Black and Brown Power: Forging a New Struggle

Manufactured Division and Gang Conflict
by Tomás Alejo via WBB Wednesday Apr 11th, 2007 10:19 AM

In the influential and time-honored book The Art of War, Sun Tzu instructs that one of the most effective methods used to defeat an enemy is to "cause division among them." The book further instructs, "Seduce them with the prospects of gain, send interlopers in among them, have rhetoricians use fast talk to ingratiate themselves with their leaders and followers, and divide up their organization and power." It is when the enemy is divided that it is at its weakest and susceptible to attack and defeat.

Ensuing the Second World War, Europe was left in economic and geographic devastation. As a result, the United States became the world’s dominant super power and set forth to gain control of the world’s economies through military power and neo-liberal arrangements. Competing ideologies, such as communism and socialism, were seen as a threat to American interest. Yet, while American corporations prospered, third-world countries were ravaged by rampant capitalism and years of Western colonial rule. In the United States, the working class, especially blacks and Latinos, became unemployed and marginalized due to shifting economies and institutional racism.

Inspired by the Cuban Revolution, the poor and oppressed people of the Americas began to rebel against racism, abuse, exploitation and U.S. domination. In countries such as Nicaragua and El Salvador, Marxist revolutionaries ejected their governments and created a more equable society. In the United States, non-white populations demanded civil rights and freedom from institutional segregation. Militants, such as the Black Panther Party (BPP), aggressively fought injustice and police harassment. Fearing a communist-socialist takeover, the U.S. Government and economic elites set forth covert and psychological operations to neutralize revolutionary activity.

Utilizing manufactured division, the U.S. military and counter-intelligence agencies disrupted the insurgent’s organizational foundations. In Nicaragua, the U.S. military trained segments of the native population (the Contras) to help eradicate the Sandinistas. Domestically, these tactics were most evident in the government’s efforts to annihilate the Black Panther Party. In prison, counter-intelligence agencies manufactured division and conflict amongst prisoners and gangs - successfully pacifying organized rebellion against the system.

For decades, prisoners, regardless of race, had organized loosely to demand an ease to overcrowding, the protection of constitutional rights and humane treatment. However, it was not until 1970 that George Jackson, a California prisoner and BPP member, was able to organize black prisoners under militant revolutionary ideology. Through education, Jackson helped create a climate of political consciousness within California prisons, which in turn enabled many prisoners to understand institutionalized racism and the mechanisms of U.S. oppression. Through his efforts, conciliation and political solidarity was established between prisoners, gangs and racial factions in efforts to demand and create better living and working conditions. The threat of revolutionary insurgency within the California prison system became especially apparent after the Angola Prison Riot that left many prisoners and guards dead. California prison officials set forth covert programs to destroy Jackson and all revolutionary activity.

Emulating the FBI’s COINTELPRO (Counter-Intelligence Program), which a year earlier fabricated hostility between the BPP and the United Slaves, the California Department of Corrections formed its own counter-intelligence unit, known as the Internal Gang Task Force (IGTF), their first task was to impede solidarity between black revolutionaries (namely, Jackson’s Black Guerrilla Family) and the Mexican Mafia. In 1971 George Jackson was assassinated by guards at San Quentin Prison. Leaders from the BGF (Black Guerrilla Family) and the Mexican Mafia were slain and all-out war erupted between both factions.

Revolutionary agitators were removed from the prison’s general population and isolated in the CDC’s notorious Secluded Housing Units (SHU). In addition, the IGTF infiltrated prison gangs and organizations with informant, saboteurs and provocateurs that dismantled these groups into mere ignorant criminal hordes. Through manufactured division, the CDC victoriously took political power from prisoners and put it back in the hands of the State.

Due to harsh criminal penalties and unemployment, by the late 1970’s the Mexican-American population multiplied within the California prison system. In efforts to protect Latino inmates from predators and other racial (racist) segments, Mexican-American prisoners formed the Mexican Mafia (La Eme). Fusing Chicano nationalist ideology and illicit forms of survival, La Eme became the largest and most powerful prisoner organization behind prison walls. Contact with Jackson and newly-arriving Chicano political prisoners, such as members of the Brown Berets, swerved La Eme into a more international and revolutionary direction. However, IGTF’s manufactured division between La Eme and the BGF prevented revolutionary consciousness from expanding through the Mexican-American prison population. Energy that was once used to struggle against racist guards, draconian laws, inhumane treatment, overcrowding and exploitation was now exhausted in prisoner strife and friction. Furthermore, through classification methods, prison officials racially segregated prisoners and increased alienation, especially amongst blacks and Latinos.

In the mid-1980’s, La Eme became divided when Mexican-Americans from Northern California broke ties with their southern counterparts (namely Los Angeles) who dominated the leadership. Northerners, frustrated by their lack of hierarchal representation in La Eme, and oppressed and misconceived as bumpkins, formed their own organization and named it Nuestra Familia (NF). The IGTF quickly capitalized on this division.

In 1985, several leaders of the NF were mysteriously murdered and a war between the factions ensued. Years of conflict between these groups filtered to the streets providing the prison industrial complex with new bodies and tax-payer money. Moreover, draconian laws and sentencing enhancements have provided an over-abundance of black and brown youth in prison. While politicians use incarceration and "get tough laws" for political gain, and while the State spends millions of dollars on prisons and criminal prosecution, poor communities are suffering from dilapidation, under-performing schools, police terrorism, unemployment, low college enrollment and teen pregnancy. Teens left in the margins seek comradeship, identity and material comfort (promoted by popular culture), and find this in gang and drug activity. The unending cycle of incarceration continues through generations of blacks and Latinos. Understanding manufactured division promoted by the U.S. military and counter-intelligence agencies can help end this cycle of incarceration, create solidarity, implement revolutionary consciousness and action.

What to Do

A call for peace and unity between gangs is not enough and may seem preposterous to gang members due to bloodshed and the loss of friends and family. However, a vision must be created that calls for conciliation in order to realize a greater common and covert enemy. In order for this to happen, bonds between gang/prison leadership and academic intellectuals must be established. For decades, academics have attempted to stir the mainstream and middle-class with deep analysis of capitalism and U.S. domination. Yet due to complacency, the mainstream has been reluctant to respond (other than marching). I believe the focus of energy must be invested in the most marginalized population - the prisoner and gang member. It is important to consider that street-gang politics are dictated from behind prison walls. So it is in prison where we must start. Correspondence and book programs must be created and funded by academics, students and social activists. At the same time, prison gang leadership must be willing to be open to dialogue and provide protection for political prisoners. Prison gangs are the greatest potential for revolution!

In revolutionary struggle, your comrade from behind enemy lines,

One love. Uhuru! Mexica Tiahui!

Tomas

c/s Black and brown power!
http://brownberets.info

PEACE!

Useful Land

"How much useful land is used by the Original Man? Ans: The Original man uses 23 million square miles."- 7th degree, Student Enrollment 1-10

The above mentioned question and answer is one of the first that a person learns upon entering into their study of the '120 degrees' of the Nation of Gods and Earths. the the number in and of itself is derived from a 1933 estimatation, it remains a generalization of the area of land that is actually being occupied by the Original man across the planet. The focus is to not argue the actual amount used b-u-t the symbolized ascribes in understanding the 'degree'.

We know and understand that the entire planet Earth belongs to the Original man in all his shades and glory. We also know and understand that we chose to settle certain areas and regions based on how we assessed the value of the land in regards to our survival. We also know and understand that the Original woman is the Earth and is the Original man's greatest natural resource outside of his bond with his brothers (his 'self'). In the model of universal order, the sun, moon and stars we draw parallels with the structure of the family, which is man, woman and child. And ultimately from both of these we can witness the principles of knowledge, wisdom, and understanding.

The man is the foundation for life and the order of his family. While the woman is the backbone, the man is the brain. His role in the social context is not much different from that of the Sun in our solar system. The woman expresses the duality (2, which in Supreme Mathematics is 'wisdom') of her nature in the sisterly relationship of the moon and the earth, really the same being (since the moon broke away from the earth). Both celestial bodies reflect the light of the sun as the woman reflects the light of knowledge and guidance of her foundation, her Sun, onto the growing 'seeds' or children. The children, both he and her, are symbolic to the 'stars'. Their position in the vastness of space represents the vastness of possibility and of the future. As our sun is a star, so each male children may grow to expand and create a 'solar system' of his own. Each daughter will become the Earth rotating and revolving around the supreme magnetic of the Sun, as the word 'planet' simply means 'wandering star', from the greek origin of the word.
The '23' in '23 million square miles' represents the Original man's immediate family, his woman and child. This is how he furthers his physicial reality on the planet and where one can begin to bear witness to his 'power' (2+3=5). A man with powerful ideas will be just that. However, once a man is able to transmit his ideas in a practical manner, usuaully in the form of a family, teachings said ideas to his mate who in turn embraces, embodies and excercises this upon the children through education, we can see the further extent of his mental power. The devil kows and understands this and has thus fought for our land for hundreds and thousands of years. In many ways, the systems and institutions of the western world that have been established to uphold the status quo of this 'civilization' reflect this through the tireless efforts made are controlling and influencing our women and children. The dollar coin commemorative of Sacajawea and child expresses this very actually and symbolically. They are pictured on a piece of currency, which symbolizes the value and the 'commodity' of the Original woman and child for the exploitation and enrichment of 'white culture'. It's all based in money. Capitalism.

The coin is a reminder of Manifest Destiny and the Monroe Doctrine, the westward expanison of the U.S. by Lewis and Clark through Sacajawea. It represents to determined oppression of Original people by the U.S. government. She was their guide, and in many ways she could be viewed as a traitor, the "Eve" that flirted with the 'snake' in the garden. However the issue is more with the brazeness of this government to flaunt such images in our faces and pockets. It is a reminder that in this system of government your family, your woman and child are dispensable and can be brought and sold for a price. Although many times we just aren't aware of what that price is due to the deception and greed of those that set the prices and print the money. It is a reminder, of the struggle to maintain a positive and healthy family in the face of stressful work schedules, inflation and the myriad forms of drama we face in our daily struggle to 'BE' in a world that insists that we 'CAN'T'.

Peace!

American Uprising: The Onkwehonwe Democratic Agenda

The Onkwehonwe Democratic Agenda

by Kahentinetha Horn; Socialist Voice ; April 05, 2007

Kahentinetha Horn is a longtime indigenous rights activist from the Mohawk Nation. She was involved in the 1962 Conference on Indian Poverty in Washington D.C., the blocking of the International Bridge at Akwesasne in 1968, and other indigenous rights campaigns.

In the summer of 1990, she was behind the Canadian Army razor wires that surrounded the Mohawk compound in Kanehsatake. This was the historic Mohawk land rights struggle that became known as the "Oka Crisis." After almost 20 years of service, Kahentinetha was fired by the Department of Indian Affairs for her involvement there.

More recently Kahentinetha has been involved with the Kahnawake Elders Council, and was active at the Six Nations Land reclamation near Caledonia, Ontario, publishing and distributing almost daily accounts of the developments there.

Kahentinetha Horn is an editor for Mohawk Nation News, a daily news service that she founded during the Oka crisis. Recently, Mohawk Nation News came online. It features articles on Mohawk struggles and other issues affecting indigenous people across turtle island and beyond. Check out the site at www.mohawknationnews.com .

We’ve been complaining about the top-down bureaucratic agenda of the colonizers. Do we have something to replace it? Yes we do. It’s called the "Kaianerehkowa/Great Law of Peace" [the constitution of the Six Nations Iroquois Confederacy].

Our philosophy can be used to build a society based on peace, power and righteousness. These words have meanings that are deeply rooted in our culture and completely different from the kinds of expectations they raise among the colonized. Our understanding of these concepts has nothing in common with the command and obedience model of predatory capitalism or the exploitation of ordinary people for the power and profit of a few. The new (colonial) world order is opposite to our way of life based on the principles of fully informed consent and consensus in all our relationships.

Stephen Lendman, in CounterCurrent.org, describes how Hugo Chavez of Venezuela has "constructed socialism from below", built "from the base" in the communities." He has found a way to rebuild Venezuelan society. He wants a coalition of smaller parties whose power comes from the communities.

Chavez thinks this is the way democracy should work. A lot of ordinary people agree.

There are presently 16,000 regional federations of Communal Councils organized across the country that deal with local issues. Each represent 200 to 400 families. That number is expected to grow to 21,000 councils by the end of 2007. This new state is driven by the same basic philosophy of egalitarian human respect that underlies the Kaianerehkowa.

A decentralized government will distribute billions of dollars to these Councils. If the people so chose, billions can be put into a "National Development Fund." Yellow journalism has been attacking this thinking. They put fear into people’s minds, calling it "nationalization", which is a dirty word to capitalists and colonialists. Capitalism is a one way road for the privileged few. Development of democratic programs look threatening to those who are at the top of the old hierarchal heap.

As we assert our sovereignty, we have lots to think about. What can we Onkwehonwe do with all our land and resources and all the squatters who are here? The land belongs to us and our future generations. It always will. All our resource revenues can be used to compensate the colonists fairly. The rest can be put towards rebuilding a safe and healthy environment.

U.S., Canada and Mexico will, of course, become irrelevant. These cancerous organizations don’t belong. They are trying to kill the hosts. That’s us. Then they’ll kill everybody else! Where will that leave them?

The old hierarchies will cling to their delusional powers. They will keep their guns pointed at us and try to invent more lethal weapons. We’ll have to bring out the feathers and start tickling them so they can let down their defenses and so they can grab a shovel and take part. If they don’t, we might have to ask them to leave. Their hysterical megalomania is getting them involved in serious violations of international accords. If they’re not careful, they could be declared persona non grata worldwide.

With all the money from our land and resources, we could buy out the big corporations so that we have the major shares, say 40%, as Chavez is doing. The rest can be joint ventures with us. In other words, we want all these companies under the control of the people. The colonists can have shares after we take everything out of private control.

The people must control the energy sector, including oil production. Private investors can still play a role. But it will be based on joint ventures that include the people as decision makers, not just consumers.

The money should be put back into our hands, out of the hands of private for-profit bankers. We would invest it into worthwhile projects that restore and protect the land so that the coming generations can be healthy, happy and prosperous. The days of genocide and exploitation are over. We must benefit from our resource revenues and other businesses that provide essential services like public utilities. Clean drinking water and fresh air to breathe would be top priorities.

It goes without saying that Indian Affairs terrorism has to go. There is no excuse for that organization to exist. Its very existence is founded on a misinterpretation of the BNA Act, the constitution of Canada. Britain could only give Canada the authority to negotiate with us. There is no authority under the BNA Act, under international law, or under any treaty to make laws for us.

We have to dismantle the "Tower of Terror" in Hull. Communal power at the grass roots will be the order of the day. Kaianerehkowa can make this happen and can be the start of a real egalitarian and humanistic society.

All social structures will have to be reorganized. Selections of local officials, the economy, finance, banking, transportation, security, public safety and policies related to energy are part of this. There is no need for a top heavy governmental structure when everyone takes responsibility at all levels.

The current colonial bureaucracy will have to be dismantled. Corruption and greed are major problems. They are products of hierarchy. They will naturally disappear when egalitarian democratic structures are put in place.

The changes needed aren’t such a big deal. As long as existing representatives are carrying out the will of the people, they may remain in their positions.

All procedures and decision-making must be public and the work of all administrative officials will be subject to constant review. They have to look out for the people and their directions, instead of looking up to the artificial bosses. They can be removed from office if they do not follow the people’s directions or heed our warnings. All must be given the experience of being a representative so that we can all learn how to help the people. It is important for everyone to learn how difficult it is to serve.

Social justice and economic independence must be based on equitable distribution of national wealth. Education is most important. The habit of censorship has to end. Racism must be eliminated from all school curricula. All students need to learn our points of view on history. They have to know what really happened to us. They have to know that this land belongs to us and our future generations. Science and technology has to benefit all of the people. So must health, the environment, biodiversity, industry, quality of life and security. We have to take up our responsibility and take charge of our own lives.

Social issues can and must be resolved through consensus. We will have to rethink the need for a judiciary. We cannot give anyone power to harm civil or human rights of our people or even of our opponents. Resources must be taken care of, not exploited. The products of the land must be distributed fairly. No one will become desperate enough to want to sell their soul to the devil.

Our young people have a job to do. They can be part of the first wave of reeducation. Every person has a responsibility throughout their lives to educate the people they meet and the coming generations.

Our way is to manage our own relations with all other countries. The colonial states are squatting on our land. They do not represent us.

The people they brought here do not need to fear us. We will not expropriate private property. Right of occupancy can be given to people. The land will always belong as it always has to the future generations of the Onkwehonwe.

We are hoping that the last days of the colonial system are at hand. Democracy and colonialism cannot coexist. Colonialism is a military or civilian "dictatorship" derived from a combination of isolation, overarching greed and an attempt to pull local and global forces together to control all the people and the resources of the world.

Savage capitalism is in its death throes. It is fighting to stay alive. Because of this, it’s becoming more and more vicious. It is important for everyone to stay grounded at this time. We are all working for each other and for the future generations.

The colonial nations are on the tipping edge of fascism. They combine elements of corporatism, patriotism, nationalism and the delusion of an Almighty-directed mission. It requires an iron-fisted militarist agenda with thugs like "Homeland Security" illegally spying on everyone. In this system everything is for sale to the few who can pay.

Colonialism is out of date, illegal and so yesterday. No longer will the armies oppress and kill for the key resources, markets and cheap labor where "might makes right" and any difference of opinion will not be tolerated.

Our youth are precious to us. The Los Angeles Times did a story about "A wildly successful Venezuelan program that makes musical instruments and training available, free of charge, to all children." This gives children something constructive to do. Unlike the U.S. model that Canada copies, the kids are exercising their minds instead of exercising their thumbs playing video games.

Instead of a make-work program for police and social workers who try to slot kids into a system of jail and imprisonment, Chavez created a musical education program called "El Sistema." 500,000 children from all strata of society get training at more than 120 centers around the country. More than 200 youth orchestras have been created. Training in music is known to develop math skills in the young to prepare them later for professional training. There’s no problem keeping guns out of the kids’ hands. They’re too busy making music. That Chavez knows what he is doing.

Instead of punishing youth, we inspire them. As the author, Paul Cummins, put it, "We reap what we sow, and we don’t harvest what we don’t plant."

The Chavez approach is actually much less expensive than the multi-billion dollar state-sponsored iron-fisted prison system and militarist Homeland Security "thuggery."

Another savage effect of the capitalist hierarchy is homelessness. One-way wealth distribution siphons everything upwards except for a few crumbs that are handed to the middle class while nothing goes to the millions on the bottom who are the most in need. They all hope we will just go away. We won’t. Neither will our needs. We come from a participatory tradition which can eliminate the greedy fantasies of colonialism.

Many who come from repressive societies are unable to see a bottom-up model of relationships. We have shown that we always resisted enslavement.

Free expression is part of an open democratic society. No more secrecy or lies. No more corporate media support for capitalists and colonial states. No more thought-control police to mock our efforts at free expression which is vital to a healthy transition from tyranny to democracy. The "thought police" don’t want us to say what is on our minds. They don’t want us to think. We can and will do it because the Kaianerehkowa mandates it. People in the far south of the border are trying to get back on the natural path that has always been there, for us and for everyone. This can be done without a war and without global interference.

An earlier version of this article was published on Mohawk Nation News on February 26th 2007.--Socialist Voice

Afro-Taino clothing line

(The information below was 're-posted' from the clothing company's myspace.com website)

"AFRO TAINO "
can actually have three definitions:

First and foremost it stands for Puerto Ricans as a whole because a vast majority of Puerto Rican people are a mixture of Taino native, Spanish, and African DNA. Conquerors from spain invaded the Island of Borinquen and renamed it Puerto Rico. They also enslaved the people that they found living there, those people were the Taino natives of the island, after intermingling with Taino women and killing and using the men as labor, the Spaniards imported slaves from Africa to work the sugar cane fields. Spanish men then intermixed with African slave women and created various mixtures in the people, which was further mixed as the Africans and Tainos began to intermarry. Centuries later we have a nationality of people who range in appearance from the Blackest of Black to the whitest of white and all variations in between.
African culture and customs remain prevalent on the island in the faces of the people and in everyday life. In the music; Bomba and Plena, the food; gandules and yuca, and even in religous practices like Santeria are all of African origin.

AFRO TAINO

also stands for the offspring of Puerto Rican people with African and/or African americans. one of the world's greatest entertainers: Sammy Davis jr. was the product of a Puerto Rican mother and an African american father. Others like Carmello Anthony, Maxwell, N.O.R.E., Reagan Gomez Preston and Antonio Fargas (best known as "Huggy Bear" from TV's Starsky and Hutch) are all of a Puerto Rican/Black mixture.

AFRO TAINO

Lastly stands for the Unity thats needed within the Black and Puerto Rican communities. The two groups have shared the same ghettos for decades and were pitted against each other by the powers that be to create disunity and mistrust but that plan backfired and great things were accomplished within those ghettos from the Young Lords Party’s beginnings as the Boricua version and ally of the Black Panther Party to the development of the Hip Hop culture which included BOTH Blacks and Puerto Ricans in the South Bronx.

Together we can’t be stopped!

for more information, please visit their website at: http://www.myspace.com/afrotainogear

The Asiatic Blackman- Native Origins in Asia

I wanted to take the time to examine some concepts within 120 degrees. I have done and continue to do indepth studies of Native American culture and history and I wish to present some of this information as to further expound on our paradigm's perspective of our Native American brothers and sisters, one of the cornerstones of the so-called "Latin" American identity, in relation to other Original people globally.

The origins of the Native Americans had long been a mystery amongst the world's scholars and historians. The true science behind our brothers and sisters arriving in this land has been revealed to us in our 120 degrees. However, much time and research has to be put into sifting out opinion from fact. The purpose this article is to illustrate some of the cultural similarities between the Native Americans and their/our family in Asia, in attempt to restore a lost link of identity. The importance of this is critical in the unification of the Original people across the planet earth.

Elijah Muhammad, in his book "Theology of Time", spoke of the origins of the Indians in North America being the result of an exile from the Indian sub-continent around 16,000 years ago. For this reason it appears in the 3rd degree in the Lost Found Muslim Lesson No. 1 (1-14):

"…The people who he found here were 'Indians', who were exiled 16,000 years ago from India. They are Original people."

He purported that this exile took place because the Indians did not keep and obey the laws of Islam, which forbade the worship of idols. This worship of idols can be referred to as shamanism in this day and time. Shamanism is the worship of nature through various rituals and ceremonies and embraced through man's connection with nature and the universe. We often hear Native Americans refer to animals such as the fox or bear as being human at one point. This aspect of animism, animals having not just souls but possessing human-like qualities, is apparent in the religion of Hinduism. One of the major principles of shamanism is the respect for the earth. It is this element of shamanism along with other elements of Native American culture that helps us trace their origin back to Asia and more specifically India. Although the majority of my research has concentrated the Native American’s origin more towards the steppe region of Central Asia (Central China and Mongolia), I am sure that with more time one would ultimately obtain more information which grounds the Indian origin of the Native Americans.

According to popular theory, the Native Americans (Indians) were said to have migrated across the Bering Strait during the Pleistocene period (Ice Age) 20,000 to 30,000 years ago. At that time the climate caused the water in the oceans to freeze and form huge glaciers that covered the northern halves of North America and Asia. The Indians being "hunter-gatherers" at that time, followed the herds of animals across the land bridge exposed by the lowered sea level, and made their way into North America and then down into South America. The controversy has been within the grounds that a lot of the skeletons found do not seem to resemble the Indians in this day and time. Thus the scientific community has perpetuated the idea of America being at one point, an ancient "melting pot" of various peoples including pre-historic Europeans. We can not forget that these are no doubt the same people (scientific community) who think that the people of Egypt have looked the same throughout history as well, regardless to the numerous invasions and occupations by Greeks, Romans and Indo-Europeans. A good number of skeletal remains have been found across throughout the Americas. One of them being the Kennewick man, found on July 28, 1996 near Columbia River in Washington. Many scientists quickly claimed his origin as being that of European due to the shape and structure of his face. Further research has revealed that the man actually resembles a cross between the Ainu peoples of Japan and the Polynesians. Another is the Spirit Caveman which was found in Nevada. It has been said that the Spirit Caveman doesn’t really resemble any other ethnic group except the African Bushmen and the Aboriginal Ainu along with other East Asians. That is because of his long head, wide nose and strong chin (3). Another point brought about by the discovery of these different skeletons found, is that of the multiple migrations to America by various ethnic groups at different time periods. Ivan Van Sertima addressed these some of these skeletons in his book "Early America Revisted", cited the African skeletal remains found in Indigenous American graves, that predate the imported enslaved Africans of the late 1400’s on. Skeletal remains of Aborigines have also been found in Mexico and Central/South America which bear a DNA imprint of about 12,700 years old according to anthropologist Silvia Gonzalez of John Moores University in Liverpool, England. The Chinese had been reportedly having interaction with the Americas and left a number of cultural remnants even prior to their documented discovery in 1421 A.C.E. Tales have circulated amongst Chinese and Japanese fisherman for a couple hundred years. Author Sultan A. Latif , "When Nations Gather", notes that the Tlingit Indians of the Northwestern Coast of America had supposedly taken Japanese fishermen hostage and enslaved them, according to one tale. The Tlingit look similarly phenotypical to modern-day East Asians. The garments they used to adorn themselves bear a striking resemblance to those worn by Mandarin diplomats. It is additionally interesting to note that the Shawnees of the Ohio River valley claim an origin harkening back to Asia. They believe that is was their people who came from Asia across the "western sea on the back of the Great Turtle" and founded North America. Additionally, many Native American peoples refer to the North American continent as "Turtle Island", including the Taino Arawak (who referred to the land as "Amekikia" interesting enough).

Concerning the "Spirit Caveman", the Navajo and Hopi Indians of the southwest have been genetically traced back to the Ainu of Japan as well. Having been whitewashed in many encyclopedias and references regarding their ethnicity, Runoko Rashidi unveils the origins of the Ainu in his book "African Presence in Early Asia". He speaks of the Ainu as being clearly a Negroid and Mongoloid admixture very similar to that of the Maori's in New Zealand. They were referred to as "Children of the Bear" and it is known of a Bear cult in ancient China. It is also added in the article, originally written by James Brunson, that the origin of the Ainu is in Mesopotamia where there are references given to the "Striking Down of the Anu" which sounds as if they were expelled (exiled) from that area. This may or may not nor lend some credence to Elijah Muhammad’s theory that the Indians came to India by following Buddha, who left from the Holy City of Mecca. This then poses the question: "Which Buddha?" Ancient Pali documents from India indicate that there were 27 "Buddha’s" before Siddartha Guatama, the supposed founder of Buddhism. This subject is more accurately discussed in Swapan K. Biswas' "Mohenjodaro and the Harappan Cities".

Again, the strongest element amongst the Indians of North America and Northern East Asia is 'Shamanism'. Shamanism is also a bonding link amongst many Indigenous peoples across the planet and represents the understanding of one's relationship to the universe, prior to authoritarianism and disconnectedness of Western religions. It has been preserved amongst some tribes and mainly amongst those in the Northern regions of North America and Eastern Asia, with such peoples as the Chukchi, Buryat, Inuit, Khakass and the Nganasan. They have various myths about animals with human characteristics and spirits. All this was a means to get in tune with the world around them, once they had 'fell from grace' and strayed away from civilization. We must remember that once our people became dissatisfied, they began to search outside of themselves for the definition of themselves as well as an understanding of the universe. A lot of the mythologies the Indians had (as well as other peoples around the world) were methods of transferring knowledge from one person to another. For instance, the shamanistic people have a great love and respect for the earth, especially trees. The Tlingit used the tree as a symbol to represent the Milky Way (6). Another aspect of shamanism that was practiced amongst most tribes of Indians from Asia to America is the use of mind-altering substances drawn from plants to produce states of trance, which they believed would aid them in speaking to ancestors and gods. Plants were used such as the Coca leaf (from which is derived Cocaine) in South America, Cannabis Sativa and the Peyote Cactus. The most unique of the trance traditions comes from the shamans of Mongolia where the shaman goes into a trance and travels through a what is believed as realms of heaven and 77 realms of earth (2).

Shamanism in Eastern Asia seems to have strong origins in Mongolia. The Mongols were a society culturally influenced by Indo-Europeans (Turks/Hittites) who moved across the continent and entered into the steppe region of Central Asia. Some of the linguistic patterns found in Mongolia are of the Turkic-language branch b-u-t the Mongols were no doubt originally "black". Although the Turks mixed with the Mongols, records show the black origin of the Mongols along with other groups such the Khakass, Buyrat, Chinese and other Asians. At the date of this writing the Khakass are caste aside in Russian society and referred to as the "blacks". The Mongolian state was first established in the year 200 B.C.E as the Hun (Hunnu) state, by a tribe known as the Huns who were actually comprised of ancient nomadic tribes from China such as the Xianyu, Xianyung, Hun Yi, and the Di. In the first century C.E. they managed to invade India (Pakistan) which began the expansion of their power and empire (4). They were referred to by the Chinese as "Yueh-chih" and the "Kusanas" in India (7). There was a lot of warring between tribes and societies in the early years of development within Eastern Asia which would definitely leave reason for a people to leave, migrate, and search for a peaceful abode especially when a lot of the tribes were nomadic. Warring states and kingdoms it is said to be the reason why Abraham left the city of Ur, correlating with the exile reference made by Runoko Rashidi regarding the Anu. Abraham is considered the patriarch of the Western religions: Judaism, Islam and Christianity. The theory of the Native Americans being the "Lost Tribe" has been viewed by some as their reason for coming to the Americas. This theory is shared by the Black Hebrew Israelites as well as the Mormons (who have a very intriguing account of what they consider the 'fall' of the Native Americans, as they strayed further from 'Israel'), who believe that Jesus traveled to North America to teach the "Lost Tribe of Israel". There are those who also believe that the Kasmiri people of India are the Lost Tribe of Israel and the idea of the Indians leaving from India adds on to an interesting topic of a "wandering people without a home" unfortunately not to be discussed in this article (1,8).

Making them other than their own selves, shamanism did evolve into more complex and scientific forms of religion amongst the Native Americans. This is seen particularly over a period of time as well as what appears to be the undeniable contact with other people ('non-American' so to speak). The more advanced civilizations in the Americas appeared across the Americas, and although what is usually recalled is the civilizations of Meso-America (Mexico, Central America and Upper South America), other advanced peoples must also be recognized such as the Mississippian and the Anasazi, who dealt with astronomical and mathematical sciences and who left behind intriguing architecture and art. These cultural elements such as literature, science and religion are said to have reached their zenith with civilizations such as the Olmecs, Aztecs, and Mayans. It is thought that the Anasazi left there home in the area of Arizona and New Mexico to move south and mix with African travelers, to produce the Olmecs (5). This area is also the land the Aztecs (Mexica) referred to as their land of origin, Aztlan, from which our modern day term for them is derived. Such high forms of mathematics and sciences was thought to be influenced by outsiders like the Phoenicians and the Carthaginians especially with the puzzling similarities between Mayan and ancient Egyptian alphabets (5). Archeologists have uncovered ceramics from the Valdivia culture of Ecuador (3000-1500 B.C.E) which are very much like the Jomon ceramics of south Japan (3000-2000 B.C.E). Both the Aztecs and the Mayans used to put jade stones in the mouths of their dead, a tradition no where else but China (5,6). The cultural similarities between the American Indians and the people are Asia are to great to deny. When looking at the pyramids built by the Mayans and Aztecs we can see the resemblance to the 'ziggaruts' and step-pyramids of Mesopotamia. In a June 1995 issue of "Hinduism Today" there was an article that researched the structures and art of Meso-America in comparison with those of India and South Eastern Asia. The conclusion was that the Indians of Asia and those of the Maya were one in the same according to the engineers, scientists, and anthropologists that met and discussed the matter. There are some people who say that the art appears to have specific influence of the Khmer people of Cambodia (6).

As I had stated earlier, the religion of the Indians has been shamanism, which aided them in their striving to stay in tune with universe. In one Mayan temple in Palenque, there is a statue of a goddess, Coatlicue who is directly identified with the Hindu deity Kali (5). There were, however, those people whose efforts with spirituality took them a little closer to their true selves. The ideas espoused are not themselves one with Allah's teachings as we understand them, yet ring with remnants of their origin in this world. The Chukchi believe in a supreme being, a Creator. The Creator is the personification of the life force that moves through the human and animal worlds. The Inuit call this principle the inua along with sila. Sila is supposedly the the individual powers and forces of nature and permeates the natural world. Sila is also said to be manifest in each and every individual and is the vital force which connects a person entirely with their immediate environment (2).

The purpose of this article was to make way for a clearer understanding of our brother and sisters, the Native Americans (Indians). It was a look at the elements involved and around the movement of a people across two continents. Mainly cultural, the similarities and evident relationship of origination goes beyond art and custom, raising it’s more undeniable claim in the people’s biology. In a December 2004 issue of Discover Magazine, a popular science magazine, the cover story was an in depth look into the "Y" chromosome. It is through the Y chromosome that scientists can trace Man’s history back to his biological origin. The case study that was used in the article was Genghis Khan and the genealogical roots he spread throughout Asia and Europe. The DNA information from the Y chromosome passes virtually untouched from father to son, as does with mitochrondrial DNA in women. It was through the collection of blood sample from thousands of groups of people that they ended up tracing the Native American origin back to Asia. They found that they were able to somewhat narrow down an area of origin as well, which ultimately found to be in Mongolia in the steppes of the Altai Mountains. Of course scientific knowledge changes as technology evolves and more is to be revealed. However, what has been manifested thus far is that the Native Americans have both a cultural and biological foundation in the rugged terrain of Eastern Asia. I attempted to show the similarities between different groups of Indians as well as their relationship to some neighboring groups display the common bond amongst original people. Including the climatic conditional effect on physical characteristics and the charted geography of the people occupying the said territory (India’s boundaries could have been stretched as far north as Mongolia, being that the current boundaries were British enforced) more research has yet to be done to conclude whether or not the American Indian actually traveled from the Indian sub-continent. Lastly, the above article, while underlining numerous cultural similarities, does not mention or attempt to fully account for the biological aspects of Native Americans in relationship with other Original people. I personally, take a similar stance on the populating of the Americas as my brother Supreme Understanding, in that there wasn't one particular movement of people but several migrations, 4 in total. People travelled over from various places in Asia- across from Siberia, on boats from the Southeast of Asia and the South Pacific islands, and from what we now call Australia. All of these people intermixed to form the modern diversity we have amongst the First Nations from Alaska to Tierra Del Fuego. And the 'shades of black'- black, brown and yellow, are present amongst all Original people.

This article was an attempt to examine and expound upon ideas I received as building blocks of my 'cultural' foundation. The lessons studied by the Nation of Gods and Earths were transitioned over into our paradigm due to our founding father's experience and influence from the Nation of Islam. Elijah Muhammad, one of the founders of the Nation of Islam was largely pro-Asian, especially during the beginning of the Nation of Isla-then called the Temple of Allah. He emphasised Afro-Asian unity and relationships during a time when Japan and the U.S. were at war and the idea of Mecca and India being the two most advanced civilizations in Asia provided both a religious and cultural grounding for his movement. Especially since the movement's primary founder, W.D. Fard is regarding by many as of Pakistani descent and which Pakistan was once 'India'. Studying and investigating history will reveal more.

PEACE!

Works Cited:

(1) http://www.answering-christianity.com/lost_people_of_israel.htm

(2) Auerbach, Loren, et al. Encyclopedia of World Mythology.London: Paragon, 1999

(3) Begley, Sharon The First Americans.23 July 2001 http://www.cabrillo.cc.ca.us/~crsmith/firstamer.html

(4) http://www.espritnomade.atfreeweb.com/mongolia_history.htm#prehistory http://www.espritnomade.atfreeweb.com/mongolia_history.htm

(5) Gilbert, Adrian and Maurice M Cottrell. The Mayan Prophecies.Great Britain: Barnes & Nobles, 1996

(6) Hultkrantz, Ake. The Religions of the American Indians.London: University of California Press, 1967(7) http://www.mettanet.org/pali-utils/Pali-Proper-Names/kaniska.htm

(8) http://www.tombofjesus.com/Kashmirnames.htm

War Against Our Own

"....Because they were causing trouble amongst the righteous people, accusing the righteous people of telling lies, and causing them to fight and kill one another..."- Culture degree (4th degree) 1-14 Lost found Muslim Lesson No. 1

Divide and conquer, proven to be one of , if not 'the' best, strategy the devil has...

"Multicultural killing is still killing!”

A Conversation with Laura Holland on First Nations recruiting by the Canadian Forces by Mordecai Briemberg
by Laura Holland and Mordecai Briemberg; Seven Oaks; April 03, 2007

The Canadian military is on the hunt for new recruits. They are setting bait for First Nations children as young as sixteen, and Laura Holland’s two sons wanted to sign-up. Laura, who comes from the Wetsuweten Nation near Smithers BC, convinced them otherwise. Laura Holland is a member of the Vancouver Rape Relief and Women’s Shelter collective.

First they target social gatherings…

“It was actually through the kids that I first heard about the military recruitment campaign. About two years ago. My sons and several of their friends had been approached at a community center and they’d also been approached at aboriginal day.”

Then they target the schools…

“I didn’t hear about the program through the school itself until just recently. I can’t say that it was the Vancouver School Board itself that introduced this idea to me or gave this pamphlet to me, but it was one of the employees at the school. She had been given some recruiting pamphlets and was convinced this was a good idea and started to distribute them to first nations families.”

The hook is baited with money and native culture…

“I have a really difficult time just looking at the pamphlet because of the way it’s set up. It’s offering children as young as 16 money of course. At the end of a two month summer camp you get paid $3,000, that’s $1,500 a month. It offers military training, offers to teach young people how to handle artillery, military life. The program’s called “Bold Eagle” and the cultural component starts in the first week, for four days. It teaches a lot of things many of us don’t believe in -- multicultural killing is still killing!”

There’s not a lot that would stop a 16 year-old from going…

“The way those pamphlets read there’s very little that would stop any child as young as 16 from actually going into this program. All that’s required is grade 10. The kid needs to be physically fit and a Canadian citizen, have a high school transcript, social insurance card and a birth certificate. What they’re offered is transportation to Wainwright Alberta and when they’re there they’re offered military clothing, required equipment, meals, accommodation. It does say you don’t have to commit to the military, but they strongly encourage graduates to continue with the Canadian forces.”

Then the cutbacks…

“A couple years ago our community started to really feel a lot of the cutbacks, started to feel the pressures of not having any money. We saw many programs that were disappearing from the community. There was not a lot of training that was being offered to first nations youth, and there weren’t any programs specifically geared to first nations that were free and accessible. A lot of the kids were hiding themselves, feeling more and more destitute; as they were getting older, hitting their teens and their late teens many kids were becoming homeless, many first nations youth were beginning to hit the streets because they had no where else to go. A lot of these children also were just beginning to [leave] group homes and the foster care system.”

Depressed and afraid…we talked…

“At first I was really quite depressed. I was really afraid. I had to sit with my sons and have a conversation and ask them why they wanted to join the military. And of course they told me why – and it was out of desperation. What they were informed was they could get an education, have some training, have a job, have somewhere to be, somewhere to go.

“At the same time I had to say, listen my son this is who you are, you are a first nations youth and you have to understand why you were feeling so desperate and so destitute. You have to understand who put you in this situation in the first place. You have to understand your history. So I needed to sit with my sons and explain to them things like the Indian Act. I had to explain to them this was used as a tool to control first nations people, that this was meant to be a temporary tool to assimilate first nations people. I also had to let them know there were very few rights that we had because of this Indian Act. So there is a whole history and a lot of information I needed to tell my kids so they could understand that what they were choosing was not the right thing and not for the right reasons. I had to explain that an education, housing and work – those are the kinds of things the Canadian government has promised people in the first place. They shouldn’t have to promise to go to war, they shouldn’t have to kill or to die, in order to have housing or an education and a job.”

And what side of the fence…

“Because of their age, they at first hadn’t really thought all that much about the role the military plays in Canada. What they remember because of their age is Gustafson Lake and they remember Oka. Those are the most recent events that they can recall. I had to talk to them about what roles the RCMP played there, and what role the Canadian forces have played there also. So it was not just a matter of talking about war and the Canadian forces. It was also talking about consciousness raising, about who they were, what side of the fence they’re actually on.”

We have a long history of first nations veterans…

“I also needed to remind them we have a long history of first nations veterans, that we honour as elders, who had gone to wars. But when they came back they didn’t enjoy the same benefits as other war veterans. In fact, they had lost whatever rights they had had under the Indian Act.
“There is a couple of different things in play in the early 1900’s. There was a war that was happening in South Africa. In the early 1900’s there were men returning from that war, the Boer war vets were returning. They were given different things like land and pensions and taken care of. At that same time first nations people were being put on reserves and whatever rights they had was completely governed by the Indian Act. They didn’t really have any rights. By the time the second world war was happening, if a first nations person was to go to war what they had to do first was enfranchise themselves as a Canadian citizen, because at that time first nations people weren’t considered Canadians. We weren’t considered citizens. So if a man or a woman wanted to enlist that meant giving up whatever Indian rights that they were entitled to. Upon their return they didn’t enjoy the same benefits, they didn’t get pensions, or compensation, they didn’t have land rights and they also weren’t reinstated the Indian rights they had given up before they left. This had a profound effect on the women and children who were left behind because if a man had given up his status as an Indian in Canada it meant the whole family lost their status. And this had a profound effect on many of the following generations.”

And there’s a connection…

“The first thing that I want to do with my sons is explain our position here in Canada and what our reality is, what our lived experience is. I explain to them that this is an occupied country. So we don’t want to contribute to the violence and oppression of women and children in other occupied countries – because women and children are who are affected first and foremost.”

*Mordecai Briemberg interviewed Laura Holland on the “Redeye” radio program March 17th. Redeye is an interview based public affairs and cultural program broadcasting every Saturday morning from nine a.m. to noon on Vancouver Cooperative Radio 102.7 fm. The program also is streamed live and interviews are posted on Rabble podcasts . Checkout the options at http://www.coopradio.org/redeye

PEACE