As the black lives matter protest demanding justice and equality for the black people continue to shape the global conversation. The historic struggle against racism continues to illuminate the present as much as the past. Children of iconic figures who have played a key role in these struggles continue to keep their parents’ legacies alive. Dr. Bernice King (Martin Luther King’s daughter), Professor Ilyasah Shabazz (daughter of Malcolm X), and Samia Nkrumah (Kwame Nkrumah’s daughter) share their response towards the recent racial protest in America and the unprecedented solidarity from demonstrators around the world.
Racial Justice: Black Lives Matter Protest.
The consciousness around Black Lives Matter is really pushing the race to the forefront. Interconnection with one another as black people as a diaspora gets stronger. The call for reparations is not an anti-white struggle, rather a historic struggle against racism. The world has seen countless horrific deaths. People now understand what some iconic figures like Malcolm were talking about. They are getting to realize that Malcolm was very much a young, compassionate, responsible man seeking solutions.
“We want to be respected and recognized as human beings. We have a motto which tells them how we intend to bring it about and by any means necessary,” said Malcolm X, 1954.
Malcolm aimed to bring about complete respect and recognition by any means possible. He was dedicated to doing it for the 22 million black people in America as human beings. Malcolm X visited Ghana in 1964; leaders such as Kwame Nkrumah working together.
The Call for Racial Justice.
“For me, it is a privilege to be associated with my father’s political work,” says Samia Nkrumah.
The call for Africans to rise is not a call against anyone. Most people want to see a more just and humane world. We need to adapt many of these plans or programs to today’s change of circumstances. The thinking and language of people in mainstream America continue to change. The recent protests around racial justice are pushing the race to the forefront of our political landscapes.
When Malcolm X, Ilyasah Shabazz’s father, was assassinated, the civil rights movement lost an iconic leader. However, she lost a father, and her mother had to raise six children on her own. Ilyasah often talks about her mother as a form of inspiration to others. This is because she lived through her home being fire-bombed then a week later, witnessing her husband being gunned down in front of her. Betty Shabazz, Ilyasah’s mother, never gave in to despair. She continued to give despite the police and the press trying to make it look like he bombed his own home.
“I mean, he had no insurance on the furniture or himself, so now I guess they will say he shot himself, which is ridiculous,” said Betty Shabazz, 1965.
Inspiring Generations of Young Minds
As time elapses, people notice how Ilyasah’s mom turned the pain she felt into something where she could inspire generations of young minds. Betty Shabazz and Bernice King’s mother had a very close bond, sisterhood, and sisterhood. This is because of the common struggle they went through as committed women to the same struggle and had to raise children without husbands who had been assassinated. Bernice King could not understand how her father’s life was taken while he tried to make the world a better place.
“I do feel that non-violent direct action is the most powerful approach in seeking to bring about racial justice,” said Martin Luther King, 1961.
For Bernice King, it made her furious, and she started hating white people, especially white men. After Bernice had an interaction with a white man during an interview, her perspective began changing.
Africa On the Rise.
Samiah’s father, Kwame Nkrumah, was a great African man who believed that Pan Africanism was not just about Africans on the continent but beyond. Is his idea of African unity still alive? It is, in fact, relevant today than it was 60 years. That aim would be arrived at quicker if the 1.5 billion Africans from all over the world would work together. One thing that Malcolm X wanted to ensure, and that was responsible for sharing, is the African’s interconnection with one another, especially as black people as a diaspora.
“We had been so divided. We were taught to think that Africa was a jungle, instead of realizing that this is where we came from,” says Ilyasah Shabazz.
Africans had a history and have an identity that is rich and worth learning and acknowledging.
More:
- Being a Black man in America is not Easy
- Here is why Whites Are Treated Better than Blacks Even in Africa
