The Rasta man’s speech
I could never do such a wicked thing me lord,
Me robbing another man me lord?
This man be full of dedication,
To smear Rastafarian reputation, Read more
Solidarity is ‘Western’ for Ubuntu/Unhu
In my culture, when someone asks ‘how you slept and woke up’ in the morning, you respond ‘ndamuka kana mamukawo’ meaning ‘I woke up well if you did too’. This is an acknowledgement of the existence of other beings around you.
You acknowledge other people because they are part of you and you are part of them. It is an acknowledgement of the importance of life apart from one’s own and it is a profession of love and respect for what surrounds you. In other words you stand in solidarity with others by the way you respond to those around you. I believe I do not have a choice for who is around me and who to respect and this makes everyone and their existence important. This is not something I strive to be, it is what makes me proud to be Zimbabwean and African and it is what I am. That we grow up living in solidarity, believing in solidarity and paying solidarity to each other without thinking about it. ‘I am, because you are, because we are!’ We are one whole and one body Read more
For peace, for justice, for Mohammed Omer
As we fight our battles in Zimbabwe, let us remember that the fight for justice is universal. Here is a letter I just received from a young Palestinian journalist who was recently beaten up by Israeli security officers. Mohammed, our prayers are with you.
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Mohammed Omer
By Mohammed Omer
I am a Palestinian journalist from Gaza. At the age of 17, I armed myself with a camera and a pen, committed to report accurately on events in Gaza. I have filed reports as Israeli fighter jets bombed Gaza City. I have interviewed mothers as they watched their children die in hospitals unequipped to serve them because of Israel’s embargo. I have been recognized for my reporting, even in the United States and United Kingdom, where I have won two international awards. I have also been beaten and tortured by Israeli soldiers.
This summer, at age 24, I was honored to learn that I had become the youngest journalist to receive the Martha Gellhorn Prize for Journalism, named for the famed American war reporter and awarded to journalists who counter propaganda with the truth. Although Israel has sealed Gaza’s 1.5 million Palestinians in what many now call the world’s largest open-air prison, Dutch MP Hans Van Baalen lobbied the Israeli government to let me leave Gaza to receive my award in person.
Upon my return from London, I was surrounded by Israeli security officers. Read more
