“To gain knowledge for the future, demands wisdom of the past.”
💖Welcome to the Sankofa Newsletter Blog!
The word Sankofa originates from the Twi language of the Akan tribe of Ghana, West Africa. It means “go back and get it.” The Akan people believe the past and the future are eternally intertwined and any pursuit of knowledge must demonstrate this understanding.
The Sankofa Newsletter is a mini-guide to culture and news. A monthly publication that features four articles to inspire, enlighten, and stimulate intellectual curiosity. Get a free copy delivered to your email inbox today. Share, Like, Subscribe. Happy Reading! LaSheba Baker, Creator & Editor
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Father Figure
Zun Lee is a neurologist, corporate executive, and photographer. His book Father Figure: Exploring Alternate Notions of Black Fatherhood (2014) challenges the popular narrative of the absent African-American father by providing images of father-child relationships from various black walks of life.
His journey to create this photo collection, began when a coworker suggested Lee take up photography as a means of stress relief and it soon became a healing experience. His Korean mother had recently revealed to him that his biological father was an African-American with whom she had an extramarital affair. The abusive father who raised him was not his biological father.
His photographic eye was drawn to black father-child relationships and the results were heart-warming images of their interactions. He has expressed that a point was reached that allowed him to forgive both of his fathers-the abusive one and the absent one. See the interview video of Zun Lee at the end of this post.
Read more at Sun Magazine and Huffington Post:
Father Figure
No, Most Black Kids Are Not Fatherless
Visit his web site: http://www.zunlee.com/about
Maverick Movies
Maverick Entertainment Group provides a distribution platform for independent filmmakers. They offer a variety of genres such as inspirational, comedy, and action. According to their website, this twenty-two year old company has the largest library of African-American feature length films. Many of their movies are available to watch for free on You Tube, Black Cinema, and Tubi.
I highly recommend the Maverick indie film: Enter the Dominion (2015) starring Nicholas Gourdine as Sheldon Marcus, a shy young man in search of his purpose. A chance encounter with a wealthy media mogul exposes his brilliance and leads him down a path of materialistic seduction, flattery, and danger. His internal struggle reaches a crescendo in which he must decide whether or not to participate in a scheme that would have harmful domestic, even global effects.
Read the storyline/watch trailer here: https://www.maverickentertainment.cc/movies/enter-the-dominion/
Watch the film here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X1TbOaNDHsA
Cafe Neo
Lagos, Nigeria. Cafe Neo is a rising star coffee chain started by two brothers, Ngozi and Chijioke Dozie in 2012. After living abroad in London and New York, the brothers returned home to Nigeria to launch their business. Today, they have ten stores. The word neo means “gift” in Tswana, a Bantu language of South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, and Zimbabwe. Cafe Neo uses coffee beans produced on the continent, specifically on the shores of Lake Kivu, in the Hills of Rwanda. Their motto is: “Celebrating the return of coffee to its African roots, one cup at a time.”
Watch news clip here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=62QHA-sQvTo
Visit their web site: http://www.mycafeneo.com/
Can’t Nothing Bring Me Down
Ida Keeling has experienced the up and downs of life but has maintained a fierce perseverance. She shares her life story in the biography: Can’t Nothing Bring Me Down: Chasing Myself in the Race Against Time (2018). Born in 1915, this centenarian grew up in Harlem, New York. She faced several challenges throughout her life including single motherhood, divorce, racism, and the tragic loss of both her sons. She also bares witness to significant historical events in the African-American timeline and heard first-hand speeches by Marcus Garvey, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Sufi Abdul Hamid, and Malcolm X. She writes of the 1932 presidential election and her vote for Franklin Roosevelt: “He became the first president to appoint an African American as a federal judge and to promote a black man to the rank of brigadier general in the Army…Black folks used to vote Republican before Mr. Franklin Roosevelt appeared. After he came on the scene, most black people became Democrats” (p.130).
At the age of 67, Ms. Ida Keeling began competitive running at the encouragement of her youngest daughter, to help cope with the grief from the deaths of her sons. Fast-forward now at 104 years old, she holds many world-records as a runner for her age group. She writes: “I’ll never stop going to the gym. My gym will always be involved in my life…\”(p. 197). Don’t miss the opportunity to read this authentic and inspirational memoir.
Read more at Parade:
Meet Ida Keeling, the 102-Year-Old Who Plans to Never Stop Running
https://parade.com/644321/lhochwald/meet-ida-keeling-the-102-year-old-who-plans-to-never-stop-running/amp/#referrer=https://www.google.com
In Frame Interview of Zun Lee, Photographer
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