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The Maasai, or Wamasai in Swahili, are an ethnic group of Nilotic people who live in northern, central, and southern Kenya as well as northern Tanzania. They are well-known around the world because they live near the many game parks of the African Great Lakes and have their own customs and ways of dressing. The Maasai speak the Maa language, which is called l Maa. It is related to the Dinka, Kalenjin, and Nuer languages and is part of the Nilotic language family. Most Maasai people speak English and Swahili, which are the official languages of Kenya and Tanzania.

Some older people who live in rural areas don’t speak either of these languages.In the 2019 Kenyan census, there were 1,189,522 Maasai people, compared to 377,089 in the 1989 census. However, many Maasai see the census as the government meddling in their lives and refuse to take part or give false information. Many Maasai tribes in Tanzania and Kenya charge a fee for people to visit their villages and learn about their culture, traditions, and way of life.

The Maasai live in the area around the African Great Lakes. They came from the South Sudan. Most people who speak Nilotic in the area, like the Maasai, the Turkana, and the Kalenjin, are herders. They are known for being fierce warriors and cattle thieves. The Maasai and other groups in East Africa have taken on customs and practices from nearby Cushitic-speaking groups. These include the age set system of social organization, circumcision, and vocabulary words.Many ethnic groups who had already settled in the area were forced to leave when the Maasai came. Other groups, mostly Southern Cushitic ones, were absorbed into Maasai society. The Nilotic people who were the ancestors of the Kalenjin also took in some early Cushitic people.

Around the middle of the 19th century, the Maasai territory was at its largest. It included almost all of the Great Rift Valley and the land around it, from Mount Marsabit in the north to Dodoma in the south. At this time, the Maasai, along with the rest of the Nilotic people, raised cattle as far east as Tanganyika’s Tanga coast (now mainland Tanzania). Raiders had spears and shields, but people were most afraid of their throwing clubs (orinka), which could hit their target from up to 70 yards away (approx. 100 metres). In 1852, it was said that 800 Maasai warriors were on the move in the area that is now Kenya. In 1857, Maasai warriors threatened Mombasa, which is on the coast of Kenya. This was after they had killed everyone in the “Wakuafi wilderness” in what is now southeastern Kenya.

The Maasai worship only one god, who they call Enkai or Engai. Engai has two sides: Engai Narok (the “Black God”) is kind, and Engai Na-nyokie (the “Red God”) is angry. Maasai society is also based on two pillars or totems: Oodo Mongi, or the Red Cow, and Orok Kiteng, or the Black Cow, each of which has five clans or family trees. The lion is the Maasai people’s totem animal, but the animal can be killed. Since the lion is used in the rite of passage ceremony, the Maasai kill it in a different way than trophy hunters do.

Ol Doinyo Lengai, also known as the “Mountain of God,” is in the northern part of Tanzania and can be seen from Lake Natron in the southern part of Kenya. The laibon is the most important person in the Maasai religion. His or her jobs include shamanistic healing, divination, prophecy, and making sure that wars go well or that there is enough rain. Due to the rise of leaders, they now also play a role in politics. Any power a laibon had came from who they were as a person, not their position. A lot of Maasai have also become Christians or Muslims. The Maasai are known for their beautiful jewelry, which they have been selling to tourists as a business for decades.

It is thus astonishing and a source of great pride that a Nigerian city can outclass them in terms of size and magnificence.The city was built in honor of the Ijebu noblewoman Oloye Bilikisu Sungbo between 800-1000 AD. The location is now on Nigeria’s preliminary list of potential UNESCO World Heritage Sites.According to biblical and Quranic accounts, Oloye Bilikisu Sungbo was actually the Queen of Sheba. She built this monument as a personal memorial for herself, a wealthy and industrious widow who was greatly revered by her people.It is located near her grave in Oke-Eiri, a town north of the Eredo that pilgrims continue to visit today. Since its discovery in 1999 by the late British archaeologist Dr Patrick Darling, it has sparked both mystery and curiosity. Since then, there has been much discussion and debate about its existence and, indeed, its purpose.

Some of the richest men in the world today are tech billionaires and business leaders from the West and China. However, the title of “richest man who ever lived” goes to a little-known ancient ruler from a part of the world that is more often associated with poverty than with unimaginable wealth.

Musa took over as leader during a hard time when European countries were being destroyed by never-ending civil wars and a lack of resources. The Mali Empire, on the other hand, was thriving because it had a lot of gold and salt and other natural resources.

Under this leader, the empire grew to cover a large part of West Africa, from the Atlantic coast to Timbuktu, a trading center in the middle of the country, and even some parts of the Sahara. Just like the area he controlled grew, so did his money and wealth.

The rest of the world didn’t fully understand how much wealth King Musa controlled in his land until 1324. Musa was a religious Muslim who lived in a kingdom where most of the people were also Muslims. He went on pilgrimage to Mecca, but he didn’t go alone.

Musa went to the Holy Land with a caravan of tens of thousands of soldiers, slaves, and heralds. They were all dressed in expensive Persian silk and carried golden staffs. Even though there is a lot of disagreement about how many people were in his group, the convoy that went with him was a big deal. It included camels and horses carrying hundreds of pounds of gold.

This show of wealth caught the attention of the people who lived in the areas he traveled through, since such a large caravan would be hard to miss. When he went through Egypt, he had an effect on the people that would last for more than a decade.

When he got to Cairo, the capital of Egypt, and was forced to meet with al-Malik al-Nusar, the ruler of Cairo, his true character was shown. Ancient historian Shihab al-detailed Umari’s writings say that Musa was met in Cairo by a junior official of al-Nasir, who invited him to meet with other royals. Musa turned down the offer, saying he was just on his way to the holy land to make a pilgrimage.

“I saw this as a necessary step, not only because I was innocent..but because I knew that in the racist legal system of the United States I would receive no justice”Who is Assata Shakur? Assata Shakur, also known as Joanne Chesimard, was a black activist, a member of the Black Liberation Army & the Black Panthers. She is the godmother of hip-hop legend Tupac Shakur.On May 2nd, 1973, she was unfairly convicted of shooting and murdering State Trooper Werner Foester in New Jersey.On that fateful morning, Assata and her fellow Black Liberation Army (BLA) members Sundiata Acoli and Zayd Malik Shakur were stopped by NJ state troopers for a broken taillight, that ended in a shootout.

Later after they pulled over, both Zayd Malik Shakur & Trooper Foerster were dead, and Assata and Trooper Harper were shot and wounded. Assata and Sundiata ended up arrested and sentenced with murdering a state trooper.An all-white jury convicted Shakur of shooting the state trooper. There was evidence that Assata’s hands were raised in the air, but she received a sentence of life plus 33 years in prison, served 2 years in solitary confinement, then escaped.In 1978 the National Conference of Black Lawyers & its allies sent a petition to the UN that noted Shakur’s case was one of the worst examples of “a class of victims of FBI misconduct… who as political activists have been selectively targeted for provocation, false arrests entrapment, fabrication of evidence, and spurious criminal prosecutions.”

After her escape from prison in 1979, she fled to Cuba and was granted political asylum till today. The FBI’s attempted to extradite her back to the U.S in 1998, when they asked the Pope to use a visit to Cuba to order her into the hands of the US government.

James Hemings, brother to Sally Hemings was the first American to train as a chef in France. He was enslaved by Thomas Jefferson at 8. The Chef de cuisine is the reason macaroni and cheese made it to America. James Hemings was born in 1765 into slavery and lived much of his life enslaved. He was among the many enslaved people who came into Thomas Jefferson's possession through his wife's inheritance.In May 1784, Hemings received a summons to join Jefferson in Philadelphia. From there they travelled to Paris where he was trained in the art of French cooking. At a time when illiteracy was imposed on all African people, he was not only literate but fluent in English and French.

James went on to make culinary history. He ran the kitchens of Jefferson’s residence on the Champs-Élysées, overseeing meals served to the notables of Europe. This made him the first American chef to be head cook at an American embassy.Macaroni & cheese, vanilla ice cream, French fries, crème brulée, meringues, and many other foods were introduced by Hemings, though Jefferson got the credit.James continued his legacy and became one of the nation’s most influential culinary instructors. His transfer of knowledge impacted Black cooks, caterers, and chefs who were instrumental in developing American dining.Hemings life was cut tragically short in 1801 through suicide at 36; a letter addressed to Jefferson said that the cause was “drinking too freely.” Ultimately he left an important legacy in culinary history. He helped to create and define American Cuisine as we know it today!

US military authorities demanded the town’s pubs impose a colour bar, the local landlords responded with signs that read “Black Troops Only” which pissed them off.In 1943 Black American soldiers faced off with white American Military police during World War 2 on British soil. Black American soldiers had to fight their own white American soldiers, while in England, where they were fighting the world war.Why? Because the town, Bamber Bridge in Lancashire wasnt segregated so they treated the black soldiers like all other races, BUT back in America segregation still existed so essentially the American army went to someone else’s country & demanded they adopt their racist practices

So when the American Military police found out that their own black soldiers were drinking at the same pubs as white people, they went in to arrest them. The people in the town got mad about that treatment and decided to then turn their pubs into “BLACKS ONLY DRINKING PUBS”This pissed off the American military so guns went blazing & when word spread back at camp that black soldiers had been shot, scores of men formed a crowd, some carrying rifles and by midnight more American military police arrived with a machine gun-equipped vehicle.

The black soldiers also had no choice but to get rifles from British stores while others barricaded themselves back on base, so now it was American white soldiers verzuz American black soldiers. This lead to the death of 1 solider, injury of 7, and 32 convictions. Back in America the battle was hushed up because they didn’t want the country to find out that they were fighting their own soldiers which would anger the black population and weaken the morale in the country.you may read about the ill treatment of black American soldiers by their own army in the book FFORGOTTEN.

On March 5th, 1959, 69 African American boys, ages 13 to 17, were padlocked in their dormitory for the night at the Negro Boys Industrial School in Wrightsville. Around 4 a.m., a fire mysteriously ignited, forcing the boys to fight and claw their way out of the burning building.The old, run-down, & low-funded facility, just 15 minutes south of Little Rock, housed 69 teens from ages 13-17. Most were either homeless or incarcerated for petty crimes such as doing pranks. 48 boys managed to escape the fire.The doors were locked from the outside and fire mysteriously ignited on a cold, wet morning, following earlier thunderstorms in the same area of rural Pulaski County.

Forty-eight children, between the ages of thirteen to seventeen, were able to get away to safety by knocking out two of the window screens. Amidst the choking, blinding smoke and heat, four or five boys at a time tried to fight their way forward through the narrow openings as the fire began to devour them. The survivors never forgot the horror of that fire.

The horrific event brought attention to the deplorable conditions in which the boys lived. The boys all slept in a space barely big enough for them to move around & theyre one foot apart from one another & their bathroom was a bucket at the corner where they had to defecate in.In an ironic twist, the land in which the school stood is now the Arkansas Department of Correction Facility Wrightsville Unit. In 2019 a plaque was finally placed after 60 years.

The narrow streets and alleyways of Rabat's old town in Morocco have been turned into an open air art gallery.From portraits to abstract paintings, the work of many local artists is on full display since Thursday bringing many visitors to the capital."This atmosphere, that starts at 10 in the morning every day for 10 days, is about the desire to share artworks, which are usually shown in galleries or in exhibition spaces, whereas here the paintings are outside and available to everyone. Children, the elderly, everyone can access painting" said Jamal Ouadi, the GAL'RUE exhibition director. Against the backdrop of traditional architecture, the works gain added meaning.

"Everything is made to have a good time, and we have the old town is beautiful, a very beautiful place with its ancestral doors and a very typical architecture, and in addition to that, art that comes in contrast. We have portraits, abstract art, it’s a mixture that we rarely see" said Célia Shouznou, a French student participating in GAL'RUE."This event is practically a first in Morocco as far as I know, apart from street art.I did not know this gallery that brings artists out to the public, to citizens going about their daily life, in these alleys in the old town in particular, the old town of Rabat. It's an extraordinary event for me", admits Laila Skalli, a painter whose work is on display at the GAL'RUE exhibition.

The GAL'RUE project started in 2021 in the wake of the pandemic and the desire of artists to share their creations with everyone.

Italian artist Alessandra Ferrini who is based in London won the MAXXI Bulgari Prize for her video installation titled "Gadhafi in Rome: Notes for a Film".A video installation titled "Gadhafi in Rome: Notes for a Film, focuses on the Libyan leader's first official visit to Italy in 2009. The work was awarded at the third edition of the MAXXI Bulgari Prize, in Rome.Italian artist Alessandra Ferrini, was fascinated by how Gaddafi’s friendship and cooperation visit followed a similar pattern to the three-act structure from playwrights."I think she (Alessandra Ferrini) developed a very particular, personal perspective in the research of social history, geopolitical history, which is not only very significant for the time now and also has a strong consistency", the artistic director of MAXXI and President of the International Jury of 2022 MAXXI Bulgari Prize said.

"She's also been able to develop a very strong multimedia language around this, and it shows particularly importance in terms not only the aesthetic but also of cultural relevance", Hou Hanru concluded."On the first day, you had a sort of inciting incident, which for me is Gadhafi wearing the image of Omar Al Mukhtar [Editor's note: a Libyan national hero who was executed by Italian colonial authorities for leading a guerrilla war against the Italians colonisation in the 1920s and 1930s] on his chest to sort of disrupt this ceremony of friendship", Ferrini told."And then day two followed up with a lot of conflict and in fact we have lot of protests on day two of the event. And then day three is supposed to be a resolution, which is sort of achieved by the commercial deals, economical deals that are really signed on the last day."

Ye accused Gap of not honouring terms of their deal, including by failing to open standalone stores for his Yeezy fashion label.Although Adidas put its relationship under review after Ye showed his "White Lives Matters" T-shirt, the company did not say the collection was the reason for the review.The phrase Black Lives Matter, which represents opposition to racism and police brutality, was widely used after George Floyd, an unarmed black man, was killed by a police officer in Minneapolis in the summer of 2020.High-end fashion house Balenciaga and talent scouts Creative Artists Agency also cut ties with the rapper earlier in October.

Film and television production company MRC said on Monday it will not be airing its recently completed documentary on the rapper.

The most significant African challenge to German colonial rule during the brief period when Germany had African colonies was the Maji Maji Uprising in Tanganyika. The Uprising involved indigenous African people living inside over 10,000 square miles and lasted two years.During the “scramble for Africa” that took place in Berlin in 1885, European powers invaded and dominated much of Africa, carving out vast territories as their own and establishing brutal and tyrannical regimes to enforce their rule. Four major regions had been colonized by Germany, including Tanganyika (modern-day Tanzania), Togo, Cameroon, and Namibia. Tanzania had been acquired largely through the efforts of the German Colonization Society, founded by Dr. Karl Peters.

By 1898 when Germany established its control over Tanganyika, it imposed a deeply violent regime in order to control the population and included a policy of killing kings who resisted German terrorism and occupation. Dr. Karl Peters was now the Tanganyika colonial governor, and this brutal policy earned him the name, “Milkono wa Damu,” meaning “Man with Blood on His Hands.”The African population was subjected to high taxation and a system of forced labor, in which they were required to grow cotton and build roads for their European occupiers throughout this period of German occupation.

The oppressive regime bred discontent and disenchantment among the Africans, and the resentment reached a fever pitch in 1905 when drought hit the region. A prophet named Kinjikitile Ngwale emerged. He claimed to know a secret sacred liquid that had the power to repel German bullets. The sacred liquid was called, “Maji Maji,” which means “sacred water.” The first warriors of the rebellion began to move against the Germans, armed with arrows, spears and doused with Maji Maji water.They were attacking at first only small German outposts, such as at Samanga, and destroying cotton crops. The rebellion spread throughout the colony, eventually involving 20 different ethnic groups all of whom wished to dispel the German colonizers. Therefore it became the first significant example of interethnic cooperation in the battle against colonial control.

The rebellion reached a peak at Mahenge in August 1905 where several thousand Maji Maji warriors attacked but failed to overrun a German stronghold. The Germans retaliated on October 21, 1905, with an attack on the camp of the unsuspecting Ngoni people who had recently joined the rebellion. The Germans killed hundreds of men, women, and children. This attack was the beginning of a brutal counteroffensive that ultimately left an estimated 75,000 Maji Maji warriors dead by 1907. Famine was also adopted by the Germans as a weapon, purposely destroying the crops of suspected Maji Maji supporters.

The Maji Maji Uprising was ultimately unsuccessful but it forced Kaiser Wilhelm’s government in Berlin to begin instituting reforms in their African colonies as they realized the potential cost of their brutality. Also, the uprising would become an inspiration for later 20th Century freedom fighters who called for similar interethnic unity as they struggled against European colonial rule.

While the west may have entrenched the erroneous belief that Africa was bereft of any form of education and civilization before the arrival of the colonialists, historical evidence has pointed out otherwise. According to history, one of the oldest and first universities in the world was in Timbuktu, Mali.Mali is famous in world history because it is home to one of the richest kings that ever walked the face of the earth. Emperor Mansa Kankan Musa was considered one of the richest kings in the world, and to date, his wealth is still unrivaled by anybody. Now, Mali is considered the home of one of the first universities in the world.

Sankore University in Timbuktu, the then capital of Mali, was founded in 13BC. Its literary output was so enormous and included scholarly works covering the history of Africa and southern Europe, religion, mathematics, medicine, and law. Also, there were manuscripts that detailed every movement of the stars, as well as possible cures for everyday illnesses such as malaria, and remedies for menstrual pains.

This is a great departure from the prevailing narrative that Africa was without any form of education, and that the white European invaders came to civilize Africa . In fact, It is clear that the great learning centers of Africa gave the world much of the education and learning we have today. Sankore University in Timbuktu, Mali, laid the groundwork for much of the inventions we have in medicine, law, mathematics and the sciences.

Students from all around the world studied and earned an education in Timbuktu, and the university was home to approximately 700,000 ancient manuscripts, traversing almost all branches of knowledge known to man.Their astronomers didn’t follow the usual European leap to a sun-centered solar system. Instead, they sprang far ahead in the mathematics of calendar writing, making significant headway in trigonometry. Timbuktu is also home to some of the world’s oldest mosques buildings. Each year, the people of the city come together and repaint the walls of the mosques. It was added to the UNESCO world’s heritage list in 1988.