Special of the week; Issue 46-70

And E.R. the national educational radio network presents special of the week from the series backgrounder produced by Neil Bedford for WUOM in Ann Arbor and I hope and I'd slide overview that I bring it back into my agreement with you certainly that there is a redefinition. You get is that people from the Oval Office think did I see it as a face that is not certainly not the definition. Now yes you're very white. You're very right now let me mention to. You. You. Look. At the. Can you as I write about that the Scotch in that picture. OK well let's go weak. We consider that an acceptable Friday and slept ok.

This is Background a program of comment conversation and analysis. Today a discussion of the new role of the black male and implications for education. This is the second of two programs taken from a recent seminar sponsored by the University of Michigan's School of Social Work and school of education. Panelists include Squier pageant a recent graduate of the University's Law School Eugene Parnell doctoral student in the School of Education Robert Williams student and public health and medical schools and Cornelius Harris. Dr. Lawrence Gary moderates the discussion and introduces Mr. Harris as the keynote speaker. Canadians however this will speak. Can you use a student in the law school and he will speak on the reverse black psychology as a social phenomenon. Can a youth thank you first of all I'd just like to preface any of my remarks with a few comments. Think it an honor to be ever I am not about to become a

2 for any type of great knowledge building thing of anybody in the audience. I have come here to learn as everyone else. First I would like to talk about the middle class so-called Negro before the so-called black revolution and some of his I don't know behavioral changes. This is essentially a person who is aspiring for middle class respectability and in his effort lays down the black church because as Webster defines it it is a. African ancestry all worship communicated by trances with animal deities so that in fact is a complete repudiation of anything that could in any shape form or fashion be servile as behavior. Secondly soul food

is laid down along with the blue because blue is blue and they want to be white. And a host of other things. Only to find out when he makes it that white folks ain't there. They out on the county. You did check it out. Jazz Blues even so. Swapan where in suburbia. You know let it all hang out and the brothers in a severe problem. So immediately runs back to the curtain breaks out that the Shiki jumps in the shower let is here and now you know and she backed up to block the practice and on the way I said you know this is where I said baby this kind of thing. One of the I don't know strange phenomenons that I have seen is this whole firing of the blue add soul brother. It seems as if

black people. Awful lot of us in a way have let people take the last vestige of anything which we could really call entirely ours and commercialize it for instance some of the national department stores are now opening Afro-American boutiques. There's a whole thing you know fact that on TV where this chick said something like sniff it like it is or let it all hang out of some other supposed black phrase and you know it occurred to me that these people who are really making the money as you might say the silent majority these are the very same people who are capitalizing off of the black movement in my estimation for I have seen more white black power experts than anything else and I don't profess to be an expert of nothing other than me. I would just like to get into a thing that I have seen

demonstrated most vividly here at the university. The way the right person has I believe created this you know Color me happy negro thing. This kind of stuff. And then you know you had all this militant stuff and all of this and this upset the man so reluctantly he coined a new label for us. And a lot of black people jump right into that back to black militant bag. And one of the consequences of jumping in that bag is that immediately everybody who looks like they may be black has to become a Black Power expert. Because if you cannot rap on letter say black history or some other aspect of blackness you're obviously not to KU. So a lot of black people get into this. Now even though this black militant thing is used by a lot of white people it is also a thing which evokes a lot of fear from me because I imagined in his mind is that every little Suzanne boy you

know is really getting some hip information so we could run it back to the brothers or either you know every little black junior executive is really waiting to become another Putney Swope. You know they do things to me OK. One of the things that I've seen here and I've noticed quite tremendously is some of the reactions that I've gotten from my beautiful black sisters and they've told me things like this that it really depress them to see so many black cats chasing after white women white women. Now this I maintain generally for sisters. Her primary social object the black care the white woman's thing. And I hear such things as you know like I don't dig way boys because they can dance or you know they dress square or some other you know superb for this thing and never you know really as a

general proposition here this thing you know like they just don't you know really appeal to me this way or that way because like I could run down a thing like Paul Newman myle and Brando this kind of stuff sisters dig that. But it's upsetting to her to have to dig this phenomena where her black man is chasing me. And there is no corresponding chase by white get you know and I think that's for real. I would also. I like to say in terms of integrated situations in which we are now that there are several socially acceptable myths which I believe are in fact the destruction of black people these myths this one. That if you are black you are automatically a superior physical being like you can run faster you can dance. You know all of those things that we can related to something physical like you sing. We become in fact a gigantic phallic symbol.

And one of the consequences of this is that this method accepted by black cat. So I'm saying that essentially this has been a criteria which has it been accepted by black cats for establishing any vestige of manhood. And I asked myself if I accept this criteria. What have I done to myself. Number one I have automatically led a mule or a horse become a better man than me. So this I feel has to be totally discarded. There's a second if that goes around and particularly in integrated situations it is this that white people are inherently more intelligent than black. For instance one of the hip things would be you know like I'm almost as smart as a white man or I am as smart as the way man. It is very inconceivable to white people anyway for a black number one and I think Squire brought this up to speak up in class to question to do any

of these things to have any type of intelligent thought on this man. It's baffling to him. Now along with this smear which I promise and maintain is accepted by both black and white to an extent there's a base built in superiority clause that says Remember this always. It is mind over matter you know. And my mind controls the lighting in the sky and big mountains and other things and regardless to how big and powerful you become black man I am smarter. And I believe that particularly in integrated situations there's a lease built in Myst system which destines most black cats to an inferior position. I also maintain that this type of attitude. It has its most vivid expression. Black kids in school feeling that they're simply incompetent that they cannot legitimately compete you know and so

like one of the things you do you copy out. You don't get involved in that. Another thing to kind of you know just text me all off is the title of the series itself the new role of the black male and implications for education. And if we are talking about some type of new role for the male then it must be something perverse and sexual you know activities. And I simply maintain that the implication for education is this that education for a lot of black people has a built in faggot Tazz factor that ails black people with education tend to believe that number one I will accept this and become the pseudo yes man because I have my education to have my job to do. I have all of these things to lose. So I don't know much about the new role for the black male or any other male you see cause I just can group with

my way of thinking and I would think that if for black people that we must number one. Education is cool but we must get our own buying and reading fan. Everything that we have ever learned you know for our sales you know and really get down and do our job our way. There isn't one you know of for the most part professor who is qualified to grade me. Any shape form or fashion. I'm here for one reason you know to learn something and get like a C if that's passable. Let's I don't want a it don't matter to me cause this man is a poor judge of my ability anyway. And secondly I think as students we must realize that we have a tremendous task in terms of leadership for the black community and that we are in fact involved in a struggle for survival if you will physical as well as intellectually. And I think that we should address ourselves to the

physical survival of black people also. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Now their questions are there any questions. Yes. This is. This is not a that. The black man is buying. Well man I don't know. I don't know man I don't even know if that's necessary like that concrete thing I don't believe has this manifestation of this kind of intellectualizing we do it a cat does that by his actions. I think you have a good point that perhaps we are in a phase where we are more emphatically trying to seek a definition of just who we are. I think implicit in the and the turnabout from patterns of.

Visual presentation of the black male to have the neat straight hair and to employ the facial creams that were skin lightening to have for so long employed a mode of behavior that paralleled and sought to be the equivalent of the white. Male behavior. And to find ourselves no sand that's not going to work because no matter how damn hard we try we can only get so close. And even when we have become equivalent we will still have the black mass and this will create a front that will not allow us to permeate whatever level we really seek and you see it sort of a nebulous thing. But now we've come back and we've started wearing the dye shiki and the natural hair and we've said this is me. You know it's my thing. So for me it is a redefinition. It's making a clear demarcation between what had prevailed here before and what has to be our attitudinal role now.

You're certainly very right but let me remind remind you that the definition is not complete at a phase of being and complete it. Perhaps where a crossroad and a complete schism of this thing that we're trying to make as a definition hasn't occurred yet. And perhaps that's the reason why some of us black and otherwise just cannot find a completely acceptable yet say that we are redefining it. I would say it is anything in a state of transition in terms of Webster's dictionary is nonexistence either were or is the transitional period I think has it been called has been like I say this is some of us to move to the street because we feel that white liberals on the street used to be hung up with a whole bunch of redneck western suits and want to feel like I get

my hair cut tomorrow. You know I do a whole bunch of things. I'm not going let nobody put my life in no caps and say you black act like this. That's what it is. If that's true then why people hate themselves. Because I will argue that whites probably spend more money on hair coloring and suntan lotion or what have you. So I'm not sure you understand I'm not sure that this is timed out with this self-hatred because I just disagree with that part. I think what many of us fail to realize however Mr Garrett is that this pattern of behavior may in the subconscious be a rejection of a pattern of when the natural in the early 30s and 40s you see where now it's more conventionally accepted behavior now it can indeed be a real expression of the black males desire and others and the Black females to get away from the cliche of

wanting to be like the dominant figure in society. Not that he's been completely convinced that they are right just that he's seeking some type of acceptance from from the dominant social structure. Yes. First of all for the college educated person in the black revolution if so. First of all is there a role for the black enthusiastic psychology certainly that is in psychology there is a need to find out just what has all of this stuff. You see over the years that the dominant society here has put on this including just a foot on the neck. What has it done. I like to borrow an example more explicitly from medicine where I find myself reading these very large volumes book that off time forget to give us

just the normal stuff on black people. I'm reminded so frequently of reading about Sino Suzanne and. Other problems that we can visually pick up and the white patients are in the situation of having an intelligent lecturer come in and say give blood until the patient turns red or pink behind the gills. That's not really yours. I'm often remind them that you know I couldn't go back to my community and employ this type of critique because you said to me you know I would just wouldn't have anybody left for five years I guess. You know how I starve to death. Then there are some other things what happens to the psychology of the many many black females both who've had legitimate and occasional illegitimate kids when their illegitimacy has been compared to the white lack of illegitimacy and quote because there really is no such thing. The whites have been able to cover it up but see the black girl has to go through this thing and she's an illegitimate

woman because she's done that. But on the clinic we find ourselves examining females who are pregnant and the doctors are pressing them for whether or not you really try to have an abortion you say and the lady says no. And he says well are turned over let me try again Jack and he didn't say no doctor I didn't do it. He wants. TIME You know her psychology has been completely ruined. She's not fit to trust her to go to to the clinic and to have a white doctor give her this kind of runaround. The interesting thing about this is that we have many white medical students who find themselves totally frustrated and the black's raisin hell that this type thing prevails over here and social work and sociology you must see problems that are tantamount to are the equivalent of the same thing first. Ask those people who are very experienced in the biological sciences. Do you hear

anything about your legitimate offsprings. You don't know here's a man who lay down a critique on black people columnist animals and then has the audacity to suggest that we have illegitimate kids. I say that that man is crazy. I don't know no damn illegitimate kids you know at all that says let him go with it. Another thing you know I'd like to get to and I think this is reading with a lot of black people who are at this university. It it seems to me that if an educated black people have any type of role it's providing black people with their quote unquote expertise in any given field. And it also seems that one of the things a phenomenon that I have seen happening is those black people who have been fortunate enough to get good educations and are somewhat heavy get dispersed to the four corners of the globe when in reality a far better proposition would be if we all got together

in later shot you know for black people. I think another way of looking at your question might be in terms of instrumental versus process type of thing. Obviously the black community needs doctors. I mean it's just so obvious. You take the example of Detroit in medium age for black doctors 55. Something is happening in Detroit. You see this type of thing and then you look at the composition of the medical school you say is quite obvious that we need more lawyers. We all know what's happening with respect to tenant rights and how to educate the people from the point of view of legal things. But it's a much more basic question if Detroit get control if blacks get control of Detroit and the legal control is in last and we're in trouble. See so you've got to have you have like people you see envolve with legal training. You have the same thing of teachers that I mean if is there anything that is.

There's not a subclass of educated people. We need to have a people get educated there's a there's a definite role for teachers teachers who are dedicated. And this this is this is really serious in the inner city and we need men in the schools. There's no doubt about that. Engineers. The whole thing with pollution. Me We need you know there's just a real we should ask one question. POLLACK get minutes when I scratch I should ask a lot of question but one question protect where you might ask the Institute of Public Administration here how many black students you have how have lasted as you training to help run governments financial experts see another question would be OK medical school. You say you've got financial problems and now all of the kind of problems. Why don't you give out some commitments scholarships. Why don't you sponsor a few poor black ears in Detroit. And they move back to Detroit.

Now let me tell you the government will do this university can do it too. You can give us commitment scholarships so I mean you know social workers maybe some people want to know about their social work is a big thing. A lot of money. But you know how the money gets messed over. You know we need we don't need a lot of Black Social Workers in a clinical bag. That's just true. We all know that they run his game on black folks in public housing units set up a mental health clinic and tell him I got a mental problem. And if our government keeps feeding the money and you keep writing reports and you know you ain't doing nothing you've got to figure out how to misuse the man's money and get away with it. And that is what education is all about for black people. Now you must realize that most white folks hang out teach you that you know they've got. To have it. You know. Another question here I think there's one thing Gary. From a psychological standpoint I think in my example is analogous to a

person taken a fish out of water put him on the ground and watch him wiggle and then go over and write a report on why in the hell he's wiggling now. I think this is what has been done to black people you know you go in to the ghetto when I've had little kids ask me Are you trying to get to a doctor or by study me you know and they're really I think really psychologists now instead of studying the black guy should be studying what you know these people who who do this kind of thing to you studied why folk did it why so yeah this is the thing I'd say. Right. There. Actually. Yes well social work is getting to be a new trend and part of an arm or Terry M of NEED IT professionals for the black community in particular. So much rampant disorganization and and phony stuff has been presented to the black people by people who have not been appropriately trained and who do not have

adequate background to deal with the people that the public health programs certainly have been oriented towards and almost any other program. Because there seems to be systematically planned perhaps a plot or style that really denies maximizing what the program was designed to do in the black neighborhood and these black men certainly and the black women who are more familiar with the social works role are going to have to handle this big void or deficit and these communities I think we need black social scientists to do one thing to Mindanao ghosted is a Black people we do the study did do. Nobody got here yet. Well you know some of these beautiful blacks say it is go out and study this man system and well let me ask you this do you think that the federal government is gonna give a black man to go out and study it.

No. They're not. Let me tell you if you see this you can do it where I'm not astronaut that's another thing that's what you saw. If you train black folks the right way when they go into the system you know how to get the man's money and have a good time. And most y'all know about that five hundred thousand dollars that these jag guys got up here to study blood pressure. Don't you remember Joe. Everybody got a big Sarah had a party and then they concluded. I know that you see bribes to get a viable education really worth it to you. Yes yes here is a she's cancer. Free. And I have of course and they talk this way. I mean all I can do is talk about how I got through you know everything.

Same here but I think his problem with his question is very good because what he's really saying is that if a black student comes in with some academic kinds of handicaps and got to try to do all these readings and also try to educate himself he's in serious trouble. He probably will see an increase in patterns of deception on the part of the black male. That of trying to be the buffer especially for those of us who have come out of education you're going through. I also think that question is related to the black school you see a lot of us including myself had a chance to go to one of these inferior schools that Michigan are doctors. You say But at this inferior school you say you can get some self-confidence that Michigan can never give a black student. And see that's what's so stupid about Michigan and Wisconsin now all these are the elite schools that want to adopt black schools. What they should do is not doubt their stock go down and find out how tasking can pull some out a cotton patch

and prepare them for Michigan. But see they don't want to do it that way. That's the game that's the game gotta break up. Now maybe that's the new role. Breaking up my father's game. I am. Going to. Be listening to Michigan graduate students for New Year's Harris square pageant Eugene Parnell Robert Williams and moderator Dr. Lawrence Gary in a discussion of the new role of the black male and implications for education. This was the second of two programs taken from a recent seminar sponsored by the University of Michigan's School of Social Work and school of education and a Rs special of the week. Thanks to the University of Michigan Radio station WUOM for the recordings of these programs. This is an E.R. of the national educational radio network.