we dont deserve to celebrate

johnny · (#1 (**permalink**))

another carnival has just ended and as i write this piece, preparations for next years' extravaganza are already underway.

this it seems is the story of the african carribean community: experts when it comes to organising wonderful parties but weak when it comes to organising itself to combat the growing menace ofthuggery and indiscipline besetting the community.

i have asked myself many times over exactly what are we celebrating and i cant really put my finger on it, and i dont really understand what the carnival stands for, are we celebrating the victory of good over evil? ie common sense over stupidity, tolerance over senseless violence like shooting dead a fellow blak because he looked at you the wrong way?, are we celebrating sexual responsibilty over promiscuity? education over illeteracy? self love over self hatred? frugality over greed?

it does not take a genius to realise the african caribean community is at the bottom of the social ladder, not just here, in america, brazil, south america, africa, we as a race are in so much disarray that one shudders to think what the future holds for us.

we have become as apeople so out of sync with each other and the wider world that i believe the african race is quitely becoming the laughing stock of the world.

jamaicans against africans, african american against africans blacks against somalans. there was a time when everytime i was watching the news and i heard someone has been shot in london i would try and find whether the dead person was black or white . but these days i dont even bother anymore as i already who the killer was and who the victim was. we keep going on about whites this and whites that. but the single killer of young black men in this country, america or africa is at the hands of fellow blacks, not whites. do we really hate each other that much. just liste to any hip hop track and listen to the amount of black on black hatred that is all to frequent.

i relly dont mean to be so sensational. but looking at the future i'm really scared and terrified, not of whites but blacks.

Sooofresh · (#2 (**permalink**))

okay kids their will beno more carnival, christmas, eid, easter, bank holidays untilll we rid of our societies of all its badness, now go to your room and try to find a way to get rid of the badness.

confused3

Maat · (#3 (**permalink**))

Hey johnny,

I hear what you're saying. There was a time when I thought that way too more out of frustration. What you will find though is that we ARE doing a lot about how we interact with each other and can work together. It may not seem that way because we don't make a big issue of it (as in promoting blkhailerEVERYONE PAY ATTENTION THE AFRICANS ARE TALKING NOW LOL) Talking and sharing ideas and views with each other is the only way you will realize that more too.

As for carnival, it's not just that we as a people like celebrating, we love music, being around like minded peopleand happiness that comes from that. All of us are extremely intelligent people and from what I can tell, are more often that not about ACTION. We can usually turn our hand to anything and if we don;t we know someone who can....think about it.

Carnival has changed so much probably for the worse but if you wanted to focus on that specific part, a good question to ask would perhaps be why aren't those who are involved in carnival all reaping the financial benefits that it brings to the economy? The people taking the money are the ones we need to go and sort out:X

johnny · (#4 (**permalink**))

i'm not saying we shouldnt celebrate, i just think every year when we put on these costumes, at least it woild be flfilling if we had something good to celebrate it with.

and actually i heard the carnival makes millions of pounds, i just wanna know who actually benefits from all this money, and also since notting hill is mainly white isnt about time we switched the carnival to a more predominantly black neighbourhood like hackney or brixton, where i'm sure the black retailers there can actually get a share ofsome of this money and also raise the profile of black neighbourhoods.

just a thought

Sooofresh · (#5 (**permalink**))

@Johnny

I hear what you are saying, and the sad fact is that Â£1million does not go into the black community, but then is the black community prepared to fund the event? exactly

Also

Notting hill used to be a black area untill all the white yuppies (you know the ones with the dread that say "cool" every minute). Watch Brixton is getting taken over and the same with hackney. The funny thing is that those same yuppies used to be "scared" and did not invest in the area.

I say we need to stop this influx of yuppies, I say we scare them by wearing balaclavas and jump from behind trash bins in the middle of the night, watch them run to mama and papa in St Johns wood.

(#6 (**permalink**))

Sooofresh Wrote:Notting hill used to be a black area untill all the white yuppies (you know the ones with the dread that say "cool" every minute). Watch Brixton is getting taken over and the same with hackney. The funny thing is that those same yuppies used to be "scared" and did not invest in the area.

Actually I've noticed this as well,particularly Brixton at night!........However as a "YT" U will forgive me allowing myself a wry smile here.....

......In The 1960's when I grew upalmost 99% of the London Population was White.....at School it was 100% !!....Even Leyton!!

songbird · (#7 (**permalink**))

Quote:

Johnny wrote: i relly dont mean to be so sensational. but looking at the future i'm really scared and terrified, not of whites but blacks.
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Quote:

@Johnny, In relation to the above comment, I am assuming you are black, do you frigten yourself when you look in the mirror?confused3

Are you afraid of black people or for black people?

Quote:

Sooofresh · (#8 (**permalink**))

@cockneyboy

lol, you got me, you got me.

but

I am not talking about allwhite people, my heck it is their city, but the ones I am talking about is the the ones that want to "experiment" and see living in a ruff area as an "adventure" to tell mama and papa, you know which ones I am talking about! those yuppies are the same ones when they see a black man at night they cross over the road.

(#9 (**permalink**))

Sooofresh LOL Darling!........I know exactly what U mean!!.....and you're right!........If U want I'll tell U a true story from such a (slack!)type who I met 6 months ago from a mutual Liberian friend!