Dec 27, 2011
I
was remembering in the dim recesses of my mind a huge fuss over a
television program in 1967. It was the first globally transmitted
program, and it ended with a newly composed song by the Beatles "All You
Need is Love". I found this in Wikipedia:
"Our World
was the first live, international, satellite
television production, which was broadcast on 25 June 1967. Creative
artists, including opera singer Maria Callas, The Beatles, and painter
Pablo Picasso,
representing nineteen different nations were invited to perform or
appear in separate segments featuring their respective countries. The
two-and-half-hour event had the largest television audience ever up to
that date: an estimated 400 million people around the globe watched the
broadcast.Today, it is most famous for the segment from the United Kingdom
starring The Beatles. They sang their specially composed song "All You Need is Love" to close the broadcast."
I
am thinking the only people who listened were in the Vatican, because
after the genocide of 30,000 Igbos, the Nation of Biafra had just been
declared, and the Vatican stood with Biafra when the US, the UK, Russia
wanted the breakaway state back as part of Nigeria as soon as possible.
Dec 26, 2011
Time to go to sleep and dream about the the advantages of being a Roman
Catholic nun (no men around me ever again, no property, prayer is
institutional and mandatory, get respect from men and women) and the
disadvantages (can't think of any, everyone is already pissed off with
me).
I have seen nuns in work in
Africa. Far away from priests and the Vatican, they do whatever they
like in a very disciplined and helpful way. Nuns preach to each other
every morning, and give out the host. The nuns in Africa are amazing,
and I can tell you, they are not ordered around by men. What I saw was a
collective, they are working together. And the men have enormous
respect for them. In Australia, and the US, the nuns were sidelined by
the pedophile scandal; in Africa, and I have seen them in action in
Nigeria, Sierra Leone and Kenya, they do enormous good and do not have
the scandals of thievery associated with many pentecostal pastors.
Dec 25, 2011
Miracles.
Everyone associated with MJoTA.org, profiled in a story: we don't just
believe in miracles, we expect them. And remember, you may not believe
in God, but God believes in you. Which is the message of Christmas.
Cashews, honey roasted almonds, port wine cheese and crackers, good
Kenyan tea: watching a Nigerian movie. After Igbo Catholic mass, some
good hugs and some great red rice. Magnificent way to celebrate the
annual day of miracle. I have counted 3 so far, waiting on 4 more.
Dec 22, 2011
I have spent Christmas
- in Bristol, UK
- in
Manchester, UK (I remember convincing Patrick to play baby Jesus and so
he climbed into my baby doll carrier, and I remember somehow dropping
him down the stairs, he remembers too, sorry Patrick!);
- on board
the ship the Southern Cross which was a 6-weeks journey past exotic
countries in the Caribbean, Central America and the Pacific (I was an
angel in the ship pageant and my arms nearly fell off from having to
keep them crossed, Patrick was a shepherd or something that didn't
involve standing painfully still)
- in
Gisborne NZ, Patrick and I watching the nurses walk through Cook
Hospital grounds carrying candles and singing carols to cheer up the
patients, and then following them to a large room where the Matron was
cutting a huge Christmas cake in the shape of a Bible, and handing out
small glasses of sherry
- in Sydney,
Australia, going to church early and coming home to either eat mangoes
on the beach or eat my mother's feast which usually included a trifle
and plum pudding and Christmas cake
- in the Pokhara Valley of Nepal with Dr Gavan Schneider, in the shadow of Mount Everest, going to church and sharing a feast
- in
Eastbourne, UK, with Dr Gavan Schneider, spending Christmas with my
paraplegic uncle Tony (his kidney and legs shot from under him during
the second world war in France, friendly fire)
- in Philadelphia,PA, with Dr Raymond Pekala and a newborn baby boy and a toddler son (1982 was a banner year)
- in Haddonfield, NJ with my 2, then 3, then 4 children and Episcopalians, and after the first Gulf War, with Quakers
in Hazleton,
PA with Dr Raymond Pekala and the descendants of coalminers who are
relatives of my older 2 sons, Angus Dodgson Pekala and Miles Dodgson
Pekala
- in
Freiburg with Lothar Blossfeld and the relatives of German Jews who
perished during the Holocaust, who are relatives of my younger children
Allister Dodgson Blossfeld and Patience Caroline Dodgson
- in Brooklyn, New York with Nigerian Muslims including Chief Lookman Sulaimon Arounfale L&K. We watched the newscasts about a Nigerian Muslim bomber and went back to file a story, but Lookman fell asleep and Sahara Reporters scooped the whole world.
Dec 18, 2011
Miles
is 29 today. I went into labor on December 17, Philadelphia was 2 feet
deep in snow, and my husband Dr Ray Pekala and baby son Angus were at a
party celebrating the winter solstice. We dumped Angus on our downstairs
neighbors, who were Indian, at 3am, and Miles emerged defiantly at
11:45am on Saturday morning.
Defiant.
I hoped not, which is why I named him Miles, which is Latin for
soldier. Somehow I thought he would like rules and law and order. Of
course he does, he is a robotics engineer working for the United States
military, but he doesn't like my rules, my order.
I
run into him at his father's house on holidays, and frequently Google
him to see if anything has happened that a mother should know about.
Like having a meeting with the Secretary of Defense, or being selected
to build for 3 days something that moves for the Red Bull Challenge, or
winning an award as creative genius.
Like
all my family members, he thinks my work reporting Africa and African
communities has no value, and that everything I do is really really
stupid.
Happy Birthday Miles!
Dec 17, 2011
On
my long trip home from the Sahara Reporters holiday party (Harlem to
Brooklyn by train, ducked into huge Caribbean party on Utica Ave, where I
was patted down and my bag searched for weapons, then drove through
Manhattan, through North Jersey), I formulated why I applaud Sahara
Reporters. Because otherwise, the world cannot tell the good Nigerians
from the bad ones. I have been scammed, robbed by
the bad ones.
And Sahara Reporters hates that happening to anyone.
Crooks in government or otherwise representing Nigeria are not
acceptable, and finally, Sahara Reporters gives voice to the journalists
and citizens who have been yelling themselves hoarse saying that.
And
the quiet pale journalist reporting Africa who gave space to Sahara
Reporters way back when, Lisa Vives absolutely rocks. Okey Ndibe
was celebrated, as was the publisher Sohore who started it all.
My
favorite Nigerian publisher, the always gracious Yoruba princess, Tosin Mustapha gave a lovely speech.
Dec 14, 2011
Beethoven's
birthday is December 16! We can celebrate with his music and a debate
on whether he was African. Beethoven's 5th. Opening notes are the morse
code for V, for victory. I remember my German children's father telling
me that they were the opening music for BBC broadcasts, and anyone
caught listening to the BBC was shot. Lothar Blossfeld must have been
told that by his unshot father, he was too young to remember anything
except US soldiers giving him chocolate.
Dec 8, 2011
Corruption
in America
at its most elemental. Occupy Darby anyone? This came From Paula Brown, who is
trained in law and was a previous mayor of Darby.
"So
last night's council meeting once again, proved that when you back a rat into a
corner, they come out fighting. I asked for proof or records of money allegedly
owed to Smythe and NONE WERE GIVEN. Smythe once again LOST HIS TEMPER and tried
to come at me, SCREAMING and had to be held back by the Code Enforcement
Officer...REALLY? If this is a legitimate move, then why does everyone get
upset when I ask for proof? I asked a question why is $12,000.00 paid under the
table to the "janitor" for cleaning the police station? Why isn't she
put on the payroll like everyone else? Janice Davis jumped up and screamed at
me because I am picking on her daughter? No, I want to know why our tax money
is paid out to an individual and no taxes are taken out! First of all, how did
her daughter even get this job? Was it advertised? NO, it was just handed
out...like everything else is. And the kicker?
They said Smythe getting this
money, and pumping up his retirement is not unheard of these days....they said
everyone does it including Joe Paterno, and Congressmen and State Reps! So that
makes it right I guess, that we allow him to collect several hundred thousand
dollars that there is NO proof that he is owed...ONLY IN DARBY....http://delcotimes.com/articles/2011/12/08/news/doc4ee03bf8b3d09240132656.txt?viewmode=fullstory"
December 7, 2011
ARLINGTON, VA – PBS.org
announced today a slate of programs profiling African-Americans for Black History Month,
February 2012.
Premieres
“Daisy Bates: The First Lady of Little Rock,”
premiering Thursday, February 2, at 10:00 p.m., tells the story of
Bates’ life and her public support of nine black students who registered
to attend the all-white Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas.
Premiering on Thursday, February 9, at 10:00 p.m. is a
compilation of interviews from African-American artists,
activists, musicians and scholars in “Black Power
Mixtape 1967-1975.” In the late 1960s and early 1970s, Swedish
television journalists came to America to document the burgeoning black power movement.
This film
features interviews with b Stokely Carmichael and Eldridge Cleaver and Angela Davis. In “More Than a Month,”
premieres on Thursday, February 16, at 10:00 p.m., Shukree Hassan
Tilghman, an African-American filmmaker, is on a cross-country campaign
to end Black History Month.
SLAVERY BY ANOTHER NAME,
premieres February 13, at 9:00 p.m.
FRONTLINE “The Interrupters,” premiering Tuesday,
February 14, at 9:00 p.m., follows a group of former gang leaders in
Chicago who try to “interrupt” shootings and protect their communities
from the violence they themselves once committed. From director Steve James (HOOP DREAMS, Stevie).
In AN EVENING WITH VALERIE SIMPSON, premiering in February 2012, Gwen Ifill
interviews Valerie Simpson, who for more than 40 years wrote hit-making
songs with her husband, the late Nick Ashford.
“Cab Calloway: Sketches”
premieres Monday, February 27, at 10:00 p.m.
FREEDOM RIDERS: AMERICAN EXPERIENCE will be shown on Tuesday, February 7, at 8:00 p.m.
Other series airing throughout the year that routinely cover topics
and profile guests and performers of interest to African-Americans
include FRONTLINE, GREAT PERFORMANCES, PBS NEWSHOUR, NEED TO KNOW, POV, TAVIS SMILEY and WASHINGTON WEEK WITH GWEN IFILL.
FINDING YOUR ROOTS, the latest series from renowned cultural critic and
Harvard scholar Henry Louis Gates, Jr., premieres Sunday, March 25, at
8:00 p.m.
UNDERGROUND RAILROAD: THE WILLIAM STILL STORY,
airs Monday, February 6 at 10:00 pm: one man’s mission to
help slaves escape to freedom.
On February
24, at 9:00 p.m., turn the radio dial back to the 1950s for the tale of a
black singer, a white DJ, forbidden love and the birth of rhythm and
blues in GREAT PERFORMANCES “Memphis.” The original
Broadway cast members of the 2010 Tony Award-winner for Best New Musical
reprise their roles.
Thousands of hours of PBS programming are available on the PBS Video Portal.
In mid-January, the Video Portal will release a special collection for
Black History Month 2012, featuring new and encore programming.
December 7, 2011
I
posted on MJoTA.org news (click here) 3 stories from Africa about consequences of HIV disease (lonely old age, click here, respiratory disease, click here) and lower rate of HIV infection in circumcised men, click here. I had never previously read that circumcision lowers the incidence of HIV
infection. That does not give anyone a free pass, if you really don't
want to get or give infection: 1.stay with one partner after you have
both been tested and know you are completely STD-free, 2.don't shove
your favorite male part down anyone's throat, and 3.use condoms. All of
them. No line-item veto.
November 27,2011
Nigeria.
Medical Journal of Therapeutics Africa, at MJoTA.org getting ready to
publish on Monday November 28 a tribute those who died in the lead up to
and during the Biafran War of Independence.
So
many stories I have been told of education interrupted or ended,
migration, starvation, injuries, death. I have been told that as many as
1 million children were airlifted to Haiti. Arithmetically, that is
impossible, and I don't know how many Nigerian children went to Haiti.
But Haiti looked to me like Nigeria.
War
is hell. Colonel Ikemba in 1967 declared "enough is enough" and
declared the Nation of Biafra, carved out of eastern Nigeria. Haiti
recognized it, so did the Vatican, but most of the world turned its back
and what was a plea for peace turned into a carnage for so many
Nigerians. Vale Colonel Ikemba.
-----------------------------------------------------
New York. Why you need to give your last dollar to Bed Stuy Vollies, corner of Greene and Marcus Garvey, www.bsvac.org. First hand account by the Commander's grandson, Emergency Medical Technician James Pointer.
"James Youngmoneywonder Pointer. As Im Driving Home Tonight Im Getting Onto The Bruckner Expressway When
I See A Highway Cop Shoot Right Pass Me To Get On The Ramp So I Turn To
Highway On My Portable And I Hear Another
Highway Unit Screaming " Central I Need Buses On The Bruckner North For
A Bad MVA Mutiple Patients So Knowing Me The Nosey EMT I Am I Speed Up
On The Ramp To Then Highway To See Some Crazy Ass MVA With Just A Single
Fire Engine And A Conditions Boss Which Was Following Me On The
Highway! So Of Course I Jump Out Grab My Bags And Got To Work! 7
Patients Total 2 Critical Patients 5 Borderline Patients I treated
tonight! Once Again ( Im My HOT97 Voice) "The Trauma King Is In The
Building, The Trauma King Is In The Building" lol Pics Will Be Up In A
Minute"
November 15, 2011
Antigua & Barbuda. Who is Antiguan? Not a simple answer.
When enslaved humans were freed in 1836, the sudden drop in free labor sent sugar
plantation owners to South Carolina
where they could still buy descendants of Africans seized in an illegal,
undeclared war against the African continent.
The plantation owners that
remained lacked manpower for the sugar fields, so lots and lots of Portuguese
arrived to work and married locals. Meanwhile Antigua
is a small island easily accessible by boat from other islands. Most people I
have talked to have come themselves from other islands, or a parent or 2 has.
What
is amazing to me is that Antigua has never
seen military action since the British seized it illegally. The one attempt was
the attempted revolution led by Prince Klass, a Ghanaian who had been enlaved.
That was in 1736, the plans of the revolution were told by people whose despair
was great, and Prince Klass and his warriors were publicly, horribly tortured,
executed and dismembered.
Not only did the Portuguese show up and settle, and
on Remembrance Day, the Consul of Portugal laid a wreath on the memorial; but
also the Irish. The Irish were treated badly by the British (they were always
treated badly by the British), and so they too married the locals. Then the
Syrians and Lebanese showed up and started shops, which continue to prosper. And
they are Antiguan. So Antiguans are a mix of African, Irish, Portuguese, Africans
from other islands, Syrians, Lebanese, and probably British.
So the question of
whether the names on the war memorial are those of Antiguans remains
unanswered.
------------------------
Antigua
& Barbuda. My last night here, sob, with the huge St Bernard
sitting at my feet watching the sky past the palm trees (I bonded with
him), my hair braided with tiny tiny braids that took all day and
several life stories (her daughter needs to get faster than 5minutes for
1500m, but she is only 15, and the 13yo plays killer tennis: I bonded
with this Antiguan-Jamaican family), looking at the
West Indies Anglican hymnal (I bonded with the folks at St John's
Cathedral), and thinking about diabetes (I bonded with the health folks)
and health programming for zoomradiofm.com.
What a beautiful country;
how can the misdeeds of one person, Mr Allen Stanford, be allowed to
destroy so many jobs? He was the second biggest employer in Antigua,
after the Government.
November 13, 2011
Antigua
& Barbuda. Remembrance Day service. The services and the veterans
were out in force, plus the Red Cross, Girl Guides, Boy Scouts. The
Anglican Dean led the service, standing next to the Prime Minister and
the Governor General. Wreaths laid by the lady Governor General first,
then the PM, then the consuls. Wreaths from Portugal, Italy, China, UK.
One from the US Airforce. Antiguans were on the ground in the Grenadian
conflict, and have fought in all (?) the US wars. I am finding out more.
Beautiful, dignified ceremony. "At the going down of the sun, and in
the morning, we will remember them." They didn't read that, but I said
it quietly in front of the monument.
After the service, when I came back to Zoomradiofm.com studio, I discovered that the military is the smallest in the
world, with 245 in service. I am realizing I saw them all, the whole
military, today. They have fought in active wars, aside from enlisting
when in the UK and in the US. But usually they do things that the
military does when no-one is firing at them. Peace work. God bless them
all.
November 11, 2011
WarArmistice
Day. When the leading war merchants met in a train carriage and signed
the agreement to end the war to end all wars, November 11, 1918. Guy
Dodgson died 3 days later of his wounds. His older brother, a Cambridge
graduate named Francis but always called Toby, had been killed in 1916;
the remaining middle brother, Philip survived a head wound that knocked
his ability to use his Cambridge education. They were my grandfather
Hubert Dodgson's cousins. Hubert married a war widow 2 months after the
war ended; she had been the wife of a prominent Scottish portrait
painter, Campbell Lindsay Smith. War sucks. Armistice story on click here.
I have been
in Antigua & Barbuda for 2 weeks, and have met quite a few people in
public and private offices. I found a lovely story from a local
Antiguan paper about a quiet, honest, hard-working woman, Mrs Genevieve
Williams. She has been loyal and constant. Beautiful. Click here.
I wonder if anything is better than watching a full moon
and Venus through palm trees. With a black St Bernard sleeping in the
doorway. Listening to gospel music playing in a church back somewhere,
and crickets, and kids calling out to each other. While searching for
information about solar film and collapsed credit unions (a lot, even
this month). And eating fresh pineapple and drinking tea. I love having
no-one talking back to me. Occasionally Samson ambles over so I can pat
his head.
November 2, 2011
St John's, Antigua & Barbuda. In 1979, shortly after I came to Philly as a post-doctoral
fellow in the Faculty of Medicine, School
of Physiology, I lived in
a house with a young veterinary student. We were at the Jersey
shore in the summer, and we watched a dog run away, his owner scream at him, he
come to the owner and the owner bash him. My friend, since 1981 known as Dr Susan M Daly, shook her head, "he
will never come to him again."
I remembered that this morning. I have been sharing a compound with a
big black St
Bernard dog, whose main interaction with me is to back off when I am
around. Today he followed me to the front gate, and leaped through the
gate when I opened it. I followed him, tried to head him off, but he ran
further.
Then I remembered Dr Day's words. I told him
he was a good boy, and backed off completely. I opened the gate wide and
stood near it, but out of his way. After 10 minutes, he was tired of
sniffing grass and palm tree stumps, and ambled back inside.
So I gave him one of
my precious stash of canned fish, and left for a walk.
When I came back, he
came up to me, and let me touch his nose. Wow.
October 28, 2011.
At 6.30am, I fly from JFK airport ahead
of the earliest bad snowstorm in recorded history. My favorite
Dominican Jean Joseph is on the plane. I tell her it is her fault I am
going to Antigua, I had thought about going to Dominica. Next time, she
said!
At 10am I land in Puerto Rico, and spend the day enjoying
watching palm trees sparkle and wave in the tropical sunshine and island
breezes. At 10pm I land in Antigua, and am greeted by Mali Olatunji,
who is a host of Zoomradiofm, and an artist with a long career as a
photographer of fine art at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in Manhattan;
and Patrick Dore, station manager of Zoomradiofm, who had a long career
as a telecommunications engineer in New York City.
October 29, 2011
I
am in the studio of Zoomradiofm, chatting with Mali on air about social
issues. At 11am, I introduce the weekly health program of African
Views, African Health Dialogues. We have some technical difficulties
because I dont know how to seamlessly integrate live blogtalkradio with
the mixer and sound equipment at Zoomradiofm. I have difficulty
interacting with the guests and co-host Dr Ladi Owolabi, later I
listened to the Afican Views podcast. My voice sounds distant, but all
the other callers are loud and clear.
In the cool afternoon, I
walk to the beach, past cormorants and horses, and wade in the warm
Caribbean Sea which washes onto pink sand.
In the evening I am
back in the studio, and get to chat with hosts Austin and Mali, and
Mali's guest, journalist Frank. We have a spirited discussion about the
many uses and criminalization of hemp. Frank claims that deforestation
could be eliminated with use of hemp for paper manufacture. Go for it, I
say!
The night winds down with Austin's beautiful calypso music.
Every 30 minutes he says something, like who won the football game
being played in St John's, or a comment on how New York City alerts has
told residents to stay away from parks because branches have been broken
by the heavy snow and are falling down.
October 25, 2011
Oct. 25 (GIN) - A group of Iowa-based investors is
winding up a deal with Tanzania for an 800,000 acre parcel, now home to over
160,000 people. By
Fungai Maboreke
Several generations of families, former refugees from Burundi, who
have successfully re-established their lives by developing and farming the land
over the last 40 years, will be displaced against their will. They will lose
their livelihoods and their community. Once they are gone, AgriSol Energy will
move in.
According to the AgriSol, an investment company, the land deal will
benefit local farmers, increase food and energy security in the area, maintain
sustainable farming practices, and offer “opportunities to buy commodities at
production cost.” But AgriSol will have the final say in all
matters.
“Locals will have little to no bargaining power, and any
development opportunities for local farmers will be on terms set by AgriSol,”
the Oakland Institute said. Similar deals have been struck to increase
production of biofuel crops.
A
letter to AgriSol from the environmental Sierra Club notes: “This will be a 99
year lease on unfavorable terms, a step back towards Tanzania’s colonial past;
that, reportedly, disputes are to be arbitrated under International Chamber of
Commerce rules in Londonand, which will further disempower local peoples; that
AgriSol has demanded a change from the current prohibition of genetically
engineered crops which threaten the local biodiversity and contaminate local
crop species; and that biofuel production will subtract from the production of
local food calories in favor of an export-oriented product.
A
write-in campaign by Oakland asks the company to drop the initiative. It can be found at www.oaklandinstitute.org
w/pix of local tree planting
Lisa Vives, Executive DirectorGlobal Information Network
146
West 29th Street, Suite 7E, New York, NY 10001
October 23, 2011
Brooklyn Borough President's Marty Markowitz statement on the earthquake in Turkey
“Brooklyn is the ‘Turkish
Capital of America’ and our hearts go out to our Turkish brothers and
sisters and their families as we await news of the final impact
from yet another earthquake in Turkey. It is our sincere hope that the
extent of the damage is limited. But regardless of the degree of loss,
I am confident that all of Brooklyn's communities will come together
as they have done before, opening up hearts and wallets to the victims
of this disaster. Anyone wishing to contribute to relief efforts
through the City can do so through the Mayor’s fund to Advance New York City by calling 311 or at www.nyc.gov.”
October 17, 2011
A week of celebrating being 60 concluded yesterday with a party at the African Cultural Center in Philadelphia.
On
African Health Dialogues, we have had a physician in Puerto Rico call
in and talk about health diagnostics and treatment in resource-poor
communities. Breast cancer diagnosed with mud: cancerous cells give off
more heat from rapid cell division. Several African Health Dialogues
professionals were in Philadelphia yesterday congratulating me on being
both 60 and breathing. Dr Ladi Owolabi
posted some pictures that are absurdly flattering, thank you co-host Dr
Ladi! Contributor Ms Abiola Saba! Our boss, African Views executive
director and African Health Dialogues producer Mr Wale Idris Ajibade!
We
are always held in the palm of God's Hand, I heard Bishop Tutu say that
in 1986. Yesterday, I saw God's Smile on my friends' faces. Thank you.
We
talked about breast cancer on African Views' program African Health
Dialogues. Main points, 1. you are more likely to die of cardiovascular
and lifestyle diseases, so fix your diet and execrise more; 2. if you
have African ancestry, you are more likely to die of breast cancer than
if your ancestry is European; 3. fix your diet and exercise more and you
will increase your chances of not getting breast cancer. http://www.mjota.org/
for data and access to podcast. Physicians from Malaysia and Puerto
Rico called in, nurse from the US, Nigerian clinical trial experts, way
cool.
September 28, 2011
Wangari Maathi
My
week-long commemoration of the wonderfully successful life of the East
African woman scientist is continuing. Like her, I grew up in British
colonies, got my PhD young (I was 26), traveled to the US and worked as a
scientist, reached the rank of full Professor, was not cut out to be a
wife, is a devoted mother, and has lived with Kenyans and been named by
Kenyans. And like her, I dream. But I am not at all like her in getting
my dreams realized, I can only stare at her images in awe and wonder
what power gave her such strength and focus.
For more, scroll down, and link on this site to Wangari Maathi Lives
-----------------------------------------
African Views
This
is the letter I sent to the African Views Radio teams, congratulating
Wale Idris Abijade on the organization he founded, African Views, being
awarded 5013c status. I participate in African Health Diagues every
Saturday at noon EST, recordings of all shows are on
blogtalkradio.org/africanviews.
Wale started off in Vienna, son
of Nigerian immigrants working in Austria, where he studied philosophy.
His studies in philosophy brought him to the US, where he studied
finance and embarked on a career in international finance. Somewhere in
that journey he became obsessed with the goal of gathering information
about African communities in every country in the world, and created
AfricanViews.org.
"This is beyond fabulous! I am doing cartwheels!
Africans deserve the best, not the second best, not the unwanted
discards. This puts us in position to do our best. We are now in the
position to fund-raise from foundations. And all who know me, know that
if I find anyone who is cutting corners, not understanding the
seriousness of what we are doing, playing loose with funds: you know I
will be very very angry.
Wale and his
supporters have put us at the starting gate, that is all. It is up to
all of us to behave ourselves more than anyone else so we get to the
finish, when every African baby born claims his birthright to be
educated and healthy.
And do please plant a
tree today for
Wangari Maathi, who was part of the Kenyan airlift, and the first East
African woman to receive a PhD. She could have rested on her laurels
then, used her contacts to make herself exceedingly wealthy, but instead
she ran faster, much faster, got up when she was smashed down, and was
the first woman Peace Nobel Laureate. I am planting an evergreen.
Susanna"
September 27, 2011
Wangari
Maathi died, and I headed to a beach to make sense of a superhero
dying, a scientist who was a leader with a beautiful smile.
The
sea holds all the answers and all the questions. I asked the sea what I
needed to know, why Wangari lived, how she was able to summon the
strength she had when everything in her personal and professional life
was under attack.
The
waves crashed and the seagull squawked and old men threw in fishing
lines. The answers came from the sandpipers, who were 3, who repeatedly
ran towards the crashing waves and dug in the sand for worms. The
instant a wave crashed, they ran back to the shore ahead of it, and then
when the energy from the water could not move the water anymore, the
sandpipers ran back again, out towards the crashing waves. Again and
again and again and again.
IWhen
I got back to my computer, I saw that Wanda had posted on my page a
video of Wangari talking about a huge fire in the forest, and all the
huge animals standing around ringing their hands, but the tiny
hummingbird scooped up a drop of water and dumped it on the fire,
returning again and again and again and again. She said she was a
hummingbird, but I know she was a sandpiper, because she was not alone.
And I know she is surrounded by a legion of angels, telling her she did
well, she came to earth naked and left it filled with her vision and her
love. Wangari Maathi will live for ever. We must always remember her.
Click to Wangari Maathi lives page.
September 26, 2011
When my first born was placed in my arms, I instinctively
drew him to my breast, I wanted to feed him, and he wanted to be fed. We tried
hard, and occasionally were successful, but within a week he had drawn blood
from me, and he was screaming with hunger.
I was a post-doctoral fellow at the
University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, I was supposed to understand the physiology of small people.
I remember looking out of the window at the
trees starting to leaf in the Spring, looking down at my tiny son,
puzzled why my breast did not calm him down, and calling Dr Patience, my
mother, in Australia. She told me that I was starving my son, and to
give him infant formula immediately. I did, and I continued to breast
feed him until he bit me with his teeth when he started to pull himself
up and walk holding on when he was 8 months.
September 19, 2011
From
the Welcoming Center, which was founded and is run by my favorite living
Irishwoman (my late mother came from Belfast), Anne O'Callaghan. Last
Wednesday, Welcoming Center president and CEO Anne O'Callaghan testified
at a hearing in Harrisburg.
Convened by Rep. Daryl Metcalfe
(R, Butler Cty.), chair of the House Committee on State Government, the
focus was a proposal to make English the official language of
Pennsylvania.
Anne's testimony illustrated some of the reasons
that this seemingly benign proposal would actually be a major step
backward for Pennsylvania.
The bill is both unnecessary and unwise, she told the legislature.
Unnecessary
because English is widely embraced across Pennsylvania, including by
our very newest arrivals. Anne cited research by sociologist Claude
Fischer showing that immigrants today learn English faster than in
previous generations.
Unwise because it sends a powerful message
to international investors, tourists and students that Pennsylvania is
not interested in their business. This would carry a heavy economic
cost to our state, as:
-International tourists spent $3.1 billion in
Pennsylvania in 2009 -- representing $1 out of every $10 spent by
travelers in our state
-Universities such as Penn and Penn State
are home to more than 10,000 international students, who typically pay
full tuition rates
Pennsylvania is home to a growing number of
businesses with an international footprint, such as a Chester
County-based pharmaceutical company, which has 160 local employees and
others in China.
Also testifying against the bill was Tsiwen Law
of the Asian Pacific American Bar Association, who explained that if
passed, the bill would forbid him to communicate in Mandarin or
Cantonese with elderly community members when carrying out his official
duties as a member of the Mayor's Commission on Asian American Affairs.
Written
testimony was also submitted by groups including the Pennsylvania Bar
Association, which noted the presence in Pennsylvania of more than
110,000 US citizens born in Puerto Rico. As a US territory, Puerto Rico
has established both English and Spanish as official languages.
Quoting the US Supreme Court, the Bar Association added:
"The
Protection of the Constitution extends to all, to those who speak other
languages as well as to those born with English on the tongue. Perhaps
it would be highly advantageous if all had ready understanding of our
ordinary speech, but this cannot be coerced by methods which conflict
with the Constitution."
September 12, 2011
So
much going on in New York this weekend: Egbe Omo Yoruba National
Convention in Long Island, 9/11 memorials in a big way at the World
Trade Center site, in less grand ways with wreath laying in communities
in communities - on Brighton Beach Russian-Americans laid wreaths at
their memorial and in Brooklyn, church services remembered the 19
Nigerians who died in the terror attacks. But mostly, the memorials, the
ones that mattered, were in all our hearts.
For
me, September 11 is not about death, but about life. In 1988, on a
sunny warm Sunday afternoon, I drove my car to a friend's house, dropped
off my 2 young sons, and drove my car into the parking garage at the
University of Pennsylvania. walked down 3 flights of stairs, crossed
38th street, walked down Hamilton Walk, climbed up 2 flights of stairs
to my lab and office. I collected my bag, and walked through the
corridors to the emergency room, plopped down my bag and announced that I
was in labor.
All
through the night of September 11 I labored, and when the nurses
realized that my baby was in trouble, they wheeled me into the operating
theater, the Chairman of Anesthesiology gave me a general anesthetic
and at 12.24am, Allister Michael Dodgson Blossfeld was born.
A lot has
changed since 1988, and a lot has not. I was then an academic researcher
and asisitant professor at the University of Pennsylvania; my friend, the
Reverend Lucy Ammerman Esq, was then a young mother as well as consul to
a
huge rail conglomerate, and now a vicar in an Episcopal church outside
Philadelphia. Allister has grown up, and grown tall, but September 11
2011 was another sunny Sunday, where normal people were doing normal
things in Philadelphia and New York.
African Health Dialogues
August 29, 2011
Yesterday
at noon, an hour after the rain from Hurricane Irene started falling on
my backyard tomato plants, I introduced the 5th edition of African
Health Dialogues. This hour-long live broadcast is open to callers from
all over the world, and is recorded and posted on
www.blogtalkradio.com/africanviews.
guidelinesYesterday's
show was about prevention, Dr Ladi wants physicians in all the 54
countries of Africa to have in hand guidelines for treatment of
diseases, and for prevention of illness and injury. A huge topic for an
hour-long international chat. I related efforts of prevention with the
preparations I made to keep life and property safe as Hurricane Irene
moved without a passport past Puerto Rico, past Dominican Republic and
Haiti, past Cuba into North Carolina and past Washington, past Baltimore
(where my robotics engineer son Miles Pekala was hunkered down), shook a
few branches and dumped oceans of water on my daughter and son in South
Jersey before moving to North Jersey past my medical writer son Angus
Pekala into New York.
But
I had guidelines. The mayor of New York treated Hurricane Irene as it
she were an advancing army, and through New York City alerts, issued
directions every few hours from 2 days before her strike on New York up
until now, 12 hours after her strike. I knew what to do, where to be,
and I did it. Guidelines only work when we use them.
And
Mayor Bloomberg? I know he is 70 and a multibillionaire. But I would
like to see him in charge of the United States when we are at war. Even
more, I would like him to take charge of our financial mess. He'd fix
it. I know he would.
Libya's Government Fell, DSK Free, Earthquake, Corruption in Philadelphia
August 23, 2011
Corruption
in the US? What! We invented corruption.... What would you call giving
the Philly School Superintendent of Schools nearly $1million to LEAVE
her job because she wasn't able to do what was wanted? needed? What I
call corruption is demanding the money and accepting it for herself. Let
us see if she is a bigger person and donates this money to open a
closed library, say in Camden. Because our kids are worth it.
Rape
charges against DSK dismissed because Diallo is a "convincing liar" and
squirting semen on her chest isn't rape. Absurd that this nonsense can
be equated with sexual assaults on African women. An African woman raped
by anyone in New York, call me, I will talk for you, go with you to
police, hospitals, judges. But "convincing liars" looking for pay-day
from men and women rich or perceived rich: no.
What
disturbs me is that supporters of Diallo are saying the judicial system
and the prosecutors are racists. Has anyone been inside a New York City
jail or court lately? I have. A sizeable percentage of the police
officers and judges are of African descent, some from Africa and the
Caribbean. So why do I think dismissing the charges was the right thing
to do?
Because I was arrested on a lie by a West African
man on the same day. Because I was the defendant in a 20 million dollar
federal law case when my West African female accuser made up lies about
me. Because Diallo is a liar and the prosecutors were doing backflips
to bring this to trial and they could not. You are media, I am media. We
are both very supportive of African communities. I have seen crooks
like Diallo and my own accusers, Chief Publisher Lookman Sulaimon
Arounfale and his lover Mrs Dr Barrister Lady Evangelist Janet Ogundipe
Fashakin doing immeasurable harm to African communities.
I
have been a feminist and against exploitation of women all my life, the
result of being born to a line of well-educated Irish Quaker women.
Nothing is more abhorrent to me than men using rape as a method of
humiliation. Simply, I don't believe Diallo's story. And even if it were
true, that inside 9 minutes she was orally raped when she happened to
wander into his $3K hotel suite, I think it is not terribly dreadful.
She could have bit him, kicked him, not kneeled down, a lot of things. I
believe he was ready to pay her and she got mad when it wasn't enough.
Bringing race into this is nonsense.
How can the fact that she lied
about everything not be relevant? I would like to see DSK and Diallo
thrown out of the US. He is clearly a pig. ofI
think in this case, the New York City police and judicial system worked
well. When NYPD receives an arrestable complaint, unless the accuser
backs off, they have to arrest. Whether they believe the accuser or not.
It is then up to the District Attorney's office to decide whether they
believe the accuser, based on a phone call, and to decide whether they
will prosecute. After that, it is in the judicial system. Processes were
followed, and because Diallo was caught out on lies made to the
prosecutor, the case was dismissed. That is what happened to me. The
prosecutor knew that my accuser forged my name on a legal document and
caught him on other lies, so I was let out of jail.
-------------------------------------------------
At
1.53 pm EST I was working in my office and the sofa started shaking. I
knew it was an earthquake, so I got up and stood under the door frame,
and posted on Facebook "Earthquake in New Jersey. Right now. "
The shaking got a little worse but all was over in 15? 30? seconds, so I
posted "Very mild. Like the ones every day that I remember in San Juan,
Puerto Rico. Or in Gisborne, New Zealand." I called my daughter, who
said she felt nothing, she was studying in a basement the other side of
town.
After a few minutes I posted "I
just got a report from Notify NYC that Virgina had a 5.8 earthquake.
You read the report of the earthquake first here, on my page, when it
was happening. How about that! NYC Alerts reports no damage of anything or anyone anywhere in NYC. Hm. Exactly what DSK prosecutors said.""
-----------------------------------------------------------------
I
thought this was funny. From AAP via smh.com.au, a story about
Elizabeth Hurley and Shane Warne, "The beer-swilling, cigarette-smoking
cricketer has gone through a physical transformation in recent months,
admitting to shedding 12.7kg and adopting a suave look including slicked
hair, which has prompted comparisons to a waxwork model." I guess he makes the earth move for Liz Hurley. Just by standing still.
-----------------------------------------------------
The
Independent reports that 3 of President Gaddafi's sons have been
captured. Video of storming of presidential palace on Telegraph site;
upsets me to see soldiers fire machine-guns up in the air. Like the
bullets will float up past the moon and not hit an angel.
What a day. Libya
has officially fallen because the Chinese changed the Libyan flag to
the Rebel flag. A minor earthquake resulted in cancelling the press
conference we all breathlessly awaited: the prosecutor explaining to the
US people why taxpayers money was diverted to focus professional
attention on semen stains on a shirt which were confused with the crime
of humiliation which is rape. Diallo, DSK: go home.
Maintaining a healthy weight
August 16, 2011
One of my
former medical writing students is moving out of a house in South JErsey
into an apartment in South Carolina and starting a new job. She will
have more driving and less exercise in her daily life, and she wants to
know how she can drop the extra pounds she has and get to her ideal
weight.
My dietary
advice as a 1978 graduate as a doctor of philosophy from the School of
Physiology & Pharmacology at the Faculty of Medicine, University of
New South Wales:
1. Dont ever drink sodas or fruit drinks. Only
drink water, but you can squeeze a lemon or lime into water if you need a
little extra. I drink a lot of tea as well.
2. Dont have any cookies or
candies around the house, have a basket of fruit in a prominent place.
Eat a banana when you come home from work, and sip lime water while you
are cooking.
3. Cook simple. Piece of meat, frozen broccoli, microwave a
potato.
4. Eat a bowl of oatmeal for breakfast or lunch. Add dry oats
to soy milk and microwave. Add blueberries, strawberries, peaches,
anything. That will really fill you up.
But
the key is to keep moving. Wriggle your toes and stretch your arms when
you drive. Clench and unclench your stomach muscles. Only use steps,
never elevators or escalators. Swim, walk, run whenever you can. And
always dance, everywhere.
Guinean Maid Accuses DSK
July 29, 2011
We
have now had a week of media circus with Ms Diallo, the Guinean maid,
who admits she can neither read or write, being paraded around saying
she wants justice against DSK breathing while white in her presence. She
has admitted she lied to US officials. She and her handlers have a
complete lack of understanding in the law and order in immigrants where
law and order is bought and sold.
The
approach she and her handlers are taking seems to be that the person
who screams loudest will get the prize, which is a large payout. What
was interesting was that a senior member of a government from another
African country was arrested for a similar offence about 10 days later,
plead guilty to a misdemeanor, was released and told that the offence
was no worse than having a traffic ticket. When I find an article abut
that, I will post it.
Well,
you just have to see who is supporting her. Dr Nkechi Agwu, who one by
one forced out the Board of Directors of AAUW NYC, changed the locks of
the house so that no-one had access except her, created 19 bank accounts
so no-one had access to funds and information about how she spent funds
(she even wrote out 3 checks to YOU Inc, a non-profit owned by the male
assistant treasurer who was by her side day and night, that forger of
signatures on official documents and love-and-marriage-for-cash worker
Lookman Sulaimon).
Dr
Nkechi Agwu loves writing press releases. She was proud of using
non-profit funds to throw private parties at AAUW NYC house, once even
endorsing the runnerup candidate for the Nigerian presidency, and
writing press releases. Two weeks after harassing me my calling the
police on me when I was waiting for a board member in the house, 2 days
after pushing me and screaming at me when I sat at the wrong desk in the
public area of the AAUW NYC house, 2 days after AAUW NYC board
dissolved its 125-year organization because of Dr Nkechi Agwu's antics,
Dr Nkechi Agwu sent out a press release in support of everything the
Guinea maid, Ms Diallo, said.
Well Ms Diallo, with friends like Dr Nkechi Agwu, who needs enemies?
July 25, 2011
Ms Diallo lied to US officials. She admits she lied. DSK may be a piece of slime,
but he only had 9 minutes to shower, change, and screw Ms Diallo between her entering
the suite and him chatting with his daughter about lunch.
From CNN July 25, 2011:
"Prosecutors said the woman admitted lying on the asylum application
about having been a victim of a gang rape, even providing details of
that attack. She cried when she first told prosecutors about the alleged
gang rape but in a subsequent interview, admitted it never occurred.
She said the fabricated account on the asylum application was made with
the assistance of a man who "provided her with a cassette recording of
the facts" so that she could memorize them."
The fact is,
she is on record as having lied to US government officials. I don't know
whether I believe her or not. I don't care. She wasn't hurt, she wasn't
killed, she wasn't paralyzed. And the prosecutors, who in Michael
Bloomberg's New York bend over backwards to help the African
communities, they are the ones that found errors in her story.
I
was arrested the next day when I was accused of all sorts of nonsense
by security guard and notary public Chief Lookman Mojeed Lamar Majeed
Sulaimon Bashiru Fale Arounfale L&K Olaoshebikan MS (Polytechnic
Univ, 2008). I was released after 8 hours because he was on record by
the prosecutors of having lied to them about his marriage-for-cash
deals and had forged a car ownership document.
The message is quite clear. If you want to be believed, don't lie to US officials. Because I won't believe you.
--------------------------------------
African Views
June 16, 2011.
The African
Views annual meeting was convened by Wale Idris Abaje on the first
anniversary of its start, which was June 15, 2010. Wale is a philosophy
graduate who turned to finance and had a career working in getting
investment into South Korea. He is a charismatic, good-looking young
Nigerian, soft-spoken, who grew up in Vienna, and has amazing stories to
tell.
He told us
he was a friend of the family of Fela Kuti (yes, that Fela) and he went
back to Nigeria with them. He said one of the family members had a
debilitating headache when they were visiting Vienna, and as he was the
only person who spoke German, he got to take the invalid for healthcare.
The physician shook his head, and said that African physiology was so
different that he couldn't help. Wale knows an idiot when he sees one,
so he grabbed a physician who knew that we are all God's children, and
treated the invalid appropriately.
He told us
about a riot in Burkino Faso that turned deadly that resulted from a boy
slapping a girl; and the girl getting her friends together and they
beat the boy to death. The spontaneous demonstration led to police
killing 4 demonstrators. I am not sure how African Views was involved,
if at all, but they reported what happened. Lack of respect was fatal.
Often is. We must be kind to each other.
He told us
about an initiative in Zimbabwe to build a cultural center. This
initiative rose from Zimbabweans, Wale told us the land was donated by
the African Views Country Director in Zimbabwe, and we heard a
presentation from a Nigerian American architect who grew up in Kuwait
who wants to build it. I have seen so many African initiatives fail
because of lack of understanding of positive thinking and optimism. They
need to understand all the problems of building a world-class center in
a country where the economy and healthcare systems have collapsed.
Figure out ways of solving these problems and then it will work.
African
Views is an open-source data sink for all things African. He took us
through some country pages, showed us how each country ranks in the
world (all countries are there, including the United States in which
according to his statistics, about 15% of the population reports
themselves as African).
He showed us
videos of an African population in India, of 2,000-year old ruins of
castle and aqueduct in Zimbabwe, and we heard from speakers about
African populations in Poland and of a Jewish population in Ghana.
African Views is growing and is inclusive, it is like a Wikipedia for Africa. Lose yourself for horus and hours in http://www.Africanviews.org/
----------------------------------------------
On this day, in 1945, 66 years ago, a
wedding in a tiny village near Frankfurt in Germany. The war had ended
the previous day, and this day was the first day in over 10 years that a
German citizen was permitted to marry another German citizen who was a
Jew. Engineer Lothar snr and Ruth's 4-year-old son Lothar came to the
ceremony.
Lothar snr gave Ruth a pink gold wedding ring in
which he had engraved "Lothar u Ruth 9 May 1945". This ring was the
symbol of survival, of fighting for life when Ruth's own country was
attacking her. Insanity has a way of evil sounding logical; Ruth's
father was Dr Ernst Noerdlinger, born to Jewish parents in Bavaria,
trained in chemistry, a friend of Albert Einstein, a cousin of Austrian
Nobel Laureate Dr Loevy, a cousin of Anne Frank's family. Her mother was
from the non-Jewish Busch brewery family. Which made Ruth a half-Jew,
so she wore a half-star and wasn't rounded up for extermination early
on.
Later on, Lothar snr had to hide her and his main war
effort was to be one step ahead of the authorities in Germany. The last
thing Lothar snr said to me, 45 years after his wedding was "The
greatest miracle was that Ruth survived the war."
That was
after he said to me "Thank you. Thank you." Because I had given birth
to his grand-son Allister. He and Ruth had both died before their
grand-daughter Patience was born.I know they have been doing cartwheels
in heaven every day since Patience was born. As have my British parents,
Dr Michael and Dr Patience.
After Ruth died in 1993, I
was given her jewelry, and after some thought, I put on her wedding ring
on my left ring finger, knowing I would never be able to take it off.
That ring I wear to remind me every day that I must always have hope
that I will triumph against evil, that people will always try to kill
me, harm me just because of who I am, that I must always try my hardest,
that life is miraculous.
Lothar grew up in post-war
Germany, represented Germany as a alternate rower in the Olympics, was
president of the student union of University of Heidelberg, was awarded a
Dipl.Physik, was a physicist working on the first quartz watches,
worked as a physicist for 35 years with Intermetall, has been awarded
over 70 patents for his inventions and celebrated his 70th birthday last
week. My children tell me he is still doing his 50-mile bicycle rides
or skiing through the Black Forest several times a week. All because he
and his mother were not exterminated when the order came towards the
end of the war.
-----------------------------------------------------
May 6, 2011
So there I was at the funeral and ushers kept coming over to me,
telling me I was needed to speak with church elders. Lookman Sulaimon
cannot bear to not be the center of attention, even at a, um, funeral,
for a great great man. Lookman's friends kept telling me I was pursuing
him, stalking him, and my being there, in a crowd of maybe two
thousand, was somehow preventing him being at the funeral.
I
told the elders, the pastor, I had no problem him being at the
funeral, I was not under any circumstances going to cause trouble (why
would I? it wasn't Lookman's funeral. I am not known to cause public
scenes, far too British, and I am aware I was the guest of my Nigerian
friends).
That clearly wasn't enough for Mr Looman (I
have surgically removed his K, he will get it back when he shows he is
worthy of it), who first had a friend chase me around trying to give me
an envelope (the Philadelphia CAC wouldn't have any of that, they
protected me).
Then Mr Looman called police on me and had
them follow me into the, um, loo, (toilet) and bang on the stall and
serve me an amazing restraining order, saying I had harassed him at a
public event by saying peace, lay down your anger, shake my hand. (I
have the paper, it is on it) and I was escorted out of the funeral by
policemen who treated me like a criminal.
I had asked for
and been given a restraining order against him a week before because
he is stalking me. He has been showing up whenever I am present at
women's events in the women's organization formerly known as AAUW NYC,
inciting my friends to violence against me (throwing me out on the
street, calling me at 2am saying that I will be assaulted if I show up
to African events). And that is just against me. He is clearly
embezzling funds from AAUW NYC, and if he is not, he is certainly giving
the appearance of it.
So later on, well after the
funeral I drove to a police station and handed over the restraining
order I have against him. I told the officer I was not going to have
him served, because I knew he would want to be at the funeral, but that
he served me at the funeral. "Classy" the officer said.
Classy
indeed. Mr Looman is the constant companion of AAUW NYC president Dr
Nkechi Agwu. Mr Looman is the public relations officer of a women's
organization, the public face of an organization meant to empower
women. The only person, other than Dr Nkechi, who has access to funds
coming in and going out. Who managed to disappear $100,000 of the
memorial fund without any financial sheets. But wait, they have another
$1,000,000 coming in. Nkechi used some of the money to endorse
Buhari's candidacy for the Nigerian presidency. (Buhari won all the
northern states, but not the presidency.) Can't begin to believe how
many campaigns she can endorse with all that money that women worked
hard for and donated because they want equity and empowerment for girls
and women.
Gosh, can Mr Looman and Dr Nkechi be the main
reason that AAUW national disaffiliated AAUW NYC, the first time that
any of the 1,000 branches has been disaffiliated in AAUW's 130 years?
Mr Looman.
Classy.
-------------------------------------------
|
On
Tuesday and Wednesday, the huge numbers of people that Pastor Oyedeji
touched had the opportunity to say goodbye to his physical body, and on
Thursday we came together to rejoice his life at the Allen AME Cathedral
in Queens.
I first walked into a CAC church with my
eldest son in Philadelphia in 2006, and was immediately welcomed by
Pastor Festus, the elders and the women's group. I was a member of that
congregation for the next 18 months, and during that time I met our
Superintendent, Pastor Oyedeji. The first time I saw Daddy he was
dancing down the aisle, I had heard he was an old man, but concluded
when I saw him dancing that he was not old, he just had white hair.
I
knew when I first met Daddy that I was in the presence of a great man, a
good man, a kind man, a pastor who took seriously his mission of
ministering to the body and soul.
Today, I was so excited
to hear Pastor Agbeja speak, he is Secretary of CAC North America, and
pastor of the Hyattsville Church of Praise, in Maryland. Pastor Agbeja
and Pastor Yomi Ademawagun laid their hands on me and prayed for the
success of Medical Journal of Therapeutics Africa the first time I went
to CAC Church of Praise in Maryland. Pastor Agbeja and Pastor Ademawagun
were cut from the same cloth as Pastor Oyedeji. Daddy is dead, but he
left worthy successors.
During the Cathedral service
today, pictures were projected showing Daddy at different times, in
different places. Twice Daddy was beaming next to his good friend and
protegee, Princess Tosin Mustapha. So lovely to see his blessing on her.
Praise
the Lord for such a good man who lived an exemplary life. May Daddy
rest in perfect peace, and personally, I would like to thank him for the
good works he did that paved the way for the work I do.
------------------------------------------------------
|
|
Flying
high today, because on Easter we are promised that the impossible
happens! I knew this when I was on a military truck en route to present
99 boxes and 6 barrels of medical supplies, library books, clothes and 2
new computers to a tiny village in Pendembu. How did Zainab Wai-Lansana
get it all together?!!! How did she!!!
And yesterday I
chatted with the identical twin of the man in the village who is putting
together the library with the Paramount Chief (King). I cannot get over
the intelligence, enthusiasm, hard work, patience, expertise and
organizational ability of the Sierra Leoneans I am working with in the
US and Sierra Leone. They understand process, they understand attention
to detail, they understand the most important part is the thinking: we
do not want antiquated old and new world technology in Sierra Leone. We
want what works in Sierra Leone, for Sierra Leone, by Sierra Leone.
Please do wear green white and blue this week to celebrate a country that has gone through devastation and is rising.
------------------------------------------
|
Apr 21, 2011
Professional photographs
I
have prepared a Memorandum of Understanding for anyone who permits me
to take photographs at their event, workplace, home, anywhere. I will
happily take your picture for you on your camera. If you want my
pictures, you need to come to my studio, sit down with me, pull out the
ones you want, save them on a flash drive, and pay my non-profit, MJoTA
Institute of Medical Writing $150, and the money will go towards
building the milk factory in Sierra Leone.
If you want
business cards, I will design them for you, with you if you like, using
your picture or a montage, and deliver you 1000 full color glossy
business cards , for $100, which includes mailing or hand delivery. Two
sided full color glossy business cards will cost you $115.
Why do I take photographs?
toFirst,
because I am hyperactive and don't drink alcohol, or eat meat, or speak
Yoruba or Mende or Kikuyu or Creole or anything useful other than
English and often music is too loud to talk. So there I am in a colorful
environment, with happy, healthy Africans, with a professional camera,
so I take pictures. I don't like taking posed photographs, I am much
more interested in the scene, putting people in context. You want to
grin at me for a photograph, I will take it for you on your own camera.
Second,
I publish MJoTA, and I use my own photographs because I don't have to
ask myself for permission. MJoTA has no cash flow, no one pays for
anything, no one sells anything. Any ads you see in MJoTA are community
service.
Third, because I am building an archive of
successful Africans in African diaspora communities and in Africa. Some
day this will be made available to African scholars. It also means that I
have pictures of people who do important things, so if I need a picture
of an important person for an article, I have it already.
Brooklyn Criminal Court
Gosh.
What happens in court and what happens in court databases are 2
different things. New York City ecrims database shows that the charge of
auto larceny was dropped to misdemeanor use of auto, and I heard in
court that all charges were dropped on March 21. Turns out the case has
been adjourned until March 20, 2012. This is horrible. My car was
returned to me by New York City police in December.
He does not have a criminal record, he is not a
criminal. Exceedingly badly behaved, and has an IRS lien of $9500 since
2004, and about 7 judgments against him in civil court: he is terrible
with money and accounting, but he is not a criminal.
Sierra Leone Milk Factory
Found
a contact who did electrical work in a dairy factory in Ghana,
yipppeee! Ex-boyfriends and ex-husbands are highly undervalued when it
comes to getting contacts. How many people would love me to spend the
rest of my life in a village in Sierra Leone? Yes! You know you want
that! So connect me with professionals who can build the dairy factory:
mechanical engineers, electrical engineers, accountants, lawyers. We are doing this through the Sierra Leonean
Nurses Society and MOSAD (Arthur's band of hardworking ag engineers on
the ground in Salone).
----------------------------------------
April 20, 2011
Bayard
Rustin.
memorialI photographed a memorial stone through some daffodils, across
the street from the United Nations. Then I saw his bio displayed in
Queens, NY, in Flushing Monthly Meeting of the Society of Friends (aka
Quakers). Turns out he counseled MLK jr on nonviolent resistance. And
did a lot of organizing and leading. In a quiet, Quakerly way. Awesome.
--------------------------------
Feb 13, 2011
Food and Drug Administration Regulates Drugs Injected, Swallowed or Rubbed In
My
house is a 15-minute car drive from Philadelphia International Airport:
quick escape to New York, Washington, Philadelphia, the rest of the
world.... A young Nigerian woman died in a hotel next to the airport the first week of February because she
believed a liar who told her that she could enlarge her butt. The reason
healthcare professionals are trained and licensed is because medicines
are dangerous, and non-medicines like silicone are more dangerous.
The Food and Drug Administration was set up by the United States
Congress in part to regulate dangerous poisons that in small amounts are
healing. The US Congress considers some medicines so dangerous that
only licensed trained healthcare professionals (nurses, dentists,
physicians, pharmacists) can prescribe them and only licensed trained
healthcare professionals can dispense them. This is the Western model,
which works well, or barely, or not at all throughout the 53 countries
of Africa.
