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by Baba Jahahara Amen-RA Alkebulan-Ma’at
6260 AAAK/March 2020 JC-PG
Commemorating the Contributions of Women and HERstory Month
Africans Deserve Reparations! Cause, Black Lives Truly Matter!
Greetings of IMANI (FAITH) Esteemed G-o-ds and Elder, Sister and Brother Leaders,
May our Divine Mother-Father Creator of and in All – and beloved Ancients and Ancestors from yesteryears and yesterdays – find you and (y)our extended Family thriving in healing Spirit. WE know you were further enlightened during the many timely events and activities highlighted throughout our Alkebulan-African OurStory and Futures Month.
On a very personal level, i am honoring the long life and contributions of my first Pastor (Emeritus), Rev. WALLACE S. HARTSFIELD, SR., who for many decades led the Metropolitan Missionary Baptist Church helping build affordable housing, community businesses, grocery stores, a credit union, senior center as well as a child care center and other enterprises in Kansas City, Missouri. Amen. Asé.
WE pay our deepest respect and gratitude for our beloved Queen Mother, supreme educator and Bay Area business owner, the great Dr. RAYE RICHARDSON. She, along with her husband Dr. JULIAN “RICH” RICHARDSON – and their gifted two Suns and two Daughters, Grands and Greats – founded what is now the oldest African-owned bookstore in the U.S., MARCUS (GARVEY) Books. Dr. Raye also chaired the famed Black Studies Department at San Francisco State University for many years. Amen. Asé.
Also making her sacred transformation to the Spiritual realm was another inspiration to so many young and talented women (and male) actors, the brilliant and beautiful Queen Mother NISA BEY; the founder and lead singer of Azania’s (South Africa’s) Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Baba JOSEPH SHABALALA; and, the amazing 101 year-old KATHERINE JOHNSON, the far-sighted mathematician who played a key role along with other Black women in engineering the NASA program.
WE are grateful for the life, work and many contributions of these new and All our incredible Ancestors. Long Live Their Spirits! Asé. Asé. Asé-O!
Destination REPARATIONS!
WE hope that each of you has registered to vote, educated yourself on the issues, adopted a group or personal agenda and had the opportunity to challenge the candidates for the upcoming Primary Election, on March Third. My leading mantra has always been, it is not which man, woman or political Party that WE support that matters most. For me, what is most significant is our People’s Agenda and do the candidates or political parties support us. Or, in short, it ain’t the man or the woman. It’s our Plan that is key! Asé.
WE are calling on all Africans, as well as our true friends and allies, in San Francisco to immediately call up Speaker Nancy Pelosi, as well as Rep. Zoe Lofgren. Tell them to endorse “The Commission to Study and Develop Reparations Proposals for African Americans Act,” H.R. 40, right now!
Our thanks to Rep. Anna Eshoo – who represents portions of the northern California peninsula counties of San Mateo and Santa Clara – for signing on to H.R. 40, “The Commission to Study and Develop Reparations Proposals for African Americans Act,” in February. This is a critical moment in this important legislation, first introduced by Congressman and Ancestor JOHN CONYERS, JR. (and most recently by Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee of Houston). With appreciation to many of you and your networks, WE now have more endorsers in the U.S. House of Representatives than ever before. But, WE need an additional 28 to reach the 150 to force full hearings beginning this June(teenth). So, WE are calling on all Africans, as well as our true friends and allies, in San Francisco to immediately call up Speaker Nancy Pelosi (at both (415) 556-4862 and (202) 225-4965); as well as Rep. Zoe Lofgren (at (408) 271-8700 and (202) 225-3072), one of the designated Trump Impeachment Managers, representing parts of the South Bay including San Jose. Tell them to endorse H.R. 40 right now!
In addition, WE continue to encourage every registered voter in California to immediately call up Senator Diane Feinstein who – as the ranking Democratic Party member on the Senate Judiciary Committee with a net worth of close to $80 million – has not yet apologized for disrespecting African people. She has said in regards to our desperate needs and righteous demands for Reparatory Justice, that we “need to get over it” (Meaning 500 plus years of European “white” terrorism, torturous enslavement, robbery, lynchings and murder, mass imprisonment, gang rape and continuing crimes against our humanity, JAA-M). Feinstein was quoted as stating “some things are just better left alone … and I think that (Reparations, JAA-M) is one of those things.”
What say you, African Family and true allies? Will you call Sen. Feinstein’s office to voice your opinion at (415) 393-0707 in San Francisco, or (202) 224-3841 in Washington? Will you tell her to immediately apologize for those statements? And endorse S.1083, “The Commission to STUDY AND DEVELOP REPARATIONS PROPOSALS FOR AFRICAN AMERICANS Act”? Also, i ask again, very respectfully. If two white dudes in Vermont, by the name of Ben and Jerry, can endorse and advocate for our Reparations H.R. 40/S. 1083 legislation and hearings, shouldn’t that be the least that WE can do as organizations and individuals? And, shouldn’t WE demand the same of every elected official and candidate as they flood our area over the coming March to November 2020 election period?
Also, in February, Assemblymember Shirley Weber of San Diego – and chair of the California Legislative Black Caucus – has introduced AB 3121. The bill calls for, in the spirit of the national H.R. 40/S.1083, a commission to study and develop proposals for Reparations. While WE haven’t seen the legislation in full yet, WE support all forward energy that propels us towards our Destination of Reparations.
Gratitude to those who visited our National Coalition of Blacks for Reparations in America (N’COBRA) and San Francisco Bay View newspaper table at events like the Black Joy Parade in Oakland. WE are working diligently to make the west side one of the best sides in expanding our righteous inter-generational movements for self-determination, justice and healing of Africans. Go to www.ncobraonline.org or reach us locally at support@africansdeservereparations.com
WE again thank those generous souls who became a member of N’COBRA, made a contribution to the Bay View, purchased one of our books, a beautiful REPARATIONS poster by Baba Emory Douglas and/or a Red, Black and Green liberation flag. Every purchase helps us raise funds in support of our unjustly-imprisoned and exiled political leaders, as well as our Jericho Amnesty Movement.
With our collective actions and contributions, WE will soon reach our Goal and Destination of REPARATIONS RIGHT NOW! Asé.
Please Support Our Bay View
WE urge you to make a desperately-needed contribution to our San Francisco Bay View newspaper, place an ad, or take out a subscription for yourself or an incarcerated family member. As expressed many times before, WE are struggling mightily to keep this voice of liberation in print and distributed FOR FREE throughout the Bay Area and around the united capitalist prison terrorist states of america (including to numerous penitentiaries where our Bay View is not currently banned due to our radical political stances and giving a voice to the voiceless).
Please, please make a tax-deductible donation ASAP by calling us at 415-671-0789. Or, go to our website at www.sfbayview.com. You can also send contributions of any amount the old-fashioned way by mailing a check or money order to 4917 Third St., San Francisco, CA 94124. Asante Sana (Many Thanks)! Asé.
#BlackLivesMatter #AfricansDeserveReparations #BringOurEldersHomeNow #AbolishPrisons #LoveandDefendMotherEarth
Jahahara Amen-RA Alkebulan-Ma’at is a Baba (Father), a “FREE-tired” community-labor-environmental and justice organizer, writer, musician and author of several books, including “Many Paths to Kujichagulia (Self-Determination)”; a Life Member and former National Co-Chair of the National Coalition of Blacks for Reparations in America (N’COBRA) and recently-assigned Acting Western Regional Representative. Take a listen to a few songs from his musical catalog, including his newest release “BAMN: ByAnyMeansNecessary!” (featuring the great Archbishop Franzo King of the Saint John Coltrane Church, on saxophone) at https://soundcloud.com/search?q=jahahara Invite Jahahara to present at your group, school, church or event c/o support@africansdeservereparations.com or FONAMI, P.O. Box 10963, Oakland, CA 94610.
