Children of Joshua- New American Revolution

According to Bibical citation, Joshua was a major figure in the events of the Exodus and was charged by Moses with selecting and commanding a militia group for their first battle after exiting Egypt. Joshua was one of twelve Israeli men sent by Moses to explore the land of Canaan (Numbers 13:1-16), then after the death of Moses, he led the Israelite tribes in the conquest of Canaan and allocated the land to the tribes. God appointed Joshua to succeed Moses as leader of the Israelites along with giving him a blessing of invincibility during his lifetime (Joshua 1:5).

Young people born in the 1990’s and beyond have been dubbed: “The X generation”, The Millenniums”, The Lost Generation” by the media. But, in Black American communities, young people, aged 16 to 30, who are attentive to current event, seeing marked aggression toward Black males coupled with judicial indifference, are calling themselves the “Joshua Generation”. When I first heard this, I did not understand this reference. Out of curiosity, I started to talk to scholarly people, listen to wise men and women in lecture settings and talked directly to young adults aged 16 to 30. I had my eyes opened to “thinking” that I had not come upon on my own.

Young people are satiated with false promises and overt lies about justice, “leveled playing fields” and false promises about "getting an education” and finding a good job. There is a “disbelief” in American public education citing how staying in school no longer means getting a high school diploma. And going to college means being enslaved by long-term debt without prospects of a career or vocation. Distrust, unrest and “brain-washing” of their late ancestors, have given rise to Black American youth who are ready to exact change. “Respect is earned”, they told me, and “power is taken”.