African-American Man Convinces Klansmen to Leave the KKK through Friendship

 

 

My Buddhist teacher, the Venerable Urgyen Sangharakshita, has said that anyone can be friends with anyone, that this is his religion and that he would rather die than give it up.  

This may well be true, but I don'r necessarily think this is a good thing.  I have strong feelings about explaining racism to white people.  And yet, I find this story very inspiring.  This is challenging some of my opinions, assumptions and views. 

An African American man by the name of Daryl Davis decided he wanted to go along to Klan rallies and meetings, befriend Klan members and teach them not to be racist.  So he did.  

Unlike Ron Stallworth, the person Spike Lee focused on in his film BlackkKlansman, it was not his job.  He was not an undercover police officer.  He was just someone who wanted to make a difference. 

I personally would not have seen the point in doing this.  But Davis states that 200 Klan members have left the Klan as a direct result of his befriending them.  Food for thought.  As I say, I find this truly inspiring. 

This just goes to show that anyone can make a difference.  One person can make a huge difference. 

It's amazing what communication can do.  Go here for more about Nonviolent Communication (NVC).  This is not to say that Daryl Davis uses NVC.  But what he is doing clearly works.  

What are your thoughts?  Please post below.  

See also:  The Black Man Who Attends Klan Rallies. 

 

Success Strategies with Zhana: Black History Month and the Month of Nonviolence

Unfortunately, this is a very, very sad time.  I am beginning the Blogging Carnival for Nonviolence on a tragic note, once again.  

My guests on today's show were Dr. Lynne Muhammad, founder of the STREAM Labs, and Pastor Charetta Hodge, who is on the ministerial staff of Christhood International Ministries of St. Louis.  Both of my guests attended the recent HWPL Peace Summit in South Korea, as did my Executive Producer Naimah Latif.  

TRIGGER WARNING:  We talked about two extremely violent incidents which recently occurred in South London, and strategies for preventing these types of attacks in future. 

Go here to listen.  

To correct what was said there, 15-year-old Elianne Andam was killed when she intervened in an attack on a friend of hers by the friend's ex. 

Go here for a blog post on domestic violence.  

Go here for my conversation with Mercy Makinde on her experience of escapiing domestic violence.  

Go here for more from the Blogging Carnival for Nonviolence 2023.  

October is Black History Month here in the UK. And it is also the annual Month of Nonviolence which is held by Black Women for Positive Change, and is open to EVERYONE. And that means this is month is the annual Blogging Carnival for Nonviolence. So stay tuned for all the blogs I’ll be publishing this month.  The link for the Blogging Carnival for Nonviolence 2023 is above.

 What are your thoughts?  Please share this with your networks and please comment below.   

The KKK in Colorado

 

According to this short film, the Ku Klux Klan have infiltrated all areas of public life in Colorado, including politics, education and health.  This has been going on for many years.  Who knew?

Far-right white supremacist groups are on the rise in the U.S.A.  

While it is important to be aware of this, it is more important for us to dwell on the positives.  The Law of Increase states that whatever we dwell on increases.  Whatever we focus on expands.  Therefore, we need to focus on our own power.  

Those of us who are conscious frequently dwell on the negatives, on our history, which is full of trauma and has been for the past 500 years.  But we are a glorious people.  Our history need not define us or our future. 

The world reflects our thoughts, feelings and emotions.  If we dwell on the positives and what we are striving to achieve, nothing and no one can hold us back.  

See also:  How to Get the Results We Want.  

Please share this with your networks.  

What are you focusing on right now - the negatives or the positives?  Please post below.  

The Black History of Oppenheimer

The recent film Oppenheimer is guilty of one crucial omission:  the involvement of people of the Congo in the development of the atomic bomb.  

As is well known, the Congolese were forced to harvest rubber after the country was made the private estate of King Leopold of Belgium.  They were subjected to amputations if they failed to meet their quotas, as well as other horrific punishments.  I talked about this history here.  

What is probably less known is that the Congolese were also used to mine the uranium which Oppenheimer used to create the first atomic bombs. The highest quality uranium in the world came from Congo.  This was a top-secret operations in which the workers were exploited.  

As the author says, "I kept seeing what was missing: Black miners hauling earth and stone to sort piles of radioactive ore by hand".    Go here to read more. 

Go here for more African history blog posts.  

Were you aware of the role Congo played in the creation of the atomic first bomb?  Please comment below, and please share this with your networks.  Thanks.  

 

5 Things People Still Get Wrong about Slavery

African American Freedom Fighters

I've just seen this very interesting article about slavery misconceptions.  I know that in school, children used to be taught that the enslaved were docile and "happy on the plantation".  But does this belief still persist today?  Please post your thoughts in the comments section below.  

I am delighted that Brother Tony Warner of London Black History Walks will be joining me as my guest on my Success Strategies podcast/online radio show on 4th March.  Please join us for this show, as I am sure he will be dropping many, many fascinating Black history facts and telling us about his new book, Black History Walks in London Volume 1.  

Plus go here for loads more Black history blog posts.  

See also:  The Breathtaking Courage of Harriet Tubman.  

See also:  The Legacy of Violence of the British Empire. 

Please share this with your networks.  

What was your most surprising or unusual Black history fact?  Please comment below.