The Black American Zeitgeist

The Black American Zeitgeist has been studied extensively by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the CIA, and many private institutions. It is the powerful mindset of being Black. Adherence to and harmony with the Black American Zeitgeist comprises what we call being “down” with your people. Deliberate violation of the code of behavior prescribed within the Black American Zeitgeist puts a black person at risk of being labeled a “sell out”, a “coon”, or an “Uncle Tom” or “Sambo”, which would be a little more accurate. This label would of course come with the presumed loss of your “black card” or “ghetto pass”, with the accompanying right to consider one’s self a “real” Black person ever again.

The mindset of being Black

But, for my non-Black readers, it’s not quite as bad as it appears. I love living within the Black American Zeitgeist, by choice. I can function within the Spanish, Russian, Japanese Caribbean, and Latin American societies quite effectively. However, I love the sense of community and family I find living within Black society. It is a club of the most loving and accepting people on the planet Earth. And, at the same time, the black American Zeitgeist is something that you are either inside of, or outside of. And never the twain shall meet.

Old school Black Americans still understand that it is only Black American proper etiquette to give the nod of acknowledgement whenever we encounter another Black person. Not another person of color. Not even another person from the African diaspora, necessarily. But real Black Americans still know to give the nod to every black stranger you encounter on the street. This subtle, yet enduring cultural artifact distinguishes Black Americans from all other Americans, and from all other Black people in the world. This is one of the strange peculiarities about being a Black American that is the source of so much intrigue and envy among other races.

The nod and the dap

Of course, along with the nod, comes our distinctive style of handshaking. The dap. Imitated by every race and culture in the world. From our cultural heyday in the 1960s and 1970s, when Black Americans proudly wore natural afro hair styles, the Black Handshake is a powerful aspect of Black American culture, especially among men. Now, it has simply become the style of shaking hands for every guy in America that wants to consider himself “cool”.

This brings me to “Ebonics”. Black American Culture is American culture. As a capitalist society, the American economy relies on the use of slang to sell products and services. American English is dynamic, unlike the English of our friends across the pond, which is static. Black Americans have always been the most prolific contributors to every aspect of American culture, especially language. Almost all of the idioms, expressions, and slang used in American English have their roots in popular Black culture and music. A five-minute long song can repeat a phrase like “light my fire” many times, and by singing the song, the American public adapts the phrase into common vernacular.

There is no Ebonics

With the advent of rap music, the linguistic contributions of Black America to American English exploded. One five-minute rap song can theoretically introduce hundreds of new slang phrases to the American English lexicon. Seeing this coming catastrophe, the all-knowing cultural guards of academia decided to further marginalize Black Americans from the American cultural landscape, by creating the separate linguistic category and language called Ebonics. I call bullshit! There IS no Ebonics. There is only American English, of which Black Americans are its most prolific authors.

One cannot discuss the black American Zeitgeist without discussing our foods. Our culinary contributions to America are undeniable. Not only Creole food and what is called “Soul Food”, but our unique dietary preferences and quirks are part of what make us who we are. We know why our people love grape drink, strawberry soda, and Kool-Aid. We know when and how to use hot sauce. Every real Black American is a chef in his/her own right.

Our food is our culture

When it comes to culture, I believe we have to safeguard against having our culture judged by the standards of any other culture. Regardless of how much influence any race or culture has over our society, they cannot redefine reality for us. Black Americans have a culture that is centuries old. The traditions have been passed orally from generation to generation. We are in touch with nature as natural human beings. Although we tend to be religious people, we don’t need religious doctrine to tell us right from wrong. This is an innate thing in Black Americans, even though we too often choose to ignore it. So, no matter how much anyone mentions ridiculous post-modernist ideas like “everything we’re learning lately about gender”, or the redefining of a fetus or embryo as not a human. Deep inside, Black people know better. You can convince some of us to pretend to buy into these constructs, but we all know better.

Black Americans understand that “hetero-normalcy” is just normalcy. A marriage is between a man and one or more women. There is a black male honor code, which has given rise to the gang culture and the Black Guerilla Family, of our warrior class. This code not only encompasses the principle of “no snitching”, but an expectation of “heart” for young Black Man that is uncompromising. The Black American community remains “sucker free”.

There is a spirit of ingenuity and creativity among Black Americans that is unmatched by any culture or race in the world. The Black American spirit of engineering craftsmanship and inventiveness have given rise to the term “nigga-rigging”. Although the main character in the McGiver television show was white, his claim to fame was nigga-rigging.

Ingenuity, enterprise and charisma

The Black American is a natural born entrepreneur. We call it being a “hustler”. Black American know how to grind, and how to find creative ways to grind more effectively. We can distribute any product, against the most adverse conditions. We are natural conservatives, because we like to conduct our affairs without the interference of the police, or any other extension of government. Minimum control, minimum regulation, minimum taxes.

Definitely within the Black American Zeitgeist is charisma. Black people, Black men especially, are known for being very charismatic. We are a passionate and colorful people, who enjoy the many flavors of life. Our charisma also makes us excellent entrepreneurs at every level.

Definitely within the Black American Zeitgeist is charisma.

There is a powerful sense of stoicism within the Black community. This is probably due to the many struggles we have endured, and the necessity to work our way out of problematic situations. Our work ethic was definitely well earned. It is unbelievable how we have been saddled with the stereotype of laziness, when we were brought here to do all the work for others. This stoicism has led to our obvious excellence in sports and entertainment.

These are just some of the positive aspects of the Black American Zeitgeist. As I stated before with the American Zeitgeist, there is enough information for its own book. I may actually write a book about the Black American Zeitgeist in the future.

The Black American Zeitgeist has many negative and self-destructive aspects as well. Among the less positive beliefs and paradigms supported within the Black American Zeitgeist are:

The self-destructive side, named honestly

Their world is no bigger than the United States. Most Black Americans still spend their entire lives without ever even obtaining a passport.

• Their history began with slavery.
• They buy into the American Zeitgeist myth of some historical or ideal America without Black people.
• They hold many self-limiting beliefs, robbing themselves of any sense of self-efficacy.
• Anti-intellectualism. Being smart is still not “cool” in the Black American Zeitgeist.
• Mental Health Stigma. It appears to still be true, that Black Americans would rather kill each other than seek mental health services.
• Lower moral expectations. For some reason, the phenomenon we call “Black male privilege” has a much looser moral requirement than that of other men. This is a major contributor to the long-standing celebration of ignorance we call “gangsta rap culture”.
• There is an ugly sense of cynicism, pessimism, and nihilism that masks itself as wisdom in the Black American Zeitgeist. Most aptly described as the phenomenon of knowing that “fat meat is greasy”.
• Perhaps this may be the result of the presently high rate of fatherlessness in Black American homes, but many young Black males seem to have a propensity toward seeking paternalistic relationships with whites. This is especially true for white authority figures, and even more especially true for white police officers.
• An ever-present sense of victimization and grievance, which only represents a belief in one’s own inferiority to his alleged oppressor. Black Americans empower white supremacy much more than any white supremacist possibly could, through the Black American Zeitgeist.
• Intensity of emotion has equal or higher status to reason.
• A very powerful sense of Black American group-think. A hive mentality. Even if the group is thinking something stupid. An outsider with the ability to script into Black American group-think can and does wield control over our entire political presence.
• The most powerful influencer of the Black American Zeitgeist is Black American music culture. As of this writing, the American music industry moguls (and their puppet masters) are using Black American popular music to recycle the social ills that plague Black American society into future generations, by pumping toxic gangsta rap music and culture into the ears and eyes of our children. Although we buy into the belief that this is “market driven” and that the record labels only make this music because there are people willing to buy it, this is defamation. More than defamation, this is cultural violence. This is a deliberate, pernicious psychic oppression of Black Americans via our own culture. How can black Americans allow this to continue? Why are Black Americans the only people in the world whose culture is allowed to be highjacked so thoroughly, toward such destructive and nefarious ends? The Black American Party is committed to putting a permanent end to this cultural Pied Piper, who leads our children directly to the penitentiary and the graveyard.