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Spare Us The Lashes Of The “Selfish Gene” Theory

Flagellation as a tool of education and social sophistication

SPARE US THE LASHES OF THE “SELFISH GENE” THEORY

By N Oji Mzilikazi

Originally published in the Montreal Community Contact Volume 23, Number 19 September 19, 2013

When the Black historical experience has been marked by chattel slavery, torturous suffering, unmitigated brutality and violence, unbridled exploitation, the fracturing of voice, soul and self, obliterating identity, culture and religion, destruction of the bond of family, institutionalize racism and discrimination, dysfunction in every imaginable way; our education, must in part — and out of necessity be centered on making us whole, and languaging ourselves — finding voice, being formidable, and uncompromising in upholding one’s humanity, and bringing respect to the race…

To that end, those of us at the bottom of the education, employment, wealth, and health indexes expect our brightest, our leaders and exemplars to throw us lifelines; provide us with visionary blueprints, winning strategies and techniques to empower — stop our recycling of losing formulas that keeps us at each other’s throat, and at the bottom of the economic barrel.

 

 

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Pimping, Misrepresenting Resistance

Pimping, Misrepresenting Resistance

By N Oji Mzilikazi

Originally published in the Montreal Community Contact Volume 23, Number 18 September 7, 2013

The Bhagavad Gita, Hinduism holy book, opens with two armies just about to battle, and Arjuna, expressing trepidation to Lord Krishna – he doesn’t want to fight – his uncles, his cousins, his brothers; his relatives are in the opposing army.

Lord Krishna then asks Arjuna to which class does he belongs. Arjuna replies, “The warrior class.” Lord Krishna then tells Arjuna to do his Duty – Fight!…

 

 

 

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Emancipation 2013: Field Negroes Needed

50th Anniversary of the March on Washington

Emancipation 2013: Field Negroes Needed

By N Oji Mzilikazi

Originally published in the Montreal Community Contact Volume 23, Number 17 August 22, 2013           

Won’t you help to sing

These songs of freedom

Cause all I’ve ever had redemption songs

All I’ve ever had redemption songs

These songs of freedom

Songs of freedom

— Redemption Song

— Bob Marley

August 28, 1963, was a momentous day in the history of America, and Black people everywhere. On that day, hundreds of thousands of people; men women, children, Blacks, whites, Jews, gays and lesbians, marched on Washington in the most significant protest of the civil rights era.

It was on that day, there in Washington; on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial that Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his “I have a dream” speech, inarguable one of the greatest 20 Century speeches.

King’s speech prompted William Sullivan, the FBI’s assistant director of domestic intelligence, to recommend: “We must mark him [King] now, if we have not done so before, as the most dangerous negro of the future of this nation.”…

 

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Emancipation 2013: Who Will Pay Reparations For My Soul?

EMANCIPATION 2013: WHO WILL PAY REPARATIONS FOR MY SOUL?

By N Oji Mzilikazi

Originally published in the Montreal Community Contact Volume 23, Number 16 August 8, 2013 

 

…The Hon. Thaddeus Stevens of Pennsylvania (Republican)  initiated the move for reparation. On March 19, 1867, in a speech before the U.S. House of Representatives, Stevens declared that no Southern state should be readmitted into the union until the ex-slaves were treated equally both in law and in practice.

Stevens introduced the Reparation Bill: Taking land away from plantation owners and giving the former slaves; each adult male or head of family forty acres of land, with $100 to build a dwelling. Thus, the “40 acres and a mule” that African Americans speak about, believe is their rightful due…

…Colonialism and African enslavement set in motion crimes against humanity, and its repercussions are still in play today…

 

Justice is yet to be served. To quote Bob Marley: “Mi no know how me an dem a work it out.” But reparations have to be worked out. Someone has to pay reparations for my soul.

 

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Cut Out The Foolishness And Embrace Success

CUT OUT THE FOOLISHNESS AND EMBRACE SUCCESS

By N Oji Mzilikazi

Originally published in the Montreal Community Contact Volume 23, Number 14 July 11, 2013    

This past Carifiesta weekend made it abundantly and irrefutable clear that despite individual brilliance, personal achievements, this community to which I belong, we — as a people, are both scared of success and clueless as to what it takes to succeed, to win. If that wasn’t the case, leadership, our entrepreneurs, our dream merchants, our organizers, and hustlers would talk to one another, build productive alliances, collaborate, and not continue to engage in adversarial politics and sabotage…