FROZEN! By the White Man’s Ice?

Saturday, April 16, 2011 | 5:30pm-9:00pm

FROZEN! BY THE WHITE MAN'S ICE? MOVING (BEYOND MATERIALISM) TOWARDS A BLACK ECONOMY

“My personal economic philosophy is also Black Nationalism, which means that the Black man should have a hand in controlling the economy of the so-called Negro community. He should be developing the type of knowledge that will enable him to own and operate the businesses and thereby be able to create employment for his own people, for his own kind.” – Malcolm X

Discussing Black economic empowerment has always posed a danger for Black people because of the implications it would have on dominant white society. Some argue that Martin Luther King, Jr. did not become a major threat to the status quo until he shifted his main focus from civil rights to economic justice. In other words, conceding voting rights to Black people was viewed as less threatening than sharing economic privilege. Despite this danger, the concept of a Black Economy remained an inherent part of the Black Nationalist agenda especially during the Booker T. Washington/Tuskegee Machine era. It was believed that an autonomous Black economy would lead to Black self-determination and true freedom.

Today, it is claimed that people of African descent have become content with their role as members of the consumer/labor class in the mainstream economy.  As participants in a culture permeated by hedonistic materialism – salaries, cul-de-sacs, BMWs, clothing, shoes and other “valuables” have become our focus and determinants of our self-value instead of enterprise ownership and wealth production. Many have charged the “White Man’s Ice Syndrome” with the dwindling of our own Black economy. Perhaps, this “ice” can even be found in your own home. How many of your dollars are re-circulated in the Black community?

In these economically unstable times, it is imperative that we re-evaluate our economic systems and find innovative ways to serve our collective needs. During our next conversation, we will cover the following:

• Roots of Black hedonistic materialism, and ways to overcome consumerism
• The historical relationship between Blacks and capitalism and whether Blacks should engage in capitalism or alternative economic systems
• Reasons for the lack of Black owned/controlled resources, businesses, production and real estate in majority Black nations and communities (e.g. oil in Trinidad and Nigeria, or businesses and real estate in Harlem, etc.)
• Concept of group economics and other steps to begin building a competitive Black Economy

Article & Video Selections

Please note – A new article or video relating to the discussion will be posted every Sunday until the week of the event. You can subscribe to http://www.sankoreconnect.wordpress.com to receive alerts when new posts are added! Click the links below to view each of the videos and articles:

• Black People Still Don’t Get It (video), by Dr. Barbara Sizemore
  
• SIMPLE LIVING: An Antidote to Hedonistic Materialism (excerpt), by bell hooks
• Practicing Group Economics (excerpt), by Claud Anderson
• An Economic Agenda for Black Power (video), by Martin Luther King, Jr.
• Have We Lost Harlem (article), by Melvin Mitchell
• Phillip Payton & Booker T. Washington’s Big Vision to Own Harlem (video)

Event Schedule

5:30 – 6:00pm: Pre-Discussion Meet & Greet (refreshments will be served)

6:00 – 7:30pm: Moderated discussion around topic and article/video selections

7:30 – 9:00pm: Group Q&A (participants can pose their questions for the group to answer)

9:00pm: Post-Discussion Wrap-Up & Cocktails

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