What is it that makes some blacks, once they reach a status of success in Hollywood or other high stations, seem to want to deny or minimize their heritage? For example, Raven Symone is a beautiful, intelligent and accomplished woman, but she recently stated she didn't want to be labelled as black.
Unfortunately, she grew up under white supremacy, which is the exaltation of white history, white values, white theology, white standards above all other people.
I will never trash my beloved sister.
I instead seek to understand her and others.
Under white supremacy we have been fed a steady diet of "white accomplishments" and a minimizing/hiding of "black accomplishments".
Nearly all of our childhood stories were of white heroes.
For 12 years of school we learned nothing but European history and accomplishments.
In church we were given images of white prophets, white angels, white Mary, white Jesus and a white God.
We were told go to sleep on Dec 24th and a Caucasian man(Santa) will bring you everything you want on Dec 25th.
Couple this indoctrination in white supremacy with the images given that Africa is savage, we were swinging from trees like animals, we haven't contributed to human history...
and combine these images with the negative images we have today of black on black killings, self hate, the way we glamorize black ignorance on BET, reality shows, etc.
Are we surprised that a Raven Symone would wish to ignore her background when the world has given so much negativity to being black? According to the Psychology Dictionary "Avoidance" is a disorder that: "refers to the practice or an instance of keeping away from particular situations, activities, environments, individuals, things, or subjects of thought because of either (a) the anticipated negative consequences of such or (b) the anticipated anxious or painful feelings associated with those things or events.
Psychology explains avoidance in several ways: as a means of coping- as a response to fear or shame- and as a principal component in anxiety disorders.
" Our giant Carter G.
Woodson told us over 50 years ago in his book: The Miseducation Of The Negro, "If you can control a man's thinking you do not have to worry about his action.
When you determine what a man shall think you do not have to concern yourself about what he will do.
If you make a man feel that he is inferior, you do not have to compel him to accept an inferior status, for he will seek it himself.
If you make a man think that he is justly an outcast, you do not have to order him to the back door.
He will go without being told; and if there is no back door, his very nature will demand one.
" White Supremacy is a sickness that produces the diseases of Black inferiority, Black self hate and wanting to be white in black skin.
The cure for these diseases is a good dose of knowledge of self, love of self & kind and valuing our history.
When we know who we are we won't seek to hide it we will instead shout it proudly! #mywalkwithfarrakhan #farrakhanstudent