#african archives

[itswadestore]

2 women photographed after a visit to the hairdresser, Perseverance Photo. Angola, 1990’s. 

© Saman Archive

[jasoncanty01]

Aunt Polly Jackson, was an escaped enslaved woman who worked as an agent on the Underground Railroad helping others escape. She was known for fighting off slave catchers with a butcher knife and a kettle of boiling water.

Can see more here on Twitter from

AFRICAN & BLACK HISTORY

@AfricanArchives

[deadassdiaspore]

Bahamians were among the first settlers in Miami. The first name on the city charter in 1896, when the city was incorporated, was a Black man named Silas Austin. Out of 368 men who voted to incorporate Miami,162 of them were Black.

In 1896 Florida had a state law that required a minimum number of registered voters to incorporate. 368 voters signed to incorporate Miami. Black people mostly occupied Over town and Coconut Grove, which is also the oldest inhabited neighborhood in Miami.

The Black population was largely made up of Florida born Black folks, Bahamians and Black people who came further south from southern states like North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia.

Overtown was Miami’s Black Wallstreet. It was once a thriving cultural & arts scene & the epicenter of Black wealth in Miami. Overtown hosted major entertainers who performed at Miami Beach but could not stay at those hotels due to segregation and racism.

Georgette’s Tea Room in overtown was one of the place for the affluent black community to meet like Billie Holiday and Nat Cole who were frequent visitors.

Fisher Island was once owned by a Black man, Dana Albert Dorsey, Miami’s first black millionaire. He later sold the island in 1919 to Carl Fisher who was developing Miami Beach. He also owned Miami’s first black-owned hotel, Dorsey Hotel & also owned the Negro Savings Bank.

Virginia Key Beach was once a Black beach when there was segregation. Black people were excluded from enjoying many of Miami’s amenities. Local Black leaders protested & in response, Virginia Key Beach was designated as the exclusive public park for Black people in 1945.

Black people also had their own police precinct with black police officers in 1944, but segregation restricted them from patrolling white neighborhoods. They also had their own courthouse.

[alexandraunderthesun]

At Night -- Awake or Dreaming

From the exhibition At Night -- Awake or Dreaming at the Museum der Kulturen Basel

I am fascinated by the way different cultures around the word engage in a practice-- which really I don't consider a practice, rather something we all participate in-- that is a part of all lived experiences, globally. No matter geographical location, time zone, or beliefs, humans experience nighttime, daytime, and dreaming in the same yet different capacities.

--> The exhibition text translates as: "This mask appeared at dusk and represented the setting sun." However, I'm not too sure about the truth of this statement. If my life experiences and education has taught me anything, it is: to be weary of museums and always question.

This mask belongs to the Pende tribe, an ethnic group who originally resided in Angola; however, they were forced to relocate to the Democratic Republic of the Congo due to forced territorial expansion. Once removed, they separated themselves into the Eastern Pende tribe and the Western Pende in the DRC.

This specific mask is a gitenga mask, which was typically worn by an older, male figure of the tribe. Those who wear the gitenga masks hold more social responsibility; their job is to control the ceremony and enforce punishment if needed. The mask is viewed as intimidating and dangerous-looking due to the circular, sharp eyes.

Masks such as these are used in mukanda ceremonies, which are an intergenerational, community ceremonies where boys are initiated to become men. To ground this research in the context of the exhibition, gitenga masks often appear in the dreams of young boys, almost taunting them in a manner. When a ceremony does occur, it is their opportunity to take control of the mask, and in a way, taking control of the nightmares associated with it.

The ceremonies are held in a camp, lasting 11-15 days; in this camp boys are circumcised, they learn rituals and craft, and prepare to become men. These initiations occur every ten-twelve years, however it is at the discretion of the tribe and chief.

An example of a song learned through the mukanda ceremony is below:

Ngenze a Panda udi kale ku mbongo ya Loange,

Muna Munzadi wamakana ha pambu ya Khoyi,

Ita ngayisha mu Mbinda. Tsumienu ngenji, jiyile Makumbi

a Lubunda,

Wasala kungima.

Mbimbi tsuayidile kilako, Makumbi a Panda azuele milonga,

mbimbi tuaitshikina.

Kisanga kia Muna Mumbanda!

These initiations still occur today, however there is more of a choice whether to participate in it or not. Boys today who choose not to participate in mukanda, however, are teased as being "weak" or "childish".

Read more + Free Congo Resource:

https://www.jacarandatribal.com/items/pende-mask

https://www.academia.edu/43640360/The_Role_of_Masks_in_the_Eastern_Pende_Mukanda

https://africa-art-archive.ch/en/multiple-readings/pende-initiation-masks-art-that-makes-men-out-of-boys

https://friendsofthecongo.org

[usnatarchives]

Dr. Mae Jemison was the first African American woman to travel in space. Born on October 17, 1956, in Decatur, Alabama, and raised in Chicago, Illinois, Jemison’s journey into the stars is a testament to the power of dreams and determination. 🚀

[allaroundtheworld55]

[gibsalotdoodles]

tma sticker sheet im gonna have at comic con africa :) the jon and martin designs will also be available as a connected keychain!

[newestcool]

African Mosaique s/s 1997 rtw Creative Director Anna Getaneh Model Ling Tan Newest Cool

[tabney2023]

Michelle Obama and her daughters, Sasha & Malia.

[lionofchaeronea]

Portrait of an Unidentified Laborer, Missouri, Louise Putman, ca. 1946

[deadassdiaspore]

A street scene in Cairo, 1936.

[mimi-0007]

Martin Luther King Jr and Family 🖤🖤🖤

[usnatarchives]

This remarkable photograph shows the then-oldest living ex-enslaved individual, Mrs. Sally Fickland, viewing the Emancipation Proclamation in the Freedom Train at Philadelphia, on September 17, 1947.

[conniesrockstargf]

Sweetheart ♥️ Milo

I'm so obsessed with them it ain't even funny

[itswadestore]

FANTA, amour et trahison, a collaboration between Archives Ivoire and wä dé.

[visuac]

i shut my eyes and all the world drops dead, i lift my eyes and all is born again