Chapter - Help Self before Helping Others
Many of my people, the so-called Negroes, say we should help the nations of Africa which are awakening. This has been said as if we owned America. We are so foolish! What part of America do you have that you can offer toward helping Africa? Who is independent, the nations of Africa or we?
The best act would be to request the independent governments of Africa and Asia to help us. We are the ones who need help. We have little or nothing to offer as help to others. We should begin to help at home first.
We are 20 million strong. Many of the nations today that have their independence, and those who are getting their independence, are much smaller in number than my people in America. We are dependent on the slave-master. We do not have 2 feet of earth for our nation of people. You and I, here in America, are licking the boots of the slave-master, begging him for the right of independent people. Yes, we are licking his boots. "Sir, let me shine your shoes?" You have been doing that for approximately 400 hundred years. Today, if one rises up in your midst and says, "We should not lick the slave-master’s boots, we should lick our own boots," you would say, "He should be killed! He should be killed because he is teaching us to hate." My people, you are in a dangerous position. Get that fear out of you and stand up for your people! Who are you not to die for your people? Who am I not to die for my people! If I am shot down or cut down today, who is little Elijah Muhammad to 20 million of you! If a million of us throw ourselves in the fire for the benefit of the 20 million, the loss would be small compared to the great gain our people will make as a result of that sacrifice. Hundreds of thousands of Muslims gave their lives in Pakistan to get their nation’s independence. They were successful. The black men in Africa are fighting and dying today in unity for their independence.
We sit here like pampered babies. We cannot even stand on the floor, not to mention taking a chance of crawling out of the door. We are too careful of shedding blood for ourselves. We are willing to shed all of it for the benefit of others. I am not trying to get you to fight. That is not even necessary; our unity will win the battle! Not one of us will have to raise a sword. Not one gun would we need to fire. The great cannon that will be fired is our unity. Our unity is the best. Why are you afraid to unite? Why are you afraid to accept Allah and Islam?
It is only because the slave-master did not teach you of this! We unite to ourselves as a nation of people.
Separation of the so-called Negroes from their slave-master’s children is a MUST. It is the only solution to our problem.
You must know that this is the time of our separation and the judgement of this world (the Caucasian), which you and I have known. Therefore, Allah has said to me that the time is ripe for you and me to accept our own, the whole planet earth. Are you waiting for the Divine Destruction? Come! Let us reason together. First, in order for us to reason, you must have a through knowledge of self. Who is going to teach you that knowledge of self? Who are you waiting for to teach you the knowledge of self? Surely, not your slave-master, who blinded you to that knowledge of self. The slave-master will not teach you the knowledge of self, as there would not be a master-slave relationship any longer.