I do not understand why the Prince was so disturbed by being called a leather/gold smith? If what you said below are anything to go by then I belief you should have been proud even if you are not whenever you are called a product of hard-working ancestors who lived from their sweat and profession. You coated from the Holy Quran are real words of Allah and if as you said you read the Quran for the Quran never lies, on all that you were so angry to the point of using abusive languages, then I wonder what went wrong with that knowledge from Allah you just coated? This caste system came for a peaceful purpose but uninformed group of people misguided it and misled others to think one group is more pure than the other. But the fact of the matter is hard working people are the farmers, tool makers, and traders.

I am a Leather smith and proud I am of it because my ancestor Sumanguru Kante was a well known powerful king who ruled Mandingos until he married Sundiatta's sister. We became smiths when children of Sumanguru fled Sundiatta after the battle of Kirina and sought refuge with the smith of Farba Counda who married one of the daughters and had Janyanfara my ancestor. You see even Gambia's first democratic leader was a leather smith but married amongst what you and others would consider Foro Kunda kos. I am presently married to the direct great grand Daughter of Mansa Musa Moloh of Fulladu and the parents knew who I am but never questioned my married for my grand mother's blood aunt Kumba Sillah , was Musa Molloh's wife she shared the same mother and father with Foday Umaru Sillah of kedugu my born mother's grand father.Now my prince can you see how royal blood flows?

Where I was born and raised, I had never been told or mocked these so called caste system and even my father took her mother side tradition and he was proud doing it people respected until he died. I personally never knew how to sew a shoe but I wished today that my parents should had learnt it? I can marry whom I like today in the Gambia and no one would question my Foro ya or Jung ya for as far as I am concerned all are Jungos of Allah and that was the only thing I chose to disagree with my Dad when he dared point at a family saying they were our Jongos.

I studied and taught history for four years also tracing my family tree and today I am the most proud man on the planet.

My brother one thing you need to know is grow up.

Even prophets all have trades to do before God picked them. Musa/Moses was a herdsman, David king of kings was a smith. (in fact Jaliba kuyateh when he praise sing about my family I always hear him say we are from Prophet Dauda who all knew as king of kings,) Noah a boat builder (laibo), and Muhammad a herdsman so who else can be proud of another thing and that bothers you up to a point you decide to leave Gambian discussions. The president Yahya Jammeh's father Junkung was a bugarabu drummer (Jali) so what else can you ask for. God's favour rises from self lowering my brother I would never have been so proud today if I originate from lazy ancestors you see?

Cheer up my Prince.x

http://dailynews.gm/africa/gambia/article/sankanu-on-caste

Sankanu on Caste

Prince Bubacarr Sankanu

Monday, July 02, 2012

Dear editor,

Please allow me to observe that most Gambians are not matured to debate without going personal and petty. If they do not play the denial game of using religion, tribalism and the outdated caste system, they will use natural human faults to drag one’s names through the mud. How can Africans be accusing the White people of racism when the only sports they love are tribalism, religious bigotry, greed, regionalism and caste hypocrisy?...............................................................................................................................................................................................

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I checked everywhere across my lineage and saw that this discriminatory slur and caste system is just a flimsy imagination of people who want to sabotage social cohesion. The main reason why I love the Jola Civilizations is that they do not have this discriminatory caste nonsense that any idiot can use as tool of promoting discord. I am glad that a new generation of responsible people are growingly treating people according to their natural talents, personalities and world-views and not according to what Stone Age people say about them.

Once again I am very proud that part of my lineage has smithery just as the other parts with marabouts, merchants, clerics, nobility, princes, princesses and warriors in The Gambia, Mali, Mauritania, Senegal, the two Guineas and by extension, Sierra Leone.

I am glad that my people were not lazy through their long migratory routes between Ghana Empire and the Gambia River Basin until they became jongho slaves, badoles, sadadanilalu beggars, jihad religious bandits and fake greedy marabouts.

I am grateful that before returning to my African religion, I did intensive research into my long pre-Islamic genealogy and feel proud of the warriors and nobility whose bravery and fearlessness I inherited. The owners of the Principality of Monaco started as pirates. The space here will not be enough to name all nobilities/royals worldwide with mixed genealogies.

PRINCE BUBACARR AMINATA SANKANU,

Angry Young African Alpha Boy (AYAAB),

Tel.: 00491774842957 (texts only),