The REAL Faces of Black Conservatism 

If you have a leftist org that you want to funnel support to, please post their info under this comment. PLEASE ONLY POST INFO FOR ORGS TO SUPPORT. (also please use discernment and wisdom in what you post)

Bill saying “these young girls have no BUSINESS having sex” while he himself was r*aping them is the most wild shit I’ve ever heard.

@FDSignifire Thanks a ton man. I'm a white teacher in a predominately black school teaching AP US History and AP US Government & Politics. Your channel has been a huge resource for me in challenging my perspective, blindspots, and biases so that I can properly represent and steel-man the arguments of black intellectual history. Keep up the good work. I'll be supporting your channel financially.

The look on my grandparents face when I said "I don't wanna be rich, I just want my people to be comfortable"

I love the quote by fred hampton: "you fight fire with water, not fire - we dont fight racism with racism, but with solidarity. We dont fight capitalism with black capitalism, but with socialism." What a great man, crazy he died at 21. Would have been such a great contributer to the unity of the working class. COINTELPRO really was a despicable act.

The greatest trick that capitalism ever pulled, was convincing the world that it was the ONLY thing that exists.

When you mention that respectability politics probably has its roots in slavery, it just became linked in my mind to how during the chattel slavery era, freed black people could be arrested and sentenced to be sold as slaves as a punishment for ridiculously petty crimes. This could happen to them for "loitering or misspending their time", celebrating or partying too loudly or disruptively to nearby white people, etc. They would have to be proactively respectable to avoid a lifetime of bondage. I know this at least happened in Pennsylvania, not sure how widespread the practice was.

Me seeing Kamala Harris: oh, this is gonna be REAL controversial. Me seeing Oprah: oh. nevermind, this might be career-ending. Edit: Me seeing the Distraction: Oh fuck.

"Minorities are louder than white folks." She should come to the English suburbs. Hear "White English Dave" shouting at the tv because his football teams just lost a goal…

i am native american, and i must say a lot of what you're saying is very relatable for the native american struggle. its interesting for my culture because we try to solve our problems the same way, native capitalisms how every none of the wealth is ever leaked down to the community because the nature of capitalism.

If I had a dollar for every time F.D. said “but I’ll come back to that later” and actually did, I’d have a significant amount of money

As a white dude who grew up in a small town and thought I was more educated on left wing ideas and American history. But man your channel has seriously shown me how little I know. This is my first time hearing some of these names. I appreciate you for making this so deep and nuanced videos on the history of your community. It's seriously eye opening, I'll be here everytime you drop

Actual History, Actual Analysis, Actual Clarity - if you don’t accurately diagnose the Problem you can never accurately identify the Solution… Your Thought and Work are needed now more than Ever

I swear people kept calling me crazy about Dave Chappell. Went from "keeping it real" to calling his fans broke for not liking Elon Musk

My Dad, his mom, and his dad are all legacy HBCU grads. Growing up there was always so much pressure to be the "right" kind of black woman. When my mom moved to rural Ohio I decided to follow her rather than stay with my dad's family, not because I didn't love them---my grandfather was GOD to me, but because I wasn't like them. I didn't want the weight of the black middle class legacy they created on my shoulders. I graduated from WVU with a BA in Literature and Communications and I work making 45k a year caring for people with developmental disabilities. I'm OK with that. I don't NEED to be an HBCU alumni with a Doctorate and a mic. I like to care for people and I just want to find a modicum of peace in this world before I die. Not all generational curses are poverty and domestic violence. Some poisons come from silver platters.

I literally am on my third listen of this video today. I am a 25 yo black man with little to no education on African American history, and I’m embarrassed to say that. Seeing this video put a spark in me to study up on these topics spoken of throughout this video. Looking forward to buying another bookshelf to fill up.

i love how kanye is very clearly all 3 of these

As a young black man (Jamaican immigrant) I've been on a ride lately when it comes to American politics and culture. I had the black inferiority complex growing up in Southern California, then listened to Jordan Peterson (the bootstrap mentality and making my own bed) then the likes of Candace Owens and Thomas Sowell and adopted the idea that the problem is me (black people) and I need to fix it (I have to admit, this did help me pull my shit together) then listening to the Manosphere, before stumbling on F.D Signifier. I do appreciate people like F.D to be a voice of reason and unbiased facts within this media storm. I see problems with the Democrats but also know Republicans aren't the answer. Neither help most Americans (especially black people). You really should have a larger platform my man. Thank you.

Thank you for reminding everyone that watching a video is not activism. As entertaining as a lot of creators are, we can't afford to forget what kind of action really matters

This is my new favorite RU-vid video Not too long ago, around the time of the Logan Paul controversy through the George Floyd protests - if you so much as put “Black” in a video title - this platform would shadowban it (for being advertiser-unfriendly) and not show it to anybody.

"Why do I like what I like and How do I know what I know" is incredibly useful and I want to keep that internalized forever now.

I was just re-watching the video on black conservatism the other day and now we get the sequel?! Feels like anti-capitalist Christmas.

Im a black combat veteran. After deploying to iraq in a combat role I came to the realization of how this country really works.

We got a real pseudo intellectual problem in the US. Too many people fall for the grift as long as you speak with authority and a large vocabulary.

I’ve discovered your channel recently thanks to the piece on the Drake v Kendrick, and thank goodness this happened, because I don’t think the algorithm would have recommended this video to me despite my clearly trying to signal, “THIS is the discussion I want to watch!” It’s funny how the three archetypes told here seem to happen elsewhere in kin-spirited movements in other parts of the world. And that’s strangely reassuring. Even in my community’s loneliest struggles, we’re not quite alone. Many thanks from east of the meridian. Or west. (Who decided the meridian anyway.)

merch idea: "We'll talk about that later" shirts

Unfortunately the complex relationship of Black people and Jewish people in America is just not a subject most people from either group are willing to engage in. The few times I've tried to converse about it (being Jewish myself) I've been laughed off by Black people or just straight up ignored by Jewish people. It's really frustrating because the seeds of discord between the two groups were so clearly intentionally sowed by the third party elite to prevent any kind of political camaraderie between us.

A part 2 of this video should be the Black church. The power it wields and the perpetuation of this same bootstrap narrative it peddles. The Black church in general, parades the talented 10 and treats its poorest members as a blight on the congregation. The focuses in my experience has been getting a larger prettier church over affordable childcare or social, and food programs. Being steadfast in conservatism is the root of its problem and the overall detriment to the Black community in my opinion.

the section about the black capitalist and double agent hit far too close to home for me, because i've heard family members parrot a lot of those exact same talking points. My immediate family, particularly because of my father, is well off, I didn't have to really worry about money at all growing up, and i can see that since he was an immigrant and came to the US for college barely knowing english and was still able to be successful, he thinks anyone else should be able to. I've heard the "black people complain about racism all day instead of just working hard" many times with regard to my older brother and cousins having financial issues and coming to my father for help or "black people aren't smart about money and investing and thats why they stay broke" as if black people aren't playing the game that is capitalism well enough, and ignoring the fact that the game itself is rigged, you just got lucky. edit: thank you for also talking about where we can take action, im not an expert on this type of stuff, but usually i just see these discussions talk about the problems themselves, but not what can be tangibly done to counteract them. will be looking into the stuff you linked

As a Jewish fan, I appreciate you touching on issues of anti-semitism. Jews certainly have a lot of anti-racist work to do in America as well! We need healthy critique as well.

“And I hear some of the most anti-black sh*t come out of the mouths of people that purport to be pro-black all the time because they think they are different then their poor counterparts that live in certain parts of the city.” That statement speaks so much volumes.

Saw it on Nebula ! Watching it here too! Get your popcorn 🍿 ITS GOOD

The lady breaking it down to "police brutality by the income of the neighborhood" in the intro nailed it

A video explicitly focusing on class conflict in the black community. This has been a long time coming. I remember the first article I read about it and I'm glad that this is out. This feels like a conclusion to a long journey. I'm really glad this video exists.

The Black Capitalism segment reminds me of the time I almost fell for the "multi-level marketing" pyramid scheme Primerica 10 years ago. They promised Black people could be entrepreneurs, get their own license to sell insurance in just two weeks, gain enough money to travel, and more. You had to pay a fee to earn your license though, and when you sell your insurance, the person at the top who helped you gets the bigger cut while you get the smaller one. It already sounded like a scam, but I decided to attend one meeting. The person who introduced me was a "friend of the family". When I arrived to my first meeting, it was nothing but Black people in the room and a head elderly Black woman everyone called "coach". In this meeting, she began preaching about building wealth in the Black community, keeping it within us. She had two "lackeys" who served as examples, including my friend. She began distributing checks to people who'd done well, and mostly it was to her lackeys. Then, she began asking everyone in the audience what their sales numbers were. When she got to one older woman, the woman shared her numbers, and the Coach's smile wiped off her face. She began berating the woman, telling her those numbers were nothing to be proud of and that if she wasn't going to take this seriously, she should get out. The woman apologized and told the "Coach" she'd do better next time. It felt like a cult to me. I ran out of that place and never looked back. When I did more research, I learned that this company was founded by a White person, propping a Black leader in the Black communities so they can lure them in, and that most of the insurance they offered was fake and didn't cover anything. Most people never made a dime except a few, who did shady things to gain money. Many people had their money stolen. To add, they found out their licenses weren't legit. To me, this is what Black Capitalism means.

As a former member of the NOI, it’s refreshing to hear someone else acknowledge the fact that it’s a cult. I was a kid when I was in it, and those teachings effect me negatively until this day. Thank you.

When you said strictly diciplined people, it brought back some sad memories. I remember like it was yesterday a young black girl in highschool in the early 90s getting thrashed about by her hair by an adult black lady. The girl was with her friends and they just stood there watching probably in shock like I was from a distance. Some of those close were laughing. Turned out the adult was her mom and she gave her a public beating because she had shaved. Pretty extreme and sad.

I'm surprised someone finally stepped up and talked about the intricacies of how the our communities are just being led in circles and kept in line. 2nd vid of yours I've watched today, subbing

The fact that you said you were scared and still decided to do this means a lot. Thank you, brother

I remember watching that Morgan Freeman movie when I was in high school, and my first thought was, “if these kids are SO bad and dealing drugs and sexually assaulting people and shit, why are they even attending school?” There was already something really off about the whole thing.

Listening to this channel while i work is hard because i keep having to stop to take notes about things you mention that i feel like i should look into.

One of the biggest mistakes I made playing video games with my nephew was letting him pick the character that I would fight with! Never could beat him! That is the same error of letting your enemies pick your leaders!

Great video. I was raised heavily in the Black Excellence mindset and it took so long to unlearn. I grew up in the Wealthiest black county in the US (PG Maryland) and was only surrounded by the capitalist success stories. I was told by teachers, neighbors, family, and career advisors to go to college, infiltrated and cahnge the system from the inside. I just got my PhD, but that mindset never sat right with me. It wasn't until the 1619 project that i found ways to explain that logical dissonance. "The master's tools will never dismantle the master's house" and all that.

This kinda thing is a real problem within the gay community too. Because of the silence induced by the AIDS genocide, and the fact that it's a lot harder for us to transmit culture down through generations (most gay kids dont have gay parents), a lot of young folk are unaware of our history and our radical roots. That makes it easy for us to be taken in by respectable, mainstream gay celebrities. Even when you do have your own community of queer radicals, the system denies you any representation. It's impossible to tell what the views of gay people in the US are actually like, because the faces of homosexuality in America are rich singers and tv show hosts -- not the political activists that gave us the rights we have today, nor the mass of poor, disenfranchised queers that most of my friends fall into.

As a Jewish person, I grew up with the boomers in my community telling me that black people are antisemitic without getting much of an explanation. It always seemed to me that our communities would make natural allies, and I couldn’t understand why the Jewish elders were being so dismissive. We have a shared history of persecution, we have a “stranger in a strange land” thing in common, we have socialist ideologies built into our very culture. So why the animosity. It seems like there are people in positions of power in both our communities that want to keep us at each other’s throats. I have been binging your videos because I really do want to start having this conversation. But like all new things anyone tries, I’m pretty bad at it

You're undisputedly the best sociopolitical channel on this platform. It continues to grow too, which is fucking awesome. You are a truthteller to the bullshit.

The thing running through my mind with all of this is Ta-Nehisi Coates saying (paraphrasing) "the right to be an American is the right to be mediocre." Which, like, should be a unifying concept? Why is the expectation for any discreet group to be excellent just to earn the right to exist? It reminds me of the thing I was told growing up, "if you work super duper hard with terrible pay then eventually you'll be recognized and raised up and do well for yourself." We were all taught that, and that meant that business owners could count on hard docile workers that are there for a hope that was never put in writing.

I live in Atlanta and have seen Killer Mike talk, in person, about raising up working class black people, only to immediately turn around and then see him, in person, publicly support corrupt politicians like Kasim Reed. I feel like Ive tried a lot of times to explain that his personality is almost entirely a selfish, inauthentic, capitalist facade. I also regularly get called racist for those kinds of comments. It’s an ongoing journey of learning for myself, and I appreciate you taking the time to address topics like this which elicit a knee-jerk reaction in people. Keep doing your thing and inspiring people like me. Thank you FD.

1:08:00 - As a white guy watching this, this idea of looking at someone the same color as you from afar and judging them "for not being right" seems like such a huge defining mentality of white conservatism. In my experience, the people going after women and minorities are also going after other white men for just not making the right designs in their life. That the people living in trailer parks and who are addicted to drugs have just done it to themselves, and it comes from a flaw in character. It's probably just part of the greater American philosophy, perhaps.

You're the social studies teacher I've always wanted and needed to have, now I strive to be. Excellent video that connects historical movements and media representation to the ongoing survival and fight against ideology that separates us from our own humanity and the humanity of others, wealth and power inequality

"These young girls have no business having sex." Woof. Especially coming from Cosby that is a truly sickening clip.

As a French White man, this was truly instructing. It's rather easy to draw comparisons with other movements, classes, and minorities issues all over the world.

Your discussion of Cosby spoke to me because I used to live and work in not a very black area but a very rican and dominican area as like an anomaly white transplant, and when I was working in low class factory work I kinda became the favorite gringo of a lot of my coworkers who were very overtly anti-black and would preference me over their black coworkers. The unconscious drive to ingratiate and befriend me for approval and put down their darker skinned associates to basically get the higher rung on the ladder was really disheartening to realize was happening. It was bizarre to realize how conservative some of my coworkers were and how much they performed for my sake and the sake of my white boss, but I was too young and dumb at first to know how to speak to that and really understand what they were doing. I hope they're all doing well. I hope they learned to appreciate their black neighbors. I was hesitant to even speak on this bc it's definitely not for me to speak on, but I suppose it's interesting to realize the black pick-me exceptionalism behavior is not unique to them, but striates through the underprivileged in general.

To open up with the F***** critique is how you know this man’s ultimate goal is to educate and open up the dialogue fr fr. Hats off to you F.D you doing your due dills constantly and with consistent greatness

Hey Fiq. I'm really happy to hear that you're making good money from RU-vid, and that it is enough to help your family not only survive, but thrive. You deserve it! Everyone deserves it! I love your videos. Keep up the great work!

I saw the news about the Texas mall shooting interviewed by a Black survivor and one thing I took note was how he asked for better and harder policing of the mall to prevent more issues like this. I never wanted to scream at the TV in front of my sleeping father in my life up until then

My mother is one of those “Black people/creatives have a responsibility to unite us and show that we are capable of coming together instead of shaking ass and twerking on the devil”, of course referring to Lil Nas X. Needless to say, I was so upset by what she was saying that I could barely catch my breath. I can’t understand how my grandmother was apparently a Black Panther, and now my mom thinks that black people need to “keep our heads down” essentially to as to not upset racists and/or white supremacists. Maybe the trauma and fear from American killing our socialist leaders made them adopt this very defeatist mindset, but the difference in me and her is more than a mile wide. It was such a horrible day for me to hear her say those things, really.

i love this video. what i dont LIKE, is the last bit saying its not activism. We need more black voices like this. It is necessary. The reality is, this is the hope. I am open to learning, and what i’ve learned is change is only possible through active words, talking, teaching. Socialism is only more popular now because of the accessibility from the internet; in turn youtube. You’re youtube. and as much as that may sound cringe this is what the black community needs to hear. the only voices we have these days is kanye and jayz. you should be promoting this video as fact, instead of entertainment. what you have to share is incredibly more thought out than what bigwigs have to say about how to build structure in community rather than individuality. loved this video, but last bit seems backpettled. Need more vids like this from you ❤️

I see this elitism in my community too. As a hispanic you have to either be "hardworking" or you are the the problem. It breaks my heart when a member of my community "makes it" and take a get away car to a white neighborhood. We should all support our fellow disenfranchised community. Thats how we make change. Supporting each other and voting for policies in the neighborhoods we grew up in.

This is filling in so many gaps in my understanding of Malcom X and other historical figures from the 60's and how they fit into different ideologies and how they related to each other, and of course how they ended up dead in some cases. I was born in 50's and it took decades for me to begin learning/unlearning the history. I remember the lightbulb going on when someone explained to me that MLKjr was actually a socialist but also in trying to address the immediate crisis of the black community, downplayed that to some extent and that it was a point of contention within his circle. I'm learning so much. Thank you.

The double agent part resonated with me. It was like finally putting my finger on movies like Lean on Me that always rubbed me the wrong way. Probably because after that movie came out, my high school went through successive principals trying to land the next Joe Clark.

As a mixed native, the indigenous and black struggle are VERY similar and I find a lot of this relatable, unfortunately. Thank you for the video!!

My family owns an African Centered k-12 Private school. I have a doctorate in Culturally responsive education and we have been operating since 1996. I enjoy your platform and incorporate this information into my curriculum. We are one of those schools that could definitely benefit from community support.

I believe Farakkahan had something to do with Malcolm’s Assassination. But to be fair, in that clip he said the words he spoke lead to lose of life. Idk if that’s him sayin he was apart of the hit, I think he was more sayin his words inspired the anger that lead to the hit.

As a caucasian Jew, I can't tell you how much I appreciate the unwavering criticism of Farrakhan. After the lack of visible criticism when Desean Jackson promoted Farrakhan's praise of Hitler, I remember asking a close black friend why it felt like there were more people showing support than denouncing it. He was quick to mention the level of power and influence Farrakhan has and that for celebrities especially there's a real danger in vocally opposing him. Combine that with white conservative elites elevating problematic black voices to delegitimize ALL radical thought that could beneficially challenge the toxic status quo, it makes sense that fringe movements like NOI (which has directly aligned itself with other cults like scientology) are able to be presented as if they're mainstream influences. Not that Jews are always the best allies, I remember a guy I knew in college (upper-middle class Jew) who opposed elevating other suppressed minorities because they'd challenge his job prospects. I had some words about that and hopefully as an adult he found some empathy... On the subject of job searching, the problem is arguably worse now that AI/ML are being used to screen resumes, because they use qualities of successful candidates to decide what will make future candidates successful, which establishes preexisting racial bias in the algorithms. On why black capitalism doesn't work, it shouldn't have to go beyond "capitalism doesn't work for most white people so why the fuck would it help anyone who's starting from less?!" Capitalism creates a small class of elites and leaves most people deprived of resources. Capitalism doesn't just encourage exploitation of underclasses, it requires it. Lastly I just want to mention how much I love FD's videos because the arguments are so well structured and supported. I'm nowhere near as well researched on these issues and I learn so much new info to better substantiate my perspectives in a way I never otherwise could. It's like sitting in lectures with one of the best professors you could ever have. Though I gotta say I'm disappointed that my Patreon $$$ aren't helping him overthrow the state 🤣

This video (and the first one) have been so informative. My mother is half black and she is VERY anti-black. She says so much bullshit that makes me want to pull my hair out and this video gives me some useful points to throw back at her.

Watched this on Nebula yesterday but missed the last 45 mins so im catching it here. Youve come so far the last couple years, bruh. Some of the best content around. You can def tell you come from an educator background. Cheers.

I am a white 19 yo woman who lives in provo Utah. for years I have gone to BLM protests and challenged my family’s very racist views and language and I have been basically removed from some of my family because of it. But I honestly have the most shallow understanding of what Im trying to stand for. Never have I heard of the NOI until watching this video. I thought I knew so much already but thanks to this video I know there is a lot more for me to learn. I am thankful to have come across this RU-vid video and for your creativity and uniqueness in explaining issues that I would tune out against my will because of my adhd. Thank you!

This is THE video I've been waiting for for as long as I've been a subscriber. As a white person who grew up in a Mennonite community, I was sheltered not only from Black politics but also the basic politics from any group outside my group. I'd heard you talk about hoteps in other videos and I'm pretty sure my first comments were asking you to cover this subject. I can literally feel the historical pieces clicking together in my mind while watching this. As always, excellent video.

Malcom is the shit and will always be the plain saying man that speaks truth to power. May he rest in power and his example inform the generations of how to demand justice and work for peace. A complicated man that found a deeper truth and doesn't get the credit he deserves for it.

Farrakhan robbed the Black collective when he helped assassinate Malcolm, and he is still doing us dirty. If he lives another 10 lifetimes, he still would not be able to repay the damage he's done. I can't forgive him.

This is quite literally the most accurate, engaging, intelligent, fair, unbiased, courageous and, yes, entertaining video on this very subject this side of the new millennium. This is must watch, must share, must rewatch material. Brother, you did it. Congrats.

Just stumbled upon this channel yesterday, and have to say that the content has been really eye opening. While I knew a handful of the facts presented in part 1, I definitely wish that the historical context regarding leftist movements during the civil rights era and how many sentiments underpinning revolutionary movements get co-opted by conservative and establishment rhetoric were better taught and understood.

This is the conversation I’ve been wanting to have. Great job. Damn good job

As an Eastern European, all this seems so outlandish, but at the same time, I can find direct points of comparison, because at its root, tyranny and opression is identical all across the map. Much love from Romania!

The “things you won’t be taught in Florida these days” thing is interesting to me. Those things being ignored is far, far, far from new. As a white person in Alabama, I couldn’t even tell you what a lynching *was* until I learned about it online at like 13. The most I was taught about the KKK was the cross burnings(Did those actually happen? I’ll have to look it up). Most kids here weren’t taught much about slavery other than the white men who argued about whether we should have it. I don’t even think our curriculums mentioned people like Fredrick Douglass or Sojourner Truth until 10th grade. I think education on this topic is way worse than a lot of people realize. Edit: the cross burnings did in fact happen

Race and class are interwoven but NOT interchangeable. Big ups to a fellow Bri for mentioning it. I’ve been arguing this point with a lot of black people recently. Things like Guns and Healthcare in America prove this point EVERY day

your videos are so deep and informative 😭 I’ve never subscribed faster to a channel in my life

I know I’m not the only middle age white dude to be here and saying I’m only learning some of these names for the first time in my life. But I want to make sure you hear it, because this was educational. That’s a constant in your content, and yeah I wanted to say I’ve learned a lot watching you. I apologize that most of this take me a lot of time to process and come to terms with. But you’re doing great work and I hope you feel proud of you’re work and take some time to appreciate that people are growing from watching your videos.

I appreciate how you called everyone out with receipts, as opposed to just declaring things to be true. Empty assertions are some of the worst underhanded lies. And doing it all without asserting a purity test. Well put together video.

I appreciate your videos F.D.! Thank you this was great!! So well done, I just wrote a paper about the history of Black political power in Atlanta and found some of your takes super helpful to guide my writing.

I have never been afraid to express my disdain for Farrakhan.

As a poor white Scot thank you very much for helping me understand black American issues more. I already knew a very small amount about the likes of the NOI, Marcus Garvey and Cosby (before all the awful sex scandals came to light) and I want to thank you so so much for giving me more insight. We don't have many black people in Scotland, most are in England-we have a larger Middle Eastern community. But again, thank you so much

As a white Jewish woman, I truly appreciate your addressing and sensitivity to the issues of antisemitism. It can be hard to know where one’s place is to speak up when it comes to antisemitism within non-white communities. And as always, your content is amazing and very educational. Thank you FD!

This video was so damn good. I particularly liked the upholding of Kwame Ture's legacy and the extremely important point that people like this who ACTUALLY threatened the status quo get written out of history, as does the deep history of black socialism and black leftist movements in general. Meanwhile, ideas that are oppressive, reactionary, and justify obscene levels of inequality are relentlessly promoted by corporate media. That is why the work you are doing is incredibly important. I salute you!

It’s so interesting through this comment section and this video that white supremacy often and still affects us, in similar ways but the way that the system is set up and how we learn our history, is built on the idea of our struggles existing in a vacuum, rather then a entanglement of webs. I had learned this when I took my first Hispanic history class in college, that the struggles of Indigenous, Hispanic, Black, and other marginalized communities literally find themselves in perpetual battle against capitalism and white supremacy for decades.

1:10:46 Warms my heart that you were able to make your passion support your family the way it does. Great job Fig

Dear sir. I am a 55 year old man Jamaican living in Montego Bay. I cannot begin to thank you for your content. I was riveted for the whole video. You had me revisit the history of Garvey...a national hero. Mostly I am encouraged to see young men teaching us older folks history lessons...its like my education put me in a trance that I'm only now waking up from...but better late than never. Thanks again and I look forward to seeing you reaching more people beyond the US as I will be sharing your name and content to anyone willing to hear it.

Thank you my brother for being brave enough to speak the truth. It was absolutely brilliant how you articulated and broke down the 3 main problems facing our community. The sad fact is that nothing happens without the government’s knowledge and approval. I learned this after my brother, Mark Clark was murdered, along with Fred Hampton in Chicago back in 1969. In doing my research for my book titled,” Mark Clark: Soul of a Black Panther, “I learned that the Black Panther Party had over 40 FBI informants in Chicago: Not one, not two, but over 40. Many of these informants are still living today. The real leaders that were actually trying to help our people were murdered off, and what we have left is charismatic entertaining deceivers. In my opinion, most, if not ALL of our so called black leaders and groups are part of the plan to systematically deceive our people. It’s a hard pill to swallow; but if we take it with a tall glass of pure water, we can see it for what it is.

At 67 years of age, it amazes me today that, not so long ago, even a select cohort of "mixed " thinkers I associated with were talking, debating, arguing these very issues on a fairly regular basis. We were naive as hell, but I really believe our heads were on straight enough. Maybe forty to fifty years ago -- Yes, those Vietnam times -- real and sustained energy was everywhere, "on the street". We DID scare the shit out of Authority. Here's the scary part: That dialog has been so effectively quashed, the real issues converted into fake moral, cultural, racial, economic "trigger" images and sound bites to such an extent -- the actual conversation is no longer possible. It has become Social Media, too. We have, collectively, been converted into our own Police: All opinion on the table all the time. Eyes Everywhere. That's how a police state works.

I was very much a talented 10th negro. Coming back to South Carolina to live in between my dad's military assignments kept me grounded in a way, but I definitely had some deep seated anti-Blackness that I didn't truly begin to unpack until my mid-late 20s. Working in corrections and education for most of my adult life has motivated me to look beyond the surface and really get at the systemic core of these issues.

One thing about the 1994 Crime Bill was that there was also supposed to be government aid included for black communities within the bill, but Republicans backed out, and it ultimately just funded cops.

Maybe it's because of me simply being white that the information regarding the history of black culture and the culture of hip-hop never made its way to me growing up, or even until I was well into adulthood. Regardless of whether it's a deliberate structure designed by the system in place or just a predominately white audience that determines what information is appealing and marketable for history consumption, or some combination thereof, I can't say with too much certainty, but I can say that whether it's late in life or not, I appreciate your content and coming across the persoectives you put forward. I think content like this with video essay format is if not a crucial, then the most crucial form of media to bridge the gap caused by misinformation and ignorance across the races and classes and I'm glad to see the world differently and better. Thanks brother 🙏 Keep doing your thing and crushing it

This is such a profound and yet accessible distillation of such a complex critique of how capitalism exploits black people. I am going to have watch this video several more times because of the breadth of your topic and nuance and specificity of your analysis. Thank you so much for doing the massive amount of research to make this video as thought provoking as it is.

I’m a black 49 year old and the simplicity of our issue lie in the fact that we at are core (generally speaking) are individualists at least in this day and age. The truth is the majority of us can be bought and sold. Most wouldn’t do the political work if it didn’t come with influence and money.

You doing a real service for our community big bruh and even opened my eyes when I didn’t know I was blind. Gotta get out here and help the guys 🖤🤝🏽

I'm so glad this channel came up on my home page. Educating people on history and how it affects things today is so important. There were too many important individuals and events in this video that I had never even heard of. The topic, and the way the information was presented and organized, made me immediately subscribe and then open about 20 tabs of videos. This sort of education is all the more important now that people are trying (and often succeeding) to keep so called "CRT" from being taught. It's sad that what little education about black history we get in school is somehow considered inappropriate, despite the fact that it already tends to casts people and events in a light that supports the status quo that is harmful to so many people. It's also sad that so many things you discussed are considered radical or extreme in this country despite the fact they are supported by evidence from both research and the examples of other countries. Thank you for the high quality content and the effort that went into it!

I grew up under the NOI umbrella and while I do feel like it gave me a very positive cultural identity with myself as a black man in the aggregate, when I learned about the Mother Wheel on Savior's Day around my Jr year of HS, that was sort of the beginning of the end when I checked out. I can appreciate it from a distance or in doses, or the highlight reel but that's about it. And the whole anti-Jew thing, I just have never really been able to buy, it always seemed like a reach even as a teen lol

Thought we were going to be dragging black conservatives but you’ve brought nuance, empathy and caused some self reflection. You’re an amazing teacher!

That was the best nearly 2 hours on youtube I've ever spent in one setting. I never sit on social media that long. Great video.