their products are mode overseas. What better way to employ people than to have these items made in the USA and have the very people wearing it benefiting from them as well when they receive a paycheck.
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