Reparations Means Standing for Our RIGHT to Speak Truth to Power

Tonight, we were blessed to hear from the Reverend Wendell Anthony of the Detroit NAACP. And, in his introduction of Reverend Jeremiah Wright he stated that this is not about Barack Obama, or Hillary Clinton, or John McCain. He said, "this is about the African American Church...this is about our right to speak truth to power."

Everyone has been looking at the snippets of Reverend Wright's sermons and injecting Senator Obama into the discussion. They have been questioning Senator Obama about the words of his pastor. But, why must a free man's sermons be explained?

Reparations means standing for our right to speak truth to power. And, this is what Reverend Jeremiah Wright was saying when he said "different does not mean deficient." Is Reverend Wright entitled to have a different view of world events and their relation to Scriptural realities? Is the Black Church entitled to have a different view of world events and their relation to Scriptural realities?

Different does not mean deficient. And, reparations means standing for our right to speak truth to power. No longer should we bow to the pressure to conform. As a free people, we have the right to speak as we feel. We must stand for that right, before that right is stripped away.

We must never forget - and Western Society must come to understand - that the Black Church has grown in a separate incubator from the White Church. The Black Church grew from the from a paradigm of challenging the prevailing social construct. The Black Church in America was rooted in confronting the hypocrisies of a racist Nation that espoused certain "self-evident truths" - that all men are created equal, yet holding some as slave and some as free. The Black Church spoke out against the injustice of an American Society that promoted such "inalienable rights" as "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness," while there remained members of that society who were alienated from the inalienable.

You see, reparations means standing for our right to speak truth to power. And, we must be free enough to stand "naked and unashamed" before what is called mainstream society. We must be able to stand "under the bludgeoning of chance" with heads bloodied but yet unbowed. (Black Greeks, remember the pledge process and Invictus - this is the application of that poem...do not bow.)

And as I watch CNN's extended coverage of the speech, I see the analysts and pundits still miss the point. Again, as Reverend Wendell Anthony said, "this is not about Barack Obama..." But, the Mess Media is trying to turn this into a campaign affair. Again, as Reverend Wendell Anthony said, "this is about the African American Church...and our right to speak truth to power."

Reparations means standing for our right to speak truth to power. And, it means standing for the right to be free. Freedom - for our context - means embracing the US Constitution. Part of that is freedom of religion and freedom of speech. So, why must the Black faith perspective fit into the constructs of the box designed by White America? Why must Black free speech be regulated, parsed and analyzed?

Our "Black Leadership" must speak truth to power. They must see this as an assault on the inalienable rights of Black People. "Black Leadership" must realize that this is an attempt to infringe upon our First Amendment Rights. If they do not view it as such, they should no longer be deemed worthy to lead our people.

Reparations means standing for our right to speak truth to power, and we must demand that our "Black Leadership" do its job. They wanted to be "Drum Majors" for the Black Community. Tell them it is time to lead us on a different course. Tell them we did not fight for our rights, only to hand them over again. Tell them we do not fight for equality to have it measured by the standards of White America. Tell them we do not "have a Dream" of so-called unity that whitewashes us and forces free men and women to conform to modalities that are self-conflicting. You have the power to hold your leadership accountable. You have the power to challenge the "Drum Majors" and take their place.

Join one of our groups to the right of this frame. Engage the dialogue. Make your voice heard. Come and Get Your Reparations!