Culture
There is not much more that fosters the respect of a peer on initial meeting than their awareness and subsequent appreciation of the other’s ability to have made a good name for themselves. As it is for individuals, so it is for races, ethnic groups and nations. More often than not, this involves being able to utilise whatever is available, be it a skill or resource, to great effect without needing to rely on another for assistance.
Doing for self is in part a remedy for the social ills experienced by any marginalised group. At a personal level, at least at the subconscious, it is often a requirement for respect. “Our elevation must be the result of self-efforts and work of our own hands. No other human power can accomplish it. If we but determine it shall be so, it will be so.” No one will build an empathetic and effective organisation that focuses on the disenfranchisement of a people except those affected personally. Just as it is unlikely, anyone except those affected by misrepresentation and the lack of representation will have the necessary passion to be able to tackle that problem successfully.
Economic self-reliance places responsibility back in the hands of the people. It straightens one’s back, injects a sense of pride, obliges them to retract the outstretched arm solely in search of help, sparks their imagination and creativity and puts that arm to work.
“At the bottom of education, at the bottom of politics, even at the bottom of religion, there must be for our race economic independence.” It is the foundation on which all other social institutions are built. It improves social relations across the board, levels the playing field and demands the respect of one’s allies and detractors.
It is the impetus for the creation of industries that will speak for the muted and act for the subdued. Economic self-reliance facilitates the much-needed change in narrative. It increases the volume of the voices drowned out by the distracting noises of the Machine at work.
A race that is solely dependent upon another for its economic existence sooner or later dies.…
Marcus Garvey
In a world where the impositions of poverty, discrimination and other weaponised social divisions are underestimated, many a brilliant light have been diminished. The steep mountain a person climbs in order to reach those lofty heights become increasingly slippery. One’s aspiration therefore has to be that captivating and rewarding to make that level of effort worthwhile and stir up a call to action.
“To act is to be committed, and to be committed is to be in danger”. Who navigates dangerous territory with any hope to survive without a true willingness to thrive? Willingness is key. Willingness is a response that comes about from one’s decision to really want a desired outcome. For one to be all they can be, they need to be able to make their own choices and develop the skills to respond to the external factors that affect the realisation of those choices.
Where seemingly unscalable obstacles are present, the prevalence of negative influences become instructive rather than suggestive. Self-determination empowers, and informs its adherents of the possibility to make a choice and compels them to seek out the tools necessary to make real their choices.
To live governed by your own consent is freedom. To deliberately not leave the outcome of your life to chance but rather, driven by purpose, attempt to control it is to walk into a world of infinite possibility. This truth should be embraced as a divine right and never should anyone be granted permission to rob you of that privilege.
Our volition determines destiny. “It is out of our own created genius we make ourselves what we want to be…Let the sky and God be our limit and Eternity our measurement.”
Each generation must, out of relative obscurity, discover its mission, fulfil it, or betray it.
Frantz Fanon
Haiti’s first democratically elected president said it was “the spirit of Ubuntu that once led Haiti to emerge as the first independent Black nation in 1804…and inspired our forefathers...Today; this spirit of solidarity must and will empower all of us...”
The Ubuntu philosophy of “I am because we are” is an acknowledgment of the fact that as a community we are one. This culture binds us. We are the sum total of our contributions. The way we walk and talk tells tales of our experiences. Our attitude is a memory bank documenting our triumphs, our struggles, our wins, our losses. The confidence and boldness in our stride is testament to our resilience. Our silences are not due to being incapable of speaking up for ourselves; on the contrary, it is due to our belief that we will have the last say.
In as much as we are one, we are indeed all unique…and thankfully so. There is intense beauty in our differences. To ignore them in fear that they will separate us is to fail to respect and admire the unique qualities that strengthen us. “The forces that unite us are intrinsic and greater than the superimposed influences that keep us apart.”
A community without unity soon ceases to exist. With our survival in mind, it is to this end that THE NEW BLXCK moves. THE NEW BLXCK as a philosophy, a movement, a company and organisation that emerged from within the community, from the culture, from amongst the people and as a result have an obligation, and feel it is a privilege to give back.
By prioritising the creatives and aptly rewarding their freedom of expression; by providing a bullhorn to the ‘little people’ who constantly roll up their sleeves but criminally go unnoticed; by valuing and encouraging journalistic integrity; we aim to facilitate constructive dialogue within the community that leads to stronger ties and all round progression for all.
THE NEW BLXCK thoroughly believe “an organisation which claims to be working for the needs of a community…must work to provide that community with a position of strength from which to make its voice heard.”
In all things that are purely social we can be as separate as the fingers, yet one as the hand in all things essential to mutual progress.
Booker T. Washington
History like hindsight often rewards those who peer into it, with a clearer view and a wider perspective. Outside the realm of real time, we are afforded the opportunity of analysing the details and nuances that make up complex historical events. History better positions us to answer the question of “why”.
The “why” is a motivator; a guiding light that illuminates a path cloaked in uncertainty and doubt and pushes one forward in the hope that they will arrive where they wish to be. The “why” is important in any endeavour and more often than not, can be found hiding in plain sight waiting to be retrieved amongst the lessons of some historical event.
Naturally, history does not give a clear view of the future, hence the need for a “why”, but it can offer insight into the framework in which a future event may operate. “History is not everything but it is a starting point. History is the clock that people use to tell their political and cultural time of day. It is a compass they use to find themselves on the map of human geography. It tells them where they are but, more importantly, what they must be.”
As visionaries, THE NEW BLXCK acknowledges the importance history plays when setting out on a journey such as this. By consulting the past, we read the future. “History from the African point of view…helps you to have a reclaimed identity. It helps you to assert yourself on the social, political and cultural agenda, today.” The study of history is critical to acquiring appropriate placement in the world.
The rich history of a people, by design, made to be an afterthought, a figment of their imagination, an unsubstantiated folk lore or oral tradition by oppressive rule, can ignite amongst that population a desire to first question the reason for their present condition but also cause them to embark on a quest to rediscover the beaten path that leads to such heights. “We live in a society of an imposed forgetfulness, a society that depends on public amnesia.”
“Intellectuals ought to study the past not for the pleasure they find in so doing, but to derive lessons from it.” Great self-esteem arises from dusting the annals of history, stopping to read about the ebb and flow of life and ultimately conclude the story with the thought, “and still I exist”. It is a testament to strength and resilience. The study of history facilitates that appreciation and fosters an environment for great achievement.
Of all our studies, history is best qualified to reward our research.”
Malcolm X
Humanity, for centuries, has found itself in a quandary when attempting to deal with the wealth gap and the disparity in the quality of life available to certain populations in nations across the globe. Principles that can be applied to larger populations can often be applied to smaller ones too.
Irrespective of one’s political disposition or to which economic school of thought one belongs and believes will most effectively solve the issue; all sides typically agree the issue persists and to varying degrees requires immediate attention.
THE NEW BLXCK does not believe progression isolated and set apart from the group to which it identifies is consistent with the idea of success. Success is a joint enterprise. Without the agency of others, directly or indirectly, knowingly or unknowingly, success is impossible.
Upliftment by way of motivation, inspiration, edification and education transforms success from an ideal one hopes to experience to an attainable goal within arm’s reach. Coupled with support, being shown the attainability of a goal, whether it be simply to better one’s living conditions, start a business or repair a broken family, is often incentive enough to put in effort for those willing to achieve it.
THE NEW BLXCK believe in community outreach and are committed to exercising the philanthropic arm of the organisation. Using our sphere of influence for the betterment of the people takes priority and is of great importance.
There is no better reward than being able to witness and identify how your contribution to one’s life had a role in the betterment of that individual. The process of upliftment rewards both the giver and the receiver and incentivises progressive movement for the whole, as often the receiver in this instance becomes the giver in the next. At a very practical level, it gives dreams legs and can dramatically alter the reality of the less fortunate in our community.
…...the importance of doing activist work is precisely because it allows you to give back and to consider yourself not as a single individual who may have achieved whatever but to be a part of an ongoing historical movement.
Angela Davis
More numerous and diverse than our backgrounds, languages, cultures, experiences and our values are the idiosyncrasies that differentiate us from one another thus making us unique.
Our physical differences, no matter how minute, combined with our experiences inform the way we interact with each other. This uniqueness is multiplied further when we consider the time in our lives that we have certain experiences and the length of time said experiences endure.
The resulting changes to our being continue to morph so that at any given stage in our existence, we interact with different versions of an individual, as they do different versions of ourselves. With the possibility of the much welcomed pleasure, relief, excitement and exchange of enlightening perspectives these connections may produce comes also the anxiety, angst, dismay, disappointment and conflict of incompatibility. The outcome of our interactions is a decision made by the parties involved.
Respect is the great soother of wounds; the pacifier of brewing conflict. It is the door behind which understanding and appreciation reside and knock. It is the volte-face on a road to which an unwavering commitment to follow leads to nowhere but unproductivity and regret.
We are grouped into cohorts on a regular basis, by ourselves or by others we do not identify with, by others who do not identify with us, for varying reasons, some political, some for ease of conversation, all of which, however, in some way or another aiding and abetting our division and weakness. “In our world, divide and conquer must become define and empower”.
The freedom and boldness to disagree and live differently to the status quo is welcomed and appreciated; just as much as the freedom and boldness to question and challenge the rationale behind such disagreement and difference. Provided respect accompanies our conversations, the unification of our communities and the progression of society have no choice but to move in a positive direction.
Advocating the mere tolerance of difference…is the grossest reformism. It is a total denial of the creative function of difference in our lives. Difference must be not merely tolerated, but seen as a fund of necessary polarities between which our creativity can spark like a dialectic. Only then does the necessity for interdependency become unthreatening.
Audre Lorde
All undertakings come with the potentiality of undesired results. Shouldering responsibility develops a sense of being, purpose and the mental fortitude to deal with life’s challenges.
Assessing any situation and concluding that it requires change demands a want for more or a frustration with its existence.
With enough motivation, a desire to do something about it starts to arise as one is confronted with the reality of the first law of inertia; everything will continue in its present state of being unless acted upon by a force. Change requires force. A force large enough to cause a change in the momentum of the circumstance or in its current form, end its existence.
Bringing about such change requires looking within and assuming the responsibility of that task. As fate would have it, taking such a decision attracts like-minded individuals also wishing to take on the responsibility or at least some part of it. “The obligation of anyone who thinks of himself as responsible is to examine society and try to change it and to fight it - at no matter what risk. This is the only hope society has. This is the only way societies change.”
We all have a part to play in change as we all, whether we know it or not, are in some way responsible for the reason things remain the same. We all have much to give. “No individual has any right to come into the world and go out of it without leaving behind him distinct and legitimate reasons for having passed through it.” By taking both responsibility and accountability for our words and actions, we stand a greater chance at gaining the world we fantasise.
It is this view that THE NEW BLXCK takes especially as it pertains to the welfare of the people; the creative contributors of this beautiful culture we have formed by being ourselves, and continually partake and seek refuge in.
Although sometimes rare, unfortunately, with power should come responsibility and with responsibility, accountability. Be taking on responsibility, no matter how small, we expedite the process of change. The mission must be personal. “We must make an issue, create an event, and establish…ourselves: and never may expect to be respected as men and women, until we have undertaken some fearless, bold, and adventurous deeds of daring - contending against every odds - regardless of every consequence”.
…...the task ahead is great indeed, and heavy is the responsibility; and yet it is a noble and glorious challenge. A challenge which calls for the courage to dream, courage to believe, courage to dare, courage to do, courage to envision, courage to fight, courage to work and courage to achieve - to achieve the highest excellence and the fullest greatness of man. Dare we ask for more in life?.
Kwame Nkrumah
