Has Christianity brainwashed black people?

I was born into a Christian family and spent my whole life in the Church. I was taught that the Bible was the Word of God and if I disobeyed it I would go to hell and if I followed it I will go to heaven. To be honest I initially didn't question it. However as I did get older,  I started to think critically and researched a lot more.

The images of Jesus I saw growing up was a white man that looked like the above. I had believed as a child that Jesus was white. My mum has a similar image in her bedroom. The Jesus image that we see is based on Cesare Borgia , a 15th century Italian politician and cardinal. This image is very damaging to the psyche of Black people as it makes you believe that a white man is your God and saviour. This has brainwashed many African/black people globally. Unfortunately, all over Africa you will see this image of white Jesus, and there are many black people who see white people as superior to them. Some Africans believe that white people will save them from poverty, this is very ironic since it was the Europeans that caused Africa to be underdeveloped in the first place. My mum told me of a saying in Ghana that says "if you see a white man, you have seen God". This is really sad and is a narrative that needs to change.

The oldest form of Christianity is found in Egypt and Ethiopia. The Ethiopian Coptic church has existed since the 4th Century and Ethiopia was one of the first Christian nations in the world. The image on the right shows Jesus, Mary and others as black. In the majority of cultures across the world people worship God's that look like them. I think it is important to see yourself in the God you worship. The Ethiopian bible contains 80+ books whilst the modern bible that we have only contains 66 Books. The question is why does the modern bible have less books? what happened to the other books? why were there taken out? what was their agenda behind this? 

The "missing" books of the bible are called the Apocrypha. You are able to find some of these books online, these include, the Book of Judas, The book of Enoch, the Maccabees, The Gospel of Thomas etc. Further to the research I had done, I found that the missing books cover the missing parts of the bible. For example what happened to Jesus during the ages of 12-30? what happened to Adam and Even when their were exiled? these are covered in these texts. 

When Europeans brought Christianity to other parts of Africa they had used it as a tool to control Africans. The Europeans wanted others to follow their way of life, and wanted to "civilise" Africans by forcing their lifestyle and religion on them. They convinced Africans that their own spiritual belief systems were evil and demonic (which unfortunately many Africans still believe till this day).  They gave many Africans "Christian names" to basically replace their native names.

Christianity was used to justify slavery against Africans during the trans-atlantic slave trade. In the bible (Genesis 9:20-27) there is a story of Noah, where he drank wine, became drunk and was naked. His son Ham (the father of Canaan) saw him naked and told his two brothers Shem and Japeth. They then covered their dad but kept their faces turned away so they didn't see him naked. When Noah woke up he cursed Ham and his son "“Cursed be Canaan!, The lowest of slaves, will he be to his brothers.”. There was this belief that as a result of the curse Ham's skin became black, and that all black people descended from Canaan and therefore were destined to be slaves.

Also during slavery, there were Africans who committed suicide as a form of resistance. To combat this slave masters used to tell enslaved Africans that committing suicide was a sin and they would go to hell for that. They also used the following bible verse to control Africans -Ephesians 6:5-8:

5 Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. 6 Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. 7 Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people, 8 because you know that the Lord will reward each one for whatever good they do, whether they are slave or free.

However slave masters will purposely leave out the next verse "9 And masters, treat your slaves in the same way. Do not threaten them, since you know that he who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favoritism with him.

That is a reason why enslaved Africans were not allowed to read. While I was in Ghana last December I visited cape coast castle which was a slave castle. The tour guide informed us that the very first church in Ghana was built on a slave dungeon.

Christianity was used to make Africans docile. Historically, Africans have always been warriors and fighters, such as the Zulu's, the Dahomey, the Massai etc. They fought their enemies. Europeans knew they couldn't physically control Africans as they would always fight back, so they controlled them mentally and used Christianity to do this. They convinced Africans that they should be forgiving and always "turn the other cheek" so  that they don't attack their white oppressors. They also brainwashed Africans to accept  and endure suffering on earth so that they will be rewarded in heaven. We only get one life, so why should some people suffer while those preaching this message are being rewarded on earth? The remnants of this brainwashing still exists today and keeps many black people in the position they are in today.

There are some black people who believe that if all they do is fast, pray and give offering, all of their problems would be solved instead of taking action to fix their problems. The bible clearly states that "Faith without WORKS is dead"  (James 2:26). Being a Christian doesn't mean you shouldn't use logic, common sense and critical thinking. God gave all of us a brain for a reason. I'm sure many of you would have come across the over religious Christian who you try to explain a practical concept to but they just end up unnecessarily over spiritualising it, instead of using simple logic.

I do not believe Christianity itself is bad, I believe the way it has been used by some has been very detrimental to many Africans and their descendants. On the flip side Christianity has also helped people overcome difficult situations and create positive outcomes in their life. I think it is important that Christians read and study the bible for themselves, not just believe something because someone told them about it. Always do your own research. Christianity should be used in the right way to make your situation better and not worse.

Do we have a negative black culture?

A few months ago I was in a clubhouse room which had the above title and a lot of interesting points were made. I also watched the above YouTube video by SaRa Garvey which also talks about the same topic. First off, I will need to clarify that black people are not monolithic and we have various different cultures across the globe. The culture of the Maasai people of Kenya will be different from a black Brazilian, which is also different from a black American. In this post I will be specifically talking about mainstream black culture in the Western world, so when I reference "black culture" this is what I mean.

A lot of negative behaviour is pushed to the forefront when it comes to black culture. These negative degenerate behaviours have become normalised. One example is music. We have rap/drill songs where black men promote criminal behaviour such as the murder of other black men,  drug dealing and gang life. The use of derogatory terms such as n**** is normalised. These are glamourised and can have a negative influence on younger impressionable children. Unfortunately, there have been young black men who have been murdered over drill/rap songs. When there are black musicians that make positive, or conscious content their music does not get pushed to the forefront by the Record labels. These labels are quick to put money into negative "black" music and make these mainstream instead. However, if a rapper were to use derogatory terms against people of other races, or other communities, the record labels will quickly shut it down. The question is why is it acceptable to make negative music in relation to black people but not other communities?. I believe there is an agenda, but it is sad that there are black rappers who willingly partake in the destruction of their own communities. There needs to be a change.

There is also the hyper-sexualisation of black female bodies. We are so used to seeing black women with large butts shaking their ass/twerking  in music videos while being practically naked. Music with overly sexual lyrics has also become normalised. In order for female artists to become a huge success it seems that they have to be hypersexualised, whereas women that aren't like this find it very difficult to make it far in the music industry. Most mainstream female rappers are oversexualised. One of the most successful rap songs last year was W.A.P. (Wet ass pussy) by Cardi B and Megan thee Stallion. Unfortunately we live in a society where sex sells. It would even make sense if there was a balance with positive music but there isn't. There is also the promotion of the BBL body type where women with exaggerated assets are promoted in the media. Black women are more than their bodies and this image should not be used to represent us to the world,  it is disrespectful and reduces our value to just our physical bodies.

Hyper-consumerism and materialism is a big issue. I am not against black people buying luxury brands. What I do not like is how much black people in the media constantly promote these brands (usually for free) to show off how rich they are. Look at the "Versace" song by Migos, promoting the brand, while Versace never paid them a penny for doing so. Any increase in sales Versace received, Versace benefitted from. Many rappers reference European brands in their songs but I rarely see them promote black owned brands. The majority of the money in the black community goes straight into other communities. I personally feel there is an unhealthy obsession with European designer brands, the Rolex's, the Bentley's, the LVs', the Birkins by Hermes, meanwhile black people are economically at the bottom across the board (globally).  It is as if some black people attach themselves to European symbols of wealth in order to feel validated and important. There needs to be a shift in how we view wealth. Generational wealth should be the goal, not making Bernard Arnault (the owner of LVMH) and his descendants richer, they own numerous designer brands such as Louis Vuitton, Hermes, Dior, Fendi, Moet, Hennessy plus many more. If you look at their executive committee there is not a single black person in sight. In order for the black race to progress we need economic advancement and this happens by practicing group economics just like other communities do.

Another area I will address is the promotion of broken families, namely the"baby mama and baby daddy" culture which is becoming more and more normalised and is more common in black communities than other communities. When you have unprotected sex with someone, you are choosing who the potential mother/father of your child is so you need to choose wisely. I understand there are times when the relationship doesn't work out, it happens. But I am referring to  the many instances when GROWN adults choose to have unprotected sex with someone they know would not be a good mother/father, someone they can't see themselves having  a future with or someone they don't know properly. The sad thing is that the child will be the one to suffer from the poor decisions their parents made.  What I dislike are those that have numerous children by numerous people (i.e. Nick Cannon, Future etc) creating more broken families. This behaviour is very detrimental. Children need both their mothers AND fathers. Mother's should not be raising children on their own and playing the role of both parents, it is not their job. I am a big advocate for strong black nuclear families. Cultures where nuclear families are normalised are more successful such as the Jewish and Indian communities. The family structure is the foundation of any community,  if you want to destroy a community you destroy the family structure (and you can see the consequences of this in certain black communities). Many wealthy people are married and have children because they know the importance of legacy and passing down wealth to their children. Creating broken families does not create wealth, it's more likely to promote generational poverty.

We need to stop justifying and promoting degenerate behaviour as it is not conducive to the advancement of the black community. We need to hold those that do this accountable for their actions. There are many black people who have strong family units, who have professional careers such as lawyers, doctors, engineers, investment bankers etc, those who own businesses, those who own multiple properties, those who help their community and those who practice group economics. Representation is extremely important and these are the type of black people we need to see pushed to the forefront, this is the kind of black representation we  need. I am sick of seeing the worst in black culture representing us. This narrative needs to change, the young generation of black people need to see positive black role models they can aspire to, we need to create generational excellence, not generational degeneracy. 

Do black people have a victim mentality?

When I was young, my mother told me that I needed to work twice as hard because I'm black. This is a sentiment which most black people have heard growing up, particularly black people growing up in predominantly white countries. I didn't understand it fully at the time as I was very young. Regardless, I worked hard in school and was academically on top.

I didn't feel like I was held back by my race, as I was outperforming most of my white peers in school and my teachers (who were mostly white) were positive towards me. They always reminded me that I could be anything I wanted to be. I didn't really understand racism or that I could be held back by the colour of my skin. I do understand that my experience at school is not indicative of that of other black people. I've heard stories from black people who experienced racism from their teachers, who had told them that they wouldn't amount to anything in life. Further, some who had high ambitions were told by their teachers that they should aim low.  Statistics also show that black students are excluded from schools at higher rates (in the UK). 

Lately, I have been listening to right wing/conservative black people (I'm more left-wing myself) to hear their commentary on racism and issues within the black community. I noticed that many of them deny that white supremacy/institutional racism is an issue, and they also say that black people have a "victim mentality", which keeps them in the position that they are in. 

I do not agree with them that racism is not an issue, we can not deny that there are ethnic disparities such as the black maternity death rate, stop and search figures, and ethnicity pay gaps. There are policies and institutions in place which have disadvantaged black people globally. We should be able to acknowledge these facts and realities. However, I do not think that we should base our whole identity on this. Having a victim mentality and defeatist attitude can be damaging to your psyche.

Do I believe that black people have a victim mentality? My answer is that some do and some don't. Black people today do not have it as hard as their ancestors did. Our ancestors went through chattel slavery, colonisation, genocide and wars, etc. They fought their oppressors so that we can have the freedoms and privileges that they didn't have. I have come across some black people who have the "victim mentality" that believe every single bad thing in their life is because of "the system/the white man". What I've noticed about some of these types of people is that they continue making poor life choices, which makes their situation worse, and they seem to lack accountability for their own actions. You get some left-wing people who highlight inequality in society, which I agree that they should. However, some can be extreme and act like black people are so oppressed that they have no chance to make it in life. One thing I do respect about black conservatives is that they do not allow their blackness to stop them from achieving in life. 

I think that mindset is a big factor. I am a black female, therefore, I am considered "doubly oppressed" and at the bottom of society's hierarchy. Do I view myself in this way? No, I don't. There were many black women in history who went through horrific circumstances and overcame them. They are victors and they paved the way for people like me. It would be a disservice if I do not utilise the opportunities that I have because of them.  I remember reading articles last year about black women in America being the most educated group and the fastest-growing entrepreneurs. These women see themselves as victors, not victims. 

We have to recognise that there are inequalities in society and that racism will always exist. Whilst living in these societies, we need to learn to circumnavigate "the system" and focus more on advancing ourselves and making decisions that will improve our lives. I feel that black communities need to have high racial esteem, we need to believe that we are good enough, that we are NOT inferior and that we are capable of doing what we put our minds to. We should not view ourselves through the eyes of racist people. Yes, there are black victims, but we shouldn't base our whole identity on victimhood.

Erasing blackness

About a month ago I saw a post about Rochelle Humes, who is a mixed race British singer, talk about presenting a documentary which explores why black women are 4x more likely to die from childbirth than white women in the UK. I was happy to see that a documentary was being made about this subject, so it can bring this issue to light. The next day it came out that Candice Brathwaite, a dark skin black British woman was suppose to host a documentary about the same topic, however this was no longer going ahead. Unfortunately, this concept is not new. Mixed race women are usually used as the face of Black women.

Mixed race women are seen as more palatable to the wider white audience due to their proximity to whiteness. I remember being young and watching black sitcoms. I noticed that when there was a black family, the daughter was usually mixed race, however the sons were always unambiguously black. I did find it strange and wondered why they didn't use a black female actor.

The identity of mixed race people varies between cultures. In the UK people who are biracial are called mixed race. In my country of origin, Ghana, most Ghanaians refer to them as Obroni (white person), in South Africa they are referred to as 'colored' and in the USA, due to the racist one drop rule they are classed as black. As someone who was raised in the UK I see them as mixed race, they are both black and white, not just black. I think it's disingenuous to expect mixed race people to ignore half of their DNA and  only claim their black side. I think this is dangerous as it erases monoracial black women. Further, this causes spaces which should be given to black women more likely to be given to those who are of mixed race. An example of this is when Zoe Saldana who is a mixed Latina actress portrayed Nina Simone, a monoracial black singer. They had to darken Zoe's skin, and make her wear prosthetics to give her fuller black features. There was of course a lot of backlash regarding this. There are plenty of black actresses that they could have easily been cast to play Nina Simone.

The average black woman does not look mixed race (though there may be a few that do). When it comes to representation, it is important for black women to see people that look like them that they can identify with. A lot of high achievers that we see that are the "first black X" are usually mixed people. Look at Barack Obama, the first "black" president in the USA, born to a white mother and Kenyan father and was  raised by his white grandparents. If both of his parents were black I doubt he would have have been able to become president. Halle Berry another mixed person, was the first black woman to win an Oscar for best actress. Even looking at Meghan Markle, despite the racism she is going through, if she was a monoracial black woman she would not have been allowed to even marry Prince Harry. It is easier for mixed race people to enter certain spaces than it is for monoracial black people.

Though the experience of mixed race people and black people do overlap a lot , they will never be the same. I do not doubt that a lot of mixed race people have experienced racism like many black people, but they do benefit from colorism unlike darker skinned black people. I cannot tell a mixed person how they should identify because I myself aren't mixed, and I haven't gone through their experiences. They should be able to have their own spaces and black people should also be able to have theirs. We should be able to recognise that we do have our differences but yet  support each other. There are many mixed race people who have made contributions in speaking out against injustice against black people, look at Bob Marley, even in modern times Colin Kapernick has done a lot for the black community and one of my faves is Akala. This post is not about causing division. We live in a patriarchal world which benefits men, do I hate men? No . We can recognise that someone who is different from you has more privilege, it doesn't mean that you hate them or segregate from them. I believe  that those that have certain privileges over others should use their position to help those who have less privilege than them. For example if there is a role for a black person and you are mixed and have been given that role you should speak out and demand that it is given to black person. We still do have a long way to go when it comes to black representation, especially of black women but I do believe we  can make change.