The great black American Booker T. Washington, a man who himself was once a slave, discussed this very dynamic in his autobiography, Up From Slavery. 

While in Paris we saw a good deal of the now famous American Negro painter, Mr. Henry C. Tanner, whom we had formerly known in America. It was very satisfactory to find how well known Mr. Tanner was in the field of art, and to note the high standing which all classes accorded to him. When we told some Americans that we were going to the Luxembourg Palace to see a painting by an American Negro, it was hard to convince them that a Negro had been thus honoured. I do not believe that they were really convinced of the fact until they saw the picture for themselves. My acquaintance with Mr. Tanner reenforced in my mind the truth which I am constantly trying to impress upon our students at Tuskegee - and on our people throughout the country, as far as I can reach them with my voice - that any man, regardless of colour, will be recognized and rewarded just in proportion as he learns to do something well - learns to do it better than some one else - however humble the thing may be.

Note the point he is making here.  Despite being an American Negro, Tanner’s painting was being exhibited and admired.  Not because it was a work of art by an American Negro (though I am sure that certainly added to its novelty), but because it was a good work of art.  Tanner didn’t draw a stick figure on a canvas, then expect glowing adulation for his work solely because he was an oppressed black man.  He had talent, then he utilized that talent, and was a success because of it.

Now, keep this attitude in mind when you read the following.  Also remember Kanye West’s admission that when he had to sweep the floor, he did so with a minimum of effort, undoubtedly because he found the work demeaning.

As I have said, I believe that my race will succeed in proportion as it learns to do a common thing in an uncommon manner; learns to do a thing so thoroughly that no one can improve upon what it has done; learns to make its services of indispensable value. This was the spirit that inspired me in my first effort at Hampton, when I was given the opportunity to sweep and dust that schoolroom. In a degree I felt that my whole future life depended upon the thoroughness with which I cleaned that room, and I was determined to do it so well that no one could find any fault with the job.

In other words, no matter what task you have before you in life, do it better than anyone else, and society will be forced to accept you.  If you have to sweep a floor (and my lily white ass has had plenty of jobs where I had to sweep floors, primarily during my service in the United States Navy), do it to the best of your abilities.  Because if you put yourself in a situation where you do substandard work, you open yourself up to the competition of the marketplace, and someone else (white or black or any other color) can easily come along and replace you.

Few people ever stopped, I found when looking at his pictures, to inquire whether Mr. Tanner was a Negro painter, a French painter, or a German painter. They simply knew that he was able to produce something which the world wanted - a great painting - and the matter of his colour did not enter into their minds.

In another ironic twist, Kanye West’s career as an entertainer perfectly illustrates this point.  He obviously has talent, as his booming record sales show.  I think it’s fair to assume that a large portion of his CDs are being bought by white fans.  Why?  They obviously like his music.  He is able to produce something the world wants, and the matter of his color does not enter into their minds.  Do you think there’s a white rap fan out there anywhere in America who says, “Yeah, I love that rap, but I ain’t buying no record from no nigger!” Of course not, the idea is ludicrous.  Kanye West has carved out a niche for himself, has provided a service that people like, and his race has absolutely nothing to do with his abilities.

After his recent ourburst on the Red Cross telethon, there was a lot of pressure for the NFL to drop West from their opening day ceremonies.  They refused.  Why?  Because the NFL is trying feverishly to attract a younger demographic, and Kanye West is one of the hottest things in youth music and culture right now, so they stood by him over the protestations of undoubtedly white, conservative football fans.  So, despite the fact that he was booed all throughout his performance, Racism hasn’t hurt Kanye West.  Indeed, it wasn’t his race that got him booed, it was the way he ran his mouth off in a completely inappropriate time.  If racism hasn’t hurt West, why is it immediately assumed that racism is the sole reason to explain economic disparities in this country?

When a Negro girl learns to cook, to wash dishes, to sew, to write a book, or a Negro boy learns to groom horses, or to grow sweet potatoes, or to produce butter, or to build a house, or to be able to practice medicine, as well or better than some one else, they will be rewarded regardless of race or colour. In the long run, the world is going to have the best, and any difference in race, religion, or previous history will not long keep the world from what it wants.

Absolutely.  I’m as white as they come.  Who would I, as a white male, choose to have as my cardiologist, a brilliant black doctor or a mediocre white one?  As the entire history of the human race has shown us, where there is a free market consumers will demand the best, and that the desire to receive the best is a far greater motivator than any kind of lingering racial animosity.

Let me put it this way.  Say there were two supermarkets, equal in quality, price, and location.  One supermarket has a racist owner, who decides that he will not serve black people.  The vast majority of whites in this country would refuse to patronize such an establishment, choosing instead to go to the non-distriminatory store.  In addition, every minority in the neighborhood would refuse to go there as well.  The inevitable end result is that the racist market will eventually be driven out of business through the simple power of the free market.  In other words, in all but the most insular locales, racism does not mix with good business practice.  Take into account the cost of lawsuits for violating laws against discrimination and it’s plain to see that what Washington write here is absolutely true.  Race is immaterial when it comes to business, provided the service offered is of a comparable or superior value.  By making themselves invaluable to the rest of society, blacks would force themselves to be dealt with.  Any employer who refused to avail himself of the talent and labor pool that black Americans present would not be in business very long.

I think that the whole future of my race hinges on the question as to whether or not it can make itself of such indispensable value that the people in the town and the state where we reside will feel that our presence is necessary to the happiness and well-being of the community. No man who continues to add something to the material, intellectual, and moral well-being of the place in which he lives is long left without proper reward. This is a great human law which cannot be permanently nullified.

The overriding point here is this: if you are faced with a situation where you have an obstacle to overcome, the only way to do so is to work harder than the next guy.  This isn’t just about race, it applies to every aspect in life.  If there’s an opportunity for promotion at work, showing that you are more competent and a harder worker than other employees is the best way to get the job.  If you are one of a number of men wooing a young lady, being the one who pays her the most attention and treats her the best is usually the right way to win her over.  If you were born with a genetic tendency to obesity, you’re going to have to work harder to maintain your health than someone who was born with a stellar metabolism.  That’s life, it’s the way our entire society functions.

Except black America.

There are reasons for this far too numerous to go into in great deal in a limited format like this blog post, but there is one I want to touch on in particular.  The lingering resentment in the South from a humiliating defeat in the Civil War set black equality back about a century.  There was a proposal floated prior to the Civil War for the US government to simply purchase all slaves then set them free.  Had this been done, the very market forces described so clearly by Booker T. Washington would have forced racist white society to recognize and deal with the benefits of utilizing the resources available from a black labor pool.  This, in turn, would have achieved black integration at a much more rapid rate than what came to pass in antebellum America.  Indeed, it wasn’t until the mid 1960s that blacks were truly afforded their rights under the law via the Civil Rights Acts of 1964 and 1965.

Why is this significant?  Because it has instilled in black Americans the idea that government is the only means by which anything can be achieved.  It was a war between governments that eventually ended the institution of slavery.  It was government decrees in the form of civil rights legislation that got them the right to vote, the right to work, and so on.  The creation of the welfare state in the 1960s further cemented this idea, by showing a whole generation of black families that the government was there to provide for their every need.  Legislation designed to increase black attendance in education did nothing more than lower admissions standards, further showing blacks that they didn’t need to do as well as whites, because they were “owed” something.  To use Kanye West’s analogy, black America was told that it was perfectly acceptable to sweep the dirt under the sink, because in the long run white racism wasn’t going to permit them to succeed, and therefore doing a half-assed job was a form of rebellion, of getting one over on whitey.

Don’t bother trying, the white man will always work to keep you down.  Don’t bother doing well in school, you’re not going to get into college.  Don’t bother working hard, you’re not going to get the promotion.  The only way you’ll ever succeed is by using political force to get the government to provide for you.  This attitude has, to put it bluntly, raised generations of black Americans who honestly believe that white racism is to blame for every ill that befalls them, when even a former slave was able to see that the specter of racism, while evil and omnipresent, could never withstand an assault from a black population with something significant to offer.

Then there is the cultural identity of “blackness,” which is partly a legitimate response to decades of white racism, and partly a creation of the black power structure.  George W. Bush has appointed more blacks to positions of authority than any other president in history.  Yet, as far as black America goes, this means nothing.  Why?  Because the blacks that he has appointed aren’t “real” blacks.  Condi Rice, for example, is a house nigger.  So was Colin Powell.  After all, no “real” black could ever be a Republican.  No “real” black could believe that racism was a much lesser obstacle than believed by the majority of black Americans.  Black children are faced with an enormous pressure to accept this black identity, lest they be accused of not being “real” blacks.  Don’t like rap?  Don’t like basketball?  Like doing well in school?  Well, you’re “acting white,” playing into the hands of “the man,” not “keeping it real.” It’s bullshit.  This is known as the No True Scotsman logical fallacy.

No true Scotsman is a term coined by Antony Flew in his 1975 book Thinking About Thinking. It refers to an argument which takes this form:

Argument: “No Scotsman puts sugar on his porridge.”
Reply: “But my uncle Angus likes sugar with his porridge.”
Rebuttal: “Ah yes, but no true Scotsman puts sugar on his porridge.”

Now, transpose this into modern terms.

Argument: “No black man can make it in America.”
Reply: “Colin Powell seems to have done pretty well for himself.”
Rebuttal: “Yeah, but Colin Powell isn’t a real black man, he’s nothing but a house nigger to George Bush.”

Think I’m crazy?  Harry Belafonte said it about both Colin Powell and Condi Rice.  Back when I was but a blogging tadpole and utilizing Blogspot I did a couple of posts on these outrage, which you can read here and here.  This idea that in order to be “black” you have to subscribe to one way of thinking or one mode of dress or speech, well, this is far more responsible for the blight of so many American blacks than any institutional racism.  I also blogged on a column in the WaPo (see here) which contained the following brilliant quote.

If Belafonte had taken on Powell on the basis of policy or other issues, fair enough. But there is no just cause for questioning the blackness or race loyalty of someone who believes that Saddam Hussein, with his nerve gas, chemical weapons and lust for nuclear devices, is a menace to the world and a threat to all Americans without regard to race, color, creed, gender, age, national origin or sexual orientation. Apply that kind of racial litmus test to war with Iraq and you brand every American officer and enlisted man and woman of color who ships out to the Persian Gulf as a racial traitor. That would be reprehensible.

No true Scotsman would put sugar on his porridge, and no true black man could support Bush or the war on terror.  Both of these ideas are equally illogical.

And Kanye West is a fucking moron.  I say that with no racist intonation or undertones.  I despise him because he’s a fucking race-baiting asshole, and that’s got nothing to do with the color of his skin.