PAWNED SOVEREIGNTY: SHARPENED BLACK PERSPECTIVES ON AMERICANIZATION, AFRICA, WAR AND REPARATIONS
"Pawned Sovereignty will be a collector's item, alongside Welsing's Isis Papers and Woodson's Mis-Education of the Negro." - Rolling Out Magazine
"Aharone's bold blueprint for black sovereignty sounds more like a long overdue prescription than an incendiary manifesto." - Lloyd Kam Williams, Syndicated Writer
The themes of Ezrah Aharone?Äôs political book, Pawned Sovereignty, revolve around Black America being a "free," but not a "sovereign" people. Simply put, sovereignty is the absolute power and authority of a government to control all people, activities, territory, and resources within its borders. Sovereignty also refers to the inherent right that all people have to govern themselves without foreign influence or interferences. The book however does not promote a sovereign movement, but rather a sovereign consciousness and evolutionary outlooks.
Since sovereignty (not civil rights) is the pinnacle of all freedoms, the book provides Black America with solutions and insightful viewpoints, based on sovereign-minded frames of reference. This approach pierces the core of mainstream body politics and leads to redefined ideals and worldviews which better serve Black/African interests. According to Aharone, "Such outlooks also help bridge the political and philosophical gap that now separates Hip Hop from the Civil Rights/Black Power generation."
Aharone surgically dissects, and then separates, the flaws and misperceptions from the realities of American democracy. In prototype fashion, he reconfigures today's sociopolitical landscape as he expounds on 55 original topics that are now part of his "Pawned Sovereignty Lecture Series." His topics include:
The Principles, Practices, and Philosophy of Sovereignty
Brands of Democracy and States of Freedom
Understanding the Fallacies of Democracy, Equality, and Voting
Politicizing Religion to Promote Patriotism and Nationalism
Psychological Warfare and Contradictions of Being ?ÄúAfrican?Äù and ?ÄúAmerican?Äù
Bush, Baghdad, Bombs and Black Gold
Hip Hop: Standing on the Verge of Political and Philosophical Revolution
Geopolitics and the Strategic Value of Africa
Concepts of Equity and Developmental Reparations
A central premise of Pawned Sovereignty concerns what he calls different "Concepts of Freedom." According to Aharone, Black America's concept of freedom has historically been limited to "Civil Rights, Integration, and Citizenship." However, freedom for White America entails nothing less than "Sovereignty, Independence, and Statehood." Aharone says, "This conceptual distinction is arguably the most consequential, yet most unrecognized, source of racial disharmony and inequities. As a result, certain sociopolitical conditions that Whites would never tolerate have become normalized within the Black Experience."
To support this claim he compares the historical parallels, and then argues that today's 0 Black governors, 1 Black senator, and the scant percentage of Blacks in the H.R., constitute a modern case of "Taxation Without Representation." Since this was a primary factor sparking the Revolutionary War, Aharone concludes that Black America has conversely accepted a political "Way of Life" which history proves White America would violently object. Hence, he delves into critique of democracy's generic-nature and what he defines as, "Brands of Democracy" and corresponding "States of Freedom."
Among other things, Aharone asserts that whether the issue is international terrorism; domestic crime and homicides; or inadequate numbers of Blacks in government ?Ķ the solution does not lie within America's current "Brand" of democracy. Pawned Sovereignty addresses the root causes of such issues, while offering prescriptions to remedy the human failures of American democracy. The blueprint he outlines will undoubtedly enhance or make people rethink their worldviews.
Born and raised in New Jersey, Ezrah Aharone earned a BS in business from Hampton University in 1980. He has since lived and worked in West Africa for 23 years, where his relationships span from presidents and government officials, to people in remote villages. His originality of thought and vast international experience, provide a unique scope of reference that gives Pawned Sovereignty an uncommon distinction.
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Pawned Sovereignty, by Ezrah Aharone
First Edition: December 2003, Paperback, 258 Pages, $19.99
ISBN: 1-4107-8642-0
Publisher: Author House (888) 7-AUTHOR
Web Site:
http://www.1stbooks.com/bookview/18126To Contact Author: Email,
EzrahAharone@juno.com or Call (732) 566-9327
Author