“Learning, Wisdom, and the African World” (lecture #1)

1. To be African is to be brilliant and excellent. Dr. Carr makes it very clear that Africa is the birthplace of brilliance and excellence. He invoked the images of Seshat, the creator and Goddess of numbers and according to Dr. Carr “rocked leopard skin”. Djehuty was her husband and the creator of letters. He referenced these two greats of our history to show that we are indeed genetically members of the source of academic origins. This powerful link allowed us to connect mentally and emotionally to the richness, greatness and authority from which we come. We were indeed able to see that “To be African is to be Brilliant and Excellent.” From here Dr. Carr, in my opinion achieved his objective to call us into re-membering and re-setting our “Axis of Learning Around Excellence” through the eyes of Sankofa (taking us to Seshat and Djehuty).
2. Dr. Carr also broke down the meaning of an Mbongi. I had never heard this term before. It is a space where the community is engaged with one another for the purpose of to solve problems. According to Dr. Carr it is a “physical and intellectual space” where members come together, creating a kind of “think tank, which develops the best ways of knowing and keeping the traditions which characterize the group and order thought.” He also pointed out that this is a “common shelter” meaning this is a safe and protective place. I will always hold as vey significant the next thing he said. He stated that in this space all are given permission to speak however everyone is “required to speak with authority and clarity.” This is showing that everyone is valued and should also respect themselves as a valuable contributor to the growth of their community and an actual instrument of “effect” of the world at large. This is showing that when one views herself in this way she will hold herself accountable for her actions and be more mindful of the impact her action or non action has on the world. What a strong community, nation and world this would be if we all held and maintained such a high healthy self esteem.
3. Another point of immense value was the lens with which Dr. Carr magnified how many were trained to forget. He reminded us of how many Africans were separated from their memory. He highlighted that many American peoples of African descent have been taught that the history of their ancestors began with Africans who “showed up pickin cotton”. This of course resulted in the psychological disconnecting from Africa among many African Americans. Indeed many supporters of white supremacy desired this memory loss of connection to a power source.
Many Africans were enslaved and ripped from their continent. Africans have been spread across the globe as a result of many factors other than the Trans Atlantic Enslavement Trade. However it was this that caused the most amount of displacement of Africans and their descendants. Africans were forcefully taken to places like Brazil, Haiti, Trinidad and Tobago and North America. Despite this, we maintained memory seemingly in our DNA. Retention of things such as the African way of cooking, African rhythms, African dress, African color combinations and African drum beats are all just a few examples of the presence of this memory across space and time. Though many of these continue to experience some evolution, the authenticity of the retention of memory is undeniable.
Seeing myself as heir “…to a tradition of African thinking” makes me feel powerful, influential and a strong sense of responsibility to be the best and most authentic human I can.