Saturday, December 19, 2015

Black Peter (the Moor) and White Santa; 15 things you didn't know about the Moors

Dutch self-image shaken by "Black Pete" debate

 
Saint Nicholas (C) is escorted by his assistants called 'Zwarte Piet' (Black Pete) during a traditional parade in central Brussels in this December 1, 2012 file photo.
Reuters/Francois Lenoir/Files
 
The Dutch see themselves as tolerant pragmatists, especially adaptable if social harmony or commercial interests demand it.
But that self-image has taken a battering in recent weeks as a growing chorus of voices inside and outside the country protest against a Christmas tradition that many Dutch see as harmless fun but critics say is racist.

According to the folklore, Saint Nicholas arrives in the Netherlands in mid-November accompanied by his servant Black Pete - a part usually played by a white man in "blackface" with a curly wig and large, red-painted mouth.

Now the Dutch are being forced to confront the possibility that their enormously popular Christmas tradition might point to a latent racism which many thought was anathema to their culture.

Few debates have stirred such emotion among the cool-headed Dutch. Millions flocked to "like" a Facebook page backing Black Pete after an independent expert who reports to the U.N. Human Rights Council criticized the tradition.

Prime Minister Mark Rutte has rejected depictions of the Netherlands as insular and xenophobic.
"I do not recognize ourselves in that portrayal," he told reporters last week when asked whether the Netherlands no longer tolerated outsiders.

But that is the point that has been exposed by the debate, according to Quinsy Gario, an artist who has campaigned against the Black Pete tradition for years.

"We've lied to ourselves about our tolerance for so long that we don't recognize discrimination anymore," he said. "There has been structural exclusion of minorities for decades."

He said the children of the many immigrants to the Netherlands were becoming increasingly vocal about confronting signs of racism that their parents may have chosen to ignore.
"You have third- and fourth- generation people who see it as their own country and they want to take responsibility for their own and their kids' sake," he said.

IMMIGRANT DESTINATION

The furor over the revered tradition, which some art historians say has its roots in a 17th century fashion for well-to-do Amsterdam families keeping a black house slave, has exposed the sensitivity of race in the Netherlands.

Wealthy and fast-growing in the years after World War Two, the Netherlands was a major destination for economic migrants from southern Europe, Turkey and Morocco in the 1950s and 1960s.
In 2010, around 11 percent of the population was foreign-born, according to Eurostat. Most have acquired Dutch citizenship, a sign of the country's successful integration policies.

Out of a population of around 16 million people, more than 3.5 million are foreign-born Dutch citizens or the children of non-Dutch immigrants, according to the official statistics agency.
The largest immigrant populations include those from Turkey, the former Dutch colony of Suriname and Morocco.

Some Dutch blame the influence of outsiders, from Muslims to interfering European Union bureaucrats, for the erosion of Dutch culture and social benefits, particularly at a time when many Dutch are feeling the pinch of the economic slowdown.

"Many Dutch people feel fundamentally threatened," said Laurens Buijs, a sociologist at the University of Amsterdam.

"As if they feel Brussels, or the UN, want to take away who we are, our identity."
Such fears have boosted support for Geert Wilders, the populist anti-Islam politician who wants to stop immigration by Muslims as well as eastern Europeans, and wants the Netherlands to leave the euro and claw back powers from Brussels. He has even set up a website where people could file complaints about eastern Europeans.

Andre Krouwel, a political scientist at Amsterdam's VU University, agreed an intolerant streak has been exposed.

"It's evidenced by the strength of anti-Muslim parties compared to other countries like Germany," he said.

The Dutch record in fighting discrimination has been criticized in recent months by Amnesty International and the Council of Europe, the continent's human rights watchdog.

"EVERYDAY RACISM"

Most big-circulation Dutch newspapers leapt to the Netherlands' defense when Verene Shepherd, a Jamaican academic who heads a U.N. working group of independent experts on discrimination against people of African descent, said in late October that the tradition of Black Pete was racist.
On Tuesday, U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay made clear that Shepherd was speaking in her own capacity and not for the Geneva-based office.

The daily Algemeen Dagblad gave over its front page to a montage of portraits of black and Asian Dutch citizens, all of whom said they supported the tradition.

But in an opinion piece for the Volkskrant newspaper, Roomyla Choenni, a Dutch consultant of Surinamese descent at IT outsourcer Capgemini, said Black Pete "keeps alive an atmosphere of everyday racism."

"In many people's eyes, the Netherlands is meant for white people, preferably with blue eyes and rosy cheeks," he wrote.

Many of the Africans who work at the international courts in The Hague as judges, prosecutors, lawyers and court officers - services which contribute to the region's economic growth - privately admit that they have experienced racism.

When one African judge told a taxi driver she worked at one of the international courts, he asked her if she was the cleaner, the judge told Reuters. Another senior court official said she spent months trying to find a place to live when she first arrived.

"Each time they saw it was an African, I was told the apartment was not available any more," she said.

Polls show that the main opposition in the Netherlands to the tradition of Black Pete is in cosmopolitan Amsterdam. The local council in the southeast part of the city, where many immigrants live, voted to ban the festivities this year.

But the majority still want Black Pete. In a survey by pollster Maurice De Hond last month, 91 percent of a representative sample of Dutch people said the tradition should not be changed to suit the tastes of a minority, and 81 percent thought it would be unacceptable to turn Pete another color.
Rutte said the debate was inevitable and healthy given the number of immigrants now in the Netherlands.

"It's unavoidable that when you have a huge inflow of people then you get tensions," he said. "Initial reactions from society are for no big changes at the moment ... (but) traditions can change over time."
But many Dutch eyes have been opened, Gario said.
"People are starting to realize that some people here are staunchly, obtusely racist."
(Editing by Anthony Deutsch and Sonya Hepinstall)



15 Things You Did Not Know About the Moors of Spain





1. The Spanish occupation by the Moors began in 711 AD when an African army, under their leader Tariq ibn-Ziyad, crossed the Strait of Gibraltar from northern Africa and invaded the Iberian peninsula ‘Andalus' (Spain under the Visigoths).


2. A European scholar sympathetic to the Spaniards remembered the conquest in this way:
a. [T]he reins of their (Moors) horses were as fire, their faces black as pitch, their eyes shone like burning candles, their horses were swift as leopards and the riders fiercer than a wolf in a sheepfold at night . . . The noble Goths [the German rulers of Spain to whom Roderick belonged] were broken in an hour, quicker than tongue can tell. Oh luckless Spain! [i]
[i] Quoted in Edward Scobie, The Moors and Portugal's Global Expansion, in Golden Age of the Moor, ed Ivan Van Sertima, US, Transaction Publishers, 1992, p.336



3. The Moors, who ruled Spain for 800 years, introduced new scientific techniques to Europe, such as an astrolabe, a device for measuring the position of the stars and planets. Scientific progress in Astronomy, Chemistry, Physics, Mathematics, Geography and Philosophy flourished in Moorish Spain



4. Basil Davidson, one of the most noted historians recognized and declared that there were no lands at that time (the eighth century) "more admired by its neighbours, or more comfortable to live in, than a rich African civilization which took shape in Spain"


5. At its height, Córdova, the heart of Moorish territory in Spain, was the most modern city in Europe. The streets were well-paved, with raised sidewalks for pedestrians. During the night, ten miles of streets were well illuminated by lamps. (This was hundreds of years before there was a paved street in Paris or a street lamp in London.) Cordova had 900 public baths - we are told that a poor Moor would go without bread rather than soap!


6. The Great Mosque of Córdoba (La Mezquita) is still one of the architectural wonders of the world in spite of later Spanish disfigurements. Its low scarlet and gold roof, supported by 1,000 columns of marble, jasper and and porphyry, was lit by thousands of brass and silver lamps which burned perfumed oil.


7. Education was universal in Moorish Spain, available to all, while in Christian Europe ninety-nine percent of the population were illiterate, and even kings could neither read nor write. At that time, Europe had only two universities, the Moors had seventeen great universities! These were located in Almeria, Cordova, Granada, Juen, Malaga, Seville, and Toledo.


8. In the tenth and eleventh centuries, public libraries in Europe were non-existent, while Moorish Spain could boast of more than seventy, of which the one in Cordova housed six hundred thousand manuscripts.


9. Over 4,000 Arabic words and Arabic-derived phrases have been absorbed into the Spanish language. Words beginning with "al," for example, are derived from Arabic. Arabic words such as algebra, alcohol, chemistry, nadir, alkaline, and cipher entered the language. Even words such as checkmate, influenza, typhoon, orange, and cable can be traced back to Arabic origins.


10. The most significant Moorish musician was known as Ziryab (the Blackbird) who arrived in Spain in 822. The Moors introduced earliest versions of several instruments, including the Lute or el oud, the guitar or kithara and the Lyre. Ziryab changed the style of eating by breaking meals into separate courses beginning with soup and ending with desserts.


11. The Moors introduced paper to Europe and Arabic numerals, which replaced the clumsy Roman system.


12. The Moors introduced many new crops including the orange, lemon, peach, apricot, fig, sugar cane, dates, ginger and pomegranate as well as saffron, sugar cane, cotton, silk and rice which remain some of Spain's main products today.


13. The Moorish rulers lived in sumptuous palaces, while the monarchs of Germany, France, and England dwelt in big barns, with no windows and no chimneys, and with only a hole in the roof for the exit of smoke. One such Moorish palace ‘Alhambra' (literally "the red one") in Granada is one of Spain's architectural masterpieces. Alhambra was the seat of Muslim rulers from the 13th century to the end of the 15th century. The Alhambra is a UNESCO World Heritage Site


14. It was through Africa that the new knowledge of China, India, and Arabia reached Europe. The Moors brought the Compass from China into Europe.


15. The Moors ruled and occupied Lisbon (named "Lashbuna" by the Moors) and the rest of the country until well into the twelfth century. They were finally defeated and driven out by the forces of King Alfonso Henriques. The scene of this battle was the Castelo de Sao Jorge or the 'Castle of St. George.'










Thursday, December 17, 2015

The Sixteen Crucified Saviors before Jesus

  1. The World's Sixteen Crucified Saviors

    From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
    The World's Sixteen Crucified Saviors (1875)
    The World's Sixteen Crucified Saviors; Or, Christianity Before Christ, Containing New, Startling, and Extraordinary Revelations in Religious History, which Disclose the Oriental Origin of All the Doctrines, Principles, Precepts, and Miracles of the Christian New Testament, and Furnishing a Key for Unlocking Many of Its Sacred Mysteries, Besides Comprising the History of 16 Heathen Crucified Gods is an 1875 book written by American freethinker Kersey Graves,[1] which asserts that Jesus was not an actual person, but was a creation largely based on earlier stories of deities or god-men saviours who had been crucified and descended to and ascended from the underworld. Parts were reprinted in The Book Your Church Doesn't Want You to Read edited by Tim C. Leedom in 1994, and it was republished in its entirety in 2001.
    The book is often used as a source by Christ myth theory proponents, such as Dorothy M. Murdock,[2][3] Tom Harpur, and John G. Jackson. Many of the same theories espoused in the book are repeated in the documentaries The God Who Wasn't There, The Pagan Christ, Zeitgeist: The Movie and Religulous.
    American Atheists leader Madalyn Murray O'Hair was a fan of the book. While modern-day American historian Richard Carrier found the book to be incomplete, he appreciated some of its points.[4]

    Contents

    Summary

    Graves, often citing Anacalypsis and other works by Godfrey Higgins (1772-1833) as his source, asserts in the book that many messiah-like "saviors" were crucified on a cross or tree before ascending into heaven.
    "One thing is clear — the mythos of the Hindus, the mythos of the Jews and the mythos of the Greeks are all at bottom the same; and what are called their early histories are not histories of humankind, but are contrivances under the appearance of histories to perpetuate doctrines." (Higgins, Anacalypsis)
    Here is Graves' main list, arranged chronologically:
    He also lists a number of other holy figures who took the form of men and then ascended into heaven, including:
    The book claims that a number of these deities or god-men shared at least some traits of Jesus as described in the New Testament, drawing the strongest similarities with Krishna. For example, some figures had miraculous or virgin births, were sons of supreme gods, were born on December 25, had stars point to their birthplaces, were visited by shepherds and magi as infants, fled from death as children, exhibited traits of divinity in childhood, spent time in the desert, traveled as they taught, had disciples, performed miracles, were persecuted, were crucified, descended into hell after death, appeared as resurrections or apparitions, or ascended into heaven. Graves also devotes chapters to the pagan roots of baptism and the eucharist, and concludes that Jesus was not a real person.

    Quotes

    Here I desire to impress upon the minds of my clerical brethren the important fact, that the gospel histories of Christ were written by men who had formerly been Jews (see Acts xxi. 20), and probably possessing the strong proclivity to imitate and borrow which their bible shows was characteristic of that nation ; and being written many years after Christ's death, according to that standard Christian author, Dr. Lardner, it was impossible, under such circumstances, for them to separate (if they had desired to) the real facts and events of his life from the innumerable fictions and fables then afloat everywhere relative to the heathen Gods who had pre-enacted a similar history. Two reasons are thus furnished for their constructing a history of Christ almost identical with that of other Gods, as shown in chapters XXX., XXXI. and XXXII. of this work.[21]

    Criticism

    American historian Richard Carrier, a supporter of the Christ myth theory, has written online about his concerns with The Sixteen Crucified Saviors. For example, Price argues that Graves often omits citations, uses dubious sources, mixes opinions with facts, and draws conclusions beyond the evidence presented. However, according to Carrier, there is no comprehensive rebuttal of the book, and although many of his facts are wrong, others assertions such as a December 25 birthdate among Greco-Roman sun gods are now acknowledged to be correct. Carrier argues there is a better case for the resurrection of Thracian god Zalmoxis (also called Salmoxis or Gebele'izis) and the crucifixion and resurrection of Sumerian goddess Inanna (also known as Ishtar), neither of whom are mentioned by Graves.[22]

    See also

    References


  2. Graves, Kersey (1875). The World's Sixteen Crucified Saviors: Or, Christianity Before Christ, Containing New, Startling, and Extraordinary Revelations in Religious History, which Disclose the Oriental Origin of All the Doctrines, Principles, Precepts, and Miracles of the Christian New Testament, and Furnishing a Key for Unlocking Many of Its Sacred Mysteries, Besides Comprising the History of 16 Heathen Crucified Gods. Freethought Press. pp. 22–23.

  3. Maurice Casey Jesus: Evidence and Argument or Mythicist Myths? T&T Clark 2014 p21-22

  4. http://www.truthbeknown.com/beddru.html

  5. infidels.org

  6. Graves, p. 125

  7. The Ball Shell Walls: Awaken Your Mind to New Spiritual Realities by Joseph Kantor Higgins

  8. aryanity.com

  9. www.bharatonline.com

  10. see_the_truth.web.com

  11. www.flyingchariotministries.com

  12. The Atlantic Monthly, Dec. 1870

  13. ronaldvhuggins.blogspot.com

  14. The World's Sages, Thinkers and Reformers: Being Biographical Sketches by De Robigne Mortimer Bennett

  15. Phoenicia by John Kenrick

  16. A New Universal History of the Religious Rites, Ceremonies and Customs by William Hurd

  17. www.kingdavid8.com

  18. www.kingdavid8.com

  19. www.kingdavid8.com

  20. www.kingdavid8.com

  21. www.kingdavid8.com

  22. Graves, Kersey (1875). The World's Sixteen Crucified Saviors: Or, Christianity Before Christ, Containing New, Startling, and Extraordinary Revelations in Religious History, which Disclose the Oriental Origin of All the Doctrines, Principles, Precepts, and Miracles of the Christian New Testament, and Furnishing a Key for Unlocking Many of Its Sacred Mysteries, Besides Comprising the History of 16 Heathen Crucified Gods. Freethought Press. pp. 22–23.

  23. http://infidels.org/library/modern/richard_carrier/graves.html

Top 10 Myths: Akhenaten was the World's First Monotheist (Ancient Art Po...

The Birth of Monotheism: Great Hymn to the Aten

Black Hollywood unChained

A History of God

Karen Armstrong - Religion and the History of Violence





Karen Armstrong is one of my favorite scholars of theology and
spirituality. I love her because she has that eclectic vision so
necessary to unravel the conundrums of the present intellectual morass.
We are happy to hear her explain her understanding of religion and
violence. Too often we want to attribute world issues to one cause or
another, sometimes politics, religion, economics, ecology, but Karen is
careful to sift through all such isms, schisms, ideologies and
mythologies to arrive at some modicum of truth that we can savor. She is
not always optimistic at the human condition. After one lecture on her
current book, she said she felt dreadful. We share her dread, for the
world has become very dreadful. She notes that men are essentially
predators or killers. She told how men kill and plunder often because
they are bored. This hit us in the gut because we recall when some young
men in the ghetto told us, "OG, you know what we do when we get bored? We
get our bulletproof vests, UZIS and ride through the hood killing
nigguhs." This made me consider that we have become lower than the KKK,
at least they killed because they hated us, certainly not because they
were bored. But I tried to think deeper on this predatory condition of
men. As I grew up in the country where men to hunt, I
wondered was it because in our move to urbanity we were unable to
exercise the hunter myth/ritual. In the absence of deer, duck,
pheasants, quail rabbits and other animals to hunt, in our urbanity we must now resort to
hunting each other, humans killing humans in lieu of animals. How
can we back up from this precipice and return to some level of humanity and/or civility?

Is there any possibility of us reclaiming our divinity which I am want
to maintain is our essential nature. Karen never imagines we are capable of such high spirituality.

This notion of our predatory nature being essential appears to be pervasive in our 
slippery slop into nothingness, dread and absurdity.
-- Marvin X
12/18/15

Karen Armstrong - Religion and the History of Violence




Karen Armstrong is one of my favorite scholars of theology and spirituality. I love her because she has that eclectic vision so necessary to unravel the conundrums of the present intellectual morass. We are happy to hear her explain her understanding of religion and violence. Too often we want to attribute world issues to one cause or another, sometimes politics, religion, economics, ecology, but Karen is careful to sift through all such isms, schisms, ideologies and mythologies to arrive at some modicum of truth that we can savor. She is not always optimistic at the human condition. After one lecture on her current book, she said she felt dreadful. We share her dread, for the world has become very dreadful. She notes that men are essentially predators or killers. She told how men kill and plunder often because they are bored. This hit us in the gut because we recall when some young men in the ghetto told us, "OG, you what we do when we get bored? We get our bulletproof vests, UZIS and ride through the hood killing nigguhs." This made me consider that we have become lower than the KKK, at least they killed because they hated us, certainly not because they were bored. But I tried to think deeper on this predatory condition of men. As I grew up in the country where men used to go hunting, I wondered was it because in our move to urbanity we were unable to exercise the hunter myth/ritual. In the absence of deer, duck, pheasants, quail and other animals to hunt, we must now resort to hunting each other, brothers hunting brothers in lieu of animals. How can we back up from this precipice and return to some level of civility? Is there any possibility of us reclaiming our divinity which I am want to maintain is our essential nature although this notion of the predatory nature being our essence appears to be on a slippery slop of nothingness and absurdity.-- Marvin X

Monday, December 14, 2015

Marvin X's East Coast style biblotherapueutic revolution rocks Oaktown

Master Teacher Marvin X at his Academy of da Corner, 14th and Broadway, downtown Oakland.
Marvin X has given out thousands of books freely to the people. Lately, Dr. Nathan and Dr. Julia Hare gave him permission to give a five book collection of their writings at whatever price God puts in the people's heart. Many do not understand when God tells them to give whatever God puts in their hearts. Some give $100.00, some give $50.00, some give $40, some give $20.00. But it doesn't matter.

Dr. Nathan and Julia Hare authorized Marvin X to tell the people to give what God puts in their hearts. Now what part of English do you understand??????

Most people give $100.00 to $50.00, those who are able to give less give $40-to $20.00. It's okay.
Give what God tells you to give and what you are able to give. Thank you. May God bless you. ASA, Marvin X, Dr. Nathan Hare, Dr. Julia Hare




 Marvin X and his associate and Master Teacher Sun Ra, outside Marvin's Black Educational Theatre,
San Francisco, 1972, on Ofarrel between Fillmore and Webster at the Greek Orthodox Church, renamed the Black Educational Theatre. Sun Ra arranged the music for the musical version of Marvin's play Flowers for the Trashman, renamed Take Care of Business of TCB. Sun Ra and Marvin X produced a five hour performance (without intermission) with a cast of fifty, including the Sun Ra Arkestra and dancers, the Raymond Sawyer dancers and the Ellender Barnes dancers, and the cast of TCP by Marvin X.
 Marvin X in Seattle WA rally in support of Palestine

 Syrian poet/scholar/novelist Dr. Mohja Kahf. She invited Marvin X to read at the University of Arkenssas. She proclaims the Black Arts Movement artists are the foundation of Muslim American literature and art.
 On February 7, 2015, the City of Oakland issued a proclamation in honor of the Black Arts Movement. Mayor Libby Schaaf issued the proclamation in the presence of Marvin X, his daughter Nefertit and grandchildren Naeema and Jahmael, along with the President of Laney College, Dr. Elnora Tina Webb. The Mayor honored Dr. Nathan Hare as the Father of Black Studies in America.
The Marvin X biblotherapueutic (healing through reading books) has finally come to the attention of the West Coast. At his Academy of da Corner, Lakeshore station, the Buppy/Yuppy section of Oakland, he was acknowledged for doing an East Coast thang, i.e., from Harlem to Wash. DC, conscious literature is vended on the streets, especially in Harlem, Brooklyn, Newark, and Philly. Marvin X is often seen vending his books up and down the East Coast. A little brother from Oakland saw him in Philly outside the Gallaria, the downtown mall frequented by Philly's North American Africans. The brother couldn't believe Marvin X was in Philly doing what he does in downtown Oakland, usually at 14th and Broadway, although Marvin also works Lakeshore Ave. and the cross roads of the Black/African Bay Area, the Berkeley Flea Market at the ASHBY BART Station.

Today the Blacks on Lakeshore let him know they know how conscious literature is vended on the streets of Harlem, Brooklyn elsewhere up and down the East Coast. These bi-coastal North American Africans were elated to see Marvin X has that East Coast style of spreading conscious knowledge.

Marvin X didn't hesitate to let them know he does his thang coast to coast, including the Midwest and Dirty South. After working the Fulton Street Mall in Brooklyn, Marvin X stopped at a conscious book stand that sold conscious tapes as well. Since the brothers weren't familiar with him, he shared some of his works freely, books and DVDs. As he departed Fulton Street Mall, a young brother ran up to him saying, "OG, my padnas selling books and tapes said you just left their stand and you got a different point of view. That's what I'm looking for, a different point of view." The young brother spent $30.00 buying Marvin X's different point of view. Ironically, before arriving in Brooklyn, Marvin X had visited the Yoruba African Village in Sheldon, South Carolina. While there a another young man saw him and said, "Marvin X, I know who you are! My friend is your friend on Facebook, and even though I am not your friend, he sends me your writings, and I must admit, you have a different point of view. We appreciate you, Marvin X."

At Marvin X's Academy of da Corner, Lakeshore, he deals with a variety of people, including Christians, Muslims, Native Americans, Whites, Gypsies, Gay/Lesbian, and those who claim to be nothing or none of the above. He tries to treat them all with unconditional love, as he is a follower of His Holliness Guru Bawa, along with Elijah Muhammad, Prophet Muhammad, Rumi, Saadi and Hafiz, and don't leave out Sufi Master of Senegal, Bamba, who has the Holy City Touba, more sacred than Mecca to West African Muslims.

While Marvin X is placed into the Muslim literary tradition, Ishmael Reed says Marvin X must be considered in the Yoruba tradition since he is in that tradition of the artist as teacher, better known as didactic literature, or literature with a purpose, usually moral, probably why Ishmael Reed called him, "Plato teaching on the streets of Oakland." Reed said of Marvin X, "If you want to learn about motivation and inspiration, don't spend all that money going to workshops and seminars, just go stand at 14th and Broadway and watch Marvin X at work. He's Plato teaching on the streets of Oakland."

We suggest you catch Marvin X at work, whether at 14th and Broadway (currently being renamed the Black Arts Movement Cultural and Economic District) or on Lakeshore or at the Berkeley Flea Market, catch him and see if you can escape his aura. Although Marvin X has been literally giving away his books for free, alas, he said God told him to give away a thousand copies of his collection of essays Wish I Could Tell You The Truth. He felt vindicated when two young brothers passed him on Lakeshore but turned around to introduce themselves to him saying, "Brother Marvin X, we just want to shake your hand because we found half of your book Wish I Could Tell You The Truth and it changed our lives. Thank you, thank you, thank you."

More recently, a young brother said to him at the Berkeley Flea Market, "Marvin X, thank you for taking so much pressure off me. After reading your Mythology of Pussy and Dick, I can now get my life together. I don't have to worry about owning my woman's vagina. I can own myself. Thank you, thank you, thank you. And even old men have told Marvin, "Marvin X, I hate to admit this, but I learned something from your Mythology of Pussy and Dick." And the young girls says, "Marvin X, you taught me I had pussy power. I didn't know this before reading your essay. Thank you."
 

Tuesday, December 8, 2015

Marvin X and Aries Jordan on The Black Arts Movement District, downtown Oakland CA, photo essay by Adam Turner




The BAM/City of Oakland planning committee voted to make The Black Arts Movement Disrtrict the official name of the proposed BAM District, a cultural and economic area along the 14th Street corridor, downtown Oakland. The BAM District will give honor and respect to Oakland's radical tradition of artists as artistic freedom fighters (Paul Robeson). According to Ishmael Reed, "If not for the Black Arts Movement, Black culture would be extinct!" BAM co-founder Marvin X says, "We give all praise to the Harlem Renaissance artists who expressed Black consciousness, inspired by the teachings of Marcus Garvey. We who are part of the Black Arts Movement give praises to the teachings of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad. Think of writers Amiri Baraka (LeRoi Jones), Sonia Sanchez, Last Poets, Askia Toure, Sun Ra and Marvin X, all influenced by Islam. Muslim American literature originated with the BAM poets, writers, musicians, painters, dancers, actors. BAM artists were "sisters of the Black Power Movement" (Larry Neal). Marvin X says BAM was the Mother of the Black Power Movement because many students and young people came through BAM, then joined the Nation of Islam, the Black Panther Party, Black Students Union. Even the American Prison Movement was influenced by BAM after the staff of Black Dialogue Magazine visited the Soledad Prison's Black Culture Club, chaired by Eldridge Cleaver and Alprintice Bunchy Carter.

BPP co-founder Dr. Huey P. Newton said, "Marvin X was my teacher. Many of our comrades came through his Black Arts Theatre: Bobby Seale, Eldridge Cleaver, Emory Douglas, Samuel Napier."

The Black Arts Movement District gives honor and respect to the artistic and political freedom fighters who fought to liberate Oakland and America from the addiction to white supremacy. We think of dancer/choreographer Ruth Beckford, Ellendar Barnes, Raymond Sawyer, Ed Mock, Judith Holton, Suzzette Celeste, Deborah Vaughn, Halifu Osumare, Malika Jamillah, Nisa Ra, et al. We think of Avotcja, Adam David Miller, Sarah Webster Fabio, Dr. Nathan Hare, Dr. Julia Hare, Bob Chrisman, Robert Allen, Abdul Sabrey, Aubrey LaBrie, Duke Williams, Saadat Ahmad, et. al. We especially recognize actor Danny Glover who was with us at San Francisco State University and was a member of Black Arts West Theatre, San Francisco. Danny is in the Paul Robeson tradition of the Artistic Freedom Fighter.

As was noted in the BAM/City of Oakland planning meeting: BAM was/is an international Black Arts Movement, that expressed itself nationally and internationally, from Europe to Brazil, Peru, Columbia, Mexico, Africa and elsewhere.

Oakland's Black Arts Movement District serves as the model of a national and international/Pan African artistic movement. Those who think BAM is something from the past are simply lost and turned out on the way to grandmother's house (Whispers). They need to get a healing and come into the present era. After all, we are yet free and thus the mission of BAM continues until freedom is won. Oh, Ancestor Harriet Tubman, speak to us tonight, "...I could have freed more slaves if they had known they were slaves...."
--Marvin X, BAM Planner, December 7, 2015
Next meeting: Oakland City Hall
January 4, 2016, 2PM-5PM
Be there or be square!
Information: 510-200-4164



Graphics design by Adam Turner

 

Oakland City Council President Lynette McElhaney addresses planning session on establishing an Arts Commission and the Black Arts Movement District


Oakland Post Publisher Paul Cobb making a point. "Lynette, why didn't you include or sync the BAM agenda with your agenda?"  


Anyka Barber, Director of Betti Ono Gallery, Elder Paul Cobb and Aries Jordan, all BAM District planners




 Menhuaim Ayele, holds a Masters in Architecture, is author of  a book on creating an Afrikatown. His dream is coming true! He is a member of the BAM District planning team. To left of Menhuaim is Duane Deterville, Editor of Black Artists in Oakland. He is a member of the BAM District planning team.







The next meeting of the Black Arts Movement District is January 4, 2016

BAM Notes by Aries Jordan

On Monday 12/7/15 the 2nd planning  meeting for the Black Arts Movement District began with a review of norms and the ambitious agenda to finalize recommendations for BAM District and Arts Commission. Participants acknowledged the past efforts of  many culture keepers who  also  envisioned a Black cultural district in Oakland . Participants were also  challenged to move past grievances and grief towards a collective vision for  the next  100 years.  The large group was broken into  two working groups to explore the scope of  BAM district and   reestablishment  of the Oakland Arts commission. Both groups passionately shared the need for  protection for Black artist and businesses leaders in Oakland and beyond. 

A consensus was reached on the name “Black Arts Movement”  District  for the 14th street corridor.  The Black Arts Movement is  a part of Oakland’s history of resistance to oppression and was a catalyst for the spread of Black consciousness in the 1960’s.  The BAM district would serve as a place for cultivation of Black art and economic prosperity. The BAM  group  identified the creation of a BAM Land trust as a top priority; also, an assessment of City of Oakland Properties that BAM district can acquire for performance space, artist space, housing, business space. 

The BAM members envisioned a green space that incorporated Science Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics.  The BAM committee also proclaimed that they will support and not compete with our brothers and sisters in east Oakland working on creating a Black Arts Movement district

The Oakland Arts Commission group made recommendations on the process going forward which included partnering with the Oakland's Department of  Race and Equity to ensure protection of existing Black cultural institutions. Moreover, it was also clear that once the Oakland Arts commission is re-established the arts fund needs to be restricted for sustainability, including a citizen review board.

Lastly, the group recommended the establishment of Oakland Entertainment Commission to address the challenges of obtaining permits and licensing. The meeting concluded with closing remarks from City Council President Lynette McElhaney on next steps for the  proposed legislation before the City Council.  Participants departed the meeting  with a sense of hope, fierce determination and commitment to move thoughtfully and swiftly to turn the BAM District into a reality.  
--Aries Jordan

Saturday, December 5, 2015

If you only knew how beautiful you are


I wish black people knew how beautiful they are
no matter negrocities
beautiful people
strange fruit cross lynching tree
century after century
in the sun in the rain pain
a miracle
silence of centuries
strange tongue
songs without memory
songs broken smashed
drama of resurrection
Kemit drama of resurection
ISIS OSIRIS
Yoruba tales a  thousand years
drama of a thousand years
ancestor tales so rich vivid
look at them before the king
they crawl before the king
and he embraces them
the tale of a thousand years
we hear music
 “Blues” from Mali
Why do you let me hear the music
that rocks my soul
why do this to me?
rock my world
take me back a thousand years
look at me sitting on the river bank
my queen and me
look at me dancers before me
telling the story of our tribe
a thousand other tribes
warrior dances
women dances
the dance of priests and priestess
let the come before the Oba
let them crawl before the holy one
let the holy one accept them
Please, do not let me hear the Kora
Do not let me hear the kora
do not shake my world like that
kora is memory vivid and true
I walk around Timbuktu
I teach at the University
Fluent in many languages
we translate for the world in darkness
while we walk in the sun and students
will not leave us alone

I wish black people knew how beautiful they are
something even slavery could not destroy
though it tried in every way every day
to no avail
even the whip could not prevail
destroy the beauty of blackness
a soul force energy beyond time and matter
atomic particles quantum physics
high mathematics
equal justice righteousness peace
Ma’at yes
MIzan (Arabic) balance

so let us travel the space ways
honor Sun Ra Arkestra
travel the space ways
beyond this world
if you find earth boring
the same old same place
take a trip to outter space
next stop is Jupiter Jupiter
You want to get off at Saturn
Let’m off, Saturn!

Black people so beautiful
that’s why they hate us
we beautiful
in spite of our negrocities (Baraka term)
beauty
we can be ugly
slipping into darkness fear
do not let fear consume us
the only thing to fear is fear itself
beyond fear is freedom discipline
beyond fear all things are possible
beyond fear nothing is impossible
if we say yes to life yes to joy yes to love
yes to success yes yes yes.
say yes and be blessed
say yes be blessed
and yet as I write
some are saying no no no
say yes my friends
stop showing God your fist
open your fist so blessing can flow into your hand heart
Did you know God is in the blessing business
but even when He/She comes to bless you are depressed
won’t open your hand to receive
how can God bless you with closed hand
how can God bless you when you are full of the pain of yesterday
let it go let it go let it go
be beautiful
beautiful
black and beautiful.
—Marvin X
11/30/15

I wish black people knew how beautiful they are
no matter negrocities AB term
don't steal my term Marvin X

we are beautiful strange fruit
no matter 
cross lynching tree
century after century
beautiful in the sun rai
we speak is pain
that we can speak at all is a miracle
after the silence of centuries
strange tongue given to us
and yet we sing songs without memory
songs from the past broken smashed
imagine the drama of resurrection
Yoruba tales from a thousand years
the “Blues” from Mali
Do not let me hear the kora
do not shake my world like that
kora is my memory vivid and true
I walk around Timbuktu
I teach at the University
Fluent in many languages
we translate for the world in darkness
while we walk in the sun and students
will not leave us alone

I wish black people knew how beautiful they are
something even slavery could not destroy
though it tried in every way every day
to no avail
even the whip could not prevail
destroy the beauty of blackness
a soul force energy beyond time and matter
atomic particles quantum physics
high mathematics
equal justice righteousness peace
Ma’at yes
MIzan (Arabic) balance

so let us travel the space ways
honor Sun Ra and his Arkestra
travel the space ways
beyond this world
if you find earth boring
the same old same place
take a trip to outter space
next stop is Jupiter Jupiter
You want to get off at Saturn
Let’m off, Saturn!

Black people so beautiful
that’s why they hate us
cause we beautiful
in spite of our negrocities (Baraka term)
in our beauty we ugly
slipping darkness fear
do not let fear consume us
oh my children move beyound fear
fear is in your heart mind
fear controls you unless you jump out of the box like jack
jump jump
you can do it jump

the only thing to fear is fear itself
beyond fear is freedom discipline
beyond fear all things are possible
beyond fear nothing is impossible
if we say yes to life yes to joy yes to love
yes to success yes yes yes.
say yes and be blessed
say yes be blessed
and yet as I write
some are saying no no no
say yes my friends
stop showing God your fist
open your fist so blessing can flow into your hand heart
Did you know God is in the blessing business
but even when He/She comes to bless you are depressed
won’t open your hand to receive
how can God bless you with closed hand
how can God bless you when you are full of the pain of yesterday
let it go let it go let it go
be beautiful
beautiful
black and beautiful.
—Marvin X
11/30/15

Publisher wants to release Marvin X's next book of poetry


At the Pen Oakland Literary Awards Ceremony at the Oakland Main Library today, the publisher of Poetic Matrix Press tentatively agreed to publish Marvin X's next collection of poetry. Marvin's last collection was Land of My Daughters, 2009, Black Bird Press, Berkeley, CA.

Stay turned for the forthcoming poetic collection by Marvin X, known variously as "Plato teaching oh the streets of Oakland" (Ishmael Reed); "The USA's Rumi, Saadi, Hafiz...." (Bob Holman); "The father of Muslim American Literature"(Dr. Mohja Khaf).

At the PEN Oakland Literary Awards, Jack Foley mistakenly said there were no Muslims being awarded today. When Marvin X came up to receive his Lifetime Achievement Award, along with BAM poet/musician Avotchja, Marvin noted that he is a Muslim poet, in fact, considered the "Father of Muslim American literature" (Dr. Mohja Khaf), along with other Black Arts Movement Poets, including Amiri Baraka, Sonia Sanchez, Askia Muhammad Toure', et al. According to Dr. Khaf, "The Black Arts Movement poets are the foundation of Muslim American literature."

After receiving his award, Marvin X read his classic poem What If, a poem any Muslim would recognize, although Marvin transcends Islam in the poem by including an essential dose of pantheism or African religion. Ishmael Reed puts Marvin X in the Yoruba tradition, while others place him in the Islamic literary tradition. In truth, Marvin X defies all traditions by embracing all traditions.

When I write, I write to write, I do not write in sectarian traditions or any religious tradition. "I am the pen, Allah is the ink."

Sometimes I have had a writing plan for a book until the Holy Spirit took over and I saw I was only the pen and Allah was the ink. It was then that I forgot my plan and let the Holy Spirit guide my hand. I wish somebody could understand. I wish somebody could hep me tonight.
--Marvin X
12/5/15

James Sweeney has noted, "Marvin X is the freest Black man in non-free America." Indeed, being Black listed from Academia has allowed Marvin X to speak freely on any subject that comes to his mind, and for sure his mind is global. Former California Poet Laureate Al Young introduced Marvin X. Al said, "I've known Marvin at least half a century, and we have watched him evolve and expand his consciousness. In his memoir on Eldridge Cleaver: My Friend the Devil, Marvin X revealed not only things we didn't know about Eldridge, but Marvin was more than honest about himself, his own foibles and flaws. What else can we ask of a writer?"

Black Arts Movement Distrtict tentative Agenda for City of Oakland Plannning Meeting, December 7, 2015




1. The need for the BAM land trust is top priority. Just as the Eastside Arts Cultural Center is under a land trust, we want a parity of buildings in the BAM District under the land trust. We call upon Black developers to work with us, e.g., Amy Groves and/or Thomas Dolan. Foundations can help us secure buildings in the BAM District, investment bankers, Silicon Valley corporations can assist us, e.g., Facebook, Yahoo, Microsoft, et al.

Municipal bonds can be sold to acquire properties. Bonds attorney Amira Jackmon suggests creating jobs for BAM people as bonds salespeople.

We need an assessment of City of Oakland properties that BAM District can acquire for performance space, artist space and housing, businesses, including proposed buildings at 14th and Alice that we understand are part of the Oakland Downtown Plan.

2. Banners up before Xmas along the BAM corridor. Let us start with the Red, Black and Green that Marcus Garvey created during the Harlem Renaissance. We have added the heart because all we do we do in the name of love.

3. Immediately establish the African Women’s Market for vendor’s along the corridor. We suggest a pilot project between Clay and Franklin. We suggest women from the African Diaspora Bazaar organize and operate the African Women’s Market, under the leadership of Aishah Boone.

4. Develop the BAM Business Plan and incorporation papers. Establish Board of Directors and project directors for the various BAM entities. Separate profit from non profit projects.

5. Organize the BAM Union of Artists, modeled after the National Writers Union, AFL/CIO. The Union of Artists will be a membership organization to promote the works of artists in all genres, painters, poets, writers, playwrights, dancers, musicians, graphic artists, directors, technicians. The union will help artists in legal matters such as contracts, royalties, commissions, grants, loans, housing, publishing, printing, exhibits, housing, emergency funds, health insurance, life insurance, mental health and physical health matters.

6. Immediate BAM planning grant so we can work on making the BAM District a reality at the earliest.

7. Tour guides hired for BAM District tours ASAP.

8. Create employment opportunities for artists, craftpersons, entrepreneurs, youth and children.

9. Partner with business community for expertise, especially the African American Chamber of Commerce and the Oakland Chamber of Commerce.

10. Students from the College of Alameda have asked to partner with BAM to establish the BAM Love Zone, a sacred space for lovers only. We would hope the entire BAM District would be a Love Zone.

11. Establish a BAM General Assembly of all BAM members.
12. Establish Elders Council to advise
13. Women’s Council
14. Young Adult Council
15. Children’s Council

These are some of my thoughts. Please let me know your thoughts or agenda items that you feel should be a priority for the December 7 meeting.
—Marvin X, BAM Planner

Meaning of the Red, Black and Green Flag



The Red Black and Green flag is an act of love. Prior to the flag, there was a song called Everybody got a flag except a Coon. Marcus Garvey then presented the Red Black and Green to show the world Africans have a flag, Red for the blood shed, Black for the people, Green for the land we must have as a nation of people. We add the heart for the precious love in our lives. God is Love, so we are in God, God is within us.

The Red Black And Green is sacred to us. We honor the tri colors and want the world to know we are a nation of people under the Red Black And Green. We see the Red Black Green flying coast to coast as we strive toward freedom in the present era. We ask the children to accept the heart in the Red Black and Green as per the Black Arts Movement District. Why the heart?

The heart has been an essential part of the Black Arts Movement/Black Liberation Movement, i.e., Black Power Movement. Revolution is for love, love of family, love of community, love of self, but love always and forever, love. No hate up in here, only love survives and transcends hate, jealously, envy. Let us then move beyond hatred, beyond jealousy, envy toward the pure sprit of love.

Let the BAM banner fly up and down the BAM District. Let the people know they are loved. Let the people know they have a sacred space. Let them know there is a space where their bodies are sacred and holy and will not be violated. Let the people know there is a space where their creativity is respected; where their economic genius is respected, especially in the BAM African Market Women’s Bazaar along the BAM corridor, which they shall organize and operate, in the African/Afrikan tradition
Let the artists form the Union of BAM Artists. Let the business people from their association. Perhaps there must be a General Assembly of Black Arts Movement associates. Let us do this now and for the the generations to come. Ache.