We cannot allow those in the state of Missouri to divide us in the name of so-called peace when the grand jury drops its decision about Darren Wilson, the white police officer who killed Michael Brown Jr.
It appears to me if they wanted peace they would be trying to negotiate with the list of legitimate demands that the coalitions issued and openly discuss them. The first coalition that issued a list of demands was The Justice for Michael Brown Leadership Coalition, which demanded Wilson be fired and charged with murder, Gov. Nixon remove County Prosecutor Robert P. McCulloch from the case, a Department of Justice investigation of police policies and practices throughout the state of Missouri, a state audit of local police departments, and the resignations of the Ferguson mayor and police chief.
I recommend strongly that those involved in this struggle identify ways to unify and work together so we can continue to push our struggle in St. Louis as a national struggle against police brutality and police killings.
I am watching the divisions that have cropped up since we began our protests in the name of justice for the murder of Michael Brown Jr. I encourage those seeking to understand our divisions to study the “ divide and conquer” strategy.
In this strategy, one power breaks another power into smaller, more manageable pieces, and then takes control of those pieces one by one. Leaders who use a divide and conquer strategy may encourage or foster feuds between smaller powers.
Differences always exist about the strategy that is used to move a struggle forward within the same groups. During the civil rights and black liberation struggles, we differed about our tactics on how we would go forward, but many of us maintained a healthy respect for those who would struggle in different ways.
Minister Louis Farrakhan gave me a quote from the Honorable Elijah Muhammad. When some young men met the Honorable Elijah Muhammad in the city of Chicago and asked him, “Mr. Muhammad, will you come out into the streets and fight with us?” The Honorable Elijah Muhammad told them, “No, I will not, but I can teach you how to fight and win.”
This struggle in St. Louis is for the thousands who have died at the hands of police brutality in the communities across America. There is a culture of cover-up in many police departments that protects policemen who wrongfully killed a black person by criminalizing the victim so they will be seen as a menace to society and a black thug that should have been killed.
This is why the struggle is so important and why we have to fight against being divided as we move forward to bring an end to these hideous crimes of the police against the black community. If we are going to win this battle for our community and all young men threatened by this mentality that exists in these police departments, we must find a way to work out our differences, form alliances and not become divided.
Be careful not to allow the enemies of our struggle for justice pull you aside, give you money and sponsor your programs, thinking your plans will fly in the face of others who are struggling. Communicate with your brothers and sisters, and when the enemy tries to isolate you talk about inclusion of your comrades in the struggle out of respect for their points of view.
Let’s not fall victim to our enemy’s strategy of divide and conquer. Let’s commit to the principled position of united we will stand, and God-willing we will win.
Akbar Muhammad can be contacted at aakbar314@yahoo.com.
