Last week Eric Garner was
buried. And the plan by Civil Rights leaders such as Al Sharpton is to march,
protest and rally to get him justice.
Here’s what I have to say to
that tired old approach to Civil Rights: No Justice, Man Please.
Black folks have been
marching, rallying and protesting Since Emmitt Till. And not a single White person
has ever been convicted in 50 years in any of these high-profile cases.
Let’s look at the track
record of Al Sharpton, the Civil Rights dinosaurs and their march, protest, and
rally approach to getting justice in AmeriKKKa for Black people over the last
decade or so in the cases of :
Patrick Dorismond
Amadou Diallo
Sean Bell
Oscar Grant
Trayvon Martin
In each case All Not Guilty
verdicts. Some didn’t even get to trial. How’s that march, protest and rally
approach to getting justice working out?
Doesn’t look like it’s
working too well for Black folks.
The definition of insanity is
doing the exact same thing and expecting a different result. I’d have to say
any Black person who believes any cop or EMT is going to jail for Eric Garner’s
death is certifiable.
Black folks, we don’t need
any more marches. We don’t need any more rallies. We need Group Economics.
America is a business. And
businesses follow the money. What good is a march, a protest or a rally if the
flow of money remains the same after that march, protest, or rally?
No one White or nonblack cares
about a Black man killed by a White Cop because it has no impact on their money.
At the end of the day those same Negroes coming out to protest will be wearing dressed
up in the latest American Apparel hoodies, True Religion Jeans, brand New Air
Jordans and carrying iPhones to tape that rally along with a bag of skittles
and Arizona ice tea.
At the end of the day still making
White men rich. And making the statement they aren’t serious about change. All
those businesspeople see are a bunch of Negroes so addicted to their consumer
pacifiers they aren’t willing to make any sacrifices or commitments to getting
the justice they want.
The big problem is Black
folks TALK a good game, but don’t have the character or resolve take any ACTION
that nonblack people see that FORCES them to take Black people seriously.
The only way to get justice
in America is to show legislators, businesspeople and just plain old ordinary
white and nonblack folks the money. And the only way to show them the power of
the Black dollar is through Group Economics.
How does Group Economics
change things for Black People? When Black dollars are spent with Black-owned businesses,
it enables those business owners to hire other Black people. Over time the
wealth accumulated by those businesses allows them to influence businesspeople
and politicians and create political agenda and a platform they can take to
legislators. And with that influence they can get policies not only written but
create a culture where they’re enforced to prevent things like racial profiling
and police brutality.
If Eric Garner had a JOB at a
Black-owned business he wouldn’t have been on the street. If there were Black
businesses in his community he’d have a place to work. He’d have the support of
a collaborative of Black businessmen. He wouldn’t have been an individual on
the street in a white and foreign owned shopping district and a target for
police, he’d be part of a group which would have the economic and political
power to protect him.
Black people are some of the
biggest consumers on the planet. And 97 percent of their $3.3 trillion dollars
of spending power in cash and credit goes to nonblack businesses. This is the
main reason NO ONE takes protests, rallies or marches seriously. Most of those
business owners know at the end of the rally Black folks will be headed back uptown
to those same White and nonblack businesses to hand their money to the very
people who are oppressing them.
The Black community is the
only community in the WORLD that STARVES its own businesses and FEEDS
businesses where dysfunctional discriminatory behaviors such as racial
profiling are the norm. Most Black folks just don’t have the critical thinking
skills to understand if they want a behavior to change regarding Black people in
nonblack and White communities, you have to stop rewarding those nonblack and
White people for participating in those behaviors in the Black community. Every
time a Black person goes shopping in a store with nonblack business owners,
especially those who participate in racist policies such as bag checks and racial
profiling all Black people do is send a clear message to those owners there
that the racist policies they participate in every day are perfectly fine.
The only way to stop police
brutality, racial profiling job discrimination and other abuses of Black people
is to participate in Group Economics. People don’t listen to rallies. They
don’t listen to protests. They don’t care about marches. They follow the
dollars. The world needs to see Black dollars flowing to Black owned
businesses, and active efforts to cut off the flow of them to White and
nonblack businesses.
When Black people cut off the
flow of dollars to White and nonblack people to protest racial profiling, police
brutality and other racist policies they send a powerful message to both Whites
and nonblacks such as Hispanics Asians, Indians and Arabs that they will NOT
tolerate being mistreated in any way shape or form. And when they see Black
people making active efforts to build a community with its own economy, these
groups will stop taking Black people for granted and stop using the Black
community as a stepping stone to achieving the American dream.
America runs on money. And
the message needs to be sent that if any group of people doesn’t value Black
people they don’t deserve a Black dollar. If a Black people cannot be
guaranteed safety in a nonblack business district, then Black people should
make every effort to avoid shopping there.
I say it’s time Black people
started watching where they spent their money. It’s time we showed nonblack
people where $3.3 trillion dollars of the money they earn comes from. And
instead of spending them with Whites and nonblacks and making them rich it’s
time Black people took that money and invested it into Black-owned businesses
so we can enrich ourselves.
Black folks the time for
marching, rallying and protesting is OVER. It’s time for a new plan and a new
approach to Civil Rights. Instead of protesting with picket signs and T-shirts with
slogans, protest with your dollars. Economic power is the only way to get
political power. Start participating in Group Economics and work towards
building a stronger Black community.