AFRIKAN-CENTERED SBAYT:

Education for Liberation

essays from www.mukasa.info
Mukaa Afrika Ma!at
1
AFRIKA Publications
Philadelphia, PA
www.mukasa.info
Copyriht ! "##$ by %ukasa Afrika
All rihts reser&ed.
I'() #*+$1$1+,*,*-
"
.his book is dedicated to the countless
and primarily nameless Afrikans
who dedicated their li&es to educatin future enerations.
It is dedicated to those Afrikans throuhout the world
who looked back to the lessons of our ancestors
of many thousands years ao
and continued the reat work of the future.
.his book is dedicated to those Afrikans
who new the power of education
and sacrificed so much
while ainin so little
in their rihteous and sacred endea&ors.
/
AFRIKAN-CENTERED SBAYT: Education for Liberation
essays from www.mukasa.info
Preface0000000000000000000000000.1
Introduction2
'inificance of 3ducation to the Afrikan 4orld 000000000-
1. Afrikan (lood 5ath00000000000000000000006
". .he Crises of )ero Intellects, 3ducators, and 7eaders0000000...1/
/. Part 5ne2 .he Interenerational Afrikan 4orld&iew2
An Afrikan*Centered Criti8ue 93(:)KI); <Afrocentricity=
>the Propaanda*%yth?00000000000000000000.016
,. Part .wo2 .he Interenerational Afrikan 4orld&iew2
An Afrikan*Centered Criti8ue 93(:)KI); <Afrocentricity=
>the Propaanda*%yth?000000000000000000000-1
1. Mis-education2 .he 7ittle ;irl 4ho Couldn@t 'top Askin Auestions .01#$
-. Interpretin the Facts, Bistory, A)9 AC.I);000000000.011,
$. Kin .ut*Ankh*Amen, %odern 'cience, and the .heft of Kemet000.1/-
6. C7A''ICA7 AFRIKA) 7I.3RA.:R300000000000..01-"
+. AFRIKA) 'CI3)C3 A)9 .3CB)575;C000000000...016"
1#. AFRIKA) K3%3.IC %A.B3%A.IC'0000000000...0"#1
11. Afrikan*Centered 'piritual Pedaoy
>reprinted from The Redemption of Afrikan Spirituality?000000..0""/
1". Bealth, Fitness, 4ell*bein, 'pirit, and 3ducation0000000..0",1
1/. "1 9Dedu*Kheperu*Ra000000000000000000...0"1,
1,. Afrikan Rites of Passae 5utline00000000000000..0"-"
11. Afrikan*Centered Curriculum and Instructional 5&er&iew0000..0"-6
1-. Final .houhts000000000000000000000..0"+-
,
"reface
4ith the support of Kamau Rashid, I was able to build a
website, www.mukasa.info, from which we bean to post critical and
analytical essays on Afrikan content in education and other subDects
rele&ant to Afrikan people. .he website rew out of the book The
Redemption of Afrikan Spirituality, but soon took on a direction of its
own in so many ways. .he website was both nationalist and Pan*
Afrikanist in orientation. .eachers, students, administrators, parents,
and others interested in the content would &isit the website. .eachers
across the country would use the website to enhance their daily lessons,
build units, and to i&e direction to curriculum content in Afrikan based
education. .he site was &isited by a fair share of collee students and
parents as well. 5n more than one messae board, and in a handful of
emails, the website and some of its content became the center of debate
and some le&el of contro&ersy. .hat was not surprisin i&en the nature
of dynamics related to the education of Afrikan people and issues
surroundin the debate. .he website was used by readers in other
countries who were concerned about the educational process of Afrikan
children.
4ith the success of the website, I always felt it was not enouh
and more could be done. In the back of my mind, I always knew the
contents of the on*line essays would o in book format. I Dust didn@t
ha&e a clear plan laid out. As I belie&e, when you do the work of the
ancestors, thins will kind of take their own shape and course. I had no
idea that a book would be produced from the on*line essays in Dust a
few years.
AFRIKAN-CENTERE S!A"T# Education for $i%eration is
from the maDor on*line essays of www.mukasa.info, which are still
a&ailable, print free, as of now in draft form on the website. .he essays
in this book ha&e been slihtly edited, there has been some new content
and materials added. .his research, done o&er the better part of , years
is offered as a contribution to the field of Afrikan*Centered education.
It is belie&ed that new round has been broken herein.
1
Introduction2
Si#nificance of Education to t$e Afrikan %or&d
I will bein with what should be my conclusion. 1. .o be
functional, all cultures and all people must properly educate their own
children to maintain and build not only their physical structures in the
world but their collecti&e interests. People must educate their children
to ad&ance their well*bein and sur&i&al. ". Institutions free of the
influence and control of other people are necessary to properly educate
future leaders. 7oyalty is not born in a people, it is bred and nurtured,
and so too is disloyalty and treachery. /. If the proper measures are not
taken to ensure the sur&i&al and prosperity of a people, throuh the
education of its future eneration, that people will be the sla&es and
subordinates of a dominate society who will educate or miseducate
them for that purpose.
It is politically correct to talk about cultural assimilation, the
meltin pot, cultural interminlin, multi*culturalism, etc., etc. .he
politicians, policy makes, opinion manufacturers and the like who
make statements about how <4e@re all the same,= then ha&e their
closed door meetins, in&itation only, where they take their ties off,
role up their slee&es, foret the public Daron, and start makin
strateies based on interest, their personal interest and the interest of
their people and their families. .he crisis with Afrikan people is that we
take the public face of these opinion makers to be their real face when
it is not. 4e then come up with similar ideas for our people, but when
and if we ha&e closed door sessions, our dialo has one face, the one
we were trained to turn on in public. In fact, we think it is wron to
speak about our own interest, issues related only to us. Conse8uently,
the same people who pull up their slee&es and address issues related to
their roup interest will call re&erse racism when we do the same.
.hose of us who are nai&e then become &ery apoloetic. (asically, this
is the traedy of (lack leadership. 4e are playin in a ame, and the
necessary institutions and strateic mo&es of interest rele&ant to our
people ne&er take place.
4e either run away from our own identity andEor claim to be
the same as e&eryone else. All people are not the same. People and
cultures ha&e different and sometimes conflictin interests. As an
oppressed people, the sooner that we realiFe that the better. 'ome are
sayin that it is no different from us and those who run society. It is a
&ery bi difference. .hey control the input and output of affairs, and we
-
don@t. .hey control the education of their children, for ood or bad, and
we don@t.
.his underlies the sinificance of education for Afrikan people.
:nless we control the education of our children from before birth to
youn adulthood, we will not produce and reproduce the type of society
we want to brin into eGistence. :ntil we are clear on our identity as
Afrikan people, we will remain confused and misled on e&erythin we
set our siht on. :ntil we understand the richness of who we are as a
people, what resources we can brin to each other, and the need to
protect and preser&e our resources, culture, and interestsH we will
continue to be the subordinates of others and not independent unto
oursel&es.
3ducation has two purposes in this world, with &ery little ray
area. .he education of a people will either build and maintain their
social and life structures or it will make them the sla&es of others who
ha&e these structures. A people who are the cultural sla&es of another
do not only depend on the dominate roup for Dobs and housin, they
see the dominate roup as the pur&eyors of education, culture, and
indeed the imae of the Creator of all the worlds.
Afrikan*Centered education then becomes of reat rele&ance
for Afrikan people. Alon the ancient waters of the )ile Ialley, our
ancestors had a spiritual*educational system in place to pass knowlede
of the culture and world&iew from one eneration to the neGt. .his
ensured the sur&i&al of not only the culture, but the people themsel&es.
.his was a defense aainst the enemies of the )ile Ialley. Althouh the
ci&iliFation would fall, the )ile is one of the most endurin
ci&iliFations in world history, spannin a timeframe of o&er /,###
years. .he interenerational transmission of the world&iew throuh
education was the key to the people@s sur&i&al. .hey called the
intereenerational instruction '(AC..
$
T$e Afrikan B&ood 'at$
.his 5ath is a 'piritual 5ath that has been written
in the blood of our ancestors.
.his 5ath has been smeared in blood throuh time
by those ancestors who sacrificed their souls to eternity
in the sake of the hallowed cause of liberation and &eneance.
.his 5ath has been written
from the blood that dripped and saturated the rounds
of %other 3arth
as Afrikans stood upriht to endure the timeless struleH
the blood that ran deep down
to be absorbed by the roots of strule to bear fruit.
.his 5ath has been written
from the blood that dripped and o&erflowed from sla&eships,
the blood that dripped down the wound*opened backs of (lacks,
dripped down the necks strun by ropes swinin in the dull air
from tree branches,
dripped down the bullet holes of those who defied fear,
blood that dripped down the sacred mountains
and flowed throuh the sacred ri&ersH
dripped down e&ery wound, ash, slash, and cut.
.his 5ath is the blood that dripped down
to moisten %other 3arth@s deserts, forests, and swamps.
.his is an 5ath in blood written by those mihty warriors
whose bodies were half*dead on the battlefields,
but whose souls had Dust beun to li&e.
.his 5ath we do take in their names,
4e do take to continue their work of liberation,
as lon as we walk and breathe upon the 3arth.
4e take this blood 5ath so that one day the children and the unborn
will take the same 5ath in our names.
4e, the li&in, do take this 5ath to i&e libation and honor
to those who put themsel&es in harms way on the altar of freedom.
4e take this 'piritual 5ath to e&ery sinle drop of Afrikan blood
that has flowed o&er the past centuries,
for e&ery drop of Afrikan blood
6
that has flowed o&er the past se&eral thousands of years.
In the names of our di&ine mothers and fathers
who chose to fiht to be free or die tryin,
we take this 5ath to thee.
4e take this 5ath for e&ery sinle drop of Afrikan blood
that moistened the rounds of sla&e duneons,
blood that darken and soaked the wood of sla&eships,
blood that dripped in the hot fields of oppression.
.his 5ath is smeared from the precious blood of that Afrikan man
that dripped while he was hanin on the allows.
.his 5ath is smeared from the precious, precious blood of that Afrikan
woman
who was whipped and desecrated.
4e take this consecrated 5ath for those Afrikans who
ripped the knife,
rabbed the un,
concealed the poison,
slashed the sword,
and were determined to be free or inflict di&ine Dustice
on their oppressors.
7et us dip our finers in the timeless sea of sacrificed blood
and place a taste on the tips of our tonues.
7et that drop of ancestral blood
trickle to our inner depths,
trickle from our hearts and fall into our souls.
4e ask the 'pirits of mihty Afrika J
i&e us the same strenth that our ancestors had
when they marched out to meet the armies of foreiners,
those scum who had in&aded our lands.
4e ask the 'pirits of mihty Afrika J
i&e us the power that willed our ancestors to break free,
free of chains as they defied swords and uns,
as they a&e their li&es to hopes of the future,
or as they took the li&es of their ensla&ers and oppressors.
4e ask as we taste the timeless blood of sacrificed souls
that we ha&e the strenth that ensla&ed Afrikans had who rose up
aainst all odds
to kill or be killed,
to be free or die,
to desire to bleed fast than li&e in slow torture.
+
5h 'pirits of mihty Afrika J
bless us with such ancestral strenth, power, and lo&e for freedom.
4e make this blood 5ath to our ancestors.
4e make this 5ath to the wounds of the liberator of the )ile,
'e8enenra .ao
and the warriors of ancient Afrika.
4e make this 5ath in remembrance of when
Bannibal drank the poison
rather than accept the chains of Romans.
4e make this 5ath to the undyin courae of Kahina and Kuselia
as they marched out to battle the Arab %uslims who in&aded Afrika.
;i&e us the power that made )Finha stand
and put fear in her white Christian foes.
4e make this 5ath to Kumbi and the re&olutionaries of Palmares,
they who fouht year after year and decade after decade.
4e make this 5ath to the %aroon warriors
of the ;uyanas and 'urinam.
;i&e us )anny@s strenth and the arms of those %aroons in Lamaica,
they who took up the battle after her.
4e e&erlastinly commit oursel&es in 5ath to Kimpa Iita
and her spirit*child,
both who were burned ali&e in flames at the stake by white de&ils.
4e make this 5ath to all Afrikans who were
bra&e enouh, stron enouh
to shed e&ery precious drop of blood
as they fouht to battle aainst e&il,
aainst sla&ery,
and aainst colonialism.
4e make this 5ath to 9essalines and the Baitian re&olutionaries
who spilled blood, died, yet defeated )apoleon and his army.
4e make this 5ath
and ask for the strenth that )at .urner had
when he was chosen to unleash di&ine retribution on America
knowin that he would face the allows,
and face the allows with an undyin heart he did.
4e commit oursel&es to this 5ath
from the tears shed by Barriet .ubman,
tears and hurt that strenthened her heart and soul.
4e i&e 5ath to Lohn Chilembwe@s blood.
.o 7umumba and his comrades who ained so little
1#
yet suffered so much,
we make this 5ath.
4e ask for their uncon8uerable strenth.
4e trace this 5ath in blood
for the will that Amilcar Cabral had
e&ery time he went into the fields of war.
.his 5ath is for the Afrikan blood
that stretched from Berero*land
to the Indus Ialley
to (lack .asmania and beyond.
4e make this 5ath to the sacred blood
shed by the %aDi %aDi
and the %au %au.
4e make this 5ath to the sacred blood
shed by the :mkonto we 'iFwe, the PAI;C, FR37I%5
and 'amora %achel.
.his 5ath is i&en to 5uandie
who faced the firin s8uad because he fouht for freedom.
4e i&e this 5ath to the blood
of the (lack Panther Party and (lack 7iberation Army.
4e make this 5ath to the blood of the slauhtered,
4e make this 5ath to our bra&e martyrs.
.his 5ath is i&en to the Afrikans
who fouht enocide, fouht sla&ery, fouht coloniFation, fouht
apartheid, fouht caste, fouht sereation, fouht
forein domination, and fouht, and fouht, and fouht.
4e dip our finers in the blood that ran from the wounds
of %alcolm and %artin,
we taste the blood, we mourn, we cry, we taste the tears, we bandae
the wounds, we hurt, and we continue the sacred cause.
4e i&e libations and then mo&e steadfast forward
into the fields of battle.
4e cry but deny pain,
and still we fiht.
4e fiht behind enemy lines.
4e choose death o&er capti&ity,
freedom and war o&er sla&ery.
4e i&e this blood 5ath in life
or we i&e it in death.
4e i&e this 5ath to the e&erlastin fire of faith
11
and knowin that
in war is our redemption,
in war is the redemption of our ancestors,
and in war the Creator consecrates this blood 5ath.
4e make this 5ath
for the pain, the precious tears, and the blood shed
by %andela, Assata, and %umia.
%ay the Afrikan Creator hear this 5ath
and i&e us the di&ine strenth
that pumped throuh the hearts and &eins of our ancestors.
4e ask that we not be afraid to shed blood for freedom@s cause.
4e ask that we ha&e the heart to li&e for the sake of rihteousness,
to march to the frontlines in the timeless strule.
4e ask for the power so that we will not be afraid to pick up arms
and stand shoulder to shoulder
alonside the reat warriors of the pastH
and shoulder to shoulder onward we shall fiht.
4e ask for the courae of those who came before us
so that we obliate oursel&es
and continue the work of Afrikan deli&erance.
4e ask and pray that those of us li&in today
ha&e our marks placed on the pillars of eternity
by the hands of our ancestors.
4e ask that those of us li&in today,
throuh the will of our ancestors,
lea&e a rihteous leacy for those of the future.
4e ask for uidance
to i&e a de&otion of loyalty to the Afrikan blood 5ath.
4e i&e this 5ath to thee,
5h dear ancestors, as a sacrifice to the ;reat Creator.
4e mark this 5ath on our hearts and souls
fore&er and e&er and e&er into eternity.
1"
T$e Crie of Ne#ro Inte&&ect( Educator( and Leader
7eadership is not beyond 8uestion, criticism, or disareement.
7eadership is not dri&en by eotism or self*arandiFement.
7eadership is not perfect. Intellectuals are not the property or
monopoly of uni&ersities, and neither is intellectual production. .he
ser&ice of the intellectual must be to intelliently and practically
address the needs of society. 3ducation at its best maintains and builds
the interest and well*bein of people, beinnin with the most depri&ed
and oppressed. In order to more fully understand the crises of
leadership faced by Afrikan people, it is necessary to re&iew some of
the historical analysis already done on the subDect.
3dward Franklin FraFier was a pioneer intellectual and one of
the early forerunners of the (lack 'tudies mo&ement. Almost e&ery
time he put pen to paper, it was done with the interest of his people in
mind. Be wrote eGtensi&ely on the (lack family in the :nited 'tates, in
urban, small town, and rural areas. Be documented the challenes and
perils faced by the (lack family. Bis research included commentary on
racism, social problems, classism, education, and employment. Be
wrote on sla&ery and the family such as in his 1+/# entry <.he )ero
'la&e Family.= Be would eGpand his research into ;lobal Afrikan
'tudies and look at the (lack family abroad in his 1+," work <.he
)ero Family in (ahia, (raFil.= FraFier was by no means a straner to
contro&ersy. In 1+"$, his writin of <.he Patholoy of Race PreDudice=
resulted in his lea&in %orehouse :ni&ersity.
Conse8uently, 3. Franklin FraFier@s publication in the )ero
9iest, <.he Failure of the )ero Intellectual,= in 1+-" came after a
lon history of research that spoke to the interest of Afrikan people.
.he basic premise of <Failure of the )ero Intellectual= was that the
educated (lack scholars had not done enouh of the sinificant work
that was necessary and rele&ant to our people. FraFier had produced
work o&er the decades leadin up to the article that clearly spoke to the
interests of (lacks. 4hile I do not aree totally with FraFier, I must say,
in the twiliht of his years, as he passed away shortly after this article
appeared, he decided to take the lo&es off and pull no punches in this
last round before the bell sounded to end the fiht.
FraFier was critical of the <)ero= intellientsia, and he should
ha&e been, I wish he had been much earlier. Be was frustrated because
he had spent so many years pioneerin research that was not i&en due
consideration. Be had to ask, what was wronM Bis answer2 the )ero
1/
intellectual was the problem. Bowe&er, as Lacob Carruthers has noted
in Intellectual &arfare >11, 11,, 1+/?, FraFier was not a nationalist and
had not ade8uately eGamined the need for nationalist knowlede
production and acti&ity in the (lack community. Bad he done so, his
criti8ue would ha&e spanned more of his years and would ha&e been all
the more sound and rele&ant to our people.
In 1+-$, in step Barold Cruse and his Crisis of the Ne'ro
Intellectual. I@d ha&e to say that his work was a lot of thunder and
lihtenin, but he didn@t ha&e the electric bolts to o alon with it.
'tated another way, Cruse@s Crisis of the Ne'ro Intellectual is an
eGcellent work and an intellectual traedy at the same time. Lohn
Benrik Clarke has termed Cruse@s brand of research as alarmism. As an
alarmist, Clarke eGplains, that the research raises more 8uestions than
Cruse can answer and raises more issues than he can handle. In Notes
for an African &orld Re(olution, 9r. Clarke has a chapter dedicated to
a critical analysis of Barold Cruse@s Crisis of the Ne'ro Intellectual)
.he full title, The Crisis of the Ne'ro Intellectual# A *istorical
Analysis of the Failure of !lack $eadership is much more of a criti8ue
than an historical analysis. 5f course I ha&e no problem with the need
to criti8ue intellectual or political leadership, in fact we are too
ac8uiescent of leadership as a people. <)ero= andEor (lack leadership
is indeed in a crisis, beyond a crisis for that matter, but Cruse missed
the mark. In fact, he is hittin and missin throuhout the entire book,
as 9r. Clarke eGplained, and unfortunately Cruse is doin more missin
than hittin. I would definitely recommend the book, but only after the
researcher has come to a basic and accurate understandin of the
nationalist and interationist mo&ements in America. 5therwise,
Cruse@s work would be an enima as he straddles the fence on many
issues and is wholly distorted on others. Also, I must recommend the
reader to Clarke@s appraisal of Cruse@s book in African &orld
Re(olution.
Cruse@s oriinal audience was the <creati&e intellectuals= of the
late 1+-#s. Be himself was a self*made historian lackin a collee
deree. .his was an ad&antae in the sense that not bein collee
trained a&e him some confidence in intellectual freedom. .hus, he
dealt with issues that those in academia dared not e&en address.
Bowe&er, the downfall of Cruse@s work was that at some point
in his life, he de&eloped a reat sense of disdain for the nationalist
mo&ement, did not properly define it, and did a serious disser&ice to his
interenerational study.
1,
Barold Cruse probably missed the mark with %arcus ;ar&ey
more than any other point in the book. Cruse reduced ;ar&ey to an
eotist. Be reduced ;ar&ey to a <(ack to Africa= dreamer. Be wronly
belie&ed ;ar&ey to be a capitalist. Cruse arues that the emphasis on
Afrikan history is romanticiFin the past while not dealin with the
American reality. 4hile thorouhly criti8uin the nationalist mo&ement
in an historical conteGt, which is needed, past and present, he shows
little or no appreciable understandin for the need of nationalism
>community andEor nation buildin and maintenance? amon people of
Afrikan descent. )onetheless, the reatest traedy of Cruse@s Crisis of
the Ne'ro Intellectual is that he frowns upon the idea of Pan*Afrikan
unity amon Afrikan people. Bis research is conse8uently neutraliFed,
whate&er teeth and bite it could ha&e had was taken out as Cruse
enaed in an intellectual eGercise that thorouhly lacked meanin. Be
criti8ued and or attempted to de&alue so much that he stood for &ery
little. Cruse found stron disfa&or with not only ;ar&ey, but likewise
Richard (. %oore, Paul Robeson, Lohn Bernik Clarke, and so many
others.
.he crises of the )ero intellect, educator, and leader are much
more than a crisis, more than a failure. As 9r. Clarke eGplained, the
first crisis is that our intellectuals are not in ser&ice to our people, so
their intellectual production is by far useless to our liberation.
Furthermore, we are here talkin about a betrayal, a stabbin in the
back from the one who helped you off the round and then turned to
walk ahead of you. .he intellientsia, the academicians, the leadership
body, the politicians, ha&e all by far helped tihten the noose in the
rope around the masses of Afrikans and set the torch afire and burned
us ali&e while we stranled to death. .hat is the traedy of our
leadership, the betrayal of our leadership. %any, if not most, ha&e not
been leaders at all. In the schools, in o&ernment, in businesses, in so
many &enues, our <leadership= has either worked part*time or full*time
aainst the well*bein, freedom, and liberation of our people. A body of
leaders ha&e been produced, or I should say shaped and molded, that
actually work aainst their people and therefore aainst themsel&es.
.o continue, I must refer you to one of the most important
books for Afrikan people produced in the "#
th
century. !lueprint for
!lack +o,er by Amos 4ilson has a chapter entitled <.he Crisis of
7eadership.= As Amos 4ilson emphasiFes throuhout the entire teGt,
the crisis of our leadership, often the betrayal, is that the terms of raw
power ha&e not been brouht to full and fundamental consideration.
4ilson states2
11
In the :nited 'tates of America the primary source of
the host of problems which plaue the Afrikan
American community is powerlessness. Powerlessness
is also the source of the host of problems which plaue
Afrikan nations and peoples across the 9iaspora.
Afrikan communities, both at home and abroad, are
corrupted by weakness which if not remediated by
their ac8uisition of power will ine&itably lead to their
absolute corruption and final demise >6",?.
.hat is the &ery heart of the matter. .he crisis and betrayal of
our leadership is that so few ha&e come to terms with power, the
meanin and reality of ac8uirin power, the role of the educational
process to power, and what it means to be without power in the world
we li&e in today with all of its hostilities. 4ilson is &ery clear in his
analysis when he states, < .he &ast resources of the Afrikan American
community and their potential for con&ersion into formidable political*
economic power ha&e been ruinously wasted or prostituted by leaders
whose ineptness borders on treachery= >6"-? .here is a need for a new
brand and a new eneration of leadership. .he present and outdated
class of leaders ha&e a crisis that flows from <intellectual and
ideoloical bankruptcy,= to borrow 4ilson@s term.
In conclusion, it can almost be arued that we ha&e no
leadership as a people. 4e do ha&e opportunists, sell*outs, swindlers,
and intellectual charlatans. 4e ha&e a parade of indi&iduals who are
ready to mount the pulpit of leadership, step into the spotliht, and
falsely claim they represent us. 4e ha&e a cadre of leaders who do what
I call <(i .alkin,= that is they talk with fire and brimstone about
whites and about the system. It all amounts to nothin, or at least empty
applause when our people lack the basic needs of sur&i&al, when we
lack a functional educational system, when our children are washed
down the streets in blood, when drus a&alanche our communities,
when oppression is at e&ery turn, and we can@t properly address and
remedy these problems. 4orst yet, we ha&e a leadership that is bent on
pimpin the community instead of rihteously ser&icin it.
3ducation for any people empowers and pro&ides ways and
means to maintain and protect their interest. A functional system of
education is e&en more sinificant to a people who rapple with
oppression. 3ducation and the institutions which ser&ice the oppressed
must be independent of the dominant system and must de&elop
1-
methods and solutions to the liberation of the oppressed. 4e need
independent institutions that speak to the historical, cultural, spiritual,
economic, political, and social uni8ueness of our people. .he leader,
intellect, educator, etc. must understand his or her role in ad&ancin and
implementin those methods and solutions for liberation, so&ereinty,
and nation*buildin. 7eadership, in its essence, boils down to ser&ice,
ser&icin people in the attainment, continuance, and maintenance of
their interests and liberationEfreedom. .he crisis, failure, andEor
betrayal of many if not most our intellects and leaders is they not only
disaree with the need to promote and strule for our people, they in
fact acti&ely work aainst it. 4e are left with one option2 not to only
analytically criti8ue wron*headed leadership, but to raise and educate
the caliber of Afrikan*Centered and consciously aware leaders needed
for our future.
1$
T$e Inter#enerationa& Afrikan %or&d)ie*:
An Afrikan-Centered Critique
DEBUNKING Afrocentricity !t"e #ro$a%anda-&yt"'
"art 'ne
Content of Ea+
NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN
Introduction
4hat is the PurposeM
Afrikan 'pirituality and <Afrocentricity=
%olefi Asante@s <Afrocentricity=
<4ill the Real Father of Afrocentricity Please 'tand :pO=
.he Afrikan Iiew of Bistory and Culture
)ile Ialley 'pirituality2 %other Cradle of the Afrikan 4orld&iew
Bistorical 9e&elopment of the Afrikan 4orld&iew
Baitian Re&olution and Afrikan 4orld&iew
16
I do not ha&e a fiht with %olefi Asante. I
ha&e a fiht with his eneration. Bis eneration has
failed to see the latitude and the lonitude of the
subDect that was already old when Professor Asante@s
parents were born0
%y arument is about latitude and lonitude.
4e ha&en@t kicked what we call <Afrocentricity= back
far enouh. 4e ha&en@t dealt with its historical roots)
,o$n -enrik C&arke. &ho !etrayed The African &orld Re(olution
and -ther Speeches. <.he Bistorical (asis of Africancentricity,=
'peech i&en April /, 1++".
1+
0I wish to seiFe this opportunity that has been i&en
me to direct your attention to the ra&ity of the
responsibility which has been entrusted to you J that of
the transmission of knowlede to youn enerations of
our community. 7ookin o&er history we are 8uickly
drawn to the fact that our nations ha&e declined, and,
as a result, our communities. .his is intimately tied to
national so&ereinty and especially to the loss of
control of our educational systems which assure the
transmission of understandin from eneration to
eneration0 It is also the classical techni8ue of
domination, of coloniFation, throuhout history, to
destroy and to weaken the historical consciousness of a
people who become dominated. All the factors which
reinforce that consciousness are taken away, taken out
of the instruction so that proressi&ely the dominated
nation becomes amnesiac.
C$eik$ Anta Dio. made these statements about the interenerational
Afrikan world&iew in a speech i&en at %orehouse in 1+6/. It is
recorded in Great Afrikan ("inkers edited by I&an Ian 'ertima >/1+?.
"#
Abstract from 3ssay
%olefi Asante has been wronly called <the father of Afrocentricity= by
his followers and others who are naP&e enouh. Be has not discouraed
the ridiculous claim, and has promoted it. 5thers mistakenly belie&e
that he coined the term or defined the concept before anyone else. It is
the fault of our present eneration of <scholars and leaders= for not
directly addressin this propaanda*myth at the heart of our world&iew.
4hat is called <Afrocentricity= today has no father, and really no
inno&ators, especially from this modern era of history. Additionally, in
the Afrikan world&iew, nothin has a father without a mother. .he idea
of a fatherhood for a then modern idea with ancient roots is a form of
plaiarism of the older idea. .he ;reeks were labeled <fathers= of )ile
Ialley concepts they learned in Afrika. 5ur scholars and leaders
continuously address the ;reek plaiarisms of Afrikan ideas, but for
political reasons, handshakes, and pats on the back, &ery few of our
<leaders and scholars= will address the modern plaiarism of the
cultural world&iew improperly defined as <Afrocentricity.= .hus, in not
addressin this propaanda*myth, and for some who e&en support it,
the intellectual chaos has become an endless wire of confusion and
mis*concepts in our mo&ement. .here are no modern day inno&ators of
the Afrikan world&iew because this eneration@s knowlede has been
passed down from our ancestors. .he Afrikan world&iew is a product of
enerations, a product of the history and culture of a people, not an
indi&idual.
Introduction
"1
It is &ery fittin to bein this essay in the proper manner, by
i&in tribute to the lineae of reat Afrikans who took up the cause to
battle for the minds of Afrikan people. .ribute is i&en to 9a&id
4alker, Anna Lulia Cooper, %artin 9elany, 43( 9u (ois, %arcus and
Amy Lac8ues ;ar&ey, Lohn 3dward (ruce, Arthur Alfonso 'chombur,
L( 9an8uah, Carter ;. 4oodson, 9rusilla 9unDee Bouston, 'te&e (iko,
%alcolm Q, Cheikh Anta 9iop, Aueen %other %oore, Lohn Lackson,
and so many others. .ribute is i&en two champions who addressed the
&ery same issue in this essay in their writins and speeches J Lohn
Benrik Clarke and Lacob Budson Carruthers. .ribute is i&en to those
Afrikans named and unnamed who took up the battle for Afrikan
mental liberation lon before our times. .hese Afrikan ancestors are
amon the many who passed down the Afrikan world&iew throuh the
enerations. %ental liberation is the roundwork or foundation for a
reater cause in our future. I would further like to acknowlede Kamau
Rashid and Bannibal Casano&a for li&ely dialoue about this topic and
&arious issues that helped heihtened my own understandin of the
Afrikan world&iew.
In the reat tradition of our )ile Ialley ancestors of at least
1,### years ao, the practice of &indicatin %dw )fr >;ood 'peech? is
brouht forth in the words of Khun*Inpu throuhout his petitions, but
specifically when he stated2
As for falsehood, its deeds may flourish,
(ut %a@at will turn herself to balance it.
%a@at is the final end of falsehood...
>'impson, $iterature of Ancient E'ypt, ,"*,/?

.he Afrikan 'pirituality of what Khun*Inpu was sayin is that
society, as much as the uni&erse, is meant to be balanced. As much as
the sun rises and falls, as much as Beru will always defeat 'et, so it is
that truth will always endure o&er falsehood in the end. In fact, the
ultimate end of falsehood is truth, and there can be no other way. .he
uni&erse is built on wa&es and circles of a harmonious rhythm. .hat
bein the structure of the uni&erse means that we as people ha&e
harmony at our inner*bein. It is from the di&inity in us spoken to by
Khun*Inpu that we correct falsehood where and when we can.
.his essay bean as what was oriinally thouht to be a much
smaller research eGercise. %y simple obDecti&es were to historically
""
pro&e and lay out eGamples of why there is no <Father= of
Afrocentricity, the etymoloical E historical de&elopment of the word
<Afrocentricity,= and to properly honor our Afrikan ancestors as
creators of the Afrikan world&iew. In the process of writin the essay,
the interenerational de&elopment of the Afrikan world&iew took
precedence in my research. After all, it is the more sinificant of the
issues, yet inseparable from the need to correct myths and propaanda*
myths that ha&e left imprints on the Afrikan world&iew. .he essay has
been structured into a two parts. Althouh not eGclusi&e, Part 5ne deals
more with the ancient de&elopment of the Afrikan world&iew, and Part
.wo deals more with the recent historical de&elopment.
4hat is the PurposeM
%any, I@m sure, will wonder why I ha&e chosen to address this
issue. %y response to them is that as is the case with whate&er I write
or speak about, I find it to be &ery pressin to the world&iew of Afrikan
people. If I did not, or if I could inore this issue, if it were tri&ial
enouh, I would. If the issues were not so critical to the de&elopmental
world&iew of Afrikan people at a time where anti*Afrikan concepts
dominate our minds, I would not consider these writins. If more of our
<scholars= and <leaders= addressed these fundamental flaws in what is
becomin part of the Afrikan mindset, I would only reference their
works and let the issue be as it may. .o the contrary, the issue is &ery
pressin and has been inored by far too many, for far too lon.
%any ha&e chosen to inore this issue, and often people who
should especially address the topic are the ones who inore it. .he topic
is inored for many reasons. %olefi Asante has been wronly called
<the father of Afrocentricity.= Be has built a cheerin section in the
stadium that we call today@s <%o&ement,= and many scholars who
should address this issue fear bein booed by Asante@s cheerin section.
Indi&iduals in Asante@s cheerin section are there for se&eral reasons,
and I know this because I ha&e spoken with many of them. 'ome are
cheerin the propaanda*myth of <Afrocentricity= in seekin some
position at a uni&ersity or tenure, of which he has been an assistance to
many. 5thers are cheerin this propaanda*myth because they belie&e
it is an honest <paradim= or <theory,= and it is neither. 5thers who
inore any attempt at correctin the propaanda*myth do so because it
will take a reat deal of time and enery. Countless brothers and sisters
across the world ha&e been misled, so for those who are more than
capable of addressin the propaanda myth, consider it too costly to
"/
their community andEor academic reputations. Further, scholar*leaders
of Afrikan descent fear bein placed in the white schools of thouht
created by %ary 7efkowits, Arthur 'chlesiner, 'te&en Bowe, and the
like. .here is another school of thouht alon the wa&es of Benry 7ouis
;ates, and many chose not to be e&en remotely or accidentally alined
with this camp by addressin the propaanda*myth. Conse8uently,
because the issue is not addressed, many ha&e become defensi&e about
<Afrocentricity= in thinkin that they are defendin somethin Afrikan
aainst anti*Afrikan propaanda. 'ome indi&iduals ne&er took the
mo&ement serious in the first place, so they see nothin wron with
reuritatin an unsound theory. 5thers are cheerin the propaanda*
myth of <Afrocentricity= simply because they are not well read, and
ha&e become eGperts at soundin like they know what they are talkin
about when they don@t. 'till others unwittinly promote the
propaanda*myth because they ha&e heard it o&er the years, ha&e been
tauht it, read it in books, and think it is true. It@s like when a small
number of people tell a lie consistently, and then honest people bein to
belie&e it is true.
. For these reasons abo&e, and others, many ha&e allowed
themsel&es to be indoctrinated into what they think is Afrocentricity.
.here is one &ery core reason for my addressin this issue. A
propaanda*myth of <Afrocentricity= has been allowed to run*a*muck
for o&er two decadesH it has become imbedded in the minds of all too
manyH a mass of confusion has been createdH and &ery few ha&e had the
courae andEor insiht to deal with this mess.
'ome notes on definition would pro&e useful. 4hat is meant by
inter'enerational ,orld(ie,M All cultures ha&e world&iews, and all
cultures are interenerationalH indeed a culture cannot eGist otherwise.
All functional people seek to educate and socialiFe their new
enerations into the wisdom of their elders and ancestors. All people
seek to further their eGistence in this di&erse world. 'ome de&elop
ideoloies of harmony, or domination, or liberation, or compromise, or
confrontation, etc., etc. Bowe&er, a world&iew is in part the cultural
frame of reference of a people, and the frame of reference is always
passed on o&er time. For cultures that are spiritually or reliiously
based, their world&iews are also transcendent in some way beyond the
physical world. Afrikan cultures, uncorrupted by forein influence, are
such eGamples of cultures with a world&iew that is spiritually based.
.he interenerational character, or world&iew, of a culture depends on
se&eral factors2 such as en&ironment, the eneral mind*set of the
people, their socio*economic condition, their identity, political and
",
reliious loyalty, but abo&e all their historical past or how they came to
see their meanin and purpose of eGistence. In spite of the reat turmoil
of the past endured by our ancestors, Afrikan people ha&e always had a
cultural reference or interenerational world&iew. .his is the heart of
the topic.
For this essay, I had to de&elop a specific term that captures the
character of <Afrocentricity.= First, propaanda in itself is not bad. It
only means the spreadin of information, knowlede, ideas, etc.
Bowe&er, when I refer to <Afrocentricity= as <propaanda,= I am
referrin to the spreadin of non*factual and non*historical based
propaanda. 'till, the falsifications run deeper. I compounded
<propaanda= with <myth= due to the inaccurate ideas surroundin the
oriin and de&elopment of <Afrocentricity.= A myth is an idea or
concept used as an eGplanation, but one that is not based on historical
facts. .he term propaanda*myth best captures the character of
<Afrocentricity,= as it is belie&ed by some, promoted by others, and not
properly addressed by all too many. I often place <Afrocentricity= in
8uotation marks because there is a historic lineae of Afrocentricity
that de&eloped free of the propaanda*myth, and it is authentic. .hat
authentic Afrikan lineae from the )ile Ialley to the present is the
more important part of this essay. In fact, I don@t consider it to be &ery
difficult to deconstruct the propaanda*myth of <Afrocentricity.= %ost
often, where <Afrocentricity= is in 8uotation, I am referrin to the
propaanda*myth. 4here it is not in 8uotation, I am most often
referrin to the authentic de&elopment of the Afrikan world&iew or
interenerational lineae.
In the title of this essay, <9ebunkin Afrocentricity,= may seem
a bit harsh for some to stomach, and to that, I say reatO .o debunk
somethin does not mean to destroy it. .he root word of de*bunk is
bunk. 'omethin that is bunk is unconscious, or partially conscious.
'omethin that is bunk is false, out of conteGt. 'omethin bunk is
weak, absurd, nonsensical, or ridiculous of what it supposedly means
and represents. 'omethin that is bunk is asleep. 4e@&e all seen people
debunked from their sleep. Restin at an hour or time when they should
be least asleep, and alon comes someone to snatch the co&ers away,
yank the sheets from under them, and send them rollin onto the floor.
A ood yellin in the ear at that point, or a bucket of cold water, would
do well to debunk the sleeper. .hat@s what <Afrocentricity= needs, as it
is understood today. A ood de%unkin' would do the minds, the
historical consciousness, and the cultural de&elopment of our people
&ery well.
"1
I will eGamine what I call <.he %aDor Propaanda*%yths of
Afrocentricity= throuhout the essay. A core set of propaanda*myths
can be defined that are intrinsic if not always openly stated in the
writins and speeches of self*proclaimed Afrocentrists and their
teachins. Althouh I ha&e placed them in a set, the propaanda*myths
abound in so many ways throuhout the writin and teachins of the
Afrocentrists, and by <Afrocentrists,= I mean those who are all too
uncritical and those who blindly follow the unsound theory of %olefi
Asante, former Chairperson and current professor of .emple
:ni&ersity@s (lack 'tudies 9epartment in Philadelphia. .hese are some
of the core myths of <Afrocentricity.=
.he %aDor Propaanda*%yths of <Afrocentricity=
1. %olefi Asante is the <Father of Afrocentricity=
". <Afrocentricity= was created with the 1+6# publication of
Asante@s book
/. Asante coined the term <Afrocentricity=
,. Asante was first to <operationaliFe= or defined the meanin of
<Afrocentricity=
1. .he recruits and followers of <Afrocentricity= belie&e they are
basin their research on a sound theory that is a &indication of
Afrikan people
-. 4hite people and non*Afrikans can be <Afrocentric=
$. <Afrocentricity= is a theory, idea, or paradim.
.hrouhout this essay, I will deal with each of the abo&e
propaanda*myths. .his essay will brief the Afrikan conscious
mo&ement. In so addressin the historic mo&ement, we bein to dispel
certain falsifications of the propaanda*myth. .he interenerational
lineae of the Afrikan world&iew is both ancient and modern, as will be
displayed. .hrouhout this essay, reference will be made to some of
those who ha&e addressed the propaanda*myth. In this essay, I will do
my best to address what Lohn Benrik Clarke called the <latitude and
lonitude,= or past and present, of Afrikan consciousness. In this essay,
I will <kick back= Afrikan*Centered thouht to at least ,,1## years
alon the )ile Ialley, and brin it up throuh some of the cultures,
mo&ements, and nations of Afrikan people. Finally, I will look at the
threads of Afrikan consciousness in the Afrikan world as it related to
the historic strules aainst oppression. .he Afrikan world&iew is E
was present amon all Afrikan people at &arious times in history, and it
"-
was <founded= by no indi&iduals. Ledi Lehewty called this the
interenerational con&ersation of the Afrikan world&iew amon our
people, a con&ersation which stretched back to the anti8uity of our
ancestors to the present. All people ha&e a world&iew and
interenerational dialo that addresses the task of teachin its@ future
enerations the knowlede, wisdom, and lessons of their ancestors. .he
Afrikan world&iew is especially critical because of the oppression we
ha&e faced in the world. .he interenerational dialo will continue into
the future as Afrikan people face new challenes and triumphs in our
eGistence.
%olefi Asante@s <Afrocentricity=
4e must reconiFe that all cultures and all people ha&e
world&iews, and there are no indi&idual founders for any of them. A
world&iew is how a specific people or race understands the totality of
its@ own eGistence and based on that understandin how they li&e and
interact in the world. 4hen we consider how <Afrocentricity= has been
defined, it is clear the <Afrocentrists= are really talkin about the
Afrikan world&iew. .here was always an Afrikan world&iew since
Afrikans ha&e been in the worldH Dust as much as a 3uropean
world&iew, Arab world&iew, Chinese world&iew, etc. ha&e always
eGisted with those people. If %olefi Asante is the father of
<Afrocentricity,= I would only ask who is the father of 3urocentricityM
4ho is the father of Arab*centricityM 3uropeans and Arabs ha&e always
had ways they ha&e interacted in the world with other people. 4ouldn@t
it be ridiculous to say that someone fathered the 3uropean world&iew
when it is a de&elopment of their culture, history, and eGistence. Certain
whites ha&e influenced the 3uropean world&iew such as AleGander the
;reek, Constantine, Columbus, 4ashinton, etc. Cet still, none of them
were fathers of the 3uropean world&iew as it de&eloped from the
historical*cultural backround of the total people. 7ikewise, the Afrikan
world&iew de&eloped from the total historical*cultural backround of
Afrikan people.
%olefi Asante defines <Afrocentricity= as <a mode of thouht
and action in which the centrality of African interest, &alues, and
perspecti&es predominate= >Afrocentricity, "?. I ha&e no problem with
that definition as lon as it is acknowleded that it has been part of the
Afrikan world&iew since beyond anti8uity. .he world&iew of any
people would place their <interest, &alues, and perspecti&es= first. )o
enius would ha&e to fiure that out. It@s called self*interest or
"$
collecti&e consciousness. .he self*interest andEor collecti&e
consciousness of Afrikan people were not waitin in the darkness for
the 1+6# publication of a book. .he Afrikan world&iew has been
wronly termed <Afrocentricity,= and it has been misunderstood as
such. .he Afrikan world&iew is a de&elopment of Afrikan history,
culture, and eGistence. I will further address this later in the essay. Bere
I would like to deal directly with a few selected 8uotes from what is
thouht to be %olefi Asante@s foundational work, Afrocentricity, first
published in 1+6#. %any consider this to be the foundation teGt of the
<Afrocentric mo&ement.=
In my opinion, what is one of the most larin inaccuracies in
the book deals with the mistreatment of 43( 9u (ois and the
<scholars of his era.= Asante says2
9espite his intense lo&e for African people, 9u
(ois was not Afrocentric >9u (ois, 1+-12 1,"?. Be
studied African people not from an African perspecti&e
but from a 3uropean one which employed 3urocentric
methods to analyFe and study black people. Few
African scholars of his era, if any, could break out of
the tihtness of 3uropean thouht. Indeed, only
Afrocentric scholars ha&e been able to achie&e that
&ictory. Althouh he demonstrated admirably that the
African could eGcel at 3uropean scholarship, this
apoloetic posture was necessary in his mind to
establish our respectability worldwide >"/?.
4ould it be too unscholarly of me to say2 Are you kiddin meO
7et me restrain from commentin on this 8uote and lay out some others
so that I may comment all at once. Be further states2
9u (ois prepared the world for AfrocentricityH
the protector of an idea who did not fully reconiFe its
power but who would ha&e shouted to see it come.
Afrocentricity was the most loical end of his own
brilliant rowth pattern >"/?.
Asante continues with useless compliments and roundless
claims about 9u (ois2
"6
Always the seer, 9u (ois ad&anced interation
as the key to human proress in America. 4orkin
from a 3urocentric &ision, he participated in the
philosophical currents of 4estern 3urope, and
therefore reflected the same mental flow as 9arwinism,
%arGism, and Freudianism0 9u (ois wrestled with
the contradictions of this 3urocentric &iew0 >",?
:nfortunately, Asante did not make a case for any one his
comments about 9u (ois. .hey do, howe&er, show a serious
miscalculation of the life@s works of 9u (ois. As I estimate, this could
ha&e somethin to do with the fact that the 9u (ois we speak of is the
same person who used the term <Afro*centric= to define his Africana
proDect in the early 1+-#s, that is "# years before Asante@s book
Afrocentricity. Asante does not eGplain this in the book, and it is
e8ually inored by other Afrocentrists. )or does he eGplain that the
man he calls an interationist was one of the leadin proponents of
Pan*Afrikanism for nearly half a century, throuh the fi&e conresses
he held and participated in between 1+1+ and 1+,1. 9u (ois helped led
an entire eneration in the direction of the anti*colonial mo&ement.
InterationistM 3urocentricM Bardly.
9u (ois had his contradictions, like the unnecessary feud
between him and %arcus ;ar&ey. 9u (ois did utiliFe 'ocialist analysis
in much of his materials, but to say he was 3urocentric is more than a
stretch. 4hile 9u (ois was 'ocialist in some of his analysis of politics
and history, that did not make him 3urocentric as Asante claims. Bis
idea of the <.alented .enth= was elitist in some ways. Bowe&er, let us
not miss the contributions of 43( 9u (ois to the Afrikan conscious
mo&ement. In readin 9u (ois@ 16+$ <Conser&ation of Races,= it is
clear that he was a stron nationalists. 9u (ois set the tone for Afrikan*
Centered research in his Suppression of the African Sla(e Trade in
16+-. 4ho would dare claim that 9u (ois@ 1+,$ teGt The &orld and
Africa# An In.uiry into the part ,hich Africa has played in &orld
*istory is not Afrikan*Centered. Bis writin 1+11 entitled <Pan*Africa2
A %ission in %y 7ife= speaks &olumes to the half century of work 9u
(ois dedicated his life. .hrouh his annual Atlanta Conferences, 9u
(ois laid out not only a nationalist business plan for (lacks, but also a
method of study rele&ant to our people. 4hat is meant by callin 9u
(ois@ posture <apoloetic.= .he man took unpopular stance after
unpopular stance throuhout his life. The Crisis was outspoken aainst
lynchin, a danerous topic. 9u (ois was not afraid to be called
"+
unpatriotic if it meant speakin out aainst :' oppression at home and
abroad. 7et us not foret that 9u (ois e&entually a&e up his :'
citiFenship and eGpatriated to ;hana in 1+-1. 4ho is this 3urocentric
9u (ois that Asante speaks about as if it is such a forone conclusionM
.here is no need to deal with this idea of 9u (ois@ eneration not bein
able to <break out of the tihtness of 3uropean thouht.= .hat issue will
form a reater part of this essay. For clear insiht into the sinificance
of the life of 43( 9u (ois, I stronly recommend %annin %arable@s
!lack Radical emocrat.
<9u (ois was not AfrocentricM= ReallyO 43( 9u (ois finished
his final autobioraphy in the last years of his life in ;hana. Althouh
he was 'ocialist in certain analysis, 9u (ois was a Pan*Afrikanist
abo&e anythin. In his autobioraphy, 9u (ois noted ;eore Padmore@s
1+1- work +an-Africanism or Communism# The Comin' Stru''le for
Africa) Padmore himself had split from the Communist party because
of ideoloical differences rooted in racism and colonialism on the part
of white Communist. Padmore would become chief ad&isor to
)krumah. In the letter to Kwame )krumah, 9u (ois eGplained that
Afrika must not be a tool of the capitalist 4estern nations or the
Communist 3astern nations >Auto%io'raphy of &E! u !ois, ,##?.
Pan*Afrika <should build a socialism founded on old African
communal life0= Be then eGplained2
Pan*Africa will seek to preser&e its own past
history, and write the present account, erasin from
literature the lies and distortions about black folks
which ha&e disraced the last centuries of 3uropean
and American literature0 >,##?
9u (ois was not a socialist in the 3uropean sense, definitely
not later in life. .he same simplistic blanketed obser&ation is made of
)yerere, 7umumba, Cabral, %achel, and the entire eneration of anti*
colonial, freedom fihters. Afrikan communalism is what many of them
stood for, not white 'ocialism or Communism. Asante makes this
mistake with 9u (ois in referrin to him as %arGist in thouht
>Afrocentricity, "1?.
In a number of places in his book, Asante refers to
<Afrocentricity= as an <ideoloy= and discusses it alonside ideoloies
and reliions >6, 1", 1-, 1#"?. As tri&ial as this may seem to some, to
the contrary, it is a ra&e issue. <Afrocentricity= is not a reliion or an
ideoloy. Few people would be willin to arue that in public, I would
/#
suspect. It is because %olefi Asante e8uates <Afrocentricity= to a
reliion or an ideoloy that so much confusion has been stirred up. .he
3urocentric critics such as 7efkowits*n*company belie&e that
<Afrocentricity= is an ideoloy. <Afrocentricity= is a misnomer for the
Afrikan world&iew. Reliions and ideoloies ha&e founders. 5n the
other hand, world&iews ha&e no founders because they de&elop out of a
roup@s cultural framework and outlook. 5ne may compare or contrast
Pan*Afrikanism to Communism or )ile Ialley 'pirituality to another
reliion, but it makes little sense to contrast or compare a world&iew to
an ideoloy, that is unless one attempts to boG a total world&iew into
bein an ideoloy or reliion. Cou cannot con&ert someone to their
world&iew, as Asante speaks of in his book >11?. Cou con&ert people to
ideoloies and reliions. 5n this note, an interestin deletion was made
between the 1+66 and "##/ editions of Afrocentricity. In 1+66, Asante
proclaimed2
Puttin these 8uestions already causes you to
contemplate the eGtent of the deification of the history.
Islam, as an oraniFed reliion, had its oriin in the
Arabian desert, somewhere in the &icinity of %ecca
and %edina, dependin upon where one wants to place
the emphasis of %uhammad@s life. 4ithout bein
the 8uestion by assertin that Islam is older than
%uhammad, consider that such a posture has been
taken by all reliions when assailed for ha&in a place
and time or oriin. (uddhists will say that (uddhism
eGisted before ;otamaH Christians will says RsicS that
Christianity eGisted before LesusH and Lews will say
that Ludaism eGisted before %oses. .his is all true
because the elements which are necessary for effecti&e
human li&in and collecti&e roup consciousness
eGisted before any of these indi&idual people. (y the
same token, Afrocentrists will say that Ni/a eGisted
before Asante@s Afrocentricity or 4elsh@s Mfundalai.
.hey will be correct to assert such a position.
)e&ertheless, the truth of the matter is that the
statement of the position must bein somewhere, in
someplace with someone. Islam had such a beinninH
in fact, as we know it, Islam bean with %uhammad.
Conse8uently, the initial responsibility and direction of
/1
Islam beloned to %uhammad much as the initial
responsibility of )iDa belons to its oriinators >/?.
.he heart of the issue is not with <)iDa.= I don@t know of
anyone who has an issue of the oriin of <)iDa.= 7ookin beyond the
lack of clarity, it is ob&ious that Asante e8uates <Afrocentricity= with
reliions or as if it were an ideoloy. In the later edition of the book, the
followin sentence was taken out2 <(y the same token, Afrocentrists
will say that Ni/a eGisted before Asante@s Afrocentricity or 4elsh@s
Mfundalai.= It alters the implications and inferences of the meanin.
4hat remained in the "##/ edition, as Asante promoted his idea of
<Afrocentricity= is the followin2
Afrocentricity can stand its round amon any
ideoloy or reliion2 %arGism, Islam, Christianity,
(uddhism, or Ludaism. Cour Afrocentricity will emere
in the presence of these other ideoloies because it is
from you >1-?.
Aain, it is a far off miscalculation to reduce the world&iew of
a people, any people, to an ideoloy or a reliion. .he Afrikan
world&iew is fundamental to the eGistence of all conscious Afrikan
people, anywhere in the world, past or present. 5ur world&iew
emanates from our culture and history. .he Afrikan world&iew is
fundamental to Afrikans who are not conscious, althouh they may be
unaware. 5ur understandin of our world&iew may determine the
ideoloies and reliions we belon to, but the world&iew is not an
ideoloy or reliion itself. Conse8uently, there is no founder for an
entire people@s world&iew. I ha&e spoken to many people of Afrikan
descent who will declare, <I am not AfrocentricO= .his confusion comes
from the idea that <Afrocentricity= is belie&ed to be an ideoloy or a
reliion of some kind, one where you can <con&ert= someone to it.
Asante stated, <Afrocentricity does not con&ert you by appealin to
hatred0= >11? .he writers who used <Afrocentricity= before Asante@s
1+6# publication did not intend or define the term as such, but as a
world&iew. People of Afrikan descent may become more conscious of
the world&iew of their culture, but this is not an issue of con&ersion. )o
one is a dues payin, card*holdin member of <Afrocentricity= that I
know. 7ater, the historical oriin of the word, or its@ etymoloy, will be
addressed in further detail.
/"
%y point is that no one is con&erted to the world&iew of their
ancestors the way one is con&erted to a reliion or ideoloy. It is
because of this idea of con&ersion that Asante and others ha&e arued
that whites, Chinese, and anybody else can become <Afrocentric.=
<Afrocentricity= has become a misnomer for the Afrikan world&iew,
Afrikan consciousness, or Afrikan*Centeredness. Cou don@t con&ert to
the Afrikan world&iew in that sense. .here must be somethin in this
world that belons to Afrikan people. 5ne must be Afrikan to be
Afrikan. %eanin2 you can@t simply understand or read up on the
Afrikan world&iew, write a book on it, and then one way or another you
will be <Afrocentric,= reardless of your race. 5nly Afrikans can be
Afrikan*Centered. People of other races can be understandin at best.
.his sad misunderstandin about whites bein able to be <Afrocentric=
is a position some <Afrocentrists= and their students ha&e taken
because they ha&e found a need to compromise in the face of the
uni&ersity policies of this country. In fact, many of our <scholars and
leaders= ha&e not been able to see the challenes of our people beyond
the uni&ersity.
Afrikan 'pirituality and <Afrocentricity=
(efore discussin Afrikan 'pirituality, we must first reconiFe
the coloniFation and ensla&ement of Afrikan people, and as ChinweFu
said, the coloniFation and ensla&ement of the Afrikan mind. Afrika has
been under siee, under attack, and in a state of war at one time or
another, in one place or another, for the last /,1## years. Foreiners
ha&e made it part of their reliions and reliious beliefs to wae wars
and propaanda campains aainst Afrikan people in their ultimate
interest of robbin the richest continent in world history. Afrika@s
wealth has been a curse because the land mass is situated in an area
where other people ha&e been poor, hunry, reedy, thie&in, or all of
those combined. 3uropean Christians and Arab %uslims ha&e waed
the most protracted and de&astatin wars of ensla&ement and
coloniFation aainst Afrikan people in modern history. .he Byksos,
Assyrians, Persians, ;reeks, and Romans, ha&e contributed to the
destabiliFation of ancient Afrikan ci&iliFation. .wo of the best and
classic works on this history are L. C. 9e;raft*Lohnson@s African
0lory# The Story of 1anished Ne'ro Ci(ili2ations from 1+1, and
Chancellor 4illiams@ .he estruction of !lack Ci(ili2ation# 0reat
Issues of a Race from 1+$1. (oth works pre*date %olefi@s
Afrocentricity, and both works are nationalist and Afrikan*Centered by
//
anyone@s standards. (oth works are as sinificant as they are
historically accurate. (oth works i&e direction in the task of research
reco&ery of the Afrikan past. 9e;raft*Lohnson was from ;hana and
4illiams@ father was ensla&edH both writers labored to transmit the
Afrikan world&iew to the neGt of their enerations.
Arab %uslims in&ade Afrika in -/+ (C3, about 1,,## years
ao, and they ne&er left. )orth Afrika has been completely coloniFed,
militarily and culturally. Islam has culturally eroded the sacred systems
of many communities in Afrika, past and present. .he ensla&ement of
countless millions o&er the last millennium and a half ha&e come with
the coloniFation of a lare part of Afrika. Few ha&e researched this
forotten coloniFation and ensla&ement of Afrika the way 'amuel
Cotton has done in Silent Terror and his &arious essays and articles on
the issue.
3uropeans first entered Afrika militarily with the decline of
three thousand years of )ile Ialley ci&iliFation. .hey were first in
Afrika as students who sat at the feet of the reat Afrikan teachers of
the ancient world. .he ;reeks learned a reat deal of knowlede and
science that they took back to 3urope. .he Bebrews also learned a
reat deal from the Afrikan teachers of the )ile Ialley, and they placed
much of this information, althouh half understood, in the writins we
know of today as the (ible. .he 3uropeans would re*in&ade Afrika in
the 1,,#s with the rise of a worldwide sla&e trade we call the Maafa. It
is important that we understand that the 3uropean ensla&ers were
learnin lessons from the Arab ensla&ers. Althouh they fouht each
other at times, in other cases they cooperated.
'la&ery by Arabs or by 3uropeans systematically attempted to
de*AfrikaniFe the Afrikan. Christianity and Islam both souht to take
the Afrikan world&iew and 'piritual systems away from the Afrikan
and implant a coloniFation of the mind and soul based on forein
beliefs, names, lanuae, and culture. As a people, we ha&e not
reco&ered psycholoically or spiritually from the ensla&ement era. .he
ensla&ement of the mind was so entrenched that many Afrikans in
Afrika and throuhout the Afrikan world remain fascinated by forein
cultures and reliions today. 'ome will lea&e one forein reliion for
another. 'eldom do we honor the 'pirituality of those souls who fouht
and died for us. 'eldom do we honor the souls of our ancestors who
struled and fouht wars aainst those who dared to ensla&e people
and coloniFe our lands and our minds.
4hat I am notin is that Afrikan people and Afrikan culture
ha&e been under attack, not only in the last 1## years, but also in the
/,
last /,1## years. .he assault has been aainst Afrikan people, Afrikan
land, and Afrikan culture. )early a 8uarter of a billion li&es ha&e been
lost in war, coloniFation, forced miration, and ensla&ement by Arab
and 3uropean ensla&ers in the last centuries. .his constitutes the most
massi&e enocide in human history. .he continuin traedy is that
neither campain aainst Afrika ha&e completely stopped or been
pre&ented. (oth the 3uropean and the Arab ha&e found it necessary to
attack that which has been most sacred to Afrika, our women, our
children, and our 'pirituality. 5&er the centuries, armies ha&e met on
the field, blood has soaked the soil and the shores of Afrika, li&es ha&e
been i&en as a sacrifice to Afrikan liberationH yet the battles are not
o&er and the war is not yet won. Afrika is still under attack today. .ake
the two most recent brutal wars not only in Afrika but in the world. In
9arfur and 'outhern 'udan, innocent children and women are draed
off to be ensla&ed, raped, or killed by %uslims. In the 9emocratic
Republic of the Cono >9RC?, we ha&e seen the worse human loss
from neo*colonialism than in any other country where nearly fi&e
million Afrikans ha&e died in this unendin resource war o&er
diamonds, coltane, and other minerals. As traic as Rwanda was in
1++,, it was the testin round for a reater traedy in 9RC.
Afrikan 'pirituality is the sacred ancestral and traditional belief
systems of Afrikan people. Afrikan 'pirituality stretches beyond time
and space. .he first Bumans in the world were Afrikans, and the first
sacred system in the world was Afrikan 'pirituality. 5ur ancestors were
first to built an interenerational commune of spirituality. .he honorin
of our ancestors in ritual and tradition is central. .he honorin of our
ancestors in our life@s work is paramount. .hrouh our daily actions,
the way we treat others, the way we li&e, our oals, our desires, the
deep recesses of our inner*sel&es, all speak to the spirituality imbued in
us by our ancestors. A reat sense of humility is prere8uisite before we
can properly honor our ancestors and li&e our Afrikan faith.
.he Afrikan Creator is the first ancestor in our understandin
of Afrikan 'pirituality. It was the First Ancestor who a&e life and
breath to the spirit forces of the uni&erse and nature2 matter, stars, sun,
fire, land, air, and water. .hese elements ha&e combined to create
creation. .hey are the essential makeup of the uni&erse. %an and
4oman must seek harmony with the uni&erse and nature. 5ur ancestors
in the )ile Ialley understood this to be %aat. 4hen we li&e %aat, we
seek harmony with the world around us and the uni&erse beyond.
4hat sla&ery and coloniFation o&er the last /,1## years ha&e
failed to destroy, we ha&e not oursel&es seriously considered. Afrikan
/1
'pirituality has sur&i&ed the fire of e&ery e&il that foreiners could
brin aainst her people. Althouh the secrets of how to translate the
%dw )tr of .awi >Kemet or K%.?, the channel to )ile Ialley
'pirituality, were lost for enerationsH the traditional 'piritual systems
throuhout Afrika amon the Coruba, Akan, Kulu, 9inka, (akono, and
so many others are still intact. .he transplanted Afrikans in the )ew
4orld would maintain the faiths of our ancestors throuh resistance
and war. 'urrounded by oppression, these Afrikans in such places as
(raFil, 'urinam, Lamaica, Baiti, and Florida would create an
interenerational world&iew of resistance. .hese Afrikans, and many
others, would fiht protracted wars aainst sla&ery that lasted for
decades.
'ome belie&e that Afrikans in 7atin America are Dust becomin
race conscious. .his is not the complete case. %any of the Afrikans in
7atin speakin countries who had not reconiFed themsel&es by race
are beinnin to do so today. It was and still is common for a person of
Afrikan descent from (raFil, Colombia, or another Caribbean or 'outh
American country to define themsel&es by their nations of birth and not
by race. 4ell, since many non*whites in 7atin speakin countries are
becomin more politically conscious and ainin some access to
education, they are beinnin to de&elop awareness of the historic
oppression in their countries. .hey are also raisin 8uestions about the
hierarchical racial structure of power in their nations.
Bowe&er, let us be slow to say these countries ha&e shown little
Afrikan consciousness, or little <Afrocentricity= as some miht arue.
7et us not foret the historic resistance campains fouht in 7atin*
speakin America. Additionally, Afrikan 'pirituality has sur&i&ed in
few places the way it has amon Afrikans in these 7atin countries.
Racial and political consciousness are two forms of awareness that
ha&e not been in the main amon Afrikans in 7atin speakin countries
in the Americas. Cet, in the :nited 'tates, Afrikan 'piritual
consciousness has not sur&i&ed the way it has in many 7atin speakin
countries. 7atin speakin Afrikans ha&e been the primary bearers of
forms of Afrikan 'pirituality in the )ew 4orld. 4hile the Afrikans in
the :nited 'tates ha&e led an acti&ist mo&ement for social and political
rihts, the Afrikans of 7atin countries ha&e been heir to stron Afrikan
'piritual sur&i&als in the Americas. In all of these nations, the Afrikan
world&iew has sur&i&ed one way or another, thouh framented
because of the history of sla&ery. 5ur task to the future, is Pan*Afrikan,
that is to unite and build the framents of the Afrikan world&iew
throuhout the Americas, indeed throuhout the world.
/-
.he Afrikan world&iew must be united across time. .hat is, the
present enerations must always reach back into time to renew their
faith in the ancestral strule for Afrikan people. Afrikan 'pirituality is
essential in this process. .he Afrikan world&iew must be united across
space, that is Afrikans must see themsel&es as a lobal people and
know that the strule is lobal. In the process of unitin the Afrikan
world&iew across time and across national boundaries, we must
understand that the Afrikan world&iew is not stanant, rather it adapts
to the chanes of strules met in e&ery eneration. 4hat is constant in
the Afrikan world&iew is the honorin of ancestors. Also, constant in
the Afrikan world&iew is strule, that is the campain to always
chane the world for the better. .he world&iew of a people is
multidimensional and has many forms of consciousness >or awareness?
that relates to the roups eGistence and cultural framework. .he
world&iew of a people stems from their cultural history and current
world challenes.
.he fact that far too many in the current eneration are
misdirected by the concept of <Afrocentricity,= is the lesser issue in this
essay. .he larer issue here deals with the need to reach beyond our
limited &iew of the current <Afrocentric= mo&ement and understand
that our 'pirituality transcends time and space. Afrikan 'pirituality, an
essential part of the Afrikan world&iew, is not limited to one corner of
the world or another, it is present throuhout the world. Afrikan
'pirituality is not limited to Dust the past or the present, but is timeless
and stretches from the beinnin of Buman history to the present. 4e
ha&e to connect with the space and time defyin nature of our ancestral
faith. 4e ha&e to connect with the ensla&ement and coloniFation
resistance of our ancestral faith. 4e ha&e to connect with the ancestral
strenth and the Afrikan power of our faith. In limitin our &iew to the
ridiculous belief that <Afrocentricity= is a modern phenomenon, we
ha&e become lions without teeth and claws. 4e may wear the Afrikan
arb but ha&e no substance. 5ur strenth and lobal outlook are from
our culture, history, ancestors, and Creator. .hat@s not an ideoloy or
reliionH it@s a world&iew.
<Afrocentricity= has become a name of an academic eGercise,
and the maDor proponents of the propaanda*myth are for the most part
all uni&ersity trained and beholden to positions that curb their academic
freedoms and thouhts. .he uni&ersity is the intellectual center of
mainstream America. 4here <Afrocentricity= eGists in the uni&ersity is
only on the frines of the core curriculum of American education. A
nation@s educational system ser&es the purpose of promotin that
/$
nation@s world&iew, ethos E cultural constructs, and &alues. 4hat@s
more, an educational system eGists to maintain or ad&ance a nation@s
status 8uo. It is a contradiction in itself to ha&e somethin called
<Afrocentricity= bein rooted in American uni&ersities. :ntil we build
our own uni&ersity systems, <far beyond the reach of the influence of
the Coast= as 3kra Ayiman >L. 3. Casely Bayford? said a century ao,
we will ne&er be completely free in any academic arena. .he only
academic arena that we will be completely free in is the one that we
build from the round up. It is only in a uni&ersity system founded in
the total interest of Afrikan people and Afrikan nations that our reatest
intellectual and spiritual potential will flower.
.he intellectual pursuits of Afrikan interest must be married
with the 'pirituality of our ancestors, not the American or any other
uni&ersity. 'uch a marriae can only take place where our intellectual
and spiritual centers are linked to the enuine interest of our people.
.he strule can bein in the uni&ersity, but it must not end in it.
Paternalist, coloniFers, and ensla&ers cannot build Afrikan institutions
for our needs because these Afrikan institutions would be aainst their
own interest. American institutions may tolerate (lack 'tudies course
and courses with some le&el of Afrikan content, but the core &alues of
the institutions remain unchaned, and that is a promotion of the
oppressi&e status 8uo in society. 4hite think tanks and policy centers
that directly influence uni&ersities ha&e an ideoloical, economic, and
political orientation that is not concerned about the interest of Afrikan
people. Further, there will always be a 9a&id BorowitF and some kind
of <Academic (ill of Rihts= to remind us that the American uni&ersity
is not our house. )ow, I arue we should use the uni&ersity for what it@s
worth, but we should also take that reminder and build our own house.
If we built a network of Afrikan uni&ersities, by definition and nature,
they would include the study and promotion of Afrikan 'pirituality and
Pan*Afrikanism as essential cores of the Afrikan world&iew. 4hat
nation builds uni&ersities that do not promote their faith>s?, concepts of
nationhood, and ultimately their world&iewM
.he current <Afrocentric= intellectual enterprise has not
sufficiently i&en direction on the spiritual relationship of our ancestors
to our current strule. 5ne primary reason is that the mo&ement is
uni&ersity based in institutions that are not ours. Instead of bein truly
Afrocentric, this mo&ement has become limited in its historic approach
in some cases and eocentric in others. .he <Afrocentric= intellectual
and academic mo&ement has not sufficiently addressed the Afrikan
world&iew@s interenerational tradition and the Afrikan lobal strule
/6
for nationhood. <Afrocentricity= in itself cannot represent the Afrikan
world&iew. .o the contrary, <Afrocentricity= is at worst a de&iant in the
interenerational commune of Afrikan thouht. At best,
<Afrocentricity= represents a current fad that will de&elop into a more
serious direction where the proponents will themsel&es mature into a
fuller and more accurate understandin of the Afrikan world&iew. If
this is done, the <Afrocentrists= will bein to realiFe the true historic
de&elopment of the mo&ement.
I ha&e to be fair. Part of the problem with the <Afrocentric=
mo&ement is the problem of (lack <leadership.= .he crises of (lack
leadership are many. 4e ha&e leaders who lack loyalty and insiht into
the Afrikan world&iew and thus are not e&en sure in the direction they
intend to lead. 4e ha&e i&ory tower leaders who concoct 3uropean
solutions for the Afrikan world. 4e ha&e leaders who concoct other
forein solutions for the Afrikan world. 4e ha&e leaders who are
opportunist, and these will sell all of us for pieces of old or sil&er. 4e
ha&e leaders who lack discipline and are thus poor moral eGamples. 4e
ha&e leaders who are semi*celebrities and are thorouhly eotistical.
4e ha&e leaders who are &ery selecti&e in pickin issues to battle that
will ain them some popularity or fa&or. .hese problems of what we
call <leadership are many, and they are compounded. .he solution is
the same. .he crisis of leadership will only be answered when we allow
our children to de&elop their natural ifts of enius in Afrikan
institutions built in the framework of our world&iew.
<4ill the Real Father of Afrocentricity Please 'tand :pO=
.he )ierian .unde Adeleke of 7oyola :ni&ersity in )ew
5rleans wrote the interestin essay <4ill .he Real Father of
Afrocentricity Please 'tand :p= in the 4estern Lournal of (lack
'tudies in "##1. .he essay in itself is a basic historical eGercise of the
intellectual mo&ement that pro&es why %olefi Asante should not be
called <father of Afrocentricity.= Adeleke discusses the 1+
th
and "#
th
century de&elopment of the Afrikan intellectual mo&ement. Bistorians
of the past such as Lames 4. C. Penninton who published A Te3t%ook
of the -ri'in and *istory of the Colored +eople in 16,1, Robert
(enDamin 7ewis who published $i'ht and Truth in 16,,, Lames
.heodore Bolly who authored A 1indication of the Capacity of the
Ne'ro Race for Self-0o(ernment4 and Ci(ili2ed +ro'ress published in
161$. Bolly@s arument was based on the Baitian Re&olution. Be was a
/+
nationalist and emirationist. Adeleke notes 3dward (lyden, (ruce
<;rit,= Arthur 'chombur, 4oodson, 9u (ois, and others.
Adeleke is a case in point. As honorable as it is for him to
address an unpopular topic, ob&iously doin some necessary historical
research, he missed the mark. In fact, Adeleke has missed the mark in
se&eral other publications. 5ne of his &ery off*base works is &ithout
Re'ard to Race# The -ther Martin Ro%inson elany in which he
attempts to pro&e how un*Afrikan, pseudo*nationalist he felt 9elany
was as opposed to what nationalist historians ha&e made him out. 4hat
Adeleke did in misunderstandin 9elany, he also did in
misunderstandin the mo&ement before, after, and durin the life of
9elany in his work 5nafrican Americans# Nineteenth Century !lack
Nationalist and the Ci(ili2in' Mission. Bis misunderstandin of the
historical sinificance of 9elany is eGtended to AleGander Crummell,
Benry %c)eal .urner, and others. Be clearly misunderstands the
influence of the American ColoniFation 'ociety and their foundin of
the 7iberia proDect. 7ike many mainstream historians, he wronly
thinks that Afrikans from America coloniFed 7iberia. Be sadly
misunderstands the lineae of the Afrikan world&iew, which he thinks
is <Afrocentricity.= Adeleke is correct in assertin that the Afrikan
world&iew, what he calls <Afrocentricity,= did not bein with %olefi
Asante. Bowe&er, Adeleke sadly does not understand that the Afrikan
world&iew eGisted with the first Afrikans in the world and reached a
classical stae in .awi >ancient dynastic 3ypt of the reat Afrikan
Pharaohs?. Adeleke belie&es that <Afrocentricity= bean in sla&ery as a
response to 3uropean cultural heemony. Be is riht in that the Afrikan
world&iew in the Americas had to adDust to de&elop a heihten sense of
resistance in the midst of sla&ery. Cet, Adeleke is wron because he
does not understand that the Afrikan world&iew went in the hearts and
minds of Afrikans to the Americas who were held in bondae. 9oes he
know that the Afrikan world&iew in Afrika had to respond to forein
aressionM .he Afrikan world&iew is ancient and modern, and it is
also a messae to posterity. .hrouhout time and in different places, the
world&iew will adDust to the challenes of new realities, but Afrikan*
ness was and will always be with us. Adeleke only did half of what he
set out to do when he decided to write his article <4ill the Real Father
of Afrocentricity Please 'tand.= Be didn@t o back far enouh. Be also
misunderstood what he has called the <:nafrican Americans.= Instead,
he should ha&e first understood that we are Afrikans in America and
used that as the basis of his research.
,#
Adeleke is an eGcellent eGample of the crisis in the intellectual
mo&ement today. Be has much in common in this sense with %olefi
Asante. .hey both ha&e cut the historical lineae of the Afrikan
world&iew off from its ancestral bloodline. Another problem is that
Adeleke has the trained uni&ersity mentality of beinnin Afrikan
history in America with sla&ery. .he Afrikan in Afrika de&eloped a
world&iew of resistance to coloniFation the same way the Afrikan in
America de&eloped a world&iew of resistance to sla&ery. (oth Afrikans
were oppressed, and both reacted to their oppression. .he 1+
th
and
early "#
th
century mo&ements had its contradictions, but the Afrikan
lineae was bein de&eloped and passed down in enerations after the
de&astation of centuries of sla&ery. .he framents were bein put back
toether, and they still are today. It@s the thread of the Afrikan
world&iew that we trace to our present understandin of nation*
buildin. .his historical lineae of the Afrikan world&iew, the
interenerational communication, has been distorted in the writins of
Asante who claims he founded <Afrocentricity,= but it has also escaped
the writins of Adeleke who feels that Afrikans taken from Afrika lost
their total world&iew. 4hat sla&ery did to the mind and soul of the
Afrikan in America, coloniFation also did to the mind and soul of the
Afrikan in Afrika. 'till, neither roup was completely di&orced of the
Afrikan world&iew. It is that world&iew which fired the spirits of
Afrikans to resistance.
Adeleke@s is an intriue, to say the least. Bis article, <4ill .he
Real Father of Afrocentricity Please 'tand :p,= is worth the read, but
in eneral he has presented some tremendous ideoloical and historical
flaws in his research. Be is an eGtreme case of what is &ery common
amon many who write to criti8ue or support what they belie&e is
Afrocentricity. A much more accurate assessment is presented in
A'CAC@s The +reliminary Challen'e, edited by Carruthers.
;re Kimathi Carr authored the entry in +reliminary
Challen'e entitled <African*Centered Philosophy of Bistory.= Carr
opens with the followin2
.he essay seeks to place before Pan*African
nationalist researchers the challene of fleshin out the
intellectual and ideoloical enealoy upon which we
ha&e constituted our contemporary oraniFational
strule >"61?.
,1
From the outset, the essay places itself in the dialoue of
interenerational strule. Carr himself, alon with his colleaues,
%ario (eatty and Ialethia 4atkins are all students of Lacob Carruthers
and Lohn Benrik Clarke, now ancestors. .he students represent the
continuin of Afrikan intellectual thouht into the neGt eneration. As a
footnote, howe&er, of reat sinificance to his o&erall essay, Carr made
the followin statement2
.here is for me a clear ideoloical distinction
to be made between African-centered and Afrocentric
knowlede production, stemmin, inter alia, from the
relationship of the latter concept to the epistemoloical
premises of 3uropean knowlede production and the
institutional constraints of 4estern academia that ha&e
ser&ed to infuse much of Afrocentric discourse with a
liberal humanism akin to multiculturalism. .his
posture has ser&ed to instill a marinality and
socialiFation to mediocrity in the work of many
academic Afrocentrists, most of whom ha&e a difficult
or impossible time eGplainin what Afrocentricity is.
.he difficulty stems, I contend, from the hopeless self*
referentiality of what has come to be known in some
8uarters as the discourse on location and dislocation
>"6-?.
Allow me to i&e an o&er&iew of this essay by Kimathi Carr.
.he core section of Carr@s essay is entitled <A 4orkin ;enealoy of
Foundationalist Bistorical .houht2 A Iiew From the (ride.= Be
traces Afrikan intellectual thouht from the 1+
th
century to the present
era, notin the works of scholars that spanned a century and a half.
)ote is made of works similar to Adeleke@s essay. Carr notes PI
Iastey@s 16"/ An Essay on the Causes of the Re(olution and Ci(il &ars
of *ayti, L4C Penninton@s 16,1 A Te3t !ook of the -ri'in and
*istory of the Colored +eople, and Lames .heodore Bolly@s 161$ A
1indication of the Capacity of the Ne'ro Race for Self-0o(ernment.
Carr@s research is of a different brand than Adeleke, for one reason,
Carr eGplains that amon these 1+
th
century works, an Afrikan
consciousness was acti&ely bein erminated or produced and
reproduced. 5f course, the speeches and atherins of this period were
Dust as central to the de&elopment of Afrikan consciousness throuh the
,"
)ero Con&ention %o&ement and the lectures of leaders such as Benry
Bihland ;arnet, %artin 9elany, Benry %c)eal .urner and others.
4hile the leaders of the 1+
th
century were Christians, and many had
the idea of <ci&iliFin= Afrika as Adeleke emphasiFes, it is these leaders
who carried the tradition of strule into the "#
th
century. .hese
leaders would lay the roundwork for Pan*Afrikan mo&ement that
would lay roundwork for the anti*colonial strule.
In the essay by Carr, historian ;eore 4ashinton 4illiams
and the American )ero Academy@s AleGander Crummell are placed in
their proper historic places. Alon with others, it is they who helped
transmit the strule into the "#
th
century. (efore the rise of the
%arcus ;ar&ey era, leaders of the American )ero Academy, the
)ero 'ociety for Bistorical Research, and &arious other oraniFations
were acti&ely enaed in the promotion of Afrikan*Centered thouht in
the first two decades of the 1+##s. In addition to 43( 9u (ois, Arthur
'chombur, and Lohn 3dward (ruce, particular note is made of Bubert
Barrison in Kimathi Carr@s essay. Barrison was a radical acti&ist, and
lontime %arcus ;ar&ey supporter. In fact, Barrison and ;ar&ey were
close associates in the strule for which they dedicated their li&es.
Barrison shifted from a <Class First= philosophy to a <Race First=
philosophy because of the influence of ;ar&ey, yet they held each other
in reat respect. A recommended source is the *arrison Reader4 edited
by Leffery Perry.
Adeptly, Carr eGplains that it was the stirrin of the 1+"#s that
led to the formation of the 3dward 4ilmot (lyden 'ociety which had
such members as 4illis ). Buins, Lohn ;. Lackson, and Lohn Benrik
Clarke. It was the works of Lohn ;. Lackson and Lohn Benrik Clarke
that laid the foundation for our present era. Lackson, Clarke, and their
colleaues such as Chancellor 4illiams and Cosef ben*Lochannon
brouht the Afrikan intellectual thouht into the latter part of the "#
th
century. .hey all had labored decades before anyone bean misusin
the term <Afrocentricity.= Carr i&es important space to the
sinificance of Cheikh Anta 9iop, of whom detail will be i&en later in
this essay.
.his idea of <Afrocentricity= bein a recent de&elopment is
ridiculous. .he Afrikan world&iew has come to this eneration from
past eneration. 3&en in this eneration, the world&iew is a
de&elopment of an interenerational links &arious intellectual warriors
who dedicated their li&es to the reco&ery of our world&iew. )o small
roup of people labored on this current de&elopment of Afrikan
,/
thouht. I@ll only re&iew the more sinificant of the intellectual
warriors. Lohn Benrik Clarke, in 1+-+ had edited Malcolm 6# The Man
and *is TimesH and in 1+$, Marcus 0ar(ey and the 1ision of Africa.
(oth works are masterpieces on the li&es of two of our reatest leaders
in the "#
th
century. 'till, by the 1+-#s Clarke had amassed an
impressi&e number of articles and Dournal entries on Afrikan history.
Chancellor 4illiams@ classic work, estruction of !lack Ci(ili2ation,
was published in 1+$1. In the 1#s and -#s, 4illiams authored important
essays on an Afrikan*Centered approach to history. In 1+$", 4illiams
wrote a tribute to his teacher 4illiam 7eo Bansberry after his passin
into ancestor*hood. Cosef ben*Lochannon@s African -ri'in of Ma/or
7&orld Reli'ions8 was published in 1+$#, and !lack Man of the Nile
and *is Family was in 1+$". Lohn ;lo&er Lackson was authorin works
back in the 1+/#s and 1+,#s. In 1+/+ he wrote Ethiopia and the -ri'in
of Ci(ili2ation, in 1+,1 he wrote the +a'an -ri'ins of the Christ Myth,
and with 4illis ). Buins he co*authored in 1+/, A 0uide to the
Study of African *istory and in 1+/$ An Introduction to African
Ci(ili2ation. 4ith Dust mention of some selected works from these
authors, it should be ob&ious that Afrikan consciousness or
<Afrocentricity= was not born in the current era. 'omethin that Clarke,
4illiams, Lackson, and ben*Lochannon all had in common is that they
had no problem with speakin about their intellectual predecessors
such as 4illiam 7eo Bansberry, Arthur 'chombur, Bubert Barrison,
and others. 5ut of his admiration for Barrison, Lackson wrote The
!lack Socrates. Clarke often said 'chombur tauht him the
relationship of Afrikan history to world history, Buins tauht him the
political*meanin of history, and Bansberry tauht him the
philosophical meanin of history. Chancellor 4illiams eGplained in
estruction of !lack Ci(ili2ation, <'tandin alone and isolated in the
field for o&er thirty*fi&e years, 4illiam 7eo Bansberry was the teacher
who introduced me to the systematic study of African history 0=
>/-1?. I must include amon the reat master*teachers Lacob Carruthers
>Ledi 'hemsu Lehewty?. .wo men who impacted the life of Carruthers
were Lohn Benrik Clarke and Cheikh Anta 9iop. In 1+$", Carruthers
wrote Science and -ppression. It was in 1+$1 that Carruthers went to
'eneal and met 9iop, and the inspiration was immediate. Carruthers
would eGplain that 9iop commissioned him to study the %dw )tr
>9i&ine 'peech?, ancient lanuae of K%. >or Kemet? called
hierolyphics. (y the 1+$#s, Carruthers was already masterin the
ability to translate and teach %dw )tr. In 1+$+, Carruthers would write
two essays on the works of 9iop, subtitled <.he %an 4ho Refuses to
,,
be Forotten.= It was Carruthers, more so than is enerally realiFed,
who tauht the present eneration of Afrikan*Centered researchers the
need to understand )ile Ialley ci&iliFation and %dw )tr. After bein
commissioned by 9iop, Carruthers opened this door, and we all stepped
in. .hese are eGcellent eGamples of the interenerational commune of
Afrikan consciousness that spanned the full rane of the "#
th
century.
4hile none of them, from 'chombur to ben*Lochannon claimed any
Fatherhood titles on Afrikan consciousness, they all a&e credit to their
intellectual predecessors and reconiFed they were continuin a
tradition older than they were. <Afrocentrists= and <Afrocentric=
supporters are not &ery aware of this recent interenerational <passin
on of the 3lder@s 'taff= as Carruthers often 8uoted from the Sa%yt of
+tahhotep)
<Afrocentricity= is not new. 4hat is the etymoloy of the term
<Afrocentricity,= so often used and so often misunderstoodM In 1++-,
Raymond 4inbush of Fisk :ni&ersity authored an article for the ;hana
International Re&iew, a&ailable on*line, entitled <A (rief Bistory J
3ncyclopedia Africana2 9ictionary of African (ioraphy.= Be
presented an honest history, in brief, of the oriins of the term <Afro*
centric,= used in 1+-/ by 4illiam 3dward (urhardt 9u (ois.
In the final years of his life, 9u (ois followed the ad&ice of the
President Kwame )krumah who asked him to come to ;hana to <pass
the e&enin of his life= and work with the 3ncyclopedia Africana. In
1+-1, 9u (ois went to his ancestral homeland where he would spend
the last two years of his life. .he massi&e encyclopedia proDect was
ne&er completed. Bowe&er, 9u (ois held meetins and wrote o&er 1##
letters to scholars around the world, 4inbush eGplains. 9u (ois wanted
the proDect to be the work of Afrikan writers and to ha&e an <Afro*
centric &iew.= A term was introduced, but 9u (ois had been doin
primarily Afrikan*Centered research back in the 16+#s and throuhout
his life as I ha&e already eGplained. Althouh he made a monumental
contribution to Afrikan history throuh his life@s work, 9u (ois is not
<the father of Afrocentricity,= and I@m sure he would ha&e made no
claims. I@m also sure 9u (ois would understood how ridiculous such a
claim would be when the Afrikan world&iew is a timeless core
imbedded in Afrikan people and cultures.
In 1+6#, Lacob Carruthers wrote an essay for (lack (ooks
(ulletin entitled <Reflections on the Bistory of the Afrocentric
4orld&iew.= 7ater, he wrote an essay, <Reflections on the Re&ision of
the African Centered Paradim= buildin on the 1+6# work. .his 1+6#
essay was published the same year that %olefi Asante@s Afrocentricity
,1
was published. (oth of Carruthers@ essays had some truth*tellin facts
about the oriins of the terms <Afrocentric= and <Afrocentricity.= In
honorin the ancestors, Carruthers beins <Reflections on the Re&ision
of the African Centered Paradim= by 8uotin from the lineae of the
Afrikan*Centered world&iew enealoy. Carruthers opened the essay
with the words of Ptahhotep and then a 8uote from 9a&id 4alker@s
Appeal.
.hen command the ser&ant, thusly2 %ake an 3lder@s
staff causin my son to stand in my place I will instruct
him throuh the speech of the listeners and the
counsels of the first of the ancients who listened to the
di&inities. In so doin troubles will be remo&ed from
the people. * Ptahhotep, ,1## years ao
7et us not underestimate the sinificance of Carruthers@ >(aba
Ledi@s? decision to open his essay with these words of our ancestor
Ptahhotep. .he statement speaks to the fact that within the Afrikan
world&iew ,,1## years ao, Afrikans were already then lookin to their
ancestors for traditions, wisdom, and uidance to deal with the
challenes and strules they faced. 5ur ancestors in the )ile Ialley
called this sabyt >instruction?, and today we call it, amon other names,
Afrikan consciousness or thouht. .he statement is all the more
sinificant since a man, Ptahhotep, who was 11# years old when he
li&ed, is makin it. .he neGt words in the essay comes from 9a&id
4alker.
It is eGpected that all coloured men, women, and
children, of e&ery )ation, lanuae and tonue under
hea&en,... >4ho are not too deceitful, abDect, and
ser&ile to resist the cruelties and murders inflicted upon
us by the white sla&e holders, our enemies by
nature? ... will try to procure a copy of this appeal and
read it, or et some one to read it to them, for it is
desined more particularly for them. * 9a&id 4alker,
16"+ C.3.
Althouh 9a&id 4alker was a Christian and went on to make
(iblical parallels with Afrikan history, he was committed,
uncompromisinly so, to the liberation of Afrikan people. .hat his
,-
Appeal is Afrikan*Centered for its@ time is re&ealed in the fact that his
subDect was liberation and his audience was Afrikan people the world
o&er. 4alker@s writins in fact carried the Afrikan world&iew to the
neGt eneration, as will be noted later in this essay.
4ith ob&ious reference to %olefi Asante, Carruthers eGplained
in this essay that2
4e must first reconiFe that the African
Centered perspecti&e emeres from African life. Its
eGistence, is found in the interenerational
transmissions amon &arious African peoples.
5b&iously no one can <create= or <father= African
Centeredness in such a conteGt.

Carruthers eGplains that he and the <Chicao ;roup,=
nationalists who were workin on the Afrocentric 4orld Re&iew that
bean publication in 1+$/, were influenced by Lohn Benrik Clarke and
the African Beritae 'tudies Association >AB'A? who said in 1+-6 that
their work would be alon <Afrocentric lines.= Cosef ben*Lochannon@s
work had a primary influence on this era as well. AB'A was formed
when Lohn Benrik Clarke led a roup of (lack historians from the
%ontreal meetin of a roup of paternalistic white historians. After
makin the call for studyin alon <Afrocentric lines,= Clarke and
AB'A would inspire the Afrocentric 4orld Re&iew. Clarke would e&en
become one of the writers for the Afrocentric 4orld Re&iew. .his all
happened prior to %olefi Asante@s publication of Afrocentricity. Finally,
Carruthers clears the fo like the risin sun when he 8uotes the 1+$/
words of Anderson .hompson2
+uttin' !lack interests first4 the (ie, of Afrocentricity4
is the plateau from ,hich ,e launch our dialo'ues
,ith those ,ho are dedicated to the esta%lishment of
po,er amon' African peoples) Afrocentrism stri(es for
reinforcin' the Ne, African Frame of Reference %ein'
for'ed %y !lack %rothers all o(er the ,orld) It seeks
for a collecti(e identity founded on !lack ideas4 rather
than the ideas of non-!lacks)
)ear the end of the essay, 8uotin from the 1+$, publication of
the Afrocentric 4orld Re&iew, Carruthers then notes2
,$
))) ,e assert that all forei'n isms4 doctrines4
ideolo'ies4 and systems of thou'ht are not only
inade.uate %ut must %e a(oided) In takin' this stand
,e are not so much anti anythin'4 ,e are merely pro
Afrikan4 or in other ,ords4 Afrikan Centered)
It is clear from the record that Afrocentricity was early used by
43( 9u (ois in the remainin years of his life in ;hana while
workin on the Africana proDect. 9u (ois would inspire and influence
Lohn Benrik Clarke and the formation of the African Beritae 'tudies
Association. AB'A would use the term <Afrocentric,= and the use
ended up as the title of the Afrocentric 4orld Re&iew in 1+$/ where
Anderson .hompson would continue to define it as a world&iew as 9u
(ois, Clarke, and so many others had done before him. 3&entually, in
1+6#, %olefi Asante would publish a book with the title, but in no way
did he create Afrocentricity, define it before others, <father= the
world&iew, coin the term, populariFe it on his own, or any of the other
propaanda*myths associated with him around it. As Carruthers has
stated in his books and essays, the world&iew emeres from the
interenerational commune of Afrikan people throuhout the world and
throuhout time. .he world&iew emeres from Afrikan traditions and
strule. .he Afrikan world&iew depends on the eGistence of our
people, yet it is independent of time and space.
.he Afrikan Iiew of Bistory and Culture
(efore bein taken in chains to the Americas, before
coloniFation, before foreiners corrupted the interenerational Afrikan
mind, Afrikans had a world&iew and culture that was fundamentally
spiritual. I ha&e always said that the current cultural mo&ement is
o&erly seculariFed. .he so*called <Afrocentric= mo&ement is one
eGample of the seculariFation of the Afrikan world&iew, and the )uFo
'aba >'e&en Principles of KwanFaa? is another. (oth, %olefi Asante@s
&ersion of <Afrocentricity= and %aulana Karena@s conception of
KwanFaa are supposedly leadin ideas in the cultural mo&ement, and
they are both hihly secular and place little or no emphasis on our
ancestral 'pirituality. (oth KwanFaa and Asante@s <Afrocentricity= can
ha&e a merit of reater sinificance amon Afrikan people if they were
properly placed in the 'pirituality of the Afrikan world&iew.. .he same
,6
is true of the o&erly seculariFed (lack Bistory %onth idea of February.
Afrikan celebrations and holidays must be Afrikan 'piritual if they
intend to ha&e a sacred Afrikan core. It is precisely because of our
history bein told in this secular society dominated by a 3uropean form
of o&ernment and culture, a society which outlawed e&erythin that
made us Afrikan, that we now look at the world throuh the eyes of our
oppressors instead of our own Afrikan world&iew. Cet, the holidays and
celebrations of Christians, Catholics, Lews, and %uslims hold a special
place for themH that is their holidays and celebrations are reliious
based and sacred. Can you imaine a secular holiday for Catholics or
%uslimsM %ust e&erythin we celebrate be absent of the 'pirituality of
our ancestors. Is KwanFaa really an Afrikan cultural celebration if it is
not properly founded in Afrikan 'pirituality, <non*reliious= as
Karena saysM Is <Afrocentricity= from the Afrikan world&iew if it
does not hold our ancestors lineae as a sacred traditionM Is (lack
Bistory %onth a celebration of our traditions if it does not rest on the
pillars of our sacred world&iewM
In the rihteous redemption of our culture and traditions, we
cannot stop at where we are comfortable in the process of re*
AfrikaniFation if that means nelectin Afrikan 'pirituality or
marinaliFin our culture to some academic eGercise or yearly holiday.
Afrikan 'pirituality is a /-1
1
E
,
yearlon lifestyle, and we must honor
e&eryday. 4e li&e to become ancestors and so we i&e honor beyond
the ra&e. 4e must rear our children on the fountains of Afrikan
'pirituality, so we honor our world&iew at birth and e&en before birth.
5ur 'pirituality must become a total part of our lifestyle and world&iew
before birth, in life, and beyond the ra&e. For this reat proDect of re*
AfrikaniFation to reach maturity, we cannot escape the necessity of
institution*buildin, Afrikan*Centered institutions, not simply
institutions owned by (lack people. .here is a world of difference
between the two.
4here is the world Afrikan 'piritual center, city, or nation
o&erned by our peopleM 4here are the Afrikan 'piritual institutions of
the world that function as preser&ers of our traditions and cultureM
4here are our intellectual centers that are uided by the Afrikan
world&iewM It is because we are caed intellectually, spiritually, and
physically in the institutions of our oppressors that we cannot e&en
imaine a world network of Afrikan 'piritual institutions, uni&ersities,
schools, and o&ernments based in the Afrikan world&iew. Cet, if you
look at America, 3nland, Poland, the Iatican, %ecca, Israel, China,
,+
India, and other nations, you see nations set up on the traditions,
political andEor reliious, of their ancestors. Afrikan people must do the
same. As (aba Lake said, <Restoration of African ci&iliFation is not
possible without a return to African spirituality= >Intellectual &arfare,
1+++?. As he tauht, our ancestors of the )ile Ialley called this
restoration the &hmy Msu, Renaissance or Repetition of the (irth. .he
role of history, culture, and Afrikan 'pirituality are central to this
historic proDect of rebirth.
)ile Ialley 'pirituality2 %other Cradle of the Afrikan 4orld&iew
It was my teacher, (aba Ledi Lehewty, who labored for years to
teach Afrikan people the sinificance of the ancient teGt of our
ancestors. It is from his inspiration that I ha&e dealt with teGt of )ile
Ialley 'pirituality. .he writins of Afrikan ancestors predate and are
more abundant than the Boly (ooks of all other cultures. It is time we
take our sacred, classical teGt as serious, if not more so, than others take
the writins they say are their Boly (ooks. .he land of .awi, also
known as K%. or Kemet, called 3ypt by the ;reeks, is the classical
de&elopment of the Afrikan world&iew. Cet, the Afrikan world&iew did
not bein in Kemet. .he Afrikan world&iew bean with the first
Afrikans in eGistence. .o Kemet >.awi?, we owe a maDor historical
ad&ancement of the Afrikan world&iew in classical literature. In this
section of the essay, note will be made of the sacred teGt of the )ile
Ialley. 4e ha&e allowed the seculariFation of our history, and now it is
time to look at the past with Afrikan eyes.
.he Afrikan E (lack historian and educator today runs into so
many problems. First, the mainstream &iew of history and education
nelects the history and contribution of Afrikan people, and the mere
fact one may brin it up is considered radical. 'econd, we ha&e fallen
for an idea of history that is a conception of the 3uropean mold. 3&en
the way we define a historian is not in the Afrikan framework. .hird,
Afrikan history has been separated from Afrikan 'pirituality. From the
)ile Ialley, throuhout the rest of Afrika, the keeper of the past had a
spiritual function to the society. .he historian in the Afrikan world&iew
was much more than an academician. .he concept of the academic
historian is from the 3uropean world&iew. .oday, any <historian= of
Afrikan descent who does not understand his or her role to the
preser&ation of the Afrikan world&iew will definitely nelect the
spiritual role of the historian. .he true Afrikan historian understands
1#
that our history is sacred, indeed our culture is sacred. Be or she is both
a keeper of the past and a promoter of the Afrikan future.
Consider the words of Ptahhotep of at least ,,### years ao.
The Teachin's of +tahhotep or The S%ayt of +tahhotep is a classic of
classic instructions from the )ile Ialley. After complainin about the
aches and pains of ha&in li&ed o&er 11# years of ae, he allows one to
ponder the 8uestion of what ood is old aeM .hen Ptahhotep states2
Permit your humble ser&ant to appoint a staff of old ae.
7et my son be allowed to succeed to my position.
.o that end I will instruct him in the decisions of the Dudes,
.he wisdom of those who ha&e li&ed in earlier aes,
.hose who hearken to the ods.
'o may the same be done for youH
%ay discord be banished from the people,
And may the .wo (anks ser&e you >'impson, $iterature of Ancient
E'ypt, 1/1?.
In the sacred words of our ancestor, we ha&e the Afrikan
world&iew displayed o&er ,,### years ao, lon before our present
time. Ptahhotep is speakin about the need to continue the
interenerational tradition of passin down knowlede from his
ancestors to the proceedin eneration. .he teGt, the S%ayt of
+tahhotep, instructs us on the role of teachin to the nation, that the
purpose of instruction is nation maintenance. 3ducation was not then
and is not now only for the sake of education. Instruction, as Ptahhotep
eGplains is for the nation. .he theme in the teGt is timeless for the
Afrikan world&iew.
The S%ayt of Khety for Merikare is o&er ,,### years old. .his is
the instruction from one Pharaoh to his son before he takes o&er the
throne of the nation. .he sbayt or instruction is i&en from the years of
eGperience in how to properly o&ern and defend the nation. .houh
o&er ,,### years old, we can clearly see the Afrikan world&iew.
(ecause this was in the Intermediate period, chaos and rebellion had
become widespread. Khety warns his son to be &ery mindful of the
potential for rebellion in the country. .hen he says, aside from military
defense, another way to defend the nation is throuh 0ood Speech or
speech with the foundation of %aat2
(e proficient in speech, so that you may be stron,
For the strenth of a kin is his tonue.
11
4ords are mihtier than any strule,
And no one can outsmart him who is skilled of heart,
R(ut you will sit secureS upon the throne.
.he wise man is a bulwark >e&en? for officials,
And those who are aware of his knowlede dare not assail him.
)o e&il happens in his presence,
(ut %a@at comes to him refined,
7ike the counsels of what was said by >our? ancestors >111?.
4e ha&e heard the sayin, <.he pen is mihtier than the
sword.= It may ha&e likely come from the banks of the )ile where our
ancestors said, <4ords are mihtier than any strule.= %aat was the
way a nation must be o&erned. It is throuh rihteousness that the
nation@s stability must be maintained. %aat was the throne on which
our indi&idual and family li&es were to rest. .his is the same theme
echoed in The Elo.uent +easant or The Md, Nfr of Khun-Inpu. In this
teGt, the commoner speaks to the nation about the blessins of
followin %aat. .his is directly opposite the 3uropean world&iew
based in the )icolo %achia&elli tradition of deceit, dictatorship,
thie&ery, and the lust for power displayed in the writins from 1-
th
century 3urope known as The +rince. .he Afrikans were &ery clear
about the need for military strenth, so important for the defense of any
nation. .his was a concept which the 5raniFation of Afrikan :nity did
not understand, and the Afrikan :nion does not understand today. .he
Pharaoh Khety eGplained2
(ut as concerns the foreiners, let this be said2
.he &ile Asiatic is miserable because of the place wherein he is,
'hortae of water, lack of many trees,
And the path thereof difficult because of the mountains.
Be has ne&er settled in one place,
(ut plaued by want, he wanders the deserts on foot.
Be has been fihtin e&er since the time of Borus.
Be neither con8uers nor can be con8uered.
Be does not announce the day of fihtin,
(ut is like a thief whom society has eGpelled >1-1?.

.he Pharaoh is i&in instruction on the military defense of the
nation. .he Asiatic in 8uestion is the nomadic Arab, related to the
Byksos who would later o&errun the entire nation in the 11
th
and 1-
th
1"
dynasties. Khety said that these nomads were <fihtin e&er since the
time of Borus,= that is they were fihtin e&er since the beinnin of
time. .here was no need to compromise with people who had nothin
to offer your nation and ci&iliFation eGcept chaos, coloniFation, and
sla&ery. %ilitary defense of the Afrikan nation was stressed by Khety.
Bow sinificant are these words today as we witness enocides from
sla&ery and neo*colonial, instiated wars throuhout the continentM
Another reat 'abyt is that of Amenemhet I, i&en to his son
'enwosret. The Sa%yt of Amenemhet is particularly interestin because
it is clear that Amenemhet is teachin his son the lessons of rulin and
the lessons of life from his ra&e. Amenemhet I was the reat founder
of the 1"
th
9ynasty, and as is told in the +rophecies of Neferti4 he was
considered a sa&ior or restorer of the &my Msu >the Afrikan
world&iew?. Amenemhet would come from the 'outh, )ubia, to brin
order out of chaos in the world. .his Pharaoh was a sa&ior of his people
",### years before Lesus, eGcept his messae was the &my Msu or
restoration of %aat in the Afrikan world&iew.
.his reat Pharaoh was one of the kins of Kemet@s >.awi@s?
'econd ;olden Ae or second &hmy Msu. Be was assassinated while
rulin the throne, and since the Pharaoh had not prepared his son to
rule, he a&e him lessons from the ra&e. .he assassination of
Amenemhet I is told in the Tale of Sinhue. .he 'bayt teGts are all
classic eGamples of interenerational transmission of the Afrikan
world&iew.
.his misuided idea of <Afrocentricity= or the Afrikan
world&iew bein somethin new from this era of history seems
absolutely ridiculous when we sit it alon side the Tale of Sinhue. .he
name <'inhue= seems to ha&e been one that was &ery patriotic to the
nation of K%., for it means <'on of the 'ycamore.= .he sycamore was
a &ery common tree to 3ypt, and it was a sacred tree. .he name
<'inhue= speaks to the Afrikan roots that the person had with the nation
of .awi >K%., 3ypt?. Althouh 'inhue would lea&e his ancestral land
to wonder from country to country, he returned as an elder to his
belo&ed home. .he Pharaoh informed 'inhue that he was not to be
buried in a forein land, but that his burial should be done properly in
the land of his ancestors. Be was i&en the blessins of the Pharaoh to
return home and kiss the round of his ancestors.
5n returnin, it was said, <7ook, 'inhue has returned as an
Asiatic, an offsprin of the 'yriansO= >Parkinson ,#*,1?. At the moment
of noticin that this once proud Afrikan had adopted the culture and
ways of foreiners, the Aueen and royal children bean to rie&e. .he
1/
rie&in continued until the Pharaoh himself prayed for 'inhue.
3&entually, 'inhue was re*AfrikaniFed in the story. Be washed and
sha&ed, and was i&en the fine clothes appropriate for an Afrikan in
K%., alon with fine oils, and other cultural ifts to sinify his return
home. 'inhue said, <A load was i&en back to the forein country0=
>,"?. .he 'on of the 'ycamore li&ed the rest of his life as a re*
AfrikaniFed and happy patriot of K%.. 5n his transmission into
ancestorhood, he recei&ed a royal Afrikan burial. The Tale of Sinhue is
especially sinificant for us, not only because it is so steeped in the
Afrikan world&iew, but because this ancient teGt speaks to our current
crisis of identity in the world as Afrikan people with forein mindsets.
.he story also shows the reat anti8uity of the Afrikan world&iew. 4e
ha&e to o back to Afrika >physically if possible, but definitely
'piritually? and kiss the round of our ancestors as 'inhue did ,,###
years ao. Finally, as 'inhue did, we must be re*AfrikaniFed.
.he total culture of .awi >K%., Kemet? is a display of our
ancient world&iew and 'pirituality. .ake for instance the pyramids, a
key structure on the horiFon of the ancient Afrikans. .he pyramids
were spiritual structures, themsel&es built o&er enerations, belie&ed to
be massi&e tombs to the Pharaohs and others of nobility. .emples and
non*pyramid tombs structures were no less impressi&e. .he structures
of .awi >Kemet? were not built because of arroance or any reat
obsession with death, as so many ha&e claimed. .he architecture of the
)ile was a physical display of the culture@s 'pirituality. Proud and
honored citiFens built these structures, not sla&es. 7ook at the ancient
paintins of the )ile cultures and witness offerin scenes after offerin
scenes of food, drink, oils, ifts, and libations bein i&en to parents by
children, to Pharaohs by citiFens, and to the ancestors or spirits by
people. .he act of i&in an offerin or libation is a spiritual act in the
Afrikan world&iew. .he li&in honor the ancestors, li&e rihteous, and
will then be honored themsel&es by the youn and the unborn. .he )ile
Ialley i&es us eGamples of the interenerational world&iew with a
&ery spiritual link. .he Afrikans of .awi belie&ed that it was a reat and
humble esture to honor the ancestors, spirits, and the Creator. .hus,
children and youn people were tauht to carry on this tradition. .his
esture of honorin and i&in re&erence was repeated o&er thousands
and thousands of years. 'till today, throuhout Afrika, and places in the
)ew 4orld where Afrikan sur&i&als are ali&e, ancestors and the spirit*
forces of the uni&erse continue to be honored.
1,
4hen the Afrikans of K%. >Kemet, .awi? looked back at their
history, they knew the sacred &alue of a culture@s past. Bistory was not
simply an academic eGercise as it has become in this modern society
where we ha&e lost of ancestor@s &iew of history. 4e must see the
spiritual &alue of the past. 4e must not study li&es of those who ha&e
one before us simply as an academic discipline. For the Afrikan*
Centered &iew of history, we must study the past for our ancestral
lifeblood and connection.
Bistorical 9e&elopment of the Afrikan 4orld&iew
4hat is the Afrikan world&iewM It is essential to i&e a clear
understandin of the Afrikan world&iew and what is meant when we
are discussin it. .he Afrikan world&iew must include at some le&els,
amon the followin2
1. A racial and cultural identity of Afrikan*ness is the
&ery basic foundation of the Afrikan world&iew. If we
do not know who we are, we can@t be conscious of
anythin else about oursel&es.
". An historical Afrikan consciousness is what the
study of history offers to our eneration. As is often
said, one must know the past to understand the present
and the future.
/. 4e must de&out loyalty to the present strules of
Afrikan people. 5ne can be &ersed in the dates and
names of the past, and of course that is of reat
sinificance, but one must also be committed to some
action today. 4hat are we doin in the here and now to
correct the wrons of yesterday to better the futureM
,. :ltimately, we must ha&e an undyin commitment
to the future liberation of our people. All Buman
interests are first concerned about the rihteous
preser&ation and li&elihood of their people first.
1. 4e must ha&e a knowlede of and responsibility to
our community, national, and E or lobal strules as
Afrikan people. 4e must be informed about the e&ents
of the world that affect our people, and in some way,
we should be in&ol&ed in some way to correct
inDustice.
11
-. 7ast, as Afrikans, a belief and practice of Afrikan
'pirituality is central to the di&ine uidance we must
recei&e from our ancestors and the Afrikan Creator.
As I adamantly state, <Afrocentricity= is not the brainchild of
anyone in our eneration. )either is this the brainchild of anyone in the
past. <Afrocentricity,= I arue, has de&eloped into a misnomer itself.
.he use of the word itself dates to at least the early 1+-#s with 43(
9u (ois, and so the word was not coined in this eneration. For now,
my point is that the Afrikan ,orld(ie, or e&en Afrikan consciousness is
much more encompassin than <Afrocentricity= as self*proclaimed
<Afrocentrists= ha&e defined it in this eneration.
I would debate that what we call <Afrocentricity= has become
an o&erly academic
eGercise of o&ert (lackness which escapes the responsibility of today@s
strule and the proper acknowledment of our ancestral strule. In
other words, what we call <Afrocentricity= is becomin more and more
a show piece of superficial consciousness. People claim to be
<Afrocentric= simply because of their names and dress, or their study of
a few courses and books. If that is all the <Afrocentrists= brin to the
table, with a misunderstandin of the oriins of <Afrocentricity,= then
that is indeed a serious missin the mark of the Afrikan world&iew. .
In the African -ri'in of Ci(ili2ation# Myth or Reality, Cheikh
Anta 9iop has a chapter entitled <Peoplin of Africa from the )ile
Ialley.= .he chapter deals with cultural and linuistic similarities that
note the )ile Ialley and 3astern Afrikan oriins of Afrikan people. Bis
findins are supported by an abundance of archeoloical records. )ot
only are the oldest ci&iliFations in the )ile Ialley and 3astern Afrika,
but the oldest Afrikan Buman remains are in the same area. .he )ile
Ialley compleG and the surroundin areas are the physical, cultural,
and spiritual cradle of Afrika and Afrikan people. Berein is the
foundation of the Afrikan world&iew. Bundreds of thousands of years
ao, Afrikans bean to de&elop ways to build societies and li&e in the
world. .his de&elopment would lead to the buildin of the world@s first
ci&iliFations where the world&iew would reach maturation due to the
Afrikan in&ention of writin in an ad&anced society. In the )ile Ialley,
the scribes were able to pass down the Afrikan world&iew throuh
literature o&er the course of centuries and thousands of years.
.he Afrikan world&iew has eGisted since Afrikan people
eGisted, that is since the beinnin of Buman history amon our
ancestors. :nlike some Afrocentrists who belie&e our eneration has
enlihtened history, the understandin that our history, or properly our
1-
ancestors ha&e enlihtened our times dri&es Afrikan 'pirituality. .he
Afrikan world&iew is of the past, present, and future. 4hile it will be
de&eloped by those who are loyal to our strule, it is not new in the
least. 4e ha&e discussed the ancient de&elopment of the Afrikan
world&iew, and now some detail will be i&en to the transition of the
Afrikan world&iew in a new era dominated by resistance to the )ew
4orld ensla&ement of Afrikans.
4ithout writin any documentaries, Afrikans led massi&e wars
and battles that lasted for years and sometimes decades throuhout the
Americas. In parts of 'outh America, the islands of the Caribbean, and
the :nited 'tates, Afrikans made a statement about our world&iew in
the wars, battles, and re&olts fouht aainst sla&ery. .he wars of
Palmares, the ;uyanas and 'urinam, %eGico, the %aroon wars of
Lamaica and Cuba, and Puerto Rico, the battlefields of Baiti,
%artini8ue, and ;uadeloupe, the wars of Florida, the re&olts of
Iirinia and the Carolinas, Afrikans ha&e always fouht sla&ery to ain
freedom or sacrifice their li&es in the strule. In the process, a
world&iew of resistance was passed down. In many of the locations of
battle, the Afrikan world&iew and Afrikan 'pirituality still sur&i&e
today. In (raFil for instance, the memory of Palmares, libations to
;ana Kumbi, and the 'pirituality of Candomble continue to inspire
the hearts of millions of Afrikans.
Baitian Re&olution and Afrikan 4orld&iew
5ne of the most sinificant wars aainst sla&ery happened in
the island*nation of Baiti from 1$+1 to 16#,. As an introduction to the
Baitian Re&olutionary 4ar, I think e&ery reader and student should
bein with the classic research entitled Irritated 0enie by Lacob
Carruthers. 4here the Afrikan world&iew is concerned, we learn
se&eral lessons from the study of the war and the words of our
ancestors transmitted down to us o&er time in this reat resistance war.
In a statement that is not only historic, but a foundation of the
transmission of the Afrikan world&iew from our %otherland to the )ew
4orld was a prayer by a Iodun priest named (ookman on Auust 1,,
1$+1. .he prayer initiated the lon Baitian Re&olutionary 4ar that
would last o&er a decade. .he Baitian Re&olution defeated the reatest
military power of 3urope at the time, )apoleon@s France. .his war was
consecrated in the Afrikan world&iew, with Afrikan 'pirituality, two
centuries ao with a prayer in the name of 5un, the spirit of iron, war,
and independence. .he Iodun priest stated2
1$
;ood ;od R5unS who created the 'un which shines
on us from abo&e, who rouses the sea and makes the
thunder rumbleH 7istenO ;od R5unS thouh hidden in
a cloud watches o&er us. .he od of the white man
calls forth crimes but our R5unS wills ood works.
5ur R5unS who is ood commands us to &eneance.
Be will direct our arms and help us. .hrow away the
likeness of the white man@s od who has so often
brouht us to tears and listen to liberty which speaks in
all our hearts >Carruthers, Irritated 0enie, ""?.
.his Afrikan prayer was i&en o&er "## years ao from today.
Is this prayer <Afrocentric= or Afrikan*CenteredM 5nly a miseducated
person or myth*maker would doubt it. (ookman called forth a spirit
from the bosom of Afrika to assist in a liberation strule that would
last nearly 1, years and cost the sacrifice of much bloodshed. 4hat@s
more, (ookman was &ery clear about not only the current uphill
liberation strule, he was clear about the need for ancestral power and
the Afrikan world&iew. <.hrow away the likeness of the white man@s
od0= he said. (ookman understood that it was a military war as
much as it was a cultural and spiritual war.
At the end of the war, the spirit of 5un was still ridin hih in
the souls of the Afrikan re&olutionaries. .his is ob&ious because of the
words that were shared by Lean Lac8ues 9essalines, the ;o&ernor*
;eneral of the island*nation who had brouht the people o&er the
threshold of independence after the lon war. 7ike (ookman,
9essalines was clear that the war was physical as well as spiritual. 7ike
(ookman, 9essalines was committed to the Afrikan world&iew. 7ike
(ookman, 9essalines words were an historic mandate of the Afrikan
world&iew for a new era in our history symboliFed by eternal resistance
to oppression and an undyin lo&e for freedom and independence.
Allow me to 8uote enerously from Carruthers@ &ery important work,
The Irritated 0enie, where there is an appendiG of two proclamations
by Lean Lac8ues 9essalines. Consider the followin historic words of
the ;o&ernor*;eneral on the day of Baitian Independence, Lanuary 1,
16#,2
It is not enouh to ha&e eGpelled from your
country the barbarians who ha&e for aes stained it
with blood J it is not enouh to ha&e curbed the
16
factions which, succeedin each other by turns, sported
with a phantom of liberty which France eGposed to
their eyes. It is become necessary, by a last act of
national authority, to ensure fore&er the empire of
liberty in the country which has i&en us birth. It is
necessary to depri&e an inhuman o&ernment , which
has hitherto held our minds in a state of the most
humiliatin turpitude, of e&ery hope of bein enabled
aain to ensla&e us. Finally, it is necessary to li&e
independent, or die. Independence or 9eathO 7et these
sacred words ser&e to rally us, let them be sinals of
battle, and of our reunion.
CitiFens J Countrymen2 I ha&e assembled on
this solemn day those couraeous chiefs, who, on the
e&e of recei&in the last breath of eGpirin liberty, ha&e
la&ished their blood to preser&e it. .hese enerals, who
ha&e conducted your strules aainst tyranny, ha&e
not yet done. .he French name still darkens our plainsH
e&erythin recalls the remembrance of the cruelties of
that barbarous people. 5ur laws, our customs, our
cities, e&erythin bears the characteristics of the
French J Bearken to what I sayO .he French still ha&e
footin in our island0 >Irritated 0enie, 1"/?.
After this decree, the sword was turned on the in&aders and the
former ensla&ers aain. 9essalines words eGemplify the Afrikan
world&iew for his time where he eGplains the dimensions of the lon
war that led down the road to independence when he states, <5ur laws,
our customs, our cities, e&erythin bears the characteristics of the
French0= In this proclamation, 9essalines also stated, <And what a
dishonorable absurdity, to con8uer to be sla&esO= (y that he meant that
the blood of re&olutionaries was not spilled in the name of bein half*
free. Be and the Baitian re&olutionaries belie&ed that freedom was
sacred. 4e should try belie&in that freedom is sacred today.
And on the note of Afrikan 'pirituality, 9essalines stated,
<)ati&es of Baiti J my happy destiny reser&es me to be one day the
sentinel who is to uard the idol we now sacrifice to.= .he Iodun
'pirituality of Baiti, uided by the spirit of 5un, is what led to the
independence of the nation. 9essalines did not abandon the ancestral
'pirituality and because of his campain for liberation, he was
1+
e&entually i&en offerins of libation in the island when he became an
ancestor.
9essalines showed that he understood the past, present, and
future of the Afrikan world&iew. )ot only did he honor the bra&e
&eterans who died in the war, in an April "6, 16#, proclamation, he
also a&e homae to 7ouis 9elres who was born in %artini8ue, and
he a&e his life to the cause of freedom in ;uadeloupe in 16#".
9essalines said of him2
0the bra&e and immortal 9elresse, blown
into the air with the fort he defended, rather than accept
their offered chains. %ananimous warriorO .hat noble
death, far from enfeeblin our courae, ser&es only to
rouse within us the determination of a&enin or of
followin thee.
Be was committed at e&ery moment to the present strule, and
he spoke to the future of Afrikan strule by sayin, <)e&er aain shall
a colonist, or a 3uropean, set foot upon this territory with the title of
master or proprietor.= )ews of the Baitian Re&olution inspired Afrikans
throuhout the Americas. 9essalines words were a consecration of the
Afrikan world&iew that spoke to the eternal obliation to strule
aainst e&il. From my analyses, (ookman and 9essalines laid an
historic mandate, a spiritual mission, for Afrikan people throuhout the
world. .he re&olutionaries in the war were committed to this oath.
.hey a&e e&erythin they had to i&e the strule to posterity. .oday,
we ha&e not committed oursel&es to the oaths of our ancestors who
fouht and died in this reat war of liberation and other reat
campains of resistance. 5ur children must learn the lories of their
past, and they must learn the reat resistance campains fouht by their
ancestors. 5ur historic mandate or task, those of us in the present, is to
pass the reat leacy of our ancestors to our children and unborn
children of the future. It is at the core of the interenerational
world&iew to teach our children that they ha&e not only inherited a
reat leacy, but that they are the li&in manifestation of that leacy.
.he strules of the Baitian Re&olution must be included in the
education of e&ery Afrikan child, and it must stay ali&e in the Afrikan
world&iew throuh the enerations.
-#
T$e Inter#enerationa& Afrikan %or&d)ie*:
An Afrikan-Centered Critique
DEBUNKING Afrocentricity !t"e #ro$a%anda-&yt"'
"art T*o
Content of Ea+
NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN
9a&id 4alker and the Interenerational Commune
.he Arthur 'chombur ;eneration
Afrikan 4orld&iew in Afrika
5laudah 38uiano
Facin %t. Kenya
Amilcar Cabral
%arcus ;ar&ey,
.he Barlem Renaissance and )eritude %o&ements
.he (lack 'hinin Prince
.he :nfinished Re&olution
)otes to the Present ;eneration
7ast .houhts
-1
9a&id 4alker and the Interenerational Commune
9a&id 4alker, oriinally from the 'outh, was a (oston
business owner who secretly opened the doors of his home to escapin
Afrikans from sla&ery. 7ikewise, he pro&ided financial assistance for
this strule. Be could ha&e li&ed a comfortable middle class life, but
4alker felt his freedom meant nothin while his people were ensla&ed.
In 16"+, 9a&id 4alker published his fiery, outspoken Appeal to the
Coloured Citi2ens of the &orld. In a short time, it was bein circulated
throuhout the 'outh at risk of the safety of those with it in their
possession and with a price for the decapitated head of 4alker or his
body dead or ali&e. Althouh he was a Christian and did not ad&ocate
emiration from the America, 4alker@s Appeal was historic in
continuin the interenerational strule for liberation. It is proper to
bein Part .wo of this essay with the contribution and sacrifice of
9a&id 4alker to the interenerational Afrikan world&iew.
In my opinion, I belie&e that 4alker spoke more to the present
and future whereas 9essalines spoke to the past, present, and future.
)onetheless, 4alker@s Appeal was especially landmark for the nature
of its uncompromisin tone for liberation, and it is firmly placed in the
Afrikan world&iew. 'ome of us will fiht for freedom as lon as we are
comfortable. Bowe&er, in the tradition of Aueen )Finha, 9essalines,
)at .urner, 9a&id 4alker, Barriet .ubman, Patrice 7umumba, Amilcar
Cabral, and %alcolm QH others of us will sacrifice all for the sacred and
rihteous cause of i&in an honorable strule of independence to the
future. Proclaimin that he was one of the <sons of Africa= willin to
offer his life as a sacrifice to freedom, 9a&id 4alker laid an historic
oath that so many of us ha&e lost. Indeed, that the sacrifice of life in
pursuit of freedom honored abo&e and beyond the cowardice of luGury
and ensla&ement is what 4alker belie&ed. Althouh some belie&e he
died from a disease, others belie&e his death was an assassination. In
-"
this offerin of his life for the strule, 9a&id 4alker echoed the words
of 9essalines o&er two decades later.
9a&id 4alker would impact his eneration in such a way that
his influence would be passed down in time. It is belie&ed that the
Prophet )at .urner read the writin of 9a&id 4alker for se&eral
reasons. First, )at .urner was able to read. 'econd, he had liberty to
tra&el some distance to preach to other ensla&ed Afrikans which a&e
him more access to such a writin. &alker9s Appeal was circulated in
Iirinia. In addition, the timin of the release and spreadin of the
Appeal went alon with the re&olt led by .urner. 4alker was &ery
likely an influence on )at .urner and other armed re&olutionaries of
that time. Anyone who reads the <Confessions of )at .urner,=
understands that it is due to the e&ils of sla&ery why he felt he should
i&e his life as a sacrifice on the altar of Afrikan liberation. .he mere
fact that )at .urner rose in rebellion aainst the sla&ocracy of America
does more to pro&e that he was committed to the Afrikan world&iew
than anythin else. Be understood that Afrikans were not meant to be
anybody@s sla&es, and he set out to make sure others understood it.
Further, we can trace the lineae of the Afrikan world&iew
throuh the confessions of )at .urner. Althouh he was a Christian,
.urner helped carry the Afrikan world&iew into the neGt eneration. As
Prophet )at .urner bean to i&e his <confessions,= his first recorded
words were, <'ir, Cou ha&e asked me to i&e a history of the moti&es
which induced me to undertake the late insurrection, as you call it0=
.his speaks &olumes to )at .urner understandin that there was a
fundamental difference in the world&iew of his own people and those
who saw nothin wron with the inhumanity of sla&ery. Instead of
callin his actions an <insurrection,= in my estimation from .urner@s
own lanuae, he would ha&e preferred to say he was carryin out the
<reat day of Dudment= or the <reat work= of liberation. 5b&iously,
.urner wanted to free Afrikans as much as he wanted to terrify and
shake the &ery foundations of the sla&ocracy of America. )at .urner
stated in his confessions that he was not meant to be a sla&e. Be was
meant for a hiher purpose.
I stronly recommend &illiam Styron9s Nat Turner# Ten !lack
&riters Respond edited by Lohn Benrik Clarke. It not only has the
Confessions, but 9r. Clarke and contributin writers set the record
straiht about our re&olutionary ancestor )at .urner. 9r. Clarke stated
in some of his many lectures that the so*called <Confessions= was no
confession because )at .urner did not i&e away anyone who was not
-/
already cauht. Bis <confession= only included those already cauht
who should ha&e been ready for the allows like him.
Also, the reat 9a&id 4alker had a sinificant impact on a
radical Afrikan woman named %aria 'tewart. Ber husband had been a
friend of 9a&id 4alker, and she admired 4alker as an abolitionist.
%aria 'tewart was stronly mo&ed by 4alker@s death defyin courae
in the publication of his Appeal. In her 16// lecture at the African
%asonic Ball, she asked, <Ba&e the sons of Africa no soulsM= In
carryin the enerational strule, %aria 'tewart called on men who
had made themsel&es too comfortable in the face of inDustice to stand
up. 'he asked, where are the men who will defend <African rihts and
libertyM= 'peakin of 9a&id 4alker who was now an ancestor, she
said, <.here was one, althouh he sleeps, his memory li&es.= .he (lack
leadership of (oston could not take the hard truth told by %aria
'tewart. 'he e&entually mo&ed to )ew Cork, but she would continue to
work in the interest of Afrikan people her entire life. %arilyn
Richardson@s Maria Ste,art# America9s First !lack &oman +olitical
&riter includes the writins and speeches of this reat ancestor.
5thers held 4alker@s words to be sacred. .he interenerational
Afrikan world&iew, the promotion of the strule throuh the power of
lanuae that broke round in 9a&id 4alker@s Appeal would be carried
throuh time throuh the life of a former ensla&ed Afrikan, the reat
Benry Bihland ;arnet. In 16,/, at the 5hio meetin of the )ero
Con&ention %o&ement, ;arnet a&e an historic mandate of resistance
to oppression, <An Address to the 'la&es of the :nited 'tates of
America.= .he speech was too radical many thouht, and it was &oted
that it would not be published. In 16,6, ;arnet not only published his
speech, but he included a reprintin of 9a&id 4alker@s Appeal. Bis
conclusions were the same that 4alker had reached, Afrikans must rise
up and strike for freedom or die tryin. ;arnet spoke to the hearts of
ensla&ed Afrikans, ha&in been himself once ensla&ed. Be said to the
ensla&ed on behalf of the <freed= Afrikans2
%any of you are bound to us, not only by the
ties of a common humanity, but we are connected by
the more tender relations of parents, wi&es, husbands,
children, brothers, and sisters, and friends. As such we
most affectionately address you >(racey, -6?.

7ike many 1+
th
century leaders, ;arnet was a Christian. Cet, as
I ha&e said, the Afrikan world&iew was bein molded durin these
-,
critical years. In the speech, this historic mandate of resistance, ;arnet
spoke about the contradictions of a self*proclaimed democratic and
Christian nation founded in the e&ils of sla&ery. 5&er a century before
the world would come to know the words of our ancestor %alcolm Q,
Benry Bihland ;arnet would say2
.he diabolical inDustice by which your liberties are
clo&en down, neither ;od, nor anels, or Dust men,
command you to suffer for a sinle moment.
.herefore2 it is your solemn and imperati&e duty to use
e&ery means, both moral, intellectual, and physical,
that promises success >(racey, $1?.
9isplayin within the Afrikan world&iew, ancestral strule
and an indictment to the 3uropean ensla&er of Afrikan people, ;arnet
continues2
(rethren, it is as wron for your lordly
oppressors to keep you in sla&ery, as it was for the man
thief to steal our ancestors from the coast of Africa.
Cou should therefore now use the same manner of
resistance, as would ha&e been Dust in our ancestors,
when the bloody foot*prints of the first remorseless
soul*thief was placed upon the shores of our fatherland
>(racey, $1?.
Aain, foreshadowin the re&olutionary lanuae of %alcolm
Q who said, <.he price of freedom is death= in 1+-, * Benry Bihland
;arnet said in 16,/2
If they then commence the work of death, they,
and not you, will be responsible for the conse8uences.
Cou had far better all die J die immediately, than li&e
sla&es, and entail your wretchedness upon your
posterity. If you would be free in this eneration, here
is your only hope. Bowe&er much you and all of us
desire it, there is not much hope of redemption without
the sheddin of blood. If you must bleed, let it all come
at once J rather die freemen4 than li(e to %e the sla(es
>(racey, $/?.
-1
In finishin the historic mandate, ;arnet spoke of 9enmark
IeaFie, )at .urner, Loseph Cin8ue, and %adison 4ashinton. )ot only
was he historically conscious, ;arnet was conscious of the resistance of
Afrikans aainst sla&ery. Be had li&ed that resistance, and was
continuin it lon after 16,/. In an 16,6 speech deli&ered in .roy, )ew
Cork, Benry Bihland ;arnet shows that he was not only conscious of
the need and obliation for resistance aainst sla&ery, but that he was
also conscious of the need for historical restoration. 4hile he did rely
hea&ily on (iblical references, as all 1+
th
century Christians did. Be
displayed a timeless Afrikan consciousness and lo&e for his ancestral
land. In the 16,/ address, he spoke about the Afrikan identity of 3yptH
the Beru*m*Akhet >'phinG?, %enes, )itocris, and Cleopatra. Be made
reference to <Bannibal, the sworn enemy and the scoure of Rome0=
As the landmark research of Lohn (racey so clearly informs us
in !lack Nationalism in America, ;arnet was not an eGception to
Afrikans in the :nited 'tates who were not only conscious of the
obliation to undyin strule, but conscious of the need to restore the
history of Afrika. .his mo&ement is hardly a modern creation. .he
buildin of historical consciousness has become more proressi&e o&er
time, and it has led to some le&el of cultural restoration. Cet, as has
been maintained, this has been the work of countless ancestors down
throuh many enerations. .hose of us ali&e today are only continuin
this reat work.
%any of the 1+
th
century nationalists were Christians, but they
all thouht themsel&es to be distinctly different from the Christian
&alues of a nation that would ensla&e their people. Further, althouh
Christians, which reflected their times, they carried the Afrikan
world&iew in their hearts and minds. It is up to us to ad&ance that
world&iew today. It is time that Afrikan 'pirituality takes its proper
place in our hearts and minds. 7et us not nelect the historic seeds of
Afrikan consciousness because we ha&e been trained in 3uropean*
western uni&ersities and we ha&e not been properly tauht to honor our
ancestors.
%olefi Asante has been wronly called <the father of
Afrocentricity= by his followers and others who are naP&e enouh. Be
has not discouraed the ridiculous claim, and has promoted it. 5thers
mistakenly belie&e that he coined the term or defined the concept
before anyone else. It is the fault of our present eneration of <scholars
and leaders= for not directly addressin this propaanda*myth at the
heart of our world&iew. 4hat is called <Afrocentricity= today has no
--
father, and really no inno&ators, especially from this modern era of
history. Additionally, in the Afrikan world&iew, nothin has a father
without a mother. .he idea of a fatherhood for a then modern idea with
ancient roots is a form of plaiarism of the older idea. .he ;reeks were
labeled <fathers= of )ile Ialley concepts they learned in Afrika. 5ur
scholars and leaders continuously address the ;reek plaiarisms of
Afrikan ideas, but for political reasons, handshakes, and pats on the
back, &ery few of our <leaders and scholars= will address the modern
plaiarism of the cultural world&iew improperly defined as
<Afrocentricity.= .hus, in not addressin this propaanda*myth, and for
some who e&en support it, the intellectual chaos has become an endless
wire of confusion and mis*concepts in our mo&ement. .here are no
modern day inno&ators of the Afrikan world&iew because this
eneration@s knowlede has been passed down from our ancestors. .he
Afrikan world&iew is a product of enerations, a product of the history
and culture of a people, not an indi&idual.
4e should remember that writin was in&ented in Afrika. .he
)ile Ialley was the world@s first librarian culture. 9ue to a ",1## year
onslauht aainst Afrika, the dispersion of populations from the )ile to
the rise of the ensla&ement era in the Arab world and the )ew 4orld,
Afrikans were separated from the lanuae of %dw )tr, the lanuae
of our ancestors. .he lanuae of %dw )tr had the cultural imprint of
the Afrikan world&iew as (aba Ledi noted. Bowe&er, when Afrikans in
the :' ot the opportunity to use the press, the first words in pen were
about freedom. In fact, the first Afrikan newspaper was founded by
'amuel Cornish and Lohn (. Russwurm. .hey called it Freedom@s
Lournal. <.oo lon ha&e others spoken for us= were the 16"$ words
from the editors of this first Afrikan newspaper in the :'. .his first
copy of Freedom@s Lournal stated dedication to the uplift of the people,
a &indication of information about Afrika, and a platform for <whate&er
concerns us as a people.= .he paper spoke aainst the e&ils of sla&ery
and hihlihted the achie&ements of our people in the :nited 'tates,
Baiti, and parts of Afrika. Freedom@s Lournal is but another eGample of
how the Afrikan world&iew was bein shaped and passed down throuh
time. 5ne of the writers for Freedom@s Lournal was the reat 9a&id
4alker.
.he Arthur 'chombur ;eneration
)o one can claim to be the father of a cultural form that
stretches o&er enerations and was shaped by countless men and
-$
women. If we allow someone such a preposterous claim, we are
oursel&es hihly 8uestionable in much that we do. Lohn Benrik
Clarke@s intellectual roots o back half a century before the publication
of %olefi Asante@s Afrocentricity in 1+6#. 9r. Clarke often illuminated
the names of Afrikan ancestors who helped him on the reat walk of
teachin Afrikan history. Be also spoke of the names of those whom we
should all be familiar with in our own studies. (y the 1+/#s, 9r. Clarke
had been inspired and tauht by reats such as Arthur 'chombur,
4illis ). Buins, and 4illiam 7eo Bansberry amon others. .his was
all in the 1+/#s, and %olefi Asante was born in 1+,". Anyone who
reads Arthur 'chombur@s essay, <.he )ero 9is :p Bis Past,=
published in Alain 7ocke@s 1+"1 The Ne, Ne'ro4 will understand that
for someone writin then, he was far ahead of his time. Anyone who
carefully reads 3linor 9es Ierney 'innette@s bioraphy of 'chombur
will understand how ridiculous it is to claim that Afrocentricity was
born in this eneration. In a lot of ways, 'chombur and Alain 7ocke
were ahead of our time. Anyone readin 'chombur@s little essay will
bein to understand that what we call <Afrocentricity= oes way back. I
am not sayin that 'chombur was the <Father of Afrocentricity,= but I
am sayin that he is one of our many ancestors inored by the current
mo&ement that does not understand the historic roots of its own
de&elopment. 'chombur@s openin statements in the essay speak to his
time and ours. Be states2
.he American )ero must remake his past in
order to make his future. .houh it is orthodoG to think
of America as the one country where it is unnecessary
to ha&e a past, what is a luGury for the nation as a
whole becomes a prime social necessity for the )ero.
For him, a roup tradition must supply compensation
for persecution, and pride of race the antidote for
preDudice. Bistory must restore what sla&ery took
away, for it is the social damae of sla&ery that the
present enerations must repair and offset0.

<Bistory must restore what sla&ery took way,= is about as
Afrikan conscious as a statement can et for the last century or this
century. .he statement speaks to the necessity to be able to redeem
historical consciousness in order to redeem cultural consciousness. )o
sinle indi&idual has done or will do this for Afrikan people. .his will
be the work of a collecti&e mo&ement that must be lobally sustained
-6
and institutionaliFed. 'chombur wrote another e8ually impressi&e
essay about a century ao in 1+1/ entitled, <Racial Interity2 A Plea for
the 3stablishment of a Chair of )ero Bistory in 5ur 'chools,
Collees, etc.= In ways, 'chombur made the arument for what we
call (lack 'tudies more forcefully than many of us today. 4hy do we
think this strule is a new oneM 'chombur said way back in 1+1/
before the )ero 'ociety for Bistorical Research2
4e ha&e reached the critical period of our
educational eGistence. I ha&e shown by a few eGamples
of the past a&ailable and useful material upon which
we can base our future structure. 4e ha&e chairs of
almost e&erythin, and belie&e we lack nothin, but we
sadly need a chair of )ero history. .he white
institutions ha&e their chair of historyH it is the history
of their people and whene&er the )ero is mentioned
in the teGt books it dwindles down to a foot note
>(racey, %eier, RudwickH !lack Nationalism in a
America, /1#?.
4hat would 'chombur say about the current state of (lack
'tudies across the countryM 4ould he feel we that we ha&e arri&edM
4ould he feel that we are on the riht trackM I think 'chombur would
be as frustrated with our times as he was with his own. .he (lack
'tudies mo&ement is in dire need of new life and new leadership at all
le&els, from the student leaders to the scholar leaders. .his new
leadership must first reconiFe 'chombur and the others of his era as
the path*makers of our current foundation.
A sinificant work from this era of history was The Children of
the Sun by ;eore 4ells Parker, published in 1+16. Also, Parker had
been instrumental in the oraniFation known as the Bamitic 7eaue of
the 4orld, founded the year before he published the essay. Parker
would foreshadow the Afrikan*Centered )ile Ialley studies of this
present eneration by decades. In fact, the little essay by Parker
prefiured the studies of Afrikans in the early ci&iliFations of Asia and
3urope. 9ecades ao, Parker had already opened the door of Afrikan
lobal studies. 9rusilla 9unDee Bouston@s &onderful Ethiopians of the
Ancient Cushite Empire in 1+"-H 43( 9u (ois@s The &orld and Africa
in 1+,$H Loel Auustus Roers 1+,$ &orld9s 0reat Men of ColorH ;. K.
5sei@s 1+-- African Contri%ution to Ci(ili2ationH Lohn Lackson@s Man4
0od4 and Ci(ili2ation in 1+$" were some of the earlier works on
-+
Afrikan lobal studies. Afrikan*Centered research is simply not new by
anyone@s standard. Lohn Lackson@s A'es of 0old and Sil(er in 1++#4 the
recent research and tra&els of Runoko Rashidi, and the recent editorial
works of I&an Ian 'ertima continued the work of Afrikan lobal
studies.
43( 9u (ois, probably at his near finest as far as I am
concerned, presented <.he Conser&ation of Races,= a paper o&er 1##
years ao in 16+$ before the American )ero Academy. In a lot of
ways, like 'chombur, he also made a stroner arument for (lack
'tudies than many of our leaders are makin today. 9u (ois stated2
For the accomplishment of these ends we need
race oraniFations2 )ero collees, )ero newspapers,
)ero businesses oraniFations, a )ero school of
literature and art, and an intellectual clearin house, for
all these products of the )ero mind, which we may
call a )ero Academy. )ot only is all this necessary
for positi&e ad&ance, it is absolutely imperati&e for
neati&e defense >(racey, !lack Nationalism in
America, "16?.

.here is a difference that must be understood in %olefi Asante
and Lohn Benrik Clarke. 4hile 9r. Asante fans the propaanda*myth of
bein father of a mo&ement, or oriinator of ancestral ideas, 9r. Clarke
on the other hand would always say2
Arthur 'chombur tauht me the
interrelationship of African history to world history.
4illis ). Buins tauht me the political meanin of
history. 4illiam 7eo Bansberry, in his lectures when
he came o&er from Bar&ard tauht me the
philosophical meanin of history >&ho !etrayed the
African &orld Re(olution, 11$?.
.his often*repeated statement by 9r. Clarke was not to lift up
himself, rather it is like a libation to the work of his ancestors. I am not
sayin that 9r. Clarke was the <Father of Afrocentricity,= but that he
was a mo&er and a way maker in this mo&ement when Asante was
known by another name and doin basically multi*cultural research in
the 1+$#s. %olefi Asante, under the name Arthur 7ee 'mith, authored
se&eral multicultural books such as To,ard Transracial
$#
Communication in 1+$#H *o, To Talk To +eople -f -ther Races with
Allen and BernandeF in 1+$1H Transracial Communication in 1+$/H
Intercultural Communication# Theory Into +ractice in 1+$- with
)ewmark. Few of the followers of <Afrocentricity,= or those who
belie&e they are followin <Afrocentricity= understand that Asante was
a multiculturalist, or an interculturalist as he miht say, before he
considered himself <Afrocentric.= Bow could he be the father of the
Afrikan world&iewM 4hy are so many so silentM I brin up 9r. Lohn
Benrik Clarke and others for se&eral reasons. .he acknowledment of
Afrikan ancestral influence is not only a show of humilityH it is also
acknowledment of a spiritual*cultural*intellectual bride of those
ancestors to our times. If one were supposedly oriinatin ideas that are
o&er hundreds of years old, thousands e&en, then one could not at the
same time properly acknowlede that bride built by our ancestors.
%any of us ha&e not studied the little known, but reat ancestor
Lohn 3dward (ruce, known as (ruce <;rit.= .hey called him ;rit
because he defiantly spoke out and spoke up aainst inDustice at risk of
his own personal safety. 4e think that <Afrocentricity= is new when
this reat ancestor (ruce ;rit founded the .he )ero 'ociety for
Bistorical Research in 1+11 to promote the study of Afrikan interest.
Ralph Crowder has pro&ided us with a bioraphy of (ruce ;rit. (ruce
was amon many collectors of (lack books like 'chombur. !lack
!i%liophiles and Collectors# +reser(ers of !lack *istory edited by
three distinuished peopleH 4. Paul Coates who is the founder of (lack
Classic Press, 3linor 9es Ierney 'innette who is the biorapher of
'chombur, and .homas (attle who is director of the massi&e research
center at Boward :ni&ersity. )ot only was this reat ancestor, (ruce
;rit, a self*trained historian, world*renowned Dournalist, and oraniFerH
he was a fiery Dournalist at a time when Afrikan people in the :' could
be lynched for lookin a white person in the eye. (ruce ;rit, born a
sla&e, was also an early Pan*Afrikanist at the turn of the last century.
Be built an international network known as the 7oyal 5rder of the 'ons
of Africa with members in the :', the Caribbean, and Africa. (ruce
;rit was a forerunner and e&entual partner in the strule with the reat
Pan*Afrikanist %arcus %osiah ;ar&ey of the :)IA who capti&ated the
whole of the Afrikan world.
4hile 'chombur@s 1+1/ essay, <Racial Interity2 A Plea for
the 3stablishment of a Chair of )ero Bistory,= was &ery impressi&e
and proressi&e in Afrikan thouht, he limited the arument to only the
Chairpersonship within a uni&ersity and other educational settins. In
the essay, he said himself2
$1
.he obDect of this paper is not to re&olutioniFe
eGistin standards, but simply to impro&e them by
amendin them, so that they will include the practical
history of the )ero Race, from the dawn of
ci&iliFation to the present time >(racey, !lack
Nationalism in America, /#,?.
5f course, althouh 'chombur didn@t consider the proposal
one that would re&olutioniFe education, it was a re&olutionary idea for
his times and ours. 'till, such a proposal has not been taken seriously.
.he reason is 8uite simpleH we must build our own schoolsO If we want
educational institutions to train teachers and students to teach what we
know is necessary for the future of our people, we will ha&e to build
those schools oursel&es. 4here am I oin with thisM
Bere@s the multi*fold point2
1. 4hat we call <Afrocentricity= is not a new concept to our era of
history.
". 'chombur was Afrikan conscious and so were others of his era,
others before his era, and the entire body of men and women who laid
the historic foundations for the Afrikan consciousness of our era. .his
second point has not been properly studied by many of today@s
<Afrocentric= scholars who themsel&es fail to fully understand what
they call <Afrocentricity.=
/. As historic as Arthur 'chombur@s <Chair of )ero Bistory= was as a
foundational display of Afrikan consciousness, someone else made a
stroner case in writins fi&e years prior.
.hat some else was a ;hanaian of a Fanti backround. Be was
3kra Ayiman, better known to history as Loseph 3phraim Casely
Bayford, or simply Casely Bayford. I prefer to call him by his Afrikan
name, 3kra Ayiman. Be li&ed from 16-- to 1+/#. Be was a stron
Afrikan nationalist and Pan*Afrikanist. Be was a lawyer, author,
educator, and politician. Ayiman was so influential in the political
arena as a nationalist that he was called <.he :ncrowned Kin of 4est
Afrika.= Bere was a man who was a foundation to the Pan*Afrikan
mo&ement and the Afrikan conscious mo&ement. Ayiman@s impact
was lobal.
3kra Ayiman was one of the many distinuished members of
the )ero 'ociety for Bistorical Research founded by Lohn 3dward
(ruce, Arthur 'chombur, and others in 1+11. 'chombur was familiar
with the works and the person of Ayiman. .he writin in 8uestion was
$"
3kra Ayiman@s response in 1+#6 to a series of articles authored by
3dward 4ilmot (lyden entitled <African 7ife and Customs.= (lyden
was a world*renowned Pan*Afrikanist himself who had written
Christianity4 Islam4 and the Ne'ro Race in 166$. In his 166$ debate
with reliion and race in his larer work, (lyden had not seriously
considered Afrikan 'pirituality. In 1+#6, (lyden souht to redress the
issue in <African 7ife and Customs.= As only an appendiG to (lyden@s
articles, Ayiman wrote a short response that was ahead of his times
and ours in Afrikan thouht on <the Race Auestion.=
.he cruG of the educational 8uestion, as it
affects the African, is that western methods
denationalise him. Be becomes a sla&e to forein ways
of life and thouht. Be will desire to be a sla&e no
loner. 'o far is this true that the moment the unspoilt
educated African shows initiati&e and asserts an
indi&iduality, his forein mentor is irritated by the
phenomenon >6,*61?.
Ayiman was &ery clear of the role that education would ha&e
to ser&e in the liberation of an oppressed people. In 1+#6, he asked a
8uestion, <9oes a nati&e RAfrikanS cease to be a nati&e RAfrikanS when
once he is educatedM= (ased on that 8uestion, this Afrikan made a plea
a century before our time2 <Bea&en rant that the educated nati&e
RAfrikanS may ne&er be wantin in his duty to his less pri&ileed
brethren or betray their trust in him.= 4hat would he say if he saw how
far we ha&e ad&anced a century laterM
3kra Ayiman seems to ha&e had an impact on the essay by
'chombur. Bowe&er, as I stated, Ayiman went a step further. Be not
only made the case for a <chair of Bistory,= as 'chombur did fi&e
years later, but Ayiman said we need a whole uni&ersity. Afrikans
must build the types of institutions free of forein influence in order to
promote the liberation and maintenance of Afrikan nations, in order to
preser&e our world&iew and potential as a people. 4hat we think is a
new disco&ery of Afrikan consciousness is old, and our ancestors ha&e
already made the case. 5ur Afrikan consciousness is due to the
world&iew passed down by our ancestors. Instead of claimin
oriinality where we ha&e no riht, we can make the uni8ue
contribution of continuin and institutionaliFin the work of our
ancestors in our time. In his own words, 3kra Ayiman stated in 1+#62
$/
And now I come to the 8uestion of 8uestions.
Bow may the 4est African be trained so as to preser&e
his national identity and race instinctsM
As a precautionary measure, I would take care
to place the educational seminary in a reion far
beyond the reach of the influence of the Coast. If I
were foundin a national :ni&ersity for the ;old Coast
and for Ashanti, I would make a suitable suburb of
Kumasi the centre. (ut why do I speak of a national
:ni&ersityM For the simple reason that you cannot
educate a people unless you ha&e a suitable trainin
round0

A )ational Afrikan :ni&ersity, free from <the influence of the
Coast= is somethin Afrikan people don@t ha&e in Afrika or anywhere
else today. After statin the case for an independent Afrikan uni&ersity,
Ayiman then went on to eGplain some of what the curriculum and
instruction in the school would look like. In addition to ha&in
lanuaes in the study of Fanti, Bausa, and Coruba, Ayiman@s ideal
uni&ersity that he hoped of a century ao is one we ha&e yet to come to
in our times. Be foreshadowed what we call (lack 'tudies E Afrikan
'tudies E )ile Ialley 'tudies back in 1+#6 with the followin words2
I would found in such a :ni&ersity a chair of
BistoryH and the kind that I would teach would be
uni&ersal history, with particular reference to the part
of 3thiopia played in the affairs of the world. I would
lay stress upon the fact that while Rameses II was
dedicatin temples to <the ;od of ods, and secondly
to his own lory,= the ;od of the Bebrews had not yet
appeared unto %oses in the burnin bushH that Africa
was the cradle of the world@s systems and philosophies,
and the nursin mother of its reliions. In short, that
Africa has nothin to be ashamed of in its place amon
the nations of the earth0 >6-?

In discussin the impact that 3kra Ayiman had on Afrikan
thouht, note must be made of two people that touched his life, his wife
of some years Adelaide 'mith Casely Bayford and his Pan*Afrikanist
colleaue 3dward 4ilmot (lyden. Adelaide '. Casely Bayford was a
leader in her own riht. Adelaide %. Cromwell i&es us the bioraphy,
$,
An African 1ictorian Feminist# The $ife and Times of Adelaide Smith
Casely *ayford) Adelaide Bayford was herself a nationalist, Pan*
Afrikanist, and an educator who understood that education was
essential for Afrikan people. Adelaide was a supporter of %arcus
;ar&ey@s :)IA and an officer of the 'ierra 7eone branch. Ber life was
dedicated to the interest of her people in eneral and the educational
uplift of Afrikan irls in particular. 4e owe to the reat Adelaide
Casely Bayford the raisin of Afrikan consciousness and acti&ism in
Afrika and the :nited 'tates. 4hen she toured the :' on speakin
enaements, she would often wear the pride of Afrika in traditional
kente cloth. 'he promoted Afrikan arts, crafts, son, and dance. .his
was in the 1+"#s when she and others promoted Afrikan culture before
anybody was usin the word <Afrocentric= at the time. .oday, we ha&e
a word and don@t know the contributions of women like Adelaide 'mith
Casely Bayford.
3dward 4ilmot (lyden >16/" J 1+1"? was one of the leadin
Pan*Afrikanist and nationalist of the 1+
th
and the early "#
th
century.
Bollis 7ynch authored the informati&e bioraphy Ed,ard &ilmot
!lyden# +an-Ne'ro +atriot. Be was born in the Caribbean, the island of
't. .homas. After mo&in to the :nited 'tates to attend Ruters
.heoloical 'eminary, he was turned down because of American
racism. Be was in the :nited 'tates when the 161# Fuiti&e 'la&e 7aw
was bein enforced, kidnappin Afrikans who were ne&er ensla&ed
before and others who had ran away to ain their freedom. 'hortly
thereafter, (lyden was recruited by the American ColoniFation 'ociety
>AC'? and emirated to Afrika, 7iberia and then 'ierra 7eone. Be
came back to the :nited 'tates o&er a doFen times, and each time was
to interest Afrikan people in America of returnin to Afrika. .his did
not mean i&in up the battle aainst sla&ery. As the reat Pan*
Afrikanist and emirationist %artin 9elany, a contemporary of (lyden,
had shown in the eGample of his life, the fiht aainst sla&ery and the
riht of emiration to our %other 7and were one and the same. In fact,
9elany@s response to the 161# :' Constitutional Fuiti&e 'la&e 7aw is
historic2
Bonorable mayor, whate&er ideas of liberty I may
ha&e, ha&e been recei&ed from readin the li&es of
your re&olutionary fathers. I ha&e therein learned that a
man has a riht to defend his castle with his life, e&en
unto the takin of life. 'ir, my house is my castleH in
that castle are none but my wife and my children, as
$1
free as the anels of hea&ens, and whose liberty is as
sacred as the pillars of ;od. If any man approaches that
house in search of a sla&e * I care not who he may be,
whether constable or sheriff, maistrate or e&en Dude
of the 'upreme Court * nay, let it be he who sanctioned
this act to become a law RPresident %illard FillmoreS,
surrounded by his cabinet as his bodyuard, with the
9eclaration of Independence wa&in abo&e his head as
his banner, and the constitution of his country upon his
breast as his shield * if he crosses the threshold of my
door, and I do not lay him a lifeless corpse at my feet, I
hope the ra&e may refuse my body a restin*place,
and rihteous Bea&en my spirit a home. 5, noO Be
cannot enter that house and we both li&e. >Iictor
:llman, Martin R) elany# The !e'innin's of !lack
Nationalism, 11"?.

3dward 4. (lyden is one of the many ancestors who carried
the Afrikan consciousness mo&ement into the "#
th
century. Be and
other ancestors passed the Afrikan conscious spirit to the eneration
that would pass it to our times. %y elder and teacher, (aba Ledi
Lehewty >Carruthers?, would often read one of his fa&orite 8uotes from
3dward (lyden about the Afrikan personality. .he statement was made
in 16+/, and shows sinificantly enouh that the roots of the Afrikan
world&iew are not a modern affair. (lyden shows us that our ancestors
carried the burden and lo&e of fihtin the strule and passin it
throuh the enerations. Bere@s the 16+/ 8uote by 3dward (lyden2
It is sad to think that there are some Africans,
especially amon those who ha&e enDoyed the
ad&antaes of forein trainin, who are blind enouh to
the radical facts of humanity as to say, T7et us do away
with the sentiment of race. 7et us do away with our
African personality and be lost, if possible, in another
race.@
.his is as wise or philosophical as to say, let us do
away with ra&itation, with heat and cold and sunshine
and rain0 .here is, only then, one fatal influence
aainst all this teachin, and that is, .he 4hole Course
of )ature. Preach this doctrine as much as you like, no
one will do it, for no one can do it, for when you ha&e
$-
done away with your personality, you ha&e done away
with yoursel&es. Cour place has been assined you in
the uni&erse as Africans, and there is no room for you
as anythin else >Carruthers, Intellectual &arfare, "-,*
"-1H 7ynch, !lack Spokesman, "##*"#1?.
5&er a hundred years ao, in 16+/ (lyden a&e an historic
mandate to the "#
th
century centered on the Afrikan personality. In the
uni&ersity, 43( 9u (ois@ mandate has been o&erplayed while (lyden@s
mandate has been all but totally inored. In 1+#/, 9u (ois opened
Souls of !lack Folk with the followin words2
B3R3I) lie buried many thins which if read
with patience may show the strane meanin of bein
black here in the dawnin of the .wentieth Century.
.his meanin is not without interest to you, ;entle
ReaderH for the problem of the .wentieth Century is the
problem of the color*line.
4ith all due reconition to the monumental works of 9u (ois,
in the Souls of !lack Folk, he only stated a problem. .his statement
from Souls of !lack Folk is often 8uoted, but more focus should be
placed on some of 9u (ois@ other works, in particular his 16+$
<Conser&ation of Races.= .he 16+$ presentation of 9u (ois was like
(lyden@s 16+/ statement, both were prescripti&e, that is solutions to the
problems of Afrikan people. If the Afrikan Creator assined us our
place in the uni&erse as Afrikans, we must protect and maintain that
place as (lyden and 9u (ois eGplained o&er a century ao. .he historic
mandate of the Afrikan personality and conser&ation of the race did not
wither away after the 16+#s. Fortunately, alon with (lyden@s and 9u
(ois@ Pan*Afrikan spirit, the mandate was i&en breath throuh the
aes.
5ne of our ancestors who labored throuhout his life to pro&ide
our people with an Afrikan intellectual frame of reference was Carter
;odwin 4oodson >16$1 J 1+1#?. 7et me say at the outset that he was
not the <Father of (lack Bistory.= In 1+11, 4oodson founded the
Association for the 'tudy of )ero 7ife and Bistory. .he followin
year, the :ournal of Ne'ro *istory was founded. .he paes of the
Dournal are still a wealth of &aluable information for the Afrikan*
Centered researcher today. In 1+"-, 4oodson started what was then
known as )ero Bistory 4eek, and by 1+$-, it de&eloped into (lack
$$
Bistory %onth. 'ome may call him the founder of (lack Bistory
%onth, but the notion that he is the <Father of (lack Bistory,= which is
the oldest Buman history in the world, is as silly as callin %olefi
Asante the <Father of Afrocentricity.=
Carter ;. 4oodson@s most endurin and classic work is the
Miseducation of the Ne'ro from 1+//. In this work, he laid out a
foundation of study rele&ant to the reality of people of Afrikan descent
in America. Be understood, as many of his contemporaries did, that a
3uropean based education for Afrikans, without a critical analysis, is
detrimental. Consider this often*8uoted statement from the teGt2
4hen you control a man@s thinkin you do not ha&e to
worry about his actions. Cou do not ha&e to tell him not
to stand here or o yonder. Be will find his <proper
place= and will stay in it. Cou do not need to send him
to the back door. Be will o without bein told. In fact,
if there is no back door, he will cut one for his special
benefit. Bis education makes it necessary.
.he statement by 4oodson speaks to the need for Afrikan
people to create a system of education that meets the needs of our
eGistence. 3ducation, 4oodson understood, is trainin for
subordination or it is liberatin. 3ither we will be trained into another
people@s world&iew, or we will recei&e an education that will promote
our own. 4oodson understood the need of an education for our reality
decades before our times, and others understood it decades before his
time. 5ur task today is to institutionaliFe the Afrikan world&iew in
bricks and stones. 4e must build the uni&ersities and schools that our
leaders ha&e desined the blueprint for some time ao.
4hile 4oodson@s Miseducation of the Ne'ro is his most
endurin work, he has some other e8ually impressi&e works. 5ne of
which is African *eroes and *eroines, published in 1+/+. .his work is
hihly Afrikan*Centered for its era, and that he laid foundational
roundwork with it is undoubted. Be opened chapter one of African
*eroes and *eroines with a statement that eGpresses a common theme
throuhout his work that has helped chart the proper course of Afrikan
history. .he statement follows2
)either 3uropeans nor Americans, as a rule,
endea&or to tell the truth about Africa. %ost forein
writers produce such accounts as support their reliious
$6
propaanda and the proram of the economic
imperialists. 4hat they ha&e found in Africa is
obser&ed throuh the eye of a preDudiced mind, and the
faults of the nati&es are played up as Dustification for
con8uest and eGploitation.
Carter 4oodson went on in this work to detail reat e&ents and
ancestors in Afrikan history, to dispro&e the idea that Afrika has no
history, and to show to his eneration of readers and ours that Afrikan
people ha&e an esteemed place amon the people of the world.
4oodson understood the need for Afrikan people to learn and
appreciate their history at a youn ae. .his is sinificant to his startin
)ero Bistory 4eek in 1+"-. Additionally, in 1+"6 he authored
African &yt"s) (o%et"er wit" #ro*er+s. .his was a children@s book
that was used in public schools that had folktales, pro&erbs, and myths
from &arious parts of Afrika. .he reader should see the need to
understand that the historical basis for Afrikan*Centered thouht is not
new to our era in history.
.he study of Afrikan nations, especially those at a time when
they were less corrupted by forein influences, is a study of Afrikan
societies li&in the Afrikan world&iew. Lohn ;. Lackson@s Introduction
to African Ci(ili2ation and Cheikh Anta 9iop@s #reco,onia, B,ack
Africa ha&e been &ery helpful in basic yet fundamental research in this
area to readers. Lackson and 9iop, both foundation buildin, Afrikan*
Centered scholars who laid roundwork decades prior to the 1+6#s, are
names that any serious researcher will seek out. Lackson became an
ancestor in 1++, and 9iop made his transition in 1+6-. 4e tend to think
of these men as contemporaries, but there works stretch back decades
before the 6#s and +#s. It was in 9iop@s 1+11 work, Nations Ne%res Et
Cu,ture and his 1+-$ Anteriorite Des Ci*i,isations Ne%res- &yt"e ou
.erite /istorique, that would i&e rise to the 3nlish translation of
African 0ri%in of Ci*i,i1ation- &yt" or 2ea,ity in 1+$,. Lohn
Lackson@s masterful work in 1+$#, Introduction to African
Ci*i,i1ation) branched from at least two earlier works from the 1+/#s.
4ith 4illis ). Buins, Lackson co*authored A Guide to t"e 3tudy of
African /istory in 1+/, and An Introduction to African Ci*i,i1ations
in 1+/$. .o this list, we should add the already mentioned 1+/+
African /eroes and /eroines by Carter ;odwin 4oodson and his
1+/- ("e African Back%round 0ut,ined. Also, the historic 1+,$ work
of 43( 9u (ois entitled ("e 4or,d and Africa was a contributin
$+
piece to the era. .hese works and many others bean to pa&e the way
for the (lack 'tudies era and Afrikan intellectual thouht in eneral for
the latter half of the "#
th
century.
%y emphasis, howe&er, has been that from this historioraphy
we can see that two enerations of Afrikan people who did not know of
or use the words <Afrocentric= or <Afrocentricity= became more
knowledeable about traditional Afrikan ci&iliFations that eGisted after
the decline of dynastic K%. to the rise of the resistance campains
aainst forein incursions into Afrika. %y emphasis has also been that
Afrikan people had the blueprint of their cultural world&iew from at
least the beinnin of )ile Ialley ci&iliFation o&er 1,### years ao. As
Afrikans dispersed from the )ile and 3ast Afrika to populate the
continent, they may ha&e lost the )ile Ialley writin systems of Kemet
and Kush, but they took with them the Afrikan world&iew as they
founded new Afrikan ci&iliFations throuhout the continent. .he reat
challenes of Afrikan ci&iliFations came from foreiners whose &ery
reliions were based on the domination of Afrikan land and people.
4ith the rise of Arab and 3uropean sla&ery and coloniFation, the
Afrikan world&iew was se&erely challened, yet not destroyed. .he
Afrikans taken in sla&eships to the Americas took the cultural blueprint
of the Afrikan world&iew. .he Afrikan world&iew manifested itself in
massi&e resistance campains throuhout the Americas and massi&e
resistance campains throuhout Afrika aainst coloniFation. .he
blueprint or seed of the Afrikan world&iew can be traced across the
enerations because our ancestors ha&e successfully transmitted this
knowlede and wisdom in spite of the inhumane persecution they had
to endure and fiht. 4e must properly honor their strule and
continuity of the Afrikan world&iew to ain our own strenth.
Afrikan 4orld&iew in Afrika
Afrikan*Centered intellectual thouht is not new to our era, and
it is not limited to the eoraphic confines of America. In fact, I totally
disaree with the many scholars who belie&e it is an <African*
American= creation. Afrikan*Centered thouht is a birth from the
world&iew of Afrikan people and cultures. .he ancient, classical
world&iew of Afrika from K%. >.awi? has been i&en some space
abo&e. It is necessary to understand that before the rise of dynastic
Kemet, Afrikans had a world&iew. 9urin the rise of dynastic Kemet,
6#
Afrikans had a world&iew. .hen, after the decline of dynastic Kemet,
Afrikans still and ha&e since maintained a world&iew. .he rise of
Afrikan nations throuh ci&iliFations, kindoms, and city*states were
all eGpressions of the Afrikan world&iew to &aryin derees. 'ome of
the primary source writers who eye*witnessed Afrikan ci&iliFations
before the rise of the trans*Atlantic %aafa were eGplorers who &ery
fre8uently reported on the le&el of ad&anced ci&iliFation the Afrikan
nations reached. .hese eGplorers reported on peaceful societies with
intake cultural traditions, well built homes or palaces, tradin systems,
and specialiFed labor. A ood work on the subDect is (asil 9a&idson@s
African Ci*i,i1ation- 2e*isited/
.he Arab and 3uropean sla&e trades, and the wars that resulted,
eroded Afrikan cultures in many locations. Cet, the traditions and links
from one eneration to the other were not destroyed. From the decline
of dynastic Kemet to the rise of the 3uropean sla&e trade, the ancient
ci&iliFations of ;hana, %ali, (enin, Cono, Kimbabwe, Kilwa, and
othersH we know that Afrikans were buildin thri&in nations
throuhout the continent at different staes. 4hile much of the early
writins from this era are translated from Arabic, researchers must be
mindful of the flarantly racist or anti*Afrikan bias of such primary
sources from the accounts of Ibn (attuta, Ibn Khaldun, Ahmad (aba,
and others. Bowe&er, these accounts and others i&e us some insiht
into Afrikan nations before forein influence and the de&astation that
foreiners had on the societies.
5laudah 38uiano
5ne such account is from an autobioraphy of an Afrikan who
was ensla&ed as a child. 4e can et a limpse into an Afrikan society
uncorrupted by forein influence throuh the autobioraphy of 5laudah
38uiano, entitled ("e Interestin% Narrati*e and 0t"er 4ritin%s.
38uiano was only a boy when he and his sister were kidnapped into the
horrors of the bowels of the sla&e trade in 1$11. Bis account offers a
&i&id picture into Afrikan life, the inhumanity of sla&ery, and the
endless desire to promote freedom. 4hile separated from his people
and their world&iew, 38uiano was con&erted to Christianity. Cet, as an
abolitionist and a promoter of Afrikan emiration, 38uiano belie&ed in
the strule for freedom@s cause. Bis autobioraphy was completed in
later years, and it i&es us a &iew of an Afrikan nation before forein
corruption. Be was from the kindom of (enin, and the people were
&ery conscious of their world&iew and the role of the ancestors in it.
61
38uiano eGplains in recountin his life that his people were a &ery
'piritual people who belie&ed in the <one Creator,= but like all Afrikan
cultures they also belie&ed in the spirit*forces of ancestors and nature.
Be eGplains2
For this reason, they always, before eatin, as I
ha&e obser&ed, put some small portion of the meat, and
pour some of their drink, on the round for themH and
they often make oblations of the blood of beasts or
fowl at their ra&es. I was &ery fond of my mother, and
almost constantly with her. 4hen she went to make
these oblations at her mother@s tomb, which was a kind
of small solitary thatched house, I sometimes attended
her. .here she made her libations0 >,#?
Afrikan 'pirituality is displayed here when 38uiano described
how his mother a&e homae to his randmother with libations. .he
fact the he was with her at the ra&e was another link in the
interenerational commune. In essence, with the reconstruction of the
Afrikan world&iew bein our maDor proDect, commissioned to us by our
ancestorsH we intend to i&e a proper libation to our %other 7and, our
culture, and our past. 4e are all 38uiano@s now in search of the
ra&esites of our ancestors. .he re&erence and honorin of the
ancestors is a cornerstone or pillar in the Afrikan world&iew and
'pirituality. .he tradition is much older than the 1$##s, but I note it
here to eGplain the continuity of the Afrikan world&iew throuhout
time. 7ike Kenyatta@s account of his nation that will be eGplained
shortly, 38uiano also eGplains how some traditions and knowlede
were passed down throuh the enerations.
It is worth notin that Afrikan nations had an interenerational
system of passin down traditions, wisdom, and culture. 4hen
foreiners went into Afrika, they brouht de&astation, not help and
ci&iliFation. .he people of Afrika needed no help from the Arab or the
3uropean. .he Afrikan had a culture, lanuae, and a spiritual system.
.he Afrikan soul needed no sa&in from the foreiners. In fact,
foreiners ha&e done a reat deal of wron in Afrika. Consider ;eore
4ashinton 4illiams@ 16+# letter entitled <A Report upon the Cono*
'tate and Country.= 4illiams was e8ually appalled by the Arab sla&e
trade in the Cono, as he said in the letter that the traffickin in
Bumans went on with the basic appro&al of 7eopold@s men. Be
6"
eGplains from his tra&els how contact with the 3uropean sla&e trade,
(elian colonialism, and rum had de&astated whole populations2

.hese &arious peoples are differentiated by
their en&irons and occupations. In the 7ower Cono,
where the nati&es ha&e been in contact with 3uropeans
for centuries, felt the shock of the sla&e*trade and the
deradin influence of rum, they are diminuti&e in
form, obse8uious, deceitful, untrustworthy, unmanly
and unreliable. .heir &illaes are the abodes of
wretchedness, misery and common &ice. .heir huts,
poorly constructed of bad material, and their
uncleanness breed the most pestilential diseases, which
often de&astate whole communities of these hapless
&ictims of their own filth.
Passin from the coast inland I found a sliht
impro&ement, a stroner and more acti&e people, in the
Cataract ReionH and yet these pastoral people are
surely fallin under the destructi&e influences of
poisonous li8uor. :nder the effect of this deadly li8uor
I found the old people lookin older, and the youn
men weary and prematurely decayinH and &illaes,
formerly the scenes of content and acti&ity, at present
rent by brawlin disorder.
At 'tanley*Pool, where the nati&es cannot
obtain li8uor, I found them an industrious and
prosperous people. .hey are fishermen and traders, and
li&e in neat and comfortable &illaes. And as I
continued my Dourney up the ri&er, I noticed the nati&e
type impro&in in feature, siFe, compleGion and e&en
in character. Amon the people around (olobo,
(anala, and 38uator I beheld the most splendid types
of physical manhood I had seen in any land or amon
any people I ha&e tra&eledH I found them bra&e, frank
and enerousH but how lon they will be able to keep
this character if rum is introduced amon them, I
cannot say >Franklin, Geor%e 4as"in%ton 4i,,iams- A
Bio%ra$"y, "$"?.
It was clear from 4illiams@ writins that he understood the
damae done to Afrikan nations by sla&ery and coloniFation. In the
6/
letter, he not only spoke of the physical damae done to the people, but
also the damae done to the nations@ character. People who once li&ed
by the moral codes of their cultures had lost their ways and traditions.
.his is in the wealthy nation of the Cono where de&astation and
enocides still haunts the people. In the new Cono, Dust as in the old,
the need for an Afrikan defense system of a continental scope is
urently needed. I use the eGample of the Cono, throuh the
eyewitness account of 4illiams to show the damae done to the
Afrikan world&iew by Arabs and 3uropeans. 38uiano@s autobioraphy
i&es an eGample of the Afrikan world&iew and how 3uropean sla&ery
would erode it. 7et us briefly consider the Afrikan world&iew throuh
the account of another Afrikan.
Facin %t. Kenya
I absolutely recommend a readin of 5acin% &t. Kenya by
Lomo Kenyatta for e&eryone, and a re&isit of the teGt by those who are
familiar with it. In essence, the central purpose in Lomo Kenyatta@s
5acin% &t. Kenya was to eGplain the cultural world&iew of his people.
Kenyatta beloned to the re&olutionary eneration of Afrikans who led
the Independence mo&ement that stretched across the Afrikan
continent. Kenyatta himself, in spite of his contradictions, was a reat
leader in the Independence mo&ement. Be would o on to be the first
president of the nation of Kenya in 1+-/. Kenyatta understood the role
of Afrikans understandin the interenerational world&iew. In 5acin%
&t. Kenya, he wanted to present the Afrikan nation of the ;ikuyu
before forein domination.
.he ;ikuyu >or Kikuyu? people had a &ery stable and intake
nation beyond the Arab and 3uropean sla&e tradin and coloniFation
assaults aainst Afrika. Kenyatta@s writin i&es us an in*depth look
into that part of Kenyan culture not damaed by forein influence. In
the preface of the book, Kenyatta says, <.he cultural and historical
traditions of the ;ikuyu people ha&e been &erbally handed down from
eneration to eneration.= Be referred to this handin down of
knowlede bein e8ui&alent to liberal education. .hrouhout the teGt,
he eGplains how the elders and adults of society teach the ;ikuyu
'pirituality, customs, oral histories, leends, and traditions to the
children. As a result, the Afrikan world&iew was re*erminated in e&ery
new eneration. 5acin% &t. Kenya, published in 1+-1, is part of the
interenerational dialo or commune amon Afrikan people and the
Afrikan world&iew. Kenyatta knew this well as he wrote, <I know that
6,
there are many scientists and eneral readers who will de
disinterestedly lad of the opportunity of hearin the African@s point of
&iew, and to all such I am lad to be of ser&ice.=
5n a second eGamination of the statement, Kenyatta re&eals
that his writin was for a hiher purpose, a <ser&ice= as he put it.
7ikewise, Kenyatta was clear, as many of his contemporaries and
comrades were, on the Afrikan world&iew. Be said that his writin@s
were <t"e African6s $oint of *iew.= .hat Afrikan point of &iew,
Kenyatta eGplained throuhout the book, was tauht by remote
ancestors to ancestors, and then tauht by ancestors to li&in elders,
and transmitted by elders and adults to youn people and children. .he
children would one day ha&e the responsibility and obliation to pass
the Afrikan world&iew to the unborn. In fact, he beins the teGt by
discussin the di&ine oriin of the world and the nation accordin to his
people. .hus, we can infer from Kenyatta@s knowlede, the Afrikan
world&iew is not the domain of any indi&idual man. Rather, the Afrikan
world&iew is a ift of the Afrikan Creator that is passed on throuh
time to maintain our societies. .his analysis would make sense amon
any Afrikan culture at any time in history.
Amilcar Cabral
Aain, the fact is that all Afrikan cultures, by the di&ine rite of
comin into eGistence from a &ery distant past, possessed the Afrikan
world&iew. .hat world&iew was thus passed down throuh the aes.
%y fundamental position is that the Afrikan world&iew was not created
in America amon <African Americans,= but rather bean in Afrika.
.he Afrikans taken to America on sla&e ships carried the world&iew
with them. In a 1+$# publication of his memorial to 3duardo
%ondlane, entitled Nationa, 7i+eration and Cu,ture, I aree with
Amilcar Cabral where he states2
4hate&er may be the ideoloical or idealistic
characteristics of cultural eGpression, culture is an
essential element of the history of a people. Culture is,
perhaps, the product of this history Dust as the flower is
the product of a plant.
.his 1+$# statement of Cabral, a re&olutionary leader in the
armed strule for independence, were words to honor another
re&olutionary leader in the armed strule, 3duardo %ondlane of
61
%oFambi8ue who had founded Frelimo. Amilcar Cabral was the
foremost leader of the armed strule for the independence of ;uinea*
(issau and Cape Ierde in 4est Afrika. Cabral dedicated his life to the
resistance campain for his people, and e&entually he a&e his life to
this strule with his assassination in 1+$/ J %ondlane was
assassinated in 1+-+. Cabral@s soldiers of the PAI;C often saw him, not
only directin battle, but in battle with them. Cabral and %ondlane are
honored ancestors for Afrikan people throuhout the world as anti*
imperialists and armed freedom fihters.
Cabral was an Afrikan nationalist and Pan*Afrikanist. 5ften, he
is wronly called a 'ocialist, %arGist, or 7eninist. 4ithout a doubt, he
had 'o&iet leanin propaanda in his speeches and writin.
:nfortunately, Cabral and his eneration of armed re&olutionaries ha&e
been seriously misunderstood, includin %ondlane. Cabral and the
other independence leaders were first and number one committed to the
freedom of Afrikan people and Afrikan land. %any espoused 'o&iet*
influenced propaanda for the primary purpose of ettin arms and
supplies for battle. .hey saw some &alid parallels with class
eGploitation or the potential thereof amon middle and upper class
Afrikans in 'o&iet*influenced propaanda. Cet, Cabral and the leaders
of the independence eneration of the 1+-#s and 1+$#s were all first
and foremost committed to Afrikan nationalism. 4ithout understandin
this, one can miss the fact that Cabral and his eneration ha&e made a
reat contribution to the Afrikan world&iew.
Cabral@s contribution to the Afrikan world&iew came on the
battlefield. Be was a modern day Afrikan warrior. Cabral was of the
utmost what we call Afrikan*Centered or <Afrocentric= before either
term became popular. 4hyM (ecause he was willin to o into battle
for the land of his people, the land of his ancestors. Be was not seekin
status, tenure at some uni&ersity, or political officeH Cabral was
concerned about one thin2 liberation by any means.
Further, he has left us some of his writins and speeches. 0ur
#eo$,e are 0ur &ountains( 2eturn to t"e 3ource, and 2e*o,ution in
Guinea are amon his contributions. In Nationa, 7i+eration and
Cu,ture, Cabral said that culture rows out of a people@s history as a
flower rows from a plant. Bow appropriate that is for the issues raised
in this essayO For anyone who would dare say that Cabral was not
Afrikan*Centered, he spoke about the re&olutionary influence of culture
to a people. Be also spoke about how oppressors always attack the
culture of the oppressed. Cabral understood that resistance and freedom
rest in Afrikan culture for Afrikan people.
6-
%arcus ;ar&ey,
.he Barlem Renaissance and )eritude %o&ements

First, the Barlem Renaissance was bier than Barlem, and
)eritude was bier than Paris. .hese are mo&ements that de&eloped
from a rowin historical and cultural consciousness amon Afrikan
people in different parts of the world. It was the international
emirationist and risin nationalist mo&ements of the 1+
th
century that
laid the historic roundwork for the :)IA, the Renaissance, and
)eritude. .he "#
th
century mo&ements were all anti*colonial. .hese
mo&ements would i&e foundation to what would later de&elop as the
Afrikan Independence Re&olution beinnin with ;hana in 1+1$, and
would spill o&er in the 1+-#s to other colonies in Afrika. %y point is
that, the Barlem Renaissance and )eritude had historical models
before their times, and no mo&ements e&er de&elop out of a &acuum.
4hen discussin the de&elopment of the Afrikan world&iew of
the "#
th
century, its@ influence on the openin of the "1
st
century, and
the interenerational de&elopment of Afrikan intellectual thouht, we
must make note of certain influences. .he impact of the Bonorable
%arcus %osiah ;ar&ey and the :)IA >:ni&ersal )ero Impro&ement
Association? on the "#
th
century must not be underestimated. (asically,
after the heiht of ;ar&ey@s :)IA, e&ery (lack nationalist oraniFation
in America was influenced one way or another by the mo&ement he led.
Bis influence was felt deep in the Pan*Afrikan and decoloniFation
mo&ement decades after he became an ancestor. ;ar&ey beloned to an
era of the Barlem Renaissance and the eneral stirrins of
decoloniFation in Afrika and around the world. Althouh it is not wise
or accurate to do so, many ha&e tried to write ;ar&ey out of the Barlem
Renaissance. If the Barlem Renaissance was a storm, ;ar&ey and the
:)IA were the eye of it. ;ar&ey@s name and oraniFation was the name
spoken of by the conscious masses of people in the 1+"#s at the heiht
of the :)IA. ;ar&ey impacted millions in America and around the
world. For his era in history, none carried the Afrikan world&iew o&er
to the neGt eneration like him. It is because of ;ar&ey@s oraniFational
enius that his influence is still &ery much ali&e in our times.
Althouh not as far reachin as ;ar&ey and the :)IA, the
)eritude mo&ement is in many ways e8ually impressi&e. .he primary
founders of the )eritude mo&ement were Aime Cesaire from
%artini8ue in the Caribbean, 7eopold 'edar 'enhor from 'eneal in
6$
4est Afrika, and 7eon*;ontran 9amas from French ;uiana in 'outh
America. .he li&es of these three Afrikan men crossed the borders of
their respecti&e countries to help build a mo&ement. .heir associations
were eGamples of the potential of Pan*Afrikanism. 4hile it is widely
reconiFed that the writers of the )eritude mo&ement were at times
preoccupied with 3uropean culture, no one can deny that these writers
and acti&ist helped carry the Afrikan world&iew into the followin
eneration. .he same is true about the Barlem Renaissance. 'ome
writers were more preoccupied with American and 3uropean &alues
than Afrikan restoration, yet the mo&ement as a whole was sinificant
in the interenerational strule for Afrikan people. 4e may criti8ue
the mo&ements and leaders of the past, as certain Afrocentrists seem to
often find necessary, but those leaders and mo&ements of the past must
be honored for layin the foundations upon which we stand today. 4e
ha&e not built our own foundationH on the contrary, our ancestors ha&e
built our foundation. 4e ha&e an obliation to renew the foundation
and pass it on, but we did not create it.
It must be acknowleded that Afrikan women were acti&e in
both mo&ements. Kora )eal Burston, Lessie Fauset, Aueen %other
%oore, the women in leadership positions in the :)IA, and others
were acti&e in the Barlem Renaissance. .9 'harpley*4hitin has
authored the teGt Ne%ritude 4omen. In the )eritude mo&ement, the
works of 'uFanne 7acascade, 'uFanne Roussy*CUsaire, and others
were in&aluable. .here has been no mo&ement or re&olution of reat
sinificance in Afrikan history that eGcluded women. 5ur sisters ha&e
always been in important roles or in leadership positions.
.he )eritude mo&ement de&eloped for many of the same
reasons as the Barlem Renaissance. .he historical era precedin the
birth of both mo&ements was marked by the heihtened coloniFation of
Afrikan lands. In America, the ;ar&ey mo&ement was also fueled by
the rise of sereationist laws and practices aainst people of Afrikan
descent. In essence, both the Barlem Renaissance and the )eritude
mo&ements were loical reactions to rowin white supremacy in a
world where Afrikans saw their continent bein taken o&er by alien
rule.
It would not be chronoloically accurate to compare the
Barlem Renaissance to the )eritude mo&ement, the first went into
decline in the 1+/#s as the other was Dust beinnin. It is rather more
accurate to look at these mo&ements as an interenerational continuum
that brided across lanuae and space. .he )eritude works were
primarily in French while the Barlem Renaissance works were in
66
3nlish. In fact, the )eritude writers acknowleded the influence that
Barlem Renaissance writers had on their works. Claude %cKay,
7anston Buhes and others impacted the )eritude mo&ement. It is
hihly commendable that the )eritude writers did this because there
was not only the lanuae barrier, but national boundaries that
separated the mo&ements.
5&er time, the Afrikan world&iew has and will always adDust to
current strules faced by our people in the world. .he one constant
factor of the Afrikan world&iew is the strule for Afrikan liberation.
9e&elopments and adDustment ha&e occurred with time, and these will
continue to e&ol&e, as they should. At no point does the world&iew
completely recreate itself. .he Afrikan world&iew stems from Afrikan
culture, people, traditions, and history. 5ne of our reat challenes as
Afrikan people is to take the historical de&elopment of Afrikan
intellectual thouht, institutionaliFe it, and pass it to the future
enerations. Few understood this as much as %arcus %osiah ;ar&ey.
.ony %artin is the world@s foremost authority on %arcus
;ar&ey and the :)IA. Bis works, amon others, include 2ace 5irst,
the bioraphy of ;ar&ey entitled /ero( 7iterary Gar*eyism( and ("e
#an-African Connection amon other works. .he Lamaican Robert
Bill has published the massi&e &olumes of the &arcus Gar*ey #a$ers.
Lohn Benrik Clarke and Amy Lac8ues ;ar&ey ha&e an informati&e
work entitled Gar*ey and t"e .ision of Africa. .here is endless
number of books, websites, and other publications on %arcus ;ar&ey
today.
;ar&ey founded the :)IA in 1+1, in Lamaica. .he
oraniFation was rather conser&ati&e at the beinnin. Cet, after ;ar&ey
toured the :nited 'tates i&in lectures, he decided to set up
head8uarters in Barlem, )ew Cork. .hrouh his newspaper, ("e Ne%ro
4or,d, ;ar&ey and the writers who contributed to the paper would
carry the messae of Afrikan liberation to the far corners of the world.
(eyond his times, ;ar&ey and the :)IA would carry the messae of
liberation beyond his era. .he :)IA would set up an international
network of oraniFational chapters and businesses. ;ar&ey did not fully
realiFe his <&ision= of Afrika, yet after his transition into bein an
ancestors in 1+,#, no one can doubt that he has impacted the Afrikan
consciousness mo&ement throuhout the world. Be has likewise left an
indelible mark on the Afrikan Independence %o&ement. In short,
;ar&ey was monumental, and it is because of the impact he left on
history that we must look back to understand Afrikan consciousness
today. If we do not look back to understand Afrikan intellectual
6+
thouht, whate&er <theories= we create supposedly based on what we
ha&e not accurately studied and i&en homae to is what I ha&e called a
propaanda*myth.
As the ;ar&ey %o&ement and the Barlem Renaissance bean
to decline in the 1+/#s, across the ocean, .he )eritude mo&ement was
Dust stirrin. :nfortunately, most of the books on )eritude deal with
the mo&ement as a literary mo&ement. .he same mistake is made with
the Barlem Renaissance. (oth mo&ements were more than literary
works, poetry, and dance. .he mo&ements were also political, radical,
and anti*colonial. (oth mo&ements were a channel for nationalists
thouht and acti&ism, some writers and leaders were more radical than
were others. .he Renaissance came after a low point in the 1+
th
century emiration and nationalist mo&ement in America. Cet, the
Renaissance peaked at a time when sereation reined in America.
)eritude happened while France was a colonial power in Afrika and
around the world. .he )eritude mo&ement de&eloped from the anti*
colonial sentiments of Afrikan students from &arious French colonies.
%arcus ;ar&ey, the Barlem Renaissance, and the )eritude mo&ement
would all ha&e an impact on the Independence mo&ement that would
sweep throuh the Afrikan continent.
.he :)IA of %arcus ;ar&ey, the African (lood (rotherhood
of Cyril (ris, the )AACP of 43( 9u (ois, the (rotherhood of
'leepin Car Porters of A. Phillip Randolph, and &arious other
oraniFations should tell us that the Barlem Renaissance was much
more than poetry and dance. .he Afrikan consciousness literature,
entirely unrelated to poetry, is often nelected. .he Renaissance was a
period of Afrikan cultural, educational, and political awakenin.
7ikewise, the )eritude mo&ement has been marinaliFed as only an
aesthetic mo&ement. Cesaire, 'enhor, and 9amas were all writers, but
they were all politicians in their countries of birth at some point in their
li&es. .hat@s more than what we can say about particular
<Afrocentrists= who are so 8uick to downsiFe )eritude, but are
basically academicians in uni&ersities. 5ne of the common factors
amon those who made the )eritude mo&ement is that Afrikan nations
on the continent and throuhout the Afrikan world had a riht to
independence and so&ereinty. .o &aryin derees, this idea influenced
the political careers of Cesaire, 'enhor, and 9amas. .he arts ha&e an
important place in Afrikan cultureH howe&er, )eritude and the Barlem
Renaissance were much more than poetry and dance.
Aain, it is silly to think that the Barlem Renaissance or
)eritude were only artistic and literary mo&ements. Alioune 9iop is
+#
not considered one of the <founders= of the )eritude mo&ement, but
his contributions would be immense. Be i&es us a concrete eGample of
how )eritude was anti*colonial and political. 9iop was a close friend
of 'enhor, both of them bein 'enealese. Alioune 9iop decided to
create a central clearin house for the )eritude mo&ement, and that is
eGactly what he did. .he Dournal, #resence Africaine) was founded in
1+,$. 'hortly afterwards, in 1+,+, the Presence Africaine 3ditions
publishin company was founded. #resence Africaine became one of
the most sinificant literary &ehicles for Afrikan nationalism and Pan*
Afrikanism on the e&e of the Independence era in Afrika. #resence
Africaine retained its@ anti*colonial, pro*independence tone throuhout
the 1+-#s and $#s. If there was any sinle literary bride from the
colonial era throuh the Independence mo&ement, most would aree
that it was Alioune 9iop@s #resence Africaine) 'uch writers as
'enhor, Lulius )yerere, and 'ekou .oure were all heads of state who
at some time wrote for Dournal. 4hat seemed like a &ery modest proDect
in the beinnin would e&entually impact an entire era.
It has been noted that 'enhor was a factor in the publishin
efforts of Alioune 9iop, but so was Richard 4riht and many others. In
Great Afrikan ("inkers, Lames 'pady notes the 4riht*9iop
connection >+1?. Alioune@s publishin &ehicles thus represent a bride
for not only )eritude, but also the Barlem Renaissance into the era
across the -#s and $#s. 9iop@s publishin house, Presence Africaine
3ditions was founded as a &ehicle for Afrikan authors. It was throuh
publishin efforts of Alioune 9iop, that one of many youn writers ot
a start. 5ne youn writer in particular was Cheikh Anta 9iop who
published his first essay in #resence Africaine before he was "1 years
old in 1+,6. .he essay is entitled <5riins of the 4olof 7anuae and
Race.= 'ubse8uently, all of Cheikh Anta 9iop@s books were first
published by Alioune 9iop. In Great Afrikan ("inkers, edited by I&an
Ian 'ertima, Lohn Benrike Clarke discusses how he came to know
9iop. It was after becomin familiar with the research of Cheikh Anta
9iop, Clarke souht an American publisher to reproduce his works in
3nlish from French. It took se&en years >Clarke, Great Afrikan
("inkers <Cheikh Anta 9iop and the )ew Concept of African Bistory,=
11#?. Lohn Benrik Clarke was in ways a product of the Barlem
Renaissance mo&ementH Cheikh Anta 9iop was in ways a product of
the )eritude mo&ement. .his was the most sinificant bride of the
two mo&ements that would combine to ha&e a reat impact on the
Afrikan conscious mo&ement of the present eneration. (etween these
two monumental ancestors, Cheikh Anta 9iop and Lohn Benrik Clarke,
+1
neither of whom relied on usin the word <Afrocentric= in their
research, few ha&e contributed to the Afrikan world&iew as they did. It
bes to be pointed out, howe&er, that in the 1+$6 &ersion of 9iop@s
book, Cu,tura, Unity of B,ack Africa, Clarke said in the introduction
about 9iop, <Amon the African writers usin the French lanuae he
started the Afrocentric approach to history.= I don@t think that Clarke
was sayin that 9iop was a complete inno&ator from out of a &acuum.
9iop ushered in a new and scientific approach to Afrikan history with
the use of &arious disciplines, as Clarke had often noted. 4hat is
sinificant is that in 1+$6, %olefi had not published his book,
Afrocentricity, and in that year you had one master teacher sayin that
another was Afrocentric. (y that time, both men had been doin
Afrikan*Centered research for se&eral decades. (oth men paid due
homae to the interenerational world&iew or those scholar*warriors
who blaFed the trail before them. )either Clarke nor 9iop claimed
fatherhood titles.
Cheikh Anta 9iop recei&ed an honorary doctorate from
%orehouse in 1+61. Bis words are as pertinent now as they were then.
Be spoke about the need to continue the work of interenerational
knowlede and the need to institutionaliFe the transmission for the &ery
sake of sur&i&al. .hese are his words2
9istinuished uests, ladies and entlemen,
%r. President, my colleaues and friends, I wish to
seiFe this opportunity that has been i&en me to direct
your attention to the ra&ity of the responsibility which
has been entrusted to you J that of the transmission of
knowlede to youn enerations of our community.
7ookin o&er history we are 8uickly drawn to the fact
that our nations ha&e declined, and, as a result, our
communities. .his is intimately tied to national
so&ereinty and especially to the loss of control of our
educational systems which assure the transmission of
understandin from eneration to eneration0 It is
also the classical techni8ue of domination, of
coloniFation, throuhout history, to destroy and to
weaken the historical consciousness of a people who
become dominated. All the factors which reinforce that
consciousness are taken away, taken out of the
instruction so that proressi&ely the dominated nation
becomes amnesiac >Great Afrikan ("inker, /1+?.
+"
9iop was fueled throuhout his life to continue the
interenerational transmission of Afrikan consciousness to the neGt
eneration. Be was &ery clear about the interenerational transmission
of knowlede and culture bein the reat issue of sur&i&al for our
people, for any people. 9iop was also clear about bridin the two
mo&ements across the Atlantic. In the same speech, 9iop also declared,
<Research in the periods concerned in prehistory and in anti8uity ha&e
sufficiently ad&anced to permit a fusion of our prorams on the two
sides of the Atlantic.= .o this effort, 9iop committed his life to the
restoration of the Afrikan nation of ancient 3ypt >Kemet, K%., or
.awi? to Afrikan history. Be has led the path that a eneration of
historians and researchers ha&e followed. 4e are still in the process of
rede&elopin )ile Ialley ci&iliFation to Afrikan history. Racist white
scholars ha&e spent at least two centuries remo&in Kemet >ancient
3ypt? from Afrikan history. :nderstandin the role of a people@s
classical ci&iliFation to their interenerational world&iew, 9iop has
basically, sinle*handedly, corrected the myth of 3ypt bein anythin
eGcept a product of Afrika. .his has been his maDor contribution to the
Afrikan world&iew. Cet, as Lohn Benrik Clarke was, 9iop himself was
a product of a mo&ement, and both properly honored those who came
before them.
5ur (lack 'hinin Prince
.he late 5ssie 9a&is euloiFed %alcolm Q as our <(lack
'hinin Prince.= Be made reference in the euloy to %alcolm Q@s
tra&els in Afrika. %alcolm was in Afrika buildin brides, Pan*Afrikan
brides, for the Afrikan world community. Be understood that the
strenth of Afrikan people was in unity. Be was 8uick to clarify to
anyone that he was a (lack nationalist and a Pan*Afrikanist. Few
would arue that at the heiht of his influence, in the 1+-#s, %alcolm
Q did more than any other indi&idual in America in passin the Afrikan
world&iew on to the followin eneration. .hrouh his passion and
elo8uence, %alcolm Q opened the minds of millions of Afrikan people
in America to the concepts of nationalism.
.here are se&eral loose strins about the life of %alcolm Q.
.here are se&eral issues that are not clear or issues that people ha&e a
reat deal of confusion about. 5ne reat issue is that three chapters
were ne&er published with the rest of his autobioraphy, three chapters
that reflected his ideoloical de&elopment in his last years. Foremost
+/
amon issues that are unclear about %alcolm Q is his assassination.
4ho killed %alcolm QM For any sensible person, I would only
recommend a couple of sources to bein the research in findin the
answers about who killed %alcolm. Be is &ery re&ealin in his
autobioraphy about the in&ol&ement of the )ation of Islam >)5I? in
wantin him dead, and he was Dust as clear in his speeches when he was
ali&e. Farrakhan has made statements o&er the last se&eral decades
about wantin %alcolm dead, or of him deser&in death, or bein
partly responsible for <creatin the attitude and atmosphere.= %any of
us ha&e heard L. 3dar Boo&er@s diabolical statement about the need to
<pre&ent the rise of a (lack messiah.= Karl 3&anFF has written some
unearthin details in :udas Factor# The +lot to Kill Malcolm 6 and his
other book The Messen'er# The Rise and Fall of Eli/ah Muhammad. I
ha&e some disareements with 3&anFF reardin %alcolm@s personal
life, but o&erall his research is sound. 7et none of us foret, %alcolm
was a threat to national and lobal white supremacy. .he problem is
that some of us are not sensible on this issue of %alcolm@s
assassination for one reason or another.
%alcolm Q was ne&er only a reliious leader. Bis earliest
speeches in the )ation of Islam re&eal that he was hihly, politically
conscious. 4hen he was put out of the )5I, his mind and ideoloy was
able to de&elop in ways it had not while he was under the leadership of
3liDah %uhammad. It was after his break with the )5I that %alcolm
bean to more and more declare that he was a (lack nationalist and a
Pan*Afrikanist. 4hat must be understood here is that the )5I did not
introduce %alcolm to Afrikan consciousness, and this fact is often
o&erlooked. %alcolm and his siblins were introduced to Afrikan
consciousness by his parents who were both members of %arcus
;ar&ey@s :)IA. 4ith the loss of his father throuh a brutal lynchin
and his mother@s emotional breakdown, %alcolm would lose the
uidance he would ha&e recei&ed in his formati&e pre*teen and teenae
years when he became a street hustler and e&entually a con&ict.
.here are primarily three roups of people who et this neGt
issue confused2 %uslims, %uslim sympathiFers, and multiculturalists.
.he issue is the reality around %alcolm Q@s trip to %ecca. %alcolm
reported how he had witnessed the brotherhood of mankind on his haDD
to %ecca. %aybe he did. 4hat we do know is that for centuries Islam
has been used by anti*Afrikan racist the same way Christianity has
been used by anti*Afrikan racist. Arabs and their collaborators ha&e
been systematically ensla&in Afrikans and committin enocide for
about 1,,## years in the name of reliion. .he reat 8uestion, as I see
+,
it, is if %alcolm Q understood the Arab oppression of Afrikans
throuhout many countries in Afrika and the %iddle 3ast, what would
he ha&e done or said about itM 4hat we all know is that once %alcolm
Q transformed his life, he was a man of principles and interity.
%y contention is that, durin the heiht of his influence, none
other was more responsible for the interenerational crosso&er of the
Afrikan world&iew than %alcolm Q. Accordin to Ne, "ork Times, in
between 1+-/ and 1+-,, %alcolm Q was the most souh*after (lack
speaker on collee campuses and uni&ersities. Be was the second most
souht*after speaker of any race on collee campuses and uni&ersities.
.he first was the influential, Republican senator from AriFona, (arry
;oldwater who was runnin for President of the :' in 1+-,.
%alcolm Q was not a chosen or accepted leader by mainstream
America. (ecause of his commitment to the strule, and the sheer
passion he brouht to it, he was accepted as our (lack 'hinnin Prince.
If I can site a few of %alcolm Q@s historic speeches, they will i&e
some &alidity to the fact that he was a man who was de&elopin
ideoloically after splittin from the )5I. In <%essae to .he
;rassroots,= deli&ered in 1+-/, he pro&ides us with his analoy of the
Bouse )ero and the Field )ero. In this speech, it is &ery clear that he
belie&es in freedom and re&olution. In the famous <(allot or (ullet=
speech of 1+-,, %alcolm said o&er and o&er aain that he belie&ed in
(lack nationalism, which simply means that Afrikan people throuhout
the world ha&e e&ery riht to control their nations, communities, and
destiny. It was also in 1+-,, Luly, that %alcolm a&e the historic Pan*
Afrikan address to the 5raniFation of Afrikan :nity before Afrikan
Beads of 'tates in Cairo, 3ypt. In %alcolm@s &ery last speech, i&en a
week before his death, in 9etroit, he spoke primarily about the
<Afrikan Re&olution,= as he put it. Be spoke about Afrikans in the
Americas and 7atin America. It is clear that he was an astute Pan*
Afrikanist and &ery Afrikan*Centered. Be eGplained that the only way
to counter white supremacy and neo*colonialism was throuh lobal
Pan*Afrikanism and nationalism. Be also eGplained some details about
the oraniFation he founded, the 5raniFation of Afro*American :nity
>5AA:?, founded after the principles of the 5raniFation of Afrikan
:nity in 1+-,.
%ore so than any of his speeches, %alcolm Q@s little*known,
&ery last inter&iew * last words before the day of his assassination *
speaks &olumes to the fact that he was still oin throuh ideoloical
transitions in his life. .he Al-Muslimoon Ma'a2ine based in ;ene&a,
'witFerland in February of 1+-1 inter&iewed him. .he teGt is currently
+1
a&ailable at www.malcolm*G.or. %alcolm bean by eGplainin the
differences between him and 3liDah %uhammad that many belie&e led
to his death. .he inter&iewer more than once asked %alcolm Q about
his concern and attention to the strules of Afrikan people in America
and the world. %alcolm told the inter&iewer that his loyalty was <first=
to his race, and then he informed him that, <I reard Africa as my
fatherland.= .his &ery last inter&iew by our (lack 'hinin Prince
clearly places his loyalties to Afrikan people abo&e all, a clear shift in
his &iew when he was in the )5I seekin primarily con&erts. Aain,
speculation will ne&er be final about what would ha&e become of
%alcolm@s &iew about Islam had he understood the Arab ensla&ement
of Afrikans. Bowe&er, we must understand that he carried the Afrikan
world&iew throuh the first half of the 1+-#s and passed it o&er to a
new eneration. Bis influence is still &ery ali&e today.
4hile he is enerally celebrated amon our people, few people
understand %alcolm Q and the sinificance of his life. 3&en fewer
people understand that the life of %alcolm Q was reatly impacted by
the Afrikan world&iew throuh the influence of the %arcus ;ar&ey@s
:)IA on his family. .he :)IA also reatly influenced the )ation of
Islam, howe&er, that is not my emphasis. %alcolm was born into a
conscious (lack nationalist and Pan*Afrikan family. Be became
misuided as a teenaer. Cet, it was due in lare part to his family
upbrinin that he was able to et his life back on its@ di&ine track.
%arcus ;ar&ey was mentioned se&eral times in the first paes of
%alcolm Q@s autobioraphy when he bean eGplainin his childhood.
In writin the Foreword to her father@s autobioraphy, Attallah 'habaFF
found it especially sinificant to note2
In 1+1+, my paternal randparent, 3arl and 7ouisa
7ittle, married and bean their lare family of eiht
children. At the same time they both worked
steadfastly as crusaders for %arcus ;ar&ey@s :ni&ersal
)ero Impro&ement Association, actin as chapter
president and writerEtranslator for more than a decade.
.heir children were deeply in&ol&ed and inspired by
their parent@s mission to encourae self*reliance and
uphold a sense of empowerment for people of the
African 9iaspora >Auto%io'raphy of Malcolm 6, 6?.
%alcolm Q did not fully de&elop into a Pan*Afrikan nationalist
until his mind and ideoloical foundation was able to row after his
+-
1+-/ split from the )5I. Prior to his split with the )5I, %alcolm@s
speeches were hea&ily focused on the con&ersion of (lacks to the )5I.
%alcolm@s most sinificant speeches came after he left the )5I. .he
<%essae to the ;rassroots= was i&en Dust before the split, yet friction
was hih between him and the )5I at the time. .raically for the
world, this reat man@s life was cut short by the bullets of assassins.
Cet, %alcolm Q was able to brin his life full circle back to the Pan*
Afrikan nationalist roots tauht to him and his siblins as children by
their parents throuh the teachins of %arcus ;ar&ey. People read his
autobioraphy and often inore the most important issues. After lea&in
the )ation of Islam, %alcolm Q eGplained that he wanted to de&elop a
(lack )ationalist oraniFation, specifically the 5AA:.
<4hy (lack )ationalismM= he asked in the autobioraphy. <If
you will remember, in my childhood had been eGposed to the (lack
)ationalist teachins of %arcus ;ar&ey0= >/6"?
I ha&e pointed out that if %alcolm li&ed loner, he would ha&e
morphed aain. 'ince he left the )ation of Islam, his mind and
thouhts were allowed to eGpand, and in his thinkin, formin new
oraniFations and contacts, he was still fiurin a lot of thins out.
(esides his tra&els in the Arab world, hihlihted in 'pike 7ee@s mo&ieH
%alcolm had met and had discussions with Presidents of Afrikan
nations such as )krumah, )yerere, Kenyatta, AFikwe, .oure, and
others >/$6?. Ideoloically, %alcolm was still de&elopin. Cet,
%alcolm became one of the stronest proponents of nationalism and
Pan*Afrikanism in the Afrikan world. In the process, he also became
one of the reat bearers of the Afrikan world&iew.
.he :nfinished Re&olution
7et us be clear. 4hat is a re&olutionM Bow does a re&olution
translates in terms of Afrikan peopleM A re&olution is a re&ersal or
radical chane in the status 8uo of a society. A re&olution can occur by
peaceful means, or by armed resistance, or the threat of armed
resistance. A re&olution by an oppressed population must occur within
that population@s total world&iew. .o be successful, a re&olution must
also occur in the primary and secondary means of eGistence of the
dominated peopleH meanin in the areas of political control, economics,
education, reliiousEspiritual institutions, and other cultural institutions
that shape a population@s or a nation@s world&iew. .his is the heart of
what so many of our leaders and oraniFations ha&e not understood.
.he ainin of the riht to &ote may be a re&olutionary act in itself, but
+$
it is not a re&olution. A rowin number of politicians and access to the
Dudicial system are not re&olutions alone. Access to hiher learnin is a
reat ad&ancement, but it is not a re&olution. A rowin middle class is
a desired achie&ement of any nation, but it is not a re&olution either.
.hese are some of the honored ains made by people of Afrikan
descent in America, but these ains are not re&olutions. In fact, in many
instances, our proress as a people in America has at times pro&en to be
counterproducti&e. .here is no compromisin ain in a re&olution. I
must add that a re&olution is not domatic rhetoric, loud talkin, or the
riht to speech. A re&olution that would occur in an oppressed society
has but one end, and that is the end of oppression and sustained
independence.
An Afrikan re&olution must occur within all of the aspects of
our societies, i.e. culture, economy and business, education at all le&els,
politics, social, and spiritual. All of our re&olutions in the modern era
ha&e missed one or more points. A complete re&olution that we may
use as an eGample is the re&olution in the ancient )ile Ialley beun by
the founders of the 1$
th
9ynasty from the royal family of 'e8enenra
.ao aainst the in&aders known as the Byksos. .hat was a &ery
complete re&olution because not only did the 1$
th
9ynasty warriors
eGpel the Byksos, they also restored their total Afrikan world&iew, in
all domains. A total re&olution is indeed a rare historical item because
the oppressed usually adopts ways, traditions, and thouht of the
oppressor to the le&el that corruption is almost final unless the
re&olutionary fully understands that re&olution is total, complete or
physical as well as spiritual, conscious as well as subconscious in all
domains of eGistence. .oday, we ha&e a more complete understandin
of re&olution from the study of the couraeous mo&ements and
sacrifices of our ancestors. .hey ha&e left the many eGamples for our
study. 5ur obliation is to chane the world for the better. 5ur
responsibility is to look towards the future. 5ur moti&e is a complete
Afrikan re&olution and nothin short of it.
An Afrikan world re&olution is our historic obDecti&e. .his is
not to say that Afrikans will be the new oppressors of anyone else. .he
most humane societies the world has known were built on the Afrikan
continent. An honest study of ;reece and Rome, the rise of modern
3urope, America, the Arab nations, and India would all yield e&idence
of nations built on oppression. .his would not be the case with an
honest and accurate study of )ile Ialley ci&iliFation and most of the
early ci&iliFations of Afrika. :nfortunately, many people ha&e fell for
+6
this created idea about sla&ery beinnin in Afrika before the 3uropean
and Arab in&asions. .hese indi&iduals ha&e not seriously studied
Afrika, or the rise of Arab and 3uropean culture in Afrika. An Afrikan
re&olution would ha&e a foundation in the concepts of order and Dustice,
known as %aat, in the )ile Ialley and found amon other Afrikan
societies and traditions not so corrupted by forein world&iews. An
Afrikan re&olution in any nation would take the en&ironment into
consideration. Any Afrikan nation based on the concepts of our
ancestors would not pollute the waters, air, and land. .he first
re&olution a technoloically ad&anced Afrikan nation would take up
should be a pollution free enery system. .he neGt issue in an Afrikan
nation would be how to feed and educate e&eryone. .he Afrikan
world&iew is not based on oppressionH it is based on harmony. 5ur
mo&ements of the past and present are a march to an Afrikan re&olution
in the future.
Lohn Benrike Clarke wrote two &ery important books, one
Notes for an African &orld Re(olution# Africans at the Crossroads and
the other &ho !etrayed the Afrikan &orld Re(olution and -ther
Speeches) Be often spoke about the Afrikan world re&olution as an
<incomplete re&olution.= 'peakin of the re&olutionaries who made
their marks on the "#
th
century, Clarke said, <5ur mission should be to
complete their re&olution and the completion should be the leacy that
we lea&e for our people and for all people= >African &orld Re(olution,
1##?. 5ne of the maDor <incomplete re&olutions= was the Independence
%o&ement in Afrika. 4e still ha&e e&ery so*called independent nation
in Afrika with neo*colonial ties to the 3uropean world or physically
coloniFed by Arab populations and culture. %any nations are bein
slowly coloniFed economically by 3ast Asians. In the 'udan, Afrikans
ha&e been fihtin an independence war that they must fiht for
sur&i&al aainst a enocidal o&ernment. In the 9R Cono, the nation
is fractured in an instiated resource dri&en war. Kimbabwe has to
defend its@ rihtful and so&erein actions of takin lands from whites
who are descendents of the coloniFers who took the lands in the first
place. 'outh Afrika, where the masses protested and campained in
armed resistance, is enrichin 3uropean nations more than it is
enrichin the people who suffered for freedom. 3&en the nations with a
stable en&ironment free of warfare and coups are bein ripped off of
their resources. .he re&olution is far from finished. Furthermore, the
Ci&il Rihts %o&ement, the (lack Power %o&ements, the conscious
and political mo&ements throuhout the Caribbean and 'outh AfrikaH
all of these mo&ements are unfinished re&olutions that must be
++
re&italiFed and whose brides must be connected. Consider the
followin 8uotes by Clarke2
Perhaps the reatest political mistake that has
been made in Africa in relation to the Independence
3Gplosion is the 3uropean trainin of the African heads
of state and their respecti&e supporters, whose ideas of
the state are neati&ely influenced by this trainin.
4hate&er system the Africans use for themsel&es must
be reshaped by the concept of Africa for Africa.
)either the communists nor the capitalists ha&e a
master plan for African freedom. 4hile there are
stron ideoloical differences between the capitalists
and the communists, their intention in Africa is the
same. (oth of them would like to rule o&er African
people and their resources by any means necessary.
.he sal&ation of Africa must be desined by
the collecti&e mind of the African world. .he imitation
3uropean states now in eGistence throuhout the
African world ha&e no lon*rane future >Notes for an
African &orld Re(olution4 Giii?.
Also, consider this 8uote2
In callin attention to the African world
re&olution and its betrayal, I am askin African people
to reclaim those &ital assets that ha&e always been a
part of their history, culture, and politics. As a people,
we ha&e always been re&olutionary, creatin chane
and adDustin to chane. .oday as we stand at the
crossroads of our history in particular and world
history in eneral, we miht ha&e to strateically step
backwards in order to mo&e forward0 >&ho !etrayed
the Afrikan &orld Re(olution4 1-?
.here can be no complete Afrikan re&olution without an
educational enterprise totally de&oted to the Afrikan world&iew and
interest. 4e must educate the future eneration to maintain and protect
nations. .hat education must deal with the damaes of oppression on
the Afrikan mind. 5therwise, we will see a eneration of people who
think like their oppressors, and they will keep the door open for their
1##
oppressors. .he Afrikan mo&ements of the "#th century ha&e not been
complete re&olutions in the march aainst time. Pan*Afrikan brides
must be built between nations in Afrika and throuhout the Afrikan
world, and we as a people must understand what a complete Afrikan
re&olution encompasses. It re8uires institutions, really an infrastructure
or network of institutions, dedicated to all domains of our interest and
sur&i&al.
.he center stae of the Afrikan world re&olution was the
Independence mo&ement that bean sweepin throuh Afrika once
;hana ained its@ independence from (ritain in 1+1$ with Kwame
)krumah as the Prime %inister and e&entually the President. )krumah
and the eGample of ;hana lit a fire in the hearts of the Afrikan world
community. .he Independence %o&ement did not bein in 1+"" or
with the <independence= of 3ypt because 3ypt is still an Arab
colony. )asser, contrary to what many belie&e, is not a nati&e Afrikan.
Be is descendent from the (eni %orr Arabs. Also, )asser was a
staunch Arab nationalist. .he so*called <independence= of 'udan was
turno&er of power from the (ritish to the Arabs in 1+1-. %orocco and
.unisia was also turno&ers of powers from French to Arab o&ernments
in 1+1-. .his is why the modern Independence %o&ement bean in
1+1$ with the Afrikan nation and Afrikan presidency of ;hana. .he
Independence %o&ement, or eGplosion as Clarke calls it, spread
8uickly throuhout the -#s and $#s. 4ars aainst colonial forces would
erupt in se&eral places such as Kenya, 9emocratic Republic of Cono,
Kimbabwe, ;uinea*(issau, Anola, and 'outh Afrika. .he (ritish
suffered financially with the %au %au resistance in Kenya. France
suffered militarily with the resistance in Aleria. As a result, se&eral
nations were able to rely on protest and political pressure to win some
le&el of political independence. .he re&olution of this era was won on
the battlefield in war and by means of protest. 5n the other hand, the
re&olution was ne&er completed.
.he Afrikan world must reconiFe that the Independence
re&olution of Afrikan nations was ne&er complete. )orth Afrika is still
militarily a colony of Arab nations. :nderstood in its@ historic conteGt,
the war in the south 'udan, renewed in 1+6/, was an armed resistance
aainst the further infiltration of Arabs and Arab culture and reliion
further into Afrika. If these e&ents were understood, e&ery Afrikan
nation would ha&e had troops on the round supportin the 'outhern
'udanese who had to fiht that war &irtually alone and lose o&er two
million li&es, mainly ci&ilians, in the process. .hose bra&e Afrikans in
1#1
'udan were fihtin to preser&e Afrikan land, culture, and the
world&iew of our people.
If the independence mo&ement were better understood, there
would ha&e been more cooperation amon Afrikan freedom fihters,
military and political cooperation aainst colonialism and neo*
colonialism. .he only reason the recent co&ert, :' coup under the (ush
administration was successful in Baiti is because the Afrikan world is
so splintered. If we know for no other sinle eGample in any nation
why Pan*Afrikanism is an issue of sur&i&al, we should consider the
reatest traedy of any nation in the last half century, the instiated war
in the Cono that has cost o&er fi&e million li&es, mostly women and
children. .his issue of Pan*Afrikanism is not an ideoloical debate.
.his issue of the Afrikan world&iew is not definitional. .his is an issue
about our &ery sur&i&al on 3arth. 4e cannot afford to lea&e the Afrikan
world re&olution unfinished in a world replete with inhumane and anti*
Afrikan interest. .he Afrikan world re&olution is our only chance to not
only chane the world, but to first sur&i&e in it.
)ote to the Present ;eneration
4ell, today, we ha&e kept the Afrikan world&iew ali&e in this
eneration. It will certainly be passed on to the neGt eneration. If not
for anythin else, we can be certain of this fact because of the rowin
influence of the Afrikan conscious mo&ement today. 'ince the 1+-#s,
Afrikan intellectual thouht and consciousness has continued to
de&elop. Bowe&er, in many ways the current eneration has reressed.
.hose of us in this eneration are not where we should be in the
strule. 4e ha&e not taken the interest, sur&i&al, and world&iew of our
people seriously enouh.
For one, the collee and uni&ersity protest mo&ement for (lack
'tudies has become a ross, student, careerist, mo&ement and a ross,
professor, tenure*track mo&ement. It is ross because many if not most
of these students and teachers ha&e lost the memory of how they ended
up with their positions in (lack 'tudies or other prorams and
departments. .he (lack administrators ha&e also lost siht of how they
ended up with their position. .he protest mo&ement which peaked in
the 1+-#s has put people in positions who ha&e now become insensiti&e
to that &ery mo&ement, and in some cases these indi&iduals ha&e
become bitter and e&en hostile.
As a community, we fouht for the riht to &ote. People were
hurt, beaten, and e&en shot for the riht to &ote. )ow, today we ha&e
1#"
too many people in offices who care less than an iota about makin
chanes for their people. 4e ha&e people in office who are afraid to
speak up for what is riht for their own communities, the constituency
as they miht say. If the mo&ement was a feast, most of our politicians
would arri&e late and lea&e early. .he rest would ne&er bother to show
up. 4e ha&e &ery few eGceptions, from what I see, of politicians who
are willin to make a fiht for our people.
4e often wonder why we don@t ha&e more (lack*owned and
operated businesses. 4e wonder this and then look at all of the Asian,
Arab, and forein businesses poppin up in our communities. 4e look
at corporate white America ettin filthy rich from the hundreds of
billions of dollars that slip throuh our hands e&ery year. 4e obser&e
all of this and wonder what@s wron. 4e ha&e not educated our children
in nation*buildin and economy creation. 4e ha&e not tauht our
youn people a basic le&el of race consciousness and the need for
interdependence with their own. A youn woman or man lea&es our
community and learn business manaement, where do they oM A white
uni&ersity or a white uni&ersity with a (lack population >we call them
B(C:s?, all the same. 4e don@t ha&e an educational network to teach
Afrikan lobal marketin or national business creation. 4ith the money
we make as a people, we could build a uni&ersity e&ery few months,
one for each season. .hat@s literally how much money we throw away.
4e must educate our children in how a nation of people must cooperate
and use their resources to promote their interest, or what happens when
they don@t.
.he Afrikan*Centered school mo&ement has all but
disappeared. In 1+$", CI(I was founded. .oday, that mo&ement is a
shadow of its@ past. 5nly a few soldiers hold that frontline. 4e ha&e a
charter school mo&ement, but like many of the independent schools,
our schools lack teachers and administrators who are Afrikan*Centered.
4e ha&e basically no Afrikan 'piritual schools today. %ost of our
people belon to the reliions of foreiners, and thus they will not e&en
take an Afrikan 'piritual based school as a serious thouht. 4e ha&e no
Afrikan uni&ersities to e&en dream about. )o people can promote their
interest without an educational system that they built for that purpose.
9id anybody e&er think that with all of these (lack
administrators and professors, what does it look like for us not to ha&e
one independent uni&ersityM 4here is the Afrikan uni&ersity that
promotes our ancient )ile Ialley lanuae and literature as classical
teGtsM 4here is the independent, Afrikan*Centered uni&ersity de&oted
to the promotion and study of Afrikan cultures and 'piritualityM 4here
1#/
is the Afrikan uni&ersity that de&elops think tanks de&oted to the
political and economic interest of our peopleM 4here is the Afrikan
uni&ersity that has a medical department and hospital which trains
students in the health and medical fields for the particular ailments we
face as a peopleM 4hy don@t we ha&e a uni&ersity or uni&ersities that
address these issues facin our people and other Afrikans throuhout
the worldM Is this eGclusi&e or racist, some may thinkM 4ell, consider
the fact that many nations on this 3arth with the capital that we earn
also ha&e uni&ersities to meet the needs of their populations. 7ook
around the world and you will see nations de&elopin studies for their
populations. .he American uni&ersity has ne&er been committed to
Afrikan people, yet we ha&e yet to build our own. 4e ha&e yet to e&en
build enouh hih schools and rade schools for our children. 4hen we
understand the Afrikan world&iew, we will bein to understand our
mission as a people.
.he Afrikan world&iew is what I intended to set the record
straiht about in this essay. 4ith our current state, our world&iew is the
one thin we ot that has been passed down o&er the enerations. 4e
can@t afford to ha&e that distorted or destroyed. 4e can@t afford to
nelect this issueH too much is at stake. 4e do ha&e some &ery serious
scholars and leaders in this eneration who take the Afrikan world&iew
&ery seriously, but we also ha&e many who do not. For eGample, far too
many ha&e been willin to address the ideoloical chaos around
<Afrocentricity.= 'till we ha&e a cadre of scholars and leaders who
work o&ertime to introduce our people to their history and potential. In
all, I must say, we ha&e yet to build a nation of people that is clear
about the meanin of their eGistence in this world. 4e ha&e yet to build
a people who produce the institutions we need for our interest and
sur&i&al. 4e ha&e yet to build a nation of people committed to nation*
buildin. If we don@t mount the structures in this eneration, let us at
least be couraeous enouh to pass the tools, foundation, and blueprint
on to the neGt eneration.
7ast .houhts
<Fatherhoods= are from a paternalistic, 3uropean world&iew.
.he <Father of science= ;alileo, <Father of medicine= Bippocrates,
<Father of math= Pythaoras, <Father of philosophy= 9escartes,
<Father of history,= Bomer, etc., etc., are all 3uropean, non*factual,
titles. .here was science, medicine, math, history, and ci&iliFation in
Afrika lon before people started callin 3uropeans fathers of what
1#,
they did not create. .he 3uropean world&iew is linear and set in the
belief that throuh the march of time proress is ine&itable and is
always ood. .his mindset has led to mythmakin about the oriins of
science, math, and ci&iliFation in eneralH and it has led to
technoloical <proress= that has resulted in the destruction of the
en&ironment and populations.
In the Afrikan world&iew, history is cyclical. 5ur &iew of
history is that it is based on harmonious cycles that we must stay in
tune with. .his cyclical &iew of history necessitates a renewin of the
Afrikan world&iew o&er time at different period in history. .he renewal
is always based on ancestral links or what Lacob Carruthers called the
inter'enerational communication. Fundamentally so, this is why
<Afrocentricity= has no <Father.= :nfortunately, many of our scholars
ha&e adopted the 3uropean idea of concepts ha&in <Fathers.= 4e sit
and debate uselessly about whether or not %artin 9elany is the <Father
of (lack nationalism,= 9u (ois or ;ar&ey is the <Father of Pan*
Afrikanism,= 3dward (lyden is the <Father of )eritude,= or if
4oodson is the <Father of (lack Bistory.= .hins really et interestin
when we talk about Imhotep bein the <Father of medicine= since he
li&ed well o&er ",### years before Bippocrates. 4ell, Bippocrates was
not the father of medicine, and Imhotep did master the science of
medicine two millenniums and some centuries first. Cet, Afrikans were
masterin medicine before Imhotep. In fact, in the )ile Ialley
educational system, Imhotep himself was tauht medicine by his
teachers or elders.
In the attempt to label 9elany, 9u (ois, ;ar&ey, 4oodson, and
others with fatherhood titles, what is missin, amon other issues, is the
fact that none of these men were self-a''randi2in' enouh to promote
themsel&es as <Fathers.= .hey understood they were continuin a
tradition of strule. .he <Fatherhood= is not an Afrikan idea, and in
e&ery case the title is not historically factual J most of all the present
one about Afrocentricity. .hat old sayin2 <it@s nothin new under the
sun= is especially true here. Afrikan thouht, consciousness, and
strule ha&e been passed down from our ancestors. .he ift of
Afrikan*ness has been bestowed on the present eneration from aes of
the past. It is our responsibility to hand it o&er to the future. It is our
responsibility to put the Afrikan world&iew back on its@ proper course.
In the final analysis, as I ha&e said, this issue is much bier
than %olefi Asante. .his issue of historical consciousness, cultural
awareness, and the buildin of a mo&ement is central to the eneration
in which we li&e. It is also central to tomorrow@s eneration. 5ur last
1#1
frontier in the war for Afrikan minds and souls is the
institutionaliFation of the Afrikan world&iew. Institutions are of utmost
importance. 4e must build the necessary educational, 'piritual,
cultural, political, social, and economic institutions to promote the
interest of our people. (eyond institutionaliFation, we must nation*
build. InstitutionaliFation is a key factor in the process of nation*
buildin, and we must reach the obDecti&e. If I may dare, lookin back
o&er the "#
th
century at the links with the Afrikan conscious
mo&ements of the Barlem Renaissance, )eritude, the Independence
%o&ement, the rise of Afrikan consciousness in the 1+-#s in the :', I
see these mo&ements as an era or century of awakenin for Afrikan
people. Concurrent with these mo&ements were the political
mo&ements amon Afrikans in the Caribbean and 'outh America where
many are becomin conscious of their Afrikan*ness. .he Afrikan
consciousness mo&ement has mo&ed beyond our hemisphere to India
and the 'outh Pacific Islands as Runoko Rashidi has reported from his
firsthand research and tra&els. .he "#
th
century was an era of lobal
Afrikan consciousness. Lohn Benrik Clarke called it the Afrikan world
re&olution, and he also arued that the re&olution was betrayed and left
unfinished. As we o into the neGt century, let us not foret the
re&olutions of the past aain. .hose mo&ements of the last century were
all ultimately oin in one direction, Afrikan liberation. If we betray
that strule, we betray oursel&es.
.he chare and mandate of the "1
st
century must be the
institutionaliFation of the consciousness from the 1+##s. Further, we
must accept the chare and mandate of Afrikan nation*buildin in this
new century. .he Independence mo&ement that swept throuh Afrika
was ne&er completed. Political independence was ained, Afrikans
were elected to office, but Independence was ne&er fully actualiFed. If
the nations of Afrika ained independence, the horrific traedies in
Cono, 'udan, and other places would ne&er ha&e happened.
Kimbabwe would not ha&e been put in a position to confiscate land that
beloned to the Afrikan people in the first place. .he re&olution of
independence was ne&er finished. 4e must finish this reat proDect in
this century. .he nations around the world where Afrikans are rowin
maDorities ha&e a responsibility of nation*buildin. Afrikan Americans
must build their own infrastructuresH schools, banks, businesses,
cultural centers, etc. .he Afrikans of the Caribbean must do the same.
.he Afrikans of the many nations throuhout the Americas must reach
o&er the borders to each other and build nations within nations. .he
1#-
Afrikan populations of the 3ast and the Far 3ast must unite and nation*
build. As a world people, we ha&e no choice. 3ither we build stron
nations and defense systems or witness the rerets of &ulnerability as
we ha&e seen time and time aain o&er the last century. 4e must put
the Afrikan world&iew on its@ proper course in history because the work
is Dust beinnin for a new eneration and a new century.
&is-education:
T$e Litt&e 0ir& %$o Cou&dn!t Sto. Akin# 1uetion
<%om, why is the sky blueM= she asked while she sat in the
chair lookin throuh the kitchen window with her head in her hands.
'he was swinin her feet back and forth, one at a time while they
ne&er touched the floor.
<%om, why do I ha&e to o to school e&erydayM= she asked
her mother.
<Cou ha&e to o to school so that one day you can be
successful and make a difference in the world.=
<I can@t make a difference without oin to schoolM= the irl
asked.
<Ces, but it@s better that way.=
.he irl was standin neGt to her mother as she was cookin
o&er the sto&e. .hey looked out the window at ;randma pickin for
fresh tomatoes. .he kitchen was warm from the smell of breakfast
scrambled es and pancakes. .he mornin was briht with the sun
shinin throuh open windows. .he scene miht ha&e been idyllic,
eGcept their neihbors a short distance up the road and downwind from
the breeFe ran a pi farm. It smelled e&ery bit like a pi farm too.
<%om, why do people keep those smelly animals,= she
wondered because her family raised chickens and rew a few crops.
<.hey ha&e to make a li&in,= she responded as she was
readin the newspaper. .he mother had picked up the paper left by her
husband who was readin it before he left for work. A (lack man was
lynched, and it was front pae. .he paper said he was in town after
dark. (lacks could not be cauht in this town after dark. .he mother
opened the paper to finish readin the story, and the 7ittle ;irl cauht a
limpse of the headline from the story on the front pae.
<Sunet and a Co&oured Man *a -un#0= she read the
headline out loud when her mother closed the paper, folded it in half,
and placed it on top of the refrierator.
1#$
<.his is you 9addy@s paper. 4e ha&e to ask him if we can
read it.=
<%omM= the irl wanted to ask about the story.
<(aby, we ha&e to finish breakfast and et you to school.
%ommy and 9addy don@t like you bein late.=
Ber 9ad was a hardworkin man. Be had left before sunrise
to rouh throuh another day of work. Be dro&e an old tin can of a
%odel . Ford that had been out of production for years, but he worked
at a brickyard. Bis Dob was rouh, and he endured the racial insults
e&eryday. Be fiured, he only had to put up with the humiliation for a
couple of more years, and then he@d mo&e the family )orth to one of
the bi cities and settle in a new home. In the meantime, he pressed the
old car all the way to work and back daily. Be spent a lot of time
repairin the car to keep it runnin, but o&er the years he became &ery
handy with fiGin all kinds of car troubles for friends and people
around town. Althouh he made a little money fiGin cars, that wasn@t
his desire. Be Dust new one thin J he had to et his family off that farm
and out of the 'outh, out of 9iGie 7and and sereation. (lack people,
<)eroes= the word e&eryone often used, couldn@t &ote, own a
business, or e&en walk with their head up too hih around white folks.
.he most disturbin and unsettlin part about this town, it was a
sundown town for (lacks. .he 7ittle ;irl@s dad had heard about factory
Dobs in 9etroit and Chicao. %aybe he could work at a car factory, and
that way et his family out of this town.
<%ama, why ain@t 9addy e&er here in the morninM=
<Cour dad oes to work early in the mornin to take care of
the family. %ommy does the same thin after I drop you off for
school.=
.hey li&ed in a small town in the 'outh, and the 7ittle ;irl@s
dad had to dri&e to the neGt city, a lare city about an hours dri&e away.
It was difficult for (lacks to find ood payin work in the 7ittle ;irl@s
hometown. Factory work was considered to be white folks work.
(lacks could at most hope to work at a store in the town@s commercial
center, but they@d ha&e to lea&e the area riht after work, before the
sunset.
'o, her dad ot up e&ery mornin and headed to work before
anyone in the house rolled out of bed. Ber mother, a lean (lack woman
with not*so*soft hands, did odd Dobs like cleanin white folks homes.
'he would make rounds to homes where she did house cleanin
throuhout the day, and because her husband had to et to the neGt
town in that old car, she had to do a lot of walkin.
1#6
.he one time the family always used the car toether was
when they were oin to church. .he 7ittle ;irl@s dad dro&e the family
e&ery 'unday. (ut the funny thin about that, he ne&er went to church
with them. Be would wait outside for the ser&ice to be o&er, or o into
town and make runs. 7ast 'unday while waitin outside the church, he
was lucky enouh to tune into a Loe 7ouis fiht Dust before the (rown
(omber, the pride of )eroes around the country, knocked out his
white opponent.
<9id Loe 7ouis win 9addyM=
<Ces he did, knocked him.=
'he@d ask her dad about Loe 7ouis and the )ero 7eaue, she@d
ask 8uestions about almost anythin in the world, eGcept reliion. 'he
had some 8uestions about why her dad ne&er went to churchH she had
8uestions about why the Pastor said ;od@s word was in the (ibleH she
had 8uestions about why people had to o to hell and burn all upH she
had 8uestions about why people had to i&e money to ;odH but she
ne&er asked 8uestions like these. Ber mother and randmother had
made it &ery clear, <Cou are not to 8uestion Lesus child.=
Cet, for some reason, she really wanted to ask her dad. 'he
fiured he@d really tell her some answers, but she obeyed her mother
and randmother. 'chool was somethin different because her parents
said, <If you don@t understand your teacher, raise your hand and ask a
8uestion.= .hey really didn@t need to tell her that.
5n the way to school, lea&in out the door with her %om,
her mother told her randmother that she@d see her in the e&enin. .he
7ittle ;irl held her mother@s hand. Ber mother always walked her to
school. .he 7ittle ;irl was in the ,th rade, and she was one of the
smartest students in her class. (ut she had a 8uestion2
<Can I o to a closer schoolM=
'he was tired of the lon walks it took to et to school, and
her school was rundown. It was not a one*room school, like the one a
lot of (lack children had to attend where all of the rades were in one
room seated by rows. 'till, she really asked the 8uestion because the
white children didn@t ha&e to o so far to et to school. 'he Dust felt she
had to walk too far to a school that was not in ood condition. .hen
also, what troubled her is that her teacher, a youn white lady, didn@t
like her askin so many 8uestions, especially when it came time for
their Bistory class. (ut, the 7ittle ;irl Dust could not help herself. 'he
asked 8uestions because she really wanted to know answers.
<%om, why do all of the (lack people sit in the backM= she
asked as the bus went by on the unpa&ed road kickin up dirt.
1#+
Ber mother thouht for a second, <It@s the law sweetie, and
we ha&e to obey the law.=
<Is that why we can@t o shoppin in the city when the sun
oes downM=
<Ces, that@s riht. (ecause this is a sundown town, no (lacks
can be in the city at niht. It@s not riht, but it@s the law=
<4hat happens when (lack people are late ettin home and
they@re in the cityM= the irl asked rememberin the headlines from the
newspaper she wanted to ask her mother about at breakfast.
<(ad thins happen, baby. (ad thins. Come on, let@s et you
to school.= Ber mother didn@t know if she asked because she heard
about the (lack man that was lynched in the middle of the city, hun
from a street liht, because he was cauht in the town with the sun
oin down. Be was accused of tryin to enDoy the nihtlife because of
the way he was dressed, but the 7ittle ;irl@s mother knew better. .his
man was new to the town, and he went to a bank because he wanted to
know about ettin a loan for some land. )eroes could not li&e in the
city@s commercial center, they could only shop their durin the day. .he
man was askin about some land close to the city@s white center. Be
was accused of bein an <uppity )ero= and the local Klansmen beat
him to near death, and pulled him up a poll with a rope around his
neck.
<Come on baby, let@s et you to school.=
After the lon walk, she kissed her mother, and a&e her a
hu.
<)ow, don@t worry your teacher todayO=
<Ces mother,= she answered.
<If you ha&e a 8uestion, be polite, raise your hand, and ask.
(ut don@t worry your teacher.=
<Ces mother,= she answered aain.
'he watched her dauhter as she ran into the school for class.
.he mother had to walk all the way back into the town, the white
section where (lacks couldn@t li&e at all or be seen after sundown. 'he
was oin to &isit the homes of whites where she cleaned to help her
family make ends meet and sa&e enouh money to mo&e )orth. Ber
husband crossed her mind as she went off to work.
.he classroom was somewhat bare because the (lack schools
were under*funded. .he school didn@t ha&e enouh books so the
students had to share, and what books they had were used. .he walls
had one picture. It was of the President, Franklin 9elano Roose&elt.
5ther than that picture, the walls had some raded student papers. .he
11#
7ittle ;irl walked into the old classroom, and took her seat Dust before
the day bean. 'he had to mo&e her seat o&er Dust a bit, because
althouh there were under "# students in the class, it was still crowed in
the small room. .he teacher had to teach from her desk or stand in the
aisle. .he chalkboard was so small it was useless to depend on it &ery
much.
As the day went by at school, the 7ittle ;irl was her usual
self, playin with friends, doin all of the work re8uired by the teacher,
respectful as her parents always told her, dressed neatly, always makin
sure her socks were pulled up Dust the way her mother did before she
left the house. 'he was a farm irl but no one could tell.
.hen, it was time for Bistory class. .he 7ittle ;irl was &ery
disciplined, and she ne&er ot in trouble. 'he enDoyed school. (ut
durin her Bistory class time, not any other subDect, durin Bistory she
a&e her teacher the frits because she wouldn@t stop askin 8uestions.
.his day, the teacher was finishin a lesson on the American
Re&olution.
<0and it was in 1$$- when the Americans bean the fiht
for freedom, Dustice, and independence for all. Are there any
8uestionsM=
.he 7ittle ;irl raised her hand riht away, and the teacher
looked around the class before answerin waitin to see if any other
students would raise their hands, and after the hesitation she asked,
<Ces, what@s your 8uestionM=
<I thouht you said the Ci&il 4ar freed the sla&esM=
<.hat@s correct,= the teacher said.
<Americans didn@t fiht for the freedom of e&erybodyM= the
7ittle ;irl asked from her seat.
<4e don@t ha&e enouh class time, but no they didn@t eGactly,
and we ha&e to stick to the lesson.= .he teacher knew this was when
the 7ittle ;irl started askin 8uestion after 8uestion. 'he could ne&er
et the other students to ask any 8uestions, but this one, well this one
Dust couldn@t stop askin 8uestions.
<4ho did the Americans fiht for if it wasn@t for
e&erybodyM= the 7ittle ;irl asked with the frustration of her oriinal
8uestion not bein answered.
<4ell,= the teacher said, <)eroes did fiht in the war.=
<'o, the American Re&olution freed the sla&es,= the irl said.
<)o, I didn@t say that,= the teacher responded while lookin
directly at the little irl who then dropped her head and apoloiFed for
askin another 8uestion.
111
<)o, don@t feel bad. It@s Dust we don@t ha&e enouh class time
when you start askin all of these 8uestion.=
.he 7ittle ;irl was almost in tears at this point.
<I@m sorry %a@am. It@s Dust you said the American
Re&olution was fouht for e&erybody. .hen you said )eroes fouht in
the war too. (ut, you told us that the Ci&il 4ar freed the sla&es, so I
was confused.= .he 7ittle ;irl said as she wiped a few tears. Bere
classmates ne&er understood why she always 8uestioned thins to the
point of upsettin herself.
.he teacher a&e her some napkins from her desk, <Bere,
here, don@t cry. %aybe this war is Dust too confusin anyway. Cou know
whatM 4e@re finish with this lesson. Bow about we bein with readin
about the disco&ery of AmericaM 'tudents, open your books to the first
chapter. It@s entitled Christopher Columbus.=
'he was confused aain. 'he hesitated, but she had to ask a
8uestion. 'he raised her hand slowly, and all of the students looked at
her.
<CesM 4hat nowM= the teacher sihed.
<I thouht you said we were oin to read about the
disco&ery of AmericaM=
<I did0=
<(ut, you said open the books to the Christopher Columbus
chapter,= the irl pointed out.
.he teacher was frustrated aain. <4e can@t do this with
e&ery history lesson now. Christopher Columbus disco&ered
America0=
<I thouht the )ati&es were here firstM= she asked lookin at
her teacher.
<5kay, ne&er mind Columbus.= 'he said as she looked
around the class tryin to decided what to do durin the Bistory class
time. 'he started passin out crayons and paper. 'he a&e the students
hasty instructions on drawin some type of historical scene, any
historical scene. .he teacher Dust didn@t want to deal with those
8uestions at the moment. .he students all sensed her frustration.
<4e@ll read about the disco&ery of America later. I@ll finish
teachin about the American Re&olution later. 4e@ll teach about how
Americans fouht for freedom, Dustice, and e8uality for all later.=
Bowe&er, she was actually thinkin that while Columbus didn@t
disco&er America or anythin else, she couldn@t teach that. Althouh
she was white, she@d be fired. 'he knew that
11"
.he 7ittle ;irl pondered her teacher@s statement2 <freedom,
Dustice, and e8uality for all.= 4hat does that mean, she thouht to
herself. 'he started thinkin about the walk to school with her mother.
'he thouht about the headlines from her father@s newspaper. 'he
thouht about how was it that (lacks were supposedly freed by the
Ci&il 4ar, but the American Re&olution was for e&eryone. 5r was itM
'he asked herself, how could we be free if we can@t o into town
because the sun is settinM 'he was totally confused about this
Columbus thin. 'he knew if she asked one more 8uestion, she@d et in
trouble, but she had so much on her mind, so many unanswered
8uestion, so much she wanted to know.
<If you ha&e a 8uestion, be polite, raise your hand, and ask.
(ut don@t worry your teacher,= that@s what her mother said. 'o she
raised her hand.
.he teacher stood and looked. <9o you ha&e a 8uestion,= she
asked.
.he 7ittle ;irl nodded. 'he didn@t know which 8uestion to
ask, but her first words were, <I don@t want to worry you0=
At that point, her classmates all started ilin. A few
lauhed out loud. .he 7ittle ;irl was definitely worryin her teacher
with all of these 8uestions.
<'arcasmO= the teacher said.
5n top of all of this, she Dust knew the 7ittle ;irl was bein
sarcastic. 'he couldn@t take anymore. After wastin much of the class
time, now she was Dokin about it.
<Coun lady, et your thins and report to the principals
office.=
11/
Inter.retin# t$e Fact( -itor+( AND ACTIN0
Content of Ea+
NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN
Abstract
Introduction
Bistorical 9e&elopment
Correctin the Crisis
Conclusion
;uidelines
11,
<For the aenda of liberation, (lack 'tudies deals with a cultural,
historical, and systematic treatment of all spaces and subDect areas in
education and society.=
A%stract
Children of African descent in America are in an educational
crisis, a state of emerency as seen in hih dropout rates, &iolent and
criminal offenses in and out of school, low performance and low test
scores >test scores which are culturally and racially biased?, educational
apathy, and the eneral presence of mis*education that leads to
psycholoical, cultural, and social trauma. Bistorically, American
education has pro&ided a racist system of education for African people
used to promote dominance by the white power structure. Currently, the
school systems continue to fail to implement policy chanes based on
the interest of African children who make up the reat maDority of
student populations in all of the maDor cities and many districts
throuhout the country. (ased on studies, statistics, the analysis of the
educational crisis for o&er a century, o&er /# years of concrete African*
Centered education, and African*Centered education eGperts throuhout
the country, the primary remedy to the educational crisis amon our
children is the infusion and implementation of African*Centered
education throuhout the curriculum and the other structural chanes in
the uidelines at the end of this document. .he (lack community must
be prepared to oraniFe and mobiliFe to brin the necessary pressure on
the school systems if our children are not educated properly, and we
must be prepared to utiliFe all leal options to see that this occurs. 5f
most importance, we must build our own schools.
Introduction
It was not intended in the history of America, until &ery
recently, for African people to recei&e an education, and the education
that is recei&ed today is 8uestionable at many le&els. Carter ;.
111
4oodson is known as the oriinator of what we call (lack Bistory
%onth today, it bean in 1+"- as )ero Bistory 4eek. 4oodson also
founded the Association for the 'tudy of )ero 7ife and Bistory in
1+11H later in 1+// he penned the still rele&ant classic %is*3ducation
of the )ero to address the educational crisis of African people. (efore
4oodson@s work, 43( 9u (ois called on the need for African people
to ha&e &oice in his historic presentation to the American )ero
Academy >A)A? in 16+$ entitled <.he Conser&ation of Races=
published in the A)A@s 5ccasional Papers. Another historic work in
A)A@s 5ccasional Papers is Arthur A. 'chombur@s 1+1/ <Racial
Interity2 A Plea for the 3stablishment of a Chair of Bistory in our
'chools and Collees.= 'chombur founded the )ero 'ociety for
Bistorical Research in 1+11. 'chombur and 4oodson lectured at the
:ni&ersal )ero Impro&ement Association >:)IA? meetins, the
international oraniFation with millions of members founded by
%arcus %osiah ;ar&ey in 1+1, and dedicated to buildin a world
economic network for African people and educatin Africans about
their true history. .he :)IA had schools and trainin sessions at many
of their branch locations. From these few eGamples, we see that as soon
as African people had the doors of uni&ersity education cracked a little,
they bean to challene the racist and culturally biased interpretation of
education. 4illiam 7eo Bansberry of Boward :ni&ersity, his students,
and others continued this tradition of challenin the racist paradim of
American education. .he %ississippi Freedom 'chools that bean in
1+-, rew out of the Ci&il Rihts mo&ement, and were schools based
on protestin the racist education of public schools. (lack history and
the protest methods of the Ci&il Rihts %o&ement were part of the
Freedom 'chool@s curriculum. %alcolm Q@s 5raniFation of Afro*
American :nity >5AA:?, founded in 1+-,, reconiFed in its@ statement
of obDecti&es the need for culturally rele&ant education amon (lack
children. .he eminent historian Lohn Benrik Clarke was a &ery
important member of the 5AA:H he played a lare role in writin the
obDecti&es and in bein an ad&isor to %alcolm Q. .he lineae for the
fiht for (lack 'tudies is a continuous one.
In 16$", 3dward 4ilmot (lyden wrote the followin words2
All educated )eroes suffer from a kind of
sla&ery in many ways far more sub&ersi&e of the real
welfare of the race than the ancient physical fetters.
.he sla&ery of the mind is far more destructi&e than
11-
that of the body >Too Much Schoolin'4 Too $ittle
Education, /+?.
.he Ci&il Rihts protest and (lack Power mo&ements of the
1+-#s a&e rise to the (lack 'tudies mo&ement. (lack students
protested, riskin safety and life, to ain an e8ual opportunity to
education in the :nited 'tates. 4hen more African people bean to
enroll at uni&ersities throuhout the country, they didn@t stop there.
.hese dedicated students continued to protest in the interest of (lack
students and faculty. .hey demanded fair admissions and hirin
policies. .hey demanded an end to racism on campuses. .he (lack
student acti&ists also demanded that the uni&ersities offer (lack
'tudies. Finally in 1+-6, the students at 'an Francisco 'tate Collee
succeeded in forcin the establishment of the first (lack 'tudies
9epartment. 5ther student acti&ists throuhout the country bean to
protest and et similar results. %aulana Karena@s Introduction to
!lack Studies describes the emerence of the discipline in this era.
.he forces of chane must aain rumble. (lack 'tudies must be
eGpanded at the uni&ersity le&el where so many departments and
prorams are under*funded, under*staffed, and marinaliFed. 5f reat
sinificance, the fiht for (lack 'tudies must be eGpanded beyond the
uni&ersity. Althouh an area of specialty at the uni&ersity le&el, all
elementary and hih school students must recei&e (lack 'tudies
throuhout the curriculum if they are to e&er recei&e a proper and
rele&ant education in this society. .he topic of this brief essay deals
with the &ery real emerency to infuse and implement African*Centered
education in the school systems across the county.
In relation to African people, America@s system of education
was meant to sustain oppression and make the oppressed ser&iceable
and subordinate to the white power structure. 3ducation, or the lack
thereof, and the structure of power relations in society ha&e been
successful o&er the enerations by not pro&idin the means and ways
for African Americans to build stable communities. %ost African
American children are failin in the public school systems throuhout
the country. %any of these children who ha&e been failed and mis*
educated ha&e become the misuided teenaers seen in the streets,
teenae parents, those who depend on public assistance, and those who
are herded off to Dail in e&er increasin numbers for a &ariety of crimes.
For the past se&eral decades scholars, eGpert educators, and community
acti&ists ha&e yelled in the wind that African*Centered education, if
implemented properly, can not only impro&e school performance and
11$
beha&ior, but will also reduce many of the social problems faced by
teens and youn adults of African descent. <Alternati&e schools,= as
used in this essay, refers to the non*public schools that are options for
parents who choose to take their children out of public schools. .his
essay promotes the infusion of African*Centered education in public
and alternati&e schools with any sinificant portion of students of
African descent. .he ultimate solution to the educational crisis, as will
be noted, is Afrikan independent schools.
.his essay intends to look at some of the research and studies
done that support the need for African*Centered education. .hrouhout
the country, (lack teachers are rossly under*represented in the schools
due to an ob&iously racist system of education. 5f course, without
Afrikan descent teachers, one cannot ha&e Afrikan based education.
7astly, there is a lot to learn from the rowin <alternati&e= modes of
education. .hese are home, pri&ate, independent, and charter schools *
all of which enerally out perform the public schools in test scores and
student beha&ior. It is sinificant because these alternati&e school
en&ironments, while showin a reater success rate with educatin
(lack children, rely on teachers who are lackin the same credentials
and eGperience of public school teachers. .his essay calls for the dire
need to properly infuse and implement mandatory African*Centered
education in all school en&ironments with children of African descent
to bein to curb the psycholoical and cultural damae of mis*
education or educatin children outside of their culture, into self*hate,
and thus increasin the possibility of them becomin teens and adults at
risk for societal ills.
*istorical e(elopment
9urin sla&ery, education for Africans was strictly for the
promotion of the sla&ocracy base of the :nited 'tates. As far as the
ensla&ers were concerned, education consisted of learnin skills to
sustain the plantations. 9ue to the radical abolitionist mo&ement,
plantation resistance, and resistance in eneralH Africans learned to read
and write in the face of ra&e daner. .he education of Africans was
aainst the law, but that did not stop countless from learnin to read
and write. Africans who were literate would often read the newspapers
to inform the others. It was belie&ed that the education of the ensla&ed
would cause trouble for the institution of sla&ery, and it did. %any of
the leaders of re&olts were literate Africans. .he abolitionist mo&ement
was composed of many well*read Africans and orators. For learnin to
read and write, when they did, education became another tool used in
116
the liberation arsenal to fiht aainst sla&ery. .he first publications by
African people were &oices aainst the inhumane system of sla&ery.
.he first of the reat African orators in the :nited 'tates spoke out
aainst sla&ery, often at risk of their li&es. .he writins and speeches of
9a&id 4alker, %artin 9elany, Benry Bihland ;arnet, 'oDourner
.ruth, Frederick 9oulass, Frances Barper, %ary Ann 'hadd Cary,
%aria 'tewart, and so many others present e&idence of the couraeous
will of Africans to stand up aainst the reat e&il of sla&ery. Lohn
(racey@s !lack Nationalism in America and 9orothy 'terlin@s &e Are
"our Sisters would be informati&e.
In discussin African education, it should be noted that se&eral
thousands of years ao Africans alon the )ile Ialley in&ented the
world@s first writin scripts and compleG educational systems. .he
myth of Africans comin from a non*literate past is one of the many
corrections that must be made in the schools where there is ample
e&idence that mis*education is the rule instead of the eGception. Also,
Africans in traditional societies de&eloped functional educational
institutions. In the Redemption of Afrikan Spirituality, in an essay
entitled <Afrikan*Centered 'piritual Pedaoy,= I ha&e a more
thorouh discussion on this subDect. .hat essay has been added to this
book. African systems of classical education were relocated into the
continent due to in&asions in the )ile Ialley, but they were sustained.
'la&ery and coloniFation by Arabs and 3uropeans were assaults on
African people, African cultures, and African systems of education. In
all, African people and African systems of education sur&i&ed the most
brutal assaults aainst a people in the history of humanity.
After the end of the Ci&il 4ar and the sinin of the 1/th
Amendment, most African people remained on plantations as
sharecroppers, often workin for the same sla&e owners who held them
and their parents in sla&ery. 9urin sla&ery, African education on the
plantations was underround. 4ith the end of physical sla&ery, Africans
set up their own schools. .he people who had laws passed aainst
them, bannin the process and possibility of their learnin, were now
the most eaer to learn. .he Freedmen@s (ureau went 'outh to educate
the <freed= people to find out that these former ensla&ed people set up
countless schools for themsel&es. .hat would not do for those who saw
a paternalistic need to control the education of (lacks.
As 4illiam 4atkins@ made clear in the &hite Architects of !lack
Education, the white elites of America dealt with what they commonly
called <the )ero Auestion,= that 8uestion is what are we oin to do
11+
with them since they are free now. ;enocide of Africans, such as that
promoted by the Ku KluG Klan and other terrorist roups, was found to
be impractical. .here was a coloniFation proDect durin sla&ery, in
which the plantation owners, politicians, lawmakers, and other
supporters of the sla&ocracy wanted to send all free Africans in
America outside of the country to better secure the ensla&ed
population. .his is the basis of the American ColoniFation 'ociety@s
>AC'? foundin of 7iberia, which many people erroneously belie&e
was founded by former ensla&ed Africans. 5f course, countless
Africans wanted to o back to Africa in the first place. .he <(ack to
Africa mo&ement= was populariFed by Paul Cuffe, as described in his
eGcellent bioraphy, Rise To !e A +eople, by 7amont .homas. Africans
always wanted to o back to Africa, e&er since settin foot on
American soil. Althouh the children of Africa desired their homeland,
many saw throuh the aenda of the AC'. 'till, coloniFation of
Africans outside of America was deemed impractical because of the
lare population of Africans who were <freed= after sla&ery.
Conse8uently, with an enormous population of Africans in the country
after the Ci&il 4ar, the fear that many 'outherners had with
Reconstruction, and the racist*paternalistic attitude of whites in eneral,
somethin had to be done with this new <status= of Africans in
America. .he solution to the <)ero Auestion= came out of the
%ohonk Conferences of 16+# and 16+1, other conferences patterned
after these followed around the country. Former President Rutherford
(. Bayes, ;eneral 'amuel Chapman Armstron, and others laid the
uidelines for <)ero= education which still impacts education today.
Another sinificant e&ent was the Plessy &s. Feruson case in 16+-,
which made sereation the constitutional law throuhout America.
(efore the end of the 1+th century, it was decided that the best way to
deal with the problem of the <)ero= was to completely sereate them
as near as possible to the old traditions of the sla&ocracy and to i&e
them an education to make them better ser&e the interest of the white
power structure.
'ereation and an education built aainst the interest of
African people became the norm for millions. .he decades of chane
and defiance were the 1+1#s and 1+-#s. African Americans dro&e o&ert
racism in America from the mainstream throuh ci&il and &iolent
protest, leislation, and community pressure. Bow can any of us foret
the imaes of African students walkin throuh lynch mobs to o and
et an education, or bein hosed down the streets from peaceful
protestin, or children and women bein attacked by dos and
1"#
policemenM 4e shouldn@t foret. Althouh leal and o&ert
racismEsereation became less conspicuous, oppression and the
actualiFation of oppression did not. Lust as education, or the lack
thereof, was a powerful tool used aainst African people in sla&ery and
the era of sereation, it remains a way that oppression is maintained in
society to this &ery day.
Correctin' the Crisis
It is indisputable that America@s system of education is biased
and inade8uate for African Americans. .his is especially so if the child
does not come from a stable two parent home. %arriae amon African
Americans continues to decline, and while it is not the school@s Dob to
<raise children,= as so many teachers will eGclaim, it is the school@s Dob
to pro&ide a nurturin educational en&ironment. African*Centered
education rests on the African pro&erb2 It takes a &illae to raise a child.
A nurturin educational en&ironment must include the socio*cultural
reality of the student@s backround. American education was built as a
model for 3uropean American students and the acculturation of
3uropeans into American society. .his is ob&ious from a re&iew of any
teGtbook.
Lames 7owen@s book, $ies My Teacher Told Me# E(erythin'
"our American *istory Te3t%ook 0ot &ron', while not an African*
Centered teGt, it eGposes some of the bias in history books currently
used in the schools. African*Centered scholars ha&e been educatin the
masses for decades on the proper teachin of our history. From Arthur
'chombur, 43( 9u (ois, and the African consciousness mo&ement
of the first 8uarter of the "#th century to the mo&ement today, bodies of
research ha&e been pro&ided for the correct interpretation of African
history. .he idea that African history is <reinterpretin= and <re&isin=
history is far from the issuesH the correct teachin of African history is
teachin the truths of historical e&ents as they ha&e impacted society
today. African children mo&e from one rade to the other without e&er
learnin about the reat African personalities and mo&ements in world
historyH they do howe&er learn about the reatness of ;eore
4ashinton and Abraham 7incoln, of course without learnin that the
first was a lare sla&e holder and sla&e trader while the second was a
white coloniFationist intent on sendin Africans out of the :nited
'tates. 5ur children learn about how their ancestors were ensla&ed
andEor coloniFed in Africa and the Americas, without learnin anythin
about the massi&e resistance, and culture of resistance, to sla&ery and
coloniFation. Richard Price@s Maroon Societies# Re%el Sla(e
1"1
Communities in the Americas is a classic in African resistance that must
become a resource in the schools.
For the aenda of liberation, (lack 'tudies deals with a
cultural, historical, and systematic treatment of all spaces and subDect
areas in education and society. 4e fail our future and the meanin of
our own eGistence if we fail to understand that the education of African
children is essential to the liberation of our people, and the maintenance
of liberation in the future. .his proDect of ensurin the proper education
of African children is our obliation. 4e cannot allow the education of
our children in the hands of a system responsible for our oppression.
4e cannot allow it and be mentally sane at once.
.his nelect of the cultural reality of (lack students permeates
the teGtbooks in all subDect areas. Cheikh Anta 9iop@s Ci(ili2ation or
!ar%arism, I&an Ian 'ertima@s !lacks in Science, and the se&eral
works and articles of (eatrice 7umpkin all pro&ide solid e&idence on
the African oriins of mathematical concepts and sciences, which we
use today. In fact, the world@s oldest mathematical and medical*science
documents >the Rind, 'mith and 3bers papyri? were found in Kemet
>.awi?. Also, bein the first widely literate culture in the world, Kemet
produced an abundance of literature, the world@s first librarian culture,
with documentations of spiritual, scientific, poetic and creati&e writin
teGts. I would refer you to %iriam 7ichtheim@s &olumes entitled
Ancient E'yptian $iterature. .he bodies of African Kemetic >K%.?
writin were all done thousands of years before the ;reeks and
Romans were literate. African ci&iliFations in the )ile Ialley were the
world@s first literate cultures. Cet, so many of our children are tauht
that Africans had no writin systems, when in fact they had the first.
African traditional societies ha&e a rich culture of oral stories that must
inform the literature curriculum in the schools with students of African
descent. .he reat autobioraphies, bioraphies, and literature of the
African world must take precedence for the African child o&er
3uropean literature forms. 4hite authors primarily write the teGtbooks
that are used to teach children of African descent, and the contributions
of Africans to the primary subDects are all but completely inored while
3uropean classical math, science, literature, and art are incorrectly
presented as the prototypes for world cultures. Additionally, certain
literature books with stories by African Americans often still promote
themes that are culturally and socially damain to (lack students. .he
reatest traedy is that Dust as the students are mis*informed, so are the
teachers and parents. .he present educational paradim must be
1""
correctedH it is false and racist. Bow can we e&er eGpect (lack children
to succeed in an educational paradim that o&ertly and subliminally
teaches that African*ness is inept, inferior, and should be left outM 4e
need African*Centered educators in the classroomsH new models must
be used. In addition to bein selecti&e of our student@s learnin process,
a national team of African*Centered scholars must be used to write new
teGtbooks in all subDect areas.
Few discussions on the de&elopment of the education of
African children will inore the roundbreakin work of %walimu
'huDaa, Too Much Schoolin'4 Too $ittle Education. 'huDaa, himself a
&eteran in the African*Centered school mo&ement, has complied essays
by many scholars and acti&ists concerned with the proper education of
African children. Consider this piercin statement from 'huDaa on
curriculum &ersus peda'o'y in the teachin process2
4hen discussin African*centered education I belie&e
that more emphasis should be placed on pedaoy than
on curriculum. %y reasonin for this is that pedaoy
con&eys the importance of the teacher to the education
process while curriculum is too often reduced to
documentation. 4orkin with and in independent
African*centered schools for nearly "# years I ha&e
seen ood teachers rounded in African*centered
thinkin use 3uropean*centered, racist materials to
teach brilliant African*centered lessons. I ha&e seen
3uropean*American as well as some African*American
public school teachers rounded in 3uropean*centered
thinkin use curriculum materials written by our best
African*centered thinkers in ways that tri&ialiFe and
misrepresent the content. .hese eGperiences ha&e
con&inced me that it is the African*centeredness of the
teacher@s thinkin that determines the African*
centeredness of the teachin >"-1?.
.he issue is not about multi*cultural education &ersus African*
Centered education. All cultures approach the study of other cultures
from their own cultural framework. If you can show me someone who
promotes the multi*cultural education of African children, I@ll show you
the same person who promotes 3uropean*centered education. It is a
crime to e&en think that African children should suffer the study of
other cultures at the eGpense of their own.
1"/
In essence, our strule to implement (lack 'tudies in the
schools across this country must not stop at ettin the curriculum on
the books. )umerically, African Americans ha&e the power to chane
the school system of this nation where our children are concerned. If
we can finally understand the racist hirin practices of the schools, and
see that there are more whites teachin our children than people of their
own cultural backround, we can force the policies we know are best
for our children. Bowe&er, ha&in (lack teachers in the classrooms is
not enouh. A teacher of African descent must understand the African
uni8ueness in the educational process, as it is rele&ant to the child.
5therwise, that teacher can be as damain to the African child as any
racist teacher.
African*Centered education is not an ideoloy, as Lacob
Carruthers stressed in Too Much Schoolin'4 Too $ittle Education
><(lack Intellectuals and the Crisis in (lack 3ducation,= 1/?. African*
Centeredness is a <world&iew= critical to the sur&i&al of African
people. 5nly the inorant, mis*educated, or someone not truly
concerned about the interest and maintenance of African people would
try and reduce this world&iew to an ideoloy. Cou may debate about
ideoloies. .o the contrary, when one student stabs or shoots another in
or out of school >as what happens in our community? the student
learned to de&alue African life at some time or another. .his is about
sur&i&alO Properly infused (lack 'tudies in the schools populated by
our children has the capacity to fundamentally correct the world&iew of
our youth. %y life is a testament to that.
%ore (lack educators are needed across the entire country. .he
schools populated by our children are under*funded while their white
suburban counterparts are o&er*funded. (lack teens ha&e
disproportionately hih suspension and dropout rates. .he curriculum
and teGtbooks do not affirm the positi&e social, historical, and cultural
reality of Africans. 5ur children suffer with drastically low test scores,
compounded with psycholoical and cultural disorientation. 5ften,
teachers are not e&en aware of the damae. Parents are misinformed
about the depths of the educational crisis so many do not understand
that the home should be the first school, the first learnin en&ironment.
4hile the students suffer as a result, they are not the cancerous
problem. .he collapse in education remains with African American
children because the school systems continue to inore African*
Centered eGperts on (lack education. .he days of old must come to an
end when white educators assume to know more about how African
1",
American children should be educated than do African Americans. .he
racist 1+th century attitude of paternalism that formed the basis for
(lack education must be buried, and only then will proress bein.
.he :' 9epartment of 3ducation reports that (lacks makeup
about one*fifth of public schools students, while under 1#V of teachers
are (lacks says the )ational 3ducation Association, which means that a
federal African American teacher recruitment dri&e should become one
of the nation@s top priorities. I seriously doubt that e&en a discussion of
the issue will happen. )onetheless, the issue is concrete. 4hile o&er
+#V of the teachers are white across the country, less than two*thirds of
students are white. Accordin to the :' Census (ureau, 4hites
makeup $$V of the :' population, and (lacks 1/V, yet the disparity
in education is most ob&ious in America@s maDor cities where African
people make up a reat maDority of the populations and the maDority of
(lack students sit in front of teachers who are of 3uropean descent.
'e&eral studies show that teachers ha&e hiher eGpectation for students
of their own race, and cultural and class preDudice permeates the
schools. .hese factors ha&e stronly impacted student outcome. .hey
ha&e likewise impacted the (lack student@s self*imae of their
capabilities and potentials. It cannot be o&er*emphasiFed that it is of
paramount sinificance to the de&elopment of (lack students that they
see (lack teachers and administrators, and this is especially so when
they ha&e to o home to sinle*parent families in impo&erished
neihborhoods.
As an eGample, in the city of Philadelphia, accordin to the
school district, o&er two*thirds of the students are African American
and less than one*fifth are white. 9ebra Kahn, 'ecretary of 3ducation
in Philadelphia eGplained once in an inter&iew2
In Philadelphia, -1 percent of teachers are white and
/1 percent black, and a lot of those teachers li&e
outside of the city. 'tudents are $# percent people of
color. 9oes that create an en&ironment where the le&el
of carin may be suspectM
Carin is one of many dynamics that are suspect in such an
arranement. 'tudent performance and potential, beha&ior patterns,
student self*esteem, cultural awareness, and perceptions of racial
competence are neati&ely impacted when (lack students spend their
learnin eGperience primarily under white teachers. .here should be
twice as many (lack teachers in the Philadelphia schools, accordin to
the statistics. Philadelphia is one eGample of the racial imbalance that
1"1
eGists throuhout this country in city after city. .his racial imbalance in
the schools must be corrected, and the only correcti&e measure that can
sol&e this traedy is an aressi&e recruitment dri&e for African
American teachers. .he only way to force such a recruitment dri&e
would be throuh sustained community protest. If our needs are not
met as a people, we must reach the point of bein oraniFe enouh and
sensible enouh to start our own schools that we should ha&e already
had in the first place.
5ne of the primary eGcuses i&en for the racial imbalance is
the certification process. .eacher certification has not shown an
e8ui&alent rise in student performance or beha&ior in any studies. Cet
school officials constantly preach of the need to ha&e <8ualified=
teachers, meanin that because you o throuh the certification
process, that makes you 8ualified. .his is really a case of beatin a
dead horse because the fact is that the opposite is true as all alternati&e
school settins outdo the public schools across America. 'tudents in
home*schools, pri&ate schools, charter schools, and reliious schools
tend to score hiher than public school students where teacher
certification is all but mandatory. .he idea amon school officials is
that more of the old modelEapproach is needed, when a new model
altoether should be implemented because the old model has failed,
indisputably so.
.his conclusion is not simply based on test scores because children are
more than test scores. Asa Billiard, an eGpert African*Centered scholar,
has informed us for years that standardiFed tests do not test students@
intellience. Billiard@s articles and books should be read, in particular
S%a# Rea,akenin' of the African Mind and The Maroon &ith 5s.
'tudents@ scores are more reflecti&e of socio*economic factors. In
addition to that, it has been demonstrated that standardiFed tests, like
the educational system in eneral, are culturally biased aainst non*
white students. 5nly those whose interests or self*interests are bein
met continue to inore the national research done which pro&es the
cultural bias of the tests we rely on today. And aain, I say the ultimate
solution is independent, Afrikan based, school buildin.
Children interact with their society and must be functional in
and beneficial to their society. Culturally based education and non*
public school en&ironments out perform public schools because they
deal more holistically with students. 'ome of the alternati&e schools
that do not out perform the public schools academically do instill a
reat sense of decency, self*respect, self*determination, and cultural
1"-
awareness in students. .est scores can be raised, but children must
recei&e an education that teaches them the &alue of community
responsibility. .he hallmark of African*Centered education is that it is
culturally holistic. It is not by accident that many of the African*
Centered schools throuhout the country use the 'e&en Iirtues of %aat
and the )uFo 'aba >'e&en Principles of KwanFaa? as &alue systems.
Althouh they may differ slihtly at &arious schools, the 'e&en Iirtues
of %aat are .ruth, Lustice, Rihteousness, Reciprocity, (alance,
Barmony, and 5rder. .he )uFo 'aba, first de&eloped by %aulana
Karena in 1+--, are :moDa >:nity?, KuDichaulia >'elf*
9etermination?, :Dima >Collecti&e 4ork and Responsibility?, :Damaa
>Cooperati&e 3conomics?, )ia >Purpose?, Kuumba >Creati&ity?, and
Imani >Faith?. .hese concepts and others tauht in African*Centered
schools instill children with a stron sense of self*respect, community
responsibility, and cultural awareness. .o many parents, while
concerned about test scores, they fa&or African*Centered schools
because of the ethics and &alues that are tauht. 5ne parent who has
supported the African*Centered schools for decades eGplained that
while he wants his children to learn about planets in outer*space, he is
more concerned about how they socialiFe with people in e&eryday life.
A challene for the Afrikan*Centered schools is to o beyond &alue
systems to the deep internaliFation of what it means to be Afrikan, and
to do that we must enae the 'pirituality of our ancestors.
In African*Centered schools, once stabiliFed, the en&ironment
is &ery conduci&e for African children to score hih on the standardiFed
tests. Bowe&er, the tests are not the ultimate measurement of student
success. )umbers, data, and statistics do not eGplain the entire story of
African children. 3&en when students perform well on tests, that does
not mean the child is beyond the present educational crisis. A student
can make ood rades and score hih on standardiFed test, but can in
the process become thorouhly mis*educated about his or her own
history and cultural reality. 9o we consider a child who scores hih
academically, but has self*hate and no sense of cultural awareness
properly educatedM Absolutely notO
.here are eGamples of functional Afrikan*Centered schools
throuhout the country. .he (etty 'habaFF Charter 'chool on the 'outh
'ide of Chicao, formerly a CI(I school called the Institute of Positi&e
3ducation, had a &ery holistic curriculum. 4hile the school still
maintains a healthy &eetarian lunch for students that administrators
attribute to hiher test scores, at one time the students went to African
1"$
dance class and African drum class for recess. .he founders of the
school found it more rele&ant to the students@ cultural reality as
Africans to ha&e African cultural eGpressions in place of the usual
sports that are played after school. Another eGample is the %arcus
;ar&ey 'chool in the Crenshaw area of 7os Aneles where children
score o&er two years ahead of their rades. .he students are thorouhly
inundated with African*Centered education at the %arcus ;ar&ey
'chool. .he benefits of African*Centered education are Dust bein
realiFed nationally, with the proper African*Centered trainin of
teachers, scores and o&erall student performance will only increase.
%ore importantly, African children recei&in these types of cultural
models of education will be inoculated aainst societal ills and
inferiority compleGes. Lacob Carruthers@ Intellectual &arfare, )a@im
Akbar@s Kno, Thy Self, %arimba Ani@s "uru'u, and so many other
works came to the fundamental conclusion that because education was
used improperly by the white power structure, it has been a serious
detriment to African people since the end of sla&ery, and only a
culturally rele&ant education will be fully correcti&e.
4e are informed by the roundbreakin study of .homas 9ee,
a 'wathmore Collee professor in Pennsyl&ania. ProDect '.AR
>'tudent .eacher Achie&ement Ratio?, as the study is known, was
published &ia internet by the )ational (ureau of 3conomic Research.
.he study in&ol&ed -,### school children in .ennessee, and it focused
on performance in the subDects of %ath and 'cience. .he findins
pro&ed that when children >(lack or 4hite? ha&e the benefit of learnin
from teachers of the own race, their rades and scores would show
sinificant impro&ement. Class siFes also impro&ed student@s scores
accordin to this study and others. 4hile the study in&ol&ed youner
students, it must be reconiFed that older students are e&en more race
conscious, and a similar study with older students would no doubt
reatly reinforce the findins. 4hen (lack children are not eGposed to
African*Centered education, they are culturally and psycholoically
damaed by the schools and teachers who are supposedly educatin
them. .he matriculation trend for far too many African American
students supports this as the loner many of the students stay in public
schools, their rades and beha&ior becomes worse and worse.
.he Council of Independent (lack Institutions >CI(I?, founded
in 1+$", rew out of the protest and (lack power mo&ement of the
1+-#s. 4hen many community acti&ists and parents fouht to ha&e
more control on the direction of the education of (lack children, they
1"6
were refused by white officials in the school systems throuhout
America. As a result, and because of the historic need for African
children to recei&e a culturally rele&ant education, the CI(I school
mo&ement was born. Althouh there are fewer CI(I schools today, the
mo&ement did pro&ide reat stimulus for public, home, and charter
schools to see the &alue of African*Centered education. .he position of
CI(I schools is that only an independent and African*Centered
education in a family*school en&ironment has the reatest potential to
holistically and properly educate the (lack child. .he unpublished
dissertation of :huru Botep of 9u8uesne :ni&ersity, entitled
edicated to E3cellence# An Afrocentric -ral *istory of the Council of
Independent !lack Institutions4 ;<=>-?>>>, outlines the content of the
CI(I schools@ method to culturally rele&ant education.
CI(I has o&er /# years of eGperience with eGclusi&ely
educatin African childrenH therefore, we may consider CI(I as the
leadin national body on African*Centered education. CI(I has
educated a small, but sinificant sement of this present eneration of
children and youn adults. .he 7otus Academy in Philadelphia, Afrikan
Peoples Action 'chool in .renton, )ationBouse in 4ashinton 9.C.,
and Bofi )i Kwenu AcademyE9oulass Institute in 't. 7ouis, %issouri
are some of the CI(I schools across the county. 'tudents eGhibit
eGceptional beha&ior, respect for elders, and a consciousness about the
African world and local community. .hese schools ha&e a hiher
percentae of students who score abo&e the national a&erae. 3Gperts
in and outside of CI(I aree that an independent education, free of
public school mandates, is essential for the African American
community. :nfortunately, a larer percentae of our children cannot
o to CI(I schools because there does not eGist enouh CI(I schools
across the country. Independent African*Centered schools in operation
must be eGpanded, and this will happen as mass cultural awareness
continues to de&elop.
.he maDority of African American children are in public
schools, and a rowin percentae is attendin charter schools, pri&ate
schools, and reliious based schools. African American children in
CI(I, charter schools, and pri&ate schools enerally score hiher
nationally than their public school counter parts. .he pedaoy of
African*Centered education is directed by a model dedicated to
teachin the child that he or she can achie&e in life because of an innate
enius to do so, a enius that the student must reach within with the
teacher@s uidance, and achie&ement is defined ultimately in the
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relationship of one@s dedication to the o&erall community. African
ancestors are used as models of rihteous li&in, not Dust poster
decoration durin certain parts of the year. 5b&iously, this is different
from the public school model of education based on the idea that ood
teachin is measured in student@s test scores and teacher@s credentials.
Reardin the deeper internaliFation of what it means to be
African, African*Centered schools, by the &ery nature of African
culture, approach the 'pirituality that directs the culture. African
cultures are not secular, and the 3uropean separation of Church and
'tate, 'pirit form )ature, is not part of the African psycheEcultural
reality. :nfortunately, there is no national network of African 'piritual
based schoolsH our children can benefit from such schools that could
sinificantly ad&ance the model of African*Centered education.
'piritual consciousness represents the heiht of any cultures
consciousness, so I belie&e that African 'pirituality and African
'piritual education will be the reat threshold of African people in the
future. .oday, we must eGpand the African*Centered schools, all of
them. Cet, the African community in America must not escape the
fundamental responsibility it has to build new, culturally based,
independent schools
4ith the hundreds of billions of dollars we brin home yearly,
African Americans can indeed build our own schools, many of them.
5ur present <intellectual and ideoloical bankruptcy= of leadership is a
lare part of our crisis, to borrow a phrase from Amos 4ilson@s
!lueprint for !lack +o,er. In this classic work of 4ilson@s, in a section
entitled <(lack 3ducation in the 'er&ice of 4hite 9omination= >1+1?,
he states <)ero industrial trainin= was de&eloped to keep (lacks in
their <place= in the social and economic system, that system was then
called sereation. Industrial trainin in the early "#th century was
meant to instill the old ethics of hard work and <dinity of labor,= akin
to the days of forced labor on plantations. It was wron to think that
(lacks could attain the hiher le&els of academic trainin, and the
educational system was not built for that purpose. .he education of
(lacks was meant to be of ser&ice to the white power structure. 4ilson
states2
Any re&iew of the perceptions of the primary purposes
of (lack education held by the 4hite corporate elite
today would 8uickly re&eal that they do not differ
fundamentally from those of their counterparts durin
the early to mid*1+##s >1+"?.
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3ducation is for sur&i&al and the promotion of interest. 4e
must understand the essential function of education is to create the type
of society that is conduci&e to the sur&i&al and well*bein of a people
throuh the proper trainin of their children. .hat means if we are to
build successful communities and nations as people of African descent,
we must educate our children to do so. 5nly African people can
properly educate African children for our future reality. 4here we can
impact the education of African children in en&ironments that we do
not fully control, we should do so. Cet still, we must not escape our
responsibility to build independent institutions.
Amos 4ilson@s analysis is cuttin when we consider the fact
that (lack men are resources for the prison industrial compleG and
almost all are hih school dropouts. .here is no need to create a
conspiracy theory. .he fact is that o&er a million (lack men populate
the prisons of the :nited 'tates when accordin to the Lustice
9epartment@s (ureau of Lustice 'tatistics report that (lack males are
incarcerated at far reater percentaes than any other roup in the
:nited 'tates, but white males numerically commit more crimes. 4ith
nearly a million (lack men in prison, that eGceeds the number of (lack
men in collee, and the prison industrial compleG is worth billions of
dollars. )ot to mention that America imprisons more citiFens than any
other country in the world. .he correctional system needs to be
o&erhauled as much as the educational system.
.here are se&eral factors that influence student test scores such
as the followin2 the culturalEracial bias of teachers, race of teachers,
family and neihborhood en&ironment, income, peers and peer
subcultures, school en&ironment, class siFe, school fundin, teacher and
parent eGpectations and relations, test preparation, and more.
Conse8uently, standardiFed tests are more so symptoms of a &ariety of
factors which ha&e less to do with students@ intellience and teachers@
8uality. .he closin of schools based on test scores is as ridiculous as
closin schools based on family income or neihborhood locations.
'cores are not e&erythin. .hey don@t tell the whole story. .here are no
standardiFed tests that inform us on the le&el of psycholoical, cultural,
and social damae suffered by children in the public schools, or other
schools for that matter. It is an educational contradiction to be more
concerned with students@ scores in their subDects while nelectin the
damae done to the spirit. 4hile we can@t measure that damae with
any tests, we can look at how (lack children are failin in schools. 4e
can also o to nearly any city and see the rate of crime amon (lack
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youth. %ost of these children could ha&e been steered down a more
producti&e road in life had they been educated in a school en&ironment
that centers its teachin on commitment and responsibility to the
African community, as do all African*Centered schools.
Consider the eGample of Asians who as a roup score hiher
than 3uropean American students on standardiFed tests. Asian children
are raised within their traditions, and they ha&e a profound respect for
their elders. Asian children are centered within their cultures, and thus
buffered from a le&el of the mis*education in American schools. Also,
they et an education conscious of the fact that it is meant to promote
the well*bein of their families and communities, not for indi&idualism.
4e must understand how this relates to African people utiliFin an
African cultural conteGt to educate African children.
4hen (lack children do not recei&e an African*Centered
education, these children are socially, culturally, and psycholoically
damaed. .his is the position of scholars, acti&ists, teachers, and other
concerned indi&iduals in the African American community. .his is
supported by studies of the imprisoned >or incriminated? population of
African Americans in which o&er 6#V are hih school dropouts. Bih
school dropouts are the most likely to be unemployed or work in low*
wae Dobs, ha&e teenae prenancies or unwanted prenancies, Doin
street ans, and enae in illeal street acti&ity. If we do not educate
these children properly, we all end up payin for it laterO .he crime of
mis*education is committed aainst many soon*to*be felons while they
are in the school systems. 5ne of the basic premises of African*
Centered education is that children are tauht to be committed and
responsible to their families and communities. 7ikewise, they are
tauht to ha&e a tremendous amount of lo&e and respect for their
culture and their race. 'omeone from within that culture can only do
this type of soul*felt, culturally based teachin, which aain supports
the need for buildin our own schools.
.he need for a cultural based education remains &ery ob&ious
for all of the reasons stated, and others. 3&en African American
children in pri&ate schools across the country score lower than white
children in public schools. 4hyM 'imply because that was the way the
educational system was set upH it is doin eGactly what it was intended
to do, and that is to maintain the reality of white America. .hose white
children recei&e an education that affirms their social, historical, and
cultural world&iew. 4e demand a system of education that does not
damae our African children. If we correct education, we will be
1/"
correctin some aspects of historical e&ents that ha&e their roots in the
foundin of American sla&ery. If the educational system is not willin
to correct the broken system, and it is not, we must be prepared to take
our children out of the failin school systems and build our own
schools.
(efore concludin, a note should be made on holidays as we
ha&e discussed the role of culture and race to education. )o institution,
school, or family is Afrikan*Centered that honors and celebrates the
holidays of other cultures. In fact, no culture that affirms the holidays
and traditions of another culture truly eGhibits an internaliFation of their
own. It is not necessarily wron to participate in the holidays of other
cultures, but when you ha&e allowed your own holidays and traditions
to be totally supplanted by forein holidays and traditions, that e8uates
to mass confusion and insanity. .his is especially so when people
celebrate holidays that defame, dishonor, or denirate their own
ancestors. Bow sensible is it for Afrikan Americans to honor the
independence of the :' when our ancestors were held in brutal sla&ery
in 1$$-M 4hy celebrate Columbus 9ay, outside the fact that he did not
disco&er America, but when he was a maDor initiator of the transatlantic
sla&e trade, called the %aafaM Beres a bi one2 why celebrate a
Christian holiday called Christmas when your ancestors were ensla&ed,
castrated, raped, burned, and forced to con&ert to Christianity by
Christians who did not see them as e&en humansM 4hat if we had a
thorouhoin knowlede and appreciation for Afrikan 'piritualityM
Part of the crisis with Afrikan Americans is that we ha&e been
separated from the land of our cultural oriins and a forein, dominant
culture has been imposed o&er us. 5ur challene then is to de&elop
authentic alternati&es to forein holidays or to completely inore them.
KwanFaa as an alternati&e to Christmas and :moDa Karamu as an
alternati&e to .hanksi&in are two such eGamples. .he problem with
alternati&e holidays is that in a way they still affirm the sacred time of
forein cultures. If we as Afrikans are to de&elop a culturally so&erein
frame of reference, we must be separated enouh from American
culture to be here physically and not ore oursel&es on turkey because
others do so. 4e must be separated enouh to not spend money on ifts
until we are broke because others do so. 4e must be separated enouh
to not feel uilt, emotional distress, or lonely from not participatin in
3uropean holidays. 5ur uilt, distress, and loneliness should come
from the alienation of not participatin in our own holidays or culture.
4e should feel uilt from not affirmin our Afrikan*sel&es. 5ur
1//
challene is to reach into the deep wells of Afrikan tradition and
retrie&e holidays, celebrations, traditions, and rituals that speak to our
cultural roots in a modern day conteGt.
Conclusion
In conclusion, it is reconiFed that the educational system
disproportionately fails, suspends, and nelects African American
children. .his is not outside of the historic settin that did not intend to
e&er truly educate African children. If education is to meet the needs of
children, and not lea&e them &ulnerable to the social ser&ices or the
prisons, some &ery radical chanes must be made. Chanes must be
made that are far more radical than those that are concerned with
ad&ancin the old model of education that ne&er worked for (lacks.
.he &ery core of the school system must be built o&er if it is to meet the
needs of our people. 4e must be prepared to take all leal measures to
force that chane, and if the current educational system is as stubborn
and as racist as the educational system of a century ao, then we must
be prepared to educate our own children in our own schools that we
build. In fact, we should ha&e our own schools as an alternati&e to
bein with.
.he followin uidelines are eGtracted from the abo&e research
and must immediately be put in place, into action, to correct the
emerency state of (lack children in education2
0uidelines
1. All schools >public, pri&ate, charter, or home based? with a
sinificant population of (lack children must be thorouhly infused
with African*Centered education. An African cultural based education
is essential for the psycholoical and social well*bein of children of
African decent. All school districts throuhout the country must
establish and build a stron (lack 'tudies 9epartment in their (oards
of 3ducation that will ser&e as resource and directi&e centers to ensure
that African*Centered education is properly infused throuhout all
subDect areas, in all schools.
". Crowded schools and classes must be reduced. .his promotes better
class manaement and more efficient teachin. .he reduction of classes
will open an opportunity and stratey to recruit (lack teachers who are
under*represented in the schools.
/. .he fair distribution of funds should be directed to better finance
(lack public schools, impro&e the physical en&ironments, et better
1/,
8uality books and supplies, and make computer technoloy more
a&ailable to those students. .eacher@s salaries must be on par with their
suburban school counterparts. A (lack .eacher@s union must be formed
to promote these obDecti&es and others.
,. .he family focused concept of African*Centered education must
become the standard practice that will in&ol&e the parents in the
educational process. %any of the alternati&e school en&ironments ha&e
a hiher le&el of parent participation, which is one of the factors in
hiher student performance.
1. .here are &ery few (lack teachers in the schools, and far fewer
(lack male teachers. An aressi&e teacher recruitment campain must
be implemented across the :nited 'tates to correct the racial imbalance
with the se&ere lack of (lack teachers. .hese teachers must undero
riorous African*Centered staff de&elopment process because many of
the teachers were mis*educated in the process of uni&ersity and
certification trainin. .his will not only raise student scores, but will
also bein to heal the psycholoical, social, and cultural damae
suffered by (lack children which is ob&ious in society, but cannot be
measured on any test.
-. 'chool boards must not be allowed to make decisions without the
input of parents and community acti&ists. Parent*focused African*
Centered education must be implemented in the schools and
community. .his will raise parent consciousness on a number of issues,
historic and current, which impact on the li&es of their children.
$. Present teGtbooks must be &ery selecti&e to ensure that they are not
culturally or socially damain to (lack children. A national team of
African*Centered scholars must be constructed to bein de&elopin
bodies of teGtbooks, in all subDect areas, which will take the place of
the present psycholoically, socio*cultural damain books presently
used which mis*educate (lack children.
6. .he African*American community must start African*Centered
schools where&er the opportunity is present, and those in eGistence
must et mass community support. .he community must reach the
point where it no loner depends solely on public schools for
education. Independent schools based on the needs of our children will
pro&ide the best atmosphere conduci&e to their present and future well*
bein. 5ur children will learn the meanin of nation*buildin only
when we teach them.
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+. .he (lack community must demand, petition, boycott, and protest
the schools across the country to implement the necessary chanes that
will benefit our children educationally and socially. .eachers and
parents must be part of this mo&ement.
1#. .he African E African American 'tudies 9epartments throuhout
the country, as well as politicians and oraniFations, must et in&ol&ed
in this o&erall process.
Kin# Tut-Ank$-A2en:
&odern 3cience and t"e ("eft of Kemet
Content of Ea+
NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN
Preface
Rise of the 16
th
9ynasty
Forensic Reconstruction or 9eliberate 9eception
Fact2 Kin .ut is Afrikan
'CA Reacts to Counter Afrikan Identity of Kemet
Resurrectin Cheikh Anta 9iop
4e %ust )ot Rest
'elected (iblioraphy
1/-
Preface
I would like to i&e praise and tribute to the ancestors and
Afrikan Creator. I would like to i&e honor and respect to the fihtin
leacy and work of Cheikh Anta 9iop, 9rusilla 9unDee Bouston, Lohn
;lo&er Lackson, Lohn Benrik Clarke, and Lacob Budson Carruthers
amon others. I would like to i&e thanks to the Philadelphia chapter of
the Association for the 'tudy of Classical African Ci&iliFation
>A'CAC?, amon others Ron and Cleanise %cCoy and Lim ;ray, my
elders and inspiration. I must always thank Kamau Rashid for his
insiht and technical assistance.
Alon with se&eral other works, this essay was posted on the
website www.mukasa.info. .he essay is slihtly eGpanded, but is
basically the same as the on*line &ersion with limited chanes. .he
eGpress purpose of the essay is to inform those who would wronly
belie&e or promote the idea of Kin .utankhamen )ebkheperura bein
anythin eGcept an Afrikan Pharaoh of an ancient Afrikan nation. .his
form of the electronic essay became of critically sinificance due to the
wide propaandiFin of a "##1 reconstruction of a Caucasoid*Arabic
.ut. .he "##1 forensic reconstruction, led by Kahi Bawass of the
'upreme Council of Anti8uities >'CA?, has been spread o&er the world,
and unless the false imae is countered and corrected by as many
concerned indi&iduals, students, teachers, parents, scholars,
oraniFations, institutions, etc., the fake imae stands to poison the
minds of millions o&er the comin enerations.
Afrikan ci&iliFation and history has been under assault for
millenniums. .his assault continues to this &ery day. .he Arab
o&ernment of 3ypt and the head of the 'upreme Council of
Anti8uities are only continuin this lon assault. As our Afrikan
ancestors rose up in the city of 4aset o&er /,1## years ao, formed an
army, and marched out to reclaim their destiny from the Byksos, we are
1/$
commissioned to meet this battle today. .he 4aset led army of
'e8enenra .ao and his warrior sons would form the 16
th
dynasty that
would i&e birth to the then little*known, boy*kin who is the subDect
of this essay. 'e8enenra .ao bean a &hmy-Msu >rebirth?, althouh he
would die in battle and not witness the &ictory of his people o&er the
forein in&aders. As 'e8enenra .ao did in his lifetime, we must dare to
restore Maat >truth? to the world.
<In practice it is possible to determine directly the skin
colour and hence the ethnic affiliation of the ancient
3yptian by microscopic analysis in the laboratoryH I
doubt if the saacity of the researchers who ha&e
studied the 8uestion has o&erlooked the possibility=
>C$eik$ Anta Dio. on the %elanin 9osae .est in
5NESC-4 0eneral *istory, Iolume II, "#?.
Rie of t$e 34
t$
D+nat+
Tutankhamen >the 7i&in Imae of Amen?, also known as
Ne%kheperura >7ord of the Creations of Ra?, was a minor Pharaoh who
li&ed around /,/## years ao. Be beloned to a ci&iliFation that rew
from the heart of Afrika. .he land of .ut@s dynasty was populated from
the base of the )ile waters and the 'ahara before it was a desert. Bis
family sat on the throne of the 16
th
dynasty that ruled o&er a land they
often call .awi >the .wo 7ands? in their writin, and at times they
called their land K%. >7and of the (lacks or the (lack 7and?. .he
16
th
dynasty had subDuated areas beyond its boundaries into Asia and
other parts of Afrika. As much as it may be to the dismay of some,
3ypt is in Afrika and is an Afrikan ci&iliFation.
.ut*ankh*amen was oriinally .ut*ankh*aten, due to the
reliious fer&or of his relati&e Akhenaten who promoted the worship of
Aten as a way to circum&ent the rowin political influence of the
powerful Amen*RA priesthood. Kin .utankhamen was a boy*kin
when he came to the throne at a time wrouht with reliious and
political uphea&als from within and issues Dust as reat from without.
.he 16
th
dynasty constantly fouht wars to protect its borders and in
the process spread its rule to distant lands. In fact, the 16
th
dynasty was
born in warfare when .ut@s ancestors eGpelled the forein Byksos
in&aders who brouht sla&ery, coloniFation, and chaos to the Afrikan
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population. Kin .utankhamen would be one of the last rulers in one of
the reatest royal families of not only Afrika, but also the world. Art,
literature, science, architecture, and the other hallmarks of ci&iliFation
had reached a Fenith in a reat, old ae of old.
.he boy*kin who ruled in theory for about a decade would not
be a maDor player in his dynastic era. 'ome of Kin .ut@s ancestors,
like Ahmose, had fouht historic wars that freed the entire land from
the forein Byksos. 5thers of .ut@s ancestors, like 9Dehewty*%oses III,
had waed round*shakin campains that con8uered distant lands and
doFens of cities. Afrikan Pharaohs of other dynasties had built
manificent and breath takin monuments, pyramids, uni&ersity*
temples, and buildins that were wonders to behold. Kin .ut would
not e&en li&e lon enouh to make these reat contributions to Afrikan
ci&iliFation. Bistory is not without ironyH the sayin oes. 5ne of the
most insinificant Pharaohs for his time, .utankhamen )ebkheperura,
the boy*kin, would become one of the most hihlihted and most
sinificant rulers of his dynasty in our time.
.oday, we look back o&er /,### years later to understand his
era, as we look back to ain the truths to the Afrikan identity of not
only .ut himself, but his family*dynasty and ultimately his nation. .he
olden, boy*kin can become a key throuh which future enerations
will no loner be able to deny the Afrikan identity of .awi >Kemet?,
and it all bean with a false claim, the perpetuation of a lie. .he
falsification now i&es the world the opportunity to learn the truth
about the Afrikan identity of .ut, the 16
th
dynasty, and )ile Ialley
ci&iliFation in eneral. In the process, we hope to learn the sinificance
of Afrikan history to Afrikan identity, the need to build independent
institutions, and the need to rebuild who we are as a people.
Forenic Recontruction or De&iberate Dece.tion
Cultural oppression and theft is not only the product of warfare
and sla&ery. .oday, modern science in the campain of misleadin
propaanda has become &ery useful in the theft of the past. 5n Lanuary
1, "##1, the mummified remains of Kin .utankhamen were remo&ed
from their tomb under the super&ision of the 'ecretary ;eneral of the
'upreme Council of Anti8uities of 3ypt, 9r. Kahi Bawass. .he
mummy of Kin .ut was subDected to treatment from a million dollar
machine, a C. scanner, or CA. scan, or computed aGial tomoraphic
scanner, which rotated around his body and took 1,$## slices,
computeriFed, diital, state of the art G*rays of the boy*kin. It took
minutes for the machine to do its Dob. .he scan would pro&e that .ut
1/+
died from an inDured, probably infected broken le he may ha&e
suffered from ridin a chariot. After the scans were done, three teams
came up with three different forensic reconstructions of the boy*kin.
Bowe&er, the )ational ;eoraphic and the 'CA would lay ultimate
interest on one reconstruction. .hat reconstruction falsely depicts Kin
.ut as an ArabECaucasoid youn man.
http2EEnews.nationaleoraphic.comEnewsE"##1E#1E#111N#1#111Nkintutface.html
http2EEwww.nationaleoraphic.comE
In a matter of months, millions had seen the false, decepti&e
imae of .ut, and millions more will see it o&er the years. .he truth
must be told, and the campain to spread the truth about .utankhamen
in particular and Afrikan ci&iliFation in eneral must be sustained. 7et
us consider the parties in&ol&ed in the makin of the fake .ut.
.he )ational ;eoraphic 'ociety and the 'iemens %edical
'olutions company of ;ermany donated the C. machine to the
'upreme Council of the Anti8uities >'CA? of 3ypt. 'iemens is a
world*leadin supplier of medical e8uipment. .he )ational ;eoraphic
was founded in 1666 as a maaFine and society dedicated most
specifically to eoraphy, but also its related fields. .he 'CA is under
the Arab Republic of 3ypt@s %inistry of Culture, and this political*
educational body o&ersees the anti8uities and archeoloical finds of the
country. 'iemens, )ational ;eoraphic, and the 'CA all stood to ain
from the C. scans of Kin .utankhamen. It was all a skillful
manipulation of modern science to profit from and promote a fake
imae that had nothin to do with .ut@s true likeness.
'iemens and )ational ;eoraphic has ained an unbelie&able
amount of basically free commercial time as the world stands awe
struck by the absolutely misleadin forensic reconstruction that depicts
.utankhamen as an Arab*Caucasoid. An Arab himself, Kahi Bawass,
heads the %inistry of Culture@s 'CA of the Arabic Republic of 3ypt.
Bawass and the o&ernment of 3ypt descended politically andEor
enetically from the Arab@s who in&aded 3ypt in -/+ E -,# AC3. .he
Arabs who now occupy 3ypt are not the historical, oriinal
inhabitants of that nation. Alfred (utler@s The Ara% In(asion of E'ypt is
one ood source on the subDect. Bawass and the o&ernment he
represents ha&e imposed themsel&es politically and culturally o&er a
land that did not belon to them, a land that was oriinally o&erned by
Afrikan Pharaohs. Bawass denies the Afrikan heritae of the )ile
Ialley, 3ypt in particular. 3ssentially, he is a propaator of cultural
theft, and this is why he found it necessary to make a fake .ut.
1,#
.he C. scan was completed and three teams were used to
create three different forensic reconstructions to further i&e
international publicity, stature, and &alidation to an outriht lie. .he
most important team was that lead by 9r. Kahi Bawass, an eGpert
archeoloist. Forensic reconstruction eGpert 9r. Lean*)oel Iinal led
the French team, and physical anthropoloist 9r. 'usan Anton led the
American team. .he .ut produced by the 'CA would recei&e basically
all of the attention. In fact, the others were ne&er completed, no doubt
because they were more Afrikan than the 'CA@s .ut. In fact, the
reconstruction done under Anton@s team was distinctly Afrikan. .his is
all the more of interest because only the American team of Anton did
not know the identity of the skull while the French and 'CA team knew
it was the skull of Kin .ut. .his shows deliberate deception or at best
denial about the Afrikan identity of .ut and 3ypt >Kemet?.
.he Lune "##1 edition of the )ational ;eoraphic interestinly
entitled <.he )ew Face of Kin .ut,= tele&ision co&erae, maaFines,
and newspaper articles would run the face of the fake .ut, a non*
Afrikan, all o&er the world, into schools, uni&ersities, bookstores, and
the homes of millions. An international tour, shortly after the
reconstructions, of some of the items from the boy*kin@s tomb and
other Pharaohs, alon with the fake reconstruction hit the road eGpected
to be &iewed by millions and to make millions of dollars. In the public
relations work of the 'CA and )ational ;eoraphic, the racial identity
of Kin .utankhamen, the accuracy of the Arab*Caucasoid
reconstruction was a secondary or third issue when compared to how
he died and the publiciFin of the tour. .hat Kin .ut@s mummy is an
Afrikan has been completely and deliberately inored. .he 'CA is
more concerned about their theft of Afrikan history and a
predominately white audience &iewin a fake reconstruction of .ut to
make millions of dollars rather than re&ealin the true identity of the
mummy and his family.
Chris Lohns, the editor of )ational ;eoraphic, said in the Lune
issue2
4hat happens when "1
st
century technoloy J
in this case a C. scanner J meets the /,/## year*old
mummy of an 3yptian pharaohM First of all, there@s
this month@s co&er imae, a &isualiFation of the boy
kin0
.ut@s features turned out to be predominately
Caucasoid, collidin head*on with the opinion of some
1,1
scholars that the ancient 3yptians were black Africans
>the italics were added?.
Lohns stated that debate and contro&ersy would follow the
reconstruction. .hat is not the most important concernH rather
correctin the lie is what should follow. Lohns states in reference to one
of the forensic team leaders, Iinal, as they supposedly tried to fiure
out .ut@s skin compleGion, <4e may ne&er know the pharaoh@s skin
color0 5ur solution Rin the reconstruction processS was to model the
color on modern 3yptian skin tones, which &ary across the spectrum.=
.he skin tone that sits on the reconstruction is that of an Arab or
%editerranean Caucasoid. For those who are in the slihtest familiar
with C. scans know that the machines accuracy is with detectin
medical illnesses or potential illnesses, bone structure or breaks, but
not racial reconstruction. A C. scanner cannot tell the thickness of
.ut@s lips and nose. )or can the machine tell his skin color or his hair
teGture in the absence of it. As sophisticated and eGpensi&e as the
machine is, and as 8ualified >dereed? as the teams who did the
reconstructions were, they ot Kin .ut@s race dead wron, and what@s
more is that they knew itO Cheikh Anta 9iop@s melanin test, much
cheaper than a million dollar machine, could accurately i&e us .ut@s
skin tone. I would caution, before we accept any conclusions from the
'CA, that we ha&e independent in&estiators because we are dealin
with a roup of educated liars.
5act: Kin# Tut i Afrikan
A forensic reconstruction is only as ood as the e&idence
a&ailable, or the e&idence chosen for use as in this case. Also, to a
point, forensic reconstructions are basically artwork, left ultimately to
creati&e interpretation. In the case of the reconstruction of .ut, art was
relied on more hea&ily than the actual e&idence. If the reconstructions
of .utankhamen )ebkheperura were intended as an actual and accurate
representation of the Pharaoh himself, at least three critical types of
e&idence would ha&e ne&er been inored. Ces, e&idence was
completely inored that could ha&e i&en an actual representation of
the identity of the boy*kin as the Afrikan he was in life and still is as
we aFe at the mummy.
.he scans from the mummy were used in the reconstruction,
but obser&ers ha&e noted that the mummy is dried and the structure has
sunk in to some deree. From the mummy, the basic shape of .ut@s
head was formed with some accuracy, and that@s about it. A more
1,"
accurate nose could ha&e been de&eloped. .he reconstruction should
ha&e had a stroner Daw structure. .he e&idence, deliberately inored,
consisted of the ancient imaes of the kin and his family, the 9)A of
.ut to confirm his family members and thus create an accurate likeness,
and finally the melanin content of .ut@s skin. )o serious reconstruction
of Kin .ut would ha&e inored this e&idence. 9r. Kahi Bawass and the
others responsible for the reconstruction inored this critical e&idence
because it was known before the proDect bean the type of
reconstruction they had in mind for the final product. 7ikewise, I arue
that the 'CA knows with certainty that .utankhamen is Afrikan
because there could be no other reason to inore readily accessible
e&idence that could ha&e properly rendered the imae of the kin for
what he looked like in life.
From Kin .ut@s tomb alone were found enouh imaes of him
to render a true likeness. .here are se&eral lifelike car&ins, probably
the most famous bein a manikin, one that was used when the kin was
dressin. .he manikin is in the almost eGact imae of the kin as a
youner teen some years before the time of his death. .here are se&eral
artistic imaes of the boy*kin, one of the most famous, I@d say, bein
the imae that is on his olden throne with .ut and his wife. .here are
se&eral life*siFe paintins of Kin .ut found on the walls of his tomb.
4e know from this physical e&idence left by the artist who looked
upon the face of the Pharaoh and chose colors to represent a person
with a hih melanin content that the boy*kin was an Afrikan of a rich
brown compleGion. Additionally, known the world o&er, the sinle most
attracti&e and most well known imae of .ut, the most known imae of
any kin, is the olden mask. .he olden mask rested inside three
coffins, two ilded and one of solid old. 3ach of the coffins had the
likeness of the kin. .he most accurate likeness, howe&er, wasEis the
olden mask that rested directly on the mummy. .he olden mask is a
near portrait of .utankhamen@s physical features at the ae of his last
days. .he mask clearly shows a person with full lips and nose that
would fit the facial structure of any Afrikan. Bis cheekbone, brow, and
Daw structure are that of an Afrikan. .he olden mask does not ha&e the
kin@s compleGion, but enouh paintins riht in his tomb show his
deep brown skin.
4hy would the 'CA@s reconstruction team use Arabs li&in in
3ypt, who did not li&e in 3ypt when .ut was ali&e, to i&e a skin
tone to the kinM .he only predominate non*Afrikan population in
K%. >.awi? were the Byksos, and by the time of .ut@s rein, they were
already eGpelled from the land. If they wanted to know his skin tone,
1,/
they should ha&e used his skin by melanin testin. Can anyone think
that the reconstruction eGperts, in decidin on the skin tone, simply did
not think to use the e&idence from the mummy and the tomb that
clearly shows .ut wasEis AfrikanM 4hy would such e&idence be
inored unless the result was propaandiFed and deliberate deceptionM
.here is his own skin and there are clear paintins of .ut showin skin
color, and all were inored. (esides the imaes of .ut, a&ailable
e&idence includes the accurate likenesses of Aueen .iye, Akhenaten,
and %eritaten. .he mummy of Amenhotep III is a&ailable alon with a
mummy that is belie&ed to be .iye@s and a skull belie&ed to be
Akhenaten@s. .he identities of the mummy and the skull are critical,
and likewise so is establishin whether these are remains related to .ut
or not. It is only one way to establish these strins of information as
fact, and the method has been &iorously discouraed by the 'CA. I
speak of the reliability of 9)A samples.
SCA 2eacts to Counter Afrikan Identit+ of Ke2et
If forensic reconstruction is a science, then the results would
ha&e been conclusi&e and areeable between the different remakes of
.ut. )ot only did the three teams come up with different imaes, there
was an earlier reconstruction done in "##" by 9r. Richard Robins of
:ni&ersity Collee 7ondon. For ob&ious reasons, this "##"
reconstruction did not recei&e the same attention and media hype as the
"##1 reconstruction of Bawass. .his reconstruction was diital and
based primarily on 1+-6 G*rays of Kin .ut. Robins also used people
who matched the kin in ethnicity, siFe, and shape. .his is a common
practice in forensic reconstructions. A sculptor, AleG Fort, made the
final product into a life*like finish. .he results of the "##"
reconstruction2 Kin .utankhamen was Afrikan. .he display was put
in the 7ondon %useum of 'cience and a (ritish based tele&ision
documentary was produced. .he famous olden mask was used at some
phase in the reconstruction.
http2EEwww.sciencemuseum.or.ukEantennaEtutankhamunE111.asp
.he timeframe of the e&ents of the two reconstructions, leads
one to the conclusion that the 'CA and Bawass was led to make the
Arab*Caucasoid .ut in "##1 because Robins and Fort had made the
Afrikan .ut in "##". :nfortunately, the "##" reconstruction could not
rely hea&ily enouh on the imaes of .ut and his family. .he 'CA
would ha&e no doubt refused to work with Robins or any proDect in
which the true Afrikan identity of .ut could ha&e been pro&en.
1,,
Additionally, a <reconstruction= of another reat Afrikan
personality from Kemet led the 'CA to make the "##1 fake .ut. In
"##/, a team of eGperts, led by :ni&ersity of Cork@s 9r. Loann Fletcher,
reconstructed a mummy that some belie&e to be that of )efertiti.
Fletcher@s specialty deals with the eGamination of hair from the ancient
burials. 9r. Fletcher has widely noted the presence of non*Afrikan hair
in Kemet >.awi?, to the reat satisfaction of those who would like to
whiten the nation. Cet, 9r. Fletcher has acknowleded, which is often
inored, that while there is non*Afrikan hair found on mummies, the
<standard= hair type of dynastic Kemet >K%.? is Afrikan >see the 1++$
and 1++6 articles of the Nekhen Ne,s, <:nra&elin the 'ecrets of the
7ocks= and <.he 'ecrets of the 7ocks :nra&eled,= by Loann Fletcher?.
4hat@s more is that althouh hair dyein was a common practice, so
was wearin eGtensions >braids? and wis. .he wis show Afrikan
styled hair, and need I say that no women in the world braid hair the
way (lack women do. .he Afrikan sisters of K%. were into hair as
much as they are today. Fletcher fails to draw these conclusions in her
research on hair, but it@s plainly ob&ious that her hair research further
pro&es the Afrikan identity of Kemet. 4hat is of reat interest is that
9r. Fletcher has specialiFed in hair, and if you find as much Afrikan
hair as she has, you would know that the ancient 3yptians were
Afrikan. .his 9r. Loann Fletcher, who studies hair, led the eGperts in
"##/ who reconstructed a mummy belie&ed to be )efertiti, and the
result is that they made her as she was in life, an Afrikan. Fletcher
knows that it would not be honest to make )efertiti white, Persian, or
Arab because she has studied enouh hair samples to understand that
Kemet is an Afrikan ci&iliFation.
http2EEdsc.disco&ery.comEcon&erenceEnefertitiEfaceEface.html
)ow, as interestin as Fletcher@s findins are, and her
acknowledin, basically reluctantly admittin, that Afrikan hair was
the standard type found in dynastic Kemet, some other facts are sure to
raise 8uestions. .he reconstruction of )efertiti by Loann Fletcher was
aired on a 9isco&ery Channel special in "##/. .he face of an Afrikan
woman went across tele&isions to a mass audience sayin that this is
what the 8ueen looked like, and that is when Kahi Bawass of the 'CA
countered Loann Fletcher, and thus countered the Afrikan
reconstruction. Bawass countered Fletcher and the )efertiti
reconstruction by bannin her from workin in 3ypt. Bawass in an
article on his official website claimed that Fletcher was banned because
she broke uidelines with the 'CA by oin to the press and producin
1,1
the documentary when she did not et appro&al first. .his is what
Bawass said on his official website2
Loann Fletcher did not disco&er anythin. 'he tried to
sell herself to the world as an eGpert in somethin she
knows little about. 7ast week I went to 7uGor and
entered the tomb of Amenhotep II once aain, and I am
now more certain than e&er that this mummy cannot be
)efertiti.
http2EEwww.Fahihawass.comE
Bawass has attempted to completely discredit Fletcher as an
eGpert, when in fact she del&es into areas completely inored by him
and basically the entire field of archeoloy. 'urely, Fletcher is an
eGpert. Fletcher@s crime was not in sayin that she disco&ered )efertiti
or breakin 'CA rules. Ber crime aainst the 'CA is that she chose to
et her Ph.9. in ancient 3yptian hair, an area where her findins could
only pro&e the standard presence of an Afrikan Kemet, as she has
reluctantly admitted herself. Fletcher has said that Afrikan hair is
predominatin throuhout dynastic 3ypt, which is critical E pi&otal
and honest, yet she spends more time focusin on non*Afrikan hair
types. 5n this matter, Fletcher is misleadin because, with all of the
confusion, there is no way one could speak and write so much about
hair and not consistently mention the ob&ious, that is she has spent
countless hours studyin Afrikan hair which pro&es the Afrikan identity
of ancient 3ypt >K%.?. Bowe&er, the crime of Fletcher with the 'CA
is that she was bold enouh to tell the truth about the race of an Afrikan
royal mummy, )efertiti or not. 'he has an eGcellent case, as she
eGplained in the documentary, but whether it was )efertiti remains to
be seen. Cet, that was a minor issue compared to her research pro&in
the Afrikan identity of Kemet. .his was too much for Bawass, who is
hell bent on lyin to millions of people. Be, in his mind, had to make
the fake .ut. Be had to promote the myth of a non*Afrikan .ut because
he does not want to belie&e that Kemet >.awi? is an Afrikan nation.
In a ((C radio inter&iew, Bawass a&e his position on Cheikh
Anta 9iop@s research, the Afrikan identity of Kemet bein a <theory,=
and how he felt Arabs who li&e in 3ypt are related to the Pharaohs.
4hen asked how he felt about Cheikh Anta 9iop, the 'CA@s Kahi
Bawass said2
5f course Cheikh Anta 9iop was completely
wronO .his is a kind of a theory that he de&eloped
because it doesn@t mean, look at the features of the
1,-
people, the (lack, in 3ypt today, their nose, their lips,
is completely different from the )ero and therefore
Cheikh Anta 9iop@s theory, he did it I think in a time to
please the (lack Americans, who really feel they@re a
minority, and they want to be connected with this
place, this ci&iliFation like 3ypt. After Cheikh Anta
9iop did make his theory, there is a conference was
made by :)3'C5 and the recommendation at the end
of the conference that this cannot be accepted, and they
said we need more work in prehistoric time to
understand more about the oriin of the people.
4hen asked how he felt about people sayin 3ypt was an Afrikan
ci&iliFation, Bawass said2
I really do not belie&e that 3ypt is an African
ci&iliFation. I belie&e that the 3yptian ci&iliFations
were uni8ue. 3ypt is in Africa, but the 3yptian
ci&iliFation has nothin to do with the African cultures
because of many, many, many features. If you look at
the pharaonic period, it@s completely different from
anythin. If you look at the production of the
technoloy that the 3yptians left, it@s completely
different from any belief in any time. If you look at the
3yptian from the anthropoloical point of &iew,
they@re different from the African. And this why I
belie&e that pharaonic 3ypt is completely uni8ue,
they ha&e no connection with the Africans, or e&en
with the Arabs, completely independent. And this why,
e&en today, 3yptians are 3yptians. The idea doesn9t
mean that ,e speak Ara%ic4 that ,e can %e Ara%s) &e
are really4 I feel personally4 that ,e are related e(en
today4 to the +haraohs) >italics added?
http2EEwww.bbc.co.ukEworldser&iceEafricaEfeaturesEstoryofafricaEramsE/audio1.ram
:nlike 9iop, who relied on a multi*disciplinary, researched
approach to pro&e the Afrikan oriins of Kemet, Bawass can only say
that he disarees without i&in any concrete e&idence for why he
arues aainst the Afrikan identity of Kemet. As will be detailed
shortly, 9iop relied on science, history, linuistics, and anthropoloy to
pro&e the Afrikan oriin of )ile Ialley ci&iliFation. Bawass relies on a
fake forensic reconstruction and his opinions. Be has tried to crush the
reputability of Fletcher because she has relied on physical, indisputable
1,$
e&idence in her research, that of hair. Bawass, likewise, stands aainst
any scientific research that may pro&e the Afrikan backround of .awi
>Kemet or K%.?.
9r. 'cott 4oodward, molecular bioloist of (riham Coun
:ni&ersity is belie&ed by some in his field to be the first scientist to
eGtract dinosaur 9)A from a bone. I@m not aruin whether he really
eGtracted dinosaur 9)A or not. 4hat is sinificant here is that
4oodward is world renown, and in "##/ he was denied the possibility
of usin 9)A samples to enetically reconstruct the 16
th
dynasty.
Lapanese scientists were earlier denied the same possibility in "###.
.his was all despite the fact that 4oodward was doin 9)A testin on
royal mummies in the 1++#@s. .he denials came after the 1+++
9isco&ery Channel@s documentary, <'ecrets of Pharaohs= in which
4oodward said that it was &ery possible to enetically reconstruct the
entire 16
th
dynasty because the ene pool was &ery narrow due to
intermarriae in the royal family. 4oodward said there seemed to be
N- outsider blood in the royal family, which is contrary to what has
been thouht. 4hy wouldn@t the 'CA want 4oodward to reconstruct
the 16
th
dynastyM
Bistory would ha&e to be rewritten if 4oodward or some
eneticist were allowed to do such a study. 'uch a study would remo&e
certain mummies ,ron'ly identified as Afrikan royals. Certain
mummies ha(e %een catalo'ed that are not Afrikan4 and they ,ere not
family mem%ers of the ;@
th
dynasty) .his task will be left to future
researchers to finaliFe. I@ll refrain from much speculation here, but the
enetic chronoloy is the only sure way to know. I do arue that the
family relationship of 'e8enenra .ao II, 9Dhewety*%oses I, II and III,
and .utankhamen )ebkheperura could be enetically pro&en throuh
9)A samples. 9ue to the certainty of the identity of his mummy, Kin
.ut would thus become a marker for the enetic reconfiuration of the
16
th
dynasty, which would in turn pro&e his Afrikan identity, and all or
most of the misidentification that has occurred can be corrected.
%ummies that are not identified may pro&e to be members of the royal
family. 7ikewise, the relationships of .iye and )efertiti to the royal
families would be reconsidered. 9)A holds so much promise to the
16
th
dynasty and therefore )ile Ialley ci&iliFation in eneral, and I am
con&inced this is why the 'upreme Council of the Anti8uities of the
Arab Republic of 3ypt and Kahi Bawass refuse to allow the samplin.
If one is attemptin to create a false identity of an indi&idual kin,
1,6
really an entire population, one would not rely on concrete science like
9)A, rather emphasis would be placed on interpreti&e science like a
forensic reconstruction that can really o either way.
Consider aain the hihly 8uestionable method of the "##1
reconstruction team who used Arabs to choose a <skin tone= for Kin
.ut. 4hy would this be the way to sol&e the mystery of his skin tone
when the 'CA could ha&e used the mummy itselfM .he melanin in .ut@s
skin is as present as it were /,/## years ao. Cheikh Anta 9iop
proposed a study that could ha&e concretely pro&en the Afrikan identity
of the royal mummies throuh testin of the melanin content of the
skin. 9iop, now deceased, has yet to be taken seriously because the
research would cause the academic world to admit that it has been lyin
for enerations.
Bawass can only say that he disarees with 9iop, but 9iop put
his research on a multi*disciplinary foundation. At the 1+$, :)3'C5
Conference on 3yptoloy, Cheikh Anta 9iop and his protUU
.heophile 5bena arued before the world that scientific, linuistic,
and cultural studies must be used to properly classify the people of
ancient 3ypt >Kemet, .awi?. 5ne method that could still be &ery
useful if used today is his %elanin 9osae .est. .his is what 9iop had
to say in his own words from the paper presented at the 1+$,
conference entitled, <5riin of the Ancient 3yptiansH= it reads as
follows2
Me&anin Doa#e Tet
In practice it is possible to determine directly
the skin colour and hence the ethnic affiliations of the
ancient 3yptians by microscopic analysis in the
laboratoryH I doubt if the saacity of the researchers
who ha&e studied the 8uestion has o&erlooked the
possibility.
%elanin >eumelanin?, the chemical body
responsible for skin pimentation, is, broadly speakin,
insoluble and is preser&ed for millions of years in the
skins of fossil animals. .here is thus all the more
reason for it to be readily reco&erable in the skins of
3yptian mummies, despite a tenacious leend that the
skin of mummies, tainted by the embalmin material,
is no loner susceptible of any analysis. Althouh the
epidermis is the main site of the melanin, the
melanocytes penetratin the derm at the boundary
1,+
between it and the epidermis, e&en where the latter has
mostly been destroyed by the embalmin materials,
show a melanin le&el which is non*eGistent in the
white*skinned races. .he samples I myself analyFed
were taken in the physical anthropoloy laboratory of
the %usee de l@Bomme in Paris off the mummies from
the %arietta eGca&ations in 3ypt. .he same method is
perfectly suitable for use on the royal mummies of
.hutmoses III, 'eti I and Ramses II in the Cairo
%useum, which are in an eGcel state of preser&ation.
For t,o years past I ha(e %een (ainly %e''in' the
curator of the Cairo Museum for similar samples to
analy2e) )o more than a few s8uare millimeters of skin
would be re8uired to mount a specimen, the
preparations bein a few um in thickness and lihtened
with ethyl benFoate. .hey can be studied by natural
liht or with ultra*&iolet lihtin which renders the
melanin rains fluorescent.
3ither way let us simply say that the e&aluation
of melanin le&el by microscopic eGamination is a
laboratory method which enables us to classify the
ancient 3yptians un8uestionably amon the black
races >5NESC- 0eneral *istory of Africa# II Ancient
Ci(ili2ations in Africa, /# and Ian 'ertima, 0reat
Afrikan Thinkers, ,1?.
As has been noted, there are certain mummies that ha&e been
misidentified. If 4oodward and other scientists wereEare allowed to
conduct 9)A samplin, the mislabelin of mummies can be eGposed.
9iop may ha&e found this out if he were allowed to conduct his
%elanin 9osae .est on the mummies. I would arue that 9iop would
ha&e been led to the conclusion that mummies ha&e been mislabeled
because his research was hihly meticulous. 9iop did not only promote
melanin testin, he basically wanted to brin all a&ailable science and
research to the table. If Cheikh Anta 9iop were ali&e today, he would
intensely promote the 9)A samplin of the mummies alon with the
%elanin 9osae .est. As well, Loann Fletcher@s hair samplin of
mummies can only be completely reliable with melanin testin. .oday,
the combination of 9)A, melanin, and hair testin must be done in
order to properly place the ethnicity of the Pharaohs, the 16
th
dynasty,
and the eneral nation of .awi. 5nly someone whose career is built on
11#
phony propaanda would a&oid these scientific tests. 5nly someone
who wishes to a&oid the Afrikan identity of the mummies would a&oid
these tests. 5nly someone who wants a fake .ut would a&oid these
tests. .he end result is the mis*educated and inorant conclusions of
millions of people the world o&er, that is unless we do somethin about
it oursel&es. 4hile Fletcher is an eGpert in hair samplin, 9iop
prefiured her in the area. In fact, 9iop eGplained that if researchers
were to study a population to find out their racial identity and eneral
backround, these researchers would use all a&ailable science at their
disposal to unearth the facts. 7et us take a closer look at the multi*
disciplinary approach to unearthin the Afrikan foundation and identity
of the )ile Ialley de&eloped by 9iop.
Reurrectin# C$eik$ Anta Dio.
4e ha&e people and institutions in this world such as Kahi
Bawass and his colleaues, )ational ;eoraphic, the media, and all of
the museums that will display the eGhibit with the fake .ut, who in the
process of misleadin the world about the identity of this kin will
mislead us about the identity of the ci&iliFation. Cet, we also ha&e those
who ha&e championed the cause of rescuin the Afrikan identity of
Kemet throuh e&idence. .here are none who led the way in this
historic proDect as 9iop. .here is not only a need to re&isit 9iop, but
also a need to institutionaliFe his leacy and promote his work. .his
must be done throuh uni&ersities and museums around the world.
Indeed, 9iop@s leacy should be a national proDect of e&ery Afrikan
nation and any museum or uni&ersity in the world that honestly
promotes the awareness of )ile Ialley ci&iliFation. 4e ha&e failed to
understand the sinificance of his work. In fact, the world has failed to
understand his work.
I&an Ian 'ertima has done an impressi&e Dob in the book
dedicated to 9iop, entitled 0reat Afrikan Thinkers. It is a work that no
one should inore who is serious about )ile Ialley studies and 9iop
himself. Cheikh Anta 9iop >1+"/*1+6-? was a master*teacher, a master*
scientist. 4hile the works of 4oodward and Fletcher are hihly
sinificant, the Afrikan 'enealese who dealt with science half a
century ao to pro&e the Afrikan identity of Kemet prefiured both of
them. 9iop had stronly recommended the study of hair as one method
to determine the racial identity of the people of Kemet. Fletcher seems
to think that hair lice are more important than racial identity. 7ikewise,
9iop had encouraed the use of all sciences a&ailable. 4hile 9iop
li&ed durin the dawn of the scientific world@s use of 9)A in mappin
111
human populations and relationships within families, he would ha&e
emphatically promoted the use of this method. Cet, 9iop had de&eloped
a comprehensi&e and scientific system or network of systems to
identify the racial ethnicity of the ancient 3yptians.
3mphasis is worth notin on a particular battle that 9iop
fouht some decades ao aainst certain academicians about the race of
Ramses II, also known as Ramses the ;reat. It is especially sinificant
because the battle for Ramses II is not o&er, and it is &ery related to the
issue herein this essay.
At the 1+$, :)3'C5 Conference, amon a plethora of other
concerns raised by 9iop was the possibility of testin the Pharaoh
Ramses the ;reat for his melanin content to determine his race. Aain,
in his maDor work, Ci(ili2ation or !ar%arism, 9iop raised the
possibility of testin the melanin content of the mummy belie&ed to be
Ramses. 9iop had obser&ed the historical records on the 1+
th
dynasty
concernin Ramses. Be obser&ed the reat temples and statues of this
Pharaoh, especially the Abu 'imbel architecture built in )ubia with the
massi&e statues of Ramses seated at the entrance. .he statues ha&e full
lips and broad noses. 9iop looked at the many paintins of Ramses,
which show him to ha&e the classic rich brown compleGion of the
ancient 3yptians. )o doubt 9iop looked at the <lock of youth=
pictures shown in bas*relief car&ins of Ramses when he was a child.
.he hair type is clearly Afrikan, and althouh braided, it is &ery thick,
as if in dreadlocks. In Ci(ili2ation or !ar%arism, 9iop had the picture
from the tomb of Ramses III reproduced which showed three racial
types. .wo were forein to Afrika, the Arab and 3uropean. .he third
type painted in the tomb was the 3yptian and )ubian, both were
painted black with Afrikan features. Few writers ha&e 8uestioned the
fact that Ramses III constantly campained militarily aainst
foreiners. .he only loic of ha&in such a clear emphasis on the
commonality of the 3yptian and )ubian is that they were in
cooperation with each other at the time of the paintin, a cooperation
fored out of military need aainst common enemies. All thins
considered, how could Ramses II be anythin eGcept an AfrikanM 9iop
was adamant about Ramses bein (lack.
For years, 9iop proposed a melanin test of Ramses@ skin which
did not happen then, and it has not happened now. 9iop especially
wanted a melanin test of Ramses because, beinnin in 1+$1, the
mummy had underone a tremendous amount of testin and radiation
had turned the skin from black to yellow, as 9iop had witnessed with
his own eyes >-$?. 9espite the color chane, 9iop noted that the
11"
melanin was still present in the skin, and still detectable. Aain,
althouh bein flown to Paris to undero testin, no melanin test was
e&er conducted on Ramses, at least that is known. Professor Ceccaldi
and 9r. Loann Fletcher ha&e said that their tests ha&e indicated that
Ramses had red hair, wa&y red hair, and so he must ha&e been white. A
"##, 9isco&ery Channel documentary would ha&e the world belie&e
that Ramses and his descendents were white. Ramses dyed his hair red
as was common amon some people then, and in old ae his hair was
ray. Fletcher and Ceccaldi claim that the roots of a +# year old man
still retained its oriinal red color from when he was a child while
e&erythin else rayed. A redheaded Ramses is hihly 8uestionable
because, as 9iop noted, his mother was from the royal family. Also, all
of the imaes, paintins, and car&ins of his time indicate that he was
an Afrikan, as were his rulin descendents who Fletcher claims were
also redheaded. If Ramses is redheaded, why a&oid the melanin testinM
4hy a&oid the 9)A testinM Fifty Parisian laboratories studied Ramses
II, says 9iop, so should we belie&e that no melanin testin was done on
the mummyM %aybe they didn@t et the results they desired.
7astly concernin Ramses II, 9iop raised the 8uestion, <9id
they e&en 8uestion whether this was really the same mummy that was
disco&ered by ;aston %asperoM= It is a stron possibility that the
mummy we ha&e associated with Ramses II may not be him in the first
place. .he mummy thouht to be that of Ramses II was not found in its
oriinal burial place, as was the case with many other mummies. 4e do
not know if this mummy belons to RamsesM 4e do not know the
melanin content or the 9)A family relations of the mummyM 4hat we
do know for certain is that Ramses the ;reat was depicted in all of his
car&ins and paintins as a proud Afrikan ruler. 4e know that his
father, 'eti I tauht him to honor the rulers of the past. 4e know that
this warrior*kin, Ramses the ;reat, did not hesitate to defend his
nation. As 9iop said, <Ramses II was a (lack. %ay he rest in peace in
his black skin for eternity= >-$?.
5ne of 9iop@s most widely read works is The African -ri'in of
Ci(ili2ation# Myth or Reality. .his is with ood reason. It is probably
one of the more understandable of his works for those who lack a
backround into the areas he deals with, but also because this work
deals straihtforward with the issue at hand. In this book, 9iop shows
pictures of 3yptian hairstyles and wis, and then he compares these
hairstyles with those worn by Afrikan women and irls to this &ery day,
with little chane >/+*,1?.
11/
Chapter se&en of The African -ri'in of Ci(ili2ation# Myth or
Reality is entitled <Aruments 'upportin a )ero 5riin.= In this
chapter, 9iop forms the core arument of the book itself. Be addresses
1# areas, really suestions for future research, which pro&e and
identify the Afrikan heritae of Kemet. Be states that each of these
areas can inform us of a commonality, a kinship with the rest of Afrika.
.hose areas are as follows2
3/ Tote2i2, which we can say is the spirit worship
found amon Afrikan nations
5/ Circu2ciion, which oriinated and is still found
amon Afrikan nations. 9iop also made note of the
spiritual sinificance the ancients of Kemet
attached to the practice as is done in traditional
Afrikan communities.
/. Kinship, di)ine kin#$i., of which is 8uite often
forotten is a de&elopment of the Afrikan
continent.
,. 'ome similarities between the co2o#on+
>account of the uni&ersal beinnins? of Kemet is
compared with that of the 9oon.
1. 9iop does not ha&e a separate section dealin with
.$i&oo.$+ in this work. Bowe&er, he makes note
of the issue under the section on cosmoony. In
Part Four of the book Ci(ili2ation or !ar%arism,
9iop deals with Afrikan philosophy.
-. 9iop made note of the common features of ocia&
or#ani6ation with Kemet and traditional Afrikan
societies. Althouh only a few lines in this work,
he eGpanded this research in Part .wo of
Ci(ili2ation or !ar%arism.
7/ Matriarc$+ or the %atri*focal orientation of
Kemet and Afrika is another shared feature that
eGplains the Afrikan*ness of the )ile Ialley.
)either Arabs nor 3uropeans ha&e matri*focal
societies as they are found in Afrika. .his issue
was so profound that 9iop would de&elop it into a
full lenth book, The Cultural 5nity of !lack
Africa# The omains of Matriarchy and
+atriarchy in Classical Anti.uity.
11,
4/ Kin#$i. of Meroitic Sudan and E#+.t builds
from point /, where 9iop is notin the common
features of Afrikan kinship.
8/ Crad&e of ci)i&i6ation, this is a section where
9iop notes the Afrikan heartland oriins of not
only the )ile Ialley, but of other ancient cultures.
.his topic is still widely debated, but no one can
sensibly deny / points2 A. the Afrikan presence of
the world@s ancient cultures, (. the Afrikan
mirations from the continent throuh the
prehistoric and ancient world, and C. the Afrikan
presence in these lands today. .his was further
e&idence of the Afrikan oriins of Kemet because
Afrikans took ci&iliFation where&er they went.
I&an Ian 'ertima@s edited Dournals on the African
+resence in Early Asia and the African +resence in
Early Europe is worth the research on this topic.
1#. .he last area in The African -ri'in of Ci(ili2ation
that shows the relationship with Kemet and Afrika
is the study of &in#uitic. 9iop made it a habit in
his research to obser&e the lanuaes of Kemet and
compare it with other Afrikan lanuaes.
In 1+$,, at the Cairo :)3'C5 conference on 3ypt, 9iop
presented the paper <5riin of the Ancient 3yptians,= to the reat
frustration of white and Arab 3yptoloist who would ha&e preferred to
bury the facts. .heophile 5bena was a reat support to 9iop in the
area of linuistic studies. 9iop knew that science could ha&e a &ery
useful role in identifyin the race of the ancient 3yptians. As a result
of his belief in the &alidation of science and knowlede of &arious
disciplines, from the publishin of The African -ri'in of Ci(ili2ation#
Myth or Reality to the 1+$, :)3'C5 conference, 9iop was able to
better scientifically de&elop his web*like system that interlinked
disciplines to pro&e the Afrikan identity of Kemet. 'ome areas were
o&erlappin while others, such as melanin testin, blood roups, and
bone measurements were new. Bere is a summary outline of the paper2
1. E(idence of physical anthropolo'y on the race of the
Ancient E'yptians
.his included the findins of remains and items by
anthropoloist of the ancient ci&iliFation.
111
". *uman ima'es of the proto-historic period# their
anthropolo'ical (alue
In this section, 9iop eGplained the Afrikan people
called the Anu from southern 3ypt and )ubia. In
particular, he made note of imaes that point to the
Afrikan oriin of Kemet. Be also cited the fact that the
color black was sacred in the )ile Ialley world&iew.
/. Melanin dosa'e test
.his was a &ery concrete way to pro&e the ethnicity of
the mummies by testin their melanin content.
,. -steolo'ical measurements
%easurin the eneral bone structure of mummies
could yield information about the racial cateory to
which the people of Kemet beloned. 9iop eGplained
that measurin the body proportions as opposed to
craniometry is one of the least misleadin methods in
findin out race.
1. !lood 0roups
9iop noted that the main blood roup of present day
Afrikans in 3ypt, especially in :pper 3ypt was the
same as 4est Afrikans, ;roup (. .his was contrary to
the A" ;roup of whites. (lood testin of mummies
could be used.
-. The E'yptian race accordin' to the classical authors
of anti.uity
Berodotus, Aristotle, 7ucian, Apollodorus, Aeshylus,
Achilles .atius, 'trabo, 9iodorus of 'icily, Ammianus
%arcellinus were all ancient writers, amon others,
who all said that the 3yptians were Afrikan in
phenotype >skin color?, hair teGture, and cultural traits.
.he ancient writers didn@t say the 3yptians were
whiteH they said they were Afrikans. .he world today
inores or denies what these ancient writers witnessed.
$. The E'yptians as they sa, themsel(es
.he lanuae and literature of ancient 3ypt i&es
e&idence that the people were (lack. 9iop notes the
kmt, which in its root, km, means black. In paintins
and sculptures, the 3yptians are (lack.
6. The di(ine epithets
(lack was the most sacred color of the people of
ancient 3ypt, notes 9iop. It was the root of the &ery
11-
name of the nation, and the root was also found in the
names of their di&inities. 3&en if they did not mean the
&ery color black where skin was concerned, as many of
the people were shades of brown, the point is that had
they been white, likely, black would not hold such
prominence in their mind.
+. The ,itness of the !i%le
9iop noted that in the (ible, 3ypt is classified as a
(lack nation as one of the sons of Bam alon with
other Afrikan nations. .he linuistic relation with Bam
and Km >Kem or Kam, meanin black? is readily
ob&ious.
1#. Cultural data
:nder this cateory, 9iop re&isited the cultural traits of
circumcision and totemism >spirit worship? as Afrikan
cultural traits.
11. $in'uistic Affinity
9iop noted the family relationship of Afrikan
lanuaes with the lanuae of ancient 3ypt.
1". Kin'ship
Althouh he did not make it a separate cateory, in his
conclusion, 9iop aain emphasiFed the Afrikan
practice of di&ine kinship.
A people who lose the knowlede of their history will also be
lost and &ulnerable in their future to domination and perhaps e&en
destruction. )o sensible people would permit the theft of their past. For
Afrikan people to rebuild who we are, we must continue to reain and
rebuild our historical memory. 4e must always protect our history from
thie&es who intend to rewrite it usin false claims and modern science.
.heft of a people@s history takes place one step at a time. As much,
rebuildin of a people@s history takes place a step at a time. .he racial
identity of .ut*Ankh*Amen is a step that we must not falter on. If we
lose .ut to the clutches of the 'CA, Bawass, )ational ;eoraphic, and
museums, dynastic Kemet is up for rabs neGt.
%e Mut Not Ret
4e cannot restO People like Kahi Bawass work hard around the
clock to mis*educate and decei&e millions of people about Afrikan
history and culture. .he Bawasses of the world must be confronted,
challened, and eGposed as cultural thie&es of the Afrikan past. Bawass
11$
will always disaree with 9iop, deny 4oodward, and discredit
Fletcher. .he works of these three scientists would pro&e the Afrikan
identity of )ile Ialley ci&iliFation, contrary to Bawass@ deception.
Reardless of the resources of the 'CA, we must deal with this issue.
5ne day, history will &indicate the truth and liars will be eGposed as
liars. 4e must not feel o&erwhelmed by the task of takin on those who
ha&e millions of dollars to create deception. .ruth has no price, and it
must be tauht. 4hat can be doneM
1. 4e can protest the eGhibition of the fake, forensic
reconstruction of .ut in whate&er city it lands in.
". 4e can write what we think to the 'upreme
Council of Anti8uities of the Arab Republic of
3ypt.
/. .hrouh writins and lectures, we can correct the
lies that are so often told about Afrikan history. 4e
can support e&ents that properly deal with Afrikan
history or issues related to our people in eneral.
4e must support oraniFations that promote the
study of Afrikan history and ci&iliFation. 4e must
form study roups and book clubs.
,. 4e can raise these issues in the classrooms of our
schools.
1. 4e should stronly encourae the museums and
libraries of this country, especially the (lack ones
where we would ha&e more influence, to de&elop
eGhibits that teach the truth about Afrikan history
and ci&iliFation.
-. 4hate&er we do, we must not a&oid our ultimate
responsibility. 4e must teach to the future. 4e
must teach truth to our children. 4e must arm
them with their Afrikan history so they can resist
all of the pitfalls of misinformation in this world
that are awaitin them.
$. Iery importantly, we must build our own
independent schools. 4e cannot eGpect that our
children are tauht the truth in schools that we do
not fully control, schools that we did not build,
schools that do not ha&e the best interest of our
people at their core.
116
6. From eGperience, I must say this2 it is not enouh
to build our own schools. 4e must re*educate and
AfrikaniFe oursel&es as a people. 4e must
understand the &alue of protectin our culture and
history. 4e must understand that we ha&e been
tauht to hate who we are and work aainst our
own self*interest. 4e must eGtricate the identity
crisis that is at our &ery heart.
+. 4e can take some time out to teach the truth to
children we know. (uy the books and &ideos that
teach the Afrikan backround of )ile Ialley
ci&iliFation and Afrikan history in eneral. %ake
the home a learnin en&ironment. 4e can ha&e an
enlihtenin dialo about this issue with family
members and friends, when possible.
1#. 4e must understand our obliation and
responsibility to our children, our future. 4e must
know that there is somethin that each and e&ery
one of us can do.
.he theft of .utankhamen )ebkheperura is one distortion in a
million. .he way to properly address these distortions is to build
our own institutions. If we allowed, our history would be
completely taken and i&en to the ownership of those who would
claim we ne&er had a history to speak of in the first place. All sane
people protect their history and the memory of their ancestors.
.hey do so for the sake of their children and their &ery future as a
people. 4e must see the &alue in that, especially as a people whose
ci&iliFations and history ha&e been under assault for thousands of
years. Afrika was not stolen o&erniht, and the reco&ery and
redemption of Afrika will not happen in one day. Bowe&er, we
must always work towards those ends, and all of us can do
somethin, e&erythin counts.
11+
'elected (iblioraphy
Ani, %arimba. "uru'u# An African-Centered Criti.ue of European
Cultural Thou'ht and !eha(ior) .renton, )L2 Africa
4orld Press, 1++,.
ben*Locchannan, Cosef and Clarke, Lohn Benrik. Ne, imensions
in African *istory. .renton, )L2 Africa 4orld Press,
1++1.
(rowder, Anthony .. Nile 1alley Contri%ution to Ci(ili2ation.
4ashinton 9C2 Institute of Karmic ;uidance, 1++".
(utler, Alfred. The Ara% In(asion of E'ypt. )ew Cork2 A and (
Publishin ;roup, 1++".
Carruthers, Lacob B. Intellectual &arfare. Chicao2 .hird 4orld
Press, 1+++.
Md, Ntr# i(ine Speech. 7ondon2 Karnak Bouse, 1++1.
Clarke, Lohn Benrik. Notes for an African &orld Re(olution#
Africans at the Crossroads. .renton, )L2 Africa 4orld
Press, 1++1.
9e*;raft*Lohnson, L.C. African 0lory. )C2 4alker and Company,
1+--.
9iop, Cheikh Anta. The African -ri'in of Ci(ili2ation# Myth or
Reality. Chicao2 7awrence Bill (ooks, 1+$,.
* Cultural 5nity of !lack Africa. 7ondon2 Karnak Bouse, 1+6+.
* !lack Africa# The Economic and Cultural !asis for a
Federated State. Chicao2 7awrence Bill (ooks, 1+$,.
* Ci(ili2ation or !ar%arism. (rooklyn, )C2 7awrence Bill
(ooks, 1++1.
* +recolonial !lack Africa. (rooklyn, )C2 7awrence Bill
(ooks, 1+6$.
* <.he 5riin of the Ancient 3yptians= ;eneral Bistory of
Africa, Iolume II. ;. %okhtar. 7ondon2 Beinemann, 1+61.
Lackson, Lohn ;. Introduction to African Ci(ili2ation. 'ecausus,
)L2 Citadel Press, 1+$#.
1-#
* Ethiopia and the -ri'in of Ci(ili2ation. (altimore, %92
(lack Classic Press, 1+61.
5sei, ;. K. African Contri%ution to Ci(ili2ation. (altimore, %92
(lack Classic Press, 1+++.
Parker, ;eore 4. The Children of the Sun. (altimore, %92 (lack
Classic Press, 1+61.
Ian 'ertima, I&an >editor?. 0reat African Thinkers# Cheikh Anta
iop A0reat African Thinkers4 1olume ;B) )ew (runswick2
.ransaction Publishers, 1+6-.
- E'ypt Re(isited. )ew (runswick2 Lournal of African
Ci&iliFation, 1++1.
* 3ypt2 Child of Africa. )ew (runswick2 Lournal of African
Ci&iliFation, "##".
4illiams, Chancellor. The estruction of !lack Ci(ili2ation. Chicao2
.hird 4orld Press, 1+6$.
1-1
CLASSICAL AFRIKAN LITERAT9RE
<7et us reco&er and restore our classical ci&iliFation so that it ser&es us
like the classical ci&iliFations of other people ser&e them=
>Lacob Carruthers, Intellectual &arfare, "$/?.
Introduction
%y first serious study of classical Afrikan literature was in the
classroom of (aba Ledi 'hemsu Lehewty >otherwise known as Lacob B.
Carruthers?. I distinctly remember eGtended discussions co&erin
se&eral class periods on 'inhue, the Instructions of Ptah Botep, Khun
Inpu@s ;ood 'peech ><3lo8uent Peasant=?, and the %dw )fr of )eferti.
(aba Ledi tauht me the first lessons I had in readin and understandin
%dw )tr >hierolyphics?. After those initial lessons under his uidance,
my understandin of the &alue of the content has rown with time. I
ne&er knew until after (aba Ledi made his transition into the home of
the ancestors that he was teachin the contents of a maDor work he
intended to publish, but ne&er did. .he work deals with the classical
literature of Afrika. I mention (aba Ledi for se&eral reasons. Be labored
for years teachin the community the lessons of the ancestors from
classical )ile Ialley ci&iliFation. Be would only want us to continue
the work to which he dedicated his life. (aba Ledi often a&e credit to
his elders E ancestors, such as Cheikh Anta 9iop, Lohn Benrik Clarke,
and Cosef ben*Lochannan. .hese men, the men and women of A'CAC
>Association for the 'tudy of Classical African Ci&iliFation?, and many
others are part of the historic lineae which is rebirthin our culture.
.his rebirth, (aba Ledi called the 4hmy %su, the Kemetic >K%.? term
which means <repetition of the birth= or <renaissance.=
Allow me to 8uote the reat teacher2
1-"
7et us reco&er and restore our classical
ci&iliFation so that it ser&es us like the classical
ci&iliFations of other people ser&e them. 3&ery reat
3uropean institution is molded in part in the imae of
the ancient ;reek*Roman ci&iliFation0 3&ery reat
Lewish proDect is enriched by the idea of the classical
culture of the .orah0 3&ery oraniFation in the
%oslem world harkens back to the classical Islamic
ci&iliFation of the %iddle Aes0
5ur classical )ile Ialley ci&iliFation is e&en
more appropriate for us. In the first place it is more
ancient and achie&ed reater accomplishments than
any of the others. In the second place, it was an
inspiration and model for later cultures. In the third
place, it brouht the African world to the hihest point
of perfection thus far.
It is therefore fittin and appropriate that we
restore our classic ci&iliFation. It is the deep well from
which we must draw the waters of African
re&italiFation0 >Carruthers, Intellectual &arfare, "$/*
"$,?
.he word <classical= is defined in dictionaries as literature, art,
or music related to 3uropean culture. In particular, dictionaries and
works that deal with <classics= are works about ;reece, Rome, or 7atin
literature, music, and art. Also, 3uropean 16
th
and 1+
th
century music
are considered classical. .he opera and symphony are considered
<classics= as if other cultures do not ha&e classics, or as if the 3uropean
were the only culture to reach such a le&el of art and culture. In
opposition to this, some ha&e called LaFF music a form of classical
<(lack= music. I don@t totally aree with that analysis. Classical music
for our people can be found on the shores of Afrika and in the
continent. .his music, danced to with the sacred rhythms of the drum
and &arious instruments, has been passed down for many enerations.
Afrikan classical music is older than the 3uropean classics by
centuries, and it is much older than LaFF. .he &ery recent music form
called LaFF is simply too youn to be considered classical by Afrikan
standards. LaFF has its oriin in the classical Afrikan rhythm and dance
from the continent. I would aree that LaFF is classical <Afrikan
American= music.
1-/
.here continues to be a small rowin documentation of
classical )ile Ialley literature. Cet, discussions about the sinificance
of classical Afrikan art and literature are topics all but entirely inored,
and no efforts are made to include this reat literature in the curriculum
while Afrikan children sit in classes and learn about the classics of
3urope. .here is a reason for this erasin and distortin of cultural
history which will be detailed. First, all cultures ha&e a classical
tradition of music, art, dance, architecture, and literature. .o inore that
in the educational process and only teach 3uropean classics is criminal.
From the elementary to the uni&ersity le&els, Afrikan classics are
marinaliFed at best or completely inored at worst.
.he reason Afrikan classics are inored is the same reason that
captured Afrikans were denied their history and culture and i&en the
history and culture of 3uropeans in the Americas. For the same reasons
that our Afrikan ancestors resisted sla&ery and 3uropean cultural
heemony, is the same reason we must do so today. Afrikans will only
open the doors to freedom and liberation when we li&e and learn our
distinct cultural personality, and that cultural personality has its
foundation in the classical anti8uity of our continent.
A classic is by definition from an ancient or earlier period. It
laid an influencin foundation on later art forms, be they in art, music,
dance, literature, or architecture. A classic would bare the cultural print
of a ci&iliFation, or its internal support structure. 4hile acknowledin
the cultural sinificance of Afrikan oral traditions, those oral traditions
do not represent classical Afrika because of the reater anti8uity of the
)ile Ialley culture. Also, the reater emphasis on <oral= tradition has
left many students with the myth of the <preliterate= Afrikan past.
Afrika was not <preliterate.= 5n the contrary, literature was born in
Afrika.
.he )ile Ialley is the cultural cradle for the rest of Afrika. In
fact, from the years of labor Cheikh Anta 9iop made of the )ile
cultures, we can see the cultural print that Kemet a&e to the rest of
Afrika. .his does not mean that Kemet was Afrika@s first ci&iliFation
because it was not. Kemet rew from the oriins of the )ile in .a*'eti
or )ubia, but the crystalliFation of the classic culture, the hihest point
of the ci&iliFation occurred in Kemet >K%., 3ypt? or the land known
as .awi >the .wo 7ands of :pper and 7ower Kemet?.
As a collee student, I@&e seen countless professors who could
proudly 8uote the 3uropean classics from Bomer and Plato to
'hakespeare. I@&e only known &ery, &ery few who had any idea of the
Afrikan classics, or who could e&en name one of them. I@&e known
1-,
collee students, and unfortunately children, who belie&ed that
Afrikans did not in&ent any writin. Bih art in the American
educational system has been wholly narrowed into a false 3uropean
world&iew, and it does not fit. .he myth is furthered as many belie&e
Afrika had no classics or <philosophers.= (y the countless millions,
students are thorouhly miseducated on the history of Afrikan classics
of literature. )o one can claim a competent educational system that
lacks Afrikan classics, and to and fro throuhout this country they all
are lackin.
. I must raise a &ery important issue that deals with the crisis in
the educational process. .he teacher is as miseducated as the student.
.he student and the teacher must be re*AfrikaniFed in our schools. In
addition to that, the reinforcement of Afrikan education and Afrikan
&alues must take place at home and in the community. .he parent must
be re*AfrikaniFed and learn that they must be the first teachers of the
Afrikan child. A reater challene is the re*AfrikaniFation of the
community. 5ur reliious institutions and community institutions are
headed by people who ha&e been tauht the reat myth of 3yptians
ensla&in the Bebrews, and it is only a myth that ne&er happened. .he
reat 3Godus and Pharaohs army drownin in the Red 'ea are only
myths. .he problem is that Afrikans ha&e been tauht these myths, and
so they ha&e a predisposition to de&alue the classics of their own
cultures which predate the Bebrew myths by thousands of years. A re*
AfrikaniFation and a new educational process must occur if we are to
sa&e the minds of Afrikan children and our own future.
.he facts are altoether contrary to the myths tauht about
Afrikan people. 4e not only ha&e classics, we ha&e the world@s first
classics. 4e not only in&ented writin, we tauht writin to the ancient
world. From the reat land of Afrika came the world@s first written
poems, stories, teachins, epics, and sacred teGts. All cultures ha&e
classics, and Afrika has the world@s first classics. .he educational
process that denies the classic heritae of a people is denyin their
ci&iliFation and indeed their humanity. .he Afrikans of the )ile Ialley
in&ented the world@s first paper, and placed their literature in enormous
stone temples in the world@s first libraries at cities like %ennefer,
4aset, and AbDu. .his was the buildin of Afrikan classical literature
which is the subDect of this essay.
%dw )tr
1-1
A brief note on %dw )tr, what is often call hierolyphs, should
be made. %dw )tr means 9i&ine 7anuae or 'acred 'peech. .he
Afrikans of K%., like all Afrikans with their world&iew based on their
ancestral 'pirituality, ha&e a thorouh understandin of the uni&erse as
bein fundamentally spiritual and ali&e. People were concei&ed of as
children of the reat ancestor, and a reat ancestor was the Creator
represented by the 'un. .hus, people were considered di&ine by nature.
.his meant that any rihteous eGpressions, especially art, were a work
of and to the Creator. .hus, writin in K%. >or Kemet? was thouht to
be the in&ention of a spirit >netcher? named 9Dehewty. 4ritin was a
sacred process, as much as speakin words of truth and oodwill.
%dw )tr is the world@s first written lanuae oin back to
o&er 1,### years ao, and deser&es much more attention if not for only
that reason. Also, because it is an Afrikan lanuae and for so lon we
ha&e been tauht that Afrikans did not in&ent a written lanuae, we
must study the works of our ancestors. .here were three main )ile
Ialley scripts from Kemet, the hierolyphic, hieratic, and demotic. I
refer the reader to Middle E'yptian by Lames Allen and *o, to Read
E'yptian *iero'lyphs by %ark Collier and (ill %anley.
Bierolyphic is often called picture writin, but it is so much
more than pictures consistin of ideorams, phonorams, and
determinati&es. .he lanuae has its own set of rules and reulations.
Bierolyphic is the &ery artistic form of the writin. It was so artistic
that the writin of words was &ery often abbre&iated for space. .his
form of writin was used for car&in inscriptions on stone or in metal
such as old.
.he hieratic >cursi&e? script de&eloped &ery early in Kemet,
and it is not as old as the hierolyphs which predates it by se&eral
centuries. .here was a closer cursi&e script to hierolyph that was not
as cursi&e as hieratic. .his type of writin occasional used a period to
separate thouhts >Allen, -?. Bieratic was used when writin letters,
accounts, or when the scribe did not ha&e time to spare for the artistic
hierolyph. In schools, often the cursi&e script would be used, but one
can imaine the tired student sittin down to enDoy the artistic drawin
of hierolyphs after a lon day of cursi&e and lecturin in the school*
temples called Per Ankhs >Bouses of 7ife?.
Iery late in Kemetic history, the demotic script would de&elop
out of the hieratic. 9emotic was e&en more cursi&e than hieratic and
thus facilitated more rapid writin. In administrati&e functions this
would be necessary. It is &ery loical to study the cursi&e scripts in
addition to the hierolyph to see their relationship to other writin
1--
scripts that de&eloped near that part of the world around the
%editerranean, such as cuneiform, ;reek, Arabic, and Bebrew. .he
research will pro&e insihtful about the Afrikan oriin of letters. 4hat
we know is that Kemet a&e the world its first classics, and the writins
of Kemet were profoundly spiritual.
.he Issue of Reliious .eGts
As was stated, all cultures ha&e classics. .he problem is that
Afrikan people ha&e been miseducated into seein the classics of other
people as their own. Part of the classical teGts of all cultures includes
the ancient sacred teGts of those cultures. .hey are in fact the core of a
cultures literature, often reflected in other works to &aryin derees.
9ue to the cultural damae from centuries of sla&ery and colonialism,
by 3uropeans and Arabs, we Afrikans ha&e been wronly tauht that
our classical reliious teGts reside in two books, the Koran and (ible.
Afrikans of the BebrewELewish reliions belie&e that the .orah is our
core reliious teGt, Afrikan Christians belie&e it to be the )ew
.estament, and Afrikan %uslims belie&e it to be the Koran. .he fact is
that Afrikan classical sacred teGt is thousands of years older than the
Koran and (ible.
4e must consider the inored chronoloy, althouh there is
much disareement about the eGact dates. Abraham was born around
1$$# (C3, %oses around 1-## (C3, Lesus around 1 AC3, and
%ohammed in 1$# AC3. Reardless of the disareement about the
historical dates for the founders of the so*called <world@s reliions,=
what is certain is that Afrikan 'pirituality eGisted in the world o&er
11#,### years ao when Afrikans were the only Bumans walkin the
3arth. In reards to classical sacred teGt, I ha&e to refer the reader to
se&eral &ery important works2 Lacob Carruthers@ Md, Ntr# i(ine
Speech, Lohn ;. Lackson@s Christianity !efore Christ and +a'an
-ri'ins of the Christ Myth, Cosef ben*Lochannan@s African -ri'ins of
the Ma/or 7&estern Reli'ions48 Amon 'aba 'aakana@s African -ri'ins
of the Ma/or &orld Reli'ions, and my work The Redemption of Afrikan
Spirituality) It has been thorouhly documented that Ludaism and
Christianity ha&e their oriin in the )ile Ialley Afrikan culture of
Kemet. Islam has its oriins in Christianity and Ludaism, and less
directly in the )ile Ialley.
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4hat is the central concernM All cultures teach their reliious
teGts alonside their classics. 7ook at the Bebrew school, the Catholic
school and other Christian based schools, the Islamic school, and you
will see the use of reliious teGt used to teach the core &alues of a
people. 3&en in the public schools, reardless of the <separation of
church and state,= children do not totally escape lessons in teGtbooks
and from teachers about reliious teGts. )ow, what is the Afrikans of
the world to doM Are we to teach the sacred teGts of those cultures as
our ownM 'hould we continue to inore the reat library of the )ile
IalleyM
.o bein with the study of classical Afrikan literature, we must
understand the necessity to bein the widespread study of readin and
translatin at least sections of %dw )tr >the proper name for
hierolyphs?. Lust as studies in other cultures rabble with translatin
and readin ancient classical teGt, Afrikans must do the same with %dw
)tr as this lanuae is the classical lanuae of our people. 7et us
consider a few themes from Kemetic 'piritual teGt, which predate the
reliious teGt of other cultures by thousands of years and is their oriin.
Collier and %anley translate three re&ealin lines from %dw
)tr that deal with the sacred obliation of i&in and helpin those in
need to benefit the whole. .he lines are as follows2
I buried the old Rthe deadS.
I a&e bread to the hunry and clothes to the naked.
I ferried the boatless in my own ferry. >1++6, $/ and 1-$?
4hile only three lines from the workbook, they i&e a
fundamental insiht into the Afrikan world&iew of Kemet. .hat
world&iew tauht throuh its@ literature that in rihteousness the order
of a society would pre&ail. .here was one &ery famous teGt that dealt
with this theme.
'bayt of Ptah Botep
9o not be proud and arroant with your
knowlede. Consult and con&erse with the inorant
and the wise, for the limits of art are not reached. )o
artist e&er possesses that perfection to which he should
aspire. 0ood speech is more hidden than reenstone
>emeralds?, yet it may be found amon maids at the
1-6
rindstones >Billiard, 4illiams, 9amali, The Teachin's
of +tahhotep, 1+6$?.
.his statement is from the .eachins of Ptah Botep. 'ome
scholars belie&e the writin to be from the Fifth 9ynasty under the
rein of the Pharaoh Issi well o&er four thousand years ao. 5thers
belie&e it to date from the .welfth 9ynasty and was written in honor of
what was a more ancient and inspirational period in K%. history. .his
would make the document about /,1## years old. 3ither way, the
.eachins of Ptah Botep was a classic Afrikan teGt in its@ own time and
should e&en more so be in our time.
Ptah Botep was a 11# year old elder who chose a life of ser&ice
for the nation as a priest and a teacher. <4hat ood is old aeM= the
elder seems to ask. Be answers that the purpose is to create a <'taff of
5ld Ae= for the purpose of teachin the words of the Creator, the
ancestors, and the spirits >)etchers? to brin order >%aat? into the
world. .his is %dw )fr >;ood 'peech?. .he Classical Afrikan teGt of
Ptah Botep discusses the &alue of 'cared or 9i&ine 'peech which is so
much more than mere talkin or rumblin.
%dw )fr does not belon to the royal or the rich, it can be
found amon ser&ants at rindstones. Althouh it can be found amon
the ser&ants, %dw )fr is more hidden and more &aluable than precious
Dewels. From the classical teGt we learn that %dw )fr is speakin %aat,
and %aat is uni&ersal order. .he power which sustains nature and
rotates the 3arth is %aat. In Kemet, spirits o&erned the uni&erse, as in
other forms of Afrikan 'pirituality. Accordin to our )ile Ialley
ancestors, for people, uni&ersal order is speakin and li&in truth. For
Ptah Botep, there was no hiher ser&ice than brinin %dw )fr into
the world.
Ptah Botep@s 'bayt or instruction is not often considered
<reliious teGt,= but there is no sole <reliious teGt= in Kemet or K%.
as e&en the so*called <secular= is sacred. .hat is, thouhtful lanuae is
sacred, and therefore so is the written lanuae. .he writin often
called hierolyph or hieratic is properly known as %dw )tr or >9i&ine
'peech?. 5ne teGt that may be considered almost strictly of the spiritual
enre is a story about a man@s inner conflict with his soul.
<.he 9ialoue of a %an and his 'oul=
5ne aspect of the soul of man and woman in Kemetic was his
or her (a. .he 'oul had se&eral parts, such as the (a, Ka, Khu,
1-+
'ekhem, 'ahu >(ude, 0ods of the E'yptian4 &i 1+-+, 1-"*1-/?. .he
(a is one part of the soul endowed with its own intellience and
Dudment, and it is able to separate from the person at will. .he (a, as
we can see from the teGt, can be reasoned with by the person, and
stron disareement can lead to serious inner turmoil.
In the teGt, the man desires to reach the 4est, the Ialley of the
9ead on the side of the 3arth where the sun sets. .he world of the
li&in is on the 3ast. Ready to die, disappointed with life, and ready to
transition into the spirit world is <like the smell of flowers= the man
says to his (a >Parkinson, The Tale of Sinhue and -ther Ancient
E'yptian +oems, 1++$, 1-#?. Cet, almost as if another person, the
man@s soul talks to him about missin the Doys of life, not o&er
indulin but lo&in life. 5f course, the man is torn, and he attempts to
con&ince his soul to understand his readiness to transition. In the end a
healthy compromise about life and transition is reached with the man
and his soul >(a?. .he man@s soul ends the dialoue by sayin desire
the 4est, but lo&e life today. .he soul has done his Dob by i&in
direction and balance to the man in a time of need, and the man has
done his Dob by listenin to his soul. .he soul and man are both
enriched. (alance is reached in the end.
.his teGt and many others should be read not only for their
educational 8uality, but also as sources spiritual inspiration in e&eryday
life. .he K%. teGt are timeless lessons that we must infuse throuhout
the educational process of the Afrikan child.
Pert m Beru
%istakenly referred to as the <(ook of the 9ead,= the Pert m
Beru is translated as <Comin Forth by 9ay= or <Comin Forth Into
7iht.= If there is any literature in the world that we could consider a
classic amon all classics, this is it. .his is the oldest teGt known to the
world. It has predynastic oriins in the )ile Ialley, before %ena or
)armer founded the First 9ynasty, older than fi&e thousand years ao.
7ater, in dynastic times, &erses of the Pert m Beru were buried with the
deceased, enra&ed in the Coffin .eGts and the Pyramid .eGt. .he
Coffin .eGt was particularly from the %iddle Kindom@s 3le&enth and
.welfth 9ynasties, or what is the 'econd ;olden Ae >or 4hmy %su?.
.his is sinificant because the 'econd 4hmy %su continued and
eGpanded on the classic works of their ancestors from centuries before
their time. .he Coffin .eGt of this period continued and eGpanded on
the writins from the First ;olden Ae@s Pyramid .eGt which was
1$#
found primarily in pyramids. .he pyramid of the Pharaoh :nas of the
Fifth 9ynasty has the earliest sur&i&in Pyramid .eGt from about "/1#
(C3. Bowe&er, it seems that the Pyramid teGt reached its@ Fenith with
pyramid construction itself.
It was 'nefru@s son, RKhufuS, who carried the
process to its ultimate conclusion by erectin the ;reat
Pyramid. .his is $1- feet s8uare at base and is the most
ponderous buildin e&er set up by man, consistin of
about ",/###,### stone blocks, a&erain " W tons
each. .he inner blocks were once co&ered by a smooth
casin of fine*8uality polished .ura limestone, which
must ha&e littered in the sun. .he detail of the ;reat
Pyramid was as impressi&e as its bulk. .he casin was
later co&ered in hierolyphic raffitiH o&er the centuries
it was stolen, but e&en at the end of the twelfth century
A9, an Arab writer, Abd el 7atif, declared that the
remainin inscription on the outside of the ;reat
Pyramid would fill 1#,### paes >Lohnson, The
Ci(ili2ation of Ancient E'ypt, 1+++, 11?.
.he <raffiti= that Paul Lohnson mentions was classical Afrikan
literature in the form of Pyramid .eGt likely from the Fourth 9ynasty
of o&er ,,1## years ao. Foreiners who in&aded the )ile Ialley would
destroy much of the classical literature and the Arab %uslims in
particular remo&ed tons and tons of stone to build mos8ues and palaces.
Cet, as Lohnson notes, as late as twelfth century A9, there was still
enouh %dw )tr of the Pert m Beru on the ;reat Pyramid alone to fill
1#,### paesO
In reco&erin the classical literature of Afrika, we are turnin
the tides of the cultural wars waed by foreiners aainst Afrika and
Afrikan ci&iliFation for o&er /,### years. 4e ha&e a sacred obliation
to restore Afrikan literature and education to the classrooms and homes
of our children, that obliation we owe to our ancestors and we must
fulfill it. Fortunately, the Afrikans of K%. wrote in stone to pass their
words down throuh time. Centuries after the buildin of the massi&e
;reat Pyramids, the Pert m Beru was still bein written and some of
the many, many paes and &erses ha&e sur&i&ed into the present despite
the lon assault aainst Afrika.
1$1
(elow are three lines from (ude@s The E'yptian !ook of the
ead >l&ii*l&iii?. .he transliterations are altered, but his translations are
basically the same.
!a ir pt sht ir ta * 'oul to Bea&en, body to 3arth.
Mu-k r pt ka-k r ta * .hy essence is in Bea&en, thy body to 3arth.
+t kr %a-k ta kri tut-k J Bea&en hath the 'oul, 3arth hath thy body.
From the Papyrus of Ani, found in the ruins of the reat city of
4aset >.hebes? in .awi >Kemet?, we can further see the Afrikan
'piritual interity of the classical literature. Aain, the transliteration
and translation are slihtly altered.
IC, n R9 N% pt ity Dnkh d/a sn% J
Praise Ra, the 7ord of Bea&en, the Prince2 7ife 'trenth, Bealth
>(ude, "?.
.he Pert m Beru was intended as sacred words that would
accompany the deceased into the world of the ancestors to help them
with a safe passae. .hey would of course ser&e as a reminder for those
on top of the 3arth to li&e %aat and rihteousness. .he reward of
rihteous li&in, and assistance from the sacred book, was life fore&er.
.he Pert m Beru is eGtensi&e, and it was a function of the culture
throuhout all of K%. history. 4ithout credit bein i&en, the teGt was
copied into the scriptures of other cultures.
;ood 'peech of Khun Inpu
For eGtended study, I must refer the reader to %iriam
7ichtheim@s three &olume work entitled Ancient E'yptian $iterature.
7ichtheim has documented classics of Kemet from all of the ;olden
Aes, that is the 5ld Kindom, %iddle Kindom, )ew Kindom, and
7ate Kindom.
Another classic that we must labor to include in the educational
process of Afrikan children and adults is often called <.he 3lo8uent
Peasant.= Cet, (aba Ledi Lehewty >Carruthers? tauht us for years that
the title does not capture the essence and meanin of this teGt. 5ne of
the most serious works that deal with the restoration of classical
Afrikan literature is Md, Ntr# i(ine Speech by Lacob Carruthers. I
1$"
stronly recommend the book for anyone who takes this issue with any
depth of seriousness. .he teGt is more properly called the %dw )fr of
Khun Inpu.
Khun Inpu was a common man, a farmer and countryman
>sekhety?, who supports his family and li&es %aat. Be is no wealthy
person, but he possesses %dw )fr >;ood 'peech?. <.his connects us
with the first instructions of Ptahhotep which teaches that ood speech,
thouh eGtremely rare, may be found amon the humblest little irls,=
says Carruthers >1,6?. .he farmer, an honest and hard workin man,
loads his donkeys with items to trade which is how he feeds his family,
and in route to his destination he crosses paths with a man named
)emtynakht whose name means <'tron Robber,= and yes the farmer is
beaten and robbed of his property.
.he farmer first appeals to the heart of the robber to no a&ail.
.hen he appeals to an aent of the Bih 'tewart Rensi, whose name
means <'huffler.= .rue to his name, Rensi orders )emtyakht to repay
Khun Inpu, but he shuffles around i&in out due Dustice by not
punishin for the crime. .hen the humble man who speaks %dw )fr
appeals to the 'tewart himself pleadin that %aat is not inored.
N%)i i, 'm)n)i ,D m nn n skty nfr md, n ,n mCD
<%y lord I ha&e found one amon those farmers whose
speech is ood, of true essence= >Carruthers, 1,,?.
.his is what Rensi said when he approached the Pharaoh
)ebkaure to inform him about this man with speech that is rare as
reenstones. .his was at a time when the nation of Kemet was in an
intermediate period and not prosperous as in one of the ;olden Aes.
(aba Ledi states that <the nation was Tsick@ and re8uired a healin.=
%aat is uni&ersal order and social order, thus, the farmer whose speech
is true and sacred speaks words capable of healin a nation. As a result,
the more profound meanin of the literature oes well beyond Khun
Inpu recei&in his oods and Dustice bein i&en to the 'tron Robber.
.here are lessons of hard work, patience, protocol, and honesty in the
teGt, but the paramount lesson is that %dw )fr can heal the nation. As
Khun Inpu is a complete and stable person, despite his &ery humble
lifestyle, the nation can be made stable aain throuh ;ood 'peech.
.he Pharaoh orders that the farmer is held to keep him
speakin, that he and his family are feed, and that his ;ood 'peech is
written down. .he Pharaoh orders that e&eryone remains silent so that
1$/
the farmer keeps talkin. Khun Inpu makes + appeals about Dustice and
truth. At one point he appealed to the oodness of the 'huffler2
<For you are a father to the orphan,
A husband to the widow,
A brother to her who has been cast out,
.he clothin of him who has no mother=
>'impson, The $iterature of Ancient E'ypt, "##/, "+?.
Khun Inpu speaks aainst the e&ils to which society has fallen.
Be stronly admonishes those of authority who ha&e not upheld %aat.
Be states2
<)obles perpetuate crimes0
Ludes steal what has already been stolen0
.he arbiter is >now? a thief0= >'impson, /1?.
Althouh bein beaten aain, the farmer holds true to %aat. 4e
see him sufferin, but maintainin to what is riht and Dust for society.
In another petition, he speaks to the need to uphold truth and order to
keep chaos away when he states2
<7et your eyes seeO 7et you heart be instructedO
9o not be tyrannical in your power,
.hat e&il may o&ertake you.
If you inore one incident, it will become two= >/$?.
5n the last appeal, Rensi was finally brouht around, and he
stated to the farmer, T5n my lifeO 'hall I eat of your bread and drink of
your beer fore&er,@ meanin that he would ne&er foret the words he
heard. Also, the words were recorded and sent to the 7ord of .awi, the
Pharaoh )ebkaure, whose heart was full of Doy. Be allowed Rensi to
pass the Dudment which he did, and Khun Inpu recei&ed the Dustice he
was due. Khun Inpu means <Protected by InpuH= Inpu bein the final
Dude of the deceased.
.he 9rama of 9ramas
.he most endurin story from .awi >:pper and 7ower K%.?
is one that is not found in its entirety in the land of its birth. .he story
of Ausar and 'et is predynastic, was told throuhout the history of
1$,
Kemet, and is properly the most well known classic from the )ile
Ialley. Re&erence to Ausar, Aset, and Beru were &ery widespread in
Kemet, and today in our times this trinity attracts a reat deal of
attention. 'ome reconstruction of the story from Kemetic framents is
necessary because the most eGtant &ersion of the story is from
Plutarch@s Isis and -siris.
.he drama of Ausar and 'et is literally the classic story of ood
aainst e&il because this story is one of the &ery first eGamples of ood
aainst e&il on written record. Ausar, the rihtful ruler was decei&ed by
his e&il brother who killed him and e&entually chopped his body into
pieces. Bis wife, Aset, ha&in found his body then assembled the
pieces, all eGcept the phallus. In Plutarch@s &ersion of the story the son
was born before the reassemblin, but from descriptions in Kemet it is
clear that Beru was born after the reassemblin which a&e the drama a
&irin birth. Iirin births were &ery common in the literature of Kemet,
so this was not unusual. Aset was imprenated with the Ankh >(reath
of 7ife? with the sa&ior*child Beru. After rowin older, Beru a&ened
the death of his father by defeatin his uncle 'et and claimin the
throne. Aset plays a &ery central role throuhout the story. .his story
was central in Kemetic literature. It underlined se&eral important
concepts. .he role of woman as an e8ual player in society is seen in
Aset@s sinificance throuhout the story. .he foundation of sacred
kinship is &alidated as e&ery kin was considered a Beru. .he concept
of Ausar bein the reat Dude of the deceased is found in this story.
.he e&entual defeat of e&il and the triumph of ood is the o&erall
direction of the drama. For se&eral reasons, this is the drama of dramas.
.he ;ood 'peech of )eferti
.he ;ood 'peech of )eferti, sometimes called the Prophesy of
)eferti, is definitely a classic Afrikan teGt. It displays the &alue of %dw
)fr, wisdom, and tradition. It is belie&ed to ha&e been composed in the
.welfth 9ynasty with a settin in a much earlier period, in the Fourth
9ynasty under 'nefru se&eral centuries earlier. .his would make the
literature about ,,### years old. .his teGt is ultimately about the
prophesy of a liberator and sa&ior "### years before Lesus.
It beins with a bored Pharaoh askin that someone be
summoned to speak some %dw )fr in the court for his entertainment.
)eferti is summoned, and he asked the Pharaoh if he wanted to hear
thins of the past or thins that were to come in the future. Be chose
the future, and )eferti beins his prophesy. Althouh <bored,= the
1$1
Pharaoh writes down the words of )eferti. .he foremost person in the
land takes notes from a man who is before him only because of his
;ood 'peech and wisdom.
)eferti speaks of doom and loom, a period when .awi would
fall from the ;olden Ae into a lon period of chaos, warfare, drouht,
and famine. After oin on about this doom and loom, )eferti then
suddenly foretells of a liberator, a sa&ior who would deli&er the people
and the nation from e&il and fiht off all the enemies of the land. A
Kin from the 'outh <son of a woman from .a*'eti >)ubia?= would
come to restore %aat and destroy Isfet >chaos and e&il?, and his name
would be <Ameny,= the abbre&iated and affectionate name of
Amenemhet I. Ameny also means the <Bidden 5ne,= which is
sinificant because )eferti describes the liberator appearin out of
nowhere. )eferti ends by sayin that future saes will pour libations to
him when e&eryone see that his words became true. Amenemhet would
become the founder of the .welfth 9ynasty. Aain, the classical teGts
are abundant with &aluable lessons.
'inhue
.here are scores of Afrikan classics from the )ile Ialley, yet
we must acknowlede the painful fact that we are only limpsin at a
small reflection of an immense literary past, most of which has been
lost in ruin and war. Fortunately, the writins which ha&e sur&i&ed are
definitely enouh to i&e us an appreciation of the )ile Ialley
anti8uities. In the abo&e o&er&iews, we ha&e barely scratched the
surface of the deep literary past that includes narrati&es, dialoues,
epics, poems, teachins, hymns, and scriptures. (efore concludin this
section, there is one piece of literature which must be discussed.
.he story of 'inhue is also from the .welfth 9ynasty, nearly
,,### years old.
Sinhue was composed in the first half of the .welfth
9ynasty, probably shortly after the end of the rein of
'enwosret I >c. 16$1 (C?. .he earliest sur&i&in
manuscript date from the rein of Amenemhat III, and
late copies show that it was read for at least $1# years
>Parkinson, "1?.
Carruthers beins the chapter in Intellectual &arfare where he
discusses the sinificance of 'inhue by 8uotin a statement from the
1$-
teGt made by the Pharaoh 'enwosret to 'inhue while he was in self*
imposed eGile from the land of his ancestors2
Come back to the (lack 7and
Come back to the place
where you were born
Kiss the round at the reat ate
%inle with the officials >-1?
'inhue worked in the royal court of the Pharaoh Amenemhet I.
4hile away on a military eGpedition with the heir to the throne the
Pharaoh is assassinated. 'inhue o&erhears the oldest son and soon*to*be
Pharaoh 'enwosret bein informed of the traic news about his father.
For reasons eGactly unknown, 'inhue went into a panic and fled .awi
>K%.?.
Be tra&eled for many days and nihts until he reached a land of
the Asiatics. .here he would find a new home, become well*known,
marry and ha&e children who all rew up to become as prosperous as
he was in this new land. 'inhue became an administrator and a military
leader. Cet, in all of his success, 'inhue loned for the land of his
ancestors throuhout the years.
In this forein land, attainin reat success, 'inhue was
challened in a death match. :nable to a&oid a contest of unnecessary
&iolence, he defends himself and defeats his opponent. .his scene is
widely thouht of as the source of the Bebrew encounter of 9a&id and
;oliath.
As a result of comin close to death, and the continued lonin
for the land of his ancestors, 'inhue prays for the day he can return
home. Bis prayers are answered when the Pharaoh sends a decree to
him statin, amon other thins that he need not roam from country to
country and should return home to be treated like royalty. .he Pharaoh
says that 'inhue has rown old and he should be plannin a proper
transition to the ancestors in his own land. .he )eb .awi >7ord of the
.wo 7ands? Pharaoh 'enwosret, promises that 'inhue would recei&e a
royal burial with old, semi*precious stones, sacred oils, siners and
dancers. Be would be placed in a reat limestone tomb with the proper
linen wrappins, ceremony, and mummification process as opposed to
the burial in animal skin he would recei&e away from home. In other
words, 'inhue would ha&e the proper transition to the ancestral world,
and this could not happen if he remained and died in a forein land.
1$$
'inhue returned to his ancestral land where he li&ed the
remainder of his life as a member of the royal family. Be was clothed in
fine linen and anointed with oils. Be deser&ed these thins because, as
the Pharaoh said, he was a rihteous man and his speech was ood. Be
enDoyed his last days, and he was e&entually buried in a pyramid of
stone to li&e fore&er.
Carruthers felt that the 'inhue classic was one of the most
sinificant pieces of literature for Afrikans today. It is the story of a
man who loses touch with his ancestral land for a reat period of time,
but royalty was waitin for him all alon. Be roamed country to
country like a nomad without a home, but he would e&entually o
home where he was buried in a pyramid of stone. 'inhue is similar to
Afrikans who ha&e lost touch with their cultures and classic literatures.
'inhue recei&in a royal burial in Kemet is not our desire to become
financially rich, but rather our reainin of Afrikan consciousness and
Afrikan content based education which is reater than riches. 7et us not
settle for an improper home and an improper burialH let us return to the
royalty of Afrikan consciousness.

.he (lossomin of Afrikan 7iterature (eyond K%.

.his essay has dealt with the classical literature of the )ile
Ialley, which is the classical literature of Afrika. .he )ile Ialley was
the root and stem of Afrikan world literature that blossomed after the
last ;olden Ae of )ile Ialley ci&iliFation. 9ue to the massi&e wars
that swept across )orth and 3ast Afrika, replacin populations, the
people who sur&i&ed the catastrophic period would mirate closer to
the heart of the continent. .hese mirations are discussed in Chancellor
4illiams@ The estruction of !lack Ci(ili2ation, and are the topic of
the chapter he entitled <.he 'catterin of the People2 Routes to 9eath
and Resurrection.= .he mirations are also discussed in Cheikh Anta
9iop@s African -ri'in of Ci(ili2ation in the chapter <Peoplin of Africa
from the )ile Ialley.= 9ue to the nature of these sporadic mirations
o&er centuries and millenniums, due to the constant attacks aainst
Afrikan people and Afrikan ci&iliFation, due to the outlawin of
Afrikan culture by the 3uropeans, Assyrians, and Arabs, the
transmission of the world@s first written lanuae was lost for two
thousand years until its recent decipherin our times.
Althouh the course of history was altered, the classical written
lanuae was not allowed to properly spread throuhout the continentH
many imprints from the )ile Ialley remained in the spoken lanuaes,
1$6
art, reliion, and the eneral social structure of societies throuhout
Afrika. .his is where the oral traditions become of utmost importance.
.raditional Afrika is rich in oral traditions, histories, pro&erbs, epics,
and stories. .he classical literature is absolutely necessary in the
curriculum of the Afrikan child, but the oral tradition must not be left
out as an important source of the literary past. .he oral tradition has a
total history of Afrika in itself about the foundin of nations, reat
ancestors, lessons, pro&erbs, and a wealth of insihts about the Afrikan
world&iew. .he oral traditions of the )ierian, the oral history of the
;hanaian, 'undiata@s foundin of ancient %ali, the 'outh Afrikan
stories of creation, the wise sayins of the 3ast Afrikans, the oral
'piritual teGt throuhout the continent, and more are all necessary in
the literary curriculum of Afrikan based education.
Protest 7iterature
4ith the rise of the 3uropean ensla&ement era came another
phase of Afrikan literary history and Afrikan history in eneral.
Resistance literature was born of this new period. Poems,
autobioraphies, pamphlets, articles, newspapers, and speeches became
&ehicles of protest aainst sla&ery. .he Afrikan student must learn
about the reat writins of 5laudah 38uiano, Frances 3llen 4atkins
Barper, 9a&id 4alker, Frederick 9oulass, %artin 9elany, and so
many others. .he protest literature is Dust as important as learnin about
the reat re&olts and wars fouht aainst sla&ery. It is absolutely critical
to the mind of the Afrikan child that knowlede of the history and
literature of resistance is properly tauht. Also, if we understand that
9essalines of Baiti, )anny of Lamaica, Kumbi of (raFil, and the
Afrikans who waed wars, uerrilla war, maroon acti&ity, sla&e
mutinies, and resisted e&il in the Americas are reat histories that can
be told throuh the creati&e writin of short stories, we realiFe that we
ha&e not done enouh writin of the types of books our children should
be readin. .he &aloriFation of a people@s ancestors is necessary in the
cultural transmission of not only &alues but as well a racial competence
of the roup. <4e can succeed because our ancestors ha&e succeeded,=
or <4e will fiht inDustice because we ha&e always fouht inDustice,= or
<4e can build nations because our people ha&e always built nations,= is
the idea of racial competence. If the memory of past accomplishments
is lost, then you can teach a person that he or she is a sla&e, or you can
teach them anythin. 4hen children are disconnected from their
1$+
traditions, we et the social ills that e&erybody often complains about,
that so few understand how to sol&e.
Protest literature went into a new phase with the rise of
coloniFation in Afrika. .he Afrikan world responded to the 3uropean
coloniFation of Afrika with the Pan*Afrikan mo&ement. .he anti*
colonial literature, speeches, and writins of ;eore 4ashinton
4illiams, %arcus ;ar&ey, Kwame )krumah, Amilcar Cabral, Patrtice
7umumba, and ;eore Padmore are as important as the protest
literature from the Ci&il Rihts era in the :nited 'tates. In discussin
protest literature, we would be incomplete to lea&e out the literature of
the (lack Power mo&ement from %alcolm Q and ')CC to the (lack
Panthers. .he speeches, autobioraphies, books, and articles are all
necessary in a sound literary curriculum for the Afrikan child. .he way
many students and teachers are familiar with %artin 7uther Kin@s <I
Ba&e a 9ream= speech is the way they must become familiar with the
reat protest literature of the last few centuries. If our children are not
familiar with the protest literature that spran from their history, they
will only assume that the battles aainst hypocrisy and inDustice were
ne&er waed. .hey will not understand the sacrifices made by so many
for them, and these same children will not understand their role as
chane*makers in the society they li&e in today. 4orse still, they may
continue to sink into the ills and misfortunes that so many of them
encounter.
Conclusion
.
.he classical teGt of any culture is the core of their literary
curriculum, and it must be so for Afrikan people. .he protest literature
must be tauht because many of the same inDustices still eGist in
society. Abo&e all, Afrikan children must recei&e an education of
competence. .his is the powerful role that history and literature must
play in the educational process. 7iterature and Readin classes E
courses are not Dust the study of sentence structure and parts of speech.
3ducation is a weapon for liberation and a tool to build not only the
indi&idual, but also the family and society. .his process includes
literature. 4e must not sit by the sidelines and lea&e our children to a
system of 3uropean modeled miseducation which has consistently
failed them.
3ducation is a tool of propaanda, but the 8uestion is
propaanda for whatM 4e need only look to the purpose of education
amon other roups to find that answer. Reardless of the subDect,
16#
education amon all nations in the world has one central obDecti&e. If
education is not set up to build and maintain nations, pass on traditions
and culture, create the tools for a people to prosper, then that is not
education at all. .his is why only someone who considers their roup a
<minority= would discuss education without discussin the obDecti&es it
should achie&e. %ost of our children will respond that they belie&e that
the purpose of education is to et a Dob. 4hat they ha&e been tauht is
that you et a Dob and make some money, buy a car, et some nice
clothes, and wear eGpensi&e shoes. %any are happy when they become
adults and are able to do Dust that, especially without creatin a reat
deal of debt. In other words, our children row up thinkin that
education is meant to help them be more successful consumers in the
retail market.
.he purpose of education is nation*buildin and nation
maintenance. .his is what our children must learn. 3ducation is not for
selfish ains, but rather the upliftin of a people. In readin the
classical literature of Afrika, our children will see a nation, a
o&ernment, a people, and a society based on Afrikan &alues and
concepts. .hey will see a fully functional community. .hey will see the
nation that held the standard of ci&iliFation for o&er /,### years. 5ur
children will see an Afrikan nation based on the uni&ersal order of truth
and Dustice. .hey will see a world class ci&iliFation second to none,
then or now. Finally, they will see what they are capable of achie&in
today, and they will understand that they are the proud and dinified
bearers of Afrikan culture and ci&iliFation.
161
AFRIKAN SCIENCE AND TEC-N'L'0Y
.heophrastus, 9ioscorides, and ;alen perpetually cite
the prescriptions that they recei&ed from the 3yptian
physicians, or more specifically, as ;alen says, that
they had learned by consultin the works conser&ed in
the library of the .emple of Imhotep at %emphis Rin
3ypt in AfrikaS, which was still accessible in the
second century A.9., and where, se&en centuries
before, Bippocrates, the Tfather of medicine,@ was
tauht= >Cheikh Anta 9iop, Ci(ili2ation or !ar%arism,
"6/?.
Introduction
At a bookstore in Chicao, years ao, I saw a teGt starrin at
me edited by I&an Ian 'ertima entitled !lacks in Science# Ancient and
Modern. 'ince then, I ha&e always kept a copy or two in my library.
7ike e&eryone else, I was all but wholly unfamiliar with the Afrikan
contribution and foundation of science. I rew up, like all mis*educated
people, thinkin that 3uropeans brouht knowlede of the sciences to a
backward people in Afrika. Readin the book, the truth bean to slowly
erode away years of lies that had been implanted in my mind as an
Afrikan child. .he essays in Ian 'ertima@s book were my introduction
to Afrikan science.
In the educational school systems of America, and throuhout
the world, children are not tauht an inklin about Afrika@s contribution
16"
to the sciences. .hey are left to think that the ad&ances in science
happened in ;reece and Rome, and peripherally amon non*whites. 5f
course, the Afrikan contribution and backround to those ci&iliFations
are con&eniently deleted. .he Afrikan child is predictably left with a
sense of innate inferiority about the capabilities of her or his own
ancestors, and conse8uently her or his own race today. .he error in
curriculum and instruction is on the one hand that Afrikans are not
inferior, whether we made contributions to science or not. 5n the other
hand, the error is that what we call <education= would better fit the
label <indoctrination= because it is false yet ser&es the purpose of
instillin a damain sense of identity in the Afrikan child. Ancient and
modern Afrika, and Afrikan people throuhout the world not only ha&e
made maDor contributions in the sciences, but also it was from the deep
fountains of Afrika that what we call <science= had its &ery oriin.
A )ew Iiew on 'cience
Raymond 4ebster, author of African American First in Science
and Technolo'y, eGplained to me that after closely re&iewin literally
thousands of (lack 'tudies courses across the country only four had
some backround on the (lack contribution E foundation to the
sciences. .he traedy is that the (lack 'tudies mo&ement should be at
the cuttin ede of the subDect. It points to the reat need for research
and instruction in Afrikan science and mathematics that must take
place. In addition to that, Raymond 4ebster areed when I said that the
teacher must be retrained in this subDect area we call science. In fact,
the teacher must be retained o&erall.
.he purpose of this essay is to pro&ide an introductory method
of approach to Afrikan science in the instructional and curriculum
buildin of the educational process. Bow should we teach Afrikan
scienceM 5ut of profound inorance, racism, or both, many ha&e e&en
doubt that such a thin as Afrikan science e&en eGists in the first place.
.his myth will be dealt with in the proceedin paes. .he concern of
instructional methodoloy in properly teachin our children is the
primary obDecti&e. Also, debunkin the myths of Afrikan inferiority is
of reat importance.
Afrika not only contributed to science, but science bean in
Afrika. Aain, as we ha&e cited in other essays, and as so many eGperts
and scholars ha&e pro&en, humanity bean in Afrika circa 11#,###
years ao when no other races where on the planet. For Afrikan people,
this fact beams with racial pride due to the history of the world
16/
sufferin from oppression, sla&ery, and racism. .he <Afrikan 7aw of
Primacy= is based on the Afrikan bein the first in the world. .hat is
simple. If Afrikan people where the first people on 3arth, we naturally
had a headstart amon others to de&elop ci&iliFation, in the case of this
essay J science.
Concernin Afrikan primacy, what has the world*renowned
scholar I&an Ian 'ertima eGplainedM Relyin on the Lournal of Afrikan
Ci&iliFation, in the monumental work !lacks in Science# Ancient and
Modern, Ian 'ertima stated2
Fi&e centuries of these falsehoods ha&e been
eGploded in Dust fi&e years. .hese years ha&e seen the
disco&ery of African steel*smeltin in .anFania 1,1##*
",### years ao, an astronomical obser&atory in Kenya
/## years before Christ, the culti&ation of cereal and
other crops by Africans in the )ile Ialley $,### years
before any other ci&iliFation, the domestication of
cattle in Kenya 11,### years ao, the domestic use of
fire by Africans 1,,##,### years ao >one million years
before its first known use in China? the use of
tetracycline by an ancient African population fourteen
centuries ao, an African lider*plane ",/## years
old0 >1?
Afrikan ci&iliFation was no bystander with the de&elopment of
the sciences. In fact, Afrikan ci&iliFation was front and center stae.
.hrouhout the history of science, Afrikans ha&e always made maDor
contributions. %odern times ha&e been no eGception. Afrikan people in
America and around the world ha&e made maDor contributions to the
fields of science in the industrial re&olution, aricultural science,
enineerin, telecommunications, transportation, safety, the medical
field, the computer ae, space eGploration, and more.
In Intellectual &arfare, Lacob Carruthers notes that Afrikan*
Centered education is not myth makin, but restorin honesty to the
curriculum. Centuries of white supremacy has distorted the educational
process and today damaes Afrikan children. Correctin this process is
not simply the includin of Afrikan contributions, but eGposin
falsehoods and why the falsehoods wereEare accepted in the first place.
.rue education deals with power, and if our Afrikan children are to be
educated into power, we must teach them oursel&es.
16,
5n the 8uestion of science, Carruthers underlines the
sinificance of the followin research when he states2
.oday, science and education inores the fact
that the ancient 3yptians were considered by
indi&iduals such as Aristotle and Francis (acon to be
the founders of mathematics and certain sciences.
Inorin the 3yptian mathematical and medical teGts,
while still eGplainin the impact of 3uclid and
Pythaoras on eometry is a clear case of unacceptable
3urocentrism. Bihlihtin the Bypocratic 5ath, while
inorin the medicine and surery of the ancient
3yptians, is yet another eGample. In fact, one can take
science and mathematics from elementary school
throuh the Ph.9. deree and ne&er learn that a sinle
African contributed one idea to either science or
mathematics >+$?.
.his essay will o&er&iew some of the maDor ad&ances and
contributions of Afrikan science to world ci&iliFation. Althouh
mathematics is a science, there will be &ery little discussion in this
essay on that subDect. An entire essay has been dedicated to the subDect
of Afrikan mathematics. .he areas of eGploration will be threefold, at
least. .he )ile Ialley contribution to science, especially Kemet, will be
considered. .his essay will ha&e some discussion on Afrikan science
outside of Kemet in the reater continental body of Afrika. .he last
maDor area of focus will o&er&iew the Afrikan American contribution to
science.
.he <'cientific %ethod=
It would only be proper to bein our research with what has
been called the <'cientific %ethod.= .he scientific method is
considered one of the roundbreakin pathways to modern science that
separated arri&in at a process throuh reasonin, eGperimentation, and
the collection of data. 5bser&ation is the necessary beinnin in order
to deri&e at a workable hypothesis, collect data, and ain some
scientific reasonin alon the way.
4e ha&e all been wronfully tauht that modern science had
its@ roots in ;reece and Rome. It is wronfully tauht that the scientific
method bean in 3urope with Roer (acon, the 3nlish philosopher of
161
the 1/
th
century, Copernicus the Polish astronomer of the 1-
th
century,
;alileo ;alilei, and E or Francis (acon. All cultures who ha&e
de&eloped any reat buildins and monuments, domesticated crops,
smelted metal of any kind, de&eloped different paints and dyes, built
boats or ocean*oin ships, understood astronomy, found ways to treat
illnesses, etc. ha&e all used the scientific method. It is throuh the
human mind, which e&ol&ed in Afrika, and later impacted all the
ci&iliFations of the world that the scientific method eGists. )o one
people or culture created the scientific method, it is a human function
of thouht. It is only throuh a system of mis*education that anyone
would teach about a 3uropean creation of a human reality called the
scientific method. After considerin the ;reat Pyramids of 3ypt, the
;reat 4all of China, the AFtec and %ayan calendar, the temples of
India, the astronomy of the (abylonians, how could one honestly say
that only 3uropeans de&eloped the scientific methodM
.he arument is that the separation of science from myth and
the spiritual cosmos bean to happen in ;reece and continued to
de&elop in 3urope. .his is a cultural arument since the 3uropean
world&iew is less spiritually connected to the uni&erse than other
cultures. .he arument is also racially biased because there are many
other cultures who ha&e made reat ad&ances in science. .he scientific
method is a human method of approachin a process. It is wron to
arue that it belons solely to 3urope or Afrika. .o say that someone is
human, but de&oid of the scientific process is to say that they are
inferior. In fact, it can be arued, the scientific method can be found in
many animals. .he human brain is and has always been capable of the
scientific process. Cou cannot build a ci&iliFation, hih arts and science,
without the scientific process. Also, let us remember that the 3uropean
was late in comparison to the other ci&iliFations of the ancient world in
their de&elopment.
)ow, not only does common sense tell us that any people who
built reat monuments, de&eloped their arts, and made contributions to
the sciences, had to ha&e fully understood a scientific method E
approach to their proDects. In addition to that, our reat scholar
.heophile 5bena has re*translated the .he Ahmose %athematical
Papyrus and found therein the 'cientific %ethod ,,### years old. In
other words, Afrikans ha&e left the physical e&idence of understandin
the scientific method, and they left the first e&er documented source in
the Ahmose Papyrus of knowin and usin the scientific method o&er
1,### years before the ;reeks went to the )ile Ialley to learn science,
and o&er /,1## years before Francis (acon was born. For 5bena@s
16-
translation, the reader is referred to <T.he@ 'cientific %ethod from
Kemet to ;reece= in E'ypt# Child of Africa edited by I&an Ian 'ertima
>"6/?. .he 3dwin 'mith %edical Papyrus will be discussed later, and in
it is a &ery scientific approach E scientific method to treatin ,6 cases of
inDury throuh eGamination, dianosis, pronosis, and treatment.
.o the Afrikan of Kemet and elsewhere, science and spirituality
do not contradict each other. .here is a balance between Afrikan
'pirituality and science. From the ;reat Pyramids of ;iFa, to smeltin
of old from )ubia, to the obser&atories of Kenya, the 9oon
astronomers of %ali, and the medicines of the Cono basin and
beyond, Afrikan 'pirituality and science are more often than not
interlinked. .he 8uestion of <pure= science is settled when we consider
one fact. .he Afrikan led the world in science and tauht the first
<ci&iliFed= 3uropeans, the ;reeks, what they knew. 'till, there are
unanswered 8uestions that surround the de&elopment and ad&ancement
of Afrikan science such as the Kemetic astronomers, the 9oon
astronomers, the architecture of Kemet, the massi&e libraries of Kemet,
the surical doctors of .imbuktu, the steel*producin blast furnaces of
.anFania, the widespread practice of Afrikan na&iation for
millenniums, and much more. 5nly a fool or a racist, or both, would
claim that the Afrikan made no contributions to science. 7et us take a
closer look.
Ariculture
Aricultural science is the one ad&ance in humanity that has
probably chaned the course of history more so than any other. .he
primary preoccupation with early societies was the atherin of food
and huntin. .he refinements of the arts and sciences were limited to
the time constraints necessary to ha&e the essentials of sur&i&al, food
and water. 4ith the de&elopment of aricultural science, specifically a
<class= de&oted to food production, the arts and sciences could only
become de&eloped to unprecedented le&els. All cultures ha&e
contributed to aricultural science and food production in one way or
another. .he eGchane of crop foods is a lobal interaction. 9ishes are
shared amon many cultures. Ideas for scientific farmin come from
many societies. .his must be acknowleded by any study that is not
preDudiced. At the same time, the de&elopment in early aricultural
science, that would e&entually reach throuhout the entire world, bean
in one place, the Afrikan )ile Ialley. .he historic phenomenon that has
16$
helped the ad&ance of the entire world is owed to the Afrikan
ariculturalist of tens of thousands of years ao. 4hat is the e&idenceM
Aain, one book that should be part of the class of e&ery
science teacher is !lacks in Science# Ancient and Modern, edited by
I&an Ian 'ertima. Fred 4endorf should be a world*renowned
anthropoloist today, on the scale of a 7ouis 7eakey. .he problem is
that 7eakey@s fossil finds could not be inored because of its
implications to the Afrikan oriins of Bumans. 4endorf@s finds could
be marinaliFed or inored, and that has occurred. 4endorf@s finds on
the oriins of ariculture are not as eGplosi&e as the oriins of Bumans,
but it is Dust as pertinent to world history.
In !lacks in Science, Fred 4endorf, Romuald 'child, and
Anela Close ha&e an entry entitled <An Ancient Bar&est on the )ile,=
oriinally published in the American Association for the Ad&ancement
of 'cience in the maaFine Science. .he authors reported that the mo&e
from huntin and atherin societies to settled, larer communities
with a hiher attainment of the arts and sciences was not as clear*cut as
is often tauht. 4ith knowlede of farmin, the early communities still
hunted and athered for thousands of years >16?. Also, stron e&idence
was noted that the idea of farmin beinnin in Asia about 1#,###
years ao is Dust an idea and nothin more. Concernin the Afrikan
oriins of farmin, and the unsubstantiated idea of an Asian oriin, the
anthropoloist reports the followin2
5ur eGca&ations at 4adi Kubbaniya, a desolate
reion in 3ypt@s 4estern 9esert, throw all this into
doubt. 4e ha&e found that, between 1$,### and 16,1##
years ao J while ice still co&ered much of 3urope J
African people were already raisin crops of wheat,
barley, lentils, chick*peas, capers, and dates. .hey were
doin it in the floodplains of the )ile, much as people
would continue to do for another 1/,### years until the
classical 3yptian ci&iliFation arose, and on into
modern times >16?.
.he e&idence points to an early form of ariculture where the
farmers waited for the )ile Ri&er to recede and lea&e its rich silt
deposits. .hey used this rich topsoil to plant some of the earliest crops
that Afrika would i&e to the world. .his basic practice led to the
domestication of the world@s first crops and the de&elopment of the
ancients@ most ad&anced ci&iliFation.
166
4ith a surplus of food, other classes of men and women could
focus their crafts and talents on other areas. 'lowly, o&er the course of
thousands of years, but ahead of the other ci&iliFations from what all
e&idence informs us, Afrikan )ile Ialley ci&iliFation and science bean
to de&elop until it reached its classical stae in .awi >Kemet?. 7et us be
&ery clear about what the e&idence informs us in the reater conteGt.
Afrikan mirants from the beinnin of the )ile waters mirated
upstream o&er time, and they bean to build the fountain, mother
ci&iliFation for Afrika, and the ancient world
%edical 'cience
.he )ile Ialley Afrikans de&eloped a &ery sound medical field
that was acknowleded throuhout the ancient world. K%. was a
&eritable intellectual center of the ancient world, and the same applies
for the field of medicine. .he Afrikans of Kemet were ad&anced in
bone settin, surery, herbal remedies, circumcision, ynecoloy,
dentistry, autopsy, and anatomy. Capsules were used, birth detection,
contraception, and pulse takin were common in the medical
profession. Bealth was taken &ery seriously in Kemet >.awi?. In
addition to bathin, they cut all body hair to ensure ood hyiene.
)utrition was understood to be central to well*bein and &itality in life.
Certain papyri show a modern approach to medical science in which a
dianosis was made and then the problem or disease was treated.
Cheikh Anta 9iop, in the chapter <Africa@s Contribution to
Bumanity in 'ciences and in Philosophy= of the book Ci(ili2ation or
!ar%arism, states the followin2
.heophrastus, 9ioscorides, and ;alen
perpetually cite the prescriptions that they recei&ed
from the 3yptian physicians, or more specifically, as
;alen says, that they had learned by consultin the
works conser&ed in the library of the .emple of
Imhotep at %emphis, which was still accessible in the
second century A.9., and where se&en centuries,
Bippocrates, the <father of medicine,= was tauht
>"6/?.
16+
It must be acknowleded that the Afrikans of K%. belie&ed
that disharmony with the spiritual world caused most illnesses. .hus,
the indi&idual recei&ed physical and sometimes spiritual treatment.
.hose in the modern medical field looked down on such healin in
traditional societies, especially in the Afrikan field of medicine. )ow,
howe&er, many studies conducted by different uni&ersities and
hospitals ha&e recently surfaced that i&e e&idence to the power of
belief in the healin process of physical ailments.
Allow me to rely on the wonderful research of Charles Finch
who has done painstakin work to document Afrikan medical science.
In the insihtful book, The African !ack'round to Medical Science by
Charles Finch, he 8uotes Bomer@s statement that <In medical
knowlede, 3ypt lea&es the rest of the world behind.= Finch@s book is
all the more sinificant because he is a medical doctor. Be has a &ery
informati&e essay entitled <Imhotep the Physician2 Archetype of the
;reat %an.= Imhotep is often called the <world@s first multi*enius=
because he was an architect, scribe and sae, priest, astronomer, IiFier
to the nation under the Pharaoh, and amon his many titles he was also
a doctor. Bowe&er, Imhotep was not the first physician or the first
documented physician. Afrikan medical science oes back tens of
thousands of years. In addition to that, the first documented physician
was Athothis, the second Pharaoh of the First 9ynasty who wrote a
treatise on anatomy >11/ and "#"?. In his book, Finch has two essays
that deal with Afrikan medical science, one <.he African (ackround
of %edical 'cience,= and the other <'cience and 'ymbol in 3yptian
%edicine.=
Finch@s essay <.he African (ackround of %edical 'cience= is
a brief yet eneral study on Afrikan medicine. Be notes the sinificance
of the most important medical papyri to sur&i&e from Kemet, the 3bers
and 3dwin 'mith Papyri, but from those papyri and others, and what
we know about the ci&iliFation, thousands of medical books must ha&e
been written. Finch notes that throuh a riorous trainin process, the
doctors of Kemet were skilled at the task of treatin hundreds of
different bodily ailments. <7ike all African peoples, the 3yptians had
a lare material medica, usin as many as 1### animal, plant, and
mineral products in the treatment of illness= >1"$?. .he ancient
Afrikans of Kemet e&en <dispensed their prescriptions as pills, enemas,
suppositories, infusions, and eliGirs in accurate, standardiFed doses,
causin some to wonder if they had separate pharmacies and
pharmacists= >1"$?.
1+#
Finch notes Afrikan medical science beyond Kemet. Be notes
the surical skill of the (anyoro of :anda. In particular, he discusses
the Caesarean section operation amon these Afrikans that was carried
out with reat success at a time when women in 3urope did not sur&i&e
this operation as it was done only to sa&e the child >1/1*1/-?. All
Afrikan societies ha&e a lare pharmacopeia. .he Kulus, Finch notes,
use $## different plants for &arious illnesses. Afrikans ha&e de&eloped
effecti&e herbal remedies for many of the ailments we complain about
oursel&es today
.he other essay by Charles Finch is <'cience and 'ymbol in
3yptian %edicine.= .his essay takes an eye*openin look at the
ancient Afrikan medical treatise known as the 3dwin 'mith Papyrus.
(ased on his years of research, Finch states <.he le&el of medical
science re&ealed in the 3dwin 'mith Papyrus makes it the most
remarkable medical document to sur&i&e from anti8uity= >1,-?. .he
'mith %edical Papyrus displayed an eGtensi&e knowlede of cranial,
skeletal, and internal anatomy amon this ancient Afrikan culture. .he
surical skill of the doctors was likewise ad&anced. .he medical
document has ,6 medical cases. Iery modern, each case in&ol&es an
eGamination, dianosis, pronosis, and treatment * if possible.
Lust as e&ery student learns about the myth of Bippocrates
bein the <Father of %edicine,= and the falsified ;reek oriin of
modern medicine, the truth must be tauht. %odern medicine, alon
with the ;reeks, benefited tremendously from the Afrikan foundation
in the )ile Ialley. .he first specialiFed physicians in the world were
Afrikans, and they were &ery skilled in their professions. 3&ery child
should know that because it is an historic fact. .he Afrikan child should
especially know this because it would bein to widen the aspirations of
children who ha&e been mis*educated for far too lon. Afrikan*
Centered education is based on honesty and facts. As was noted earlier,
we can@t present on only contributions, lea&e lies and myths in the
teachin and learnin process, and then call that multi*cultural.
Astronomy
Astronomy in Kemet tells so much about the ci&iliFation. 4e
learn about their ancient understandin of the laws that o&ern the
uni&erse. 4e are informed about the mathematical*astronomical
science that still benefits the world today. 4e ain an appreciation for
the spirituality of the people. 7astly, we learn about the chronoloy of
the ci&iliFation itself.
1+1
.he physical science of astronomy, like life on 3arth, was
belie&ed to be o&erned by the order of %aat. It was belie&ed that the
same force which caused the planets to be suspended in space, that
made the sun i&e heat, that brouht the )ile@s flood, is the same force
or spirit that a&e peace to the li&es of people. %aat was not only the
basis of astronomy, but of all the sciences, indeed of life itself.
)aturally, because the first Bumans were in Afrika, Afrikans
were the first astronomers. In addition to bein the only astronomers
for tens of thousands of years, Afrikans made ad&ances in the study of
astronomy that we still benefit from today. .he first lunar, solar, stellar,
and seasonal calendars were all first used by Afrikans. (eyond that, the
calendar achie&ed such an accuracy that it is impressi&e today. Certain
Afrikan astronomical, astroloical, and spiritual concepts are still with
us today. It was from the Afrikan )ile Ialley that the year was di&ided
into twel&e months with twel&e Fodiac sins. It was aain the Afrikans
of the )ile Ialley that separated the months into weeks, the weeks into
days, the days into hours, and the hours into seconds >Pappademos@
<An 5utline of Africa@s Role in the Bistory of Physics,= !lacks in
Science, 16$2 Finch@s The African !ack'round to Medical Science, 1,12
(rowder@s Nile 1alley Contri%ution to Ci(ili2ation, $6*6#?. It was the
Afrikan water*clock that a&e the notion to di&ide the hour into
seconds.
From the .emple of Bet*Beru of 9endera, we can see a later
form of the Afrikan Fodiac calendar that birthed the &ery Fodiac system
we use today with all twel&e sins. 4e can see the di&ision of the circle
into /-# derees or days. .he Afrikans understood well the need to add
fi&e additional days, and the leap year was also known and understood.
.he 9endera Fodiac calendar is one piece of e&idence that informs us
that the /-1 X day calendar that is presently used throuhout the world
is from Afrika. 5ur &ery concept of timekeepin is from the Afrikan
)ile Ialley, and so &ery, &ery few people know that fact.
Afrikan ethnic roups throuhout the continent ha&e
astronomers, but the 9oon of %ali offers an interestin point of study
with Afrikan astronomy. For centuries the 9oon had an intricate
knowlede of the solar system. .he source of note on 9oon
astronomy is +ale Fo3 by %arcel ;riaule and ;ermaine 9ieterlen.
Amon other thins, the 9oon had a sound knowlede of the 'irius
star system for centuries. .his star system could only be seen with
ad&anced telescopes, and thus se&eral theories ha&e cropped up about
how the 9oon possessed this knowlede. In !lacks in Science, I&an
Ian 'ertima notes <.he Russians ha&e found crystal lenses, perfectly
1+"
spherical and of reat precision, in ancient 3ypt, durin the African*
dominated period= >1/?. In the same teGt, Bunter Adams notes that after
eGtended star watchin, the 9oon astronomers would de&elop &ery
sensiti&e dark*adapted eyes ><)ew 7iht on the 9oon and 'irius,= ,6*
,+?. (esides 3uropean tra&elers, missionaries, and &isits from outer*
space aliens, it is &ery possible for the 9oon astronomers to ha&e
athered the knowlede they knew about the 'irius star system and the
uni&erse in eneral.
Architectural 3nineerin in K%.
5f all the ci&iliFations of the ancient world, few mar&el the
obser&er more than the architecture of Kemet >.awi or 3ypt?. For
those who ha&e tra&eled to 3ypt or who ha&e seen photos, they are
often amaFed at how an ancient people without modern technoloical
e8uipment could mo&e fi&e, ten, hundred ton stones, or more.
.he column and the colonnade is an Afrikan architectural
inno&ation that has spread throuhout the entire world. Columns can be
found imbedded in the architecture of buildins, museums, and homes
amon many different cultures in almost e&ery city on the planet.
Althouh the column is &ery common in world architecture, so few
people know that it is an Afrikan creation.
.he colonnade temples of K%. >Kemet, .awi? are one of the
hihly impressi&e sihts in the )ile Ialley. .he temple was also the
center of education due to the fact that in the Afrikan world&iew, the
sacred and the secular were one. .he world&iew was spiritual in
orientation. :sually known as the Karnak temple, the Ipet Iset temple E
uni&ersity that is dedicated to Amon*Ra has 1/, massi&e dDed columns
that are about $# feet tall, weihin countless tons each. .he colonnade
is a &irtual man*made forest. As lare as the columns are, their ancient
beauty is e8ually impressi&e. .hey are car&ed as lotus flowers in the
&arious temples, often with the top blossomin out. .his added to
aesthetic, but also helped more securely hold the roof placed on top.
.he fact that flowers were used in the architecture speaks to the
spiritual world&iew of the people.
4e must keep in mind that the Afrikans of the )ile Ialley built
on lare scale. .he columns, statues, and tekhens were massi&e. Bow
were they mo&edM Bow did they erect the massi&e columnsM 5ne of the
obelisks or tekhens built by Batshepsut@s architects was nearly 1## feet
tall with a weiht of o&er /## tons. .wo towerin pylons or walled
ateways built of smaller brick were between two tekhens that reeted
1+/
the Afrikans as they walked into this reatest of the )ile Ialley centers
of spirituality and education. .he temple E uni&ersity was &ery modern
by our own standards. For thousands of years, the world mar&eled at
the architecture of Ipet Isut. It stands today as a masterpiece of
enineerin and architectural science. An eGcellent resource of Kemetic
>K%.? temple architecture is E'yptian Temples by %araret %urray.
.he temple E uni&ersity was built o&er the reins of many
different rulers, and was thus classic and up*to*date at once. .o build
such a rand temple as Ipet Isut, the state funded an oraniFed and
super&ised team of workers. An eGperienced architect would super&ise
the workers. A roup of skilled professionals cut, shaped, and placed
the &arious rock structures in place. 'cribes car&ed the feats of the
Pharaoh on the walls and columns. .he enineerin, oraniFation, and
cooperation were no doubt a siht to see in itself.
7uGor or 'outhern Ipet, which has many of the same features
as the Ipet Isut temple, is Dust as impressi&e. 'ome of the other maDor
temples E uni&ersities include 9endera, Philae, and 3dfu. .hey are all
se&eral thousands of years old, and they are a testament to the Afrikan
standard of architectural science set when ;reece didn@t ha&e the
slihtest idea of how to build in stone, or e&en writin.
Areed by many, the reatest architectural achie&ements in the
)ile Ialley are the pyramids. 'ince much has been written about the
architectural and scientific accomplishment of the ;reat Pyramids, only
some cursory notes are needed here. .he pyramids were not simply
stacked or thrown up in place, as some suest. .he ;iFa plateau was
the site chosen for specific eoloical reasons. .he bedrock foundation
had to support such a massi&e proDect. A round layout and eometric
measurement of the base s8uare for buildin was done. It is likely that a
plan was drawn up because such blueprint diarams ha&e been found
for other construction proDects. 'uch eometric measurements and the
use of slopes and weihts were used throuhout the entire process. .his
was calculus at work. From start to finish, the builders studied the stars
for the purpose of alinin the manmade mountains to certain
phenomena in the sky. A buildin diaram was likely used, especially
when the internal passaes of Khufu@s pyramid are considered. 'ome
stones were cut on site, most were transported &ia land and boat. .he
8uarryin, measurin, and shapin of stones were &ery important,
especially the outer casin. Ramps were built to raise the stones
a&erain ".1 tons to heihts of hundreds of feet in the air. %assi&e
polished limestones with sacred teGts written on them were placed on
the outer core. 'uch a feat as displayed on the ;iFa plateau in the ;reat
1+,
Pyramids re8uired a sophisticated use and understandin of eometry,
calculus, eoloy, architecture, astronomy, and enineerin.
4e must also keep in mind that the e&olution of pyramid
buildin was a process that took place o&er se&eral centuries. .he mud*
brick mastaba tombs of the earliest Pharaohs became brick tombs by
the .hird 9ynasty. .he Pharaoh 9Doser, with the eGperience of the
architect Imhotep, built the "## feet tall 'tep Pyramid in stone. Pharaoh
'neferu would encase the steps of his pyramid, and the architectural
sophistication reached its Fenith under Khufu@s pyramid. 4hat
happened to the polished limestone that had %dw )tr >sacred writins?
on themM 4hat happened to the capstone >the benben stone?M
7ike his predecessors, Khufu used limestone
from local outcrops for the bulk of his pyramid, while
for casin he used fine limestone from .royu and the
%o8attam Bills east of Cairo. .he capstone was
probably ilded. (ut nearly all the fine stone was
peeled off by the medie&al %uslim rulers of 3ypt to
build brides and houses in Cairo >7. 'praue de
Camp, The Ancient En'ineers, /,?.

A wide &ariety of tools were used in the buildin of Kemet@s
monuments that were built to defy the aes of time. %any of these tools
ha&e chaned &ery little with time and cultures. Bammers, mallets,
chisels, ropes, measurin ropes, le&ers, measurin rulers, riht anles,
kni&es, plumb le&els, a de&ice for screwin holes in stone, aGes, adFes,
saws, and other tools were used. 4ith the abundance of stone and the
fleGibility of the carpenter@s and architect@s tool kit allowed the
Afrikans to build to the hea&ens. .his could only happen with the
eGperience and sound knowlede of architectural science.
Chemistry
From The Star of eep !e'innin's by Charles Finch, we ha&e
an enlihtenin chapter on metallury entitled <.he Followers of
Borus2 ,#,### Cears of African %inin and %etal .echnoloy.= In
0reat African Thinkers edited by I&an Ian 'ertima, the reat Cheikh
Anta 9iop has two essays sinificant to the topic of Afrikan science
entitled <Iron in the Ancient 3yptian 3mpire= and <Africa@s
Contribution to 4orld Ci&iliFation2 .he 3Gact 'ciences.= .he latter
essay by 9iop is an abbre&iation of his more eGtensi&e treatment in
1+1
Ci(ili2ation or !ar%arism in the chapter entitled <Africa@s Contribution
to Bumanity in 'ciences and in Philosophy.= Finally, throuh !lacks in
Science edited by Ian 'ertima, we can ain some insiht into iron
makin outside of the )ile Ialley. 4e will note that the e&idence
suest that iron and metallury in eneral was introduced into Kemet
by way of the lands to the south deeper in the continent. Kemet was
peopled from the south, and the Afrikan mirants brouht ci&iliFation
and metal makin with them into the area.
Charles Finch notes in The Star of eep !e'innin's that
Afrikans were minin, smeltin metal, and makin tools continually
from a &ery remote period. A mananese mine, alon with tools from
Kambia, date to "6,### years ao. Iron minin was occurrin in
'waFiland ,#,### years ao. Finch states, <It seems e&ident that the
entire reion J encompassin Kambia, Kimbabwe, and 'waFiland J had
been the site of eGtensi&e minin operations repeatedly since the :pper
Paleolithic= >"-?. It is enerally assumed that the iron mines from this
&ery remote period were used to et hematite for body decorations. .he
reason is that anythin else would completely destroy the accepted Iron
Ae chronoloy. Finch states that althouh iron oGidiFes >rusts? rapidly,
that would eliminate much of the e&idence if any were present from
such a remote period. )onetheless, we await further e&idence. Cet,
there is still enouh e&idence to support the Afrikan oriin of iron
makin.
(efore notin ",+## to 1,1## year old e&idence of iron sla and
charcoal, e&idence of smeltin amon the ancient )ok of the area of
present day )ieria, Finch points out that Afrikans of the )ile Ialley
were manipulatin meteoric iron for practical usae -,### and 1",###
years ao >/1?. .his was the introduction to the metal that familiariFed
the smelters with the chemistry and how to e&entually deri&e it from
3arthly or stratum sources. .hen Finch notes that an iron tool was
disco&ered in the ;reat Pyramid of Kufu. 9iop makes the same
obser&ation in <Iron in the Ancient 3yptian 3mpire= >-1?. .his is
e&idence that the Iron Ae is at least 1,"## years before the belie&ed
Bittite beinnin of the Iron Ae of 1,1## (C3, accordin to 9iop and
Finch. Also, Finch stresses that all the latest e&idence on Kemetic
chronoloy forces us to ree&aluate e&erythinH the ;reat Pyramid was
built around /,### (C3, se&eral centuries earlier than what was
thouht. .hat would mean that the Iron Ae is at least 1,### years old,
and it bean in the continent that a&e ci&iliFation to the world, Afrika.
%inin and the separation of &arious metals from their ores to
be fashioned into tools, weapons, Dewelry, ceremonial items, and
1+-
household decorations were &ery common in Kemet >K%., .awi?. .he
sinle most famous sculpture is that of the solid old mask with semi*
precious stones and lass found in .utankhamen@s coffin, three coffins
of old. Bow differently would the world &iew Kemet had the burial
chambers of reat Pharaohs and Aueen %others not been looted o&er
the aesM 'till, .utankhamen@s old treasures i&e us a blink into the
refined Dewelry crafts of the ancient empire. ;old was the metal of
choice. Royal realia, thrones, statues of animals, statues of the boy
Kin, Dewelry, were all solid old or old co&ered.
As was stated, metal was fashioned for a &ariety of reasons.
4hether it is a sil&er statue, old earrins or a pendent inlaid with lapis
laFuli, an iron hoe or steel knife, a bronFe adFe, a cooper tool, an
electrum piece of art, or a bronFe tool, the Afrikans of the )ile Ialley
were masters of metal shapin. 'culptin with lass was also practiced.
.he use of &arious colors of paint, dyes, and cosmetics reached
an impressi&e stae. 4is were dyed, eye paint was made from black
alena and reen malachite as a cosmetic and sun*protector, oils were
massaed o&er the body, fine linens were fashionable, foundation and
lipstick were made from ochre. 7astly, and to top it all off, the Afrikans
of the )ile Ialley used polished and buffed bronFe or copper mirrors.
4hen considerin the chemistry of Kemet >.awi?, note must be
made of the brilliant colors that the Afrikans of this land were able to
make for paintin not only small pieces of artwork but columns and
temple walls. Faience ceramic had a briht blue color. 'haw and
)icholson in, The ictionary of Ancient E'ypt, informs us about the
beautiful faience.
Ceramic material composed of crushed 8uartF,
8uartF sand, with small amounts of lime and plant ash
or natron. .his body material is usually coated with a
briht blue or reen laFe of soda*lime*silica type0
.he material was known to the 3yptians as
t/ehenet, the literal meanin of which was Tbrilliant@ or
TdaFFlin@. 7ike lass, which was introduced in the
)ew Kindom >111#*1#-+ (C?, its main purpose was
probably to imitate em*stones such as .:RA:5I'3
and 7API' 7AK:7I >+1?.
.
In Ancient E'ypt, 9a&id 'il&erman states, <Paint was made by
miGin water and um arabic with round piment. (lack, blue, reen,
yellow, red and white were the most common colors= >""1?. .o say
1+$
<round piment= is an inDustice of o&ersimplification. Afterall,
<round piment= can &ery well be mud and rain water, but it was not.
In a brief but informati&e essay by Bamed 3ad entitled <Ancient
3yptian 'cience,= we 8uote the followin concernin this <round
piment=2
.hus, the piments from the tomb of Perneb
>at estimated "-1# (.C.? which was presented to
%etropolitan %useum of )ew Cork City in 1+1/, were
eGamined by %aGimilian .och. Be found that the red
piment pro&ed to be iron oGide, haematiteH a yellow
consisted of clay containin iron or yellow ochreH a
blue color was a finely powdered lassH and a pale blue
was a copper carbonate, probably aFuriteH reen were
malachiteH black was charcoal or boneblackH ray, a
limestone miGed with charcoalH and a 8uantity of
piment remainin in a paint pot used in the
decoration, contained a miGture of haematite with
limestone and clay.
.he use of eGtractin minerals, not only for sculpture and tools,
but also for paint displays the ci&iliFations ad&anced stae in the
chemical process. .hus, what we call the <Periodic .able of the
3lements= was not disco&ered yesterday. %any of the elements were in
practical and ceremonial use in Afrika for thousands of years. 4e
cannot say that the Periodic .able is an Afrikan in&ention, but we must
point out the historical fact that Afrikans were the first to use many of
the elements on the .able such as copper, iron, old, sil&er, silicon, and
possibly others. 5ther ancient cultures used the elements on the
Periodic .able. It is due to a lack of focus with such important details
that our children are not educated properly.
%ummification
Professional, priestly embalmers conducted the task of
mummification. .he mummification process in Kemet was central to
honorin the deceased in their passae to the ancestral world. It also
lent stronly to the idea of a resurrection. .he heart was left in the body
because of the spiritual sinificance attached to this oran. .he brain is
taken out throuh the nostril with a metal hook made especially for this
purpose. .he li&er, luns, stomach, and intestines were surically
1+6
remo&ed and stored in canopic Dars that represented the Four 'ons of
Beru or the four corners of hea&en. After remo&al of the orans, the
body was stitched. .he body was repeatedly washed with palm wine in
this process. Frankincense, myrrh, cedar oil, and resin were used in the
process. .he key chemical compound was natron, and alon with the
climate of Kemet, this assisted in the preser&ation of the body for aes.
.he body was allowed to lay in natron for $# days, the lonest stae in
the process. .he last stae was the &ery careful wrappin of the body
with fine linen before the burial process. A ood source on
mummification is E'yptian Mummies# 5nra(elin' the Secrets of an
Ancient Art by (ob (rier. .here are any number of books with
information on the science of mummification.
%odern Afrikan Contributions to 'cience
For thousands of years, Afrikans played a central role in the
historical de&elopment of science. .o write a science book or to teach a
science course and totally inore the Afrikan foundation of modern
science is to promote the mis*education of children or students, and that
is all too common in the present educational system. As terrible as it is
to inore the ancient Afrikan foundation of science, it is e8ually
shameful to inore the modern contributions to science by Afrikan
people, and this mistreatment of instruction is e8ually per&asi&e in the
education settins. 7et us briefly hihliht the contributions that
Afrikan people ha&e made to modern science. From the industrial
re&olution to the medical field, from the computer ae and
communications to safety in&entions, from enineerin to ariculture,
from chemistry to astronomy, from ad&ances in military technoloy to
)A'A space eGploration, people of Afrikan descent ha&e made maDor
contributions to modern science, and continue to do so today.
!lack 0enius by 9ick Russell would be a ood resource to
bein with on the modern Afrikan contribution to science. .he book is
not an end*all, but there are se&eral ood essays on what Russell
rihtfully calls (lack enius. In <Ancestors J .he AstromerE'ur&eyor,=
Russell states2
(y the time he died in 16#-, (enDamin
(anneker was somewhat of a leendary fiure alon
the 3ast Coast of a recently independent :nited 'tates
J a self*tauht mathematician, astronomer, in&entor,
sur&eyor and almanac writer who corresponded with
1++
.homas Lefferson in an attempt to influence his &iews
on sla&ery >/,1?.
In <Ancestors J 7ewis 7atimer and the 3arly (lack In&entors,=
Russell makes note of an Afrikan American scholar from the :ni&ersity
of %assachusetts at Amherst, one Asa 9a&is whose specialty was in
Afrikan*American science and in&ention. 4hen asked about the first
time he heard of 7ewis 7atimer, Asa 9a&is beins by recountin some
other sinificant facts of modern Afrikan science. An Afrikan
;hanaian, Kwakwe wrote a book on the classification of plants that
would influence modern bioloy. 9a&is stated that 3dward 3&erett Lust,
a (lack bioloist2
0became the first scientist to unlock the
secrets of cell function durin the 1+"#s and 1+/#s. Be
disco&ered the essential part that the outer surface
played in the de&elopment of the e and the entire
cell, shatterin then*accepted thinkin that only the
nucleus was important >"+1?.
9a&is also mentions the (lack astronomer from Russia,
(oloto&. It was this astronomer, who throuh his obser&ations <was
amon the first to point out that mass and time in space interlock,
which ties into some thins 3instein worked on for his theory of
relati&ity.= 9a&is continued, <.oday, what we know as Riemann
eometry is really based on (oloto&@s obser&ation= >"+1?.
7ike a ood history teacher, before discussin 7atimer, 9a&is
notes the sinificance )orbert RillieuG, who completely chaned the
suar processin industryH 3liDah %cCoy who in&ented the first self*
lubricatin system for trainsH and Lan %atFelier who re&olutioniFed
shoe production throuhout America and the world. Finally, after these
brief but &ery important facts, Asa 9a&is beins to discuss 7ewis
7atimer, the man who in&ented the carbon filament to make liht bulbs
burn, and who lit up the cities of )ew Cork, Philadelphia, %ontreal,
and 7ondon.
In !lacks in Science, Lohn Benrik Clarke has an eGcellent essay
entitled <7ewis 7atimer * (riner of the 7iht.= 7atimer worked with
the .homas 3dison Pioneers, in&ented his own electric lamp with
Loseph )icholas, in&ented a more efficient method for the production
of carbon filaments, and made the drawin@s for the phone which
AleGander ;raham (ell recei&ed the patent. Also, 7atimer authored the
"##
first book on this lihtin system entitled <Incandescent 3lectric
7ihtin2 A Practical 9escription of the 3dison 'ystem.= 7atimer was
called on in 3dison@s court cases as a specialist concernin the
in&ention. 5f the 3dison Pioneers, 7atimer was ob&iously the eGpert on
his in&ention abo&e the others, includin 3dison.
.he in&entions of (anneker, 7atimer, %cCoy, RillieuG,
%atFelier, and others are all the more sinificant when we consider
that these scientists were descendent of ensla&ed Afrikans. 5ne of the
reatest of the scientists, of any race, in the early "#
th
century was born
into sla&ery, left on the round, and sold for a horse when he was a
baby. .hat was the beinnins of ;eore 4ashinton Car&er@s life.
%ore than any sinle indi&idual, he sa&ed the aricultural economy of
America, influenced scientific farmin throuhout the world, and bean
an alternati&e food industry. 'ome of Car&er@s many in&entions were
types of be&eraes, o&er /# types of milk, snakes and candy, &arious
meat substitutes, medicines, cosmetics, fuel, and more. In 0eor'e
&ashin'ton Car(er# *is $ife and Faith In *is -,n &ords4 biorapher
4illiam Federer states of the centuries reatest aricultural scientist2
;eore R4ashinton Car&erS showed the
farmers the benefits of plantin leumes, such as
peanuts, which replenish the soil with nitroen. .he
farmers heeded his ad&ice but soon had more peanuts
than the market wanted, as peanuts were primarily used
as feed for animals.
Be disco&ered o&er three hundred uses for the
peanut, o&er one hundred eihteen for the sweet potato,
o&er siGty for the pecan, as well as doFens more for the
soybean, okra, cowpeas, wild plums, etc >11?.
4here modern contributions to science are concerned, few
sources are as helpful as Raymond 4ebster@s African American Firsts
in Science and Technolo'y. .here are well o&er a thousand entries in
this chronoloical book, co&erin such fields as astronauts, a&iation,
bioloy, chemistry, enineers, in&entors, mathematicians, physicians,
physicists, and many more. A ood classroom teacher would know to
preface this before certain classroom discussion, locatin particular
people of Afrikan descent who made scientific contributions dependin
on the lessons for the day. Also, 4ebster has a &ery eGcellent
biblioraphy for the serious reader and researcher.
"#1
Russell Adam@s 0reat Ne'roes +ast and +resent is a ood
reference book for K*1" teachers and students. 5&erall, it can also be
&ery useful for the underraduate uni&ersity le&els. Be has a section in
the book entitled <'cience and Industry= where there is some detail on
the followin2 mechanical in&entor 3liDah %cCoy, scientist )orbert
RllieuG, mechanical in&entor Lan %atFelier, electrical enineer
;ran&ille .. 4oods, stop liht and as mask in&entor ;arrett %oran,
ethnoloist %artin 9elany, eGplorer %atthew Benson, aricultural
scientist ;eore 4ashinton Car&er, first successful heart sureon
9aniel Bale 4illiams, cellular bioloist 3rnest Lust, renowned sureon
:lysses ;.9ailey, sureon and in&entor of blood plasma preser&ation
Charles 9rew, chemist Percy Lulian, and dermatoloist .heodore
7awless.
A few notes should be made of some of the prior mentioned
indi&iduals who ha&e made contributions to science. %any of the
doctors and in&entors of Afrikan descent ha&e chaned the 8uality of
life and eGtended the possibility of lone&ity. Consider how the traffic
liht and as mask of ;arrett %oran ha&e sa&ed countless li&es since
their in&ention. %oran had to hire a white man to sell his as mask
because of American racism.
;ran&ille .. 4oods had doFens of in&entions, and he in&ented
an effecti&e teleraphin system for railways that sinificantly reduced
the number of crashes in the outdated system. 4oods in&ented what we
call the <.hird Rail= today. Be in&ented the o&erhead conductin
system for trains and trolleys. After 3dison lost two court cases to
4oods o&er his electric motor reulator, 3dison tried to hire 4oods and
was turned down >!lack 0enius, /##*/#1 and African American First,
,*1?. In short, 4oods helped moderniFe the railroad industry.
Percy Lulian@s eGtraction of sterols from soybeans made
cortisone a&ailable to the common masses of people. (efore this, only
the rich bothered to treat arthritis. Be de&eloped a method to mass
produce the dru physostimine for the treatment of laucoma. Be also
in&ented a foam to eGtinuish fires >0reat Ne'roes, $, and African
American First, "+/?. .hese were his primary contributions, and when
9r. Lulian mo&ed to 5ak Park, Illinois, his home was firebombed.
Percy Lulian@s randfather was a former ensla&ed Afrikan with finers
missin as a punishment for learnin readin and writin.
7ewis 7atimer, one of the most outstandin in&entors of his
time, was born to ;eore 7atimer and Rebecca 'mith, who both had to
escape the e&il and inhumane system of sla&ery to ain their freedom.
After escapin from )orfolk, Iirinia to (oston, %assachusetts, the
"#"
hihly publiciFed case about ;eore 7atimer@s freedom bean. 4ith
the support of Frederick 9oulass and others, the case was won. Cet,
with the passae of the 161# Fuiti&e 'la&e 7aw and the 161$ 9red
'cott case, the 7atimer family li&ed in constant fear and had to mo&e
fre8uently. ;eore and Rebecca li&ed in constant worry about their
freedom and safety in a land where sla&ery was constitutional. 4inifred
7atimer )orman, randdauhter of 7ewis 7atimer, authored the &ery
important book $e,is $atimer# Scientist.
%arie (rittan (rown in&ented the home security system. Philip
3meawali, a )ierian, is one of the <fathers= of the supercomputer
and the internet. 3meawali had to face the eGploitation and forces of
colonialism and neo*colonialism in )ieria. 9r. Lane Cooke 4riht and
her father 9r. 7ouis .ompkins 4riht ha&e been pioneers in the
treatment of cancer with chemotherapy drus. 9r. (en Carson has
trained hundreds of doctors around the world in compleG operations of
brain surery. 9r. Patricia (ath in&ented the 7aserphaco Probe for eye
surery to remo&e cataracts, and she relates how she dealt with racism
and seGism. .here are literally thousands of in&entions, impro&ements,
and contributions of science by people of Afrikan descent. In no way is
this essay a complete account as that would take at least se&eral
&olumes. 4hat is attempted here is to broaden the appreciation for
Afrikan science, and to i&e a method of approach to the student and
teacher. .he (lack In&ention %useum, with world tra&elin eGhibits,
located in 7os Aneles, California furnishes the patent dates for
countless in&entions. .he %useum is hihly recommended, and it
pro&ides an historical backround on Afrikan science from anti8uity to
the present. .his subDect is one that must be treated systematically in
the classroom settin. .his essay attempts to i&e some direction. .here
continues to be a rowin body of teGt on this subDect. .he reader,
teacher, parent, student must become more informed. In addition to all
other works cited in this essay, I do suest the two followin works2
Ii&ian 'ammon@s !lacks in Science and Medicine, and 'panenbur@s
and %oser@s African Americans in Science4 Math and In(entions.
Conclusion
%ath and science are the two subDects with the reatest
emphasis in the school systems. In addition, these are the subDects that
our children ha&e the reatest problems in because these subDects are
tauht so backwards with no cultural rele&ance. %ost indi&iduals fail to
e&en reconiFe how math and science are culturally and historically
"#/
bound in the points of &iews that people teach and learn from. As a
result, we ha&e a &ery 3uropean point of &iew of math and science. Is it
no wonder why our children are bein outperformed in a school system
that does not teach to their particular needs and interestsM
3ssential to the problem is that school systems are too inorant
to understand the identity of Afrikan children with an American
eoraphic location. .he bare concepts of education aside, we should
know that Afrikan children in America ha&e specific cultural needs that
are not catered to by the mainstream. 5ur responsibility then is to cater
to the culturally and socially rele&ant curriculum and instruction of our
children oursel&es. It is insanity to do otherwise.
4e must understand why education is important, critical. .he
purpose of education must o beyond ettin a Dob, house, and car.
3ducation must ha&e cultural and social rele&ancy to any people. If our
children are recei&in an education, we must ask oursel&es how is that
the education will uplift and build our people in the future. In the
subconscious or the conscious of all people is this primary 8uestion
about the purpose of education J the buildin of people and nations. 4e
who are of Afrikan descent around the world must not let it escape us.
)o nation or roup of people can build without a sound class of
scientific eGperts to rely on. Currently, the nations of Afrika, the
Afrikan American population, and many other maDority Afrikan
nations, ha&e a brain drain. .hat is, our eGperts and doctors of science
ha&e little nation and race consciousness. .he crisis with the Afrikan
world is not that we lack medical and scientific eGperts, althouh we
can use many, many more. 5ur crisis is one of loyalty. 5ur scientists
are no different from the a&erae person in our communities that lacks
any racial or cultural loyalty. .his crisis oes back to the self*neatin
type of education, socialiFation, and &alues we are tauht. .he type of
education and &alues our children recei&e depends on who controls
their school systems, media, and information outlets. .he only way
Afrikan >(lack? children will recei&e an education for the liberation
and the maintenance of their people is if we build that type of education
and socialiFation systems for them. 'ince when did a system built on
oppression properly educate the oppressedM 3ducation teaches one to
run a nation, build and maintain an economy, utiliFe natural and
manufactured resources, install lobal communication systems, de&elop
the necessary administrati&e le&els for manaement, direct political
influences, create defense forces, etc. 4hy would a country built on
oppression from its &ery foundation properly educate an oppressed
classM 4ith all the money we fri&olously waste, we could chane
"#,
history. 4hen we build our own independent school systems in
America and around the world, then and only then will our children
recei&e a proper education. 5therwise were playin in someone else@s
ame, by their rules. 4e need to create our own systems, with our own
rules and obDecti&es.
AFRIKAN KEMETIC MAT-EMATICS
<3ypt was the cradle of mathematics.= Aristotle.
Introduction
.he )ile Ri&er Ialley@s ancient past is a product of Afrikan
de&elopment and mirations into that area. .he )ile has been fed for
thousands of years from inner Afrika, the ;reat 7akes reion of
Central*3ast >especially 9R Cono, :anda, Kenya, and .anFania? and
the Bihlands of 3thiopia. .he first Bumans in the world came from
this part of Afrika. .he Afrikan people who populated the reater )ile
Ialley came from these reions and 4est from the 'ahara. .hey
brouht ci&iliFation with them into the )ile, and they also brouht the
mathematics that they later de&eloped e&en further after the foundin of
dynastic Kemet >Ancient 3ypt or the .wo*7ands?. .he )ile Ialley
would be the parent cultural cradle of Afrika. I refer the reader to
9iop@s essay <Peoplin of Africa from the )ile Ialley= in The African
-ri'in of Ci(ili2ation. In and around this reion was the parent location
of Afrikans, humanity, ci&iliFation, and mathematics. %y first
introduction to Afrikan mathematics came by way of the reat Cheikh
Anta 9iop in Ci(ili2ation or !ar%arism. Further, I was profoundly
impressed with the subDect of Afrikan mathematics from the works of
(eatrice 7umpkin and con&inced that math, like all the subDects of
learnin, had been told throuh a false 3uropean &iew of the world that
was not accurate and intentionally falsified to bolster 3uropean
supremacy.
It is throuh this 3uropean supremacist &iew of education that
children are incorrectly tauht math and all of the subDect areas. .his, I
"#1
maintain, is one of the key reasons why children of Afrikan descent
perform poorly in school. Children are tauht about reat 3uropeans
who created math, the <Father of ;eometry= as 3uclid is known, or the
<Father of Alebra= as 9iophantus is known, or the <Father of
)umeroloy= as Pythaoras is known. .he fact is that eometry,
alebra, and numeroloy all eGisted before the ;reeks had the most
&aue understandin of mathematics. As much and more will be
eGplained in the followin paes. Children, and adults in uni&ersities,
are tauht or indirectly left with the impression that ;reeks fathered,
not only math, but science, philosophy, and all areas of knowlede. .he
;reeks were latecomers in the history of mathematicsH indeed the
;reeks were latecomers in the history of world ci&iliFation that spran
up in the )ile Ialley and later in the .iris*3uphrates, Indus, and China
before enterin 3urope. From the current educational system, we are
left to belie&e that ci&iliFation started with the ;reeks and spread to
Afrika &ery late with the era of sla&ery. .his is altoether false. As all
cultures and peoples ha&e, the ;reeks did make some contributions to
mathematics, but the ;reek contributions to mathematics was built
from an Afrikan foundation before and durin the 7ibrary of
AleGandria period in 3ypt where many of the reat <;reek=
mathematicians went and studied. It is sinificant to note that the
ancient scholars associated with the 7ibrary of AleGandria are all
assumed to be ;reek merely, it seems, because they made a
contribution to some filed of knowlede and wrote in ;reek. .he fact is
that the identity of many of the philosophers is not clear in the least.
Instead of doin uesswork about racial identity, I want to focus on
Afrikan mathematics. In fact, before the buildin of this library, ;reeks
were already studyin Afrikan math and other subDects in this Afrikan
nation.
.he ;reeks ne&er claimed to be <Fathers= of math, science,
history, or philosophy. .hose fatherhood titles were i&en in later times.
Bowe&er, the ;reeks didn@t always i&e credit to the Afrikans of the
)ile who tauht them mathematical and knowlede otherwise.
Consider the followin 8uote from (asil 9a&idson in E'ypt Re(isited2
.he philosophers and mathematicians were in
full areement. Pythaoras spent no fewer than twenty*
one years in 3ypt. Aristotle said that <3ypt was the
cradle of mathematics.= 3udoGus, Aristotle@s teacher
and a foremost mathematician of his time, had likewise
studied in 3ypt before teachin in ;reece. Isokrates
"#-
and Plato were profoundly influenced by 3yptian
philosophy. 3uclid, aain, learned mathematics in
3ypt before applyin them elsewhere. And who could
be surprisedM For the pyramids and temples of the )ile
were not built by uesswork or rule of thumb. .hey
were built by the use of mathematical propositions
which the 3yptians had disco&ered and pro&en. Bow
otherwise could it ha&e come about that the difference
in lenth between the shortest base*side of the ;reat
Pyramid at ;iFeh >c"-##(C? and the lonest side
>$1-.#6 RfeetS? is no more than a staerinly $.+
inchesM Berodotus and the men of his time did not
know this, but they did know that the ;reat Pyramid
was only one of innumerable mathematical mar&els to
be found in the land of the Pharaohs >,,?.
%athematics is not an in&ention as much as it is a realiFation of
what already eGisted, the realiFation of phenomena, the manipulation of
numbers to arri&e at solutions to known and unknown fiures, and the
calculations of shapes. All cultures ha&e made contributions to the
proress of mathematics. 7umpkin states2 <Any unpreDudiced &iew of
world history must acknowlede that many different people and races
on e&ery continent ha&e made reat mathematical disco&eries= >!lacks
in Science, <Africa in the %ainstream of %athematics Bistory,= 1#1?.
'till, as 7umpkin would aree from her research, Afrika led the world
in mathematics for thousands and thousands of years, and the
foundations for much of what is tauht in math is from the )ile Ialley.
.his brief essay will focus on the Afrikan K%. foundations of
mathematics, as it was from the )ile Ialley that mathematics shed its
liht on the 5ld 4orld by way of the K%. mathematicians and later
the 7ibrary of AleGandria, a library based on a massi&e collection of
Afrikan writins. Cet, this essay@s focus will be on the de&elopment of
mathematics prior to the 7ibrary of AleGandria, that is the foundation
knowlede of the library. .he focus of this essay will be on Kemet of
the Pharaohs, beinnin from the &ery conser&ati&e estimate of the first
dynasty of at least */"##. For datin purposes, (C and A9 >(efore
Christ and anno 9omini? will not be used. )or will use be made of
(C3 and AC3 >(efore the Common 3ra and After the Common 3ra?.
Instead * or Y years will be used. For eGample, instead of /"## (C, or
/"## (C3, it will be found as */"##. Instead of 1### A9, or 1###
AC3, it will be found as Y1###.
"#$
.he focus of the essay will deal hea&ily with the mathematics
of the pre*9ynastic and 5ld Kindom period >what is also known as
the First ;olden Ae from the First throuh the 'iGth 9ynasties?. .he
mathematical concepts later used in Kemet had their oriins in this
early period. 4itness of this is the architectural and mathematical
achie&ements of the early period, which were in ways ne&er surpassed
by later 9ynasties, in ways ne&er surpassed by any nations up to this
day. .he ;reat Pyramids of ;iFa are still mar&eled at in their ruin like
no other pyramids in the world. .hey were a much more wonderful
siht when they were encased in polished and shinin limestone, tipped
with the ben*ben stones, with a compleG of fine buildins and smaller
pyramids around them thousands of years ao. %illions and millions of
eGtremely massi&e bricks went into the construction of these
monuments. It is supported by e&idence that mathematics were
essential in the buildin process from the precision of the architecture,
astronomical and 3arthly alinments, tools and records found in
Kemet, inner and underround chambers.
3arly Afrikan )ile Ialley Ci&iliFation
.here is some areement on the definition of ci&iliFation. %ost
scholars seem to belie&e that ci&iliFations oriinated in settled
communities that de&eloped compleG trades or occupations amon the
residents. .hese settled communities were able to de&elop hih arts,
sciences, and writin. %any scholars place the beinnin of ci&iliFation
at the ad&ent of writin. (y either of these definitions, the Afrikan )ile
Ialley is the seat of ci&iliFation.
Bowe&er, we ha&e been operatin from a limited and 4estern
definition of ci&iliFation that employs a &ocabulary with such terms as
<pre*modern,= <primiti&e,= and <sa&ae.= Ci&iliFation implies a le&el
of cooperation amon people, and the conscious attainment and passin
on of knowlede to further sur&i&al. Ci&iliFation implies a hiher order
of thinkin and actin, reardless of technoloical ad&ancement or the
eGistence of writin. It is always amaFin when cultures are defined as
ci&iliFed who systematically bomb innocent people, wae wars,
ensla&e, coloniFe, and commit enocides. %y position is that the first
Bumans on 3arth were ci&iliFed. Bow and why can a roup be
classified as bein Buman, but not yet ci&iliFed, especially people who
li&ed in peaceful and de&elopin communities. .his definition of
ci&iliFation accepted by most scholars is a product of 4estern
influenced thouht. It is more sensible to speak of early ci&iliFations
and written ci&iliFations than to speak of <primiti&e= and <preliterate
"#6
cultures.= In fact, the ability to write can be less skillful than certain
functions in early ci&iliFations that eGisted before writinH such as
astronomy which in&ol&es the obser&ations of the hea&ens o&er
countless enerations, or medicinal herboloy which in&ol&es a &ast
knowlede of healin properties found in plants, roots, bark, and other
&eetations from )ature.
It is senseless to arue that mathematics or ci&iliFation did not
oriinate in Afrika. %ost scholars a&oid or Dule with this debate. .he
first Bumans in the world oriinated in Afrika at least 1##,### to
11#,### years ao, and there they bean to de&elop the first early
ci&iliFations in the world. .o the dismay of some, Afrika is the only
continent where the entire chain of Buman e&olution can be traced back
to pre*Buman hominids. .here in Afrika, Bumans first li&ed in small
communities where they bean to obser&e the skies and bury their
deceased. For thousands of years, they obser&ed the chanin seasons
and the sun@s daily passin across the sky. .hey saw the blossomin of
certain flowers, plants, and trees that would yield fruit and other foods.
%any of the communities studied the miratin patterns of animals and
knew where the most successful hunt awaited them. .hese
communities manipulated nature to make tools for huntin, fishin, and
atherin foods from nature. It was found that certain plants had
medicinal properties that aided in the healin of particular ailments.
4omen obser&ed the repetition of the menstrual cycle, sometimes
occurrin reularly with lunar appearances. A lunar calendar and
seasonal calendar were created at such remote periods that the time
frame escapes our knowlede. All of this occurred o&er the space of
tens of thousands of years in Afrika alone, before humanity reached the
other continents, and subse8uently tens of thousands of years before the
e&olution of other races. 5ne of the earliest and most ad&anced notions
of mathematics came with the lunar calendar, and was likely a creation
of Afrikan women. .hat Afrikan women were in&ol&ed in science in
Kemet is not doubted, they were also &ery important political
administrators. .he Kahun %edical Papyrus of approGimately *16##,
althouh not eGclusi&ely the only writin on the issue, is an ancient
document that deals with treatin female medical concerns.
It was from these early Afrikan ci&iliFations that math was first
employed in history. %ath was essential in the de&elopment of the
lunar and seasonal calendars. .he Afrikan Ishano (one with notches
car&ed on it is a form of an early calendar, uses prime numbers,
addition, and di&ision. .he bone is at least "#,### years old, and was
found near the borders of the present day 9R Cono and :anda. It is
"#+
the world@s second oldest mathematical artifact. .he world@s oldest
mathematical artifact is the 7ebombo (one and is about ,#,### years
old, and was found near the borders of 'waFiland and 'outh Afrika.
.he 7ebombo (one uses the same type of math as the Ishano (one.
.he 0a2ette math article by )aidoo and 4ebb entitled <.he 5ldest
%athematical Artifact,= is often cited on this fact >1+6$?.
It is important to note that after Afrikans mirated into Asia,
the 'outh Pacific Islands, and 3uropeH they remained Afrikan in
phenotype >skin color? for tens of thousands of years, and some roups
would later e&ol&e into the other races we know today. 4hat is
fascinatin about early Buman mirations is that many of the early
mirants did not e&ol&ed into other races at all. 'ubse8uently, we can
see the Afrikan populations in 'outh*3ast Asia, Australia, and the 'outh
Pacific Islands. %illions of these Afrikans ha&e been there for fifty
thousand years or more. In fact, we know from archeoloical e&idence,
that some of the early mirants into America from Asia were Afrikans.
.he miratory descendant of the ancestors of Afrikans who went into
the Americas from Asia can be found in 'outh*3ast Asia, Australia, and
the 'outh Pacific Islands. .he pioneer researcher and world tra&eler,
Runoko Rashidi has documented this in African Classical Ci(ili2ation
in the chapter <%en 5ut of Asia2 .he African Presence in Prehistoric
America.=
.he early Afrikans, parents of the 3arth@s entire population
created the first systems of passin knowlede to future enerations
throuh an educational system. As knowlede was ac8uired that was
essential to the sur&i&al of these small communities, the children were
i&en the task of learnin it as soon as they were old enouh to benefit
to the community.
In the top of the )ile Ialley from where the ri&ers bein to
de&elop, the base from where humanity spran in Central*3ast Afrika,
the communities became more and more oraniFed into de&elopin,
compleG societies by *1,###. At this time, mirants from the base of the
)ile in Central*3ast Afrika and the 'ahara bean to settle in the broader
)ile Ialley. Afrikans were attracted to the )ile Ialley from the 'ahara
as that once fertile and wet*land bean to dry up. From the base of the
)ile, Afrikans mirated down followin the flow of the ri&er >what we
call )orth today?. .he )ile attracted Afrikan mirant because of fishin
and other sources of food. .he ri&er o&erflowed once a year lea&in a
rich deposit of soil behind that was a farmers dream for plantin and
yieldin a ood har&est. Afrikans bean to settle in the )ile Ialley,
"1#
e&entually makin it the most populous reion of the continent by the
time of dynastic Kemet.
%uch of the e&idence points to a massi&e settlin of Kemet
from the base of the )ile. .he ancients told and wrote stories of how
Ausar, Aset, and Beru came from 3thiopia to settle the land and brin
ariculture. .he people of Kemet considered the land at the base of the
)ile as their ancestral home. .he four ;olden Aes of Kemet were all
stabiliFed from Pharaohs who had lineae ties to :pper Kemet >'outh?.
.he archeoloical disco&ery of the frament from .a*'eti shows that
the Pharaoh tradition came from the 'outh in )ubia or Kush. .hese
early mirants de&eloped and often brouht with them into what would
become .awi >.he :nited .wo 7ands of Kemet or K%.? much of the
mathematics that would be the foundation of Kemetic ci&iliFation.
4hile Kush would often ri&al K%. militarily and culturally,
the most ad&anced mathematics and architecture would crystalliFe in
K%. due to a more conduci&e en&ironment where a lot of stone and
papyrus plants were a&ailable for car&in and writin the lanuae.
Also, the papyrus plant was the world@s first paper. .he word <paper=
has its oriin from the Afrikan based word <papyrus.= .he papyrus
plant was skinned of the reen outer*core, cut into strips, laid &ertically
and horiFontally across each other, pounded, and dried. 9ependin on
the color, the ink and paints of many colors were made from plants,
soot, and 3arthen based chemicals. .he colors of Kemetic ink and paint
are still brilliant today after thousands of years.
.housands of years before the settlin of Kemet before */"##,
the conser&ati&e date, Afrikans who mirated to the &alley had
aricultural and pastoral knowlede. A minimum knowlede of basic
math was necessary for such communities. In aricultural one had to be
able to count, di&ide, and as communities rew be able to fiure the
&olume of barely and wheat in storae from season to season. A
workin knowlede of astronomy and the calendar became essential,
and both re8uired onoin mathematical computation. .he pastoral
communities had to count the sheep, oats, and cows. A sense of
di&ision was necessary for the distribution of food. As communities
rew before the foundin of dynastic Kemet, the collection of taGes
became important which brouht many de&elopments to Afrikan
mathematics, e&en an early eometry with needed knowlede of land
area.
.his early pre*9ynastic era is essential to a correct
understandin of the history of mathematics. .he )ile Ialley was the
world@s first compleG culture, before China, India, and the .iris*
"11
3uphrates de&elopments. It would loically be from the world@s first
hih compleG cultures that mathematics would see its first blossoms.
%athematics in the First ;olden Ae >5ld Kindom?
As the )ile Ialley became more settled, and communities rew
into small towns and cities, a more compleG mathematical system
became necessary. 4ith all thins considered, it is no surprise that by
the time of the First 9ynasty we see the use of mathematical place
&alues well into the thousands. .he Pharaoh )armer >also called %ena
or %enes? united .awi >the .wo*7ands of K%.? and was the founder
of the dynasties. 5f course, the concept of a pharaoh and dynasties
came before )armer from the .a*'eti )ubia reions. .he )armer
Palette, althouh simple, is &ery re&ealin. 5n the front, )armer is
wearin the 4hite Crown of :pper Kemet or K%. as he smites one of
his enemies. Bis name is in %dw )tr >hierolyphs? abo&e his head.
(ehind )armer stands a sandal bearer with a &ase of water. (elow is
seen his defeated enemies. (efore )armer is the falcon symbol of Beru
with a head of an enemy with - lotus flowers rowin from an
eGtension behind the head. .he lotus flower is the Kemetic place &alue
for one thousand, and clearly the palette reads that )armer had subdued
-,### enemies. 5n the back of the palette, )armer is seen with the Red
Crown of 7ower Kemet. (elow are two lionesses with necks bein
intertwined to represent the unitin of Kemet in the .wo*7ands, or the
beinnin of the Pharaohnic era. From the )armer palette, we see the
use of hih place &alues in math at the &ery beinnin of dynastic
Kemet */"##. It oes without sayin that a complete system of &alues
is necessary for understandin numbers as lare as -,### and beyond.
K%. >Kemetic? Place Ialues
.he K%. place &alue system allowed for the understandin
and manipulation of simple and compleG numbers. .he system was
based on place &alue units of ten. 7ines were used for the numbers 1
throuh +. 1# was an opened half circle, similar to a horse shoe. 1##
was an encirclin rope. 1,### was a lotus plant. 1#,### was a finer.
1##,### was a fro or tadpole. A million was a kneelin man with arms
raised to hea&en. .his system of numbers allowed for the computations
of lare and small numbers. Further, the K%. system employed a
fraction E decimal system based on the different parts of the <3ye of
Beru= or the 4adDat or :dDat. 5ne of the most common myths about
the history of math is that the Fero is an 3ast Indian in&ention
introduced to the world by Arabs. 4hat culture or roup of people
"1"
would not understand the FeroM Furthermore, in K%., when they wrote
a number with Fero as one of the place &alues, they &ery simply
skipped to the neGt diit lea&in the place for Fero blank.
.he K%. numerals, like the words in the written lanuae,
were written in three types or styles. .he %dw )tr >hierolyphic? type
is the oldest and most common. Bowe&er, in K%. there was also the
use of the two cursi&e scripts for writin, the hieratic and later the
demotic writin style. 9r. 'tephen Chrisomalsi of %c;ill :ni&ersity in
%ontreal recently documented how the ;reeks learned their alphabetic
numeral system from the Kemetic demotic numeral system. .he
research is a&ailable in the international Dournal Anti.uity, and it is of
reat interest. 5n the other hand, scholars such as 9iop, Cosef ben*
Lochannan, and others ha&e stressed for decades that the basis of ;reek
writin and learnin were from Kemet. It is factual, but should not be
surprisin that the ;reek mathematicians learned their place &alues and
concepts of mathematics from Afrika. 9r. ben*Lochannan addresses this
issue in !lack Man of the Nile in a section entitled <;reek
Interpretation of African and Asian Philosophy= >//,*//-?.
.he K%. mathematical system used sacred symbols, like the
%dw )tr >writin? system. 5f course the symbols were transformed
into cursi&e with the hieratic and demotic. .he written lanuae itself
was considered sacred, bein the creation of the )etcher >spirit?
9Dhewty, who was also said to ha&e in&ented mathematics. .his
)etcher 9Dhewty was drawn as a man with the head of an ibis bird, and
is one of the oldest )etchers in the )ile Ialley. .he K%. writin and
mathematical system is spiritually based, deeply so like the Afrikan
world&iew in its totality. 9Dhewty was the male counter*part of the
)etcher %aat. .he )etcher %aat was the symbol of balance, amon
other thins. %athematics, the word we use today comes from the
;reek word <mathematikos.= Cet, the ;reek word has K%. oriins in
the word %aat which means balance and harmony. %aat was closely
related to the weihin scales with an imae of her mounted at the top*
center of the scales, furtherin implication of the meanin balance. .he
spiritual element ne&er absent in the Afrikan world&iew, %aat is mostly
associated with .ruth and Rihteousness. )umbers in Kemet had a
deeply spiritual sinificance, aside from their &ery practical use in
architecture, taGes, land sur&eyin for irriation and floods, and pure
education.
.he scale itself is worth mention. .he scale was in&ented in
K%. >Kemet?. It was accurate enouh to detect the slihtest
differences in weihts. An entire system of weihts and measures were
"1/
thus created due to the practice of weihin for trade, taGes, and the
distribution of items. .his practice of switchin the amounts of weiht
on the scale assisted the de&elopment of alebraic thouht and written
e8uations.
.he Afrikan Calendar
From the .emple of 9endera, we see a fine eGample of the
spiritual sinificance of numbers and math in Kemet. In the ceilin of
the .emple, before it was dynamited down by )apoleon in 1$++, there
was car&ed a circle of the hea&ens E uni&erse. From this car&in we see
the di&ision of the circle into /-# derees represented by /- decans,
each bein one of the Kemetic 1# day weeks. .he Kemetic calendar
was /-1."1 days, in other words the calendar we use today around the
world is an Afrikan calendar. .he last fi&e days in the Kemetic year
were festi&e days of celebration. .he 1" months of the year are shown
in the 9endera calendar, and the 1" Fodiacs are shown. Planets and
stars are shown. .he di&ision of the day into ", hours is also present on
the car&in. .he calendar was central to the numeroloical*based
spiritual system. At the end of the Kemetic year, creation was honored
in celebratin a day for what was belie&ed to be the first people in the
world Ausar, Aset, 'et, )eb*Bet, and Beru. .he .emple is said to ha&e
been built at the &ery late Ptolemaic period, yet the architecture,
literature, and many, many other car&ins in Kemet ensures the
distinctly Afrikan creation of the .emple and the knowlede composed
in it. .ony (rowder@s Nile 1alley Contri%ution to Ci(ili2ation outlines
the sinificance of the Calendar from 9endera >$+?.
.imekeepin
'e&eral methods of timekeepin were de&eloped in K%.
>Kemet?. .he solar, lunar, and stellar calendars were all used for yearly
timekeepin. .he tekhen >obelisk? was a timekeepin structure as well
as a spiritual symbol used for daily timekeepin. .he &ery accurate
water clock, an artistic bowel or cup shaped instrument with markins
on it was used to tell time as the water dripped out. .he water clock
was used for hourly time keepin. .he round and bar shaped sundial,
also called shadow clocks, were both Kemetic in&entions. .hese
measured the shadow cast by the sun as it mo&ed across the sky, like
the tekhen, and were used for daily timekeepin in hours dependin on
the lenth of the shadow on the instrument. .imekeepin had been
perfected in Kemet from the year, month, week, day, hour, minute,
down to the second. From the drips of the water clock, the second was
"1,
arri&ed at in concept. .he Kemetic year of /-# units, plus 1, was
di&ided into the smallest unit. .he word <hour= e&en comes from the
)etcher Beru. It is the least to state that a hih competence of
mathematics was necessary for the ancient Afrikans to reach this
understandin. Lohn Pappademos has a &ery eGcellent article entitled
<An 5utline of Africa@s Role in the Bistory of Physics= published in
!lacks in Science by I&an Ian 'ertima. Amon other subDects,
Pappademos eGplains the Afrikan contribution to timekeepin and
in&ention of timekeepin de&ices.
.o the 3yptians we owe the concepts of most
of the fundamental physical 8uantitiesH distance, area,
&olume, weiht, and time. 3urope is indebted to 3ypt
for the in&ention of standards, units, and methods for
accurate measurements of all of these 8uantities Zthey
>the 3yptians? could compute the areas and &olumes
of abstract eometric fiures, includin the circle@s
area accurate to #.#-V >Pappademous, 16,?.
Architectural .ools
Pappademous discusses the Kemetic measurin ruler. .he
Afrikans of Kemet in&ented the measurin ruler and other
mathematical instruments still used today. <.he ancient 3yptian
primary unit of lenth was the cubit * the lenth of the forearm. .hus
the hierolyphic sin for the cubit was the forearm and all subdi&isions
of finers, palms, reat and little spans and the foot= >16-? 3&entually,
this system of measure would be chaned into today@s units of measure.
9iop notes the Kemetic measurin ruler in Ci(ili2ation or !ar%arism
>"1+?. Aside from the scale and ruler, Afrikans in&ented other
instruments for architectural desin still used today. .he chisel, wede,
pickaG, crowbar, and hammer were all used in Kemet. Afrikans in
Kemet in&ented the A shaped s8uare le&el with plumb bobs, which
were wooden riht anles with a strin and weiht hanin down the
middle to create a &ertical line. .he other type of le&el was a &ertical
board with two short steps stickin from it on the upper half, and
hanin o&er it was the plumb line and weiht at the end. .he
instruments made sure architectural proDects were precisely le&el and
&ertical into minute fractions of an inch, and it is ob&ious that they
were used &ery early from the precision of the ;reat Pyramids in the
Fourth 9ynasty. For more detail, I must refer the reader to the work of
9ieter Arnold entitled !uildin' in E'ypt# +haraonic Stone Masonry.
"11
'hown from the tomb of 'enedDem >'eneDem?, the reat mathematician
and architect of the 1+th 9ynasty, the wooden riht anle, or <builder@s
s8uare,= was used without a line on it for desin and architecture.
Aain, this is another instrument common still today.
A modified s8uare le&el E plumb bob called the roma or ruma
>sometimes called a sur&eyor@s cross today? was in&ented in Kemet.
.he sur&eyor@s cross was used to sur&ey and plot lare areas of land
into e8ual distributions, as it is used in construction and land sur&eyin
today with the s8uare le&el. Another modification with the plumb line
was used for astronomical obser&ations. .he ;reeks and Romans
learned to sur&ey land from bein in the )ile Ialley, and they used the
Afrikan tools for the same purposes.
Althouh only a &ery limited part of the book addresses
Afrikan mathematics, 9a&id 3. 'mith@s *istory of Mathematics is
worth mention. Be notes the Roman use of the roma, without mention
of its oriins >1",?. 'mith notes <roma= is from the word <nomon,= a
distinctly K%. >Kemetic? word. .he ;reeks called shadow clocks or
sundials nomons, after witnessin the use of the de&ices in Kemet.
.he Romans would also learn of the use of this Afrikan instrument,
which e&entually led to today@s clocks.
'mith says, <4hate&er claims may properly be made for the
anti8uity of mathematics in &arious countries, claims of e&en reater
&alidity can Dustly be made for the science in 3ypt= >,1?. 'mith notes
census takin >or population countin? for taGation in Kemet, the
plumb line in astronomical obser&ations, discusses the Ahmose
%athematical Papyrus, and the sundial >,-*1#?. .he plain wooden riht
anles were useful in construction, and were a common tool in buildin
as many paintins of Kemetic life show us from the past.
.he Afrikans used rope on land measurements, sometimes
knotted, rolled on a wooden handle for the same purposes that
measurin tape is used today. .he ropes were likely not used on
buildins where more precise calculations were arri&ed. Cet,
disco&eries of some of these ancient ropes re&eal another of many
eGamples of the .heorem wronly attributed to Pythaoras. For land
sur&eyin, the Afrikans would make a /*,*1 riht trianle, or one with
lenths of the sides distributed alon the numbers /, ,, and 1. .he /*,*1
trianle is the &ery foundation of the formula a"Yb"[c" where a and b
s8uared are the sides of a riht trianle and c is the hypotenuse s8uared
opposite the riht anle, which is the .heorem >Kemetic .heorem?.
Lames )ewman, who also has a &ery limited study of Afrikan
mathematics, states, <(ut the 3yptian skill in practical eometry went
"1-
far beyond the construction of riht anles2 for it included, besides the
anles of a s8uare, the anles of other reular fiures such as the
pentaon, the heGaon and the heptaon= >The &orld of Mathematics,
6#?. From Kemetic eometry and architecture we can see the oriins of
all of the so*called Platonic solids, and need we not foret that Plato
studied in Kemet for o&er a decade.
Architecture and %athematics
Althouh not used for timekeepin, but reflectin a hih le&el
of architectural and mathematical knowlede are the massi&e Kemetic
columns. .hey came into use durin the 5ld Kindom period, and not
only influenced architecture in ;reece and Rome, but all around the
world. 5ne can o to 4ashinton 9C, Rome, and many other places to
witness the Afrikan K%. influence on world architecture. It is
astoundin to realiFe that the Afrikans of Kemet fre8uently mo&ed
carefully sculptured stones weihin tons with relati&e ease usin no
modern construction technoloy e8uipment. 'ome people e&en belie&e
that 3uropeans or aliens built the K%. monuments. 5thers arue that
Kemet was a sla&e based culture and Bebrew sla&es built the pyramids
and monuments. All claims are ridiculous. .he monuments of Kemet
were built by skill, enius, and precision of Afrikan mathematical*
scientific architects and paid workers. .his is known because the burial
sites of architects ha&e been found. .here are also paintins of Afrikans
constructin monuments and mo&in enormous statues. :se of sledes,
le&ers, rockers, ropes, rollers, ramps, man and animal power for pullin
and pushin uided with a sound understandin of mathematics,
eometry, and physics by super&isors ot the work done. .he wheel
had &ery limited use in Kemet. It was attached to the base of a
scaffoldin ladder, the type that would ha&e been used to car&e and
paint imaes hundreds of feet in the air on K%. >Kemetic?
monuments. .he wheels would be locked once the scaffold was in
place >see 7umpkin@s <.he Pyramids2 Ancient 'howcase of African
'cience and .echnoloy= in !lack in Science, edited by Ian 'ertima,
6# and 61?.
.he Afrikans of Kemet made blueprints before they undertook
buildin proDects. .his was a re&olutionary idea in architecture, and it
seems that the Afrikans of Kemet ne&er undertook buildin proDects
without at least an eGternal blueprint on rid of the desin to be built.
.he land was studied, labor was di&ided, and material was selected.
3Gperienced professionals in mathematics and architecture worked for
the state who super&ised the buildin. .hese architects became &ery
"1$
well*known in their times and enDoyed fre8uent company with the
Pharaoh.
As Pappademos notes, because of the burnin of the 7ibrary of
AleGandria, lootin and plunderin throuhout Kemet o&er the years,
we do not know the names of these &ery important fiures in Afrikan
history >!lacks in Science, 16/?. 'enmut or 'enenmut and Imhotep are
two eGceptions.
'enenmut@s most famous buildin proDect was the burial
.emple of the female Pharaoh Batshepsut. It was cut with reat
precision out of the side of a rock mountain. .he Afrikans had tools
>non*electric? used to break and chisel away lare amounts of rocks.
.hey also possessed metal and stone tools >non*electric? used to cut
and drill throuh stones. .he remains of cut and drilled stones can be
seen today.
Imhotep of the .hird 9ynasty of Kemet was the most well*
known of all architects. 4ithout doubt, the architects of the ;reat
Pyramids must ha&e recei&ed as much acclaim or more in their
lifetimes and afterwards. Imhotep was employed under the rein of the
Pharaoh 9Doser. Imhotep re&olutioniFed buildin in the ancient world.
%astabas, some made in mudbricks and others in stones, were used as
burial chambers. Imhotep built a series of mastabas on top of each
other. From an architectural tradition founded by the culture to which
he beloned, and his ancestors, Imhotep built the first stone buildin in
the world. Bis 'tep Pyramid for 9Doser stood o&er "## feet in the air. It
was complete with buildins near it, underround chambers, and a
massi&e wall enclosin the entire compleG. Imhotep was not of royal
birth, but he was deified for thousands of years after his physical death.
.he architect>s? of Amenemhet III built a labyrinth durin his
near fi&e decade rein. .his labyrinth was the larest buildin in
ancient history. It was reported to ha&e /,### rooms with 1,1## bein
below round and 1,1## bein abo&e round. .he buildin does not
stand today, but the architect>s? must ha&e been treated with reat
admiration.
.he most impressi&e and mathematically accurate pyramids are
the ;reat Pyramids. .here are three of them on the ;iFa plateau built
for the Pharaohs Khufu, Khafre, and %enkare of the Fourth 9ynasty
about 1,### years ao. .he larest pyramid is the one dedicated to
Khufu, risin nearly 1## feet with an enormous 1/ acre base. 4ith
perfect riht anles, directed one deree from true )orth, sides facin
the cardinal direction, with o&er " million massi&e stones weihin an
a&erae of ".1 tons, the ;reat Pyramid is a mathematical and scientific
"16
wonder. All of the pyramids were completely enclosed in polished
limestones weihin tons themsel&es and positioned to incorporate
what is erroneously called the <Pythaorean= .heorem o&er ",###
years before Pythaoras was born. I think it best if it is referred to as
the K%. or Kemetic .heoremO .he ;reat Pyramid is supposedly the
only of the 'e&en 4onders of the ancient world still standin, but in
Kemet there are many wonders of the ancient world still standin.
As much as Kemet fascinates the present day world, it did
more with the ancient world. 'cholars from throuhout the ancient
world thirsted for the deep fountains of knowlede in this Afrikan land.
.he Afrikans of Kemet daFFled themsel&es and others. Consider the
followin2
;arden desin and town plannin are other
aspects of 3yptian architecture. .he 3yptians had a
reat fondness for ardens. 3&en the poor manaed to
plant a tree or two in the narrow courtyards of their
houses. 4hen they were rich, their ardens ri&aled
their residences in siFe and luGury. .he arden was
arraned around the RmanmadeS pool or pools, for there
could be se&eral of them. .hey ser&ed as fish ponds, as
reser&oirs for waterin and as a source of coolin fresh
air for the house near by. Fre8uently, the master of the
house had a liht wooden pa&ilion built near the pool
where he Ror sheS could come for a breath of fresh air
in the e&enin and recei&e friends for cold drinks
>:)3'C5, III, 11,*111?.
'ome of these pools, such as the ones built for Amenhotep III
and 'nefru >'enefru?, were lare enouh to sail a boat on with a crew
durin moments of leisure.
Afrikan %athematical 9ocuments
A fraction of a percent of K%. writin on papyrus has
sur&i&ed the ruins of time and bandits. Cet, what has come down to us
is of reat interest and challenin to the current understandin of the
disciplines of learnin. Afrikan papyrus documents in science,
literature, medicine, and mathematics ha&e leaped forward in time to
destroy the myths about 3uropean supremacy in thouht, intellect, and
education. Amon the most interestin documents found in K%. is the
Ahmose %athematical Papyrus from the 11th 9ynasty, and it is the
"1+
most detailed disco&ery in K%. math. .he scribe and mathematician
Ahmose stated that he was not the author of the document, but that it
was a work from his ancestors in the 1"th 9ynasty "## years prior to
his time. 'till, from the writin of the teGt, it is clear that the oriinal
was from the time of the ;reat Pyramids when such mathematics
would ha&e been essential for such buildin proDects. .his act of not
claimin authorship was a common practice amon writers in K%.
>.awi, Kemet?. .hey did not claim authorship, but a&e the credit of
their writins to the ancestors. .he Ahmose %athematical Papyrus is
approGimately dated at *",###, or about ,,### years old. It is the
world@s oldest mathematical teGtbook to date. Charles Finch describes
the papyrus as the world@s foundation teGt in mathematical science.
A second and &ery important document is the <%oscow=
%athematical Papyrus, named as such because it is in a %oscow
museum. .he name of the scribe*mathematician is not known. It is not
as complete as the Ahmose teGt, but is of reat importance in the
world@s history of mathematics. It dates to the %iddle Kindom or the
.hird Kemetic ;olden Ae. (oth documents are between *"### and
*1$1#.
In Ci(ili2ation or !ar%arism by Cheikh Anta 9iop, a chapter
entitled <Africa@s Contribution2 'cience,= there is some detailed
information about the Afrikan foundations to mathematics and the
Afrikan methods and formulas used to sol&e problems. Primarily, 9iop
uses information about the Ahmose and <%oscow= Kemetic papyri.
9iop takes a close look at Kemetic arithmetic, eometry, alebra,
trionometry, and other related areas. I recommend this section of his
cornerstone work for further study. 9iop references .. 3ric Peet@s <A
Problem in 3yptian ;eometry= in the Lournal of 3yptian
ArcheoloyH Peet@s The Rhind Mathematical +apyrusH RL ;illin@s
Mathematics in the Time of the +haraohsH and other interestin works
that 9iop does not hesitate to criti8ue.
In Kemet, the mathematicians were &ery accustomed to
workin with fractions E decimals, unknown &ariables, s8uare roots,
e8uations, and irrational numbers. .hey had formulas for sol&in the
areas of s8uares, trianles, circles, 8uadrants of circles, and surface of
spheres. .hey had formulas to fiure out the &olumes of pyramids,
truncated pyramids, and &arious eometric shapes. 9iop does an
eGcellent work in showin where the ;reeks deri&ed their methods in
mathematics. 9iop also deals with astronomy, medicine, chemistry, and
other subDects.
""#
A &ery eGcellent article by (eatrice 7umpkin can be found in
E'ypt# Child of Africa, edited by I&an Ian 'ertima. .he article is
entitled <%athematics and 3nineerin in the )ile Ialley.= 'he notes
that the use of the rid for architectural desin and art bean in Kemet.
.he use of the s8uare rid in K%. >.awi, Kemet? before the desin
was drawn was ob&iously to ensure accurate proportions and
measurements in the actual buildin proDect. 7umpkin not only makes
note of Kemetic fractions, arithmetic, eometry, and trionometryH but
she also makes note of a problem by Ahmose in which a method of
<Aha Calculus= is used to find an answer to an e8uation with the <false
position= method. 7umpkin sites her own work, Senefer and
*atshepsut in notin the de&elopment of the Kemetic .heorem of riht
anles, wronly associated with Pythaoras who studied in Kemet for
o&er two decades. 'he also notes that the Arabs introduced knowlede
into 3urope that they had ac8uired from Kemet, directly and indirectly.
In her conclusion, 7umpkin sums up the sinificance of her work, and
the sinificance of why we Afrikan people must reco&er the
mathematical enius introduced into the world by our ancestors. 'he
says2
)ow suppressed, this Rmathematical and
scientificS enius will be free to produce aain when
there will be peace and freedom from imperialist
oppression. Bere, the true history of the achie&ements
of the )ile Ialley ci&iliFation can play a liberatin role
by restorin the sense of continuity and identity with a
reat past, pointin to a reat future. In particular,
knowlede of the mathematical achie&ements can help
allay <math anGiety= amon the descendents of the
)ile Ialley people in Africa and in the Americas >//+?.
Conclusion
3lementary to uni&ersity le&el education is the only way such
basic to ad&anced methods were tauht to children and adults in Kemet.
Kemet was a literate culture, and education was not limited to the
priestly or royal as so many ha&e erroneously claimed. Lacob
Carruthers discusses Kemetic education in the essay <African*Centered
3ducation= of the work Intellectual &arfare >"1$*"1+?. Asa Billiard
has two essays on the Afrikan :ni&ersity of 4aset in Kemet. 5ne essay
is in The Maroon &ithin 5S and the other is published by the Lournal of
African Ci&iliFation in E'ypt Re(isted, and is entitled <4aset, the 3ye
""1
of Ra and the Abode of %aat.= Kemet was the world@s first librarian
culture with institutions at 4aset >.hebes? and many of the other maDor
cities alon the )ile. Kemet, the .wo*7ands, was also the world@s first
uni&ersity based culture. %uch of the physical structure of the
uni&ersity of 4aset dates to the )ew Kindom around *111#, or /,11#
years ao. Cet, the foundations of all the subDect areas studied at 4aset
were thousands of years older than the physical buildin, as Billiard
notes. .he :ni&ersity E .emple of 4aset was a center of Kemet@s
network of educational institutions, many of the past shadows of which
can be seen today. %athematics was a central part to the )ile Ialley
educational system. All children were re8uired to learn the basic
education, and dependin on one@s occupation, one would learn more a
certain areas of learnin. %ath was not only studied as an abstracted
subDect, but was rele&ant to the Afrikan understandin of not only the
uni&erse, but also the soul. .hat@s why such meticulous care was i&en
to the construction of temples, monuments, and pyramids. .hese
architectural structures were built on Afrikan 'piritual principles of
time and dimensions transmitted down thousands of years by the
ancestors. %ath was part of %aat, or balancin the person and the
person@s inner self. %aat, in the company of 9Dhewty, was central to
balancin the community and the nation. .here were ," districts of the
.wo*7ands, correspondin with the ," 7aws of %aat, and each district
had a particular )etcher or spirit that was central to it.
As (eatrice 7umpkin stated, understandin the true history of
Afrikan mathematics will be liberatin. Afrikan children, and adults,
tauht mathematics throuh the historical and cultural lenses of their
reality will not only do better academicallyH mathematics properly
tauht to Afrikan people will direct us to the reat sinificance of the
subDect. %ath is essential in the buildin of an economy or economies,
or a nation or nations. .his is why we must abandon the false methods
of teachin and learnin mathematics that ha&e been common for too
lon, that ha&e failed many of our children for too lon. A new learnin
process must take place for the student and the teacher. 4ith teachers
rounded in Afrikan mathematics, the subDect must be introduced to our
children with the understandin that their ancestors are the people who
a&e math to the world. .his is of central importance at the K*1" rade
le&els. .he beinnin of any mathematics class should include the
Afrikan backround to the subDect. 'eparate classes from hih school to
the uni&ersity should deal specifically with the Afrikan foundations of
mathematical science. Any class on math, properly tauht, would in a
number of areas deal with the Afrikan backround, directly or
"""
indirectly. Any class tauht on mathematics must take some time to
correct many of the false concepts that ha&e been so inrained in the
minds of students and teachers.
4hen Afrikan children are tauht the true foundations of the
subDect, they will eGcel beyond our eGpectations. .he study of history is
not only so that we may feel of sinificance about our past, but more
importantly to look to the reat eGamples of what we are capable of
achie&in today and in the future. Afrikans built the foremost
ci&iliFation in the ancient world, a rihteous and moral based
ci&iliFation, and Afrikan people ha&e the capacity to do no less today.
Afrikan-Centered 3$iritua, #eda%o%y
.his essay is reprinted from The Redemption of Afrikan
Spirituality# An Afrikan-Centered *istorical Criti.ue of :udaism4
Christianity4 and Islam.
7on after in&asions of and coloniFation in
ancient Africa by outside nations, Africans maintained
sophisticated systems of education0 4e can still see
some of those systems today in traditional
communities. It was these systems that were the
priority tarets of coloniFers. 5nly when they were
destroyed would Africans be weakened and confused
to the point of serious &ulnerability >Asa Billiard, The
Maroon &ithin 5s, 116?.
Introduction
3ducation takes place in and out of school, at home, in front of
the tele&ision, listenin to music, in con&ersations, and throuhout the
day. 3ssentially, pedaoy is education and the method of teachin that
carries out a particular curriculum or set of teachin standards and
&alues. It is throuh education that world&iews are made. Pedaoy is
of reat sinificance in the enerational transmission of culture and a
ci&iliFation@s lone&ity. Afrikan*Centered pedaoy addresses the
educational needs and concerns of Afrikan people from our particular
cultural orientation and world&iew. .he need for rele&ant pedaoy in
the 8uestion of cultural retention and sur&i&al, indeed liberation, for
""/
oppressed people is essential. (ecause Afrikan people ha&e been
ensla&ed, coloniFed, sereated, and oppressed in so many ways in
recent history, foresiht is often lost of lon*term plannin that eGtends
years and decades into the future.
7on*term futuristic plannin for nation maintenance is the
&ery purpose of education for any oppressed roup. 5therwise, the only
options become assimilation into the oppressi&e roup. Paulo Freire in
+eda'o'y of the -ppressed notes that oppression i&es the oppressed a
narrowed &iew of eGistence based on ser&ice to the dominant structure
for the sake of sur&i&al, or what is thouht of as sur&i&al. .herefore,
any oppressed roup or nation which seeks to educate their children for
a future in which they control their destiny would naturally encounter
some type of resistance from the dominate E oppressi&e structure. .he
oppressi&e system always has a pedaoy, or an educational plan, for
the oppressed.
In Notes for an African &orld Re(olution, Lohn Benrik Clarke
stated2
.B3 CRI'I' I) AFRICA) 39:CA.I5) is really a
crisis in African self*confidence. %ost of us who ha&e
thouht seriously about this matter know that our
former sla&e masters cannot afford to educate us.
Powerful people ne&er educate the &ictims of their
power in how to take power away from them. .his
simple fact eludes most of us, especially those African*
Americans who call themsel&es scholars and leaders
>11?
It is a simple, yet profound statement, <Powerful people ne&er
educate the &ictims of their power in how to take power away from
them.= .his statement speaks to the urency of any oppressed roup to
properly educate their children and students, if they e&er wish to be
liberated. First, howe&er, it is necessary that the reality and impact of
oppression is realiFed, or the oppressed will o and car&e out his own
back door * to paraphrase Carter ;. 4oodson@s Mis-Education of the
Ne'ro2
7ead the )ero to belie&e this and thus control
his thinkin. If you can thereby determine what he will
think Rthrouh education and socialiFationS, you will
not need to worry about what he will do. Cou will not
"",
ha&e to tell him to o to the back door. Be will o
without bein toldH and if there is no back door he will
ha&e one cut for his special benefit >1+"?.
.he fears and thouhts that hold Afrikan people in oppression
are fueled when they are not thorouhly erased and replaced with an
affirmin world&iew. .he imprint of <mis*education= can be
subconscious, but the oppressed can be aware of it and still perpetuate
the world&iew of their oppressors due to coercion or choice for material
ains. <In other words,= as 4oodson eGplains, <a )ero teacher
instructin )ero children is in many respects a white teacher thus
enaed, for the proram in each case is about the same= >"/?. An
educational proram for liberation and nation*buildin must be
promoted by the Afrikan people of the world. 'uch a proram must be
implemented for the comin enerations of Afrikan children. .he most
outstandin eGample of Afrikan*Centered education for rades K*1" is
the national mo&ement of the Council of Independent (lack Institutions
>CI(I? founded in 1+$". .here are many Afrikan*Centered charter
schools in the :', but the eGtent to how much they can enae the
students in a thorouhly cultural*based education is somewhat
8uestionable due to the lack of independent fundin, which is the
couraeous step that CI(I schools take to promote Afrikan*Centered
education. .he need for an alternati&e to the public school education of
Afrikan children is readily obser&ed by many. In fact, the CI(I schools
bean because the parents simply refused to continue to allow their
children to be mis*educated and pulled them from out of the public
schools.
In the discourse on Afrikan*Centered education E pedaoy
there is little if any discussion on Afrikan 'piritual pedaoy, or in
other words the type of education based on the spiritual world&iews of
ancient and traditional Afrikan societies. .here are se&eral reasons for
the absence of this discussion. First, discussions about reliion are
always sensiti&e, and many people simply a&oid them unless it is some
reconiFable common round. 'econdly, Afrikan 'pirituality and
culture recei&es no affirmation by forein cultures and reliions, and
conse8uently there is no affirmation by Afrikan people who are
followers of the forein reliions which neate their own ancestral
cultures. .he neation and self*neation of Afrikan culture and
'pirituality oes back to sla&ery and colonialism. .he forein reliions
that influence millions of Afrikan people throuhout the world often
belittle or e&en demoniFe Afrikan 'pirituality. 'uch neati&e terms as
""1
<idolatry,= <fetish worship,= <paanism,= <heathenism,= and so many
others are enrained into the imaes that people ha&e about Afrikan
'pirituality. If Afrikan history and culture are to be redeemed, we
cannot a&oid correctin the misperceptions about Afrikan 'pirituality.
If Afrikan*Centered pedaoy is to be Afrikan it cannot be di&ided
from the Afrikan 'piritual world&iew, as there was no such di&ision in
the cultures of our ancestors.
.he world&iew of <reliion= for millions of Afrikan people
throuhout the world was drastically altered from contact with
3uropean Christians and Arab %uslims, but also from contact with
other Afrikans who followed the reliions of those forein roups. Cet,
Afrikan 'pirituality has sur&i&ed the last two thousands years of
in&asion after in&asion, and the foundation and essence of our ancestral
belief system is still intact. Bowe&er, for millions, the ancestral
'piritual world&iew was distorted and altered. 4hen the <reliion= of
any cultural roup is distorted and altered that roups fundamental
understandin of the world, traditions, and life is transformed. .his is
especially so for the &arious Afrikan ethnic roups due to the complete
permeation of Afrikan 'pirituality in Afrikan cultures.
.hrouh socialiFation, customs, rituals, and the rites of passae
in Afrikan societies, children were tauht the 'pirituality of their
people. In these methods, Afrikan 'piritual traditions were passed
down for enerations. 4ith the spread of Islam into Afrika, beinnin
in the $
th
century, many of the Afrikan traditional &alues would be lost
due to con&ersions, but also because of lon periods of war and sla&ery.
7ater, with the rise of the 3uropean Christian sla&e trade >%aafa? more
de&astation would be brouht to the enerational continuity of Afrikan
'piritual interenerational transmission. .he de&astation of either
reliion to Afrikan culture and people can only be denied due to
inorance or dishonesty.
.he trans*Atlantic %aafa spread Afrikan people throuhout the
Americas, and while many con&erted to Christianity as a copin
mechanism in an attempt to lessen the horrific realities of sla&ery,
others did not. In 'outh and Central America, the Caribbean Islands,
and the 'outhern :nited 'tates, Afrikan 'pirituality was retained in
&aryin derees. (ecause of resistance to sla&ery this retention of
Afrikan 'piritual traditions was impressi&e in many areas in the
Americas. .he retention was impressi&e e&en with the intermiGin of
Catholicism in many cases. .here was no comparable Afrikan
retentions in the Arab world where Afrikans were imported into sla&ery.
""-
.here are some basic reasons for the fewer sur&i&als of Afrikan
retentions in the Arab world which were hihlihted in earlier essays.
.oday, what is the role of non*Afrikan reliious pedaoy and
curriculum for Afrikan childrenM 4hat is the role of reliious education
for children within their own culturesM Is there a need for Afrikan
people in America and throuhout the world to return to Afrikan
'piritual pedaoyM Is there a need for Afrikan people to return their
children to the rites of passae traditions of their ancestorsM
Rites of +assa'e and Education
3ducation was always a fundamental part of traditional Afrikan
society. It was used in Afrikan traditional societies as it is used amon
all cultures and races throuhout the world to prepare the children to
one day be the custodians of their li&elihood and the preser&ers of their
ci&iliFations. Bowe&er, Afrikan cultures were not secular cultures.
'pirituality permeates Afrikan traditional and ancient cultures. 5ne of
the most sinificant institutions in Afrikan cultures for educatin the
youth and preparin them to be the custodians of Afrikan li&elihood is
what is called the rites of passae. .he rites of passae can be called the
<Afrikan school= because it ser&ed all of the purposes that a <school=
would ser&e in any other society. It was in the <Afrikan school= that
children recei&ed instructions to prepare them to be functional in their
communities. .hese schools also had a 'piritual basis to de&elop the
character and help seek the ultimate meanin of eGistence.
In Ancient Afrika
)o one would arue that children were bein educated in
Kemet. .his would not be a supportable arument due to the Kemetic
writin system, the sciences, and the architectural achie&ements of the
ci&iliFation. Additionally, the )ile Ialley ci&iliFation of Kemet had a
rites of passae for their children, similar to the many other traditional
Afrikan cultures. 3&idence is a&ailable. From the writins of
Berodotus, the ;reek historian, it is known that circumcision was
common in )ile Ialley ci&iliFations >9a&idson, African Ci(ili2ation
Re(isted, 1"*1/?. %ale children in Kemet wore braids that were cut
upon their rites of passae. 5ne eGample of this braid can be seen in a
car&in of Ramses II >9iop, African -ri'in of Ci(ili2ation, "#/?. Also,
upon oin completin rites of passae, the children in Kemet wore
<adult= clothes. .he difference in children and adult clothes can be seen
in the many car&ins from temple walls and papyrus drawins. In
""$
Stolen $e'acy, by ;eore Lames, we et a ood idea of the Kemetic
initiation system.
Carruthers finds it of reat necessity to discuss Afrikan
education in Intellectual &arfare. Be states2
%ost of us are inorant about African
education before the 3uropean in&asion0 A smaller
roup has eGamined the reat African Koranic
uni&ersities and eGtolled their &irtues in comparison
with the mediocrity of 4estern education. All of this,
thouh, leads to a false impression of indienous
African education >"1$?.
Carruthers notes that those who do eGamine Afrikan education
do so with the outside bias of 3uropean methodoloy or Islam. Be
eGplains that Afrikan education in Kemet was both practical and
scribal. Practical education consisted of occupational skills such as
farmin, brick masonry, and carpentry. Carruthers states, <It was
throuh scribal education that the ci&iliFation produced its priest, ci&il
administrators, physicians, scientists, astronomers, and architects=
>"1$?. .he children in Kemet learned the basic subDects of readin,
writin, and arithmetic. .heir education prepared them to be functional
contributors to society, and Kemetic 'pirituality was deeply interwo&en
into the education. .he children learned about the &irtues of %aat >truth
and Dustice?, %dw )fr >;ood 'peech?, and the ci&iliFations sacred
concepts that o&erned their world&iew.
Asa ;. Billiard wrote an essay in his book, The Maroon &ithin
5s4 on the educational world&iew in the ancient Afrikan nation of
Kemet. .he essay is entitled <Pedaoy in Ancient Kemet.= .he city of
4aset in Kemet was a maDor center of educational and 'piritual studies
which helped in shapin the world&iew of the )ile Ialley nation.
Billiard eGplains <It was at 4aset >.hebes or 7uGor? where the oldest
records of a uni&ersity head8uarters eGisted. 'peculation places the ae
of this head8uarters as far back as /,### (.C.= >+/?.
7ater, Asa Billiard wrote an essay, <4aset, the 3ye of Ra and
the Abode of %aat,= for the Lournal of African Ci&iliFation. Billiard
states that two of 4aset@s reat temples, the 'outhern Ipet and the Ipet
Isut were maDor centers of Kemetic education and 'pirituality. .hey
were built almost entirely in the )ew Kindom or the .hird ;olden
Ae >E'ypt Re(isited, "1"?. 5f course, the foundations for 4aset@s
temples are much older than the )ew Kindom which bean around
""6
111# (C3. Afrikan 'piritual studies is the oldest form of <reliious=
education in the world. .here is no church, mos8ue, synaoue, or
other comparable reliious monument older than the .emples in 4aset
or some of the other temples E uni&ersities in Kemet. .he reader should
also know that the .emples >or Per Ankhs meanin Bouses of 7ife? in
4aset was one central location in a system of branches in Kemet.
It is also important to note the influence of Kemetic 'pirituality
on 3urope and Asia. Billiard notes in reference to the Afrikan
'pirituality of the )ile Ialley2
It was this TAfrican reliion@ of Isis RAsetS,
5siris RAusarS, Borus RBeruS, and Amen >Amon or
Amun? that remained one of the maDor reliions of
3urope until the national o&ernment of Rome
installed Christianity as the state reliion, after the
Council of )icea, nearly three hundred years after the
death of Christ >+,?.
.he ancient world admired the cultures of the )ile Ialley, and
often borrowed from them. .he Romans, who became con&erts to
Christianity, had a different reliious orientation in mind for the world
that they came to control. All nations and people, in &arious ways,
promote the lone&ity of their cultures and the eGistence of their
ci&iliFations throuh the spreadin of their world&iews and reliions.
.hose nations and people who do not spread and maintain their cultural
centers will become the cultural parasites of others. 4e ha&e been
parasites for too lon, in contrast to our ancestors who were not
parasites, but cultural fountains.
;eore Lames, in his classic book Stolen $e'acy4 decades
earlier came to the same basic conclusions about Kemetic education
and 'pirituality that Asa Billiard reached in the essay <Pedaoy in
Ancient Kemet.= Althouh Billiard@s research is somewhat of an update
of Lames@ Stolen $e'acy4 the conclusion is that education in Kemet was
fundamentally 'piritual. 7ike education throuhout Afrika, sacred life
was not di&ided from the secular. In fact, in the Afrikan world&iew,
secular life did E does not eGist. If life is the ift of the Afrikan Creator,
then life and all aspects of it are sacred, especially the education of
children. Billiard summariFes that <In the final analysis, the ancient
3yptian souht %AA. >truth, Dustice, and order?0 to become one
with %AA., the cosmic order.= %aat was one of the many uidin
)etchers or spirits. %aat was depicted as a female, and her counterpart
""+
was 9Dhewty, the )etcher of wisdom and intellect. Billiard continues
with the followin encouraement2 <A careful study and reconstruction
of this aspect of our African past can uide the reconstruction and
de&elopment of educational aims, methods, and content appropriate to
the children of the sun= >1#"?.
In Traditional Afrika
.he rites of passae in Kemet ser&ed the same function as it
does in traditional Afrikan societies. In Afrikan societies the rites of
passae was a stron 'piritual institution for the cultures. Concernin
;hanaian culture in relationship to other Afrikan cultures, Peter
'arpon stated <An element of reliion is introduced into initiation
ceremonies as in many other practices of the African= >0hana in
Retrospect, $,?.
.he Afrikan rites of passae in ;hana is similar to the Afrikan
school in many other parts of Afrika. .here are &ariations from ethnic
roup to ethnic roup, but they all ha&e se&eral common features.
Afrikan 'pirituality is the common basis of all the rites of passaes in
Afrika. .he initiate will ain a clear understandin of their duty to the
ancestors and the Afrikan Creator. .hey will also ha&e an intimate
understandin of the spirit world, nature@s power, and life*i&in
forces. .hey all pro&ide the child with proper trainin to enter
adulthood as producti&e indi&iduals. All of the Afrikan schools build
social and communal relationships. .he ae*rades or roups who o
throuh rites of passae toether de&elop lifelon bonds with each
other. 5f reat sinificance, the indi&idual de&elops his or her
relationship and responsibility with the society. Chancellor 4illiams in
the estruction of !lack Ci(ili2ation eGplains, <.he ae*rade or ae*
set >also called Tclass@? was the specific oraniFational structure
throuh which the society functioned= >1-1?. .he ae*rade or Afrikan
school helped de&elop the child into the communal Afrikan world&iew.
If one does wron or commits a crime, it is a wron to society, the
ancestors, and the spirits of the uni&erse. .herefore, that indi&idual@s
family is accountable to some eGtent to correct the wron with the
indi&idual.
For certain &ery important lessons, the men tauht the boys and
the women tauht the irls. In particular lessons, a woman could not
teach a boyH and in particular lessons, a man could not teach a irl.
4omen did not teach the boys how to hunt, and men did not teach the
irls how to nurture and care for babies. .hese ender specific lessons
led to successful families in traditional Afrika. 4hat we should learn
"/#
from this is that today we cannot lea&e the education of our children up
to chance or the media.
In the classic book Facin' Mt) Kenya4 Lomo Kenyatta, the first
President of independent Kenya, eGplains Kikuyu culture, traditions,
the function of education, and the rites of passae is discussed in reat
detail. Kenyatta notes that the 'piritual traditions and moral code of the
culture is transmitted to the youth in this manner, with all of the
customs, leends, sons, and history of the Kikuyu. .he boys learn
about huntin, takin care of the animals, farmin, and warrior*hood
amon other thins. .he irls learn about plants and herbs, house
keepin, and motherin amon other thins. .he rites of passae is part
of the bond of Afrikan cultures, as Kenyatta eGplains, and it is based
larely on the relationship of people to each other and nature. .his is
the Afrikan 'piritual basis of the rites of passae in Afrika.
.he idea that e(ery indi(idual ,orked for the %enefit of the
,hole was more than a theory, it was daily practice. .he concept of if
one had food then all ,ill eat was natural. .he need for honesty,
stability, and peace permeated the ci&iliFations of Afrika. .he Afrikan
communal world&iew led to the belief that the deceased ne&er departed
the li&in. .he ancestors watched o&er society and were anered when
stability was not maintained. .his communal world&iew, in Kemet and
traditional Afrika, was instilled in the people as they raduated throuh
the rites of passae. Afrikan people need not copy the social theories or
reliions of foreiners.
A utopia of Afrika is not bein painted. (ut, the fact that
Afrikan cultures were functional and stable before contact with forein
>and reliious? in&asions cannot be denied. In lare part, it was the
destruction or weakenin of the Afrikan school that se&erely damaed
the functionality of Afrikan cultures. %oderniFation and urbaniFation
ha&e played a role, but if people ha&e their cultures intact from one
eneration to the neGt, they can transition to modernity without the lose
of tradition.
It has already been noted that in the Afrikan school >or rites of
passae? children learned a &ariety of skills that prepared them to be
upriht and functional adults dedicated to the well*bein of their
people. .his educational process did not stop with the childhood rites
of passae, it was an educational process that was lifelon. .he Afrikan
educational system helped one function from childhood to the re&ered
old aed elders. .he basis for the Afrikan school was the ancestral
'pirituality of the Afrikan, and in this system elders were neGt to
ancestors and i&en re&erence. 4hat I ha&e conceptualiFed as the
"/1
%iamba .ano of Afrikan 'pirituality, which includes the ethical codes
of rihteousness of Afrikan people, were tauht and strictly adhered to
in the Afrikan school@s of our ancestors. It would, thus, become the
duty of the Afrikan who successfully completes the Afrikan school to
be an eGample of ood manners, ood conduct, and o&erall
rihteousness. Indi&iduals who did not complete the Afrikan school
were partially or completely, dependin on the ethnic roup, ostraciFed
from their people. .hese indi&iduals did not complete the process of
becomin adults, and were &iewed as children. People refrained from
socialiFin with them, they could not marry, or li&e functional li&es as
those who had prepared themsel&es throuh the Afrikan school to
participate in society. For these reasons, it was uncommon when
someone did not raduate.
Conflictin' Schools in Afrika
(ecause of this stron Afrikan 'piritual and educational
system, the societies were &ery producti&e, and each indi&idual knew
his or her role to the common whole. .he 3uropean missionary schools
and the Arabic Koranic schools had to separate the Afrikan child from
their &illae to be successful in instillin a new pedaoy and
world&iew. It is important to eGamine the cultural erosion of missionary
and Koranic schools on the Afrikan school. A thousand years before the
3uropean initiated %aafa, Islamic*Arabs crossed o&er into Afrika, and
with their Afrikan aents, chaned the Afrikan school and the course of
history.
Islam spread across )orth Afrika in the se&enth century, and
o&er the course of the neGt few centuries the reliion would ain a
stronhold on the upper*third of the entire continent. .his would i&e
rise to the Arab sla&e trade in Afrika that drained many Afrikan cultures
of its most precious resources * the people who were taken into this
sla&e trade destined to forced labor in different parts of the Arab world
or death, and often both. .he Arab sla&e trade especially tareted
children because the child could be easier imprinted with Arab*Islamic
culture than the adult. Lust as the 3uropean Christian replaced and
denied the Afrikans of their 'piritual names and culture, the Arab and
(lack*Arab %uslims did the same.
Also, with the Arab*Islamic in&asion into Afrika, which was
part militaristic and part proselytiFin with traders, came the Koranic
schools. In the Koranic schools, Afrikan children would ha&e to write
and recite &erses from the Koran for se&eral hours a day. .hey were
also tauht how to pray as %uslims, the lories of %ohammed >the
"/"
founder of Islam?, and the Arabic lanuae. Lohn Alembillah AFumah
in The $e'acy of Ara%-Islam in Africa i&es a lot of space to discussin
the cultural realities of Islam in Afrika. .he fact that Islam has a
competin pedaoical paradim from the traditional Afrikan@s
world&iew is not sensibly disputable. .here are Afrikan people who
belon to Ludaism, Christianity, and Islam who are &ery honest
worshippers of the Creator. .he criti8ue of this book, howe&er, is
focused on the power structure of the reliions >Ludaism, Christianity,
and Islam?, and not on indi&idual members. .he power structure of
Islam, like Christianity, had a specific desin for Afrikan people that
had little to do with reliious attainment and more to do with sla&ery
and colonialism..
In +recolonial !lack Africa, Cheikh Anta 9iop makes a
contrast of the Afrikan institution of the rites of passae and the
Koranic school. Be states that education in the Koranic schools bean
at ae four or fi&e, and the children would be separated from their
parents, and often their &illaes, for months and e&en years. In these
schools, the Afrikan child learned the entire Koran and Arabic rammar
by ae ele&en, and later was tauht Arabic*Islamic customs, law, and
history >1+#?. 9iop eGplains2
(efore Islam, children were marked by the
period spent with other members of their eneration at
the time of circumcision0 all the roups of
circumcised form classes by ae and are initiated into
the secrets of the uni&erse on the same day, at the
completion of this ordeal. A bond of solidarity is thus
established that lasts throuhout life0 >1+1?
In the late 1+
th
century, 3dward 4ilmont (lyden, the reat
Pan*Afrikanist from the Caribbean, in his often cited book,
Christianity4 Islam and the Ne'ro Race4 made the arument that Islam
was preferable o&er Christianity and <paanism= for the Afrikans) It is
not surprisin that %uslims of Afrikan descent often make note of the
book. Bowe&er, two decades later, (lyden seemed to ha&e retracted on
some of his fundamental conclusions. Be wrote, in African $ife and
Customs, that Afrikans had their own institutions and <reliion= for
socialiFation of people and children. African $ife and Customs is not as
fre8uently cited as Christianity4 Islam and the Ne'ro Race)
Christianity had two maDor wa&es in Afrika. .he first was in
remote times before and durin the period of the Roman Catholic
"//
church which a&e rise to the 3yptian Coptic and 3thiopian 5rthodoG
Church. .he early Afrikan Church borrowed hea&ily from Kemetic
'pirituality before the Romans became Christians under Constantine.
.he Romans were killin and persecutin the early Afrikan Christians,
then the Romans became Christians and took o&er the church. In
African 0lory, de;raft*Lohnson discusses this history. .he second
wa&e of Christianity into Afrika came as a result of sla&ery, beinnin
with the Portuuese, and later mo&in into the nineteenth century and
twentieth century periods of coloniFation.
Readin African 0lory# The Story of 1anished Ne'ro
Ci(ili2ations by LC de;raft*Lohnson would be helpful in understandin
the political and military spread of Christianity and Islam in Afrika. It
is important to note that the success of Christianity in Afrika was due to
sheer force on the one hand and proselytiFin on the other, like Islam.
Catholicism@s success in )orth Afrika was due to the ancient Roman
coloniFation of )orth Afrika. )orth Afrikans adopted Christianity
before the reliion was official in Rome. (ut, when Rome adopted the
reliion, the Afrikan Kemetic temples and artifacts that displayed the
Afrikan@s 'pirituality were destroyed. 5f course, the )ile Ialley had
suffered many other in&asions by the time the Romans arri&ed in /#
(C3. 4hen the Romans officially adopted Christianity, after the
)icene Council in /"1 AC3, they would intensify their campains
aainst Kemetic 'pirituality. .he Romans closed Kemetic temples, and
destroyed Kemetic artifacts. It was to their benefit to try and erase any
resemblances to their new reliion on the ancient Afrikan monuments.
3&entually )orth Afrika was in the hands of the Romans, and
would later fall into the hands of the Arabs. .he Romans and Arabs
became enaed in wars o&er the control of )orth Afrika, beinnin
with 3ypt when Islamic armies stormed into Afrika in -/+ AC3.
%uslims fouht harder for )orth Afrika than they did for 3ypt. .he
3yptians, de;raft*Lohnson eGplains, were disenchanted with Roman
Catholic taGation and oppression. As a result, they did not resist the
new coloniFers. Bowe&er, when the Arabs ained control, the taGation
and oppression continued Dust the same >African 0lory, $"*$,?. 4hat
differed completely with the new reliion in 3ypt, and the rest of
)orth Afrika, was the reliious world&iew and pedaoy of the new
coloniFers. Islam, %ohammed, and the Koran replaced Lesus, %ary,
and the (ible. (ut, neither considered that the Afrikan had a
worthwhile 'piritual world&iew of their own. .he Afrikan world&iew
was, in fact, more ancient and more de&eloped than either of the two
new comers to Afrika.
"/,
.he second wa&e of Christianity into Afrika bean with the
sla&e trade and peaked under colonialism in the 1+
th
and "#
th
centuries. .he 3uropean*Christians, like the Arab*%uslims, set up
schools to spread their reliion and their culture, and to check or
alle&iate the culture and 'pirituality of the Afrikan people by focusin
on the reorientation of the Afrikan children in these schools.
Concernin Christian missionary education in Afrika, Lomo Kenyatta
states2
In the early days of 3uropean coloniFation
many white men, especially missionaries, landed in
Africa with preconcei&ed ideas of what they would
find there and how they would deal with the
situation0 .he 3uropean based their assumption on
the con&iction that e&erythin that the African did or
thouht was e&il. .he missionaries endea&ored to
rescue the depra&ed souls of the Africans from the
Teternal fire@H they set out to uproot the African, body
and soul, from his old customs and beliefs, put him in a
class by himself, with all his tribal traditions shattered
and his institutions trampled upon. .he African, after
ha&in been detached from his family and tribe, was
eGpected to follow the white man@s reliion without
8uestionin whether it was suited for his condition of
life or not >Facin' Mt) Kenya, "1+*"-#?.
Lust as the Koranic schools assisted the Islamic control and
coloniFation in many )orth Afrikan countries, missionary schools
assisted 3uropean coloniFation. In fact, as Lomo Kenyatta eGplains, the
3uropean missionaries themsel&es played a central role in the
coloniFation of Afrika. .he missionaries were often information
atherers for the coloniFers. In country after country, the missionaries
would precede the colonial occupation. Chinua Achebe pro&ides a &i&id
description of how missionaries played a central role in the
coloniFation of Afrika and the destruction of Afrikan 'pirituality and
institutions in the &ery popular no&el Thin's Fall Apart. .he story is
set in the land of the Ibo >or Ibo? people of modern )ieria. Achebe
i&es a li&ely account of Ibo customs, festi&als, and traditions. .hen
he displays the disastrous impact of missionaries and coloniFation on
traditional Afrikan culture. Achebe also hihlihts the resistance of
Afrikans to forein intrusions.
"/1
.he spread of the new reliions of Islam and Christianity into
Afrika presented many challenes to the Afrikan traditions. Amon
some roups, Afrikan 'pirituality was forcibly replaced, others created
a dual relationship that was at the core Afrikan, while still others
completely resisted. 5ften, the enerational continuity of Afrikan
pedaoy suffered or was lost.
.he 9oon people of %ali resisted Islam and Arabic culture.
.he 9oon fled to the safety of mountainous areas in their country
while much around them was absorbed by Arabic*Islamic culture. As a
result of steadfastly holdin onto their traditions and passin their
'pirituality and world&iew to succeedin enerations, a wealth of
knowlede about 9oon 'pirituality was preser&ed. .he 9oon ha&e
astounded the world about the 'irius star system, the rins of 'aturn,
and the moons of Lupiter. .he reader is referred to The +ale Fo3 by
%arcel ;riaule and ;ermaine 9ieterlen. 9iop eGplains that the 9oon
use a lunar, solar, and sidereal calendar similar to what was used in
Kemet. 9iop eGplores the many commonalities of 9oon and Kemetic
astronomy and 'pirituality, and from his research concludes that the
9oon inherited their science of the stars and <hea&en= from Kemet.
.his section of his maDor work, Ci(ili2ation or !ar%arism, is a ood
eGercise in Afrikan 'pirituality >/1/*/""?. 9iop states, <.he myth of
the 9oon@s pale foG yuru'u stranely recalls the myth of the 3yptian
od 'eth, who has the same animal form, and who, like him, introduced
the creation of disorder, e&il, and sterility= >/"#?.
.he comparison supports 9iop@s life*lon research that
Afrikans inherited Kemetic ci&iliFation throuh lon, enerational,
miratory patterns. If the Afrikan school of the 9oon was replaced
with the Koranic school of Islam, or the missionary school of
Christianity, they would ha&e surely lost this compleG, ancient, Afrikan
'piritual wisdom. 5ne wonders how much ancient wisdom has already
been lost in Afrika due to forein world&iewsM
+eda'o'y and Sla(ery
9e&astation to the Afrikan 'piritual world&iew and pedaoy
came with the processes of ensla&ement in the Americas and in the
Arab controlled world. Afrikan children were tauht a completely
different world&iew, one used by their captors to suit them for their new
reality as sla&es, ser&ants, and subordinates. .his function of non*
Afrikan reliious pedaoy for Afrikan children was the foundation of
colonial missionary schools and Koranic schools. Reliious principles
aside, reliious education is no different from secular education which
"/-
socialiFes the future enerations to ser&e certain roles to society.
Afrikans were brouht to America for the purpose of forced labor and
profits. Conse8uently, the reliious indoctrination of Afrikans had a
&ery economical purpose for the 3uropean ensla&ers. It was a method
to ad&ance their structure of the world. For the Afrikans who con&erted
to Christianity, it was ultimately a copin mechanism to lessen the
inhumanity and brutality of sla&ery. (lassiname states, <.he shock of
seein their parents floed was an early reminder to many black
children of what sla&ery was= >16-?.
(ecause sla&ery was a structure created by the plantation 'outh
in which Afrikan people had a specific place, after sla&ery it was a lot
of discussion on what to do with the freed Afrikans. .his discussion
was &ery often called <.he )ero Auestion= or what to do with the
)ero. 4illiam 4atkins states, <.he Ci&il 4ar and surroundin
acti&ity brouht the T)ero 8uestion@ to the center of social and
political debate. .he 8uestion of what to do with the newly freed sla&e
e&oked a multitude of responses= >The &hite Architects of !lack
Education, /1?.
4atkins further eGplains that the desire to answer the <)ero
Auestion= culminated in a series of 'outhern conferences. .he first two
conferences set the stae for the later ones. .he first two were held at
7ake %ohonk in the Catskill %ountains in 16+# and 16+1. .he basic
resolutions from the conferences were that Afrikans ><)eroes= as they
said? had to be properly educated to fit the future of the 'outh >1,,*
1,6?.
Concernin the %ohonk conferences, Lacob Carruthers stated2
.his is the place where the leadin white
educators and ministers met to hammer out a
consensus on )ero education. )o blacks were in
attendance * none were in&ited, but the conference
thouht they had successful meetins and more
importantly they * those white men * plotted the course
of black education that still eGist todayO .hat pattern
was later transferred to Africa by the (ritish
>Intellectual &arfare, "1-?.
4hite educators and ministers plotted the course of <)ero=
education, and their plot was not absent of a reliious &alue system in
the 3uropean world&iew. .hey decided that Afrikan people must be
educated as workers to promote the interest of a white power structure
"/$
and future. Furthermore, Christianity would ha&e a simple, yet central,
role in the <education= and <ci&iliFation= of Afrikan people in America.
.he same analysis is applied to the role of Islam and the Koranic
schools in Afrika today. .he historic role of Islam in Afrika to the Arab
is the promotion of an Arabic world&iew at the eGpense of the
traditional Afrikan world&iew. .his is the central 8uestion2 4ill Afrikan
people continue to recei&e a reliious and E or secular education of
subordination by forein people and forein cultures, or will we
de&elop our own education of liberationM :ntil all Afrikan children
recei&e an education and world&iew of liberation and how to build and
maintain nations, we will remain unprepared for the future, and
dominated by others. 5nly an education de&eloped by Afrikan people
will ad&ance an Afrikan structure of the world, and we must ne&er
foret that the Afrikan school was ne&er di&orced of Afrikan
'pirituality.
Conclusion
It has been noted that a spiritual E reliious pedaoy for
children ser&es the function of inter*enerational transmission of a
cultural world&iew and scared ethics. .his is the role of reliions and
spiritual systems amon all people throuhout the world. .his is also
the shortcomin of non*Afrikan belief systems for Afrikan people. All
reliions oriinate out of and reflect their cultural settins. 4hen
Afrikan children are bein tauht a non*Afrikan belief structure
>Ludaism, Christianity, or Islam? they are also bein tauht a non*
Afrikan culture and world&iew. .his will e&entually lead Afrikan
people on non*Afrikan physical and psycholoical Dourneys. .hus,
Afrikans are not recei&in an education based on the preser&ation of an
Afrikan world&iew. Aain, reliious principles aside, all reliions E
spiritual systems ser&e a purpose in the promotion of their cultures and
ci&iliFations in the world. If a roup of people loses their spiritual and
cultural round, that may indeed be the end of that people@s world&iew
and ci&iliFation, as history has pro&en time and time aain.
Afrikan 'piritual pedaoical methods were challened or
threatened by forein reliions in Afrika throuh Arabic*Islamic and
3uropean*Christian education, socialiFation, coloniFation, and
ensla&ement. .he Afrikan 'piritual world&iew was ne&er completely
eliminated. Bowe&er, with the adoptions of non*Afrikan belief systems,
Afrikan 'pirituality has surely suffered. 4e can be certain in sayin
that Afrikan 'pirituality has stood the test of time, armies, and centuries
of persecution * and is not oin anywhere.
"/6
%any Afrikans in Afrika resisted the forein traditions. In the
Americas, Afrikans bein taken capti&e into sla&ery, in &aryin
derees, remarkably held onto their traditions in se&eral countries
throuhout the Caribbean, 'outh America, Central America, and the
'outhern :nited 'tates. Afrikan maroons, runaways who set up rebel
camps that raided and threatened the institution of sla&ery, held onto
Afrikan 'pirituality. (ecause of the fre8uency and lone&ity of many
of the maroon communities, and the presence of children, it cannot be
doubted that there were sincere efforts to pass on the 'piritual traditions
to succeedin enerations. Also, there are millions of Afrikan people in
the Americas who inherited the 'piritual traditions down throuh time
since sla&ery. .here are also many who ha&e con&erted to Afrikan
'pirituality in the Americas. 'till, there are millions of Afrikans
throuhout the world who ha&e little knowlede about their ancestral
'pirituality, and often think it is <e&il= or <paan,= and it is they who
must also be redeemed or reborn.
A return to the Afrikan concept of education will be one of
Afrika@s 'piritual traditions that will benefit Afrikan people throuhout
the world. %any Afrikan American oraniFations in the :nited 'tates
ha&e started rites of passaes for children and adults. Reliance on the
public educational school system will not be enouh to make Afrikan
children functional to their communities, as we ha&e repeatedly seen
amon our children. .he conflict of the &arious rites of passae
prorams now in place, many of which are in churches, is to
incorporate the Afrikan 'piritual world&iew amon Afrikan Americans
who faithfully follow non*Afrikan reliions. .he conflict may not be
readily ob&ious. .he Afrikan 'piritual frame of reference was
completely interwo&en in the Afrikan school and the rites of passae,
and it is only in an AmericaniFed conteGt that the separation would take
place.
Properly uided Afrikan*Centered education is healin for
Afrikan children, and it should be. .oday, we absolutely need a Rites of
Passae to teach our youn males and females about the dynamics of
adulthood, manhood and womanhood in a family and community
centered conteGt. 4e cannot lea&e this fundamental process up to
chance or the public schools. 5ur ancestors tauht children about
adulthood as they became adults. .his &oid is a central part of the crisis
in the Afrikan community. It cannot be filled with forein traditions
unless we plan to lose or compromise our own identity and traditions.
If Afrikan American children were raised into an Afrikan
'piritual world&iew, they would recei&e a protecti&e shield aainst
"/+
many of the problems that plaue the community >self*hate, &iolence,
drus, ans, etc?. .his is a &ery reasonable conclusion because the
Afrikan school has worked for our ancestors for thousands of years
before foreiners introduced new educational systems to Afrikans *
systems which in&ariably do not work. .he standard curriculum in the
public school system does not reflect the history and culture of Afrikan
people, and this is also the case with the missionary schools and the
Koranic schools in Afrika.
4hat is the role of reliion for non*Afrikan people throuhout
the worldM If reliious pedaoy is essential to the cultural bond of all
cultural and ethnic roups, it is also essential to the cultural bonds of
Afrikan people. %illions of Afrikan people huner for an Afrikan
'piritual mo&ement as Afrikan*Centered consciousness de&elops. 'uch
a mo&ement is ine&itable, and it will be both national and lobal. .o be
successful, it will ha&e to be a mo&ement at the rassroots le&el, and
this is already occurrin. .hat such a mo&ement in culturally rele&ant
Afrikan 'piritual pedaoy is necessary is not doubted by many who
ha&e made efforts. .he 'piritual world&iew of Afrikan people is
essential for roup sur&i&al. .hus, the Afrikan 'piritual mo&ement must
and will happen.
",#
-ea&t$( Fitne( %e&&bein#( S.irit( and Education
Fitness and 'pirituality
It@s always funny when people tell me that I need their reliion and
they o ha&e some ho mauls or chitterlins for dinner. .hey tell me I
need sal&ation and they o and eat a fat red*meat burer on buns of
white bread. 4hate&er reliion you belon to, if it does not promote
health and fitness, you should make some adDustments one way or
another in your life. 3ither et another faith, or include some eGercise
in you life. 4e all know the numbersH Afrikan Americans die at the
hihest rates from nutrition*based diseases such as cancer, heart
disease, stroke, etc.
I don@t et on diet kicksH Atkins, Lenny, Lohn 9oe or anythin
else. %ost of us don@t need another diet kick anyway. 4e need lifestyle
chanes, to be honest, drastic ones, real 8uick as in yesterday. 4eiht
lose is simple, it@s the discipline that people ha&e a problem with. Lust
remember that your body needs a minimum of 1"## calories a day Dust
for normal functions, heartbeat, breathin, circulation. .hat means you
ha&e to add a few hundred calories when you include your daily
acti&ities such as walkin, workin, and hopefully eGercise. Intense
trainin will re8uire more than usual calories for needed enery.
Ideally, you want a low or ade8uate calorie intake lifestyle with
eGercise. Cou ha&e to sweat, not Dust eat riht. In addition to weiht
loss, you ha&e to be concerned about your cardio&ascular health. 9on@t
Dust worry about fittin your Deans you used to wear. Bow@s your heartM
Bow@s you lunsM
'till, eGercise is part of the ame. Cellular health, the stuff that
will keep you from ettin cancer, depends larely on what you eat.
7i&e foods are the key. A &itamin and mineral supplement will not hurt,
",1
but your body needs li&e enFymes found in fruits and &eetables.
Cellular reeneration should be on e&eryone@s radar. 9on@t enouh
people die from cancer in our communityM (ecause the actual 8uality
of food is poor nowadays, we should drink homemade &eetable Duices.
I would recommend / to $ full cups a week, or one a day if possible.
An apple today is not as rich as an apple 1## or 1# years ao. .ry some
oranic foods. I don@t eat meat, and I don@t miss eatin meat. 'aturated
fat, Fero fiber, drus shot up in poor farm animals, blood, bacteria, low
F9A standards J no I don@t miss eatin that stuff. 4hat@s more, meat
has the tendency to take up room that should be used for li&e food.
5kay, you say so and so li&ed to be +# years old, smoked, drank, ate
meat, and did e&erythin else. 4ell, so and so could ha&e li&ed a lot
loner and a lot healthier with nutrition and eGercise.
3&eryone should eGercise a minimum of three days a week. If
you are doin hih intensity workouts, remember your muscles need
reco&ery time. %uscles reco&er in ", to ,6 hours, dependin on the
workout. Bowe&er, &ery serious weihtlifters will concentrate on one
muscle roup once a week, of course their in the ym 1 or more days a
week workin the whole body. In addition to eatin sufficient amounts
of proteins, as a &ean I am also concerned with ettin complete
proteins in a day. 4hole rains, nuts, seeds, and leumes become &ery
important. 'oy products are reat for protein and calcium. Athletes
need 1# J $# rams of protein a day, and that@s a minimum rane.
4hat does this ha&e to do with Afrikan 'piritualityM .he body
is a temple. It is throuh the body*temple that we will accomplish the
oals we set in life. Poor eatin, lack of eGercise, and inade8uate sleep
will lead to o&erweiht, fatiue, and illness. 3Gercise and proper
nutrition is one way to i&e thanks to your eGistence, that is by not
takin your temple for ranite. .he body is a ift, cherish it. 4e need a
clear mind and lots of enery to deal with the world, stay focused, and
climb to our heihts. Cultural and historical consciousness are &ery
important for our people. Cet, we must not inore health consciousness
and spiritual consciousness. %umia Abu Lamal once wrote an article on
health. Be said that we can@t talk about personal health while %other
3arth is sick. %umia is one amaFin, inspirin, and insihtful Buman
bein. Air and waters are polluted, food 8uality is poor, the soil is
contaminated, rain forests are bein destroyed, and the 3arth is ettin
sick and tired. 9isturbin the 3arth in this manner is not wise. I did see
a science maaFine where the co&er said somethin about lookin for
new worlds in spaceM %aybe, the industrial polluters and their
scientists are bent on profitin and destroyin this world in hope of
","
findin another to do the same. If we belie&e in nutritional and
spiritual consciousness, we must also belie&e in promotin 7ife on
%other 3arth. .he Buman body is a microcosm of the 3arth. If you
belie&e in personal health, you should belie&e in en&ironmental health.
'pirituality and eGercise o hand in hand. :nderstand your
body*temple. :nderstand the foods you eat. Promote ood health. Read
daily, books of substance please. 3Gercise, pray, meditate, i&e thanks
to the ancestors and Creator for i&in you eGistence. In Afrikan
'pirituality we belie&e in two concepts from the )ile Ialley, Maat and
Md, Nfr, which at the &ery basic le&el means you speak truth and li&e
rihteously. :ltimately, use your eGistence to better the eGistence of
others, and bein by usin your life as an eGample.
)utrition and .hinkin Power for Afrikan People
4hen we speak of Afrikan liberation, we must forecast far into
the future and ask the followin 8uestion2 4hat can I do to promote the
o&erall well*bein of my peopleM 4hen we ask and answer this
8uestion, we cannot lea&e nutrition out of our proram of liberation. I
ha&e found it necessary to do some basic research in this area.
4hen we think of eatin, do we think of brain foodM 9oes
eatin effect thinkinM If so, what kinds of food should the brain ha&e
for superior functioninM It is essential that we produce Afrikan
children who are clear thinkin as they row up in later years. .here
used to be a time when children were not labeled <hyperacti&e,=
<learnin deficient,= or <beha&ior disordered.= .here also used to be a
time when our parents told us, <(aby, eat all of your &eetables,= and
e&en <(aby, try some fruit instead of those sweets.= )ow, we ha&e
more and more Afrikan Americans enrichin all of the fast food chains
in our community which contribute to our poor health and poor
thinkin.
For children, and adults, refined suar >or what is called refined
carbohydrates? is one of the main culprits to ood thinkin powerO In
the book 'mart %edicine For Bealthier 7i&in it says, <.he a&erae
adult eats 11# pounds of suar each yearH the a&erae teenaer eats a
whoppin /## pounds annually= >Kand, 'preen, and 7aIalle, p. 11?. If
that is the national a&erae, I uarantee you that it is hiher for
Afrikans in America. 'uar has a lon list of neati&e effects on the
body that we could list. 'uffice it to say, suar ad&ersely effects
e&erythin from the teeth and bones to the immune system. 'uar is
also addicti&e, as we all know one way or another. (ut, as far as
",/
neati&ely effectin thinkin power, suar causes <Ditteriness, aitation,
and an inability to concentrate, followed by tiredness and irritability.=
9oes suar sound like brain food to youM First it makes you Dittery, then
it makes you tired. Remember, what effects the body also effects the
mind. Bow can we eGpect (lack children to come to school and do
their best when they are dosed up on suar, cow@s milk, processed
cereal, donuts, and candy for breakfastM .he breakfast our children eat
is Dust as destructi&e as the 3uropean focused education they et in the
classroom.
'uar is not only in Dunk foods. Bih amounts come from
selectin those brand named cereals that most our people lo&e, such as
Fruity Pebbles and 7ucky Charms. 4hen lookin at the inredients you
find a lot of fancy names for suar like barley malt, molasses, sucrose,
and plain old <suar.= 'oda drinks are loaded with suar, and e&en most
fruit Duice drinks that may seem to be healthy from lookin at the name
and label contain suar. I don@t know about you, but like many of our
youth today, I rew up thinkin cool*aide was one of the best drinks in
the world. 5f course, there was more suar than cool*aide in the water.
'o, what foods are needed for ood brain powerM 4hen you
think of brain power or brain fuel, CompleG Carbohydrates and
Complete Proteins should come to mind. CompleG Carbohydrates and
Complete Proteins are needed to i&e the body and the mind lots of
8uality enery. .hey are needed for the mind to stay focused and clear.
Cou can et CompleG Carbohydrates from whole rains such as rice
>any kind eGcept white rice is ood?, corn, oats, and wheat. 7ook for
cereals with whole rains in the inredients. Cou will )ot find them in
the section with 7ucky Charms and Frosted FlakesO Also, try a ood
health food store e&ery now and then. It oes without sayin that you
should support (lack stores. CompleG Carbohydrates and Complete
Proteins are in whole rains, &eetables, fruits, and leumes >dried
beans and peas?, nuts and seeds. %eat is a source of Complete Proteins,
but eatin animal meat has the tendency to take up needed space in the
stomach that should be used for CompleG Carbohydrates and a lot of
other needed nutrients you cannot et in meat. Bih consumption of
animal flesh is one of the reasons Afrikan Americans ha&e such hih
death rates. (esides, you can et plenty of protein from healthier
sources. .oo many of us are eatin oursel&es into the ra&e with a
'7AI3 diet.
If you want optimal, hih 8uality brain power, then you should
eat lots of foods hih in CompleG Carbohydrates and Complete
",,
Proteins. A&oid or eliminate animal meat and refined suar, soda, and
suary Duice drinks. Instead try 1##V Duice drinks, and eat lots of fruit.
3at healthier cereal. For breakfast, try soy milk and healthy cereal
miGed with whole oats and fruits. For lunch, try a healthy salad with
nuts and seeds miGed in it. Remember cleaned water >bottled or
filtered? is important to proper body and brain functionin. ;i&e your
brain the food it needs for powerful thinkin.
%ention should be made of our wonderful ancestor, ;eore
4ashinton Car&er. (orn ensla&ed and sold for a horse, he would
become one of the reatest in&entors in the world. Cou may ask, what
does he ha&e to do with nutritionM ;eore 4. Car&er started the
alternati&e food industry with a &ariety of healthier food products. Be
did so much more than in&entin peanut butter, in fact, he had
approGimately 1,1## in&entions. Be in&ented what we call the &eie
burer and other meat substitutes. Be also in&ented a rubbin oil which
he used to heal people who were paralyFed. 4e ha&e allowed other
people to et rich from the alternati&e food industry created by our
reat ancestor. ;eore 4. Car&er was healer. A ood book on his life is
;eore 4ashinton Car&er2 Bis 7ife and Faith in Bis 5wn 4ords by
4illiam Federer.
3&erythin that Afrikan people do in life should be for the
liberation of our people. If you think this is eGtreme, consider the fact
that our oppressors modeled their entire lifestyles around our continued
oppression. If we continue to deform our children with improper
nutrition, we will continue to uarantee our oppression in the future.
Ba&e a 7ifestyle to Pre&ent Illnesses and 7i&e 7oner
.oo many of our people continue to die from early deaths. 4e
need Afrikan people to li&e lon, healthy li&es. Afrikan people ha&e
de&eloped unhealthy lifestyles here in America. 4e need to li&e healthy
and producti&e lifestyles for the benefit of the o&erall well*bein of our
people.
It is often assumed that we will simply et sick o&er the natural
course of life. (ut, ha&e you e&er wondered why some et sick more
often than othersM 5r, ha&e you e&er wondered why some seem to
ne&er et sick, or as sick, as othersM 4e ha&e been trained to think that
when we et ill we must o to the medicine cabinet or to the store and
et aspirins, couh syrups, and nasal deconestants. %any of us belie&e
if you ha&e a headache you should pop a pillH or if you ha&e the fe&er
you should take some (ayerH if you ha&e the flu >influenFa? you need
",1
some .ylenol and E or Ad&il. 4hile takin pills and drinkin couh
syrups may brin short*term relief to the flu, headaches, and runny
noses this treatment does not actually cure the illnesses. Con&entional
medicines only hide the symptoms until your body heals itself. As a
result, many people who feel better often continue with the same
lifestyle that caused them to et sick in the first place. .hey continue
until they et sick aain, then they find some type of medication to take
aain. Aside from the many side*effects of o&er*the*counter medicines,
the lon*term results of this pattern is the enrichment of medical
companies and dru stores, and a slow and eneral deterioration of
(lack health.
A little secret is that you do not catch a cold from bein
eGposed to a &irus. Cou catch a cold from the inability of your body@s
immune system to fiht off the &irus. 3&ery time someone sneeFes or
couhs in a room e&eryone in that room is eGposed to the &irus. 4e are
eGposed to millions of &iruses and bacteria when we shake hands, hu,
touch doorknobs, and Dust o around breathin e&eryday. .he secret to
not catchin a cold or an illness is buildin up your body@s internal
protection system. .his is important because Afrikan people in
America, and throuhout the world, do not et the same medical
treatment that 3uropeans et. 'ometimes, when Afrikan people o to
the doctor, we walk away with more problems than the one@s we had.
.he reatest eGample of this was the :nited 'tates steriliFation of
millions of Afrikan women in (raFil in the past se&eral decades. Cou
probably ha&e not heard of thisO (ut, the :' is uilty of sponsorin the
enocidal*steriliFation of millions of Afrikan women. Reparations for
this is only the beinnin of the solution to this problem.
Bow do you pre&ent illnesses before they happenM Bow do you
stop the flu or a runny nose before it happensM Bow do you li&e a
loner, healthier, and ha&e a more Doyful lifeM Cou simply adopt a
lifestyle that will achie&e those ends. 5f course, it oes without sayin
that alcohol and ciarettes are &ery destructi&e to our community.
7eadin a healthy lifestyle is really simple. Cou only ha&e to do three
basic thins2 1. 3at Riht ". 3Gercise /. and %aintain Barmony.
1. 3at Riht2 3atin riht is easy. Curin our addiction of fast
foods, Dunk foods, and not*ood*for*you foods is what is hardO .he
American media, our family, and our friends all play some role in why
many Afrikan people are prorammed into eatin habits that promote
illnesses. .o eat riht you must remember the Fi&e 7i&e Foods2
Ieetables, Fruits, 4hole ;rains, 7eumes >(eans?, 'eeds and )uts *
",-
and of course lots of water. Berbs and spices are tasty and healthy.
Afrikan people ha&e used herbs and spices for thousands of years.
Berbs and spices are not only tasty, but they promote ood health.
A&oid or eliminate animals and animal products >cheese, milk, etc.?,
refined suar >Dunk foods?, refined foods >pasta, white bread?, soda, and
suary Duice drinks. .here are so many healthy substitutes that you will
not miss any of that stuffO Afrikan people must reach the point when we
realiFe that nutrition is essential to our eGistence.
". 3Gercise2 Children usually et enouh eGercise with playin.
(ut, with the risin influence of &ideo ames, and the most famous
babysitter >also known as the tele&ision? this is chanin. Children are
loosin the art of playin and sports. 7ack of eGercise is much worse
for adults. If you think children are couch potatoes, then you should
look at adults. 5&erweiht is a &ery serious problem in our Afrikan
community in America. .he condition of bein o&erweiht leads to so
any other illnesses. Find some types of eGercises or sports that you
enDoy. .ry to ha&e some kind of physical acti&ity at least three times a
week. 4alkin, bikin, Doin, dancin, weihtliftin, and all kinds of
sports are hihly recommended. 4e ha&e to et in shape, physical
shape and mental shape. .he battle already started and so many of us
are not in shape.
/. Barmony2 Afrikan 'piritual and physical harmony is
essential for a healthy lifestyle. 7ack of sleep and stress are two of the
problems that lead to illnesses. Find the time to smile, lauh, and
compliment one of your brothers and sisters. Bow many times ha&e
you walked into a store and recei&ed a nasty attitude from a brother or
sister. 4e ha&e to eliminate the self*hate we suffer from in our
community. 'elf*hate is the root cause of (lack*on*(lack &iolence. 4e
must learn to lo&e what makes us who we are. ;o to e&ents and enDoy
Afrikan culture. 7earn about the rich traditions of Afrikan people.
'pread Doy and oodness in our community and world. 4e can@t reain
control of our communities and nations if we do not first appreciate
who we are as Afrikan people.
4e also enrich the medical industry which relies hea&ily on the
unhealthiness of our community. I am not sayin that you should not o
to the doctor. I am sayin that Afrikan people must et into pre&enti&e
health. 'imply, if you don@t et sick, you wont need to o to the doctor,
and you will li&e loner. For Afrikan people, maintainin a healthy
physical and mental lifestyle is &ery serious because our community
suffers disproportionately from most illnesses. If Afrikan people ha&e
",$
fewer illnesses, we will li&e loner and healthier li&es. .hat means we
will also li&e fuller and more Doyful li&es. 4hat better ift is there to
i&e to the Afrikan familyM
Iiorous 3Gercise and Ieetarian 3atin
:nless you learn to enDoy it, which you should, eGercise can
seem like a laborious task. .his has a lot to do with lifestyle, eatin
habits, whether you smoke or not, etc. 3atin the wron foods and
workin out is absolutely a drain on the body. Con&ersely, not eatin
the riht foods will Fap your enery and essential nutrients from the
body. Iiorous eGercise and &eetarianism can be two opposites that
don@t miG. 4ith proper nutrition and sufficient muscle reco&ery, you
can workout intensely and be a &eetarian. Cou can also ain eGcellent
muscle rowth and fitness.
3Gercise and eatin healthy should be part of your lifestyle.
.his would promote lone&ity, a healthy mind and body, and I arue
spiritual enery. I would recommend a minimum eGercise routine of
three days a week with at least one rest day after e&ery workout day.
.he workout should be medium to &iorous for at least /# minutes to
an hour. Also, we should be enerally acti&e on all other days, workin,
walkin, cleanin at home, etc. Lust a&oid a couch*potato and tele&ision
sitcom lifestyle. .his weekly, minimum, eGercise routine could be a
%onday, 4ednesday, Friday schedule. It could be a 'unday, .uesday,
.hursday schedule. As lon as there is an off day between each
medium to hea&y workout day, that would be fine.
'ome of us who are &ery serious about health, fitness, and
wellness eGercise on a more fre8uent basis than others. %ake the time
to do what you can because it pays off in the lon run. At most, we
should eGercise, in my opinion, 1 or more days a week. .his should
include a &ariety in the workout schedule such as cardio*&ascular,
aerobic eGercises >like treadmills, step machines, bikin, Doin,
andEor other intense sports with liht resistance?H also strenth trainin
with free weihts and machines. I can ne&er separate spirituality from
eGercise, and must say, prayer, meditation, andEor libation on a reular
basis is &ery important.
In reards to eatin, some simply try to eat healthy portions of
food but do not eGclude anythin from meals, other than foods that may
cause alleric reactions or are simply disliked. 5thers may ha&e had the
doctor@s &isit and were told they ha&e a health crisis of diabetes, hih
",6
blood pressure, or some other health risks. .hese people must cut out
red meat and other fatty foods, starchy foods, refined foods, and too
much suar and salt. .hey will ha&e to eat more fruits and &eetables.
.hey also must eat smaller portions of foods.
Finally, there are those of us who eat riht for pre&enti&e
health, which means that we want to pre&ent or lower the risk of illness
and disease before we et it. 'ome e&en incorporate spiritual &iews into
their nutritional lifestyle. .his makes complete sense if you belie&e that
the body is a temple. .hose of us with this mindset eliminate many
foods from our eatin habits. 'ome may not eat the meats that are
hardest to diest, such as red meat and pork. 5thers who eat for
pre&enti&e health o further and refuse to eat any meat. 'till others will
not eat or at least reduce fiber*less foods such as white rice >or other
rice without whole rain?, white bread >or other bread without whole
rain?, hihly processed or refined foods, and Dunk foods. .here is no
fiber or health benefits in a donut.
4e should be &ery conscious of our health. .he need for health
consciousness becomes &ery necessary the more &iorous we eGercise
or the more foods we restrict from our nutritional lifestyles. I learned
this not in a classroom or from a book, but the hard way, in the ym.
I ha&e eGercised my entire life. I was always physically acti&e
in sports, racin, and playin as a child. In my teenae years, I played
basketball on teams in schools, park tournaments, and Dust for e&eryday
fun. I started liftin weiht when I was in $
th
rade, and by the time I
ot to hih school, I was lean*built but a lot stroner than the a&erae
kid. I didn@t et serious about liftin weihts until I was an
underraduate in collee, but e&en then I had not studied the science of
weihtliftin or nutrition. .he problem was that I was already a
&eetarian by then and was doin a lot of serious weihtliftin and
runnin. 7ike others, I thouht bein a &eetarian meant not eatin
meat, and I ha&e found that it means so much more than that.
Cou miht ha&e uessed where this is oin. I suffered some
serious inDuries in collee. I had torn or inflamed the tendons in both of
my shoulders from hea&y bench pressin. 5nce, I o&erworked my
forearm from curlin dumbbells and it was numb and felt like rubber
for days. I would be eGtremely sore for days after workin out. 4ith all
of the runnin and weihtliftin, and not understandin nutrition, I was
basically depletin my body of &itamins and minerals. 5f those
inDuries, the torn tendons in my shoulders were the most serious. I went
from reularly bench*pressin ""1 pounds to not bein able to do a
push up or raise my arm without pain. 5f course, I was worried about
",+
needin surery because tendons and liaments repair &ery slowly, o&er
years.
4ith hea&y weiht trainin, &eetarians can suffer problems
that are more serious. 'ome &eetarians ha&e lost teeth from lack of
calcium. 4omen ha&e become anemic from lack of ironH and men ha&e
had erectile dysfunctions from lack of Finc and other nutrients. 5thers
ha&e had lowered immune systems and ha&e become prone to illnesses.
'ome ha&e lost more than the desired weiht and ha&e other health
risk. 'ome &eetarians ha&e i&en birth to children with &itamin and
mineral deficiencies. 'till, others who are tryin to be &eetarians
without first learnin about proper nutrition for such a lifestyle ha&e
faced a host of other problems.
%y solution was not really a solution. I simply cut back on
how &iorous I worked out and maintained my &eetarian lifestyle o&er
the years. 9urin those years, the tendons in my shoulders ne&er fully
healed, and I really wanted to et in the ym and workout. I thouht I
ne&er would be able to workout aain the way I did when I was "#
years old. I was disappointed, but I did spend those in*between years
studyin and becomin more health conscious.
For anyone interested in ood health, and especially those who
eGercises &iorously and may be &eetarians, there are certain thins
they must know and do2
1. For starters, hydration is necessary, 6 cups of fluid is
enerally recommended. 9rink a cup of water or fruit Duice
in the mornin instead of coffee. 4ith lunch ha&e a cup of
water or Duice, and ha&e a &eetable Duice >homemade
Duice? or some water with dinner. Remember, that a well*
balanced diet contains an important amount of fluids that
are present in fruits and &eetables.
". 5Gidation is a natural process that increases with ain. 4e
usually don@t think of oGyen as ha&in bad effects, but
eGercise increases oGidation in the body. 5Gidation is the
production of free radicals or molecules that attach onto
and damae healthy cells that result in wrinkles, hair loss,
bone and muscle weakness, deenerati&e illnesses, cancer,
and what we call <ettin old.= .he process of oGidation is
part of life and death. Bowe&er, one does not want to
8uicken the process, I hope. .herefore, we must learn
about antioGidants or nutrients that pre&ent or slow the
"1#
process of oGidation. .he basic antioGidants are &itamins
A, C, 3, and beta*carotene, all of which are contained in a
well*balanced diet of &eetables, fruits, whole rains, and
seeds. A salad a day, a homemade &eetable Duice e&ery so
often, a one a day supplement is ways to keep sufficient
le&els of antioGidants in the body.
/. .he role of protein in eGercise cannot be o&eremphasiFed.
4hen you eGercise, you are actually tearin muscle fibers.
.he more you eGercise and the more intense the eGercise,
the more muscle fibers you tear. Also, strenth trainin
puts stress on the tendons and liaments. It is after the
eGercise that the body beins to rebuild itself to be
stroner. )ature is miraculous. .he eGercise is called
<stress= while the process of rebuildin is called
<reco&ery.= 'tress and reco&ery combined will build
endurance and strenth. .he reco&ery phase is sometimes
nelected, but it is &ery important. 9urin the reco&ery
period, when the muscles are rebuildin, ade8uate amounts
of complete proteins are essential for muscle de&elopment
and body maintenance >ood health?. 'leep is necessary for
the reco&ery phase. Protein intake will depend on your
body weiht and how acti&e you are in your daily life.
.here are any number of reat books and reliable web
sources on protein intake. Protein is also necessary for
eneral body >cellular? reeneration and health. As a
&eetarian who does hea&y trainin eGercises, and this is
&ery important, I eat foods hih in protein like brown rice
and other whole rains, beans, soy products, and pasta >not
too hea&y on the pasta?. For men, I would recommend you
o liht on the soy products due to the le&els of estroen in
the soybean that can reduce sperm count. .oo much of
anythin can be bad. 5ne of my fa&orite foods is a peanut*
butter and Delly sandwich on sprout*leume bread because
it makes a complete protein, plus it tastes ood. For those
&eetarians who are alleric to peanuts, there are so many
sources of proteins in a well*balanced diet. I do
recommend that all &eetarian athletes of any kind take
daily amino acid supplements. .he reason is that the
a&erae person may need only 1# to $# rams of protein in
a day, while an athlete may re8uire 1## or more rams of
"11
protein, dependin on the person@s weiht and type of
workout reime. Also, of the "" amino acids that make up
proteins, + are essential while 1/ are non*essential. .he
essential amino acids are not produced in the body like the
non*essential ones. Amino acids are the buildin blocks of
protein. For this reason, I would discourae protein
supplements. 4hy take a protein supplement when you can
take an amino acid supplement which is more complete.
It@s in a way like cuttin down a tree for paper when you
ha&e a notebook in your book*ba. Ieetarian or not, you
should be &ery concerned about ettin 8uality protein,
without all of the saturated animal fat, in your nutritional
lifestyle.
,. Calcium is the most abundant mineral in the Buman body,
and its deficiency can be &ery harmful. Calcium intake is
also &ery important. 4omen who do not ha&e enouh
calcium in youner years tend to suffer later from
osteoporosis and other diseases later. For those of us who
do not drink or eat dairy products, we must et calcium
from soy products, spinach, kale, broccoli, or fortified
Duice. Aain, takin a supplement a day can be &ery
helpful. 3Gercise and especially weihtliftin is one
recommendation to strenthen bones.
1. .he last note is on eneral health and diestion. It has been
many days that I ha&e lost track of time in the ym and
stayed until closin time. I usually ha&e a tremendous
amount of enery to burn in the ym. I swear, if I had the
time, I could workout for 1" hours on some days. .his
enery le&el is due to se&eral reasons such as hydration,
protein intake, ood diestion, and eneral nutrition. I
don@t o&ereat, not anymore at least. 7ack of enouh food or
lack of the proper foods will result in low enery le&els.
.oo much food or too much of the wron foods will
suppress your enery output. Cou want enouh of the riht
food at the riht time, at least three, well portioned, healthy
meals a day. %eat and other fiber*less foods are bad for
diestion. Bealthy eatin will promote ood diestion,
which is a key factor to your enery le&els and mental state
"1"
durin the day. 7i&e foods, raw or lihtly cooked are also
reat for enFyme replacement.
4ell, my tendons in my shoulders still et sore if I@m not
careful with my workout, but now I workout a lot smarter than when I
was "# years old. I work my whole body, and not Dust benchin and
curlin. %y bench press is approachin /#1 pounds, my oal for this
summer. (ut, I machine s8uat, work my cal&es, back, shoulders,
laterals, abs, you name it. I can do 1 miles on the track on a bad day.
I@m intent on showin people that a &eetarian can not only be more fit
and healthy but also as stron or stroner than a meat*eater. I know
people who eat steaks for breakfast to ain strenth, and I don@t need to
say that makes little sense to me. If I@m blessed to do so, I want to
pro&e that you can be a &eetarian and benefit from intense weiht
trainin. As of now, I will tell you that I am definitely on track, and I
encourae you to do the same. 'et your nutritional, fitness, and spiritual
oals J and know deep down that you can reach them.
"1/
53 D:edu-K$e.eru-Ra
A?; +illars to the Transformations
of
!etter *ealth4 Fitness4 and Spiritual &ell-!ein'B
Introduction
"1 9Dedu*Kheperu*Ra, "1 pillars to the transformations of the
Creator, are staes of proression that are intended to lead one
ultimately to a hiher spiritual consciousness and hiher spiritual
lifestyle. It is often stated by many that <the body is a temple,= and
indeed that is true. Cet, I arue that the statement is not properly
understood and eGercised in the e&eryday li&in habits of indi&iduals
and families. Ces, the body is a templeH but what eGactly does that
meanM 4hat is the purpose of understandin the body as a templeM
A temple is a channel used to open a way between the natural
and spiritual worlds. If the body is a temple, its purpose is to maintain
harmony on 3arth. 4e, our bodiesEtemples are intended to continue the
di&ine work of %aat bean at the first moment of Creation. .his work
cannot be done if our temples are poisoned, polluted, and unhealthy.
9i&ine messaes are hindered when the body*temple is not open. 4e
not only succumb to illnesses, we also eGperience confusion, conflict,
and character flawsEimbalances. 5ne will hopefully see that not seekin
proper health, fitness, and spiritual well*bein will do more than only
led to bein o&erweiht. .o open oursel&es up to the channel of
di&inity, we often pray, fast, and attend spiritual atherins. .he 9Dedu*
Kheperu*Ra lays out se&eral pillarsEsteps to an e&en more holistic and
spiritual lifestyle. 'o, this entire concept oes way beyond mere
dietin.
.he 9Dedu*Kheperu*Ra is laid out in three maDor le&els, one
le&el bein necessary for the de&elopmentEfoundation of the neGt.
.hose le&els are in the name itself, 7e&el one is 9Dedu >Pillars?, 7e&el
two is Kheperu >.ransformations?, and 7e&el three is Ra >the Creator?.
Additionally, each le&el has a particular focus2 5ne is )utrition and
"1,
Foundational ;round 4ork. .his le&el is for basic health, the beinnin
of openin one@s channel by the elimination of toGicity from the body
and promotion of life*i&in nutrients. 7e&el two, 3Gercise and
'tructural 'upport, turns health and fitness up se&eral notches with
eGercise, rest, reco&ery, and optimal physical health. Finally, .he last
le&el, 'pirituality and .ranscendence, is a road to spiritual
consciousness and well*bein. .he / le&els ha&e $ pillars each for a
total of "1. .hese le&els are not hierarchical, but rather cyclical.
%eanin, the indi&idual may start where&er she or he is at with
impro&in her or his life, yet one must mo&e to the functions of the
other pillars. Bowe&er, the le&els do not eGactly work one after the
other, but simultaneously where needed in life. .hey are constant, you
may say. Bealth, fitness, and spirituality are constant and daily factors
in our li&es. At least that@s what is best.
)ow, what@s the whole reason and purpose for impro&in our
own li&esM 4e do the work of our Afrikan ancestors so that we may
impro&e our communities, spread %aat with those we come in contact
with, and ultimately impro&e life J all life J on 3arth.


"11
"1 9Dedu*Kheperu*Ra
A?; +illars to the Transformations
of
!etter *ealth4 Fitness4 and Spiritual &ell-!ein'B
9L39: 7e&el 5ne2 )utrition and Foundational ;round 4ork
1. A&oid 9ead Foods
". 3at and 9rink 7i&e FoodsE)utrients
/. Bydration
,. Proper 9iestion, Absorption, %etabolism, and 3limination
1. ;uarantee (alanced and Replenishin )utrients
-. %ake Bealthy %eals 9elicious and 3nDoyable
$. %aintain and Always 'eek )utritional Awareness
KB3P3R: 7e&el .wo2 3Gercise and 'tructural 'upport
6. A&oid a 'edentary 7ifestyle
+. %aintain at 7east 7iht Physical Acti&ity on 9aily (asis
1#. Intense Cardio&ascular 3Gercise at 7east .hree .imes a 4eek
11. 9o 3nDoyable 4orkouts, 'ports, andEor Physical Acti&ities
1". A&oid 5&erstress in 3Gercise Routine
1/. Rest and Rebuildin
1,. %aintain and Always 'eek Fitness Awareness
RA 7e&el .hree2 'pirituality and .ranscendence
11. 7o&e of 'elf
1-. Peace of %ind and Bonor of the Physical .emple
1$. Respect and Bonor the 5neness of the :ni&erse
and the Cycle of All 7ife
16. Barmonious Relationships in 5ne@s 7ife
1+. 7i&e with Purpose
"#. 9aily Reconition of Biher Power>s?
"1. 5pen 5ne@s (ein to the 'pirit Realm
"1-
"1 9Dedu*Kheperu*Ra
A?; +illars to the Transformations
of
!etter *ealth4 Fitness4 and Spiritual &ell-!ein'B
9L39: 7e&el 5ne2 )utrition and Foundational ;round 4ork
1. A&oid 9ead Foods
.he first and fundamental step in better health, fitness, and
well*bein is a&oidin or eliminatin dead foods from one@s eatin
habits. 9ead foods are one of the top culprits to poor and deeneratin
health. 9ead foods are foods that are not life i&in and are life takin.
.hese foods may ha&e some nutritional &alue, but when weihin the
pros and cons of if one should include dead food in their consumption,
the cons weih out the pros, hea&ily. Knowin and understandin the
pros and cons of food, the effects that foods and all supplements ha&e
on the body is what is called nutritional awareness or nutritional
consciousness. 9ead foods are the meats that people eat especially, but
also dairy products, white flour, suar and Dunk food. (reads, pastries,
and pastas are dead foods, but because people tend to prefer them
without whole rains they ha&e little nutritional &alue. 5ne is
encouraed to eat pastas and bread that ha&e whole rains, otherwise,
much of the nutritional 8ualities are absent.
". 3at and 9rink 7i&e FoodsE)utrients
)utritional consciousness is not only knowin what not to eat,
but also knowin what to eat. 7i&e foods row from %other 3arth, and
they ha&e fewer man*made inredients than o&erly processed foods.
7i&e foods are &eetables, fruit, whole rains, beans >leumes?, seeds
and nuts. ;enerally speakin, the closer to the 3arth, the better food is
for your health. 'oy and other alternati&e products are becomin more
and more popular as healthy substitutes for dead foods such as meat,
milk, and cheese from animals. Cet, o&er*consumption of soy and other
products is not recommended.
"1$
/. Bydration
Bydration, of course, is essential to ood health. 4e usually hear that
we should drink 6 cups of water per day. .hat is not a bad suestion,
howe&er most people don@t understand the need for hydration throuh
not only water but also foods, all foods. It is not enouh to drink the
proper amounts of water and then a&oid healthy eatin. Fruits and
&eetables contain a lare 8uantity of natural, clean water. Alon with
the nutrients held in the fibers of these foods, drinkin the riht
amounts of water and eatin a balancedEholistic diet would pro&ide
eGcellent hydration and nutrients.
,. Proper 9iestion, Absorption, %etabolism, and 3limination
:nfortunately, most people are only concerned with part of the
first stae of diestion, how foods taste. 9iestion really has four
staes of processin food, from the moment when you place food in
your mouth to the point when you eliminate it out of your body. Really,
we can say that diestion beins in the choice of food made and the
preparation of it. 9ead foods diest a lot poorly than li&e foods. Foods
that are not prepared properly would not diest properly or ha&e an
appealin taste. (asic diestion is the point from eatin and chewin
food to prepare it for the intestinal diesti&e tract.
Absorption is the neGt process. At this stae, after diestion,
food is broken down and made accessible to the body for uptake from
the diesti&e tract into the circulatory system. .he li&er plays an
important role in this process as a type of filter of waste. .he better our
choice of foods, the better our absorption and the more balanced we
feel.
%etabolism is the process in which the orans and tissues of
the body take in the nutrients brouht to it throuh the circulatory
system. Bere is where the cells, orans, and tissues are replenished and
made new. .hrouh metabolism, the defenses of the body from many
ailments are built up. Aain, if the mind is not riht, the choice of foods
will be poor and diestion, absorption, and metabolism will be
weakened. If those processes are hindered, then of course the proper
function of elimination will be hindered. 3limination is the remo&al of
waste from the body. .his last stae will o without a thouht if the
first process is correct. 4e should eliminate waste on a daily basis. In
all, it is naP&e to only consider how food tastes and inore diestion,
absorption, metabolism, and elimination.
"16
1. ;uarantee (alanced and Replenishin )utrients
It is critical to basicEfoundational health to eat riht, and by that
I mean first a&oidin dead foods as recommended in 'tep 5ne, and
then eatin and drinkin li&e foods as recommended by 'tep .wo.
)eGt, to uarantee balanced and replenishin nutrients, supplements in
a world where foods are less nourishin are basically mandatory. A
multi&itamin a day can o a lon way. 4omen should take iron and
calcium supplements. Kinc is a ood immune system booster, but men
should especially take Finc for prostate health. Ieetarians should take
amino acid >complete protein? supplements, especially if they eGercise.
4e must remember that the body is made up of &itamins and minerals
found in e&ery cell of our bein. .o not replenish our bein is what has
led to countless nutritional based illnesses.
-. %ake Bealthy %eals 9elicious and 3nDoyable
5ne of the pleasant secrets to healthy eatin is to enDoy what
you eat. 4ith some ade8uate le&el of nutritional awareness and some
old fashioned creati&ity, you can turn your kitchen into a place where
healthy and delicious foods are made e&eryday. 'pices and herbs are
the key to makin foods appetiFin. .he idea that people who eat
healthy, especially &eetarians, are missin out on ood food is Dust an
idea. I make one of the best salads in the world because I@m &eetarian.
If you take meat out of your diet, it can help you eGplore the
combinations of foods you may ha&e ne&er considered.
$. %aintain and Always 'eek )utritional Awareness
For the Foundational ;round 4ork le&el of nutrition to be
complete, the interested person must always seek information and
knowlede on nutritional awareness. .here are few thins we do in life
more than eatin. From the day we@re born, to our last*meal, we will be
eatin. 4ith all of the foods in the world, with all of the effects that
foods ha&e on our bodies, enerally speakin, we are all but totally
inorant on matters of which we should &ery informed.

KB3P3R: 7e&el .wo2 3Gercise and 'tructural 'upport
6. A&oid a 'edentary 7ifestyle
5therwise known as the habit of bein a couch*potato, a
sedentary lifestyle is what leads to weiht ain, a weakened immune
system, poor circulation, and enerally bad health. .he cardio&ascular
system is depressed, and a host of other problems can de&elop. A
"1+
sedentary lifestyle leads to poor eatin habits and poor diestion. All of
the tele&ision watchin in the world is Dust not worth your ood health.
+. %aintain at 7east 7iht Physical Acti&ity on 9aily (asis
4hether it is walkin, workin, cleanin, or doin some other
liht physical acti&ity, it is important to ha&e fre8uent physical acti&ity.
In the lon run, such physical acti&ity makes a bi difference in o&erall
health.
1#. Intense Cardio&ascular 3Gercise at 7east .hree .imes a 4eek
For eGcellent fitness and health, one simply cannot a&oid
eGercise. In addition to daily liht eGercise, you should workout
intensely at least three times a week on a&erae, a maGimum of , to -
times per week. 4orkin out strenthens the cardio&ascular system
>heart and luns?, which are central to lone&ity.
11. 9o 3nDoyable 4orkouts, 'ports, andEor Physical Acti&ities
If you were born into this world, you are a product of di&ine union, and
as a conse8uence of your eGistence, you should lo&e yourself. 7o&in
self does not mean inflatin eotism. 7o&in self means feelin
ade8uate instead of lackin, bein satisfied instead of insecure, i&in
thanks for all that you are and all that you ha&e instead of always
focusin on the thins you don@t. 7o&e of self means lo&e of one@s
people. For Afrikans, this is critical because we ha&e been indoctrinated
into self*hate and self*neation. 4e must remember, what you lo&e is
what you protect and respect.
1-. Peace of %ind and Bonor of the Physical .emple
.he person must always stri&e for peace in self. .he
relationships you ha&e with lo&ed ones, family, and friends must build
your peace of mind, or %aat in your circle of relations. 4here you ha&e
relationships in your life that do not build %aat, you must consciously
seek %aat in those relationship or place healthy limitations on them.
5ne cannot ha&e peace of mind with unhealthy relationships.
Additionally, one must seek harmony of the body. Cou must eat
foods that are life i&in, et you eGercise, et ade8uate amounts of
sleep, and use wise decision makin when your physical body interacts
with this world and people in this world.
1$. Respect and Bonor the 5neness of the :ni&erse and the Cycle of
All 7ife
"-#
In many of the steps in the "1 9Dedu*Kheperu*Ra, they
ultimately point in one direction J to the 8uest for the spiritual di&inity
of the person with herselfEhimself and one@s surroundins. .hese "1
steps are all connected in that sense. .hey are intended to assist in the
openin of the soul. 4hen we li&e rihteously, we allow oursel&es to
be used as chane makers in society, to be some type of ray of liht or
hope for others, directly or indirectly. 4e honor the oneness of creation
and the cycle of life by first seekin wholeness, purpose, and meanin
with oursel&es.
16. Barmonious Relationships in 5ne@s 7ife
It is sinificance enouh to reiterate, we must constantly stri&e
to build and maintain harmonious relationships. PersonalEprofessional
relationships, friendships, family relationships, and more all o into
makin the interactions we ha&e in our li&es. If those relationships are
not producti&ely buildin who we are, we must adDust or limit them
accordinly. 4e must also consider the relationships we ha&e with self.
1+. 7i&e with Purpose
;enerally, indi&iduals who eGperience hardships in life are not
on the road of there di&ine purpose. 4hen you are not li&in your
di&ine purpose you enae in beha&ior that is detrimental to your and
your community@s well*bein, and you make ac8uaintances that are not
producti&e. Purpose has a way of keepin your mind clear. Cou think
thouhts that would not ha&e entered your mind. Cou make choices you
would not ha&e made. In effect, purpose i&es uidance.
"#. 9aily Reconition of Biher Power>s?
3&ery person must ha&e a spiritual core to sustain one throuh
hardships and to i&e one the inner liht to inspire others. .o keep your
spiritual core sound, you must i&e daily reconition to the Creator.
9aily reconition of the Biher power in the uni&erse also comes by
way of proper eatin, fastin, prayer, meditation
"1. 5pen 5ne@s (ein to the 'pirit Realm
If the abo&e "1 stepsEpillars are followed, they would naturally
led to this last one. Prayer and eGercise ha&e the same function, the way
I see it. Proper nutrition and lo&e of self o hand in hand. .hese steps
will open the person to conscious eGistence and spiritual li&in.
"-1
Afrikan Rite of "aa#e 'ut&ine
Introduction
Rites of Passae refers to the Rite, sacred and ritual, to pass
from one stae of life or bein to the neGt. Rites of Passae, while
uni&ersal and eGistin in all cultures, is a fundamental element in the
historical and current educational framework of Afrikan people. Rites
ha&e eGisted in Afrika throuhout the history of the people, bein
utiliFed to instill a reat sense of community responsibility, cultural
continuity, and spiritual roundin from eneration to eneration.
.he elements of community responsibility include, amon
others, responsibility of the indi&idual to his or her family, the role of
rowin into adulthood, the sanctimony of marriae, and carin for the
wellbein of not only the community but the people in the community.
For youn people and teenaers, the need for community responsibility
is e&er so critical as e&idenced in the social ills faced by Afrikan youth.
9ue to sla&ery, colonialism, war, oppression, and inorance,
Afrikans ha&e been separated from the cultural umbilical cord of our
ancestors. Cultural continuity would therefore include relearnin and
reestablishin at least some of the traditions, ceremonies, and customs
that are characteristic of our people. 4hen people do not celebrate their
own cultures it is because they are the sla&es of others.
'piritual roundin has been the sustainin power of our
people for o&er thousands of years, lon before we arri&ed in the
Americas. .he compleG dilemma of Rites today is that most Afrikans
born in America, e&en millions in Afrika and other parts of the world
belon to non*Afrikan faiths. In the days of our ancestors, one could
)5. possibly complete his or her Rites while holdin the
reliiousEspiritual &alues of another to be more sacred than his or her
own culture. 4hat@s more so is that we belon to the faiths of people
who ha&e been our historic enemies. In that sense, we ha&e enerations
of Afrikans who ha&e not met the Rites of Passae and spiritual
standards of our ancestors. )eed I say what happens when a people are
disconnected from their cultural lifeblood and foreinEalien cultures are
inDected into their way of life.
"-"
Rites of Passae is intended to teach the responsibilities that
one has to oneself, one@s family, one@s community, one@s nation, one@s
race, the world, and the Creator. .hese are called the 'e&en
Responsibilities2
1. 'elf
". Family
/. Community
,. )ation
1. Race
-. 4orld
$. Creator
9ue to this, the Rites process is all the more critical and
transformati&e. Bowe&er, at the same time, we ha&e to carefully infuse
Afrikan 'pirituality into Rites in public settins. :sually this is done by
emphasiFin the cultural interity of Afrikan*ness while downplayin
the spiritual &alue of our culture. KwanFaa, while it plays a &ery
important role in the cultural reco&ery of our Afrikan Consciousness, is
a prime eGample of emphasiFin less Afrikan 'pirituality and more
cultural interity. Indeed, this is one reason for the success of the
Boliday. .he only way to sol&e this dilemma is to build our own
institutions where we can openly promote Afrikan consciousness,
Afrikan culture, and Afrikan 'pirituality. .hose institutions must be
educational, social, and sacred places that affirm our world&iew as
people of Afrikan ancestry.
)onetheless, our task is a reat one, and we must rabble with
the dilemma as we promote the interenerational &alues of our
ancestors. In our families, howe&er, the task does not ha&e to ha&e the
same compleGity. If the parents, both parents, are able to achie&e a
functional and proficient le&el of Afrikan Consciousness and
'pirituality, those interenerational &alues will be more efficiently and
effecti&ely transmitted to the neGt eneration. 3ither way, our task is
serious and we ha&e a holy endea&or to our ancestors and Creator.
T$e Afrikan B&ood 'at$ ; 'at$ of Secrec+
I must bein this section on Rites of Passae by emphasiFin
that our ancestors took oaths of brotherhood in the male Rites and oaths
of sisterhood in the female Rites. .hose were oaths to hold the most
sacred aspects of the Rites secret. It was thouht that indi&iduals are
ready for certain sacred and cosmoloical knowlede only after they
"-/
ha&e completed the processes. .he oaths of secrecy were also for the
eneral process of initiation and completion of Rites.
.he Afrikan (lood 5ath has been pro&ided in the earlier part of
this book. It is a &erbal oath, not an actual pourin or lettin of blood.
.he Afrikan (lood 5ath is a &erbal oath to continue the strules of
our ancestors, the lobal and historic strule aainst e&il that has
sustained our people for thousands of years. In the Rites of Passae,
students may be re8uired to commit part of the oath to memory. .he
oath itself is also a teachin toolEuide on certain reat Afrikan
ancestors. .he Rites teacher can take each name in the 5ath and make a
bioraphical study of it.
)onetheless, we Afrikans must make an 5ath to our ancestors
who sacrificed their &ery li&es for those of us who ha&e followed them.
Countless Afrikans a&e their li&es as a sacrifice in the wars, battles,
re&olts, and resistance aainst forein oppression o&er the centuries, in
fact o&er se&eral millennia. .he campain may ha&e slihtly different
fronts, but the lon war aainst Afrikans ne&er ceased. 4e must take up
the Afrikan (lood 5ath, or some other oath, to continue to always fiht
oppression and e&il in the world as our ancestors did.
Initiation;Na2in# Cere2on+
Coun people should undero an initiation ceremony at the
beinnin of their Rites of Passae and subse8uent Ceremonies may
follow. .he ceremony may be annual, as the instructed will reach a new
stae of life with each yearly cycle around the sun. In a family settin,
the new initiation ceremony may happen on the birthday >or 3arth*day?
of the child. .he initiation ceremoniesERites ceremonies may occur at
certain staes in the child@s life. .he first Rites of course is from
conception to birth. .he neGt Rites is from childhood to adolescence.
From the teen years into adulthood is the period where the youn
people learn the meanin of adulthood based on their enders. .he
Rites ceremony would represent a passin from an old stae to a new
stae of life. 5n certain of the Rites ceremonies, the youn people may
be i&en Afrikan names. 5pened with libations for the ancestors to
bless the initiates and ask for uidance, the ceremonies should be ritual
and festi&e. .hey may be accompanied with Afrikan drums and dance,
words from elders, reflections on times of challene or triumph in the
Rites process, teachin of reat ancestors, reinforcin Afrikan spiritual
&alues, etc. 7astly, in Rites much as it is in life, men teach boys to be
youn men, and women teach irls to be youn women.
"-,
T$e Core of Intruction
.he core of the Afrikan Rites instruction must be Afrikan
'piritual. .his will re8uire the instructors or parents to become familiar
with one or another branches of Afrikan 'pirituality. .he historic
strules and sur&i&al of Afrikan people must become part of the
knowlede base of e&eryone of our children. Cet still, the child must
know about her or his own family tree, and the child must know what
strules did the family endure to be at their present locales and
situations in life.
.he most ancient &alue system in the world is an ancient
Afrikan &alue system called %a@at. .he )ile Ialley concept of %a@at
should be part of the core instruction in the Rites process. %a@at should
be accompanied with the concepts of %dw )tr >9i&ine 'peech? and
%dw )fr >;ood 'peech?. 7ibation, meditation, and Afrikan prayer
should be tauht and practiced. .he core instruction in Rites is meant to
build character, humbleness of person, and inner*strenth throuh
introspection.
In the core instruction, all in&ol&ed in the Rites process must be
true to the process of 'ankofa or re*AfrikaniFation and character
buildin. 5ur people ha&e been systematically stripped of our cultural
and historic memory, and this has led to much of the emptiness that we
ha&e as a people. Rites is a return to this state of cultural wholeness. In
turn, youn people must be i&en the copin skills to deal with the
challenes of emptiness >i.e. sadness, loneliness, depression, hurt,
helplessness, insecurity, aner, hopelessness, o&ercompensation, etc.?.
Coun people must learn to address the 8uestions that were i&en to me
by an elder years ao2 4ho Am IM 4hat Is %y Purpose In 7ifeM 4hy
9o I 3GistM 'ankofa or re*AfrikaniFation is personal at one le&el,
related to the healin of one@s family at another le&el, and refers to the
healin of a people at another. 4e must build strenth, security, and a
sense of direction in the li&es of our youn people.
-ea&t$( Fitne( and Se&f-Defene
9iscipline is the first lesson of health, fitness, and self*defense.
.his eneration of youn people must learn to a&oid or diffuse &olatile
situations, but they must also learn sur&i&al skills. 3&ery child should
learn at least basic self*defense techni8ues such as blocks and counters.
)utrition is essential to sur&i&al, and eGercise is not only needed for
health but also defense. 3nain in sports is a social and fun way to
stay in shape, but e&eryone should find some type of eGercise to enae
in. .he topic of health and fitness has been elaborated on in another
"-1
section. It is noteworthy that e&ery (lack woman should know at least
basic self*defense.
Anti-Socia&i6ation of Afrikan Yout$
.he Rites of Passae must address the de*socialiFation and
anti*socialiFation of Afrikan youth. .he problems our children and
teens face are so per&asi&e in society. .he misoynistic hatred and the
seGual obDectification of women in rap music impact the imae of our
youn irls and women throuhout our community. %ales row up
with a totally distorted imae of manhood based on the un
brandishin, dru dealin, cash flashin imaes they see in the &ideos
and hear in the music, usually from <studio= ansters who influence
children and teens into a &ery neati&e lifestyle. .he comedy and
sitcoms lead to our teens actin out the kinds of tele&ision beha&ior
they watch e&ery niht. .he materialistic emphasis on cars, skimpy
clothes, and Dewelry continues to shape the &alues of our youn
eneration. All of this, with the breakdown in the family structure,
leads to teen mothers and absent fathers. 5ur children are more
influence by the media and their own peers than their parents, and
many row up with a eneral lack of role models in their communities.
.he Rites of Passae is missin in our communities. 4hile not the end*
all cure for these social problems, it is definitely part of the solution.

"--
Reco22ended Reource for teac$er and tudent:
.hrouhout the Rites of Passae, there is a body of research and
materials that the students must become familiar with. It is no sinle set
of books that must be read, rather it is a body of work that the student
and teacher must be informed about in someway, with some le&el of
competence.
1. Assata 'hakur@s Auto%io'raphy
". %alcolm Q@s Auto%io'raphy
/. Amos 4ilson@s !lueprint for !lack +o,er
,. Lohn ;. Lackson@s Introduction to African Ci(ili2ation
1. .ony (rowder@s Nile 1alley Contri%ution to Ci(ili2ation
-. %arimba Ani@s $et the Circle !e 5n%roken
$. %aulana Karena@s K,an2aa# A Cele%ration of Family4
Community4 and Culture
6. .ony %artin@s Race First and Marcus 0ar(ey# A *ero
+. I&an Ian 'ertima@s !lack &omen in Anti.uity
1#. Lomo Kenyatta@s Facin' Mount Kenya
11. Chinua Achebe@s Thin's Fall Apart
1". Lacob Carruther@s Md, Ntr4 Irritated 0enie, and Intellectual
&arfare
1/. ChinweiFu@s ecoloni2in' the African Mind
1,. 5ladauh 38uiano@s Interestin' Narrati(e
11. Lames Conyers@ +an African Nationalism in the Americas# The
$ife and Times of :ohn *enrik Clarke.
1-. 9orothy 'terlin@s &e Are "our Sisters# !lack &omen in the
Nineteenth Century
1$. Cheikh Anta 9iop@s Ci(ili2ation or !ar%arism
16. Lacob 5lupona@s African Spirituality
1+. Anthony 3phirim*9onkor@s African Spirituality# -n !ecomin'
Ancestors
"-$
Afrikan-Centered Sba+t Curricu&u2 'ut&ine
I ha&e eGamined the Afrikan oriins of education throuhout
the pre&ious paes of the book. .his is particularly the case in the
essays on math, science, and literature. It is also the case to some eGtent
with Part 5ne of the essay entitled <.he Interenerational Afrikan
4orld&iew= which forms a section of the o&erall historical analysis that
has been presented. Any culturally sinificant instruction would
address the )ile Ialley oriins of educational concepts still in practice
today, as I ha&e attempted to document in this labor. Additionally, what
I ha&e done in the book is presented a broader operational knowlede
of Afrikan*Centered education and instruction >sbayt?.
.oo often, Afrikan*Centered education is discussed and written
about from a philosophical and conceptual approach. 5ut of sincere
concern, teachers and parents often read books, attend workshops, and
are i&en slide presentations which they walk away from with little or
no idea of how to implement what they ha&e learned as it relates to the
8uality of education for their studentsEchildren. .his book is essentially
a how*to*do teGt on implementin Afrikan*Centered content into the
maDor subDect areas by the processes of correction and infusion. First,
the misconceptions and myths of miseducation must cease and then the
correct Afrikan content must be infused. Additionally and &ery
necessary for this purpose, a curriculum outline or an instructional map
is pro&ided in the proceedin paes.
(elow you will find a curriculum outlineEmap for the subDect
areas of math, science, literature, social studies, and the eneral arts
>meanin creati&e and performin arts?. Althouh the descriptions are
not eGtensi&ely detailed, much of what is listed, not all, is in pre&ious
the paes of the book itself, often with resources. 3ither way, teachin
is a creati&e profession, and I cannot stress enouh that for Afrikan*
Centered instruction and learnin to work, the teacher must become a
student and study. In each subDect cateory, you will find a curriculum
outline, modules or units of study which includes recommended subDect
content, personalities, eras of study, andEor some resources in a short
eGplanation or statement about the purpose of certain of the sections.
"-6
.he modules are oraniFed into subDect sections and numbered. %%
>%ath %odule?, '% >'cience %odule?, 7% >7iterature %odule?, and
B% >Bistory %odule? should make for easier use and reference.
Additionally, Afrikan*Centered education is eclectic, that is the
historical basis of all subDects is sinificant, literature and history are
particularly linked, math and science will o&erlap, and art can bride
into se&eral other areas. In essence, the instructor must use the best of
whate&er content to make the learnin process ali&e and reachable in
the student@s mind.
3ach module includes a short list of skills andEor obDecti&es
that the teacher should use as an instructional uide when decidin on
how to construct their lessons around the recommended content. .he
skillsEobDecti&es are fleGible. .he instructor may consider more or less
from this area.
.he modules also include su''ested lesson duration or
fre8uency. Bow lon or how often a lesson is tauht, its duration or
fre8uency, its emphasis in a i&en area, depends ultimately on the
creati&ity and knowlede base of the teacher and what the teacher is
willin to learn. .he suested duration or fre8uency is &ery open. 5ne
teacher may create a full unit of what another may teach as a 1# minute
preclass lesson.
.he pre&ious paes of the book and outline are in no way all*
inclusi&e, but rather they are a list, more or less, of recommended
content for the process of enhancin education in the areas of Afrikan*
Centered practice and methodoloy. For the interested researcher, the
cateorical curriculum lists that follows can pro&e &ery useful in
directin the educational and socialiFation process of the Afrikan
student andEor child.
'tudents should ain a le&el of content understandin or
eGposure with the recommended modules and skills. It is dependent
upon the teacher becomin a student in this process. .he road to
becomin a teacher takes at least four years of collee trainin,
ad&anced derees, andEor certificates. .he process of re*teachin the
teacher is no shortcut. .he teacher must be willin to first think
differently about the dynamics of the classroom. .he teacher must also
be willin to think differently about the purpose and the process of
education for the Afrikan student. A chane in perception is &ery
critical in this process. .he teacher must be open to different and
correct perspecti&es about Afrikan people, culture, history, and
ci&iliFation besides what is in mainstream thouht. :ltimately, the
teacher must reconsider and raise the eGpectations she or he has of the
"-+
students. .he proper frame of reference and creati&e thouht are
prere8uisite to implementin Afrikan*Centered instruction. 5ne must
understand that throuh Afrikan culture, education has a &ery often,
completely different approach than in 3uropean or other non*Afrikan
content teachin and instruction.
.he function of what is presented below is to pro&ide a
roadmap to brin a more wholistic approach to Afrikan instruction or
sbayt. Research is the key for this curriculum to work. It is &ery
important, critical, that the teacher and the parent researchers before
tryin to implement or i&e instruction to students >or children? on the
followin modules, unless they are already &ery familiar with the
content. It would pro&e beneficial for the instructor to also i&e her or
himself a period of introspection, a time of mental house cleanin, to
address the misconceptions and erred perceptions that miht be held
about Afrikan *ness. .here is no need for further elaboration on the
sinificance of the cateories below, the entire book was detailed for
that purpose. 5ne last note should be made on Afrikan art since there is
no curriculum outline in the teGt for it.
.here is no curriculum outline for the performin or creati&e
arts with the other subDects in the proceedin paes. Bowe&er, it is
stronly recommended that the arts instructor take careful and
necessary time to thorouhly infuse the class with Afrikan*Centered
content. In the culturally based school, all spaces and all subDects
reflect Afrikan identity, history, and culture in some way.
First, the Afrikan dance instructor has found no difficulty with
this since the class rows directly out of Afrikan content. 4ith Afrikan
dance, we can reconsider Physical 3ducation or ym classes. .his class
best ser&es the Afrikan*Centered school as a class of cultural and
physical eGpression. .he art form should be accompanied with
instruction and lessons. 'tudent should learn about the cultures and
peoples who de&eloped certain dance forms. .
'econdly, creati&e arts teachers should consider art in ancient
and traditional Afrikan cultures, the meanin and works of Afrikan
artists, and Afrikan motifs in eneral. 'tudents should be able to make
&arious types of Afrikan masks and dolls >fiurines? and ha&e the
instruction and lessons to eGplain the culture of oriin of their artwork.
.he Afrikan art instructor should also pro&ide students with
opportunity to de&elop their own art skills.
7ast, Afrikan martial arts and nutrition should be incorporated
into physical trainin and eGercise. Fitness and defense are art forms
"$#
that are seriously lackin in our community. 'tudents must be tauht
discipline throuh martial arts and ways to de&elop health.
&A(/E&A(IC3
%%12 Afrikan Num+erin% 3ystems
9uration or Fre8uency2 5ne full lesson, preclass or post lesson>s?.
.here is a myth the Afrikans were preliterate and inorant
before 3uropeans came to the continent. .his myth beins to undero
deconstruction when the researcher finds out that Afrikans were the
world@s first enlihtened people. )umberin systems are one such
eGample, and they ha&e eGisted not only in the )ile Ialley, but
throuhout the continent.
5ne can study and teach the Afrikan numberin systems
throuhout the continent. Amon the many culturesEnationsElanuaes
that pro&ide us with Afrikan numberin systems are K%., Coruba,
9oon, Kiswahili amon &arious nation roups, and so many others.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Countin, Place Ialues, 7inuistic Comparisons
%%"2 K&( measurin% ru,er !roya, cu+it'
9uration or Fre8uency2 5ne full lesson, preclass or post lesson>s?.
It is of reat historical sinificance the world@s first measurin
rulers are found in Afrika. Cet, so few know this simple fact. .he royal
cubit can be used to teach &ery basic math skills. It is a reat
mathematical*historical lesson because the ruler includes fractions and
%dw )tr symbols. 7ike most if not all of the followin modules, one
can always re&isit the historical sinificance of the royal cubit in
classroom instruction in other content.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: 4hole number, Place Ialues, Fractions, 9ecimals
%%/2 Con(ersions ,ith Eye of *eru A&ed/atB
9uration or Fre8uency2 A full unit or se&eral lessons.
4ith the <3ye of Beru= as the initial reference, students can
learn the K%. concept and use of fractions. Fractions are essential
di&isions of units, and therefore they are also decimals * all skills that
can be tauht with this ancient Afrikan symbol. .he 4edDat or <3ye of
Beru= pro&ides an eGample of the use of Afrikan symbolism and the
incorporation of mathematics.
"$1
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Fractions, Percents, Ratio, Reducin, 9ecimals,
9i&ision
%%,2 ("e 8ero in K&(- t"e $,ace of &a6at
9uration or Fre8uency2 A full unit or se&eral lessons.
In 3uropean education, the Fero is nothinness. Amon a
ci&iliFation such as the )ile Ialley where the people based their total
world&iew on a concept such a %a@at, the Fero would hold a different
cultural perspecti&e. .o the riht of the Fero are positi&e numbers >or
inteers? and neati&es to the left, which means that the Fero is the
domain of balance. .he concept of %a@at in alebraic e8uations can be
used to pro&ide students with another frame of referential
understandin. Aain, this also holds opportunities for moral lessons.
5ften, when I ha&e tauht e8uations to students, it is with a scale of
%a@at on the board or in the classroom.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Alebra, Formulas, Positi&e and )eati&e )umbers,
38uations2 the Fero as %a@at E the center of the e8uation
%%12 #yramid &at"- A met"od of ca,cu,atin% s"a$es.
9uration or Fre8uency2 A full unit or se&eral lessons.
Pyramid math deals first with the dimensions of the ;reat
Pyramids, and second with formulas used in calculatin these shapes.
.he instructor may then use primarily the eometry of trianles and
pyramids, and the &arious types of anles produced from
superimposin a circle or circles o&er them. .he instructor may
superimpose a rotated trianle inside of another, a pyramid inside of a
circle or rectanular prism, a circle inside of a trianle, etc. .hese
methods of pyramid math with allow students to learn the interactions
of formula e8uations with &arious shapes.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: ;eometric 'hapes, ;eometric Formulas, 9erees,
Anles, 38uations
%%-
Kemetic Ca,endar 9 Cosmo%ram) Kon%o Cosmo%ram
9uration or Fre8uency2 Preclass, Post class, or Class lesson>s?.
For this eGercise, the instructor should initially use the Kodiac
calendar from the .emple of Barthor or Bet*Beru from 9endera. A
more ad&anced study would include a knowlede of the K%.
numberin system for the months and year. .his would include the )ile
Ialley names for days, weeks, months, and years.
"$"
.he Kono Cosmoram can be used to understand Afrikan
symbolism as it is a much more simplified &ersion of the calendar from
9endera. .he Kono Cosmoram teaches the fundamental concept of
Afrikan eGistence in time and space. 'ee '%11 and '%1# for more
details.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Calendars, Place Ialues, 9erees, .ime and 'pace
%%$2 (ime Kee$in% De*ices- use of s"adows) ,i%"t) *o,ume)
and structures
9uration or Fre8uency2 A full unit or se&eral lessons.
5ur Afrikan ancestors in&ented and used se&eral types of time
keepin de&ices. Alon the )ile, the Afrikans in&entedEused solar,
lunar, stellar, and seasonal calendars. .his was done by the
interenerational obser&ations of the hea&ens >stars? for many
thousands of years.
4ater Clocks, 'hadow Clocks, .ekhens, Pyramids, and
.emples were all types of time keepin de&ices. .he instructor should
bein such a study by definin time itself and addressin why the
measurement of time is sinificant. %%- on the Kemetic calendar
would be &ery useful before presentin this module.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Knowlede of Afrikan .echnoloy, Concept and
%easurement of .ime, Calendars, 9erees
%%62 K&( measures and wei%"ts
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
K%. had a complete system of measures and weihts. .he
K%. system can be compared with the metric and standard system. In
Kemet, it was sinificant to measure and find the &olume of the rain
and other food stuffs durin har&est time. .hey measured their amounts
of old and other metals. 5ils and be&eraes were measured. .he
people of K%. used a de&ice call the )ilometer to measure the
floodin of the )ile. It was due to these techni8ues that the Afrikans
de&eloped eometry and e8uations. %a@at was at first a 'piritual code,
but e&entually the concept of balance took on reat meanin.
A more eGtensi&e study would find that other Afrikan cultures
used weihts and measures, linuistic or cultural elements of which can
be found throuhout Afrika such as in the )ile Ialley, the 3ast Afrikan
coast, the Ashanti, the %alian home of old .imbuktu, and the Cono
basin.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Ancient and %odern %easures and 4eihts,
38uations, (asic 5perations
"$/
%%+2 Arc"itecture of K&(- Dia%rams and &easurements of
Bui,din%s
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
)ile Ialley ci&iliFation pro&ides a ranin study of &arious
ancient architecture. From the ;iFa to Abu 'imbel and beyond,
architecture abounds in the )ile Ialley like no other ancient nation.
.his presents itself as &ery useful for the creati&e instructor. 'tudents
can draft with ratio scale measurements >inches to feet to yards? some
of the many buildins and monuments from K%.. 'tudents may draft
parts of .emple such as the entrance to 4aset. .ekhens, pyramids, and
columns may be used. 'tudents can use the K%. system of usin the
rid backround for proportions with the draftin. :sin the rid
backround would then allow for an introduction to coordinate planes.
.he teacher may then use these skills to draft some modern
architecture. 'ee '%" for a scientific approach.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Knowlede of K%. Architecture, 9raftin 'kills,
%easurement, Ratio %easurement, 9imensions, Coordinate Planes
%%1#2 A"mose (e:t and 0t"er &at" #a$yri
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
.he Ahmose Papyrus is the foundin teGtbook on mathematics
in the entire world. Althouh this book is of reat anti8uity, it has many
of the same mathematical concepts used today in rade schools, hih
schools, and collees throuhout the world. 38ually, the teacher should
consider instruction on the other mathematical and scientific papyri
such as the %oscow, Kahun, 3bers, and 'mith teGts. I would
recommend that the instructor bein with Cheikh Anta 9iop@s
Ci(ili2ation or !ar%arism, in particular his chapter <Africa@s
Contribution2 'ciences,= and RL ;illins@s Mathematics in the Time of
the +haraohs)
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Ad&anced 'tudy of )ile Ialley %ath and the
5riins of %odern %ath.
%%112 Ancient Bio%ra$"ies of Afrikan &at"ematicians
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
'ome of the reat Afrikan mathematicians from anti8uity are
Imhotep of .hird 9ynasty, 'enedDem of 1+th 9ynasty, and the Afrikan
woman Bypatia of AleGandria. All students should learn about the
contributions of their ancestors in the subDect of math. .he study of
bioraphies produces a needed sense of self and race confidence.
"$,
(ioraphies place a face or personality to the subDect and makes it more
tanible to the mind of the student.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Bistorical and Chronoloical (ackround
%%1"2 &odern Bio%ra$"ica, 3tudies of Afrikan
&at"ematicians
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
.eachers must take some time to educate their students on the
many reat Afrikan mathematicians that our people ha&e produced. In
effect, this is i&in the Afrikan personality to mathematics. 'ome of
the reat Afrikan mathematicians of note are the astronomer and
mathematician (enDamin (anneker, the computer scientist and
prorammer Annie 3asley, the physicist and mathematician L. 3rnest
4ilkins Lr., and mathematician and computer scientist Phillip
3meawali.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Bistorical and Chronoloical (ackround
%%1/2 4ord #ro+,ems- 2e,e*ant92ea, 7ife &at"ematics
9uration or Fre8uency2 Preclass, Post class, or Class lesson>s?.
.here is ne&er enouh instruction in mathematics i&en on the
analysis of current and historical e&ents. .he basis of mathematics
should address real life and rele&ant word problems. 4ord problems
and critical analysis are ways math presents itself in the real world.
Bowe&er, it is tauht in the classroom the eGact opposite as raw
operations and numbers primarily. All too often teachers spend the
entire year focusin on numerical math problems, and then students are
unprepared when they encounter word problems on any type of
standardiFed tests.
5n the subDect of rele&ant or real life math, for Afrikan people,
this would mean addressin the subDect as it relates to buildin and
maintainin the economics of our communities and nations. .he
recommendation for this area is !lueprint for !lack +o,er by Amos
4ilson.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: 9e&elopment of Critical and Analytical .hinkin,
9e&elopin %ath Problems from 4ord Problems, 9e&elopment of
%ath 'kills for )ation (uildin
"$1
3CIENCE
'%12 3i%nificant and 2ecent Arc"eo,o%ica, Disco*eries t"at
connect t"e Afrikan 0ri%ins of t"e /uman C"ain and Ci*i,i1ation
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
.o implement this module, the teacher must be prepared to
search out articles on archeoloical disco&eries or other insihtful
sources. .he disco&ery of Buman remains always offer some new
insiht on the oriin and e&olution of Bumans and Buman ci&iliFation.
Artifacts from ancient ci&iliFations are e8ually re&ealin of the past.
From such disco&eries, we know with fact that Afrika is the birthplace
of Bumanity and ci&iliFation. 9isco&eries in Afrika ha&e yielded so
much information and insiht such as the followin2 the first pre*
Buman and Buman remains, the world@s first use of fire, the oldest
mines and iron instruments, the oldest farmin and irriation systems,
the first domestication of animals, the first time Bumans mapped the
stars, the oldest boats, the oldest writin and numerical systems, the
oldest mathematical*scientific books, the oldest sacred teGt, the oldest
literature, the oldest libraries, the world@s first places of worship and
intellectual centers, and so much more. .here are so many &antae
points that the instructor may bein with on Afrikan archeoloical
disco&eries.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Chronoloy of Bumanity and Ci&iliFation. Bistory
of Recent 9isco&eries.
'%"2 Arc"itecture
9uration or Fre8uency2 Preclass, Post class, or Class lesson>s?.
Pyramid buildin and temple buildin technoloy in classical
Afrika makes for interestin instructional lessons and learnin. .he
instructor may consider a comparison of K%. and Kushite >3thiopian?
Pyramids or study the temples or colonnade architecture of K%.. .he
insihtful science teacher should i&e instruction on the methods of
pyramid and temple buildin, the materials used in the buildin
process, and the social infrastructure that was in place to feed and pay
the workers. At some point the instructor must deconstruct the reat
"$-
myth of Bebrew sla&es buildin the pyramids and their ensla&ement in
K%.. In addressin architecture from the scientific perspecti&e, the
structural soundness of what was built should be considered. .imbuktu
and ;reat Kimbabwe also offer some ancient Afrikan architecture for
study. 'ee %%+ for more details from a mathematical perspecti&e.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Knowlede of K%. Architecture, (uildin
%aterials, and 'ocial Inenuity
'%/2 3cientific &et"od
9uration or Fre8uency2 Preclass, Post class, or Class lesson>s?.
As we ha&e eGplained in the chapter <Afrikan 'cience and
.echnoloy,= the 'cientific %ethod is a creation of the Buman mind.
All cultures ha&e used the scientific method. It is not distinctly Afrikan
or 3uropean. 4here chronoloy is concerned, it is a fact that the first
documented use of the scientific method is in the )ile Ialley. .he
world does not owe its de&elopment to 3urope. If anythin, the re&erse
is true. Additionally, as was also noted, .heophile 5bena has shown
us that .he Ahmose %athematical Papyrus has the oldest recorded
'cientific %ethod in the world. Cet, any people who ha&e built
endurin nations, or monuments, or proDects of any kind ha&e used the
'cientific %ethod.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: .he 'teps of the 'cientific %ethod2 1. 5bser&ation
". Bypothesis /. Prediction ,. .ests
'%,: A%ricu,ture and Domestication
9uration or Fre8uency2 Preclass, Post class, or Class lesson>s?.
'tudents should learn about the aricultural de&elopment that
happened in the )ile Ialley, which was the first in the world. .he
de&elopment of ariculture was one of the most sinificant
de&elopments in Buman history. .he surplus of food would led to the
specification of trades, and this in turn led to the march of )ile Ialley
culture, ci&iliFation, and art. Aricultural de&elopment happened alon
with the domestication of animals, and this should be inored.
Ariculture was the foundation of )ile Ialley ci&iliFation.
Instruction must be i&en, amon other areas, the types of food
and nutritional habits of the K%. people, the K%. new year beinnin
with the )ile Ri&er >Bapi? annual floodin, the feedin of pyramid
builders and crafts workers, and how the abundant supply of food led to
an ad&ance in the arts and sciences, politics and education.
Additionally, prior to colonialism in Afrika, Afrikan kindoms
and empires were built from ariculture and trade. Colonialism would
"$$
interrupt and nearly destroy the social fabric of many nation roups in
Afrika. .he science teacher may use the lessons on ariculture to
preface instruction on the nutritional >&itamin, mineral, and li&e
enFyme? benefits of certain foods, and this could &ery easily transition
into lessons on diestion and Buman anatomy.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Chronoloical backround, 3arly 9e&elopment of
Ad&anced 'ocieties, Afrikan Food Iariety, (enefits of Certain Foods
'%12 Kemetic #"armaco$oeia
9uration or Fre8uency2 Preclass, Post class, or Class lesson>s?.
Part of the instruction on the de&elopment of aricultural
science must address the medicinal usae of plants and nutrition in
K%.. 'ince the beinnin of Buman history, Afrikans ha&e used nature
as a source of health and healin. 'uch a lesson would ha&e to pro&ide
some instruction on the healin properties of food and plant based
medicines. A lesson of this type could easily transition into instructions
on pre&enti&e health and wholistic li&in.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: %edicinal Properties of Plants and other Foods
'%-2 (raditiona, Afrikan #"armaco$oeia
9uration or Fre8uency2 Preclass, Post class, or Class lesson>s?.
.he use of nature in the healin process is common throuhout
the Afrikan continent. A closer look at the healin practices of &arious
Afrikan cultures would pro&e a worthy study of science. For the
instructor, it would benefit to address the healin properties of the
plants or &eetation bein discussed.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: %edicinal Properties of Plants and other Foods
'%$2 K&( and t"e (a+,e of E,ements
9uration or Fre8uency2 Preclass, Post class, or Class lesson>s?.
Iarious metals were used throuhout K%. for architectural
and farmin tools, weapons and huntin tools, Dewelry and Dewelry
makin, medical supplies, and household wares. An introduction of
students of Afrikan descent to the Periodic .able of 3lements could be
the use of metals by their )ile Ialley and other Afrikan ancestors.
Afrikans used iron o&er a thousand years before the Bittites. .here was
no classical ;reek and Roman sculpture when the 16th 9ynasty
Afrikans made artwork of old and sil&er. )ile Ialley Afrikans used
metals and semi*precious stones for Dewelry when the concept was
totally forein to other ancient nations. I must recommend Charles
"$6
Finch@s works such as Echoes of the -ld arkland and Star of eep
!e'innin's)
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Periodic .able of the 3lements
'%62 &edica, 3cience-
9uration or Fre8uency2 A full unit or se&eral lessons.
)ile Ialley Afrikans had pioneered medical science o&er
thousands of years before Bippocrates, called the <Father of %edicine.=
In schools today students are tauht no clue of this fact. 9ocumented
e&idence of the Afrikan use of medical science can be found in the
3dwin 'mith and Kahun medical papyri. In many traditional societies,
medical science had reached an appreciable le&el and skill of treatin
&arious illnesses. In Kemet, bone surery and wound stitchin were
used. In ancient .imbuktu, remo&al of eye cataracts was practiced. .he
(anyoro of :anda successfully performed the Caesarean section when
women in 3urope were dyin from the same procedure. Afrikans were
usin &accination lon before 5nesimus, an Afrikan, introduced the
process into America. .he Afrikan use of plants and herbs continue to
supply 4estern nations with ideas for medicine and cosmetics. .hese
are only a few eGample of Afrikan medical science.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Afrikan oriins, de&elopment, and methodoloy of
medical science
'%+2 &ummification
9uration or Fre8uency2 Preclass, Post class, or Class lesson>s?.
Pullin the brain out the nose, remo&in and preser&in orans,
preser&in and wrappin the body, all of this with ritual and ceremony,
the subDect of mummification always captures the student.
9id the )ile Ialley knowlede of anatomy come before or
after the knowlede of mummificationM 9id they de&elop mutuallyM
.hese are 8uestions that may be used to enae the class. Afrikans in
K%. had a profound knowlede of the heart and circulatory system,
the diesti&e system, the skeletal and muscle system. 9id this
knowlede de&elop before or after or mutually with the practice of
mummificationM 5f course, the creati&e teacher may then use this
in8uiry enaement to teach about the body systems.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: )ile Ialley method of mummification and body
systems
'%1#2 ("e K&( 8odiac Ca,endar from t"e (em$,e of /et-
/eru
"$+
9uration or Fre8uency2 Preclass, Post class, or Class lesson>s?.
.he 9endera Kodiac falls under a broader study on K%.
astronomy. Cet, the Fodiac itself is &ery particular as a window to the
subDect because of its completeness. .hrouh learnin the )ile Ialley
concept of the uni&erse and the meanin of Afrikan symbolism, the
Kodiac Calendar at the Bet*Beru .emple of 9endera is teachable in
science. I would recommend .ony (rowder@s Nile 1alley Contri%ution
to Ci(ili2ation as a resource. 'ee %%- and '%11 for more details.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Astronomy 9erees, .ime and 'pace
'%112 Afrikan Ca,endars
9uration or Fre8uency2 Preclass, Post class, or Class lesson>s?.
Knowlede of Afrikan astronomy oes back to the beinnin
of Buman history. Afrikans throuhout the continent ha&e in&ented all
types of calendars. .he first documented use of the /-1."1 day solar
calendar is in K%.. Afrikans in K%. also in&ented and used the other
types of calendars, i.e. the lunar calendar, stellar calendar, and seasonal
calendar. .he 9oon of %ali inherited the stellar calendar based on the
'irius star system from their )ile Ialley ancestors. Afrikans throuhout
the continent ha&e used seasonal calendars of some type. .his is not to
say that the use of calendars throuhout the world all came directly
from Afrika, yet their is ample e&idence that certain ones ha&e at least a
stron relationship to Afrika. 'ee %%- and '%1# for more details.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Afrikan :se of Iarious Calendars, Astronomy,
9erees, .ime and 'pace
'%1"2 Ancient Bio%ra$"ies9Nation 3tudies
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
.here are many personalities from K%. that must be studied.
5ne method of introduction of any subDect is to bein with a focus on
personalities, that is ancestors, who made contributions to the subDect.
In science, one may bein with Imhotep of .hird 9ynasty or 'enemut
of 16
th
9ynasty. In a broader conteGt, the instructor may i&e an
o&er&iew of a certain nation roup before teachin about their
knowlede of a certain science. 'ee '%1+ for a different perspecti&e.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Knowlede (ase of Afrikan Contributors to 'cience
'%1/2 /ea,t") Nutrition) 5itness) and E:ercise
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
Afrikan people in America are leadin the cateories in deaths
for all of the maDor illnesses * heart disease, stroke, and cancer. People
"6#
are bein dianosed youner and youner with diabetes. 9ue to our
nutritional habits, our children are the most obese of all children, not
only in the :' but the world. .hat health awareness is sinificant for
our people is a doubtless understatement. 4e must create an
en&ironment for our children that enhances their physical health and
health awareness. I refer the researcher to the essays <Bealth, Fitness,
4ell*bein, 'pirit, and 3ducation= and <"1 9Dedu*Kheperu*Ra= for a
more practical approach to our health catastrophe.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: )utrition Awareness, (alanced 3Gercise Routine,
and %entalEPhysicalE'piritual Bealth
'%1,2 &e,anin 3cience-
9uration or Fre8uency2 Preclass, Post class, or Class lesson>s?.
3&entually melanin science will mature beyond the
metaphysical studies it is limited to today. .he role of melanin to the
Afrikan body is of reat sinificance to our people. Instruction may
address the role of melanin in Buman e&olution >see '%1?, protection
from cancer, and the Iitamin 9 factor would be Dunctures of
instruction. Cheikh Anta 9iop is one of the pioneers of melanin
science. Be used the process of melanin detection to pro&e that the
ancient 3yptians >people of K%.? were in fact Afrikans. 9iop@s
%elanin 9osae .est and its sinificance may be considered.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: 'inificance of %elanin in Buman 3&olution and its
Interaction with the Buman 3n&ironment
'%112 B,acks and NA3A
9uration or Fre8uency2 Preclass, Post class, or Class lesson>s?.
(eth (rown, ;uion '. (luford, %ae C. Lemison, and 'tephanie
4ilson are some of the (lacks who ha&e made contributions to )A'A.
From anti8uity to the cuttin ede of modern science, Afrikans
continue to make contributions to the field. As bioraphical studies or
studies on certain aspects of the de&elopment of space science may
bein with (lacks in )A'A
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Knowlede (ase of Afrikan Contributors to 'pace
'cience
'%1-2 G,o+a, DNA 3tudies
9uration or Fre8uency2 Preclass, Post class, or Class lesson>s?
.he study of 9)A is a field of bioloical science. In collee
and hih school, we should encounter the study at different point. .o
make the study of 9)A more sinificant and rele&ant to the Afrikan
"61
student, the instructor should consider the sinificance of 9)A studies
to Afrikan people as an introduction.
4ith a swab of sali&a or some other 9)A sample, a way for
people of Afrikan descent to disco&er what part of Afrika they ha&e
roots in are pro&ided. .he problem with the study is simple to fiure
out. Afrikans miGed on sla&e ships, interminled durin sla&ery, and
ha&e done so after sla&ery. .he chances of an Afrikan ha&in enetic
lineae back to one and only one particular ethnic roup is &ery rare. In
fact, this is e&en rare in Afrika itself where a person may ha&e ne&er
been outside the continent because Afrika is a continent of miration,
always has been. .herefore, the teacher may enae the class with
critical in8uiry about the accuracy of 9)A samplin of Afrikans in
America to find sinular Afrikan roots. )onetheless, the study of
traceable 9)A would pro&e interestin and enlihtenin to students.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Knowlede of 9)A
'%1$2 G,o+a, 4armin% and A,ternati*e Ener%y 3ources
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
At the rate modern technoloy is proceedin, 3arth@s capability
of sustainin Buman will be destroyed. All people and nations should
take interest in lobal warmin and the de&elopment of alternati&e
enery sources that are non*pollutin. .his is one of the reatest
challenes facin Buman eGistence, and we must educate the neGt
eneration on the disastrous impact of lobal warmin. 3ssentially, we
must do at least three thins2 1. Produce leaders who will effecti&ely
address the matter ". Produce scientists who will do the same and /.
Produce an 3arth and en&ironmentally conscious world population. .he
world must become more en&ironmentalist in thouht, eGpectations,
and demands of &arious nationsH otherwise we will all suffer.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: 3n&ironmental Consciousness
'%162 Nature and Afrikan conce$t of Ba,ance-
9uration or Fre8uency2 Preclass, Post class, or Class lesson>s?.
'ustainin the en&ironment and li&in in harmony >%a@at? with
nature is a concept that Afrikans were masterin thousands of years
ao. .he study of Afrikan concepts of nature may include &arious
concepts about Afrikan 'pirituality and the world&iew of different
cultures in the continent. 3&ery traditional Afrikan culture at its core
would ha&e &alues and concepts that affirm the balance of nature and
Buman society. .his is e&ident in the %other 3arth concepts in &arious
parts of Afrika, such as Asasse Caa of the Akan. .he balance of )ature
"6"
and Bumanity is e&idenced in the concepts of 5rishas amon the
Coruba and )etchers in K%.. 4ater and 3arth are sacred in Afrikan
traditional cultures. All Afrikan societies ha&e a form of i&in
libations and offerins to the sacredness of 3arth and honorin nature.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Knowlede of Afrikan 'acred Concepts
'%1+2 &odern Afrikan #ioneers and In*entions
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
People of Afrikan descent ha&e made many contributions to
science and in&entions. Lust a samplin of the Afrikan contribution may
include ;ran&ille .. 4oods and railroad in&entions, ;eore
4ashinton Car&er and aricultural science, 7ewis 7atimer and the
liht bulb, Percy Lulian and Chemistry, Philip 3meawali and the
'upercomputerE internet, Patricia (ath and laser eye surery, %aria
(ritton (rown and the security system, Lane Cooke 4riht and 7ouis
.ompkins 4riht and the treatment of Cancer. 'ee '%1" and '%11 for
a different perspecti&e.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Knowlede (ase of Afrikan Contributors to %odern
'cience
"6/
7I(E2A(U2E
7%12 (y$es and Use of 3ty,es in K&( and in traditiona,
Afrikan societies
9uration or Fre8uency2 5ne or more full lessons, should be re&isited
for reinforcement.
.he writin styles are 3Gpository, Persuasi&e, 9escripti&e, and
)arrati&e. It would pro&e for eGcellent instruction to eGamine samples
of the four main writin styles and their &arious uses in Afrikan
literature, classical and traditional, written and oral. .he instructor may
&isit the abundant supply of K%. literature. .he 3pic of 'undiata, the
'tory of Anansi, and other 4est Afrikan stories, myths, and pro&erbs
are useful consideration. .he Kulu 9eclaration and the Afrikan
)ational Anthem in its &arious forms will pro&ide backround for
instruction. 5f course, the teGt of the modern Afrikan writer will fit
with this instructional dialo >see 7%6?.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Afrikan :se of 4ritin 'tyles
7%"2 Inter$retin% &eanin% 3ym+o,s in Afrikan Cu,ture
9uration or Fre8uency2 Preclass, Post class, or Class lesson>s?.
A basic understandin of the %dw )tr system, Adinkra system,
and other Afrikan symbol systems is a form of Afrikan literacy. 'ome
other cultures may not ha&e a system as compleG as the Adinkra, yet
throuhout Afrika there are ceremonial and traditional symbols used on
certain occasions or e&ents.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Knowlede and 7iteracy of Afrikan 'ymbolism
7%/2 Basic &dw Ntr
9uration or Fre8uency2 Preclass, Post class, or Class lesson>s?.
A basic translation of %dw )tr >Bierolyphs? can be attained
with students at a rane of aes. A profound understandin of %dw )tr
will take years, but with ood instruction a student can learn basic
concepts easily. %dw )tr translation with teGtual support can be
offered at the hih school le&el, and uni&ersities without some course in
%dw )tr should consider themsel&es lackin. At the &ery least, a
knowlede of the basic and common symbols is needed in order to
better understand the K%. world&iew.
"6,
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: %dw )tr ;rammar and )ile Ialley Culture
7%,2 Ni,e .a,,ey 7iterature
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
)ile Ialley literature is rich. 'tories like %an and Bis (a, the
Prophecies of )eferti, the %dw )fr of Khun*Inpu, the .ale of 'inhue,
the 'bayt of Ptah*Botep, and so many other teGts must become a
cornerstone of literary analysis in the culturally infused classroom.
4hile teachin about or from )ile Ialley literature, the instructor
should consider amon other ways of buildin insiht the followin2
the settins, the characters, the meanin of names and places, recurrent
words in the teGt, the moral or ethical &alue of the teGt, what happened
before or after the characters came into the story, cultural eGpressions
and messaes in story, and the eneral purpose of the writin.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: (ackround of )ile Ialley .eGts and 7iteracy
Interpretation
7%12 0ra, (raditions t"rou%"out Afrika !E$ics) #ro*er+s)
3tories) etc.'
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
.he oral tradition is the stories, myths, leends, pro&erbs, etc.
that were passed done &erbally o&er enerations. Afrika has a body a
literature that is from the oral tradition. .he epics, the stories about the
foundin of nations, the pro&erbs throuhout the continent, the Afrikan
creation stories, the 5risha stories of )ieria, the myths of the people
far and wide in the continent, and countless other teGts that were
oriinally oral tradition make up a library of Afrika literature to
consider. 'ee 7%1 for a different approach.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Knowlede of Afrikan 5ral .radition
7%-2 7iterature) Art) #o,itics) and 0r%ani1ations in t"e
/ar,em 2enaissance
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
.he Barlem Renaissance is another rich era in Afrikan history
with literary wealth. Kora )eal Burston( Claude %cKay( Alain 7ocke,
43( 9u (ois, %arcus ;ar&ey, Carter ;. 4oodson, Arthur
'chombur, 9rusilla 9unDee Bouston, Paul Robeson, Richard 4riht,
Cyril (ris, A. Phillip Randolph, and the other artists and oraniFers
of the era offer an abundance of materials and bioraphical information
for instruction and learnin.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: (ackround of 'inificant Bistorical 3ra
"61
7%$2 Ne%ritude 4riters
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
)eritude, like the Renaissance, was an era of Afrikan
awakenin. An introduction to the )eritude mo&ement would bein
with the founders Aime Cesaire from %artini8ue in the Caribbean,
7eopold 'edar 'enhor from 'eneal in 4est Afrika, and 7eon*
;ontran 9amas from French ;uiana in 'outh America. Bowe&er, as I
eGplained in Part .wo of the essay <.he Interenerational 4orld&iew,=
there are other writers to consider from the era, one of the most
sinificant bein Alioune 9iop.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: (ackround of 'inificant Bistorical 3ra
7%62 Bio%ra$"ica, 3tudies of Afrikan &a,e and 5ema,e
Creati*e 4riters and t"eir works
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
.he works of Afrikan male writers such as Chinua Achebe@s
Thin's Fall Apart and 4ole 'oyinka@s Ake# The "ears of Childhood4
ha&e recei&ed some due attention. Bowe&er, the works os some Afrikan
female writers such as .sitsi 9anaremba Ner(ous Conditions) (uchi
3mecheta@s The :oys of Motherhood4 %akuchi@s "our Madness4 Not
Mine ha&e yet to recei&e any due attention. .he creati&e literary
instructor must be able to bride this problem. Afrikan %ale and
Afrikan female writers ha&e made contributions to the field of
literature, and we must consider a broader &ariety of the works of all, at
least more than what has been done.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Knowlede (ase of Afrikan Creati&e 4riters
7%+2 2esistance 7iterature- Anti-3,a*ery9Anti-7ync"
7iterature) Auto+io%ra$"ies) 3$eec"es) News$a$ers.
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
.he Afrikan resistance literature in eneral is nelected. .he
Afrikan American resistance literature is one aspect of this nelected
literature. Anti*sla&ery literature is likewise nelected. 4e must i&e
instruction on the writins and life stories of 5laudah 38uiano@s
account of the %iddle Passae, the antisla&ery poems of Francis 3llen
4atkins Barper4 the body of speeches and writins by Frederick
9oulass, 9a&id 4alker@s Appeal, )at .urner@s Confessions, Benry
Bihland ;arnet@s 'peeches, 'oDourner .ruth@s speeches, the speeches
and writins of Ida (. 4ells, and so much more. A fine piece to
consider for literary and historical conteGt would be 9essalines@
"6-
proclamations aainst the French after the Baitian Re&olutionary 4ar,
a&ailable in Lacob Carruthers@ Irritated 0enie. Children must ne&er be
left with the impression that their ancestors didn@t fiht with pen,
sword, and un aainst sla&ery.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Knowlede (ase of Afrikan Anti*'la&eryEAnti*
7ynch 7iterature
7%1#. 2esistance 7iterature- Anti-Co,onia, 7iterature)
Auto+io%ra$"ies) 3$eec"es) News$a$ers
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
Amon the most nelected aspects of Afrikan literature is the
body of anti*colonialEresistance teGts. .he names and writins of
Alioune 9iop, Amilcar Cabral, Lomo Kenyatta, )elson and 4innie
%andela, and Lohn ;aran do not rin with their historical due. .he
reat speeches, letters, and writins of these leaders and others like
Patrice 7umumba, Lulius )yerere, and 'am )uDoma are not i&en their
proper place in history. 'ee B%+ for Bistorical ConteGt.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Knowlede (ase of Afrikan Anti*Colonial
7iterature and ;lobal Afrikan 7iterature
7%112 Afrikan Descendent Cari++ean97atino93out"
American 4riters) 7eaders) and 3c"o,ars.
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
Afrikan literature is lobal with writers from &arious countries,
in both hemispheres. Bistorical and currently, the Afrikan world has
produced (lack writers and leaders from 'outh America such as Abdias
do )ascimento of (raFil and 4alter Rodney from ;uyana. 4e ha&e
Caribbean writers such as FrantF Fanon of %artini8ue and )icolas
;uillen from Cuba. Claude %cKay of Lamaica wrote an eGcellent book,
!anana !ottom, with his country as the backround. I must include for
literary analysis the speeches of Buo Cha&eF of IeneFuela, althouh
of miGed Afrikan and 'outh American indienous parents, he is a
conscious and proud (lack man who is anti*imperialist and anti*
colonial.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Knowlede (ase of Afrikan ;lobal 7iterature and
'peeches
7%1"2 2esistance 7iterature- ;<=>s to ;<?>s
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
For the era of the (lack Power and Ci&il Rihts mo&ements of
the -#s and $#s, it is the nature of literary analysis to deal with primary
"6$
sources or first hand accounts to ain insiht into the e&ents of the time.
.he same can be done in historical instruction, see B%+ to B%1,, but
we must honor the need for how eclectic this process should be with
interlinkin history and literature. 'econdary accounts, works by other
people who were not present are also enlihtenin. 4e need only
consider works such as Charles Lones@ !lack +anther +arty
Reconsidered and Clayborne Carson@s se&eral historical works on
leaders and oraniFations from the -#s and $#s.
.he era is rich in teGts for literary analysis. In 1+-", Robert
4illiams@ wrote his Ne'roes &ith 0uns. 4illiams is sinificant because
he was a predecessor to %alcolm Q and the (lack Panthers. %artin
7uther Kin@s 1+-, &hy &e Can9t &ait, a short history of the Ci&il
Rihts mo&ement up to that time and his 1+-$ &here o &e 0o From
*ere in which he discusses (lack Power and other issues are
recommended. 9r. Kin had se&eral other works. It benefits instruction
to see the e&olution of Kin@s thouht, instead of freeFin him in time
to one speech. %alcolm Q@s Auto%io'raphy was published after his
1+-1 assassination. .his book continues to inspire readers today in not
only understandin %alcolm@s times, but it also inspires readers into
social chane today. .he speeches, articles, autobioraphies, and
bioraphies of leaders like 3lla (aker and Fannie 7ou Bamer of ')CC,
the (lack Panther Party@s Buey P. )ewton and others, %aulana
Karena of the :' oraniFation, and others would ser&e as primary
source materials and pro&ide literature for instruction on the era.
Althouh published in 1+6$, Assata 'hakur@s Auto%io'raphy is
primary source material on the -#s and $#s. .here is some basic
historical literature that we cannot continue to nelect to teach our
children and students. 'ee B%1" for historical perspecti&e.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Knowlede (ase of 'ocial Resistance
"66
/I3(02@ 9 30CIA7 3(UDIE3
B%12 Geo%ra$"y
9uration or Fre8uency2 Preclass, Post class, or Class lesson>s?.
'tudents may be instructed to name the countries in Afrika and
their capitols. It is important for students to know the political
boundaries and the eoraphic landscape of the continent, such as
ri&ers, mountains, deserts, etc. 'tudents may recei&e instruction on the
history of certain key countries and ethnic roups in the anti*colonial
strules of Afrika. .he instructor may find it &ery useful to bein a
lesson by first pro&idin the &isual eoraphy of the nation or nations
in 8uestion. .his can be used before i&in instruction on any country
or reion in the world. 'tudents should ha&e a eoraphically &isual
location of countries before studyin.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: ;eoraphic Knowlede
B%"2 Afrikan 0ri%ins of /umanity and Ci*i,i1ation
9uration or Fre8uency2 Preclass, Post class, or Class lesson>s?.
5ne of the &ery first lessons that students should learn is that
Afrika is the oriins of humanity and ci&iliFation. Instruction may be
based on recent archeoloical e&idence like the 7ucy find or historical
accounts from ancient writers or the research of present day scholars
such as Cheikh Anta 9iop. For more details, see the '%1 section under
'cience, <3i%nificant and 2ecent Arc"eo,o%ica, Disco*eries t"at
connect t"e Afrikan 0ri%ins of t"e /uman C"ain and Ci*i,i1ation.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Chronoloy of Bumanity and Ci&iliFation. Bistory
of Recent 9isco&eries.
B%/2 Ni,e .a,,ey Ci*i,i1ation
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
)ile Ialley ci&iliFation is Afrika@s classical ci&iliFation which
led not only Afrika but the entire ancient world. .herefore, the )ile
Ialley must become more or less the nucleus of educational instruction
in all subDect areas. Instruction must not remain on the )ile Ialley for
the entire year, but it is one of the onoin reference points of
instruction. If year lon instruction does not bein with the )ile
ci&iliFation and culture, it is noted at &arious Dunctures.
"6+
.he instructor must become &ery familiar with the chronoloy
of K%. and maDor personalities of the nation. 'inificant, but not
eGclusi&e to )ile Ialley ci&iliFation would be the study of the
followin2 pre*dynastic ci&iliFations and K%. dynastic chronoloy,
reat male and female K%. ancestors, K%. culture, %dw )tr and
%dw )fr, the concept of 4hmy %su, and K%. and 3thiopia >Kush?
comparati&e studies
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: K%. Chronoloy, Ancestors, and Ci&iliFation
B%,2 2esistance /istory of Nort" Afrika
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
.he resistance history of Afrikan people is all but entirely
inored, and this is not without desin. Instruction should be i&en on
the historic reat Bannibal of Carthae, the resistance of Kahina and
Kuesila in the 6
th
century to Arab in&asions, and .arik and the %oors
$11 AC3 in&asion into 3urope.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Knowlede (ase of )orth Afrikan Resistance
B%12 2ise and 5a,, of 4est Afrikan Em$ires
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
4est Afrika offers a rich history of kindoms and empires.
'ome of the maDor personalities which should pro&ide basic instruction
are .enkhamenin of ;hana, 'undiata the founder of %ali, the leendary
%ansa %usa of %ali, and 'unni Ali (er the founder and warrior*kin
of 'onhai. 'tudyin the structure of the societies, the wealth of the
empires, and the feats that were accomplished would enrich classroom
instruction.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Knowlede (ase of 4est Afrikan 3mpire (uildin
in the Pre*%aafa 3ra
B%-2 ("e Afrikan &aafa-
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
'tudents must learn the historical truths about the %aafa. Arabs
ensla&ed Afrikans before 3uropeans with all the same brutality and
inhumanity. Afrikans had a form of cultural ser&itude that did not
resemble the ross inhumanity of the 3uropean or Arab system. 'la&ery
was widely accepted in the Americas, from the American presidents to
the American poor, many held Afrikans in brutal sla&ery.
.he Afrikan %aafa started around /,1## years ao, and it has
not stopped to this &ery day. .he %aafa has been the cause of so much
turmoil, bloodshed, and enocide in the Afrikan world. .he Afrikan
"+#
%aafa bean with the Byksos in&asion of K%.. .he Arab %uslim
in&asion of Afrika in -/+ AC3 was a continuation of the %aafa,
especially with the spread from the initial in&asion across )orth Afrika
and south into the 'udan. .he enocides today in 'outh 'udan and
9arfur are continuations of a lon assault on the Afrikan continent by
Arabs.
.he rise of the 3uropean sla&e trade, colonialism, and neo*
colonialism are but continuations of a lon period of forein aression
aainst Afrikan people. Bowe&er, we must not use the %aafa to retreat
into &ictimiFation history. In teachin about the %aafa, we must teach it
parallel with resistance history. Followin this module, you will find
three possible modules on resistance history.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Knowlede of 4hat Afrikans 3ndured in the %aafa
of ColoniFation and 'la&ery
B%$2 Anti-3,a*ery 4ars-
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
Afrikans ha&e waed wars aainst sla&ery all around the world.
In the $th to the +th century in (asra, Ira8 the Afrikans called KanD
fouht at least / maDor wars aainst the Arabs. From 1$+1 to 16#,, the
Baitian Re&olutionary 4ar was waed aainst sla&ery, and the reat
9essalines would emere to brin the nation to independence. Aueen
)Fina fouht Portuuese ensla&ers for se&eral decades in the Anola*
Cono reion. Lamaican warrior*8ueen )anny led her maroons warriors
aainst the 3nlish in the 1$##s. .here were wars in 'outh America,
such as that of Palmares led by Kumbi. Florida maroons fouht the :'
o&ernment in the Afrikan 'eminole 4ars of the 16##s. Afrikans ne&er
tamely accepted sla&ery. 'la&ery was fouht from beinnin to end,
and the fiht was lobal.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Bistorical (ackround on how lon and o&er how
much space has been Afrikan Resistance to 'la&ery.
B%62 &aroon92esistance /istory and Afrikan 4ars
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
Resistance history in the Americas is rich with the strules of
the maroons. %aroons were Afrikans who li&ed independent of sla&ery
and acti&ely resisted and fouht wars aainst it. .here were maroon
wars and acti&ity in e&ery maDor sla&e holdin nation in the Americas,
includin %eGico and 'outh America. .wo of the most recommended
sources on maroon history are Berbert Aptheker@s American Ne'ro
"+1
Sla(e Re(olts and Richard Price@s Maroon Societies# Re%el Sla(e
Communities in the Americas)
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Bistorical (ackround on %aroonae
B%+2 Anti-Co,onia, 4ars) /istorica, Back%round of Anti-
Co,onia, 2esistance) &et"ods of 2esistance) Bio%ra$"ica, 3tudies
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
Afrikans ha&e resisted in&asions into Afrika, and fouht aainst
colonialism and neo*colonialism in e&ery reion of the continent. It is
of reat and pi&otal sinificance that students learn resistance history
and not &ictimiFation history.
.he Ashanti 4ars aainst the (ritish went on throuhout the
16##s. 'outh Afrikans ha&e a rich history of resistance to in&asions and
apartheid. Around the turn of the last century, the Berero and other
)amibians were willin to fiht for their homeland aainst the
;ermans until the last of them died. .he %aDi %aDi resistance was a
campain in 3ast Afrika waed aainst the ;ermans. .he %au %au
waed a couraeous war aainst (ritish colonialism for almost a
decade. .he PAI;C led by Amilcar Cabral, FR37I%5 led 3duardo
%ondlane and 'amora %achel, %P7A lead by Aostinho )eto were
all reat resistance strules aainst the Portuuese. .he reat Lohn
;aran founded the 'P7%A in 1+6/ and fouht aainst the Arabs of
'udan for "# years. .he 5A: leadin anti*colonial eneration of
)krumah of ;hana, 'elassie of 3thiopia, )yerere of .anFania, and the
other leaders is a &ery nelected area in instruction with so much
potential to open worlds of knowlede for the student. .here is so much
more that the instructor must consider with the history of Afrikan
resistance. Afrikans ne&er accepted sla&ery of colonialism, and it is a
crime if students are left with that impression. 'ee 7%1# for literary
perspecti&e.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Anti*Colonial Campains
B%1#2 ("e /ar,em 2enaissance
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
:nder the section of 7iterature, see 7%-, <7iterature) Art) #o,itics)
and 0r%ani1ations in t"e /ar,em 2enaissance.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: 'ee 7%-
B%112 2ise of t"e #an-Afrikan 9 Nationa,ist &o*ement
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
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Pan*Afrikanism usually refers to the unification of all Afrikan
people, or at least a functional operational unity of sufficient numbers.
Afrikan nationalism refers to the ownership of Afrikan communities
and nations by themsel&es. .hese two concepts really are &ery natural
and not uni8ue to Afrikans. All people should be united and own their
communities. .his has been a strule for Afrikans due to forein
aression. Cet, there has been certain indi&iduals who ha&e marked
their li&es by promotin the interest of Afrikan people.
.hese indi&iduals and many others are &ery worthy of
classroom instruction and learnin2
Paul Cuffe was a wealthy ship builder who used resources in
the late 1$##s and early 16##s to fiht aainst sla&ery. Bis children
were denied the an education, so he started his own school. Be also was
an early oraniFer of the (ack to Afrika mo&ement.
%artin 9elany an anti*sla&ery abolitionist, a reat speaker, and
one of the leadin proponents of nationalism and the (ack to Afrika
mo&ement throuhout the 16##s. Bis 161" book, The Condition4
Ele(ation4 Emi'ration4 and estiny of the Colored +eople of the 5nited
States and -fficial Report of the Ni'er 1alley E3plorin' +arty, is still
read today.
%aria 'tewart was an abolitionist, nationalist, and admirer of
The Appeal and its author 9a&id 4alker. 'he belie&ed that 4alker was
an eGample of Afrikan manhood in the :'. In 16//, she a&e a speech
in front of the (oston African %asonic 7ode, and she admonished the
men for standin up aainst oppression the way 4alker had done in the
writins of his Appeal. Ber speech was e&en more contro&ersial for its
time because women didn@t do reular public speakin as she did.
Benry Bihland ;arnet, Paul Robeson, %arcus and Amy
Lac8ues ;ar&ey, 43( 9u(ois, %alcolm Q are amon the many others
who the historically aware instructor will make time for in the
classroom. .he 5A: eneration of Kwame )krumah of ;hana, Baile
'elassie of 3thiopia, Lomo Kenyatta of Kenya, Patrice 7umumba of
Cono, and others cannot be o&eremphasiFed in the instruction on Pan*
Afrikanism and )ationalism.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Knowlede of Bistorical 9e&elopment of Pan*
Afrikanism and )ationalism
B%1"2 Ci*i, 2i%"ts and B,ack #ower &o*ement from ;<A>s
to t"e ;<?>s
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
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.he history of the Ci&il Rihts mo&ement is the most
documented aspect of Afrikan American history. 4hile it is sinificant,
and should be studied, this mo&ement ran parallel to the (lack Power
%o&ement. .he two mo&ements had a cross*influence on each other.
(oth mo&ements are sinificant to Afrikan conscious instruction and
learnin. 4e must not only study %artin 7uther Kin, but also
%alcolm Q. 4e must not only learn about the )AACP, but also the
(lack Panther Party. 'tudents must learn some of the factors that led to
the radicaliFation of youth in the 1+-#s. %ainstream education focuses
on the fiht for desereation and totally inore the strule for
Afrikan*Centered education. .he 1+1, (rown &erses (oard case is
historic, but so is the 1+$" launchin of the Council of Independent
(lack Institutions >CI(I?.
.he mo&ements ne&er achie&ed their ultimate obDecti&es for
many reasons. 5f course, oraniFational politics played a role. Cet
additionally, students must learn about how both mo&ements were
under assault from the F(I@s C5I).37PR5 operations. 'ee 7%1" for
literary perspecti&e.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Knowlede (ase of 'ocial Resistance
B%1/2 Afrikan /istorio%ra$"y
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
.he historically conscious teacher must pro&ide instruction not
only on the sinificant eras and personalities of Afrikan history, but
their must be instruction on the Afrikan historians and leaders who
ha&e brouht Afrikan awareness to the masses, those who ha&e
dedicated their li&es to the rescue and reconstruction of our historical
memory. 'ome of these reat scholar*leaders are Arthur 'chombur,
9rusilla 9unDee Bouston, Cheikh Anta 9iop, LC 9e;raft Lohnson, LA
Roers, Lohn Lackson, Chancellor 4illiams, Lohn Benrik Clarke,
Runoko Rashidi, %arimba Ani, .ony (rowder, and so many others.
.hrouh these lessons, students should learn why Afrikan history was
falsified, how it was falsified, and why correctin the myths about the
past are so necessary for the future.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: (ackround on 4orks and 7i&es of Afrikan
Bistorians
B%1,2 G,o+a, Afrikan 3tudies
9uration or Fre8uency2 A complete unit or se&eral lessons.
Arthur 'chombur, LA Roers, 43( 9u (ois, and as of recent
Runoko Rashidi, alon with a few others, ha&e pioneered the lobal
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study of Afrikan people. 4hat are the conditions, strules, history, and
accomplishments of Afrikan people throuhout the worldM 4hat are the
locales of the lobal Afrikan population, especially in those less
documented countries and reions of countriesM 4hat is the situation of
Afrikans in the Caribbean Islands, Central and 'outh America, Asia,
and the Pacific IslandsM .hese are some of the 8uestions of the lobal
Afrikan studies researcher.
Runoko Rashidi@s contribution to this field is particularly
impressi&e. Be has dedicated almost his total life to reco&erin
knowlede about the lobal Afrikan presence. Be is the foremost world
authority in this field tra&elin to countries far and wide to document
the Afrikan presence. Rashidi has also been successful in makin his
findins a&ailable to a mass audience &ia the internet and his
publications. 'tudents must recei&e instruction on this of many
nelected fields in Afrikan content. 'ee 7%11 for literary perspecti&e.
Ski&&;'b:ecti)e: Knowlede (ase of Afrikan ;lobal Presence
"+1
Fina& T$ou#$t
I ha&e attempted to draw out the profound sinificance, need,
and difference with Afrikan*Centered education as opposed to the mis*
educationEdistorted educational process that thorouhly pro&ides a
disser&ice to children of Afrikan ancestry in America and throuhout
the world. Afrikan*Centered education, it has been detailed, oes
beyond the subDect of history alone. In the well thouht out and
properly oriented institution, the history classes would be the focal
point of direction and instruction, of course this is i&en that capable
administration and instruction are in place. .he problem is that in many
of our <Afrikan*Centered institutions= the administrators are followin
the same 3uropean model and structure of education. An e8ual problem
is that teachers are not rounded in Afrikan thouht, practice, and
instruction. 4e must acknowlede that alon with the reat need for
institution*buildin comes the need for re*AfrikaniFation and
internaliFation of our culture, history, spirituality, and world&iew. .his
is the only way to properly direct the eneral curriculum and
instruction in the Afrikan*Centered institution.
I ha&e emphasiFed in essays that science, mathematics, and
literature are subDects that ha&e not been properly treated in the Afrikan
educational mo&ement, to the detriment of the educational process and
our children. I ha&e pro&ided a eneral methodoloyEmethod of study,
approach, framework, curriculum and research basis for the teacher to
de&elop her or his instructional classroom learnin with an Afrikan
foundation. 38ually, this book is tareted for the (lack parent who
would like to educationally enlihten the home en&ironment.
I ha&e noted the need to infuse Afrikan*Centered education
across the curriculum, e&en into the arts, physical education, and
recreational acti&ities of studentsEchildren. .he socialiFation systems of
the Afrikan child in all areas must be considered in the educational
de&elopment and rearin in today@s anti*Afrikan climate. I ha&e
pro&ided my own notes on physical fitness and nutrition while i&in
the Afrikan framework of the connection to fitness and spirituality. )o
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educational process can be considered thorouhly Afrikan if it is not
properly imbued with the spirituality of our ancestors.
.his teGt is more of an outlineEuideline, an o&erall framework
and approach to Afrikan*Centered educationEinstruction or '(AC.. It
will take the courae of the teacherEparent and the schoolEhome to
properly direct the %aat in the hearts and souls of our children. .he end
product is much more than hiher standardiFed scores. 4e are dealin
with a crisis of nation*buildin and therefore sur&i&al as a people. 5ur
children@s education is related to our &ery sur&i&al as a people and our
so&erein liberation from oppression. 4e must treat this precious and
necessary process with all the sinificance of the life and death of
e&erythin that makes us who we are as a people. It is that critical.


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