The African Diaspora and the Wealth Paradigms of Corporations

Wealth Paradigms of Corporations

By Frank T. Scruggs, The Afro News International

Most current corporate paradigms proceed from a Western perspective that holds technological, economic and political/military advantages. These same give Western world the ability to shape global thinking towards a pattern of Western thinking in matters of global policy.

Today, the opportunity exists to create a better and more peaceful global community by thinking economically and wealth sharing. In order to achieve such a new reality in economic thinking requires shift in paradigms.

Corporations and political leaders whom typically focus on the pursuit of material wealth, greed and perversion have lost the way. Older, more traditional African values, spirituality and mores continue to be ignored and often are replaced by new, soulless, money-oriented, values. Older African more traditional values and beliefs such as Ujima and Ujamaa for example have been replaced in some places by a more capitalistic and money-oriented, values; values that seek wealth for the sake of wealth and increased individual power. Indeed, corporations like nations should seek to create wealth; however corporations like nations also have a social obligation to the global community. This obligation requires that both entities give back to the people and provide for the development of the vast human capital of the population. Such development of human capital serves to create a healthier, well-adjusted population and workforce. More time should be spent on actually providing essentials like quality, affordable healthcare, housing, work and education for all. Instead time is wasted on debating the validity of such essentials and as to whether or not to share the wealth with everyone.

Perhaps actually sharing the wealth of corporations and nations for good projects, acting more humanely and paying more than lip service to the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights could launch us into a new era of a global civil society and a healthy world community; hopefully.

As African people of the world, first we also must address human rights violations because as people of the African Diaspora we are indeed connected to other Africa people everywhere. Next we can look at equitable distribution of wealth and returning to traditional African values and paradigms. Afrocentric theories often reject corruption, greed and stress responsibility. The principle of Ujima, or collective work and responsibility demonstrate that businesses and corporations need not fear being overtaken by corruption by adopting a more Afrocentric paradigm as a guiding principle.

Maulana Karenga has stated that, “Ujima, as a principle and practice, also means that we accept the fact that we are collectively responsible for our failures and setbacks as well as our victories and achievements…such a commitment implies and encourages a vigorous capacity for self-criticism and self-correction.” Another Afrocentric value that needs to be mentioned here is Ujamaa, or cooperative economics. Ujamaa stresses sharing wealth and working to achieve a measure of wealth that is evenly distributed. When Karenga discussed the principle of Ujamaa, he said; “[Ujamaa] grows out of the fundamental communal concept that social wealth belongs to the masses of the people who created it and that no one should have an unequal amount that it gives him/her the capacity to impose to impose unequal, exploitive or oppressive relations on others.”

Multinational corporations should indeed seek to create wealth, but at the same time practice social obligation towards all workers including the neediest and often most exploited. A paradigm shift that stresses the development of the vast human capital of the world’s population; provide for quality, affordable healthcare, housing, work and education is essential to multinational corporations since this will allow for a better workforce, a better product and the development of each nation’s greatest resource, their people. Keep the conversation going and share your thoughts and comments with each other and me too. I’m at fscruggs@yahoo.com