The cruelest thing slavery and colonialism did to theAfricans was to destroy their memory of what they were before foreign contact.Dr John Henrik Clarke Malcolm delivered this speech on the very night that his home in New York was firebombed. He was terribly tired and worried, yet he still showed up all the way in Detroit-- this shows his extreme courage and determination. This is probably his last speech outside of New York, and displays his intellect and honesty, as well as his ideas and understanding close to his death. Malcolm had a become a great Pan Africanist, and this could be judged as his most significant speech. This speech says it all, and yet, we have no truly honored a Man that was perhaps our Greatest Warrior the best honor that we can give Malcolm, is to continue his plan.. Malcolm didnt have a dream, Malcolm had A Plan theres a difference between the two. He understood that the people needed a plan, and he gave us one. So lets work his plan, the best that we can..So we can Thank him, for his life, that he gave to us all. Valentine Day Message 1965 Distinguished guests, brothers and sisters, ladies and gentlemen, friends and enemies: I want to point out first that I am very happy to be here this evening and Im thankful [to the Afro-American Broadcasting Company] for the invitation to come here to Detroit this evening. I was in a house last night that was bombed, my own. It didnt destroy all my clothes, not all, but you know what happens when fire dashes through -- they get smoky. The only thing I could get my hands on before leaving was what I have on now. It isnt something that made me lose confidence in what I am doing, because my wife understands and I have children from this size on down, and even in their young age they understand. I think they would rather have a father or brother or whatever the situation may be who will take a stand in the face of any kind of reaction from narrow-minded people rather than to compromise and later on have to grow up in shame and in disgrace. So I just ask you to excuse my appearance. I dont normally come out in front of people without a shirt and a tie. I guess thats somewhat a holdover from the Black Muslim movement, which I was in. Thats one of the good aspects of that movement. It teaches you to be very careful and conscious of how you look, which is a positive contribution on their part. But that positive contribution on their part is greatly offset by too many other liabilities. Tonight we want to discuss -- and by the way, also, when I came here today I was a bit -- last night, the temperature was about twenty above and when this explosion took place, I was caught in what I had on, some pajamas. And in trying to get my family out of the house, none of us stopped for any clothes at that point -- twenty-degree cold. I myself was -- I had gotten them into the house of the neighbor next door. So I thought perhaps being in that condition for so long I would get pneumonia or a cold or something like that, so a doctor came today -- a nice doctor too -- and he shot something in my arm that naturally put me to sleep. Ive been back there asleep ever since the program started in order to get back in shape. So if I have a tendency to stutter or slow down, its still the effects of that drug. I dont know what kind it was, but it was good; it makes you sleep, and theres nothing like sleeping through a whole lot of excitement. Tonight one of the things that has to be stressed is that which has not only the United States very much worried but which also has France, Great Britain, and most of the powers, who formerly were known as colonial powers, worried also, and that primarily is the African revolution. They are more concerned with the revolution thats taking place on the African continent than they are with the revolution in Asia and in Latin America. And this is because there are so many people of African ancestry within the domestic confines or jurisdiction of these various governments. There are four different types of people in the Western Hemisphere, all of whom have Africa as a common heritage, common origin, and thats the -- those of our people in Latin America, who are Black, but who are in the Spanish-speaking areas. Many of them ofttimes migrate back to Spain, the only difference being Spain has such bad economic conditions until many of the people from Latin America dont think its worthwhile to migrate back there. And then the British and the French had a great deal of control in the Caribbean, in the West Indies. And so now you have many people from the West Indies migrating to both London -- rather both England and France. The people from the British West Indies go to London, and those from the French West Indies go to Paris. And it has put France and England since World War II in the precarious position of having a sort of a commonwealth structure that makes it easy for all of the people in the commonwealth territories to come into their country with no restrictions. So theres an increasing number of dark-skinned people in England and also in France. When I was in Africa in May, I noticed a tendency on the part of the Afro-Americans to, what I call lollygag. Everybody else who was over there had something on the ball, something they were doing, something constructive. For instance, in Ghana, just to take Ghana as an example. There would be many refugees in Ghana from South Africa. But those who were in Ghana were organized and were serving as pressure groups, some were training for military -- some were being trained in how to be soldiers, but others were involved as a pressure group or lobby group to let the people of Ghana never forget whats happening to the brother in South Africa. Also youd have brothers there from Angola and Mozambique. But all of the Africans who were exiles from their particular country and would be in a place like Ghana or Tanganyika, now Tanzania, they would be training. Their every move would still be designed to offset what was happening to their people back home where they had left. The only difference on the continent was the American Negro. Those who were over there werent even thinking about these over here. This was the basic difference. The Africans, when they escaped from their respective countries that were still colonized, they didnt try and run away from the problem. But as soon as they got where they were going, they then began to organize into pressure groups to get governmental support at the international level against the injustices they were experiencing back home. And as I said, the American Negro, or the Afro-American, who was in these various countries, some working for this government, some working for that government, some just in business -- they were just socializing, they had turned their back on the cause over here, they were partying, you know. And when I went through one country in particular, I heard a lot of their complaints and I didnt make any move on them. But when I got to another country, I found the Afro-Americans there were making the same complaints. So we sat down and talked and we organized a branch in this particular country, a branch of the OAAU, Organization of Afro-American Unity. That one was the only one in existence at that time. Then during the summer, when I went back to Africa, I was able in each country that I visited, to get the Afro-American community together and organize them and make them aware of their responsibility to those of us who are still here in the lions den. They began to do this quite well, and when I got to Paris and London -- there are many Afro-Americans in Paris, and many in London. And in December -- no, November -- we organized a group in Paris and just within a very short time they had grown into a well-organized unit. And they, in conjunction with the African community, invited me to Paris, Tuesday, to address a large gathering of Parisians and Afro-Americans and people from the Caribbean and also from Africa who were interested in our struggle in this country and the rate of progress that we have been making. But since the French government and the British government and this government here, the United States, know that I have been almost fanatically stressing the importance of the Afro-American uniting with the African and working as a coalition, especially in areas which are of mutual benefit to all of us. And the governments in these different places were frightened because they know that the Black revolution thats taking place on the outside of their house -- And I might point out right here that colonialism or imperialism, as the slave system of the West is called, is not something thats just confined to England or France or the United States. But the interests in this country are in cahoots with the interests in France and the interests in Britain. Its one huge complex or combine, and it creates whats known as not the American power structure or the French power structure, but its an international power structure. And this international power structure is used to suppress the masses of dark-skinned people all over the world and exploit them of their natural resources. So that the era in which you and I have been living during the past ten years most specifically has witnessed the upsurge on the part of the Black man in Africa against the power structure. He wants his freedom. Now, mind you, the power structure is international, and as such, its own domestic base is in London, in Paris, in Washington, D.C., and so forth. And the outside or external phase of the revolution, which is manifest in the attitude and action of the Africans today is troublesome enough. The revolution on the outside of the house, or the outside of the structure, is troublesome enough. But now the powers that be are beginning to see that this struggle on the outside by the Black man is affecting, infecting the Black man who is on the inside of that structure. I hope you understand what Im trying to say. The newly awakened people all over the world pose a problem for whats known as Western interests, which is imperialism, colonialism, racism, and all these other negative isms or vulturistic isms. Just as the external forces pose a grave threat, they can now see that the internal forces pose an even greater threat. But the internal forces pose an even greater threat only when they have properly analyzed the situation and know what the stakes really are. Just by advocating a coalition of Africans, Afro-Americans, Arabs, and Asians who live within the structure, it automatically has upset France, which is supposed to be one of the most liberal -- heh! -- countries on earth, and it made them expose their hand. England the same way. And I dont have to tell you about this country that we are living in now. So when you count the number of dark-skinned people in the Western Hemisphere you can see that there are probably over 100 million. When you consider Brazil has two-thirds what we call colored, or nonwhite, and Venezuela, Honduras and other Central American countries, Cuba and Jamaica, and the United States and even Canada -- when you total all these people up, you have probably over 100 million. And this 100 million on the inside of the power structure today is what is causing a great deal of concern for the power structure itself. Not a great deal of concern for all white people, but a great deal of concern for most white people. See, if I said all white people then they would call me a racist for giving a blanket condemnation of things. And this is true; this is how they do it. They take one little word out of what you say, ignore all the rest, and then begin to magnify it all over the world to make you look like what you actually arent. And Im very used to that. So we saw that the first thing to do was to unite our people, not only unite us internally, but we have to be united with our brothers and sisters abroad. It was for that purpose that I spent five months in the Middle East and Africa during the summer. The trip was very enlightening, inspiring, and fruitful. I didnt go into any African country, or any country in the Middle East for that matter, and run into any closed door, closed mind, or closed heart. I found a warm reception and an amazingly deep interest and sympathy for the Black man in this country in regards to our struggle for human rights. While I was traveling, I had a chance to speak in Cairo, or rather Alexandria, with President Gamal Abdel-Nasser for about an hour and a half. Hes a very brilliant man. And I can see why theyre so afraid of him, and they are afraid of him -- they know he can cut off their oil. And actually the only thing power respects is power. Whenever you find a man whos in a position to show power against power then that man is respected. But you can take a man who has power and love him all the rest of your life, nonviolently and forgivingly and all the rest of those ofttime things, and you wont get anything out of it. So I also had a chance to speak to President Julius K. Nyerere in Tanganyika, which is now Tanzania, and also President Jomo] Kenyata -- I know that all of you know him. He was the head of the Mau Mau, which really brought freedom to many of the African countries. This is true. The Mau Mau played a major role in bringing about freedom for Kenya, and not only for Kenya but other African countries. Because what the Mau Mau did frightened the white man so much in other countries until he said, Well I better get this thing straight before some of them pop up here. This is good to study because you see what makes him react: Nothing loving makes him react, nothing forgiving makes him react. The only time he reacts is when he knows you can hurt him, and when you let him know you can hurt him he has to think two or three times before he tries to hurt you. But if youre not going to do nothing but return that hurt with love -- why good night! He knows youre out of your mind. And also I had an opportunity to speak with President Nnamdi Azikiwe in Nigeria, President Kwame Nkrumah in Ghana, and President Sekou Toure in Guinea. And in all of these people I found nothing but warmth, friendship, sympathy, and a desire to help the Black man in this country in fighting our problem. And we have a very complex problem. Now I hope youll forgive me for just speaking so informally tonight, but I frankly think its always better to be informal. As far as I am concerned, I can speak to people better in an informal way than I can with all of this stiff formality that ends up meaning nothing. Plus, when people are informal, theyre relaxed. When theyre relaxed, their mind is more open, and they can weigh things more objectively. Whenever you and I are discussing our problems we need to be very objective, very cool, calm, collected. But that doesnt mean we should always be. Theres a time to be cool and a time to be hot. See, you got messed up into thinking that theres only one time for everything. Theres a time to love and a time to hate. Even Solomon said that, and he was in that Book too. Youre just taking something out of the Book that fits your cowardly nature. And when you dont want to fight, you say, Well, Jesus said dont fight. But I dont even believe Jesus said that. Also I am very pleased to see so many who have come out to always see for yourself, where you can hear for yourself, and then think for yourself. Then youll be in a better position to make an intelligent judgment for yourself. But if you form the habit of listening to what others say about something or some one or reading what someone else has written about someone, somebody can confuse you and misuse you. So as Afro-Americans or Black people here in the Western Hemisphere, you and I have to learn to weigh things for ourselves. No matter what the white man says, you better look into it. And a good example of why its so important to look into things for yourself: I was on a plane between Algiers and Geneva and it just happened that two other Americans were sitting in the two seats next to me. None of us knew each other and the other two were white, one a male, the other a female. And after we had been flying along for about forty minutes, the lady, she says, Could I ask you a personal question? I said, Yes. She said, Well-- she had been looking at my briefcase, and she said, Well, what does that X-- she says, What kind of last name could you have that begins with X? So I said, Thats it -- X. And she said, Well, what does the M stand for? I said, Malcolm. So she was quiet for about ten minutes, and she turned to me and she says, Youre not Malcolm X? You see, we had been riding along in a nice conversation like three human beings, you know, no hostility, no animosity, just human. And she couldnt take this, she said, Well youre not who I was looking for, you know. And she ended up telling me that she was looking for horns and all that, and for someone who was out to kill all white people, as if all white people could be killed. This was her general attitude, and this attitude had been given her -- this image had been given [to] her by the press. So before I get involved in anything nowadays, I have to straighten out my own position, which is clear. I am not a racist in any form whatsoever. I dont believe in any form of racism. I dont believe in any form of discrimination or segregation. I believe in Islam. I am a Muslim. And theres nothing wrong with being a Muslim, nothing wrong with the religion of Islam. It just teaches us to believe in Allah as the God. Those of you who are Christians probably believe in the same God, because I think you believe in the God who created the universe. Thats the One we believe in, the one who created the universe, the only difference being you call Him God and I -- we call Him Allah. The Jews call him Jehovah. If you could understand Hebrew, youd probably call him Jehovah too. If you could understand Arabic, youd probably call him Allah. But since the white man, your friend, took your language away from you during slavery, the only language you know is his language. You know, your friends language. So you call for the same God he calls for. When hes putting a rope around your neck, you call for God and he calls for God. [Laughter and applause.] And you wonder why the one you call on never answers you. So that once you realize that I believe in the Supreme Being who created the universe, and believe in him as being one -- I also have been taught in Islam that one God only has one religion, and that religion is called Islam, and all of the prophets who came forth taught that religion -- Abraham, Moses, Jesus, Mohammed, all of them. And by believing in one God and one religion and all of the prophets, it creates unity. Theres no room for argument, no need for us to be arguing with each other. And also in that religion, of the real religion of Islam -- when I was in the Black Muslim movement, I wasnt -- they didnt have the real religion of Islam in that movement. It was something else. And the real religion of Islam doesnt teach anyone to judge another human being by the color of his skin. The yardstick that is used by the Muslim to measure another man is not the mans color but the mans deeds, the mans conscious behavior, the mans intentions. And when you use that as a standard of measurement or judgment, you never go wrong. But when you just judge a man because of the color of his skin, then youre committing a crime, because thats the worst kind of judgment. If you judged him just because he was a Jew, thats not as bad as judging him because hes Black. Because a Jew, can hide his religion. He can say hes something else -- and which a lot of them do that, they say theyre something else. But the Black man cant hide. When they start indicting us because of our color that means were indicted before were born, which is the worst kind of crime that can be committed. The Muslim religion has eliminated all tendencies to judge a man according to the color of his skin, but rather the judgment is based upon his deeds. And when, prior to going into the Muslim world, I didnt have any -- Elijah Muhammad had taught us that the white man could not enter into Mecca in Arabia, and all of us who followed him, we believed it. And he said the reason he couldnt enter was because hes white and inherently evil, its impossible to change him. And the only thing that would change him is Islam, and he cant accept Islam because by nature hes evil. And therefore by not being able to accept Islam and become a Muslim, he could never enter Mecca. This is how he taught us, you know. So when I got over there and went to Mecca and saw these people who were blond and blue-eyed and pale-skinned and all those things, I said, Well! But I watched them closely. And I noticed that though they were white, and they would call themselves white, there was a difference between them and the white one over here. And that basic difference was this: in Asia or the Arab world or in Africa, where the Muslims are, if you find one who says hes white, all hes doing is using an adjective to describe something thats incidental about him, one of his incidental characteristics; so theres nothing else to it, hes just white. But when you get the white man over here in America and he says hes white, he means something else. You can listen to the sound of his voice -- when he says hes white, he means hes a boss. Thats right. Thats what white means in this language. You know the expression, free, white, and twenty-one. He made that up. Hes letting you know all of them mean the same. White means free, boss. Hes up there. So that when he says hes white he has a little different sound in his voice. I know you know what Im talking about. This was what I saw was missing in the Muslim world. If they said they were white, it was incidental. White, black, brown, red, yellow, doesnt make any difference what color you are. So this was the religion that I had accepted and had gone there to get a better knowledge of it. But despite the fact that I saw that Islam was a religion of brotherhood, I also had to face reality. And when I got back into this American society, Im not in a society that practices brotherhood. Im in a society that might preach it on Sunday, but they dont practice it on no day -- on any day. And so, since I could see that America itself is a society where there is no brotherhood and that this society is controlled primarily by racists and segregationists -- and it is -- who are in Washington, D.C., in positions of power. And from Washington, D.C., they exercise the same forms of brutal oppression against dark-skinned people in South and North Vietnam, or in the Congo, or in Cuba, or in any other place on this earth where theyre trying to exploit and oppress. This is a society whose government doesnt hesitate to inflict the most brutal form of punishment and oppression upon dark-skinned people all over the world. To wit, right now whats going on in and around Saigon and Hanoi and in the Congo and elsewhere? They are violent when their interests are at stake. But all of that violence that they display at the international level, when you and I want just a little bit of freedom, were supposed to be nonviolent. Theyre violent. Theyre violent in Korea, theyre violent in Germany, theyre violent in the South Pacific, theyre violent in Cuba, theyre violent wherever they go. But when it comes time for you and me to protect ourselves against lynchings, they tell us to be nonviolent. Thats a shame. Because we get tricked into being nonviolent, and when somebody stands up and talks like I just did, they say, Why, hes advocating violence! Isnt that what they say? Every time you pick up your newspaper, you see where one of these things has written into it that Im advocating violence. I have never advocated any violence. Ive only said that Black people who are the victims of organized violence perpetrated upon us by the Klan, the Citizens Council, and many other forms, we should defend ourselves. And when I say that we should defend ourselves against the violence of others, they use their press skillfully to make the world think that Im calling on violence, period. I wouldnt call on anybody to be violent without a cause. But I think the Black man in this country, above and beyond people all over the world, will be more justified when he stands up and starts to protect himself, no matter how many necks he has to break and heads he has to crack. I saw in the paper where they -- on the television where they took this Black woman down in Selma, Alabama, and knocked her right down on the ground, dragging her down the street. You saw it, youre trying to pretend like you didnt see it cause you knew you shouldve done something about it and didnt. It showed the sheriff and his henchmen throwing this Black woman on the ground -- on the ground. And Negro men standing around doing nothing about it saying, Well, lets overcome them with our capacity to love. What kind of phrase is that? Overcome them with our capacity to love. And then it disgraces the rest of us, because all over the world the picture is splashed showing a Black woman a with some white brutes, with their knees on her holding her down, and full-grown Black men standing around watching it. Why, you are lucky they let you stay on earth, much less stay in the country. When I saw it I dispatched a wire to Rockwell; Rockwell was one of the agitators down there, Rockwell, this George Lincoln Rockwell [leader of the American Nazi Party]. And the wire said in essence that this is to warn him that I am no longer held in check from fighting white supremacists by Elijah Muhammads separatist Black Muslim movement. And that if Rockwells presence in Alabama causes harm to come to Dr. King or any other Black person in Alabama whos doing nothing other than trying to enjoy their rights, then Rockwell and his Ku Klux Klan friends would be met with maximum retaliation from those of us who are not handcuffed by this nonviolent philosophy. And I havent heard from Rockwell since. Brothers and sisters, if you, and I would just realize that once we learn to talk the language that they understand, they will then get the point. You cant ever reach a man if you dont speak his language. If a man speaks the language of brute force, you cant come to him with peace. Why, good night! Hell break you in two, as he has been doing all along. If a man speaks French, you cant speak to him in German. If he speaks Swahili, you cant communicate with him in Chinese. You have to find out what does this man speak. And once you know his language, learn how to speak his language, and hell get the point. Therell be some dialogue, some communication, and some understanding will be developed. Youve been in this country long enough to know the language the Klan speaks. They only know one language. And what you and I have to start doing in 1965 -- I mean thats what you have to do, because most of us already been doing it -- is start learning a new language. Learn the language that they understand. And then when they come up on our doorstep to talk, we can talk. And they will get the point. Therell be a dialogue, therell be some communication, and Im quite certain there will then be some understanding. Why? Because the Klan, is a cowardly outfit. They have perfected the art of making Negroes be afraid. As long as the Negros afraid, the Klan is safe. But the Klan itself is cowardly. One of them will never come after one of you. They all come together. Sure, and theyre scared of you. And you sit there when theyre putting the rope around your neck saying, Forgive them, Lord, they know not what they do. As long as theyve been doing it, theyre experts at it, they know what theyre doing! No, since they federal government has shown that it isnt going to do anything about it but talk, it is a duty, its your and my duty as men, as human beings, it is our duty to our people, to organize ourselves and let the government know that if they dont stop that Klan, well stop it ourselves. And then youll see the government start doing something about it. But dont ever think that theyre going to do it just on some kind of morality basis, no. So I dont believe in violence -- thats why I want to stop it. And you cant stop it with love, not love of those things down there, no. So, we only mean vigorous action in self-defense and that vigorous action we feel were justified in initiating by any means necessary. Now, the press, behind something like that, they call us racist and people who are violent in reverse. This is how they psycho you. They make you think that if you try to stop the Klan from lynching you, youre practicing violence in reverse. Pick up on this, I hear a lot of you all parrot what the [white] man says. You say, I dont want to be a Ku Klux Klan in reverse. Well, you - heh! -- if a criminal comes around your house with his gun, brother, just because hes got a gun and hes robbing your house, brother, and hes a robber, it doesnt make you a robber because you grab your gun and run him out. No, see, the man is using some tricky logic on you. And he has absolutely got a Ku Klux Klan outfit that goes through the country frightening black people. Now, I say it is time for black people to put together the type of action, the unity, that is necessary to pull the sheet off of them so they wont be frightening black people any longer. Thats all. And when we say this, the press calls us racist in reverse. Dont struggle -- only within the ground rules that the people youre struggling against have laid down. Why, this is insane. But it shows you how they can do it. With skillful manipulating of the press, theyre able to make the victim look like the criminal, and the criminal look like the victim. Right now in New York we had a couple cases where police grabbed the brother and beat him unmercifully -- and then charged him with assaulting them. They used the press to make it look like hes the criminal and theyre the victim. This is how they do it, and if you study how they do it [t]here, then youll know how they do it over here. Its the same game going all the time, and if you and I dont awaken and see what this man is doing to us, then itll be too late. They may have the gas ovens already built before you realize that theyre hot. One of the shrewd ways that they use the press to project us in the eye or image of a criminal: they take statistics. And with the press they feed these statistics to the public, primarily the white public. Because there are some well-meaning persons in the white public as well as bad-meaning persons in the white public. And whatever the government is going to do, it always wants the public on its side, whether its the local government, state government, and federal government. So they use the press to create images. And at the local level, theyll create an image by feeding statistics to the press -- through the press showing the high crime rate in the Negro community. As soon as this high crime rate is emphasized through the press, then people begin to look upon the Negro community as a community of criminals. And then any Negro in the community can be stopped in the street. Put your hands up, and they pat you down. You might be a doctor, a lawyer, a preacher, or some other kind of Uncle Tom. But despite your professional standing, youll find that youre the same victim as the man whos in the alley. Just because youre Black and you live in a Black community, which has been projected as a community of criminals. This is done. And once the public accepts this image also, it paves the way for a police-state type of activity in the Negro community. They can use any kind of brutal methods to suppress Blacks because theyre criminals anyway. And what has given this image? The press again, by letting the power structure or the racist element in the power structure use them in that way. A very good example was the riots that took place here during the summer: I was in Africa, I read about them over there. If youll notice, they referred to the rioters as vandals, hoodlums, thieves. They tried to make it appear that this wasnt -- they tried to make it -- and they did this. They skillfully took the burden off the society for its failure to correct these negative conditions in the Black community. It took the burden completely off the society and put it right on the community by using the press to make it appear that the looting and all of this was proof that the whole act was nothing but vandals and robbers and thieves, who werent really interested in anything other than that which was negative. And I hear many old, dumb, brainwashed Negroes who parrot the same old party line that the man handed down in his paper. It was not the case that they were just knocking out store windows ignorantly. In Harlem, for instance, all of the stores are owned by white people, all of the buildings are owned by white people. Black people are just there, paying rent, buying the groceries. But they dont own the stores, clothing stores, food stores, any kind of stores; dont even own the homes that they live in. This is all owned by outsiders. And then these run down apartment dwellings, the Black man in Harlem pays more money for it than the man down in the rich Park Avenue section. It costs us more money to live in the slum, than it costs them to live down on Park Avenue. Black people in Harlem know this. And the white merchants charge us more money for food in Harlem -- and its the cheap food, its the worst food; and we have to pay more money for it than the man has to pay for it downtown. So Black people know that theyre being exploited, and that their blood is being sucked and they see no way out of it. So finally, when the thing is sparked, the white man is not there; hes gone. The merchant is not there, the landlord is not there; the one he considers to be the enemy isnt there. So, they knock at his property. This is what makes them knock down the store windows and set fire to things, and things of that sort. Its not that theyre thieves. But they try and project the image to the public that this is being done by thieves, and thieves alone. And they ignore the fact that no, it is not thievery alone. Its a corrupt, vicious, hypocritical system that has castrated the Black man; and the only way the Black man can get back at it is to strike it in the only way he knows how. They use the press. That doesnt mean that all reporters are bad. Some of them are good… I suppose. But you can take their collective approach to any problem and see that they can always agree when it gets to you and me. They knew that [the Afro-American Broadcasting Company was giving] this affair -- which is designed to honor outstanding Black Americans, is it not? Youd find nothing in the newspapers to give the slightest hint that this affair was going to take place. Not one hint. Why? You see, you have many sources of news. If you dont think that theyre in cahoots, watch! Theyre all interested, or none of them are interested. Its not a staggering thing. Theyre not going to say anything in advance [about an event] thats being given by any Black people who believe in functioning beyond the scope of the ground rules that are laid down by the liberal element of the power structure. When you begin to start thinking for yourself, you frighten them, and they try and block your getting to the public, for fear that if the public listens to you, then the public wont listen to them anymore. And theyve got certain Negroes whom they have to keep blowing up in the papers to make them look like leaders. So that the people will keep on following them, no matter how many knocks they get on their heads following him. This is how the man does it, and if you dont wake up and find out how he does it, I tell you, theyll be building gas chambers and gas ovens pretty soon -- I dont mean those kind youve got at home in your kitchen. Another example at the international level of how skillfully they use this trickery was in the Congo. In the Congo, airplanes were dropping bombs on African villages. African villages dont have a defense against bombs. And the pilot cant tell who the bomb is being dropped upon. When a bomb hits a village, everything goes. And these pilots, flying planes filled with bombs, dropping these bombs on African villages, were destroying women, were destroying children, were destroying babies. You never heard any outcry over here about that. And it had started way back in June. They would drop bombs on African villages that would blow that village apart and everything in it -- man, woman, child, and baby. No outcry, no sympathy, no support, no concern, because the press didnt project it in such a way that it would be designed to get your sympathy. They know how to put something so that youll sympathize with it, and they know how to put it so youll be against it. Im telling you, they are masters at it. And if you dont develop the analytical ability to read between the lines in what theyre saying, Im telling you again -- theyll be building gas ovens, and before you wake up youll be in one of them, just like the Jews ended up in gas ovens over there in Germany. Youre in a society thats just as capable of building gas ovens for Black people as Hitlers society was. This was mass murder in the Congo, of women and children and babies. But there was no outcry even from the white liberals, even from your friends. Why? Because they made it appear that it was a humanitarian project. They said that the planes were being flown by American-trained anti-Castro Cuban pilots. This is propaganda, too. Soon as you hear that its American-trained, you say, Oh thats all right, thats us. And the anti-Castro Cubans, Oh thats all right too, cause if theyre against Castro, whoever else theyre against thats good, cause Castro is a monster. But you see how step-by-step they grab your mind? And these pilots are hired, their salaries are paid by the United States government. Theyre called mercenaries, these pilots are. And a mercenary is not someone who kills you because hes patriotic. He kills you for blood money, hes a hired killer. This is what a mercenary means. And theyre able to take these hired killers, put them in American planes, with American bombs, and drop them on African villages, blowing to bits Black men, Black women, Black children, Black babies, and you Black people sitting over here cool like it doesnt even involve you. Youre a fool. Theyll do it to them today, and do it to you tomorrow. Because you and I and they are all the same. They call it a humanitarian project and that theyre doing it in the name of freedom. And all of this, these glorious terms, are used to pave the way in your mind for what theyre going to do. Then they take Tshombe. Youve heard of Tshombe. Hes the worst African that was ever born. The lowest type that was ever born. Hes a murderer himself. Hes the murderer of Lumumba, the former prime minister of -- the first and only rightful prime minister of the Congo. Hes an international -- hes a murderer with an international stature as a murderer. Yet the United States government went and got Tshombe in Spain, and put him as the head of the Congolese government. This is criminal! Heres a man whos a murderer, so the United States takes him, puts him over the Congo, and supports his government with your tax dollars. Now -- they hired him to occupy the position as head of state over the Congo -- a killer! He is a hired killer himself! His salarys paid by the United States government. And he turns -- his first move is to bring in South Africans, who hate everything in sight. He hires those South Africans to come and kill his own Congolese people. And the United States, again, pays their salary. You know, its something to think about. How do you think you would feel right now if some Congolese brothers walked up to you -- and they look just like you, dont think you dont look Congolese. You look as much Congolese as a Congolese does. They got all kinds of Congolese over there. How would you feel if one of them walked up to you and asked you about what your government is doing in the Congo. I was asked that when I was over there. But they dont have to come to me like that, cause they know where I stand automatically. And for one time Im thankful to the press, for letting everybody know where I stand. They -- but you have no explanation. Your tongue stays in your mouth. And then you have to become -- you have to go to the extreme to convince them that you dont go along with what the United States government is doing in the Congo. And they justify the usage of Tshombe as the present head of state by saying that hes the only African who can unite -- or bring unity to the Congo. Has he brought unity to the Congo? But, see, this is their game! And their real reason for wanting Tshombe there was so that Tshombe could invite them to come in. Now, what African head of state would have dared to invite outside powers? So they put Tshombe there, and as soon as Tshombe got there he invited them to bring paratroopers from Belgium in the United States transport planes to try and recapture Congo. This is all a cold-blooded act on the part of your Western powers, namely the Western powers here in the United States -- interests in the United States, in England, and France, and Belgium and so forth. They want the wealth of the Congo, plus its strategic geographic position. The step-by-step process that was used by the press: First they fanned the flame in such a manner to create hysteria in the mind of the public. And then they shift gears and fan the flame in a manner designed to get the sympathy of the public. And once they go from hysteria to sympathy, their next step is to get the public to support them in whatever act theyre getting ready to go down with. Youre dealing with a cold calculating international machine, thats so criminal in its objectives and motives that it has the seeds of its own destruction, right within. They use the press to emphasize that white hostages are being held by [inaudible] -- imagine that -- or white priests, white missionaries, white nuns -- they dont say nuns: white nuns. You know what the paper said right here in Detroit: white missionaries, not just a missionary; a white nun -- as if theres a difference between a white nun and a black nun; or a white priest and a black priest; or if the light thats in a white skin is more valuable than a light within a black skin. This is what theyre implying! And the press -- look at the press when this thing was going on -- and you will see what Im talking about. Theyre vicious in their whiteness. But still, I wouldnt judge them just cause theyre white, or theyd call me a racist. [Im] judging by their deeds, by their conscious behavior -- and you know how theyve been consciously behaving in the Congo, and how they consciously behave in Vietnam, and how they consciously behave right now in Alabama and Mississippi. So you and I got to get conscious, and start behaving in a way that we can offset this thing before its too late -- and this is what they dont want to hear. One more thing concerning Tshombe, if you notice -- and I must -- while we were over there on the African continent, in order to give you a better understanding of what is going on right here. The next thing that is good to know about Tshombe: no Congolese troops have ever won any victories, whatsoever, for the present Congolese government. Congolese soldiers wont even fight unless theyre forced to. But the fighters in the Congo, or the freedom fighters -- the rebels from the Oriental, eastern province -- they fought with stones, and sticks, and rocks, spears, and arrows. And the only time they had a gun was when they got some soldier who had it, and theyd kill him and take his gun. But they were winning, they took over two-thirds of the Congo. [Im] showing you, they were fighting from their hearts. The other people, their heart wasnt in it. And because of the fighting spirit of these people, it will be impossible for Tshombe to remain as head of state over the Congo without additional troops -- white troops -- being constantly brought in from South Africa or elsewhere. But sooner or later, these troops are going to give out, and then Americas going to have to increase her troops like she did in South Vietnam. Shes not at war with Vietnam yet, shes only there advising. They have 20,000 advisors, you know, on the front lines. But its not a war. Just -- theyre in advisory capacity. Why, they insult the intelligence of their own public! And theyre going to have to end up doing the same thing in the Congo, theyll be trapped. Theyll have to eventually send American troops to occupy the Congo. Cause the African freedom fighters are going to fight -- theyre not going to give up one inch without fighting back. And theres something that you should know! That they realize now on the African continent whats at stake, and how much -- what these Western powers have in common and what theyre doing in cahoots with each other behind the closed doors. So on the African continent they are training Africans -- these soldiers -- so they can invade one of these countries, and take it over, and give it [back] to the rightful people. One of the last things I must say concerning the Congo: not only do they not intend for the Congo to fall into African hands because of its mineral wealth -- and it has the greatest deposits of some of the richest elements, or minerals, of any other area on this earth. They dont intend to give it up because of its wealth; another reason they dont intend to give it up is if you look at the map youll see that it is so strategically located geographically. Wherein, if a real genuine African government were to come in power over the Congo, then it would be possible for African troops from all countries to invade Angola -- which is a Portuguese possession. And if Angola fell, and it would fall, then it would only be a matter of time before South-West Africa, Southern Rhodesia, and Bechuanaland also would fall. And it would put African troops right on the border of South Africa. And thats where they really want to get, that man down there in South Africa. And the United States interests are involved in blocking this, yes! Some of these liberals who grin in your face like theyre your best friends, they have money tied up in the Congo. Some of the most powerful political figures in this country come up and governors over states, [have] got interests in the Congo, and got interests in South Africa, and got interests all over the African continent, and go there! And as the Africans awaken and realize, they -- it makes them full of the incentive to never rest until that exploiter is driven out. So, now what effect does this have on us? Why should the Black man in America concern himself -- since hes been away from the African continent for three or four hundred years -- why should we concern ourselves? What impact does what happens to them have upon us? Number one, first you have to realize that up until 1959 Africa was dominated by the colonial powers. And by the colonial powers of Europe having complete control over Africa, they projected the image of Africa negatively. They projected Africa always in a negative light: jungles, savages, cannibals, nothing civilized. Why then naturally it was so negative [that] it was negative to you and me, and you and I began to hate it. We didnt want anybody telling us anything about Africa, much less calling us Africans. In hating Africa and in hating the Africans, we ended up hating ourselves, without even realizing it. Because you cant hate the roots of a tree and not hate the tree. You cant hate your origin and not end up hating yourself. You cant hate Africa and not hate yourself. You show me one of these people over here who have been thoroughly brainwashed, who has a negative attitude toward Africa, and Ill show you one that has a negative attitude toward himself. You cant have a positive attitude toward yourself and a negative attitude toward Africa at the same time. To the same degree that your understanding of and attitude toward Africa becomes positive, youll find that your understanding of and your attitude toward yourself will also become positive. And this is what the white man knows. So they very skillfully made you and me hate our African identity, our African characteristics. You know yourself -- and we have been a people who hated our African characteristics. We hated our hair, we hated the shape of our nose -- we wanted one of those long, dog-like noses, you know. Yeah. We hated the color of our skin, hated the blood of Africa that was in our veins. And in hating our features and our skin and our blood, why, we had to end up hating ourselves. And we hated ourselves. Our color became to us a chain. We felt that it was holding us back. Our color became to us like a prison, which we felt was keeping us confined, not letting us go this way or that way. We felt that all of these restrictions were based solely upon our color. And the psychological reaction to that would have to be that as long as we felt imprisoned or chained or trapped by Black skin, Black features, and Black blood, that skin and those features and that blood that was holding us back automatically had to become hateful to us. And it became hateful to us. It made us feel inferior; it made us feel inadequate; it made us feel helpless. And when we fell victims to this feeling of inadequacy or inferiority or helplessness, we turned to somebody else to show us the way. We didnt have confidence in another Black man to show us the way, or Black people to show us the way. In those days we didnt. We didnt think a Black man could do anything but play some horn -- you know, some sounds and make you happy with some songs and in that way. But in serious things, where our food, clothing, and shelter was concerned and our education was concerned, we turned to the man. We never thought in terms of bringing these things into existence for ourselves, we never thought in terms of doing things for our selves. Because we felt helpless. What made us feel helpless was our hatred for ourselves. And our hatred for ourselves stemmed from our hatred of things African. Along about 1955 they had the Bandung Conference in Indonesia. And at that time the Africans, the Asians, the Arabs, all of the nonwhite people got together and agreed to de-emphasize their differences and emphasize what they had in common, and form a working unity. And it was the working unity -- the spirit of Bandung created a working unity that made it possible for the Asians, who were oppressed, the Africans, who were oppressed, and others who were oppressed to work together toward gaining independence for these other people. And it was the spirit of Bandung that brought into existence this working unity that made it possible for nations that didnt have a chance to become independent to come into their independence. And most of this began along in 1959. After 1959 the spirit of African nationalism was fanned to a high flame, and we then began to witness the complete collapse of colonialism. France began to get out of French West Africa; Belgium began to make moves to get out of the Congo; Britain began to make moves to get out of Kenya, Tanganyika, Uganda, Nigeria, and some of these other places. And although it looked like they were getting out, they pulled a trick that was colossal. In that -- when youre playing basketball and they get you trapped, you dont throw the ball away, you throw it to one of your teammates whos in the clear. And this is what the European powers did. They were trapped on the African continent, they couldnt stay there; they were looked upon as colonial, imperialist. So they had to pass the ball to someone whose image was different, and they passed the ball to Uncle Sam. And he picked it up and has been running it for a touchdown ever since. He was in the clear; he was not looked upon as one who had colonized the African continent. But at that time, the Africans couldnt see that though the United States hadnt colonized the African continent, he had colonized twenty-two million Blacks here on this continent. Because we are just as thoroughly colonized as anybody else.
Posted on: Sun, 05 Oct 2014 14:47:17 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015