Black Men Listen XIV

Be it known that: When we focus on the messenger as opposed to the underlying message, we often get caught up in a cyclical circumstance of trepidation and letdowns. Mind you, the messenger is always deceptive, conniving, patronizing, appeasing, unforgiving, culturally cohesive, and a genius at employing divide and conquer strategies. Black men, we are almost a complete opposite of the messenger by contrast. We are consoling and passive, but to a great extent, we have a peculiar willingness to inflict harm upon ourselves rather than allow our good attributes to work in our favor. Essentially, whether we accept it or not, our behavior is that of a slave mentality, needing to be eradicated from whom we are as people. Not until the latter can we become a formidable cultural force.

Likewise, we are encouraged to dress like women; and to more or less, tone down our masculinity. We are implicitly or overtly demonized for embracing our heterosexuality, and for decades, through mass incarceration strategies systematically separated from the lives of our male offspring. We allow ourselves to be compromised, therefore negatively affecting growth as a culture of strong Black men. We let other cultures tell us how to be Black men by emulating their cultural blueprints. Are we not tired of all those inconveniences and proprietary expectations?

Black men, if we’re either afraid or unwilling to take ENORMOUS risks to build and leverage our brand, then Black culture’s ship will never sail the vast oceans, but just dally in the rivers and lakes of denunciation. So, will it be the messenger or underlying message that help Black men change course for the continued liberation and amelioration of his community? Who knows, but both options ought to be highly motivating.