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Ibo Foroma: Rastafarian Perspectives
SLAVERY and colonisation were not only physical but above all, psychological and spiritual.
Perhaps the following allegory assists in revealing how this occurred, allowing us to create the much needed antidote.
Once upon a time was a baby frog trapped in a tiny box. As it grew older and felt like jumping and springing into the sky, something very sad and disturbing happened.
Every try and every attempt failed to produce the desired results. The young and energetic frog would bump and bounce back from bumping onto the solid solitary confinement.
This unnatural behaviour went on for quite a long time until the frog lost all hope in its benevolent endeavour. An even longer period lapsed with such acrid conditions being regarded as the norm and hence the frog grew up thinking.
But eventually, as a lot of people do sing and confess “The Lion of Judah shall break every chain,” through the powers of the Most High Jah RasTafari, the indomitable Conquering Lion of the tribe of Judah, the baby frog was loosed of all bonds and chains.
However, when the fully grown frog became free, it totally failed to fully practice and experience life as expected of an adult frog. Every time it jumped, it always exerted minimal effort even when maximum force was demanded.
The sky is the limit.
This following speech was delivered by a white slave owner, William Lynch, on the bank of the James River in 1712 and the message is still true even to this date.
“Your invitation reached me on my modest plantation in the West Indies were I have experimented with some of the newest and still the oldest methods for control of slaves. Ancient Rome would envy us if my program is implemented.
“As our boat sailed south on the James River, named for our illustrious King, whose version of the Bible we cherish, I saw enough to know your problem is not unique. While Rome used cords of wood as crosses for standing human bodies along its old highways in great numbers, you are using the tree and rope on occasion.
“I caught a whiff of a dead slave hanging from a tree a couple of miles back. You are not only losing valuable stocks by hangings, you are having uprisings, slaves are running away, your crops are sometimes left in the fields too long for maximum profit, you suffer occasional fires, your animals are killed.
“Gentlemen, you know what problems are; I do not need to elaborate. I am not here to enumerate your problems; however, I am here to introduce you to a method of solving them.
“In my bag here, I have a fool proof method for controlling your Black slaves. I guarantee every one of you that if it is installed correctly, it will control the slaves for at least 300 years. The Black slave after receiving this indoctrination shall carry on and will become self-refuelling and self-generation for hundreds of years, maybe thousands. When we do it with horses we break them from one form of life to another; that is, we reduce them from their natural state in nature; whereas nature provides them with the natural capacity to take care of their needs and the needs of their offspring, we break that natural string of independence from them and thereby create a dependency state so that we may be able to get from them useful production for our business and pleasure. For fear that our future generations may not understand the principles of breaking both horse and man, we lay down the art. For, if we are to sustain our basic economy we must break and tie both of the beasts together, the nigger and the horse.
“We understand that short range planning in economics results in periodic chaos; so that, to avoid turmoil in the economy, it requires us to have breadth and depth in long range comprehensive planning, both articulation skills and sharp perception.
“We lay down the following principles for long range comprehensive economic planning:
1. Both horse and nigger are no good to the economy in the wild or natural state.
2. Both must be broken and tied together for orderly production.
3. For the orderly futures, special and particular attention must be paid to the female and young offspring.
4. Both must be cross-bred to produce a variety and division of labour.
5. Both must be taught to respond to a particular new language.
6. Psychological and physical instruction of containment must be created for both.”
A brief discourse in offspring development will shed light on the key to sound economic principles. Pay little attention to the generation of original breaking but concentrate on future generations.
Therefore, if you break the female mother, she will break the offspring in its early years of development and, when the offspring is old enough to work, she will deliver it up to you for her normal female protective tendencies will have been lost in the original breaking process.”
In light of this, let us examine and testify how it is norm for the average African mother to make sure her children will never wear dreadlocks, a mighty strong symbol of resistance against the established system evident from Black; Samson, Daniel, Moses and Jesus the Nazarite. (Numbers 6)
Even in the absence of the slave master, dread-locked people are stigmatised in society, work places and cannot join the uniformed forces.
Beginning today, we hope and pray for a better tomorrow.
Online Reporter