Organizing A Race for Action

Organizing A Race for Action

Welcome everyone to another week everyone.

The topic we are introducing this week is a heavy one and truthfully, it’s a tumultuous task to achieve. However, it is one that must be carefully considered.

Organizing A Race for Action is a chapter from the book, The Destruction of Black Civilization written by Chancellor Williams. If you haven’t heard of the book, you could always read a review online, youtube the audio book or simply buy it and see why so many of our scholars have quoted from this impressive piece of work. For sake of time, I will not be highlighting the author himself, however, his dedication to our cause should never be taken for granted.

Chancellor Williams

 

This chapter and the following one titled, The Shape of Things to Come: A Master Plan, help to outline a…

functioning framework of a unifying Race Organization of a kind never present to the black race before.

Chapter 15, Page 341

If we truly are to come together as a people, then we must take heed from those who have prepared the way.

Like the old saying goes,

    The worlds of the elders do not lock all the doors; they leave the right door open.

Zambian Proverb.

Here’s our review of Organizing a Race for Action and what’s involved.

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Enjoy all.

 

For those who would love to follow. The notes are below.

To return to our greatness does not require naiveté, instead it requires a balanced approach. We get a sense of that when Chancellor Williams mentions that…

The total membership has to be mutually and individually involved in activities which each feels is important and will directly beneficial to him/her all in his/her lifetime.

Also…

Economic activities are so fundamental in any truly upward movement.

And the ever important..

All community enterprises, contrary to capitalism, will be owned and operated by the people in the community.

Page 343-344, Destruction of Black Civilization

 

The plan has been divided into areas of interest, or as Chancellor Williams calls it Divisions of Structure.

Each Division will be briefly outlined and will be accompanied by an organization past or present as an example of what is already in place.

One Love!

The Division of Economic Planning and Development

Should be the foundation of the most important activities of the whole race.

All community enterprises shall be cooperatively owned and controlled by the people of the community.

Example: Collective Black People Movement’s Economic Plan

To summarize, for every dollar donated it would be distributed among the organization to fund various projects with the plan.

Their website states how little one would have to come out of pocket in order to assist in the efforts towards self-reliance.

If a 1000 Black People come together and put 27 cents a day into a collective account, after 1 year we would have generated $98,550.

For more information on the CBPM’s Economic Plan, click here.

Economic Departments

Promotion of Community Cooperative Enterprises

  • To conduct surveys to determine what the people want and need.
  • Soundness of project.
  • Ways and means of community financing and secured trained personnel and management.

Any and all community enterprises would operate as a nationwide chain of stores and markets for mass buying power and distribution.

Example: African People’s Socialist Party

Finance, Banking, and Credit Union

  • Development of a Central National Bank of the organization
  • Promoting a consortium of banks operated by members of the race and expansion of financing and banking systems.
  • Day to day banking functionality of the branches for members of the race to provide, daily cheque & savings, credit line and loan services for both non-commercial and commercial activities

Example: Toronto United Negro Credit Union (UNIA, Marcus Garvey); Jamaican Canadian Credit Union (cite the history of Bromley Armstrong); click here is a list of black owned banks in the USA

Institute of Technology and Personnel Training

  • Engaging in the training of expert technicians for various fields of operation
  • Developing the expertise required for large scale manufacturing operations (shoes, clothing, hats, underwear, canning, frozen foods, furniture, mattress-making and other products)

 

We know that an African technician placed in optimum conditions of responsibility must and can quickly assimilate the knowledge needed so that he in turn can direct a whole complex on which the life of the nation, and in due time the life of the whole continent, will depend.

Black Africa (Diop) Page 80

Click here for a list of Historically Black Colleges/Universities in the USA

Central Office of Accounting and Finance Control

  • To enhance our deficiencies in money management and control
  • To perform rigorous data on all income and expenditures of the National organization and provide similar auditing and accounting units for the local community organizations and enterprises.

National Association of Black Accountants (Maryland), Canadian Association of Black Accountants

Department of Land Reclamation and Farming

  • To secure large tracts of land in various parts of the country to raise:
  1. Vegetables of all kinds for the various community markets
  2. Livestock (hogs, beef, cattle, poultry, eggs)
  3. Farm Homes for persons who would work on the farm
  4. Country Camp Services for rest and play

Example: Black Farmers Collective, Afri-Can FoodBasket, Adinkra Farm

Transport and Distribution Agency

  • Primarily concerned with long distance shipping, from farm, plants and other points and maintaining the trucks, shipping vans and required maintenance services.

Central Purchasing and Supply Agency

  • Responsible for the proper location and supervision of the various warehouses required as the community enterprises expand.

 

Division of Political Action

  • To promote and assist voter registration
  • Provide “profile” of candidates – local, provincial, national
  • Prepare bills and other measures affecting our community
  • Liaison with Parliament
  • All actions that can be taken through the political process to protect and promote the welfare of our community

Example: Canadian Black Caucus , All African Peoples Revolutionary Party 

Division of Public Education

Purpose: To achieve a higher standard of teaching and student achievement on every level; and to develop a better system of general adult education in all communities where we are.

  • Foundation for directed research, field studies and the training of scholars in various aspects of African life and history.
  • General Publishing Board: Textbooks and other works related to progress of our nation. Newspapers and magazines, a professional journal, community-action newsletters, etc.
  • Committee of Visitors: To become acquainted with teachers, students, textbooks and other learning materials. To determine to what extent, if any, the anti-African or anti-black feeling on the part of many teachers of back youth, which may be a hidden obstacle to their progress in school work.

Notes: Please understand that education here means far more the school education. It means spreading light through a comprehensive program into the deprived areas of the community: New standards for better health; better homes and gardens; neighbourhood improvement activities; and sponsoring neighbourhood conferences on questions of mutual community and educational interest.

 

Division of Community Services

Department of Health and Sanitation

  • Council of Physicians, Dentists, Nurses, Medical Aides and laymen and Home Visiting Nurse Services
  • Community Clinics
  • Clean Community Programs
  • Better Home life Counseling Services
  • A “Home-Beautiful” Program

Example: Taibu Community Health Centre, Tropicana Community Services 

Legal Aid Services

Example:  African Canadian Legal Clinic, Ma’at Legal Services, Black Action Defense Committee

 

Division of Youth Activities

  • To assume leadership roles in all areas and undertakings for which they are capable. Students and non-students should join hands in the race-building efforts.
  • To develop a Department of Children Affairs
  • The aim is to have specific and important roles for all children and youth.

Example: Harriet Tubman Community Organization

 

Division of Pan African Affairs

To maintain direct contacts and the closest relationship with the people and states of Black Africa, the Caribbean and the other black population centres, around the world.

The purposes would be specific:

  • To keep them fully informed
  • To learn from them
  • To find out what obstacles are in each area, including our own, and to counsel together on ways and means of overcoming the seemingly impossible
  • To explore for, and then actually determine definite ways for mutual assistance.
  • To trade in the exchange of goods and services, scientific and technical knowledge

Example:  All African Peoples Revolutionary Party 

 

Division of Intelligence and Security

This Division would maintain highly trained intelligence agents for the following:

  • To check internal subversion and activities of agents placed within the organization by others
  • To secure complete records of all persons by or connected with the organization
  • To promote formation and training of self-protection units everywhere to defend the community against unlawful and unjust raids and other forms of murderous attacks

We would have to consider military to be added to this section as well. 

Example: New Era Chicago/Detroit 

 

Commission for Spiritual Life and Assistance

Major Tasks for this Division would include:

  • To determine the direction of civilization
  • To understand the meaning of life while trying to improve it
  • To enlist the co-operation of people of all cultures and faiths in an all-out drive for a better world
  • To maintain an emergency assistance program for families or communities in distress

In order to eliminate racism, the African race can not do this alone. 

Example: Ausar Auset Society Canada