-----Original Message----- From: Art McGee <[log in to unmask]> To: [log in to unmask] <[log in to unmask]> Date: 10 September 1999 00:28 Subject: [BRC-NEWS] To Be Afrikan >http://www.wanonline.com/blackhistory/blackhistory6248.html > >World African Network > >February 26, 1999 > >To Be Afrikan > >by Dr. Marimba Ani <[log in to unmask]> > >All people, all over the world, throughout history have shared in common >the fact that they belong to a culture of origin. That is a universal >reality. Another equally important universal reality is that there are >many, many different cultures in the world and each of them is unique. > >The uniqueness of a culture is what gives specialness to its members. The >members of a culture are bonded together by their shared culture, which >gives them a sense of collective identity. > >"We are an Afrikan people," simply reveals that there are values, >traditions and a heritage that we share because we have a common origin. >The cultural process is naturally a ongoing, which allows people to >continuously affirm their connectedness through being linked to their >origins. > >However, the continuity of our cultural identity has been interrupted >cruelly and unnaturally by the experience of slavery. We as a people are >still suffering from this crime because we have not been allowed to find >our way back to the sense of cultural identity and continuity which would >transform us into a unified and whole people. We have not been able to >function in the world with a collective consciousness that naturally >imparts a strong sense of cultural roots. > >The term "Maafa" (from the book, "Let The Circle Be Unbroken) is a >kiswahili word for "disaster" that we are now using to reclaim our right >to tell our own story. Maafa refers to the enslavement of our people and >to the sustained attempt to dehumanize us. Because the Maafa has >disconnected us from our cultural origins, we have remained vulnerable in >a social order that does not reflect our cultural identity. > >We are people of African ancestry living in denial of who we are. We have >lost our strength as a people. We are losing our children to systems which >miseducate them. Our families are disintegrating before our eyes. Our >numbers are growing in the statistics of drug addiction and incarceration. > >Responsible national Black organizations are seeking remedies to these >problems, but we are not speaking with one voice. We need to work together >as a family who supports its members and who is responsible for their >welfare. We must use the most valuable asset that we have: That is the >spirit of our people. It is that spirit that connects us to our Afrikan >roots. > >Slowly, we are awakening to the need to claim our cultural legacy. The >term "Sankofa" from Akan tradition in Ghana, West Africa tells us to >return to the Source so that we can go forward with strength and clarity. >Culture is a powerful tool for inspiring human beings and bringing them >together in a concerted "family" action. > >Our cultural roots are the most ancient in the world. The spiritual >concepts of our Ancestors gave birth to religious thought African people >believe in the oneness of the African family through sacred time, which >unites the past, the present and the future. > >Our Ancestors live with us. They created the first civilizations thousands >of years ago and they suffered the pain of the Maafa. And yet, they were >able to endure the most disastrous and dehumanizing circumstances ever >perpetrated against a group of people, only because of the power of the >African spirit. They did not have the freedom to affirm their cultural >heritage. We now have that choice. In the African view of life it is our >responsibility to honor their name. > >This is perhaps our moment of truth. We must come together as a family. We >must do all that we can do to uplift our people. Otherwise, we are still >denying who we are and bringing dishonor to our "family name;" to our >Ancestors. > >The answer to our social dilemma is the resocialization of our people into >the cultural value-system that affirms our spiritual being. Our Ancestors >are calling us "home", back to our cultural selves. We must begin the >process of Sankofa. > >-- > >Dr. Marimba Ani, an activist in the African Liberation Movement, worked as >field-organizer for the Student Nonviolent Committee (SNCC) in Mississippi >in the 60s. She has continued her activism through her scholarship. > >She has created African-centered theoretical concepts that have assisted >in the developing of an African Cultural Science. At this time, she is >actively involved in retrieving philosophy and in the re-creation of >ritual, so that they can be used for the transformation and healing of >people of African descent > >Currently, Dr. Ani teaches in the Black and Puerto Rican Studies >Department of Hunter College in New York. > >She is credited with writing the scholarly works "Let The Circle Be >Unbroken" and "Yurugu: An African-centered Critique of European Cultural >Thought and Behavior," as well as articles that have appeared in scholarly >journals. > >Copyright (c) 1999 Dr. Marimba Ani. All Rights Reserved. > > >[Articles on BRC-NEWS may be forwarded and posted on other mailing >lists/discussion forums, as long as proper attribution is given to the >author and originating publication, and the wording is not altered in >any way. In particular, if there is a reference to a web site where an >article was originally located, please do *not* remove that. > >Unless stated otherwise, do *not* publish or post the entire text of any >copyrighted articles on web sites (web-based discussion forums exempted) >or in print, without getting *explicit* permission from the article author >or copyright holder. 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