African and Caribbean War Memorial Unveiled

The African and Caribbean War Memorial was unveiled this week outside the Black Cultural Archives in Windrush Square, Brixton, South London. It is a long overdue commemoration to the war dead and veterans of the African and Caribbean countries who also laid down their lives for the good of the world.

Interestingly I accompanied my eldest son's class on a visit to a local church that also has a war memorial. This was preceded by an assembly where the kids discussed the war and spoke with veterans about the wars of the past and today. It just shows how many lives were affected by the wars of the past and still are today. During the assembly a teacher who was once part of the army made note of the contributions of men and women from the commonwealth and the colonies.  

Feed a Child South Africa | Problematic Advert

In the name of charity is it ever alright to depict a black child as a dog belonging to a white owner who is fed scraps off food to throughout the course of the day? Even if the message is to state that many children eat worst than dogs. This is what This is Africa is asking.  Take a look at the advert by Feed a Child South Africa. It just screams wrong, wrong, wrong. If this is how white South Africans see the indigenous Black populations poor children, what do they think of the rest? The advert is in one of the most poor tastes I have seen in a long while. I just wonder if poor white children are depicted in this way in South Africa. It is just bad really. The could have done this ad by showing a well fed dog and a child with an empty bowl at a dinner table to sat on a porch. If this is the box they are in, this charity needs to think outside of it.

Read the article on This is Africa here.

Lupita Nyong'o Braids Hair

Check out this video that was made for Vogue where Lupita shows off her hair braiding skills. She explains that she had a bad experience in America with her hair so when she was back in Kenya her Aunt showed her how to braid hair. This became a talent that she would use to style the hair of her friends.

It is definitely nice to see an African celebrity who is one of Hollywood's current darlings showing off Black culture to the masses. Hair braiding is a very old tradition that is passed down the generations. As the years go by more creative ways are developed. Mothers daughters aunts teach the younger ones to do this. Nowadays if you are not able to braid hair there is a plethora of tutorials online to show you how. Some traditions are just meant to be for eternity.

Yes to Lupita showing off African cultural tradition! 

I Love My Africa | Africa Rise Up

MultiChoice's Africa Rising, is a campaign focussed on creating shared value, designed to inspire Africans to become involved in community-based social investment projects. 

I really do love the theme of this song and the campaign it is for. Africa as a continent is rich. It is about time that Africa and her many countries stand up and be great.  To be great every African at home and abroad must do their part to help propel their communities forward. Have a listen to the song and tell me what you think.

The artist featured in this song are Tiwa Savage, Davido, Sarkodie, Micasa, Diamond and Lola Rae.

Bring Back Our Girls

 My heart bleeds for the parents of the missing school girls kidnapped whilst sitting or preparing to take their final exams. About 234+ girls were kidnapped. Some are said to have been sold as brides to rebels in neighbouring countries. The islamist group responsible have been very boastful of the fact they have done such a horrible crime. They are against western education for some reason and may have done more kidnappings. Social media users have been highlighting their plight for the past week and the mainstream media and international governments are now paying closer attention. Both the UK and USA have extended their hand to offer help. 40 girls are said to have escaped but the rest still remain missing and their lives are at risk whilst in the hands of their captors or worst forced marriage and conversion to the islamic faith.

The Root has a very good synopsis of events and some background info you can read it here.

CNN also gives a very good breakdown of events with updates to read you can click here.

Please keep the girls and their families in prayer! 

Azonto Flash Mob - Oh Vera

I remember when all I used to care about was my dancehall bashment and doing the latest yard dance. Or the latest American dances just to keep me connected to the lands that help raise me. Anyway I came across this video on Youtube and thought to share it on every social platform I know. The dances remind me of a time when Reggae Dancehall was more about telling a story and less about just bruck it down etc.

It features a song called Change Your Life by Oh Vera. The video is made in Ghana and features the Accra Mall and a beautiful scene on the beach. I love how this video is getting so much love as it shows that Africa is not what the western governments and charities always claim Africa to be. This video just makes me want to visit Ghana even more. Especially with my sons so they can see all that is good and not just what needs improvement.

I hope you enjoy the well choreographed Flash Mob Dance. I hope to see more of these. Nice to see African popular music in the mainstream.

Issues with the Kony 2012 video

Over the last few days I have watched many Ugandans and non Ugandan people discuss the flaws in the Invisible Childrens charity status, motives and context of their video. The crux of the critique says that Kony is not in Uganda and has not been for years. He may be dead but that is not confirmed. Also there are many grass roots organisations in Uganda that is making changes spearheaded by locals. Also Uganda has newly discovered oil which the west may be after and not peace in the land. This video below was a very interesting critique from a Ugandan blogger.

Umoja ~ The Spirit of Togetherness

On Thursday I quickly made a quick trip to my hometown London as I was being treated to a theatre show. Yes what a treat.  The theatre shows that come to my current town do not really interest me. No Lion King or Color Purple for us. So when my good friend Nai suggested I come down to see the show I thought why not. It was a belated birthday present. So sweet of her. Always nice to have friends who like to see you celebrate life in some form of way.

So I basically travelled down to London on Thursday and within a few hours was at the Peacock Theatre. We were seated at the 1st row at the top. I kind of like these sort of seats compared to lower ground. As you get to see more if not all of what is going on and you do not have to strain your neck. The audience was decent too, no actually they were as full of life just like the actors on stage.

Umoja is a word from the Zulu language which means "togetherness". It is based in Sophia Town and tells the story of music through the different years of South Africa's history which has kept the spirit of the people alive and together. It starts off with the traditional songs and drumming and ends with modern African rhythms. I particularly enjoyed the dancing, drumming singing, jokes, and the way the story was told. If I had more leg space I would have got up and danced. The show was given an standing ovation and yep they deserved it. I was definitely satisfied.

French police man handle African women and children

I was browsing World Star HipHop when I came across this video. It is so painful to watch. The people in the video have been living in the street after being evicted from their tower block council homes so that they can be demolished and replaced with a new housing project.  Surely these ladies with babies and some heavily pregnant as you can see would not just decide to sleep on the street.

This incident occurred on July 21, 2010 in La Courneuve, France. The protest had been going on since 8 July 2010. The police are shown dragging mothers away knowing that babies are tied to their backs. In one scene you could see a baby almost squashed under its mum. Some of what I have read so far says that the government had offered very short term hotel housing, however the protests and squats developed out of a need for a more long term solution. The were only being offered 3 to 12 nights in a hotel. I thought these so called civilised countries in the west would have thought ahead of themselves and re-housed people before making them homeless.

I would love to know more about these ladies plight. Especially since the French government and police have tried to keep all cameras out. There is definitely more to this story.

This video gives some commentary below. There is some bias and the repoter comes across very flippant.


Read more here on CNN and check out MediaPart who filmed the footage. The site is in French but google can translate for you.

Akon, Kerri Hilson Oh Africa

I came across this song as I was browsing the web. It is a charitable single and a joint venture with PepsiCo. This song will form part of Pepsi’s football ad theme. Look out for cameos from football favourites such as Didier Drogba and Fernando Torres. Part of the proceeds from this single will go to Akon’s charity Konfidence Foundation which does many things in Senegal including mobile clinics and education. Some profits go to charities chosen by Kerri Hilson.

The song includes the Soweto choir and some aspiring artists across the globe. The video is amazing. Full of colour and vibrant. I think it captures Africa’s spirit. Africa is full of life and her culture and music ought to be celebrated more often.

What do you think of the song?