| In some African traditions, the griot held the story of | | | | often find themselves searching for their identity. In the |
| the local people – the village, family or clan. The griot | | | | ‘70s, many turned to Rastafarianism. These days, |
| pulled together the strands of the story, which | | | | some of them, having rejected the dominant culture, |
| represented the various people who took part in it. | | | | turn to gun violence and gang violence as a means of |
| Kept these strands and held them safe. Savoured | | | | seeking a positive identity as strong Black men and |
| them, treasured them. Wove them together to form a | | | | women. Others overidentify with the dominant culture |
| cloth, a whole that blended the assorted colours and | | | | and seek to fit in with, and be accepted by, white |
| shadings into a pattern, which told the story of the | | | | society, so unaware are they of their heritage. |
| people. | | | | In addition, our ignorance affects the way we deal with |
| The people then heard their story. Their tongues sang | | | | the racism we experience. When we are not aware |
| it. Their feet danced it. Their hips swayed it. Their | | | | of our heritage, we are not as resourceful as we |
| hands drummed it. Their fingers carved it. The stories | | | | might otherwise be in our responses to racism. |
| of their ancestors, treasured, remembered, shared, and | | | | We don’t strive to be all we can be. Instead, we |
| preserved for future generations. | | | | settle for being second-, third- or fourth-best. We |
| I was very fortunate in that my African American | | | | don’t take life-changing or world-changing decision, |
| mother taught me from an early age to be proud of | | | | we leave it to someone else to make things better, |
| my heritage. When she told me about the experience | | | | and we hope things don’t get too much worse. |
| of enslavement, she told it from the perspective of | | | | How often have you complained to your friends and |
| those who had resisted and survived that | | | | family about your noisy neighbours, or your Council |
| enslavement. So I was encouraged to think of slavery | | | | Tax bill, or moaned to someone at the bus stop about |
| and resistance as one and the same – a person | | | | how late the bus is? Have you taken this complaint |
| who was enslaved resisted that enslavement as a | | | | any further? |
| matter of course. She told me stories of Harriet | | | | And this is a problem that affects white people as |
| Tubman and Sojourner Truth that still inspire and inform | | | | much as Black. When one section of society is failing |
| me, nearly 40 years later. | | | | to live up to its full potential, all of society suffers – |
| In Afrika, under colonisation, people were also often cut | | | | we see increased rates of crime, we have to pay to |
| off from their heritage and even forced to speak | | | | police and imprison criminals, we live in fear of being |
| European languages. Under an education system | | | | robbed or attacked. And the person who could have |
| which left them unable to locate their home villages, | | | | discovered the next cure for cancer may be |
| and unable to speak with members of their own | | | | sweeping the floor of the local supermarket or sitting in |
| families, they could not communicate their experience | | | | a prison cell right now. |
| to their own communities. And they were taught to | | | | Conscious Black adults have to take responsibility for |
| believe they were superior to the ‘backwards’ | | | | turning this destructive tide, this tide of toxic, negative |
| people of the rural villages, and encouraged to adopt | | | | thoughts, beliefs and attitudes. |
| European religious practices, modes of behaviour and | | | | Celebrating Black heroes and sheroes allows us to |
| so forth. However, they often have a stronger sense | | | | decide for ourselves what images will inhabit our minds. |
| of their heritage than we, in the diaspora, may have. | | | | The more we celebrate our Black heroes and |
| During the time of enslavement, Afrikan people were | | | | sheroes, and share their stories with one another and |
| not allowed to tell our own stories. We were not | | | | with the wider society, the more we can enjoy our |
| allowed to speak our own languages, or even to name | | | | true heritage as African people. |
| our own children. Our stories were stolen from us, and | | | | Many Afrikan people, such as Harriet Jacobs, author |
| rewritten in distorted forms. These distortions were | | | | of Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, having escaped |
| then used to define and control us. | | | | from enslavement in North America, published their |
| But still, Afrikan people told their stories. They | | | | stories, often as a way of supporting themselves |
| whispered them. They lovingly sewed their babies’ | | | | financially. Some, like Frederick Douglass and Sojourner |
| names into their blankets. They told the stories of their | | | | Truth, also gave speaking tours relating their |
| homes, although much has been forgotten. Their | | | | experience of oppression to a wider audience. These |
| fingers remembered. They baked them into breads | | | | speakers were important participants and leaders in |
| and cakes, stirred them into soups and stews and rice. | | | | the abolition movement of the United States. Many of |
| Plaited them into their children’s hair. And planted | | | | their speeches and narratives still exist, inspiring us as |
| them in their gardens. | | | | to how our ancestors used their strength, ingenuity and |
| They made up their own words and their own | | | | courage to survive. |
| languages. Creole. Patois. Gullah. They made new art | | | | Caribbean slave narratives are not as numerous, |
| forms, new musical forms – jazz, blues, reggae, | | | | although it is entirely likely that many more |
| rhythm and blues, gospel. Although much had been | | | | as-yet-undiscovered narratives lie languishing in libraries, |
| forgotten, stolen, lost, rewritten or distorted, still much | | | | universities, and people’s attics. In Britain, our stories |
| remained. | | | | were often not recorded. Many British dealers held |
| In the Afrikan diaspora, we have been brainwashed | | | | onto material in order to sell it to American collectors. |
| for hundreds of years to believe that we are inferior to | | | | The late Len Garrison, founder of the Black Cultural |
| other races. During and after enslavement, our | | | | Archives in Brixton, showed total commitment to |
| forebears were told that they were fit only for | | | | building a monument in celebration of the presence of |
| labouring and for serving their white masters, who | | | | Black people in Britain. He told me: |
| were stronger, more intelligent and more able than | | | | In the late ‘60s and the ‘70s, when I was talking |
| they were. | | | | about this collection, I went round to some of the |
| Today, we see these stereotypes being perpetuated, | | | | museums to ask them if they had any material relating |
| in slightly altered but still clearly recognisable forms. In | | | | to Black history, and they would say, “Yes, people |
| screen roles, including TV and film as well as adverts, | | | | are coming to us with materials”. I remember the |
| we often see Black men portrayed as criminals or | | | | Museum of Labour History said, “But we don’t |
| gangsters – tough, hard and violent. We rarely see | | | | collect it ‘ we just told them that we don’t know |
| Black men and women being portrayed as loving | | | | anybody who’s collecting it”, and so nothing was |
| husbands and wives, and parents, in stable homes and | | | | being collected. You would imagine that labour history |
| relationships, or doing jobs such as bankers, teachers | | | | related to Black people as it did for whites. But they |
| or other figures of authority. | | | | hadn’t collected it. |
| We have swallowed the distortions, the changes to | | | | He took the initiative to seek out Black memorabilia |
| our stories. And all too often, we have believed them. | | | | whenever and wherever he could find it. He told me, |
| Jak Dodd created the Nubian Jak board game | | | | I used to cut out articles in newspapers. I would just |
| because of this syndrome. He said to me: | | | | collect them. But eventually, I began to build up the |
| “I worked as a social worker with a lot of young | | | | collection by going to antiques shops, to Portobello |
| Black men and women. I noticed that a lot of them had | | | | Road and to second-hand shops. |
| a very negative self-image. If you asked most of them | | | | When Afrikan people celebrate our heroes and |
| how they would describe themselves or see | | | | sheroes, we take control - we take charge of how |
| themselves, or whom they would identify with, they | | | | we see each other and ourselves. The more we |
| didn’t have a lot of Black role models in Britain…. | | | | know about our ancestry and our heritage, the more |
| So they would identify with African American | | | | we are empowered by this knowledge. This changes |
| achievers and Jamaican gun culture. We all want to | | | | our entire attitude and our behaviour. We are no longer |
| have strong role models that we can identify with. | | | | at the mercy of the negativity with which we are |
| This brainwashing is often subtle, but it is very | | | | constantly being bombarded. And we have the |
| powerful. All too often, we are not aware of its effect | | | | opportunity to pass down our positive images and |
| on us. Our negativity about ourselves and each other | | | | attitudes to our children. And when white people |
| limits the kinds of opportunities we attract. It creates a | | | | celebrate Black heroes and sheroes, they reap the |
| sense of helplessness, which often leads to aggression | | | | rewards of living in a multiracial society. |
| on our part as we strike out in frustration at the | | | | Afrikan people are good at everything – |
| limitations imposed on our lives. | | | | architecture, astronomy, astrophysics, and that’s |
| These negative images have a profound effect on our | | | | just the ‘A’s. We are scientists, teachers, |
| psyches – our conscious and unconscious minds. It | | | | explorers, educators, philanthropists, and healers. |
| becomes nearly inevitable that, in the face of this | | | | Black people are heroes and sheroes. We are |
| overwhelming disadvantage, we develop an inferiority | | | | successes. We each have our own Black success |
| complex. This negative attitude Black people often | | | | stories to tell. The more we share them with each |
| have about ourselves and each other gets passed | | | | other, the more we create energy of love and |
| down from parent to child, and from generation to | | | | positivity which surrounds us and which affects our |
| generation. | | | | lives. It helps us to attract and connect with the |
| As the journalist Henry Bonus said to me, | | | | abundance of the universe. It affects the kinds of |
| If you have no sense of your foundation, you’re | | | | opportunities we attract, and it helps determine how |
| skeletal, you can’t do anything. This is what’s | | | | we respond to these opportunites. |
| happened. And you have no sense of shame about | | | | We need to take responsibility for our lives and the |
| anything. Nothing is beneath you. There should be | | | | lives of our children and others in our community. We |
| codes of behaviour. It should be un-Black to mug and | | | | need to take control of our negative thought |
| rob somebody. It should be un-Black to attack your | | | | processes and do whatever we need to do in order |
| teacher. Because you’ve always had discipline. | | | | to turn them around. Then we can experience the |
| You’ve always had balance. But unfortunately, | | | | bright and glorious abundance of the universe to which |
| it’s become very Black to do these things for a | | | | we are entitled, and which is our birthright. And the |
| certain group of children. They think that’s what | | | | whole of British society will benefit from our continued |
| being Black is, about being rough and tough. | | | | successes. |
| We can see the effects of this brainwashing on | | | | Did you find this article useful? For more useful tips and |
| modern African British youth. Those whose parents or | | | | hints, points to ponder and keep in mind, techniques, |
| grandparents were born in the Caribbean and were | | | | and insights pertaining to Internet Business, do please |
| brought up to think of Britain as the Mother Country | | | | browse for more information at our websites. |