Friend 1: But still it’s clear as hell that we ain’t never seen a revolutionary black nationalism in Amerika.
Friend 2: That’s cause nationalism can’t be revolutionary. It always collapses on itself.
Friend 1: It’s not the nationalism itself that’s revolutionary nigga, but the process. It’s a step towards something more. Just what do you think black nationalism is?
Friend 2: Why have a revolutionary process if you don’t have revolutionary ends? Seems like a lot of niggas dying, for no reason. But niggas be obsessed with the struggle.
Friend 1: ‘Cause of the contradictions of capitalism. You can’t honestly believe everything will be resolved in one fell swoop! And ain’t you always going on about how “nothing ever ends?”
Friend 2: There ain’t never been nobody who worked out the contradictions. Resolving capitalism wouldn’t resolve patriarchy, colorism, transphobia. Look at the independence and national liberation movements in Africa in the 20th century.
Friend 1: You bitin’ off too much nigga. Just cause ain’t no one worked it out yet don’t mean we can’t. Those were revolutionary movements you know, but neocolonialism set in. They cut off the head in the wrong place and the beast grew right back but with black skin.
Friend 2: That’s what I’m saying. You think you killed colonialism and then here comes creepin’ ass neocolonialism. There’s a lot of different kinds of black nationalisms anyway. Historically. So I don’t even know which one you talking about. Elijah Muhammad of the Nation of Islam was working out a deal with the KKK to give blacks their own land once upon a time. And–
Friend 1: You know damn well that ain’t no revolutionary black nationalism.
Friend 2: Sure, sure. But to go back to Africa. I see why they rose up and took back their land. You had settlers coming in from the shores, the people that enslaved folks from your land, inhabiting your land, controlling your resources, plundering the shit out of everything. That makes sense. But Amerika ain’t our land. This land don’t belong to us.
Friend 1: At what point does a piece of land become someone’s?
Friend 2: When you have the necessary power to sustain ownership over that land.
Friend 1: Right. So following that, this ain’t indigenous land anymore. It’s the white man’s land, but if all the niggas rose up, this would be our land.
Friend 2: And what about indigenous people?
Friend 1: So you think after we take this land, we should just give indigenous people some of it? What they ever do for us? You ever seen them niggas out there with us in the streets?
Friend 2: You can’t give what ain’t yours to take.
Friend 1: Tell that to white folks.
Friend 2: As it concerns land, the people indigenous to this land should be the ones doing that revolutionary nationalist shit, and black folks, finding common enemy in white people and US empire, should support that shit any way we can. Plain and simple.
Friend 1: And what happens after they take back their land? They ship us back off to Africa with UPS? So we can be a parasite to the African societies who hates the shit out of our American asses? Or do they allow us to stay here, so we can be ruled by a new antiblack Native regime? You ain’t convincing me much for nothing, nigga.
Friend 2: Nigga, you the one who talked about contradictions.
Friend 1: Yea, you right.