The Perspective
Atlanta, Georgia
October 21, 2018

                  

(Reuters photo: Brendan McDermid, 2013 Immigration Naturalization)

America is great because of Immigrants! The greatness of America comes from it being a beacon of hope for the helpless, the deprived, the brightest and the most talented. The United States of America has offered hope and opportunities to many immigrants. The Irish came from Ireland during the great potato famine of the 1840s; the Jews emigrated from Europe during and after the 2nd World War, and the English escaped a depressed English economy in the 1700s. They came to a land that offered a chance for the future. The only immigrants that were kidnapped and forcibly brought to these shores against their will are the ancestors’ of African Americans. 

In the 19th Century, it was appropriate to refer to the USA as a “melting pot” - because most of the people that immigrated to the United States Americanized their names and lifestyles to fit in and become part of the “American Dream”. However, in the 21st century, the appropriate metaphor to describe the United States of America is “tossed salad”. The rationale is - tossed salad is a mixture of several ingredients, i.e., greens, tomato, sliced radishes, onions, bacon bits, canola oil, cider vinegar, salt, pepper, etc. Today, immigrants maintain their names and culture. These ingredients represent diversity. The diversity contributes to the United States’ STRENGTH as a nation.  This is what makes the United States different from any other country on the face of the earth. It is, therefore, un-American for any politician to tear apart this unique tapestry of what makes America great. And even Trump cannot change it!

For example, the founding fathers established the United States of America on the principle of uniting all peoples. According to them: 

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common Defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

Instead, President Donald John Trump makes it his business to rain insults on those that disagree with him; especially, American citizens of immigrant origin. Yet, he himself is an offspring of immigrant parents from Scotland and Germany. President Trump is bent on dividing Americans. Despite saying that he does not believe U.S. District Court Judge Gonzalo Curiel's heritage "makes him incapable of being impartial;" he branded him as a “hater,” “very hostile” and “Mexican.” He refused to admit that the statement directed at Judge Curiel is racist; instead, he slammed the judge's rulings in cases where he served as the presiding judge. 

Many people do not realize that, with the exception of immigrants from Latin America and the Caribbean, foreign-born residents have higher levels of educational attainment than native-born Americans. Though higher percentages of Bachelor’s and graduate/professional degrees are found among Asian immigrants, these percentages for African immigrants are essentially the same as New Americans from Europe, Canada, and Oceania.
But America’s immigration policy has depended on the demonization and dehumanization of Africans as the American government forced them into slavery and literally made them build the White House and the South’s agrarian economy. President Trump’s comments follow a long line of ignorant, rich, white, property owners who do not want to admit that their survival depends on the African continent and its people. 

A century ago, thousands of people across the globe joined together in what became one of the 20th century’s first great international human rights movements in protesting the bloody reign of Belgium’s King Leopold II over the Congo.  In a murderous effort to exploit the vast natural resources of that country, half of the Congo’s population was decimated by King Leopold’s personal rule—an estimated 10 million people.  The resulting public outcry helped curb the worst abuses of that period. 

A current exploitation of Africa’s resources is the Cell Phone. For example, the cell phone could not have been made possible, if it wasn’t for the mineral from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The next time Europeans and White Americans insult Africa and Africans, remember it is our contributions that made America, and Europe great (from the ‘cradle to the grave’). Moreover, it needs to be known that much of the conflicts in Africa got started or influenced by the West for its selfish national and economic interests.

Some Principal Conflict Minerals

Gold – used in jewelry and as a component in electronics
Extremely valuable and easy to smuggle, Congolese armed groups are earning between $44 million to $88 million per year from gold.

Majority of the perpetrators of this economic exploitation are Westerners, who claimed to be Christians. Yet, they violate the Golden Rule.  For example, on July 19, 2015, moderator Frank Luntz asked President Trump who claimed to be a Presbyterian whether he has ever asked God for forgiveness; his response was: “I Don’t Think I’ve Ever Asked God for Forgiveness” (Published Sunday, July 19, 2015 edition of the NEWSMAX and written by Todd Beamon). 

Anyone who calls himself a Christian and NEVER asked God for forgiveness is not a Christian. 

As a Christian, you are to “Seek the LORD while you can find him. Call on him now while he is near. Let the wicked change their ways and banish the very thought of doing wrong. Let them turn to the LORD that he may have mercy on them. Yes, turn to our God, for he will forgive generously”. (Isaiah 55:6-7; NLT) 

It is disingenuous to say you are a Christian and have never asked God for forgiveness. 

Our Heavenly Father who forgives us of all trespasses, calls sinners like us to seek Him and He promised us forgiveness. It is because of His grace and mercy that He rescues believers from the dominion of darkness, which began way back in the Garden of Eden. And our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ extend a loving invitation for the forgiveness of sins that is made possible through the blood He shed on our behalf. We are forgiven because of His love for us! 

Those who do not believe in asking God Almighty for forgiveness are inclined to treat others with EVIL DEEDS, the way Mr. Trump has spoken about immigrants. For example, he directed the following racist comments at Africans and Africans Americans. According to him:

“Some Africans are lazy fools only good at eating, lovemaking, and Stealing”. (From the October 25, 2015 edition of the POLITICA written by Christine Mendoza)

“African Americans are very lazy. The best they can do is gallivanting around ghettoes, lamenting how they are discriminated. These are the people America doesn’t need. They are the enemies of progress. Look at African countries like Kenya for instance; those people are stealing from their own government and go to invest the money in foreign countries. From the government to opposition, they only qualify to be used as a case study whenever bad examples are required. How do you trust even those who have run [sic] away to hide here at the United States hiding behind education? I hear they abuse me in their blogs but I don’t care because even the internet they are using is ours and we can decide to switch it off from this side. These are people who import everything including matchsticks. In my opinion, most of these African countries ought to be recolonized again for another 100 years because they know nothing about leadership and self-governance”.

In addition, he says,

“Our great African American President hasn't exactly had a positive impact on the thugs who are so happily and openly destroying Baltimore!”

Finally he says,

“I promise to make America great again by restoring the dignity that we have since lost through Obama. The more reason why I still believe that he and his Kenyan brothers and sisters should be deported back to Kenya to make America safe” (October 25, 2015 edition of the POLITICA). Check https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-37949183

Sadly, Donald Trump is not alone in his evil way of thinking about immigrants!

African Americans’ Right to Vote is subject to Renewal
African Americans have been here in America for over 400 years.  When African-American ancestors were brought to these shores, they worked from dawn to dusk to create wealth for a nation that has denied them their rightful place in America. They, too, would like to be treated like any other Americans whose ancestors came to this country. But the party of Abraham Lincoln (Republican Party) that supposedly freed the slaves, a party that became the party for Blacks during the Reconstruction, has failed miserably to promote African American causes. The politics and policies of the Republican Party continue to blame African Americans for almost all of the ills of American society. African Americans and Native Americans were denied their human and constitutional rights and have had to fight for them through the COURT and seek redress through Affirmative Action; unlike other Americans, African Americans’ rights to vote had to be achieved through the court system, and even recently it has been subject to lobbying legislation (to reduce their participation). In fact, the Voting Rights Act is still subject to renewal! 

Why can't African Americans be like other Americans? All that African Americans want is to be treated like other Americans. But unlike others, African-Americans continue to have to fight for everything they have achieved through the court system.

Let it be said here that over four hundred years ago our ancestors were brought to these shores against their will; accorded the worst type of treatment — treatment that was not even reserved for beasts — forced to work the land of their masters without compensation, under, arguably, the worst conditions ever visited upon any human being. They were sold like cattle, with tags attached to their bodies in the marketplace. Their mothers were forced to breed more human commodities to increase the wealth of their masters. Yet, it never dawned on their oppressors that since they were all humans they could be biologically or spiritually related. Instead, they were discriminated against on the basis of their features and the color of their skin.

A nation founded on the basis of the inalienable rights of man subjected African slaves to the very inhumane practices from which they themselves escaped to seek freedom in the ‘New World.' They were a people who supposedly believed in the sacred document that reads: "We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal." But when it concerned the ancestors of African Americans, those same truths could not be applied.  Enslaved Africans were referred to as property and deemed three-fifths human in the US Constitution. To justify this cruel act of slavery, they were considered uncivilized and inferior. That same excuse was provided as a rationale for hunting and killing Native Americans and showcasing their heads as trophies.

It had to take a civil war and thousands of lives lost between the North and South before the Emancipation Proclamation was made to finally admit that slavery was unjust. But the many promises made on their behalf were never honored — the 40 acres and a mule and the Freedom from Harassment Acts. A new conspiracy to keep African-Americans oppressed took roots beginning with the Reconstruction to Jim Crow and the Separate but Equal Laws which violated the very foundation the Emancipation Proclamation stood for.

Having been denied true emancipation and integration, African Americans’ ancestors were not considered citizens. They were taxed without representation and denied access to education too. But when they were finally allowed to enter through few doors of opportunity, they were used as experiments. Even when their fathers and brothers died fighting in wars to liberate Europe, they were refused burial rights in the same cemeteries with whites because of the color of their skin.

How cruel can a nation be to a people who have suffered the worst kind of crime ever committed against humanity? Yet, it continues to be argued that Blacks are inferior and that Whites are superior! But the question that has NEVER been answered is - if Whites are SUPERIOR and Blacks are INFERIOR, why go through all the trouble to make LAWS to OPPRESS them? This is something that requires serious consideration!

Like the Jews, African Americans cannot take things for granted or leave their plight to chance. Reparation for African Americans is denied while the US government has compensated other groups of people they have wronged.

I wrote some time ago, a Donald Trump presidency portends a return to the blatantly anti-African Americans policies of the Reagan-Bush years; characterized by a general disregard for Blacks and the perception of Africa as a continent ONLY good for its mineral and natural resources. But sadly, African Americans whose ancestors paid the ultimate price for the right to vote hardly VOTE. This practice led me to write the poem: Vote! Vote! Vote! It reads:

To vote is not only a choice
But rather an obligation required of
Every responsible citizen
It is also a RIGHT in a democracy
A right not found in many political systems
This you need to know!

In order to secure the RIGHT to vote,
Many men, women, young and old
Fought and died for this RIGHT
Therefore, to treat it like it is useless
Is unwise and irresponsible.

Right now, as I write 
There are lots of people all over the world
Who wish they had a fraction of our freedom
Let alone, the RIGHT to vote
For the candidate of their choice
But they are denied the RIGHT to do so.

There were a multitude of people who died
So you and I will be able to cast our ballots
For whoever we feel deserve our votes
But if you fail to do so like those who feel
It is a waste of time or lesser of two evils
Then you're no better than those who in the past
Thought it was a privilege and not our RIGHT.

To vote is not only a choice
But rather an obligation of a responsible citizen
It was fought for - so we could exercise it wisely
Without fear or intimidation
Therefore, to do otherwise is to deny yourself
Your country and especially,
Those who fought so hard to safeguard it for us.

If you elect to disfranchise yourself
You and those who behave in this manner
Will have no say in whatever laws or policies
The government and elected officials passed
Because a democracy is like a bank account
What you put in it, is what you expect to gain
If you failed to be a part of this exercise
You need not say a word about the government
You had your choice but you elected not to EXERCISE it.

Conclusion

GOD is in the Wish Granting Business
Be careful of what you ask of GOD because He will surely grant your wishes. America had President Barack Obama; he wasn’t good because he is a Kenyan-American. Therefore, White Americans prayed to GOD to give them their ‘OWN’. He answered their prayers; He gave them DONALD JOHN TRUMP.

This reminds me of the Nigerian novelist, Ms. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s story of “The Danger of a singer story”. According to her:

The consequence of a single story “…robs people of dignity. It makes our recognition of our equal humanity difficult. It emphasizes how we are different rather than how we are similar. Stories matter. Many stories matter. Stories have been used to dispossess and to malign, but stories can also be used to empower and humanize. Stories can break the dignity of a people, but stories can also repair that broken dignity’ (Curried from TED Forum Video).

Stories truly matter!
Europeans and Americans create stories about Africa, but many of these stories are false. They do so to obtain a political and economic advantage in the world; while their ultimate goal is to keep Africa in the state of war and underdeveloped.

Another interesting story is that of hurricanes
First, let’s look at the paths hurricanes follow. It has been proven by Science that Hurricanes cannot form just anywhere in the world due to the need for hot and humid air. Normally, hurricanes form close to the equator and move west or northwest. Hurricane Alley is a stretch of warm water through the Atlantic Ocean from the west coast of North Africa to the coast of Central America.

The transatlantic slave trade began in the middle 15th century after Europeans began to establish a trade for Africans off the coast of West Africa. The Slave Trade Act of 1807, an act that became effective January 1, 1808, ended the slave trade outside the U.S. but not the abolition of the Slave Trade and not Slavery within its borders.

The majority of African captives were exported from the coast of West Africa, some 3,000 miles between what is now Senegal and Angola, and mostly from modern Benin, Nigeria and Cameroon.

There are several African legends about the paths hurricanes follow; it is no accident they follow the routes of former slave ships. According to the legendary story told about the Battle of Mbwila, hurricanes are the work of angry African ancestors stolen from their homeland exacting revenge for the millions of African lives killed in the Atlantic Ocean and those who survived the Trans-Atlantic forced into slavery in the Caribbean, United States, and South America.

The Legend reads:

Legend of Angry Grieving African Ancestors named Hurricanes more than 400 hundred years ago, at the valley of the Ulanga River, was fought the Battle of Mbwila, the last battle of the long fight between the slave traders, and Nvita a Nkanga, also known as King António I of Kongo. There Nvita a Nkanga perished utterly alongside brave male warriors and women and children. The survivors were taken captive and traded as slaves never to feel their native African soil under their feet again. The weeping and moaning of the suffering since that battle, the sea and shore have been haunted. There are many strange things to be seen and heard along that coast. On dark nights, thousands of voices are heard along the beach above the waves, chanting “Sunset, may there be no moaning of Africa's soul, when we put out to sea, a cursed wind moving as if asleep, as the winds are up, a sound of great shouting comes from that sea, like a battle cry of our fallen King!"

The battle cry of our fallen King, the brave male and female warriors, and their children who perished are the cause of all the Hurricanes according to our Ancestors’ Legend.

Hurricane Isabel was born near the Capo Verde (formally Cape Verde) islands off the western coast of Africa. The same waters produced Andrew in 1992 and Frances in 2004. Hurricane Katrina did not form off the coast of Africa like many hurricanes but near the Caribbean island of the Bahamas.

The 2016 hurricane Matthew formed from a tropical wave that pushed off the African coast just southwest of the Cape Verde Islands in late September. Matthew Category 3/4 hurricane brought destructive hurricane conditions to eastern Florida, the Georgia coast and coastal South Carolina. Matthew would likely be stronger than any hurricane in recent decades, including the 2004 hurricanes (Charley, Frances, Jeanne) as well as Hurricane David in 1979. By the time Matthew reached Florida, it traveled more than 3,000 miles.
Curried from: (http://www.theafricangourmet.com/2015/09/nature-holds-many-secrets-hurricanes.html: Chic African Culture)

African Americans’ Legend has it that the hurricanes which originate every year from West Africa, around June thru November are anger produced by their African American ancestors who were kidnapped in Africa, brought to the Americas, treated like animals. And those that died in the “Middle Passage”, dumped in the ocean – it is believed are the ones exhibiting their anger and unhappiness that is directed at their benefactors: Europeans and White Americans. The annual storms and hurricanes are for their benefactors to ask GOD for forgiveness for the SINS their fore great, great, great grandparents committed against African Americans’ ancestors during the Atlantic Slave Holocaust. 

It is said that pictures are worth a thousand words. Both cartoons below make the case better!

Culled from both Marty Two Bulls (2015) and JLYS

Retrieved on September 18, 2018:
http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/jurisprudence/2013/09/conflict_minerals_from_the_congo_is_your_cellphone_made_with_them.html

Retrieve on September 18, 2018:
http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/02/14/african-immigrant-population-in-u-s-steadily-climbs/
Retrieve on September 25, 2018:
https://face2faceafrica.com/article/scotlands-glasgow-university-received-millions-from-slavery-now-it-plans-to-pay-reparations

 

About The Author & Bloju TEH: Griot Elder Siahyonkron Jglay Kpa-kay Nyanseor, Sr. is a life-long activist (*troublemaker); a Griot and Member (2012) of Bloju Geesayfahnnonkon TARTY TEH’S Social, Political and Economic Rights Activists who is Committed and Dedicated to keeping TEH’S legacy and memory ALIVE through Writing and Telling the Stories of African people.

Bloju TEH is the late Liberian Literary Genius, Writer, Storyteller, Human, Civil and Constitutional Rights Activist who hails from the village of Pallipo, River Gee County (1946-2012). Read about Tarty Teh on http://blojlu.wordpress.com. Griot Elder Nyanseor can be contacted at siah1947@gmail.com