kwanzaa gains momentum among caribbean blacks

Ok, this should be the last Kwanzaa post for a LONG while...

Kwanzaa, which traditionally showcases the inner strength, struggles and accomplishments of African-Americans, is quickly becoming a popular holiday for black Caribbean people, as well.

As they began dabbling in the celebration, they found they shared similar roots.

"We're all Africans. We've just been dropped off in different places," said Amanayea Abraham, a cultural consultant for the West Palm Beach-based African-American Cultural Arts Organization.

From BlackElectorate.com: Kwanzaa Gains Momentum Among Caribbean Blacks by Karla D. Shores

babel fish

I just added Altavista's Babel Fish (translator) to my blog. There are some kinks. It seems to be able to translate one blog entry at a time but not much more than that. To translate any given entry, what you can do is first click on the time at the bottom of the entry you want (so then you get one entry showing) and then on the side bar, click on the flag appropriate to the language you want the entry translated into. Enjoy.

i'm franklin, who are you?

Ok, I actually was sort of hoping to get this result, but the fact that I did is funny on so many levels. You don't even know.

You are Franklin!


Which Peanuts Character are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

imani

Today is the last day of Kwanzaa and today's principle is Imani or faith; to believe with all our heart in our people, our parents, our teachers, our leaders and the righteousness and victory of our struggle.

I'm a little pressed for time today, so I will limit myself to a few brief comments:

First, I would point out that here there is an obvious but superficial similarity between Karenga's notion of imani and the Islamic concept of iman (also commonly translated as "faith" or "belief"). While Karenga seems to be talking about having faith in created things, the Islamic concept of iman is centered on the Supreme Being who is uncreated.

So, secondly, unlike two days ago when one could argue that Nia and Niyyah could co-exist and complement one another, I would say that here the two terms, iman and imani are harder (if not impossible) to reconcile. Karenga seems to be turning Blackness into an idol, but from an Islamic perspective idolatry is the one unforgivable sin.

So, thirdly, what we should do is start with God and an inclusive notion of justice and taking care of your neighbors and "kinfolk". That might allow for some general feelings of racial solidarity, but it shouldn't reach such extremes that race becomes an idol.

christ: the prequel

I'm in the middle of reading Anne Rice's new book, Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt. It is actually quite surprising on a number of levels. Firstly, it is much more reverent and conventional than I originally had expected (see previous entry from May, christ the lord: out of egypt). In fact, it seems that in the process doing research for the book, Rice has actually decided to become a believing Christian.

Given that she's writing as a Christian, it is interesting to note that she decided to include accounts (apocrophyal from a Christian persperpective but sound from a Muslim perspective) of Jesus miraculously giving life to birds made out of clay. Another more provocative miracle which is placed early in the book is an instance where the young seven year-old Jesus actually causes a bully to die (and then raises him from the dead afterwards)

In some ways, the book is to the Christian gospel what the WB tv series Smallville is to the Superman mythos. Rice fleshes out with amazing historical detail Jesus' early years which aren't covered in the Bible. And as in the case of Smallville, we all know how the story will have to end so there are plenty of moments full of foreshadowing and significance. (Like when Christ's relatives get all quiet when the subject comes up of why the family suddenly left Bethlehem or when Lex starts quoting Nietzsche's theory of the Superman to Clark)

In any case, Rice's book is a nice read so far. I'll let you know how it turns out.

Also by Rice: do you know what it means to miss new orleans

amiri baraka

Bringing up Amiri Baraka's comments about the Nguzo Saba made me think it would be good to add some links about him. He's definitely gone through his own set of changes in terms his literary and cultural life, his politics and religion.

Amiri Baraka Homepage
Blue Neon Alley: Amiri Baraka
Modern American Poetry: Amiri Baraka
Rootwork: Amiri Baraka and the Power of Poetry
Chicken Bones: Amiri Baraka
Planet Grenada: amiri baraka and the millions more movement

kuumba

Today is the sixth day of Kwanzaa and today's principle is Kuumba or Creativity; to do always as much as we can, in the way we can, in order to leave our community more beautiful and beneficial than we inherited it.

For today I'll just share another excerpt from Amiri Baraka's book, "Raise, race, rays, raze":

When we said Black Art, we meant Kuumba. The spiritual characteristic of revelation through the creative. The artist is respected in Bantu philosophy because he could capture some of the divinity. Because it flowed through his fingers or out of his mouth, and because he would lend this divinity to the whole people to raise them in its image, building great nations reared in the image of righteousness. ...

But Black creativity is what will save us - not just "artists" but all of us - after all is said and done - nothing else. An antidote to birth or mind control! The Nguzo Saba itself is one of the strongest examples of Kuumba. And each idea or act that animates our lives must be measured against the Nguzo Saba in each of its components. You must ask of each new idea of dissociation that comes to mind, what does this have to do with bringing about unity... what does it contribute to... self-determination - does it have anything to do with Ujima, collective work and responsibility, and so on...

Tomorrow is the last day of Kwanzaa and its principle is Imani or faith.

swahili and arabic

From The Baheyeldin Dynasty: List of Swahili Words of Arabic Origin

nia

Today is the Fifth day of Kwanzaa and today's principle is Nia or Purpose; to make our collective vocation the building and developing of our community in order to restore our people to their traditional greatness.

Something I find really interesting about Swahili is the fact the much of its vocabulary comes from the Arabic language, which gives a whole other layer of meaning to some of the principles of the Nguzo Saba. For example, today's principle of nia makes me think of niyyah (or intention). In Islam it is emphasized that every action must begin with the proper intention. Sincerity is important. And actions are judged by their intentions.

The Nguzo Saba emphasizes the collective side of this principle; the masses of people have to get together and move in the right direction. But Islam (at least when it comes to this particular concept) puts the emphasis on how the individual heart absolutely has to start with pure and sincere intention, or else what follows will be incomplete, corrupt and empty.

Tomorrow's principle is Kuumba or Creativity

even a stopped clock...

Here is an old Ann Coulter piece on Karenga and Kwanzaa. Snide and insulting comments aside (and there are plenty), it is interesting to see someone like Coulter, recognize COINTELPRO, the positive side of the Panthers and the limitations of cultural nationalism.

why i like it, why i don't

In spite of me really getting into Kwanzaa-blogging this year, I actually have a number of reservations about Karenga and cultural nationalism in general. I definitely believe that the principles of the Nguzo Saba are worth further reflection and discussion, but I don't necessarily feel that cultural practices can really be imposed from above. Culture isn't some burden you have to carry in order to establish your authenticity. Instead, culture is a spontaneous and creative response to ones situation. Black culture is what Black culture does.

For a few days I've been thinking about how to best articulate some of my other reservations about Karenga and was toying with the idea of including a link to an older piece by Ann Coulter on Kwanzaa (and I was going to give the piece the title "even a stopped clock..."). Fortunately, I don't have to sink to such depths. I recently found another blogger who also has a rather balanced view of the holiday. She does a good job of describing Karenga's differences (to put it mildly) with the Panthers along with other issues.

Pica12: Kwanzaa – Why I Like It And Why I Don’t

dhul-hijjah and eid al-adha

According to ISNA, the first day of Dhul-Hijjah is expected January 1. That would mean the Day of Arafah will be the 9th of January, and Eid begins on the 10th.
Zawaj.com: Some Sunnahs of Dhul-Hijjah and the Eid
Central Mosque: Ten Days of Zul Hijjah

julius nyerere and ujamaa

Ujamaa: The Basis of African Socialism by Julius Kambarage Nyerere

ujamaa

Today is the fourth day of Kwanzaa and today's principle is Ujamaa or Cooperative Economics; to build and maintain our own stores, shops and other businesses and to profit from them together.

Hopefully you already realize that different communities have chosen to set up Chambers of Commerce to support "their" businesses or publish their own Yellow Pages in order to keep money within the group. For today's entry I just wanted to highlight a couple of interesting examples of distinctive financial arrangements people have come up with which manifest the principle of ujamaa. This shouldn't be taken as an endorsement on my part. You should do your own research for your own investments. But personally I think it is interesting that people are even attempting these kinds of alternatives to conventional business arrangements.

Federation of Southern Cooperatives Land Assistance Fund
List of Muslim Financial Institutions
What are co-operatives?
Ansar Co-operative Housing Corporation Ltd.

For further reading:
A history of African-American Farmer Co-operatives, 1938-2000

Also:
United Farm Workers

hoax or lie?

Xpatriated Texan is a Liberal Christian blogger who pokes a few holes in the story that mosques were being put under surveilance in order to keep people safe. Check out: Hoax or Lie?

prison magazine

Muslim blogger, Umar Lee is trying to put together an informal magazine for prisoners and is looking for volunteers, either in terms of writing contributions, contacting prisons, helping with mailings, desktop publishing, etc. For more info go here.

new addition to blogroll

Check out the Woman of Color Blog by activist Chicana blogger, brownfemipower.

carlos santana

"Spirituality to me is water. Religions are like Pepsi-Cola, Coca-Cola, wine, beer, or whatever. But spirituality is what's really going to save you in the battle, man. Champagne is not going to do much for you in battle. And so that's how I look at things. To me, it's very clear. And I think the more we get people this information, spiritual information, they will be able to choose, to realize the power of choice because, again, that's the most empowering thing you can give people. And I'm really happy to say that I'm not the only one waking up to this new dimension." -Carlos Santana

I'm both very suspicious of, and very sympathetic to, the "New Age" movement. On the one hand, under the banner of the New Age movement there is probably alot of ill-informed, self-indulgent undisciplined navel-gazing going on. But on the other hand, more traditional organized religions have certainly shown the potential to stagnate and fossilize into a dry oppressive unspiritual practice. Ultimately, the believers vote with their feet, and if the mainstream religious institutions aren't feeding the hearts of their congregations, their members are going to feel a sincere need to look elsewhere.

So in spite of the fact that I don't share all Santana's beliefs, I think there is something appealing in his willingness to step out on a limb and do his own thing. He not only stepped outside the Catholic Church, but out of a mainstream Christian paradigm altogether.

For a while now I've wanted to do an entry on Carlos Santana. Like John Coltrane, Santana is an amazing musician with a very unique and personal spiritual sensibility. In 1970 he released the album Abraxas (a Gnostic term for god) . For 9 years from 1972-1981 was a follower of Sri Chimnoy and went by the name Devadip. (see Carlos Santana and Sri Chinmoy ) He was later disillusioned with his guru and left, but continued explore spirituality on his own. in the wake of his Grammy-winning album Supernatural he credits his succes to his regular communication with the angel Metatron.

"Metatron ignited in me the concept of being patient, gracious and grateful," Santana muses, fingering a gold and silver pendant which, he says, is a representation of the angel. "He made me feel like a phoenix rising out of the ashes, and he still visits me in dreams. Some people don't believe in him, but that's okay. Like I said to Rolling Stone, I'd rather live with my craziness than your sane reality. In my craziness, I get to hang out with some seriously cool people."

(See also Metatron: Angel of the Presence)

Other articles/interviews with Santana:
Carlos Santana: Ready to reincarnate
The Eagle Flies Again: Interview with Carlos Santana
The Supernatural Rebirth of Carlos Santana by Zannah
The Uncompromising Spiritual Passion and Positivity of Carlos Santana by Craig Hamilton and Jessica Roemischer

And from Grenada's past:
the guru principle

ujima continued

In a similar vein, we should also stop to consider the connection between social justice issues globally and our personal individual lifestyles. For example, a few individuals are willing to pay a little bit more money for Fair Trade Coffee but what about other goods and services? A large portion of the prosperity and high standard of living found in the West is due to certain unjust economic and political arrangements which we benefit from. So what would happen to our standard of living if the world became more just? What would happen if all our goods were "Fair Trade"? If everything suddenly cost more, wouldn't we have to learn to get by with less? In order to truly work towards having society be more just, and to work responsibly for the collective good, we also have to be willing to sacrifice the various ways we've been benefitting from injustice.

If you want to follow this train of thought further, you might be interested in the voluntary simplicity movement. I'm not claiming to represent them, or speak for them, but I think at least some sectors of the movement are into making that same connection between social justice in the world and a certain kind of lifestyle at home.

ujima

Today is the Third day of Kwanzaa and today's principle is Ujima or Collective Work and Responsibility; to build and maintain our community together and make our brother's and sister's problems our problems and to solve them together.

From the film Bulworth, starring Warren Beatty in the title role of a temporarily suicidal liberal politician. And Halle Berry as Nina, the sexy B-Girl raised by a Black Panther mother (but Bulworth doesn't know that yet):

Bulworth: (looking at NINA) You know who Huey Newton was?

Nina: (slowly she nods her head) yes.

Bulworth:
You know a lotta people I talk to, the blacks your age, they have no idea who he was.
(long pause)
Huey.
(long pause)
Why do you think there are no more black leaders?

Nina: (after a pause)
Some people think it's because they all got killed. But I think it's got more to do with the decimation of the manufacturing base in the urban centers. Senator, an optimistic population throws up optimistic, energized leaders. And when you shift manufacturing to the Sun Belt in the Third World, you destroy the blue-collar core of the black activist population.

Some people would say that problem is purely cultural. The power of the media that is continually controlled by fewer and fewer people, add to that the monopoly of the media, a consumer culture based on self-gratification, and you're not likely to have a population that want's leadership that calls for self-sacrifice.

But the fact is, I'm just a materialist at heart. But if I look at the economic base, higher domestic employment means jobs for African Americans. World War II meant lots of jobs for black folks. That is what energized the community for the civil rights movement of the 50's and the 60's. An energized, hopeful community will not only produce leaders but more importantly it'll produce leaders they'll respond to.
Now what do you think, Senator?

(Bulworth is speechless)

So what do YOU think? Does Nina have a point? The part which is grabbing my attention right now (especially in terms of connecting it with collective work and responsibility) is the idea that consumer culture itself is discouraging the growth of progressive leadership; and so instead of getting leaders who believe in "Give me liberty or give me death" we end up with "Get rich or die tryin'".

And what I find really interesting about this train of thought is that ujima seems to provide an alternative on which to base (or reinforce) at least a large portion of traditional morality. In other words, living out the principle of ujima requires a willingness towards self-sacrifice and a rejection of hedonism.

And so in addition to doing the right thing on religious grounds, or because of what would happen if the neighbors found it, ujima suggests that certain kinds of vices and indulgences are bad because they are anti-progressive and bad for the community.

Further reading:
Bulworth: The Hip-Hop Nation Confronts Corporate Capitalism


Tomorrow's principle: Ujamaa or Cooperative Economics