Category: General

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Reuters and Africa 2.0

The recent news of Reuters’ new Africa website which includes African bloggers is BIG. Not only because of the idea that there’s more than enough news coming out of Africa to fuel a separate site, but also because it’s a major boost for African voices. With the incorporation of Global Voices blog posts, Reuters dares to shine a light on the African people themselves. While diehard news buffs can still rely on sites like AllAfrica.com and CNN for news, Reuters introduces a opinionated human element to their stories. With bloggers taking over traditional media, this move is nothing new but for us Africans it’s a huge step. Many of us have complained for years about the one-sided image the media shows of us and have blamed everyone but ourselves (maybe rightfully so). Wherever the blame lies, we’ve got the mic now guys, what are we going to say.

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Malian director puts globalization on trial

Bamako movie premiereI made note earlier of the movie Bamako, but it certainly deserves more than a side-note. Co-produced by Danny Glover, the movie Bamako has been taking the film critics by storm. Directed by Mauritanian-Malian director Abderrahmane Sissako Bamako is a fictional story of a trial where ordinary Malians hold international financial institutions (World Bank, IMF) to account for what they see as the damage caused by neoliberal policies. I must admit I haven’t seen the movie but from what I’ve heard and a look at the trailer below, it’s a must see.

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Summer reading list

Chinua Achebe Things Fall ApartThe great (for winter anyway) weather in New York has gotten me thinking about spring and summer. I know it might be a little early for some of you but here’s a great list to help you prepare for your summer reading. The list of Africa’s 100 Best Books of the 20th Century was put together by the Zimbabwe International Book Fair. While the list is a bit old (published in 2002) it’s a good place to start to become familiar with Africa’s literary geniuses. Here’s their list thanks to The Funky Ghetto Hijabi. Can you recommend any newer books?

Creative Writing

  1. Abnudi, Abd al-Rahman (Egypt) al-Mawtala al-asfalt (Death on the Asphalt)

  2. Achebe, Chinua (Nigeria) Arrow of God

  3. Achebe, Chinua (Nigeria) Things Fall Apart

  4. Aidoo, Ama Ata (Ghana) Anowa

  5. Almeida, Germano (Cape Verde) O testamento do Sr. Napumoceno da Silva Araújo

  6. Armah, Ayi Kwei (Ghana) The Beautyful Ones Are Not Yet Born

  7. Bâ, Amadou Hampâté (Mali ) L’étrange destin de Wangrin

  8. Bâ, Mariama (Senegal) Une si longue lettre

  9. Ben Jelloun, Tahar (Morocco) La nuit sacrée

  10. Beti, Mongo (Cameroon) Le pauvre Christ de Bomba

  11. Brink, André (South Africa) A Dry White Season

  12. Bugul, Ken (Senegal) Riwan, ou le chemin de sable

  13. Cheney-Choker, Syl (Sierra Leone) The Last Harmattan of Alusine Dunbar

  14. Chraibi, Driss (Morocco) Le passé simple

  15. Coetzee, J.M. (South Africa) Life and Times ofMichael K

  16. Couto, Mia (Mozambique) Terra sonâmbula

  17. Craveirinha, José (Mozambique) Karingana ua Karingana

  18. Dadié, Bernard (Côte d’Ivoire) Climbié

  19. Dangarembga, Tsitsi (Zimbabwe) Nervous Conditions

  20. Dib, Mohammed (Algeria) La grande maison, L’incendie, Le métier à tisser

  21. Diop, Birago (Senegal) Les contes d’Amadou Koumba

  22. Diop, Boubacar Boris (Senegal) Murambi ou le livre des ossements

  23. Djebar, Assia (Algeria) L’amour, la fantasia

  24. Emecheta, Buchi (Nigeria) The Joys of Motherhood

  25. Fagunwa, Daniel O. (Nigeria) Ogboju ode ninu igbo irunmale

  26. Farah, Nuruddin (Somalia) Maps

  27. Fugard, Athol (South Africa) The Blood Knot

  28. Ghitani, Jamal al- (Egypt) Zayni Barakat

  29. Gordimer, Nadine (South Africa) Burgher’s Daughter

  30. Head, Bessie (South Africa) A Question of Power

  31. Honwana, Bernardo (Mozambique) Nos matamos o cão tinhoso

  32. Hove, Chenjerai (Zimbabwe) Bones

  33. Isegawa, Moses (Uganda) Abessijnse Kronieken

  34. Jordan, Archibald Campbell (South Africa) Ingqumbo yeminyanya

  35. Joubert, Elsa (South Africa) Die Swerdjare van Poppie Nongena

  36. Kane, Cheikh Hamidou (Senegal) L’aventure ambiguë

  37. Khosa, Ungulani Ba Ka (Mozambique) Ualalapi

  38. Kourouma, Ahmadou (Côte d’Ivoire) Les soleils des indépendances

  39. Laye, Camara (Guinea) L’enfant noir

  40. Magona, Sindiwe (South Africa) Living, Loving and Lying Awake at Night

  41. Mahfouz, Naguib (Egypt) The Cairo Trilogy

  42. Marechera, Dambudzo (Zimbabwe) House of Hunger

  43. Mofolo, Thomas (Lesotho) Chaka

  44. Monenembo, Tierno (Guinea) Un attieké pour Elgass

  45. Mutwa, Vusamazulu Credo (South Africa) Indaba, My Children

  46. Ngugi wa Thiong’o (Kenya) Caitaani Mutharaba-ini

  47. Ngugi wa Thiong’o (Kenya) A Grain of Wheat

  48. Niane, Djibril Tamsir (Senegal) Soundjata ou l’épopée mandingue

  49. Nyembezi, Sibusiso (South Africa) Inkinnsela yaseMgungundlovu

  50. Okigbo, Christopher (Nigeria) Labyrinths

  51. Okri, Ben (Nigeria) The Famished Road

  52. Oyono, Ferdinand (Cameroon) Le vieux nègre et la médaille

  53. P’Bitek, Okot (Uganda) Song of Lawino

  54. Pepetela (Angola) A geração da utopia

  55. Saadawi, Nawal El (Egypt) Woman at Point Zero

  56. Salih El Tayyib (Sudan) Season of Migration to the North

  57. Sassine, Williams (Guinea) Le jeune homme de sable

  58. Sembene, Ousmane (Senegal) Les bouts de bois de Dieu

  59. Senghor, Léopold Sédar (Senegal) Ouevre poétique

  60. Serote, Mongane (South Africa) Third World Express

  61. Shabaan,Robert Bin (Tanzania) Utenzi wa vita vya uhuru

  62. Sony Labou Tansi (Congo) La vie et demie

  63. Sow Fall, Aminata (Senegal) La grève des battus

  64. Soyinka, Wole (Nigeria) Death and the King’s Horsemen

  65. Tchicaya U Tam’si (Congo) Le mauvais sang – feu de brousse – à trisse-coeur

  66. Tutuola, Amos (Nigeria) The Palm-wine Drinkard

  67. Vera, Yvonne (Zimbabwe) Butterfly Burning

  68. Vieira, José Luandino (Angola) Nós os do Makulusu

  69. Vilakazi, B.W. (South Africa) Amal’eZulu

  70. Yacine, Kateb (Algeria) Nedjma

Scholarship/non-fiction

  1. Amin, Samir (Egypt) Accumulation on a World Scale

  2. Amadiume, Ifi (Nigeria) Male Daughters, Female Husbands

  3. Andrade,Mario de (Angola) Os nacionalismos africanos

  4. Appiah, Anthony (Ghana) In My Father’s House

  5. Cabral, Amilcar (Guinea-Bissau) Unity and Struggle

  6. Chimera, Rocha (Kenya) Kiswahili, past, present and future horizons

  7. Diop, Cheikh Anta (Senegal) Antériorité des civilisations nègres

  8. Doorkenoo, Efua (Ghana) Cutting the Rose

  9. Hayford, J.E. Casely (Ghana) Ethiopia Unbound

  10. Hountondji, Paulin (Benin) Sur la philosophie africaine

  11. Johnson, Samuel (Nigeria) The History of the Yorubas

  12. Kenyatta, Jomo (Kenya) Facing Mount Kenya

  13. Ki-Zerbo, Joseph (Burkina Faso) Histoire de l’Afrique noire

  14. Krog, Antjie (South Africa) Country of My Skull

  15. Mama, Amina (Nigeria) Beyond the Mask, Race, Gender and Identity

  16. Mamdani, Mahmood (Uganda) Citizen and Subject

  17. Mandela, Nelson (South Africa) Long Walk to Freedom

  18. Marais, Eugene (South Africa) Die Siel van die Mier

  19. Memmi, Albert (Tunisia) Portrait du colonisé suivi de portrait du colonisateur

  20. Mondlane, Eduardo (Mozambique) The Struggle for Mozambique

  21. Mphahlele, Ezekiel (South Africa) Down Second Avenue

  22. Mudimbe, V.Y. (Dem. Rep. of Congo) The Invention of Africa

  23. Nkrumah, Kwame (Ghana) Ghana: The Autobiography of Kwame Nkrumah

  24. Plaatje, Sol (South Africa) Native Life in South Africa

  25. Soyinka, Wole (Nigeria) Ake: The Years of Childhood

  26. Van Onselen, Charles (South Africa) The Seed is Mine

Literature for Children

  1. Asare, Meshack (Ghana) Sosu’s Call

  2. Al-Homi, Hayam Abbas (Egypt) Adventures of a Breath

  3. Mungoshi, Charles (Zimbabwe) Stories from a Shona Childhood

  4. Tadjo, Veronique (Côte d’Ivoire) Mamy Wata et le monstre

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Bling & Blood go primetime on Vh1

Paul Wall in Sierra Leone for Vh1 bling documentaryI mentioned before that Vh1 in conjunction with the United Nations was producing a documentary on the bling and blood diamonds relationship. The documentary, “Bling’d: Blood, Diamonds, and Hip Hop”, “takes a look at the illegal diamond trade in Sierra Leone, West Africa and its connection with the hip hop culture, particularly how ‘bling’ played a role in the nation’s 11-year civil war.” While we’ve seen quite a few film projects about blood diamonds and Sierra Leone, it’s a wonder that the hip-hop angle has never really been explored in depth by a major film/television company; or did I just miss it? Either way the documentary features interviews with Paul Wall, Raekwon, Tego Caldron, Jadakiss, Big Daddy Kane, and Kanye West among others. Hopefully the documentary will expand beyond the war in Sierra Leone and show how the diamond trade exploits both the Africans who mine the diamonds and the African-Americans who aspire to own one. As Sierra Leonean rapper Chosan said “Don’t give up and keep shining, your heart’s worth more than a diamond”. The documentary premieres Thursday, Feb. 22. at 8pm on Vh1.

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This week in African Style 2/10 – 2/16/07

• Cell phones fight AIDS in Africa

• Sophis Okonedo plays in Skin

• Africans challenge global corruption in ‘Bamako’ courtroom

• Africa: 48 African countries expected in Cannes

• Warner Music announces strategic initiatives in North Africa

• Global Film Community invited to Oscars

• Africa/America—a beauty that could be

• Joburg Fashion Week’s Disco Masais and African City Girls

• Are mud floors cool?

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Africa’s Inconvenient Truth

Africa wasteWhen I heard Al Gore’s announcement that he will be producing Live Earth, a 24-hour concert held simultaneously across all 7 continents, I got to thinking about what part if any Africa(ns) play in the enormous eco-conscious global trend. With “An Inconvenient Truh” nominated for an Oscar, eco-trend features in both business and fashion magazines, and eco news and blog sites popping up everywhere, surely the trend seems to be here to stay. But as we Africans go about trying to deal with our societal issues, I can’t help but think that maybe we need to think about this issue as well.

I spent a good deal of my senior year in high-school in the Environmental Society (yeah, yeah, I’ve had many lives and some a bit nerdy), where myself and a group of students learned and taught about the necessity of caring for your environment. I remember some programs we ran seeming boring and redundant to me but I couldn’t pin-point why. While others became passionate about the whole “save mother earth” movement I started to wonder why I wasn’t so gung-ho about it. I certainly agreed with the efforts but i just didn’t understand why some people seem to take it soooo seriously. Later in life I came to understand that growing up in an African household we never saw the earth as something or someone separate from ourselves. It was part of our culture to respect your surroundings and live within the parameters of the environment you were in. You somewhat understood the need and uses of certain natural resources and you respected their place in your life. But I think we’ve gotten comfortable as time has gone by, and are now part of Africa’s environmental problem.

When my father visited Ghana recently after many years, he was shocked about how rampant littering was. He described how easily people threw plastic products on the ground, even when there was a trash receptacle available. In discussions we often chalked it up to lawlessness, but there might be a deeper concern. As Africans we’ve begun to assume that we innately subscribe to old cultural norms when our actions prove otherwise. Try to talk to an African about environmentalism and many times you’ll get a blank stare or a “whatever” response. But one thing that Silas Siakor proved is that our actions are causing our situation to get worse. Yes, we have big problems like corruption, famine, and drought, but those problems are also tied to how we treat our environment. It’s true we’re not any worse than any other communities, but the effects on our “problems” are worse. When we allow large corporations to drill for oil without any concern about environmental hazards we make things worse for ourselves, What’s the revenue from exports worth when it leaves us with more problems to spend the money on.

The Africa portion of the Live Earth concert will be held in…..wait for it……South Africa. Surprised? Anyway, here’s more information about the event:

LIVE EARTH
Live Earth – The Concert for a Climate in Crisis
July 7, 2007
“The global audience gathered for Live Earth, its ongoing actions, and the proceeds from the concerts, will form the foundation for a new, multi-year international initiative to combat the climate crisis led by The Alliance for Climate Protection and its Chair, Al Gore.

Concerts on all 7 continents:
• Shanghai
• Sydney
• Johannesburg
• London
• Brazil – TBD
• Japan – TBD
• United States – TBD
• Antarctica – TBD

100+ artists: Current and legendary artists across all genres performing multiple hits.

Confirmed performers:
• Pharrell
• Red Hot Chili Peppers
• Foo Fighters
• Snoop Dogg
• Lenny Kravitz
• Bon Jovi
• Paolo Nutini
• Sheryl Crow
• AFI
• Melissa Etheridge
• John Mayer
• Damien Rice
• Corinne Bailey Rae
• Duran Duran
• Snow Patrol
• John Legend
• Black Eyed Peas
• Akon
• Enrique Iglesias
• Fall Out Boy
• Maná
• Keane
• Kelly Clarkson
• Korn
• Faith Hill w/ Tim McGraw
• Bloc Party

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Refugee entrepreneurs

Somali Bantu Women entrepreneursFortune Magazine has a great feature on African refugees who have fled their homeland and have started businesses in America. This feature highlights one of the undeniable strengths of the USA. While the country has enough problems to put it on many people’s hate lists, I doubt anyone can deny that this country is at the top of the list for business opportunity. While there is no level playing field for people of color, there are more than enough opportunities to make a living and chase your dreams. America is one of the few places that determination is rewarded, however strange the reward may be (queue “Star Spangled Banner”). Especially in todays world adopting a long tail mentality is the way to go.

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Making a model living

Ajuma Alexander McQueen backstage 2007Back in my fashion week round-up post, I mentioned the lack of black/african models on the runways this season. While it was a passing comment the topic holds great weight with many Africans trying to build a career in the modeling industry. While many of us take them for granted and often trivialize the idea of someone making money on their looks, the fact remains that models are an important part of selling a product in any industry. Many years ago, I went with a friend to a casting call. Let me tell you, you have to have serious determination, passion, and focus to go to those “cattle calls”. As I sat in a room of about 100 people vying for only one spot for a simple shoot, I realized that putting yourself out there to be judged by your looks alone is a harrowing experience. You are often at the whim of whomever is in charge and whatever their hang-up is that day or even that minute; and not taking it personally is easier said than done. My friend didn’t get the gig but she continued to pursue modeling until she finally gave up. Working on the “other side of the camera”, I’ve been witness to quite a few instances where models have had to tolerate everything from physical to verbal abuse just to get ahead; and if you feel that they get paid well enough to bear it you’re wrong. Just this past fashion week, I had to literally choke a model to get her shirt buttoned to complete the look the designer wanted; and my model just stood there and took it. Each season African models compete in a world where even when the product is being sold to people who look like them, they can easily be replaced by someone who doesn’t. Particularly in the fashion world there is a growing cap on how many African or black models can work each season or even per show. And I mean worldwide. Many designers make the excuse that African models don’t fit the look they’re going for, but the fact is it’s just an excuse not to make the effort. There are tons of qualified models like Noella, Honorine, Ajuma, Oluchi, and Atong working their way through the industry with varied enough looks for any shoot or runway. And they all represent the varied consumers who spend money on the fashion. If fashion week is all about creating excitement, then what is more captivating than an African model putting some flavor in an otherwise vanilla fashion show. So the next time you open a magazine, watch a video, or buy a product think about all those models who are putting themselves out there so that your image is represented and give them some credit. (photo: Style.com)

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Is identity holding Africans back?

I got into a debate about African identity last night. The debate brought about two specific issues. Do individual African nations have to create their own identity first before subscribing to an African identity? also what part does identity play in resolving Africa’s issues? What are your thoughts?