knowledge equals black power

dynamicafrica:

A. M. Duggan-Cronin, “Bomvana Initiates,” South Africa, c. 1930.

From what I understand, ‘Bomvana’ is a Xhosa clan name.

Xhosa clan names are family names which are considered more important than surnames among Xhosa people.

Each Xhosa person can trace their family history back to a specific male ancestor or stock. Mentioning the clan name of someone you wish to thank is the highest form of respect, and it is considered polite to enquire after someone’s clan name when you meet them. The clan name is also sometimes used as an exclamation by members of that clan.

When a woman marries she may take her husband’s surname, but she always keeps her own clan name, adding the prefix Ma- to it. A man and a woman who have the same clan name may not marry, as they are considered to be related.

dynamicafrica:

NOTABLE AFRICANS: William Moore (attr.), inscribed: “Macomo and his chief wife,” South Africa, c. 1869.

Along with several other Xhosa leaders and their wives, Maqoma was imprisoned on Robben Island for leading insurgencies during the Frontier Wars of the eighteen-fifties.

This widely circulated portrait was taken after their release.

Even when they were photographed on Robben Island, Maqoma and his wife never sat for the camera without dress coats, hats, and shawls.

dynamicafrica:

“Being black is not a matter of pigmentation - being black is a reflection of a mental attitude.”

“Black Consciousness is an attitude of the mind and a way of life, the most positive call to emanate from the black world for a long time.”

“Merely by describing yourself as black you have started on a road towards emancipation, you have committed yourself to fight against all forces that seek to use your blackness as a stamp that marks you out as a subservient being.”

“The most potent weapon of the oppressor is the mind of the oppressed.”

“The basic tenet of black consciousness is that the black man must reject all value systems that seek to make him a foreigner in the country of his birth and reduce his basic human dignity.”

- Stephen Bantu Biko

(via howtobeterrell)

positive-press-daily:

Proudly SA says ‘buy local’ accord is paying off

The signatories pledged to purchase more goods and services from South African producers to an “aspirational target” of 75% in an effort to enhance industrialisation and boost job creation.

The Western Cape government, the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) in the province, the Cape Chamber of Commerce, the City of Cape Town and Proudly South Africa signed a “buy local” pledge and gave an undertaking to make a “conscious effort” to sustain and create employment.

Speaking on the sidelines of the local procurement conference on Monday, Mr Sedibe said the signing of the pledge would help to ensure that “we influence procurement practices at provincial and local level”.

“The local procurement accord signed last year was signed at a national level … we need to make sure that we trickle down whatever the parties have agreed on at national level,” he said.

Mr Sedibe said there were several developments which illustrated that the local procurement accord was beginning to make a difference.

“The government is saying through our state entities … they will support the local procurement accord,” he said.

“We have seen the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa, for example, with rolling stock purchases (making) a significant commitment to ensure that the bid documents themselves spell out the localisation issue.”

Mr Sedibe said municipalities such as Tshwane were also insisting on localisation in bid documents for the manufacture of electricity meters.

“There is a consciousness in many other sectors that is beginning to build … we need to pay attention to supporting South African companies and business. There is a gradual change in mind-set of most procurement officers,” he said.

“We will be going throughout the country to remind people about this agreement. We want to make sure that, on the ground, there is meaningful commitment. Government, across all spheres, has undertaken to make sure that there is a significant uptake of local products.”

Cape Town mayor Patricia de Lille told the conference that the city was making strategic investments that would help grow the local economy and support the job-creation role of the private sector. She said the city was determined to utilise local industry wherever possible in its procurement processes, especially in employment-intensive industries, such as the textile sector.

“To this end, in the calendar year thus far, the city has spent close to R19m on local procurement for clothing,” she said. A Cape Town company had won the R660m tender to provide the first 190 nine-metre buses required for the MyCiTi bus services.

Cosatu Western Cape secretary Tony Ehrenreich said that because Chinese products were heavily subsidised, it was always going to be tough for local products to compete.

He said the government needed to sign an agreement with China which emphasised the need to protect local industries.

samuelashitey:

rationaloptimist:

“The most potent weapon in the hands of the oppressor is the mind of the oppressed.” — Steve Biko

Black History 

(via manifestationsofafreemind)