This reasoning seems to be plagued with those who seek to willfully misunderstand or distort the issue, either because they lack the necessary experience to critically examine it or have something to gain from perpetuating this misunderstanding.

The question of merit and experience dictating the leadership of black movements is not an issue that will go away. To quote Ayinde “NO WHITE or FAIR-SKINNED PERSON is fit to LEAD any BLACK movement that is supposed to be addressing White Supremacy, White Privilege, Racism, or Gender Discrimination”. While some may see this as division I see it as reality and a matter if symbol. How can one who is held up higher in the system, or seen to be the ideal properly bring about the destruction of the system? As we have seen this question has led us into many other areas of discourse on racism. The effect of colourism is well known to every African person. Even if they have not felt it personally they see the effects of it in the media daily. Light skin seems to be the universal preference. While there are a wealth of posts that debate the lack of experience of light skinned/ near white people and their often overt or subtle complicity with the system, what we have not touched on enough is the appropriateness of the SYMBOL that leads the black movement.

Even a cursory look at Egyptian art shows the importance of colour symbolism. Their Gods and Pharaohs were painted dark, black or even a dark blue black. The importance of this is to see that Egyptians situated themselves in blackness, to them black represented Godhood and perfection and was not just a reflection of the physical description of the Egyptian people. If we apply this same idea today we must see the appropriateness of dark-skinned leadership. It does not deny the presence of those with light skins or the valid contribution that they can make to the movement, but dark-skinned leadership EFFECTIVELY SITUATES THE STRUGGLE IN BLACKNESS IN ITS TRUEST AND PUREST FORM. It is the ultimate answer to white supremacy that has effectively divided us by colour and given a certain degree of preferential status to those whose skin colour is more like their own. We can argue that there are light skinned original Africans and this is true, we can even argue that light skinned Africans still are racially, culturally and spiritually Africans and this is also true, we can even argue that all African people experience racism and the evils of white supremacy to one extent or the other and this too would be true. However, higher than all these truths, the ultimate truth remains. We are not dealing with a fair and just system. It does not play by those rules. In an answer to overwhelming whiteness, we must answer with blackness. This is not divisiveness and it is not discrimination. While no one denies the Africanness of light skinned Africans, to take the forefront in a movement that seeks to empower those that are MOST denied power is unjust and does not show RIGHT ORDER.