Reflection-Now is the time, Ahora!!

"Any time you have an opportunity to make a difference in this world and you don't, then you are wasting your time on Earth. " Roberto Clemente


Now is the time, Ahora!!

Now is the time for the Black community to heal the internal divide that does not allow us to see each other as Brothers and Sisters.

It would be much easier to sit and let things go by but that is not who I chose to be.

I have been reading and reflecting on the comment made by baseball player Torii Hunter. Before I get to the comment itself, I want to share why I think this is an opportune time for us to move as a community.

To many this may sound like I am minimizing history but we need to break things down a little to get it moving. Our ancestors were forced on a ship and dropped off in different places. We may speak a different language, cook our rice different but at the root of our being, we are all people of African descent.

Almost two years ago, I participated in a panel at the Schoomburg Center called Black, Latino, Both. This event was hosted by the Afrolatin@ Forum.

During the presentation, I made a statement that Afro- Latino players are in the position to bridge the understanding between Latinos and African Americans yet, many do not identify themselves as Black. I was concerned then as I am now because these players are admired by many Latino youth, who struggle with their racial identity. A fellow panelist and I went back and forth as to the level of their responsibility to engage in this dialogue.

I immediately thought about Roberto Clemente as I began writing this reflection.

Please let me get something out of the way. I feel very comfortable speaking about sports as a college athlete in track and tennis and about baseball because of my father and brother’s love of the game.

Everyone knows about Rod Carew, Ben Oglivie, Omar Moreno and my personal favorite, Manny Sanguillen. Yet, I have always said that I grew up with some of the most talented baseball players. Yes, before there was Mariano Rivera, there was Tonio Ortiz, Mauricio Chin, Omar Massiah, Marco Pady, Ricardo Ortiz and Fernando Ramsey to name a few. So yes, I know baseball and now you know a little more about Panamanian baseball players.

Roberto Clemente is the first Latino player to make it into the Baseball Hall of Fame. I have always loved his story of commitment to the poor and underserved with a focus on Puerto Rico and his work in Nicaragua.

What has moved me the most is his courage to face the racism before him. Mr. Clemente transcended baseball. I sat and watched, Roberto Clemente an American Experience. I was left with the words, humanitarian, pride and loyalty.

He played during the Jim Crow era which was a shock coming from Carolina, Puerto Rico. He learned through painful experiences, that to the white community in Pittsburgh, he was just Black. To his fellow African American players, he was someone they did not understand and struggled to find commonality.

Mr. Clemente was inspired by Martin Luther King Jr. who he met face to face at his farm in Puerto Rico. He became involved and spoke out on the injustice that he saw and experienced in this country.

Encuentro Diaspora Afro participated in a national Black Brown focus group. In preparing for the dialogue, we shared with the facilitators that this space would be a Black –Black dialogue, African American and Afro-Latino, a Black –Brown dialogue using their definition, Afro-Latino and Latino and a Black –Brown dialogue, African American , Latino dialogue. We addressed the tension, the mistrust, the historical divide, the pain that was and still is present in our community.

One of the things highlighted in the dialogue was that our experience, the Afro-Latino experience in this country, is an African American experience. It is not until I open my mouth and they hear an accent, I learned that I am seen as a different kind of Black. It is at this moment that I step up to say,” Speaking bad about those Black people, ”African Americans” is speaking bad about me.”

We all agree that they are different cultural experiences in Puerto Rico, Santo Domingo and the U.S. but the Black experience, lack of inclusion, inequality, access, exist everywhere.

Why all of this? Torii Hunter’s comments places us in a position once again to talk, really talk to each other.

The use of the word “impostor” is strong yet, he hits a note. The note, that African American and Afro-Latino players do not truly see themselves as brothers. His words highlight that both sides need to learn more about each other, moving pass language.

Now is the time, Ahora!! Let us not get stuck on the word and take, grab, this opportunity to talk. Let us, people of African descent, transcend the stigma, perceptions that have plagued us.

Baseball is not just a game. During the time of Jackie Robinson and Roberto Clemente, it was the platform for visible change, a platform to challenge the status quo and now it can be the platform to confront a divide that exist between us, BLACK people.

peace
Yvette

Reflection- HUMANITY-Words We Should Stand By-Honoring Ann Marie Coriolan


I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bare. MLK

As we pause on the birthday of Martin Luther King, his words could not be more meaningful as we continue to mourn with the people of Haiti.

Last year I was asked to do a presentation of the impact of MLK on President Obama. I took it one step further to speak of a leader who had an impact on MLK and those who used the same theme of non-violence and love. Here is some of what I shared with the students.

Martin Luther King Jr. studied the words of Gandhi. In his teachings Gandhi said, “Where there is love, there is life.” As MLK began to gain a larger understanding of what was happening around him he found himself holding strong to this saying, “Non-violence became more than a method to which I gave intellectual assent; it became a commitment to a way of life.”

Other world leaders developed an equal message in their fight for justice and the humanity. Nelson Mandela wrote in a Long Walk to Freedom, “No one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than the opposite.”

In doing the research for the presentation, I found a telegram that MLK wrote to Cesar Chavez. This speaks to the commonality of their struggle. ”Our separate struggles are really one, a struggle for freedom, for dignity, and for humanity.”

I share this with you to highlight the common theme of love for humanity. Why do I think this is so important at this time? Like MLK, once our eyes are open to the suffering of the world, you could not but feel the pain of the people of Katrina, Colombia and Haiti, to name a few.

Through my awareness, I have always felt this strong connection to the people of Haiti because if we know history, then we know that what they did has impacted all people of African descent. We should always salute them for fighting, FOR US!! The people of Haiti have been recovering from many disasters over the years. If you have spent any time there, then you know that this devastation will require years of recovery.

Beyond our connection to the country is the connection to the human beings we see on the news and in the papers and the family members of friends we hear about.

This week has been difficult on many levels. Death makes you get on your knees and pray to those who guide you and reach for those who you carry close to your heart.
With the passing of my dear friend ‘s mother, Mrs. Mayani, I was reminded that if we care for someone then anything that causes them pain, will affect you as well.

We have been receiving direct information from our sisters in the DR who have traveled to Haiti since the earthquake. Their accounts are real and depict a great sense of loss, pain and chaos amongst the people.

My time with the women of the Red de Mujeres Afro, teaches me more than any book could. I have been moved by the dedication and the passion of our Haitian sisters. Today in thinking of the words of MLK, I salute them. We mourn the loss of sisters who were pioneers in the justice of the people of Haiti.

I write this reflection with a heavy heart as we wait for confirming news of our sister, Ann Marie Coriolan. Ann Marie is one of the founding members of the Red. She was filled with love, her smile was contagious. She is a legend in my eyes because her unwavering commitment was a lesson to all.

From the first time we met, I felt like she was family. She always made me practice my French with her because as she would say, “my name was too French to not be able to speak it.” She claimed me as one of her honorary Haitian women. When she spoke, we all listened because we knew that the wisdom she shared would help each and every one of us. I will cherish every minute I spent with her, her laugh and he joy for life.

Many of us continue to wait to hear from friends and family. Our prayers go out to you. We know that many of you are doing as much as you can. We would like to share this information from the Colectiva Mujer y Salud that also needs our help to reach the smaller areas and some of the poorest. This group has one of our founding members Sergia Galvan working to get the items to Haiti.

So as we celebrate Martin Luther King Jr., let us pause and send out a message of love to the people of Haiti. Let us use our collective energy and send these words out into the universe, hope, peace, love, community, prosperity. Let love and humanity be your guide. Let these words be the words we stand by.

“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” MLK
Encuentro Diaspora Afro and the Red de Mujeres Afro Diaspora Region, will be indirect contact with Colectiva Mujer y Salud in Santo Domingo. We will also be sending out information on local work with our Haitian comrades.The account information for you to make your donations for the women and children of Haiti, is the following;

Colectiva Mujer y Salud
Banco de Reservas
Cta Corriente No. 010-251497-6
Swift code o ABA No. BRRDDOSD
C/ Isabel La Catolica No. 201
Zona Colonial
Santo Domingo, Rep. Dom.


Principales Necesidades de la Comision de Salud:
Unidades moviles de atención medica
• Ambulancias-Ambulance
• Carpas-Tents
• Muletas-crutches
• Sillas de Ruedas-wheel chairs
• Medicamentos-medicine
• Unidades Sanitarias móviles-sanitary stations
• Refrigeradores de medicamentos-refrigerators for the medicine
• Camillas-beds



Peace and love,
Yvette Marie

PEOPLE STAND UP

Greetings,

Here we are in a new decade…a time for reflections and realignment…a need to understand our role in the grand scheme of things. 2010 is a time to pull it together for ourselves, our family, the important people in our lives and our people as a whole.

Before yesterday that would have been the banter of an armchair revolutionary - something that is said at the beginning of the year, repeated during Black History Month, and quickly forgotten in March.

Today we are looking in the face of disaster. There is an undetermined number of casualties and injured in Haiti. Buildings in the capital have been leveled and the airport has sustained extensive damage preventing access in to the country. People are trying to reach loved ones and communication channels have been shut down.

We are familiar with disaster – 9/11, the 2004 tsunami, and hurricane Katrina in 2005. There is one shameful distinction in this tragedy – Haitian brothers and sisters can not take in their relatives and offer refuge while the country is stabilized. It’s no secret that darker people face unfair challenges relating to access to this country. It can take months and years to be able to visit loved ones, go to school or to embark on the “American dream.”

I have personally known some heroic folk that have gone into the trenches to help people in need. I am proud of them but don’t expect everyone to be willing or able to take such extraordinary measures. So I am asking all brothers and sisters of all walks of life to do four things in the short term:

1 - Visit and bookmark Wyclef Jean’s website -http://wyclefjean.wordpress.com/2010/01/13/statement-by-wyclef-jean-on-haiti-earthquake/ for updates from the front line. He has boarded a plane to the Dominican Republic so that he can make his way to his homeland. He’s been tirelessly working for Haiti and needs support now!

2 - Donate money through the Yele Earthquake Relief Fund http://www.yele.org/ or by texting Yele to 501501. A text will charge $5 to your monthly phone bill. You can also donate through the Red Cross http://www.redcross.org/

3 - Contact your United States senator by phone or e-mail and demand an emergency amnesty program that will enable Haitian Americans to provide temporary refuge to family members

4 - Wait before you begin assembling clothing donations until the Red Cross and the Haitian government have determined the appropriate transportation and logistics for such an effort. It’s all about the money right now and every dollar will help

Pray AND take action.

With that, I wish you all the best today and always.

G
http://gspitsit.blogspot.com

Reflection-LOVE, Self-LOVE and UNITY

“We need more light about each other. Light creates understanding, understanding creates love, love creates patience and patience creates unity.” Malcolm X

Encuentro Diaspora Afro began this year with a message of hope and love. We heard from many in our family who shared these thoughts with you:

Happy New Year to all from the Encuentro Diaspora Afro family. We entered the New Year with change in the air. This change is asking us to look inward, to be more open and to challenge ourselves to grow and expand. In working towards that goal, we would like to share the words of the Encuentro Diaspora Afro family. These are heroes like Mr. Claral Richards, the Nelson Mandela of Panama, my father, my 16 year old niece, our spiritual community, my cousin in Martinique, dear childhood friends, my sister and staff/advisors to the organization.

Our energy is strong from our new elected President and our thoughts are filled with possibilities.
'
We hope to continue to share and grow with you in 2009.

-Yvette

This is a very important and historic year. The election of Barack Obama to the Presidency of the United States is a hugh psychological boost for people of African descent around the world. It is inspiring to people who are still relegated to the bottom of humanity. Obama's election is an inspiration to become active politically and to fight for our god given rights as human beings. This year we must let our work be inspirational in helping those who are globally impacted by the social, political and economic policies of the greedy economic elites around the world. We must let our Ori (spiritual head of destiny) guide us and remember that Black is beautiful and Africa is still the center of the world.

Ase!
-Tony van der Meer

We the African Panamanians are deeply satisfied and very happy for the great victory of our Brother Barack Obama. We cherish the opportunity to remind you that we are the same people; we were all brought in slave ships from different parts of West Africa by Europeans from Spain, England, France Portugal, The Netherlands who imposed upon African men, women and children their own languages. This fact doesn't make us different, It is time for us to unite in soul and mind in this Continent which we helped to build up for many centuries.

Mr. Claral Richards
Afro Panamanian Leader

I pause today to look back at our Reflections for the year and ask, Did we have the movement that we hoped for? Was there love in our message? Was there an opportunity to love each other and our individual self without shame and did it bring us closer together?

My year began with a very spiritual trip to Belize where I wrote;

When the meeting began, I reached over to Dorotea the Netwok/Red General Coordinator to say, we may need to do an ice breaker. I then caught myself and said I am among Caribbean women the love comes out of our pores. There was never discomfort in the air. Once we shared our work the connection was made deeper than any ice breaker. Dorotea then said the energy around us is doing the work. We all looked over to the elegant movement of the waters.

As I do in any place I travel, I went for a run. This makes others nervous but I always feel safe, at times, safer than I do running in Boston Streets. Everyone greeted me with “good morning maam”. How loving, how comforting to know that there is still genuine love and respect among our people. These gestures reminded me of my own upbringing. I was not allowed to call anyone outside of my immediate friends, by their first name, it was either auntie or Ms or Mr.

After my run, I found some of the women in the waters for a morning dip. We did not worry about fancy bathing suits, or anything that would get in the way. It was about the pure pleasure of soaking in this warm refreshing water. What better cleansing of the spirit and the soul than this. I found myself going in fully clothed. We sat for an hour sharing stories about home and our Caribbean upbringing. This would then become our morning ritual. Our rooms were no more than 20 feet from the ocean. So with no hesitation, I fell asleep and woke up daily to the sounds and depth of Olokun.

We held onto this sense of community, of purpose as the year moved on. When I look back at the hope in my heart and in the eyes of the many youth that I came in touch with, I feel that the conversation that did need to happen on a larger scale did not. The level of racism that I saw, felt was like no other. It was not hidden. It was blunt. The question was and is, are we naming it? That theme led me through my next few Reflections.

The following event was a National Latino Symposium Meeting in Detroit. I was more excited that a fellow Panamanian had put my name out than I was about the Foundation actually inviting me. I read all the information they sent and was concerned that the racial issues would not get its deserved time. I felt prepared for whatever would come my way when I was in the meeting. What I was not prepared for was that I would feel the “whiteness” in the space before even entering it. While on my last connection flight, I realized most of the people were also attending the meeting. I noticed them but no one made an effort to even look at me. I have learned to deal with these moments a little better. This time, I sat down pulled out my notebook and wrote the following words.

Do you see me?

Do you see me?
The Me that embraces her full self.
You have no idea that I understand your words, Quien es ella?
I acknowledge you yet, I am invisible in your eyes and mind.
You turn away to not be reminded of your roots.
What roots, you say?
The roots that challenge your white privilege mind.
The roots that built the country that you stand and say, Latino Presente!
The Day you see me, is the day the chains of colonialism will be removed from your mind.
On that day, you will embrace the Tio that the family disowned,
On that day, I will sit with you and say,
You hurt me but I forgive you, and maybe,
Hopefully on that day, You will SEE ME!

This was a defining moment for me. It validated that there is still so much work to do. It spoke to the need for the internal conversation going side by side with the external. But it is moments like these that I hold onto the words of the many people who inspire me and one in this reflection was Mr. Claral Richards.

Mr. Richards’s words speak to our connection to each other. He said to me once, when I see a Black man and a Black woman, I treat them as a sister or a brother because we were separated and we never know who is before us.

Today on Dia de la Etnia Negra in Panama, I give thanks to him for his dedication and determination to have this day become a reality. Today with all of you, I say thanks for taking the time to See Me. Your words are an inspiration to rise up and face the challenges for the full inclusion of the Afro descendent voice.

This year brought a great sense of clarity of my childhood and the role, the depth it has played in what I do on a daily basis. We mourned and celebrated Michael Jackson and my teacher, Mr. Phillip Henry. I began to see things differently and memories came to light.

As the year moved, we went further away from love, self-love and unity. My sadness came out during some major incidents. The response to this reflection was overwhelming because so many were impacted by the incidents. The part that stood out for most was,

We should not let this time pass us by without acknowledging the deep divide that exists in the Americas.

How do we mend our broken communities? How do we heal the deeply rooted history that lies within us? How do we build a community that cares for our youth and defends the humanity of our people? How do we create a space that speaks Truth?

We need to begin answering these questions if we hope to move as a people in the 21st Century. By beginning this dialogue, we give hope to those who are coming behind us and justice to those whose shoulders we stand on.

As we began to evaluate our direction, create new questions, in our following Reflection we wrote;

As we celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, go home sit with your family and engage in these questions. Cry, laugh and hopefully begin the healing process within, then when you come out, Encuentro Diaspora Afro will be there to move, walk, hold you, in the process as a community. Embrace your Afro descent identity. Honor your family, your ancestors in all their shades.

This also applies to African Americans, Africans and our allies. This is a time for all to return home to reflect on our past to know how we can be a part of the healing process of our society.

By embracing your full self, you can then embrace your African American, Caribbean, African, brothers and sisters. We will then be a community that heals itself and removes the shackles from our mind and our feet.

I pause here to share one of my, aha moment, quote from Assata Shakur: “Our desire to be free has got to manifest itself in everything we are and do.”

We did not give up! Encuentro Diaspora Afro had the honor of hosting and participating in events and entering spaces that had fruitful, spiritual and moving dialogue. It gave hope and energy to keep moving forward.
I have always loved this quote by Che Guevarra:

Dejeme decirle, a riesgo de parecer ridiculo,
que el revolucionario verdadero esta guiado
por grandes sentimientos de amor.

Let me say, at the risk of sounding ridiculous,
that the true revolutionary is guided by feelings of love.

I began to understand it better this year on a many levels both professionally and personally. Love, Self-Love, Unity: you can choose your order. What I continue to learn is that if you have early examples of love, then some obstacles are less intense, holding each other is less difficult and seeing it when it is right in front of you becomes easier.

Such spaces as the Red de Mujeres Afro is built on this quote. No matter how strong our individual position in a discussion, the ultimate goal is the advancement of Afro descendent women.

The Ifa study group, were we learned the verses and discussed them as they related to our everyday life created a spiritual love. The constant message was the building of good character as individuals and as a community and gaining wisdom and knowledge from those who have come before us.

Other spaces include our Hispanic Heritage Month event where Artist/Activist Marcos Bellamy moved the crowd with his music and his strong presence. Marco said something in a presentation that has stayed with me. He said, “We should feel betrayed because the system has failed to tell our truth”.

This statement fits with the space that we see growth yet there is a stillness that does not allow us to truly love, self-love and create unity. The H.E.R. Project is a space that teaches us what our youth is really thinking. They are open and raw. At the end of each session we all walk out saying, they are loving a little more today because they are feeling a little safer and comfortable in their own skin.

They are still conversations to have. The Hair issue is an important one for many. The movie “Hair” caused strong reactions based on how much money women spend on weaves. What lacked in the dialogue was the deep damage that has been done to Black women to act and look a certain way. Our hair issues are not just OURS but of a society that is not ready to view us in our most natural form. At times, my natural hair, my Fro, makes me feel naked because I cannot hide behind anything.

Facilitating/guiding the Reflection writing workshop combined all these spaces. We spoke openly, wrote without fear and as one of the women shared, sat at the edge of our bed and had the most important conversation with ourselves. The energy in the room is something I will treasure for life. It was an affirmation that the pen can do wonders for our social and personal transformation.

With all these wonderful moments of the year, one that speaks very close to my heart, the one where there is love, self-love and unity has been reconnecting with dear childhood friends from Rainbow City and high school classmates.

As I shared earlier, I have gained a new sense of clarity of my childhood since reflecting without discomfort and sitting with them. I realize even more that my story is their story. We still have so much in common and by reconnecting we began to love each other as adults.

This space gave me LOVE, taught me SELF-LOVE and because of that, there is a UNITY among us that is indescribable. I know that no matter how far away we are from each other, all we have to say is, Rainbow City, Colon, CHS and we are there.

So as we close out 2009, I Reflect on that Love that I hold dear for my people, my community, all of you, that gives me the energy to still believe that we can make a difference.

May the light shine on you, to create the Unity that will lead us into 2010.