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by Xion Abiodun
During the pandemic, a mother and her two daughters started an online Facebook show “Resolving Racism.” The creators of the show are all educators, and the mother has dedicated her life to fighting racism. Now they are all helping people to understand racism and how to resolve it through their show.
Xion Abiodun: Will you all introduce yourselves?
P.K: Professor Phavia Kujichagulia, author of “Recognizing and Resolving the Roots of Racism” and creator of “THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX Brain Games for the HUE-wombman RACE” is a veteran educator and cultural artist.
KS: Mrs. Kehinde Salter, artistic director of Lyric Performing Arts Academy, Oakland Performing Arts Intensive, and Oakland Unified School District teacher.
Xion Abiodun: What are the main things that you want people to take away from your show?
PK: Our show explores how and why racism, the social oppression and exploitation (economic disenfranchisement, educational denial and distortion, entertaining demoralization, family destruction, labor devaluation, legal disparity, political domination, religious plagiarism, scientific dehumanization and military destabilization and genocide) of HUE-man beings by Caucasian culture is carefully embedded into every aspect of society.
KS: I want people to feel hopeful about changing the world we have all inherited. We were very intentional in naming our show “Resolving Racism” because people need to know that it can actually be resolved. Many people falsely believe that racism has always been around and that it is something we just have to live with, when that is not the truth. The truth is, racism is a social construct that was invented and has been explicitly taught for the past 531 years. In the grand scheme of the history of the world, 500 years is not a long time, and whatever has been learned can be unlearned by telling the truth.
Xion Abiodun: What are some of the topics that your show has covered?
PK: We discuss an array of topics from the Black-African origins of humanity, civilization and the sciences to the Eurocentric evolution of enslavement capitalism and racism. Most of all we look at the epistemology (source) behind White psychopathy (narcissistic injustice and inhumanity) and the racist vocabulary we are all groomed to perpetuate.
Xion Abiodun: How do you all help to resolve racism in your day to day life?
PK: Rather than tolerating and/or training individuals and/or corporations to navigate racism, I live to expose and eliminate racism.
KS: Hello somebody. I will never use the term “disrupt” regarding racism. Do we want to pause it temporarily? Because that’s what disrupt means? Or do we want to eliminate it? I am constantly working towards the elimination of racism by teaching the truth, pointing out lies and highlighting everyone’s humanity.
Xion Abiodun: What is the story behind the creation of your show?
PK: That’s a question for educators and twin co-hosts Taiwo Kujichagulia-Seitu and Kehinde Salter because the show was their brainchild. When they approached me with the idea, I was initially hesitant. Fortunately, their genius prevailed and the show premiered in 2020.
KS: When George Floyd was murdered for the entire world to see, we were not confused as to why it happened and why his name is one in a long list of names of Black people murdered by the police. It hurt me to witness yet another murder of someone that could be my father, brother, uncle, husband etc. It also bothered me that so many people were truly bewildered as to how that event could have ever taken place, because when you understand the history of this nation, it is actually a blessing that the senseless murder of African Americans does not happen more often.
When I look at a chicken, I expect it to walk and cluck, not soar like an eagle. But for some reason, people are looking at America and expecting it to soar like an eagle, because they have been taught to ignore the fact that it can’t do anything but walk and cluck like a chicken.
Our goal is to point out the fact that America doesn’t soar because it isn’t an eagle. And if we want America to get to eagle status, its whole make-up needs to change. America is racist because it was created to be. If we want to change that, we can, and we need to know exactly how to do that.
Xion Abiodun: How long have you all been educators? Why did you all choose to become one?
PK: Like my mother, I became an educator to help empower those disenfranchised by America’s violent systems of racism, sexism, classism and white psychopathy. Today, my daughters are amazing educators and their daughters have entered the field of education as well.
KS: I did not choose education; it chose me. In fact I always said I would never be a teacher, but here I am as a third generation educator. This is definitely a path the Lord placed me on, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. I love to learn and grow, and I love helping others to do the same.
Xion Abiodun: Who has your show had the biggest impact on? Why?
KS: I cannot be sure, although our White colleagues have been very receptive to our information. Of course, we have a Black and Brown audience who is a part of our Amen corner because we share common experiences. But I think it speaks volumes about our delivery on a topic that many people are afraid of, to have people who do not share our experiences engage with our content to such a degree. We make it very clear that while we understand none of us are responsible for starting racism, we can all continue to perpetuate it when we are unaware of its ubiquitousness.
Xion Abiodun: What are some of the things we can look forward to when it comes to your show?
PK: Viewers can look forward to learning a multitude of ways to recognize and resolve the mental insanity of White psychopathy responsible for the social inhumanity of racism – economic disenfranchisement, educational denial and distortion, entertaining demoralization, family destruction, labor devaluation, legal disparity, political domination, religious plagiarism, scientific dehumanization and military destabilization and genocide.
KS: Viewers can look forward to engaging with us in real time, as we go live on Facebook the last Sunday of every month at 3 p.m. Pacific Standard Time.
Xion Abiodun: How can we get involved in supporting your show – where can we watch it, how can we donate to it?
KS: https://www.facebook.com/kujichagulia.p.
To learn more about Ms. Kujichagulia, you can visit her website https://kujichaguliaphavia.com. If you want to know more about “THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX Brain Games for the HUE-wombman RACE” you can go to the website for the game at TOTBBrainGames.com.
Xion Abiodun is a graduate of the SF Bay View’s Community Journalism Program and also a dancer. She can be reached at Xion.abiodun@gmail.com.
