WARTIME FALL 2020

ISSUE NO. 2

FALL 2020

A Quarterly Publication By Black Men Build

Cover Photo shot by

Bobby Rogers @bobbyrogers_

WARTIME

Wartime is our quarterly publication. Raw. Real. Facts.

Copyright 2020 Black Men Build

TABLE OF CONTENTS 5

An Introduction to Black Men Build

6

State of the Hood

9

FACTS or CAP

16

Who’s Afraid of Black Power

18

Ballot or the Bullet

20

The Blueprint to Local Power

22

To Our Brothers, All of Them

25

Preparing for a Biden / Harris America

29

Election Protection

32

To The Sisters We Love

34

The Revolution Is At A Gala

36

An Ode to Black Men

38

Street Violence & Homeland Security

40

Blood in the Water: Short Story Excerpt

48

Happy New Year?

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 3

WE ARE IN THE MIDST OF A WAR. A war that we are not winning. We didn’t start this war, but we have to finish it. Our opposition is organized across countries and continents. To win, we must be organized. To be organized takes a process of discipline and aligning our principles, our goals, our vision and our actions.

We are Black Men working with Black Men to serve our communities, to be critical freethinkers, to speak truth, to teach others, and to build the social, economic, political and spiritual tools needed to evolve and power our Black future.

BMB is a wide group of Black Men from all walks of life who have come together to take on issues that are challenging Black people.

Aligning our values is the first step.

BMB VALUES 1. We are critical thinkers who are curious about this moment and how it’s affecting us, our families, our communities, and future generations.

2. We are bonded with Black Women and all Black people who are fighting for true freedom for Black people*.

We must end the hurt and pain that we’ve caused Black Women and work together to heal and transform ourselves, our families, and our communities. There is no power, no victory, no hope for a better world without the partnership and leadership of Black Women.

3. We are coming together in all the ways we are called to free ourselves and our people from false information and mistreatment.

4. We transform to meet the moment head-on. We are evolving in every way and reclaiming our true history to build a future that we create, not that is created for us. We are not the images of Black men sold by the Europeans. *Black people who choose to fight for the enemy, or use our struggle for personal and financial benefit need not apply.

WE’RE BUILDING Scan this to sign on to the values pledge and tap in with us.

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 5

STATE OF THE UNION HOOD

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 6

Black People have a 500-year entanglement with the most oppressive regime this world has known.

The war cries of White Supremacists are ringing from Portland to Kenosha.

Black Lives Matter now but Black Power is restricted or even forbidden from being mentioned.

Our so-called Black Liberators Party with the purveyors of their own demise. We are trapped inside a hyperbolic chamber of undefined Blackness. There is no political line, celebrity niggas are still kneeling and praying for “change”. But that’s solely because they’re rich and wealthy, they want you to play with the change while they get to the millions. They want you to wear a mask, while they themselves appear on television without one. Nobody has the balls to call cap, because none of us really fully understand what fuck is happening. Everybody is selling half-truths and half-cocked ideas. Weak ass rappers partner with General Electric and Seagrams to release hatefilled music. In the name of self-destruction, these companies continue to use Hip Hop as a means to fuel the genocide of the Black family.

Black Men remain Public Enemy, Top Ten Most Wanted, the Most Invisible Visible motherfucker in the Room. Meanwhile, Black Women are still the most disrespected person in this entire society.

The current state of the Black union in the United States is one that’s still stuck on the basic need for safety and freedom.

These humane requirements are consistently ignored, as the police continue to kill niggas. Black families are suffering from every known angle, as their children are homeschooled by Zoom instructors. The technology gap we’ve long preached about has now reached its boiling point. Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook can’t save us but we’re still lost at sea on Instagram.

Meanwhile, African chattel slavery is reinvented every day at Wal-Mart, Target, and Kroger. The food source is controlled by the same people who make guns.

Monsanto genetically modifies the fruit, the seeds, and now even the weed you’re smoking. If you are lucky enough to have a car, you’re doing deliveries or dropping MFs off. Uber and Lyft have no identity without us.

Black families are holding this country together as they label us “essential workers,” the new aged slaves of Amerikkkan society.

White oligarchs have robbed us of our rights to healthcare, clean water, and sound hygiene. Black coons buck dance for consideration and still get neglected by Big Daddy Trump. We need a Black Messiah but the Black movement itself is the opps.

We need a plan to rid this darkness but the goofies dominate the conversation as if our children can eat their bullshit for breakfast.

Slavery and prison are the same things, confinement and forced labor are capitalism’s main means of control for our growing Black population.

BLACK MEN BUILD

Covid-19 has given way for the birth of a much deeper automation. The control of our elastic souls is tethered to the fate of this crumbling nation. As the empire prepares itself to embrace a new King, this election cycle once again reminds us to seek the truth.

The president is a liar, he has no plan beyond the chaos.

2020 7

Black babies are being born to die under his regime.

The fascist order of the United Snakes of America has poisoned us all. Family Dollar and Dollar General fleece Black families for their food stamps. Black politicians play games with people’s democracy on the daily. We want to vote, we believe in the power of choice. But many of us understand an Imperialist nation would never concede to the righteous order of a true democracy.

The proverbial Lakers of the Democratic Party have returned. The self-subscribed Super Team of the Neoliberal movement. The Obamas, the Clintons, the Bushes, and now even Colin Powell, all of them in alignment behind a man who can barely read the teleprompter. An election that poses one bizarro version of Ronald Regan against another one.

Equalizing our choices as “voters” no differently than playing Street Fighter II Turbo on two-player mode and selecting the same exact fighter as your opponent.

The State of the Black Union today says we’re enduring the wrath of the ugliest genocide planet Earth has ever known.

Trump, Pence, Biden, Harris, none of these niggas will do a fucking thing about our day to day problems. But no matter what, someone has to be president. And right now as things stand, the White House appears to be occupied by Russian operatives.

And still niggas are suffering - being forced to join the military after high school in order to stay out of jail, only to come home from Iraq and get gunned down by a racist white boy with a badge. Crackers are becoming millionaires for killing innocent people because the Alt-Right movement celebrates its kill with impunity. As Black men fall victim to homicide, Black women are being physically abused by their own lovers.

They want us to believe revolution is not possible.

They want us to put down our guns and become entrepreneurs. The white media shuns the Black sex workers as if this economy is kept afloat by any other group of people. The outskirts of the inner cities are flooded with Blacks who desperately need environmental justice, as factories fill our lungs with poison. The same white doctors who are killing our babies at birth are also responsible for letting our fathers die from cancer. Donald Trump is a white nationalist who lies about his intentions. Y’all think it’s only about the money? Well, the money was made for and designed by white devils who owned slaves. Then they spit in our faces with proclamations of putting Mama Tubman’s beautiful face on the front of their filthy twenty dollar bills. Every person who is laid off or fired from their job now has an opportunity to join the revolution. The establishment has run out of tricks, Joe Biden is their last hope. As Black Muslims are being asked to support a ticket of Zionists who will bomb and rape the men and women we pray next to at Jummah.

BLACK MEN BUILD

Niggas need counseling and therapy, but your favorite trap rappers join the Black liberation and tell you generational wealth will cure oppression.

Niggas want us to think being a landlord will cure every known problem we have in our communities.

The coronavirus has revealed the goofies, now it’s up to us to remove them. The Black Church must politicize itself if they hope to survive. As the leftish bourgeoisie sector of the Black Movement pushes for social relevancy and cool points from Hollywood. Real niggas are out here busting their fucking guns to feed their children. Real Black women are out here doing the same because the graveyard doesn’t know shit about gender. It doesn’t matter if you are gay, trans, lesbian, or straight. If you Black, your ass ain’t safe in the United States.

Written by Tef Poe.

2020 8

FACTS or CAP FACTS or CAP FACTS or CAP FACTS or CAP FACTS or CAP FACTS or CAP FACTS or CAP FACTS or CAP FACTS or CAP FACTS or CAP FACTS or CAP FACTS or CAP FACTS or CAP FACTS or CAP FACTS or CAP FACTS or CAP FACTS or CAP FACTS or CAP FACTS or CAP FACTS or CAP FACTS or CAP FACTS or CAP FACTS or CAP FACTS or CAP BLACK MEN BUILD

2020

9

FACTS or CAP The United States has a special affection for liars, thieves, murderers, and war criminals. But President Donald Trump is a special type of cap artist. He has no finesse, no morals, no code. In reality, he has told some of the most blatant lies any white man has ever told. This is an astounding statement given the fact that Crackers of his breed do indeed LIE a lot. His entire existence is nothing more than an overt dedication to dodging accountability. Here at WARTIME, we decided it was about time to expose the Capper in Chief for who he really is. The Donald Trump regime is here to perpetuate the fascist New World Order’s genocidal plan to murder ALL Black people. Today we smoke the devil out his hole. By playing FACTS or CAP. IT’S CAP

U.S. testing for COVID-19 has been far from “incredible.” It was a huge failure in the crucial early weeks, meaning missed opportunity to limit the spread of the virus before infection and death surged.

The blood is on his hands. Many people of color work in so-called essential industries such as nursing or home health care, grocery stores, and mass transit, where they are more likely to come into close contact with people who are sick. According to the CDC’s data, Black folks are hospitalized at a rate of 4.7 times higher than white people and are 2.1 times more likely to die.

TRUMP is handling the COVID-19 pandemic well!

As of September 15, 2020, the Brookings Institute reports that 1 in 1,020 Black Americans have died from COVID-19. Many of us know at least one person in our families that we have lost to the virus.

IT’S CAP

Too many black workers are still out of work—black workers are twice as likely to be unemployed as white workers.

TRUMP’s economy is “working great” for all black workers

Even with a historically low average annual black unemployment rate of 6.1% in 2019 before the pandemic, black workers are TWICE as likely to be unemployed as white workers overall and are more likely to be unemployed than white workers at every education level. Only black workers with some college or more education have an unemployment rate lower than the overall unemployment rate of white workers.

Those numbers didn’t last long either.

As of June 2020, Black unemployment rose to 16.8% from 16.7%.

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 10

IT’S CAP TRUMP, on historically black colleges and universities: “I saved HBCUs. We saved them. They were going out and we saved them.

Trump signed a law in December restoring money that lapsed for several months when Congress failed to reauthorize some $255 million in financing on time. The money came back because Senate education leaders reached a compromise on a broader dispute that had entangled financing for black schools. Neither the lapse nor the restoration was directly tied in any way to the Trump administration.

IT’S CAP “Opportunity Zones are economically distressed communities. Under certain conditions, new investments in Opportunity Zones may be eligible for preferential tax treatment.

TRUMP, on Opportunity Zones:

Opportunity zones are intended to attract investors to distressed areas, but so far, the majority of their funds have been allocated to create luxury projects. There are well-intentioned people are trying to use the Opportunity Zones to create projects that will support our community, but most of it is helping to push black folks out and not create opportunities.

”The QAnon movement wants us to believe Donald Trump is a rogue maverick raging war against the cabal and a secretive ring of pedophiles plotting to destroy his presidency.

BLACK MEN BUILD

IT’S CAP

No part of this theory is based upon fact. Trump only distanced himself from Epstein after their relationship stood to potentially damage his brand after a longtime friendship. He has made egregious statements about young women. In some instances even hinting at perverted desires to see his own daughter naked.

2020 11

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 12

Basil Kincaid @basilkincaid

“I AIN’T GOT NO GAVEL I AIN’T TRYNA FIGHT NOBODY BATTLE I JUST WANNA BE FREE I AIN’T TRYNA BE NOBODY’S CHATTEL” — “TERRORIST THREATS”

BY AB-SOUL FT. DANNY BROWN

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 15

Damon Davis @damondavis

WHO’S AFRAID OF BLACK POWER?

Power is the ability to define phenomena, and the ability to make these phenomena act in a desired manner. Black Power is self determination to live a full and meaningful life. Nothing matters without the Power to make that happen.

Power is freedom. Flying is a metaphor for Freedom.

Birds symbolize freedom like no other animal.

Our symbol of Black Power is the Crow.

The crow is constantly vilified and associated with evil and death. They are hated by the Western world because they are Black. The idea of “black” as pure evil is a white supremacist invention.

Someone must be. We don’t scream it no more. We don’t chant it no more. We don’t sing it no more. We don’t whisper it no more. We don’t look up to it no more. We don’t aim for it no more.

But, the Crow is one of the most intelligent and compassionate birds. They also move together and protect each other. They have funerals for their dead.

Crows symbolize transformation and change. They are watchful creatures that have a sharp and powerful foresight. They always believed crows to be cleansers of both land and mind.

Are you afraid of Black Power?

Does it intimidate you? Does it feel too strong? Feel like it turns too many people off? Isn’t kumbaya enough?

Fuck That.

They travel in a flock. Flocks move as one-unit. They are formless until they are not. If they choose it, they can be one unified force that can defeat any threat.

The individual bird never loses its autonomy but, in fact, chooses to align and move with the flock for the greater good of them all.

It’s BEEN time to talk about Black Power.

We been avoiding it. Running away from it. Acting like it don’t exist. Like it ain’t the key to freedom.

We know why you scared. Because Power has always been used AGAINST you. Power been used to impose someone else’s imagination on your life.

We have nothing to fear of Black Power. Black Power is ours for the molding. We either Build or Destroy. Black Men Build.

But Power is ours. We deserve Power. We need Power.

To do with it what we please. To share it, expand it, use it to define our path and determine our future.

Freedom is Power and Power is Freedom.

By Phillip Agnew and Damon Davis

Don’t be scared.

This Empire has taught us that power is control, conquest, domination and exploitation. That’s not power, it’s Cowardice. It’s frail. It’s fleeting. It must always remind others of its presence.

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 17

BALLOT

OR

THE BULLET BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 18

as it took nationalism to move -- to remove “ Just colonialism from Asia and Africa, it’ll take black

And in 1964 you’ll see this young black man, this new generation asking for the ballot or the bullet.

nationalism today to remove colonialism from the backs and the minds of 22 million Afro-Americans here in this country.

And 1964 looks like it might be the year of the ballot or the bullet.

Why does it look like it might be the year of the ballot or the bullet? Because Negroes have listened to the trickery, and the lies, and the false promises of the white man now for too long. And they’re fed up. They’ve become disenchanted. They’ve become disillusioned. They’ve become dissatisfied, and all of this has built up frustrations in the black community that makes the black community throughout America today more explosive than all of the atomic bombs the Russians can ever invent. Whenever you got a racial powder keg sitting in your lap, you’re in more trouble than if you had an atomic powder keg sitting in your lap. When a racial powder keg goes off, it doesn’t care who it knocks out the way. Understand this, it’s dangerous.

That old Uncle Tom action is outdated. The young generation don’t want to hear anything about the odds are against us.

Up here, in the North, you have the same thing.

The Democratic Party don’t -- don’t do it -- they don’t do it that way. They got a thing that they call gerrymandering. They -- They maneuver you out of power. Even though you can vote, they fix it so you’re voting for nobody; they got you going and coming. In the South, they’re outright political wolves. In the North, they’re political foxes. A fox and a wolf are both canine, both belong to the dog family. Now you take your choice. You going to choose a Northern dog or a Southern dog? Because either dog you choose I guarantee you you’ll still be in the dog house.

And in 1964 this seems to be the year, because what can the white man use now to fool us after he put down that march on Washington? And you see all through that now. He tricked you, had you marching down to Washington. Yes, had you marching back and forth between the feet of a dead man named Lincoln and another dead man named George Washington singing “We Shall Overcome.” He made a chump out of you. He made a fool out of you.

He made you think you were going somewhere and you end up going nowhere but between Lincoln and Washington.

This is why I say it’s the ballot or the bullet. It’s liberty or it’s death. It’s freedom for everybody or freedom for nobody. America today finds herself in a unique situation. Historically, revolutions are bloody. Oh, yes, they are. They haven’t never had a blood-less revolution or a non-violent revolution. That don’t happen even in Hollywood. You don’t have a revolution in which you love your enemy, and you don’t have a revolution in which you are begging the system of exploitation to integrate you into it. Revolutions overturn systems. Revolutions destroy systems.

So today, our people are disillusioned. They’ve become disenchanted. They’ve become dissatisfied, and in their frustrations they want action.

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020

”

- Malcolm X, “The Ballot or The Bullet”

Listen to Malcolm X The Ballot or the Bullet

19

THE BLUEPRINT TO

By Dayvon Love

LOCAL POWER

We live in a complex society, where information about seizing power is made least available to the masses of Black people. One item that demonstrates this the most is the lack of widely available information about how to effectively participate in local politics. There are daily, publicly available conversations about national politics that flood our timelines, but conversations about local politics are difficult to find. There is a very robust history of Black people, particularly after the Voting Rights Act seizing local government in order to attain power.

The work of attaining influence in local politics is rather simple but requires consistent organizing, vigilance over important local political entities, and the development of a track record of service to the community.

If you want to improve public education, challenge mass incarceration, stop police brutality, reverse gentrification, or any number of important issues facing Black people, then it requires engagement with local politics. In other words, to only engage in national political advocacy and neglect local politics negates any ability to actually have an impact on the quality of life of Black people. Additionally, there are many more opportunities to impact the community directly through local politics. Constituents have much more access to state and local officials, which creates more ability to pressure them than there is for national political figures.

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 20

THERE ARE FOUR MAJOR ASPECTS TO ATTAINING INFLUENCE IN LOCAL POLITICS. 1. Identify the structure of the local government and the distribution of power within it Some local governments have strong executives (mayors or county executives) that render the legislature (city or county council) mostly powerless. Some local governments concentrate the power over the budget in the executive. Some local governments have a city administrator that handles how city agencies are operated.

Many cities have had to give over the power of their school districts or prisons over to the state. It is important to have a precise picture of the nature of local government structure so that advocacy is aimed at the proper target.

2. Identify the existing organizations that have a large base in their communities.

Local elected officials are usually very deliberate about how they spend their time. They want to engage people that can impact their ability to be re-elected. Wherever there are votes and money, expect elected officials to be there. In many cases, these organizations or individuals that have a strong base are not necessarily political organizations, but they are important containers for political conversation. This can come in the form of neighborhood associations, local charities, local sports activities, and local business associations. Spend a lot of time in these spaces because it will help in developing the credibility needed to move local policy. In most local political contexts there are organizations that are the civic arm of big business in that community. Identify that organization(s) because it is often the entity that is the force behind many of the policies that harm Black people.

3. Develop a base This is the hardest part of attaining power in local political contexts. Developing base should be done primarily through two primary activities: service to the community and working to develop your own track record of accomplishments that have material benefits to the community. In local political contexts, people want their basic needs met. Folks typically are not ideological in how they participate in politics. Actions speak louder than words. Be a consistent volunteer at community clean ups, or after school programs, or helping the elderly.

Developing a consistent record of service will make people more willing to listen and support political advocacy.

Also, accomplishing goals that impact the community are important credibility boosters. There are a lot of people that come to meetings or are on social media who talk a lot, but have very little to show for all of that talk.

Being able to deliver concrete benefits to the community builds credibility necessary for cultivating a base.

4. Develop relationships with local media or folks with a platform Elected officials are very conscious of public relations. They are constantly monitoring how they are being talked about and whether it can be used against them during election time. Effective use of media is very powerful in putting pressure on elected officials to support your agenda.

These are a few basic aspects of gaining local political influence that can have a big impact on the community.

These four aspects of local politics will provide the local artillery necessary to effectively advocate for the kinds of policies on the local level that can have a more direct impact on the lives of Black people.

Advocacy on national political issues is important, but is meaningless if it is not paired with strong participation in local politics. Local politics are where the things that directly effect your life are manifested.

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 21

To Our Brothers,All of them This letter is to the brothers that have done the math. The ones who they thought they caught slacking, but lo and behold, these brothers show their work.

We see you, in community gardens giving fresh fruits and vegetables to the hood; teaching the community how to be food independent.

We see you, teaching financial management, economic development, success coaching, and helping our people build prosperous businesses that are giving back.

We see you, building nourishing home environments for your kids to thrive.

We see you, starting community protection programs, teaching the community how to shoot, hosting selfdefense classes, and hardening your bodies.

We see you, bonded with Black women and Black people in the footsteps of your mighty race.

This letter is for the brothers who are choosing not to vote. Not because you don’t care or because you are too busy to be involved. But, because you know that a trick coin always lands on heads.

Wherever you are and whatever you’re doing: we see you and we love you. You are justified in your skepticism. ...and we’re going to push you.

Just a nudge.

Not to vote, but to stay vigilant.

Keep your eyes on the news. The United States presidential election is not only a domestic event but also an international event. It affects people globally, and economies fluctuate based on the prospects of one party or the other. Keep your head on the swivel and stay up to date on what’s happening politically so that you can be best positioned to develop that strategy that will keep your people safe and call the right audibles when necessary.

We need you to bring brothers together in your area to discuss the elections, not to ask them to vote, but to think through what another four years of Trump would mean for Black people and what a Biden/Kamala presidency would mean for Black people. Either way, Black people will still have to deal with the pressures of America. If we stay ready, we ain’t gotta get ready.

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 22

We need you to protect the polls. Although, you have decided not to vote. There are millions of your people that will be heading to the polls on election day. White Supremacists and Trumpites have been and are arming to scare your people away from the polls. White nationalists have shot protesters in the head, white vigilantes are roving our cities armed with bats, and police are blaring their sirens in front of polling sites as a way to deter voters from pulling up. In all things, Black folks should be able to move freely and unhindered by white supremacy. From the voting booth to the corner store. We need you to mobilize to protect your people.

This election is about choosing an opponent, not a champion.

On November 4th, we will be once again forced into the octagon, and when the bell rings we want to be facing an opponent we know that we have more leverage on because we’ve watched the tapes, we’ve crafted our game plan, and sized up their weaknesses. We too have done the math and there are multiple ways to get to the same answer. So, Black Men Build believes in voting.

We know that the real work happens locally though, and every day on the ground. It happens during, after, and in between elections. It’s the work that you brothers do everyday in the community that will continue to create the conditions necessary for a mass movement of Black people to revolutionize this country.

This letter is addressed to the brothers that are choosing not to vote, because it’s going to take all of us.

The non-voters, the voters, and the brothers who’ve had no choice in the matter because they’ve had their vote taken by prison. We know that a voter registration card is not a black card, and whether you vote or not, your contribution should be measured in your dedication to your people, not in how many votes you’ve cast.

As Black men, we need to consolidate and organize together for the betterment of all Black people. Don’t let these talking heads devalue your position and attempt to light fake fires where there are none. The only smoke BMB got wit’ you is the one we sharing.

With love, The BMB camp

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 23

“Out of frustration and hopelessness our young people have reached the point of no return. We no longer endorse patience and turning the other cheek. We assert the right of self-defense by whatever means necessary, and reserve the right of maximum retaliation against our racist oppressors, no matter what the odds against us are.”

— SANKIYA SHAKUR

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 24

PREPARING FOR A

Damon Davis @damondavis

BIDEN/HARRIS AMERICA BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 25

THE FOX AND THE WOLF

By Damon Davis

I can’t remember ever feeling the way I do right now. This time in my life has my stress levels fluctuating up and down, day to day, sometimes minute to minute. A mass of emotions from fear, despair, hope, and grief attack my senses and psyche daily. Everything from police, plagues, government attacks, is out to kill my black ass and at times, I am overwhelmed with the constant tragedy and disinformation in my media feed. On top of all this stress and strain, I have to pay my bills. Even then still, one of the most “significant elections” (or so they say) of my lifetime is on the horizon.

“Vote” is such a loaded word to me.

Because it implies that I am taking control of my life, by giving control to another.

I am trusting that the person I vote for will have my best interests in mind and therefore implement changes where needed and fight to keep things that protect the greater good. Well, honestly in this election I don’t feel like any of them have my best interests in mind or are really going to change shit on a level that will ever reach me, let alone the folks at the depths of American society.

I am honestly jaded by the American election process and how blatantly corrupt and laughably “not-forme” it is. We have a choice between the sitting ruler of the free world who clearly favors the destruction of everything that I love and cherish. Who emboldens domestic terrorists to murder people that want safer and more fruitful lives, and outright would love to exterminate us in the name of “Making America Great Again.” Then on the other side, we got a ticket that represents a slightly slower and softer death and destruction of me and my loved ones. One that says they care about us but, have shown us time and time again, they represent the same system that is killing us every day.

So, what do you do when your choices are between bad and worse? Common sense says you pick BAD. Let’s be clear--this election is not about getting what we want and changing the world into the one we want to see. It is about mitigating harm to us and our loved ones. This is a lunch line and the choices are gruall or a happy meal, neither are good for our health as Black people, one is just more appetizing for the moment.

Understand we will be fighting the same fights with Republicans as Democrats, just one fight may be easier to win than the other. One wise man said to me the other day,

“We aren’t picking a champion, we are picking an opponent.” So in picking this battle, choose wisely.

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 26

KNOW THINE ENEMY

By Phillip Agnew

“Know thy enemy and know yourself; in a hundred battles, you will never be defeated. When you are ignorant of the enemy but know yourself, your chances of winning or losing are equal. If ignorant both of your enemy and of yourself, you are sure to be defeated in every battle.”

Let’s start here: There are no “Lesser of Two Evils.” There is just Evil. Neither party has answers for the crisis facing Black people. They ARE the crisis facing Black people. They are both our opposition.

Now that we got that out the way, the question facing us is not “Does our vote mean anything”?

The question is

“What are we prepared to do to make our votes mean something?”

Are we thinking critically? Are we thinking strategically?

I think not.

Let’s look at the business world (since everybody loves business). What do businesses thrive on? As much as they tout disruption it is actually consistency and predictability that help Billionaires sleep at night.

This election isn’t about Trump/Pence vs. Biden/Harris. It’s about unpredictability vs. predictability.

A Trump presidency will not be “four more years of Donald Trump”: it will be four (or more) years of chaos, unpredictability, shit we’ve never seen before, shit that we can’t plan for.

This is not favorable terrain to operate in. We need predictability in our opposition. The Democrats are that predictable opposition. They are the Devils we know.

A Biden/Harris Administration is predictable: nothing but symbolism and band-aids. They’ll try every day to make things feel “normal” as they pander and smile and convince you that they’ve saved the world; that we all can relax because they have everything under control. This is the terrain we know. It will be a close carbon copy to the Obama presidency.

In their own ways throughout their careers, both Joe Biden and Kamala Harris proudly waged war on Black people, poor people, immigrants. We must return the favor.

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 27

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 28

ELECTION PROTECTION

By Josh Sankara None-the-less, here we are, in 2020, facing the same question over and over again-

I’ll tell you one thing, If my momma or pops goes to the polls and is intimidated by one of these racist clowns, We gon have a problem.

will black people’s right to vote ever be fully protected in the US?

This idea isn’t to come out of nowhere. In 2012, a white man drove a truck with a trailer attached that had a dummy of Obama hanging by a noose all over the state of North Carolina. He even came to the Democratic National Convention with it. And when early voting started in October, he parked it outside of polling locations in the eastern part of the state where most of the Black people in North Carolina live. If you think for one second that these racists ain’t feeling big enough to do even more than that this time around, you’re kidding yourself. The same way we like to try to be organized in the street is the same way we got to be organized to actually protect our communities from white supremacists this election cycle...And that’s for real for real this time.

My answer; not unless we take active steps to guarantee it. Even more, we don’t get to any real political power, voting or otherwise, unless we do what we need to do to protect our right to exist in this world as whole human beings. They already stripped section 5 of the Voting Rights Act (the part that actually named counties and states that needed to be monitored by the Department of Justice because of a history of racist tactics) just a few years ago. We already know the way Black voters are targeted by false ads and intimidation since 2000 in Florida. We also know what they bout to try to do to bros that were locked up but gained the right to vote in Florida. I ain’t saying all we gotta do is vote, but damn, if they wanted to make sure you could do it, why would they make it so damn hard?

And what’s wild is that Voter Suppression is as American as apple pie. Literally. After the Civil War, southern states were forced to rewrite their constitutions to acknowledge the end of slavery.

Immediately following there was a period known as the Reconstruction Era where Black Men were elected to offices from the mayor to state representatives all over the south. Matter fact, Mississippi sent two Black Men to the US Senate!* Black people began to build political power for themselves, establishing cities businesses and even remaining true to their connections to the continent of Africa. If you don’t believe me, answer this; why is there a First AFRICAN Baptist Church founded 1777, long before black people were counted as whole humans in the US?

BLACK MEN BUILD

We already know, this election cycle is about to be wild AF. Covid19 gettin’ at us, we tryin’ to eat, the economy taking a hit and all that. Let’s be honest, this is about to be the first time since 2000 that we prob won’t know who is the president for at least a few weeks after…And what happens if Trump loses and doesn’t want to leave office? We gotta get ready to defend our communities because they coming to protect Trump and everything he represents.

It’s some of us that DGAF, either way. And least we can do is show up to make sure auntie n ‘em make it in and out the polling place without incident. Let’s ride.

2020 29

SIGN UP TO PROTECT YOUR PEOPLE AT THE POLLS BLACK MEN BUILD WWW.BLACKMEN.BUILD

Text DEFEND to 79606 2020 30

@BLACKMENBUILD

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 31

To The Sisters We Love Dear Sisters,

How often do we layer our words to the Black Woman with the rich romanticism of unfulfilled promises? The phrases we write are often sweet and kind. But the subversive energy behind our intentions somehow fails to bring about adequate healing. The obtuse nature of these Europeanized desires to conquer the ocean, the moon, and the stars, have positioned us to be nothing more than poetical liars.

And for that, we seek your forgiveness.

When we burn down these cities do we do it for her too? No more love letters with sweet nothings being whispered to the Black Woman. From here forward it’s Molotov(s) and Akay-47(s) on Valentine’s Day. No more misjudgments of your honesty, from here forward this is a death note to this entire system.

We stand beside you as you fight for your freedom...

Death to those who exoticize your hair, murder your children and jail your sisters. We buck with you against any and all opps. From the WNBA to the front lines of Section Eight low-income housing.

Despite the fact that y’all have consistently demanded more from us as brothers and lovers, these shortcomings remain the zenith of our love story. All Black Women deserve love, all Black girls are special.

Curse anyone in this society who dares to argue against this truth. Even still I’m open enough to tell you -- I got issues I’m sorting through. I want to be real with you, and then maybe I can finally be real with myself. I cried when I wrote this because this was only my side of the story. This multifaceted dilemma they have us involved in is deeper than the gossip. When they burn your name, they burn mine. I know you are tired of my shortcomings.

We ride together, always and forever.

As I rebuke my own insecurities, for every time I forced you to make a decision that was against your first mind. My blind permittance of the rape you experienced. My lack of hatred towards your oppressor did this. My lustful admiration to be more like them has done its inevitable part to put us both back in chains. A nation of inventors and scientists came from you but they’d much rather see you giving birth to gangsters and hoodlums.

But still I plea, please don’t let me go.

You retaliated and I kneeled at the threshold of the devil’s tavern and made you my enemy. Through this confusion, they poisoned us both through opioids and unemployment. Then they told us we were better without each other and we both managed to believe them. The greatest lie the universe ever told permeates around the notion that we are all nothing more than -- ”niggas” and “bitches.” But I say let our daughters and nieces grow strong enough to piss on the coffins of their own abusers.

The year 2020 has been nothing short of a dog fight.

But even still I pray we find a way to go deeper with each other. There’s no need to acknowledge the Black Woman as God if you can’t first see her as human.

Today I’m just trying my best to say I see you. Rather your request is that I hold your hand, rub your feet, or plug up the heating pad. When the rent is late and we both mobilize our resources to feed our family. When their doctors fail to see her humanity and she screams for help from the operating table. We wish nothing but death to all of her enemies. No more lame-duck excuses for the abuses she has experienced.

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 32

Let them define their own freedom.

Remove any man who has a problem with this journey.

Let this exchange be one that’s riddled with the blood every man that’s ever put his hands on you.

Two bullets in the head of a well-intentioned womanhater.

Let our children dance on their tombstones, as they sing Mama Tubman’s praises.

Let these bullets fly like Sista Souljahs wordplay.

The Black holocaust could never defeat the mother of the galaxy.

The capitalists have sexualized everything except the truth.

The Black Woman is the key to unlocking the matrix.

It’s the way that you’re able to love yourself enough to be able to forgive.

You always find a way to magnify the light of femininity.

I stand in nature and I feel you pulsing from the Earth.

As if I were back in the womb or as if I returned to a tune to live and die for you to walk and fly. For you to swim and cry with you is the ocean. You are water. You are stardust. You are everything.

Tell me sister when you look in the mirror do you see yourself? Not the image that the world has for you but the one that you find when you look yourself in the eyes and tell the world to stand back and get ready for you.

Fuck All Your Enemies, We are riding with you Forever!

Thank you for being a blade of love, sharp enough to open my heart. Thank you for giving me something to love. Your presence in all of the things that we label as life nurtures and cultivates our souls. You are mother to everything that lives off of affection. You are God’s Exhibit A, should they ever need evidence of perfection. I understand your pain and the things that you go through.

Written By Tef Poe and Corey Black

Your black girl magic sprinkling through the universe, you are colliding with infinite galaxies and realities.

And still wanting to know how to create more culture.

You show the codes to beauty. And the secrets of the gardens of Edens which have existed long before any seed was ever planted. You are the cell that separates heaven and hell. The decider and the provider. Access to the formulas and equations that transform a house into a home.When you see us being beaten and killed we know you cry….I become speechless sometimes when I think of ways to express myself to you, but I will try my best.

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 33

THE REVOLUTION IS AT A GALA Oh, you lookin for Revolution?

LOOK UP!

Revolution is at a gala Gucci clutch Birkin bagged Award winning paneling at the people.

There Revolution go parachuting again.

Skydiving onto yo block.

Oh Revolution you so fly, you make this shit look so easy So Black So effortless, so easy.

Revolution get paid well Upwardly mobile Can make you middle class Make your dreams come true When you wish upon the star it made you, Revolution make you seen Make you magic Make you represented Make you Vogue Magazine printed.

Revolution too cool for school, too good for the hood.

Too much class for the masses.

Revolution on Disney...

Plus Revolution got a gofundme overflowing off white guilt.

Got a Onlyfans for the liberal stans.

Revolution make movies, man New York Times Best sellers Story tellers, got a million followers no leaders

Still lookin for Revolution?

Revolution on a World (American) Tour.

Revolution Be coming To an arena near you.

Revolution in they bag And yo bag too.

I seen it.

Sashay’ing a runway in red bottoms Revolution just launched a promising rap career.

Revolution on a African American World Tour.

Whoever said Revolution wouldn’t be televised...

Hella lied.

I seen it on cnn nightly.

Revolution in they bag And yo bag too Revolution Be Coming To an arena near you.

So don’t you ask me where’s the Revolution?

Is you blind?

You ain’t heard?

Just wait.

Revolution’s coming. That’s what they say.

Revolution got a 60 second super bowl spot.

Just dropped a hot pair of ALL BLACK Off Whites.

Oh GOD Revolution drippin in balenciaga, bulletproof Patagonia

All you gotta do is…

Watch this video…

Revolution don’t care if you banker, or politician or president or actor or Brooklyn billionaire cuzz Revolution rooting for errbody black.

Revolution binge worthy, Revolution first class.

Revolution blue check, verified Celebrity Certified.

Subscribe to this channel…

Revolution a daredevil stunt man.

And boom.

BLACK MEN BUILD

By Phillip Agnew

Follow this page…

Buy this shirt…

Pose for this pic...

You can be Revolution too.

2020 34

Basil Kincaid @basilkincaid

An Ode To Black Men I love Black men. My father is a Black man, my grandfather was a Black man, god willing if I have children I might have one that identifies as a Black boy.

However, to fully show the depths of my love for Black men it is also my duty to hold Black men accountable for the ways in which they fall short championing and loving Black Women.

#SayHerName has reluctantly become a calling card.

As a collective we find it easy to immortalize the Black Women we’ve lost but what about those of us who are still living? I am reminded of Megan Thee Stallion and the disbelief she was met with after disclosing the abuse she faced at the hands of Torey Lanez. How she had to be seen physically crying in order to get a buy-in from the majority of Black Men. The trauma she went through after being shot by an intimate partner was ignored led to the added trauma of being dehumanized.

I was raised at the intersection of being a Zimbabwean immigrant to the United States and wanting so badly to assimilate to Black American culture, while also remaining steadfast in my African Identity. It’s such an odd feeling to realize the way I ride for and champion Black Men is not the same way they ride for and champion me. Yet I believe when you love someone you hold them accountable when they fuck up.

I am stricken with fear when I am confronted with the violence Black women are subjected to. Black Women are 40% more likely to experience domestic violence in their lifetime. 53.8% of Black women have experienced psychological abuse and 2.5% of Black Women are likely to be murdered by men.

I often seek solace in the summer. A time where I generally find my stride and come alive. This summer, however, was a different story. The confluence of a summer spent in quarantine and the ongoing reminder that folks still seek comfort in the pain of Black folks was a hard pill to swallow. As a Black woman, the murders of Breonna Taylor and Oluwatoyin “Toyin” Salau struck me. Breonna Taylor, an EMT, and aspiring nurse, was murdered as she laid asleep in her bed.

Oluwatoyin, a budding activist leading protests in Tallahassee, Florida to combat police brutality, Was taken at the hands of a Black man whom she entrusted to help her find safety. A gut-wrenching reminder that no matter where we turn as Black women our safety is not guaranteed. Seemingly as quickly as their names were made hashtags on social media was as quickly as their names seemed to be erased from the collective consciousness.

We must examine the role White Supremacy has played in the degradation of Black women. This internalized belief that white people are superior to those of other races and thus should dominate them.

White supremacy is the water we all swim in and none of us are exempt. White supremacy breeds a harmful patriarchy and an obsession with power and domination over those viewed as “weaker”. The social “ladder”, as Sonya Renee Taylor so aptly deems it, places Black Men on a rung above Black Women. As folks who maintain Black identity, Black Men still hold the privilege of having cis male identity. An identity that enables you to earn .87 cents to the dollar a white man earns, when Black Women only earn .61 cents to the dollar a white man earns. As Black men, you must make a concerted effort to assess how you (yes you, Black person) exist within these systems and in turn perpetuate the system when you refuse to decolonize your own mind.

The Rally Cry for Black women should begin while we are alive. For our humanity as Black women is intrinsic to #BLM. Namely, given that folks who birth children are the givers of life. Not only do we deserve to be protected but we also deserve to be loved.

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 36

I am more aptly brought to the thought of men being in their bags about Megan Thee Stallion and Cardi B’s W.A.P, when it’s the norm to rap explicitly about non-consensual sexual acts with women (see Rocko’s U.O.E.N.O. featuring Rick Ross and Future). We must examine the intersection of prejudice towards women: where we are primarily seen as sexual beings, yet not valued for our humanity. The prejudice Black women specifically endure due to misogynoir, the specific combination of anti-Black and misogynistic treatment of Black women, where both race and gender play harmful roles in bias. Misogynoir was coined by Dr. Moya Bailey, a Queer Black Feminist, and Trudy of Gradient Lair, who deems herself a womanist.

More than anything I find myself wanting to be vigilant in shining the light upon Black Men and if I am being fully honest, begging Black Men to extend humanity towards Black Women. A humanity which entails calling on your boys to do better when you know they are doing some fuck shit. Calling on yourself to do better, which maybe looks like seeking professional help to dismantle internalized white supremacy and toxic masculinity.

We live in a world where we are constantly exposed to the death of our own. It’s not ok. And it’s ok that you’re not ok. Honestly, how could you be? I implore Black Men to believe Black Women on the first try.

Why should we need to prove to you that we are telling the truth when we confess harm, violence, and mistreatment? Just like we believe you deserve to exist and not fall victim to police brutality, we, as Black Women, need you to believe in us. To love us.

By Sinikiwe Dhliwayo

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 37

STREET VIOLENCE

HOMELAND SECURITY

By now you’ve probably heard about Operation Legend, the Trump Administration’s current effort to get “tough on crime” and restore “law and order” in some of America’s most crime-ridden cities.

Historically, politicians have used “law and order” as a means of gaining the trust and support of their constituents and financial backers but what does that really mean to Black and brown men, women, and children, who often suffer disproportionately from both violent crime and over-policing? It means that our communities will be surveilled, abused, and attacked by local AND federal agents just to give white folks the impression that Trump has us, scary ghetto dwellers, under control.

I guess naming it after a black victim of violence is supposed to give us the impression that the Feds are on the side of the people. Do you think they’re finally making up for COINTELPRO? -Unlikely fam.

According to the Department Of Justice, Operation Legend is a “sustained, systematic and coordinated law enforcement initiative in which federal law enforcement agencies work in conjunction with state and local law enforcement officials to fight violent crime” (www.justice.gov). So far, St. Louis, Chicago, Cleveland, Memphis, Detroit, Kansas City, Albuquerque, Milwaukee, and Philadelphia have all had agents from the FBI, the DEA, and the Department of Homeland Security making their presence known, flanked by the local cops.

The Operation carries the name of LeGend Taliferro, a four-old boy who was shot and killed in Kansas City, MO June 29, 2020.

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 38

Did I mention the U.S. Marshalls and the Bureau of Alcohol, Firearms, and Explosives? It’s a feeding frenzy and anyone caught in this net could face FEDERAL charges which usually carry much harsher penalties than state charges. According to KMOV. com, Operation Legend has already resulted in the arrest of 25 people in St. Louis, mostly drug trafficking along with robbery and firearm violations (kmov. com). You might ask how Operation Legend might be a bad thing. I mean they’re taking the drug dealers and the killers off the streets, right? Sure it appears to be an aggressive fix for violence and drug-related crimes but if we don’t focus on the actual root causes of crime aren’t we just adding in a perpetual system that thrives on the exploitation and destruction of black and brown bodies? If people are still poor, disenfranchised, undereducated, unhealthy, and lacking the resources of their suburban counterparts then crime will manifest.

The cities affected by Operation Legend are receiving federal grants for the purpose of invading our privacy. In a recent post on theintercept.com, Katya Schwenk writes,”...cities have doubled down on their surveillance investments, even as they face general budget shortfalls in the tens of millions. On August 4, two days before Operation Legend was formally announced in the city, Memphis signed a new contract with Cellebrite, an Israeli forensics manufacturer popular with law enforcement, whose products can hack and extract data from smartphones. The estimated $65,000 contract would double previous annual spending on the technology, per city procurement records” (theintercept.com).

So even after the feds are gone, local authorities will still be able to spy on us. St. Louis has been receiving federal money for surveillance since the Ferguson rebellions of 2014. Companies like ShotSpotter that manufacture microphones that can detect gunshots and send info to police could benefit even though such devices have not been shown to reduce gun violence.

It’s not “bad apples” spoiling the hood, it’s the fact that the comfort and wealth of the few is built on discontent and the depletion of the many. It’s a lot easier to hunt people like animals and violate their rights than it is to address the social inequities woven into every aspect of our existence. People continue to be punished for reacting to living under inhumane conditions. Yes, we have to find efficient ways to deal with people who are a danger to themselves or others but why pour money, technology and resources into methods that have never effectively prevented criminal activities? Innocents will continue to suffer and die as collateral damage in this “war on crime.”

Any of us could be caught in the trajectory of rubber or lead bullets perhaps while protesting the police brutality that has plagued us since the first slave patrols started in 1704 (Time.com).

Money will be made, jails will be filled, and politicians from both sides of the aisle will ride the “law and order” train to victory all at the expense of black and brown communities. Many of us have literally been in the streets protesting state sanctioned murder raising the consciousness of people around the world.

The moment has caused many to consider actually defunding the death squads, but our government has chosen to ignore the rebel yell of those who seek justice. Instead they have chosen to enhance the same system that forced us to rebel in the first damn place. Be safe out there.

-lyfestile

Most of the politicians and pundits have condemned the killing of George Floyd but it’s time to get back to business. Protesters have worn out their welcome (before Operation Legend, Trump deployed Federal agents to Portland Oregon to quell the rebellions) and for black and brown people we will get a militarized force on the streets and the National Security Agency hacking our cellphones.

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 39

BLOOD IN THE WATER WRITTEN BY ASA SHAW

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 40

SCENE 1

I didn’t see it coming. I kept my left high, stayed on his outside, and threw roundhouses at his right arm to weaken his power. But, I still got caught by that fucking straight right…

My left arm gripped the bottom rope and my right hand pressed into the mat to keep me from falling over. I was on my knees and all I could see was the floor of the ring. It was white with speckles of red. The taste of iron filling my mouth brought me some focus. I can’t lose this fight...

I tried to focus my eyes but the image wouldn’t single out, everything. My ears were also ringing. I could faintly hear It was more a vibration than a sound. The pitch of the last knew it wasn’t a six, a seven, or a ten. It was most likely

there was triple of the referee counting. sound was low. So, I a four, I had time...

I took a deep breath, then leaned hard on the bottom rope with my left hand and brung my right knee to my chest - Low pitch, a five - I looked like a runner who was settling into his blocks before a race. I pressed against the mat with my right glove and brought my hand to my knee in a kneeling position - high pitch, a six - I pushed against my right knee, stood up, and leaned over the ropes, my legs were rocking beneath me - high pitch, a seven - I lifted my head and took another deep breathe - medium pitch, an eight? - In one motion I bounced off the ropes and stood straight up - low pitch, a nine - I turned to the center of the ring, wobbled a bit, but regained my balance. The ref ran over to me as I attempted to stand straight up. He grabbed my gloves and tried to check my eyes. I turned from him to look in my corner. I could see the blurry silhouettes of Nine and Tre. Nine looked worried and Tre had his back turned pointing in someone’s face, then gesturing towards me. The ref pulled my head back towards him. His mouth was moving but I couldn’t make out what he was saying. The tone of these sounds were not as simple to make out as the numbers. He asked something again. I turned my ear to him. He repeated. Before I could respond he turned away from me and waved his hands above his head in an X motion. He was ending the match. I stepped forward in an attempt to protest but my knees buckled and I fell back to the canvass. My eyes started to go dark. Everything was slowing down. I could see Nine running over. I decided to let whatever was in the darkness take me. I dropped my head and my mind went blank.

SCENE 2 The headaches were getting less painful. It had been a week since the fight and I still couldn’t hear sufficiently out of my left ear. Bernice, our team doctor said I had a mild concussion and a busted ear drum. The treatment plan was simple enough.

Lots of sleep and pain killers. She also suggested I go real light in my workouts until I get my equilibrium back. The biggest change was no sparring for a couple months, and even after that I would need to wear head gear until she cleared me.

Tre grabbed my shoulder and shook me, “knuckle up Tree! You been spacing out since the fight. You act like you ain’t never been knocked down before.” Tre smirked, as he grabbed the remote and sat down on the opposite coach.

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 41

“When have I been knocked down before this?” I responded “Oh you don’t remember? Nine, please remind this fool that time I put his ass down.”

Nine was behind us in the kitchen making his daily shake. I turned to face him.

“Can’t say I remember that good brotha.” said Nine “Ok, so both you niggas got alzheimers this morning? Yall dont remember those saturday martial arts tournaments at the gym that Baba silas used to run?”

“Yea” Nine and I responded.

Tre sat straight up and placed his hands in his lap “And do you not recall the championship fight when I caught you with that straight right, Tree?” Tre relaxed back into the couch “Something yo ass still aint learn how to counter I see.”

Nine stopped making his shake and laughed “Yea, I remember now. I had to peel Tree off the mat. But to be fair, Tree was five years younger fighting in those tournaments, you knocked out a youngin bro.”

Tre shrugged his shoulders while looking at the t.v. “So nigga...a win is a win.”

I remembered our fights in the Nine Bars community gym. I was the youngest, but Baba Silas always made me fight the older kids because I was too big for my age bracket.

I bit off more than I could chew fighting Tre that time though.

I sat up and reached for an apple from the coffee table. I bit into it. “Ok. I’ll give you that, but you know damn well that shit would never happen again,” I said chewing.

-Tre let out a cackle. “This shit funny, you heard what Trump said Nine?,” asked Tre. “Nah bro” Nine responded “He talking bout how democrats ain’t done shit for Black people and we still lining up to vote for them like sheep. Dont yall need to respond? He coming hard for your party.”

I turned to Nine “What! When you became a democrat” “You know damn well I ain’t no Democrat, Tree. Tre is just a troll.”

Tre sneered BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 42

“What would you propose we do about Trump’s rhetoric Tre?” said Nine.

“I don’t really care what yall do cause I ain’t voting anyway. But, you’re voting for Joe and Kamz, right Nine?”

“Yup” “How bout you Tre? Who you voting for?”

“I aint never really think about it. Trump is a racist and both the democrats on the ticket like to lock niggas up so. I don’t know. I definitely don’t want Trump though.”

Tre shook his head, then looked at Nine. “This man aint convinced either Nine, how you say you a revolutionary and can’t even convince your family to vote your position?”

“Because my position takes time to develop, Tre. I rather Tree vote for Biden because he thought critically about the conditions of our people and made a strategic choice.” Nine continued, “If you were a part of a flock of blind sheep and you became conscious of the treachery of the shepherd. Could you overthrow the shepherd with a flock of blind sheep?”

“Probably not,” I said.

Nine nodded his head, “Even if the other sheep listened to your every command, would you prevail?”

“I don’t think so,” I said.

“You wouldn’t. But, why no--” Tre interrupted, “Cause all the shepherd would need to do is single me out, butcher me, and he could regain control of the flock.”

“Exactly, You would need the other sheep to be aware, their eyes open and analytical so they can also make decisions based in strategic thinking.”

“Your point?” said, Tre. “I need Tree to come to the decision because he understands the strategy in it. We only win through the masses of Black people being knowledgeable and activated. Which is why I have been inviting Tree to these political education workshops we have once a week.”

I looked down. He had been texting me for the last month, but I had been too busy training for my fight to go. “You’re right, I’ll make it to the next one Nine.”

“OK, but the election is in november nigga.” Said Tre, “What are you telling people now? Why should they strategically vote for Biden?”

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 43

“Like I said, My job isn’t to go out and get people to vote for Biden. It’s to be in dialogue with them, share ideas, and work together in hopes that getting them engaged will make them see why voting for Biden makes the most sense at the moment” “But why are you specifically voting for Biden, Nine?” I asked.

Tre threw up his hands, “Thank you Tree! This nigga keep avoiding the question.”

“I am voting for Biden because I am picking an opponent, not a champion. Tre, if you were forced to fight me or Tree, who would you fight?”

“You nigga. I’ll beat yo ass.”

I laughed.

Nine raised an eyebrow, “Ok, why me?”

“Cause I know I’d beat yo ass!”

Nine laughed, “Yea, but what variables did you use to make that choice?”

Tre looked at me, “well first Tree is a Muay Thai champion who just lost his first fight last week. The nigga is also like 6 inches taller than me and 40 pounds heavier.” Tre looked at Nine, “And you BJJ niggas are hoes, yall only useful on your back.”

I struggled not to laugh.

“If I can keep you on your feet, I’ll wear your ass out.” Tre finished.

Tre was drastically misrepresenting Nine’s skills. He’s a master at BJJ and has been doing striking all his life. We all have. Since we were kids. Nine leaned more into BJJ, but he isn’t a chump while on his feet. Tre would have a hard time with either of us. Tre is the oldest of us three and the strongest. But definitely not the most skilled. He has heart though, and usually in a dog fight, the more tenacious the pit the better its chances.

Nine looked Tre up and down a couple times then shook his head “so if you understand the importance in choosing an opponent that you think you can win against, then you should understand why I’m choosing to vote for Biden.”

“No bro, I don’t understand.” said tre, “Black people ain’t been able to shift the dynamics of the democratic party since we switched to it. That’s why this voting shit is a joke. It’s like a trick coin, every time you flip that bitch it lands on heads. We gotta introduce a new coin into the mix, a third party or something that got black people true interest at heart. Until then, this is one nigga you aint going to see in nobody voting booth.”

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 44

“So you never voted before, Tre?” I said.

“I voted for Obama in 08, but that nigga let me down too. So I haven’t voted since.”

“What’s your reason for not voting this year?” I said.

“Same as every year. I don’t think it’s going to change anything. I rather focus on community programs that I have seen help our neighborhoods. like community protection teams, mentorship programs, helping brothers to start businesses, teaching money management and financial coaching. That shit goes farther than any election.”

“I respect that, said Nine. All of those things are important. I would add that elections are important also, especially on the local level.”

Tre waved his hand, “them niggas good for nothing too.”

“Yea, but they affect your everyday life more than Trump ever could.”

“How?” I said curiously Nine paused, then said, “If some pig shot and killed me tomorrow, where would you go for justice?”

The room went silent.

Tre’s face turned cold. He dropped his head and responded slowly. “We grew up warriors, bro. You know what’s gon happen.”

I nodded my head in agreement, “Its blood in the water” Me, Tre and Nine aren’t related. But we grew up like brothers. The saying goes, blood is thicker than water. We say there is blood in the water because we found family through friendship. The wrath of god would be released if any of us were killed by the police. A bittersweet truth.

“Ok. I receive that love.” said Nine “But, who legally do you go to when you need to punish dirty cops?”

I smiled “The butcher. Niggas need ham for they greens” Nine and Tre laughed, then he turned to me again waiting for an answer.

“But for real, who?”

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 45

I exhaled “I would go to the police chief” “Ok, and who does the police chief answer to?”

“Nobody, he is the police chief.”

“Everybody answers to somebody, Tree.”

“The police chief answers to the city government. Tree your ass got hit too many times last weekend,” said Tre. I picked up the heaviest pillow off the couch and heaved it at Tre. “Just saying, city officials, judges, and head prosecutors are elected locally.

These elections are more important to our everyday lives than Trump will ever be when it comes to seeking justice, legally of course.”

Tre through the pillow back at me, “Duh, I aint dumb, Nine. But, elections and voting just aint my thing. Too many liars, and whenever we get somebody in there we like, they dont do shit. When I voted for Obama, I didnt vote for this nigga to bomb the Middle East to hell. I don’t want that blood on my hands, bro. Im just gon make this money, Im gon drink this 1942, and Im gon fuck wit these bitches.

Politics is your lane.”

Nine furrowed his brow, “says the man who watches CNN every morning, and why they gotta be bitches, bro!”

Tre looked annoyed, “Your right. I am going to fuck with these young ladies, happy?”

“Yes,” said Nine Tre turned off the T.V., grabbed his water bottle from the coffee table and walked to the kitchen to start filling it with water. Nine was behind Tre loading the last of his ingredients into the blender.

“Speaking of bitches, yall heard Lorraine pregnant?” said Tre. Nine raised and eyebrow.

“Word? You think it’s yours?” I said.

“Hell nah, my pull out game undefeated. But if it is, yall know I got Michael Jordan tendencies…fuck them kids.”

Nine chuckled, shook his head and turned on the blender...

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 46

Christopher Burch @goyagoon

NOTES

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 48

NOTES

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 49

Happy New Year?

Where are you? What are you doing? Are you prepared? Is your Block prepared? Your crew prepared?

Ten! Nine!

Eight!

Seven!

Six! Five!

Four!

Three!

Two! One!

The next few months will decide the next decade of our lives. Our only hope is their biggest fear: Organization.

Join us.

HAPPY NEW YE-As the clock strikes midnight, the Federal Eviction Moratorium expires. Millions of Black families are celebrating New Year’s Eve in homes and apartments that won’t be theirs by the end of the month.

Black unemployment is at an all time high. Them holiday season retail jobs never came.

The Government just launched an investigation into “Widespread Recovery Fraud” in the Black Community, saying they’ll prosecute “Government Thieves and Traitors” to the fullest extent of the law.

A second stimulus came and went, spent the last of it on Christmas.

It’s cold as fuck. COVID came back with a vengeance.

It’s a missing family member at almost every table.

White militias guard white neighborhoods against “holiday looters”. Police look the other way.

Rent due, water due, power due, credit cards due.

It’s 2021.

Nobody is coming to save us. They say even God only help those that help themselves.

BLACK MEN BUILD

2020 50

Work/Play @work_play

WWW.BLACKMEN.BUILD

@BLACKMENBUILD