Latest / D-constructing Topics / Voices of Freedom: Albizu Campos, Malcolm X & the Mirabal Sisters

Transcript

Voices of Freedom: Albizu Campos, Malcolm X & the Mirabal Sisters · D-constructing Topics

0:00
What's going on, everybody? And what's going on, folks?
0:03
My name is David, and I'm your legendary host of this legendary podcast,
0:07
the Deconstruct and Topic Podcast.
0:10
Hey, listen, we grab a topic. We discuss a lot of things. We just go,
0:14
and whatever topic that it is that we are talking about, we're going to deconstruct
0:18
it, the de-way, whatever.
0:21
Hey, listen, I make a lot of noise, but that's fine.
0:24
The thing is that I'm making my own noise instead of you listening to certain
0:28
other noise from other places that sometimes you don't need that certain noise.
0:32
You need that good vibe that's into my voice. And I appreciate everybody tuning
0:36
in to this special, special episode because this special episode is going to
0:41
kind of open up a little bit in regards to my views.
0:45
In many things, and it's always good that listening to this podcast,
0:49
I want people to, when you listen
0:50
to this, you're going to learn so much that you're going to be like,
0:54
wow, do I owe him any, you know, am I in college debt, you know,
0:58
listening to Deconstructing, my boy, Deconstructing Topics?
1:01
Not at all. Not at all. I'm here because, you know what, as I always say,
1:05
saving a mind and saving a life, let's get it.
1:09
And you already know that when you listen to it, don't be greedy and just sit
1:14
down and listen to my podcast all by yourself.
1:16
Hey, by yourself is great in the confines of whatever. But feel free to share.
1:20
Just nudge your fellow peep there with his family, colleagues,
1:26
church, whatever it is that you do.
1:29
Even go to a sports game and listen, you watch it with your eyes.
1:33
Watch the game with your eyes. You listen to my podcast and feel free to share.
1:38
But we're here. And if this is your first, second time, make sure that you hit
1:41
that notification and make sure that you subscribe because I'm all over the place and we're here.
1:48
And today we got an interesting, once again, interesting podcast episode.
1:53
And, you know, off the bat, I would say that, hey, listen, this is basically Voices of Freedom.
1:58
And we're going to kind of talk a little bit of three events, three individuals.
2:03
Well, I'm going to say more than three individuals in this case,
2:06
but individuals that shake me, who I am in terms of my political views,
2:12
and my views in many things, especially me, a Puerto Rican kid,
2:15
born in Puerto Rico, woo, let's go, and raised,
2:20
in the United States, in New York City.
2:22
So we got Voices of Freedom, and I'm going to be talking about none other than
2:26
the esteemed, Don Pedro Albizu Campos,
2:31
Ooh, Don Pedro Albizu Campos, Malcolm X, and, hey, the Mirabal sisters.
2:39
And I'm just going to give you a little kind of introduction here because we're
2:42
going to examine Puerto Rican nationalist Pedro Albizu Campos.
2:46
Don Pedro Albizu Campos, but I'm just going to keep it short.
2:49
Pedro Albizu Campos, I just might call him Albizu Campos or Campos, you get the gist.
2:54
Puerto Rican nationalist leader, former leader, you know, passed away long ago.
2:59
And we got an African American Civil rights leader Malcolm X Let me tell you something.
3:07
Let me take a deep breath of Malcolm X. Because there's so much to digest,
3:11
so much to divulge in that individual and the way he sees things that I want
3:16
people to once and for all drink the Kool-Aid, if you will.
3:22
And we got Dominican Republic's courageous, Mirabai's sister, that situation. Wow.
3:28
The Mirabai sisters, oh my goodness. And I'm going to say this off the bat that
3:33
in regards to these three situations, If there's a common theme in the other day, it's funny.
3:38
One of my Dominican, and I'm not going to say funny like ha-ha, but you get the gist.
3:43
One of my Dominican brothers in arms, who's aware of the middle white sister's story,
3:50
beautiful story, sad, but it needs to be told, sent me a video of a young African-American
3:57
sister talking about Malcolm X, and she went off.
4:01
Because there's something about Malcolm X when he talks about racism,
4:05
he doesn't see that racism in just one kind of, you know, the figure,
4:11
you know, how can I say, white hooded, whatever, you know.
4:17
He sees it a little bit different.
4:19
He sees it, you know, and we're going to discuss that. So this brother from
4:22
Dominican Republic, well, he's actually living here, sent me this video in regards
4:27
to our sister talking about brother Malcolm X, and I'm going to make a connection.
4:32
And then we talk about here, Pedro Alviso Campo. If there's one thing and one
4:36
thing that I've gotten and I've heard throughout the years in regards to these
4:41
individuals, because even though Alviso Campo being Puerto Rican,
4:45
I've tried to show my African-American black brothers and sisters,
4:50
teach them about Albizu and Mirabai Sisters, just as I grabbed Malcolm X and
4:55
tried to transcend him to the Latin community, Puerto Rican,
5:00
Dominican Republic, Mexican, whatever.
5:02
We need to kind of know each other's stories here.
5:06
And it's interesting, the theme is that I always hear.
5:08
We don't hear enough about these stories, especially more or less of the Albizu
5:14
campus. They all, Albizu campus, Malcolm X, Mirabai Sisters.
5:18
They all, they all, they all have a connection. So...
5:22
You know, and when you look at it, and again, it's kind of separate timelines
5:26
in a sense, or you could say, no, it was in the 50s, 60s when all this started to develop.
5:32
But the fact that, you know, their stories, even though they separate,
5:35
it's one thing that they forked colonialism, racial injustice,
5:39
dictatorship. You know, you're going to look at it and how it's all tied up.
5:43
To the United States of America.
5:45
So we're going to take a close look at how this connection, I mean,
5:49
regards to the situation, you know, it's something that we need to bring in.
5:54
I'm glad that you are listening to my podcast because it is going to get you
5:58
to know these individuals and how they made an impact on me and how they make
6:03
an impact on your life and how I think more than ever,
6:07
we need to cross these stories to each other, especially in the Black land community,
6:13
you know, all that, because we need to know these stories. We have to.
6:19
So we're going to talk with Ibizu Campos first and foremost.
6:23
So Pedro Ibizu Campos, so he basically was kind of, I'm not going to say the
6:26
father, but in a sense, the father of Puerto Rican nationalism.
6:31
If you ever seen Puerto Ricans be like, yo, you know, Boricua,
6:36
all this, you know, stuff, whatever the case might be.
6:38
And if you see them waving a Black and white flag, That's actually the flag
6:42
of the Puerto Rican nationalists in the time with Alviso Campo.
6:46
We're talking about the 1940s, 50s, 60s. I will be doing a podcast separately,
6:52
just an FYI, on Alviso Campo.
6:54
He has made a big impact in my life, the way I see things.
6:58
Because I often say, like, listen, I'm in the United States.
7:00
I love the United States. I love the people here, but they've been taking advantage of.
7:05
They basically tell you, go work, work, work, pay your taxes, taxes.
7:10
You know, everything goes up. Gas price goes up. Everything goes up. Food goes up.
7:14
And then, you know, when it comes to international feud, then they grab this
7:19
hard, you know, earn money from these American taxpayers and start funding things,
7:25
that doesn't do well for the people here living in the United States, including me.
7:29
So that's why I say to me When I see this country And the political,
7:34
parties that run this country I don't see them as two I see them as one,
7:39
Because sadly when you're in another country And if the United States is funding
7:43
that country To attack another country You're not going to see who's running
7:47
it You're going to see that it is United States,
7:49
Funding a government to go after whatever But you get the gist So Alvizo Campo, born in,
7:56
1891 He became one of the strongest voice against U.S. colonial control of Puerto Rico.
8:02
He's a Harvard educated person. So, hey, listen, my boy, my boy has the street
8:08
smarts and the book smarts.
8:11
And he believed that Puerto Rico deserves self-determination. And I do too as well.
8:17
I always say, even if you look at it the philosophical way, that if you,
8:23
when you think on y'all, Let's say you're in a toxic relationship.
8:27
Brother, whatever the relationship it is, friendship, you know, spouse, excuse me.
8:33
Drink a little bit of water here. Got the little bit of burps.
8:35
You already know I do not edit that because I like to just straight off the
8:39
bat, just whatever it is. So anyways.
8:44
One of the things that I always have said, when you're in a toxic relationship,
8:48
regardless of what it is, basically, you know, serve determination so you can live a better life.
8:55
And I basically have said in the way I see things when it comes to Puerto Rico,
8:59
sadly, it's owned by the United States. But hey, listen, it doesn't mean that we cannot.
9:04
And please, anyone that could correct me that are in the pro-independence,
9:08
if I'm saying anything you want to correct me, feel free to comment, share, DM me.
9:12
All the information will be on the description below, wherever you listen.
9:17
But the fact that when you think on your own, it's much better when you're separating
9:21
from a toxic relationship, which is what it is in Puerto Rico and the United States.
9:26
Because wherever the United States goes, Puerto Rico goes.
9:29
The fact when you're by yourself, independent, you could do anything you want.
9:33
You want a party like 1999, by all means.
9:36
But when you're limited to what to do, what to tell, whatever it is,
9:41
then it's no longer a good relationship. It becomes toxic. It is toxic.
9:46
That the fact is this, that he also believed that, hey, listen,
9:49
America having their presence in the little island of Puerto Rico is going to
9:54
take our cultural identity.
9:56
And that's something that we've been fighting for even to this day.
9:59
The fact that I was in Puerto Rico last year.
10:03
Never in my life I lived in United States For quite a long time Never in my
10:06
life I ever Ever woke up On a Black Friday Which is the day After Thanksgiving
10:12
If you're listening To this,
10:14
In United States You already know What Black Friday is If you're not And I'm,
10:19
Hoping that You get a little bit of learn But Black Friday Is a day after,
10:23
A holiday Where people And you know The powers that be The corporations Say
10:28
hey listen Wake up early Because now we are Selling TVs at 50% off.
10:33
Or 80% off. And what happens? People wake up. So never in my life,
10:37
and people wake up and they do the lines.
10:39
Never in my life have I ever done that. But in my island of Puerto Rico, I'm waking up.
10:46
Last year on a Black Friday, somebody waking me up, telling me, let's go to, what is it?
10:53
What's the name of that store? Walmart and Sam's Club? Like, really? To look for a TV?
10:58
Really? In my island? Black Friday? Really? Come on, man.
11:02
And see, then this is what Al-Bizzo Combley's talking about.
11:05
This is exactly what he's talking about.
11:08
And his activism, you know, again, he got arrested. He was in prison.
11:12
They used radiation on him.
11:15
And, you know, he sacrificed him and he became the symbol of the resistance.
11:22
And the freedom, and I mean, if I could just go on again, please,
11:27
please make sure that you subscribe because there's so much to talk about him.
11:31
Because I'm over here ranting after I just want to do like 10-hour episode and
11:35
I'll be so comfortable with the fact that he believed in preserving the people's
11:38
culture, history, and that sense of who we are, Puerto Ricans.
11:43
That's who we are, Boricuas, blood from the Tainos, the greats of God,
11:48
whatever it is. Oof, let's make it happen.
11:51
Then we got Malcolm X. Oof, oof.
11:55
You know, when I was a young kid, they used to call me the Puerto Rican Malcolm
11:58
X, and I'm going to tell you why.
12:00
So Malcolm X, you know, he emerged as one of the kind of influential people
12:04
in the black liberation, especially in the 50s, 60s.
12:08
You got Martin Luther King. You got so many others. Black Panthers afterwards.
12:12
James Baldwin. I mean, we could go on and on. Beautiful topic.
12:16
Sad time. Beautiful topic.
12:18
And Malcolm X, he was known as Malcolm Little, born in 1925. Malcolm Little.
12:24
What is your name? Could have been Smith. Could have been Power.
12:28
Who created your name? And who created and why you don't know where you come from? That's Malcolm X.
12:35
People are like, wait a minute. Is that Malcolm X I'm listening to?
12:37
But, you know, he challenged racism. But he, Malcolm took racism into a different level.
12:44
If you are those living in the United States, and if you look at the history
12:48
of racism, racism was more or less had a symbol, you know, And this is where
12:55
I was talking about the hooded people, you know, white men.
12:58
You know, if I'm talking about the KKK, you know, the South and all, we could go on and on.
13:04
But what Malcolm started to kind of realize and talk about, which I believe
13:09
it's something that we should be talking about now, is that there,
13:12
you know, came a moment in this country where there was segregation in the North
13:16
and the South, South being segregated.
13:18
Meaning that, you know, for those people out there Listening to my podcast,
13:22
once again Either you don't know the history Or you are listening to this Outside of the United States,
13:29
Basically, the black color people Black folks I say color because I want people
13:34
to kind of use their imagination.
13:37
And those people that are considered white Were segregated You went to the bathroom
13:42
You have to be on the black only, white only So for years, you know,
13:46
this group of people especially in the north, you know, New York City, Chicago, whatever.
13:52
You know, they will send these folks to fight so we could, and you got Martin
13:55
Luther King, Brother Martin Luther King, in the south to once and for all these
13:59
segregate. You know, let's have unity.
14:01
But what Brother Malcolm X here in the United States, and he also started seeing
14:05
this in other countries, especially countries that were around the United States,
14:10
is that this colonial mentality of segregation and going after countries that,
14:15
were, you know, people of color, if you will running that for some reason the
14:20
powers that be here would take over whatever they did but he started to kind
14:24
of make that connection it's that in this country.
14:28
Segregation racism just ain't happening in the South, that it also happened
14:32
in New York City, in a place that claimed to be more unified with the Black folks.
14:39
He kind of was symbolizing where here in New York City, how is it that the Black
14:44
people still living in poverty areas and still being treated the same way as those in the South?
14:50
What is going on? And I'm going to do a podcast in regards to that philosophy,
14:55
because he kind of basically call it out as, you know, racism,
14:59
it looks like a wolf and it looks like a fox.
15:04
And, you know, one is friendly, the other one is more, you know,
15:08
out there in front of your face.
15:10
And when I'm talking about that, I'm talking about racism.
15:13
So the fact that, you know, the international kind of perspective is that little
15:18
bridge with Ibiza Campo, what he was talking about.
15:20
Because remember, Ibiza Campo is looking at it from the outside. in.
15:25
Malcolm is looking from the inside out. And when he starts to realize,
15:30
you know, how people from the outside, let's say with the Dominican Republic
15:34
invasion in the mid-60s, it's like, whoa, I see what they're talking about.
15:40
But you see, we here in the United States, we want to point the finger,
15:42
oh, this wolf is the most racist. This fox is the most racist.
15:47
No, no, no. They're all in one system.
15:50
They all have the same appetite.
15:52
So looking at things from the outside, what Malcolm X started to do,
15:56
it's like, ah, I could see where these folks are looking at this country as one.
16:01
It's not a political, it's not a two-party system, it's not none of the lesser
16:06
of two evil, whatever the case might be. It's none of that.
16:09
It's one, one nation under God, right, that goes out there in Dominican Republic,
16:16
Puerto Rico, other countries of color.
16:18
They go and they invade you And they put somebody that looks like them That
16:21
looks like the common American white political figure You know what I mean?
16:28
So that's the story of Malcolm X. And again, and I am going to be doing upcoming
16:32
episodes on Malcolm X and his political views, because trust me,
16:37
he still resonates to this day.
16:40
So lastly, but not least, the Mirabal sisters.
16:46
In the Dominican Republic, Patria, Minelva, and Maria Teresa,
16:51
they stood against the dictator of Rafael Trujillo.
16:56
They were co-named. So, you know, these, let me know about sisters.
17:00
It's interesting because they were co-named Las Mariposas, the butterflies.
17:05
And in the 50s, Rafael Trujillo, to make a long story short,
17:09
this was one of those dictators in certain parts of the world for like 20 plus
17:13
years that if either you don't go with him or you don't support him,
17:19
you might as well just be dead. Yeah.
17:21
And there were mostly men, men, in Dominican Republic that was afraid of Trujillo.
17:27
It took these women, the Mirabal sisters, the Mariposas, to stand up and start a revolution.
17:35
Because sadly, with Trujillo, we could go on and on and on. That's a whole different podcast.
17:40
And the backstory is that, you know, wait, listen, Trujillo,
17:43
being this man who is the dictator of Dominican Republic, he could do whatever he wants.
17:49
He wanted to go out with one of the sisters Something to that effect And hey, they say no, no, no,
17:55
In any other country, they would have been like Well, he's the leader and he's
17:58
this, you bro You know, I'm going to sacrifice you Or you better sacrifice your
18:02
body, your body Your mind, your soul for this individual Not those sisters,
18:07
They said no And what happened sadly is that they were caught And they were
18:11
assassinated, if I'm not mistaken In 59, 1960s,
18:15
By people of Trujillo all because they stood up courageously for it.
18:22
Why this story hits me, you know, I've come across many Dominicans who were
18:29
in that era, who live in that era.
18:32
That was the start of something very interesting, sad but interesting.
18:37
And Dominican Republic, 1963, elected their first Democratic-selected president.
18:46
And within a year that the United States gets involved, they invade the Dominican
18:51
Republic they put their puppet in and all this what's happening over here in
18:55
the United States, bring up Malcolm X it was the civil rights movement,
19:00
and how Malcolm X said, hey listen, the civil rights would not,
19:04
you know, black people did not earn that.
19:07
It seems that they were begging for it and they gave it to them because of these
19:10
international situation in Dominican Republic Vietnam, that it was not too popular,
19:16
with Malcolm X, basically, how is it? And even Adam Clay and power.
19:20
How is it that you're invading these people from other countries and yet want
19:25
to give us equal rights here?
19:28
And the made about sister, they're just icons of women's leadership and the
19:33
struggle for human rights. And that's another topic that I want to talk to.
19:38
So what's the connection, right? If you look at Abiso, he challenged the colonial
19:43
rule of the imperial United States, the jankies.
19:47
Michael Mack challenged the institutional racism that still happens today.
19:51
And I'm going to bring what he talks about, the fox and the wolf. Write that down.
19:56
Racism is not just a wolf. Racism is not just a fox. It's true.
20:01
And the Middleby sisters, they challenged that dictatorship.
20:04
The oppressed regime that happened during that time, I mean,
20:06
I heard stories from Dominicans who fought in that, who fought to defend themselves
20:12
after from the invasion of the United States.
20:15
The whole thing is self-determination And you got to do that thing where,
20:18
hey, listen We control our own destiny That's why I always say, what's in your hands?
20:24
What it means for Alviso and the Puerto Rican independence?
20:27
What it means for Malcolm X and the political and the common empowerment of black communities?
20:33
For the Mirabal sisters? What it means for the Dominican people and anybody,
20:37
That live in this Autodorean rule? What it means?
20:42
Sadly, there was courage and sacrifice among these individuals.
20:47
And it's one of those things that I, you know, sadly, I always say,
20:49
you know what? These folks, they pay personal price.
20:53
You know, my sister was assassinated. Malcolm X was assassinated.
20:57
Alviso Campos, let's just say, he died a bit elder, but he died of pain.
21:04
His body full of radiation.
21:06
His people turn his back. Because sadly, United States find a way to manipulate the masses.
21:13
A man that was a national hero at one point was left merely to think that he's a radical terrorist.
21:22
And his people sadly turned his back on him.
21:25
That hurt more than anything, sadly. So that's the reason why I got to talk
21:30
about these individuals.
21:32
Abyssal Campbell spent years in prison. Malcolm assassinated Ralph and the Mirabal
21:38
sisters assassinated Sally.
21:40
So I just want to say is this, that sometimes what's going on in this country,
21:44
United States, that we want to fight the fight.
21:47
We want to do all this. We want to do all that. But sadly, we're so in armor
21:51
with thinking that racism just looks a certain way, that we should address this
21:57
and we should address that.
21:59
As Malcolm X said, the fox and the wolf, they know what to do.
22:03
One, master the art of control. The other master,
22:07
The art of perception I mean of deceitment,
22:12
So if we want to fight the fight And we want to open up And we want to educate
22:15
ourselves It's always that same man To be seen To be heard And to be free Make
22:22
that a thing Make that a challenge And let's make it happen,
22:26
Thanks for listening folks I appreciate that This really means a lot I got like
22:30
a little Little TMI I'll be honest with you Voices of freedom.
22:36
Because these three stories and this individual, they shake me who I am.
22:41
So if you enjoyed this, I mean, hey, listen, subscribe, let me know, share this episode.
22:46
If you're into the history, social justice, whatever it is, and you want to
22:51
know more about leaders, not just in the United States, but globally,
22:55
and you want to keep learning and keep kind of questioning, building something
22:58
where, ooh, goddamn, I'm listening to something.
23:01
I'm not listening to a podcast. I'm listening to a revolution. Let's make it happen.
23:06
I'm out of here. It's your boy, Deconstructing Topics. I'm out. Peace.