It is now 2015 in Florida, and the Black community appears lethargic, apathetic, and not interested in their condition or state. If we listen to Governor Scott, our state has low unemployment numbers, businesses are hiring, and the residents feel good about the state’s economy. This year there will be a one billion dollar surplus in the treasury, and our political leaders are putting together ideas on how they will spend this extra cash windfall.
But when our leaders and politicians go into the Black community more people cannot pay their electric bills, cannot afford to buy food, and mental illness, violence and drug abuse is running rampant. In the Black community 50% of the Black men are unemployed, and 60% of Black youth do not have jobs. Many Black women in the ghetto support their entire family with their small checks that they receive from Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF), Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC), Food and Nutrition Program (SNAP), and Supplemental Security Income (SSI).
With Governor Scott and the Republicans controlling the budget and purse strings, poor people, Blacks, seniors, Hispanics and single women must get ready for a cut in basic services and state benefits. As basic services are cut in Florida, it will become imperative that Blacks and poor people began to depend on each other for their survival.
2015 will be a year of action, because Black churches and civic organizations will play a significant role in the life of our community. The young people in the Black community in Florida are angry, and they will start to organize and mobilize the community. Many of our political leaders are corrupt, so young Blacks understand there is a need for change, and the different organizations in our community must collaborate to make a difference.
In 2015, Black men in Florida must begin to step up to the plate, and change inappropriate behavior. Black men and women must begin to love each other and take care of our children. It is time for Black people to hold their political representatives accountable to their job and replace them if they are not speaking and voting for our community.
Across the state, Blacks must sit down, and begin to create an independent political party in 2015. In the election of 2014, the Democratic Party proved that they did not believe in supporting Blacks candidates in Florida with funding. Blacks should no longer beg the leadership in the Democratic Party to fund their candidates, and we should support our own. There are 2.3 million Black Folks registered to vote, and we should force both parties to ask for our vote, and we should make the decision.
In Florida Black economics 101, Black people must work to keep the Black dollar circulating in our community at least four times. We need manufacturing plants, more Black businesses in the Black community, and we should hold our representatives accountable to help make this happen.
Finally, Blacks in Florida must first prove to themselves that they are not obsolete in 2015, by getting involved in the improvement of themselves, and our community. Blacks must start in 2015 to become producers, if we plan to survive as a powerful force in Florida and America.
