Meta tags:
description= Celebrating Black Life & Culture;
Headings (most frequently used words):
share, this, our, to, of, ados, the, black, legaci, with, in, and, by, violence, it, time, about, slavery, what, posts, on, reads, aiwuyor, join, my, mailing, list, rest, peace, harper, glenn, death, brilliant, writer, words, grieving, cousin, from, here, equality, william, darity, kirstin, mullen, deception, misdirection, dangers, how, movement, promotes, anti, blackness, online, voter, suppression, stop, being, surprised, police, truth, reparations, powerful, conversation, minister, ari, merretazon, why, rape, must, be, emphasized, articles, dna, deport, confederates, americans, need, pan, africanism, coronavirus, means, for, america, is, not, lineage, navigation, subscribe, support, independent, woman, owned, media, blog, stats, like, us, fb, as, seen, popular, new, recent, comments, do, readers, think, social, top, pages,
Text of the page (most frequently used words):
the (397), and (265), that (139), for (94), black (88), african (79), was (75), our (69), with (65), this (59), not (55), from (54), harper (50), are (45), you (41), they (37), #slavery (35), about (33), pan (33), have (31), new (31), their (31), #american (30), would (30), what (28), people (28), email (27), were (27), when (26), rape (26), reparations (26), but (26), americans (25), aiwuyor (24), jamaiwuyor (24), com (23), ados (23), share (23), america (22), cousin (22), window (21), why (21), like (21), opens (21), women (20), reddit (20), how (19), also (19), can (19), culture (18), time (17), descendants (17), had (17), 2020 (17), africanism (16), more (16), will (16), enslaved (16), most (16), them (16), all (16), she (16), world (15), need (14), who (14), has (14), school (14), there (14), coronavirus (13), identity (13), because (13), work (13), other (12), jam (12), understanding (12), than (12), where (12), still (12), some (12), every (12), loading (11), must (11), being (11), anti (11), here (11), darity (11), friend (11), ourselves (11), africans (11), history (11), into (11), only (11), term (11), race (11), these (11), creation (11), his (11), wealth (11), writing (11), now (10), join (10), glenn (10), mullen (10), tweet (10), link (10), one (10), been (10), both (10), slave (10), ethnicity (10), book (10), years (10), over (10), old (10), know (10), forced (10), white (10), just (9), lineage (9), movement (9), cultural (9), list (9), many (9), ancestors (9), never (9), unity (9), while (9), better (9), don (8), trump (8), violence (8), jessica (8), ann (8), mitchell (8), condition (8), enslavement (8), prison (8), could (8), yes (8), community (8), during (8), communities (8), testing (8), see (8), global (8), great (8), men (8), confederate (8), jefferson (8), collective (7), brilliant (7), quotes (7), facebook (7), merretazon (7), police (7), mailing (7), should (7), your (7), call (7), say (7), life (7), european (7), published (7), across (7), long (7), economic (7), too (7), leaders (7), healthcare (7), same (7), moore (7), around (7), well (7), going (7), day (7), labor (7), legaci (6), instagram (6), twitter (6), girls (6), rest (6), minister (6), william (6), racism (6), woman (6), erasure (6), free (6), heritage (6), understand (6), which (6), point (6), without (6), told (6), states (6), pandemic (6), local (6), government (6), first (6), won (6), instead (6), national (6), always (6), each (6), knew (6), mother (6), want (6), child (6), chapter (6), breeding (6), engine (6), chattel (6), report (5), yourself (5), young (5), writers (5), deport (5), peace (5), ari (5), stop (5), equality (5), kirstin (5), death (5), writer (5), letter (5), address (5), gmail (5), freedom (5), fact (5), passed (5), down (5), lives (5), human (5), stated (5), those (5), often (5), then (5), use (5), further (5), another (5), let (5), went (5), having (5), descent (5), religious (5), used (5), however (5), united (5), covid (5), children (5), income (5), continue (5), major (5), immigrants (5), treatment (5), made (5), make (5), get (5), john (5), malcolm (5), coalition (5), audley (5), alive (5), everything (5), oppression (5), back (5), george (5), augusta (5), georgia (5), times (5), thomas (5), rising (5), thought (5), september (5), systematic (5), females (5), assets (5), didn (5), home (5), view (4), sign (4), create (4), blog (4), believe (4), word (4), called (4), think (4), workers (4), tweetingjam (4), social (4), light (4), moveme (4), donald (4), divid (4), powerful (4), recent (4), confederates (4), blackness (4), brown (4), context (4), born (4), lose (4), tell (4), thus (4), less (4), various (4), look (4), mothers (4), daughters (4), grandparents (4), before (4), claim (4), bloodline (4), descendant (4), example (4), grandmother (4), her (4), ideology (4), hamitic (4), through (4), religion (4), specific (4), daeus (4), activists (4), garvey (4), health (4), financial (4), taken (4), towards (4), put (4), state (4), leave (4), advocate (4), federal (4), take (4), much (4), discrimination (4), short (4), connected (4), public (4), common (4), commission (4), out (4), best (4), inspired (4), cobra (4), process (4), said (4), member (4), university (4), attended (4), helps (4), strategies (4), things (4), saying (4), medical (4), monuments (4), lived (4), flags (4), flossie (4), did (4), ago (4), library (4), mass (4), research (4), raped (4), july (4), author (4), payment (4), value (4), unpaid (4), close (4), laughed (4), turned (4), course (4), habit (4), website (3), required (3), write (3), comments (3), subscribe (3), already (3), wordpress (3), liberation (3), cocolo (3), dominican (3), really (3), posts (3), profile (3), legen (3), emphasized (3), articles (3), dna (3), truth (3), surprised (3), online (3), voter (3), suppression (3), deception (3), misdirection (3), words (3), right (3), additional (3), among (3), continent (3), africa (3), sight (3), survived (3), came (3), future (3), multiple (3), refer (3), land (3), using (3), beings (3), cousins (3), inspiration (3), teaching (3), later (3), wrote (3), since (3), past (3), starting (3), lead (3), spiritual (3), self (3), acknowledgment (3), existence (3), justice (3), says (3), missing (3), thing (3), even (3), sufficient (3), discuss (3), racist (3), myth (3), whether (3), modern (3), additionally (3), enslavers (3), justify (3), matter (3), tried (3), terms (3), historical (3), its (3), clear (3), thinking (3), diaspora (3), universal (3), does (3), society (3), assistance (3), paid (3), hourly (3), politicians (3), non (3), industry (3), measures (3), crisis (3), act (3), good (3), potentially (3), may (3), pay (3), issue (3), hours (3), seeking (3), order (3), robert (3), system (3), administration (3), endure (3), proverb (3), org (3), any (3), isolationism (3), remember (3), fine (3), moment (3), build (3), representative (3), traitors (3), perspectives (3), false (3), narrative (3), forward (3), advocated (3), congress (3), north (3), ghana (3), movements (3), keep (3), done (3), queen (3), met (3), goes (3), wherever (3), globally (3), interest (3), recently (3), mississippi (3), congo (3), purpose (3), systemic (3), against (3), yet (3), girl (3), until (3), college (3), few (3), small (3), days (3), family (3), vinson (3), memorial (3), monument (3), removing (3), grew (3), growing (3), southern (3), dedicated (3), milledgeville (3), statues (3), june (3), forget (3), york (3), transatlantic (3), trade (3), sally (3), hemmings (3), man (3), centuries (3), something (3), three (3), vietnam (3), dead (3), war (3), legal (3), august (3), claims (3), rapes (3), closure (3), daily (3), again (3), such (3), today (3), enslaver (3), redress (3), between (3), big (3), face (3), deep (3), deal (3), spent (3), monarch (3), name (2), content (2), log (2), subscribed (2), subscribers (2), careful (2), group (2), kanye (2), frantz (2), fanon (2), complex (2), negative (2), dismantling (2), amnesia (2), happens (2), vacation (2), legendary (2), documentarie (2), experience (2), single (2), readers (2), means (2), conversation (2), dangers (2), promotes (2), grieving (2), reads (2), politics (2), ended (2), year (2), mike (2), wearing (2), please (2), excuse (2), popular (2), search (2), support (2), independent (2), owned (2), media (2), interview (2), americas (2), struggle (2), continues (2), story (2), generations (2), cultures (2), downtrodden (2), language (2), reason (2), disconnect (2), own (2), beliefs (2), fathers (2), scientists (2), woodson (2), accomplished (2), comes (2), dangerous (2), concerning (2), precisely (2), founded (2), negro (2), week (2), miseducation (2), repair (2), terminology (2), cause (2), harm (2), full (2), humanity (2), attempts (2), response (2), rights (2), starts (2), serious (2), proclaim (2), imprisonment (2), itself (2), statement (2), dehumanizing (2), wear (2), shirts (2), calling (2), doesn (2), anything (2), sake (2), eugenics (2), getting (2), themselves (2), son (2), proponents (2), thereby (2), indeed (2), actually (2), racial (2), scholars (2), advocates (2), brings (2), impact (2), line (2), problematic (2), number (2), reasons (2), january (2), read (2), overdue (2), rename (2), roots (2), marcus (2), february (2), effects (2), steps (2), along (2), ensure (2), survive (2), emphasize (2), protect (2), focus (2), providing (2), resources (2), pressure (2), legislation (2), low (2), families (2), sick (2), profit (2), prevent (2), utility (2), housing (2), municipalities (2), behind (2), ruin (2), effective (2), include (2), safety (2), net (2), nation (2), economics (2), employment (2), structural (2), barriers (2), 500 (2), wage (2), result (2), likely (2), hit (2), color (2), fearful (2), seek (2), created (2), fear (2), making (2), avoid (2), committing (2), default (2), seriously (2), belief (2), patients (2), lack (2), insurance (2), cases (2), isn (2), level (2), feel (2), gets (2), ignore (2), doctors (2), detroit (2), clarke (2), caricom (2), vision (2), activism (2), ashley (2), farmer (2), none (2), perfectly (2), working (2), importance (2), advocating (2), speech (2), earlier (2), international (2), largest (2), minds (2), identify (2), power (2), continuously (2), promote (2), divisions (2), uplift (2), worldview (2), move (2), caribbean (2), directly (2), blacks (2), talking (2), involved (2), locally (2), different (2), improve (2), delegation (2), africanist (2), reminded (2), learned (2), planet (2), away (2), examples (2), pull (2), asked (2), unia (2), slaves (2), independence (2), returned (2), perspective (2), inspiring (2), building (2), mutual (2), grounding (2), determination (2), provides (2), within (2), differences (2), emphasizes (2), strategize (2), xenophobia (2), throughout (2), collaborative (2), efforts (2), issues (2), confusion (2), systems (2), bodies (2), grounds (2), historically (2), interested (2), seems (2), neo (2), terrorists (2), watch (2), crumble (2), brutality (2), grandchildren (2), surrounded (2), served (2), terror (2), sharecropping (2), little (2), reached (2), memories (2), mary (2), udc (2), exists (2), car (2), surrounding (2), statue (2), plot (2), cotton (2), after (2), wife (2), signed (2), manifesto (2), union (2), lee (2), confederacy (2), capital (2), students (2), flag (2), off (2), end (2), broken (2), leaving (2), stickers (2), immediately (2), 23andme (2), glad (2), endured (2), victims (2), general (2), post (2), traumatic (2), refused (2), rapist (2), nature (2), relationship (2), owner (2), professor (2), wanted (2), consent (2), raised (2), kind (2), harmful (2), sexual (2), raping (2), contributed (2), pool (2), bloods (2), oral (2), books (2), late (2), political (2), philadelphia (2), northeast (2), region (2), graduate (2), hampshire (2), law (2), known (2), explains (2), video (2), includes (2), jones (2), webinar (2), publisher (2), michael (2), fisher (2), south (2), _______________ (2), 21st (2), century (2), million (2), fold (2), sisters (2), certainly (2), necessity (2), drove (2), demanding (2), mutually (2), consensual (2), possible (2), merely (2), fancy (2), subject (2), childhood (2), choice (2), wayles (2), 1820 (2), dated (2), estate (2), consider (2), two (2), joel (2), yancey (2), 1819 (2), explained (2), male (2), age (2), under (2), producing (2), authors (2), case (2), 1865 (2), segregation (2), ongoing (2), once (2), program (2), injustices (2), grievous (2), concerned (2), together (2), anybody (2), definitely (2), love (2), rapture (2), tuesday (2), talk (2), monday (2), gone (2), lynette (2), else (2), smiled (2), telling (2), yeah (2), voice (2), tears (2), facetime (2), zoom (2), miss (2), looked (2), beautiful (2), quote (2), universe (2), traditional (2), ask (2), though (2), novel (2), proud (2), type (2), novels (2), wasn (2), laughter (2), loved (2), bonded (2), beloved (2), 2025 (2), celebrating (2), comment, collapse, bar, manage, subscriptions, site, reader, privacy, account, 123, tajudeen, abdul, raheem, agonize, organize, cops, boys, erykah, badu, seat, poem, dealing, feelings, top, pages, trent, conf, zoemorosini, sondra, alexia, walton, cynthia, dunker, symis, elizabeth, parent, kristin, olivia, valcarce, zora, nea, friendship, open, joe, scarborough, clothing, appropriation, davontaye, suffers, povertenza, harry, belafonte, jay, seen, 593, 988, worldwide, stats, 137, older, navigation, marie, pollard, listen, class, consciousness, jen, fought, defeated, birthright, battled, belly, beast, reducing, total, horrific, potential, survivors, cultivators, innovators, visionaries, revolutionaries, rich, grounded, merger, blended, origins, originating, religions, customs, languages, blatant, insult, confines, descriptor, sons, uncles, aunts, farmers, artisans, preachers, etc, repairing, carter, record, forebears, biography, recognized, mentality, evolved, month, influences, true, framework, continually, demand, mental, physical, root, destruction, repaired, healed, experiences, reduce, attack, fight, internally, difficult, person, neither, wouldn, sound, ridiculous, confusing, incredibly, perhaps, closest, laborers, absolutely, place, confinement, confined, rightfully, imprisoned, argument, essentially, uplifting, adopt, internalized, surprising, leadership, seeks, distance, question, 1858, testimony, science, mankind, james, lawrence, cabell, argued, genetically, inferior, buys, colonizers, institutions, cursed, god, ham, noah, mythic, sought, permanently, align, excusing, rationalizing, anyone, tries, frame, idea, embracing, based, reinforces, lies, hierarchies, pseudoscience, lineages, reply, luck, predate, extremely, useful, addressing, follow, discussions, realized, descend, revisit, publication, downloaded, 000, indication, discussion, hijack, fracture, knowledge, origin, tree, assessment, meant, bleak, serve, warning, complacent, undermine, severity, centered, bailout, care, bear, brunt, worst, churches, mosques, temples, limit, attendance, large, crowds, push, districts, aged, closings, governors, lawmakers, pass, emergency, covering, food, employees, shutoffs, corporations, profits, moratorium, evictions, foreclosures, companies, meals, governments, scramble, needs, protective, promising, options, start, leaves, goal, save, plan, crushing, helpful, abrupt, shutdown, events, buildings, places, strike, blow, livelihoods, due, bills, student, loans, lacking, savings, instability, decreased, jobs, substantially, reduced, causing, authorities, atmosphere, afraid, medicaid, steer, attention, citizenship, status, societal, accessing, competence, undocumented, charge, rule, tests, completely, remain, scary, corner, cdc, director, redfield, pressured, california, rep, katie, porter, officials, sure, concerns, appropriate, wellbeing, biased, either, faking, illnesses, unfortunately, rejected, predicted, surge, adequately, equipped, availability, wait, periods, certainty, probability, enough, experiencing, pain, whites, couple, indifference, incompetence, inadequate, nearly, existent, got, disaster, hands, disparities, cold, flu, ample, prepare, preventative, chose, seriousness, allowing, virus, spread, sending, country, tailspin, march, france, row, arthur, alfonso, schomburg, bibliophile, collector, elinor, des, verney, sinnette, pence, announces, hydroxychloroquine, trial, hospital, nikki, robertson, henrick, cornell, west, debate, afrikan, nationalism, audubon, ballroom, caricomreparations, ncobraonline, mlk, mohammed, elnaiem, nationalist, keisha, blain, 1898, 1997, blackpast, dwayne, mack, dara, abubakari, sources, otherwise, detriment, journey, afford, unnecessary, divisiveness, far, foolishness, statements, remind, nigerian, wise, bridges, foolish, dams, referenced, nations, comprise, body, force, bloc, reluctant, whom, allow, become, sighted, succumb, ideologies, encourage, derives, ignorance, laziness, myopic, 1987, supporters, initiatives, consist, africanists, 2015, gathered, colleagues, part, consists, artists, organizations, internationally, fields, 8th, ashanti, fool, game, players, dispersed, firm, floating, withered, nothing, doing, viewed, herself, saddening, currently, claiming, sentiment, direct, contradiction, amy, ashwood, found, association, ethiopian, committee, republic, afrika, pushed, reconnect, actively, organized, connect, 1964, kwame, nkrumah, ghanian, ceremonies, refreshed, civil, martin, luther, king, smart, forefathers, foremothers, trinidadians, haitians, jamaicans, continental, puerto, ricans, eagerly, learning, engaging, aid, worked, respect, tap, awareness, centers, wisdom, guides, tools, come, understandings, recognition, attempt, erase, similarities, celebrates, able, viewpoints, conditions, worse, strategy, essence, helped, masses, mean, easy, instantly, sunshine, roses, bonds, struggles, linkages, threats, highly, beneficial, combine, capacity, counter, collectively, meanwhile, city, majority, population, coincidence, live, considered, experimentation, painful, deadly, western, implemented, medications, tested, populations, french, openly, suggested, vaccines, understands, nationally, speaking, peoples, gain, insight, confronting, effort, interests, stake, sides, drawn, schemes, center, position, stage, henrik, tells, relates, romanticized, april, colonialism, looking, crumbling, send, defeat, losers, protestors, knock, refuse, reality, misunderstood, weren, constant, threat, reminder, celebrated, died, sophomore, remembers, grandfather, paranoid, capturing, him, wilder, fled, except, fond, granddaddy, money, grandmama, chewing, snuff, despite, disapproval, escaped, inside, glass, encasement, memorabilia, stand, underneath, uniform, medals, shone, surroundings, odds, excited, opportunity, rebuild, spring, summer, study, named, congressman, carl, segregationist, onto, drafted, angry, supreme, court, ruling, racially, segregating, schools, unconstitutional, street, soldiers, according, recorder, newspaper, constructed, unveiled, 1912, board, education, topeka, town, normalized, reprimanded, fubu, 6th, grade, military, preparatory, located, capitol, georgian, voted, secede, terrorism, bits, flung, water, heads, knocked, graffiti, cover, names, fall, heal, wounds, davis, months, store, noticed, truck, plastered, bumper, illegals, struck, irony, considering, illegal, deeply, appreciate, scope, researchers, covered, fully, grasp, happened, affects, repeatedly, clarifies, uncertain, sadly, alone, job, deifying, founding, vilifying, leads, gross, prevents, functions, rooted, important, conceptualize, transgenerational, trauma, trans, generational, epigenetic, injury, syndrome, affect, acknowledge, silent, sex, grad, classmate, argue, brushed, claimed, rumor, classmates, verified, given, birth, exclaimed, discussing, lot, evidence, widespread, stuff, ancestral, rage, doorway, narratives, stress, key, jezebel, stereotype, hypersexualize, dehumanize, imply, enjoyment, clearly, murder, avoiding, implies, lessen, usage, ships, continents, excerpt, particularly, damning, gene, british, appear, sparingly, shared, available, traces, described, comprehensive, investigations, ever, genetic, data, stemming, article, technical, consultant, presidents, motion, picture, larenz, tate, actor, played, character, historian, veterans, wallace, terry, random, house, ballantine, decorated, honorably, discharged, veteran, headquarters, recon, 3rd, brigade, 4th, 25th, infantry, army, active, party, chair, security, leading, 1989, development, manchester, certified, technician, antioch, washington, reparationist, nuances, laws, basis, peoplehood, reparationists, above, steadfast, defunding, redirecting, exploring, reading, abolitionist, writings, carceral, inherently, dismantled, terrorized, jacob, blake, floyd, breonna, taylor, alton, sterling, sandra, bland, ahmaud, abery, aiyana, tamir, rice, oscar, grant, freddie, gray, botham, jean, natasha, mckenna, replay, danger, hosted, features, communications, specialist, gives, depth, overview, promoting, divisive, rhetoric, supremacy, grandchild, carolina, sublette, ned, constance, coast, 2016, smithers, gregory, 2012, dubois, edward, burghardt, reconstruction, 1935, literature, honored, resulting, succeeding, happy, accept, acceptance, dealt, central, millions, deserve, recompense, deliberate, whole, pair, unless, thoroughly, incompetent, historians, economists, deliberately, side, stepping, actual, reparation, quite, literally, equivalent, owed, skipped, prostitution, liaison, extent, trivialize, horrendous, crime, intimate, enslaving, rapists, promiscuous, engaged, liaisons, indispensable, bred, resemble, closely, sold, usually, sole, satisfying, gratification, including, pedophiles, five, average, field, hand, closer, resembled, female, higher, valuation, carried, infected, existed, conducted, fascination, skinned, originates, namely, selective, imagine, knowing, inevitable, minute, womanhood, recourse, elaborated, eppes, error, consuming, stocking, farms, almost, exclusively, profitable, farm, produces, addition, labors, disappear, mere, consumption, object, crop, laboring, increase, consideration, luminary, 600, expert, centrality, imperatives, biology, babies, controlled, manipulative, definition, took, reproductive, obtained, overseer, stud, assigned, task, universally, began, menstrual, cycles, houses, built, brick, mortar, cement, wood, steel, produced, recurring, mortgages, principal, miscellaneous, expenses, rose, very, folk, unlike, real, expanding, ownership, mortgaged, acquire, mistaken, feature, curiously, fail, specifically, define, creating, implication, amounts, quantity, gap, upon, retroactive, compensation, promise
Text of the page (random words):
h is described as one of the most comprehensive investigations of the transatlantic slave trade ever done i m glad this research is being shared and made available to the general public it s about european men committing mass rape for centuries it s about them raping enslaved african women on slave ships and multiple continents yet the words rape or raped appear sparingly this excerpt is particularly damning european men contributed three times more to the modern day gene pool of people of african descent than european women did in the british caribbean they contributed 25 times more however we need to be clear about what we re discussing this research is saying that european men raped a lot they raped enslaved african women some men too every day and the evidence of their rape is widespread so why avoid the term rape why lessen its usage this is the kind of stuff that gets my ancestral rage rising avoiding the term rape implies something dangerous it opens the doorway for harmful narratives that imply consent or enjoyment it must be clearly stated that this was centuries of mass rape and mass murder i stress using the term rape for a number of key reasons one of them is the jezebel stereotype continuously used to hypersexualize and dehumanize black women in order to justify the rape and sexual violence we ve endured in grad school a white classmate tried to argue with me about the rape of black women when the life of sally hemmings was raised she brushed it off and claimed that it was only a rumor when other classmates verified that sally hemmings had given birth to the children of thomas jefferson she then exclaimed well we don t know the nature of their relationship i told her the nature of their relationship was that sally hemmings was a young enslaved black girl and he was a slave owner if our professor a black man owned you and wanted to have sex with you would you call that consent or rape she was silent she refused to call it rape she refused to acknowledge that thomas jefferson was a rapist sadly she is not alone american school systems have done a fine job of deifying founding fathers and vilifying their victims this leads to gross miseducation among the general public that prevents full acknowledgment and understanding about how our society functions and how systemic oppression is historically rooted in american history another important reason to emphasize the term rape in these articles about dna and the transatlantic slave trade is that it helps us better conceptualize transgenerational trauma trans generational epigenetic injury and the post traumatic slave syndrome that continue to affect our lives i deeply appreciate the scope of the work by 23andme researchers and will continue to share it and i m glad that the new york times covered it however in order to fully grasp what happened to enslaved africans and how it affects their descendants we need language that repeatedly clarifies what they endured in no uncertain terms this is about mass rape let us never forget join my mailing list jessica ann mitchell aiwuyor twitter jamaiwuyor facebook com jamaiwuyor email jamaiwuyor gmail com instagram com jamaiwuyor jamaiwuyor com share this email a link to a friend opens in new window email tweet share on reddit opens in new window reddit like loading june 23 2020 june 23 2020 jam aiwuyor race ethnicity culture it s time to deport confederates a few months ago i was leaving a store when i noticed a truck plastered with confederate flag bumper stickers one of the stickers stated deport illegals i was immediately struck by the irony of the statement considering the fact that confederates were traitors they should be what we refer to as illegal i know that removing confederate statues flags and monuments won t end structural racism i know that removing confederate flags won t end police brutality i know that the broken statues of robert e lee and jefferson davis won t heal the wounds of oppression but i still want to watch them fall i want to see them crumble in bits i want to see them flung into the water i want the heads knocked off and graffiti to cover their names the point that many are missing is that the existence of these statues and monuments is an act of terrorism itself i grew up in milledgeville ga a small town that at one point was the capital of georgia i grew up surrounded by confederate flags it was normalized white students would wear their confederate flag shirts to school with no issue while black students were reprimanded for wearing fubu in the 6th grade i attended georgia military college preparatory school located at the old capitol building where georgian politicians voted to secede from the union and join the confederacy i attended school on those grounds after school many of us would go to the mary vinson memorial library to study the library is named after the wife of congressman carl vinson a segregationist that signed onto the southern manifesto the manifesto was drafted and signed by southern politicians who were angry with the supreme court s brown v the board of education of topeka ruling that racially segregating schools was unconstitutional across the street from the library was a statue dedicated to confederate soldiers according to the union recorder milledgeville s local newspaper the monument was constructed by the united daughters of the confederacy s udc robert e lee chapter and first unveiled in 1912 surrounding the statue was a small plot of cotton that grew in the spring and summer yes they had a plot of cotton growing around a confederate monument when i was 12 years old the udc chapter still exists a few years ago the monument was hit by a car and instead of removing the memorial the chapter was excited for the opportunity to rebuild it inside the mary vinson memorial library was a glass encasement of confederate memorabilia i used to stand underneath the light where the uniform medals shone here i was a little black girl from georgia my surroundings at odds with my existence for the sake of history as some would say a few years earlier my grandmother told me the story of how my family escaped from sharecropping when she was a small child my great grandparents flossie and george wilder fled with their children until they reached augusta ga where they lived the rest of their days it seems like a long time ago except that flossie and george were still alive when i was born in fact i have fond memories of great granddaddy teaching me about money and great grandmama chewing her snuff despite his disapproval george died when i was a little girl but flossie lived until i was a sophomore in college my mother remembers my great grandfather still being paranoid of white men potentially capturing him when she was a child he lived with a reality that his grandchildren and great grandchildren had often misunderstood we weren t just surrounded by flags and monuments the world around george and flossie served as a constant threat and reminder of the terror of slavery and sharecropping the world around them celebrated terrorists years had passed yet still the world around me did the same i don t want that for my daughters protestors against police brutality and systemic racism have every right to knock these monuments down if local municipalities and the federal government refuse to do so it s time for america to deport confederates send them back to the land of defeat remember them as they were terrorists enslavers traitors and losers it s long been time to watch them crumble neo slavery neo colonialism wage slavery systemic anti black racism and oppression i m looking forward to all of those crumbling too join my mailing list jessica ann mitchell aiwuyor twitter jamaiwuyor facebook com jamaiwuyor email jamaiwuyor gmail com instagram com jamaiwuyor jamaiwuyor com share this email a link to a friend opens in new window email tweet share on reddit opens in new window reddit like loading april 22 2020 jam aiwuyor race ethnicity culture black americans need pan africanism there seems to be some confusion about pan africanism and how it relates to black american identity the purpose of grounding the black identity in an understanding of ourselves as african people is not just for us to have an over romanticized vision or perspective of ourselves the purpose is for us to center ourselves in who we are understanding our position in the world on the global stage helps us to understand our condition better and strategize better to improve it dr john henrik clarke reminded us that black tells you what you look like but it doesn t tell you who you are this is why every serious pan africanist understands that locally nationally and globally speaking african peoples gain better insight perspectives and strategies when confronting oppression through a collaborative effort that is why malcolm x told us you can t understand what is going on in mississippi if you don t understand what is going on in the congo and you can t really be interested in what s going on in mississippi if you re not also interested in what s going on in the congo they re both the same the same interests are at stake the same sides are drawn up the same schemes are at work in the congo that are at work in mississippi the most recent example of this is the coronavirus covid 19 global pandemic the western medical industry has historically implemented forced medical testing on people of african descent recently french doctors openly suggested that vaccines and medications be tested on african populations first meanwhile in the u s the trump administration is starting medical testing in detroit a city with a majority black population this is not a coincidence it s another example of how no matter where we live black bodies are considered as testing grounds for medical experimentation often forced painful or deadly globally african people and people of african descent experience this harm as a collective thus it is within our best interest to counter them collectively these collaborative efforts don t mean that everything will be easy and there will be no issues and i think that s where most of the confusion comes in some people believe that by advocating for pan africanism we re saying that instantly everything is going to be all sunshine and roses that s not what we re saying we re saying that globally african people share common bonds struggles and cultural linkages we also share common threats that are connected to global systems of oppression so much so that it is highly beneficial to combine our efforts and work with each other in some capacity this is a much better strategy than isolationism or xenophobia in essence all of these things have been tried before and none of it has helped the masses of any african nation or community of african descendants throughout the diaspora anti black xenophobia or isolationism has only made things worse additionally a grounding in black identity with an understanding of ourselves as african people helps us to better tap into cultural awareness that centers our worldview it helps to uplift african self determination and provides the wisdom that guides effective strategies and tools that come from within our communities and cultural understandings and still a recognition of african identity as black americans or wherever you are as an african descendant on the planet is not an attempt to erase our cultural differences yes pan africanism emphasizes similarities but it also celebrates our differences because we re able to build from various viewpoints and perspectives to strategize to make our collective conditions better that s not erasure that s just called being smart that is why when we look at the forefathers and foremothers of pan africanism we see trinidadians haitians jamaicans african americans continental africans puerto ricans the list goes on eagerly learning from each other inspiring each other building liberation movements and engaging in mutual aid they worked in support of pan african freedom respect and unity across the world pan african unity is why martin luther king jr went to ghana met with kwame nkrumah attended the ghanian independence ceremonies and returned to the united states with a refreshed perspective on civil rights and black freedom that was directly inspired by african movements for independence pan african unity is why malcolm x met with african leaders pushed for african americans to reconnect with our african heritage advocated for pan africanism and actively organized to connect african americans with african communities please read his 1964 speech at the university of ghana for additional context pan african unity is why the mother of the reparations movement audley queen mother moore was a member of the unia founded by marcus garvey and amy ashwood garvey she went on to found the universal association of ethiopian women the committee for reparations for descendants of u s slaves and the republic of new afrika and it s saddening that there are currently some people claiming to advocate for reparations using the work of queen mother moore while also seeking to disconnect us from our african heritage this anti african sentiment is a direct contradiction to queen mother moore s life s work she advocated for reparations and pan africanism she viewed herself a black american woman as an african in america when asked about her work she said i have done everything i could to promote the cause of african freedom and to keep alive the teaching of garvey and the work of the unia our ancestors that have been doing the work to keep us alive and create a better future knew who they were africans in america there are so many examples to pull from but i ll keep it short for now there is also a false narrative floating around that pan africanism is an old ideology that came went and withered away when nothing could be further from the truth pan africanism is alive and well it is my firm belief that as long as black people are alive on this planet pan africanism will endure because it has to the only people that believe this false narrative of the death of pan africanism are people that are not themselves involved in pan africanist movements i m reminded by an ashanti proverb that states by the time the fool has learned the game the players have dispersed they don t know what they are talking about because they are not involved in the process in 2015 africans and african descendants from across the continent and diaspora gathered for the 8th pan african congress in ghana i was there along with my colleagues from the north american delegation the pan african congress is part of the global pan african movement that consists of activists scholars artists and organizations locally and internationally across many different fields working in coalition with each other to improve the lives of african and african descendants across the world also pan africanism is why the g...
|
