Latest / DA CREW Podcast / HALF WAY MARK_ SEASON 2 DA CREW PODCAST _ EPISODE _94_ HOST DR_ CHENIZRA

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HALF WAY MARK_ SEASON 2 DA CREW PODCAST _ EPISODE _94_ HOST DR_ CHENIZRA · DA CREW Podcast

0:05
Then he came up against the all time hug wh he came up against Joy
0:24
Health, and he came up against your hey ho hey, And welcome to
0:33
another episode of the Crew podcast. I am your visionary Queen Angela. And
0:39
if you are a diva that's looking to amplify your voice and you're looking for
0:44
a whole we have fast for you, come on over and join them.
0:50
Diva up yeahwis and amplify your voice. Person person. All things an't what
1:03
they used to be. Where did all the blue skies? But boys,
1:11
as the wind blows from the Lord and something one person missing me? All
1:23
things a't what they used to do. Not greetings, greetings, greetings.
2:05
I'd like to say, welcome to building a new legacy speaks here with the
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Crew podcasts definitely the first and third Thursday of every month, and being able
2:19
to share truth to power, sharing some information of things that are happening wherever
2:23
we are at. And when I say wherever we are at, I mean
2:28
literally around the glow as I'm speaking with you at this time. I want
2:31
to kind of open up with a little bit of sound from the illustrious poet
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Laureate out of Barbados, Adrian green Is. Now we understand how they pushed
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on shopped you into the dimly lived cards of their history. But we know
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the true car. We've searched down low to lift on minds off who rubs
3:00
out. Some still don't understand how much strength and will power it to to
3:07
get from and their spells and propagan and now they'm one. How we sprouted,
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we that shekis and we boom bah. We let them know we were
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our fund. But we found our mother. Weven re united with our lost
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sisters and brothers. Africa stretchers brought their hands to her party, their sons
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and daughter gattered across the water in this great disaster with him Kari ma Appa
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that was authored by the thirty Buttons, thinking how you won't to say the
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world, but they tried to kill every last semblance of African spirit hand skin.
3:58
But destiny has unfold, Papa see must fulfilled emancipationism Mountain. It's our
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real shun to get to the top of me is our jadren And that's why
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from Capetown to Cairo, barb and us too Brazil. No matter where we
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were Tea, we are apart, constant and we will be heldos emotionless scars,
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and we will reclaim everything that's ours, and we will retake our place
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amongst the stars, and we will redeem our ancests. Had to start tonight's
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broadcast listening to that, because Africa, we love you. And with that,
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I'd like to really welcome one of our illustrious repatriots originally from the West
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only in body in spirit, our illustrious sister, Queen Nana Abina Grace James,
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who is literally liming with us. We have to call it liming with
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us because while it's seven o'clock I day, it's eight o'clock in the east
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cools and it's like some three o'clock in the morning, which she did.
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Greetings, thank you so much for taking some time and taking an early nap
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to rise to join us. Nana Abuna, It's an honor and a privilege
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to have you join us, to have you spend some time with us and
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speak about this fantabulous, yes new word, fantabulous well organized strategic gathering of
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the sixth Region in Tanzania that was hosted of all days on juneteenth, June
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nineteenth, twenty twenty four, you know, with a JOm pak itinerary and
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speak us from everywhere, and even speakers that you asked the day before to
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make sure that they could weigh in and definitely in a manner in what you
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were able to share the context of the work being done by the sixth Region
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and keeping them right to return. That scene brought up so many elements that
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I was compelled to shift what our intentional plans were for tonight's broadcast here with
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the pod, the crew podcasts, and just being able to highlight some ways
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in which we can work together. So please share with our lestri studience a
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little bit more, because I know that I could do like the one page,
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like the five hundred word version of your introduction, but we're gonna encourage
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you to google her name. How about that? And don't just google google
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scholar? How about that? How about that finest ideas. So I'm really
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grateful, thank you so much, Astana Tep Caribou Sana, Caribou Sana.
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It's a pleasure, and I'm truly grateful, truly grateful for this opportunity to
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break bread with you, or maybe it's break the room, kick the right
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like well exactly with you your this evening. And yes, it's after three
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in the morning, but I really think that this was important to do and
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so thank you for this opportunity and as always for your support. Yes,
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I am the chairperson for the sixth Region African Diaspara Alliance in Tanzania. And
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it's an angio that was created for and by the historic Aspera and the historic
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Aspora. It's those of us who were not born on the continent several generations
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removed African descendants. And this year the organization in September will be three years
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old. And earlier this year it was December. Yeah, that I was
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approached by a fellow what should I call him Pan Africans, but also he
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really does a lot of an annual conference every year and dutifully a lot of
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work in the US, in the UK, the African space in the UK.
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And he said, you know you're always coming to Narrowbi to support my
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conferences and speaking on the right to return. I really think we should do
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something in your neck of the woods this next year. And I said,
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yeah, it's due time. You know, we're going to be three years
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old. I think we're ready to take off the training wheels and start really
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push and get out there and do right one of the three pillars that or
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one of the three thematic areas that we operate in, which is advocacy and
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for the right to return and for the sixth Region to be acknowledged, recognized
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and to operate in its space in Africa. So I said the yes,
10:00
and that's what we just did. Yeah, well you did with a flair
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that was well organized and even with any areas of imbalance anything, you know,
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text stuff. I think that the intentionality of being able to host the
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symposium, the focuses on the right to return for African ascendants into Africa,
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inclusive of the people, the land, the sovereignty, the spiritual return,
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and the artifacts, which we're shifting because a lot of the contemporary anthropologists and
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archaeologists will refer to these items as artifacts and blah and make it very scientific.
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But we within an African context, and even through some of the efforts
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of organizations like the Society of Black Archaeologists, which really several of them were
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actually watching and viewing this because they refer to these terms and have expanded the
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narrative. So it's more of not just artifacts in a scientific anthropological archaeological space,
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but belongings, because these are items that belong to us and to our
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antsecial legacy. Right. So that was the other part that was very inviting
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for many of us that were able to listen, tune in whether it was
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one o'clock in the morning, whether it was four o'clock in the morning,
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and so for and so on, and we know that in the future we'd
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like to do something more frequent to offer that support and to be more participatory,
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you know, to help these types of work, you know, I
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think that that would be ideal. I think also what was really wonderful was
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that you were able to diversify between the people that were online the actual physical
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space and gathering there in Tazania and being able to you know, I'm just
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saying this m y Lemo Nieri Foundation. So we were there in spirit.
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No, No, everybody was just like wow. I mean, that was
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the driver for a lot of persons. But just to give me some other
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contexts, I'm pulling from your press release because there was so much information in
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it that I felt the person would also be able to benefit from the Why
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June nineteenth and I want to just quote what's here. This date was specifically
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chosen for its significance to African Americans in the United States. This day commemorates
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emancipation of enslaved people. The holiday was first celebrated in Texas, where I
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was until this morning. We're on that date in eighteen sixty five, in
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the aftermath of the Civil War, enslaved people were declared free under the terms
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of the eighteen sixty two let's get the difference almost three years later of the
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eighteenth sixty to emancipation Proclamation. They did not know until three years to.
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People should have the context to know that there were you know, yes,
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it was the symposium you know, organized as you said, who already shared
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the sixth Region African Diaspora Alliance in Tanzania. I'm led by you and collaboration
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with the Bandung Africa with retired UK Judge Peter Herbert frum Kenya, and the
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aim being to address the complex and urgent I'm going to come back to that
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urgent of repatriating Africans and African cultural heritage. I just felt it's important that
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persons know the context of the versation that we're going to have tonight, because
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we're not conning anyone. So we're very clear and very intentional on the words
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that we're using to the best of our ability, you know, But I
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wanted to also high like there were so many and I'm going to keep pulling
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on the list as you begin to speak. There was so many persons that
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you invited, so many persons that were able to engage. It's wonderful that
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you were able to provide us with an opportunity to know what was the intentions
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with inclusivity of the Union, the African Union, ZITO, the African Union,
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ECOSYC will display and all of those things in a moment, and that's
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the connection to the wider global African diaspora networks that exists. All the different
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organizational entities. You brought in scholars, you brought in community leaders, you
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brought in cultural nationalists. I just because I was sitting there trying to recognize
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all the different entities and how this felt more congressly than just yes, I
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said it, yes, interesting, yes, I said, but I'm just
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saying it felt like we were bringing reflections and representations on the right to return
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in regard to land, humans and our belong right. And then you had
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people that gave the historiography of what has happened. But more importantly, this
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wasn't like a whining People weren't just complaining about what is happening with Africans.
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We shot, we identified some of the challenges, but more importantly, we
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identified you did that moderation really eloquent because some sensitive themes and topics were able
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to be shared with us still being in a space of how do we heal
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from this? Okay, this is what happened, so what can we what
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is the solutions? Okay, this happened? How do we address you know
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that people have to go and renew their visus every three every three months,
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that are living there, working there, building there, raising their children there.
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Should I keep going? Okay? I get excited. So I would
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love for you to share, you know, what were some of the intentions
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and then did the outcomes that you achieved were How can we help to move
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this forward a little bit more as well? I think That's what I'm really
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asking is I'd like you to share some of the audiences are not as familiar
16:07
with all of these things happening with Africans from the West working with Africans in
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the East. Forgetting it Okay, infomercial when Queen Mother Doctor Tanzera says African,
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I mean Alai. That's a sentence of the African experience. So if
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you want to be black colored, Negro African American, Afro American afric descendants,
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all that we're encouraging you. We're saying the African space. Because when
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we speak of Chinese, we don't say, you know, we don't do
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the hybrid hyphennated portions just for the purposes of conversation. It would be a
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conversation if we kept using these terms that others use for us. So we're
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speaking of ancestral original indigenous native people with melanin, some with a lot of
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melanin, and not so much. I just would love for you to to
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share some of that, because I know that there was some very intentional objectives
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and goals that you wanted to have covered. Mm hmm. Yes. So
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this I know with my association with bang Dong and bang Dong is an organization
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that was registered uh or created in Kenya. But as Judge Herbert mentioned and
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is intro that he he intentionally uves that name because of he's been associated with
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the Black so which is the Black Lawyers. He has done a lot of
18:03
work in the UK and even in the US with some of the cases in
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the US that was dealing with you know, police brutality, racism, and
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so he wanted to continue the legacy of the original bankdown, which is when
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the African at the time when we were I guess working on independence, fighting
18:33
for independence, and we had gotten together many African leaders have gotten together with
18:41
Asian leaders, and so they had this conference and their intention at the time
18:48
was to have more, you know, but then there was a lot of
18:52
other things going on, and so that did not continue. But he decided
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to use that word, that that name to continue the work in the UK
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and now in Kenya. And so he has been repatriated to Kenyon since I
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met him in twenty eighteen. Every year he puts on an annual conference and
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he really does a lot of work with them Massai community and also with the
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Mau Mau and their fight for acknowledgement and not reparations necessarily, but in getting
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justice for a lot of what had happened to them when they were fighting for
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independence in Kenya, and all of that it ends up including artifacts, you
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know, not just the the rights of the people or the situation that happened,
20:06
but many of the tribal leaders and chiefs, their remains are still in
20:15
Europe or in the UK specifically, and then you know items that were stolen
20:21
and taken there. So it's sort of just expanded now from just you know,
20:26
human rights advocacy to now including that. And I have been We've done
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a lot of community work while I was in Kenya, and so we have
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this relationship where we're supporting each other's work and I would vote to his conferences
20:49
and speak on the right to return because that's really my passion. And as
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someone who has lived in four countries on the continent and all of them have
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struggled and paid a lot of money and spent a lot of time in just
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trying to get residency, it has become a passion of mine and has become
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something that I think, by now, I shouldn't even be doing this work.
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You know, this should not be something that we're still advocating for just
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for awareness and acknowledgment, you know, much less some kind of resolution or
21:33
process you know that gives us residency without having to do all of this.
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So anyway, so that's how our relationship started, and we So, like
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I said earlier this past year when and I spoke at his all right,
22:06
while we're waiting for our sister to okay, give us one second because there's
22:11
a delay, just give us one year delay. So just give us one
22:17
second. Yes, yeah, we really okay, now we're going No,
22:26
it's it's because of the nature some of the things we're talking about. Okay,
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yeah, we're gonna we're gonna have that energy and come back to that
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maybe like a minute before please, yes. So right, And so I
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found this past year that there was a lot more people that were asking me
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a lot of questions. And even though many of these was mostly Kenyans,
22:55
didn't even understand or knew of what us that they would see, you know,
23:03
on the streets in Nario would be that are from Jamaica or from Trinidad
23:07
or US that no, we don't just get off the plane and they stamp
23:11
our passport and we live happily ever after, you know. And so it
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was still I think surprising for me to the extent that how uninformed they were
23:26
and unaware. And so, you know, Peter and I we did talk
23:30
about, no, we have to elevate this because even after all of these
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years. You know, it's still it's still not so many people don't know,
23:41
and even government officials, you know, in the tourism industry you would
23:47
think, and just several other industries. And so we decided to do this
23:52
to come together and to say there is a commonality with both of our work.
23:57
You know, it's coming back home. You know, I'm focused on
24:03
the people, and he's focused on our themes, you know, and and
24:10
ancestral remains. And this year, earlier this year, in preparation for the
24:15
conference, he actually went to a few museums in the UK. Kenya has
24:25
they've been pushing real hard, and they've gotten some successes in actually beginning the
24:30
engagement process to get some to getting some of the things to be shipped returned,
24:37
to return be returned, and in areas where they're not able to do
24:44
that yet, they have begun the process to create a framework which will allow
24:49
these institutions to then return the artifacts. And so, you know, he's
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had a lot of success. Now, we weren't sure what happening in Tanzania,
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and that was one of the reasons why we decided, let's come to
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Tanzania and see what's happening in Tanzania because he has seen stuff from Tanzania,
25:11
from Sudan, from Somalia, from Uganda in some of these museums in boxes,
25:19
you know, And so that was a lot of his intention, let
25:26
me come and see what's going on. Maybe we can amplify what's going on
25:32
in Tanzania and possibly make it be a East African East African initiative, you
25:37
know. And so for us, it was again bringing the resources together,
25:45
the access he has to lawmakers and different kinds of people in that space and
25:56
in human rights space in the UK and in Kenya, to really open that
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up to us, you know, the sixth Region TC and and just amplify
26:10
our voice and our reach. So we thought that was a really good partnership
26:18
and decided let's do this because you know, so many spaces we go to
26:23
and I start a conversation and people are looking at me like are you serious.
26:30
You know that's what you guys go through. You're not just having a
26:32
free ride and everything is you know, Hankadory. So you don't carry you
26:38
don't carry it in your face, you don't carry it in your complaining program.
26:45
Honestly, most persons think going to Africa. Oh you have it like
26:48
that, you have support, you're already received. You're doing all of these
26:53
things in the community. You're seeing as more than an ATM or remittance source.
27:00
You're a little better than Bank of America, Citymang money Gram, Western
27:06
Union. And I'm saying this the same way that I was able to just
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share in a short context, you know, not knowing you know, And
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I want to thank you for giving me an opportunity to even offer some closing
27:17
reflections and in your simple rephrase. And our symposium hosted yes yesterday, you
27:26
know, I think it was really powerful. I like for the listening and
27:30
viewing audience to also be aware most of these sites are being placed inside of
27:37
our chat and are also being shared inside of the different spaces on Facebook and
27:42
YouTube for persons to just go and learn about the ban Dunk Africa, and
27:47
you can just go to bandung Africa dot com and see some of the efforts
27:51
of the types of work that no, I mean I has shared it with
27:53
us is already taking place. And also to go to the sixth Region tz
28:00
dot org site to just get a better wealth of information and knowledge as well
28:04
as to stay up to date on the various events that they are hosting.
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I think it's important for persons to stay linked and stay connected because we're very
28:12
quick to say that we don't know. I didn't know. It was like
28:15
that, I don't you know. And then we also have the persons that
28:18
do the what I call the conspiracy theorists of don't go to Africa, You're
28:23
going to starve. They don't have power, even if they do have low
28:26
shedding in certain areas, but bottom line, we have that problem everywhere.
28:32
Just the other day in Texas with some lightning and the next thing, you
28:34
know, the power went. So I'm saying, wow, you know so,
28:40
and it was it was an interesting moment. And as I'm speaking with
28:42
you know, you know, I'm grace to be in one of your home
28:48
spaces here in Hameika, you know, so I landed zoomed in and minutes
28:53
before it is broadcast, I'm sitting inside of a wonderful space and Charles in
29:00
the by near the Maroon village, and I'll speak to that a little later,
29:04
but I really think it's important that persons know that what ban Known Africa
29:10
is doing, what the sixth Region organizations is doing. And again this is
29:15
something for people that aren't as familiar and my only say that June teen's happened
29:22
just the other year. These are all the different pieces that I'll have facilitated,
29:27
even as kind of observance. And not to say that everybody should say
29:30
we free and everything's good because we have a national holiday for June teens.
29:36
I mean, we have a lot of people, but we definitely not come
29:38
off of the support for repatriation and support for restitution, and support for reparatory
29:45
justice and the support for reparations. But to be able to navigate exactly how
29:49
do we move this conversation forward, and with my favorite tagline, hashtag actionable
30:00
deliverables, we're going to say it one of the time, hashtag and actionable
30:04
deliverables. And I know some people were like, well, what do you
30:07
mean by that? I said, listen to the word. Listen to the
30:10
words. Because we have had a number of convenings and workshops and conferences and
30:15
sym posia and programs and curricula and publications and DVDs. Well, we're going
30:22
back on it. Films, movies, photos, photo streams, all types
30:30
of audio. We've got MP three's, so there's no more m P.
30:33
Three's on what has happened, what has been the experience of global Africans,
30:38
Pan Africans, African ascendance. And you'll notice we say African ascendants because we're
30:45
in the rist. We recognize the power of word, and if we keep
30:51
saying we des send, then we will keep saying in this place down,
30:56
so we're navigating, even if we have some error messages that pop up,
31:02
even if we don't have an imperfection, even if we're still working on our
31:07
principled unity, which is a whole other conversation. But what I saw and
31:12
what I witnessed for the portion that I was able to stay up until the
31:17
closing with your our symposium on the Right to Return, it's phenomenal, just
31:26
phenomenal, and I'm really excited, and I was very pleased to be able
31:32
to share, you know, and of course, whenever you provide us with
31:37
some of the snippets that you want shared in public, that we can begin
31:41
to put those in different platforms. Because of course, the success of that
31:48
gathering was shared with some of the representatives that I know through the Caribbean Pan
31:52
African network who are seated inside of and have a wonderful relationship with the African
32:00
Union, African Union ZITO and African Union KOSTA, along with CHARAC and the
32:07
Cara com Commission. So even though they're just because of scheduling, it's just
32:12
and other realities not having everyone that you originally intended and invited, whether they
32:19
accepted the invitation or there was a scheduling conflict, the information is still being
32:24
shared so that the next time they'll have preparation and in these convenings to be
32:30
able to have that and also inviting you right and being able to today.
32:37
And I want to make sure I say this publicly inviting you, but recognizing
32:40
that when we invite you, we need to have that not just the social
32:45
capital part because you do that tenfold exponentially, but the liquid capital so that
32:52
that way you too can be participatory of you know, whether it's the African
32:57
Union's Eco Socks twentieth anniversary gathering in July in Ghana, whether it's the Seapan
33:07
activities that are going to be happening with the AAU with AUCITO, with the
33:12
au Osaka in Trinidad during Emancipation that's hosted by the Emancipation Support Committee of Trinidad
33:20
and Tobago and that's the beginning of the end of July, beginning of August,
33:23
and then again it's September when SEAPAN, because Seapan Caribbean Pan African Network,
33:30
which I serve as an executive council representative, we are hosting our twentieth
33:37
anniversary commemoration in September. So I mean there's a number, it's like a
33:42
layer. And again we can go into the what is it the eight point
33:45
one eight point two ninth Pan African Congress and all of these other convenience what
33:52
you shared in this Right to Return symposium and how you moderated and created a
33:58
tapestry, tapestry with all these different speakers and presenters, doers and scholars and
34:07
community organizers that have that thread. Like every next activity we have, there
34:13
needs to be this thread or I don't want to call it a paint,
34:16
I'd rather call it a working session. How about that working profession on the
34:24
Right to Return? A working session with funding yes, and keep coming back
34:29
to that with funding yes, because if we're working for others forty to sixty
34:36
hours a week and then are compelled to work fifty or more hours for our
34:43
own selves, that's not my eyes that's not true disorder. The rest of
34:47
prostty, violence, divine ricisis economy. So I would love for you to
34:52
weigh in on that. And then I'm going to put up a link.
34:55
When you were talking about Kenya and the repatriation of belongings, I was going
35:04
to share what his Royal Majesty, King Doctor Macarani of the Pocomo was able
35:14
to do last November, specifically around the Pocomo's sacred drum that the britt stole.
35:23
Okay, I think people are going to say, well, they were
35:25
saving it into perpetuity to put it in the museum. It was stolen and
35:32
they have refused to return it until now that it's becoming very public and everybody
35:39
is now in the repatriation of artifacts and belongings. So it's and this particular
35:45
drum is not just any drum. This is a throne drum. This is
35:50
a you can't go into the Vatican and take out the picture of the Pope
35:55
or the picture marry the Saint and get away with it that one. So
36:04
I'll post that article link while you're speaking, yes, yes, and so
36:13
I'll go back to the the some other parts of the intention. As you
36:17
had asked earlier, and it's really to move the conversation. It was really
36:23
to move the conversation past just talking to actionable items, actionable discussions, you
36:35
know, and real real information. You know what what what do we have
36:45
in front of us right now, right and and so you know, I
36:52
wanted to ensure that all of the players because it's it's not honestly, I
37:00
think it's our situation, our status, you know, whatever words you can
37:05
use. It is complex, it's not straightforward. Even some of the countries
37:13
they I find the Member States diaspora, it's a it's a straighter path,
37:23
but some of the countries, ah, it takes a lot of work and
37:30
time two to change some of the processes that they have that their diaspora has
37:42
to work within. You know. So some countries are acceptual citizenship, some
37:51
don't. And then you know, so for some that can be a problem
37:55
for their diaspora. Their their citizen that went to school in some other foreign
38:00
country and stayed there and then got sit inship citizenship of that country. Even
38:07
Tanzania itself, when there is there was our husband a huge issue when with
38:17
inheritance and especially as it comes to land. Yes, so there is so
38:24
many things that they've had to work out or look at differently when it comes
38:30
to their own diaspora and US. Now it's a totally different kettlefish because they
38:38
have one don't really understand who we are and they are. They don't understand
38:51
that how you would approach people from the UK, the interaction, the cultural
39:00
norms, just just a way of life. There are slight differences between someone
39:06
from the Caribbean and someone from the US and someone from the UK or some
39:10
other place in Europe, you know, and so and then also then you
39:15
have Caracom that would be that body that would you know, is in a
39:22
position to work directly with the African Union. But then you don't have a
39:27
similar body for African descendants in the UK or in Europe, right, and
39:34
the same for North America and other places. So I do acknowledge that it
39:39
has been a very involved situation to create the framework of engagement for us,
39:52
you know. Uh. And yes, the Ekosak is celebrating their twentieth year
40:00
anniversary this year, and in you know, for the last twenty years,
40:07
I would say a lot more could have been done, you know, oh,
40:15
for for the last five years, though I am. I have seen
40:21
Ecosoft really engage, you know, civil society, really encouraging the Member States
40:28
to work on their diaspora policy. Again, it's just a member of states.
40:35
So even their encouragement and they're under Seedo right, even their encouragement for
40:42
all of the member states to have a diaspora desk and to create the dask
40:45
for a policy, it is still with that Member states diaspora. So we're
40:51
still not in the conversation. Is yet after twenty years you said that so
40:57
lightly, you said that so diplomatically, and that is I think you know
41:02
chers Yeah again, so I really really have been I've been encouraging Ecosoft specifically,
41:14
let us help you to work on this, because you can't really judge
41:22
a man until you walk the malone issue. Honestly, we are in the
41:28
best position to tell you how to engage with us, and we have one
41:34
Chuck Taylor's converses. How about that not just second shues, not just moccasins,
41:39
like high tops, ready to work, like like in it, in
41:44
it like that's the thing that people sometimes make it feel like it almost feels
41:47
like we begging to be African. Then we when we finally get over there.
41:53
We got to beg to stay there, and then we got to beg
41:57
to show what are I'm just calling it like I see it, like be
42:01
offended by anything that's being shared. Remember, these are the views of the
42:07
presenter, and I holds truth and I'm unapologetically ancestral African, just for the
42:14
clarity of anyone that's listening and viewing, and just to say that so that
42:19
it's clear the manner in which we engage, because not everybody recognizes what our
42:23
experience has been. People like to talk about the prodigal sons and daughters in
42:30
a religious space, but I'm saying, what about the prodigal sons and daughters
42:37
in an ancestral legacy space? Yes, And then we just pause on that
42:44
because I think that that's why. That's why we're speaking about the repatriation of
42:50
people land, our sovereign rights and however you navigate that as well as our
42:58
belongings. You know, we are now the twenty twenty four choir, the
43:05
voices of our ancestors that did not have an opportunity or an audience to say
43:10
no table like no ting, just take it and take it. And so
43:16
we're in a space. And again that's why I keep coming to that space
43:21
of the building blocks of the society. Yes, and you know, the
43:24
diplomacy that's engaged. We've been asking about this article three Q for two decades.
43:32
We've been asking for the policy to be more inviting. You know,
43:37
if you would like to know how to engage and integrate Africans that are born
43:44
outside of the twelve million square miles of the African continent, it might serve
43:50
well to listen to our input and conversation. There you go say that last
43:57
part again, maybe that needs to be a con session. I think,
44:04
like our way, we don't need to spell it like them there and listen
44:12
in as much as I would love for at a drop or of a dime
44:19
for you to come from all the way in the Caribbean and come over here,
44:23
you know, or wrote it, I mean when I say here,
44:25
you know, specifically to add this and to have that conversation. Right,
44:30
I'm here just down the road, you see, or I I am here
44:39
just in in Ghana. The post a child for for right to return.
44:45
Right, we are actually here, you know, and and so you don't
44:52
have to go far to have a conversation with us. Some of us are
44:57
on your time zone? How about that? Okay, that's what I'm saying
45:02
though sometimes that's where and we've had this this type of reasoning for a moment.
45:09
You know, how do you quantify and create a system for our engagement
45:17
as ancestral Africans traversing through this twenty first century experience without limiting the structure and
45:30
the framework through a very euro pan I'm going to say it again, very
45:36
euros Pian, eurocentric, non African, non Umbuntu, non Mahant framework to
45:45
then resolve centuries of dysfunctionality amongst us. And that's what person's you know,
45:52
how do you say that with that? Because it's again this is not to
45:55
point fingers, it's out because this happens on a multiplicity of sites. I
46:00
recall being an African Union organized efforts and the activities, you know, particularly
46:07
through CITO. And so let me kind of come back for a second.
46:09
For persons that what are they talking about African Union, please go to Aunt
46:15
forward slash and just to find out what the African Union is to get an
46:20
idea of its growing out of the community formed in the nineteen fifties, bringing
46:28
heads of state from the African continent during a time of revolutionary independence liberation movements.
46:36
You know the honorable ancestor doctor Kwame and Kruma, doctor Julius Nieri,
46:43
and many others, inclusive of his Imperial Majesty, Empress Selassia Plea Selassia the
46:49
First and empressman on Aspha. And I think it's important that people just know
46:52
the context. And then in the beginning of the war, it shifted and
47:01
they reframed it into the African Union. So I think it's important for persons
47:07
to just get an idea of knowing a little bit, just some basic things
47:10
of what the African Union is. And if you go to that site,
47:14
the A U dot I n T, it's an English, Portuguese, Arabic,
47:21
Spanish, French, Swahili. I'm just saying, you know, which
47:24
is the language that the AU has adopted as such. But then you can
47:30
also go to the AU the Eco SoC E C O S O C C
47:38
DOT A U DOT I n T, so you can see specifically what the
47:45
This is an arm within the African Union twentieth anniversary. This life the Economic,
48:04
Social and Culture culso Social and Cultural Council for the African Union. So
48:16
this is a very important body, and the manner in which that body works
48:22
with the African heads of state and the African nations inside of the continent of
48:28
Africa equitybly important with how they handle African diasporas born in the African continent and
48:37
living outside of the African continent, as well as Africans that were born outside
48:43
of the African continent living outside, as well as those with the right to
48:47
return that have repatriated. And so there's several layers of how we can begin,
48:55
not even begin to move forward with this. That's two, to establish
49:06
or re establish policies, protocols, procedures that are authentically inclusive and now want
49:15
back to be African in Africa. You know, I don't know how to
49:17
say. That's why I have the deepest respect for our sisters and brothers,
49:23
the families that are repatriated, especially those that did it like on their own
49:29
and then established community and networks to make it functional. You know. So
49:35
I always Smarlotte, you know what she's doing as well. I think of
49:40
a BB Tunicasa and that community that they've established. I think a poppy Shah,
49:45
you know, towards there's so many persons that may have gone like much,
49:52
but then they created. You know, we remiss if I didn't mention
49:58
when Africa specific Nana, I'm acoust because she was one of the earliest,
50:05
brought this whole by, you know, more than years ago, you know,
50:07
and just like I'm out wasn't even a song of exodus. It was
50:12
just I done with with over the ear, you know, excepting you now
50:15
you know, you know, advancing into well into Mh's healthy. It is
50:27
she's able texts and constructs how to make this work. So I know,
50:32
you know, between her works in Ghana, her works in Rwanda, you
50:37
know, and I'm sure in other areas that can be supported for us.
50:42
I just like is because I could tell I got excited. You made me
51:08
too excited. You gave me some things to think about that were amazing.
51:13
So I really would love for you to when yes, make sure website,
51:20
Yeah, you need to get right. One of the things I just went
51:22
as you and as you've spoken, as you spoke about amicas, I wanted
51:28
to throw in there somebody from this side, Eli Sabori. When Jua Liimore
51:38
went to Jamaica in nineteen seventy four and officially invited Jamaican specifically, but all
51:49
people of African descent to come back to the continent and help to rebuild.
51:52
And this was nineteen seventy four, and he didn't invit. He offered me,
51:59
extended an invitation through two Jamaica and Jamaicans, and there was five.
52:05
The stories that five brethren left Jamaica and came to Tanzania, and a couple
52:13
of them have contribute to One actually built an institution, educational institution that still
52:21
exists, and others were doing different works. But this was nineteen seventy four
52:29
and so fast forward to today, only one is still alive. All of
52:35
the others passed away, and he's approaching. He's seventy five this year and
52:42
been in Tanzania, in Tanzania for thirty enough years, and he he has
52:54
some challenges. He's had some challenges. And I really think that in a
53:01
perfect world, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Jamaica would contact me and I
53:12
would get the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, invite the Ministry of Foreign Affairs here
53:16
in Tanzania and we would have that discussion about Elisaburi situation and whatever he needs
53:27
would be worked out. He hasn't left his country in thirty four years,
53:31
and he just wants to please make sure to put in the chat the proper
53:37
spelling of his name so that people, you know, we can do some
53:42
research and offer if there's ways for us to begin to hear his legacy,
53:47
what his test journey has been, you know, the challenges that you reference,
53:51
but also what are the things that we are able to do collectively to
53:55
be able to offer some degree of support. Mm hmmm, right, And
54:01
so you know, it's it's things like these that it really they just have
54:07
to have the will, you know, whichever when I say they, whichever
54:13
government, institution or organization that we're supposed to liaise with or we connect with
54:19
to get certain things done. It's really the will because if you sit down
54:22
and we have a conversation, we could come up with a solution. And
54:27
it really doesn't take much and doesn't take a lot. But I wanted to,
54:31
you know, let me just real quick to say us repatriating and the
54:38
right to return. You see, it's a UN declaration, and all of
54:45
the countries that have signed up to the United Nations, their signatures, their
54:55
signatures to the all of the UN declarations you can pick and choose which one
55:02
you know. And so there are countries outside of the continent that knows about
55:10
this and have used it to their benefit and the benefit of their citizen and
55:19
this is something that can have such great positive impact for us. We can
55:25
sit down and work out the details of what this right to return looks like
55:30
for us, you know, and most of what it would look like does
55:37
not require constitutional changes at all. So a sovereign country doesn't have to change
55:44
your constitution just for us. It's more of procedural changes, procedural amendments,
55:53
you know, creating an additional category for this group of people. Kenya.
56:00
The other day, a group of Indians who have been living in Kenya for
56:07
I think three generations applied requested of the government to give them tribal status.
56:17
So now they're an ethnic group in Kenya. And so I'm saying, really,
56:28
in just assessing what has happened over the years, assessing what has what
56:31
goes on across the continent from Guinea Bissau to here, a lot of it
56:37
is procedural changes. It's it's probably a few things might go into you know,
56:46
might be presented in front of parliament, you know, but it's to
56:52
maybe amend some laws, but it really doesn't require a lot. And so
56:59
I've I'm saying that I felt that the government needs to be a part of
57:05
the discussion. ECOSOC needed to be a part of the African Union and CARACOM
57:15
because because they are you know, they have an office in Kenya. And
57:21
many of the people I've spoken to has asked. There was a situation in
57:25
Uganda recently and I got a phone call can we get in touch with cara
57:30
Com because it was from with some people from the islands, one of the
57:36
one of the one of the small island them right, but but but they
57:45
they did not know how, they did not have the support and didn't know
57:50
what to do. And and I was asked, what about cara Com?
57:53
Can you get in touch with them? And so people want to know these
57:58
institutions. Okay, really give us your mandate, really give us your objectives.
58:04
How can you work for us who are here? How can you help
58:07
us in situations that has happened. I've actually had to call you recently and
58:15
ask for support for someone from one of the small islands who was living here
58:23
and got really sick and did not have the means to even pay the hospital
58:30
bill or to hire help, you know, and we're in These things happened
58:37
because we've moved here and we're living here. We've sold our house wherever we
58:40
are, wherever we're coming from, whether it's UUs or from Trinidad, and
58:46
we're here now and this is where we're living. But we don't really liaise
58:52
or connect with the local government right because we're not citizens. Some of us
58:58
are still struggling to get residents. See. So these are things that has
59:00
to be worked out because it's creating significant hardship, you know, for persons
59:07
who come with skills and experience and just and want to live, raise their
59:13
family, give back, use what they what they know, what they have
59:19
been trained with or been using for years, you know, offer it in
59:22
and in and around communities with people like us, you know that look like
59:30
them. And so I really felt it was important for all of these institutions
59:35
to be invited. And for the record, Ecosoft did accept the invitation,
59:42
but then something came up with the operations of the organization and how they can
59:52
interact or work with other organizations, and so they had to decline as they
1:00:00
were advised by their leave the department, so they weren't able to attend and
1:00:07
care Com they saw, they said that they acknowledged importance, but funding issues
1:00:15
they weren't able to send the representative you know. And I will just say
1:00:20
this, but I didn't want to put you off right there, but I
1:00:23
just wanted to add because I know that our time is coming to a quote.
1:00:28
But I just wanted to highlight because we'll do this again because we need
1:00:30
to have the continuum of the other portions that you may have left out today
1:00:36
because it was you know, it was a convening of more than six hours
1:00:40
and I think it's the culmination it needs to share. But we did have
1:00:45
represent the chair, you know, for you to be able to have Doctor
1:00:50
June Summer, the Chair of the UN's Permanent Form for People of African Descent,
1:00:55
really lay out the connectivity. She was able to layout with the United
1:01:00
Nations DOUFF. She was able to connect that to the care COM community.
1:01:05
She was able to share that with the CARA com Reperations Commission. She was
1:01:07
able to share that through the lens of the African Union, the African Union
1:01:10
ZEATO, the African Union ecoside. So we have I want to just highlight
1:01:15
that although there were other logistics that didn't get to work in the favor,
1:01:22
based on how you had set this up. I think persons can easily go
1:01:25
to your site and that way they can see the significant amount of information that
1:01:30
was made available. That's why I keep say fantabulous. That's why I keep
1:01:36
saying what you were able to work through. I know that you have your
1:01:39
ideal, and you know you wanted grade triple A, but you still got
1:01:45
to day. You still got grade double A because a lot of would gel
1:01:50
together, you know, to see the Tanzanian minister come and share. He
1:01:55
took time to explicate where they were. I mean, it wasn't like he
1:01:59
spoke for five minutes. He spoke for a long enough time, you know,
1:02:02
even even while you were sitting there telling us time is limited. But
1:02:06
he needed to explain, not even explained, let me let me put it
1:02:10
better than that, but to provide a diplomatic voice from information, yes,
1:02:17
and information that was clear. Well, this is what has happened, this
1:02:21
is what we're doing, this is what our intentions are, this is how
1:02:23
it's moving forward. So I'm looking forward. Please, any closing reflection that
1:02:29
you have because I know that the visionary Queen Angela in the background is going
1:02:35
to cow we go in a minute, so we kind of gone over a
1:02:38
little bit, okay. So I really do want to thank doctor June Sommer
1:02:47
for all that she brought to the table and and her commitment in working with
1:02:55
us on this specific right to Return initiative. And also to the director for
1:03:04
the Diaspora Desk at the Tanzania Ministry of Foreign Affairs. I appreciate him so
1:03:10
much. Like you said, and you know, the pioneers, Doctor Horn,
1:03:17
all of the speakers that got that came on, and then all of
1:03:22
the ones from different countries that did come on and give us their take on
1:03:29
what it would give us the information on what it's like to get residency in
1:03:34
their country. That was also an awesome piece of information to include in this.
1:03:39
So it was voluminous and out of this I just want to say real
1:03:44
quick that I've had several requests from both people in attendance online and even the
1:03:50
presenters to have separate workshops or informational sessions going forward, and so that is
1:04:00
one of the I didn't expect that, but one of the exciting things that
1:04:03
came out of this was we've got some information out to people, and people
1:04:09
are now saying they want more, and going forward, we're going to be
1:04:12
doing these informational sessions within the different I would say, areas of the greater
1:04:20
picture, including the more on the restitution as well. You sure that's said
1:04:30
last sentence. You got a sentence. She hasn't given me the gauntlet yet.
1:04:33
Let's roll. We won't push it. We won't it. I just
1:04:39
want to no, no, but we we have. We have a document
1:04:43
that we had submitted to the Ministure of Foreign Affairs for consideration and it will
1:04:50
be uh uh revisited, is said, by the end of this year going
1:04:57
into next year. So it is excellent. It is being worked on,
1:05:02
and I am confident in what they're doing because I've seen what they've done so
1:05:06
far, you know. So, yeah, fantastic. That's why you made
1:05:13
it wasn't just talking. Yes, No, this wasn't just this wasn't just
1:05:15
a conversation. This was actionable. Okay for those people that don't get this,
1:05:20
but if you didn't hear and understand anything that Queen Mother, doctor Chenzerras
1:05:25
just shared, this is the buzzword hashtag actionable deliverables. Please add that to
1:05:33
all of the things that we chat and talk about and speak about and put
1:05:39
in the background and sharing social media so that we can move into forward movement.
1:05:45
I'm going to keep saying moving a forward progressive house it pay it forward
1:05:49
that one yes, so that you can actually support, invest and promote from
1:05:58
one another. I liked say sip, but some people think I'm talking something
1:06:03
else. So I very clear support, invest and promote these types of things.
1:06:10
I don't like to thank you again, Nana, I mean a grace
1:06:15
James of the sixth Region that is for Alliance in Tanzania, thank you for
1:06:21
staying up so early late and we'll do this. We'll definitely do you know,
1:06:27
as what I always share with persons, you can get the information.
1:06:30
We put some links here any other emails. I encourage persons to put that
1:06:33
on the media. But just remember that culture heals humanity. Land is our
1:06:38
foundation and spirituality unifies us to the best of our abilities. Do I want
1:06:45
to much had you know? Just like how I started, I like to
1:06:50
always put in a little bit of music, some sound because we have these
1:06:55
wonderful artists like Adrian Green talking about Africa we love it. We see ras
1:07:00
sunshining, so thank you the starting in July and glorious things again will be
1:07:10
spoken of you like create love, humanity, birthplace of civilization, to bring
1:07:18
us some sanity to these crazy modern nations. Sankofa is the only way out
1:07:25
of this present situation looking backward to go forward to our future destination. Our
1:07:30
relation to our history must be more than information. Emancipation is a feeling.
1:07:35
It's an overwhelming emotion, inspiring debortion. Yes, and the commitment to undo
1:07:44
the brainwashing and programming that they prodcast through Africa is in shane. But we
1:07:54
must experience new Africans be persist and h and to their own culture the true
1:08:02
Let our common experience keep us together like blue with that ancient African science with
1:08:14
them car boom boom, boom boom with me if I get a little high,
1:08:26
But I'm a part of the reas not they try to wipe out of
1:08:30
all historical site and now my story's coming persons things where in all the blue
1:08:47
Sky's boot boys