PERSEVERANCE

This week’s lecture on New York’s African Burial Ground was an extremely insightful one. Professor Mark E. Mac put together an intriguing PowerPoint which displayed the African burial site under investigation and its many findings. Professor Mac gave us some background information on the site, which included; there were at least 10,000 Africans buried here and only 4000 were taken out. The fact that the remains were being dug up upset many African people throughout the area. I feel that Howard University stepped in and insisted that they get a chance to study the remains so that the disturbance of the remains would not be in vain but instead the African people would get something meaningful out of it.

Professor Mac together with the Howard University team set out to answer several research questions such as; What was the origin of these people (which part of Africa did our ancestors come from), what was their quality of life, did they undergo a bicultural transformation and did they maintain their humanity? Some of their findings included Africans with sharpened or filled teeth. Professor Mac explained to us that this was for both cosmetic beauty and also a way for them to distinguish what tribes they were originally from. Many of the remains were found with jewelry that was not made in North America and/or European objects for example a man was found in a British coat and another with coins on his eyes. This implied that there was a trade going on amongst the people. The physical quality of life could also be determined from the remains. 65% of the women were found with muscle tear in the upper arm and legs. This meant that they were hauling things that were too heavy for their bodies to handle. Also the women were found with cranial fractures which resulted from them carrying large and heavy things on their head. Many new born babies and young children were found. The remains of the young children showed that they were under a lot of stress. Many had skull problems, were malnourished and/or had rickets. As for the question, “Did Africans maintain their humanity?” The answer is clear to me that the African people did maintain their humanity. 91% of the remains were buried in coffins wrapped in white cloth and as Professor Mac stated, “We would not be here if our ancestors did not take care of us in life and death.” This Burial ground represents the fact that our ancestors came from all over Africa and through pain and sorrow they banned together and made us, and now it is our job to culturally enrich ourselves and pass what we know on to other to ensure the perseverance of our culture.

“Ancestral Rites of Return”

After a decade of research the 4000 remains were finally going to be reburied. After a set of four remains were through tour 6 cities they were placed in a coffin and then into 1 of the 7 sarcophagus. They were then carried by horse to the burial ground and finally laid to rest. This was extremely touching, for I wonder if my ancestors knew that their people would one day rise and be able to celebrate them for their strength, humanity and perseverance. As a people this burial site brings us back to the beginning and together once again. I know that when I go to visit the monument in October that it will be a very touching experience.

“The Memorial and its Symbols”

The five symbols that I learned about were; 1) Mate Masie which means Wisdom and Prudence and is from the Akan tribe. This symbol symbolizes four ears linked together and represents the importance of cultural perseverance, 2) Akoma Ntoso which means understanding and is also from the Akan tribe. The symbol symbolized four hearts linked together and represented shared affection, 3) Nsibidi which is the symbol for progress or a journey. This symbolized the journey of the African Diaspora, not only to the Americas but to the whole world. 4) Ankh is the Egyptian symbol for eternal life (wisdom and power), although I have seen this symbol before this is the first time I’m learning what it means, and 5) Gye Nyame, which symbolizes the supremacy of God. All of these symbols connected not only with each other but also with the whole meaning of the African Burial Ground. After learning about all these symbols I feel inspired to learn more about them and their origin and to be able to pass my knowledge on to others like my little sister for I think that it is important for her and others to know and understand just how sophisticated our people really were. Also I hope that Howard again gets an opportunity to embark on something so culturally significant and that I will be able to participate or help in one way or another and if the opportunity does not directly present itself through Howard I will just have to go out and find it!