Editorial: Consciousness?

Abstract

Funny enough, I’m no longer “conscious” of when we decided to make this the theme of our fourth issue of PROUD FLESH: “Consciousness?” The question mark and quotation marks are essential. “Consciousness” is a problem. The Black Consciousness Movement of earlier years recognized that our mental landscapes were a battlefield, thanks to slavery, colonialism, racism or white-supremacy, neo-slavery and neo-colonialism. But this movement for Black Consciousness was actively and intimately associated with that movement for Black Power, concrete and practical Black Liberation, anti-imperialist De-Colonization, etc. Today, however, when certain, too many people speak of “consciousness,” out there, there is no action implied--let alone militancy. For them, it is only a state of mind, somewhat of a mirage devoid of bodies, masses and certainly militants.