Kwame Speaks: The Cure

A wise man once said, "Work is the antiseptic that kills the Negro." Unfortunately, in recent days I have come to the realization that this is true and have been looking for the cause of this antipathy, for this allergic reaction has become an epidemic.

Why is work such a repellent? I have concluded through careful observation that it is not the subject of work but rather the requirements of work that generates repulsion in most. This is due to the fact that strong work ethic is a learned behavior.

In most cases, work ethic may be considered an example of a fixed action pattern, in scientific terms. A fixed action pattern is a sequence of unlearned behaviors that are essentially unchangeable and, once initiated, is usually carried to completion.

These behaviors are triggered by external forces called sign stimuli. Those who work, tirelessly, endlessly, and consequently with no sleep at times, exemplify this. This approach requires that effort is exerted until the task is completed.


On the other hand, others who do not have strong work ethic must learn it, and operant conditioning can be helpful. This type of learning is the association of certain behaviors with a reward or punishment in order to avoid or repeat the action, and is usually the process through which most learn (though it takes much more for others).

Ostensibly, in the case of the Negro, evasion is in the blood. For example, Araminty, better known as Harriet Tubman, evaded her hunters for years in order to not return to her oppression. Martin Luther King, Jr. evaded violence in order to gain civil rights.

Alas however, these examples do not sufficiently support my claim. Araminty did not evade work but rather worked exhaustively to free her enslaved brothers and sisters.

Martin Luther King, Jr. may have advocated non-violence but used protesting and legal reform as work through which he fought segregation. Can we honestly believe that following the violence, horror and threats experienced by his family that King defended non-violence? King fought consistently in the courtrooms and lunch counters to defend the rights of his family and many others.

I use these examples because many do not do the work to know about others such as W.E.B. Du Bois, Marcus Garvey or Martin Delaney. In retrospect, it seems there are no feasible examples to support this claim, except the truth. The evasion of work occurs due to pure laziness and the incompletion of work is accompanied by excuses.

Yes, there may be uncontrollable outside forces that may affect a person's desire to work from time to time, but not all the time.

This allergy is simply called laziness and it affects many on a daily basis. Its side effects are excuses, excuses and more excuses. Disagree? Prove me wrong. You have the ability to do the hard work—the work that must be done. Stop feeding your disorder with the pseudo pills of excuses and DO THE WORK.

-
Samantha Obuobi
(Published 4-19-11)