I’ve been thinking a lot about how systems of oppression are fundamentally value systems… that is, the ways things are set up tell us who to value and who to devalue, who is valuable and who is worthless. Take white supremacy/racism for instance..white people are valuable, black people and other people of color are worthless. Or adultism – young people’s ideas, contributions, and very beings are devalued in relation to adults. Same with heterosexism..if you are straight, you are valuable. if you ain’t you worthless. You don’t even deserve to live.
Once we devalue people, once we devalue ourselves, once we devalue the communities and groups we are a part of or that others belong to, we buy into the disrespect, disempowerment, harm, and oppression that is part of being in a devalued group. We come to believe that the devalued (including ourselves) are not worthy of power, respect, protection, safety and in its most basest form, even life itself.
Violence and oppression are therefore, not only connected to systems of power and control, but also systems of value.
Within these systems, certain kinds of capital, characteristics or contributions can”buy” us some measure of value, although a temporary variety. For example, some Asians are seen as more intelligent and thus the “model minority, more valuable than other people of color, Black people (and other people of color) with lighter skin are often seen as more beautiful than darker-skinned people and thus seen as more worthy… Likewise, if you’re a black boy but you can ball.., if you got a lot of money….you see what I mean. These kinds of things seemingly add more value, but only a temporary and rather artificial variety.
And so I was really excited to discover this piece by Mos Def, in which he is also talking about how we see ourselves and how we value ourselves. Mos Def says that we will change for the better when we understand our value. I most definitely agree with the brotha. Yeah, it seems so simple and so obvious, but i do think we need to remind ourselves this all of the time and really think about what it means for how we live out our lives for ourselves and one another.
How do we build this knowledge of valuing people into our everyday lives and our movements for justice, freedom and peace?
And, Mos Def so importantly emphasizes that it is God who makes us valuable. We have to emphasize this too, that it is God who makes us valuable and we honor God when we appreciate and honor the value in ourselves and others. We cannot know this kind of deep value that has nothing to do with what we are wearing, or how we look, or where we live, or what we’ve been through apart from knowing that God has made us valuable no matter what!!
Here’s the words:
Listen.. people be askin me all the time,
“Yo Mos, what’s gettin ready to happen with Hip-Hop?”
(Where do you think Hip-Hop is goin?)
I tell em, “You know what’s gonna happen with Hip-Hop?
Whatever’s happening with us”
If we smoked out, Hip-Hop is gonna be smoked out
If we doin alright, Hip-Hop is gonna be doin alright
People talk about Hip-Hop like it’s some giant livin in the hillside
comin down to visit the townspeople
We (are) Hip-Hop
Me, you, everybody, we are Hip-Hop
So Hip-Hop is goin where we goin
So the next time you ask yourself where Hip-Hop is goin
ask yourself.. where am I goin? How am I doin?
Til you get a clear idea
So.. if Hip-Hop is about the people
and the.. Hip-Hop won’t get better until the people get better
then how do people get better? (Hmmmm…)
Well, from my understanding people get better
when they start to understand that, they are valuable
And they not valuable because they got a whole lot of money
or cause somebody, think they sexy
but they valuable cause they been created by God
And God, makes you valuable
And whether or not you, recognize that value is one thing
You got a lot of societies and governments
tryin to be God, wishin that they were God
They wanna create satellites and cameras everywhere
and make you think they got the all-seein eye
Eh.. I guess The Last Poets wasn’t, too far off
when they said that certain people got a God Complex
I believe it’s true
I don’t get phased out by none of that, none of that
helicopters, the TV screens, the newscasters, the..
satellite dishes.. they just, wishin
They can’t really never do that
When they tell me to fear they law
When they tell me to try to
have some fear in my heart behind the things that they do
This is what I think in my mind
And this is what I say to them
And this is what I’m sayin, to you check it
All over the world hearts pound with the rhythm
Fear not of men because men must die
Mind over matter and soul before flesh
Angels for the pain keep a record in time
which is passin and runnin like a caravan freighter
The world is overrun with the wealthy and the wicked
But God is sufficient in disposin of affairs
Gunmen and stockholders try to merit my fear
But God is sufficient over plans they prepared
Mos Def in the flesh, where you at, right here
on this place called Earth, holdin down my square…
