Negro Digest - Freedom Archives

change in motive . The new black thing was clearly a case involving a
change of style and the so-called Negro teachers recognized this . One
might think that they would have immediately called a conference (as
they so hurriedly have for a thousand other reasons) to warn the students
that they were dealing with style instead of substance . But no, for obvious
reasons this was not in the cards . What did occur instead was that-
PRESTO!-hundreds of so-called Negro teachers suddenly became
BLACK INSTRUCTORS . Out the window went Murray's, Tuxedo,
Royal Crown and straightening combs . The buba business had a new
market ; books dealing AROUND black folks were rushed into print ;
course outlines were developed (others were borrowed, sold or stolen) ;
and letters and circulars carried the good tidings of JOBS FOR BLACK
INSTRUCTORS! ! The students were told to "keep on pushin' ." When
schools were not sending out such letters and circulars, various other
"programs" were . The entire country is now literally crawling with
"black programs .-" And everywhere the end result is division and confusion
. But we face an even greater danger .
What must be one of the greatest dangers we now face-if not THE
greatest danger-is the obvious creation of a class of opportunists who
are determined to make off Black Studies what Texas millionaires have
made off oil . In common parlance, I would call them "hustlers ." Like
the story of the ship at sea without fresh water, we are fast approaching
a situation where there will be "black experts" everywhere and not a drop
of expertise . This, Brother Harding, is what many of us are presently
"in league" with . And it is a league that we must break with very soon
if we are ever to have our own .
On many occasions the central issue in our struggles with white administrators
has been that of "autonomy ." And in most cases we have
not gotten it, although in many cases they have acquiesced in such a
manner as to offer the illusion that we have gotten it . This is of the
utmost importance in assessing fully the danger of the aforementioned
problem . Because we do not have autonomy over the "programs" we
are creating, quite often when we discover that we have a "dud" on our
hands (which may be the whole program or someone in it) we are unable
to get rid of it/them . This, of course, is very risky monster-making and
has considerably stiffened the demand for "self determination ."
There is yet another unseen danger in trying to operate without the
NEGRO DIGEST Morch 1970 6~