Nubiart Diary - Lester Lewis Tribute / Annual Review

By Kubara Zamani, Nubiart Producer / Presenter | Sun 30 December 2007

“NUBIART - A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE ON THE AFRIKAN WORLD”


It was with great sadness that we learned of the passing of our elder and mentor Prince Ntum ba Azah / Lester Lewis in the country of his birth, St Vincent. He was the founder of Hackney Black Peoples Association, and a legendary Pan African activist, organiser and writer. He spent a period as a local councillor in Hackney with special responsibility for education and was a Race Equality Officer in Reading where many of his family still live. He was instrumental in the establishment of ‘Black History Month’ in the UK and in getting the Labour party activists Bernie Grant, Paul Boateng and Diane Abbott elected to the UK parliament in 1987.

Lester was a source of knowledge and inspiration to Africans in London and internationally, for over 3 decades, and was at the forefront of a number of community-based and international campaigns, including the New Cross Fire Campaign, the Colin Roach Campaign, the Lift The Ban on Farrakhan Campaign; the campaign to reclaim African land in Zimbabwe and the Caribbean banana campaign. The HBPA was a first point of contact for Afrikans visiting London and was used for many commemoration, wedding and church services.

We at Nubiart / Afrikan Quest are personally indebted to him for the practical help and advice he has given us. He provided us with documents and books and introduced us to several contacts that were willing to be interviewed in-depth for our radio programmes due to his recommendation. As well as inviting us to many meetings on a range of topics including Afrikans in Central America, Zimbabwe, Christianity, Yoruba cosmology and Kamitian morality and history he gave us the use of the HBPA premises for the launch of the Afrikan Scientist of Truth’s books – ‘Afrikan Science for the Massive’ and ‘No Sympathy!’. We also used the premises for the auditions and rehearsals of the Afrikan Quest video-drama ‘The Bird Family’ and to put on two dances.

He will be greatly missed by us as someone you could go to for advice, contacts and also dispute resolution among Afrikan activists. May he rest in peace with the ancestors and our condolences go out to all his friends and family.


NUBIART REVIEW OF 2007 [6248]

Obituaries
James Brown; Lucky Dube; Cyprian Ekwensi; Dr Asa Hilliard; Lester Lewis; Oscar Peterson; Max Roach; Ousmane Sembene; Adelaide Tambo; Tyrone Taylor; Ike Turner; Carlos ‘Patato’ Valdes; all the other Afrikans known and unknown who joined the ancestors over the past 12 months

Event of the Year
Toyin Agbetu standing up at Westminster Abbey during the phoney slave trade abolition commemoration declaring, ‘Not in our name!’, and shaming the ‘Four Estates’ of the British imperial regime.

Ten Important UK Events
The increasing death rate of young Afrikans; deaths in custody; the rise of intrusive technology and the inability and unwillingness of the UK government to keep the information safe; the police / army escaping any real punishment for the slaughter of Jean Charles de Menezes in July 2005; the raid and closure of the EWF Tabernacle after over 35 years at St Agnes’s Place; the continued sale of bleaching creams and the prosecution of those engaged in those destructive practices; the 30th anniversary of the fight against the National Front in Lewisham; the 30th anniversary of the screening of ‘Roots’ on British TV; Chagossians defeat the UK government in the High Court and win the right to return home to their islands; and the continuing demonisation of ‘migrants’ / foreigners / non-European looking people.

Ten Important World Events
Ethiopian Millennium celebrations; Darfur; Jena 6 arrests and harassment of the local Afrikan-American community and activists; Europeans kidnapping 103 Afrikan children in Chad; German apology to the Herero for the 1904 genocide; the ‘credit crunch / sub-prime crisis’ adversely affecting Afrikan-Americans while Jews, like Goldman Sachs, profited; Talks on Western Sahara; uprising and strikes in France; the deaths of thousands of Afrikans leaving Afrika for a better life abroad; and Aboriginal life in Australia.

Nubiart Interviews of the Year
- Tunde Kelani. The Nigerian master filmmaker broke down the whole Nigerian film industry for us.
- Ahmed Gaas. Explaining the history and current circumstances of the Afar in the Horn of Afrika.
- Nabi Lukombo. On the killing of over 100 members of Bundu dia Kongo by the DRC government.

Nubiart Book of the Year
‘Under the Tree of Talking: Leadership for Change in Africa’ – Ed. by Onyekachi Wambu. [Counterpoint] The book looked at various aspects of leadership and management in Afrika. It stimulated a lot of thought and analysis and we have to thank Onyekachi for a very open and honest interview on the various themes covered in the book.

Nubiart Album of the Year
‘Junction Series’ - Bunny Lye Lye and Anthony Que [World Sounds] won for the return to form of the foundation dancehall singer closely followed by ‘Parables’ by Tarrus Riley [Cannon / VP Records]

Nubiart DVD of the Year
‘Maafa: Truth 2007’ [Ligali] No contest. Frank exploration and dismantling of the so-called 200th anniversary of the Abolition of the British involvement in slave trafficking.

Nubiart Exhibitions of the Year
- ‘Tapping Into the Known’ - Obi Okigbo [Brunei Gallery] Tribute to poet and soldier Christopher Okigbo by his daughter on the 40th anniversary of his death in the Biafran War.
- ‘Popular Painting from Kinshasa’ [Tate Modern] Powerful friezes addressing the life in DRC.

Broadcaster of the Year
Robert Beckford for keeping it as real as possible in primetime national media and asking some of the questions we want answered.

‘Afrikan’ Sellout of the Year
Rev John Sentamu, Archbishop of York. Now we know why he was jailed by ex-Ugandan President Idi Amin.

Futures
We need to stop the youth in Britain from engaging in area code wars. If they really want to control ‘endz’ then they should be looking to set up businesses and projects that allow the Afrikan community to diversify away from an over-reliance on hair and ‘patty’ shops, which we may need but not to the exclusion of everything in the food distribution and services chain.

We should be moving as much trade as possible out of the dollar. ‘Delinking’ from the dollar is where the Gulf countries and China have now got themselves to and they are currently developing much faster than most of Afrika. This should also be seen as a ‘punishment’ for the exploitation and profit-taking of financial companies in the credit crunch / sub-prime crisis which has left many Afrikan-Americans homeless and deep in debt. The third reason for moving away from the dollar is the war economy and money laundering wrapped up in that currency. It was because Saddam Hussein wanted to start selling oil in euros that the Americans invaded in 2003 and had him killed but we should have taken that as an example to all people who have been on the wrong side of American foreign socio-economic policies. Finally, this will be a big show of solidarity with the people of Zimbabwe who have been on the receiving end of US and UK-inspired sanctions.

As Afrikans, we are good at analysis of our economic and political crisis in Afrika and the diaspora. But we need to try and institute solutions that have a real impact improving people’s lives on the ground. We at Nubiart are considering bringing back the ‘boycott list’ – naming and shaming companies whose business practices are detrimental to the welfare of Afrikans anywhere in the world. We ran such a list in the 1980’s covering the military-industrial complex; those companies who exploit and kill indigenous people and destroy their land; and food and health companies who ignore local economic benefits and health and safety standards.


FORTHCOMING NUBIART PROFILES
NUBIART: Focus on arts, business, education, health, political developments and the media.
~ G E K Ofomata, Professor Emeritus of Geography, University of Nigeria, Nsukka. Editor of ‘A Survey of the Igbo Nation’. A comprehensive study of Igbo history, environment, arts and culture.

~ Deborah Gabriel, journalist and author of ‘Layers of Blackness: Colourism in the African Diaspora’.


DEC PROMOS:
~ ‘Small Things Fall From the Baobab Tree’ – The Zawose Family. [Realworld Records – Out Now] The Zawose Family trace an extraordinary legacy of African music as one musical legend passes and the door opens on a new era. A number of songs are the last ever recordings of the great Hukwe Zawose and his uniquely talented nephew Charles before their untimely deaths. The album also introduces the voice of the new generation - the young Zawose Family – rapturous, joyous, polyphonic singing accompanying buzzing thumb pianos, soaring izeze fiddle and exuberant rhythms. They now have a foundation to support their music and local initiatives. Check: www.zawose.org

~ ‘Afrikan Roots’ – Masi T Lambo – [White label] First track from forthcoming album from a Scotland-based Tanzanian singer-songwriter. For more info e-mail: tumilambo@yahoo.co.uk


NUBIART LIBRARY – DEC MEDIA:
We will try to recommend books we have read and DVD / videos we have seen and that are available in shops or libraries. However, given the nature and current state of Afrikan publishing and production there may be books, games and films on this list that are worth the extra effort to track down.

~ ‘Egyptian Landscapes: 50 Years of Tapestry Weaving at the Ramses Wissa Wassef Art Centre, Cairo’ – Text by Hilary Weir, Suzanne Wissa Wassef and Yoanna Wissa Wassef. Pictures by Werner Forman, Ikram Nosshi and Melad Moawad [the Ramses Wissa Wassef Exhibition Trust]. Brochure of work from an art school established in Cairo in 1940 encouraging young people to develop their own individual artistic styles.

~ ‘Hear My Words’ – Josephine ‘Realitie’ Rollings [All About Us] Poetry about the challenges facing young people by the Winner of the Word Up Slam, Farrago Slam and Patrick Kevins Talent Contest.

~ ‘Harsh Realities’ - Josephine ‘Realitie’ Rollings [All About Us] Fourth publication of short stories and poems by Winner of the Word Up Slam, Farrago Slam and Patrick Kevins Talent Contest.


NUBIART DIARY:
*EDITORIAL POLICY: Nubiart is a factually-based Africentric arts and current affairs radio programme. We do not accept that the ‘slave trade’ or Afrikan chattel enslavement was abolished by Britain in 1807 in Afrika, the Americas, Caribbean or anywhere else. We therefore request everybody sending info to us publicising events, articles, TV or radio programmes relating to the 200th anniversary of 1807 to make this clear when submitting info. We will amend items submitted to reflect this historical fact.

~ ‘Story Interrupted’. Visual Orator Akosua Bambara presents her thoughtful and intelligent work of jewellery and ceramics. Each piece is created in memory of the African people who suffered and died during the decades of misery of chattel enslavement. A combination of conflict and beauty, Akosua's work is designed as tactile pieces of art. Some may be worn to promote a gentle healing of the spirit. Until 31 Dec 2007 at 1-5pm at Bruce Castle Museum, Lordship Lane, Tottenham, London, N17 8NU. Adm: Free, Contact Tel: 020 8808 8772.

~ ‘Every Day Life in Ancient Egypt’. Free Talks at the Petrie Museum
- Sat 5 Jan: ‘Introduction to the Petrie Museum’. Speaker: Debbie Challis
- Wed 9 Jan: ‘Agriculture in Ancient Egypt’. Speaker: Andie Byrnes
- Sat 12 Jan: ‘Stela of Shenu Herald’. Speaker: Aristea Diamond
- Wed 16 Jan: ‘From Towns to Pyramids: The People Who Built the Monuments of Ancient Egypt’. Speaker: Olga Romanova
- Sat 19 Jan: ‘Vanity and Sexuality in Ancient Egypt’. Speaker: Veronica Walker
- Wed 23 Jan: ‘Fashion in Ancient Egypt’ Speaker: Katherine McAlpine
- Sat 26 Jan: ‘Crafts in Ancient Egypt’. Speaker: Charlotte Rose
- Wed 30 Jan: ‘Introduction to the Petrie Museum’. Speaker: Hannah Davis

Every Wed at 3pm & Sat at 11am at the Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, University College London, Malet Place, London, WC1E 6BT. Tel: 020 7679 2884. Fax: 2886. For details contact: tel: 020 7679 4138. E-mail: petrie.museum@ucl.ac.uk Web: http://www.petrie.ucl.ac.uk/index2.html

~ The Royal Commonwealth Society invites you to a keynote address - “People on the Move: More Different, More Unequal?” with Trevor Phillips (OBE), Chairman, Equality and Human Rights Commission. On Tues 15 Jan 2008 at 6pm at The Commonwealth Club, 25 Northumberland Avenue, London, WC2N 5AP. Adm: free. It is essential to register in advance. Contact: Devapriyo Das, Public Affairs Officer, on 020 7766 9202 or email: publicaffairs@rcsint.org Web: www.rcsint.org

~ Stop the Genocide in Northern Uganda (StGiNU) meet every Tues at 6pm in Room K417 / 418, Keyworth Building, Keyworth St, Elephant and Castle, South Bank University, London, SE1.


Contact Details

Contact: Kubara Zamani, Afrikan Quest International, PO Box 35165, London, SE5 8WU. Tel: 07811 494 969. E-mail: afrikanquest@hotmail.com Web: www.southwark.tv/quest/aqhome.asp
NB: Nubiart Diary can also be read at www.ligali.org and on the Afrikan Quest website.


Nubiart Diary is Afrikan Quest's weekly e-newsletter giving updates on Nubiart and recommending books, music and events. To subscribe e-mail us at: afrikanquest@hotmail.com and put 'Subscribe to Nubiart Diary' in the subject line. If you no longer wish to receive Nubiart Diary then put 'Unsubscribe' in the subject line.


Nubiart: Every Sat @ 7-9pm on Sound Radio 1503AM. For more info contact: Kubara Zamani, Afrikan Quest International, PO Box 35165, London, SE5 8WU . Tel: 07811 494 969 E-mail: afrikanquest@hotmail.com Web: www.southwark.tv/quest/aqhome.asp




Speak Out!

Click here to speak out and share your perspective on this article.

Get involved and help change our world