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Tribalism and Ethnic Divisions Within the Diaspora: A Garveyite Perspective

Introduction: The Destructive Legacy of Tribalism and Ethnic Divisions

One of the greatest barriers to Black unity and Pan-African progress has been the persistent divisions along tribal, ethnic, and national lines. Whether in Africa, the Caribbean, or the Americas, Black people have been conditioned to see each other as separate, rather than one people with a shared destiny.

From a Garveyite perspective, these divisions are not natural—they were engineered by colonial powers to prevent Black solidarity and self-determination. European colonizers and slave traders knew that a divided Black people could be conquered, enslaved, and exploited indefinitely.

Tribalism and ethnic conflict weaken Pan-Africanism.

Black nations remain politically unstable due to ethnic tensions.

The African diaspora remains fragmented, making global Black unity difficult.

If Black people do not recognize, confront, and overcome these artificial divisions, they will continue to be powerless, exploited, and unable to build a future of true sovereignty and independence.

1. The Historical Roots of Tribalism and Ethnic Divisions

A. How Colonialism Used Divide-and-Conquer Tactics

European powers deliberately created and reinforced ethnic divisions to maintain control over Africa and its people.

Colonizers:

Drew artificial borders that grouped rival ethnic groups together or split unified nations.

Favoured some tribes over others, creating political and economic imbalances.

Turned Africans against each other, ensuring they remained focused on internal conflicts rather than fighting colonial rule.

Example: In Nigeria, the British favoured the Igbo in education, the Yoruba in administration, and the Hausa-Fulani in military leadership, leading to post-independence ethnic tensions and civil war.

Key Takeaway: Tribalism was weaponized by colonizers to weaken African resistance—Black people must recognize this historical manipulation.

B. The Role of the Transatlantic Slave Trade in Dividing the Black World

Enslaved Africans were deliberately separated from people of the same ethnic background to prevent rebellion.

European powers:

Mixed different African groups together on plantations, ensuring they could not unite.

Banned the use of African languages, breaking cultural continuity.

Encouraged hostility between enslaved Africans and Creoles (African-born vs. New World-born Blacks).

Example: In Haiti, lighter-skinned free Black people (mulattoes) were given more rights than darker-skinned Africans, creating a racial class divide that lasted for centuries.

Key Takeaway: Black people must see tribalism and ethnic division as remnants of colonial slavery that must be rejected.

2. The Modern Consequences of Tribalism and Ethnic Divisions

A. Political Instability and Civil Wars in Africa

Many African nations have been plagued by ethnic-based politics and conflicts, preventing true development.

Instead of uniting as Africans, many people still prioritize their ethnic group over national or Pan-African unity.

These divisions:

Weaken Black governments, making them easy to manipulate by foreign powers.

Lead to endless cycles of war and coups, stopping economic and social progress.

Allow corrupt leaders to exploit ethnic loyalty, rather than governing for the good of all people.

Example: The Rwandan Genocide (1994) between the Hutu and Tutsi ethnic groups was fueled by colonial-era divisions created by the Belgians.

Key Takeaway: African nations will never be stable if ethnic conflicts continue to be prioritized over national and Pan-African interests.

B. The Fragmentation of the Black Diaspora

In the Caribbean, Latin America, and the U.S., Black people often see each other as separate groups rather than one people.

Instead of working together, Black people are divided by:

Nationality (Jamaicans vs. Haitians, Nigerians vs. Ghanaians, etc.).

Colorism (Lighter-skinned vs. darker-skinned Black people).

Immigration status (Black immigrants vs. native-born Black people).

Example: In the U.S., African Americans, Afro-Caribbeans, and African immigrants often fail to unite politically, weakening their collective power.

Key Takeaway: The global Black community must recognize that we are one people—divisions serve only to weaken us in the face of systemic oppression.

3. How Tribalism and Ethnic Divisions Prevent Pan-African Progress

A. Economic Dependency on Foreign Nations

Instead of building Pan-African economic systems, African nations and Black communities remain isolated and divided.

This results in:

Reliance on European, Chinese, and American investors, rather than building Black-led financial systems.

Trade barriers between African nations, making it easier for foreign corporations to exploit resources.

A lack of Black economic cooperation globally, allowing non-Black businesses to dominate Black markets.

Example: Africa trades more with Europe, China, and the U.S. than it does with other African nations, proving that colonial economic divisions still exist.

Key Takeaway: Without Pan-African economic unity, Black people will always be economically controlled by non-Black nations.

B. Weak Global Political Influence

Because Black nations and communities remain divided along ethnic and national lines, they have:

No unified global political strategy.

No coordinated response to racial oppression worldwide.

No collective economic or military power to defend themselves.

Example: When Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi tried to create an African Union currency to replace the French-controlled CFA Franc, Western powers assassinated him—while African nations failed to unite in his defense.

Key Takeaway: A divided Black world is a powerless Black world—unity is the key to true global influence.

4. The Garveyite Solution: Ending Tribalism and Rebuilding Black Unity

A. Embracing a Unified African Identity

Black people must see themselves as Africans first, before their tribal, ethnic, or national identities.

Schools and media must teach that all Black people—whether in Africa, the Americas, or the Caribbean—are one people with a shared struggle.

Black people must reject colonial borders and divisions, focusing instead on Pan-African solidarity.

Example: Marcus Garvey promoted “One God, One Aim, One Destiny,” urging all Black people to unite as Africans.

Key Takeaway: Only when Black people embrace a collective identity will they achieve collective progress.

B. Prioritizing Pan-African Economic Cooperation

African nations must trade with each other instead of foreign nations.

The Black diaspora must invest in African economies, rather than supporting European or Chinese businesses.

Black entrepreneurs must create global networks that connect Africa, the Caribbean, and Black America.

Example: The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is an important step toward economic unity, but Black people worldwide must support it.

Key Takeaway: Without economic cooperation, Black nations and communities will always be controlled by foreign interests.

C. Creating a Global Black Political Alliance

Black leaders, activists, and politicians must work together across nations to fight:

Racism and police brutality worldwide.

Economic exploitation of African nations.

Foreign intervention in Black affairs.

Example: A Pan-African Congress must be re-established to unite Black nations and communities in global political decision-making.

Key Takeaway: A divided Black world will never have political power—unity is the only way to build strength.

Conclusion: Will Black People Continue to Be Divided, or Will We Unite for Liberation?

Marcus Garvey said:

“The enemies of the Negro are those who seek to keep them divided.”

Will Black people continue fighting each other over tribal and ethnic differences, or will we unite as one people?

Will we prioritize foreign alliances, or build economic and political power within our own global community?

Will we let history repeat itself, or break the cycle of division once and for all?

The Choice is Ours. The Time is Now.

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Many within the African-American community continue to talk about a phenomenon called “the slave mentality.” It’s a very controversial topic that’s discussed during African-American forums, in African-American media outlets, and at just about any gathering where the attendees are all African-American.

The reason is likely because both blacks and whites feel very uncomfortable talking about this in racially mixed company–especially and when you consider America ‘s history of slavery.

But is it real? I believe it is and a clear definition is needed. But I was never a slave. And neither was anyone else that’s tried to define this term in modern times.

But this mindset that needs to be examined and understood by all, but especially by those in the African-American community if certain issues are to be dealt with.

And I think the most qualified people to define the term are people who were former slaves themselves—Frederick Douglass and Harriet Tubman.

Both Douglass and Tubman escaped slavery and spent their lives helping others do the same. As outstanding members of the Abolitionist Movement, they contended with the slave mentality on a regular basis. And they walked among those that had this mindset. As far as I’m concerned, that makes Douglass and Tubman leading authorities on the subject.

Frederick Douglass documents his experience with other slaves in his autobiography, “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass.” And among the many things he says, we find this statement:

“I have found that, to make a contented slave, it is necessary make a thoughtless one. It is necessary to darken his moral and mental vision, and as far as possible, to annihilate his power of reason. He must be able to detect no inconsistencies in slavery; he must be made to feel that slavery is right….”

Harriet Tubman, who led many slaves to freedom through the Underground Railroad, said this about the slave mentality;

“I freed a thousand slaves. I would’ve freed a thousand more, if they only knew they were slaves.”

Based on Douglass and Tubman’s experience, we can define the slave mentality as follows:

A person conditioned to quietly, and without objection, accept harmful circumstances for themselves as the natural order of things. They’re also conditioned to accept their master’s view and beliefs, about themselves, and strive to get others, within their group, to accept the master’s view.

I think this definition summarizes a slave’s way of thinking. But is this phenomenon thriving in African-Americans today? If so, where is it clearly seen?

Nowhere is it seen more clearly seen than in the relationship between the African-American community and the Democrat Party. Let’s take a closer look and see if our definition accurately applies.

For decades, black people have supported the Democrat Party at every level of government. As a result, the Democrats have maintained control of inner cities across America . And, until the 2010 elections, they maintained control of many state governments.

But let’s examine the results of this alliance. According to the U.S. Department of Justice Department of Criminal Statistics, African-Americans account for more than 45 percent of all murder victims in 2007. And about 90 percent of those murders are committed by other African-Americans. And this trend has been going on for decades.

And consider the trend of the African-American population itself, which is in full reverse! Statistics from the U.S. Department of Health show that three out of five African-American pregnancies, in New York , end in abortion. And nationally, African-Americans account for 36.4 percent of all abortions but account for only 13 percent of the country’s population.

On the education front, many African-American children, in junior high and high school, are unable to read at their grade level. This has been going on for a long time also. And with the Democrats in charge of education, the literacy rate for African-Americans has been on a downward spiral.

And according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, African-American unemployment was at 12.6 percent in January of 2009. It now stands at 15.3 percent as of February 2011. Yet the Democrats will, undoubtedly, receive over 90 percent of the black vote in 2012.

African-Americans never express their dissatisfaction Democrats in general. In fact, African-Americans reward them by voting them back into office each election year.

This behavior meets our definition of the slave mentality, in which African-Americans appear to accept harmful circumstances quietly and without objection.

The same can be said about the African-American murder rate. However other aspects of the slave mentality apply here also. Many of today’s African-Americans appear to accept the 19th century slave owner’s view of themselves. During that time, a slave’s life was worth little or nothing. In fact it was not illegal to kill a slave whether the murderer was black or white.

And can the Democrats argue that they value the lives of African-Americans when they support and promote the abortion industry, which has most of their facilities in minority neighborhoods?

Frederick Douglass’ statement about “a contented slave having his moral and mental vision darkened” clearly explains why the African-American community tolerates extremely high murder and abortion rates.

It also explains how the African-American community can embrace the use of the N-Word within its culture. The N-word carries every horrible, degrading concept used, by their oppressors, to justify the enslavement of black people. And no matter how hard black people try to justify its use among them, it’ll always carry those meanings. And when African-Americans use it to describe themselves, it’s very destructive.

Slaves also nurtured a concept that told them they were completely dependent on their slave owners. They believed they couldn’t survive without them. And no one can dispute that the same thinking was planted in the minds of African-Americans by the Democrats since the Lyndon Johnson era. And whenever the government talks about cutting programs, many black people don’t believe they’ll survive. And recently we’ve seen the slave mentality work through Rev. Al Sharpton. When pro-life groups placed billboards in New York ‘s black neighborhoods, Sharpton led the charge to have them removed. This places Sharpton in the role of the slave who strives to get other slaves to accept their master’s viewpoint and accept their circumstances.

Based on all of this, we can conclude that many within the black community make decisions according to the judgment of a slave.

But is this type of judgment exclusive to black people? No, it’s not. The slave mentality is the result of conditioning that’s been learned and passed down from generation to generation. And since it was the black race that was enslaved in America , this mindset is easily found in their descendants.

However, if you look and compare eastern European races to their ancestors that experienced the same thing historically, it’s very likely that you’ll see the same behavior.

Constitutional amendments cannot abolish the slave mentality. So how does someone stop thinking like a slave? For the answer we must, again, consult Frederick Douglass who said “I prayed for freedom for 20 years and received no answer, until I prayed with my legs.” Douglass also said “To educate a man is to make him unfit to be a slave.”

Black people must find the courage to assert their independence and individuality in the face of their peers and their slave masters. While living in Maryland , Douglass was constantly warned, by other slaves, to stop reading for his own safety. Other slaves told Douglass that he must sound and act like them. As a slave, Douglass was also denied reading and writing material by law. But he used rocks, lumber, and anything that would make, or leave, a mark as his pen and paper.

Douglass understood that other slaves were concerned for his welfare, but knew that he couldn’t accept his master’s view of him. Douglass accepted God’s view. And after he found the inner strength to resist his peers and his master, he educated himself and became a free man.

Today, that translates into African-Americans asserting their independence from Democrats, who were the supporters and practitioners of slavery anyway.

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Brother Khalid Muhammad and Phyllis Yvonne Stickney

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In Rastafari, particularly within the Bobo Ashanti Mansion, the trio of Marcus Garvey, Haile Selassie I, and King Emmanuel Charles Edwards is known as Rastafari Holy Trinity or the Black Christ Trinity. It represents prophet (Garvey), king (Selassie), and priest (Edwards), symbolizing liberation, divinity, and spiritual leadership.

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Facts!

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True hero’s. Never forget

The Courageous Sacrifice of Bunchy Carter and John Huggins: Inspiring the Fight for Justice

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An Asofo’s determination to challenge any and every hostile affront to his or her culture, ourstory and people, no matter the consequences, is a natural reflex. War has never been about making peace with an enemy determined to destroy you at all cost. As warrior scholars we must never forget the reasoning and resolve of our wise and irrepressible ancestral jenoch. As models of manhood, Shaka Zulu, Boukman, Jean-Jacques Dessalines, Martin R. Delany, Denmark Vesey, Marcus Garvey, Robert Williams, Steve Biko, George L. Jackson, Patrice Lumumba, Amilcar Cabral, Kwame Ture, John Henrik Clarke, Robert Charles represent only a very few of those in an incredibly resilient and powerful lineage that any Afrikan determined to be a man would be proud of. As an elder sister reasoned, if a legion of Afrikan men just closed their mouths and acted like men without fear, the following generations of men would have a standing model to follow. All they need is a generation’s display of fortitude. From this lead, the mental wherewithal to persue, capture and sustain our freedom would come so easy. We are at war. We should act accordingly.

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The youth always inherit the revolution 👊🏾

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