Brief Rant: Dear Corporate US, Miss Me With The BS!

For all those corporations claiming solidarity with Black folks -- Amazon, Facebook, Netflix NF(uckyou)L, Sephora... the list goes on but I won't, JUST STOP. The statement industrial complex as someone has termed it reminds me of the uprisings in the 60s where White business owners scrawled Soul Brother on their store fronts for fear of being torched. Capitalism cannot truly be in league with the people, especially Black people who have ALWAYS been exploited and commodified in a myriad of ways in this country.

The motivations of these companies, especially right now in the midst of what is becoming a financial and political crisis are clear - get ahead of this and exploit it. These are corporations like L'Oreal, the personal care company that pimps "natural" hair care products to sisters with natural hair, while firing an employee who called out White supremacy and privilege.

In all of this, the only statement that has resonated with me is Ben and Jerry's - "We Must Dismantle White Supremacy", but then i'd expect that from the ice cream maker because they try, and not just when the world is watching. However, most of these corporations that claim to stand with Black people are not ready or willing to remove that particular pillar (White supremacy) from the foundation of this country no matter how much it sags under the weight of our pressure.

But, these companies know they must spend money to make money. So, donations flow to Obama, Sharpton and the NAACP like the payoffs my grandfather made to police when he ran the numbers. The dollars never trickle down to the youth that are out there in the streets demanding to be heard. Rather, these payments pad foundations that support the bourgeoisie with jobs, and maintain the status quo by doing nothing to dismantle, disarm or disengage from White supremacy.

We have seen this before - the rash of programs that the War on Poverty spawned in the late 60s didn't change anything as demonstrated by the fact that we are here today dealing with the same issues. What we need is a complete paradigm shift, and that has to be shaped by those with the boot directly on their neck. Accepting reforms or funds to get the boot up off of us while it remains on Native Americans and Latinos will lead us right back here. We must pull the boots off and toss them into the fire so that we will not be tempted to put them on. I say this because I am not interested in changing places with the Settler, I want a whole ass new world altogether.