US Protests and the House Negro Syndrome

US Protests and the House Negro Syndrome

Since the George Floyd protests started, opposition has come from a particular demographic – outright racists and non- racists who are in denial about their role. However, a particular group of individuals caught my attention – ‘blacks’ that are countering the efforts of anti-racists who come from various backgrounds.

White supremacist ideologies must never be condoned in any way, shape or form. Those at the receiving end will never see anything good or beneficial in protests. To the beneficiaries of social inequalities, protests portend a change in status quo. Protests by their very essence are spontaneous, and could take many forms – riots to revolutions. For example, the French Revolution would not have been encouraged by the ruling elite, but it was a catalyst that led to societal change.

In analysing intricacies associated with the protests, Malcolm X's ‘House Negro’ terminology comes to mind, with particular emphasis on the physically enslaved using the same phraseology as the slave master, underpinning the tragedy of the house Negro being not just physically incapacitated but mentally enslaved.

“When the master would be sick, the house Negro identified himself so much with his master he'd say, "What's the matter boss, we sick?" His master's pain was his pain. And it hurt him more for his master to be sick than for him to be sick himself.” – Malcolm X

The sickness of the modern-day House Negro – “We sick?” In a contemporary context, who is really sick of the protests? The far-right racists, the non-racists who are peeved at the anti-racists standing against systemic racism, and the modern-day ‘House Negro’ supporting racist causes.

A dire manifestation of mental enslavement is self-hate. One of the manifestations of self-hate is the modern day house Negro - Uncle Tom or Aunt Jemima – willingly pandering to right-wing extremist agenda, just to stand out.

I have seen a couple of videos by females of African descent that are essentially pushing the agenda of right-wing extremists, and their supporters - conscious and subconscious. These videos are gleefully shared by the right-wing and one video in particular, by a lady not worthy of mention, was retweeted by the bunker –hiding twitter-in-chief and totem of white supremacy.

Personally, if my video appeared on right-wing media channels, I would be very worried. Except of course, the culprit in question is receiving some sort of benefits - monetary, social media popularity, notoriety? Or is it just the symptomatic exhibition of self-hate?

Those in this execrable category are more or less saying “Hey look at me, I am OK! I am just different – I am not going with the crowd.” At times, doing so might actually make you appear witless! This isn't about going with the crowd; it's about being sensible and doing the right thing! Fighting against systemic injustices has nothing to do with crowd-pleasing – it is a noble cause.

Dear modern-day House Negro, you are definitely not OK, and are trying really hard to be different. It takes a special level of depravity and mental derangement to normalise the deployment of attention-seeking antics over the killing of a human being, and another level of psychosis to attempt tarnishing a murder victim’s image during the fight for justice and protest against institutionalized racism.

For all categories of people against the George Floyd protests, societal problems have long existed before but you suddenly found your voice during protests about the killing of a human being by the police in broad daylight!

How very convenient! You could have started your protest any day - pick any day of the year – before George Floyd was killed. Maybe, your ‘cause’, however warped, could have been taken seriously. You can't feed off the protest of others, and try to smear a legitimate cause against a systemic issue. Start your own protest and gather your own crowd. In fact, if your brother, relative or friend is killed like George Floyd, be the first to spit on the grave of your loved one with your mistimed and misdirected rants about the existence of other societal issues.

But for the persistence of protests, the matter may have been swept under the carpet, like many other injustices of systemic racism. So far, the 4 officers involved have been charged with various degrees of murder and manslaughter.

Any system that promotes the dehumanization of human beings – particularly those of African descent – must be resisted. As someone who has experienced racism on a professional level, I actively support efforts against discrimination.  

At this juncture, it must be explicitly stated that the George Floyd protests are not primarily about one individual. Floyd - like many other known and unknown victims, are the symbolic catalyst that trigger protests against an unjust system.

People are generally reacting to centuries of suppression and subjugation, with pent-up anger and frustration. Any opposition to protests is supporting injustice.

Incidentally, I watched a video of George Floyd speaking against gun crime and advocating for peace. So George Floyd having a criminal record is subjective, and referencing of violence in black communities does not justify his murder – these are a gross otiosity to the core issues. So those that raise black on black violence or other issues miss the point by a mile. Should people not speak out about a crime, racial inequality or social injustices because of the other many issues affecting various communities? That would be counterintuitive.

As an analogy, when people are actively trying to extinguish fire at burning a house, you don't bring up the existence of other houses in the area. Everybody knows about the existence of other houses. Though issues can be dealt with generally, the current situation must be addressed exigently.

For instance, white on white violence exists as well, so in a situation where a white person is killed by the police for example, imagine the absurdity of raising white on white violence in such a context. Such arguments about violence in black communities are a counterproductive distraction that can easily be punctured.

If the searchlight is narrowed on any community, there will be noticeable differences, and individual biases ­– even amongst family members. However, there's a difference between individual cases and systemic prejudice. The searchlight should be focused on the real issues. In this regard, the real issue is about toxic and institutionalized racism. When blacks kill each other, are they doing it backed by an institution, especially one of authority - sworn to serve and protect?         

In a predominantly white population, blacks are still overwhelmingly more at the receiving end of systemic injustices - mass incarceration and police brutality.

The facts don't lie! Based on statistics “Black Americans 2.5X More Likely Than Whites to Be Killed By Police”.

Some victims have been killed for just walking – Trayvon Martin was killed walking back home from buying Skittles at a local store. Some victims have been killed for just sitting down at home minding their business – Botham Jean was killed by a police officer at home. Victims have been killed for just jogging – Ahmaud Arbery was killed for jogging through a familiar exercise route. There are so many scenarios of people’s lives being taken for no justifiable reason at all.

Other victims are in prison because they couldn’t afford bail for minor crimes or in some cases, no crime at all. A classic example is the story of Kalief Browder. Browder was incarcerated for 3 years – two of which were in solitary confinement – for allegedly stealing a backpack. He was imprisoned 2010 – 2013, because his family could not make bail, and was eventually released without any charge. Sadly, he committed suicide 2 years after being released at the age of 22.

A system that criminalizes a class of people and has different prison sentences for whites and non-whites. Based on statistics, 97 % of victims in prison had plea bargains without any trial – mandatory minimum sentences, and are majority minor offenders. With over 2 million people in jail, the US Prison Industrial – Complex is a money-making business. The enterprise is more or less in cahoots with the judicial system and has been linked with providing free labour for some industries – just like the days of slavery.

Taking all these facts into cognisance, and other related issues, the system was designed to subjugate and suppress a class of people. And more worrisome are the lingering effects on the psyche of the victims and their respective communities.

“They cripple the bird's wing, and then condemn it for not flying as fast as they.” – Malcolm X

© M.B.O 2020