Self-employment has, and continues to be, a time tested way toward establishing wealth and prosperity. Self-employment has been a crucial aid used by other ethnic groups to create a haven of economic growth within their perspective communities, and reduce discrimination that they faced in the mainstream economy.  

These ethnic groups have included pre-World War II Chinese and Japanese immigrants in California, to Cuban refugees in Florida, and the Chinese in New York City. Although self-employment is increasingly significant, particularly under the current economic circumstances, disparities in self-employment when it comes to African Americans are statically evident from other racially identifiable groups.

According to 1997 U.S. Census data, African Americans own only 4% of small, entrepreneurial businesses, and earn 0.4% of total receipts for all small businesses, and has made the determination that, self-employment status of African Americans is weak in the United States. Given that small businesses comprise half of all private-sector employment and have created about 70 percent of new jobs each year over the last 10 years, it is imperative to the economic survival of African Americans to identify the barriers to Self-employment and find solutions.

There is no doubt that race has played, and will continue to have a substantial impact on the economic development of African Americans. Nevertheless, it appears that even in the face of certain economic disaster within African American communities, when it comes to African Americans, the holy grail of self employment continues to elude us. Nationally, we have lower rates of self-employment than non-African American groups who serve African American consumer demand in American cities. And, although more African Americans are starting businesses at a higher rate than before, their participation level in business compared to their numerical percentage of the national population is still less than that of whites, and also much less than that of some of the other minority groups in the United States.

The fact is that the development of successful African American business enterprising network is inherent to many benefits that support African Americans both individually and collectively as a community. Self employment within African American communities develop new sources of capital; help to develop a solid and independent economic infrastructure; creates new jobs; and provides the goods and services to the community which re-circulates our communal wealth (GNI) which is now estimated at 700 billion and is predicated to top 1 trillion by 2010.

There is a study by Robert W. Fairlie with the Department of Economics, University of California, Santa Cruz titled "Trends in Self-Employment Among White and Black Men: 1910-1990" that seems to provide some historical insight into the anomalies which have acted to preclude African Americans from pursuing, what has been proven to be a solid way of producing wealth, prosperity and economic self reliant independence.  The main findings from this analysis are:

 1) The self-employment rate of black men relative to white men has remained roughly constant from 1910 to 1990 (at a level of approximately one third the white rates).

2) The large gap between the black and the white self-employment rates is due to the fact that black men have lower self-employment rates in all industries and not due to the fact that blacks are concentrated in low self-employment rate industries.

3) From 1950 to 1990, the earnings of blacks in self-employment relative to wage/salary work rose more than relative earnings for whites, making the near constancy of the black/white ratio of self-employment rates more surprising.

4) We find that major demographic changes that occurred during the twentieth century, such as the Great Black Migration and the racial convergence in educational attainment, did not have large effects on the trend in the racial self-employment rate gap.

5) Evidence from simulations using a simple intergenerational model of self-employment suggests that, if not for continuing factors reducing self-employment, racial convergence in self-employment rates would have occurred within a few generations after Emancipation.

6) Low levels of, and a slow rate of growth in, black assets relative to white assets over the past three decades may have contributed to the lack of racial convergence in self-employment rates.

This report seems to bear out three distinct factors which have impeded upon, what I earlier referred to as, the holy grail of self employment, among us as African Americans which is; discrimination, racism and an indoctrinated self imposed mind set, that keeps us seeking our financial needs and aspiration through jobs; various government contracts; sports; or entertainment all of which denotes dependence upon the dominant culture.

As hard as we might, try to quell the scrooges of racism. Racism with all of its venomous effects still requires a collaborative effort between both African Americans and Caucasians, in order to become a non-factor within our mutual environment. To the contrary, indoctrination is defined “as the process of inculcating ideas, attitudes, cognitive strategies or a professional methodology. It is often distinguished from education by the fact that the indoctrinated person is expected not to question or critically examine the doctrine they have learned. As such it is used pejoratively. Instruction in the basic principles of science, in particular, cannot properly be called indoctrination, in the sense that the fundamental principles of science call for critical self-evaluation and skeptical scrutiny of one's own ideas.”

The key word in this definition is “science” i.e. the objective pursuit of truth within the context of reality. We, as African Americans alone, possess the power “for critical self-evaluation and skeptical scrutiny of the ideas in which we chose to belief in.” The only obstacle preventing us from choosing to think in our own best interest is our will to do so.

I am certain that I have arrived at a place of clarification. Because, one the most insidious aspects of our indoctrinated thinking, consist of dismissing any voice that articulates an independent solution to our problems, as being radical, revolutionary (in the militant sense) or the ranting rhetoric  of an angry Blackman.

In some convoluted way, too many of us have come to believe that we are the racist if we engage in any self help activity that excludes other races. Dr. Na'im Akbar points out in one of his books titled "Akbar Papers in African Psychology" some insight into this phenomenon of African Americans reluctance to act in an independent self reliant manner and coins the phrase "Alien Self Disorder". Within this context Dr. Akbar states:

"The alien self disorder represents that group of individuals who behave contrary to their nature and their survival. They are a group whose predominant behavior patterns represent a rejection of their natural and culturally valid dispositions. They have learned to act in contradiction to their own life and well being and as a consequence they are alienated from themselves. These are the growing numbers of African Americans in recent years that have been socialized in families with primarily materialistic goals. They see themselves as basically material beings and evaluate their worth by the prevalence of material accoutrements which they possess...these families are usually preoccupied with materialistic goals, social affluence and rational priorities (to the exclusion of moral objectives)."

The undeniable fact is; today our collective communities exist upon the unproductive foundation which consist of an array of individual opinions, and not upon the firm foundation of well researched institutions that have been designed, researched, constructed and instituted toward addressing the disparities which impeded upon our growth and development. That in and of itself, first requires a independent economic foundation that derives its independence from the support of the people in which it serves.

Without question, our future lies in our choice to take some degree of responsibility for ourselves. We can continue to lay the full weight for our economic well being upon others, and upon the contrived recommendations or programs that forge our dependence. Or, we can chose to take this responsibility upon ourselves and create real opportunities through a do for self imitative that will have a real impact on creating an independent self reliant economic foundation which is the life’s blood to both our survival and our future.

Without a viable independent economic foundation, created through our own initiative, weakens and distorts other institutions such as; ideology, theology, and cultural education of the effective balance necessary for representing our best interest within the dominant culture in which we live.

No other peoples exist within the self-centered high risk world of the individual at the exclusion of, and the security and benefits of, a group understanding which is essential to their collective existence. As African Americans we must begin to recognize our individuality upon the universal questions of:

Who am I? Who are we? What am I? What kind of people are we? What do I do with my life? And finally, what do we do with our existence? The answers to these universal questions will determine our actions; restore our creative purpose; reinstate our common sense and free us from the contrived belief that doing for self is alien to nature, instead of part of it. 

In a society where less than 5% of black Americans own their own businesses; where merely 3% of black Americans have savings of any significance; where 60% of us are employed by the government; where our economic ranking places us among the tenth wealthiest racially identified community on the face of the planet earth. Yet; today we only retain 3% of our communal wealth (GNI) and through spontaneous and indiscriminate spending, mindlessly spend 97% of our purchasing power within the general market place, with little or no benefit to the economic growth and development of our own communities.

It is critical; especially at this time, when pretty much our soul providers (corporate American/US government) are in economic distress, that we collectively and individually, identify the fundamental components of self thinking that will allow us to take more responsibility and control for participating in our own economic well being.

In order for us to move toward some form of economic independence requires from us, some aspect of a unified organizational effort. Unity or collective organization is achieved either through leadership or the coalescence of the individual around a central theme that eventually results in the organization of the group. Unfortunately, it is historically clear that African American leadership is virtually non-existent when it comes to thinking in realistic terms about creating a self reliant, independent African American economic infrastructure.

 The fact is, they have had their chance, and chose to place our economic future upon jobs being created within the general market; a acquiesce that historically accepts African American unemployment as being double the national rate, as opposed to some form of independent self sufficiency.

Looking for direction from our leadership is akin to being told to stay aboard the Titanic; that the crew is working on the problem; and should soon have the linkage fixed so that we can get back to our apathetic lives of dependency until the next crisis. With no wealth to sustain us; no leadership to guide us; with no jobs to employ us; and with our caretakers in a state of economic panic; identifying a viable option for surviving what Alan Green (former chairman of the United States Federal Reserve Board) described as an approaching “economic tsunami” is the most important endeavor that we as African Americans can be engaged in at this point and time in our history. Our self appointed leadership, are by this very definition ill equipped for navigating us through this dilemma.

The only current realistic opportunity that will allow us to change our economic circumstances is individual choice. However, we cannot dismiss the fact that our individual choice, in this matter has been subjected to various indoctrinated concepts. These concepts inhibits our ability to think freely about the benefits of constructing and implementing a self reliant economic infrastructure, that ties our individual and collective economic benefits together in such a way, that connects  African American enterprise to the 700 billion purchasing power of African American consumers, as well as the African Diaspora in general.

It is imperative that we move beyond the false hopes and illusionary beliefs that have been no more than a pacifier which has been used by, us and them, to compensate for the glaring disparities that have always existed between us and the dominant culture. Beliefs are great when they are right, but they can be just as devastating when they are wrong. So the paramount question remains; what should we belief in; and what options are viable options for addressing our economic needs; pending what is certain to be for us a generational challenge?

Undeniably, the indoctrinated concept of individualism is the wall that exists within us as African Americans, between our common sense and the embracing the realities that will move us forward. Dr. Amos Wilson alludes to the dangers of individualism in his last publication titled “Blueprint for Black Power…A moral, Political and Economic Imperative for the Twenty-First Century” where he states: “Two major means by which *Individualism and consumerism (my emphasis) are accomplished include the infusing of Blacks and the lower classes with a psychology of consumerism and by indoctrinating them with the ideology of individualism…This privately defined, socially abstract, deracialized, de-ethnicized individualism is perfectly designed to induce a false and self-defeating, alienated state of consciousness in the members of the African American community in order to sap its vitality and potential…it functions to induce and motivate in African Americans the behaviors, attitudes and social relations which perpetuate their own subordination which at the same time, and by the same means, support and empower the racist status quo –“ (page 150-151)”   

These sobering insights provide us with a viable starting point which should first compel us to stop abusing reality and embrace our common sense, and recognize that; one is greater than two; Organization is more productive than disorganization; and that unity is more powerful than disunity. Common sense dictates that when we create and sell goods and services to our neighbors, more capital is kept within the community. Capital means wealth, and wealth means better communities and creates opportunity. Business-creation is a viable option that embodies the creativity, enterprise, and risk-taking that holds the most promise for us to take control over our destiny and meet this (and any future) economic challenges head on.

We can accomplish this transformation through the realization that the concepts of an individual are eventually transformed into the concepts of a group if, and only if, the concept holds individual value that is transferable in such a way that eventually coalesce individual concerns into a organized group.

Since my critique is about the economic empowerment of African Americans, and the psychological adjustment that we must be willing to undertake in order to effectively pursue our economic development. I would like to invite you to visit a revolutionary new concept that is designed to do just that. Because, the mind-set of self reliance will also require a practical endeavor in which to focus our newly found sense of self reliance, and we don’t have to look far to discover that technology is more than worthy of our consideration. Technology is in fact the only option on the horizon that has the full potential to meet and address the economic disparities that challenge our economic progress and survival.

This great challenge will help us to find our finest moment, it will sober us up from relying on false hopes and illusionary beliefs that currently cloud our economic progress, it is during these times that we are more likely to rise above our ruts and start searching for new ways and truer answers.

The African American Connection (AAC) is a company that has been in development for over a decade, and dedicated to exploring technology for the purpose of finding real solutions to the economic problems facing us as African Americans; regardless to politics, religion, cultural ideology or social economic barriers.

You will find it to be as comprehensive in meeting your (our) economic needs, as it is fair in defending our decency; it is a journey into a whole new concept of financial freedom which has been expressly designed as a self reliant tool for achieving collective financial independence through the spirit of self participation, and has been specifically designed upon individual value and prosperity.

It is the most viable option for more effectively managing our collective purchasing power (GNI) by connecting our goods or services to the powerful 700 billion consumer market of African American buyers throughout the continental United States, and in fact ,throughout the world economy. It will allow us to take more control over managing the historic economic exploitation of our communities by providing the citizens of our communities with a shopping platform whereby we can stipulate conditions that guarantee that the citizens of our communities receive fair pricing, and the customer service worthy of their patronage.

it will free us from the complaints of discrimination, and liberate us from the ‘get rich quick schemes’ that today have become nothing short of a plague within our communities;  it will allow every citizen of the African American community to participate in their personal and collective economic well being - regardless to their social economic status; it will jar us from sitting idly by while we surrender our economic destiny to the forces of broken promises, false hope, and economic exploitation which are undeniably the current status quo.

 But, the most important goal to be obtained through the AAC self reliant home based marketing system will be a independent economic foundation for our children which will free them, as well as our economic future, from the captivity of the indoctrinated, high risk, stagnated world of job seekers and will provide us with a viable alternative for meeting our current economic challenges – head on!  Whether you have an online business, walk in business, or would like to start your own business ‘The African American Connection’ is a choice for real change.

To learn more about the self reliant home based shopping and business centers of the African American Connection simply access the link provided below, It will be time well spent and the first step in your (our) journey toward a whole new world of achieving your (our) financial goals and aspiration.

A gateway for real change: www.aaconnection.com