THE COLORED RENAISSANCE
Where do we start?
It seems to me that Black History Month (BHM) needs an entire make-over. I know that the first criticism I’ll receive on this is that I am not African American descent. But, even with that in mind, I consider that observation a half-truth for I do share half of that fact. I am African. It’s very difficult to dissociate the first half of the identity from its heritage; that’s where my argument finds its footing. We do share something in common and its more than a heritage issue…it’s a history issue.
I feel in my heart that it’s about time we talked about it, this history that we share for I do think that if we came clean we could truly become a team. First, we’re African and that means we do share a common pigment…oh man! Where do we start? If it isn’t colonisation and marginalization, or being made to fight ourselves, or being turned into slaves on stolen land…how can we say that we aren’t familiar and share the same painful history? I do acknowledge that there are slight differences between us but we are still one blood.
It is fascinating to me how much pain we’ve had to endure and yet in the midst of it all we have found a way to emerge stronger. Now, take a minute and think about it, whether it was Martin Luther King or Malcom X, we had individuals in what we could call black history who made a difference in the world and not just our communities. Whether it was the Pan African movement in the African continent or the Civil Rights movement, there is more than meets the eye. We have worked out our situations in relatively the same way but here is where we haven’t gotten it…we haven’t made ourselves family once more.
Yes, as family we do have our issues and we do make our mistakes. It has been way too long and there is a need to re-unite ourselves by coming together and mending any cracks in our relationship. Obama, an African made history and we all saw him as a black president loved by all…Africans of American and African descent did acknowledge the potential for unity between both blacks when he led as the first black president. Now that he’s left he will be sorely missed, but here’s where it gets interesting; we are a people rich in history and quoting from some of our greatest minds, we were told we didn’t have a history and that we were backward, but look who’s surprising the world? For to be told by others who knew nothing of our people and our culture. Don’t get me wrong, I am by no means racist, I believe that we all need each other. But there is a distorted, evil history that sort to rob us of our identity, divide us as people and re-define us.
It is concerning this evil that I write this post. I write saying first that I love you all for reading this, regardless of race. I consider you special and brothers and sisters in need of the one thing Black History Month has in common with the month of February—that is LOVE. Now in a time of division and unrest in matters regarding race and unity…we need to learn from our past to forge forward.
Here’s where we start. We have to start talking. We have to reach and be real with each other. We have to forgive each other and love whole-heartedly for that is the only adhesive in a world thriving from division. We have to learn from our rich past, and moreso from our ancestors because, yes, we do have a rich history.
What are we waiting for? I extend my hand to you now.
briansamuelopati 