Thursday, December 18, 2008

KWANZAA: A CULTURE CELEBRATION INSPIRED BY A POLITICAL ERA

KWANZAA: A CULTURE CELEBRATION INSPIRED BY A POLITICAL ERA

By Fahim A. Knight-EL

Kwanzaa is an African American culture based celebration and it is not considered a religious holiday or as an alternative to Christmas nor is it a Black Muslim celebration. These are often the misnomers that are associated with the celebration of Kwanzaa. This article will somewhat delve into the historical and social variables in order to give the readers some understanding of the culture void of African Americans that was created by Chattel Slavery (1555-1865), the greatest criminal act in the history of humanity. We will never overlook this crime and the devastating affect it had on the psychological, social, political and economic lives of over one (100) million Africans that were killed and displaced during Middle Passage and the Transatlantic Slave Trade. The impetus and motivation of Kwanzaa and its celebration has to be viewed and understood within the said historical context and the necessity of its establishment then becomes justifiable within the scheme of an African cultural linkage for the prodigal sons and daughters that were displaced 450 years ago. (Reference: Carl N. Degler; “Out of Our Past: The Forces That Shaped Modern America”).

It was founded by Dr. Maulana Karenga in 1966 in Los Angles, California. The word Kwanzaa comes from the Ki- Swahili language of East Africa, which means First Fruit. Karenga would perhaps be considered a Pan-Africanist, Cultural Nationalist and perhaps one of the foremost Black Nationalist intellectuals in the United States. This writer visited the Los Angles, California Crenshaw District in 1990 and 1991 and got a chance to visited Dr. Karenga’s Us Organization Study Group. Thus, Dr. Karenga struck me to be highly intelligent and very insightful on the liberation struggles of black people in America, Africa and the Diaspora, along with having a keen knowledge of Kemet (Egypt) as an Egyptologist, anthropologist, historian, and archeologist.

Karenga rose to national prominence in the 1960s as an aspiring black nationalist and as one of the premier spokesperson and leaders in 1967 the Black Power Conference held in Newark, New Jersey on October 20, 1967, which also included Imamu Amiri Baraka, Floyd McKissick, Nathan Wright Jr. (the conference chairman and workshop coordinators) in included Ossie Davis, James Farmer, Hoyt Fuller, Nathan Hare, H. Rap Brown (Jamil El-Amin) Cleveland Sellers, Chuck Stone and host of other black activist during that time.

The United States was in an unjust war in Vietnam in South East Asia and antiwar demonstrations were taking place on white and black college campuses; protesting U.S. Foreign Policy. Thus, this also was at the height of the 1960s Civil Rights Movement being led by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., who was protesting segregation and racism in the Jim Crow South and North inside the United States; demanding public accommodation and equal rights under the law. King advocated non-violent social change, but organizations like the Deacons for Defense in Monroe, North Carolina headed Robert Williams (NAACP president in Monroe, NC), and Stokley Carmichael (Kwame Ture) Lowndes County, Alabama had already began to formulate the early stages of “Black Power” and actually the symbol of the Black Panther came out of Lowndes, County Alabama before Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale officially established the Black Panther Party in 1966 in Los Angles. (Reference: Elaine Brown: “A Taste of Power: A Black Woman’s Story”).

The United States in the 1960s was a social tender box in which segregation, political, economic, and social disparities created an atmosphere of unrest and black grassroots people began to call for freedom, justice and equality by any means necessary. The Vietnam War was steadily heighten the contradictions and although, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., on August 28, 1963 led one of the largest mass protest demonstration in the history of the United States on the Capitol grounds for equality, jobs, public accommodation and inclusion, which his strategy was based on Civil Disobedience modeled after the philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi. The political mood was beginning to change and the social politics being led by the political left were becoming more radicalized and challenging to the traditional Civil Rights leaders philosophy. The racist Jim Crow philosophy was tearing the United States apart as a nation and although the Brown versus Board of Education decision was rendered by the United States Supreme Court in 1954. It was not until African Americans had fought for the passing of the 1964 Civil Rights Bill and 1965 Voting Rights Act which these two groundbreaking pieces of legislation signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson that began the gradual process of fostering public accommodation access and desegregation. (Reference: Martin Luther King and James M. Washington; “A Testament of Hope: The Essential Writings and Speeches of Martin Luther King, Jr.”).

Thus, Kwame Ture (Stokley Carmichael) was beginning to advocate the philosophy of “Black Power” and young African Americans were starting to be influenced by militant black radical spokesmen like Minister Malcolm X who taught a form of Black Nationalism and called for a renewal in black cultural identity. The Diasporas Africans in America and their movement for social, economic and political justice led to the influencing of the liberation struggles of African Nations in the 1960s who were also seeking freedom, liberation and independence from under European colonial rule. Ghana in 1958 became one of the first African nations to throw off the shackles of British colonialism and became a sovereign state. (Reference: Stokely Carmichael & Ekwueme Michael Thelwell; “Ready For Revolution: The Life and Struggles of Stokely Carmichael [Kwame Ture}”).

African leaders such as Kwame Nkrumah, Nnamdi Azikiwe, Julius Nyerere, Ahmed Ben Bella, Amilcar Cabral, Jomo Kenyatta, Ahmed Seku Toure, Haile Selassie, Patrice Lumumba, Ide Amin, etc. These African leaders in return provided African Americans with a model of African Nationalism and their philosophies of Pan-Africanism gave the Black movement in America a necessary connection to their motherland, in particular the ability to reclaim a distant culture and history that were stolen from them 400 years ago. (Reference: John Henrik Clarke:Africans at the Crossroads) & (Reference: Kwame Ture and Charles V. Hamilton; “Black Power: The Politics of Liberation”).

The political analysis in the 1960s ranged from black activist adopting the class struggle, race struggle and cultural struggle—Marxism and economic determinist theories and black theoreticians declared scientific socialism as an alternative to Capitalism and there were others more partial towards cultural nationalism, which Franz Fanon work titled, “The Wretched of the Earth” typified the African intellectual struggle and its opposition to European colonialism in Africa and there was other works such as the one written by Walter Rodney titled, “How Europe Underdeveloped Africa typified these struggles.”

Dubois called his first Pan-African Congress 1900 and would call four more Pan-African Congress 1919, 1921, 1923 and 1927 which to dramatize the necessity of blacks in America and throughout the Diaspora linking up with Africa to resolve the issues of colonialism, racism, oppression, imperialism, etc., as well as enhance cultural unity. There was also the Pan-Africanist George Padmore who was deeply involved in issues of a Pan African worldview and in his latter years in the 1940s stood as an elder Statesman in the last Pan African Congress session. However, there were probably none more passionate about reconnecting Disaporian Africans back to Africa than Marcus Mosiah Garvey (his motto "Africa for the Africans at home and abroad"). The Garvey back to Africa movement was perhaps both physical and psychological—more psychological than physical, it provided Disaporian Africans with a symbolic reaffirmation of a long lost home from whence their ancestors were kidnapped from over four hundred (400) years ago and robbed of the knowledge of self and culture, as well as land and valuable resources. (Reference: Amy Jacques Garvey; “Philosophy & Opinions of Marcus Garvey”).

The 1960s rebellions (what the United States Government and the popular media referred to this form of resistance as riots) in cities such as Newark, Washington D.C., Gary, Detroit, Los Angles, etc. The rebellions represented a philosophical and strategic departure from the political views of Dr. Martin Luther King. Jr. who consistently advocated non-violent social resistance. For example, the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) philosophy changed and evolved and became radicalized under the leadership of Stokley Carmichael (Kwame Ture) and later under H. Rap Brown (Jamil Abdullah El Amin). Their philosophical tactics and strategies were based a lot more on direct confrontation with the Power Apparatus and became the greatest challenge and threat to the passive politics of the traditional Civil Rights movement—not to mention the revolutionary politics of the Black Panther Party led by its Chairman Huey P. Newton. (Reference: H. Rap Brown; “Die Nigger Die!”).

These new radical and militant leaders were inspired by the voice of Minister Malcolm X, in particular after his defection from the Nation of Islam in 1964. The rebellions of the 1960s left many urban cities under U.S. Military seize because the violence and the destruction of personal property crippled the so-called orderly running of local governments and many black communities were in social and economic despair. This was the social, political and economic climate that led to Dr. Mualana Karenga formerly known as Ron Everett originally from Baltimore, Maryland to establish the cultural celebration we come to know as Kwanzaa.

Dr. Karenga was head of a Black Cultural Nationalist organization called Us Organization he is professor and chair of the Department of Black Studies at California State University, Long Beach. Dr. Karenga is also chair of the President's Task Force on Multicultural Education and Campus Diversity at California State University, Long Beach. Dr. Karenga holds two Ph.D.'s; his first in political science with focus on the theory and practice of nationalism (United States International University) and his second in social ethics with a focus on the classical African ethics of ancient Egypt (University of Southern California). (Reference: Maulana Karenga & Haki R. Madhubuti; “Million Man March/Day of Absence: A Commemorative Anthology”).

Dr. Karenga for over forty (40) years has advocated synthesize theories of Pan Africanism and Black Nationalism and although the Black Panther Party started out with similar theories, but in the late 1960s began to transition more towards the socialist theories of Marxist-Leninist and some of the early emphasis on Pan Africanism and Black Nationalism were debunked. The Black Panther Party replaced their hardcore black nationalist views upon embracing of the revolutionary philosophy of Che Guevara and the Chairman Mao Tse Tung’s “Red Book” in which the these economic determinist theorist viewed the class contradictions as the foremost antagonistic contradiction throughout human history that has led to the political, economic and social destabilization and division of humanity.But proponents of Black Nationalism and Cultural Nationalism in the 1960s and 1970s viewed race as the social contradiction that was leading the cause of social and political conflict in American and was driving the international conflicts that was rooted in European imperialism and colonial domination of Developing Nations in Africa, Caribbean, Asia, Central and South America, Australia, New Zealand and other nations of color.

These analysis and political evaluations led to theoretical conflicts in the Black Nationalist Community; many argued including Dr. Maulana Karenga that African Americans were engaged in a cultural struggle for self-identity and reclaiming of a glorious history and past that needed to be reaffirmed by revisiting a history that declared Africa as the “Dark Continent” and offering a more correct view of history that was shaped by western civilization and was steeped in a Eurocentric ideology that had justified the stealing of the indigenous peoples lands. (Reference: Chip Smith; “The Cost of Privilege: Taking on the System of White Supremacy and Racism).

This writer in the early 1990s as stated above flew out to Los Angles to visited Dr. Maulana Karenga’s Kawaida Institute of Pan-African Studies and his Us Organization and in certain aspects of the black community within Los Angles, in particular and in the entire black community in general, there exist a level of suspicion and skepticism relative to Dr. Maulana Karenga. This rift seems to have its origin in the 1960s between Karenga’s Us (United Slaves) Organization and the Black Panther Party had a historical rife that was never mended and there is a lot of bad blood in Black Nationalist and Pan-African circles even in 2008 relative to a four (4) decade old dispute. Some black nationalist have accused Dr. Karenga of allegedly being a Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agent provocateur who was complicit in a shootout that landed two popular Black Panthers Party members dead—Alprentice “Bunchy” Carter and John Huggins of the Southern California Chapter were murdered on the Campus of University of California at Los Angles (UCLA), in which their deaths have haunted the image and legacy of Dr. Karenga since 1969.

Thus, in Los Angles during the 1990s a cultural nationalist and African Centered theoretician named Ashra Kwesi led a huge African Centered Study group and it was taboo to mention Dr. Karenga’s name. There were other renowned scholars and activist who were critical of Dr. Karenga such as the late Professor Emeritus Dr. John Henrik Clarke, the dean of the Afrocentric thought in America and there was Steve Cokley who I heard make some real critical statements against Dr. Karenga and his allege government complicity against the Black Panther Party. This writer has heard both sides of this argument and in all fairness; it has left him inconclusive about the allegations and counter allegations, but the burden of proof in my opinion lies with Dr. Maulana Karenga. We also must understand the United States Government and its Cointelpro (Federal Bureau of Investigation Counter Intelligence program) was in full affect under FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover aimed at militant and not so militant leaders and personalities in the 1960s and 1970s.

Minister Louis Farrakhan leader of the Nation of Islam and Dr. Benjamin Chavis Muhammad reached out to Dr. Karenga during the campaign to organize the Million Man March in 1995, naming him to the Million Man March Executive Committee; this appointment helped reestablish Dr. Karenga’s credibility amongst some Black Nationalist leaders and progressive leaders who for almost four decades wouldn’t be caught on the same stage with Dr. Karenga. But Minister Farrakhan is a smart leader and organizer he recognized that Dr. Karenga still possess a black cultural nationalism following and this was a vital segment of the black community, which brought a militant and radical legitimacy to the Million Man March—this alliance was perhaps more political than Minister Farrakhan overlooking Dr. Karenga’s controversial history.

Karenga advocated building institutions and teaching and training African people to be self-sufficient; he was academician by training who has taught in the California state University systems for now over four (4) decades and has led to the establishment of Black Studies programs, as well as being engulfed in the Afro Centric movement and using his wealth of intellectual knowledge and pen to write one of the foremost black history college text books titled, “Introduction to Black Studies.” Thus, using African models, conventional data, research methodology and more of an empirical and scientific approach to document African contributions to American history and to all of western civilization. He has been one of the few Black Nationalist leaders from the 1960s that has delved into analyzing African contribution to humanity from a scholarly perspective.

Karenga was unique because as a social activist he was able to tie the liberation struggles of Black people in America to a higher intellectual pursuit taking place on the campuses of colleges and universities and he struck me as being equally committed to the intellectual and academic struggle as he was about his social activism. (Reference: Maulana Karenga: “Introductions to Black Studies”).In 1966 the Watts section of Los Angles and the black community after the 1965 rebellions was in dire need of positive rehabilitation. Dr. Maulana Karenga developed a theory known as Kawaida which gave life to Kwanzaa; he defined Kawaida as “Kawaida Theory stood out as the most structured and influential theory of the Black Cultural Revolution. Kawaida (Karenga. 1980, 1978b) contends that the key crisis in Black life is the cultural crisis, i.e., a crisis in views and values. This crisis was caused by several factors, among which are enslavement and deculturalization, the ideological hegemony (dominance in the realm of ideas and values of the ruling race/class) and the growth of popular culture at the expense of national culture.

Dr. Karaenga continues “Culture revolution, according to Kawaida, can be defined as the ideological and practical struggle to: 1) transform the cultural context in which people live; 2) transform them in the process, making them self-conscious agents of their own libera­tion; and 3) build the institutional base to sustain and constantly expand that transformation. It implies and necessitates revitaliz­ing, creating and recreating culture (Karenga, 1967). Kawaida defines culture as the totality of a people's thought and practice by which a people creates itself, celebrates, sustains and develops itself and introduces itself to history and humanity. This occurs in seven basic areas: religion, history, social organization, economic organization, political organization, creative production (art, music and literature), and ethos (collective self-definition and consciousness). It is on these seven levels, Kawaida contends, that Black people must rebuild themselves by rebuilding their culture; so that each area is in both their image and interests. This in turn necessitates a struggle against oppression to define, defend and develop that distinct culture. For it is a political fact that the greater the difference between the culture of the oppressed and the oppressor, the greater the difficulty of dominance and the capacity for resistance (Cabral, 1973).” (Reference: Maulana Karenga: “Introductions to Black Studies”).

Kwanzaa means first fruit or first harvests, which borrowed many of its concepts and precepts from more ancient rites. For example, in ancient Kemet (Egypt) Africans built systems of religions, sacrament rites, myths, etc., based on the winter and summer solstice, in which agricultural rites evolved around the sacredness of planting and harvesting—this translated into elaborate myths such as Auras, Aset, and Heru that dealt with lessons in birth, death, resurrection and ascension. The Black community after the devastating affect of the 1960s rebellions which had destroyed many urban infrastructures and the political, economic, and social lives of African Americans that were effected; they were in need of a cultural resurrection and a rebirth.

The glorious 1960s created a movement of resistance and mood to re-identify and fulfill a vacuum that had been created by four hundred years of oppression and cultural alienation from Africa by a system rooted in white supremacy ideology. Karenga instituted what was called the Nguzo Saba, which is the Seven Principles of Kwanzaa—these principles were formulated to reconstruct a community that was divided and to correct a sense of despondency that was pervasive after the 1960s rebellions.

Many of these cities in 2008 have yet to recover from the 1960s and Newark, New Jersey somewhat under Mayor Cory Booker after forty (40) years is just starting to revitalize the infrastructure and the people. The rebellions had long term social, political and economic ramifications on black urban America; however, the neglect of these cities were a systematic effort to punish those who had violently opposed the status quo—they were left to become depilated, decadent, and languished in social and economic obscurity in which this seemed to be a pattern for the majority of the urban cities that rebelled during the 1960s. Kwanzaa was a solution to that despondency. Kwanzaa is celebrated from December 25 –January 1 (Reference: Maulana Karenga; “The Husia: Sacred Wisdom of Ancient Egypt) and (Reference Karenga: "Kwanzaa: A Celebration of Family, Community and Culture”).

Nguzo Saba (Seven Principles of Kwanzaa)

1). Umoja (Unity) to strive for and maintain unity in the family, community, nation and race.

2). Kujichagulia (Self-Determination)-To define ourselves, name ourselves, and speak for ourselves instead of being defined and spoken for by others.

3). Ujima (Collective Work and Responsibility)-To build and maintain our community together and to make our brothers and sisters problems our problems and to solve them together.

4). Ujamma (Co-Operative Economics)-To build and maintain our own stores, shops and other businesses, and to profit together from them.

5). Nia (Purpose)-To make as our collective vocation the building and developing of our communities in order to restore our people to their traditional greatness.

6). Kuumba (Creativity)-To do always as much as we can, in the way that we can, in order to make our community more beautiful and beneficial than we inherited it.

7). Imani (Faith)-To believe with all our hearts in our parents, our teachers, our legitimate leaders, our people, and the righteousness and victory of our struggle.

The dates for Kwanzaa are December 26 – January 1.
On each day of Kwanzaa one of the principles of the NGUZO SABA is highlighted and celebrated:

December 26- Umoja December 27- Kujichagulia
December 28- Ujima December 29-Ujamma December 30-Nia ­ December 31- Kuumba

January 1- Imani

On each day members of the community greet each other with the phrase "Habari gani?" which means "What is the News?" The response to the greeting is the NGUZO SABA principle for the particular day. For example, if a brother or sister asks "Habari gani?" on the fifth day of Kwanzaa, the response would be "Nia", the fifth principle.

THE SEVEN BASIC SYMBOLS

1. Mazoa (crops, fruits and vegetables) These represent the fruits of our collective labor.

2. Mkeka (straw mat) Symbolic of tradition and history. The ground of which we stand and on which we build.

3. Kinara (seven lamp candleholder) Symbolic of theparent stalk-continental Africans. Represents our ancestors as a collective whole.

4. Mishumaa Saba (seven candles: 3 red, 3 green 1 black) These represent the seven principles of NGUZO SABA. They are placed in the Kinara with the black candle representing Umoja placed in the center.

5. Muhindi (ears of corn) These represent the children (watato). Each ear represents a child in the family and the potential of the offspring to become stalks themselves, reproducing and insuring the immortality of the people.

6. Zawadi (gifts) Rewards given in love and appreciationto children and adults for acts of commitment to the "family, community, nation and race. Gifts are given for merit and should enhance personal growth and "connection to the community.

7. Kikombe Cha Umoja (unity cup) It is used to pour Tambiko (libation) in remembrance of those who have gone before us, our ancestors.

ARRANGEMENT OF SYMBOLS

A low table should be used to place the symbols. Spread out the Mkeka and place the Kinara in the center. The Muhindi should be placed around the sides of the Kinara. As they become available the Zawadi should be placed on the Mkeka in an artistic arrangement. The Mishumaa should all be placed at the far right of the Mkeka so that they are available for lighting each day. The Kikombe Cha Umoja and the Mazoa should be creatively and conveniently placed.

THE KWANZAA RITUAL

Each day the celebration of Kwanzaa should include but not necessarily be limited to the following:

1. An explanation of Kwanzaa: The African roots and contemporary meaning and significance of the celebration should be made clear to all who have gathered together.

2. An explanation of the NGUZO SABA: A presentation of the importance of a Black value system and a brief review of all the seven principles.

3. Lighting of the candles: The black candle is lit for the first day representing Umoja. Each day after the first day the black candle is 1 it first and then the candle is lit for that particular day and the days preceding it. For example, on the third day, Ujima, the first candle lit will be the black Umoja candle. Then alternating from left to right the first red candle would be lit for Ujima. On the seventh and last day of Kwanzaa six candles would be lit before "lighting the last (green) candle symbolizing Imani:

4. Description of symbols: A presentation describing the meaning and importance of the seven basic symbols of Kwanzaa.

5. Libation to ancestors (Tambiko): In traditional African societies expressions of homage were paid to ancestors through the pouring of libation. We pour libation during Kwanzaa in remembrance of those who have made sacrifices and prepared a way for us. Through libation rituals we are bonded to those who have' gone before us and to those who will come after. Our commitment to the liberation of African people is strengthened.As the libation is poured a tamshi la tambiko (libation statement) should be made as pouring gestures are made in the direction of the four winds: north, south, east, and west. Unfermented wine (grape juice)' should be used for the libation.

6. Elucidation of the Principle for the day: The principle for the day should be made fully clear. Participants in the ceremony should be led to have a full (spirit/mind/body) experience of the principle. Use of such things as arts and crafts, poetry readings, music, plays, chanting, singing, dancing, drumming, dialogue, etc. can be used to heighten the participants' experience.

7. The Call: A person should be designated to lead the gathered participants in seven spirited shouts of "Harambee" which means "We are pulling together." The seventh "Harambee" should be held for an extended length of time to symbolize unity and harmony among our people.

The Kwanzaa Karamu: The evening of December 31 has been designated as the time for the Karamu which means feast. Celebrants participate in an evening of eating, drinking, dancing and gaiety in an atmosphere of communal fellowship and oneness.

Exchanging of gifts: On January 1, the day of Kwanzaa, gifts in the spirit of the meaning of Zawadi may be enchanted. Gift giving MUST NOT become commercialized and the purchase of gifts should not place excessive economic strain on the giver. Gifts should educate and inspire the receiver.

SUGGESTED READING

Kwanzaa: The Origin. Concepts. Practice by R. Maulana Karenga, Kawaida Publications, San Diego, California.

KWANZAA: EVERYTHING YOU ALWAYS WANTED TO KNOW BUT DIDN'T KNOW WHERE TO ASK by Cedric McClester, Gumbs & Thomas Publishers, New York, N.Y.

Fahim A. Knight-EL Chief Researcher for KEEPING IT REAL THINK TANK located in Durham, NC; our mission is to inform African Americans and all people of goodwill, of the pending dangers that lie ahead; as well as decode the symbolisms and reinterpreted the hidden meanings behind those who operate as invisible forces, but covertly rules the world. We are of the belief that an enlightened world will be better prepared to throw off the shackles of ignorance and not be willing participants for the slaughter. Our MOTTO is speaking truth to power. Fahim A. Knight-EL can be reached at fahimknight@yahoo.com.

STAY AWAKE UNTIL WE MEET AGAIN,
Fahim A. Knight-EL

Wednesday, December 3, 2008

BARACK OBAMA: HOUSE NEGRO OR FIELD NEGRO; WHO IS HIS MASTER?

BARACK OBAMA: HOUSE NEGRO OR FIELD NEGRO; WHO IS HIS MASTER?

By: Fahim A. Knight-EL

President-Elect Barack Obama has been left with a decaying corpse and a petrified carcass better known as the United States Government, which has declined and reached an unbearable political, economic and social stench and is in dire need of fumigation because postmortem has left our government with some intolerable fumes. President-Elect Obama will be assuming one of the worst U.S. Government’s in the history of the American republic to ever be turned over to a president-elect.

This just could be mere coincidental that the first U.S. elected African American president in the history of United States will inherited nothing to work with or was this possibly done by designed. Many have gotten caught up in the so-called historical moment that a black man is sitting in the "Big Chair" and failed to take a serious look at the economic mess (recession or depression) that President George Bush has left President-Elect Obama, in particular and the American people in general.

President-Elect Obama will be inheriting a ten (10) trillion dollar U.S. Deficit and there is not enough tax dollars to service the interest and repay the principle. But just stop for one damn moment and just do a little thinking, something that most people are not accustom to doing; and ask yourself a logical question, who is behind this enormous and in surmountable national debt that is choking the American people to death?

When President Bush took office the national debt was approximately five (5) trillion dollars and upon him leaving office that national debt has almost doubled. Bush is no doubt a low level operative who dealt the Invisible Rulers a perfect hand. For example, where I am from, the boys on the street would say they are stealing money hand over fist, as it relates to the $750 billion dollar bailout—the ignorant United States tax payers have agreed to one of the biggest scams in the history of the United States. The talk about reforming Wall Street and imposing Congressional oversight, which to so-called ensure the American people that this recent economic meltdown will not ever occur again, is a laughable joke. These ploys were mere votes of acquiring public confidence designed to further luring the ignorant masses to sleep. Wall Street doesn’t factor into determining how the money is moving; these public world markets are powerless and are at the dictates of those who have stolen the world’s gold and silver, as well as the world’s resources. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and President George Bush both should be charged with treason and sedition. This so-called bailout is a criminal act against the American people.

The United States Government is, and has been treating the symptoms since 1913 and the problem (disease) the Central Banks and the International Bankers have been intentionally ignored and allowed to function without boundaries and parameters. They have been inspired by greed and motivated only by the accumulation of wealth. (Reference: Eustace Mullins; “The Secrets of the Federal Reserve”).

The Honorable Elijah Muhammad told us in the 1970s with his book titled, "Fall of America" that there were two industries that one should always keep their eyes on—automobile industry and the steel industry because if they began to depreciate the fall of America is inevitable. The automobile industry is now seeking an economic bailout; the automobile industry is life bloodline of United States economy. This writer can remember how the scholars and social scientist dismissed Mr. Muhammad and now almost forty years later his words have been proving to be prophetic. (Reference: Elijah Muhammad: "The Fall of America").

None of the politicians, United States Congress or President-Elect Barack Obama have uttered one word about reforming the United States Federal Reserve System. This writer wonders, why? Surely they must know that the root of the United States and the world's economic crises are tied to this non-governmental and private entity called the United States Federal Reserve. Just imagine having the ability to create money out of thin air, now that is a serious magician trick and be able to perform the same magical trick for almost one hundred (100) years and only a hand full of people are able to see and detect that someone is pulling the purse strings and is altering reality and has turned the unbelievable into the believable. These money magicians are good, I mean really good. The crimes, pain, suffering, injustices, tyrannical acts, oppression, etc., they have heaped upon humanity, it's enough to make a brass monkey cry. Reference: William Greider; “Secrets of the Temple: How the Federal Reserve Runs the Country”).

This writer grew up in a Christian Baptist Church (perhaps was more liken to a fundamentalist Pentecostal church) and I can not recall the exact name of the hymn, but it went something like this, He has the world in his hand, He has the whole wide world in his hand" (I am not referring to Jesus or even God). These vipers literally have the entire world in their hand and at their disposal. The Invisible Rulers functions as Sovereign Gods and they direct the affairs of men and determine the political, economic, and social failures or prosperity of all nations. They have the ability to create human catastrophes by inducing all manner of artificial crises. (Reference: David Icke: “The Biggest Secret”).

They constantly manipulate the world's money and resources and then hide behind front organizations (here are two good ones—the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund) and then use their most lethal weapon—the media to constantly dumb down America and the world. The average person doesn't have a mere clue of what the hell is going on and they think this economic meltdown was just some bad decisions that were being made by top executives of these wealthy Fortune 500 companies which put us in this economic predicament. Many of them are beyond convincing because the corporate media is molding and shaping public opinion and is doing a nice job at it based on our level of ignorance. Who has the ability to call for the debt? (Reference: Gary Allen and Larry Abraham: “None Dare Call it Conspiracy”).

This is the sixty-four thousand dollar question. Surely not the executives and CEOs of Lehman Brothers, Fannie Mac, Freddie Mac, Citi Bank, AIG, Bear-Sterns, GM, etc., these are low-level operatives; they do not have that type of power and authority to determine the flow of the world's money; granted these are some powerful entities in their own right, but there are some much more powerful and sovereign entities than meet the naked-eye. They are truly invisible and are untouchable. (Reference: William Cooper: “Behold A Pale Horse.”)

Yes, the so-called economic meltdown and bailout is being orchestrated behind the curtain by those forces that possess the ability to make and print money (that is not backed by real currency or tangible collateral—gold and silver) and determine interest rates and determines the day too day value of America and the world's economy.

Also, President-Elect Obama will be inheriting two international wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and it just so happens to be two Islamic Nations. This translates to mean that the United States Foreign Policy relative to Islam and Middle East will continue to be strained because Obama has surrounded himself with the likes of his Chief of Staff Rahm Emmanuel who is without doubt a Zionist and will perhaps be instrumental in shaping the direction of United States Foreign Policy for the next eight (8) years. Who will be running the United States Government and have these forces already decided upon waging war against Iran? (Reference: Richard A. Clarke “Against All Enemies: Inside America’s War on Terror”).

President-Elect Obama just appointed Hillary Clinton as his Secretary of State, the New York Senator who in 2003 signed on to George Bush’s going to war against Iraq; although there was not any substantial evidence or intelligence that Saddam Hussein posed a threat to the region and/or there was no proof that he had acquired Weapons of Mass Destruction. Who interest or bidding Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will be lobbying for in the Middle East? (Reference: Scott McClellan; “What Happened: Inside the Bush White House and Washington's Culture of Deception”).

This writer knows for sure it will not be on behalf of Palestine, Lebanon, Syria, Iran, Afghanistan, etc. These appointees that Obama is making will not go into the Middle East with an objective perspective and the U.S. Foreign Policy will perhaps continue to be backwards and driven by the money changers and the war mongers. This writer and millions of others would like to see some balance in the Middle Eastern equation and, in particular in the Israeli-Palestinian issue—not some one sided debate. (Reference: Obadiah Shoher; “Sampson Blinded: A Machiavellian Perspective on the Middle East Conflict”).

This is not the solution to resolving this conflict; it will only heighten the contradictions and create more political and social tension in this war torn region. However, someone has to be bold enough to demand and mandate an equal conversation where both parties Israelis and Arabs are giving the integrity and respect to be heard. If not it clearly becomes the breeding ground for what is deemed in the eyes of the beholder as “terrorism” or “freedom fighters.” The ultimate cards rest in the hands of the United States. (Reference: Jimmy Carter: “Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid”).

However, this writer clearly understands that these two wars will not end until the Invisible Rulers decide and it will not be swayed by public opinion or by an act of the Executive branch or by United States Congress. The Rockefellers and Rothschilds are the two money masters who have a noose around the necks of the entire globe; they are fighting in Afghanistan over how the heroin trade is going to flow and the Taliban had fought the former USSR in a ten year war for the same commodity and now they are fighting the United States Government for this vast dope demand. (Reference: John Coleman; “Conspirators’ Hierarchy: The story of the Committee of 300”).

This conflict was never about combating so-called terrorism, it has always been about dope, the heroin trade. Pakistan has been a double agent for years—they have been on the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) payroll for many years and on Osama bin Laden payroll allowing dope to flow across its borders unabated and uninterrupted, the arrangement is called Dope Incorporated. Also, these den thieves are quick to say they have so-called joined the fight on terrorism—really! (Reference: George Tenet; “At the Center of the Storm: My Years at the CIA”).

Obama has kept U.S. Defense Secretary and war monger Robert Gates on the job and his reactionary war strategies in the Middle East will perhaps resemble the same old ideas, which he advised under President George Bush. There are really only three forms of real money gold and silver, oil and drugs—the majority of international conflicts are centered on this reality. But has anyone noticed that the candidate who ran on a platform of change has filled his cabinet positions with the same old reactionary politicians of prior administrations, is this the change he so eloquently articulated throughout his campaign that captivated the imagination and vision of America and the world.

It was deemed change you can believe in or was this just a meaningless campaign slogan that had no substance and now the proof is in the pudding. The Native Americans use to say the white man spoke with a fork tongue because he trampled and violated all the treaties he had signed with the Native Americans. They said he could not be trusted because he was a liar and thief. This is this writer’s view of politicians; all of them talk with a fork tongue and most of them are silver tongue lying lawyers. President-Elect Obama has already forgotten who brought him to the big dance and the big chair; this statement is only to imply that the electorate is mere cannon fodder and our vote do not mean damn thing; this man was hand picked and he has no loyalty to his visible constituents; his loyalty is strictly to the Invisible Rulers and American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). (Reference: John J. Mearsheimer and Stephen M. Walt “The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy).

Perhaps from another angle President-Elect Barack Obama did not pick his cabinet, but these appointments are being directed by the Bilderberger group, Council on Foreign Relations and the Trilateral Commission. The true forces that run the entire world; in fact Obama’s ascension to "power" and to the highest office in the world was made at the recommendation of these three entities; they set him on the throne and possess the power and authority to dethrone him, if he doesn't carryout their whims and wishes. (Reference: Daniel Estulin: “The True Story of the Bilderberg Group”).

Many of President-Elect Obama's cabinet choices are long standing members of the Bilderbergers, Council on Foreign Relations, and Trilateral Commission members, which gives America and the global community some indication of who will be running the United States Government. The same old faces and the same old agenda and politics as usual, perhaps will be the order of the day. This does not represent change to me because once again, low level operatives will be doing the bidding for the Invisible Rulers to further enslave humanity. If a man almost denies his ethnic and religious up bringing, thus crossing (betraying) the electorate wouldn't even be a thought. He did everything humanly possible to disassociate himself from his early Islamic roots and when the Al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahir allegedly called President-Elect Barack Obama a "House Negro”, it caught some people off guard. It was a dictum seldom used by other races to describe a certain aspect of African American behavior and it appeared a bit awkward coming from another oppressed ethnic people. Who are in dire need of allies. (Reference Carroll Quigley: "Tragedy and Hope”).

Zawahir stated:” You were born to a Muslim father, but you chose to stand in the ranks of the enemies of the Muslims, and pray the prayer of the Jews, although you claim to be Christian in order to climb the rungs of leadership in America. And in you and in Colin Powell, Rice and your likes, the words of Malcolm X (may Allah have mercy on him) concerning 'House Negroes' are confirmed."

Ayman al-Zawahir quoting from the words of the late Nation of Islam leader Minister Malcolm X has drawn some criticism relative to using the "House Negro" statement. Minister Malcolm X was critical of black apologist "Negro" leaders during the turbulent 1960s Civil Rights Era, which he said there are "two types of Negroes "Field Negroes" and "House Negroes" and Minister Malcolm X drew this analogy directly from what Historian Kenneth Stampp called the "Peculiar Institution" referring to Chattel Slavery, which created varying personality types according to the Historian Dr. John Blassingame who authored a sociological study titled, "Slave Community". Chattel Slavery (1555-1865) was an evil institution that affected the political, economic and social landscape of America. (Reference: John W. Blassingame; “The Slave Community”).

This is how Minister Malcolm X describes the "House Negro" and "Field Negro." Minister Malcolm X stated in a book written by Archie Epps titled, “Malcolm X and the American Negro Revolution: The Speeches of Malcolm X stated, “There were two kinds of slaves, the house Negro and the field Negro. The house Negroes—they lived in the house with the master, they dresses pretty good, they ate good. . .They loved the master more than the master loved himself. . . If the master’s house got caught on fire, the house Negro would harder to put the blaze out than the master would. If the master got sick, the house Negro would say, ‘What’s matter, boss, we sick? And if you came to the house Negro and said, “Let’s run away, let’s escape, let’s separate,’ the house Negro would look at you and say, ‘Man, you crazy. What you mean, separate? Where is there a better house than this?’

Minister Malcolm X further stated, “On that same plantation, there was the field Negro. The Field Negroes—those were the masses. The Negro in the field caught hell. He ate leftovers. In the house they ate high on the hog. The field Negro was beaten from morning to night; he lived in a shack, in a hut. . .He hated his master. He was intelligent. When the house caught on fire, he didn’t try to put it out; that field Negro prayed for a wind, for a breeze. When the master got sick, the field Negro prayed that he’d die. If someone came to the field Negro and said, ‘Let’s separate, let’s run’ he didn’t say, ‘where are we going?’ He’d say, ‘Any place is better than here!’ You’ve got field Negroes in America today. I’m a field Negro. The masses are the field Negroes.”

The Al Qaeda leader perhaps understood the social history of America, in particular and the African American in general, and the dynamics of power. We do know this much, they would not have put any man in the "Big Chair" to rock the chair, if he was not safe to be placed there; meaning based on Minister Malcolm X analogy they would not have put a "Field Negro" in charge of "Massa" plantation. They always have found the "right type of Negroes" and allowed them to make history or become history makers. So I totally understood the Al Qaeda leader’s statement and I must say I agreed with him, but they got some serious house cleaning to do relative to Arab Islam and the historical and modern African slavery dilemma.

Thus, whether you want to accept it or not President-Obama has signed on to the Invisible Rulers agenda; he is a political tool who will be loyal to doing their bidding. We have been duped into believing that the United States has made a huge step toward the continuing path of social progress based on a black token appointment. Obama's appointment is supposed to ease and quite racial tension, but we view this as token success, and this writer can say, it is a "House Negro" appointment. May be the Rockefellers, Rothschilds, DeBeers, Oppenheimers or perhaps the legendary Henry Kissinger is his master, but these names are not only the masters of Obama but are the masters over humanity. The Al Qaeda leader perhaps has forgotten that the Arabs are not in a moral position to critique the social history of African people’s experience under Chattel Slavery giving their own Arab brutal history of slavery in Africa under Islam and Arabism, which from the 8th Century to the 21st Century has been and are still involved in buying and selling black human cargo in Africa. So knowing the Arabs oppressive history in Africa, this writer took offense to the Al-Qaeda leader's less ingenious remarks. Whether not the Al-Qaeda leader made these allege remarks we will never know because it sound like something right out of the CIA play book. (Reference: Edward W. Blyden; "Christianity, Islam and the Negro Race")

Ralph Nader a former presidential candidate even he made a statement referring to President-Elect Obama as an "Uncle Tom" and even this characterization has historical inferences relating back to U.S. Chattel Slavery. Ralph Nader stated:” To put it very simply, he is our first African American president; or he will be. And we wish him well. But his choice, basically, is whether he’s going to be Uncle Sam for the people of this country, or Uncle Tom for the giant corporations.”

The black “Uncle Tom” personality was cunning, two-faced, and shiftless and was a traitor and a Judas who would consistently sell his own people out in order to be in the good grace of their Caucasian slave masters. This is what Minister Malcolm X had to say about the slave character "Uncle Tom." (Reference: Harriet Beecher Stowe; “Uncle Tom's Cabin; or, Life Among the Lowly”).

Malcolm X stated: Just as the slave master of that day used Tom, the house Negro, to keep the field Negroes in check, the same old slave master today has Negroes who are nothing but modern Uncle Toms, 20th century Uncle Toms, to keep you and me in check, keep us under control, keep us passive and peaceful and nonviolent. That's Tom making you nonviolent. It's like when you go to the dentist, and the man's going to take your tooth. You're going to fight him when he starts pulling. So he squirts some stuff in your jaw called Novocain, to make you think they're not doing anything to you. So you sit there and 'cause you've got all of that Novocain in your jaw, you suffer peacefully. Blood running all down your jaw and you don't know what's happening. 'Cause someone has taught you to suffer – peacefully. (Reference: Malcolm X Speech titled, “Message To The Grass Roots—Detroit; November 10, 1963).

This writer wonders why these slave analogies keep cropping up and may be it is out of political ignorance or may be it is subtle racism. But these insignificant matters are being created as distractions from the real issues. The Invisible Rulers are not concerned about race and gender of their servants; they use these variables as sidebars when necessary in order to create social division, disharmony and chaos, while they continue to fill their coffers at the expense of the suffering masses. Thus, believe me President-Elect Obama is no more of a "House Negro" than the other past forty-three (43) United States Presidents. All of them took their marching orders from a clandestine and hidden powerful Cabal. Yes, the U.S. President and all world presidents are slaves to the Invisible Rulers and perhaps Nader and Ayman al-Zawahir are in denial of this reality. (Reference: Naim Akbar; “Chains and Images of Psychological Slavery”).

Fahim A. Knight-EL Chief Researcher for KEEPING IT REAL THINK TANK located in Durham, NC; our mission is to inform African Americans and all people of goodwill, of the pending dangers that lie ahead; as well as decode the symbolisms and reinterpreted the hidden meanings behind those who operate as invisible forces, but covertly rules the world. We are of the belief that an enlightened world will be better prepared to throw off the shackles of ignorance and not be willing participants for the slaughter. Our MOTTO is speaking truth to power. Fahim A. Knight-EL can be reached at fahimknight@yahoo.com.

STAY AWAKE UNTIL WE MEET AGAIN,
Fahim A. Knight-EL