Louis Farrakhan, head of the Nation Of Islam, engaged in a tour all over New York City yesterday, September 25th.  He visited areas in Queens, Brooklyn, the Bronx, Harlem, and even Newark, NJ.  Many of the sites he visited were housing projects where he addressed the topic of the increasing and ongoing gun violence that has plagued so many inner-city communities, as well as uplifting those living in circumstances of poverty by emphasizing the importance of self-empowerment and self-sufficiency.  

During his speech in Harlem, Farrakhan addressed the crowd of about 300 listeners in front of the Adam Clayton Powell Jr. State Office building on 125th St., saying, "We are holding ourselves back.  You can't keep blaming the white man."

Farrakhan used to be the head of Mosque No. 7 in Harlem and was successor to the late Malcolm X.  How do you feel about his powerful words?  Do you feel as though families suffering from severe poverty are in fact holding themselves back, or are there deeper reasons which are keeping them from freeing themselves from the sad ongoing cycle?

Source: hiphopwired.com