BE WARY OF AFRICAN LEADERS LOVED BY THE WEST

Many are the times when we are told Africa’s problems are a result of bad leadership. While this is true to a certain extent, it does not tell the whole story.

Bad leaders in Africa are not a coincidence, but the result of colonisers’ calculations.

In the past, the West has not only ousted progressive African leaders, but installed or propped up puppets and tyrants, such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s Mobutu Sese Seko and Gabon’s Omar Bongo. These leaders are reported to have colluded with Western corporations to loot their countries’ resources while they lined their pockets.

In this video clip, South African content creator and blogger Darren Campher (@darrencampher.com on TikTok and @darrencampher.com_ on IG) explains how the West fights progressive African leaders

Video credit: Darren Campher

SOCIAL MEDIA IS USED TO CONTROL ATHLETES

Sports stars are told to express themselves on the field of play, but it’s a whole different ball game when they want to express themselves on social media. Here, Boston Celtic’s forward, Jaylen Brown, outlines how athletes’ thoughts are kept carefully in check. They’re given meticulous media training to make sure they don’t say the ‘wrong thing.’ And if they do step out of line with their views, they’ll lose endorsements.

Hearing this from a player of Jaylen’s status, definitely gives it extra weight. Not only is he a 2024 NBA champion and Most Valuable Player (MVP), he’s also deeply involved in social justice and community activism. On top of that, he’s an academic. He majored in biology at the University of California, and took graduate-level classes in philosophy.

Continued…. So, now you know that, don’t be surprised to hear him talk in this clip about Panopticism. In case you’re wondering, it’s a social theory that states we’re all being monitored by authorities. And Jaylen says social media has become their latest watchtower. Do you agree?

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MELANIN EQUALS SUPERHUMAN

Being Black brings with it health benefits, not least because our bodies are packed with melanin. According to holistic health expert Dr Llaila Afrika, the pigment is responsible for almost everything happening in our body. From absorbing harmful UV rays from the sun, to increasing our sense of sight and smell. He says it gives Black people superior sensory perception and has been studied by the US military.

Now, if you go online and look up melanin, you’ll also find experts who disagree. But, for the record, Dr Afrika is a Doctor in alternative medicine, an experienced lecturer and says he’s been helping people be ‘healthy’ for decades. That’s why we thought we’d share this clip, where he champions melanin’s powers. It’s a fascinating topic. Drop us a comment below.

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Our African proverb of the week comes from Kenya.

“Once water has been spilled, it can’t be scooped”.

Otherwise, consequences emerge from our actions. Be prudent when making decisions that could ultimately shift the trajectory of your life. The repercussions, most times, cannot be undone.

STREET-STYLE COW HEAD MEAT

Inyama yenhloko, a stew made from a cow’s head, is not your average dish. This traditional South African Zulu delicacy not only comes with rich flavours, but also with an equally rich history and an interesting set of rules regarding its consumption.

In the past, the meal was reserved for older men. Women were even prohibited from consuming its gravy, as this was considered to be good for male fertility. You’re probably thinking that this is patriarchy in a pot!

But luckily things have since changed and people of all ages and gender can now enjoy this amazing dish.

African Stream visited Champion Inyama, a Johannesburg roadside joint that prepares and serves this yummy stew. Have a watch and tell us if this is something that tickles your taste buds!

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PLO ON STRENGTHENING INSTITUTIONS IN AFRICA

Africans need to respect, nurture and bullet-proof their institutions. So argues distinguished Pan-African scholar PLO Lumumba in this clip. He suggests that Africans are in the habit of imagining that institutions care for themselves, whoever they elect to run them. But he vividly illustrates how wrong this is - citing the collapse of health and education in Sudan thanks to a failure of governance. Lumumba says we need institutions plus the right men and women to look after and lead them. Another example he gives is that of the toxic Indian syrup scandal, which cost the lives of African children because our own quality controls weren’t fit for purpose. How would you go about fixing the problem he’s identified?

SISTER SOULJA ON WHITE RACISM IN AMERICA

Here is a 1992 TV clip of rapper and activist Sister Souljah cutting through the chase on race.

That year is remembered for one of the most significant uprisings in US history when violence erupted in Los Angeles after a jury acquitted four police officers in the 1991 beating of Black motorist Rodney King. That, as well as a Korean merchant not serving prison time after shooting a Black teen and years of racial tension between the Black and Korean communities, caused six days of violence that left behind more than $1 billion in property damages.

In this clip, @sistersouljah replied to a caller on 'Larry King Live' who said a white disc jockey mocked Martin Luther King Day, a US holiday, by saying perhaps k*lling more Black people would help 'get a week off.'

Continued….. Our straight-shooting sister pointed to Black people's lack of power in the United States, a comment that mirrored Pan-Africanist Kwame Ture's (1941-98). Ture often said Black people's quest for power is more important than worrying over racist ideas inside white people's minds. Do you agree? Let us know in the comments.

Video credit: 'Larry King Live,' @CNN

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AFRICAN COUNTRIES REPATRIATE THEIR GOLD FROM U.S.

In this video RedactedNews anchor Clayton Morris explains why several African countries have begun withdrawing their gold reserves from the United States in recent months. The moves are a reflection of growing concerns over the stability of a waning hegemonic power and its economy. The trend also marks a real shift in global economics, as these and other countries grow increasingly skeptical of the traditional safe-haven status of US financial institutions and the dollar.

The decision to repatriate gold reserves is driven by a deeper unease among these nations about the trajectory of the US economy. Persistent inflation, mounting debt levels, and concerns about the Federal Reserve’s ability to maintain stable monetary policies have eroded confidence in the US dollar. Additionally, geopolitical tensions and uncertainties surrounding trade relations have further fuelled apprehensions among foreign governments and investors.

Video credit: RedactedNews

‘Being an old farm boy myself, chickens coming home to roost never did make me sad; they’ve always made me glad.’

Pan-Africanist icon Malcolm X uttered these words to a reporter in 1963, shortly after the assassination of U.S. President John F. Kennedy. The phrase implies that the actions of an individual or group will return to haunt them.

There is no better place where this saying holds than the United States. Four presidents have been assassinated, while five have survived attempts. Assassins also have tried to take the lives of four presidential candidates, but only one—Robert F. Kennedy—was k*lled.

Although African Stream does not condone violence in any form, we must point out that the U.S. has been built on a foundation of violence, from the k*lling and displacement of the Indigenous peoples from their lands to the enslavement of Africans who had been violently ripped away from our motherland.

Continued….. This penchant for violence against people of colour did not remain in the past as other people want the world to believe; in the last two centuries, the U.S. has continuously exported its violence abroad, especially to the Global South.

U.S. presidential assassinations pale in comparison to the millions of people the United States has k*lled from South America to Africa to East Asia to deal with governments that did not bow to U.S. hegemony.

For the U.S. to effectively stop the chickens from coming home to roost, it will need to address the violence that founded and continues to sustain the U.S. empire, which will continue whoever wins the presidential elections in November, whether it be Donald Trump or Joe Biden.

BLACK PEOPLE IN THE U.S. NOT YET FREE

Are Black people in the United States genuinely free? One might think the answer is obvious since our people are no longer subjected to chattel slavery.

However, content creator @prodigalsun3 (TikTok) argues that merely being free from chattel slavery does not equate to freedom if one is still subject to the institutions of those who enslaved them.

His argument could also apply to African countries that attained political independence decades ago but whose economies are still firmly under the control of the powers that had colonised them. Western companies continue to control the lion’s share of African resources, such as diamonds, gold, copper, timber and land.

Africa’s finance landscape is also still largely dominated by Western banks and insurance companies. Can we then say we are free if we don’t control our resources?

Video credit: @prodigalsun3 (TikTok)