May 3, 2012 - Issue 470 |
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Cover Story
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This
is the first of a two-part article on the origin and development of African
Liberation Day (ALD) (click
here
to read Part II).
The celebration of African Liberation Day in the In
1973, ALD was decentralized and From
the 1980s through 1997, the NBUF Chicago Chapter sponsored African Liberation
Day / ALD on the Westside, where we marched down African Liberation Day has become an institution throughout the African world. It is a day when all people of African ancestry should come together. Whether you were born in Ghana, Nigeria, Liberia, Kenya, Ethiopia, South Africa, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Haiti, Jamaica, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Belize, Bahia, Canada, Cuba, Trinidad, Puerto Rico, Paris, or Chicago, as long as you are Black, you are an African, with a common heritage, and a common set of conditions. As
we prepare to participate in the upcoming weekend of events and activities,
we must always remember the origin and development of African Liberation
Day. Our ancestor, Kwame Ture, explained, “ALD was
founded by Kwame Nkrumah on the occasion of
the First Conference of Independent States held in Accra, Ghana and attended
by eight independent states. The 15th of April was declared African Freedom
Day to mark each year, the onward process of the liberation movement,
and to symbolize the determination of the people of Further, the AAPRP (All-African People’s Revolutionary Party) points out: “On
the 25th of May 1963, 31 African heads of state convened a summit meeting
to found the Organization of African Unity. They proclaimed May 25th as
ALD and called for mass demonstrations and manifestations in every comer
of The idea of ALD has its origins in the long history of African people, to break free of the yoke of European domination and white supremacy. This is a time in which we emphasize our oneness as a people with a common past, common set of problems, and a common future. The capturing of millions of African people, who were placed in slavery and introduced into the western hemisphere as property and commodities, is the backdrop upon which we commemorate African Liberation Day. It
was the slave trade industry of the fifteenth, sixteenth, and seventeenth-centuries
involving Britain, France, Portugal, Spain, Belgium, and Germany that
served as the foundation for these western powers and provided them the
margin of profit in getting the greatest return from their investment.
The western world still seeks to keep After
chattel slavery was abolished in This
resulted in the calling of the Berlin Conference in 1884, where the European
powers united to divide the continent of I will continue the discussion of the origin and development of African Liberation Day in my next column. Many groups around the country and the world where African people reside will be hosting ALD Celebrations this year. Don’t forget to support African Liberation Day activities in your area of the world. BlackCommentator.com Columnist, Conrad W. Worrill, PhD, is the National Chairman Emeritus of the National Black United Front (NBUF). Click here to contact Dr. Worrill. |
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