The motto of Free Black Society also serves as it's guiding principles and mission: #GetFree #StayFree #SetFree
As the saying goes, "Nobody's free until we're all free"—aptly implied in this small phrase is our responsibility to one another. It would be selfish for one to become free, and then go mindlessly frolicking through endless fields of daisies and bottomless cups of citrus ginger tea while those they love tragically suffer.
If you knew me in high school, you know there were three things I couldn't live without:
1. Music
2. Jesus
3. Demanding attention
Fortunately for me, I played in a gospel band—The C.O.L.O.R.E.D B.O.Y.S—led by Carlous "C Minor" Drake, a talented musician and devout Christian. This platform served as an outlet for me because school hours were for getting an education, apparently. But if you know like I know, we know learning in the system means training geniuses through miseducation to behave as subservient automatons. Dr. Na'im Akbar, in his instructive tome "Know Thyself," describes education as "... a sacred right and responsibility." "A process of harnessing the inner potential that was yet unexpressed and bringing it "out" or "up" into consciousness." Being a product of the world renown American Public Education system, I feel at liberty to say that a colossal misstep occurred when building this institution. If standardized tests aren't diminishing children's inner G, they can be sure to come in contact with the School-to-Prison pipeline at some point in their academic career.
Black students are suspended or expelled three times more frequently than white students. This disparity begins in preschool with 48 percent of preschool children suspended more than once being black, according to the U.S. Department of Education for Civil Rights. It's not surprising, at least to me, why so many of my classmates resisted the institution of learning. Unbeknownst to me, we were already fighting two battles: 1. convincing middle-class white teachers that we were as best as could be, regular teenagers and 2. convincing ourselves that we weren't the scores we received on tests.
[End tangent]
One day after band rehearsal we stopped by the home of Carlous' grandparents. Dr. and Mrs. Virgil Caldwell were both educators who dedicated many years of their lives to teaching and serving. Dr. Caldwell was once a social studies teacher who went on to serve as the pastor of New Monumental Missionary Baptist for 40 years, and Mrs. Caldwell served as a kindergarten teacher for 41 years. As always, I was excited to see what snacks they had because you can always count on being fed when you visit your or anyone's grandparents. That day was a gift, not only did I get snacks, but Mrs. Caldwell also planted a seed that has taken years to blossom. In her kind, yet stern tone she reminded us that:
"The best to place to be is in the service of the Lord." — Ruby Whitmore Caldwell
At that time, I figured she only meant serving in a church setting and wrote it off as just another Baptist saying. As I've gotten older, I've gained a rich appreciation for the words of the elders and ancestors. Because, after serving 'Murica for four years, I now know precisely where and how I want to render assistance.
For years I've struggled with the idea of what I wanted to become. Deafened by the incessant voices of those who tried to offer help by telling me what I could or should become, I was left confused. To be fair, I am something of a Renaissance Man—or as a friend calls me, a Harlem Renaissance Man.
Law. Religion. Music. Politics. Psychology. Sociology. Metaphysics. Race Relations. And now, after 26 years of showing no interest, sports. If you were to ask me a general question regarding any of these topics, I'll probably provide a fact-based answer and follow it up with, but I don't know. That's because, at some point in time, I was actively seeking knowledge in these disciplines. I've always been inclined to fine arts and exploring what it means to be 'human.' Sometimes, I entertain myself by pondering what it means to be; to exist.
Fifteen seconds in my mind usually goes like this:
Where are we? How did we get here? How can something come from nothing? I'm black because of the creation of race; indeed I am nothing. Can a balance be found between Universal law, Natural law, and Positive law? Can we honestly be self-governed? God? If freedom is a condition of the mind, then captivity is a mental affliction. Paul did say, "Be ye transformed by the renewing of the mind." I get it—let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus. But, to have that mind placed in you is to have your consciousness elevated. Boom! CHRIST CONSCIOUSNESS.
I couldn't choose one and eventually learned that I didn't have to. Using an analogy provided by Dr. Maria Colavito, my favorite professor thus far, "...if philosophy is the tree and its roots, the disciplines are its branches." Studying philosophy gives me the freedom to explore all of these intellectual traditions while developing one that is personalized and evolved.
The role of the philosopher is to ask questions about things most people take for granted and overlook. The purpose of the black philosopher is to recognize these questions. To identify why we forget these preoccupations. Seek to answer them, and then help their community understand them. In essence, it is to get free, stay free, and set free. By doing so, we provide an invaluable service to the People.
The most exceptional service, to me, is teaching. By engaging our youth, through right education, we guide children through their development and build brighter, stronger, fully conscious citizens of the Free Black Society—which is why I've decided to become a teacher.
In this way, I can fulfill my responsibility to those I love. I have the freedom to create music, teach and talk about The Way, and demand attention to all the fields in which my passions burn vigorously. Above all, I can guarantee our children remain free and usher in the coming global evolution while firmly staying placed in the service of God.