My point exactly.

Petty criminal still aren’t being targeted by the FBI, which is what I mean when I say ‘mere criminals’. It is only relatively recently that the FBI have started targeting certain types of crime and criminals. I.e., small scale kidnappers which are still seen as organised crime. Where as bag snatchers and shop lifters and lone drug dealers are still dealt with by the local police force.

So the fact that the Black Panthers were on the FBI’s radar, made them a more substantial threat that if they were on the ‘radar’ of local beat bobbie - Paddy o’Reilly


Yes, I did shorten and edit your quote, but nothing ‘sinister’ was intended by me doing so. I shorted you quoted and added examples of the labels but kept the overall message that I thought you were trying to convey, which as it turns out, according to you reply…was accurate. You would be happy for these labels to be uses and you have no problems with their use, so no harm done really.


Glib, dismissive? Not me ‘G’! Nor am I obsessing over AA culture. Has it occurred to you that you maybe a little ‘overly sensitive with regards to non AA perceptions and views on AA matters?

As I have said earlier, I take AA success as our success, just as their failure are our failure. The racial stereotypes that are applied to AA are the same basic racial stereotypes that are applied to all Africans where ever they are on the globe.




If we all only spoke on subject we actually have experience on, this would be a pretty empty board now…wouldn’t it. There are no shortage of people making comments on continental Africa and Africans, yet they have never set foot on the continent.


You seem to be under the mistaken notions that you have the luxury of ‘blending into the background…sorry you don’t!

Whether you like it or not, America is the ‘world’s stage’ everyone looks to America for what is stylish and fashionable and ‘in’. As the resident African contingent on the ‘world’s stage’ you are under the eyes of many, like it or not everyone will have a comment about AA’s and their behaviour.

Even countries that don’t have a large African population still think they understand black issues because the receive factual ‘documentaries’ from the US, such as ‘The Shield’ ‘Oz’ ‘Law & Order’ ‘Hill street Blues’ etc.

These educational programmes teaches the world that black women sell their children for $20 of crack and that black males are either hustler, pimps or ‘G’s’…not fair that you guys should be scrutinized this way? Yes I agree, but that is what you get for being part of a nation that is so desperate to be the centre of attention.



All eyes are on you guys!

You’re going to get opinions whether you like it or not so it would help you to develop a thick skin.

If ,as you say, AA don’t make as may comments on other cultures, as non AAS, , then it may be down to this term ‘strutting stupidity’ that quoted Mr Randall Robinson as coining. It stands to reason that those on the ‘world’s stage’ would be more interested in the props of the stage than in looking into the audience.

I don’t agree that people need to live on a continent before they can have an opinion on what is going on there and how it affect themselves. I know for a fact no member of any government believe this!

That is one of the traits of a ‘feeler’. The belief in street credibility. People will only be listened to if the have ‘lived it’ I just don’t need to of lived in the deep south in the 1930’s to know the africans there probably didn’t enjoy the threat of ‘lynching’ too much.

Your belief in people having ‘concrete credibility before offering any opinion on any subject is IMO extremely oppressive and not conducive to a open and free flowing discussion and I see no benefit to this type of attitude.



I haven’t got a problem with labels being used. I just think that certain ‘race based labels especially one not created by us, shouldn’t be use. It is funny how people seem to have such an aversion to using the word ni££er but not negro.

As I said before, I really don’t expect ‘feelers’ to have any idea what I am going on about. By their vary nature, ‘feelers’ have a need to constantly show their emotions (particularly the negative ones) to all and sundry like a bunch of mope faced Goths but I think it important that others of our community don’t follow this example.

To those that understand, no explanation is needed, to those that don’t understand…no explanation will suffice!


I don’t have to ‘tell myself’ anything…I am totally honest both to myself and the beliefs that I hold and share on this board….but if you think I am hiding anything, or holding anything back.... please 'feel'’ free to say!

[quote=RLB;1441105][size="3"]
Yes, I did shorten and edit your quote, but nothing ‘sinister’ was intended by me doing so. I shorted you quoted and added examples of the labels but kept the overall message that I thought you were trying to convey, which as it turns out, according to you reply…was accurate. You would be happy for these labels to be uses and you have no problems with their use, so no harm done really.


I didn't necessarily think that your motive was rooted in something sinister,but rather in trying to minimize or diminish the effectiveness of my argument. The terms I chose to use as examples were very specific terms, with very specific UNDERSTOOD meanings, among AA people. Unlike the terms Negro and ni$$er, which can have multiple meanings when used by and among AA's, depending on context. The terms: Aunt Nancy, white man's ******, and Uncle Tom allude to a very SPECIFIC type of behavior and mindset, and their meanings have never changed. In other words there is NO context within which, one AA can call another AA an Uncle Tom, where it would either be INTENDED, or RECEIVED as anything other than the highest INSULT. No AA would ever refer to THEMSELF as an Uncle Tom or Sambo. Not so with the terms Negro and Ni$$er, which is why I REJECT the notion, that WE don't know what WE mean, when WE choose to use certain words, among OURSELVES.


[size="3"]Glib, dismissive? Not me ‘G’! Nor am I obsessing over AA culture. Has it occurred to you that you maybe a little ‘overly sensitive with regards to non AA perceptions and views on AA matters?

Nope, it's never occurred to me, because I've been on this Board for YEARS, and was one of the few AA's who DIDN'T take offense to the nonsense that a lot of non AA's would ROUTINELY talk, in reference to us. I even had people on this Board from other places say they don't know how myself and the other AA's on the Board exercise so much restraint, considering some of the things that are said about our culture. We've even had people from the UK express the opinion that AA's don't even HAVE a culture. What kind of nerve does that take? I'm not even talking about the merits or lacktherof of such an argument(though i know it to be balderdash). I'm talking about the spectacle of someone sitting in a country that their people have been in for 50 years or less, talking shit to a people who have been in a country for 400 years. It's absurd on it's face,lol. So no, I'm far from thin skinned, in real life or in cyberspace. When I start to take offense to something A. It's usually PAST time for that to occur and B. the Offenders will have hell on their hands.

As I have said earlier, I take AA success as our success, just as their failure are our failure. The racial stereotypes that are applied to AA are the same basic racial stereotypes that are applied to all Africans where ever they are on the globe.

That's all well and good, but one has to be careful not to go over the line with that kind of thinking. THat can end up being it's own kind of prison, and that is the ultimate triumph of racism, imo. I call it the "but white people might think badly about US" mindset, which is essentially what it boils down to.

Part 2

If we all only spoke on subject we actually have experience on, this would be a pretty empty board now…wouldn’t it. There are no shortage of people making comments on continental Africa and Africans, yet they have never set foot on the continent.


I never said that I think people should ONLY comment on what they have experience in. I SAID, that mofos need to REMEMBER that they are commenting on shit, that they have no experience in,lol. I'm talking about the arrogance, and the fundamental disrespect. I'll give u an example, there was once a thread on this Board talking about comments Bill Cosby made about young Black women needing to do their own thing because so many young Black men were not pulling their weight,(i think that was the topic), anyway, to a person, every AA on the Board was saying they understood why he was saying that, and there was some truth to it. It was NON AA's coming into the thread arguing AA's down,about how things really are in a place where WE live,lol. It was almost surreal.

AA's may comment on things going on in other places, but not with the arrogance or the smug, condescension that non AA's routinely display when commenting on AA's and AA culture. It's not even a contest.



You seem to be under the mistaken notions that you have the luxury of ‘blending into the background…sorry you don’t!

Whether you like it or not, America is the ‘world’s stage’ everyone looks to America for what is stylish and fashionable and ‘in’. As the resident African contingent on the ‘world’s stage’ you are under the eyes of many, like it or not everyone will have a comment about AA’s and their behaviour.

No problem with that, but AGAIN, be mindful of the fact that you are commenting on something that you NECESSARILY have LIMITED knowledge of. That's all. There are subtleties and nuances that one can never understand, looking at a culture from the outside.

Even countries that don’t have a large African population still think they understand black issues because the receive factual ‘documentaries’ from the US, such as ‘The Shield’ ‘Oz’ ‘Law & Order’ ‘Hill street Blues’ etc.

Well, if they do, they are simpletons. T.V. is not reality. It is make believe, by it's very nature. Going by what I saw depicted on t.v., my perception Black people in general from the UK, and Black men in particular, was that they were all self hating sell outs, who don't know they are Black/who chase white women down like there's no tommorrow,lol. (hold up, I hear a voice in the distance saying but wait a minute, that's TRUE,lol). Just kidding.

I used to watch Tarzan as a child and see AFricans running around half naked saying "payse pase bawana". I didn't think that made me an authority on Africa, or Africans. When I first met someone from Ghana as a 7 year old, I wasn't surprised that they had on clothes. That's not to say that there weren't AA's who DID believe those depictions, that's just to say that they weren't too bright, either. I don''t think reading National Geographic or watching Save the Children, makes me an authority on Africa either. My MAIN reference point for how I formed my opinions on Continental AFricans, was the Continental AFricans I KNEW, grew up with, or met as an adult, and the ones I've come across on this Board. I don't know, that seems to be a no brainer to me, that those experiences would be more accurate and valid than something I saw on t.v., but that's just me.


These educational programmes teaches the world that black women sell their children for $20 of crack and that black males are either hustler, pimps or ‘G’s’…not fair that you guys should be scrutinized this way? Yes I agree, but that is what you get for being part of a nation that is so desperate to be the centre of attention.



Those SAME educational programmes, taught the world that Africans were a bunch of savages and cannibals,who lived in trees, and that all Jamaicans are gun toting weed heads and currently teach the world that all Africans are starving,believe that raping little girls will cure aids, are involved in financial scams and are generally proned to backwardsness, tribalism, and corruption, and all around and perpetual ****ing up,(without ever adding the context of destabilization, the slave trade,colonialism,history, what predated the coming of the Cracker,mind u-those nagging nuance/subtlety words again) What's your point? If we're gonna now agree that we trust the same people who have PERPETUALLY lied on all of us, to give us the real skinny on each other, that's fine, but remember that cut's both ways.

Part 3

All eyes are on you guys!

You’re going to get opinions whether you like it or not so it would help you to develop a thick skin.

We have no problem with that, as I said. It's kind of an ego boost to know that the rest of the world is looking to you and dissecting everything you do, especially when you are blithely unaware of them, in many instances. It must be what it feels like to be a celebrity,lol. Again, I enjoy hearing the perspective of Black folks from outside my culture, to a CERTAIN degree. It can be eye opening and insightful, as long as it's offered in the right spirit, and is aware and mindful of it's limitations, and as long as the folks offering the opinions are mindful that WE NOTICE SHIT ABOUT YA'LL TOO,as my girl Rockette would say. We just aren't as keen to share our perceptions as you all seem to be.

When however, it is characterized by disrespect, condescension, and dismissiveness, I will respond in kind, and in spades.

If ,as you say, AA don’t make as may comments on other cultures, as non AAS, , then it may be down to this term ‘strutting stupidity’ that quoted Mr Randall Robinson as coining. It stands to reason that those on the ‘world’s stage’ would be more interested in the props of the stage than in looking into the audience.

Right, that's was my point. Though I find that concerning and annoying, I don't find it as concerning and annoying as mofos who think just because they take an interest in another place, cause they having nothing better to do, apparently, that means they necessarily know jackshit about it.

I don’t agree that people need to live on a continent before they can have an opinion on what is going on there and how it affect themselves. I know for a fact no member of any government believe this!

I Never said this.

That is one of the traits of a ‘feeler’. The belief in street credibility. People will only be listened to if the have ‘lived it’ I just don’t need to of lived in the deep south in the 1930’s to know the africans there probably didn’t enjoy the threat of ‘lynching’ too much.

What's with all this feeler talk?LOL. No one said that people will ONLY be listened to if they have lived something, but any fool knows that the person who has lived through something is PROBABLY going to know more about that thing, than someone who read about it, in a book(probably written by a Cracker or a Tom Negro), from half way across the world. It's not rocket science. I'll give you an example of what I'm talking about. I saw an interview one time where Keith Richards, of the Rolling Stones was interviewing blues great B.B. King. B.B. was talking about where he was born at a certain point in the interview. I kid u not, Keith interrupted him and said 'THAT'S NOT WHERE YOU WERE BORN"you were born in blah blah blah, lol. B.B. was like "no, I was born in Blah blah blah". I couldn't believe my eyes/ears.

Same principle. Because Keith and his other white British cohorts have spent their lives appropriating the music and culture of Mississipi Delta blues men, reading books, watching documentaries, listening to their music, they actually think they know MORE about the shit, than the men themselves. How you gonna tell another mofo, where in Missisissipi, they were born, ESPECIALLY, when your ass is from England,lol? Now, a more cynical person than myself would say that is typical of the snotty, condescending,arrogant,presumptuous British mindset and attitude, that unfortunately some Black Brits have taken on, and need to let go of, post haste.

Your belief in people having ‘concrete credibility before offering any opinion on any subject is IMO extremely oppressive and not conducive to a open and free flowing discussion and I see no benefit to this type of attitude.



See above dissertation.


I haven’t got a problem with labels being used. I just think that certain ‘race based labels especially one not created by us, shouldn’t be use. It is funny how people seem to have such an aversion to using the word ni££er but not negro.

Some of us don't have an aversion to using either word, among ourselves, within an agreed apon context. Words are dynamic, not static, and very much dependent on context, intent, understanding and agreement between speaker and receiver.

As I said before, I really don’t expect ‘feelers’ to have any idea what I am going on about. By their vary nature, ‘feelers’ have a need to constantly show their emotions (particularly the negative ones) to all and sundry like a bunch of mope faced Goths but I think it important that others of our community don’t follow this example.

That's funny, you're always talking about "feelers" in a negative way, as if your posts are stone cold objective logic, or as if there is such a thing(that's the height of deluded emotion,imo). I think your posts are way more emotional than many of the people you accuse of being "feelers",lol.

To those that understand, no explanation is needed, to those that don’t understand…no explanation will suffice!



I like this. That's how I feel about explaining certain INTRA Cultural things, to people from outside that culture. Can I use this, with your permission????????

I don’t have to ‘tell myself’ anything…I am totally honest both to myself and the beliefs that I hold and share on this board….but if you think I am hiding anything, or holding anything back.... please 'feel'’ free to say![/quote]

I don't believe that you're hiding anything. I just meant that I didn't believe that : a. that if you didn't respond to me it was going to be because i was a "feeler" or b. that you wouldn't respond to me. As it turns out, I was right..

Only 20% of American blacks are "poor" (by American standards). I believe the minority poverty rate is between 35-40% in the UK. We wont comment on Africa..