Newspaper Page Text
8A
MAY 14,1998 AUGUSTA FOCUS
THIS WAY FOR BLACK EMPOWERMENT
By Dr. Lenora Fulani
Madness and the
Black community
ast weekend I participated
in a conference sponsored
by the East Side Center for
Social Therapy entitled
“Madness in the Second Half of
the Century: Looking Backat R.D.
Laing.” R.D. Laing was a Scottish
psychiatrist, and one of the most
radical figures in the 1960 s move
ment to humanize society’s treat
ment of the mentally ill. The East
Side Institute for Short Term Psy
chotherapy and the East Side Cen
ter for Social Therapy hosted a
two-day dialogue with psycho
therapistsand social scientists who
knew Laing personally—as pa
tients, students, colleagues or
friends—and practitioners and
leading theoreticians of the new
movements for radically humanis
tic psychologies and psychothera
pies. Together weexplored Laing’s
conception of “madness” as a part
of the human condition.
Laing is perhaps best known for
his belief that what the medical
profession regards as “madness”
is in fact the failure of the “mad”
individuals to adjust to a civiliza
tion driven to its own destruction.
They have “opted out” of society’s
mad game, though this withdrawal
causes enormous mental anguish
and suffering. Implicit in Laing’s
critique of traditional psychiatry
is the belief that ultimately, what
needs to be changed is the culture
of competitiveness, selfishnessand
violence that our children are
raised in and must learn to “ad-
Jjust” to. Laingexposed the politics
of madness, and during the 19605,
millions of people sympathized
with his views.
My reason for becoming a psy
chologist was to address and en
gage the issue of madness in the
Black community. In the midst of
that work I came across a quote by
Dr. King: “Today, psychologists
havea favorite word and that word
is maladjusted. I tell you today
that there are some things in our
social system to which I am proud
tobe maladjusted. I shall never be
adjusted to lynch mobs, segrega
tion, economic inequities, the mad
ness of militarism and self-defeat
ing violence. The salvation of the
world lies in the maladjusted.”
This quote is powerful and mov
ing. It also helps to illuminate a
serious dilemma in the lives of
African Americans, which is be
coming increasingly acute. A re
cent report by the Center for Dis
ease Controlin Atlantashows that
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suicide rates among Black youth
are up by 124 percent. What is the
dilemma that we face?
On the one hand, Dr. King's
notion of maladjustment is the
refusal to be complacent in the
face of an inhumane and unjust
culture. On the other hand, mal
adjustment in the Black commu
nity does not necessarily produce,
or get organized as, pro-social be
havior. Much of the time, “malad
justment” is manifested as activi
ties that are anti-social, violent,
self-destructive and self-defeating.
The dilemma is further exacer
bated by the fact that, historically,
American society has not exactly
welcomed the integration and ad
aptation of Black people. This
raises some very painful and diffi
cult issues for the rearing and so
cializing of our young people. Do
we teach them to “behave”—to
conform to the profoundly limit
ing and limited roles that society
has assigned to those it
marginalizes—or is there some
other alternative?
Ibelieve that thereisan alterna
tive, and that alternativeis perfor
mance. We must help our young
peopletobe “other” than whothey
are in a culture where they are
likely to be defined (and to define
themselves) as having nothing to
give. As a co-founder of the All
Stars Talent Show Network, and
the co-director ofthe Development
School for Youth, I have worked
for the past 15 years to bring a
performatory, social therapeutic
approach to the development of
inner city youth. The All Stars has
succeeded in creating an environ
ment where young people can take
control ofand transform their lives.
By “performing,” young people
break out of their societally deter
mined roles and “play” new ones,
thus opening up new possibilities
in their lives. This deeply human
activity is the furthest thing from
passive “adjustment” and a way
out of the madness of our society.
Lenora B. Fulani twice ran for
president of the U.S. as an inde
pendent, making history in 1988
when she became the first woman
and African American to geton the
ballotin all 50states. Dr. Fulaniis
currently a leading activist in the
Reform Party and chairs the Com
mittee for a Unified Independent
Party. She can be reached at 800-
288-3201 or at http://
www.Fulani.org.
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Kditorial
CIVIL RIGHTS JOURNAL By Bernice Powell Jackson
After affirmative action: Now what?
remember my first day in col
lege. Of the 750 or so stu
dents in my small women's
college, there were 30 of us
who were African American. And
that was the largest number of
black students in the schools’ hun
dred year history. It was a daunt
ing year, to say the least—real
culture shock for those 30 of us,
who were there because of the push
to get more “minority” studentsin
those days before affirmative ac
tion was called affirmative action.
Well, if early California college
admissions numbers are any indi
cation, college classrooms across
the nation may look a lot like they
did 30 years ago when I entered
college and tens of thousands of
students of color may find them
selves relegated only to those uni
versities which are the least selec
tive or to historically black or
Latino or Native American col
leges. Only the cream of the “cream
of the crop” of students of color
will have the advantage of attend
ing the nation’s most competitive
institutions of higher education.
In numbers recently released in
California, the state’s most com
petitive public universities showed
dramatic drops in black and His
panic student admissions. At the
University of California at Berke
ley, for example, the total pool of
African American, Hispanic, Na
ALONG THE COLOR LINE By Dr. Manning Marable
Black political prisoners:
The case of Abdul Haqq. Part I
n March 27, 5,000 people
‘3l (M gathered in Washington,
‘W D.C. to demand the re
lease of about 200 politi
cal prisoners unjustly held today
in the United States. Starting in
the morning at Malcolm X Park,
protesters marched across thecity,
arriving to demonstrate at
Lafayette Park, directly in front of
the White House. Called “Jericho
’98,” the mass rally brought to
gether representatives from
Latino, American Indian, African
American and other protest move
ments.
Angela Y. Davis, a leading black
feminist scholar and former politi
cal prisoner, highlighted a series
of powerful speakers and cultural
presentations, including American
Indian activist Dennis Banks,
Ramona Africa ofthe MOVE orga
nization, and recently released po
litical prisoner Geronimo Pratt.
Imprisoned 27 years for a crime
that hedid not commit, Pratt urged
demonstrators to take greater ac
tion against the injustices of the
prison industrial complex.
“Jericho '9B" reminds us that
the American media and the politi
cal establishment refuse to ac
knowledge that hundreds of men
and women are incarcerated in
this country. By falsifying and
destroying evidence, intimidating
witnesses, and physically assault
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tive American and Mexican Ameri
cans fell nearly 13 percent from
the previous year.
At the University of California
at Los Angeles, minority repre
sentation fell seven percent. These
declines are due to the passage of
Proposition 209 in California,
which bans the consideration of
race or ethnicity in the public sec
tor. Similar challenges to affirma
tive action are in process in Texas
and Michigan and arebeing threat
ened in other states across the
nation.
The tragedy of Proposition 209
is multi-fold. It will be tragic for
students of color (with the excep
tion of Asian Americans who are
not under-represented on these
campuses) who are good to very
good students, but who will not be
able to attend the more competi
tive schools because their test
scores cannot compete. It will
impact not only these students
themselves, but their future fami
lies and communities as well if
they are forced to lower their sights.
Many who might have made it out
of poverty through education will
find it harder to do so.
It will be tragic for communities
of color which so desperately need
well-educated, articulate and
thoughtful leaders to help us over
come nearly overwhelming prob
lems of poverty, poor education
ing prisoners, law enforcement
officers and government authori
ties are guilty of gross violations of
human rights. Some of their most
prominent political victims in
clude: American Indian Movement
activist Leonard Peltier, who was
framed for a murder and impris
oned almost a quarter of a cen
tury; Janine Phillips Africa of the
MOVE organization; Marshall
Eddie Conway of the Black Pan
ther Party for Self Defense; Sekou
Odinga of the Black Liberation
Army; Angela Davis’ former co
defendant, Ruchell Magee, who has
been a political prisoner for nearly
30 years; and of course the coura
geous journalist/activist Mumia
Abu Jamal,
There are hundreds of “legal
lynchings” inside the U.S. each
year. Consider, for example, the
case of Abdul Haqq.
Abdul Haqq isa 50-year-old black
man who, throughout his life, has
been active in efforts to empower
the African-American community.
In early 1980 s, Haqq was a leader
in the campaign to eradicate ille
gal drugs from black neighbor
hoods in Cleveland. Relocating to
New York City, Haqq participated
in starting the Black Men’s Move
ment Against Crack (BMM), which
mobilized African Americans to
fight drugs. In 1986, Haqq estab
lished the Harvey Brown Youth
and housing, a multitude of health
crises, high drug and alcohol ad
diction, deadly violence and not
enough positive role models. Who
will provide medical and legal ser
vices for the African American and
Latino communities which so des
perately need them?
It will be tragic for our nation as
well. As we stand with one foot in
the 20th century and another in
the 21st and we prepare to enter a
new millennium where people of
color will be in the majority in
about 50 years, it seems that our
nation’s racism may well threaten
its very existence. It’s kind of like
shooting yourself in ‘the foot to
deny future leaders the opportu
nity to get the best education they
can possibly get. The fact is that
diversity in student populations,
police and fire departments, in the
business, legal, academic and medi
cal worlds is good for all Ameri
cans, not just for communities of
color.
And a recent New Yorkerarticle
pointed to an unintended and un
foreseen byproduct of Proposition
209 and its clones. It seems that
many of our top educational insti
tutions have recognized the value
of a diverse student body. “To the
extent this leaves us a less diverse
campus, it diminishes us,” said
Robert Berdahl, chancellor of the
University of California at Berke-
Brigade, a community organiza
tion teaching black and Latino
youths self defense and ways to
resolve conflicts nonviolently.
When Haqq'sand others’ efforts
led to charges that New York Po
lice Department (NYPD) officers’
were involved in drug trafficking,
the cops decided that enough was
enough. The New York media
soon exposed that anillegal NYPD
counter intelligence surveillance
unit was tracking the BMM'’s ac
tivities. In 1987, Haqq and two
other BMM membersin a car were
stopped by police and framed on
gun possession charges. Abdul
Haqq was convicted of weapons
possession and was forced to spend
eight years in prison.
Upon hisrelease, Haqq immedi
ately returned to black commu
nity organizing and the education
of African-American youth. When
an African-American male, Aswan
Keshawn Watson, was gunned
down by the NYPD, Haqq became
involved in the local mobilization
against this blatant case of police
misconduct and brutality. Once
again, law enforcement agencies
determined that Haqq was creat
ing too many problems on the “out
side.” He would have to be si
lenced by being returned to prison.
Abdul Haqq was arrested and
charged with the murder of a Cleve
land tavern owner back in 1984.
ley. Thus, many instituti-ns arg
looking at other predictr.s of q'
student’s ability. |
But early numbers show thal
whileeliminating test scores helpd
more poor European American stu
dents, it does little to help African
American and Hispanic stndents)
But if score requirements for all
studentsare lowered, the academig
standards of the institutions wil}
be threatened. Said one off' +ial in
the New Yorker article, barring a
miracle in elementary and sccond
ary preparation of studentsof. olor,!
- “color blind admissions will soon
produce either public universities,
without competitive admisions,,
public universities without ad-|
equate funds, orboth.” Either will!
result in the end of the great public|
universities, he warned. !
I just heard Johnny Cnchran|
address a group of African Ameri-|
cans in public administration,
warningthat wemaybeenteringa
new post-Reconstructionera. “You!
will be dealing with the nex( gen-|
eration of Jim Crow,” he wm-ned,!
calling it “Jim Crow Jr.” He de-!
scribed Jim Crow Jr. as » more!
subtle version of his father. But if!
the next generation of students,
findsitselfenteringall-white class-|
rooms like I did, it won’t be so!
subtle and we truly will have gone|
back a whole generation. !
Incredibly, the old murder casfl
was “reopened” according to au
thorities, because a police infor
mant or “jail house snitch” told:
Cleveland police that he now re-|
called having “overheard” Haqq:
tell someone else that he had mur-:
dered the bar owner. This myste
rious testimony, without a shred,
of actual physical evidence, forced:
Hagqq back to jail. |
After public pressure, Haqq was|
finally released on $50,000 bail|
and is out awaiting trail. How-|
ever, Haqq has been ordered by,
the judge not to leave the Cleve-!
land area. He is unable to return!
to his home in New York to raise;
funds and gather evidence for his:
defense. If convicted, Haqq will be
incarcerated probably for the rest
of his life.
Can we stand by silently when
innocent, dedicated black activists
like Abdul Haqq are unjustly im
prisoned? In defense of our com
munities, our children and our
selves, we must actively oppose
these violations of Constitutional
and human rights.
Dr. Manning Marable is profes
sor of History and director of the
Institute for Research in African
American Studies at Columbi
University. “Along the Color Line”
appears in over 325 publications
throughout the United States and,
internationally.