October 13, 2003
by Yan
Yes, Queen Kelani! As usual you have hit the nail on the head! The false sense of superiority that many Diaspora Africans feel in relation to their African counterparts is indeed a large part of the problem. Ones who talk about finding solutions and assert that the problems have been talked to death already clearly have no idea of the MAGNITUDE of the problems!
No need for me to reiterate the very valid points that you have raised in this post, but I will say this: This is the heart of the issue that was raised on the board before: ONE OF MERIT. While we all speak of working toward African unity, this cannot be achieved without AFRICANS taking a leading position in iterating their own issues. There was much opposition on this board with many being unable to see the right order in dark skinned- kinky haired- black African people taking the forefront in black movements given the DEGREE that they feel the pain of racism.
I would like to take it even further than that. We cannot talk of African unity and healing without seriously talking about AFRICAN ISSUES. We must be cognizant of African issues and African-led solutions in order for this thing to work. Otherwise we remain simply a bunch of talkers that will achieve nothing other than wallowing in our own arrogance and self-righteousness hidden underneath bolts of African fabric and other trappings of Afrocentricity.
Many of us are not aware of the real life issues that face our brothers and sisters daily but are content to claim 'Africa' conveniently and only when it does not challenge our own comfort zones. It is no wonder that our family on the continent views many Africans in the Diaspora with suspicion. Trying to talk about racism and poverty and economic development is pointless in the face of concerted attempts to strangle the voice of Africa WITHIN OUR OWN RANKS! Where divisions exist we cannot claim unity and where problems exist we cannot look for solutions without properly examining the problems.
Although many may see themselves fit for roles of leadership or having the ideal solutions to our problems I personally am very clear about where my role lies, and it is in SERVICE. Maybe if more people saw their purpose in this movement as such then we would finally get the order right and begin to SERIOUSLY talk about solutions.
Response II 15/10/2003
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