Friday, May 27, 2011

Parable of the Parot


Parable of the Parrot by Marvin X




for Ngugi Wa Thiong'o and the Pan African Revolution


The king wanted parrots around him. He wants all his ministers to wear parrot masks. He said he had to do the same for the previous king. He only said what the king wanted to hear, nothing more, so he advised his ministers to do the same. In fact, they must encourage the people to become parrots.

Yes, he wanted a nation of parrots. Don't say anything the kings does not want to hear. Everything said should be music to his ears. And don't worry, he will tell you exactly what he wants to hear in his regular meetings and public addresses to the nation. Everyone will be kept informed what parrot song to sing. No one must be allowed to disagree with the king. This would be sacrilegious and punishable by death.

The king must be allowed to carry out the dreams that come to his head. No one else should dream, only the king. In this manner, according to the king, the people can make real progress. There shall always be ups and downs, but have faith in the king and everything will be all right. Now everyone sing the national anthem, the king told the people.

There must be a chorus of parrots, a choir, mass choir singing in perfect unity. Let there be parrots on every corner of the kingdom, in every branch and tree. Let all the boys sing like parrots in the beer halls. Let the preacher lead the congregation in parrot songs. Let the teachers train students to sound like parrots. Let the university professors give good grades to those who best imitate parrot sounds. Let the journalists allow no stories over the airwaves and in print if they do not have the parrot sound.

The king was happy when the entire nation put on their parrot masks. Those who refused suffered greatly until they agreed to join in. The state academics and intellectuals joined loudly in parroting the king's every wish. Thank God the masses do not hear them pontificate or read their books. After all, these intellectual and academic parrots are well paid, tenured and eat much parrot seed.

Their magic song impresses the bourgeoisie who have a vested interest in keeping the song of the parrot alive. Deep down in the hood, in the bush, the parrot song is seldom heard, only the sound of the hawk gliding through the air in stone silence looking for a parrot to eat.




--Marvin X 4/5/10

Fable of the Rooster and the Hen





Fable of the Rooster and the Hen
for Jah Amiel, James, Jazmin,
Jordan, Mahadevi, Kevin,
and you



There was a farm that had many chickens and roosters. One rooster used to control his many hens with an iron fist and he made the sound of the rooster to let others roosters know not to mess with his hens. He roared and cockadoddledoed early in the morning to signal dawn of the new day. And he cockadoodledoed throughout the day, strutting around the yard with his hens well under control, standing guard when they were laying eggs, especially when he found the door of the big house open and one of his favorites would lay her eggs on the couch in the living room of the big house.



The rooster would not go inside but stand in the doorway so he could watch both ways, inside the house and outside. If the farm lady would not come into the house and chase the hen outside, the hen would stay until she laid her egg, then she and the rooster would go down the steps and back into the yard, joining the other roosters, hens and baby chicks.

There were other fowl on the farm too: turkeys, ducks, guineas, peacocks, doves, and pigeons.
One day, after the farm lady got some special feed from the store and tried a little out on the rooster, he no longer could make the sound of the rooster. The other fowl were surprised when they heard rooster sounding like a hen and no longer making the sound of the mighty rooster. They all laughed at the rooster and thought he had gone crazy. What the hell is wrong with you, rooster, they asked. They figured maybe the farm lady had given him some special food to make him sound different. They were happy she didn't give them the feed she gave the poor rooster, who looked so pitiful and sounded even worse.

They knew something had changed him and he started not only sounding like a hen but acting like one as well. He made every attempt to act like he was laying eggs, although he wasn't able to lay any, still he put on a show for everyone on the farm who gathered around to see him play the role of a hen. Other rooster's would even stand guard while he pretended to lay eggs, though he couldn't, it was just an act and they went along with it just to please him.

He no longer strutted about like a rooster but like a hen. They called him a freak and made fun of him until he couldn't take it anymore and asked the farm lady to give him some better food so he could sound and act like a rooster again.

She honored his request, telling him she was trying out some new feed and didn't think it would completely alter his behavior, she told him she was sorry, and she would never give him that feed and special water again. The feed store had told her to try it out, but she would not bring anymore to the farm. The rooster was happy to return to his true self and make the sound of a rooster. The hens gathered around him again and the other fowl danced they were so happy to see he was a rooster again and not a hen.

--Marvin X

3/5/10

Parable of the Gangsta




Parable of the Gangsta

He wanted to be a gansta since childhood. He watched his big brothers gang banging, in and out of prison, the funerals, parties with more wine than they had at the Last Supper.

Females were always on hand serving the brothers, raising their babies, visiting them in jail and prison. Big cars, flashy clothes, bling bling, the little brother watched and waited his turn.

When it was time for him to join, he got ready for the initiation. On that day he was required to kill and rape. He was ready. No matter his mother was a hard working house cleaner who took the bus to work. She wanted none of her children's ill gotten gain. She was a Christian woman who tried to get him into college, rather than go the path of her other sons.

But he had other plans. He didn't want to be a square. He hated squares. They were, in his mind, suckers for the white man. He saw them with their suits and ties and brief cases, thinking they were all that and a bag of chips.

He saw them in the dope house coping, along with their square girls. When the girls got sprung, they would leave the square nigguhs for the dope man. He watched the square brothers get broke and turn tricks with the dope man in front of their women.

He vowed to his dead gangsta brothers he would not be a square, but would be like them, even though they didn't want him to end up like them, in prison or a coffin early in life.

Thursdays was gang initiation night in the hood. Most people stayed off the street on Thursdays, unless people got off work late and had to walk home. Anyone could be a victim if caught on the street. He drove around looking for a victim, not far from his house. It didn't matter who it was.

On a dim lighted street he saw a woman and snatched her onto the ground, tearing off her clothes. She screamed and yelled but he didn't care, especially since he was loaded on dope and out of his mind. He didn't bother to look at the woman's face as he raped her.

When he finished he turned her around and got the shock of his life. She was his mother! He ran to his car in shame and horror.
When he got home he took out his gun and shot himself in the head and fell to the floor dead. He was now a gangsta.

-
-Marvin X 3/11/10


Based on a true story.

Parable of the Pit Bull


Parable of the Pit Bull


There was a pit bull who lived in the city. A man wanted to buy him and raise him for protection, so he met with the owner and got the pedigree. He investigated the history of the dog and his family connections, to make sure he was a pure bred. Once he was clear the pit bull came from a legit line, he paid for the animal and brought it home. He was happy to have a nice pet, especially one so pure and not polluted like a mutt, a cross breed or mongrel, a mutation whose DNA was of questionable nature.

He loved his pit bull and the animal loved him. He trained the dog for fighting, and he was a great fighter, a champion who won many battles.

And then the man met a woman he really liked. He knew almost nothing about her, but he hooked up with her and eventually she moved in with him. He didn't know where she came from, nothing about her family roots, her friends, her education and work history, whether she was psychotic and/or neurotic, suicidal and/or homicidal, whether she was radical, revolutionary or reactionary.

He didn't know she had been raised in a foster home, and later an orphanage, that she had seen her mother stab her grandmother, that her mother had a nervous breakdown and was confined to an institution for life. He didn't know any of this. He didn't know she had been a prostitute, homeless and a drug addict.

But he loved her and married her. And when he found out about her past life, he didn't give a damn. Since he was rich, a baller, big willie, he gave her the best of everything, just as he treated his pit bull, even better. He dressed her in the finest clothes and took her to eat in the finest restaurants and party in the VIP section of clubs.

And then one day she disappeared. He didn't know what happened to her. Worried to death, he hired a private investigator to search for her. The private eye found her in a two dollar motel with a trick.
The man told the private eye not to disturb her, leave her where she was.
--Marvin X

Parable of a Real Woman



Parable of A Real Woman



There was a man who had many women in his life. They had come and gone, with himself at fault most of the time. But he wouldn't give up, he continued his self improvement and search for that special woman. He talked with elder women about what he should do. One told him he'd never had a real woman! If so, she would still be with him, no matter what, through thick and thin, up times and down times. Well, he asked, how would he know when such a woman was in his presence. First, clean up your own act, she said. Scoop your own poop. Rid yourself of defects of character. Make amendments to all those you have harmed in life. It takes humility to do this.

Still, how will I know the real woman? The older woman answered, you will know because when she comes over your house and sees something amiss, she will take authority to correct the situation. If your house is dirty, she will immediately ask if she can clean it as a favor to you, as an act of love. She will not want any money for her services. And she will clean your house as it has never been cleaned before because she knows what she is doing. Yes, she is a pro, not only with house cleaning but with every thing she does, including her love making. She will make sure you are satisfied and herself as well.

She will demand respect and will respect you. She will demand freedom and give you freedom. She will speak in the language of love so smooth that it will be like a razor cutting to the heart. You will be bleeding to death but not know you are cut.

You will do what she suggests and do it willingly because it will not be a demand but a request said so subtle you won't recognize it for what it actually is: a demand. And you will love doing what she requests.

When you need space and time to yourself you won't need to explain, she will pick up the vibe.
And you will do the same for her.

She will not be jealous and envious of your talent and skills or how handsome you are to other women. She knows she has you in her pocket because she is confident of herself, and not worried about some other woman taking her man.

If you are taken by another woman, it must be the will of God that you go. She knows God will replace her emptiness with someone even better than you. But she will give you time to get a grip on yourself and find your way back home. Just don't take too long and when you come home don't be asking about what she was doing while you were gone.

A real woman will put her resources at your disposal if you are worthy of them, as the prophet Muhammad was treated by the wealthy trade woman Khadijah. There is no selfishness in love. All is for the beloved, but a wise woman ain't no fool. As the song says, the greatest thing you will ever do is love and be loved in return.

The man thanked the elder woman for her wisdom and departed on his search.

--Marvin X
3/11/10

Parable of the Woman at the Well


Parable of the Woman at the Well

A woman asked Plato why are youth out of control ? He replied that youth are out of control because adults are out of control and youth observe then emulate their behavior.

Even during the revolutionary 60s, the militants, who are the fathers and mothers of today’s youth, were guilty of contradictions, or saying one thing but doing another. They talked black power but went home to beat their wives and women. They preached discipline but were guilty of drug abuse and abuse of power. Much of our behavior was patriarchal white supremacy actions that debased women, considering them less than human.

Of course we learned this behavior from our white supremacy socialization. True enough, there were many good things we learned and achieved during that time, and many sincere and honest people gave their lives for the cause of freedom.

But if we had been of sober minds, we would have been able to detect agent provocateurs and snitches. We would have been able to see through the US Government’s counter intelligence program or Cointelpro. With sobriety and discipline, we might have been able to show our children better examples of male/female relations, and perhaps today’s youth would be more respectful of women, elders and peers.

The woman asked Plato what can be done today to reconnect with our children ? Plato said we must embrace them with unconditional love and do not abuse them, physically, sexually or otherwise. Do not show them contradictory behavior, saying one thing but doing the opposite.

We must not say we are about freedom, yet make their mothers slaves in the home, treating them with abuse that the children observe. Many children have been abandoned and left to fend for themselves. They are without mother or father. Many are living in foster homes, the result of parental drug and sexual abuse.

Adults must stop being predators and instead be mentors and guides. The youth want and seek our wisdom, but we must reach out to them because many are terrified of us just as we are terrified of them. It is communal insanity when we allow children to rule our community, making us afraid to go outside at night, afraid to go to the store.


But we can only take back control of our community by reconnecting and embracing our children, no matter how painful it is for us and them. We must make amends to them for our wickedness and then demand of them the same.

Yes, they must apologize to the elders they have harmed and disrespected. What we are talking about is the urgent need for a healing session between youth and adults, a time and space where we can gather to admit our mistakes and promise to do better now and in the future.

We must, youth and adults, swallow our pride and reconnect. We cannot allow the chaos to continue because we know things go from bad to worse, if we do not address the issues. Nothing is going to change until we change our thinking and actions. We must rise up from animal to divine. The tide is turning because you are turning the tide!

Mothers and fathers who are separated must come together for the sake of their children, if only for a moment. When children see parents reconciling, they will do likewise. No matter the pain of the past, adults must show the way to community unity.

Why shouldn’t youth resort to violence, after all, they see adults resolving their conflicts with violence? Adults cannot get out of our responsibility to show the way, to guide and mentor. Every youth is our child, thus our responsibility to show the right way.

Give youth a chance, support them when they are selling items other than dope, such as DVDs, CDs, gear and other items to get their hustle on in a legal way. At least they are not killing to make a dollar, so reach out to them. Hug a thug before the thug hugs you!

The woman seemed to understand the wisdom of Plato. Although frustrated to the max, she said she would try to reach out to youth, rather than simply complain about their behavior and shortcomings.

Parable of Women Without Men


Parable of Women Without Men


There was war in the land, for centuries war in the land. The men were bred for labor, sperm donations and death. The women were booty, the spoils of war. A classical situation, nothing unique, racist, call it the art of war. Men must be destroyed, or humiliated, effeminated, castrated, dehumanized. Where is the movie of David Walker, Nat Turner, Denmark Vesey, Gabriel Prosser, Toussaint, Bokman?

There is no other way to exercise social control over the population of oppressed people, enslaved peoples, than to desecrate the men and their manhood. There can be no recognition of heroes or sheroes, this would be anathema to the oppressor system of domination. Where is the movie of Harriet Tubman, Sojourner Truth, Ida B. Wells.

The man in the oppressive society is at best a stunted man, a crippled man, handicapped physically and mentally. He is a warrior but unless he dons the warrior persona, consciously or unconsciously, he cannot assume the title, thus he is a wimp, a punk bitch, a dehumanized human being, a captive in the slave society, no matter how modern the trappings of said society.

Either the former slave exercises self determination and sovereignty, or he/she is a colonized being, a slave or in the modern era a wage slave, but a slave none the less.

He can be afforded the trappings of freedom, the flag, national anthem that he is forced to sing, the election of a president of his own kind (how many presidents of black face do we have in Africa that are actually white men of the most profound kind in their wickedness and debauchery?)

How many African prime ministers, kings, presidents for life do we have who have dungeons full of opposition leaders, writers, poets, journalists?

And so out of this matrix is supposed to arise strong men and boys capable of continuing the tradition of manhood which involves the revolutionary tradition? Meanwhile the purpose of the oppressor society is to dehumanize any semblance of manhood at every turn, to project only the personality of the stunted man, the muzzled dog man, the effete man as the dominate personality.

What woman wants such a man? The woman says, "If I wanted a woman, I do not need a fake woman, I might as well get me a real woman, a woman who knows how to treat me with gentleness, even more so than the gentle man!

The champion of male/female relations, Sharazah Ali says to women, "Be careful when you call for men to be more sensitive, you end up with effeminate personalities that you reject." What does the woman says in T.S. Eliot's poem, "That is not what I meant, that is not what I meant at all...."

And so let us cut to the chase, what are women to do when their men are incarcerated, victims of homicide and/or suicide, depressed, drugged out, bisexual, homosexual, unemployed, etc.?

Nature itself rises to the occasion to answer such questions, such conundrums of life in the hood!
The man cannot sell dope, so the woman sells dope. The man cannot pimp, so the woman pimps. The man cannot carry weapons, so the woman does. The man cannot gansta, so the woman does.
The man cannot care for his family, so his girl's girl assumes the role, dress, gait, voice and language. The woman becomes protector of the woman, since the man is absent, a victim on the battlefield, a causality of life in the hood.

She dons the persona of the man, including pants sagging, swagger in gait, voice, and all manner of the masculine personality. She straps on the plastic or rubber dildo to replace the natural male organ that is absent for innumerable reasons, among them the fact the man is angry, under stress, violent and lacking in tenderness, brutal, while she needs tender loving care in her stress, trying to be mother, and lover to the unlovable male, thus she moves to her sister girl for such tenderness and understanding.

If she is the economic superior, she takes authority as a young lady said, "I leave him with the baby and I bounce. He the baby mama, I'm the baby daddy."

Indeed, we see the men picking up children from childcare. We see the men pushing strollers downtown during work hours, suggesting the male is now the childcare provider while the women is employed. This is all by societal design, of course. Have no illusions why the woman can find employment and the man cannot. The oppressor knows well he can control the woman but he also knows the oppressed male seeks to overthrow him at the earliest possibility, to cut his throat and claim the championship title as the master.

On the educational level matters are devastating. Prison is the institution for educating black males, white the academic prisons educate black women who earn their degrees in higher education but must seek out imprisoned brothers if they are to have a man. After all, black bourgeoisie parents do not send their sons to Harvard, Yale and Stanford to connect with a "black bitch." It was clear to my daughter when she attended Stanford Law School that she and her girls were not to be matched with black males. Black males avoided them like the bubonic plague.

I write as a father with three daughters who graduated college, Yale, Stanford, Howard, Fresno State University, New York University, Albany, so I know the dilemma of black women seeking a husband in academia. One of my daughters said recently 75% of her friends have married or have mates out of the black manhood pool. The Washington Post noted black women have discarded the idea of marriage with anyone.

Imagine the situation at Howard University, Washington, DC, with 14 women for every man, imagine the crisis in male/female relations, no matter how each gender claims they handle the situation. I recently spent a week lecturing at Howard, but I got a clearer understanding of Howard sexuality, from the males and females, and yet what I learned only clarified the tragedy of male/female relations, with Howard as a microcosm. The stats are so outrageous that to consider a functional solution is beyond the Western paradigm.

We now have women with MBAs, PhDs, either giving up on a husband or seeking a husband doing twenty-five to life.

Such is the result of war in the hood. Part of the frustration, anger and rejection of our children who survive the academic world, yet, as Baraka says, "Come home from academia hating us and everything we're about, yet they don't even know what we're about," but the children suspect we have sold them a bogus bill of goods. Many were told to go to college to find a husband, yet there is none.

Dr. Wade Nobles says no matter if our children attend Stanford or San Quentin prison, it is all the same, they are imprisoned, and thus denied their natural right to be with each other, in love and tenderness.

The real question is what does all this forebode for the the future? What shall be the new configuration is gender relations? Surely, not more of the same old bullshit, not after women have enjoyed same gender loving relations, and are economically and psychologically independent.

And yet, how shall they deal with the macho man or the effeminate male or bisexual rejected by the woman seeking a "real man," and yet many matrifocal households can at best produce the effeminate male, possibly the result of bio-chemistry, the petrochemical foods, including hormone produced meats, water tainted with hormones and other bio undegradable chemicals recycled from waste water. We are told the residue from plastics is causing sexual transformations. Surely this all part of the bio-chemical warfare, add in germ warfare with the HIV/AIDS pandemic.

I only know one thing, plastic toys are a sick reasonable facsimile for the real male penis. But it is understandable in war, though the only solution to war is active engagement by males and females, not diversionary tactics that only prolong war. For the day shall surely arrive when the female's biology shall seek the real deal Hollyfield.

The future of the black nation is at hand. Tell me how same gender loving people shall contribute to the this future. They may find themselves just as guilty as the oppressor in the destruction of the black nation. The question is are they pro-life or anti-life?

I don't care whether you agree with me or not. Just consider what I've said and the rest is up to you.
--Marvin X
6/1/10