Build Your Own Village

Introduction

As the #BankBlack movement begins taking steam and black americans begin to collectively consider where, why and how they allocate their financial resources, it seems imperative to discuss what the end goal of divestment from mainstream institutions and financial self-determination could look like in the future for black people. The most immediate aim is clearly to secure black dollars and create an economy which encourages the development of black neighborhoods, period. From small-business loans, community revitalization projects, land grants and scholarship funds, controlling the financial systems would enable black americans to FINALLY allocate much needed resources towards developing a productive and self-sustained economy. To actually participate in the “American Dream” for the first time (yes, the first fucking time), and be able to provide a better life for their children.

Naturally, the uninformed reader will now ask, “haven’t black people always had the opportunity to create such an ecosystem for themselves?”. The question rings loudly in liberal echo-chambers and fuels the fires of “Bootstrap-ism”, or the idea that one can simply lift themselves into equal rights by the straps of their boots. So, without distracting from the main point too far, I ask bootstrap folks to Google the following: Reconstruction, Black Wall Street, Jim Crow, COINTELPRO, MOVE, the crack epidemic, mass incarceration, and the current persecution of #BlackLivesMatter activists. Each and every time black people have tried to better themselves, both socially and economically, their attempts have been met with resistance and, too often, violent oppression. Arguing that black people have not attempted to secure their own communities is not only ignorant, but disrespectful to the many black lives lost fighting for basic fundamental human rights.

Of course, nothing is new under the sun. Black intellectual/political thought has long since advocated for the establishment of black socioeconomic institutions. Activists like Ella Jo Baker and Fannie Lou Hamer and political thinkers such as W.E.B DuBois and John Henrik Clarke advocated for economic security. Marcus M. Garvey spoke at length about the need for black people to acquire their own sovereignty, albeit through land ownership in Africa. Women in the Black Panther Party spent tireless hours developing curriculum and teaching black children about their history and the need for black (socio-economic) power. Both Zora Neal Hurston (see Their Eyes Were Watching God) and Octavia Butler (see Seed to Harvest) wrote afro-futurist novels depicting black characters creating their own communities through the use of their inherent magical powers. I’m cherry picking the most convenient historical examples, but you get the idea.

Fast forward to July 11, 2016. Babu Omowale, National Minister for the New Black Panther Party (bear with me) discussed on New York’s 970 AM “The Answer” the goal for a “Black Nation” consisting of Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Alabama, and Georgia. “The end game is land ownership” said Omowale. “We just need to start migrating back to those states and taking control of the economics in those states…So it’s not a hard process for us to have our own country within a country.”

Before we proceed, let’s talk about the levels. Firstly, the New Black Panther Party damn sure ain’t our grandparent’s Panthers and we have to respect that distinction, for better or for worse. Personally, I think their whole approach is…misguided. Great example: Why would you bring assault rifles to Cleveland for the RNC? Also, why would you advertise said plans on Facebook? Again, the whole org. seems…misguided. And the same goes for my feelings on the Minister’s proclamation. I understand the importance of real estate, however I do not think combining an image of militarized blackness with the desire to conduct a wide-spread land grab is a good idea, especially given the current police state and racist vigilante culture we live in. For me, 2016 is about subtly, and as far as Ive seen the NBPP lacks in that department.

However, I cannot disagree with the Minister’s vision. As black americans begin making a concerted effort to secure their own financial future, does it not seem plausible that the next step would be to purchase land, source local materials and develop institutions from the ground up? Institutions which are fully owned — i.e. property and all material (buildings, machinery, etc.) and natural resources (water, crops, minerals, etc.) — and collectively operated by black americans (see cooperative economics). Institutions which foster financial, social, and cultural power systems rooted in blackness (see Jewish Americans). I think yes.

If you’re still reading this essay you likely understand that the black community has made repeated attempts to actualize their own socio-economic dreams within a country that has historically deferred them. We are all woke. The purpose of this essay series, Build Your Own Village, is to take the conversation further. To incorporate aspects of economic migration, land ownership, ecology and appropriate technology into a practical suggestion for creating a modern, agrarian, black community.