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[Brainwashed: Challenging the Myth of Black Inferiority] [By: Burrell, Tom] [February, 2010]
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May 18, 2024
AN ADVERTISING/COMMUNICATIONS SPECIALIST LOOKS PERCEPTIVELY AT THINGS
Thomas J. "Tom" Burrell is founder and chairman emeritus of Burrell Communications, an advertising firm. He wrote in the Introduction to this 2010 book, “These pages examine the roots of why, more than 140 years after the Emancipation Proclamation, so many of us still think like slaves. I interviewed and incorporated the thoughts and experiences of many people throughout this book… In [this book], we will question why we still think so little of ourselves… why our one-time civil rights, business, and political heroes succumb to ‘crabbin’ and backstabbin’,’ and why we, all too often, avoid critical thinking about any of this. This book examines our subconscious perpetuation of the myth of black inferiority by asking these fundamental questions: *Why can’t we build strong families? *Why do we perpetuate black sexual stereotypes? *Why are ‘black’ and ‘beauty’ still contradictions? *Why do we keep killing each other? *Why are we killing ourselves? *Why can’t we stop shopping? *Why do we expect so little of each other---and ourselves? *Why do we give up our power so willingly? *Why can’t we stick and stay together? *Why is the joke always on us?” (Pg. xvi)
In the first chapter, he states, “though black progress is more visible today than ever before, I maintain that the unwritten, audacious promotion of white superiority and black propaganda campaign in the history of the world. African Americans, no matter how savvy, educated, or financially privileged, could not completely avoid the conditioning that resulted from increasingly sophisticated bombardment of subtle and not-so-subtle messages created to reinforce how different and inherently inferior blacks are when compared to whites.” (Pg. 5)
He notes, “We now know that many of the 24/7 news accounts of black-on-black sniper attacks, mass murders, and the rape of women and babies were largely unfounded. What influenced seasoned journalists, policemen, and emergency workers to initially sidestep humanity and propagate exaggerated accounts of black crime? Again, media propaganda… In short, we were brainwashed.” (Pg. 11)
He recounts, “Blacks in modern-day urban areas have seen a world of changes that were not necessarily of their making. As industrial jobs began disappearing from cities, many black men found themselves back in positions of economic helplessness, without the kinds of jobs that allowed a man to support a family. To survive, many families turned to the government’s welfare system for sustenance.” (Pg. 31)
He suggests, “Too many black men … living up to the expectation that they are irresponsible, take pride in making babies knowing they can leave without stressing about the outcome of their actions… Vulnerable black daughters seeking love and validation from the first man in their lives are often left to fend for themselves, relying on their mothers or society to define black manhood for them… the girls are saddled with feelings of disillusionment and disappointment in black men that often becomes a permanent fixture of their psyches. On the other end… many black women have been brainwashed to be active enablers of irresponsible men, supporting the unhealthy behavior of their mates, leading to future relations fraught with unnecessary drama.” (Pg. 32)
He observes, “For most of our history in the New World, we openly coveted light skin and straight hair. Today, the pinnacles of black female beauty remain almost white-looking. It is disturbingly telling that the long weave seems to be a prerequisite for black singers, actors, and models… The color grading and class stratification structure intensified under the plantation system. Division among slaves was aggravated by the privileges some slavemasters awarded to their light-skinned offspring… the known fact that they were spawns of the perceived superior race solidified… skin color as an indicator of status on the plantations.” (Pg. 70)
He wonders, “It seems we are mor consumed with how whites treat us and less concerned… about how we treat each other. Could it be because many blacks are so convinced that white people are superior and therefore their opinions of us, and actions toward us, are more important than our actions and opinions of ourselves?” (Pg. 92)
He says, “The message that black men are America’s demons is peddled relentlessly on the nightly news and crime shows, and through entertainment media. These messages hit black boys everywhere---on the basketball court, in the schoolyard, and when they gather on the street. Negative media reinforcements not only influence how cops, judges, employers, and others view black males, they affect how young blacks view themselves.” (Pg. 99)
He points out, “Because of the psychic deficit caused by a race-based self-esteem deficiency, we are sitting ducks for mass media’s version of consumer education: Buy, buy, buy… Just as we believed in the promise of freedom, and the promise of equality, we also respond to commercial promises of self-worth through consumerism. We will continue thinking we can overcompensate for our blackness if we drive certain cars, wear certain outfits, or drink certain expensive liquors. Until we break free of the conditioning, we will proceed as programmed.” (Pg. 154)
He acknowledges, “Perhaps in no other era has the African American story seen so many twists, dead ends, and sinkholes than in the dominion of education… no other discussion makes African Americans as uncomfortable as the topic of why our children lag so far behind the children of other races… For several decades, educators, policymakers, and parents alike have posited theories, initiated programs, clamored for funding, leveled charges of racism, and blamed parents and teachers, blamed the schools, blamed poverty, fatherlessness, or rap music. Meanwhile, the numbers haven’t budged… We have to face the facts: African Americans are the worst students in the country. On every measure used to assess student performance, statistical and anecdotal, the level of black underachievement is stunning.” (Pg. 163-164)
He posits, “In the 21st century, the problem for African Americans has less to do with blatant racism than with its imprint on our psyches. We’ve been brainwashed to internalize the myth of inferiority and have not yet wrested our image from the original mythmakers. The Massa’s gift of religion wasn’t to empower but to contain, to keep the slave’s attention heavenward.” (Pg. 190)
He observes, “When it comes to attacking the inner beast---the self-hatred, low self-esteem, and helplessness that fuels the nation’s disproportionately high black dropout, crime, and poverty rates---traditional black organizations seem woefully stuck in an antiquated model. Furthermore, the sustainability of many of these black organizations depends on multiracial, well-endowed external sources, which limits their scope and their influence.” (Pg. 197)
He states, “Crabbin’ and backstabbin’ are as much a part of our everyday conversations as they are fixtures in our comedy routines… It’s the full impact of the reflex that many blacks expect the worst from one another, harbor intense jealousy, and go to great lengths to sabotage their own. Just ask yourself: how many times have you encountered a black supervisor who was harder on black employees than his white charges, or was more disrespectful to blacks than any white boss… Has a black friend or relative ever announced that they had to find a white lawyer, doctor, or plumber because they didn’t trust blacks in those professions?” (Pg. 209)
He concludes, “The anti-BI [Black Inferiority] campaign is not an attack on white people---they, too, are BI victims… This is a call to coalesce, unify, improve, and end a detrimental campaign that has gone unrecognized and unaddressed for too long… I believe that once we change the image of ourselves, we will change the image of humanity, and subsequently deflate debilitating power structure. We will blaze a new path of unlimited possibilities for future generations free of the BI influence. These is no better time, no better opportunity, than now.” (Pg. 272)
This thought-provoking book will be of great interest to anyone concerned with African-American issues.
Thomas J. "Tom" Burrell is founder and chairman emeritus of Burrell Communications, an advertising firm. He wrote in the Introduction to this 2010 book, “These pages examine the roots of why, more than 140 years after the Emancipation Proclamation, so many of us still think like slaves. I interviewed and incorporated the thoughts and experiences of many people throughout this book… In [this book], we will question why we still think so little of ourselves… why our one-time civil rights, business, and political heroes succumb to ‘crabbin’ and backstabbin’,’ and why we, all too often, avoid critical thinking about any of this. This book examines our subconscious perpetuation of the myth of black inferiority by asking these fundamental questions: *Why can’t we build strong families? *Why do we perpetuate black sexual stereotypes? *Why are ‘black’ and ‘beauty’ still contradictions? *Why do we keep killing each other? *Why are we killing ourselves? *Why can’t we stop shopping? *Why do we expect so little of each other---and ourselves? *Why do we give up our power so willingly? *Why can’t we stick and stay together? *Why is the joke always on us?” (Pg. xvi)
In the first chapter, he states, “though black progress is more visible today than ever before, I maintain that the unwritten, audacious promotion of white superiority and black propaganda campaign in the history of the world. African Americans, no matter how savvy, educated, or financially privileged, could not completely avoid the conditioning that resulted from increasingly sophisticated bombardment of subtle and not-so-subtle messages created to reinforce how different and inherently inferior blacks are when compared to whites.” (Pg. 5)
He notes, “We now know that many of the 24/7 news accounts of black-on-black sniper attacks, mass murders, and the rape of women and babies were largely unfounded. What influenced seasoned journalists, policemen, and emergency workers to initially sidestep humanity and propagate exaggerated accounts of black crime? Again, media propaganda… In short, we were brainwashed.” (Pg. 11)
He recounts, “Blacks in modern-day urban areas have seen a world of changes that were not necessarily of their making. As industrial jobs began disappearing from cities, many black men found themselves back in positions of economic helplessness, without the kinds of jobs that allowed a man to support a family. To survive, many families turned to the government’s welfare system for sustenance.” (Pg. 31)
He suggests, “Too many black men … living up to the expectation that they are irresponsible, take pride in making babies knowing they can leave without stressing about the outcome of their actions… Vulnerable black daughters seeking love and validation from the first man in their lives are often left to fend for themselves, relying on their mothers or society to define black manhood for them… the girls are saddled with feelings of disillusionment and disappointment in black men that often becomes a permanent fixture of their psyches. On the other end… many black women have been brainwashed to be active enablers of irresponsible men, supporting the unhealthy behavior of their mates, leading to future relations fraught with unnecessary drama.” (Pg. 32)
He observes, “For most of our history in the New World, we openly coveted light skin and straight hair. Today, the pinnacles of black female beauty remain almost white-looking. It is disturbingly telling that the long weave seems to be a prerequisite for black singers, actors, and models… The color grading and class stratification structure intensified under the plantation system. Division among slaves was aggravated by the privileges some slavemasters awarded to their light-skinned offspring… the known fact that they were spawns of the perceived superior race solidified… skin color as an indicator of status on the plantations.” (Pg. 70)
He wonders, “It seems we are mor consumed with how whites treat us and less concerned… about how we treat each other. Could it be because many blacks are so convinced that white people are superior and therefore their opinions of us, and actions toward us, are more important than our actions and opinions of ourselves?” (Pg. 92)
He says, “The message that black men are America’s demons is peddled relentlessly on the nightly news and crime shows, and through entertainment media. These messages hit black boys everywhere---on the basketball court, in the schoolyard, and when they gather on the street. Negative media reinforcements not only influence how cops, judges, employers, and others view black males, they affect how young blacks view themselves.” (Pg. 99)
He points out, “Because of the psychic deficit caused by a race-based self-esteem deficiency, we are sitting ducks for mass media’s version of consumer education: Buy, buy, buy… Just as we believed in the promise of freedom, and the promise of equality, we also respond to commercial promises of self-worth through consumerism. We will continue thinking we can overcompensate for our blackness if we drive certain cars, wear certain outfits, or drink certain expensive liquors. Until we break free of the conditioning, we will proceed as programmed.” (Pg. 154)
He acknowledges, “Perhaps in no other era has the African American story seen so many twists, dead ends, and sinkholes than in the dominion of education… no other discussion makes African Americans as uncomfortable as the topic of why our children lag so far behind the children of other races… For several decades, educators, policymakers, and parents alike have posited theories, initiated programs, clamored for funding, leveled charges of racism, and blamed parents and teachers, blamed the schools, blamed poverty, fatherlessness, or rap music. Meanwhile, the numbers haven’t budged… We have to face the facts: African Americans are the worst students in the country. On every measure used to assess student performance, statistical and anecdotal, the level of black underachievement is stunning.” (Pg. 163-164)
He posits, “In the 21st century, the problem for African Americans has less to do with blatant racism than with its imprint on our psyches. We’ve been brainwashed to internalize the myth of inferiority and have not yet wrested our image from the original mythmakers. The Massa’s gift of religion wasn’t to empower but to contain, to keep the slave’s attention heavenward.” (Pg. 190)
He observes, “When it comes to attacking the inner beast---the self-hatred, low self-esteem, and helplessness that fuels the nation’s disproportionately high black dropout, crime, and poverty rates---traditional black organizations seem woefully stuck in an antiquated model. Furthermore, the sustainability of many of these black organizations depends on multiracial, well-endowed external sources, which limits their scope and their influence.” (Pg. 197)
He states, “Crabbin’ and backstabbin’ are as much a part of our everyday conversations as they are fixtures in our comedy routines… It’s the full impact of the reflex that many blacks expect the worst from one another, harbor intense jealousy, and go to great lengths to sabotage their own. Just ask yourself: how many times have you encountered a black supervisor who was harder on black employees than his white charges, or was more disrespectful to blacks than any white boss… Has a black friend or relative ever announced that they had to find a white lawyer, doctor, or plumber because they didn’t trust blacks in those professions?” (Pg. 209)
He concludes, “The anti-BI [Black Inferiority] campaign is not an attack on white people---they, too, are BI victims… This is a call to coalesce, unify, improve, and end a detrimental campaign that has gone unrecognized and unaddressed for too long… I believe that once we change the image of ourselves, we will change the image of humanity, and subsequently deflate debilitating power structure. We will blaze a new path of unlimited possibilities for future generations free of the BI influence. These is no better time, no better opportunity, than now.” (Pg. 272)
This thought-provoking book will be of great interest to anyone concerned with African-American issues.
Displaying 1 of 1 review