The
IHRAAM African American Task Force to the World Conference on Racism takes
this opportunity to salute you and the organizations and people you
represent in your continuing struggles for the realization of Human Rights.
The
evolution of international law today provides all oppressed, dominated
and/or exploited peoples the rights (legal and moral) to question the
authority of the state, its laws and institutions deemed responsible for the
denial of Human Rights.
In short, the international
community recognizes the human rights of all people and peoples including
the African Americans, and that all peoples including the African Americans
have the right to democratic representation of themselves in relation to
their government as well as to the UN and other nations.
This
is absolutely necessary in order especially to question the authority of the
state in relation to the need for new or reformed institutions in a
politically functional and coherent manner.
Therefore, it is customary for aggrieved groups, minorities, nations,
indigenous peoples, etc. to organize themselves into a political unity in
keeping with democratic norms, and national and international law through
which they can politically represent themselves in relation to the
government, the United Nations, other friendly nations, and the
international community at large. Quite
often it is the ability of a group, minority, etc. to politically and
democratically “self-identify” and “self-organize” that will, from a
practical point of view, determine the degree of seriousness with which its
demands and grievances, in relation to its government, will be given serious
consideration by that government, the UN or the international community at
large. Since all groups have
consisted of people with different religious, ideological and socio-economic
beliefs and opinions as well as educational and economic backgrounds and
organizations, the creation of a political unit that respects, encompasses
and provides for equal participation for all of its internal divisions,
becomes the first and ultimate task in the search for collective human
rights as well as self-government and international recognition.
It also provides the fundamental foundation on which legitimate and
effective leadership can be elected.
Today,
African Americans are represented to their government and the world by
leaders of various organizations, government appointees, well-known sports
and other stars. While these
individuals and groups well represent their individual, group or
organization’s interest, the failure to have cognitized the need for a
democratic political unit signals to the world the non-existence of a people
or their most important political failure as a people and highlights the
illegitimate and nondemocratic nature of the process (or lack of process) by
which certain individuals and groups are pushed forward as leaders of the
African American people, while other individuals and group leaders with
equal or greater standing in the community are ignored or bypassed. In all
cases, the deciding factor is the acceptability of the leadership to the
dominant group in the state concerned.
This manipulation leads to continuous domination and arrested
socio-economic development, and is the major cause of the African American
people’s failure to achieve a functional and empowered leadership which
then could enable socio-economic development. This manipulation also
prevents African Americans from being able, as a people, to access public
economic resources and exercise structures of governance needed for their
collective development. Thus,
while in relation to GNP they are one of the twenty richest nations in the
world, they have no control over their tax resources, which are used for
whatever project the dominant nation feels to be expedient.
There will always be a need for new weapons to protect against new
enemies and strange places in the universe that need to be visited.
Indeed,
joining with free nations in order to achieve commonly held rights may seem
to require greater effort than some may feel is desirable or required.
However the implementation of both minority rights and freedom in our
world today and consequently of international law carries an equal burden of
responsibility to others and to mother earth.
As
so well cognitized in numerous UN documents and confirmed by the
deteriorating situation in the African American community, socio-economic
and cultural development for a minority is not possible without adequate
political participation in government, and often must involve some degree of
self-governance. Keeping this in mind, IHRAAM is wishing to provide a
technical platform and framework where the leadership of all African
American organizations, US government appointees, well-known individuals,
etc. can deliberate on 1) what kind of mechanism of democratic collective
governance, if any at all, that they feel African Americans should create,
and also 2) to democratically decide if they wish to consult with
government, and 3) the nature and scope of such a consultation in regard to
the collective needs and reforms required to end racism and provide for
human rights for African Americans.
African
Americans will also be invited to participate in IHRAAM’s next educational
conference on the right to self-determination and the United Nations, which
will provide, among numerous other considerations, an opportunity for the
exploration of the notion of some form of governance (or not) in relation to
African Americans.
In
concluding, the IHRAAM AFRICAN AMERICAN TASK FORCE TO THE WCAR are aware
that the attention of the African Americans as well as those of peoples of
African descent will be glued to the struggle for REPARATIONS (the admission
of wrongdoing and thereby the obligation to satisfy, compensate and
restore). Indeed, IHRAAM fully
supports and promotes this effort and feels that the raising of this
question in the WCAR forum will be the most spectacular and important
achievement and contribution of the WCAR, even though concerned governments
will take time in officially recognizing these wrongdoings and their
obligation to provide appropriate compensation and restoration.
One of the duties of the African American Task Force of the WCAR will
be to facilitate and plan for a process of implementation, leading to a
process which will lead to the full implementation by the U.S. government of
the recommendations made by the World Conference Against Racism.
Again,
IHRAAM and the IHRAAM African American Task Force to the WCAR salutes each
and every one of you and wishes you success and peace.