The Langley Virginia based Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is celebrating Black History Month Using The Red Green & Gold. Colours adopted by the Rastafarian movement to symbolize Red for blood shed, gold for wealth of Africa and green for ‘the Promised Land’ – Ethiopia.
They posted on all their social media the tri-color image along with the caption:
We are proud to join the national celebration of Black History Month and to reflect on the contributions of African Americans to our country and to #CIA. #BlackHistoryMonth#AfricanAmericanHistory #AfricanAmerican
We are proud to join the national celebration of Black History Month and to reflect on the contributions of African Americans to our country and to #CIA. #BlackHistoryMonth #AfricanAmericanHistory #AfricanAmerican pic.twitter.com/FCHjjeTjpI
— CIA (@CIA) February 1, 2023
Although their celebration is specific to the role black Americans play in the development of the country, the CIA has historically played a villainous role in the lives of Black people in general all over the world and particularly the Jamaican born Rastafarian movement.
From leading figures like Patrice Lumbumba to Rastafarian’s biggest global ambassador Bob Marley, there are declassified documents and books showing the role they played in making the lives of black leaders difficult and resulted in their death.
The CIA played a major role in the assassination of Patrice Lumumba, the first democratically elected Prime Minister of the Congo. They supported opposition forces and provided them with weapons and money, while also providing intelligence and logistical support to the coup plotters that eventually led to Lumumba‘s death. The CIA also helped to organize the assassination and cover up the evidence of their involvement.
Chris Blackwell, Bob Marley’s former label head spoke about how he was summoned to a meeting at the US Embassy in Jamaica to discuss Marley’s “approach to making music.” He also stated that the attack on Bob Marley was “possibly by proxies of the C.I.A attacking Bob and his entourage because of his apparent ties with Prime Minister Michael Manley.” In Bob Marley’s song “Rat Race” from the 1976 album Rastaman Vibration he sings ” Rasta don’t work for no C.I.A”.
Under the C.I.A’s Black History month post one twitter person commented with the Wikipedia link to “Project MKUltra.”
Which was an illegal human experimentation program designed and undertaken by the U.S. based Intelligence Agency. The project experimented with black peoples including 7000 veteran soldiers to develop procedures and drugs that could be used in interrogations to weaken individuals and force confessions through brainwashing and psychological torture.
In the 1960s, the CIA also used Louis Armstrong, the famous jazz musician, as a “trojan horse” in the Congo. The agency reportedly saw Armstrong as a way to influence public opinion and culture in the country, which was undergoing a tumultuous period of decolonization and Cold War politics. Armstrong’s popularity was leveraged by the CIA to further its political goals, and the agency reportedly monitored his activities and monitored those around him. The article highlights the complex intersection of music, politics, and espionage in the mid-20th century.
In Jamaica Black History Month is celebrated officially as “Reggae Month” which was kickstarted today February 1 with a Dennis Brown concert in Kingston, Jamaica. On Bob Marley’s birthday February 6, there is a major concert at Emancipation Park. There are also Reggae Month activities scheduled for South Florida and other parts of the U.S.
