I recently watched a very interesting documentary about Bishop Charles Blake that was broadcast on Black Entertainment Television (BET). Blake is senior pastor of California’s West Angeles Church of God in Christ as well as presiding bishop of the national six million-member Church of God in Christ.
During the interview, Blake said something that really permeated my soul. He said, “African-Americans need to be to Africa as the Jews were to Israel.”
Since he is the founder and CEO of Safe Africa’s Children, an international organization that provides support for more than 100,000 children in 340 orphanages on the continent of Africa, Blake’s comments were especially fitting for the work that he and his church do. However, his statement was also a call to action for African-Americans to get involved in the evolution and survival of our people.
Think about what Blake said: “African-Americans need to be to Africa as the Jews were to Israel.”
Despite where Jewish people live in this world, they are still deeply involved in the lives of their people in Israel. Jews pay very close attention to current events in their homeland and they are strong advocates for the plight of fellow Jewish people. American Jews keep an eye on our government including the U.S. president and members of Congress to ensure aid packages are sent and this country’s military is ready to protect those in Israel.
American Jews also demonstrate a strong ability to come together during times of conflict, regardless of their theological or political views they always unite in times of crises.
But it’s not just Jewish Americans who are cognizant of their kind across the waters. The same applies for Korean and Chinese Americans who often put pressure on the U.S. government to in turn put pressure on the Chinese and North Korean governments. Latino Americans are also a group that is totally united during crises. Perhaps the most recent demonstration of this was the immigration marches that took place across the country.
As a result, Congress eventually struck the bill down.
As I was thinking of Bishop Blake’s comment, I couldn’t help but think of how divisive we African-Americans are with one another. A couple of weeks ago I wrote about a local Black attorney who seems to take pleasure in degrading and slandering other Blacks. In our neighborhoods, we’re stealing from each other as well as fighting and killing our own people. But the division doesn’t stop in the workplace or on the streets of our neighborhoods — it also takes place in correctional facilities across the country. Of all the races of incarcerated people, African-Americans are the most divisive behind bars, making them the most vulnerable, even though as a race, they comprise the largest population.
I was talking about the division of African-Americans with some of my co-workers and some interesting things came up.
One Caucasian male said, “Maybe they’ve been away (from Africa) too long. Four hundred years is a long time.” When he said that, it made perfect sense. Perhaps many of us are too disconnected with our history that it doesn’t affect us as deeply as it should. After all, in order to know where we’re going, we must first look at where we’ve been, right? A voyage to the Motherland might do us all some good. Maybe it will invigorate or reinvigorate a renewed sense of responsibility within each of us.
Another co-worker said that division of Blacks goes back beyond you and me to the beginning of slavery, when members of certain African tribes would sell their rivals (other Africans) into slavery. If my co-worker’s theory is true, then we have a tremendous mountain to climb in order to overcome the obstacles at hand.
Call me an idealist, but I believe with a concentrated effort we can improve the state of our people both nationally and internationally. We just have to try.
