Fighting Racism Workshop

Tag: #BLM

  • What Has Changed?

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    I have lived in Germany for over ten years now, and I can honestly say I have never seen so much racism in my whole life, and that is saying something because I come from the so-called United States of America (a settler-colonial project of land theft and genocide) that somehow forgot to teach the kids the origins of that land and rarely discusses the original inhabitants.

    I wanted to start this project to help people, but to be honest, I have grown very discouraged. I feel that some people do not want to change, and never will. They will always believe they are smarter or better than others, and their arrogance is something that infuriates me. Why should I waste my energy on them? I have better things to do with my time. These people clearly do not want the world to change since it works in their favor. They do not care about the physical and psychological damage their evil system of racism distributes against BIPOC people.

    They don’t see the tears of the children because their parents get into heated exchanges with racist people trying to pick fights with them or insulting them on the street (knowing full well that their hands are tied.) I have come to feel that, this must be the German way of attack. They see you are at work and again have your hands tied, and that is when they choose to strike, push you or even threaten your life and insult you. I have come to the opinion that many of these people truly have no shame about their dirty history and their dirty present because if they did they surely would not continue to act this way. Maybe they should ask themselves, “Why are so many Germans living all over the world?” Where was your Xenophobia then? And what of the crimes committed by those German Settlers around the world?

    I should have known it since the moment I first visited back in 2006 and they treated me like crap and me and an Asian-American woman were the only ones who were pulled to the side and reprimanded in a foreign language and had to listen to some scumbag voice his opinions about us angrily.

    Scot-Free

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    Why is it that so very few Germans in the western sector were castigated for the Holocaust? A very select few were punished for the evil that killed an estimated 11million people of which over 1.5 million were children. Why is that? Could it be because if they dug deep enough, they would find out the roles played by Robber Barons, so-called respectable organizations, and major corporations? Could it be that companies were “Too big to fail” in the midst of a Cold War, and therefore Germany needed to be helped back on its feet?

    Colonial Past

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    In regards to the Holocaust, I constantly hear people ask, “how could this happen in such a civilized society?” It seems people that ask this question are not aware or don’t bother to take into account the crimes committed in the German colonies of Cameroon, Togo, Deutsch Somoa, Tsingtao, German Southeast Africa, German Southwest Africa, among others. In German Southwest Africa (modern-day Namibia) alone one would read about how between 1904-1908 there was a genocide committed against the Herrero and Nama peoples. Also, you will come across information on how anti-miscegenation laws, already existed there. If you study further you would learn about how Germans transported people on cattle trains and had concentration camps in their German South African colony, the concept was not new to them, and they also had what is believed to have been the first extermination camp on Shark Island.

    Another detail worth noting is the fact that German Universities and anthropologists, people like Eugen Fischer were already demanding skulls, and even whole human heads with the skin left intact as if some sort of trophy or something that they could display to others stating how different (meaning superior) they were to these people of darker complexion.

    They Need to Teach Us More

    I have read where Herman Goering at the Nuremberg Trials asked the French, the English, and the Americans “Who are you to try us?” I found this so interesting, and agree that those countries should tell the world their histories as well. These countries have all committed genocides and have all stolen land, and have all helped maintain white supremacy all over the world.

    After learning about the pseudo-science Eugenics and having learned how Adolf Hitler was greatly influenced by people like Madison Grant among others, and after further inquiring about the international eugenic conventions and the horribly racist eugenic ideas taught in universities, that most likely played a role in the worldwide pigmentocracies we see today, I feel that those racists that funded that movement should also be blamed and more attention should be paid to that subject as well.

    I continue to do homework on I.G. Farben and I truly feel that their role should be taught more in detail when discussing the Holocaust. I mean how can they not teach you about the conglomerate that was the biggest chemical company in the history of the world at that moment in time, and what role they played in rearmament, experimentation on human subjects, funding, slave labor? What was their relationship to Zyklon B (the prussic acid used in the gas chambers)? What was their relationship to Auschwitz? Who was American I.G. the U.S. subsidiary company that was taken over by the U.S. government for “Trading with the enemy” in 1941?

    Why is it Happening Again?

    People keep asking how can the world (Germany included) be tilting to the right? Well, there are a lot of reasons. For one the disparity between the rich and the poor just continues to increase. People that are struggling to pay the bills and put food on the table are in dire straights and they are frustrated. Many people believe that fascism is a revolution from the top down, and I would agree. Multi-national corporations are out to make a profit and do not wish to curtail their behavior. If our food loses nutrients so what. If neo-liberal policies are gonna hurt us all with the austerity and the privatization, they are getting ready for a backlash from us, they know the unrest is coming, and so in their minds they feel, they need to divide us, and if that doesn’t work then prison and the surveillance state is the backup plan.

    They are planning for civil disobedience, they are planning for the climate refugees, war refugees, and economic refugees. We are all at risk, but they must separate us and turn our anger against other victims of the same madness, and the right-wing will serve as their buffer zone, they will be fed more scraps and will be used as the muscle to keep the others in check. That is their plan. They make wars to kill BIPOC people and to sell their weapons. The corporations will not change course. They will stick to their plan.

    How Did Your Country Get So Rich?

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    Europe and its colonizers in the Anglosphere went out and exploited the resources and labor of people in the Americas, Asia, and Africa. Then they have the nerve to not teach the real history and omit the whole thing. The hypocritical west has fooled the world into believing they are the model of civilization has continued on rewarding the dictators and their cronies, that crush all hope of fair distribution of the wealth and resources of countries worldwide. And the same hypocrite west after causing the problems and the poverty in those same countries in the global south, still have time to make wars on those countries and then militarize their borders and add the extra financial incentive of For-Profit Immigration Detention.

    Tell me again why is it that the Spanish language is spoken in twenty different countries? What role did Spain play in those countries? Were there any reparations or even apologies for the theft, genocide, and rape? How are people from Latino America treated in Spain today? As a member of N.A.T.O., what role have they played in helping create refugees? What role have their financial institutions and corporations played in creating poverty? And tell me again, just why do Ceuta and Melilla belong to Spain? (The same criticisms can be made about many European countries and their offshoots in the Anglosphere and their historical behavior).

    Ask a person suffering from Racial Trauma or Racial Battle Fatigue just how “multiculti (multicultural)” they feel this racist German country is. I can see why many of them saw an appeal in Donald Trump, I really can, since his first state of the union address was on the 30th of January, which is the same date Hitler came to power, and so people with right-wing persuasions worldwide flocked to his corner.

    Recommended Reading Material:

    The Kaiser’s Holocaust – David Olusoga

    War Against the Weak – Edwin Black

    They Thought They were Free – Milton Meyer

    I.B.M. and the Holocaust – Edwin Black

    The Destruction of the European Jews – Raul Hilberg  

    Trading with the Enemy – Charles Higham

    Hitler’s American Model – James Q. Whitman

    The Nazi Connection – Stefan Kühl

    The Nazi Hydra in America – Glenn Yeadon

    Wall Street and the Rise of Hitler – Anthony C. Sutton

    The American West and the Nazi East – Carroll P. Kakel

    KL – Nikolaus Wachsmann

    Hell’s Cartel – Diarmuid Jeffreys

    The Crime and Punishment of I.G. Farben – Joseph Borkin

    Hitler – Ian Kershaw

    The Devil’s Chessboard – David Talbot

    Factories of Death – Sheldon Harris    

    Imbeciles- Adam Cohen

    School for Barbarians – Erika Mann

    The Splendid Blond Beast – Christopher Simpson

    Auschwitz: A Doctor’s Eyewitness Account – Miklos Nyiszli

    Border and Rule – Harsha Walia

    Border Nation – Leah Cowan

    One Long Night – Andrea Pitzer

    The Holocaust – Laurence Rees

  • What Malcolm X Means to the BIPOC and Oppressed

    Photo by, Miguel Torres

    Malcolm Little was born on May 19th 1925 in Omaha, Nebraska. He was one of four children born to Louis Helen and Earl Little (Earl Little also had three children from a prior relationship who lived in Boston.) Malcolm X had many reasons to be angry at Euro-Americans. His father and four uncles were killed by Euro-Americans and his mother was put into a mental institution for 26 years, tearing Malcolm’s family apart and splitting him up from his sibblings. Eventually like many other poor urban youth from broken homes, Malcolm was pulled into the street life. On the streets of Boston and later New York he would make a name for himself as a hustler and a pimp and eventually landing in prison on a burglary conviction. Malcolm ended up serving seven years in prison, and it was while incarcerated that Malcolm discovered books (which he read vigorously) and Islam and both changed him forever.

    Malcolm took on the surname “X” because he stated that “Little” was the slave name given to his ancestors, and since he did not know his real African name, then “X” would suit him better than his birth name “Little.”

    Malcolm joined the Nation of Islam upon release from prison, and continued to be mentored by Elijah Muhammad whom he had already started writing and taking instruction from while incarcerated. With time Malcolm ended up becoming a national spokesman for the religious organization, and became quite a prolific speaker. His speeches varied in subject, e.g. he could speak about religion, or he could denounce “white supremacy” and educate Europeans and Euro-Americans about their true histories and about their unjust actions towards the global BIPOC community. Malcolm represented the Nation for several years until he eventually broke ties with the Nation and decided to start two organizations the Muslim Mosque Inc. and the Organization of Afro-American Unity (OAAU).

    Malcolm made the Hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca) and met with many world leaders in Africa and the Middle East. Malcolm was always pushing for Pan Africanism and trying to shed light to the plight of African Americans in the so-called “Land of the Free.”

    Ask Yourself

    What does the legacy of Malcolm X mean for BIPOC people today? Do his words still inspire people of color, fighting everyday injustice and racism? What does the name Malcolm X mean to the kids lost in the streets, who think there is no way out for them? What does Malcolm X mean to the kids who are tired of white supremacy? What does he mean to BIPOC people that have felt humiliation or discrimination in their lives? What does Malcolm X mean to the kids who have seen their culture not covered by school curriculum or represented on television or in film? What does Malcolm mean to the kids that looked for role models, but saw them killed off one by one, or still captive behind prison walls like e.g. many former Black Panthers? What does his name mean to those like me who are sick of racism?

    What He Still Means Today

    Malcolm X was someone who seemed fearless when it came to telling the oppressor his truths. I personally had never heard anyone speak to white people the way he did. He would speak for those who couldn’t, who had no voice, and he was a hero to the oppressed of the world. His presence is needed now more than ever, in a world where white supremacists again feel emboldened to terrorize BIPOC people like they have done so continuously in the past.

    I truly feel that if Malcolm X would not have been assasinated he would have continued to do a lot of good for humanity. I feel that he was that “fighting spirit” I feel he was that “Pride” he was a champion of the oppressed. He was our champion, he was a role model and that is why we will never forget him and will continue to study his speeches. Malcolm X is also a symbol that people can change; that if you only have faith in them and don’t give up on them, the most unexpected miracles can happen. Malcolm X is a hero that continues to influence and touch lives. He had the courage that we will all need to confront and defeat racism.

    • “Some personal heroes of mine.” (Photo by, Miguel Torres)

    Sources:

    X, Malcolm, et al. The Autobiography of Malcolm X: As Told to Alex Haley. Reissue, Ballantine Books, 1992.

    “Malcolm x.” Www.Malcolmx.Com, http://www.malcolmx.com/biography. Accessed 18 May 2021.

    “The Life of Malcolm X Documentary.” You Tube, uploaded by ILM FILM, 27 Dec. 2019, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rnX0tgNu4NA&t=241s.

  • Policing and Violence

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    Through the years I’ve read many stories about people of color shot by the police. I have even read stories of kids and even babies shot by the police. The media reports these stories, but they rarely ask the hard questions that need to be asked and sometimes the media has even resort to vilifying the person murdered.

    Children are just that. They are kids, with a lot to learn, they are growing up, learning one day at a time. Some kids depending on their social standing/class or ethnic background can afford to make mistakes, and they can learn from them, and those around them will see those mistakes as just a part of their life, it was a stage they went through, or just a stupid idea or action, but for BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) the mistake they make can seriously jeopardize their future, or even cost them their lives.

    When I read about police shootings of BIPOC, especially children, it breaks my heart, and I do not understand “What kind of a world, would allow this to continue to happen?” In what kind of world do we have to fear those (supposedly) entrusted to protect us?

    When I read about wars and how the majority of the casualties are women and children, and when I read about drone attacks killing civilians it destroys me. When I read about children being arrested or even shot, by police or soldiers anywhere in the world, I just cannot understand it. How could you do that to a child? What threat was that child to you? I do not understand this, these are children, and no child deserves evil. The world must push their so-called leaders to end all violence against children immediately.

    No Margin For Error

    Before the media or society stigmatizes BIPOC children or young men, because of the choices they make when they are not fully mature; They must first look in the mirror. These kids are growing up in the society you made for them. They watch your racist and violent television shows, and films. Programming that “glorifies violence and fast money.” They go to your racist schools that teach them nothing about their people, and instead omit information as to the true history of the United States. The kids hear the popular music on the radio, and it is not all uplifting. There is no “Conscious Rap” for the young kids to listen to on the radio. Usually the type of music that gets radio play is the type that glorifies the dollar and turns women into objects. If the kids turn on the news or reads the newspaper, all they see is violence.

    The U.S. is involved in endless wars against BIPOC, and one has to wonder if to these children it must seem, “hey look at the country, they just go and find something they like or they need, and they go and take it by force.” Ask yourself “What are you teaching them as a society?”

    For these kids growing up today in an incredibly xenophobic world. All these kids see is violence all around them. For kids in many western countries (countries built on the genocide of the indigenous people, or countries that benefitted from the genocide,exploitation, and theft of BIPOC and continue to do so) these kids are watching their people being abused and attacked.

    For kids growing up in the U.S., especially in the inner city add generations of Redlining, and underfunded neighborhoods, over policing, a School to Prison Pipeline, and easy access to guns and drugs, and you do not need a crystal ball to see that these kids are growing up in a trap.

    Ask Yourself

    How many hours do these kids parent or parents have to work to pay the rent? Why must their parents work sometimes two jobs just to barely get by? Why is housing so expensive and why can’t the average person afford to get by working 40 hours a week?

    Why does the media not talk about the Prison Industrial Complex? Is there a business motive to over policing and incarcerating BIPOC people? Why does the media not mention the history of groups like the Black Panther Party, the American Indian Movement, the Brown Berets, the Young Lords? What changes did those groups bring to their communities?

    Why have they militarized police? Who benefits? Is this their new form of Eugenics to purposely incarcerate so many BIPOC males on “Minimum Mandatory Sentences” so that they don’t reproduce? Why do police beat peaceful demonstrators? Why are police given immediate immunity from prosecution, are they going in expecting to shoot someone? Would a waiter be given immunity from prosectution if he took a life while on duty, why is it different?

    We need to rethink policing, and we must push for a better world for the kids of today and the kids of tomorrow. All kids should grow up with the same opportunities to succeed and not have to fear police officers or soldiers.

    R.I.P. George Floyd, Tamir Rice, Trayvon Martin, Oscar Grant, Sandra Bland, Philando Castile, Breonna Taylor, Stephon Clark, Michael Brown, Ahmaud Arbery Philando Castile, Daunte Wright, Adam Toledo, Richard Trejo, and the thousands that have been killed by police.

    Learn More:

    https://www.statista.com/statistics/585152/people-shot-to-death-by-us-police-by-race/

    https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/massive-peaceful-protests-us-demand-police-reform-71117694

    https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2009/mar/23/police-terrorism-protest-g20-law

    https://abcnews.go.com/US/buffalo-police-officers-arrested-shoving-75-year-protester/story?id=71106787

    https://edition.cnn.com/2020/05/04/us/ahmaud-arbery-jogging-georgia-shooting/index.html

    https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/death-sandra-bland-what-we-know-so-far-n396036

    https://time.com/5642648/eric-garner-death-daniel-pantaleo-suspended/

    https://www.biography.com/crime-figure/trayvon-martin

    https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/newly-released-interview-footage-reveal-shifting-stories-officers-who-shot-n751401

    https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/sep/24/detained-us-largest-immigrant-detention-trump

    https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-48375144

    https://www.telesurenglish.net/news/Human-Rights-Abuser-Israel-Trains-US-Police-Report-20200531-0005.html

    Police Militarization

    https://edition.cnn.com/2016/11/16/us/officer-charged-philando-castile-killing/index.html

    https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/fbi-investigating-death-breonna-taylor-killed-police-her-louisville-home-n1212381

    https://edition.cnn.com/2018/03/22/us/sacramento-police-shooting/index.html

    Books:

    Lockdown America – Christian Parenti

    Are Prisons Obsolete – Angela Davis

    American Prison – Shane Bauer 

    The New Jim Crow – Michelle Alexander 

    Shackled and Chained in Capitalist America – Eugene Puryear

  • Black Lives Matter

    (Photo by, Miguel Torres)

    On my walk yesterday afternoon, I witnessed a mural from a distance and so I decided to check it out. As I approached, I saw the piece, and I read the statement on the bottom. I became very upset after noticing how someone had defaced the word “Black.” The mural is of George Floyd, the 46 year old man murdered by Minneapolis, Minnesota police officer Derek Chauvin on the 25th of May, 2020. The mural originally read “Black Lives Matter” but someone changed it to “Lives Matter.” So, this person means to tell me, and anyone reading this mural, that “Lives Matter” as if “All Lives Mattered Equally?” Well let me just reflect on what you are saying….

    If it was true that “Lives Matter” then the Black, Indigenous, and People of Color of the world would not have been exploited for the last 529 years. If it was true that “Lives Matter” there wouldn’t be refugees leaving war torn countries, (Wars of Western Imperialism) seeking a better life for themselves and their children. If “Lives Matter” there wouldn’t be drones killing civilians, or thousands of BIPOC children dying from malnutrition daily. If “Lives Matter” The continued Imperialism of the west, would not still continue to dehumanize BIPOC people in order to continue to exploit their countries. If “Lives Matter” there would be no dictators that keep their people down, so that western countries can have access to the so-called, “Free Market” as they help themselves to the resources of that country. If “Lives Matter” than there would no need for “Immigration Detention.” If “Lives Mattered” there would not be a need for racist programming on television or film, and all histories would receive the same amount of attention, but clearly that is not the case.

    Ì am Chicano and I am very supportive of Black Lives Matter, because they are only reminding the world that “Black Lives Matter” because everyday the world reminds them by their actions towards Africans and the African diaspora that they don’t.

    Not too far away from the George Floyd mural, I ran across this sign, I see these all over Berlin, and I have never seen these defaced. What this offensive advertisement tells me is that the dehumanization of the Native People of Turtle Island, does not bother folks. The dehumanization of a people who were victims of genocide, in the means of commercializing a product is not offensive to the kind of people that would claim that “Lives Matter.” (Photo by, Miguel Torres)

    If All Lives Truly Mattered

    As an adult, I started reading vigorously about the histories of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color and their struggles. I learned what White Supremacy was all about. I also learned that the same people who insist that they do not see color, are the same people who support the system of White Supremacy simply with their silence. That is all it truly takes. All human beings are important, but what is being stated is that clearly, some need to be reminded that “Black Lives Matter” because it seems like some people do not want to acknowledge it. So, here is another reminder, Black Lives Matter!