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Galactic Imperialism

On October 8th NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) an agency of the Federal Government ex­ecuted their LCROSS Mission, in which they intentionally fired a centaur rocket at the moon. The blast was launched from Cape Canaveral in Florida. Scientists were looking for sources of water in or­der to provide vital supplies for a manned moon-base. The centaur rocket which was propelled at twice the speed of a bullet was launched towards a crater close to the moon’s south pole. Scientists believe that ice could be trapped in the crater which never receives sunlight. Many NASA students and workers were very excited to watch the expected blast from their tele­scopes, however no debris clouds were visible as they had expected. Scientists state they have collected much data which now they are working to understand but much of their expectations were wrong.

Could their expectation of usable water on the moon be wrong? Could the viability of a manned moon-base be wrong? If so, $80 million dollars was thrown at nothing more than destruc­tive target practice on our moon. This is barbaric at best. Such a destructive, risky act seems unbelievable. This is clear proof that we are in an era of exploitation. We will exploit anything in the desperation we feel from the state of peril that we have put our planet into by the same means. We have fooled ourselves into thinking that we are improving life on Earth and making technological advances but we must wake up to the fact that we have drastically affected the natural order of our planet (and the universe) more severely in just the last fifty years than through all of human evolution since history can trace. We as American citizens should ask ourselves, if our government is presenting our ancestors as primitive and underdeveloped for respecting the sa­credness of life: What type of development are we now involved in? How much is our development worth if it is a development in which we will even throw bombs towards the “heavens”? Does the mad dog only awaken from his hysteria when there are no more bodies to bite? Can we afford that?

The Earth Center at The Diop International Conference

 The Earth Center, a cultural center promoting traditional Ke­metic values, was presented at the 21st Annual Diop Interna­tional Conference by Dr. Mbuulih Tayoba Ngenge. Dr. Ngenge was accompanied by the director of The Earth Center, Herpw Bikbaye Inejnema. Herpw Inejnema is the eldest student of The Earth Center founder, Dogon High Priest Master Naba Lamoussa Morodenibig, and now heads the Los Angeles and San Diego branches of The Earth Center.

At the conference Dr. Ngenge, the head editor for The Earth Center’s Firefly Production Publishing House, made a presenta­tion explaining how The Earth Center was here to open a new era in Education for Meritan (African) studies and those in the Diaspora who are seeking reconnection to a heritage that the slave trades and colonial era has worked so hard to rip away from them. Dr. Ngenge explained how the Niger and Nile Valley civi­lizations have survived within the traditional initiatic communi­ties around the bend of the Niger river and how Master Naba and The Earth Center have created a bridge for humble, honest students to learn humanity’s original culture at a level of authen­ticity and preservation that is unmatched around the continent or globe.

In the fight to restore dignity and respect to Kemetic (tradi­tional African) civilization and ancestral cultures, many African and African American scholars have ended up qualifying them­selves and each other with the degrees handed down to them by the colonial education system. However it is this colonial system which has worked against their ultimate goals reclaim­ing their cultural identity, dignity and respect. The Southern Cameroon born Ngenge explained that these “titles” and “acco­lades” mean little for us if not at least paired with traditional initiations (like the one The Earth Center’s M’TAM School of Kemet­ic Philosophy & Spiritual­ity provide). Considering the overall objectives: to raise humanity back to the place of intellectual strength and natural har­mony that it once occupied when ancestral modes of education were the intel­lectual authority, this is imperative.

Ngenge and Inejnema were well received. Many conference members invited The Earth Center and Inejnema back to their universities. The po­tential of a Kemetic renaissance is astounding if it can be united under the authenticity of The Earth Center’s Kemetic values, the 77 commandments and initiatic education.

Taxing for Tithes

Controversy has surrounded recent financial decisions made by Illinois State Legislation. Many legal scholars have raised ques­tions about the constitutional validity of some recent decisions to provide money for religious organization and educational facili­ties. Attention has risen on this issue because $31 billion dollars of taxpayer money has been earmarked for religious organiza­tions in 2009. Currently, Christ the King Jesuit College Prep, a new Catholic High School being built on Chicago’s West Side has received a half-million dollar grant. This is just one of one hundred grants that make up the $31 billion dollar sum. Some of the other religious organizations receiving money are Telshe Yeshiva School ($100,000), St. Malachy School ($700,000), St. Anthony WW Temple ($750,000) and New Life Covenant Church ($100,000).

Religious charity workers deny that this raises a constitution problem. They claim that there is a high wall between the reli­gious practices of the organizations and the social services which they provide.

However, it cannot be denied that funding any project that al­lows these religious organizations to increase their presence also increases their promotions, exposure and influence. Taxpayers among Chicago’s South and West Side neighborhoods should think hard on this fact, considering that there are already more churches in their neighborhood than even in Rome (home of the vatican) or Israel (Christian holy land).

The Illinois State government is struggling to fund college aid or even pay the bills on health care programs. Funding more churches and catholic schools when there has been no over-all proof that inner-city morale is improved by these funds is just hypocritical. Christianity and Catholicism already have a wide-spread presence throughout Chicago so why the need for an additional $31 billion dollars? In light of the US federal and state government’s quiet yet apparent history of using religion to dominate and subjugate its communities, this spending becomes quite clear. It is important to remember that through all of the carefully prepared public speeches and campaigns that the num­ber one priority in politics is to maintain power. Christianity and Catholicism have ensured European/American dominance over people throughout the world much more successfully than guns and cannons. It is clear that one cannot surrender their educa­tion and their child’s education and development to people who’s care won’t go any further than their assurance of maintenance of power. Why would your governor ensure that your child is educated to be smarter than him? Citizens of Chicago must take responsibility for their family’s education. We can depend on the government for this, their mission has not changed over the last two centuries. We should let our voices be heard at the state leg­islation level, however we should primarily put our efforts into helping to privately fund and support projects and organizations that do have their families and communities best interest in mind, heart and hand.

In Chicago there are many private education facilities, there are privately funded Montessori Academies that receive funding through an organization called Galaesque. Montessori is a early educational philosophy in which the natural rhythms and evolu­tion of a child are observed and given priority in their education. A holistic approach is the focus. However, with the variety of choices throughout Chicago, one should investigate the shool’s administration and director to find out the religious influences, etc. Parents should also remember that they are always the first teachers, their example is the first and often most impactful on the child’s growth and education. The Earth Center school in Chica­go focuses on adult education and educating adults into an aware­ness of the dangers of colonial education and lifestyle. It educates adults into humanity’s earliest human culture, the Kemetic culture and in doing so gives the individual a wide awareness of human evolution, development and genius. Investigate the grassroots or­ganizations around you, do not surrender your future to powerful people interested only in maintaining their power.

Observing Indigenous Day of Resistance

President of Venezuela, Hugo Chavez, celebrates the Indigenous Day of Resistance with youth.

The question of colonial holiday’s holding any moral and in­tellectual legitimacy has been given much attention in the Sun­nyside Newspaper over the years. Sunnyside readers should not be ignorant to the problems that many people throughout the Americas have with holidays like Colum­bus Day. Columbus Day has been called by many a celebration of genocide of Ameri­can Indians and co­lonial domination of America’s historical accounts.

Though many people agree that these questions with Columbus Day are valid and American history needs rewrit­ing, few are willing to make changes without some alternative or substitute holidays that still allow them to celebrate or observe something on the day that their government has alloted them an off-day. Colonial society spreads many so thin in just having to keep up with their day to day survival that they find it hard to go further to improve their situations by changing old habits. This is even if our habits and customs have been proven to be outdated, irrelevant or even destructive.

In Hugo Chavez’ Venezuela they have started a new obser­vance that has replaced Columbus Day for many. This holiday is known as The Indigenous Day of Resistance and it was cel­ebrated this past October 12th. This day allows the inhabitants of Maanu (first traditional name for the Americas) to celebrate the spirit of resistance against colonial values, violence, and conquest by the original cultures of this conti­nent. In celebration of this holiday, many public displays and celebra­tion of traditional culture have tak­en place. In Venezuela, statues of Columbus have been destroyed or covered while requests have been made to replace them with leaders of the movement for traditional re­sistance such as Venezuelan Chief Guaicaipuro. Guaicaipuro was an instrumental figure in leading native resistance against Spanish colonization.

Where an individual puts their attention and energy is very im­portant. In respect of all the indig­enous ancestors who have given their lives to build and maintain cultures that fathered humanity, as well as resist the onslaught of invasions that threatened to dis­connect us from our heritage, may we all be mindful of where our energy and support is going... in observation and celebration of the Indigenous Day of Resistance.