Islam is at the heart of an emerging global anti-hegemonic culture that combines diasporic and local cultural elements, and blends Arab, Islamic, black and Hispanic factors to generate "a revolutionary black, Asian and Hispanic globalization, with its own dynamic counter-modernity constructed in order to fight global imperialism. (say what!)
The small man Builds cages for everyone He Knows. While the sage, Who has to duck his head When the moon is low, Keeps dropping keys all night long For the Beautiful Rowdy Prisoners.
Obviously the election of Barack Obama is an incredibly profound historical milestone for the United States and so in some sense it is a "New Day. At the same time, it still remains to be seen to what extent Obama will try to re-create the Clinton administration, rule as a centrist or chart a bolder leftward-leaning course. I'm cautiously optimistic but I'm not sure if we can really expect a "revolution" which will suddenly make everything better (especially given the appointment of Rahm Emmanuel as chief of staff). However, I do think that we will start to make some baby-steps in the right direction over time.
Secondly, all these political will.i.am tracks (involving dozens of other musicians and actors) are making me wonder if in the Obama era, hip-hop will go from being protest music to pro-establishment patriotic music? Just a thought.
I had wanted to include a video to this song back when I started my "black president" series but didn't find one until now. Here is South African pop star Brenda Fassie singing about a different history-making Black leader. Personally, I think one of the most beautiful, powerful aspects of the song is that it was actually written several years before Mandela was elected. The dream became a reality. (And here is a clip of a sparser, more beautiful, less "pop" version of the song)
The year 1963 The people's president Was taken away by security men All dressed in a uniform The brutality, brutality Oh, no, my black president Him and his comrades Were sentenced to isolation For many painful years For many painful years Many painful years Of hard labour They broke ropes But the spirit was never broken Never broken Oh, no, my, my black president
Hmm maa (3x) Mama Hmm maa (3x) Mama
Hmm maa (3x) Madiba Hmm maa (3x) Madiba Ahh, nyu ye uyee huu
He broke ropes But his spirit was never broken Never broken Oh oh oh, my president
Now in 1990 The people's president Came out from jail Raised up his hand and said 'Viva, viva, my people' He walked the long road Back, back to freedom Back, back to freedom Freedom for my black president
Let us rejoice for our president Let us sing for our president Let us pray for our president Let us sing, let us dance For Madiba give us freedom We thank you Lord For listening to our prayers Night and day Oh oh oh, my president
Madiba
Zulu /Xhosa lyrics
My president I will die for my president I will sing for my president
I will stand and say Viva, viva, viva, viva, viva, viva
I haven't talked about Afro-futurism for a while, so I figure I should mention that I recently saw Day Break, a prematurely-cancelled television series starring TayeDiggs. It has a premise similar to Bill Murray's Groundhog Day in that Diggs' character keeps reliving a particular day until he gets it "right". But instead of being a cutesy romantic comedy, Daybreak is a somewhat violent drama series about a Black hero being apparently framed by the (mostly-white) powers that be. In this case, the role of "The Man" is played (in part) by members of a group called the Santayana Club. (George Santayana is the Spanish philosopher who is famous for having said: "Those who cannot remember the past, are condemned to repeat it". On the other hand, almost all the people of color are at least portrayed rather sympathetically (even the criminals). An interesting show... it manages to keep the suspense and interest going, revealing layer after layer of an intricate story.
As we approach one of the most important elections (symbolically and otherwise) in US history. it is heartening to see signs of a growing consensus around Barack Obama (see Republican and conservative support for Barack Obama in 2008 and also Republicans and Conservatives Endorsing Barack) which has the potential to unify the country and redraw the political map. On the other hand it is a source of concern that the McCain campaign in its death-throes (inshaAllah) along with other elements of the far right are getting more vicious as election day approaches. (Feds disrupt skinhead plot to assassinate Obama)
Oh my God, the line was soooo long. The process took about 3 hours from beginning to end. I kept thinking back to tv images of the first post-apartheid Election Day in South Africa when Mandela was on the ballot. I spent most of the time outside, waiting to be let into the Lemon City Library (Miami). Then I got a numbered ticket and was eventually let in. Once inside (which was still 70+ deep), I had to wait for my number to be called before being let into a seperate room where all the voting booths were. Fortunately for future early voters, the governor is extending the poll hours for the rest of the week.
I’m for the underdogs and the polar bears. I’m for matriarchy and Barack Obama. I’m for green jobs, not jails. I want to turn the Titanic around before we hit the iceberg.
I believe we need deep transformation at all levels of society, individual and systemic. I hate the game, not the players. I love the suburbanites, not the suburbs. I believe that evil is real but good is real too! I believe in God and evolution and I believe it is our moral obligation to protect God’s creation. I believe that all life is sacred and that right now humans are out of balance. I believe that a society that worships material wealth cannot be reconciled with the Ten Commandments. I believe humans are trying to play God, and that genetic engineering, robotics and nano-technology are radically altering the fabric of human life into a scary science fiction novel.
I believe we need to change the game, re-invent the game, get together, hold hands, take a big deep breath, and come up with a new game where there are more winners and fewer losers. I want to see a happy ending in which humanity ultimately survives. I believe that whether the glass is half-full, one-quarter full or one-tenth full, we’ve gotta play the cards we are dealt. I believe in big baby steps.
CNN host Rick Sanchez said he was "mystified" by a last minute decision by the McCain campaign to pull a Muslim grassroots organizer from appearing on his show.
The aide, Daniel Zubairi, had been scheduled to appear on Sanchez's mid-day program after he was caught on video talking down an anti-Muslim protester outside a McCain rally in Woodbridge, Virginia. But, even after telling the network that an interview was "good to go," the McCain shop pulled Zubairi at the last minute, leaving Sanchez in limbo on live TV.
"Wouldn't you think they would have wanted him to come on?" the CNN host would later tell the Huffington Post.
As I mentioned previously, the Murabitun take a pretty hardline stance against usury and the current system of paper money. So it shouldn't be surprising that their leader, Shaykh Dr. Abdalqadir as-Sufi has written a series of pieces on The Collapse of the Monetarist Society. Read Part 1 Read Part 2 Read Part 3
In the article An Exemplar of Reconciliation Salim Muwakkil shares his own thoughts on the passing of Imam W.D. Mohammed and the significance of his legacy. To provide a little bit of context, Muwakkil himself was a past member of the Nation of Islam (but his current religious beliefs are unclear).
