Reparations rhetoric is a farce
- By Curtis Anthony Hervey
- Published 12/1/2009
Curtis Anthony Hervey
My 18,000 word thesis earned me a Masters of Biblical Studies degree (a wholistic plan to empower low-income black America). I'm here to network for publication and to seek out like-minded African Americans (curtis.hervey@yahoo.com). As a Distinguished Graduate of OCS, I seek to apply battle-tested military principles to solving black pathology by issuing a national warning order. I'm an iconoclast, my doctrine is Washingtonian (as in Booker T.) and my role is that of Socratic Gadfly.
Every time I think about the topic of reparations, I have to chuckle. I laugh to myself because the concept is both a ludicrous pipe-dream and because of the Dave Chappelle’s comedic masterpiece on the subject.
But, for the sake of argument, let us deal with the matter of reparations. Yes, one could argue precedence (Uncle Sam has indeed compensated Native Americans with reservations and subsidies and Japanese Americans for the World War II concentration camp fiasco). But, some would argue that blacks have been wards of the welfare state for over 40 years and have already been paid reparations in AFDC/TANF, housing subsidies, Medicaid, and a myriad of government “programs,” that always seem to do more harm than good.
Then there’s the matter of legality. There simply are no legal grounds for a reparations class action since the actual plaintiffs (black former slaves) are long since dead. And isn’t there a reasonable statute of limitations to consider here?
And what about those free blacks (former indentured servants, manumitted slaves, etc.) who owned black slaves themselves? Aren’t their descendants culpable as well? Or is this just a matter of skin color?
And does it matter that only a small percentage of whites could afford to own slaves and that most were too poor to do so?
Isn’t this about blind rage, settling old scores, and revenge instead of a quest for justice?
Then there’s a simple matter of realism. I mean, let’s be pragmatic about this: blacks will never see one dime of reparations. So why bother asking for that which we know we’ll never receive? Why do we invest so much time and energy into this rhetorical exercise when we could instead focus on more realistic and practical objectives?
The issue of reparations is an exercise in futility that fuels an entitlement mentality and a culture of victimization. All this talk about “equality” and nobody knows the true meaning of the word. To truly equal to someone, you must match their achievements. And, the ruling class didn’t get where they are by panhandling. The
According to the Douglassonian paradigm of the civil rights establishment, power concedes noting without demand (Frederick Douglass). But, a cursory survey of history plainly illustrates that power never willing grants the demands of a minority people group or underclass; period. In every instance in the annals of history where an underclass petitions a ruling class for redress, it is never granted willingly. This is because those who make “demands” are powerless and have no leverage or force of arms to put teeth in their petitions. Those that petition a ruling class with “demands” are powerless. The powerful is not accountable to the powerless and therefore is never persuaded to concede to their “demands.” Consequently, our grievance-based Douglassonian paradigm is counterproductive.
All the civil rights legislation is merely pacification, a placebo. Real secular power in
However, as far as I am concerned, any people group that is wasteful enough to squander over $700 billion dollars annually (according to Target Market News’ annual report, The Buying Power of Black America) doesn’t deserve reparations or any form of assistance. This so-called black “spending power” is nothing more than a manifestation of stereotypical black spend-thriftiness (spent on white-produced products and services that enrich the same apathetic mainstream blacks neurotically appeal to for redress).
All this disposable income and blacks are yet at the bottom of
Ask yourself: how much of this gross expenditure aggrandizes black-owned corporations? And we still want to pretend to be impoverished, hapless victims? This Culture of Victimization is a racket. This is racketeering plain and simple. All these civil rights organizations like the fraudulent Rainbow Coalition and National Action Network extorting the mainstream because of white guilt and old-fashioned coercion. This is racketeering. And now we’re talking about making “covenants” of coercion. When will it all stop. This is a farce. If we would learn to produce what we consume, we won’t have to continue to live on our knees.
Look, we spent over $700 billion dollars last year, but how much did we produce? Sure, we’ve cornered the market on consumerism; we have demonstrated that we are skilled at consumption, but what about productivity? Capitalism is a neutral system that can be used for either good or evil. It is a trick that can work BOTH ways. But, panhandling is the path of least resistance, after all. Of course, it takes no special talent to “demand rights” or protest. What we need is nation-building prowess. And any “leader” that says otherwise is guilty of dereliction of duty due to gross negligence.
What further proof is needed that contemporary blacks possess all the financial resources they’ll ever need to effect “equality” with whites? Apparently, we just lack the fiscal discipline and competent leadership to provide us with the necessary purpose, direction and motivation. Black doctrine is not only too pessimistic; it is too damned anglo-centric!
Furthermore, because pseudo-intellectual reparations rhetoric fuels dysfunctional entitlement mentality, it leads to social loafing and lack of ambition. Reparations does not bring about healing and only antagonizes the mainstream (won’t lead to reconciliation). So, then, it is divisive and seditious. But, few consider that Reparations would lead to a violent white backlash. Blacks are outnumbered and surrounded. Can anyone say,
Blacks
So, you see, the issue isn’t the reparations that every black knows in his heart that he’ll never see. The real issue is extravagant spending habits (“bling”) and backwards priorities in the black community. It’s about dysfunctional black values.
But, I’ve been on my soap-box long enough. Suffice it to say that Chappelle’s reparations sketch illustrated the old adage, “A fool and his money are soon parted” (accredited to the English farmer and writer Thomas Tusser, 1542-1580). The annual wasteful spending of billions of dollars in disposable income is proof of this. This is something nearly everyone on the planet has concluded long ago: the problem in the black community can’t be solved with money. It is a much deeper issue (pathological).
