---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Thu, 16 Mar 2000 07:47:22 -0800
From: Abu-Hassan Koroma <[log in to unmask]>
Reply-To: [log in to unmask]
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [african2000] Building the Movement
"A major goal of African2000," wrote Alfred Okele, "should be to bring
to light the positive sides of Africa." This is the spirit. The
hottest topic today is the global economy. We should not forget its
origins and the role of the African in it. Again, what makes the global
economy even more exciting is the role of information technology and
what we will make of it?
It is our responsibility to acknowledge the positive contribution of
Africa to the global economic expansion. Rather than just talk, we
should take simple but necessary steps toward addressing our problems
and becoming viable players in the global arena. Sometimes, affairs of
such human magnitude must be expressed from one's own perspective.
It is just natural.
However, we should acknowledge the good works of others and definitely
condemn the bad works. From Cape to Cairo, Djibouti to Freetown, the
story is not splendid and we will not turn our faces away from them.
We need to be organized. We need the cooperation and support of real
people, regardless of race and whatever orientation. Africa is real
and Africa is important. The black man is everywhere and the Black man
will always be there. The world belongs to humanity and humanity must
protect its existence.
Economically, Africa is in disarray. We provide abundant resources
necessary for the global economic expansion but we continue being the
poorest of the poor. This is an irony hard for me to grasp. Something
is wrong and we know what it is. We must now make it right. The
solutions may vary and therefore makes room for diverse opinions. It
is now necessary at every front, in every circle and, in our quiet and
boisterous moments to outline and continually work on implementing a
new strategic vision and development plan. Let us think and act some
more.
The 21st Century African Youth Movement would like to make a
difference. Our first task is to utilize the African2000 forum and
existing ideas to launch the African youth program that will cover
every part of the Black experience in Africa, Europe, America, Asia and
Australia. We know what we want. We want a United States of Africa.
We want to accomplish this project in collaboration with the Black
Diaspora.
Goke Sanusi has suggested a brilliant idea to build this movement based
on our strategies, goals and objectives, through Universities in Africa
and the African Diaspora. He suggested that we solicit the cooperation
of every student leader and making the quest for an U.S. Africa a major
topic of discussion at all Student Congresses. We must make this
suggestion a part of our grand strategy and should therefore begin
working out the modalities.
We would need to create a database specifically geared toward
networking. Ray Kumapayi has volunteered to share some information
regarding this matter. We would like to ask everyone with ideas,
suggestion or even materials that may be of help in accomplishing this
aspect of our work. Josephine Kamara has informed us that, together
with our Chairman of the Finance and Fund-raising committee, Sheku
Kallon, they will work on getting the Sierra Leone Student Union
working on this. We would like to ask our brothers in South Africa,
Tunisia, Egypt, Mauritania, Mali, Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Lesotho,
Mozambique, Ghana, Senegal, The Gambia etc., to launch similar efforts.
Little drops of water will definitely make a mighty ocean.
Africa is everywhere and everywhere is in Africa. Just take the brief
communication in Portuguese between Jesse and Antonio. Jesse emailing
from Brazil, a country with the highest black population after Nigeria!
Most of us were lost thanks to Zainabu Kooistra. Her request for
interpretation gave us access to a somber dialogue on a major on-going
crisis in an African country, Mozambique. Adelaide Wilson recognized
this and her thank you email to Jesse was indeed gratifying. What is
the lesson from this brief episode? In order for us to be effective,
we must harness our ability to communicate. In Africa alone we speak
all of the European languages and hundreds of indigenous languages.
Recognizing this problem and setting up a means of not letting it
become a barrier in communicating at African2000 is important to us. I
will therefore ask those who feel comfortable in communicating in
Arabic, French, Spanish, German, Dutch, Russian or whatever, must do so
when they deem it very necessary. There will be people to share the
thoughts and ideas with us all. Thank you Jesse, Antonio, Zainabu and
Adelaide for making us realize this.
I took a brief tour in Africa via www.LifeInAfrica.com WebPages. You
can only get a feel if you can visit there yourself and if you haven't
I would like to encourage you to do so. With good timing and the
appropriate numbers, we will acquire the resources necessary to move
ahead. Let us build the movement and let nothing stop or sway us from
our goal.
Best regards,
Askia
P.S.
Thanks Professor Elaine Jurkowski for volunteering to be on the
Monitoring and Evaluation Committee.
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