“Pan-Africanism is about us being able to work together,” declared Rabbi Kohain Nathanyah Halevi, Executive Director of PANAFEST Foundation and Head of the Diaspora Coalition.  He said that every African has a role to play when it comes to pushing up and promoting Pan-Africanism.  As the closing speaker at this year’s second Bisa Abrewa Museum Kwame Nkrumah Lecture on Pan-Africanism, he captivated those in attendance at the event who gave him a round of applause and as he finished his speech.  The annual lecture was created as an event to look at the contemporary issues that stem from the desire to strengthen the bonds between all people of African descent.

Since the times of Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana has always been known as a Pan-African nation and we’ve seen the evolution of inviting the diaspora to return home strengthen with each decade. Since the Year of Return in 2019, the ideals of bridging the gap between the diaspora and Africans has continued to grow exponentially.  Fueled by the power of social media, there’s increased awareness on the importance of connecting the dots between our brothers and sisters in the diaspora and the continent of Africa. 

The theme of this year’s lecture was ‘Pan Africanism: The Obstacles’.  With a goal of encouraging all Pan-Africanists to see how far we’ve come while asking questions about the obstacles faced, the reasons for the challenges and if we are achieving self-reliance as a people.

Professor Agyeman Badu Akosa, a pathologist and former Director General of the Ghana Health Service, was the keynote speaker. He spoke about the relevance of Africa being the start of all civilization and how our people have been deeply impacted by the trans-Atlantic Slave trade, colonialism, and the continued ravaging of Africa’s resources today.  “Wealth has been plummeted out of Africa and no [dollar] figure has been put to it…it’s been deep,” he said. “W.E.B Dubois said the system is orchestrated to make sure that our brothers and sisters on the continent don’t meet our brothers and sisters in the diaspora. Because if they meet, the rest of the world would not be able to handle it,” he continued. “Despite everything that has been done to the African and the African in the diaspora we are resilient.”

Abdourahamane Diallo, UNESCO Representative in Ghana, shared his thoughts via Zoom saying that as we promote the final years of the International Decade of People of African Descent, these lectures will continue to make sure we don’t forget how important this topic is. He said that UNESCO supports African member states in reclaiming knowledge and ownership of our history. “We strongly encourage African countries to incorporate Pan-Africanism in the educational system,” he said.  “In Ghana there is a unique opportunity to teach through the heritage sites.”  He also shared that “PANAFEST and Beyond the Return are great forces in promoting Pan-Africanism and Africa.”

Rabbi Kohain Halevi has been a strong pillar in the community since moving to Ghana decades ago.  Originally from New York, he exemplifies what it means to be from the diaspora and relocate to the African continent.  His passion for Africa is one the resonates with both Ghanaians and the diaspora community; especially the African Americans who relate to his experience.  As the final speaker at the event, he said that every African has a role in pushing up and promoting Pan-Africanism. “No matter what your endeavors in life are…only thing you’ll remain in position forever is as an African,” he said. “I was born in the United States of America in a generation where people were not proud to be Black and felt they were being insulted to be called an African. The education system taught us to be ashamed.”  He shared that he was fortunate to be part of a generation that also changed their attitudes and began to empower themselves by doing things to embrace their Blackness and being African.

The lecture was an opportunity not only to discuss issues, but also to look at potential solutions.  Professor Akosa said that we need to take a critical look at our education systems.  The continent missed the industrial revolution and many opportunities for innovation.  He said we have the resource of human ingenuity in abundance and it’s something we need to capitalize on. We need to think together as a continent. Despite all our issues, “We have a continent that is still very rich.”

By: Ivy Prosper

The 2^nd Bisa Aberwa Museum Kwame Nkrumah Lecture on Pan-Africanism takes place today, Friday 18^th March, at 11am at the Bisa Aberwa Museum in Nkotumpo, Sekondi, Western Region.   The event will be both in-person and virtual via Zoom to give those in the diaspora community an opportunity to participate in such an important event. The theme is ‘Pan Africanism: The Obstacles’.

The lecture looks at the contemporary issues arising out of the desire to strengthen the bonds of solidarity between all people of African descent.  Notable speakers will be contributing their voices to the conversation including, Professor Agyeman Badu Akosa, a pathologist and former Director General of the Ghana Health Service and Dr. Arikana Chihombori-Quao, former African Union Representative to the U.S. 

Bisa Aberwa is using this event as an opportunity to encourage all Pan Africanists to pause and reflect on how far we have come when it comes to working towards bridging connections across the diaspora. This is an ongoing topic that has been important for the global diaspora community since the times of Kwame Nkrumah who had a vision to see a united Africa that included our diaspora brothers and sisters.  The goal of this event is to look at what are the obstacles, who is placing these obstacles in our way and for what reasons. It’s the chance for our community to discuss solutions and the way forward. Also asking if we are achieving ‘collective self-reliance’ and what are we aiming for?

Join the conversation via Zoom at 11am GMT.

One tap mobile+13126266799,,82156097164#,,,,*2209541# US (Chicago)+13462487799,,82156097164#,,,,*2209541# US (Houston)Dial by your location +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago) +1 346 248 7799 US (Houston) +1 646 558 8656 US (New York) +1 669 900 9128 US (San Jose) +1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma) +1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC) Meeting ID: 821 5609 7164 Passcode: 2209541

Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kbIfDzTHPe

New York City Mayor-elect Eric Adams wrapped up his trip to Ghana yesterday with a visit to the Diaspora African Forum and the W.E.B DuBois Centre.  He made this trip to Ghana despite global concerns over the Omicron Covid-19 variant that has resulted in some African countries being put on travel bans around the world.  “I made a promise to myself that I would visit Ghana following the 400-year anniversary of slavery in America and the election, to show how far we have come and remember how far we still must go,” he told the NY Post before he travelled to Ghana.

With the mayor-elect having sited Ghana’s Year of Return campaign, it was important for the Beyond the Return Secretariat and Ghana Tourism Authority to connect with the incoming mayor during his time in Ghana.  The Diaspora African Forum (DAF) was the setting for a short ceremony that welcomed Mayor-elect Adams and his partner, Tracy Collins.  In attendance at the event were the Mayor of Accra, Elizabeth Sackey, Vice Chairperson of African Union Commission, H.E. Thomas Kwesi Quartey, H.E. Ambassador Erieka Bennett, Director of Beyond the Return Secretariat, Annabelle McKenzie, Head of the Diaspora Coalition, Rabbi Kohain Halevi, President of the African American Association of Ghana, Jessica Ayivor, and members of the diaspora community were in attendance. 

Mayor-elect Adams was given the opportunity to honour his mother with a plaque of her name which will be placed on the Sankofa Wall among many other notable people from the continent of Africa and the diaspora.  “This is an extremely significant moment for me. This is a 35-year journey that I am bringing to completion,” Mayor-elect Adams said. While holding the plaque with his mother’s name, Dorothy Mae Adams, he recounted the story about his 1975 arrest in South Jamaica Queens, being assaulted by police officers and his mother’s response to him when he was in the jail cell. “I knew that I sold my mother into emotional slavery because of my actions, and I said someway somehow I was going to buy her freedom back.”  He told the story of becoming a captain in the same department in which he was arrested, to becoming a State Senator, and eventually where he is today. “My mother saw me break the law, she saw me enforce the law and then she saw me go to Albany and write the law,” he continued.

The Sankofa Wall is located on the grounds of the Diaspora African Forum and includes the names of people like Harriet Tubman, Congressman John Robert Lewis, Chadwick Boseman and Bob Marley.  Although there are names of high-profile people, the wall also includes the names of those who never had the chance to return to the soils of Africa.  People place the names of deceased family members who made a significant impact in their lives to honour them.  “Placing her name on this wall among our ancestors is not only the sum of those who are part of their lineage but it’s the sum of our experiences,” Mayor-elect Adams said. “We’re all connected.”

Gifts were presented to the mayor-elect from the African American Association of Ghana.  A Citation was presented by the Director of Beyond the Return and Year of Return, Annabelle McKenzie. “I’m here to present a citation on behalf of Beyond the Return, Ghana Tourism Authority and the Ministry of Tourism, Arts, and Culture,” she said.  Head of the Diaspora Coalition and Member of the Beyond the Return Steering Committee, Rabbi Kohain Halevi joined her in presenting the citation.

The mayor-elect and his wife also had the opportunity to visit the final resting place of Pan-African leader W.E.B. DuBois. After laying a wreath in his honour he shared a few words. “The energy and spirit of our leader who understood the connection between our ancestors here and our ancestors that were born on the soils of America…I’m happy to reunite with his spirit here in Ghana.” Mayor-elect Adams was truly grateful for the day and the accomplishment of making the journey to Ghana.  “I appreciate everyone and the energy here.” 

Before leaving the Sankofa Wall he said, “Let’s start the journey so that we can make sure that never again will we allow others to sell us into slavery and never again will we sell ourselves into slavery. We are free,” he said. “So, I thank you, for allowing me to come into a house that I have admired my entire life and to be here and have my mother join this wall you have blessed me.”

Beyond the Return is the follow up to the successful ‘Year of Return 2019’ campaign.  It’s a 10-year initiative with the theme, ‘A Decade of African Renaissance’ with a goal to continue engaging with the global diaspora community.  Its foundation is build on seven pillars that address the needs of of both the diaspora and Ghanaians.  The pillars are Experience Ghana, Celebrate Ghana, Invest in Ghana, Diaspora Pathways to Ghana, Brand Ghana, Promote Pan African Heritage and Innovation, and Give Back Ghana.  For more information on the project visit the website at www.beyondthereturngh.com.

“It is imperative for us as Africans to use this period to come together, to reflect on the horrors of the trans-Atlantic slave trade and use this moment as a springboard to regain our right to write our own narrative,” said Deputy Minister of Tourism Arts and Culture, Mark Okraku-Mantey during yesterday’s wreath laying ceremony honouring W.E.B. DuBois, George Padmore and Kwame Nkrumah as leaders in the pan-Africanist movement.

Wreaths were laid by the Government and People of Ghana, Traditional Rulers, The Global African Family and the Youth of Africa, in honour of DuBois, Padmore and Nkrumah at their respective burial sites. The annual wreath-laying ceremony is a tribute to the ancestors and was the official opening of this week’s PANAFEST activities. This year’s theme is ‘Securing the African Family: Our Health, Our Wealth, Our Soul’. The theme for Emancipation Day is ‘Reclaiming Our Right to Weave Our Own Narrative.'”

CEO of Ghana Tourism Authority, Akwasi Agyeman spoke on the reason this event is significant and why we continue to honour the ancestors. “We do this to celebrate the resilience of the African spirit, because we went through this and we survived and we survived to produce presidents for the United States, we survived to produce world champions in athletics, we survived to produce musical icons…. and we survived to create several inventions and we have survived to tell the story to the next generation,” he said.

The Diplomatic Corps, Traditional leaders, members of the creative arts industry, tourism stakeholders, media and the diaspora community were among those who attended the ceremonies.

President of the African Heritage Studies Association, Dr. Ife Williams, who is the creator of the documentary film, Africa is Not a Zoo’, was the event’s Keynote Speaker. Williams spoke of the great reverence she has for Kwame Nkrumah and the work he did for Africa. “Our culture has been compromised. We don’t know who we are as a people. We have been separated from our true inner selves, no longer acquainted with our potential. Divorced from our strength, yet we remain resilient…” she said. “Dr. Nkrumah and others saw the African solution to end oppression of our race is through African-centred revolutionary education that counters colonial misinformation…”

Director of Diaspora Affairs, Office of the President, Akwasi Ababio, summarized the words of Kwame Nkrumah, which still resonate at occasions like this. “The independence of Ghana would be meaningless unless it’s linked up with the total independence of Africa.” Expressing the importance of this and the value of the diaspora community, Ababio reminded everyone that all African states, and all people of African descent on the continent and the diaspora can be seen as one people.

PANAFEST & Emancipation activities will continue through August 1, 2021 with more events in Cape Coast. Visit the website, www.panafestghana.org for more details.

By: Ivy Prosper