The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #104999 Message #2156002
Posted By: Azizi
23-Sep-07 - 10:16 PM
Thread Name: African American Protest Slogans & Songs
Subject: RE: African American Protest Slogans & Songs
I just thought of another Black cultural nationalist chant that I remember saying when I was a member of Committee For Unified Newark {CFUN}. This organization was largely under the leadership of Amiri Baraka [also known as poet, playwright, author LeRoi Jones}
This chant is from the late 1960s:
Caller- "What time is it?"
Group response- ["It's] "Nation Time"
While there were some cultural nationalist groups who were interested in setting up a Black nation within the USA or elsewhere, the Committee for Unified Newark was interested Black people recognizing and developing our nation where we were {are} by building economic institutions,achieving political power, and honoring and developing cultural traditions that help to reinforce group esteem and self-esteem. This was definitely not a hate whitey organization. As a matter of fact one of the group's sayings was that "You can be pro-Black without being anti-White."
I left Northern New Jersey in 1969, and haven't maintained contact with that group or people who had been members of that group. I'm not sure what has happened to that group, it's leaders, or it's former members. But I definitely credit that group for motivating me to learn more about African cultures. I thank them for that.