Return to Mother Africa!

Ethiopia, Ghana, Tanzania, Malawi & Zambia

Part III: 

When I travel, I travel Ethiopian! 

Freshly squeezed juice for Breakfast

Sazani Beach Hotel, Zanzibar

Soaking in the Indian Ocean, Coast of Zanzibar

Finally time to Relax

Part II: Ghana

Learning and Teaching Ghanaian Children~ I love this place:)

The Unknown Solider-

 Honoring those Africans who fought in both World Wars

My favorite time-

 On the playgrounds of a primary school in Accra, Ghana.

 Institute of African Studies-Ghana
Retention of cultural and historical identity- Part of the reason why I teach!

Door of No Return-
(Pathway to the Slave Ships)
Elmina Slave Castle where African slaves were held and shipped off to the Americas.
Elmina Castle was erected by the Portoguese in 1482. It was the first trading post built and is the oldest European building in existence below the Sahara. First established as a trade settlement, the castle later became one of the most important stops on the route of the Atlantic Slave trade.

 Soccer on the Beach-
View from the Top of Elmina Slave Castle

40/50ft high Rope Bridges at KAKUM NATIONAL PARK~
 This  forest in southern Ghana boasts 300 species of birds, unique monkeys and the endangered forest elephant and bongo antelope

Here is a little glimpse of our living situation!!


TO BE CONTINUED....

The 5 love languages

EThiopian Immigrant

The collection of poems and stories written by Kifle Bantayehu captures the true essence of what the New Negro embodies. Similar to the idea of the New Negro by Alan Locke, Bantayehu paints a narrative of "self identity" as both Ethiopian and Black in America. Through a poetic documentation of behavior and "inner self", The Healing Conscious, is in conversation with the concept of the New Negro. Bantayehu himself is the New Negro; he is one of the few Ethiopian authors breaking a new ground for a genre of literature by combining the English language with Ethiopian culture.

The book tells a compelling story of an African immigrant, who through much pain and sacrifice, was able to migrate to the West (America) and construct a new racial awakening and new race sprit. Just as the New Negro of Harlem fought for freedom and self-determination by coming to the north, most Ethiopians migrated to America in search of political and economical freedom. The exodus of both Blacks in the 19th century and Ethiopians in the 20th century comparably captures the challenges, struggles, defeats, and strength they endured as second class citizens; facing housing discrimination, job discrimination, and etc. Nonetheless, the narrative of both Blacks and Ethiopian immigrants as the New Negro is formed through strong cultural connection and preservation that they brought along with them.

“Although, there are many novels depicting the lives of immigrants in America, there has been little said of the sacrifices and contributions of the Ethiopian immigrant community residing in the United States,” Bantayehu said. In looking at Bantayehu's text, his pome Death and Rebirth, summarizes an immigrant’s story that has preserved their sense of culture and tradition in the new refuge.

Death and Rebirth

Silent abyss yielding to fear of the unknown

So silent- Am I here alone?

Eighty years have come and gone,

With many children fully grown:

My time has passed like king on throne

From nothing to something, as voice changes tone:

At peace beside by whom I was mothered and fathered.

With our land, earth, people, Unaltered

The journey was well worth it, a difficult feat

Here in death, a smile challenges defeat;

Chance sought and knowledge gained

Family glued as a leaf on twig, together sustained:

Eyes closed but mind still sharp

A white light ahead? Soothing as a harp

Immortal visions dance in light show

What could they be? I do not know;

A baby, a father, an old man

The stages of life, from death to the first strand;

A cell multiplies with staggering speed

This is my life reborn indeed:

Baldwin’s interpretation of the New Negro has a fundamental difference with that of Alain Locke’s interpretation of the New Negro.

Although both authors share similar notions that a New Negro identity has been formed in the turn of the 20^th century, they differ in their approach to how this identity is constructed. (Or what led to production of this identity)

Alain Lock points to “race literature” and “race journalism” as inner Negro documentation of self, which were instruments for the mainstream development of the New Negro identity that developed in America. He believes that the literary movement through progressive race periodicals as the Crisis under editorship of Dr. Du Bois and Charles Johnson were able to ignite the racial awakening and this New Negro race sprit.

Well in fact, this point of reference to answer the “how” is a major difference in ideas for both Lock and Baldwin. Baldwin believes it was the Black entrepreneurs such as Jack Johnson, Madam C.J. Walker and other business shaped the new race identity.

Baldwin suggests that economical power enabled for the emergence of the middle Black America. This allowed for black business to have a direct black market that they can influence and which also sustain them even during the time of the depression. The access to Black markets in south side Chicago, was most influential in producing that new race spirit.

These opposing views have strong ties to the conflicting race ideologies of Booker T. Washington and Dr. Du Bois. Baldwin could been seen supporting the argument of Booker T Washigton that believes only through economical gain and self sustaining will the Black race uplift. On the other hand Locke has asserted that Dr. Du Bois intellectual and race journalism would be the most effective tool to help the Black race.

One very distinct difference between the two books is the race relations of migrants in Harlem and Chicago. Although both authors argue Harlem and Chicago served as the new mecca for southern immigrants, Locke provides that Harlem will not be susceptible to race friction between the races in New York. This is because little or no gang labor gave Harlem Negros the opportunity for individual expansion and individual contacts with life and spirits of New York (p 310).

However, the principal factors in the race riots in Chicago 1919 were the fact that there was 12,000 Negroes were employed in gangs in the stockyards. This created a division between the residency of Blacks and Whites build animosity toward each other. Although there were considerable race feelings towards black in Harlem, he argues that it was only feeling and no more (p 310).

Post 2

The story of Harlem: The Cultural Capital of the New Negro illuminates similar accounts and themes that are found in the Warmth of other Suns. Both texts highlighted three major themes; the significance of Harlem as a refuge, symbolism of Harlem as cultural mecca, and the interplay of music as instrument for political and social critique.

As we discussed and read in the New Negro, Harlem became home for many blacks who fled the south in search for equal rights, dignity and endless opportunity. Harlem; The Cultural Capital story from the New Negro emphasizes the role Harlem played as a safe heaven or refuge for new blacks migrating north from the south. In response to Harlem as refuge for blacks, we can assert that there is a direct correlation for why George Swanson Startling's story line takes place in in New York. His story which comes out of the Warmth of Other-Suns is set in the 1990's, which seems to drastically challenge the concepts of the New Negro that originates in the early nineteenth hundreds. However, we can take the time differences of the two stories to illustrate the significance of Harlem as a endless time refuge. In other words, Harlem as mentioned in both text could be seen as an eternal asylum for blacks in search of better conditions and reality.

Migration to the North gradually transformed the Harlem into a vibrant place. The increase inflow of blacks into harlem created a giant cultural center that enabled southerners to create a new identity by combining past with present life. One of the means that transformed Harlem into the cultural center is the fusion of music between north and south. Jazz at Home in the New Negro asserts that Jazz is joyous revolt from convention, custom, authority, boredom, even sorrow. As ragtime of the Negro, Jazz developed and become release of all suppressed emotions at once, a blowing off of the lid, as it were. Similarly, The Warmth of Other Suns, depicts a major significance musical culture by referring to hip hop or rap of Tupac. Both the Jazz at Home and Story in the Warmth of other Suns illustrate the importance of Harlem as cultural mecca by depicting music which came out of Harlem or the north.

I came to UCSB with the intent to major in Political Science with emphasis on International Relations. At this time, I had plans on returning to Africa as a U.N. diplomat or ambassador to be the voice of the African people. The reason for discussing my initial goal is that my passion and curiosity to return to Africa led me to take a course in Black Studies.

My first course in black studies was African history with professor Daniels. As I read the texts and sat in lecture, I felt a sense of pride and emotional connection to the material. Even though some of my peers didn't appreciate his style of lecture, I felt a personal connection to the subject matter, which covered the history of Christianity in Ethiopia; my birth place. I was delighted to learn new information about my own culture and history; thus, this course became my gateway to the Black Studies discipline.

In lecture, Professor Stewart discussed the birth of the New Negro as 20th century identity, but there are three major events which help shaped the notion of the New Negro: migration from Africa to slavery, civil war to freedom, and migration from the south to the north. I am now able to connect this idea to the majority of the topics under the Black Studies courses I had in the past. In some abstract way, I see my gradual transition from political science to black studies more than substituting of a discipline but as a system of constructing a New Negro Identity. Deciding to double major in political science and black studies enabled me to gain a diverse view of the world around me.

As I continued to take additional black studies courses, I realized a new passion has taken over me; I wanted to teach underserved communities in the inner city. Realizing my new passion, I decided to drop political science as a major and major in black studies. My decision to major in black studies alone was seen by many of peers and family as worthless and miscalculated. However, I never been happier with my decision to solely major in black studies and minor in education. Taking array of courses such as black feminist thought, negritude african literature and caribbean studies has broadened my understanding and perspective of the world. The lens in which I view everyday events both domestically and internationally has been widened through my exposer in black Studies. Therefore, I am proud to say I am a “Black Studies Major.”