Malcolm X once lectured on how Black slaves were used by their ‘owners’ to convince their beaten and brutalized brethren their status was condoned by biblical decree.
That indoctrination included the false—and ridiculous—statement that Africans (or anyone darker than vanilla) were the descendants of the biblical Ham, who was cursed (by Noah of Noah and the ark fame) and destined to be the slaves of righteous (White) men.
Since reading was outlawed for slaves, and the conspiratorial message was carried by people who looked like them, many –if not most–fell for the okie doke.
hatred, to pave the way for censorship of facts—true history—and to further divide the ethnicities.”
That indoctrination scheme is still in use today, with the added caveat that many tribal ‘bucks and buckettes’ are used to explain away Massas’ evil history and present.’
Malcolm’s words echoed through my mind as I watched the controversial commercial featuring a braided brother and his cute—albeit toothless –daughter condemning Critical Race Theory (CRT), during which the brother ignorantly suggested was, or will be taught in public (government) schools.
I’ve been an employee of the Fourth Estate for all of my adult life, a public relations and advertising strategist for half that time. And I have had common sense since birth, so I see through the brother’s twisted message and the advertiser’s intent.
And it’s not to advance racial harmony, attack injustice, or stress the importance of brushing your teeth thrice daily.
It is, in truth, a classic case of racist propaganda, ethnic division, and reverse psychology.
Well, that’s not entirely true.
The first two sentences of the commercial provide a positive purpose in that the father, Kory Yeshua, explains how he has taught his daughter that there is no obstacle she can’t overcome; nothing she can’t achieve (regardless) of her race.
But after that utterance, the manure runs downhill. As if on an unblemished metal slide.
The brother goes on a rant about how CRT is advancing a narrative to divide the good people of America by race, to traumatize white children who, according to similar propaganda, will be forced to shoulder the burden of their evil ancestors’ complicity with the cruelest form of slavery known to mankind.
Normally, I would dismiss the commercial as another propaganda marketing ruse, putting it in the same category as miracle diet pills or political campaign promises to end racism and bring peace to the free world.
But this piece of tainted indoctrination hit me on the (not so) funny bone, not only because of its underlying canards (lies) and distortions, but also because unless the brother is a braided Oreo, he is insanely ignorant and not only misleading his brethren and White America, but his precious daughter, named Royalty, as well.
I fear the articulate tot is in for a sad awakening if she is taught to believe there are no longer any obstacles—institutional racism—in her way; that the only thing dividing the country is CRT.
The most apparent affront to common sense is his assertion that CRT is being, or will be taught in the schools. Inches behind that ludicrous statement is his suggestion that CRT is propaganda and a misrepresentation of American (not Black) His-story.
For the record, CRT is not an ‘alternative’ history course that offends and condemns all White people as racists, evil, or demonic.
In truth, CRT is a 40-year-old legal study that explores the relationship between systemic racism and disparities in convictions and sentencing of Black Americans.
To crystalize it for the myopic, CRT is an evaluation (research) of racial disparities in the criminal justice system that tries to explain, for example, why Wisconsin hosts the highest Black incarnation rate in the country.
Is it because Black Wisconsinites are pathologically inclined?
Is Milwaukee a breeding ground for Black self-hatred (manifested in criminal activity)? Can you blame our nation-leading Black incarceration rate on the tainted water?
For whatever reason—and you have five guesses—racists, conservatives, and other special interests (including liberals in sheep’s clothing) took that law school research and convinced the gullible and weak-minded into believing it was instead an elementary school curriculum that teaches a false history.
That includes the ‘deceptive’ narrative that the U.S. Constitution had a sentence stating African slaves were not fully human, that the government did not legislate to maintain second-class citizenship for our ancestors, and didn’t legislate laws making segregation the law of the land.
Or that Abe Lincoln didn’t say in a 1858 speech that while he opposed slavery, Black folks should not be allowed to intermarry or vote.
The question (which the brother will not tell his daughter or America) is if White America still benefits from that history?
This deceptive ad is actually one of many aired around the country. There’s a $1 million television campaign running in Virginia by a group called ‘Free to Learn’ whose sole intent is to plant the fear in White parents that one school district is trying to integrate CRT in its curriculum and, if successful, their precious children will be adversely impacted.
In truth, I find it hard to believe that so many White people—including their political leaders—don’t know the truth about CRT.
No, check that.
I find it hard to believe so many gullible Whites are willing to ignore facts— who have fallen prey to this scheme, the okie doke!
And scheme it is.
Indeed, the commercial is intended to prey upon the weak-minded, to exonerate racists for their unjustifiable hatred, to pave the way for censorship of facts—true history—and to further divide the ethnicities.
This affront to reality is second only to the false belief that there are ‘races’ based on melanin—white and yellow and red and black.
There is but one race —‘hue-man’—with roots in the Motherland—Africa. That must be true since the remains of the first human were discovered by White anthropologists. The only questionable element of that fact was they named her ‘Lucy’ (when her name was LaQuisha).
Maybe the rest would fall into place if government schools—i.e., public—would start their history courses with that fact.
But I understand why those maintaining the ‘racist’ status quo won’t introduce that fact. Nor will they admit to themselves, much less the world, that Jesus was brown-skinned, biblical support of slavery was a lie, and that the United States government was complicit in advancing policies and court rulings that permanently engrained in our country a system of institutional racism that benefits whites to this day.
But I digress.
The commercial intends to confuse, delude, and shift focus from those aforementioned facts to exonerate and thus empower those at the top—individuals and special interests that benefit from ethnic division (i.e. white folks, both liberal and conservative).
And if you’re unconvinced of that assessment, you should know the commercial was funded by a right-wing group that disingenuously calls itself, ‘Be Good to Kids.’
That organization is a front for a millionaire right-winger, David Langdon, who has formed a half dozen similar non-profits, including the ‘Coalition to Restore American Value’—’ take back America in cursive’ and the Conservative Alliance of Republicans.
Langdon also runs a conservative bible research group and something he inappropriately calls, ‘Parents Against Stupid Stuff,’ which is like calling the kettle black.
But back to Yeshua, a Hebrew/Aramaic name translated to ‘Jesus’ by Europeans to enable them to take ownership of the Messiah.
That descriptive name aside, either this brother is ignorant (absent of knowledge), stupid (misuse of knowledge), or complicit in a propaganda scheme that Malcolm warned us of.
It would be easier to figure out Yeshua’s true motives if I knew his intent: is he among the ‘House Negroes’ who benefit from following the massas’ orders, or is he simply one of those ‘ignant’ brothers who doesn’t know better than to pee into a strong wind.
If it’s the former, I hope the real ‘Jesus’ puts a bug in his ear and calls upon him to repent—for our tribe’s…and his daughter’s sake.
If it’s the latter, I hope he trips over the seven pieces of silver he was paid to advance the lies.
Hopefully, ‘Jesus/Yeshua’ doesn’t land on his daughter before she’s old enough to withstand the weight of ‘His- story.’
Hotep.
