Should the diaspora continue looking toward Africa?

‎"It is only when man becomes master of his fate, able to determine his destiny, that he can 


be free from fears and inferiority.  Such an individual or a nation stands respected by all."


H.I.M. Haile Selassie I






A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of attending a seminar, for lack of a better word, on Africa from a Pan-African perspective.  Given my determination to see 'all things African', as my eldest says, I was very enthused to attend.  And I certainly was not disappointed.  I met several peoples there in attendance who, like myself, though born in the west, had Africa and 'all things African' emblazoned deeply on their hearts and souls.


So it is with that testament that I found myself more than a little disappointed by yet another story from African shores, from in the land, my land once long lost but never forgotten.  One more story of how some of the family back home just doesn't take to some of us who were either stolen or forced out, and who presently find ourselves ascending from that lineage.

Antigua – “The beach is just the beginning…” (of a truly sad story)

“In the end antiblack, antifemale, and all forms of discrimination are equivalent to the same thing - antihumanism.” 

Shirley Chisholm


by permission

Antigua – “The beach is just the beginning…” (of a truly sad story)

by Nimah Muwakil Zakuri
Being a young, African, muslim woman anywhere on the planet is difficult. But never for one moment did I imagine that my pelau loving self would have had to go through what I did right here in the Caribbean.

The Museums Association of the Caribbean held its Annual General Meeting in Antigua this year and after three days of what I thought was a fairly successful encounter of museum professionals from across the region, I was faced with an Airport Supervisor who basically told me that I could not leave his country unless and until I removed my “scarf”, in reference to my khimar which everyone now knows as hijab.
When I refused and looked at all of them like they were going mad another officer jumped in and said that it’s the law and that they do this to other muslims and sheikhs and even nuns. They all “complied” so why was I making such a fuss about it?

And these are the "People" America and NATO were in such a RUSH to move into power?

I'm beginning to wonder if "HUMAN RIGHTS" grievances are about the humans' rights, or the having the "Right Humans" in your corner.  Brother Leader detailed these concerns about how the "Arab African" viewed and oft times still does view the African Man and Woman.  The stories have come out several times that the then rebel forces, now the National Transitional Council (NTC), were violating the human rights of Africans they accused of being Qaddafi supporters.  While "Arab" and Berber supporters are checked for signs of fighting, Africans, regardless of whether they were fighting or not, seem to be first thrown in jail, tortured and then not attended to medically.

Apple CEO Steve Jobs leaves behind a legacy

“A lot of companies have chosen to downsize, and maybe that was the right thing for them. We chose a different path. Our belief was that if we kept putting great products in front of customers, they would continue to open their wallets.”

Steve Jobs

"Women are like teabags... "

"Women are like teabags. We don't know our true strength until we are in hot water!"
-- Eleanor Roosevelt

"Anyone can give up, it's the easiest thing in the world to do. But to hold it together when everyone else would understand if you fell apart, that's true strength."
-- Author Unknown

Several conversations over the last few days had me remembering something I heard while having some high spirited communion with my family recently.  Actually, I've heard it often amongst this set of souls set adrift after being sold into bondage, who have found back one another in this time, to share bread and fellowship.  One man, not much older than me yet still esteemed as an Elder, had been ministering some upright reasoning while the rest of the group was sitting down to lunch.  "All Nations should and shall be judged by the way in which its treats its' women and children."  Simple and plain, truth without pretense.