Black Looks

• Haiti Solidarity

  Posted: February 29, 2008, 11:11 am by Sokari

  Third International Day of Solidarity with the People of Haiti & for the safe return of disappeared human rights activist Lovinsky Pierre-Antoine. On the 12th August 2007 the car of Lovinsky was found abandoned on a street in Port-au-Prince and he has not been seen or heard of since. No one has claimed [...]

• Al Akhdam out-castes

  Posted: February 28, 2008, 5:25 pm by Sokari

  The NYT publishes a story that highlights the low status of Black people in the Middle East and one of the least discussed histories of Africa and the Arab speaking world, Arab-led slavery. This particularly report is about the Black Yemenis locally referred to as “Al Akhdam” [the root khadama [...]

• Coalition of African Lesbians

  Posted: February 28, 2008, 12:43 pm by Sokari

  The Coalition of African Lesbians (CAL) are holding their annual conference in Maputo, Mozambique with the main aim of highlighting discrimination and homophobia against lesbians in Africa. Dawn O’Reilly of the Forum for the Empowerment of Women discusses the possibility of Jacob Zuma becoming the next President of South Africa and how this would impact [...]

• Quick Links

  Posted: February 25, 2008, 2:59 pm by Sokari

  *** Oxfamming the word [via No Longer at Ease] from Kenyan author Binyavanga Wainaina who gave us the wonderful How To Write About Africa. “Would you like an Oxfam biscuit? Can we fly 103 of you to France to be loved? We can breastfeed you. We can save you from yourself. We can save ourselves [...]

• Racist Obama cartoon

  Posted: February 21, 2008, 5:35 pm by Rethabile

  Obama caricature: The presidential candidate is shown painting the White House black. Now, isn’t that just plain stupid! The text is in Hebrew so I haven’t the faintest idea of what is being said, but the cartoon is unambiguous enough. http://www.notes.co.il/karny/40487.asp Share This:

• Behind Leviev’s empire

  Posted: February 21, 2008, 3:25 pm by Sokari

  Pressure is mounting from all sides on Lev Leviev, Israeli billionaire whose empire is built on corruption, abuse, illegal practices and the blood of people from Angola to New York to Palestine. Leviev has also been implicated in human rights violations in Angola: Adalah also trumpets charges by the Business and Human Rights Resource Group, [...]

• Images of Black Women & IWOC Day London

  Posted: February 21, 2008, 11:00 am by Sokari

  The annual “Images of Black Women” film festival runs from Friday 29th through to Sunday 2nd March. The festival opens with “Talk to Me” The true-life story of Ralph Waldo “Petey” Greene Jr during the mid-to-late 1960s, in Washington D.C. A story of friendship between two men Petey Greene & Dewey Hughes. The film’s [...]

• Selective policing - El Al, it’s not just an airline, it’s Israel

  Posted: February 19, 2008, 4:57 pm by Sokari

  The British police allowed a suspected Israeli war criminal to return to Israel despite having a judicial warrant for his arrest at Heathrow airport. Major General Doron Almog is a former Israeli commander in Gaza and was wanted in relation to the demolition of 59 civilian homes in Gaza. The [...]

• Both of you

  Posted: February 18, 2008, 2:47 pm by Rethabile

  An oak guards where they buried you on the hill, one leg sawed at the hip, life on its last leg, its witch’s hand creeping in your box and finding nothing; it shrivels and dies since they, when they took your body away, left only your soul. You own the hill where children play, at peace now as you ever were; their fucking laughter rises into a [...]

• Missionary healers in Lesotho

  Posted: February 18, 2008, 11:55 am by Rethabile

  The LaunchPad: Where Is Lesotho? Lesotho is a small nation that is surrounded by the country of South Africa. The King and Queen of Lesotho have invited Johannes Amritzer and Mission SOS to do a Festival for their people. The first Festival was held there in October of 07 and 17 new churches were [...]

• Out in Africa & Middle East

  Posted: February 18, 2008, 11:31 am by Sokari

  Journalist and blogger ,Andrew Havens [Meskel Square] has a feature article on “Gay Africans and Arabs come out online” published by Reuters. Andrew interviewed women and men from the LGBT communities across Africa and the Arab speaking world for the piece. NEWS AND ABUSE That limited form of coming out has earned the [...]

• Life of Pahé

  Posted: February 17, 2008, 4:02 pm by Sokari

  This month’s Words Without Borders has a special issue on graphic novels from around the world. I loved this short extract from series by Pahé (Patrick Essono) whose childhood experiences bring to life two myths. One the myth of a Europe with streets of gold and the other, the myth of returning to the [...]

• What do vegans eat?

  Posted: February 16, 2008, 3:08 pm by Sokari

  I am now Vegan - phew I have finally spoken the words in a public space. Am sweating from the admittance not because there is anything negative about being a Vegan, on the contrary I feel quite proud that I am no longing consuming animal bits. But a certain commitment comes with public admissions. [...]

• Quick Links

  Posted: February 16, 2008, 2:06 pm by Sokari

  *** Freedom Rider on the “Obama Cult”. What a relief. They are every where, like pod people in Invasion of the Body Snatchers. If you don’t fall asleep and turn into a pod person too, they are out to get you. I mean Obama supporters of course. If their adoration for cynical nothingness wasn’t so dangerous [...]

• The continued murder of Stephen Lawrence

  Posted: February 15, 2008, 4:22 pm by Sokari

  Just down the road from where I live, the recently opened Stephen Lawrence Center in Deptford was once again vandalised yesterday in a despicable racist assault. It is as if Stephen is being murdered over and over and over - when will he be allowed to rest in peace? Tags: Black Britain London + Deptford Stephen Lawrence Share This:

• Closing the gates on Black women in Britain

  Posted: February 15, 2008, 3:58 pm by Sokari

  The Southall Black Sisters is threatened with

• creative revolutions by women

  Posted: February 14, 2008, 4:02 am by Sokari

  creative revolutions by women

• Why? O Val

  Posted: February 14, 2008, 3:20 am by Chinwe

  Why? O Val That your virtuous immortal celebration Should be viciously celebrated by mortals. That this day, revered for kindness, love and joy Should be tainted with infidelity, deceit and sadness Why? O Valentine Should men become philanderers overnight And infidel spouses? Engage in unlawful rendezvous with concubines In the pretext of “being rooted in the line of duty” All in your name? Why? O Valentine Should [...]

• Bloody diamonds from Angola to Palestine

  Posted: February 12, 2008, 11:36 am by Sokari

  New York and Londoner’s campaign to boycott the jewellery stores of Israeli billionaire and settlement magnate, Lev Leviev on Madison Ave and Bond Street. Leviev is a major constructor of Israeli settlements on Occupied Palestinian land in violation of international law. He owns Alluvial diamond mines in Angola where thousands [...]

• Monday musings on travel terror and unvalentines day

  Posted: February 11, 2008, 4:34 pm by Sokari

  *** Pointing the finger at paranoia - Last xmas 5 Black members of a Steel Band (including a blind man) were forcibly removed from a Ryan Air flight from London Standstead to Sardinia because another passenger thought they looked like terrorists. The five were recently awarded £5,000 each - a pathetic sum of money considering [...]

• Stolen children

  Posted: February 11, 2008, 3:29 pm by Sokari

  The Australian government is to officially apologise to the “stolen children” of

• Tough love for Africa

  Posted: February 8, 2008, 3:54 am by Rethabile

  The Atlanticist : Africa needs tough love, not more aid poured down a rat hole: There is not a single state on the African continent that would not today be better off administered under a colonial regime, as Hong Kong was by Britain. If the West genuinely cared about Africa and wanted to make a difference [...]

• Happy birthday, Bob!

  Posted: February 6, 2008, 8:53 am by Rethabile

  “Robert ‘Bob’ Nesta Marley OM (February 6, 1945 – May 11, 1981) was a Jamaican singer, songwriter, guitarist, and activist. He is the most widely known performer of reggae music. Marley is regarded by many as a prophet of the Rastafari movement. Marley is best known for his reggae songs, which include the hits ‘I Shot [...]

• Lewis Hamilton

  Posted: February 5, 2008, 5:45 pm by Sokari

  Once again Spanish sports fans have lived up to their nasty reputation of being a bunch of racist imbeciles. This time its not football but Formula 1. Yesterday fans blacked up their faces and donned black wigs with the words “hamilton’s family” written on their white t-shirts. According to the reports [...]

• Western Cape 07-07-07 Campaign launch

  Posted: February 5, 2008, 12:17 pm by Sokari

  The 07-07-07-Campaign to end hate against Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgendered and Intersexed (LGBTI) persons was launched at the Saartjie Baartman Centre, Heideveld in Cape Town on the 2nd anniversary commemorating the violent and brutal death of 19 year old Zoliswa Nkonyana (04/02/06). The provincial campaign is being spearheaded by Cape Town’s Triangle Project, the oldest [...]

• Sex workers to be excluded from PEPFAR funding

  Posted: February 4, 2008, 11:44 am by Sokari

  URGENT ACTION NEEDED. The U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief is requiring organisations in the global south receiving US funding to sign an “anti-prostitution” pledge in order to receive funds. This is outrageous, discriminatory and will create even more problems for AIDS programmes and people living with HIV and AIDS. PEPFAR has now [...]

• Black history month: cartoonists

  Posted: February 3, 2008, 5:01 pm by Sokari

  When we think of the history of Black people in the African Diaspora, cartoonists and graphic novelists rarely come to mind so here I thought I would mention a two Black artists, one cartoonist Morrie Turner and the other graphic novelist, Lance Tooks, who have made significant contributions to their profession. Starting with [...]

• The pantry

  Posted: February 3, 2008, 9:28 am by Rethabile

  Everything’s done now. Cake is in the oven… the table set. Nothing to do but undo my lace-wear now, let it gain the floor to silk the base of my statue. I turn and hold a shelf, itself holding jars of fruit we bottled last summer when the kids were at camp and we had the house to ourselves, unlike [...]

• Calling Maya Angelou a “ho”

  Posted: February 2, 2008, 12:14 am by Rethabile

  Someone apparently thinks Dr. Maya Angelou is a “ho” because she supports Mrs Clinton and not Mr. Obama. Hmmm. I know this will generate hits for them, but who knows, maybe you can scold them, or tell someone else to scold them, your congressman, for example, could turn into an effective scolder, or blog shutter. [...]

• Quick Links

  Posted: February 1, 2008, 2:28 pm by Sokari

  Out of the ashes………….. ****I was listening to BBC’s breakfast show, “Today” on Friday morning. There were interviews with various pundits and the UK foreign affairs minister. The show ended with a brief interview with a woman resident of on Kiberia settlement in Nairobi. The last question she was asked [...]

• The first black person to…

  Posted: February 1, 2008, 3:12 am by Rethabile

  Sowetan: A few years ago we had a young kwaito sensation aptly named Lekgoa [sic] because he was white and lekgoa [sic] is Sesotho for white person. But never have I read anywhere that this young musician was the first white artist to choose kwaito. Neither were many eyebrows raised when Johnny Clegg and [...]

Blah blah blah

Fish cakes

Alas a fish cake.

Yet more fish cakes

Guess what ... yeah ... fish cakes.

The end of the fish cakes