Builders Build; Journeys to The Motherland

Anusha on the white sand beaches of Zanzibar

 

    Last year I traveled to Africa for the first time following the successful opening of my Atlantis School Gifted Youngsters. For two years I worked on renovating the site, while simultaneously coordinating public art projects in my city through the Niagara Falls National Heritage Area, serving as the director of community engagement at the Niagara Falls Underground Railroad Heritage Center, working with the United Nations, doing documentary projects, and various other programs and initiatives. It was a lot, and I would joking tell people that I work twenty-five hours a day, eight days a week. However, none of it felt or feels like work because I love what I do. Over this time period I sacrificed a lot to complete the Atlantis School. There were times that I had an opportunity to travel outside of a professional capacity, yet I chose to purchase a pallet of drywall, new windows, or appliances. Upon the completion of the Atlantis School I planned to take a trip somewhere in January 2023. That "somewhere" was Tanzania, 7,760 miles away. 

Tanzania, January 2023

     Many people have asked me, "Why Tanzania?", and there are a few reasons why I chose this location for my first journey to Africa. Number one, this East African country, with over one hundred and twenty different tribes, does not have the same history of the transatlantic trade of enslaved people as West Africa. Yes, I will visit the Western African slave ports, castles, and etc. one day. I did not want my first trip "home" to be an experience of trauma tourism. Secondly, I wanted to be in an area where I could see the various landscapes of the African continent including its famous wildlife. My entire life I grew up seeing Maasai statues, spears, shields, and other African art and crafts that my father collected. To visit a land that my father never journeyed to, yet taught my siblings and I so much about, was a personal pilgrimage. Lastly, Tanzania's Visa and COVID-19 policies were not harsh restrictions. I did not need to get dozens of vaccinations, nor was their media using fearmongering propaganda to force people to do so. 

     If you have ever said or heard someone talk about their dream to return to the motherland, my experience was like what you might imagine. From the time that I set foot on the soil in Mt. Kilimanjaro, until the time that I left, it was one of the most liberating experiences in my entire life. I felt like a king returning to my country. Our people were kind, generous, considerate, and honored for me to be there. There were white 'tourists' there from around the world to go on safaris and visit Zanzibar, yet I was not treated as a tourist. It is the first time in my life as a Black man that I have ever felt a sense of security, safety, and comfort. I was home! It left such a deep impression on me that on my journey back to America all I could think about was how I could bring others with me next time. I literally began putting the plan together on the plane. Several months later I was right back in Tanzania, and Zanzibar this time, with several others from across the United States. A few weeks ago, 12 months later, I returned with twenty-one people, including my five-year-old queen Anusha. 

     Many people have asked, "What is the reason for these trips?" I simply want people to this experience this, especially our youth. Folks have asked what travel agent/agency did I go through to set this up and the answer is none, nor am I doing this as a travel agent. When I traveled the first time I started building relationships with our people there, and it was through this established local network that I began to make these journeys possible. On this most recent journey, it was a collaborative effort; my colleagues from my second trip, Kelly Diane Galloway (Buffalo, NY) and Roderick Adams (Oakland, CA), assisted with the planning, coordination, and its execution. This journey was also captured by videographer/documentarian Dorrell Edwards of Always Timeless Productions who will be producing a documentary about our experience. 

A heard of elephants in the Serengeti
Image: Always Timeless Productions

   From the first time that I went to East Africa, to the most recent journey, I still find it difficult to verbalize this lived experience. Staying on a fully sustainable eco farm which grew fifteen varieties of bananas, I was unable to eat bananas in America for five months. Drinking pure water from a natural mountain stream, not witnessing an argument or fight, eating all organic fruit and vegetables with seeds, sitting with my back to doors without feeling a sense of danger, and being declared an International Ambassador of a Primary School that I visited are just a few things that radicalized me. Sure, there are pockets in America where you can find some of these things, yet that is what I experienced as a standard of normalcy in an environment that sustained it. Everyone looked like me, from the darkest shade of black to the lightest of brown; in their cities and rural areas, in law enforcement, their government, and in every profession within society. In the images of their schoolbooks, on their advertisements, and across television. People were not materialistic and judging one another based upon what they had, or did not have. No one was debating each other's religious or political perspectives. There was not even a sense of violence. To put this into perspective, just last week Anusha asked, "Dad, were there police in Africa?" The fact that she didn't even realize they were there taking up space tells you how different it was to what we experience with law enforcement here in America. That was only one of many insights that my five-year-old, and the other youth who traveled with us, had through this experience. They now know for a fact that certain psychological, physical, social, economic, and environmental living conditions are possible!

Sakila Primary School
Image: Always Timeless Productions

     One of the biggest epiphanies that I had was witnessing how racism and white supremacy has embedded in many of us Black folks in America a deep seeded sense of insecurity and hypervisibility. Most of our people in Tanzania grew up never being scrutinized based upon their so-called race. In fact, many don't even know what "race" or "racism" is. On one occasion I was having a conversation with a few locals about some of the challenges and history of being Black in America and realized that I brought more baggage with me to Africa than I had realized. So, when some of our people come from Africa to America and have no concept of racism, or the historical plight of Black folks here, that is real. Some of our folks from Africa are so oblivious that they think that it does not exist; so they treat Black folks in America like they are incompetent and delusional. Some folks from Africa strive to better understand the concept of racism, or the historical plight of Black folks here in America. Some educated themselves before they came to America, others began to educate themselves once they began to realize that they were put into a Black (people) box. Keep in mind that in America's short 248-year history, this predominately white society legally restricted Black people from participating in it as citizens for 199 years or almost 77% of the time that America has existed. That restricted participation included all areas of people activity from economics, education, entertainment, government/politics, religion, health, sex, and law. This was all because of the color of our skin. Any cultural movement in America by and for Black people to reclaim our cultural identity, to proclaim or beauty and intelligence, to amplify our voice, accomplishments, appearance and to scream that Black lives matter are all responses to being dehumanized, othered and uncentered in a predominately white, historically racist, society. When you are the descendant of a people who have been generationally, intellectually, legally, socioeconomically, emotionally, academically, and physiologically defined as inferior (Black) or superior (white), you either believe it and act accordingly or you fight to not believe it. All of this psychological, social, economic, educational, institutional, legal, and environmental baggage is what we all inherited as Americans, whether we choose to acknowledge it or not. All of this, and more, was baggage that I brought with me to Africa. Baggage that many of our brothers and sisters in Africa have never seen or heard of before.

Welcome Reception to Sakila Primary School

     As the International Ambassador of Sakila Primary School, I was able to secure water for the school for the next two-years and our second travel group brought supplies to the staff and students. On our most recent trip we brought more supplies and my colleague Roderick secured sixty computers that we were able to provide for their staff and create a computer lab. Lastly, we unveiled the launch of our Sakila Care Foundation; a non-governmental organization to expand this global initiative. 

     The experience of being in a cultural environment where "hakuna matata" (no worries or there are no troubles) is literally the status quo is both transformative and therapeutic, especially for our children. It is a lived experience that cannot be simulated at a three-day retreat, some professional development training, or hours long YouTube videos. As a Five Percenter, I think that too many of us use the word 'build' as a noun and see it as an object or a thing. That thing is usually just a bunch of talking, gossiping, social media posting, and Youtubing and it rarely goes beyond that. The word 'build' in our language [of Supreme Mathematics] is a verb or a word used to describe an action. So, to 'build' means to show forth and prove our power through some act, direct action, or activity. As a noun it is only potential, yet it is kinetic as a verb. These successful journeys to East Africa helped build an intercontinental bridge across the Atlantic Ocean to connect our people. A connection that enables our people to build beyond "the block" on both shores, especially our children. I am extremely proud to spark this initiative yet even more THANKFUL to those who have joined me to help make this experience possible for themselves and their families. We will be sharing details for our August 2025 trip on social media so stay in tune if you are interested in being a part of this amazing journey!

Peace,

Saladin