The attack on Pearl Harbour on December 8, 1941 was America’s introduction to a rampaging and imperialist enemy, the Japanese and the fascist forces that supported it. A Japanese bombardment occurred between 7:55am and 9:45am on that day, sinking every US battleship in the harbour, killing 2,403 people and wounding 1,716. The Japanese wanted to fragment American society with a wound to their collective ego; the story of Dorie Miller, however, shows us that America was actually brought closer together. During the attack, from the deck of a smoldering and slowly sinking USS West Virginia, Miller, a young black cook in the Navy, helped wounded soldiers overboard into safety boats and manned the ship’s machine guns. Despite having no prior shooting experience (blacks were barred from firing guns in the military), he got two confirmed kills. Only upon running out of bullets did Miller begrudgingly exit the ship.

Cuba Gooding Jr. plays Miller in the below clip from Pearl Harbor.

The point of the story is that for every celebrated moment in American history, Black Americans are the discreet heroes of the story, having made considerable yet unacknowledged contributions that keep the party going.

Jay-Z was born December 4th of 1969, the exact date Fred Hampton Sr., Chicago-born black activist of the Black Panther Party, was murdered by Chicago police and its truth covered up by the FBI and the mayor of Chicago, Richard Daley. The Brooklyn, New York City-born rapper in this way is the bearer of a mystical connection to Chicago.

Kanye West grew up in Southside Chicago, the zone of that city that houses the majority of Illinois’ black inhabitants.

In the United Center, where Michael Jordan did all of his best work, and located less than 100 meters from Malcolm X College, Jay-z and Kanye West did back-to-back nights on November 31 and December 1 2011.

Apart from President Obama and Herman Cain up until the Republican primaries, Jay and Kanye are quite possibly the most powerful Black Americans walking the planet, and for 3 hours, from 9:30pm to 12:30am, those in the United Center, including myself, were made to watch the throne.

You are now watching the throne, don’t let me get into my zone

In ‘all black everything,’ with an NY cap barely revealing his eyes, Jay-z is the reservation and worldly wisdom to Kanye’s youthful exuberance and energy.

Jay-z did way back playbacks doing ‘Where I’m From’, “Hard Knock Life’, ‘Jigga What’ and ‘Big Pimpin’, Kanye did an homage to his older hits ‘All Falls Down’, ‘Touch the Sky’, ‘Stronger’ and ‘Heartless.’

The show didn’t stray much from Watch the Throne and for the fans waiting to hear the drum and clap of Dead Presidents or the smooth trumpet from Can I live did so in vain. You need to see Jigga in a solo concert for those. I have; they’re great.

The finale was as epic as it was while remaining unthinkably simple: they played Ni**as in Paris 8 times over with a small interlude between each. People were, no exaggeration, throwing money and even a limitless black credit card, which Jay-z pocketed. Every time ‘ball so hard muhfuggas wanna fine me’ came through the speakers, the dense crowd grew louder with unslakable adoration. In defiance of conventional experience, the song got better with each successive performance. When I finally returned to the back seat of the car that took me to the show, I duly requested Ni**as in Paris be put on and stubbornly sat until the ululations were audible. America, so large, so friendly, so rich.