The late, great Nigerian bandleader Fela Kuti was one of the most dynamic, original and uncompromising musicians to emerge from the great post-colonial African pop explosion in the 1960s and ’70s. A natural-born iconoclast, Fela was a legend in his own lifetime; as infamous for his lifestyle and politics as he was acclaimed for his music.
Fela Ransome Kuti was born into an elite Yoruba family in Akeokuta, Nigeria in 1938. Fela’s grandfather had the distinction of being the first African to ever record music in Europe, recording religious songs for EMI in the 1920s, and his mother was a well-known nationalist leader who famously campaigned for Nigerian independence. From childhood, Fela was groomed for big things.
In 1958, Fela’s family sent him to London to study medicine, but within weeks of arriving in England, he instead enrolled in Trinity College of Music, where he spent four years studying piano, composition and theory. After-hours he led his highlife/jazz combo Koola Lobitos through the rounds of London Jazz clubs, to some small acclaim.
In 1962 Fela returned to the newly independent Nigeria (the country separated from Britain in 1960), and took a job in Lagos as a trainee for the Nigerian Broadcasting service. He also reformed Koola Lobitos to play the swinging clubs of the booming city, and soon left the job to pursue music full time. In 1969 he took his band to Los Angeles to record, and became enamored of James Brown and the Black Panther movement, two things that would radicalize Fela’s sound and vision.
He returned to Lagos in 1970, and promptly renamed his band Afrika 70 and opened his own club, which he dubbed “The Shrine.” There he, along with drummer and arranger Tony Allen, pioneered a new style they dubbed Afrobeat. The sound borrowed the muscular horn arrangements and slinky guitars of James Brown’s funk and grafted it onto thundering Yoruba rhythms to come up with one of the most potent African pop styles ever recorded. In the next three decades he would record over 77 albums with Afrika 70 and their successors, Egypt 80, including such legendary sides as “Expensive Shit,” “Coffin For Head Of State,” “Colonial Mentality” and “Army Arrangement.”
Singing neither in Yoruba nor the King’s English, Fela delivered his musical jeremiads in pidgin English, so as to reach as wide an audience as possible. And he was loved for it by the masses, who made him a star. But his broadsides against the corruption and of General Olusegun Obasanjo’s military government made him some enemies in very high places, and he suffered repeated harassment, including a full scale attack on his Lagos compound (which he called “The Kalakuta Republic”) in 1977. Over 1,000 soldiers set fire to the premises and beat anyone they could lay their hands on, including Fela’s 82-year-old mother, who was thrown from a window and later died from her injuries. Fela himself suffered fractures in his skull, arm and leg. In his lifetime Fela would undergo 356 court appearances and three separate imprisonments, including a 1985-87 sentence on trumped-up currency charges that made him a poster boy for Amnesty International.
But if Fela’s music made him a target, his outrageous lifestyle made him a magnet for trouble. A notorious and flagrant pot smoker, womanizer and iconoclast, Fela was infamous for such antics as wearing nothing but his underpants and formally rejecting his “European” middle name and replacing it with “Anikulapo,” which roughly translates as “He who keeps death in his pocket.” But perhaps his most famous stunt was his 1982 simultaneous marriage to 27 women (whom he later divorced in 1986, stating that “no man has the right to own a woman’s vagina”).
Yet for all his badboy behavior, Fela’s legend continues to grow long after his death from AIDS-related complications in 1997. There have been numerous books, tribute albums and even a traveling museum show devoted to his life. But his greatest legacy is still his music; which continues to evolve and mutate. His son Femi carries on the family franchise with his band Positive Force, while Fela’s former arranger Tony Allen continues to push the sound forward, even as a whole new crop of Afrobeat revivalists such as Antibalas carry the Afrobeat torch into the 21st century.
“POVERTY AND IGNORANCE EQUALS DEATH AND DISEASE. SOLVE THESE AND YOU WILL HAVE SOLVED THE PROBLEM OF BLACK ON BLACK VIOLENCE”
In my way of thinking about black on black violence from my studies and personal experiences it is an effect / consequence rather than a cause / primary issue. We live in the citadel culture of violence. There should be no denial that from its inception America has been a country that glorifies wars and violence in the name of “peace”. She has been at war against Afrikan / Black people from the time they brought us here against our will to date ( a most violent process). Every year in its history America has been at war and imposing violence in one form or another against one or more of its “adversaries”. Black people were/are reared and breed in a culture of white mob violence, lynching, slavery, suffering and death. The history of violence against Afrikans in Amerikkka is so horrific as to be almost beyond belief. Socio-structural and institutional violence (vertical violence) begets interpersonal and intrapersonal violence (horizontal violence).
Thus, the problem of black on black violence is a problem of cultural mis -orientation, self-hatred and self-alienation. What we are seeing manifest as black on black violence is an emulation of the cultural ways of our oppressor. We have internalized his ways. This is called intropression: When the oppressed are subject to oppression as long as us we internalize the oppressor and thus do to ourselves what the oppressor once did to us. When a Black man kills another Black man he’s saying in his mind “I’m gon kill you nigga” and in actuality he’s killing himself who he hates so much because he was train to do so…CULTURAL MIS-ORIENTATION LEADS TO SELF HATRED. Superimpose this on the facts of unprecedented unemployment rates in our communities, miseducation and the dope game / government element facilitated narcotization of our communities (CIA) , mass media propaganda that feeds us a study diet of consumerism, materialism and individualism; breeding jealousy, envy and haterism and you have all the ingredients for self destruction.
That being said, for those of us that are suffering from passivist psycho -pathology, please keep in mind that much of the life process is necessarily a violent experience, eg. childbirth, securing the meat that most of us eat and even the hot food you put in your mouth are all violent acts. My point here is that maybe the solution to black on black violence in amerikkka is RBG Luv. That is to say, proper knowledge and cultural orientation will inform us that we need to get RBGed Up and fight against the causes to prevent the effect. In doing this however, the first government we must overthrow is the government of our own corrupt minds. Something RBG Street Scholars Think Tank is about helping us do.
PART II OF LESSON: Dr. Amos Wilson
Black-On-Black Violence: The Psychodynamics of Black Self-Annihilation in Service of White Domination
BLACK on BLACK VIOLENCE represents a distinct milestone in criminology and Afrikan Studies. Its explanatory perspectives on the Sociopsycho-logical and politicoeconomic causes of Black-on-Black violence are exceptionally insightful, incisive, and iconoclastic. The psychodynamics of the Black-on-Black criminal are presented here with a depth and clarity rarely seen before.
NB: Pop-Out Reader from upper right for full screen reading:
What is it with us? Why do we kill each other at a rate that’s disproportionately higher than that of other people? Sure, we’ve heard the excuses before – that we’re prone to crime, violent by nature, and poor and oppressed – but what are the real causes?
Here we are, in 2006, countless articles & news reports later, and our precious communities are still in a state of distress. It appears that the problem of black on black crime doesn’t seem to be improving, but rather steadily getting worse by the day. But what’s really going on?
It’s apparent to this observant eye that more often than not we’re acting out the way we’re expected to act — that is, fulfiling a role in society that has been decided upon and encouraged by people other than us. All we need to do is look at the television or listen to the radio to experience the sobering statistics or the self-hating bullshit that now passes as black entertainment on the evidently racist major networks to confirm this fact. Thuggishness and gangsterism, misogyny, brutality and ignorance have become synonymous with black life in the eyes of many, both inside and outside of our communities, as a result of both our actions and of corporate Amerikkka’s sanctioning and glorification of negative imagery and behavior. Our worst attributes are always awarded, paraded and celebrated by those whose job it is to keep us in a state of distress. Harsh, you say? Hardly. Fear of non-whites is big business in Amerikkka, and shows like COPS and virtually any news broadcast aid in the manifestation of that fear and the acceptance of its remedies – increased police presence, new prison construction and the passage of tougher laws. Besides, do you think black life really matters to them? That they care if we kill each other off?
Understand that our focus and priorities need to change, and that nobody can be relied upon to care about us but us. This should be obvious to all of us by now. Things that many of us seem too often to be concerned with (game, pimpin’, the life, etc.) are of little importance to others. So let me say it for the record – fuck game. Do you think the bank, the phone company or a prospective employer care about game? Care about pimpin’? Life goes on without it. And while game may make you cute in the eyes of shallow folks, nowadays what you know is more important than how you look or act. Contrary to popular belief, nigga-slick is out of fashion. Only through education and hard work will we move beyond simply surviving to success.
But back to the point. While the violence we see and hear on TV, films, and in black music remains a contributing factor that keeps us on our self-destructive path, it is by no means the sole reason. Many of us have a pent-up rage that easily triggers aggression — aggression that often results from a combustible blend of cultural and racial baggage that many of us carry.
What we need to do now is break out of the mold of acting out in ways expected of us. Angry black men without focus aren’t a threat to anyone but themselves, and have become the targets of ridicule by those outside of our communities. Again, who cares if we kill each other off? We must care.
It can be argued that black life is viewed by many as being worthless, and it should come as no surprise that many studies have confirmed that the punishment blacks receive when the victims of violent crime are white is far more severe than if the victims are black. Add to this the lack of opportunity, sense of deprivation, powerlessness and alienation that many of us experience since birth and the picture becomes all-too-clear — that society is not set up for our benefit. We have to make our own way, and in order to get there we must first respect ourselves and each other. Easier said than done, you say? Why? Everything is easier when we get along, especially since it appears that many others don’t want us to. The name of the game now is to be focused. Stay focused on not only the present, but on your future too. How many young folks today can’t envision themselves older than 25? How many plan for the future at all?
The devaluation of black life by systematic racism and the media has encouraged many of us to have disrespect for life and to act out our aggressions onto others — often with the victims being women and other black males. When this happens, we all lose.
And what about gangs and drugs? The introduction of crack cocaine by the CIA into our communities during the 1980’s made black youth gangs bigger and more dangerous than they had ever been before. The illicit profits of drug trafficking provided, and continues to provide, vicious incentives for those of us without direction, immediate opportunity or hope to murder ourselves. In fact, much of the recent escalation in the murder rates can be directly traced to busted drug deals, competition over markets, disputes over turf and bruised egos.
So what must we do? We must take responsibility, first and foremost, for both ourselves as individuals and as a collective. We must understand that our brothers and sisters are not our enemies. Again, we have no one to look out for us but us. When you see wrong, speak on it. Intervene. Reach out to your friends and family if they are at risk, and be receptive to other people’s points of view if you are feeling like violence is your only alternative. You might just save your life or the life of someone you know.
I’ve been on San Quentin’s death row for more than 21 years. I hope that this brief message will provoke thoughts of change among you.
Across this nation, countless young men and women, like you, are vegetating in juvenile halls and in youth authorities. More and more prisons are being constructed to accommodate your generation when you grow to adulthood. The question is, can you become motivated enough to defy the expectations that many people have of you?
For those of you who are fortunate enough to regain your freedom, prepare an agenda to survive outside the walls of incarceration. Learn about computer technology, politics and the sciences.
On the other hand, if some of you are facing a lot of time, I suggest that you strive to educate and discipline your mind. If you have access to a library, read every relevant book that you can get your hands on. Educate yourselves about history, world religions, math, English, spirituality and your culture.
It’s time to flip the script. You or I can complain 24×7 about the problems of poverty, drugs, violence, racism and other injustices, but unless we choose to initiate a personal change, we will remain puppets of unjust conditions. Unless we change, we will be incapable of changing the circumstances around us.
In conclusion, there are two ways to view your incarceration: either your present situation will convince you to straighten up your life or it will be the beginning of a wasteful future behind bars. Or worse – you’ll end up on death row.
Though it happened 30 years ago, Attica crystallizes many issues concerning criminal justice, race, and governmental accountability that are still troubling our society today. It goes down in history as the bloodiest uprising in an American penal institution. The four-day takeover began on September 9, 1971, at the Attica Correctional Facility, located in Attica, a town in Upstate New York.
1,281 inmates, mostly black, gained control of the prison, took 39 hostages, and issued 31 demands, primarily concerning improvements in inhumane prison conditions. Negotiations with State Corrections Commissioner Russell Oswald lasted four days, and involved 33 observers with New York State Governor Nelson Rockefeller tracking the stand-off from afar.
After negotiations stalled, 500 armed troopers stormed the prison. In the end, 29 hostages and 10 guards were killed, all by police fire. Brutal retaliations and a cover-up followed. Inmates who suffered physical torture and reprisals filed a class action suit against the state. After 26 years, the case was settled with a $12 million award to inmates and their attorneys. Now the hostages are asking New York State for equal recognition. 1) Race and class were commonly acknowledged as being at the heart of tensions within Attica in 1971, but the huge disparity between African American and white felons continues today, raising questions about the color-blindness of the judicial system
2) Attica became the well-spring for the prisoners’ rights movement and the catalyst for reform in such areas as religious freedom, censorship of letters and reading materials, medical care and diet, visiting rights, educational programs, and legal services. 3) Many of these reforms have eroded in the past decade as a “lock ’em mentality” came back into favor. Numerous educational and training programs have ceased, and in 1998, Gov. Pataki vetoed funding for Prisoners’ Legal Services. Attica changed the way hostage negotiations are conducted. In training films, it serves as a textbook example of excessive and unnecessary government force. Today a “wait ’em out” strategy prevails. As a result, no one has been killed in any prison rebellion since Attica.
4) Governmental accountability for wrongdoing is still a live issue with Attica. As guard Mike Smith states in the film, “I don’t know any other employer who could murder their employees and get away with it, except the government.” The State of New York has never offered help, compensation, or an apology to the hostages or their widows. Only last year was the civil action suit settled with the inmates, who were subjected to torture and brutal retaliations after the state regained control of the prison.
The saga continues even now. As a resulting of lobbying by the Forgotten Victims of Attica, Governor Pataki formed a commission this spring to look into their request for an apology, counseling, compensation, the release of sealed records, and the right to an annual memorial service in front of the prison.
Black August originated in the California penal system in the 1970s. Many significant events in the New African Nation’s struggle for justice and liberation have occurred in August. The commemoration of Black August particularly hails the advances and sacrifices of Black Freedom Fighters.
The education of any people should begin with the people themselves…. The chief difficulty with the education of the Negro is that it has been largely imitation resulting in the enslavement of his mind. Dr. Carter G. Woodson, the Miseducation of the Negro (1933)
Despite the wealth of solid information presented within the RBG Communiversity, I am not surprised that most of us would reject the notion of us still being slaves. But, if you are a true seeker of fact, truth and history…study RBG a bit with close attention, learn how it works and follow some links before your take your final position on this most important question- “ARE WE STILL SLAVES”.
The short answer as to why I / we hold the position that we (Afrikans in America as a collective) are still slaves is articulated and documented in the body of this Communiversity’s content quite well I think …Ones cumulative overstanding of rbg philosophy, opinions and politics, once one has spent some quality time reading, will be elevated. …For those who choice to pick one little thing out of the larger picture and formulate an ill-informed position, what follows in the comment box is the short version of some of my / our reasoning and rational…
RBG Communiversity: Message 2 Da Grassroots 
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