"The Hammer" Speaks Before the NAACP

Well no, not really, but Mitt Romney will this Wednesday. However, if I every land a speaking gig before such an esteemed and storied organization such as this one, I'm ready.

Here goes:

Introduction followed by something between perfunctory applause and the reception one would receive from a 20 year old's mom after discovering her daughter was impregnated after a first date.

TEXT:

Thank you, thank you Mr. Chairman, thank you very much. Blah blah, blah-blah-blah. Joke...followed by nervous laugher...blah blah blah. So happy to be here... blah blah blah.

Ladies and gentlemen, we have serious problems in the black community…your community...our community. Nearly 50 years after Lyndon Johnson’s Great Society you are no better off: In fact quite the opposite. From the time of the great civil rights struggles a promise was made to Black America, and the promise was equality. Equality before the law and economic equality. But that promise was a lie. Too many thought you were inferior, too many thought you needed help, too many held the view that you were as children to be coddled and protected... and too many still hold that view. Look around you. Look at Detroit, the South Side of Chicago, South Central Los Angeles and Liberty City. Black crime statistics are through the roof. Black poverty remains unabated. By any sociologically or economic measure Blacks are more or less: More likely to do badly and end up in prison, on welfare or addicted; less likely to do well and achieve. Public money is not the problem. We have flushed TRILLIONS down the drain with this program or that, all to no avail. Opportunity is not the problem. We have spent TRILLIONS on education in conjunction with quotas and set-asides designed specifically for Black Americans; and I might add, with total disregard for the equal protection clause of the Constitution. Too many profited from this voracious Byzantine government behemoth ostensibly designed to raise all black Americans into the middle-class. Not only hasn't it workd, it has almost destroyed Black America. Many years from now, in the cold light of day, I believe historians will report that the great welfare programs were as devastating for Black American as slavery.

But that was then and this is now, and we must look forward. I do not stand before you and claim racial prejudice and bigotry are things of the past. Slavery was a reprehensible blight on the character and promise of America. It is our national shame. But we must learn from our history, not relive it. We must take wisdom from the mistakes of the past, not sink into an abyss of self-doubt and moral weakness. When one looks at the state of Black America in the 50’s when racism was an institutionalized part of the fabric of America, and see by comparison your community was in so many ways better off then than now, we must recognize the problem is not solely racism. The problem is with the very programs and policies designed to give a leg up.

I do not want to diminish the accomplishments of Black America. Millions of African-Americans have embraced the American dream and are steadily progressing up the socio-economic ladder. There are more Black millionaires than ever before. The Black economy in American is the 14^th. largest in the World; bigger than Mexico, Saudi Arabia and South Korea. For African-Americans as well as all Americans of different creeds and colors, this country has provided untold opportunity and wealth. So now we must call on you. You have the tools, the wealth, the education and the know-how to raise up your brothers and sisters. Hate is not an economic system. Hate produces no wealth. Self-destruction is self-destruction no matter the cause or grievance. Victims beget more victims and the cycle must be broken, and it can only be broken by you. After decades of distrust, abuse and maniputlation you are the only ones who can fix the problem. You must show your brethren the promised land because no one else can. You, the leaders sitting in this room today, must stop profiting from poverty. You must stop blaming others. You must recognize in yourself that the plantation is over, and trading places with the overseer is a crime before God. You must reject the path of profitting off other's misery. You must demand a higher standard from yourselves and your people. You must not tolerate the sin of failure. You must hold your community accountable, both collectively and individually. To expect anything less would make you no better than the most hateful racist. Acceptance of anything less is an acknowledgement that you as a people are second-class, subservient and menial. I don't believe that and I don't think you do either. With effort and perseverance and focus, and with the help of God Almighty you will take your rightful place in America and the World. And know this, America will help you in anyway possible, apart from just more of the same. The days of unlimited money and benefits and special treatment are over. These policies offer only desolation, dependence, desperation and despair. They shackle the spirit, the drive, the ambition and the creativity of your people...our people. This abomination, this welfare state, this cancer of the mind and soul has failed. It's now time for you all to excel, create and succeed. Rise up and lead the Black Renaissance. Rise up you doctors and lawyers and business entrepreneurs. Rise up and teach your community the values of your ancestors. Rise up and show the World the brilliance of your people. Too many think you can't do it, but they are wrong. Now is the time, rise up and lead!