Earthquake robbed Moroccan villagers of almost everything—loved ones, homes and possessions
TAFEGHAGHTE, Morocco—His dead relatives have been dug out and buried, but the remnants of Musa Bouissirfane’s former life are still trapped under rubble and dust in the ruins of the mud-brick Moroccan village of Tafeghaghte. “It’s incredibly challenging to lose your entire family and all your possessions,” Mr. Bouissirfane said as tears welled in his eyes in the community less...
The Nation of Islam: Building bridges across the global Black Diaspora
This year the Nation of Islam celebrated its annual Saviours’ Day Convention. It was the Nation’s first virtual convention. One of the major sessions at each annual convention is the International Workshop. According to the workshop’s facilitator, NOI International Representative Abdul Akbar Muhammad, the yearly workshop is designed to highlight the work of the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan and Nation...
Afro-Mexican activists vow to continue protest, hunger strike over murder of Malcolm X grandson
(FinalCall.com) - In the early morning hours of July 14 The Final Call received a “communicado” from Mexico City-based Citizens for the Defense of Naturalized Afro-Mexicans saying protests demanding justice after the killing of the grandson of Malcolm X would go on despite a police raid that ended a hunger strike. Dr. Wilner Metelus, president of the group, called for...
Protests grow in Puerto Rico amid demands for higher wages
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico—Shrill whistles mixed with drums, tambourines and the clacking of spoons on pots as public employees shut down streets in Puerto Rico’s capital to demand better pay and pensions. The crowd shimmied and clapped as demonstrators held up signs reading, “Fair wages now!” It’s a call that has echoed across Puerto Rico in recent weeks as government employees...
Fight for reparations continue in Jamaica
MONTEGO BAY (IPS)–Although she is busy organizing a national conference on reparations for African slavery and helping collate information on its economic impact in Jamaica, Barbara Blake Hannah is sure that the project will not be completed soon. "It's not a tomorrow thing. I'm talking about for my grandchildren, but it has to begin now," she stresses. Ms. Blake...
Indigenous and Afro Latino victims and unrest in Colombia
BOGOTA, Colombia—Forty-two people have died during anti-government protests that began two weeks earlier amid discontent fueled by growing poverty and inequality during the pandemic, Colombia’s human rights ombudsman said. The government agency added May 11 that 168 people had been reported missing during the protests, which were set continuing. On May 5, the human rights ombudsman said 24 people had...
Kenya’s economy to pick up after unrest?
New cabinet faces tough road in Kenya (FCN, 05-05-2008)Economic inequality fuels Kenya’s violence (FCN, 02-15-2008) NAIROBI, Kenya (PANA) - Kenya’s economy is expected to accelerate its growth from the depressed focus rate of 4.6 percent upwards as the economy picks up activity months after violence erupted following the East African nation’s disputed presidential polls. Kenya’s Finance Minister Amos Kimunya said...
Africa Watch – Mineral Wealth, Professionals Abroad and Honoring Winnie Mandela
Undervaluing Africa's mineral wealth Statistics taken from the African Development Bank focusing on the mining industry prospects in Africa, in 2012, highlighted that Africa represented only eight percent of global mineral production. This was broken down as bauxite 7 percent; chromite 38 percent; cobalt 60 percent; copper 9 percent; gold 20 percent; iron ore and lead 2 percent; manganese...
New head of African Union faces daunting challenges from day one
(GIN)—He’s been described as a “master strategist,” but can the incoming chair of the African Union beat the daunting challenges ahead? That is the difficult question facing Felix-Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo, president of the Democratic Republic (DRC) as he assumes the post just relinquished by South African leader Cyril Ramaphosa. Skeptics are already circling President Tshisekedi who has ambitious goals for the...
UN’s Bachelet hails ‘millions of voices’ tackling racial discrimination
More than two decades after the signing of the Durban Declaration and Program of Action (PoA)—the UN’s blueprint to tackle racism and other forms of discrimination—UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet on March 28, hailed the “millions of voices around the globe” who’ve made it their mission to eradicate the scourge, while also noting that more work needs to...