Labels and How Hegemony is in Everything
I’ve noticed a trend amoungst my distinguished brethren that I want to put a spotlight on. I am doing this because I recognize the hegemonic stain that is being applied called "elitism." So I want to make sure we black people are not doing the same thing that ⚪ people have been doing to us and our less fortunate brothers and sisters who did not even feel university was an option or who were not supported to even think college was an option.
I had a conversation with a client who when I mentioned I wished I’d had the support to go to a HBCU and her comment echoed my mother’s when I was accepted to Spellman. "Uppity Black folk are just as bad as white racists!"
This did deter me from going along with other factors, something I regret and understand better now and deeply rooted in mental abuse.
A bit of history!
HBCUs have been a haven for black and brown people who knew knowledge was power but we're not allowed to be educated due to the racism in the US that remains.
The first HBCU, Cheyney University of Pennsylvania, was founded in 1837 as the Institute for Colored Youth in Philadelphia. Other HBCUs followed in the years that followed.
So my client who is unfortunately one of many who endure abuse most of her
life both mentally and physical said nearly the same thing my mother said and some terms came to mind.
"Field slave vs house slave", "good hair vs. bad hair," "light skinned vs dark skin" and lastly "pledged vs unpledged."
Are we as a community upholding the ideologies that the oppressive hegemony has been using to keep us down in our own community?
Have we adopted "elitism" to try uplift our broken egos?
I know repping affiliations gives us some a sense of pride but are you being Emotionally Intelligent enough to see that your efforts don’t need a sorority, fraternity, club, or gang?
Yup, I said “gang” because in the end their is safety in numbers, but what are we doing with our numbers? Are we proactively lifting each other up?
When I hear freemasons and other orders or groups, I get a twinge of fear because though you feel community, these organizations adopted many of the exclusionary tactics of the white universities and organizations and passed them onto those they deem unworthy of wealth and success.
Essentially, they
are doing what they are programmed and told to do by the hegemony.
If we do this we are no better than our oppressors. Was this the goal of the black religious groups (most of you know how I feel about religion) and philanthropists who founded HBCUs intended? Another divide that is based on affiliations rooted in white supremacy. Are you unconsciously repping house negro vs. field or saying you are better the rest or are you continuing the capitalistic habit of branding? Are you giving back? I see a lot black celebrities repping but they don’t give back to where they came from in substantial ways. I am pretty sure if they did the cult of hegemony would quickly extinguish their star like they tried to do to Will Smith and others who use their platforms to give back with more than words.
My questions are for reflective purposes, not a put-down. We as a community need to love ourselves for just simply existing. We are not our affiliations or a cult of personality. We are human beings full of light and love. That is what makes us special regardless of skin tone, gender, or other erroneous affiliation.
Start loving yourself out of hegemonic labels and systems because they have shown you no matter how many degrees and affiliations you have they still pay you, treat you, and see you as less than themselves!
Time for the Grand Awakening!
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