On Personal Responsibility and Social Justice

West Indians (particularly Jamaicans) would come to the United States and have much greater success than Black Americans who had lived here for generations. My own conclusion and belief is that immigrants from the West Indies grow up in countries which may be poor or lacking in opportunities, but the social, political and economic structure is dominated by black people! There is no actual or psychological limit on how high a person can rise in that society based on skin color. They have no internalized limitation on what they feel they can have access to, or how many chances they will pursue to succeed, or how many opportunities they are entitled to. When they come to this country, they may experience racism and discrimination, but their own personal self-esteem and aspirations are not limited by a personal history of “racial socialization”.

I remember speaking with a college classmate during the Reagan years about some of the social issues affecting the Black community (homelessness, drug addiction, poverty). His response was “Who is looking out for me – I am working hard and paying my taxes. Who is trying to help me get ahead?” He said it with annoyance as if he was tired of hearing about the downtrodden who weren’t doing anything for themselves. My thought was that he is looking out for himself, because he is in a position to do so. He and I and others in our circumstances can look out for each other. We are linked to our communities and their situation in this country whether we like it or not.

I understand why Bill Cosby is beating the drum for personal responsibility, and he is taking his message directly to inner city communities. I have listened to Michael Eric Dyson and read some of his work and I do agree with his analysis – there are powerful economic, social and political forces that are vested in keeping the Black community in its current state of economic subjugation and political impotence. When the movement for social justice for Black Americans is presented as the opposite of individual responsibility, that is a divisive political strategy which undermines our strength and coherence as a community.