On the Racial Thing ON THE RACE THING Typically, when i bring up criticism of black (African-American) culture, the liberal and black apologists jump up and say, White people do it, too!!! My response is: And...?---And so what. Simply b/c white folks do something deviant, does that mean that its good for black folk to do the same? (Some people rilly need to get off the plantation.) After deflecting the matter, our apologists will blame black cultural dysfunction on racism (e.g., standardized testing is racist and that is why blacks do poorly). My response to this--without trying to oversimplify (too much)--is that the racism argument doesnt hold water. Now let me be clear, im not saying that black folk dont face racism. I am saying that racism is not the root of their problem. (If all the racists in America disappeared tomorrow (or instantly ceased being racist), the condition of black America would not significantly improve anytime soon (by the general norm of things). Furthermore, if racism is the core of the Problems of Black Folks, then what about the Asians. Asians face racism (not to the same extent or nature as black folk--but they face it). They grow up in homes where English is not the first language (some might argue the same for (many) black folk... but thats a different story). Nonetheless, Asians not only are quantum leaps ahead of blacks, they do significantly better than whites. The racism argument at this point simply collapses. The problem lies in African-American culture and its values. And as we enter a global information economy, where intellectual capital matters most, black folks, who are still living with a Civil Rights era/Affirmative Action mindset are simply going to be out of the picture (other than filling up the privatized prisons). The guilt game that African-Americans have run on liberal whites are simply useless against Koreans, Chinese, Indians, Japanese, etc. They dont care about racism, and they have their own (and more recent) horror stories of war and living under tyrannical regimes. The guilt game is useless beyond the borders of the USA (and those other parts of the world where folks suffer from white guilt complexes). If African-American Muslims wish to be relevant, then we are going to have to develop the skill sets that will enable us to excel (like, being well-informed and widely read, learning several languages, learning logic and critical thinking skills, learning impulse control, etc.). The study of the Traditional Islamic Sciences go a long way in developing those skills. With that said here is a clear example of the disparity between black culture and Asian culture (keep in mind that Asians make up about 12.5% of the population; blacks are about 25% of the population and whites about 33%). It was said: Entrance to Stuyvesant, one of the most competitive public high schools in the country, is determined solely by performance on a test: The top 3.7 percent of all New York City students who take the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test hoping to go to Stuyvesant are accepted. There are no set-asides for the underprivileged or, conversely, for alumni or other privileged groups. There is no formula to encourage “diversity” or any nebulous concept of “well-roundedness” or “character.” Here we have something like pure meritocracy. THIS IS WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE: ASIAN-AMERICANS, WHO MAKE UP 12.6 PERCENT OF NEW YORK CITY, MAKE UP 72 PERCENT OF THE HIGH SCHOOL. THIS YEAR, 569 ASIAN-AMERICANS SCORED HIGH ENOUGH TO EARN A SLOT AT STUYVESANT, ALONG WITH 179 WHITES, 13 HISPANICS, AND 12 BLACKS. Such dramatic overrepresentation, and what it may be read to imply about the intelligence of different groups of New Yorkers, has a way of making people uneasy. But intrinsic intelligence, of course, is precisely what Asians don’t believe in. They believe—and have proved—that the constant practice of test-taking will improve the scores of whoever commits to it. All throughout Flushing, as well as in Bayside, one can find “cram schools,” or storefront academies, that drill students in test preparation after school, on weekends, and during summer break. “Learning math is not about learning math,” an instructor at one called Ivy Prep was quoted in the New York Times as saying. “It’s about weightlifting. You are pumping the iron of math.” Mao puts it more specifically: You learn quite simply to nail any standardized test you take. Such dramatic overrepresentation, and what it may be read to imply about the intelligence of different groups of New Yorkers, has a way of making people uneasy. But intrinsic intelligence, of course, is precisely what Asians don’t believe in. They believe—and have proved—that the constant practice of test-taking will improve the scores of whoever commits to it. All throughout Flushing, as well as in Bayside, one can find “cram schools,” or storefront academies, that drill students in test preparation after school, on weekends, and during summer break. “Learning math is not about learning math,” an instructor at one called Ivy Prep was quoted in the New York Times as saying. It’s about weightlifting. You are pumping the iron of math. Mao puts it more specifically: You learn quite simply to nail any standardized test you take. Where as the Asian culture(s) is focusing on studying to enter elite high schools and Ivy League colleges, African-Americans concentrate on things, like twerk videos and playing basketball. Cultural values are not equal--and cultures are not equal. Inferior cultures are dominated by superior cultures. Thats the way of the world, and the sooner African-American Muslims understand that the better it will be for this Ummah.
Posted on: Wed, 13 Nov 2013 17:16:57 +0000
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