Are You "Conscious"?


Let me begin by informing you that I picked up "La-La means I love you: The best of the Delfonics", and I'm going to strongly suggest that you do the same. Do not pass go, do not collect $200 dollars! (Full Disclosure: I'm from Philly and I think that Philly Soul was the best thing to ever happen to R&B since they invented the microphone). If you can't set the mood with that, then the mood ain't in you (or you don't have any magnetic).

Now that we've gotten that out of the way, let me ask a question: Are you conscious?

I'll wage a dollar to a dime that most who read this blog will answer "yes" or "indeed so". When we think of the term, we usually associate it with knowing that Jesus wasn't white, being aware of the "African-American" presidents, or being able to wax eloquently about the Kemetian contribution to science, religion, and culture. Now, please allow me to raise the stakes: Let's say that you being "conscious" was predicated on you correctly answering the following three questions:

1. What is the Laffer Curve?
2. What is the Median home price in your area? Has it gone up or down in the last 3 years? By how much?
3. Who are the top 5 oil producing countries in the world? (For extra credit: what percentage of the world's oil supply does the United States consume)

After thinking about them, would you still be "conscious"? I will that 90% say "yes" or "indeed so". Unfortunately, from my personal experiences as well as reports on the financial and business literacy of Black & Brown communities in this country, the answer is mostly no. Individual and collective ignorance on these issues directly impacts the quality of life for our people all over the planet. You can talk about melanin all you want, b.u.t. if you're not aware and well informed about the state of the global economy, then you're not totally "conscious". Moreover, you are dooming those you know less than you to not be able to see the larger picture and how it affects them on a day to day level.

In order to make comprehensive change, consciousness has to be a wholistic framework, not one that includes what we want to know about, and excludes that which we perceive as "white" (As if original people didn't create economics and politics) or "devilish" (Which is scarier because it infers that we're afraid to confront the oppressor on any level that we see them). We have to be informed and have a perspective on every science that impacts our quality of life.

As a add-on, I suggest that you check out "The Undercover Economist" by Tin Hartford. It takes very complicated concepts and explains them in a simple way. For the babies, you can google "economics for children", and get access to info that can teach them about money.