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Black Men Build - Los Angeles

@blackmenbuildla

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A place for Black men to engage this country as an organized force. History isn't made, it's built.
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Join us tomorrow at 8a at the Compton Courthouse as we rally support for an incarcerated brother who was wrongly charged and sentenced at 16 with a murder he did not commit and has since been in prison for 36 years.

Jay Burton was the victim of a racist neo-Nazi LASD gang called the Lynwood Vikings, representing one of likely countless Black people who were brutally impacted by this state sanctioned terrorism. The California Racial Justice Act was passed in 2020 as a means of helping individuals like Jay whose convictions or sentencing was corrupted by racial bias.

Thanks to this act, Jay’s case is finally in the process of being reviewed by a Compton Courthouse judge with the potential for it to be sent back to youth court where he was originally charged and sentenced. From there the hope is it will be dismissed due to the extremely fraudulent nature of the evidence used against him.

Watch this video for more context on the Racial Justice Act, how it might help Jay’s situation, and come out with us tomorrow to stand in solitary against this injustice!

#FreeJayBurton by @blackmenbuildla

LA came together in a powerful way for the 9th stop of the New Men Tour! The sense of community and brotherhood in our Men’s Circles was undeniable. Every connection made and story shared adds to the strength of our movement. Miami, you're up next. Let’s keep this energy alive and finish strong 💪🏾💪🏾 by @blackmenbuildla

Jay Burton is a Los Angeles native who was preyed upon as a 16 yr old by the LA County deputy gang known as the Lynwood Vikings. They stuck him with a murder charge he did not commit and he’s been falsely imprisoned for the last 35 years.

Rumors of LA County sheriff gangs have plagued LA communities for decades and in 2021 it was revealed in stunning detail just how prevalent these violent, racist, gangs have been in our county’s sheriff department. Despite this revelation, these gangs continue running amok as lawmakers refuse to hold them accountable for the decades of terror they’ve inflicted.

It’s long past time to bring brother Jay Burton home!

Use this video to raise awareness - like, share, and drop a #FreeJayBurton in the comments. You can also donate to his legal fees using the GoFundMe link in our bio. After 35 years Jay is still fighting harder than ever but he needs all the support he can get to finally bring this nightmare to an end.

#GoogleLASDGangs by @blackmenbuildla

Cannabis 101: A Political History and Workshop with Grow It From Home and Black Men Build
Friday 7/10, 6-8PM
$10 suggested donation
Ages 21+

Join Grow It From Home expert Christina Wong for an interactive workshop that covers practical advice for beginner and advanced home “gardeners who like to garden.”

Learn about the political history of cannabis, home grow laws, and how new rescheduling policies may affect the future of cannabis access in the U.S.

Christina Wong is a food, cannabis, and gardening expert based in Los Angeles, California who advocates for a farm-to-table approach to cannabis. Widely recognized for her work at the intersection of food, culture and cannabis through her creative studio, Fruit + Flower Co., she’s also a Healer-certified medical cannabis consultant at Cornerstone Wellness in Eagle Rock.

Grow It From Home provides certified USDA Organic hemp plants and seeds to backyard gardeners across the U.S. while promoting education, access and equity.

After the workshop, we’ll take part in a discussion led by Black Men Build to learn more about the legacy of cannabis criminalization in the US, and how we might be able to reclaim and de-commodify this medicinal plant. by @blackmenbuildla

Join All Power Books for a collaborative event co-hosted with organizers on the ground in Tehran, Iran at the @malcolmxfoundation 🇮🇷

This will be a political education screening from our comrades in Iran and a panel/celebration of the life of Malcolm X (El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz), whose revolutionary internationalism saw clearly that the struggle for Black liberation in the US was inseparable from the struggle of colonized and imperialized peoples everywhere — including Iran. Our event’s panel will include speakers from @blackmenbuildla, @allpowerbooks and Iranian organizers. Vending by @peaceoffensive

We will explore Malcolm X’s evolving anti-colonialism and his connections to the Muslim world, parallel histories of US-backed repression, what Iranian sovereignty and Black self-determination can teach each other and concrete ways to build cross-struggle solidarity without erasing our distinct ground conditions.

This event is a celebration of Malcolm’s life, of Iranian resistance to domination, and of the radical love required to build solidarity across oceans, languages, and state-enforced borders.

📍Where: All Power Books
4749 W Adams Blvd
⏰When: THIS Tuesday, May 19th at 7:00PM by @blackmenbuildla

On this day in 1962 Malcolm X delivered one of his most incendiary speeches in the form of a eulogy for slain Nation of Islam member Ronald Stokes.

Stokes was murdered by LAPD just a week earlier after police saw 2 Black men taking dry cleaned clothes out of a car near the NOI’s Mosque 27 and decided to “investigate.” Although police inquiries on the brothers came back clean, the officers escalated the situation into a violent confrontation with other members who came out to help.

Ronald Stokes was gunned down despite having his hands up, another member William Rogers was shot in the back and paralyzed for life, and 5 other unarmed members were also shot - including 2 who were shot in the groin.

Brother Malcolm responded to this tragedy by honoring Stokes as a martyr and using his death as a rallying cry against police brutality and the abuse of Black people at large. He launched a nationwide speaking tour that took aim at the contradiction of American democracy itself, calling out the systemic violence and inequality faced by Black Americans.

Having started the LA mosque 5 years earlier and knowing Stokes personally, the speaking tour gave Malcolm an outlet for his rage over Stokes’ death after Elijah Muhammad denied him a retaliation mission in LA. Malcolm immediately went on the offensive, flying to LA and conducting press conferences that doubled as an opportunity to prosecute the LAPD to the Black public, even likening their violence to that of the Nazi’s gestapo tactics.

This is the emotional undercurrent that led to his searing indictment of America’s racism during Stokes’ eulogy. It was also one of the early major cracks in his relationship with the NOI due to their policy of not engaging in political activism, which Malcolm was beginning to fully wade into at this point. This speech was an emphatic reflection of that shift.

“This makes the negro neighborhood a police state. It’s the most heavily patrolled. It has more police in it than any other neighborhood, yet it has more crime in it than any other neighborhood. How can you have more cops and more crime?” by @blackmenbuildla

Violence against Black women and girls isn’t just increasing. It’s being ignored.

In 2023, Black women, only 14% of the U.S. female population, made up 31.4% of the women killed by men in single-victim/single-offender incidents. These aren’t just statistics, this is systemic.

Join Black Men Build and Dr. Treva Lindsey (@americagoddam) as we engage this moment, trace the long history of violence against Black women and girls, explore what is actually being done, and outline what must be done next.

June Jordan said it better than we ever could:

“I plan to blossom bloody on an afternoon surrounded by my comrades singing terrible revenge in merciless accelerating rhythms... I must become a menace to my enemies.”

May 7th. 7pm ET. link in bio.

We must become a menace in defense of our sisters and siblings. by @blackmenbuildla

Join us this Thursday at 7p est as we continue our conversation around, and condemnation of, war on our April Mass Call.

We’re excited to have special guests Margaret Kimberley (@margaretkimberley) of Black Agenda Report and Ajamu Baraka (@ajamubaraka) of Black Alliance for Peace to share their knowledge and deepen our analysis.

Our current studies on war reflect a yearlong breakdown of Black Men Build’s political platform, known as our 9 Bars, which outline what we’re fighting for. Our first bar centers specifically on war, calling for:

“An end to all US wars foreign and domestic, covert and overt, by all known and unknown branches of the US government”

🗓️ Thursday 4/23
⏰ 7p est
📍 Zoom - link in bio! by @blackmenbuildla

Join us next Thursday, April 23rd, for our next Membership Orientation. For the last 5 years we’ve been healing, transforming, and rebuilding the circle. Now we once again invite you to be part of our organization.

At orientation, we’ll share what it means to become a member of Black Men Build, outline all requirements, and give you a deeper understanding of our mission. If you’ve been curious about joining, this is the perfect time to take the next step.

Black Men Build is a grassroots organization empowering Black men and their families to become a powerful political force for liberation. We’re building long-term, transformative relationships—and we need you with us.

➡️ Make Black Men Build your political home and meet us at orientation next week. RSVP today.

Link in bio. 🔗 by @blackmenbuildla

The US war machine is the most destructive force on earth. It’s a harbinger of senseless violence, destruction of the earth, and wasteful spending that could otherwise go towards improving the lives of its citizens at home. On top of that, the US military aggressively recruits Black Americans to die fighting for a country that actively works against our interests in every regard.

For these reasons and more, a call to end all US wars is the 1st of Black Men Build’s 9 Bars - our political platform that outlines what we’re fighting for. Over the next 9 months we’ll be focusing on each of these bars in detail and examining their importance one by one.

Pull up this Thursday at 7p est as we go in depth on our 1st Bar:

An end to all U.S. wars, foreign and domestic, covert and overt, by all known and unknown branches of the US government.

🗓️ Thursday April 16th
⏰ 7 - 9p est
📍 Zoom - link in bio

Slides 7&9: Clips from the 1968 documentary “No Vietnamese Ever Called Me Nigger” by @blackmenbuildla

This month’s Black Women’s Circle will be postponed due to Easter Sunday.

We apologize for any inconvenience and truly appreciate your flexibility. We’re moving the circle to the following week to ensure everyone has the opportunity to join without conflict.

The new date will be Sunday, April 12, 1-3pm at Radical Hood Library

In the meantime, please feel free to share this update with anyone in your network who was planning to attend.

Thank you for your understanding, and we look forward to seeing you all next Sunday. 🤎 by @blackmenbuildla

April is a reminder that growth takes consistency. What we water, we grow.

This month, we come together to stay grounded, build discipline, and strengthen ourselves in community. Through real conversation and shared accountability, we continue doing the work. Mentally, emotionally, and collectively. 🖤

Pull up, tap in, and keep building. 💪🏿

🗓️ Saturday, April 4th

⏰ 1-3pm

📍 Radical Hood Library - 2304 W. Jefferson Blvd.

Open to Black Men of all ages.

#BlackMensCircle #BlackMenBuilding #CommunityStrength #SpringGrowth #Brotherhood MenInCommunity StayGrounded by @blackmenbuildla