Those who know little about their past realities shall have vague and superficial knowledge about their present realities which portends future destiny built on shifting sands. People with such attributes can never have their own narrative – past, present and future.
No nation or race is condemned to eternal wretchedness and despite the seemingly heavy, insurmountable odds a nation or race may face, there shall always arise amongst them individuals with extraordinary intelligence and unwavering courage who infuse into their people a new spirit of revival. Turning the pages of history, one doesn’t fail to notice the rise of individuals of very high caliber who took upon themselves the mission to reform the way of thinking of their people and to fully transform their social outlook.
In the world’s historical records chronicling instances of humans engaged in struggles to free themselves from the yokes of oppression, subjugation and injustices there is no equivalence to what the black race had suffered. These struggles came in different forms and always had men spearheading them.
Celebrating Black History Month, though initially began as “Negro History Week” created in 1926 by none other than Carter G. Woodson, an African American educator, historian, journalist and founder of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History.
Celebrating the Black History Month becomes more multidimensional both in scope and reach. More and more people from diverse walks of life are getting more involved and are playing very proactive roles in coming up with innovative ways to make the event not only for celebrations but for creating a new futuristic approach and setting an altogether new tone aimed at improving the lives of not only the black people but all those disadvantaged societies.
One such innovative approach to Celebrating Black History Month was adopted by three enterprising organizations AL-ABRAR FOUNDATION, GALBUR FOUNDATION and RAFIKI WEMA who organized an event showcasing Black Excellence. This event brought together young black visionaries who not only celebrated their phenomenal achievements but also calibrated a vision for a future world full of hopes and opportunities – hopes and opportunities which transcend all barriers, biases and prejudices of color, race or religion.
This was not the typical celebration of Black History Month just complaining about past history despite its dehumanizing, oppressive nature which subjugated entire race for centuries, rather this event was about the successes and achievements made through the dint of sacrifice, resilience and tenacity in the face of all present challenges and prejudices.
The panelists discussed both local and global issues. Some of the issues which occupied center stage included the global impact of climate change, global politics, unfair distribution of wealth. They had pointed out the root causes and the devastating impact these have on the developing nations. They put forward a very ambitious vision and approach towards tackling the socio-economic ills plaguing the majority of the world’s population.