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As I stumble, it is good for me to remember to humble. To be willing and open to correction. To see how the language we choose and use can contradict the very things we claim to stand for. It is obvious to me reading all these posts by white people how very far we are and how we all still fall into this white mindset …but I firmly know all of this is part of the process for us to work at in doing our part in repairing this breach against humanity. This work does start and is continual in each of us.
My question was a question asking for clarification to what you initially said on this post.
I wanted to be clear as to what you were saying before I fully responded.
You initially said this:
“…but rather calling ones to the heartbeat to remember who and what we are defending.”
I then initially asked:
“Who and what are we whites defending?”
You answered a “what” by saying
“trying to work towards and defending the goals of Africa for the Africans at home and abroad.”
You didn’t answer to what you meant when you said “who” in your initial post….I assumed by how you clarified the “what” that you meant “who” as in Africans.
I was looking for clarification and asked:
"Do you think that the reason that these issues are brought up is to call us whites to defend Africans or the goals of the Rastafari Movement?"
Since you dropped the “who” in your further clarification, I was trying to see if you changed your mind about feeling that “these issues are brought up to remind us “who” we are defending.”
This question was how could it be either of them?
How is it that us whites being asked to face the reality of racism and white supremacy “a call for ones to remember who and what we are defending?”
Do you think Africans are calling us to defend them? They don’t need our defense. They need us to back off with our ignorant arrogance. For us whites to think that Africans need our defense is contradictory to us “defending the goals of Africa for the African.”…Self-determination. And if we took that statement literally….it would read the same way…How do we defend the goals of Africa for the African?
The goals we should be defending are the cornerstones of the Rastafari Movement …Truth, Rights, and Justice….how do we do this? It is logical if we consider the context of ourselves in the present day reality of the world.
How come we whites have a hard time with taking collective responsibility? How are we going to break down white supremacy? We have reaped from the oppression of Africans. What are we going to do to correct that? If we say we are about justice…how do we meet it? We whites have obviously not gotten ourselves together. We carry on with our superiority complexes and obliviousness. To really be working toward the goals of the Rastafari Movement, we would pick up one of the calls at the foundation of this Movement, Reparations….not just donations contributions or raising funds…but first of all realizing in ourselves the white mentality of arrogance and ignorance we are reared in…a sure sign of this mentality is when we deny that we are unrightfully privileged and receive unearned benefits. Another sign is when we who do see this but don’t practically take up the responsibility. If we acted as strongly as we fervently claim to be, about Truth and Right, maybe we would start building some morality and character….becoming implements of the creator instead of complicit tools of destruction.
Also even though you say you didn’t know what I meant when I said:
"Do you think that the reason that these issues are brought up is to call us whites to defend Africans or the goals of the Rastafari Movement?"
How did you come to this statement?
“no, these issues are not brought up for our benefit, that is not the proper focus. it is not about US."
I did not ask if you thought they were brought up for the benefit of us white people. How did you think I was speaking about it being brought up for our white benefit?
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