“Bitcoin and Black America” has been seen all over social media and is becoming a cornerstone in the Black Lives Matter movement. If you haven’t snagged a copy, I highly suggest you do so even if you are the most seasoned of all crypto and blockchain veterans. Isaiah Jackson, the author of Bitcoin and Black America brings his unique perspective on the current outlook of the financial systems in America and what the future will look like with the adoption of crypto in the black community. Even though this book is targeted towards the black community, there are so many takeaways to be had no matter your race. Isaiah is a former high school teacher and this is reflected in his approach with breaking down complex ideas and turning them into bite-sized nuggets for you to digest and understand. He eloquently walks the reader through the basics of understanding the inner workings of crypto and blockchain technology while teaching you about the history of the black community and the oppression endured due to redlining, racism, and flaws in the legacy financial system. Isaiah is a leader with how he thinks and teaches and is now one of the many inspiring people hard at work shifting the scales of financial power back to the black community.
Racism has seeped its way into the financial, prison, judicial, and policing systems. It is important to understand how the black community has been oppressed throughout the history of the United States because many of us have not been taught about this reality. It is a dark reality, but a reality that many have suffered through and have endured for centuries. By learning the history of the black community we can better understand what the next best steps are to serving and uplifting their cause for equality in all respects.
The biggest wealth-building vehicle in the United States has been synonymous with homeownership. The ability to own property that can grow in value over time, be sold, or passed down to future generations has been a cornerstone here in the United States, but primarily for the white population. With this being said, many people of color have been left on the sidelines or rejected from participating in the legacy financial institution to help build their future through this wealth vehicle. Without homeownership, there have not been other options for the black community to build wealth with.
Policing was first created after the abolishment of slavery in the United States. The white population was in fear of revenge from the now free African American people and needed a way to veil the ideology of slavery in a new fashion. The African American people were “free” but southern states needed a way to rebuild their infrastructure and economies after the Civil War. Many southern states began imprisoning African Americans and criminalizing them. Manual labor became a byproduct of imprisonment and not an eyelash was batted. The policing system began targeting African Americans to feed the prison systems, and it became this disgusting symbiotic relationship. The policing system needed the prison system and the prison system needed the policing system. Whether we realized it or not, being black became a crime and we are still feeding a profiteering prison industrial complex to this day. As you can see these are just brief examples of the many flaws with many of the systems that have been set up in this country and executed for hundreds of years.
So where do we go from here?
Queue, Isaiah Jackson, and Bitcoin in Black America. Isaiah is a firm believer that Cryptocurrency and especially Bitcoin has the potential to change the black community’s wealth generation and financial capabilities. Bitcoin is completely outside the grips of the legacy financial industry and does not discriminate. That is one of the many reasons why Isaiah feels the black community needs to educate itself and start taking action to build and participate in a system that works for them. Participation in Bitcoin with the black community would mean small businesses, churches, gas stations, grocery stores, and restaurants all taking and accepting Bitcoin. Isaiah makes a great point in a CoinDesk interview stating, “the ability to circulate dollars in a community enriches everyone and makes them inherently self-sufficient. Bitcoin offers a similar dynamic.” He refers to this method as group economics.
Right now, the dollars inside the black community are not staying inside those communities, and by incorporating Bitcoin it would create its own ecosystem where communities, businesses, and people of color receive greater access to funding and spending power because of the decentralized nature of the technology. There is no bank or third party approving your purchases, transactions, or access to capital. Imagine the power of group economics when Bitcoin is completely adopted throughout the black communities in the US. Isaiah stated in an article with CoinTelegraph, “I usually say that that the most peaceful protest you can do is simply buying Bitcoin on a regular basis because you’re just moving your money out of this system into what I believe is a better and hard money system that can be used in the future.” He couldn’t be more right, and you can see the revolution happening in front of our own eyes.
The future of crypto is fast approaching and the black communities of our nation need to benefit and thrive from this opportunity. Bitcoin and crypto do not have biases, discrimination systems, or racial indifferences. Equality is and will be possible for everyone, but most importantly for our brothers and sisters within the black community.
Sources:
Bitcoin Is a Way to Repair Economic Injustice: Author Isaiah Jackson
https://www.coindesk.com/bitcoin-black-america-economic-justice-author-isaiah-jackson
‘Bitcoin and Black America’ Author: Protest by Buying BTC
https://cointelegraph.com/news/bitcoin-and-black-america-author-protest-by-buying-btc
Bitcoin & Black America
https://medium.com/defi-ventures/bitcoin-black-america-62470fb6e0e4