Sierra Leone is one of only two countries that was founded as a home for freed slaves brought back to the African continent after the abolition of slavery. Sixty-two years ago today, it lifted the final yoke - by attaining independence from Britain.
Obviously, the country’s history didn’t begin with colonialism. The area that is modern-day Sierra Leone has been inhabited continuously for millennia by indigenous Africans. But one key event in its history is hardly ever talked about.
At the tail-end of the 18th century, a group of African-Americans who had once been enslaved in the USA were at a crossroad. They had been promised freedom by the British in exchange for fighting on their side during the American war of independence, and were later settled in Nova Scotia, Canada. However, they still faced racial discrimination there - and many yearned to return to their ancestral homeland in Africa.
Starting in 1787, a number of ex-slaves - including about 300 Black Britons known as the Black Poor of London - were resettled in Sierra Leone. Over time, their numbers were swelled by the arrival of Jamaican Maroons, who had first been transported to Nova Scotia before being taken to Sierra Leone in 1800.
The histories of Sierra Leone and Liberia are similar. Neither started as a native state, nor as a European colony. But Sierra Leone stands out because the locals were not colonised by the freed slaves who docked at their shores.
Happy Independence Day to all Sierra Leoneans!
#britons #sierraleone #colonised #leoneans #independenceday #blackbritons #abolitionofslavery #jamaicanmaroons #britain #racialdiscrimination #europeancolony #canada #novascotia #americanwar #colonialism
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Obviously, the country’s history didn’t begin with colonialism. The area that is modern-day Sierra Leone has been inhabited continuously for millennia by indigenous Africans. But one key event in its history is hardly ever talked about.
At the tail-end of the 18th century, a group of African-Americans who had once been enslaved in the USA were at a crossroad. They had been promised freedom by the British in exchange for fighting on their side during the American war of independence, and were later settled in Nova Scotia, Canada. However, they still faced racial discrimination there - and many yearned to return to their ancestral homeland in Africa.
Starting in 1787, a number of ex-slaves - including about 300 Black Britons known as the Black Poor of London - were resettled in Sierra Leone. Over time, their numbers were swelled by the arrival of Jamaican Maroons, who had first been transported to Nova Scotia before being taken to Sierra Leone in 1800.
The histories of Sierra Leone and Liberia are similar. Neither started as a native state, nor as a European colony. But Sierra Leone stands out because the locals were not colonised by the freed slaves who docked at their shores.
Happy Independence Day to all Sierra Leoneans!
#britons #sierraleone #colonised #leoneans #independenceday #blackbritons #abolitionofslavery #jamaicanmaroons #britain #racialdiscrimination #europeancolony #canada #novascotia #americanwar #colonialism
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AMAPHOSA REVIVES ICC ROW
South Africa should pull out of the International Criminal Court of Justice, according to the country’s president. Cyril Ramaphosa’s shock comments reignited the row over ICC membership. He claims it’s guilty of double standards and lets Western leaders off the hook. So what will it mean for the up-coming visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who’s wanted by the organisations for alleged war crimes in Ukraine?
#Ukraine #Vladimir #Putin #Russia #ICC #Criminal #CourtofJustice #Ramaphosa #WarCrimes #SouthAfrica #ANC #RussiaPresident
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South Africa should pull out of the International Criminal Court of Justice, according to the country’s president. Cyril Ramaphosa’s shock comments reignited the row over ICC membership. He claims it’s guilty of double standards and lets Western leaders off the hook. So what will it mean for the up-coming visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who’s wanted by the organisations for alleged war crimes in Ukraine?
#Ukraine #Vladimir #Putin #Russia #ICC #Criminal #CourtofJustice #Ramaphosa #WarCrimes #SouthAfrica #ANC #RussiaPresident
Hear Us Roar: https://news.1rj.ru/str/AfricanStream
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The US has just pulled its staff out of Khartoum - almost exactly a year after it reopened its embassy in the Sudanese capital.
The White House dispatched ambassador John Godfrey to the country after a 25-year US absence from Sudan. Washington had put the country on a blacklist and labelled it a state sponsor of terrorism for hosting Osama bin Laden - a man the US supported and funded in Afghanistan to fight the Russians, but that's another story!
US diplomatic staff and their families were hurriedly evacuated from Sudan after vicious fighting between the RSF militia and the Sudanese army put the country on the brink of all-out civil war.
Online speculation sees no coincidence in the fact that Sudan is in flames a year after the US’s return to the country - nor in the timing of its rapid departure. It reminds some of an old joke: why are there no coups in America? Because there are no US embassies there! People also point to Washington’s ire at plans to build a Russian naval base in Port Sudan and the warning given by US Ambassador John Godfrey against the move last September.
One thing is sure. Khartoum never witnessed this level of violent escalation in its 25 years of being free of a US embassy. Conclude from that what you will.
Cartoon by Carlos Latuff
The White House dispatched ambassador John Godfrey to the country after a 25-year US absence from Sudan. Washington had put the country on a blacklist and labelled it a state sponsor of terrorism for hosting Osama bin Laden - a man the US supported and funded in Afghanistan to fight the Russians, but that's another story!
US diplomatic staff and their families were hurriedly evacuated from Sudan after vicious fighting between the RSF militia and the Sudanese army put the country on the brink of all-out civil war.
Online speculation sees no coincidence in the fact that Sudan is in flames a year after the US’s return to the country - nor in the timing of its rapid departure. It reminds some of an old joke: why are there no coups in America? Because there are no US embassies there! People also point to Washington’s ire at plans to build a Russian naval base in Port Sudan and the warning given by US Ambassador John Godfrey against the move last September.
One thing is sure. Khartoum never witnessed this level of violent escalation in its 25 years of being free of a US embassy. Conclude from that what you will.
Cartoon by Carlos Latuff
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AMID STRIFE, BASHIR EXITS PRISON
Two powerful figures with deep links to opposite sides in the current Sudan conflict are out of prison. The country's former dictator, Omar al-Bashir, was allegedly moved from Khartoum's Kober jail to a military hospital back on April 15th when the fighting first broke out. According to the army, he and 30 others are held there in police custody, on the recommendation of prison staff. Bashir and his Muslim Brotherhood allies were jailed after an uprising in 2019, but still have strong connections with the Sudanese army.
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Two powerful figures with deep links to opposite sides in the current Sudan conflict are out of prison. The country's former dictator, Omar al-Bashir, was allegedly moved from Khartoum's Kober jail to a military hospital back on April 15th when the fighting first broke out. According to the army, he and 30 others are held there in police custody, on the recommendation of prison staff. Bashir and his Muslim Brotherhood allies were jailed after an uprising in 2019, but still have strong connections with the Sudanese army.
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Meanwhile, one of his former top aides, Ahmed Harun, escaped from the same prison this week. He’s wanted by the International Criminal Court for multiple crimes, including supporting Janjaweed militants. They morphed into the Rapid Support Forces which are now battling it out against the Sudanese army.
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KHARTOUM ON BIO-CATASTROPHE ALERT
Fighters have seized a Khartoum laboratory storing dangerous biological samples - with the experts trained to handle them being denied access. The World Health Organisation warns the Sudanese capital is now in danger of a serious biohazard emergency. On top of that, the site stores medical blood supplies for already understaffed and under-stocked hospitals in the war-torn city.
#Khartoum #Sudan #biohazard #war #rsf #rebel #Africa #African #cholera #measles #polio #tragedy #laboratory
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Fighters have seized a Khartoum laboratory storing dangerous biological samples - with the experts trained to handle them being denied access. The World Health Organisation warns the Sudanese capital is now in danger of a serious biohazard emergency. On top of that, the site stores medical blood supplies for already understaffed and under-stocked hospitals in the war-torn city.
#Khartoum #Sudan #biohazard #war #rsf #rebel #Africa #African #cholera #measles #polio #tragedy #laboratory
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ZAMBIA REMEMBERS FOOTBALL TRAGEDY
Zambia remembers its golden generation of footballers killed in a plane crash thirty years ago. On April 28th, 1993, the country was only one game away from qualifying for its maiden FIFA World Cup tournament. Carrying the dreams and aspirations of an entire nation, the team flew out to Senegal to fulfil that crucial fixture. They never arrived as their plane crashed off the coast of Gabon’s capital, Libreville, a few minutes after takeoff, following a refuelling stop. Three decades later, the nation is still mourning the loss of the side widely considered the best to have worn the national shirt. But their memory has inspired future generations. In a symbolic and poignant fashion, Zambia won the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations held in Libreville, a few miles from the crash site.
#Libreville #zambia #planecrash #footballers #worldcup #fifa #gabon #africacup #crashsite #loss
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Zambia remembers its golden generation of footballers killed in a plane crash thirty years ago. On April 28th, 1993, the country was only one game away from qualifying for its maiden FIFA World Cup tournament. Carrying the dreams and aspirations of an entire nation, the team flew out to Senegal to fulfil that crucial fixture. They never arrived as their plane crashed off the coast of Gabon’s capital, Libreville, a few minutes after takeoff, following a refuelling stop. Three decades later, the nation is still mourning the loss of the side widely considered the best to have worn the national shirt. But their memory has inspired future generations. In a symbolic and poignant fashion, Zambia won the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations held in Libreville, a few miles from the crash site.
#Libreville #zambia #planecrash #footballers #worldcup #fifa #gabon #africacup #crashsite #loss
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CAMERA CATCHES AMAZING REUNION
A beautiful and emotional moment when a journalist spots her Sudanese uncle among evacuees. Yousra Elbagir, from Sky News, was covering civilians arriving in Saudi Arabia after fleeing war-torn Sudan. While doing her report, she unexpectedly sees him and their tearful embrace is caught on camera.
#Camera #Sudan #SkyNews #YousraElbagir #Sudanese #War #media #journalism #Rebels #RSF
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A beautiful and emotional moment when a journalist spots her Sudanese uncle among evacuees. Yousra Elbagir, from Sky News, was covering civilians arriving in Saudi Arabia after fleeing war-torn Sudan. While doing her report, she unexpectedly sees him and their tearful embrace is caught on camera.
#Camera #Sudan #SkyNews #YousraElbagir #Sudanese #War #media #journalism #Rebels #RSF
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DEATH CULT DEATH TOLL HITS 95
A death cult preaching self-starvation as the way to meet Jesus is feared to have claimed at least 95 lives, as more bodies - including whole families - are exhumed in Kenya.
The grim discovery has shocked the nation. Most of the victims were in poverty. It’s thought the cult, which runs a church, preyed on the desperate.
The case has prompted calls for better regulation of church organisations, and for more to be done to address economic inequalities.
#Kenya #Church #Cult #Poverty #Death #Jesus #Economic
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A death cult preaching self-starvation as the way to meet Jesus is feared to have claimed at least 95 lives, as more bodies - including whole families - are exhumed in Kenya.
The grim discovery has shocked the nation. Most of the victims were in poverty. It’s thought the cult, which runs a church, preyed on the desperate.
The case has prompted calls for better regulation of church organisations, and for more to be done to address economic inequalities.
#Kenya #Church #Cult #Poverty #Death #Jesus #Economic
Hear Us Roar: https://news.1rj.ru/str/AfricanStream
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