EN14
Here you can see all page revisions and compare the changes have been made in each revision. Left column shows the page title and transcription in the selected revision, right column shows what have been changed. Unchanged text is highlighted in white, deleted text is highlighted in red, and inserted text is highlighted in green color.
2 revisions | debhy at Mar 15, 2023 02:08 PM | |
|---|---|---|
1414 black people. Black Representatives must dare now to redefine themselves in terms of the interests of their people. They must ask themselves who they are and who they really represent. And if their ultimate allegiances is to the black community, and not the Democratic party or the Republican party or labor or some white political boss, they must dare to make that allegiance real by creating independent power bases in the black community. At the same time, black people must assume repsonsibility for the financing of the campaigns of black candidates. They must come together as a group and provide independent bases for a new and independent politics. The most urgent need of this hour is the political education of black people. They must be made aware of their political and economic interests and the general nature of the opposition. Beyond all that, it is necessary to make black people recognize their unity with others in the same situation. It may be necessary for some people to operate as Democrats and Republicans, but black people should realize that their real need in results, not name. The so-called alienation of the urban black voter is based, I suspect, on a very sophisticated analiysis of the American political system. Black people, by and large, don't believe politics can bring about a real--that is to say, effective--change in their basic situation. If the black masses are to rise to the requirements of this hour, they must be shown that politcs is their affair and in their fundamental interests. Bayard Rustin has said that the civil rights movement must become political. I would add that the political movement must become a civil rights movement. I believe the relevent black politican must carry off the difficult fact of blending the traditional political skills with the skills of the reformer. It is encouraging to note that this process is well underway. In Michigan, for example, a black mayor threatened to resign over a human rights issue. And when the political process failed in Wisconsin, black office holders redefined their roles and went to jail. | 14 |