“Those who are ignorant of their history are doomed to repeat it.”

These are profound statements. When it comes to the history of Black folks in America these statements merely scratch the surface. As a proponent of Dr. Claud Anderson (author of Black Labor White Wealth) the president of the Harvest Institute and the father of Powernomics I have often writhed in spiritual pain over the programmed control and in some cases dismantling of the Black community. Undoubtedly by now you have heard the suggestion of the CIA bringing drugs into our urban communities. Though some want to deny the plausibility of such a scheme, records and evidence indicate that Southern Air Transport has an ominous and dark CIA past. As time goes by the allegations that Mena, Arkansas was one of the CIA’s landing and distribution sites gains more credibility. Remember, we were also shocked to learn about the Tuskegee Project and abominations against members of the Black community. Whatever the case, I believe that even the most reticent of us understands that the U.S. government has long been the best “friend” of, yet the most nefarious foe of Black people.

We have only to take a walk through history to understand the genesis of the dismantling of the Black community. The slave trade began in the 1440’s when Henry the navigator kidnapped Africans and delivered them to the Pope as gifts. In 1487 the Pope declared slavery an enterprise. The Catholic church was the first to determine color as a factor in slavery. During this time 1 million Blacks were being traded into slavery every hundred years by the Arabs. Even today in the Sudan Black slaves are being traded for $400-$500. This has gone on for over 1300 years.

In 1400 Africans started selling each other as gifts. By 1650 over 5 million Blacks had been sent to Central America. In 1705 the relocation of Blacks to the United States was so prevalent that the Diversity Act was passed. This act was passed because 6 out of 7 people coming into the country were Black. Fear in the white community that Blacks would team with Indians and overthrow their oppressors provided strong support for the Act. It held that for every 5 Blacks owned, 1 white person had to be brought in to monitor (oversee) them. By 1800, over 35 million Blacks had been shipped out of Africa.

Then, it got nasty. To assure that Black labor developed white wealth, Maryland in 1638 passed the “Doctrine of Exclusion”. This doctrine provided that NO BLACK SHALL BE PERMITTED TO ENJOY THE FRUITS OF WHITE SOCIETY. A landmark case in 1665 involving a Black slave owner Anthony Johnson resulted in the courts’ ruling that slaves were considered slaves for life. Thus, in 1665 all states adopted enslavement laws. Later in 1705 additional slave codes were passed. These codes provided that a Black could neither defend himself nor “raise his hand” against a white. And in 1710 perhaps the most nefarious law of all time was placed on the books, (this one still haunts us today), the Meritorious Manumissions Act. This law provided that, any Black could gain their freedom by: 1.) Saving a white’s life, 2.) Protecting a white’s property, 3.) Inventing something from which a white could profit. Can you see how this is still in effect? Yet with today’s Meritorious Manumissions, there is no promise of freedom.

1712 Willie Lynch delivered his speech on the banks of the James River, advising white slave owners how to control Blacks. In 1750 Black dilution began. Indians were hired to hunt down runaway slaves for a $20 per slave bounty and later were contracted to kill Blacks. All 5 civilized Indian tribes were slave holders and slave traders.

At the eve of the Civil War (1861) 6200 Blacks were slave owners. By 1900 there were 11 million Blacks in the United States, today there are just over 30 million in 1965 the original affirmative action legislation was passed as reparations for Blacks. However, it was quickly changed to ignore past actions and provide for future opportunity and to include women and gays, thus, watering down the effect for Black people. Now, why is all of that important. Because, if you don’t know the past. . .

The effects of this anti-Black legislation has an ugly heritage that has left an unyielding legacy. Furthermore, it has a continued to this day. Also it is illegal. Consider if you will the following set of circumstances. (Connect the dots)

• During the Reagan-Bush era the CIA brings into this country 1,500 kilos of cocaine per month to be distributed in targeted Black communities throughout the country. They do this for a period of six consecutive years. (Under the auspices of raising money for the Contras, further demonstrating a devaluing of American Blacks).
• Reagan’s Federalism program (designed to take “government off your backs”) strips urban communities of Federal dollars for social programs and gives the power of asset distribution to the governors in the form of Block grants.
• Governors across the country start building prisons. (Prisons are the fastest growing industry in the country).
• Community policing is emphasized in urban communities. (Not to mention that clearly 60% of all drug use occurs in the suburbs).
• A get-tough policy is announced by the Republican Party (in their Contract for America) and another drug czar is named to replace outgoing czar William Bennett.
• A reclassification of the drug code is legislated. Up to 5 grams of powder cocaine is considered for personal use and is subject to a penalty of probation (powder cocaine is considered to be the recreational drug of choice). While 1 rock of crack cocaine is classified as felony possession.
• Mandatory sentencing guidelines are then applied. (In October 1996, Blacks for the first time in this nation’s history outnumbered all others as inmates in correctional facilities; to date we still do).
• Finally, truth in sentencing guidelines appear. Thus, if now convicted statutes provide for mandatory sentencing at the full term.

Hmm, see the picture?

But there is hope. According to my calculations almost every Black in America could be worth a million dollars if, those who are arguing for reparations engaged the correct argument. Hidden in the law is a little known Act. This act took nearly 40 years to pass. The arguments against this act were that Blacks would use it against the crimes of the U.S. government. So, much work ensued to craft just the right language in an attempt to exclude Blacks (often by hiding behind states rights). It addresses religious freedoms and the like, but in the body of the Act, and in some of the fine print (according to today’s court rulings on similar cases) it provides a formidable argument for its utility. The act is The Genocide Convention Implementation Act of 1987, the Proxmire Act. This act is contained in Chapter 50A of the U.S. law code, Title 18, (Crimes and Criminal Procedure).

(Crimes). Section 1091 deals specifically with genocide. It states: A. Basic Offense -- whoever, whether in the time of peace or time of war, in a circumstance described in subsection (d) and with the specific intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group as such --

• Kills members of that group (i.e. lynching, Mena, urban policing, dilution)
• Causes serious bodily injury to members of that group (i.e. lynching, dilution)
• Causes the permanent impair ment of the mental faculties of members of the group through drugs, torture, or similar techniques, (i.e. Mena)
• Subjects the group to condi tions of life that are intended to cause the physical destruction of the groups in whole or in part; (i.e. the Doctrine of Exclusion)
• Imposes measures intended to pre vent births within the group (i.e. sterilization); or
• Transfers by force children of the group to another group; (i.e. slavery, or forced bussing) or attempts to do so, shall be pun- ished as provided in subsection (d).

Subsection (D)-states that the law applies whenever “the offense is committed within the United States”, or “the alleged offender is a national of the United States”. Fines up to 1 million dollars per occurrence are possible under this Act. Imprisonment for life is possible in the case of murder, or up to 20 years otherwise.

Now can you imagine, 30,000,000 Black folk times $1,000,000 equals $30,000,000,000,000, designated in a pool established for the reparations of the Black community, managed by us, for us, because under the tenets of this law it’s owed to us. Consider the possibilities.