AYA Educational Institute

A social media friend and powerful Black community activist - whom I respect - posted a "resurrection" picture and a pray today. She ask's for Amen! If we believe it is a powerful symbol. Here is my response. Please take a minute to read beyond the first paragraph. It is not an attack. I responded out of love and connection. Amen! It is a powerful symbol of white supremacy that America has been praying to since its inception and Europeans have been using since Constantine in 325 AD. Whites from the Klan to the Presidency to the Military have been inspired by this symbol to invade, kill, capture, and dominate and abuse us. We - Black people - infused the symbol with African spiritual (not religious) meanings and ideas of unconditional love, righteousness, authenticity, the one-ness of humanity, etc. This is what we wish that they'd pray to get filled with. I get that, and wish the same too. The symbol/story for them is a tool of domination. For America (and E

A social media friend posted this photo along with a caption: "This is American history that we must own." My response: I don't know if you were talking to me, to Black people or to white people You are right. I do own it, and also believe that we should never make this mistake again! To send this lone Black girl to face the white humiliation and terror was a mistake and much of our wounded-ness - identity confusion, need to be where white people are, need to be approved by them, and our lack of confidence in our own - selves and creations - comes from this. Zora Neale Hurston opposed it. She was ahead of her time, though she wasn't alone. To be sure, Dorothy Counts was brave, powerful, and smart. We can laud that, and I do.  Afiya Madzimoyo , my wife, played a similar role in Alabama. I laud her bravery too. As a Black man, I say that we (Black men, particularly) should have been there to face them down and give her a sense of OU

7 Steps 2 Recovery: Home Schooling Authenticity Educational Series For Home-Schoolers, First Teachers and Life-Long Learning Directors Contacts: Afiya Madzimoyo & Yinka Winfrey (404) 832-9958 or (770)882-9515 www.ayaed.com Sponsored by AYA Educational Institute , Courses based on research and practice of AYA Educational Institute. Presented by   Baba Wekesa O. Madzimoyo AYA Educational Institute presents 7 interactive webinars to increase your educational effectiveness in a challenging time. Educating parents, grandparents and community educators rarely have the access to continuing education resources which are proven effective, and are also tailored to Black youth. Now, you do. AYA Educational Institute is a research, educational, and consultative resource  with more than 17  years experience  available to you now. Models, scripts, and cookie-cutter lesson plans have  their place.   Still,  sometimes  you need to know  the  thinking and methodology behin

A FB friend posted this photo along with a caption: "This is American history that we must own." My response: I don't know if you were talking to me, to Black people or to white people You are right. I do own it, and also believe that we should never make this mistake again! To send this lone Black girl to face the white humiliation and terror was a mistake and much of our wounded-ness - identity confusion, need to be where white people are, need to be approved by them, and our lack of confidence in our own - selves and creations - comes from this. Zora Neale Hurston opposed it. She was ahead of her time, though she wasn't alone. To be sure, Dorothy Counts was brave, powerful, and smart. We can laud that, and I do. Afiya, my wife, played a similar role in Alabama. I laud her bravery too. As a Black man, I say that we (Black men, particularly) should have been there to face them down and give her a sense of OUR protection. If we couldn' t d

I Love AYA.  "How was, or how could our ancestors insistence on using various Black "dialects" be a form of resistance, healing and restoration?" I asked our high school students. "I don't know," one student responded. "Guess," I said. Slowly the wheels began to turn. A student from Lexington, KY led the way, Georgia followed, NY wasn't far behind. They were rolling now. Today, the Economic Conundrum drama continues. The students are trying to wrap their minds around how our ancestors healed, restored, and kept us clothed in our right minds when white brutality and bestiality uprooted everything that we knew - family, law, justice, values, spirituality, love, hygiene, health, etc..  When their goal was to turn us into animals, to distrust each other, to devour each other, to alienate ourselves from our way,  How did our ancestors heal the psychic, emotional, and physical wounds?  How did we protect ourselves from going

A friend posted this meme on his FB page a couple of days ago. My response: I don't agree with this sentiment - in this context. It shares the blame of our discord equally, and that's not true or productive. Black and white discord is caused by white oppression of Black people - past and present. They have earned our people's distrust, THEY must earn our trust, and we get to say if and when they have done that. To share the blame equally - as this meme implies - is a form of "Blaming the Victim," while at the same time deluding the victim - Black people - into believing that if we stop having animosity toward white people, then they'll stop shooting us in the streets, poisoning our water, giving us syphilis, or smashing our children on their heads for breaking a no-cell phone rule. We actually don't have that power, and pretending or deluding ourselves that all we got to do is be kind, understanding, speak well, blah, blah, blah, actually s

I can’t watch it... “Knowing of our ancestor’s pain allows us to better know and animate their healing and restorative powers. It is also the path to their power animating us.” - Wekesa Madzimoyo This journey started for our students last semester. The vehicle is the course - The Economic Conundrum.  Last semester, you will recall, there were several revelations as we sought to learn about Black Economic prowess and Black Economic Nationalism in the early 20th Century. This prowess produced: Black Wall Street (the Greenwood District in Tulsa, OK),  Another Black Wall Street (the Hayti District in Durham, NC),  Another center of Black commerce in Atlanta (Sweet Auburn),  And yet another in rural North Florida (Rosewood)  And more, many more. We created 50 Black towns in OK alone Revelations: 　　The Black community and our students have come to see that historical period as mostly as a series of White massacres of Black power 　　We actually know l