Searching for New Solutions
Searching for New Solutions:
Why Street Knowledge Won’t Save the Bull-et City
Min. Paul Scott
“ To have once been a criminal that’s no disgrace. To remain a criminal is the disgrace” Malcolm X
As it happens so often, the Bull City (now known as the Bull-et City) is scrambling to find solutions to it’s growing crime rate. In the last year it has been reported that there have been at least 700 shootings. One of the solutions being offered by the Durham City officials is to hire former gang members to talk to the youth about putting down the guns, a program that has been in place in Durham county for the past couple of years. While some see it as a viable solution, others are not so sure.
The primary reason that this approach should be highly scrutinized is the buying into the “street knowledge” myth. Some people believe that only those who are from “the streets” are qualified to educate young African Americans on the dangers of criminal activity. In his essay, “The Black Child,” from his book , The Psychopathic Racial Personality, Dr. Bobby E Wright, correctly, said that the glamorization of “ the street mentality” is creating “widespread destruction.” Dr. Wright defines “street mentality” as the false belief that White people do not control “the streets” in the Black community. He argues that ‘Whites have more control over the brothers and sisters in the streets than over those in the universities.”
Historically, the “bad black dude” has been glamorized in popular culture. One could look back in the mid 20th century as many of our grandparents idolized the “Stagger Lee” character who was the crazy guy that nobody dared to mess with.
In the 70’s Stagger Lee was transformed into the hero of Blaxploitation films such as The Mack and Super Fly. During the late 80’s Stagger Lee was reincarnated as the Black gangsta of Hip Hop and the gangsta flix such as Menace II Society and Boyz in the Hood. This incarnation of Stagger Lee is still around today. Ironically, most of the victims of this personification of Black rage are other Black people courtesy of displaced aggression, meaning if you can’t take your anger out on the person who is causing your problems, you take it out on the person closest to you.
While many find this warped image of African Americans entertaining , it becomes highly problematic when this false reality becomes the basis of public policy meant to “stop the violence.” It brings us dangerously close to scientific racism.
From their first contact with our African ancestors , the European sought to justify Black enslavement and dehumanization. Subsequently, many scientists have used a distorted form of Darwinism to promote the idea of Black intellectual inferiority.
There have also been studies trying to link genetics with criminal behavior dating back decades. As far back as 1968 there was an article in Time Magazine, “Chromosomes and Crime,” that discussed the issue of criminal behavior and genetic abnormalities.
Also, Harriet Washington, author of the book Medical Apartheid explores an effort to link XYY syndrome with criminal behavior. While she discounts the theory of the criminal gene, she writes that even if there is such a thing as a XYY chromosome indicator for criminal behavior it is “a white one; not a black one found more commonly in white men then blacks.”
According to a study conducted at Florida State University’s College of Criminology and Criminal Justice, “Boys who carry a particular variation of the gene Monoamine oxidase A (MAOA), sometimes called the “warrior gene,” are more likely not only to join gangs but also to be among the most violent members and to use weapons.”
And since most “gang members” are portrayed as young Black males it is no secret who the scientists were talking about.
What is also problematic about the Durham City Council’s proposal is the assumption that this effort would be effective due to the Black communities strained relationship with any “solution” connected with law enforcement. Although it is convenient to trace the “stop snitching” ethos to Hip Hop, the actual origins are more nefarious.
According to Kenneth O’Reilly in his work ,Racial Matters in October of 1967, the FBI formed a “Ghetto Informant Program.” The agency used people who resided in a “ghetto type area” or frequented such an area on a regular basis. Not only did the agents inform on owners of Black bookstores and their clientele but also snitched on “teenage gang members” and “persons with criminal records.” With the politicizing of segments of the African American community after the recent murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, any intelligence gathering operation must be closely monitored as such techniques may be carried out under the guise of “stopping gangs.”
The final reason why the initiative is concerning is the idea that efforts to stop the violence in Durham must come from politicians or the police. While the idea of a “Good Ole Boys” network is widely talked about, in Durham , there seems to be a “Good Ole Homie” network. There appears to be a certain amount of nepotism present where certain groups of people always find themselves at the front of the line to get into meetings where six figure grants are dished out while many activists aren’t aware these meetings are taking place. Not to mention that many believe that by the time these meetings become public knowledge the decisions about who will receive funding have already been made.
So, as we move towards finding a “solution” Durham must move beyond the idea that “it takes a thief to catch a thief.” There are many community activists in Durham who are doing outstanding work whose voices deserve to be heard.
Ironically, these solution implementers are rarely consulted for their solutions.
Sadly, as much as the conversation around Black on Black violence takes place , there is rarely an African-centric solution presented. Even though history teaches us that this is the only thing that has ever worked.
As Dr. Amos Wilson wrote in his book, Black on Black Violence: The Psychodynamics of Black Self-Annihilation in the Service of White Domination:
“The prevention of Black on Black Violence and Black criminality which result in the incarceration of tens of thousands of African American males in the prime of their manhood, depends on the creation and vigorous activation of Afrocentric countervailing forces opposed to those Eurocentric forces which motivate and energize their criminal assault on the African American community and their self-destructive assault on themselves.”
Minister Paul Scott is founder of the Durham NC based Black Messiah Movement. He can be reached at minpaulscott@yahoo.com His website is BlackMessiahMovement.com
