II
o
'1
IDde.peodent Black poli tics
m t be t the cutti ng edge of
tbe drive to create a ne
ociety. African in America
ill never be free in the fullest
ense of the word until
America ha been trans­
formed.
Indeed improving the
plight of people of color and
poor people in cneral in this
society a well a po itively
changing th condition of mil­
lion of people in Africa nd
the Third WorhJ i� highly de­
pendent on Ihe r' dical and
fundemcnt I transformation
of America.
, African in America must
work 10 en ure thai "we the
people" con truer a genuine
and viable economic and
politic I democracy in this
country.
TO ACHIEVE THAT
goal African Americans nd
their allie m t be prepared
for a protracted nd often
dangerous struggle; a struggle
in which the peopl who are
committed to social tmasfor­
m tion m t b equipped to
utilize a range of trategie
and tactics.
Throu bout the 60s and 7
progre ive ctivi ts w ged a
r lenrle baule to broaden
n
B1 W t"·.I1_
Dr. Glady Brame, director
of public heal tb for manatee
County in outh est Florida.
.b a b chclor ' de rce, two
ier' degree. a doctorate,
nd a medical degree. Seeing
. all tho e degree, after her
name you might think he
gre up in middle-clas
home here education fit
comfonably within the flmily
lifestyle and budget, But
you'd be wrong.
Dr. Branie rew up in' a
de perately poor single­
parent fami Iy in rural South
elro ina. As a child he wa
told sbe ould never amount
nytbing, that she would have •
I b by or two before she wa
, ut of ber teen ,
Her high school principal
told r he wa too poor to go
to college even thougb he had
eceived a government loan,
and refu ed to rite her a
recommendation for a job to
pay room and board. She
remembers saying "I'll find a
ay." And sbe did.
Where did young Glady -
bo e mothe'r upported three
cbildren on 52 ,a d y ho
yany�ean
tbe scope of politics and
political tugJe bcyo elec-
toral poli . cs. I
Progre ive ctivi t ar­
gued t t any Slra IY or t c­
tic used by aD oppre sed
people to c· e goal of
freedom and liberation rrom
oppression i political.
IDdependeDt Black politics
as it evolved in 60's and
70's refused to accept the
notion tbat electio = power.
In tead pe nt Blac
politi� dvaocecl t concept
that community ihzation
and communi ty organization:
community develop nt and
institution develop nt; and
electoral politics and lobby­
ing are among rhe broad
strategies bich must be
utilized to dvance tbe strug­
gle for t liberation of Black
people and the creation of a
new ociety.
U DE STOOD ROM
tbis . perspective. poliucs
neces arily i 1 protests
and electie .
Developin, co muni ty
develop nt torporatio 10
harness the ceo . poten-
tial of Afric:an ri a
ell t b'l i of inde-
peodenl ed abO 1 i titu­
tions to provide an
Abo-ce tric ed liOD and
ater,
teeDa
, child 'I
make more of
tbe skills 10 develop and
streDllben the Black com­
m 'ty· political.
obilizing a mass
demonstration to figbt for
job' and justice is political.
Using civil disobedience to
defy unjust laws or 10 promote
civil rights and human rights
is political. A boycott is politi­
cal. A pic et line is political.
,The struggle I
to create a new
society.
Therefore
political
organizers
',shoUld always
vI w political
education for
the m,_sses of
the peopl a an
Integral nd
Indl pensable
component of
th organizing
proc
When all el e fails arid people
explode in defiance and rebel-
cial or from UCLA.
Eventuall y he became
director of the Internalional
Center for Health Science at
,Meharry Medical College in
Na ville, here she be ded
traimDI program (or African
nurses and conducted
orts ps throug u Arrica.
Botb re an in Arrica
people a omed seas a
medical doctor and I ked ber
to elp iD clinics. Altbough
she tried to explain that
Isn't qualified, people
tbought she ju t didn't want to
help. Tbat troubled her, ho
says. ·So at tbe age or 35 I
said to my elr, 'Why not do
so thing about it?·
IT WASN'T F..ASY with a
youn son and a full-time job.
First sbe had to go to night
cbool tOlake chemistry and
pbysics. During medical
sc 001 Dr Brlnic eparated
ero ber busband, and money
was scarce. "One day I ent to
the refrigerator and I literally
had DO food,· say Dr. Branic.
·1 b d to go to the police
tation for food." And tbere
lion, tbal too
"Freedom by
necessary.·
The crucial
of tbe use political
stra.tegies is to ke p the objec­
tive/misson of p Iitica! strug­
gle in roc .
The struggle i to create a
ne SOCiety. The (ore politi­
cal organizers h uld always
view political e ucation for
tbe m se of tbe eople an
integral and in ispensabte
component of tb organizing
process.
, It is imperati e to keep
before the peopl the flaw
and contr diction within the
sy tem aDd to pro ect the go I
of creating a so iety as the
remedy bicb wi 1 d�livet on
tbe promise of a tier life fo,
the masses of the eople.
I do not mean to diminish
the important 0 electoral
politics, but rat r to place
electoral pelitic n it proper
perspective.
that Arricans i America
achieved bistoriQlIy, inc 00-
ing the gli won in the 'vi
Rights Revolution"'of tbe 60s
and 70s, were on tbrougb the
use of vario form of c m­
mumty struggle I and prote l
politics.
D
BRANIC also make
I.
. oman . who never a�
were Ii duriag ber iDter!.
n hip ,aDd resideacy when sbe
as on call 40 bours at a time.
Yet. say. Dr. Branic, tbere
ere alwlYs mentor bo
"took me under tbeir ing
and belped e througb tbe
toup Ii •
After tbose. bard years, pro
Bra· 'Ibt ve decide� to
et up a I rative privlte prac­
tice. B t • e did 'to be
ch� i te d to serve p or
orking families witbout
medical care.
As Mlnltee County's
healtb director, Dr. BraDic is
orkin to eatabli b a DeW n­
digent bealtb care plan
financed 'by tbe intere t on an
unused county t t fund.
She ba begun a wal ·in
hult clinic, a program of
"baby bo en- to encour ge
pregDant women to star.
prenatal care early, a pro�m
to care for b bi born w th
AIDS, IDCI I be lib informa­
tion e'rvice tblt travel
around abe county in a van to.
erve the bard-to-reach.
Indeed an overdependence
. on electroal politics to the ex­
clusion of non-electoral (orms
of politic can be counter­
productive.
Community mobilization,
i nsti tu tional development,
electoral politics and lobby­
ing, all of these broad
strategic mu tbe employed
in t fight to liberate Black
people and oppressed
humanity. And all of t ese
strategies must be aimed at tbe
arne Objective - tbe .tran -
formation of America and the
creauon of a new ociety.
Malcolm X wa right, its'
"freedom by any mea neces­
sary.
Ron Daniels serves as
Presideni ollhe lIutuMle lor
Co",,,,ullity Orlllllalioll IIl1tl
De elop",elll ill YOtIIIISIOWII,
Ohio� He ",IIY be COlli cted III
(216) 746-5747.
I .
can't
time to tllk to youDg ters
growing up in tbe ame kinds
of circumstance she Jme
a chil . "I tell them they have
choic� . They don't have to,
give into expectation tbat
they can't change their live ,.
she sa .
"But I also warn tbem tbere
will be failures. It' important
to see posi tive lesson in our
failures. ) often tell the tory
of the Army officer ho aid
he w 10 ing a battle, 'We're
not re reating; we're advanc­
ing in he other direction for a
while. "
MarilUl Wright Edel",1UI is
president 0/ Ihe Childrell's
De/ellSt! FUlld, a lIatiolllll
voice lor childrell.