{"id":261,"date":"2012-07-19T18:44:14","date_gmt":"2012-07-19T18:44:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.blackactivistwg.org\/blog\/?p=261"},"modified":"2013-03-01T11:59:43","modified_gmt":"2013-03-01T17:59:43","slug":"the-tragic-betrayal-of-black-americas-intelligentsia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.blackactivistwg.org\/blog\/the-tragic-betrayal-of-black-americas-intelligentsia\/","title":{"rendered":"The Tragic Betrayal of Black America\u2019s Intelligentsia"},"content":{"rendered":"

Published in Issue 481 of The Black Commentator on July 19, 2012<\/a>
\nRepublished in Intrepid Report on July 24, 2012<\/a>
\nBy Larry Pinkney<\/p>\n

“The unpreparedness of the educated classes, the lack of practical links between them and the mass of people, and, let it be said, their cowardice at the decisive moment of the struggle will give rise to tragic mishaps.”<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

-Frantz Fanon<\/strong><\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The unthinkable and tragic betrayal by much of Black America’s intelligentsia in their blind support for the war mongering Barack Obama in this 21st century, will forever be the historical measuring rod of indictment, in the words of Malcolm X (el-Hajj\u00a0Malik\u00a0el-Shabazz), which defines “those who want[ed] freedom, justice and equality\u00a0for everyone<\/span>\u00a0and those who want[ed]\u00a0to continue the system of exploitation<\/span>.” There is not, nor was there ever, any in-between in this matter.<\/p>\n

At the “decisive moment of the struggle,” much of Black America’s so-called intelligentsia chooses to place pigmentation and hollow pride above principles and selflessness. Indeed, much of this intelligentsia continues<\/span>\u00a0today on this course of historical damnation at the expense of Black America collectively<\/span>, and humanity as a whole. They have sacrificed the common good for meaningless personal gratification. They have betrayed (and continue to betray) the masses of everyday ordinary Black, White, Brown, Red, and Yellow people in this nation and throughout Mother Earth. What they have done and who they are\u00a0must never be forgotten<\/span>.<\/p>\n

The\u00a0Black<\/span>\u00a0intelligentsia in particular knew, or should have known, better than many, that\u00a0any<\/span>\u00a0person\u00a0irrespective of color or gender<\/span>,\u00a0who rises to become the head (i.e. chief executive) of the\u00a0U.S.\u00a0Empire<\/span>\u00a0would not hesitate to:<\/p>\n

1)\u00a0give\u00a0trillions of dollars of the people’s money to corporate\u00a0banksters\u00a0and other Wall Street robber barons,<\/p>\n

2)\u00a0federally\u00a0eliminate the much needed single payer universal health care option,<\/p>\n

3)\u00a0militarily\u00a0bomb\u00a0Africa,<\/p>\n

4)\u00a0murder\u00a0women, men and children with incessant predator drone missile strikes upon other sovereign nations,<\/p>\n

5) utilize a self-legitimized ‘kill list’ to commit extrajudicial murders of ‘Americans’ and non-‘Americans’ alike without the bother of legitimate due process,<\/p>\n

6) sign into law the draconian NDAA – which calls for the indefinite detention in this nation of U.S. citizens – without charge, trial, judge, jury, or legal defense, and<\/p>\n

7)\u00a0continue\u00a0operating the torture chamber at the\u00a0U.S.\u00a0gulag known as\u00a0Guantanamo.<\/p>\n

Based upon historical analysis and principles, the Black intelligentsia<\/span>\u00a0knew, or should have known, all of these things\u00a0long before<\/span>\u00a0they were extended and\/or brought into existence by Barack Obama. Instead, this segment of the Black intelligentsia chose betrayal!<\/p>\n

This segment of the Black intelligentsia (i.e.\u00a0Amiri\u00a0Baraka) castigated, as being “rascals<\/span>,” etc., any and all political radicals of the Black intelligentsia who refused (and still refuse) to support this corporate brand Barack Obama. Still others in this segment of the Black intelligentsia campaigned vigorously (i.e. Cornel West) for the ‘election’ and installment of Obama as the head of the U.S. Empire. And then of course there is the relatively recent\u00a0absurd and utterly<\/span>\u00a0insane<\/span>\u00a0statement by Angela Davis adorning this war mongering, blood-drenched, corporate-owned Barack Obama, as somehow being someone who magically “identifies with the Black\u00a0radical<\/span>\u00a0tradition.” Such a statement is a repudiation of Black America’s historical struggles, and is devoid of both logic and sanity. Then there are certain wily fence-sitters of Black intelligentsia who attempt to ‘have their cake and eat it too’ by claiming that they are or were merely “critical” supporters<\/span>\u00a0of Obama. Yet, in the final analysis they knew and know full well that claiming “critical” support for Obama is tantamount to claiming that a woman about to give birth – is only\u00a0partially<\/span>\u00a0pregnant. Such a claim is ridiculous. One either supported or supports this systemic, double-talking, war mongering, corporate-owned Barack Obama – or one does not! One cannot give principled\u00a0and<\/span>\u00a0“critical” support\u00a0simultaneously<\/span>; and the Black intelligentsia was and is\u00a0quite cognizant<\/span>\u00a0of this.<\/p>\n

Notwithstanding his double-speak political rhetoric<\/span>, Barack Obama has indeed ‘redistributed the wealth’ of this nation. He has massively redistributed the wealth\u00a0from<\/span>\u00a0the public sectors, the dwindling middle classes, and the poor –\u00a0to<\/span>\u00a0the super-rich corporate\/military elite – which is\u00a0a fact which cannot possibly escape the awareness of the Black intelligentsia<\/span>\u00a0– and which is precisely why he was overwhelmingly supported by the corporate elite of Lockheed, Goldman Saks, and the assorted and sordid banking and pharmaceutical multinationals of Wall Street,\u00a0etc<\/span>.<\/p>\n

Those of the intelligentsia of Black America who have betrayed Black America, this nation, and humanity as a whole by their unprincipled support for Barack Obama, must be held accountable for their betrayal. They must be\u00a0remembered and repudiated<\/span>\u00a0for their\u00a0mis-leadership and their\u00a0enormous<\/span> disservice to humanity.<\/p>\n

Times are both perilous and exciting, but hanging precariously in the balance are the futures of everyday ordinary Black, White, Brown, Red, and Yellow people in this nation and around the world. The corporate-owned symbiotically-joined Democrat\u00a0and<\/span>\u00a0Republican party ‘foxes and wolves’ are, in real terms, “those who want to\u00a0continue<\/span>\u00a0the system of exploitation.” We must reject them both in favor of\u00a0collectively<\/span>\u00a0creating a political system based upon serving the aspirations and needs\u00a0of the many<\/span>\u00a0– not the pathology, subterfuge, and insatiable greed of the bloated few.<\/p>\n

Think about it and make your choice. But do it NOW!<\/p>\n

Onward, then, my sisters and brothers.\u00a0Each one, reach one. Each one, teach one. Onward!…<\/p>\n

Larry Pinkney<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0is a veteran of the Black Panther Party, the former Minister of Interior of the Republic of New Africa, a former political prisoner and the only American to have successfully self-authored his civil\/political rights case to the United Nations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. In connection with his political organizing activities, Pinkney was interviewed in 1988 on the nationally televised PBS News Hour, formerly known as The MacNeil\/Lehrer News Hour, and more recently on the nationally syndicated Alex Jones Show. Pinkney is a former university instructor of political science and international relations, and his writings have been published in various places, including The Boston Globe, San Francisco BayView newspaper, Black Commentator, Intrepid Report, Global Research (Canada), LINKE ZEITUNG (Germany), 107 Cowgate (Ireland and Scotland), and Mayihlome News (Azania\/South Africa). He is in the archives of Dr. Huey P. Newton (Stanford University, CA), cofounder of the Black Panther Party. For more about Larry Pinkney see the book,\u00a0Saying No to Power: Autobiography of a 20th Century Activist and Thinker<\/a>, by William Mandel [Introduction by Howard Zinn]. (Click\u00a0here<\/a>\u00a0to read excerpts from the book.)<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Published in Issue 481 of The Black Commentator on July 19, 2012<\/a>
Republished in Intrepid Report on July 24, 2012<\/a>
By Larry Pinkney<\/p>\n

“The unpreparedness of the educated classes, the lack of practical links between […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[5,4],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.blackactivistwg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/261"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.blackactivistwg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.blackactivistwg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.blackactivistwg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.blackactivistwg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=261"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/www.blackactivistwg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/261\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1877,"href":"https:\/\/www.blackactivistwg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/261\/revisions\/1877"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.blackactivistwg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=261"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.blackactivistwg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=261"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.blackactivistwg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=261"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}