Why Should There Be A National Agenda?

By The Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan | Last updated: Oct 5, 2000 - 5:48:38 AM

[Editor’s note: The following text by the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan is reprinted from the Million Family March National Agenda of public of public policy recommendations.]

It is clear from watching the political debate that has been going on in the country for the last several years that there is and has been a steady erosion of the principles of democracy. If this is to be a government of the people, by the people, and for the people, then the enlightenment of the people must be the cornerstone of a truly democratic society. It is only when the masses of the people are enlightened and have an enlightened self-interest that their vote in a democratic society has real meaning. With the erosion of the American educational system and the graduating of young people out of high school of whom 30 percent are considered functionally illiterate; with the dumbing down of the American people that they become as sheep, easily led in the wrong direction, easily manipulated by powerful forces, then, democracy begins to lose its meaning in the lives of the masses of the American people; producing a tremendous degree of dissatisfaction. As a result, there has been a continuous decline in voter-turnout and participation in the last few presidential elections.

The Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan

In the last presidential election, according to what we understand, nearly 50 percent of those eligible to vote actually participated in the electoral process. This means that one-half of the electorate did not bother to vote in the last presidential election. So, President Clinton won the election with nearly 30% of the 50% of the people who did vote which means that approximately 70% of the American people did not vote for President Clinton. The rise of anti-government sentiment reflected in the militia and in other organizations and groups within the country, and with mass dissatisfaction being seen among the people—Black, White, Hispanic, Asian and Pacific Islander, and Arab—are signs that the wise should and must reflect upon.

In the last few years corporate America has spent nearly a billion dollars a year through their Washington lobbyists to enact legislation that is in the best interest of corporate America, while not necessarily in the best interest of the masses of the American people. Corporate America is now buying up newspapers, radio and television stations to control the means of dissemination of information to the American people. This is a further erosion of the principle of governance of, by, and for the people.

We will find increasingly that corporations and their strong lobbies drive America’s foreign policy which the American people believe is in the best interest of the American people while in many instances these policies are "anti" the best interest of the American people.

The industrial base of this nation is steadily disappearing. It appears that manufacturing, which is the bedrock of the workforce in an industrial society, is being ceded to other countries in the name of free-market, economy and globalism – leaving the unlearned masses losing jobs and trying to fit in a service-orientated society. At some point, if the American people are not awakened they will wake up to find themselves under authoritarian, dictatorial rule masquerading itself as a democracy. Therefore, an agenda that comes from the people that is in the best interest of the people must be crafted so that the people are empowered to take the country back from the greedy merchants of death who now hold sway over the American government and its people. We have invited scholars from the various communities to give their input to an agenda that we believe can become the basis of legislation that helps to redistribute the tax dollars of the citizenry in a way that is much more beneficial.

This is the way that tax dollars can be redistributed:

The greatest need of the American people is educational enlightenment. This is what brings the potential human being out of the animalistic stage into the existence of a human being with respect for moral law and the principle that allows human interaction in a way that is pleasing to God and pleasing to man.
The next greatest need is the health of the people. Teaching the people the best way to eat to live and crafting those institutions that research, develop and explore new ways and means of curing disease.
The most important need is that the country must be able to protect its citizenry through an enlightened, strong military force.

Each life is born into this universe with the responsibility and natural duty to do something for its self, otherwise it cannot justify its existence. All living creatures must do for self and it is this aspect of the natural law that the poorer class of American people, particularly Blacks, must accept their natural responsibility to get up, unite, and pool their resources and do everything that they can to develop themselves, create institutions that serve their needs and make government responsible to create the atmosphere that will allow all of the citizenry to enjoy the principles of freedom, justice and equality. These principles are the essential principles of life. The denial of any one of these is the denial of life itself. If the Founding Fathers saw that life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are the inalienable rights of every citizen, then, we must maximize our ability to give life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness to ourselves and not just sit down and wait on benevolent government to do these things for us, for, the government is no longer now the true servant of the masses of the people, but has become the servant of those who are buying its votes and its allegiance in the name of democracy. This is why there must be a national agenda by the people, of the people, and for the people. This is why the national body must be enlightened so that we will make proper choices as to who will lead us and help to create a future for us and our children.

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In a predominantly Judeo-Christian society, the Bible is or should be the basic book of instruction and guidance for the politicians as well as the people. The Bible begins with the Book of Genesis that tells us the story of creation. According to the Bible it was on the sixth day that God created man and woman. Before the creation of man and woman an entire earth and universe was created to serve the man and woman that God had created. So, the Bible teaches us that man, and it should be understood that this means man and woman, is The Glory of God. No matter how great all of creation is, the human being is the greatest of God’s creation. The second act of creation on the sixth day was a female and God put these two together and gave them instructions. So, before there were nations, governments and systems there was family. This teaches us that the family is more important than the government and more important than the nation for it is out of family, and the needs of family, and the rights of family that governments are instituted among men.

The Holy Qur’an states the same principle differently. It teaches us that everything that God created was created to serve the human being. The importance of family and its preservation is the duty of all legitimate governments and systems. Anything that disrupts family or is against the general welfare of the family, is therefore against the aim and purpose of God and creation for He made all of creation to serve the man, the woman, the family.

Therefore, anything that we say or do that is not in the best interest of family, that injures family, must be revisited and changed. Everything that we say and do must promote the good of marriage, the good of family, and the development of family, then, we know that we are in accord with the aim and purpose of God in creating family.

I have stated that every human need is a basic human right and any denial of the basic needs of the human being is a denial of their basic human rights. The need of every human being physically is food, clothing and shelter. God has prepared the earth to provide the needs of all its creatures. Surely the greatest of God’s creation, the human being, should have access to food, clothing and shelter.

The human being has a need to be loved and that love is the nurturing force of the life in that human being. Therefore, every human being has the need for nurturing. Therefore, there is a need for a mother, a need for a father and the need for a family as the basic institution for the nurturing of the values that make us human beings.

In order that the human being be separated from the beast of the field there must be the introduction of knowledge and moral consciousness. Since the human being is created a social being, then there must be rules and regulations that govern human behavior that allow for good social relationships. This also is a human need and therefore a human right to grow up in an environment of love. Education is a human need. Therefore, it is a human right. Good government has the responsibility to ensure that its citizenry is properly educated.

Moral consciousness develops out of the values taught by parents and exemplified in the actions of parents so that the home becomes the nurturing ground for moral values and moral consciousness. All of this starts in the family. Since the country today is mired down with increase in violence, crime, child abuse, the abuse of women, then this is a manifestation of the imbalance of the human mind and this is a justification for a greater demand for proper education of all the citizens. When properly educated, properly nurtured, then all anti-social elements in behavior can be drastically eliminated.

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