Midweek Edutainment #4

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Greetings family,

I trust you are soaring and thriving in every area of life 🙏🏿 Ahead of our next reading of Amos Wilson’s Blueprint For Black Power tomorrow, here is this week's serving of edutainment. Enjoy!

African States on Israel - Hamas

While Africans on social media are almost uniformly pro-Palestine and anti-Israel, a very different picture emerges when looking and continental states. “Various African governments have adopted one of three positions. Nigeria has maintained a neutral stance, while some of its neighbouring countries like Ghana, Kenya, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Zambia have aligned with Israel. In contrast, most North African countries, except Morocco, have openly sided with the Palestinians.” Click the image to read an excellent and detailed analysis.

Remittances Under Attack

Remittances are monies sent by migrants to their families back home. The total value of remittances far outweighs that of foreign aid. You'd think that countries in the West and elsewhere would encourage this if they were committed to combatting global poverty as per their rhetoric. But as we learned when we read Marimba Ani’s Yurugu, you should not be taken in by the fabulous words of Europeans about peace and love! Growing anti-immigration sentiment is pushing Western politicians to limit remittances. Their rationale is that this will deter people from wanting to move to these richer countries. The article below discusses a recent example of this trend in Germany (click the image).

Addressing “Dunce Culture” in Dancehall

While I knew Jamaican Dancehall has fallen far from its 90s heyday, I had missed the rise of this celebration of dunceness. In this phenomenal reasoning, Ajamu Nangwaya goes deep to analyse and critique not just the artists pushing this nonsense, but also the political elites who create the conditions for it to proliferate. Well worth a listen.

Embracing Transformation: Navigating Eclipse Season

Switching gears, we now head to the brilliant Ancestral Voices, one of the leading sources of insight into African spirituality. They posted an article recently about the eclipse season we are currently in. It resonates with me as I've been in the wars health-wise for weeks now. Sister Verona writes: “From a physical standpoint, this eclipse season has demanded that we listen to our bodies. Rest has become a necessity, as even a full night’s sleep no longer feels sufficient. Ignoring this need for rest often results in sickness, forcing us to comply. Presenting a clear message: prioritise self-care over the constant need to be productive. The universe calls for us to release the need to overwork and instead focus on taking care of ourselves.” Click the image below for the full article.

Alice Coltrane - Eternity (1976)

We end with this album that popped up on my feed this week. I've only recently got hip to the glorious music of Alice Coltrane (widow and collaborator of John Coltrane). This album is quite different to the some of the other albums of hers I’ve been listening to (e.g. Ptah, the el Daoud). “Eternity” sounds like something Stevie might've done in that era, probably because of the prominent Moog synthesiser.