LESSON 16
PROPAGANDA
(Relevant excerpts in the wake of the murder by torture of George Floyd)
“Propaganda means to propagate or to make known extensively some particular phase of human intelligence. The desire is to convert or influence the people to the acceptance of the truth of that particular intelligence that is sought to be spread among them.
Propaganda can be true or false in its origin or intent; but it is always directed at the public for the purpose of winning the support of that public to the sentiment expressed in the propaganda. If you hate a man, giving him a bad name well may explain one of the purposes of propaganda without truth behind it.
Nearly all organized efforts have a system of propaganda to convert people to their principles and get them to support them even though there may be no merit behind it all.
Propaganda is all around you; to make you buy a special brand of cigarettes, although no good, but advertised to be the best; to make you drink or use a certain brand of tea; telling you of its wonderful qualities and its everlasting benefits when thee is absolutely nothing to it, and so on.
Before the war of 1914-1918, the Germans were known to be the most cultured and scientific people in Europe. When the war started, the other nations in order to discredit the Germans and to hold them up to world ridicule and the contempt of civilization, released the propaganda that classified the Germans as Huns and barbarians. This also reveals how organized intention can be carried to the public for public acceptance without thought.
The press, cinema, pulpit, schoolroom are all propaganda agencies for one thing or the other. The pulpit carries religious propaganda, the schoolroom carries educational propaganda, the press carries out written propaganda, the platform carries on oral propaganda, the cinema carries out demonstrative propaganda. These methods have been devised by the white man to spread his ideas universally among men. That is why he is able in a major sense, to control the mind of the people of the world.
The white man is a great propagandist. He fully and completely realizes the value of propaganda. Therefore, you must organize your propaganda to undo the propaganda of other people; if their propaganda affects your interest. The bible is religious propaganda, the school book is literary propaganda. The novels and books you read are also literary propaganda, all calculated to bring about certain results beneficial to the propagandist.
Never forget then that you are surrounded by a world of propaganda, all dressed up or cooped up to suit a doubtful public that is not careful about what it digests from without. The artist is also a propagandist. He paints pictures to convey the idea he wants to impress upon the non-thinking and doubtful public. The sculptor is also a propagandist. He chisels figures and portrays them to suit the aims or purpose he wants to achieve. The pictures of the Madonna and Christ and of the angels are painted portraying the white race, so as ti inflict upon the rest of the world the belief that God, the angels and the Holy Family are all white, as well as Adam and Eve. Adam and Eve were black. They also paint the devil and the imps of hell black to impress upon the world the belief that all that is black is evil and all that is white is good and holy.
Tear from your walls, all pictures that glorify other races. Tear up and burn every bit of propaganda that does not carry your idea of things. Treat them as trash.
When you go to the cinema and you see the glorification of others in the pictures don’t accept it; don’t believe it to be true. Instead, visualize yourself achieving whatever is presented, and if possible, organize your propaganda to that effect. You should always match propaganda with propaganda.
Have your own newspapers, your own artists, your own sculptors, your own pulpits, your own platforms, print your own books and show your own motion pictures and sculpture your own subjects. Never accept as yours subjects of another race; but glorify all the good in yourselves. . . .
Watch the newspapers, magazines and journals daily for propaganda against your race or your institutions; particularly against the U.N.I.A. Rush into print immediately a defense of your race institutions and organizations from any attack. Never allow an insult propagated to go unanswered by you. Be ever vigilant to down anything by way of propaganda that dishonors or discredits you. Don’t help the other fellow carry on propaganda against yourself or your race. All propaganda comes from the arranged desire of individuals and not from a race as a whole. It is the thinkers and leaders who originate propaganda. By insisting on its wide distribution they get other people to think as they like.
Don’t accept the thoughts of others through propaganda, unless it coincides with yours. Don’t follow the band down the street because it plays sweet music to the propaganda of the circus manager. He may lead you into the circus tent and take away your pocketbook; that is to say, don’t get on anybody’s band wagon, because he may drive you to hell with his sweet music. Like the pied Piper of Hamlin, who played his sweet pipe and led the rats out of the city and into the sea and drowned them.
Propaganda organized by somebody else is always calculated to take advantage of you. Don’t help them do so. Always ask, what is this about? What is the object of this? Who has sent this out? What is he aiming at? Will it hurt me and my race? Is he trying to get an advantage over me? Is it honest? Is it true? If you ask these questions of all propaganda that comes up, before you swallow it, you will be able to take care of yourself. . . .
The idea of the white man making black a symbol of mourning and sadness is just to show the extreme of the purity of whiteness and it’s joy and happiness. Reverse this. If possible teach the Negro that when he is in mourning he should wear white, and when he is happy to wear black. This is meeting propaganda with propaganda, the hatchet with the hatchet, the stick with the stick and the stone with the stone. Everything on earth is man’s creation. So out of man’s propaganda and mind he has created his special systems of opinion to meet his designs.
Therefore, customs are based upon acceptance of propaganda skillfully engineered. Have your own propaganda and hand it down through the ages. . . . Write your own interpretation of the scriptures and history and teach them as far as the interpretation of others affect your race.
Challenge the thought of any book of other literature that dishonors or discredits you in any particular way; and give it the widest publicity so as to undo the harm intended. Remember, always, that an error not corrected ultimately becomes a fact. Never allow false statements or allegations against your race to become current and pass into history as if they were facts.
WAR
War is the hellish passion of man let loose in opposition to man. It sums up the cruelty of man towards man. It always aims at the stronger taking advantage of the weaker to gain that which could not have been acquired otherwise; because of the failure to use human reason. War comes when men fail to adjust their differences with reasoning.
Always be prepared for the exhibition of the vilest passions of men in war. Man has always warred against his fellow man. . . . No generation has shown that man intends to become wholly reasonable. Therefore, in time of peace, prepare for war, so as not to be caught unprepared by your enemy who will naturally be the stronger, if he is prepared while you are not prepared in using the implements of warfare. Was is not a good thing, but man is also not a good being. You must expect war from his disposition. All things are fair in war to win the advantage over your enemy.
When there is war, use all the implements at your disposal to defeat your enemy. Do not discuss terms while you are warring; discuss them after you are victorious. When war comes, all resources of intelligence and wealth, all utilities are placed at the service of those who conduct the war to make them victorious on behalf of those for whom they are warring. Therefore, have in view the obtaining and controlling of all such resources, factors and utilities that may be necessary as ammunitions of war.
There may be righteous wars as well as unrighteous wars; depending entirely upon the civilization that makes the war or defends itself in war. It may be war to put down human abuse in favor of human virtue. The war-makers have always justified war in some way or another. If you become engaged in a war, always have justification for your engagement.
If the war is not yours, get something out of it before you go into it and complete it for the good of others. Never go into war foolishly. Never sacrifice your life without good results for your cause. War is the best time to take advantage of your transgressor, whoever he may be. Whenever he is engaged in war and he promises you nothing, you will never get anything from him in time of peace. Therefore, during the time of war make your bargains before you help anybody else in war. If you are suffering from the abuses of others and there should be a threat of war against them from some other source, encourage it because it will be your chance to force a square deal. The more other people war among themselves, the stronger you become if you exercise good judgment.
Divide your enemies so as to gain your advantage. Always keep them divided so as to be able to gain the advantage. Your only hope of escaping the hate and prejudice of other people is to keep them severely occupied with other problems. If they have nothing else to attend to, they will concentrate on you and your problems will be aggravated.
While others have gone to war, try to be at peace among yourselves to gather the spoils of war. Never talk war openly to your enemies; but be prepared for war. If you talk it, they will become prepared waiting for you. Keep the other races divided and fighting each other as much as you can so as to take advantage for yourselves. . . .
