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The following is largely quoted and paraphrased from Dr. John Henrik Clarke's lecture given sometime between 1989 to 1993 on
Education: The Highest Form of Struggle.”
“While we have educated ourselves a lot through struggle, we have not converted the struggle into an instrument of liberation, because we celebrate victory without analyzing the components of victory, how to maintain each victory and how to apply each victory towards more victory.
The Civil Rights Movement couldn't survive today if you understood it had to have a political force. It had to have a political definition under it to take us from one place to the other.
The Civil Rights Movement came at a time of the Caribbean Federation Effort, the time of the African Freedom Independent Explosion and when we realized the American dream was not dreamed for us. We realized the American promise wasn't even made to us Africans.
The Civil Rights Movement came at an appropriate time in history but we have not learned the lessons from it we needed to learn.
By educating us politically, Marcus Garvey taught us that someplace in the world you were sovereign once and will be sovereign again!
When Marcus Garvey said,
”Up, Up you mighty race! You can accomplish what you will!” he meant if one mind can accomplish it another mind can do it.
Conversion Process Of Turning The Highest Form Of Education Back Into the Highest Form Of Success
The kind of knowledge that comes out of struggle is innovation. We must take what we've learned and transform it into what we need it to be.
We must take whatever we have learned in any kind of way and take it back to
an African philosophical base and an African value system base and make our usage of our education serve African people.
The higher education of struggle is rehearsal for nationhood. We must rehearse for nationhood by being master of our own communities. Wherever we are in number, take back the community from top to bottom for Africa's sake, for our Ancestor's sake, for our descendents' sake, for humanity's sake, for creation's sake and for goodness sake. Wherever we are in any percentage, at least take the percentage that belongs to us. At this stage, it will be our fault if we are the majority and allow the minority to be in charge in our community. We have proven we can break through and move beyond all their manipulations. Work together, vote together, spend together, stop spending at certain places together, boycott together and African root them out. Practice the
"21 Behaviors To Counteract The System Of Human Racism White Supremacy." Turn protest energy into proactive energy for independence of the things we know we need and not let all our energy out as reactive energy pleading for change to a psychopathic citizenry while we continue bleeding like rain because we won't take care of our own necessities, even though
we are fully capable of doing so.
