Having listened to the second part of the series 'The Black Middle class' The following points caught my attention.

1 As black people generally have no unifying religion, language etc,mass scale unity is not going to happen.

2 Our jobs, in some cases are so precarious that we dear not help another brother/sister get on the ladder.

3 By having children with non-black partners is weakening our base.

4 Intergration/Assimilation has not worked for us.

Personally I think that this one of the best broadcasts I've heard in a very long time.

Imagine a broadcaster questioning a Black person on whether he can be objective about intergration when he himself has married a non-black person!

I don't know about you guys but we need more of these broadcasts. Let's debate with the 'Intellectuals/Academics' we need to know their thoughts!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/blackmid...ees/pip/n4fnu/

.Just checking it now.

Hold on, I think there is point to be made here. Consider India for example, they have how many religions? I don't know, but Hindu and Sikh must be major ones! There are coming close to a billion Indians and that is in India alone. so if they have say 10 religions and 10 languages, you work out the variables in terms of unifying bonds.

What is our unifying bond? opppression? if that is the case some will say their level of oppression is minimal so count me out.

All I'm saying some valid points have been raised. Some of us agree on some points and some don't.

Shit maybe it's my brain washed education that's making me be objective.

Unfortunately, many of us know our history, however, we are unable to interpret it into the 21 century.

But what have Indians done with their "unity".

Their own country is a sh*thole and they are sitting here in a white country just like black people. Some people seem to be under the impression that they areliving large but all I see with them man is them bussing their ass doing 12 hours days and seven day weeks so they can get a flashy ride to impress their "community". This is not something I personally aspire to.

neo brown,
let me tell you, I used to work in the tax field(including IR) for many years. I know Indian, Chinese and many others are trying to pop style and the businesses are on the brink of liquidation. I saw their business records and some of them in as much told me they needed to flex in their community. However, my points is lets us take the good bits from them. You cannot deny that there are some things we can learn, or can you!

Miyu, let me dealwith some of the points you have raised

1 Firstly I'm not talking about communicating I'm talking about unity, loyalty etc, that was why I used India as an example(not necessarily a good one)but an example all the same.

Of course there is unity amongst black people, however on a scale that generally benefits the all, I'm sorry, I think we have a long way to go.

2 Meritocracy, oh please! Let's dealwith reality. We have the skills no doubt, however when a 'black' person reaches a high position, what do you read, The first black to ......What's the big deal. According to you he got there on merit, no obstacles in the way?

3 stick-upKid questioned you on that one.

4 Where is the good from us begging to be accepted. Like you've highlighted, white people in some cases do not practise what they preach. However, we should continue confused3

Your right about the many ways to integrate, but to marry and have children in order to integrate well!

Well as you listened to the broadcast I presume topics like these are pointless to debate?

@Truetoyourself. I listened to two parts of the show and it was better than expected because the sister who was the presenter clearly felt that the increase in size in the black middle-class was going to benefit us.

In fact it is sad when you listen to the basic contradictions in what many said. One guy who was giving it the big middle-class bit, eg moved to somewhere in Essex in the surburbs and the rest. But at the same time had worked hard all his life was encouraging his son to prepare himself to emigratae to Canada with his family. So you have it right there, even those who believe this stuff the most, when you check their actions you can see that Britain is hostile to black people and they cannot progress even when they are bending over to play their game.

So why bother I ask myself.

About religion you are largely correct. Jews and Indians have been practising their religionfar longer than most of us have had any influence from Christianity. Most people fail to realise that this religion is less than a hundred years old in our lives and even then often in a very tokenistic way. That is why we could shed it so quickly. Christianity never stopped no Caribbean man from chasing woman or vice versa. So it has only had a minimal effect on our culture in many ways.

By the way Hindus have thousands of religious festivals which divide the various sects, who are often at war with each other. But Divalli and Navatri are unifying festivals which all of them celebrate. They can be from elite class to the poor but it binds them.

By the way from the outisde Asians look united but they do not unite on the basis of race but caste and clan. They spend as much time stuffing each other than we do probably, but most of us are not aware of it, do not speak their language and not exposed to their private world.

Speaking your own langague is so important.



FB

1 Firstly I'm not talking about communicating I'm talking about unity, loyalty etc, that was why I used India as an example(not necessarily a good one)but an example all the same.



Actually.. India was a bad example. Africa = a continent.. India = a country. Huge difference. It is easier for people of the same country to unite for obvious reasons. I would say it is natural that there is more loyalty displayed towards ones nationality than there is towards ones race. A Nigerian is a Nigerian first then African Second.