Sovereign
Evolution: Manifest Destiny from “Civil Rights” to “Sovereign
Rights”
Click to order via
Amazonby Ezrah Aharone
Paperback: 320 pages
Publisher: AuthorHouse (December 31, 2008)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1438938586
ISBN-13: 978-1438938585
Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.8 inches
Book Review by
Kam Williams
“African-Americans could benefit from a 21st Century
approach to freedom and equality, using sovereign principles
as its interpretive lens… Sovereignty is an inborn political
desire for self-government that is as natural as the change
of seasons..
This book shapes the sociopolitical substance of our
historical experience into a sovereign consciousness… [A]
key factor that distinguishes this work from typical
political works of Africans in America, is that it does not
regard ‘Civil Rights’ as the standard or goal by which our
freedom should be measured or aspired
I rather circumscribe ‘Sovereign Rights’ in a universal
and historical context that effectively confers us with just
as much integrity and authority as any other people on Earth
to espouse and employ sovereign standards for ourselves.
Sovereignty, as I exclaim, is the next state in our
centuries-old political evolution to regain our true
freedom.”
—Excerpted from the Introduction (pages xi-xiv)
The ascension of
Barack Obama to the presidency has seemingly put the
political agenda of black America on the back burner.
Consequently, many a pundit has come to suggest that this
historic moment might simultaneously signal the end of the line
for those civil rights advocates whose careers have revolved
around petitioning the government for inclusion. This new debate
has basically been framed around the question of whether or not
the U.S. has matured into a post-racial society where everyone
is judged not by the color of their skin but by the content of
their character.
However, Ezrah Aharone has a very different perspective of
the plight of Africans in America. He argues that “the granting
of civil rights and voting rights should not be viewed as a
marker of a government’s legitimization, since a genuinely moral
government would never make its citizenry fight for civil rights
in the first place.”
He goes on to point out that the woeful federal, state and
municipal response to Katrina proved that black people remain
second-class citizens, all the supposed inroads notwithstanding.
Ezrah says the problem resides in the question of sovereignty
which still “belongs to Euro-Americans who have abused their
sovereign powers as a political weapon of control.”
Mr. Aharone’s answers to this dilemma, the assertion of their
“Sovereign Rights” by black folks, are all meticulously
delineated in Sovereign Evolution, a sequel of sorts to his
first book, the equally-incendiary “Pawned Sovereignty.” It
takes a lot of gumption for anyone to be proposing what at first
blush sounds like a black nationalist agenda in this ostensibly
omni-embracive age of Obama.
If not necessarily convincing, the author at least makes a
well-articulated, thought-provoking case, pointing to the new
president as proof of “our own sovereign potentiality.” As Ezrah
puts it, “Black president or no Black president, we need our own
political ‘Manifest Destiny’ because their version of ‘Manifest
Destiny’ ensures that America will always politically remain
majority-owned, fully controlled, and absolutely governed by
Anglo-European principles, practices and policies.”
A controversial clarion call for separation just when America
finally appears on the verge of actually becoming the melting
pot it has long pretended to be. Given that you hear so many
black people saying they feel fully American for the first time,
pursuing brother Aharone’s divisive dream of black sovereignty
is probably as practical aright now as trying to unscramble a
bowl of scrambled eggs.
And I wonder on which side of the color line would
half-white/half-black President Obama belong anyway?
| Response from the author, Ezrah Aharone, to
This Review of Sovereign Evolution
While I respect and appreciate Kam Williams for
reviewing my book, the concepts and analyses of
Sovereign Evolution
are so voluminous, that I’m perplexed as to why he
singled-out a few race-related factors and then
categorized them as the sum of the book’s 301
pages. Never do I use the word “separation,” which
is an antiquated term, steeped in a “segregated”
past that no one wants to revisit. His inference of
a “clarion call for separation” and a “divisive
dream” is not only unfair to the breadth of my
scholarship; it diminishes the value of the
sovereign content that the book details in a
universal context.
Sovereignty and separation are not politically
synonymous or interchangeable. Separation does not
equate to acclamations of sovereignty. The
contemporary and factual beauty of the book cannot
therefore be grasped if one reads it thinking that
I’m promoting passé separation or a “Black
Nationalist Agenda.” What distinguishes this work
is that I uniquely apply the concept and
consciousness of sovereignty as an academic lens to
examine the African-American plight.
Yes, the book unavoidably encompasses racial
issues. But people are racist, not the "concept of
sovereignty.” If I removed all references to
African Americans and then presented the exact
same principles and concepts generically, the book
would stand-alone as a laudable resource on
sovereign ideals that would not be found
cover-to-cover in any other single book.
I don’t expect anyone to agree with everything I
write. Kam, however, did not carve (pro or con)
into the thematic heart of the book to enable
readers to benefit from a true sovereign appraisal.
Based on the racist connotations he outlined, one
would think the book is “outmoded” rather than
“evolutionary” as the title, Sovereign Evolution,
implies. But in defending the relevance and
intellectual integrity of my work, I challenge and
assert that the book sets a necessary 21st-century
platform for discourse that leaves no place for
racism to hide.
Ezrah Aharone
|
| Kam WIlliams' Reaction
Brother Ezrah,
I'm
sorry you feel that I didn't do your book justice.
However, I hope you understand that I often find
myself up against the constraints of the medium.
First of all, many of my outlets are newspapers
where I have to limit my word content because most
of the space is already reserved for advertising.
So, I have to make my points in as few words as
possible.
Secondly, in this age of Obama, I find
that virtually everything I review must be assessed
through the prism of his historic victory.
Consequently, that automatically makes talk of black
sovereignty sound outdated when so many
African-Americans are speaking of finally feeling
patriotic, proud of their country and part of the
fabric of the society for the first time. I think
this makes the timing of the release of your book
unfortunate.
Granted, your book doesn't literally call for black
separatism, and I tried not to suggest that,
although some might misread my words as implying
just that. Overall, I think I praised the
intellectual rigor of your research and writing, so
I hope that people whose curiosity is piqued will
buy the book to see whether what you propose has
merit even in these post-racial days.
Kam
|
To order a copy of Sovereign Evolution, visit:
www.EzrahSpeaks.com
Or call (888) 280-7715
To contact the author, email:
EzrahAharone@Juno.com
