There’s a constant reminder in this country that black people are the minority. The poor treatment the black community endures will not end any time soon, so it’s up to the black community itself to implement change.
Lately, the reminder of African-Americans’ place on the bottom of the totem pole has been the ongoing debate surrounding 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick’s disapproval of police brutality and his refusal to stand for the national anthem.
He didn’t stay seated with no explanation — he literally told everyone why he did it.
“I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color. To me, this is bigger than football and it would be selfish on my part to look the other way. There are bodies in the street and people getting paid leave and getting away with murder,” Kaepernick told NFL during an interview.
However, he’s being viewed by many Americans as a disrespectful, ignorant black man who shouldn’t voice his opinion but just win the 49ers some games. And that’s absolutely absurd.
This incident shows how far we are from actual racial equality. I can’t see the same people that are more concerned about a song than Kaepernick’s message actually voting for government officials that will make a change within the black community.
It’s up to the people within that community to create the change. Money runs America. If you have enough money, you can control many things and many people.
According to 1 2013 Nielsen Company study, African-Americans have more than $1.1 trillion in buying power.
Saving and spending money correctly will allow black people to choose where it needs to go — like back into black businesses.
But we can’t seem to keep our money in our wallets.
According to a 2012 NAACP blog post, “Currently, a dollar circulates in Asian communities for a month, in Jewish communities approximately 20 days and white communities 17 days. How long does a dollar circulate in the black community? 6 hours!!! African American buying power is at 1.1 Trillion; and yet only 2 cents of every dollar an African American spends in this country goes to black owned businesses.”
The black community must underestimate the economic power they could have if they just spend their money correctly, because if they didn’t, I’d hope they wouldn’t spend nearly as much as they do.
But the black community can’t be totally to blame for its spending habits. Quick and wasteful spending within the black community is a habit that dates back to slavery.
According to the Nation of Islam Research Group, after emancipation, African-Americans began spending their money swiftly because “there were specific provisions in the Jim Crow laws and customs that gave whites the right to just take money away from Black people at will. If Blacks tried to save and invest their earnings, their money would be confiscated.”
White people are still benefiting from the black community’s rapid spending.
Every pay day, African-Americans throw their money to whomever instead of keeping it within the community. This practice benefits all businesses except their own.
I’m not saying that our roots of slavery should stop us from saving our money, but it should be understood that these habits began at times that were out of our control.
As we can see in our everyday lives, racial equality and justice won’t happen simply because we’re Americans, we have to start giving people incentive.
Money talks. Once you gain economic power and can control aspects of the country’s economy, the rest of America will listen to your voice and hear your fight.
Clarke Perkins is a 20-year-old political science junior from New Orleans, LA. You can reach her on twitter @ClarkePerkins.
