The Struggle for Freedom and Independence In 2020

Hotep (Peace)!!!

Take notes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(Note: This commentary has been inspired by social media discussions and debates on the Nation of Islam from Black Sunni Muslims, Nation of Islam Muslims, Black people, and oppressed people in the Essex County area of New Jersey on my way back from the Nation of Islam’s Saviors Day Convention in Chicago, Illinois in 2019)

Saudia Arabia, Pakistan, Jordan,Turkey, Qatar, Kuwait, Libya, Malaysia are all Muslim countries based on Al-Islam and nationalism. They have flags representing their nation-states. These Muslims have a land to call their own. Master Fard Muhammad and the Most Honorable Elijah Muhammad, the founders of the Nation of Islam in 1930, worked to build a nation for Muslims and Black people in America. The Nation of Islam acquired land, established international trade, and founded businesses independent of the white power structure. To represent independence, they gave Muslims and Black people a flag, the Star and Crescent. They did it the same way the Honorable Marcus Garvey gave back people the Red, the Black, and the Green Black Liberation Flag in the early 20th Century under the Universal Improvement Association (UNIA).

The Nation of Islam was successful at building a nation. But someone, and the White power structure, came along in the 1970’s and convince oppressed Black people that we should reject Elijah Muhammad’s Black liberation theological tasfir (Arabic word for interpretation) of Al-Islam, Black consciousness, Black nation building, Black independence, and the Star and Crescent Flag. They told us that our flag must be the American Flag. A flag that was created under the enslavement and the oppression of Black people!!!! A flag that was not created by Muslims, nor Black people!!!!!!!! A flag that was created by racist white slave-masters. A flag that was created by slave-owners of Black people. They came along to tell us that we did not need any flags to represent Black people anymore, because we do not need Black Nationalism anymore amongst Black people in America. Someone came along and told us that our oppression is over. They told us that we have reached the American dream and the American promise land.

At the death of the Most Honorable Elijah Muhammad in 1975, his seventh son, Warith
Deen Mohammad (former named Wallace Muhammad) took over the leadership of the mighty Nation of Islam. In three years, the Nation of Islam, the largest Islamic organization in America was dismantled. There was no more Nation of Islam. It was replaced by Sunni Al-Islam. All of the
Nation of Islam’s Mosques were closed for public meetings that were at one time
used as a platform for organizing Muslims and Black people for liberation
struggle. They were turned into a masjid (Arabic for mosque) now just used for salaat (Arabic for prayer). The Fruit of Islam (F.O.I) and Muslim Girls Training-General Civilization Class
(MGT-GCC), the weekly military training of Muslims, Blackmen and Blackwomen,
were abolished. Its’ Black liberation tafsir on Al-Islam was replaced by a more
moderate American, and some aspects Arabic centered tasfir. After three years,
the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan, who join the Nation of Islam under the
most Honorable Elijah Muhammad and Malcolm X, could not take the destruction of Nation of Islam moving forward. He left Imam Warth Deen Mohammad’s leadership. He saw how the fall of the Nation of Islam, help set the Black community back deeper under the yoke of oppression
in America. Therefore, he went on to rebuild the work of the Most Honorable
Elijah Muhammad and the Nation of Islam to fight against White domination and
Black oppression. He reestablished the F.O.I and MGT-GCC for the training of Muslims,
Blackmen, and Blackwomen to help empower Muslims, Blackmen, and Blackwomen.
Although successful at rebuilding the work of the Nation of Islam, businesses, Nation of Islam schools, community centers, and the work of the Most Honorable Elijah Muhammad, it has been a long struggle to win back the attention and respect of Muslims and Black people as a legitimate
Islamic organization.

Although the White power structure, and their Black supporters, convinced our people that Black oppression is over, our people are still oppressed.

We are still without some land, limited resources, and Black businesses that we can call our own. Black people have not been able to generate Black wealth equal to White wealth due to hundreds of institutionalized racism, slavery., and segregation in America.

We still are owed reparations, but this government, and all of their elected officials, will not pay it forward to Black people to remedy the inequalities between Black people and white people in America. Even when we had President Barack Obama in the White house, reparations were not given to us. (Side bar note to Black people: Maybe we should have known the jig was up with Barack when he was running for the office of President. A white journalist asked him did he support reparations, and without hesitation, the he said NOOOOOOOO)!

When I was in Germany last summer studying the Jewish Holocaust and European history. One of the seminars I had to attend was about Nations solving injustice issues with countries, or people, that were inflicted with dehumanization and complete destruction, like what Germany did to the Jews in Europe around World War II. At the seminar, a German Jewish Woman was to give an analysis of the subject. This woman named Cilly Kugelmann, who was the former executive director of the Jewish Memorial in Berlin, this memorial is one of the largest memorials for Jews in Europe, gave a shocking perspective. She said something that still resonates with me to this day. She opened her talk starting with Black people. She said that the only way Black people will experience real equality, and true freedom, is when America gives them their reparations, like the way Germany did to the Jews!!! She said that the Jewish people received Billions of dollars in reparations, a Land, and a flag to call their own, Israel. Man, that was deep!!!! I said to myself, there are forces at work to make sure that this never happens to Black people. But I also said to myself, that my own people will be the first to say that they, the US government, will never give us reparations, land, or a flag to call own. Then I remembered that this has already happened. Some us came before Black people and persuaded us that we do not need to demand from this government our reparations, land, and allow us to create a flag of our own to represent the Black Nation.

But the thing I must always remember is that Black freedom, Black empowerment, and Black independence are threats to the power structure. In the 20th century, although Black people were moving masses of Black people for Black power independently from White people, particularly from the Nation of Islam, another force came on the scene to end Black empowerment. Steps were taken by a secret racist government program that was put in place to completely annihilate Black people’s march toward Black liberation in the 1950’s, 60’s, and 70’s called the US Counter Intelligence Program ( COINTELPRO).

The US Cointelpro (Counter Intelligence Program) worked at destroying any and all Black Liberation Movements that came up in the Black community to restore our broken Black Identity, our struggles to fight for land, and establish a flag to represent the Black Nation. They attacked, discredited, and neutralized Black leaders and Black revolutionary movements like the Most Honorable Elijah Muhammad and the Nation of Islam, Malcolm X, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr and the Civil Rights Movement, Huey P. Newton and the Original Black Panther Party, and the Republic of New Afrika Movement. They were successful at removing Black leaders and organizations from leading positions in Black Community down to some sort of Black History foot note in February!!! The purpose was to create chaos and disorganization in the Black community, which is what it is doing now!!!!

The following is an excerpt of the Count Intelligence Program (COINTELPRO) created by J. Edgar Hoover, the former F.B.I Director from 1935 to 1972:

The FBI Sets Goals for COINTELPRO

Under Director J. Edgar Hoover, the FBI's COINTELPRO (Counterintelligence Program) was aimed at investigating and disrupting dissident political groups within the United States. In the 1960's, COINTELPRO's targets frequently included civil rights activists, both those who espoused non-violence, like Martin Luther King, and those that Hoover referred to as "black nationalist hate groups," like the Black Panthers. This document outlines the program's goals in attempting to limit the effectiveness of such groups. In practice, the FBI used infiltration, legal harassment, disinformation and sometimes extra-legal intimidation and violence against King, the Panthers, and other black activist groups in its attempt to discredit and disrupt them.
Goals
For maximum effectiveness of the Counterintelligence Program, and to prevent wasted effort, long-range goals are being set.
1. Prevent the COALITION of militant black nationalist groups. In unity there is strength; a truism that is no less valid for all its triteness. An effective coalition of black nationalist groups might be the first step toward a real “Mau Mau” [Black revolutionary army] in America, the beginning of a true black revolution.
2. Prevent the RISE OF A “MESSIAH” who could unify, and electrify, the militant black nationalist movement. Malcolm X might have been such a “messiah;” he is the martyr of the movement today. Martin Luther King, Stokely Carmichael and Elijah Muhammed all aspire to this position. Elijah Muhammed is less of a threat because of his age. King could be a very real contender for this position should he abandon his supposed “obedience” to “white, liberal doctrines” (nonviolence) and embrace black nationalism. Carmichael has the necessary charisma to be a real threat in this way.
3. Prevent VIOLENCE on the part of black nationalist groups. This is of primary importance, and is, of course, a goal of our investigative activity; it should also be a goal of the Counterintelligence Program to pinpoint potential troublemakers and neutralize them before they exercise their potential for violence.
4. Prevent militant black nationalist groups and leaders from gaining RESPECTABILITY, by discrediting them to three separate segments of the community. The goal of discrediting black nationalists must be handled tactically in three ways. You must discredit those groups and individuals to, first, the responsible Negro community. Second, they must be discredited to the white community, both the responsible community and to “liberals” who have vestiges of sympathy for militant black nationalist [sic] simply because they are Negroes. Third, these groups must be discredited in the eyes of Negro radicals, the followers of the movement. This last area requires entirely different tactics from the first two. Publicity about violent tendencies and radical statements merely enhances black nationalists to the last group; it adds “respectability” in a different way.
5. A final goal should be to prevent the long-range GROWTH of militant black organizations, especially among youth. Specific tactics to prevent these groups from converting young people must be developed.

Just look at today's Black community since the destruction of the Black liberation movements by cointelpro in the 1950s, '60s, and '70s. Black people are dying at alarming rates from police violence and senseless Black on Black violence. They are limited resources to help our people find a way out of drug addiction and alcoholism. The Black community is experiencing depression levels of unemployment rates with no plan in sight to address this issue. The prison system is filled with disproportionate numbers of Black men and Black women. Recidivism is high amongst Black men and Black women in the penal system. Black men and Black boys’ masculinities are being emasculated in America. Black women are the most disrespected group of women in the United States of America. Since there are very few independent Black schools, high levels of mis-education taking place in American classrooms in the Black community. We experience High unequal numbers of Black businesses in the Black community. After hundreds of years of slavery our people suffered in America, there were no mental health treatment centers to help our people readjust to normal life from the horrors of enslavement. And to this day, there are a limited number of mental health facilities in existence in our community to help Black folks find the therapy needed to reduced dysfunction in ourselves and Black families. We have Black faces in high places, but no real power to help improve the lives of Black people suffering in America. Far and few Black /Afrikana Studies Departments and programs across colleges and universities in America. No bridge to link Africa with American resources to help our people on the continent with resources to rebuild Africa after hundreds of years of slavery and colonialism by America and her European allies.

But the only Black leader and Black organization still left fighting the onslaught of cointelpro is the Nation of Islam under the leadership of the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan. This organization is still on the battlefield fighting for a Black Liberation theological tafsir of Al-Islam, reparations, land, a flag to call our own, and Black Power.

The conspiracy to destroy any movement for real freedom in America is still happening now to prevent us from taking power and fighting for justice in America!!!!

Now the attacks are being targeted heavy at the Nation of Islam. The power structure is working hard, with some Islamic clergy and their Black supporters that are backed by the power structure, the media, and informants, to discredit the Nation of Islam as a legitimate Islamic organization with the Muslim (Ummah). They say the Nation of Islam is not a real Islamic movement. Although the Nation of Islam has its’ own Black liberation tafsir (interpretation) of the Holy Qu’ran and Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad (s.’a.s) that some Muslims may disagree with, and they have that right to, but overall the Nation of Islam stands on the 5 pillars of Al-Islam that all Muslims must stand on within the Muslim Ummah (community), especially the first pillar Laa Ilaha Illallah Muhammadur Rasulullah (Arabic for there is no god worthy of worship except Allah, Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah) that all Muslims believe. However, the power structure is using their Black Liberation theological tasfir to turn Muslims and Black people away from the Nation of Islam by constantly dispensing false information about the Nation of Islam. As if Black Muslims cannot have their own interpretation of Holy Qu’ran and the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad (s.’a.s) to fit their own Black experience in America and in the world.

Another way the power structure attempts to use cointelpro at the Nation of Islam is labeling this organization a hate group. For the record, the Nation of Islam does not hate anyone in the world. This organization has not violently attacked white people, gays, and lesbians, or Jewish people the way the Klue Klux Klan (KKK), and other the racist White hate groups do in America and in the world.

We must be careful of the dirty tricks that are being played in our community. In recent times, we have had Black Movements pop up (i.e. Black Lives Matter Movement) and then quickly disappear. But the Nation of Islam has been consistently organizing Muslims and Black people for liberation for over 80 years. The Nation of Islam has been responsible for the establishment of Al-Islam and Black consciousness in America. This is the last of the national and international independent Black Muslim organizations left in the Black community. If we do not protect this organization, it too will be gone, and the Black community will be void of an independent voice to challenge white supremacy, racism, and Black self-hatred. Black people will be crushed under the weight of White domination. The Nation of Islam will be a footnote in February during Black History Month!!! And this is the goal of White power structure!!!!

Hotep!!!

-Bashir Muhammad Akinyele is a History Teacher, Black Studies Teacher, Community Actvist, Chairperson of Weequahic High School's Black History Month Committee in Newark, NJ, commentary writer, and Co-Producer and Co-Host of the All Politics Are Local, the number #1 political Hip Hip radio show in America.

Note: Spelling Afrika with a k is not a typo. Using the k in Afrika is the Kiswahili way of writing Africa. Kiswahili is a Pan -Afrikan language. It is spoken in many countries in Afrika. Kiswahili is the language used in Kwanzaa. The holiday of Kwanzaa is celebrated from December 26 to January
1.
#Hotep
#afrocentricity
#nationofislam
#kemet
#blackthelogy
#kwanzaa
#blackstudies