One of the most vicious civil wars in human history are being fought with little to no bloodshed, and has reached a crescendo over the past 40+ years. This is the best way to describe the continual struggle between the Black man and woman.

In light of the well-publicized women’s march on Washington that occurred almost immediately after the presidential inauguration, it’s no secret that some of the most ardent supporters of this movement were Black women. It was quite an easy feat to gather legions of disgruntled Black women across the United States after the highly-heralded Hillary Clinton lost the presidential election, because she represented what many Black women have deemed to be a symbol of a renegade woman who goes toe-to-toe with the “old boys’ club” — the boogeyman of an establishment better known as patriarchy here in the States.

The fanfare that Clinton received during this most recent presidential race from Sisters is merely a byproduct of the axe that they’ve had to grind with Black men for decades now. In many (not all) schools of thought throughout Black female society, the long-running narrative is that Black men have only served to be the bane of their existence, acting as this proverbial monster who breathes fire under the guise of harsh words for Black women, and whose immense stature represents a mechanism of immovable oppression that bans them from any upwardly mobile progress.

However, much evidence exists that proves otherwise. In a story that was featured on Black Enterprise last year, Black female business ownership has grown exponentially more than many other groups of people who own businesses. Sisters also sit among the most educated demographic in this country. To further elaborate on the topic at hand, the very term “patriarchy” was originally intended to define the man’s traditional role in the familial construct. It was not meant to be used as a term to be categorized with other words, such as white supremacy, racism, ageism, etc.

Although the aforementioned term served a neutral purpose to merely describe a gender role, it has been taken out of context, and has been misconstrued to portray men–in this case Black men–to be the oppressors of their women. In Black society, nothing could be further from the truth. For the sake of this topic, “patriarchy” as it is referenced by some women in today’s time could very well be used to describe the longstanding devices of neglect and oppression that white supremacist males have not only used against their women (look up the witch hunts of the Middle Ages, or King James’s disdain for women), but to all people on a global scale. This very reference of ‘oppressive patriarchy’ by Black women should be left with women in other racial groups, because it is clearly not a Black female plight.

With the large number of households led by Black women with no man in sight, key supervisory roles in corporate America occupied by Black women, and the super influential mainstream media’s hand in ensuring that the Black man is virtually useless in this society, we’d be hard pressed to conclude that the Black man has the wherewithal to keep his woman down in this country.

Black women are our mothers, sisters, daughters, wives, and our best friends…our slaves and stepping stools they are not.

Dontrell Stephens is a 22-year-old who, like most other people who ride their bicycles around town, never expect to be shot by a race soldier cop. However, this is exactly what happened to Mr. Stephens in September of 2013.

Mr. Stephens was stopped by an officer by Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Sgt. Adams Lin on that fateful September date, and accused Stephens of reaching for a weapon in his waistband. As it turns out, Stephens was unarmed, and the only “dark object” that was in his hands at the time of his being stopped was a cellphone. Stephens explains that Adams Lin had already began to shoot him despite the fact that his hands were raised after being chased down and stopped.

Adams Lin, who’s Asian, was cleared of any criminal charges involving the shooting, and was promoted to sergeant after the incident. What’s alarming about Adams Lin shooting Dontrell Stephens was that he is a 12-year veteran of the sheriff’s office–ample time for an officer to gain the experience and proper judgement on how to deal with citizens–which makes his claims of innocence very suspicious at best.

Palm Beach County Sheriff Sergeant Adams Lin

Mr. Stephens’s attorneys say that their client will have more than $6 million worth of medical expenses in his lifetime because of the paralysis he suffered after being shot, and $18 million for his pain and suffering. A federal jury has awarded Mr. Stephens $23.1 million.

For more on this story, follow this link.

B. Clark

Once the story broke, a video was included along with the story. It appears that the video was recorded by Mr. Lynn himself, and was uploaded to his YouTube account. You can see footage of the incident in the video below.

According to Mr. Lynn, he was eventually let go by the cop while being searched for weapons.

B. Clark

Johnny “JJ” Montgomery and two other men were invited to a social gathering at the mobile home of Nicole Carroll, a white female whose stepfather Michael James Gobert (the killer of Montgomery) lived in a home next door with her (Carroll’s) mother.

According to varying reports, an argument ensued late Monday evening, which stemmed from a disagreement between Carroll and one of the other two Black men who accompanied Montgomery on the visit to the “party”.

After hearing their daughter’s screams, Gobert and his wife both came outside with guns, with Carroll’s mother firing warning shots into the ground, and Gobert shooting 14 shots into the vehicle driven by Montgomery as he and the two other men attempted to escape the barrage of bullets fired.

As a result of the shooting, JJ Montgomery was hit in the head, killing him . Edrius Jamel Putman–the man involved with the dispute with Nicole Carroll–suffered mild damage, with a keychain preventing him from being severely injured. The third man, Deisman Harrison, was not hurt.

Gobert has been charged with murder and is currently in a Walker County jail.

Montgomery was well-known throughout Northwest Georgia and the Chattanooga, TN areas as he was not only a native there (Ringgold, GA), but he was also an aspiring singer and musician who frequented many of the local venues to perform under the stage name “J-Mont“.

In an interview with Chattanooga NBC affiliate WRCBtv, Montgomery’s mother says she spoke with Nicole Carroll, who even admitted to Montgomery’s innocence in the incident, even going further to mention that he (Montgomery) had attempted to diffuse the disagreement between she and Harrison. This would explain the late Montgomery’s reasoning for also attempting to flee the property.

JJ’s mother, Ruth, discussed the emotional, legal, and financial aspects of this entire ordeal. A Go Fund Me page has been created to assist Mr. Montgomery’s family with the burial costs and the support of his four children that he left behind.

B. Clark

There has been a recent trend in Black Society which sees a segment of Melanoid men opt to wear suits almost everywhere they go. The reason why, you ask? Allegedly, the Brothers are doing so in response to the recent occurrences of Melanoid people being murdered by white supremacist race soldiers. In an article from Mashable,  several Melanoid gentlemen were featured, explaining their need to be dressed well at all times:

“If they dress up, they showed how grateful and sacred they saw freedom as, therefore showing white people that they could be recognized as humans”, says Calvin Warren, an assistant professor of American Studies at George Washington University. Mr. Warren, who also happens to be a Melanoid man, recently spoke to a class he taught, titled “Representing Black Men”. Several of the Melanoid students asked Mr. Warren what could be done to prevent racial profiling by race soldiers, and Warren’s reply was an interesting one:

“Clothing choices are life or death choices.”

Although the aforementioned statement may appear to be simple to many, Mr. Warren articulated a certain perception that has been shared in Black Society that is quite complex. For years, it has been stated that Melanoid people–particularly the men of Black Society–need to veer away from the fashion choices that  many believe Melanoid men make. Those choices include the more laid-back clothing combos of jeans, t-shirts, hoodies (in cooler temperatures), with sneakers.

What should be emphasized, is the unfortunate fact that many of the Melanoid men (and in many cases Melanoid women as well) who were lynched, beaten, and harassed by law enforcement were well-dressed individuals whose “presentable” image was totally disregarded by their assailants. Check out the following images which show that the Melanoid victims were actually very presentable in their appearance.

Lawrence Otis Graham, a member of Black Society who is a well-known attorney and bestselling author, seemed to echo the sentiments expressed in the Mashable  article. Last year, Mr. Graham was featured in an ABC News report. In the interview from the report, Graham explained why his sons aren’t allowed to wear dark clothing, hoodies, or shirts with labels of any sort. You can see the interview in the video below.

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2co0h6_lawrence-otis-graham-believes-believes-dressing-a-certain-way-will-keep-his-kids-alive_lifestyle#tab_embed

Another prime example of how this issue is highly questionable would be none other than Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. King was arrested, harassed by law enforcement, and eventually assassinated because of his position as a prominent leader in Black Society. In a nutshell, he was deemed a serious threat by those in the dominant society. That being stated, we’d be hard pressed to find pictures of people like Patrice Lumumba, Dr. King, Malcolm X, and many other Melanoid martyrs wearing “threatening” looking clothing, because we’ve mostly seen them in suits and ties. The oppressive and system of white supremacy disregards what style of clothing Melanoid people choose to wear, because its murderous agenda is anti-Black to its core…whether we decide to wear Timberlands OR Tom Ford.

B. Clark

This is a trend that we as Melanated people in this country should keenly observe, because it’s evident that many of the Melanoid men who are missing are in the prime years of their lives…which strangely happens to be the years of their optimum earning potential and family building by way of marriage and child producing.

Perhaps the biggest threat to white supremacy the is fear of genetic annihilation. The fact that nearly 2 million of the men of Black Society who are in the prime of their lives are missing just may be a covert signal being sent to us that the traditional warrior, builder, and provider class (which is Melanoid men) must have their ranks further reduced in conjunction with the countless other debilitating factors that plague our people as a collective.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K79Wo7R0QKc

by B. Clark