Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Black Power: The Struggle Continues

By James Harris

As Black History Month swiftly draws to a close, it seems important to reflect on the changes that brought blacks to this point in history, and what some of our next steps might be.

Just last week I was reading an article in the City Paper about the diminishing interest in activism among Howard University students. It was such a good article that I couldn’t believe the writer was still a student. I found one point especially poignant; he said “Once Howard students wanted to change the world, now they just want a piece of it.” Unfortunately, it seems that as we find ourselves with greater access to wealth, and a recession of the old surface inequalities, this attitude is becoming more and more prevalent in the black community.

What ever happened to the activists, young and old, who saw Black Power as the key to the future? That’s right, Black Power! There has been much fear and suspicion around this simple phrase. That’s because in Western Civilization “power” is used to control and demean others. Black Power simply refers to the black community being able to control its own affairs. There was a time when our main concern was building up Black Power. How were we going to gain control of our businesses, political apparatuses and educational systems? How could we keep the dollars in our neighborhoods and build our communities?

I’ve heard a lot of people talk about “getting paid,” or “getting what’s mine,” but it’s been a long time since I heard someone talk about “giving back” and “getting what’s ours.” When I was in high school, all we talked about was how when we finished our educations we had the obligation of returning to our communities to help others – the way we or our parents before us did. I guess that was one of the follies of youth because I don’t hear that kind of talk anymore. Something big has been happening in the black community in the last two decades or so, and it hasn’t been good.

I remember when my mother used to talk to me about the twin responsibilities of leadership and involvement in black issues. She used to tell me that her generation never blossomed to its full potential because, after the movements of the ’60s and ’70s, they were decimated by AIDS and drugs. Crack was a plague that wiped out just about every black man whom she grew up with and many women as well. I know I have seen enough people whom I looked up to destroy their lives. We were left with a scarred community, few leaders, a weakened vision and children without role models. Out of that mix, and standing on the back of 400 years of our ancestors’ achievements and struggles, has risen a culture of apathy and “me first” mentality. This reasoning isn’t just confined to the educated, middle and upper classes of black people as might have been claimed in times past. This thing is pervasive.

I’m not going to sit here and try to offer all of the solutions – I think we already know what we should be doing. But I’ll leave off with this: When you tell your children about your generation, and they’re thinking about their friends and peers and the state of the black community, what will you want them to reflect on, and what part will you have played in that?

James Harris is a senior in the college, a member of LEAD, the former president of the GU-NAAC, and a GUSA representative.

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