Will "Expedition Africa" be Full of Racist Stereotypes?

This evening the History Channel premiered its new historical reality series, Expedition Africa: Stanley and Livingston. The brain-child of Mark Burnett, the British television producer behind Survivor; Expedition places four white adventure seekers in a modern-day recreation of Welsh journalist Henry Morton Stanley's 970-mile search for Scottish explorer David Livingstone. Livingstone was a missionary in South Africa before deciding to search for the source of the Nile (Hapi) in central Africa. His disappearance led Stanley on an arduous 9-month trek to find him.

While Livingstone was a prominent advocate of the anti-slavery movement, his "exploration" of South and Central Africa directly reinforced the "Scramble for Africa". European countries carved the continent into pieces as they fueled their enormous wealth and power by raping it of its human and natural wealth. Livingstone's life became a symbol for the European imperialism on the "Dark Continent". Emblematic of his unyielding arrogance was his decision to re-name the Lake Nalubaale in honor of the British Queen, Victoria.

Expedition certainly reintroduces these disturbing concepts into the current dialogue. Let's start with the title, Expedition Africa. Just where in Africa are they trekking? The message is that circumstances of individual countries are irrelevant here. Africa is just one brooding mass. Imagine if a program on a major cable network produced a show which pretended that the various countries of Europe were interchangeable. Perhaps we would see an Italian family speaking with a French accent. This would be ridiculous to most people. Africa is the only continent that routinely receives this sort of treatment. No wonder Sarah Palin thinks Africa is a country.

We can be sure that Expedition will also depict the continent as a wild, savage land. We won't get to see people living in villages, cities, or simply attending to human needs in the 21st century for that matter. This more accurate depiction would render their trek as ridiculous as it truly is. In fact, it has been reported that the team will intentionally traverse mountains that Stanley circumnavigated in order to create a more rugged trip. They will also steer clear of inhabited areas. I think the producers could have saved quite a bit of money by having the group circle the most naturalistic sections of New York City's Central Park.

Finally, I am told that the most reprehensible feature of the show will be the "native" guides who will simply blend into the background much like the animals, fauna, or landscape. According to Dan Zak of the Washington Post, the four explorers will have two Masai warriors along for protection and a cohort of Tanzanian porters to carry their luggage. Clearly this will be worse than the ubiquitous Tarzan movie of the 1950's. At least we knew that Tarzan was [racist] fiction hewn for Saturday matinees. The History Channel will be asking us to believe that this is reality television!

I, for one, will be carefully watching the reception of Expedition Africa. The pedantic historical reality show will be a perfect litmus test for our so-called post-racial, age of Obama. Expedition will give us an opportunity to discuss issues which cause discomfort for individuals of all backgrounds. I recall one of my white college professors genuinely asked me when we would no longer have to harp on the enslavement and marginalization of Africans. He seemed surprised when I immediately responded that I’d gladly focus on other issues when Africans are made whole economically, socially, and politically. Programs like Expedition Africa highlight areas where we've made very little progress. Funny ... today I think I understand how Heru felt floating injured among the reeds of the River Hapi after losing his first battle with Set. Clearly we have long way to go to re-member and vindicate our ancestors. Shem em Hetep (Go forth in Peace)!

Articles on Expedition Africa: Stanley and Livingston:

Washington Post - http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/05/29/AR2009052901701.html

NY Times - http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/30/arts/television/30stan.html?_r=1&ref=arts

A Tribute to Dr. Ivan Van Sertima (1.26.1935 - 5.25.2009)

He was born in a small village;
He arrived to these shores from Guyana;
He practiced Ma'at for his people;
He satisfied Ausar with his many works;
He went to great lengths to investigate our story and brought the knowledge to the people;
He seized the right moment, and had great stature among us;
He judged between individuals in a suitable manner;
He vindicated the name of the downtrodden.
He gave knowledge of self to those whose names were stolen from them;
He respected his ancestral father and honored his ancestral mother;
He raised their children.
We say this of our beloved teacher, scholar, and brother.
His name is Dr. Ivan Van Sertima

Adapted from the Inscription of Nefer-Seshem-Ra

I must admit that although I know Dr. Ivan Van Setima led a wonderful and shinning life, I was still greatly saddened by his passing. I recently rediscovered his brilliance over the last month. I've been watching videos of his speeches from 1983 to 1994. While I've studied African history for over 20 years, I still found much of the information he shared new and exciting. I was also amazed that these early lectures contained so many well placed references from dozens of divergent fields including linguistics, anthropology, art history, ancient history, and comparative literature. I will definitely begin re-reading his books and journals.


Dr. Van Sertima was extremely important to my intellectual development and burgeoning self-awareness. Attending a predominantly white high school in the late 1980's, I was looked at as an oddity by most of faculty members and subjected to racist epithets by many of the students. I was routinely called nigger, jungle bunny, spear-chucker, and a number of other insults. At first I tried to blend in, and then I fought back. I need to understand why they feared or hated me. I began my quest for knowledge with books like The Autobiography of Malcolm X, Before the Mayflower, and of course Van Sertima's They Came Before Columbus: The African Presence in Early America. His scholarly but accessible work prodded me to continue my study of the legacy of African people. It reaffirmed me, strengthened me, educated me, and made proud. I only met Dr. Van Sertima once, but he was my intellectual father. I will miss him, although I am sure he has gone to Amenta to reunite with the souls of our ancestors. We are made stronger by his passing. Shem em Hetep (Go forward in Peace)!

8,000 Year Old Nabta Playa Vandalized?

Obviously our media is not interested in proof of the extraordinary scientific prowess of African communities 8,000 years ago. Even with the research that I did for my initial post on the stone circle calendar in the Egyptian dessert, I did not find news of the vandalism of the site which occurred over a year ago. The issue came up on my Google Alert today. Astrophysicist Thomas G. Brophy reported that the vandalism was clear when reviewing his photos from 2007 to those taken in 2008. Dr. Brophy and Robert Bauval are collaborating on the upcoming book, Black Genesis (see initial post).

Upon hearing this disturbing news, I couldn't help but think whether similar vandalism at the famed European megalith site, Stonehenge, would have received a virtual media blackout. I'm sure some of our readers are familiar with Stonehenge but only became aware of Nabta Playa due to our post. Nabta Playa is at least 3,000 years older. I will attempt to get in contact with Dr. Brophy to ascertain the severity of the damage. Let's hope that this key reference point in the history and development of African science is not simply erased from its sandy base. Shem em Hetep (Go forward in Peace)!

Ancient Egyptian Necropolis Discovered

Egyptian archaeologists announced the discovery of dozens of ancient tombs carved into the face of a stone hill near a mud-brick pyramid. Located near the farming village of Lahun, the necropolis is nested in the Fayoum oasis approximately 50 miles southwest of Cairo.

The necropolis features 53 tombs which date from the Middle Kingdom—nearly 4,000 years old—until nearly the end of native rule. The burials include colorful sarcophagi (Neb Ankh to the Ancient Khamites), pottery, statues, and amulets. Although Egyptologists believe that the sites may have been established by Senusret II, the fourth king of the 12th dynasty; Dr. Abdel-Rahman el-Ayedi stated that some of the data on the site might prove the site is much older.


There is so much more we can learn about our Ancient Kemetic ancestors. I recall that archeologists argue that perhaps only 30 percent of all of Egypt's ancient sites have been explored. Imagine that only 5 percent of all of the archeological sites on the entire continent of Africa have been studied! We have so much more to learn about ourselves and the contributions that Africans have made to the course of human history. I don't know about you ... but these are certainly exciting times. Shem em Hetep (Go forth in Peace)!

Articles on the Discovery of the Ancient Necropolis
Associated Press

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jBZy8LJHK2gqDdN1jODGEtR4beDwD97QA3VG0

finding Dulcinea
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jBZy8LJHK2gqDdN1jODGEtR4beDwD97QA3VG0

The photos used in this post are from the National Geographic website (http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2009/04/photogalleries/dozens-mummies-found-lahun/)

British Ancient Egyptians? The Absurdities Continue in Night at the Museum 2

It seems that nearly every week material is revealed which further proves the African origins of Ancient Egypt. Arguments which posit an external origin have been thoroughly unraveled—in scholarly forums. Unfortunately the masses don't usually participate in these sorts of discussions. Depictions in popular media are much more powerful. They continue to infect the average person with stronger and stronger bits of misinformation. Let's just hope the people haven't become overly resistant to the truth.


Ben Stiller is back with the sequel to the extremely successful, Night at the Museum. Stiller returns as Larry Daley a Museum of Natural History night watchman who was amazed to see the museum exhibits come to life. In the sequel Stiller must help free his museum friends as they are shipped to the Smithsonian in order to be placed in storage. As he infiltrates the Smithsonian, he finds that Kahmunrah, the jealous brother of the Egyptian Pharaoh in the first film, plans to use an ancient tablet to make it possible to continue to be animated in the real world.


In another absurd twist, Kahmunrah is played by Hank Azaria (best known as the voice of Homer Simpson), a white actor. Azaria uses a British accent in his portrayal. "We knew he would have an English accent because he's the brother of Ahkmenrah from the first movie," states Azaria in The Plymouth Herald. "Kind of bold and aristocratic is how we started, sort of laid back and bored ... at the last minute I went 'what about Karloff, he was a mummy', and did it as a joke really." To hear Azaria’s accent for yourself, watch the movie trailer included beneath this post.


So let's get this straight. Not only are the Ancient Egyptians white, but they are British—even though England doesn't even come into existence for another 1,000 years. While this is clearly impossible, there is a subtle symbol at play here. In popular media in the United States, intelligent characters are often depicted with British accents (see Professor Xavier in the X-men, Mister Belvedere, Abe Sapien in Hellboy, C-3PO from Star Wars, Dr. Frasier Crane, Stewie from Family Guy, etc.). In many ways the British dialect in popular depiction is a respectful acknowledgement by European Americans of their origins.


At this point some of you might be thinking, "So what if the European creators of this movie are paying homage to their homeland? What's the big deal?" I also believe another nefarious subliminal message is operating in the Night at the Museum films: Ancient Egyptian civilization is so advanced it could not possibly be African—even though the country is clearly located on the continent of Africa (also see accents used in the film The Lion King). After a lifetime of these sorts of seemingly innocuous messages, is it hard to understand why African children believe in their inherent inferiority? It is not surprising that many young African American students rebuke their peers who are striving for academic excellence for "acting white". So many of the seemingly subtle messages around us actually seek to destroy us.

In the final analysis, Night at the Museum 2 isn't just entertainment ... it is propaganda. It is critically important for us to unveil and defeat these messages. After all, the minds of our children are at stake. Shem em Hetep (Go forth in Peace)!

The Ancient Egyptian Source of the Bible's Book of Genesis

There are many people who might think this post is blasphemy. In fact, that select group of people would probably include most of my family. I'm sure they'll continue to pray for my eternal soul. However, I'm sure that they all agree that there are quite a few uncanny similarities between the book of Genesis and an earlier treatise from a "pagan" religion.

In order to describe these similarities, I'll reprint the opening section of the Book of Knowing the Creations of Ra as Ptah. It is said that it was written (or more possibly written down) for a priest named Nes-Amsu around 312 B.C. It has been in the British Museum since around 1865. Thanks to Dr. Maulana Karenga for the vibrancy of the translation:


I. Ra's Description of His Creations
Thus said Ra, the Lord of All, Lord of the Utmost Limits (Neb-er-tcher), after He had come into being: I am the one who came into being as Khepera. He who comes into being and brings into being. When I came into being, being itself came into being. All beings came into being after I came into being. Many were the beings that came forth from the commands of my mouth. Heaven had not yet come into being. Nor had earth come into being. Nor had the ground been created or the things which creep and crawl upon it. I raised up being in the primordial waters as inert things. I found no place on which to stand. I formed it from the desire in my heart; I laid the foundation through Maat. I created forms of every kind. Many were the forms which issued forth from the commands of my mouth. Not yet had I established Shu, the power and principle of light and air. Nor sent forth Tefnut, the power and principle of moisture. There existed no one who acted together with me. I conceived it in my own heart. And there came into being a vast number of forms of divine beings as forms of offspring and forms of their offspring from them ...


I came forth from among the plants which I created and I created all things which creep and crawl and all that exists among them. Then by the power and principles of light and air and the power and principle of moisture, heaven and earth were brought into being, and by earth and heaven [Ausar, Heru, Set, Ast and Nbet-Het] were brought into being from the womb, one after another, and they gave birth to the multitudes in this land (brackets mine).


Now let's review the description of creation in the book of Genesis. The most striking similarities will be placed in bold:

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, let there be light and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day. And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.

And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so. And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day. And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so.

And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good. And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so. And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good. And the evening and the morning were the third day. And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years: and let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so. And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also. And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth, and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good. And the evening and the morning were the fourth day.

And God said, let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creatures that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven. And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good. And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth. And the evening and the morning were the fifth day.


And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind and it was so. And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good.


And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. And God blessed them, and God said unto them, be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat. And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to everything that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so. And God saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.

Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.

Clearly the Book of Knowing the Creations of Ra as Ptah is an earlier version of the story of creation in the Book of Genesis. In and of itself, there is absolutely nothing wrong with this. After all, the first five books of the bible are also known as the Jewish Torah, right? It is accepted that Judaism is the forerunner of Christianity. However, acknowledging that both are children of an African, “pagan” spiritual form would be a problem! The Udjat will continue to describe passages which have undeniable Kemetic origin. If this Kemetic origin becomes understood by the masses; only two results can occur. Either it will shake the very foundations of the three “major” religions creating conflict and strife; or all of humanity will reconcile its Ancient Afri-Kemetic origin. Maybe we’ll all be better for it. “Honor thy mother and thy father that your days may be long upon the face of the earth.” Sounds a little different under this context, huh? Shem em Hetep (Go forth in Peace)!

Somali Piracy .. In Context

Nearly all media outlets in New York City announced the Manhattan indictment of a Somali youth on ten counts including piracy and kidnapping. 16-year-old Abduwali Abdukhadir Muse is described as the leader of a group who forcibly boarded the Maersk Alabama last month. As you've probably heard, the attempted hijacking was foiled and the captain of the ship has been hailed as a hero. Muse is the only "pirate" in the attack who remains alive. Unfortunately, we haven't even heard half the story. Historical analysis so seldom accompanies news reports on Africa (and its diasporans for that matter).

It is so easy to repudiate this youth. Simply google the words "Somali pirate" and "punk" and you'll be bombarded with commentaries and reports depicting this teenager, who faces life in prison, as a one-dimensional villain. Has anyone asked why piracy on the Indian ocean waters is even occurring? We've seen reports of the virtual collapse of the Somalian government due to the civil war which began around 1991. What we aren't hearing is how large foreign ships destroyed the delicate ecosystem off the coast of Somali.

The communities on the coast of Somali have probably been fishing-based since time immemorial. As they lived in Ma'at with their environment, the ocean used to adequately provide for all of their needs. In fact, some of the world's finest lobster used to inhabit the millennia-old coral reefs. Unfortunately since the civil war, foreign ships have decimated these reefs with toxic dumping and even by dragging heavy chains along them to collect lobster. These ships usually operate in waters just out of the reach of the local people and the weakened government of Somalia has not been able to address these activities.

Due to the destruction of their marine ecosystem, Somalia's costal communities have been ravaged by droughts, flooding, and tsunamis. Without the ability to fish, they have been thrust into abject poverty. Some of the individuals living in these communities have turned to piracy as they want to take "revenge" on these foreign ships. Interviewing with the U.S. newspaper conglomerate McClatchy from a prison in Mandhera, Somalia, 38-year-old Farah Ismail Eid explains how the foreign presence created the conflict:

"Now the international community is shouting about piracy. But long before this, we were shouting to the world about our problems. No one listened. They fished everything — sharks, lobsters, eggs. They collided with our boats. They came with giant nets and swept everything out of the sea." He recalls that the first hijackings occurred around 1997, with the seizure of a China vessel and a Kenyan ship which was ransomed for $500,000. "When I heard about this, I was happy."

We must remember that living outside of the laws of Ma'at comes at a price. In fact, if we live long enough, these prices are usually paid by everyone. As the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. stated, "While the moral arc of the universe is long, it bends towards justice." Hopefully reporting on the Somalian hijacking issue will begin to include a more balanced perspective. How can we assume that costal communities will continue to struggle in silence without looking for others to share their burden? The global community of Africans must also weigh in on this travesty. If not, the moral arc may come to exact its toll upon our heads as well. Shem em Hetep!


More balanced reporting on the Somalian "Piracy" Issue:
McClatchy Online (used in this post):
http://www.mcclatchydc.com/226/story/67142.html

Allafrica article on Somalian "Revenge"
http://allafrica.com/stories/200904140766.html

Encyclopedia Item on Somalian Coral Reefs:
http://www.eoearth.org/article/Somali_Coastal_Current_large_marine_ecosystem