Preservation of Black Culture™️

Gatekeep the culture.

I’ve been a longtime proponent of gatekeeping culture; not because other people don’t deserve to partake or appreciate it, but because we need to figure out valid ways to create and express our thoughts, skills, opinions, and talents without the exploitation of other races, entities, cultures, or individuals.

When I say “Preservation of Black Culture” I do not mean there’s a lack of importance in preserving the heritage and integrity of other cultures; I mean at this particular time in history, BLACK CULTURE needs to be reevaluated and re-imagined and preserved for what it actually is and not what it’s portrayed as.

There’s far too much nuance in this conversation and people are far too quick to react than have an actual dialogue around what’s needed nowadays. So bottom line, there’s too much negativity portrayed in media, and there’s too much division is present within our own community (particularly when gender identity and class status are brought into the equation); and I say this as someone who equally consumes the negativity that is portrayed (yes, Future still is one of my top 5 artists) as well as acknowledges the division and is guilty of partaking in behavior or thoughts that we perpetuate division within our own culture.

But this is the thing, I can appreciate Future as an Artist while also acknowledging that Future is not an accurate representation of Black people or Black men. I can recognize this as a cognizant adult who can separate media from reality; I’m learning that this isn’t the case for everyone though, even more-so for children growing up.

This also isn’t an analysis on African culture because that’s another thing entirely in itself. From my understanding African culture is still very much alive and well despite colonialism and poor distribution of wealth between affluent members of society & the masses. My theories as to why this exists is because one there’s an actual link to culture; but two, family and community are two of the things that are highly valued within that structure, this doesn’t reflect within the structure of Black Americans due to family structure and community being broken because of a plethora of reasons ranging from redlining to of course slavery. On top of that African culture is and has been established since the conception of human life (Black culture is a fairly new phenomenon in regards to the African American or Black American as some other cultures refer to us). (if I’m incorrect in this statement then I’m more than happy to be corrected on this)

I say all of this as a Black American with Jamaican roots and heritage that I feel very fortunate to have because when you know where you come from, you know where you can go. When your roots are strong; everything grows the way it’s supposed to. And I understand that not everyone has to luxury of knowing where their coming from within our community due to being a disenfranchised people, but we have to get back to the point of feeling rooted in where we’re from, as well as the point of creating community amongst each other. The word “Black” is ubiquitous as fuck, yet it’s highly misunderstood even amongst ourselves, and the way I see it; if we can find a common ground for existing amongst each other; we can find a foundation for existing within the greater world.

The Black community lacks unity, and while we lack unity everyone is able to see the assets we possess, and exploit it to their benefit. We don’t own much, and as I’ve said before: if you do not own anything; you are entirely at the whims of the people who do own it.

And yes a lot of it is systemic, I can’t write any of this without acknowledging that at the very least. But we can’t let that be the thing that keeps us where we are forever.

So how are we combating this?

If I’m being honest I’m not sure if we really are. There are strides for sure, but the divide we have on so many topics doesn’t lead to anything beneficial. We still perpetuate the same behavior, we still listen to the same music, consume the same media, and subscribe to the same stereotypes that are only actually representative of a small portion of the Black population (a portrayal and representation that was made and spread by cultures, races, and media outside of our own mind you). But none of this is to be defeatist about the fact; I’m actually fairly optimistic that we’ll be able to come back from this pit.

A large portion in tackling the problem lies in coming together and recognizing that there is a problem. So here are some of my thoughts on how we could move forward towards progression as a people.

• We need institutes, made for us, by us; we need spaces where our voices actually hold weight and have say.

• We need to be definitive on what “Black Culture” is and do damage control on all sides of it that aren’t a realistic portrayal of it.

• We need to rewire our brains and start consuming media that’s beneficial to us and allows us to learn and move forward, not media that makes us feel defeated and perpetuates standards placed on us by society.

• We need actual communities, places we can all come together and uplift our rich heritage and propel our culture further.

• We need to shift our model from consumer to owner, we also need to understand that the black dollar is best spent within OUR communities; not at luxury houses, not in foreign countries, and not on a quick hit. Delayed gratification gives us the clarity we need to create something beneficial for ourselves and the people around us, this is how we build wealth.

• We need less division. Often times our beliefs or thought processes can be polarizing but this doesn’t mean one side is any less valid than the other. Two things can be true at once, you can be very conscious about how you show up for yourself and your community while also listening to and denouncing Future (I know it seems like he’s really taking a hit here but that’s actually one of my GOATs)

• We need to learn our history, there’s a fountain of knowledge and power that we are unaware of because we’re just willing to take what’s given. Do the research, have the tough conversations, and LISTEN TO YOUR ELDERS. You’d be surprised how much strength we actually hold when we’re educated and unified.

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I’d like to give a big thanks to my brother Julio for editing this text.

Usually I just word vomit onto a screen and press publish but I felt that this is one of those topics that could benefit from additional eyes. Julio is one of my good friends going back quite a few years. Being a Dominican American coming from Afro-Latin descent who’s worked in the political and social realm for as long as I’ve known him I thought that his view on this topic would be very beneficial, (he also has far more concrete knowledge on this stuff than me, I just got theories and observations you feel me?) So i brought him in, and I actually found a lot of his insight on my thoughts to be very helpful and thought provoking; so much so that in addition to looking over and revising this post I asked him if he’d be interested in writing down his thoughts and ideas on the topic.

He’s someone who speaks with fire and I truly do admire that because I feel that it’s genuinely needed when it comes to problems that aren’t so easy to tackle. So brothaman, I really appreciate you coming along on this journey to try and help me figure out the answers to 400(+) year old questions that I feel ever so foolish to try and tackle.

But enough of me rambling; Julio take it away:

I’m an Afro-Latino (that’s the newest trendy name these days) and I’ve always been reminded of it for most of my life. Seemingly too foreign for the Afro-American cliques, too spicy for the white kids, and closely related but still distant to the Mexicans. For a while I never really knew what that meant for me in terms of identity. Over time I learned that my blackness is unique to me, while it doesn’t make me part of the Afro-American culture, I can still relate and share some common heritage. One of shared struggle, spiritual connection to our music, and a love of community.

We can hail from different parts of the hemisphere but we were all subjects of the same 5(+) centuries of back to back pain. Despite the countless attempts at subjugation, assimilation, and erasure, we as children of the diaspora always managed to endure and create love and distinct identities from that pain. Despite that storied history, our communities have never felt more fractured. I was talking with David about how systems of oppression are so ingrained in our society, we view it no more different than a fresh inhale of oxygen when you step out of the house. From Black business owners having to perform Olympic levels of acrobatics to have any chance of investment; to public schools getting defunded in neighborhoods of color while public schools in white areas operate no different than Brooklyn Tech.

This isn’t a new America that we’ve been introduced to, rather it’s the same ugly face we’ve been acquainted with since the very beginning. The same America that already worked to undo the tireless work of the ancestors. It plays the same games of psychological warfare to wipe away symbols, erase our chapters in history, and bring back its ‘halcyon’ days with melanated people back at the bottom of the barrel, ‘their place.’ This new America is not so new to us. The slow death of Black people and ‘Black’ culture in America was simply not fast enough anymore.

I don’t know what else will be in store for us as this fresh chapter in America unfolds. What other silent killer will be lurking around the corner, waiting to decimate our ranks? Will it be another version of the crack epidemic? A new COVID that plagues our streets? I can’t say for certain. One thing I can say for certain is that I do not despair. It’s strange to say that despite the layers of pessimism that’s been packaged into our lives from news feeds, despite the rhetoric of emboldened bigots, I feel a sense of zen. Black people, regardless of their place of origin, know that the threat of erasure and violence is real. It’s a reality that’s I’ve seen us all wear on our faces on the day-to-day. One thing that black people across the country are making clear is this: THIS ISN’T YOUR DADDY’S OR GRANDDADDY’S AMERICA ANYMORE. I’ve seen Black Americans rally and push back Nazis in Ohio, families and community members start to turn back to one another for community, black intellectuals turn the tide on misinformation and propaganda, and most recently the country’s largest plantation Nottoway being nothing more than a pile of ash on May 15.

There’s a long road ahead of us, one we’ll have to tirelessly build along every step we take. I was also speaking with David on the importance of connection to our ancestors, the spirituality this country tries to reap from the hands of any person who sets foot on its soil. Watching a house of pain like Nottoway being done away with in cleansing fire, I’d like to think the ancestors are still very much with us. To the Black American who reads this; regardless of whether you hail from hallowed roots in the South, the clear cutting waves of the Caribbean, or the ancient storied lands of Africa, you are not alone. Keep finding community where you can, learn about your heritage and keep your story alive, fight back against the mask of oppression this country uses to hide its fear. I believe our ancestors have never gone away and now it is up to us to continue their work while they cover our flanks.

Resistance is not grandiose in presentation and it’s not romantic. It’s distorting narratives in everyday conversation, it’s piercing the veil in small jabs until the entire fabric is torn, it’s doing your individual piece in preserving the culture. Do not despair, build whatever brick or column you can to keep our foundation strong.

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I’d like to thank Julio again for coming through for this post as well as for all the in depth conversations we’ve been able to have on the political and social landscape of the world we live in today. I really do appreciate all the work he continues to do on the behalf of our culture as well as our communities; he’s definitely one of the people who invokes deeper thought within my life, so, many blessings brother.

You can find more of Julio’s writing on his Substack linked here.

As always, peace & love folks *salute*

Davo