It is clear form 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 have
become as sheep, easily led in the wrong direction, easily
manipulated by powerful forces, then, democracy begins to
loses 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.
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 on 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 interests of the American
people.
The industrial base of this nation is
steadily disappearing. It appears that manufacturing, which
is the bedrock of the work of the workforce is an industrial
society, is being ceded to other countries in the name of
free-market, economy and globalize - leaving the
unlearned masses losing jobs and trying to fit in a
service-oriented society. At some point, if the
American people are now awakened they will wake up to find
themselves under authoritarian, dictatorial rule
masquerading itself as a democracy. Therefore, an agenda
that comes from 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 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 the tax dollars can be redistributed:
- The greatest 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
and explore new ways and means of curing disease.
- The most important need is that
the country must be able to protect its citizenship
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.
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 has 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, 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 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 that
same principle differently. It teaches us that everything
that God created was 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
is not in the best interest of family, the 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 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 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 human need. Therefore, it is a human
right. Good government has the responsibility to ensure that
is 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 more 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 citizens. Where properly
educated, properly nurtured, then all anti-social elements
in behavior can be drastically eliminated.
January 4, 2000
The Honorable Minister Louis
Farrakhan, Convener
of
The Million Family
March
and The National Representative of Nation of Islam
and of The Honorable Elijah Muhammad.
Hezbollah
- Lebanon
Nation of Islam
- U.S.A.
