A Balcony in Atlanta

Mercedes Benz stadium eating away at the horizon I hate that big ass ugly piece of shit Pipes exhausting smoke particles as Cars drive past Engines cranking bodies modest, or flashy, loud, as bright lights and booming bases drown out the resistance of the unhoused  Gentrification left behind the Ghosts  of Black neighborhoods bulldozed over the decades of Black face in leadership Wakanda empty fists of solidarity painted over a Black mecca  That aint lookin so Black The Jacksoning of Atlanta Washing whiter  While it be the model city for the petit bourgeois Wealth gap growing wider than our inner . . .

BAP Supports National Day of Action Against Police Terror

Black Alliance for Peace (BAP) member organization Community Movement Builders (CMB) is calling all organizations, organizers, and community members to a National Day of Action Against Police Terror on March 9, 2023. In the wake of the brutal killings of Tyre Nichols and forest defender Manuel Tortuguita, the city of Atlanta is going full steam ahead to build what activists have dubbed “Cop City.” Atlanta officials have proposed a $90 million complex be built on 85 acres of forest. This would only arm and deploy more police—whom we refer to as the domestic army—in African and colonized working-class and poor . . .

Africans and Identity

We want to carefully discuss our African identity because the answers we arrive at are fundamental to our Pan-Africanist objective. By defining our identity, we are defining our fighting force and ultimately we are defining the people for whom we fight. This is also the first step in the process of defining our enemy, which Sekou Touré named the “Anti-People.” These are essential definitions and in spite of the complexities involved, we have to get them right if we are to someday be free. I am sure all will agree that it will take all of us to defeat capitalism . . .

Star Spangled Blackness

There’s always been something about Black people wrapped in the American flag that has made me uneasy. For me, it’s a symbolism indicative of the intimate bonds we have with our oppressor, and the way it results in a longing to be accepted by those whose survival is predicated on our destruction. So, when I heard of the 1619 Project, I had immediate reservations. I’m well aware that 1619 was the year that the first recorded enslaved Africans came to the shores of the British colony, which would later become the state of Virginia. I support the need for African . . .

Wes Moore: Another ‘First Black’ In A Colonial System

Recently, Maryland swore in its first Black governor, Wes Moore, in a “historic” ceremony cemented with a tearful introduction by Oprah Winfrey and a hand on Frederick Douglass’ Bible. The Black elite flocked to fill the rooms of the inauguration to witness the third elected Black governor in U.S. history. Yet, this “first Black” gubernatorial win is history repeating itself.  African/Black communities have witnessed “first Blacks” consistently continuing over-policing, surveillance, criminalization, and austerity policies.  As Black Alliance for Peace (BAP) member organization Ujima People’s Progress Party understands,  “The Black middle-class’ allegiance to capitalism, and not Black liberation, has largely led . . .

Black Universities, White Power: Howard Covers For Imperialism

The crisis of identity reductionism has led to the overwhelming placement of Africans in positions to serve empire and double down on patriotism. Most recently, Howard University President Wayne A. I. Frederick, M.D., MBA, hosted U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin III, and U.S. Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall who awarded the university with a $90 million contract to serve as the 15th University Affiliated Research Center (UARC). The cultural and social significance of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) dominates almost all aspects of conversations centered on Black schools.  The UARC award will enable Howard to lead . . .

African Nationalism and The World Cup

During World Cup season, billions of people around the world have a new dose of entertainment to take their minds off the horrors of widespread economic stagnation, environmental degradation, as well as lower economic prospects for the working class than ever before, it is almost as if there isn’t an ongoing war in eastern Europe…strange times. As sports create an ‘us versus them’ atmosphere, it is also a key tool for soft power, diplomacy, and nationalism. National identity is also fostered through sports, meaning flagship events like the World Cup in Qatar are key opportunities for countries to exhibit national . . .