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The hot topic on everyone's lips in the USA at the moment is Amistad, the new Spielberg film.
 
A Brother was planning to do a preview of the film and asked members of the Black Power List to give him some pointers. He said:
 

"I'm previewing "Amistad" tomorrow - any questions for what you want me to
> look for in the film?
> send them as soon as possible"

----------------

I said to him:
 

Greetings Yemi, Brothers Sisters
Check whether the Africans are willing to sacrifice their lives for a European friend or a non-African ideology or religious concept. Since Spielberg is involved, I would expect that the African woman is betrayed and the African man is emasculated, even in their moment of glorious heroism. And of course, the good European man (or woman) saves the day. Look forward to reading your review. I hope you say I was way off course.

May the Ancestors guide and protect you on our way.
Love and Life.
SR

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His review didn't address directly any of the points I raised so the discussion raged on without me for a while - until I couldn't stand it any more. Under the heading: "Amistad - Financing Our Destruction", I wrote:

Greetings Brothers and Sisters
I think I must be going crazy (some would say I'm there already). What is going on? I am hearing people say negative things about this Spielberg film Amistad, and then telling them go and see it. Are the movies free in the USA nowadays? or is Amistad free to BPL members?

I do appreciate Yemi's very helpful review and all the comments from those Brothers and Sisters who responded but I will not discuss the content of the film because I have not seen it. However, judging by his review comments and questions, it would appear that this is not a film that I or any other African person should be paying to see. I am not saying I will not see it or African people should not see it. I am stating unequivocally that we should not pay to be abused. Is there anything in this film so vital to our liberation that we can't afford to wait until it comes on free TV or borrow it from the library?

One of the questions Yemi himself asks has not been taken into consideration:

> What is the meaning of a >   white, Jewish, liberal filmmaker bringing to the screen in a dramatic way an >   unknown piece of Black history and culture? What is the meaning of this in a >   film that distorts and defends the American justice system in the middle of >   slavery? >

Therein lies the answer. We are seen as a consumer class by these Jewish media moguls who are an integral part of the Global European power structure that oppresses us. They will occasionally produce a film which is designed to get our money; mess up our minds; cause confusion and exacerbate conflict within the community; establish and reinforce the supreme righteousness of their system of justice and Europeans who uphold it, and its benefits to Africans who support it; restate the unquestionable, inexplicable and therefore God-willed subordination of Global Africans to everyone else; reconfirm in our minds and theirs our relationship of dependency on them for everything, including information, life's most important human need.

Can anyone name me one film made by Europeans about and/or for Africans which does not satisfy all or most of the above
criteria? And by the way, when will we finance and produce our own films, to tell our own stories, films about freedom fighters such as Marcus Garvey, one of the greatest warriors of all time - of any race?

Remember:

   * "Without information you die,
   * with the wrong information you kill yourself and
   * with the correct information you live forever"

When Brother Yemi states:

> . . . the film ends up praising a justice system that held almost all of us > in bondage at this very time . . . it is not a film to boycott; better to go > see it and try to influence our people's discussion of it >

and

> I will go see the film again. My notions may change as I see more the second > time. >

he is doing exactly what the producers desire and expect of us: see it, tell others go see it, it's not really that bad, see it again to clarify some of the confusing messages and talk even more about it to others. Each visit to the cinema brings in the revenue and each recommendation, no matter how non-committal or confused, is free advertising. And do they care whether you hated
the film once you've paid? Will they be losing sleep because you are unhappy or because they are busy counting your money?

Brother Yemi is right when he says:

> Too many of our people, I believe, will not see the lie and hypocrisy and > immorality in that. The film ends up praising a justice system that held > almost all of us in bondage at this very time. >

But why should we be surprised? If we recognise that there is a war going on and the media, particularly the film industry, is a major part of that war machinery, we will know that they are not going to spend millions of dollars, in many cases more than the GNP of most African countries, by accident, without considering its value to their overall objectives in both the short and long term.

So, Brothers and Sisters, let's learn from our history and be a bit more conscious of the consequences of spending our money on anything they throw at us. If they manage to squeeze only one dollar from every African in the USA that is in excess of sixty million dollars more they will have to beat us with.

Please, let me hear what you think.
May the Ancestors guide and protect you on our way.
Love and Life
SR

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