|
An
Anatomy of a Failed Black Manhood
By Abdul Olugbala Shakur, Prisonersolidarity.org
Jan. 23, 2007
Preamble
My
Kolonial slave title is James Earl Harvey, but I am known my New
Afrikan
Freedom name, which is Abdul Olugbala Shakur. At the age of 17,
a young
black teenage girl was gang raped by three white male sailors, so
I retaliated for this vicious act and as a result I received a life
sentence; which I don't regret. Though the government attempted
to criminalize my actions as part of a typical crime wave, they
were forced to acknowledge that no personal items were ever taken
from any of the targeted individuals.
People, you may disagree with my beliefs, but I believe we are obligated
to
protect and defend black womanhood. The only thing I regret is that
we didn't
get the bastards who actually did the rape. For the past 24 years
I have been in isolation (solitary confinement), for the purpose,
no doubt, of destroying my revolutionary spirit and black manhood.
Many may/will disagree with my diagnosis. Most likely, it will be
those brothas who clearly show symptoms of a failed and broken manhood.
1.
When I look at the tragedy of Hurricane Katrina, I see our failed
black manhood. We as men knew our communities were not adequately
prepared
for a natural disaster, and yet we made no efforts to prepare them.
We have
placed the lives of our children, women and elders in the hands
of a
government that we knew didn't give a damn about us. It was very
disturbing
to watch grown black men standing around helplessly while our children,
women, elders and handicapped suffer. And our response is to blame
a racist
government that we knew didn't care if we lived or died. Who do
we blame
for our failure to prepare our people and community?
2. When I see 'Pig' brutality and how they abuse and disrespect
our communities, I see our failed black manhood!
3. When the government inadequately funds the schools in our communities,
I see our failed black manhood!
4. When the government shuts down the schools in our communities,
I see our failed black manhood!
5. When I see the high unemployment rate among our People, I see
our failed black manhood!
6. When I see poverty in our communities, I see our failed black
manhood!
7. When I see black on black violence, gang violence and crime in
our communities, I see our failed black manhood!
8. When I see alcohol and drug abuse among our youth, I see our
failed black manhood!
9. When I see teenage pregnancy and promiscuity among our youth,
I see our failed black manhood!
10. When I see our young People disrespecting our elders, our culture
and
community, I see our failed black manhood!
11. When our young People hate and despise their own blackness,
I see our
failed black manhood!
12. When our black sistas butcher their natural black beauty with
blond hair, colored contact lenses, nose jobs, breast implants,
lip and butt reductions, I see our failed black manhood!
13. When I hear our youths use the word nigger or nigga, I see our
failed black manhood!
14. When I hear other races use the word nigger, I see our failed
black manhood!
15. When a brotha or sista physically, emotionally and/or psychologically
abuses their children, I see our failed black manhood!
16. When a brotha physically, emotionally, and/or psychologically
abuses a
sista(or any woman), I see our failed black manhood!
17. When a brotha discriminates against a sista because she is too
dark, light, thin or large, I see our failed black manhood!
18. When I see a struggling, single black mother, I see our failed
black manhood!
19. When I see fatherless black children, I see our failed black
manhood!
20. When a child is abducted from our communities by a child molester
or by
anyone with bad intentions, I see our failed black manhood!
21. When our young girls and women become victims of rapists, serial
rapists or serial killers, I see our failed black manhood!
22. When I see a sista prostituting her body, I see our failed black
manhood!
23. When I see, sista dancing in a strip club, I see our failed
black manhood!
24. When I see, a sista's physical beauty being prostituted and
perverted in music videos, I see our failed black manhood!
25. When a pimp is permitted to publicly display his presence without
getting run out of our communities, I see our failed black manhood!
26. When I see R&B singer R Kelly urinating on a sista, I see
our failed black manhood!
27. When I see HIV/AIDS illnesses are devastating our communities,
I see our failed black manhood!
28. When we fail to protect or defend our communities, I see our
failed black manhood!
29. When we fail to protect and defend our communities from racial
violence, I see our failed black manhood!
30. When I see a lack of genuine black unity among our people, I
see our failed black manhood!
31. When our young People know more about Michael Jackson, Michael
Jordan,
and Oprah then they do Nat Turner, George Jackson and Assata Shakur,
I see
our failed black manhood!
32.When our young People have no knowledge of self or heritage,
I see our
failed black manhood!
Many
brothas will resist my Anatomy of a Failed Black Manhood. Even in
your
resistance and denial, I see our failed black manhood! When we as
black men fail to accept responsibility for our families, community
and People, we fail our manhood. Many of our young black men think
they have their manhood, or equate being gangsta with manhood; when
in fact, they are weak as Jello pudding. Marcus Garvey is a man!
Nat Turner is a man! Martin Luther King Jr. is a man! George and
Jonathan Jackson are men! Minister Louis Farrakhan is a man! Dr.
Donald R. Evans Sr. is a man! Bunchy Carter is a man! Fred Hampton
is a man! Bishop Eddie Long is a man! Pastor John Cherry is a man!
Bishop
T.D. Jakes is a man! Baba Herman Ferguson is a man! Chairman Chokwe
Lumumba is a man! Kwame Nkrumah is a man! Need I say more?!
Abdul
Olugbala Shakur (s/n J. Harvey)
D.4.112 C-48884 (SHU)
Pelican Bay State Prison
P O Box 7500
Crescent City, CA 45532
You
may contact Mr. Shakur directly by writing to him at the address
listed above. The following link offers tips for writing to prisoners:
http://prisonersolidarity.org/TipsForWritingPrisoners.htm
|
