Some years ago, I was walking through SoHo and came across an exhibit at a nondescript art gallery. I was struck by the large image of a man resting calmly in the gaping mouth of a crocodile. The man was laying on his stomach writing in a journal with his legs extending into the creature’s mouth. Being the ever inquisitive art student, I walked into the gallery and into my first experience with photographer/artist/writer Peter Beard‘s work. When you first happen upon Beard’s work as I did so many years ago, you are at first shocked. There’s blood, old photos, animal skin, and all sorts of other materials. Beard’s work is organized chaos at it’s best and an organic one at that. Beard first started traveling to Africa in 1955 and since then he’s been obsessed with Africa’s land, people, and animals. Beard is one of those artists who lives and breathes his work. He is easily compared to Warhol, in his art and celebrity, but his knowledge of and adoration for Africa sets him apart. Beard recently released a 500-page limited edition book of his work through Taschen books. Follow Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore’s lead and get yourself a copy. If you can’t afford it get a pair of Peter Beard sandals.
Botswana Bushmen win land after DiCaprio appeal
Earlier this week the NY Daily News rang the bell on the newest blood diamond match this time between Russell Simmons and Blood Diamond director Ed Zwick. The director’s critisism comes as the latest part of the fallout from Simmons’ fact-finding African diamonds mission. Since last week’s press conference, Russell has been fending off all kinds of hits about what many perceive as his being a puppet for DeBeers. Everyone from the hip-hop press to Rush Limbaugh have an opinion on diamonds now. I think Russell hurt his business more than ever. As Zwick and Simmons continue their match, the winners of the week seem to be Botswana’s Kalahari Bushmen who just won their diamond filled land back from Botswana’s government. It seems they have Leonardo DiCaprio to thank.
African diamond facts according to Russell Simmons
As I mentioned, yesterday I attended Russell Simmons’ press conference to reveal the results of his fact-finding Africa mission. In attendance was Russell Simmons, Dr. Ben Chavis, Kimora Lee Simmons (Russell insisted she’s still his wife), Rev. Run(Run DMC), the Dipset’s “capo” Jim Jones (again I say, WTF does he have to do with diamonds beside speaking ignorantly about it? update: Jim Jones quote below), actor Jeffrey Wright (said to be doing work in Sierra Leone), Scott Rauch (president of Simmons Jewelry Company), and a bunch of DeBeers and World Diamond Council people. I must admit I was still skeptical about the purpose of the trip and what I felt the results would be. From the video released last thursday, I began to have some hopes about the degree to which Russell was going to find the facts and re-enforce my image of him as the godfather/guru extraordinare of our hip hop generation. I went into the conference with an open mind, and looking to hear from Simmons himself that the mission was a successful one. Ultimately I was disappointed by the whole event.
While news sources report about Simmons’ Green Initiative, and (get this) Diamond Empowerment Fund (DEF) , which will “raise money for the development and empowerment of people and communities in Africa where diamonds ar a natural resource”, one key point resounding throughout the press conference was, why didn’t Russell’s entourage visit the countries which are at the heart of the blood diamond debate. As a representative of Global Witness and another reporter (I think she was from AOL Black voices) mentioned, the controversy surrounding diamonds relates more directly to countries like Sierra Leone, Angola, Liberia, and Ivory Coast, none of which were visited by Simmons delegation. Instead the focus of the conference and the trip was on Botswana, South Africa, and Mozambique, three countries which, despite reports of displacement of Native Bushmen in Botswana, have very little to do with the conflict diamonds controversy. It’s like saying there’s no racism in America and pointing to Condoleza Rice as an example. Now, some people would say that these three countries are part of the discussion since their diamond production process is a “role-model” for other diamond producing African countries, but there are still many faults even with that. During his short speech a representative from the Debswana Diamond Company, was reminded by Simmons to disclose to the press that the company at the heart of the “successful” diamond mining in Botswana was a 50/50 ownership with DeBeers, the primary company accused of profiting from the blood diamond trade. Simmons had mentioned earlier in the conference that 85% of Botswana’s profits go back to the people of Botswana for education, AIDS treatment, general health insurance and a good portion of the profits from his Simmons Jewelry Company would be re-directed to “help Africans”. But the question kept coming up; why didn’t the delegation leave the confines of the structured Botswana tour and venture into even the smaller towns within the country where reports of exploitation and human rights abuse were coming from. Couple that with the fact that the Simmons’ DEF fund contribution will go to the same Botswana that they claim is so successful in providing for it’s people and you can see why I’m not convinced.
While I think Simmons, and Chavis can do a great deal of good in Africa, my main concern is with the timing of the whole thing. With all the stories going around and reports of the diamond industry spending $15 million on preemptive measures in regards to the effect of the Blood Diamond movie, I can’t believe that Simmons got himself in the middle of this. True, he has a business to run, AND Amnesty International approached him first, but at least he could have attempted to make the “fact-finding” mission look impartial. Everything about the whole mission pointed to a spin campaign on the part of the diamond industry, to the point where a representative from the World Diamond council got up to make a speech about how they are “appreciative of the attention” the movie has brought on their efforts with the Kimberley Process. Even Russell mentioned that he was happy that Leonardo DiCaprio was talking of not boycotting diamonds. As I exited the press conference I ran into the President of Botswana, Festus Mogae, who had reportedly just taped an interview for the Charlie Rose Show which will air tonight on PBS. Russell, I still have faith in you. Do something to make it right.
Quotes from the conference:
• Russell Simmons:
“My (only) agenda is to uplift African people … and all people”
“(I want to ) help strengthen the Kimberley Process”
“Diamonds empower Africans”
• Dr. Ben Chavis:
“The diamond industry promotes good in Africa”
“(I encourage the media to) get the opinion of people who live and work in Africa”
“…most disturbing thing to me (from the trip) was seeing that the reality (of the African diamond situation) was not being covered (by the media)”
• Scott Rauch
“This continent needs help”
• Sheila Khama (De Beers Botswana Chief Executive)
“Please cut us some slack. A lot of good has happened in Botswana because of diamonds.”
update
• Jim Jones
“As rappers we spend tens of millions of dollars a year on jewelry alone. Not just me myself, I’m talking about as a general effort. It’s a service that goes back to the African people that’s been mining all the diamonds that we wear. We should learn about purchasing from them, as opposed to just giving everybody our money because we like what we see.” source
Video of Russell Simmons’ African diamond trip
Hip-Hop mogul Russell Simmons touched down in South Africa on Monday without his rumored love interest supermodel Petra Nemcova and immediately released a statement about his fact-finding tour. “I am here because the most important and powerful Muslim minister and the most important and powerful Jewish Rabbi I have met in my lifetime – The Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan and Rabbi Marc Schnier – both, individually, told me to come here,” Simmons told AllHipHop.com in a statement. From South Africa Mr. Simmons traveled to Botswana and visited the Jwaneng Diamond Mine, the largest and richest diamond mine in the world by value, with Dr. Benjamin Chavis who is part of the fact finding mission. Upon returning to the United States, on December 5th Simmons is scheduled to hold a press conference at New York City’s Mandarin Oriental Hotel at 2 p.m. There, along with wife (or is it ex-wife) Kimora Lee Simmons, Scott Rauch (both co-owners of Simmons Jewelry Company a partnership with DeBeers) and Dr. Benjamin Chavis (co-chairman of Simmons’ Hip-Hop Summit Action Network), Simmons will “announce major historic initiatives pertaining to Africa and the diamond industry.” Let’s hope so. I’ve already expressed my initial opinion about the trip, but as always am hoping he proves me wrong.
Oprah talks Blood Diamonds December 4th
A few weeks a go, I got word that Oprah was going to tape a show on the Blood Diamond controversy. She had already done a show where she reunited a Sierra Leonean girl who, after suffering limb amputation at the hands of rebels, had not seen her family in years. Catching on to the growing controversy, director Ed Zwick and Leonardo DiCaprio, were invited to tape a Blood Diamond episode of the Oprah Winfrey show. Originally scheduled for December 6th, the day of the movie premiere and two days before the release, now the the Oprah special will air on Monday December 4th , the same day Russell Simmons is expected to conclude his fact-finding trip to Africa. Set your Tivos boys and girls.
Russell Simmons: Blood diamonds and responsibility
The past year has been a roller-coaster ride for the African diamonds industry. Ever since word got out that Warner Bros was putting major star power behind its “Blood Diamonds” movie Leonardo DiCaprio, Djimon Hounsou, Jennifer Connelly) the topic has developed into something similar to a circus. It’s interesting to see what different groups of people have had to say about the issue which continues to overflow into seemingly unrelated industries.
The Daily News just published further information about hip-hop guru/mogul/phenomenon Russel Simmons’ pending DeBeers-funded fact-finding mission to Africa. His hope is to “teach Africans how to cut and polish diamonds on the continent, instead of taking the diamonds out….The diamond industry should be the leader of African empowerment”. As a business person myself, I have always been inspired by Mr. Simmons’ business sense and ability to stay grounded despite the entertainment industry he’s so deeply immersed in. But as I told the reporter from the Daily News yesterday, though I support Russell’s intent, I find it hard to believe he could be too successfull on a trip chaperoned by DeBeers. I have been wrong before though. When I read a preliminary script for the “Blood Diamonds” movies and joined a few others (you know who you are) to voice our concerns to Time Warner back in March, I was quite skeptical that a “hollywood” movie which is so rooted in one of the most horrific periods in African history could do the topic justice. Call me pessimistic, but I have Tears of the Sun as a reference. Since then I’ve worked with many individuals who have toiled tirelessly to double check and make sure Warner Bros. gets it right. But even I could not imagine the war that was soon to ensue. With Africa caught in the middle, the past 2-3 months has been a tug of war between those of us who support the movie and the big bad diamond dealers. After attending a private screening of the movie back in October and speaking to the director Ed Zwick, my concerns are gone and I am all for supporting the movie and lending my voice and hand in it’s success. Though I have a couple of issues with the movie, I think it does the topic justice and can be a good tool to mobilize the public.
Though, I continue to work hard to make sure that the controversy doesn’t overshadow the actual changes that continues to be made behind the scenes, I’m sometimes disheartened by the casualties of it all. For me a main casualty is the African societies, but another one might also be the global hip-hop community. As Clyde points out “the term bling generally refers to both flashy and high quality products separate from one’s class status, including jewelry bought for special occasions by folks that may have saved all year for their special gift for a loved one”. It’s hard to tell those who save their money to get expensive jewelryBling is Dead. Their lives are rooted in the bling culture which I and my partners are trying so desperately to derail. I’m of the belief that though hip-hop has spawned this bling culture, it has turned into something we don’t control but all the ills of it is still credited to us. Bling culture to me epitomizes ultimate consumerism without responsibility. Bling culture, at this point, is about ballin out of control”. It’s more that keeping up with the Joneses. It’s attaining the recognition without the work. When Cash Money Millionaires said “Bling! Bling!” it was a call to arms to many to indulge in excess without responsibility or purpose. What many who buy into the bling culture don’t realize is that the big cars and big jewels, they focus on is a figment of their imagination. The people they are trying to imitate are never impressed because they know the imbalance will always exist. So what if you can shop at Tiffany’s too, the real blingers send their assistants do that. The major missing link is that most people don’t realize that the money Puffy (sorry Diddy) throws around at parties is his company’s money, not his own. But it’s a well guarded secret, especially to those who are so far removed from the actual decision makers that they cannot grasp the concept of making sure you spend someone else’s money. So the bling culture continues with those who don’t have posing like they do. And us Africans are caught in the middle. Good luck Russell, I hope you find what you’re looking for.
China and Africa relations on a fast track
Since 2003, China has overtaken Japan as the second largest consumer of petroleum after the United States. In the search for oil to fuel it famous production cycle, China has begun pumping billions of dollars into Africa with most of the money focused on oil producing nations like Sudan, and Nigeria. The LA Times reports that “China’s demand for resources has driven up prices, propelling significant GDP gains in many countries. China has educated thousands of African university students, and it sends Africa hundreds of doctors and advisors each year. Chinese firms are building roads, rehabilitating infrastructure and bringing cellphone service to places that land lines never reached”. While the infrastructural benefits of this relationship is generally positive a BBC article points out how “Chinese firms are a little less ethically constrained than their Western counterparts” which can encourage human rights violations by African governments.