Date: Thursday, October 11, 2012, 11:44 AM |
Thursday, October 11, 2012
News from Troy Johnson's AALBC
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Human Earthquake to Hit New York City
New York City get ready for the Human Earthquake! Dr. M, aka Marvin X, returns to the east coast to promote his Revolution on the Rocks Book Tour. Now just exactly who is Dr. M/Marvin X? FYI, it seems he came on the scene around the time Malcolm X departed to join the ancestors, cerca 1965. It was in 1965 that Marvin X was attending San Francisco State University. And as a member of the Black Student Union, Marvin X mourned the assassination of his hero Malcolm X with fellow students.
Marvin X had been turned out to revolutionary black nationalism by his fellow students Huey Newton, Bobby Seale and Richard Thorne, along with Kenny and Carol Freeman, Ann Williams, Maurice Dawson and Ernie Allen. All the above had been influenced by the African American Association, headed by Donald Warden, aka Khalid Abdullah Tariq Al Mansour. His associates included Donald Hopkins, Henry Ramsey, Ed Howard, Paul Cobb, et al.
It was Donald Warden's Afro American Association that laid the groundwork of African consciousness that afforded the Black Panther Party to come on the scene. All of us students at Merritt College were influenced by the Afro American Association. They gave us consciousness of African liberation movements in South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, Congo, and elsewhere.
We read the writings of Jomo Kenyetta, Patrice Lumumba, Kwame Nkrumah, Nelson Mandela, et al.
We read the writings of Fidel Castro such as his court speech History Will Absolve Me, the writings of Mao Se Tung.
Marvin X had been turned out to revolutionary black nationalism by his fellow students Huey Newton, Bobby Seale and Richard Thorne, along with Kenny and Carol Freeman, Ann Williams, Maurice Dawson and Ernie Allen. All the above had been influenced by the African American Association, headed by Donald Warden, aka Khalid Abdullah Tariq Al Mansour. His associates included Donald Hopkins, Henry Ramsey, Ed Howard, Paul Cobb, et al.
It was Donald Warden's Afro American Association that laid the groundwork of African consciousness that afforded the Black Panther Party to come on the scene. All of us students at Merritt College were influenced by the Afro American Association. They gave us consciousness of African liberation movements in South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, Congo, and elsewhere.
We read the writings of Jomo Kenyetta, Patrice Lumumba, Kwame Nkrumah, Nelson Mandela, et al.
We read the writings of Fidel Castro such as his court speech History Will Absolve Me, the writings of Mao Se Tung.
Daughter Muhammida El Muhajir, Hip Hop filmmaker and her father, Dr. M, will appear on stage at the Black Power to Hip Ho[ Conference at Howard University on Nov. 2-4. She is a graduate of Howard with a degree in B.S. in Microbiology
Contrary to the Hollywood fantasy movies, the Black Panthers were not simple minded thugs, but rather the neo-intellectuals who would usher in the new day of black consciousness.
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
Osun Festival, Oyotunji Village, Sheldon SC; Part I of IV
Kings Day 2012: North American Africans Transcend White Supremacy
According to one health professional, neural placidity only occurs when we change our environment, only then can our brain cells free themselves of toxic elements and we can then set out on the road to recovery from any addiction. The new environment frees us, especially a natural setting wherein we are able to regain our mental equilibrium by being in harmony with all things, especially living things such as air, water, trees, land, animals, birds, bees, etc.
Some of us who escape from a toxic environment are almost immediately able to jump out of the box of the urban setting and adjust to a more natural setting because our DNA knows our origin and thus the amnesia forced upon us by the hostile environment is arrested and we soon recall that somewhere deep down in our consciousness we have been yearning for a return to a sacred space.
Throughout our wretched history in the Americas, at various times we escaped the hostile and oppressive environment to enjoy the Maroon tradition wherein we established independent communities, especially when we saw the ever pressing need to escape the slave system. The aim was true independence and sovereignty, not second class citizenship.
In BBC interviews, Nobel Prize winner Toni Morrison and James Meredith both lamented the continuation of white supremacy in America. Toni Morrison said only time and generations will deliver us. We wonder how much more time and how many generations will suffice? Fifty years after desegregating the University of Mississippi, James Meredith said he and his people were still at war with America. Both said the election of Barack Obama made little difference.
And so the Maroon tradition informs us of an alternative model to escape white supremacy. These communities have existed since the first kidnapped Africans arrived in the Americas. They existed in
Cuba, Jamaica, Brazil, Mexico and the United States. In the United States, the most recent example is the Oyotunji African Village located in Sheldon, South Carolina.
It may be hyperbole to say these Yorubas from Harlem escaped to Oyotunji African Village, but we know they departed Harlem forty years ago to seek a sacred space to restore their African identity to the fullness. Imagine if their model had been followed by others claiming the desire for independence and sovereignty. Yes, what if the millions of North American African who are alienated from this society would establish themselves on land wherein they can freely develop their African consciousness, political, economic, social and cultural institutions. Wouldn't that be beautiful?
It was beautiful observing the King's Day at Oyotunji African Village, honoring the founder, HRH Oba Ofuntola Oseijeman Adefunmi I. We remember him on the streets of Harlem strolling with his entourage attired in the most colorful African robes and outfits. Almost singlehandedly, Oseijeman brought African cultural restoration to North American Africans.
And his dream did not die with him but lives on at the African Village through his son HRM Oba Adejuyigbe Egundjobi Alladahonu Oyewole Adefunmi II. We observed the Royal Ancestors Parade or the Egungun Alade, a fantastic ritual drama detailing the return of the ancestors. It is an awesome myth-ritual that has been enacted for a thousand years in Yorubaland. To see that North American Africans have discarded their slave religion and returned to the faith of their fathers and mothers is a humbling experience. To hear the ritual said almost entirely in the Yoruba language is a testament that we can, will and shall overcome our psycholinguistic crisis as a result of being forced to speak the English language.
As I observed the complexity of this ritual drama, I was horrified at the thought that Europeans believed themselves superior to Africans. Their religious rituals cannot approach the complexity I saw today. I saw man and woman become one with the animals they sacrificed, whispering to them, making love to them, honoring them before the slaughter.
And as the blood dripped from the chicken and goats, I thought to myself, well, at least they are not sacrificing human beings as many North American Africans are doing in the hood throughout these United States of America. Do brothers in the hood whisper kind words to the victims of their ritual murders, do they honor them before they slaughter them? Perhaps we should teach the brothers Yoruba rituals of sacrifice, for sure, it is far better to slaughter a chicken and goat than a human being.
I agree with my friend Hurriyah Asar who sells animals and fowl for sacrifice to the African Village but is against animal sacrifice. She loves animals and is deciding whether she will continue selling them for sacrifice. When we are truly in tune with nature, we see no need to kill anything. We simply want to live in peace with all living things. On her land not far from the African Village, she raises a variety of fowl and we observe them living in peace, ducks, turkeys, chickens, doves, pigeons, guineas, dogs, cats. If animals can do this, why can't man?
--Dr. M
10/6/12
Gullahland SC
Black Panther History Month
This marks the 46th yr since the founding of the Black Panther Party in Oakland in 1966, by Huey Newton and Bobby Seale. There will be a celebration at Oscar Grant Plaza in front of City Hall on Saturday October 13th from 12pm until 3pm with the program starting at 1pm. There will be music,poetry, speakers. The BPP Alumni committee will be giving certificates out for community service awards, and one of the main award winners is the SF Bay View newspaper owned and operated by Willie and Mary Ratcliff.
Geoffrey's Inner Circle will host a film showing and Booking signings following the event at Oscar Grant Plaza Elbert"Big Man" Howard will speak at 3pm about this experiences in the BPP and about the writing of his brother" Panther On the Prowl" Big Man was a original Panther, help start the BPP.Other authors will be Steve McCuthen writer of " We were free for a while" and Meres Sia Gilbert will be there to do poems from her book "Twirl in the Smoke".Geoffrey's is located one block from Oscar Grant Plaza at 410 14th st, right off Broadway
For more information go to www.itsabouttimepp.com or call 916-455-0908
Monday, October 8, 2012
White Supremacy in Africa: Timbuktu Destruction
Mali’s heritage: Scrolls under threat
Islamist zealots are endangering Mali’s most treasured manuscripts
Oct 6th 2012 | BAMAKO | economist.com
Keep restoring Timbuktu’s scrolls
IT MAY seem odd that Timbuktu, the Malian city on the south-west fringe of the Sahara desert, is twinned with Hay-on-Wye, a placid little town on the Welsh side of the border with England. The reason for this partnership is books. Hay is famous for its bookshops and an annual literary festival.
Timbuktu has a huge stock of Arabic manuscripts, some of them going back to the 12th century, with topics ranging from Islam and philosophy to mathematics and astronomy.
But whereas Hay is as gentle as ever, Timbuktu for the past few months has been run by fiercely aggressive Islamists who control the northern two-thirds of Mali. Ansar Dine, the group in charge of the city, espouses an austere Salafist version of Islam. It has proved itself no friend of the city’s cultural heritage.
Earlier this year it began smashing ancient tombs in Timbuktu on the ground that they were idolatrous. Nine were destroyed, seven in a part of the town designated as a World Heritage Site. “The mission is not complete,” said an Ansar Dine spokesman. But the destruction of monuments may, for the moment, be over. Apart from international outrage at the vandalism, it went down badly with the town’s citizens.
The safety of Timbuktu’s manuscripts is less assured. As the rebels descended on Timbuktu, Mali’s cultural authorities told the owners of private libraries in the city to hide their wares. But not all of them are safe. A big collection at the Ahmed Baba Institute of Higher Learning and Islamic Research, which has 30,000 manuscripts, is under threat. Ansar Dine has occupied it.
On local radio the group said it would not harm the manuscripts. But many local scholars are worried. During their tomb-smashing period the rebels paused to apologise to Timbuktu’s people—then started smashing things again. The scrolls are not yet safe.
The manuscripts offend the Salafists less than the tombs or graven images do, though some address the Sufi school of Islam, which they scorn.
Timbuktu’s mayor, Hallé Ousmane, worries that Ansar Dine may start selling manuscripts to bring in much-needed cash. Others say the group sees the institute as a handy piece of property. Samuel Sidibe, the director of Mali’s national museum, has asked Ansar Dine via the Red Cross if the manuscripts could be evacuated from Timbuktu. It said no.
Timbuktu’s mayor, Hallé Ousmane, worries that Ansar Dine may start selling manuscripts to bring in much-needed cash. Others say the group sees the institute as a handy piece of property. Samuel Sidibe, the director of Mali’s national museum, has asked Ansar Dine via the Red Cross if the manuscripts could be evacuated from Timbuktu. It said no.
Priceless heritage at risk from extremists
Rebel group in control of Timbuktu desecrates venerated tomb and seeks to obliterate thousands of ancient manuscripts
By Emily Sharpe. Conservation, Issue 236, June 2012
06 June 2012-- theartnewspaper.com
06 June 2012-- theartnewspaper.com
Concern for the cultural heritage of Mali is growing after militant Islamic fundamentalists desecrated a 15th-century tomb of a Muslim saint in Timbuktu in May, and threatened to destroy other tombs as well as anything else they perceive as being idolatrous or contrary to their version of Islam. The northern Malian city, a Unesco World Heritage Site, is home to several other such tombs and three historic mosques as well as many small museums. Timbuktu also has between 600,000 and one million ancient manuscripts housed in public and private collections that are vulnerable to acts of destruction from the occupying rebel forces as well as from those looking to profit from the political unrest.
Mali has been in a state of crisis since a military coup seized power in March. Two rebel factions—Ansar Dine and the People’s Movement for the Liberation of Azawad—took control of the north in April. Members of the extremist Islamist group Ansar Dine, which is trying to impose Sharia law in the region, attacked and set fire to the mausoleum of the Muslim scholar Sidi Mahmoud Ben Amar on 4 May. His grave is venerated by many local Muslims who visit to receive blessings. According to local reports, the doors, windows and gates to the tomb were broken before the rebels set fire to the tomb itself.
The director-general of Unesco, Irina Bokova, condemned the attack on the tomb, calling the desecration “a sign of change for the worse”. She also stressed that Mali’s cultural heritage “is our common property, and nothing can justify damaging it”. Lazare Eloundou Assomo, the chief of the Africa unit of Unesco’s World Heritage Centre, warns of future risks. “We know that the [rebels] have threatened to destroy other mausoleums if the community continues to visit these tombs to receive benedictions.” He adds: “The community is taking action to protect its cultural heritage because it’s too dangerous for anyone else to enter the region right now.” This appears to be the case as reports have since emerged that armed Islamists attempted to reach the pyramidal tomb of Askia—another World Heritage Site in nearby Gao—but were denied access by locals.
As we went to press, Unesco was sending a mission to the capital city of Bamako (in the south) to meet the transitional government to discuss how to prevent future attacks.
Located at the crossroads of several Trans-Saharan trade routes, Timbuktu, founded in the late fifth century, grew to become a celebrated centre of Koranic culture by the late 15th century. Academic institutions such as the University of Sankore, brought scholars from all over Africa to the city to exchange ideas. As a result, the city became a major centre of manuscript production, with texts on a variety of subjects including astronomy, agriculture and religion as well as biographies and diplomatic correspondence.
It is the safety of these manuscripts in both private hands as well as public collections, including the Ahmed Baba Institute of Higher Learning and Islamic Research, which has more than 25,000 texts, that scholars are particularly concerned about. “Islamists do not like some views articulated in these manuscripts by some old African thinkers who believed in moderate Islam and called for co-operation with the rest of the world, particularly the West,” says Habib Sy, a west African scholar who is working with the Ford Foundation to document Timbuktu’s manuscripts.
Timbuktu mathematics and astronomy manuscript
According to Sy, within the first week of the city’s occupation, rebels went to the Ahmed Baba Institute with the intention of making it their headquarters, but staff prevented the takeover. He also says that the curator of the Mamma Haidara Commemorative Library in Timbuktu had to flee the city for Bamako in April. “He had to leave the manuscripts behind, hiding the few that he could,” he says.
“People are nervous and are either burying the manuscripts or taking them to Bamako,” he says, adding that many of these texts are fragile and moving them puts them at risk of damage. Transferring the texts to the capital is also risky because there are many checkpoints along the way and, if discovered, the manuscripts would probably be destroyed. Efforts to co-ordinate plans to safeguard the texts are also proving difficult. “People can’t even speak on the phone as their lines are monitored. And using the internet is not possible because there is only one small internet centre, which is also being monitored by the Islamists,” Sy says.
According to Sy, drug dealers from neighbouring areas including Libya have moved in and are offering money for manuscripts. “This crisis presents a perfect opportunity for them to launder drug money,” he says. “We need to act. If [these manuscripts] are lost, they are lost to all human kind. They are invaluable,” Sy says.
“We need to put pressure on the Malian authorities who should be providing security. They’ve abandoned the people of Timbuktu.”
An online petition has been launched to save the manuscripts. For more information, visit http://bit.ly/TIMBUKTU
The director-general of Unesco, Irina Bokova, condemned the attack on the tomb, calling the desecration “a sign of change for the worse”. She also stressed that Mali’s cultural heritage “is our common property, and nothing can justify damaging it”. Lazare Eloundou Assomo, the chief of the Africa unit of Unesco’s World Heritage Centre, warns of future risks. “We know that the [rebels] have threatened to destroy other mausoleums if the community continues to visit these tombs to receive benedictions.” He adds: “The community is taking action to protect its cultural heritage because it’s too dangerous for anyone else to enter the region right now.” This appears to be the case as reports have since emerged that armed Islamists attempted to reach the pyramidal tomb of Askia—another World Heritage Site in nearby Gao—but were denied access by locals.
As we went to press, Unesco was sending a mission to the capital city of Bamako (in the south) to meet the transitional government to discuss how to prevent future attacks.
Located at the crossroads of several Trans-Saharan trade routes, Timbuktu, founded in the late fifth century, grew to become a celebrated centre of Koranic culture by the late 15th century. Academic institutions such as the University of Sankore, brought scholars from all over Africa to the city to exchange ideas. As a result, the city became a major centre of manuscript production, with texts on a variety of subjects including astronomy, agriculture and religion as well as biographies and diplomatic correspondence.
It is the safety of these manuscripts in both private hands as well as public collections, including the Ahmed Baba Institute of Higher Learning and Islamic Research, which has more than 25,000 texts, that scholars are particularly concerned about. “Islamists do not like some views articulated in these manuscripts by some old African thinkers who believed in moderate Islam and called for co-operation with the rest of the world, particularly the West,” says Habib Sy, a west African scholar who is working with the Ford Foundation to document Timbuktu’s manuscripts.
Timbuktu mathematics and astronomy manuscript
According to Sy, within the first week of the city’s occupation, rebels went to the Ahmed Baba Institute with the intention of making it their headquarters, but staff prevented the takeover. He also says that the curator of the Mamma Haidara Commemorative Library in Timbuktu had to flee the city for Bamako in April. “He had to leave the manuscripts behind, hiding the few that he could,” he says.
“People are nervous and are either burying the manuscripts or taking them to Bamako,” he says, adding that many of these texts are fragile and moving them puts them at risk of damage. Transferring the texts to the capital is also risky because there are many checkpoints along the way and, if discovered, the manuscripts would probably be destroyed. Efforts to co-ordinate plans to safeguard the texts are also proving difficult. “People can’t even speak on the phone as their lines are monitored. And using the internet is not possible because there is only one small internet centre, which is also being monitored by the Islamists,” Sy says.
According to Sy, drug dealers from neighbouring areas including Libya have moved in and are offering money for manuscripts. “This crisis presents a perfect opportunity for them to launder drug money,” he says. “We need to act. If [these manuscripts] are lost, they are lost to all human kind. They are invaluable,” Sy says.
“We need to put pressure on the Malian authorities who should be providing security. They’ve abandoned the people of Timbuktu.”
An online petition has been launched to save the manuscripts. For more information, visit http://bit.ly/TIMBUKTU
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