October 4, 2010
I suppose you could say that Dr. Cornel West stopped by Phoenix the other day to talk about SB1070.
In the same way that Abe Lincoln dropped by Gettysburg to chat about troop movements, or President John Kennedy visited the Berlin Wall to inquire about a fence-line dispute.
West was in Arizona on Saturday to participate in a panel discussion on the historic roots of the newest Arizona immigration–criminal law we routinely call SB1070. Held at North High School, the discussion involved six speakers—as well as the standing-room-only crowd that packed the seats, the aisles and even the steps leading to the stage.
The other speakers were Pablo Alvarado, Tupac Enrique, Dr. Raquel Rubio-Goldsmith, Dr. Michelle Tellez and Dr. Michael Whitaker.
West is the author of many works, including Race Matters and Keeping Faith: Philosophy and Race in America. (More information on him is here.)
On Saturday, the scholar, author and Princeton philosophy professor took seriously the charge to examine “How We Got Here.” He took those assembled back far beyond an analysis of recent decades, back to a time before European immigrants shouldered their way onto an already-inhabited continent. Along the way, he peppered his insights with Sly Stone, Bootsy Collins and George Clinton.
It’s unlikely an auditorium crowd ever enjoyed a history lesson more.
Yes, West mentioned in passing the historic detail called SB1070. But he was more interested in rousing audience–participants to thought and its analogue—action.
(I call them audience–participants because of their own spontaneous vocal stylings, egging on and reveling in the speakers, all of whom appeared to draw energy from the barely seated crowd.)
His commitment to the music lyric as a path forward again emerged when he quoted Sly Stone: “Stand, you’ve been sitting much too long, there’s a permanent crease in your right or wrong.”
“And that was 1970,” West marveled. “40 years ago.”
West purred, grumbled and raged to his listeners. He said, “There is no place I would rather be than Arizona, because this is ground zero for the struggle for rights.”
Taking on a wide range of the problems—of which he called SB1070 a symptom—he said, “In the face of greed, resentment and revenge, we want justice.”
He and other panelists noted the diversity of people in the room, which went beyond African American and Latino American.
“I am unapologetic about my love for black people,” he said with a smile. “But I’ve got spillover love.” That one made the appreciative audience send back quite a few claps, hoots, hollers—and some love of their own.
He urged listeners to work for social justice.
“One day our bodies will be the culinary delight of the celestial world,” he said. “The question is what kind of a human you want to be right now.”
In fact, West may want to add “poet” to his list of accomplishments. He kept those assembled laughing out loud at his quips and quotes:
He said that American history is shrouded in a denial of the choices made in regard to the rights and property of people of color. “Our country’s original sin was the subordination of our indigenous brothers.”
“Let’s keep it true,” he said. “Let’s keep it funky.”
When West turned to the modern day, he roused listeners even more. He acknowledged that the November elections did not look favorable for those who shared his political views. But he added, “The Tea Party has no monopoly on organizing folks. Wait until we wake up.”
The fact that things did not look promising disturbed West not at all.
“For those who love poor people, it often doesn’t look too good. And that’s why you have to be a long-distance runner.”
Here are some more photos from the event.
