What does Black Resistance mean to you?

I write this piece in honor of our dear Brother, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (Dr. King).

I am tired of seeing our Brotha curated to fit a model that the dominant group in the United States wants to potray of what he represented. I do not take away from the fact that Dr. King saw humanity represented beyond the Black Person and that he cared for all People's well-being, but I want it to be known and remembered that this System that is the United States Government made it very hard for Dr. King to do his work, and that he struggled with this fact!

Our Sista, Nina Simone, upon Dr. King's transition to the ancestor realm, a transition that was brought upon by hate, a transition that was done in an inhumane way, wrote a song honoring him and confronting us, confronting this System! She and her band learned and prepared for this song in one day. Nina Simone's Tribute to The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.

In the song, 'Why? The King of Love is Dead,' Sista Nina says that, "Once upon this planet earth lived a man of humble birth preaching love and freedom for his fellow man. He was dreaming of a day peace would come to earth to stay and he spread this message all across the land." Sista Nina continues to say that Dr. King always lived with the threat of death ahead. She urges us not to forget the fact that, "They're shooting us down one by one. Don't forget that because they are killing us one by one." "Why? (The Kings of Love Is Dead)" by Nina Simone and Band

Sista Nina asks whether her country will stand or fall and whether it's too late for us all. At the end of the song she asks, "What is going to happen now that the King of love is dead?"

Dr. King had moments of despair despite his love for the United States. In expression of this despair, Dr. King in his book 'Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community?' says of the United States, "A true revolution of value will soon cause us to question the fairness and justice of many of our past and present policies. We are called to play the Good Samaritan on life's roadside; but that will be only an initial act. One day the whole Jericho Road must be transformed so that men and women will not be beaten and robbed as they make their journey through life. True compassion is more than flinging a coin to a beggar; it understands that an edifice which produces beggars needs restructuring."

Dr. King lived, practiced, and was committed to Black Resistance. This is especially seen in his writings in 'A Letter From Birmingham Jail,' and 'Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community.'

In 'A Letter From Birmingham Jail,' Dr. King expresses his frustration with the System. He shares how he and those working with him reached out to both political and business leaders in Birmingham to negotiate solutions to the unjust treatment of Black People in Birmingham, but they refused to engage in good-faith negotiation and broke their promises. Dr. King admits that he and his colleagues were, "...confronted with blasted hopes, and the dark shadow of a deep disappointment settled upon us." Dr. King explains this as a response to criticism from white clergymen in the South, of the protests carried out in Birmingham in 1963. Dr. King states that he and his Brothas and Sistas wanted to create tension, non-violent tension, but tension all the same. He explains that this non-violent tension is necessary for growth. Dr. King writes that, "...the purpose of direct action is to create a situation so crisis-packed that it will inevitably open the door to negotiation." Dr. King says that freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor and that it must be demanded by the oppressed.

Mama Coretta Scott King (Mama King), who is now an ancestor, writes in the forward to 'Where Do We Go From Here,' "It is our common tragedy that we have lost his prophetic voice but it would compoung the tragedy if the lessons he did articulate are now ignored." What are these lessons that Dr. King shares with us? He says that, "Social justice and progress are the absolute guarantors of riot prevention. There is not other answer. Constructive social change will bring certain tranquility; evasions will merely encourage turmoil." The United States Government and all the institutions under this nation have evaded the conversation on racism, and the fact that this nation is built under the false notion of white supremacy and continues to run under this false notion to this day. This has resulted in turmoil: mass shootings; killings of Black Women, Men, and Children at the hands of Law Enforcement; indiscriminate imprisonment of Black People both adults and children 'Just Mercy, by Bryan Stevenson;' a large number of homelessness; food deserts...it has become our reality. Although Dr. King preached non-violence, he did not acquiesce to the status quo...he was not a Gatekeeper, he resisted this criminal System and it cost him his life!

Dr. King speaks of "devotees of civil rights." I will go a step further and call them devotees of human rights, inalieanable human rights that belong to all human beings on earth despite the color of one's skin. The oppressive systems will try and take these rights away, but they will never take away the fact that they are inalienable and the human beings who are under oppression will continue to resist, and will one day overcome. We must heed Dr. King's lessons and continue to resist! We, especially as Black People, must make sure that we do not let the inhumane taking of our Brotha's life be in vain. 

We honor you our Dear Brotha, Dr. King. We are grateful for your commitment to the well-being of the Black Man, Woman, and Child...the Black Community, withing and beyond the borders of the United States. May you continue to guide us as we clear the path to Our Liberation and build structures that will sustain this Liberation! Asante.