Runoko Rashidi, Author at Consciousness.co.za Magazine

Great Men of African Heritage in France, from the Golden Age Through the French Revolution (Part 4 of a 4 Part Series)

Runoko Rashidi — Mon, 29 Dec 2014 01:43:36 +0000

originally posted on AtlantaBlackStar.com Joseph Bologne: The Chevalier de Saint-Georges of France In an essay titled The Chevalier de Saint-Georges, Edward Scobie documented the life of the African French composer, conductor, violinist, swordsman, equestrian and soldier of 18th century France, one of the most remarkable figures of the 18th century. Incredibly, this son of an [...]

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Great Black Russians: Ibrahim Petrovich Hannibal and Alexandre Sergeivich Pushkin (Part 3 of a Series on Great African Men in European History)

Runoko Rashidi — Mon, 29 Dec 2014 01:05:14 +0000

originally posted on AtlantaBlackStar.com DEDICATED TO LILY GOLDEN AND DIEUDONNE GNAMMANKOU Born in Moscow on May 26, 1799 (several different birthdates have been offered), Alexandre Sergeivich Pushkin, the patriarch of Russian literature, was descended on his mother’s side from Major-General Ibrahim Petrovich Hannibal — an African (probably from Cameroon and perhaps descended from royalty) who [...]

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The World of Sakanouye No Tamuramaro: Black Shogun of Early Japan

Runoko Rashidi — Mon, 29 Dec 2014 00:37:46 +0000

originally posted on AtlantaBlackStar.com DEDICATED TO WAYNE B. CHANDLER “For a Samurai to be brave, he must have a bit of Black blood.” – Japanese Proverb In 1994 I was invited to Japan to lecture at two United States military bases. It was to be my initial trip to east Asia and my second travel [...]

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Before Enslavement: Africa’s Ancient Diaspora

Runoko Rashidi — Mon, 29 Dec 2014 00:17:40 +0000

originally posted on AtlantaBlackStar.com I have argued for many years now that the worst crime that we can commit is to teach our children that our history began with slavery. And yet, this is what many of us do in the Black communities of the Western Hemisphere. When Black History Month rolls around, we tend [...]

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Distinguished Africans in the European Renaissance (Part 1 of a Series on Great African Men in European History)

Runoko Rashidi — Sun, 28 Dec 2014 23:44:17 +0000

originally posted on AtlantaBlackStar.com Alessandro de’ Medici: First Duke of Florence and First Black Head of State in the Modern Western World We have already discussed in earlier essays the Severan Dynasty of Imperial Rome, the Moors of Spain and Kenneth the Niger of Scotland. But African blood in Europe’s royalty also appears definitely in 16th century Italy. Let us speak now [...]

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The African Presence in the Roman World

Runoko Rashidi — Sun, 28 Dec 2014 23:14:33 +0000

originally posted on AtlantaBlackStar.com Great African men and women have played an important part in Roman history and culture from an exceptionally remote period. The distinguished writer Publius Terentius Afer (190-158 B.C.E.), for example, was the African who penned such immortal sentences as, “I am a man, and reckon nothing human is alien to me” [...]

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African Involvement in Slavery?

Runoko Rashidi — Sun, 28 Dec 2014 22:56:53 +0000

originally posted on AtlantaBlackStar.com I want to tell you a story and give you a thesis. It is only a perspective and is clearly a work in progress. I raised the question of why so many African-Americans and other Africans in the Diaspora repeat, largely without investigation, that Africans sold other Africans into slavery. Many [...]

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Africans in Asia During Age of Enslavement: Revolts and Resistance

Runoko Rashidi — Sun, 28 Dec 2014 22:43:08 +0000

originally posted on AtlantaBlackStar.com One thing that we have not done here and will not do is begin our survey of the African presence in Asia with enslavement. Indeed, we think that perhaps the greatest crime that we can commit is to teach our children that their history begins with invasion, enslavement and colonization. Our [...]

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Moors, Saints, Knights and Kings: The African Presence in Medieval and Renaissance Europe

Runoko Rashidi — Sun, 28 Dec 2014 22:17:29 +0000

originally posted on AtlantaBlackStar.com The study of the African presence in history, whether in the African Diaspora or Africa itself, is a richly rewarding endeavor. In this study we realize that slavery alone is not African history and that African history is everybody’s history. The history of African people — Black people — is rich [...]

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The Black Presence in Early China

Runoko Rashidi — Sun, 28 Dec 2014 22:01:29 +0000

originally posted on AtlantaBlackStar.com What of the African presence in early China? Have there been Black people in China? If so, what became of them? What happened to the Black people of early China? Are they still there? These are profound questions. Indeed, the African presence in China is perhaps the most challenging area of [...]

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