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On Feb. 8, a press conference was organized by local black activists to address the fact that Pennsylvania has the highest black murder rate in the nation. It was inspiring to see leaders and citizens voicing their concern and expressing their desire for solutions. Surprisingly, however, many of those present stated that the “root cause” of the violence was not poverty or guns but “the devil.”
As a historian, it made me think about how “the devil” has been identified over time, particularly by black folks. Elijah Muhammad, the founder of the Nation of Islam, openly identified the devil as “the white man.” He had many reasons, not least of which is that, as a young child, he witnessed white men lynch a black man just yards away. Later, Muhammad’s most prolific minister, Malcolm X, had a similar definition of the devil. The devil, Malcolm said, was the teachers who dashed his dreams of becoming a lawyer and suggested that he shore up his janitorial skills instead. The devil was the white kids who taunted and tortured him in school, and the Klan members who killed his father and left his mother clinically insane and institutionalized. Talk about Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder! No wonder he became a thug until his conversion.
This history was playing through my mind as I stood at the press conference, listening to statistics about young black men killing one another at record rates. I wondered how “the enemy” supposedly became “us,” especially after the civil-rights and black-power movements in this country. Is white supremacy off the hook these days?
Unlike willfully burning up black towns or people, these acts of violence by young black men should be seen as a kind of self-hatred. It’s a hatred borne of the frustration of (seeming) powerlessness, mis-education and disrespect from a society whose popular culture celebrates their death, destruction and lifelong imprisonment — all while applauding their capacity for sports and their beautiful, shiny black bodies.
Last month I traveled to Nebraska and, excited by the prospect of finding Malcolm X’s birth site, I began my trip in Omaha. I rode down long streets that traversed at least one black neighborhood, then a white one, and ended Downtown. I could see a trail of disinvestment that was as obvious as, well, the Centre Avenue corridor in Pittsburgh, which runs from Downtown through the Hill District and ends just a few blocks from Whole Foods and the “EastSide” development complex.
But at one point in my drive through Omaha, the disinvestment simply stopped. As soon as the light changed, so did the environment: No more boarded-up windows, no more weed-filled lots. It was so obvious it made me want to fight somebody right then and there.
I thought about what I read on a Web site about “North Omaha”: Beware the crime! Caution! You could be the victim of a violent act! So I engaged in my drive-by tourism with my eyes open, making sure to lock my doors.
But despite my efforts, I did become the victim of a violent act. It happened when I got to the corner at which the black businesses were closed … and then crossed the street to the clearly developed white business and residential side of the block.
It was an insidious, callous kind of violence. The kind that occurs in phases, and with plenty of excuses from The Man: corporate, white, Negro, suburban, elected, whatever.
When I found the birth site of Malcolm X, I concluded that Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was his birthplace too. These are the times for an entire cadre of Malcolms to be born. Pennsylvania has the highest black murder rate, and Pittsburgh is in the top tier of its cities. By the time they reach high school, 60 percent of black and/or poor children in Pittsburgh cannot read, write or do math at an appropriate grade level. Community after community — be it the Hill, Homewood, Manchester or the East End — is displaced so the gentry can have closer access to Downtown, better parking and more elbow room to live and play.
Yes, these are acts of violence, declarations of war. And any time somebody tells me “the Hill District is full of crackheads and prostitutes,” those are fighting words too. And there are three pulsating rivers here, beckoning a rebirth.
Dr. Goddess says: Thou shalt not die, but be fruitful and multiply.
This article appears in Mar 8-14, 2007.
I’m confused by what black murder rate means. Is it the number of blacks murdered or the number of black murderers. The article does not make this clear. Also are these mostly white on black, black on white, or black on black murders. I think the distinction is important in an article like this.
The article seems to suggest that white people are the devils that are the root cause – this is also not made 100 percent clear however.
This is an exciting time for pittsburgh and a difficult time. PGH has so much infrastructure that needs to be maintained that it is important that the tax base grow. A result of a stronger tax base would be better schools. I would suggest that investment, no matter the color, in PGH, would help the city as a whole. In order to have new investments in Uptown and the Hill, it is important to reduce crime in these areas. It concerns me that you state you are “fighting mad” seeing a lack of investment in black neighborhoods. Please help to stop the aggression – not inflame it.
This article has really been bothering me. I’ve been thinking about it a lot. What is the difference in advocating violence against white people because they are inferior or advocating violence against black people for the same reason? To say the white man is evil – that he is the devil – based soley on color is as racist as any white supremacist’s slander. I’ve been hearing about the evil of the white man my whole life. How am I supposed to have a sense of pride in myself when all I hear is that I am evil? I am more than a little tired of hearing that the white man has caused all the evil in the word. History is full of evil of all colors and both sexes. Surely, as an expert on racism, you must realize that calling the white man the devil is a racist statement. How do you expect to stop racism with racist statements? But I suspect that you don’t want to stop racism. I suspect that you only want the target of racism to be the white man – instead of the black.
Mike, your suspicions aside, I think it’s important for you to simply (re)read my articles and stop attributing to ideas or statements to me that I’ve not made.
Ground rules, okay?
So if I respond to you by saying, “Mike, I didn’t say the white man is the devil. I said that Elijah Muhammad and Malcolm X said the white man is the devil,” you will understand what I’m saying, right?
I also find it interesting that you have not protested the idea that Black people (specifically Black boys who are murdering one another) are the devil, as espoused at the press conference.
Gee? I wonder why not, Mike?
I am very angry about what I see happening in Pittsburgh (and beyond the city but I live here, so…), why aren’t you?
If you’re a pacifist, what are you doing to change things in your pacifist manner? Just curious…
I agree this is an important time. A pivotal, life-changing, historical moment for the city. Don’t you think we should do the right thing and rectify our past in order to create a better future? You might say “yes!” but I’m sure the devil will be in the details, to use a phrase you might not appreciate.
I’m sorry you might be struggling with self-esteem issues but it shouldn’t be based on anything I’ve said, that’s for sure.
It’s real simple, Mike.
You want “white people” to stop being blamed for all the evil in the world? — eliminate the system of white supremacy.
That’s what you can do to help this situation.
And since you live here and seem to share in my frustration, eliminate the system of white supremacy as made manifest here in the City of Pittsburgh.
I remain hopeful.
There is no system of white supremacy. Only slaves who wont leave the plantation. Sorry, i just got done reading this “article” and i cant say it makes any sense whatsoever. To assert that white supremacy is the reason for everything bad that black people might do to each other is the biggest racial lie that exist right now.
The city paper is a perfect example. Its quite alright for insults to be hurled at white people (see bittersweet out come), and it perfectly fine for the author of this confusion to essentially call white people devils just like malcom X did. There are no white people conspiring against you!! If you fuck up, and you are white..do you get to blame “white supremacy” too? No, you get shit talked to you in prison thats what you get.
Seriously, this whoile “white supremacy” thing is beyond stupid. I must be missing out on all the goodies other white people get. Because life aint been nothing but one struggle after another for me. i walk through the hill, i walk where i want. I fear nobody, i dont avoid anyone. I have to say though, this article is just another exercise in slowly trying to guilt trip white readers and possibly cause some confused unease. I see no attempt at anything but bitching. When a black kid pulls out a gun and shoots another black kid. THERE IS NO WHITE MAN INVOLVED. these kids make thier own decisions so stop trying to piun that shit on somebody else. they cant think? Everybody is FREE to fuck up. I did.
And dont bother asking me what i am doing to battle white supremacy, because it only exist to bigots. Its alwyas entertaining to see black folks actually informing white people that there is white supremacy when white people didnt even know they were supreme to begin with. weird. Makes me wonder just what makes those cats tick.
cheers
aaron
Dr. Goddess,
Please excuse any mistakes I have or may make in understanding. I am not a god, just a mere mortal.
I’m glad that you didn’t say that the white man is the devil. I also don’t believe that the black man is the devil. Either statement is counter to my philosophy. It concerns me when people start talking in terms of the supernatural in general when real problems exist. I really don’t see how blaming the devil helps at all. Instead, talking in supernatural terms is likely to cause more misunderstanding and violence.
It did, however, seem to me, that you want to keep the gentry from moving in to the hill. Is the term “gentry” code for white people?
In the article you state: “Community after community — be it the Hill, Homewood, Manchester or the East End — is displaced so the gentry can have closer access to Downtown, better parking and more elbow room to live and play.”
Isn’t it the case that people of any color who have the money to live in a neighborhood are more likely to be able to afford to live there? And once again, what is wrong with that? Why would you want to tell someone that he or she should not move into your neighborhood?
Why would my moving into the Hill be an act of violence? Why do you talk in terms like “these are fighting words?”
One the one hand you say you want to keep the gentry out of your neighborhood, but on the other hand you want people with money to invest in your neighborhoods. I think you need to think through your position a little bit more.
I recently moved here, to Pittsburgh from Austin. The KKK marched there a couple of years ago, and I was outraged. President Bush’s number one priority is fighting terrorists, but he allowed the terrorist organization the KKK to march in public.
I don’t like hypocritical logic from the president, and I don’t like it from you either. If you want to improve your neighborhoods, invest in them and encourage investment.
It can become very awkward when someone is to blame and also very moving…
While the dispute as to whether or not racism exists continues I believe that it remains the boogie man of our culture and you can never be sure unless you see it undeniably. Much like the devil it is in the details.
I am not about to tell you that black people, even by the title “black”, have not been slighted. We have suffered generations of abuse and mistreatment that continue in more subtle forms even today. It’s engrained into our culture now though. Racist comments come from even the most un-racist people without the least bit of hesitation because of its acceptance. Children are still being teased about complexion and hair texture; growing up with issues about some of the most common “black” features. We are living in a climate where the media is showing that “black” people who are doing negative things are being celebrated for their struggle to be emotionless enough to do what it takes to make fast money and often fast woman. A lot of what is being seen on TV is a continuation of stereotypes long set into motion.
I am also not about to tell you that white people are the devil either. I am going to tell you to get over your guilt because I don’t have any pity for the bogus shame you feel. (…i.e. if you didn’t do it… shut up!) As far as that time period as well as this time period the luxuries of the many are due to the brutal handy work of the considerably fewer. I don’t believe that everyone of that time had the stomach to beat another human being into submission or brutally rape someone, the same as everyone wouldn’t have what it took to really kick a dog. Probably the biggest crime is indifference…
I know when you are white you don’t get a prize… you have to be rich for that and then they don’t care what you skin looks like… very much lol. The poor have been treated terribly as well.
BY THE WAY! IF YOU WANT TO TAKE ISSUE WITH A WORD MAKE THAT WORD:
ETHNIC
BECAUSE NO MATTER HOW MANY GENERATIONS YOUR FAMILY HAS LIVED HERE IT REALLY JUST MEANS NOT WHITE!
To QT,
You state : “…I don’t have any pity for the bogus shame you feel. (…i.e. if you didn’t do it… shut up!”
Thank you for understanding. Do you really think that it is ok to make racial arguments about white men all the time. I’m truly tired of all the male and race bashing that I have to endure all the time. Every movie shows the white man as evil. Yes, slavery was a horror, but does that mean that I have to be stereotyped my whole life? It is not alright to make racial arguments about anyone. It is just wrong. How can you say that it is ever ok?
So I should just shut up and take it? Why should I feel any kind of sympathy for you or your race when I cannot have the same sympathy extended to me?
My life is hard too. Maybe yours is harder, but don’t tell me to shut up. That’s not right.
This discussion is too important for everyone involved to silence anyone. Violence is a horror that we should work hard to stop. I understand that there are many economic inequalities. Why don’t you start a socialist party. I might be able to support you in that effort. But why should anyone be able to say that it’s the white man’s fault and get away with saying it. It’s a counterproductive argument. It doesn’t promote working together. That’s what is truly needed.
When I hear these kinds of arguments, it angers me. We should try to work together. There have always been provocateurs (trouble makers) whose main purpose is to divide the poor into managble groups. That way the rich can stay powerfull.
If Dr. Goddess cannot control her urge to violence, how can you expect the young people in her community to end violence?
I think we need to worry about how production in this country is distributed – not about race. Per capita GDP is about $40,000 per person. That means that new goods and services are produced in the USA every year that equal $40,000 for every person (man.woman, child, senior) in the USA. That means for every four people, $160,000 of new goods and services are produced; yet the median income for a family of four is $40,000. That’s 1/4 of what is produced. That’s just not right. So if you want to struggle for something, why not struggle for a better sharing of GDP? Then maybe the whole country can benefit.
M
” I am also not about to tell you that white people are the devil either. I am going to tell you to get over your guilt because I don’t have any pity for the bogus shame you feel. (…i.e. if you didn’t do it… shut up!) As far as that time period as well as this time period the luxuries of the many are due to the brutal handy work of the considerably fewer. I don’t believe that everyone of that time had the stomach to beat another human being into submission or brutally rape someone, the same as everyone wouldn’t have what it took to really kick a dog. Probably the biggest crime is indifference…”
Here’s what I am saying in the simplist terms. I don’t believe that white people, or any other race of people for that matter, are evil and I never have. I am saying that a relative few of this collection have committed some unspeakable acts but, that does NOT paint with a broad brush the rest of the other people who’s biggest crime was indifference.
If you didn’t DO anything then what exactly are you guilty for? How do you feel guilt about something that you haven’t done and would never consciously do?
I am not trying to combative… I just don’t understand the guilt of it. The media isn’t kind to anyone. Their was once a movie about the KKK saving white women from black men in the south. The president at the time said that the bad part about the movie was that it was so terribly true.
No one is ever going to get a shake as fair as they would like and if we’d like to get into a contest of who’s been treated the worst we’d have quite the competition. Not just by race but, I believe even more by economic class.
I don’t want to stunt your freedom of speech. I felt you were trying to be overly P.C. about the pain that you feel. Who knows, I’ve never had a conversation about guilt in this way… maybe you teach me…
Life is hard all over…
I find it odd but quite usual and customary – I have found black people to be hateful and rude most whites I know go out of their way to be nice to them. Imus makes a stupid comment and loses his career meanwhile watch the comedians on BET TV, “black” movies, tv shows, read the interviews given by Jamix Foxx, Danny Glover, Ice Cube, Queen Latifah, Spike Lee and many other black artists early in their career (hateful things about whites) as well as rap artists – raping, robbing and killing whites. Seventy years ago the prison were filled with white men and you never heard about men raping men – what has changed? – this is black America’s behavior. It is sad that 8-10 strong highly intelligent black women would be soooo hurt due to what one old white man says – honestly, whites generally do not care what blacks think. Blacks need to toughen up and stop being so sensitive. Since rap music has had such a negative impact on American blacks as well as the worlds perception of the American black they are starting to blame the white executives for rap – of course, it could not be the black rap artists’ fault!
ok CW blacks arent sensitive whites are if you observed black behaviour to white behaviours these days (2009) you would reconsider your statement you could call me ingnorant because im black and it would go right through me thats how tough i am im a strong, independent black woman and i never get any praise for it and im sick and TIRED of it…do some research if what you find is different from my reasoning thats fine but to see me point being do some REAL research…not from the Internet