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[Christian Davenport]

Black to the Future, Part 10: 1968 @ 2018, a 50 year Retrospective of the Republic of New Africa

5/20/2018

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Series Intro

Almost two years ago, my book about the Republic of New Africa (RNA) came out entitled "How Social Movements Die: Repression and Demobilization of the Republic of New Africa. In the book, I attempted to strike a balance between theory and social science versus simply telling the story of the RNA.  Unfortunately, I had to leave a lot of information out of the book and some of the details that were otherwise fascinating were eliminated.  In this series, I revisit the archive and present the material 50 years later.  Enjoy.

Toward the 1st Legislative Assembly

Immediately the RNA moved to create local chapters called "consulates" under the leadership of bond chairmen who would lead the effort to fund the new nation through the issuing of bonds.  Each city that wanted to start a consulate was told to set them up quickly in late April.  As directed, the following guidelines were provided:
  • there should be a roll call and active participation should be limited to delegates who attended the Detroit Convention, however, names of other persons who have a commitment to separation and truly wish to help should be taken and these people should be encouraged to come to Chicago, where, I am sure, we will certainly vote to admit some of these persons to the National Council;
  • the national government will receive its revenue like any other government -- through taxes, bonds, notes, and gifts -- however, the Caucus should agree on dues for its own members to finance the operations and programs of the Caucus.
The group was even more detailed telling folks what to do in the first few meetings:
  •  Roll Call
  • Explanation of Caucus and Guidelines by Caucus Chairman
  • Organization of Caucus
    • Election of Vice Chairman, First and Second Secretaries, Treasurer and Financial Security
    • Setting of Regular Meeting Date, Hour and Place
  • Report on "Certificates"
  • Plans for First Public Program by Caucus (Rally, Culture Show, ttc. before May 30, if possible, to sell certificates, raise funds, inform public)
  • Proposal for Chicago Session of National Council
  • Organization of Travel to Chicago (Renting Bus, Car Pool, etc.)
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The police were all over the RNA:
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This type of form is clear.  The police identified who was attending different types of meetings, where it was, what they talked about - in order.
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Black to the Future, Part 9: 1968 @ 2018, a 50 year Retrospective of the Republic of New Africa

5/9/2018

0 Comments

 
Picture
Series Intro

Almost two years ago, my book about the Republic of New Africa (RNA) came out entitled "How Social Movements Die: Repression and Demobilization of the Republic of New Africa. Who and what is the RNA?  Well, I'll get to that later in a blog or two.  In the book, I attempted to strike a balance between acknowledging the theoretical insights that guided my reflection about what I had collected versus simply telling the story of the RNA.  It was a hard needle to thread.  For rigorous social scientists, there were no tests of the claims that were made. Instead, I used a detailed reading/writing of the case to flesh out what I thought was going on and I was doing plenty of testing in another book and series of articles co-authored with Chris Sullivan so I did not feel that I needed to address some of the things that hinder reading rigorous work.  There was also the issue of what to do about the case. Were the dynamics I was seeing specific to African Americans and/or the US or were they generalizable? Would someone in/out of political science and sociology feel comfortable arguing about conflict dynamics in another place/time based on a disaggregated group and individual analysis of some black folk?  Not clear yet.  I'm not optimistic for political science but I hope that I am wrong.  Sociology has had less of a problem in this regard.

For those who just wanted the story though, there was this theory stuff to wade through and for some reason skipping some chapters did not seem to feel right for them.  In my new series, I will then revisit the story of the RNA from the beginning - diving into the archives that underlie the project as well as simply telling the compelling story of who did what to whom and why.  Enjoy.

​Education

A major part of the Republic of New Africa's objective was to improve African American awareness of the problems confronting them.  As with most things, this was thoroughly gone over and drafted out.  

The key for the RNA was to create a particular type of African American - one that was aware, complete dedication to their people, aware of their history, truthful and a willingness to engage in revolution. 

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To get there, the RNA wanted to start from the beginning (African civilization) and to work forward from there.  This effort was advanced in order to dispel the myths of African and African American inferiority as well as to provide some foundation for engaging in a confrontation for liberation and freedom. As a result, the RNA tried to inspire African Americans by reminding them of their heritage, bringing to the forefront their awareness of those against them as well as connecting them to the broader African American community and simultaneously tried to cultivate a good citizen/member. They had a unique formulas that they explicitly presented in different documents:

Politics = Unity of People and Common Purpose
Liberation = Struggle + Separation + Nation Building
Nationhood = Common culture + Common Land + Common government
Power = People + Land + Politics (Nation)


To this they added:

A strong mind in a strong body creates a strong citizen, a strong family, a strong community and a strong nation

We must devote all our time and energies towards the total destruction of all our enemies who would deny to us the right of self-determination


The instructions to RNA teachers were clear:
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The reading list was extensive:
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Black to the Future, Part 8: 1968 @ 2018, a 50 year Retrospective of the Republic of New Africa

5/5/2018

0 Comments

 
Picture
Series Intro

Almost two years ago, my book about the Republic of New Africa (RNA) came out entitled "How Social Movements Die: Repression and Demobilization of the Republic of New Africa. Who and what is the RNA?  Well, I'll get to that later in a blog or two.  In the book, I attempted to strike a balance between acknowledging the theoretical insights that guided my reflection about what I had collected versus simply telling the story of the RNA.  It was a hard needle to thread.  For rigorous social scientists, there were no tests of the claims that were made. Instead, I used a detailed reading/writing of the case to flesh out what I thought was going on and I was doing plenty of testing in another book and series of articles co-authored with Chris Sullivan so I did not feel that I needed to address some of the things that hinder reading rigorous work.  There was also the issue of what to do about the case. Were the dynamics I was seeing specific to African Americans and/or the US or were they generalizable? Would someone in/out of political science and sociology feel comfortable arguing about conflict dynamics in another place/time based on a disaggregated group and individual analysis of some black folk?  Not clear yet.  I'm not optimistic for political science but I hope that I am wrong.  Sociology has had less of a problem in this regard.

For those who just wanted the story though, there was this theory stuff to wade through and for some reason skipping some chapters did not seem to feel right for them.  In my new series, I will then revisit the story of the RNA from the beginning - diving into the archives that underlie the project as well as simply telling the compelling story of who did what to whom and why.  Enjoy.

A Month into the Movement

The Republic of New Africa was trying to do what had not been attempted before.  To do this, the came up with the following:
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Essentially, the RNA resolved to pay for the revolution themselves - at least in the short term.  They knew that reparations was a long shot.  They knew that other nations and organizations were likely to keep their distance.  Accordingly, the organization tried to set a path to go it one their own.  

Interestingly, the RNA began to reveal themselves to be quite legally-minded and detailed.  Indeed, you would think that lawyers pervaded the institution in addition to holding the vice presidency.
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    Analog - The Anti-Blog

    By "Analog" I am referring to the adjective (i.e., relating to or using signals or information represented by a continuously variable physical quantity such as spatial position or voltage) and not the noun (i.e., a person or thing seen as comparable to another) for I wished to give voice to my thoughts which have come to me in a more or less continuous manner but which do so in a way that is not consistent in content or form. Thus you will see short stories, brief thoughts, haikus, low-kus and even a political cartoon or two. 

    Winner of Best Blog Post for 2014 by International Studies Association

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