Afrocentrism

[Ixtab]

Afrocentrism is a pseudohistorical political movement that erroneously claims that African-Americans should trace their roots back to ancient Egypt because it was dominated by a race of black Africans. Some of Afrocentrism's other claims are: the ancient Greeks stole their main cultural achievements from black Egyptians; Jesus, Socrates and Cleopatra, among others, were black; and Jews created the slave trade of black Africans.
The main purpose of Afrocentrism is to encourage black nationalism and ethnic pride. . . .
. . . One of the more important Afrocentric texts is the pseudo-historical Stolen Legacy (1954) by George G. M. James. Mr. James claims, among other things, that Greek philosophy and the mystery religions of Greece and Rome were stolen from Egypt; that the ancient Greeks did not have the native ability to develop philosophy; and that the Egyptians from whom the Greeks stole their philosophy were black Africans. Many of James' ideas were taken from Marcus Garvey (1887-1940), who thought that white accomplishment is due to teaching children they are superior. If blacks are to succeed, he said, they would have to teach their children that they are superior.
James's principal sources were Masonic, especially The Ancient Mysteries andModern Masonry (1909) by the Rev. Charles H. Vail. The Masons in turn derived their misconceptions about Egyptian mystery and initiation rites from the eighteenth century work of fiction Sethos, a History or Biography, based on Unpublished Memoirs of Ancient Egypt (1731) by the Abbé Jean Terrasson (1670-1750), a professor of Greek. Terrasson had no access to Egyptian sources and he would be long dead before Egyptian hieroglyphics could be deciphered. But Terrasson knew the Greek and Latin writers well. So he constructed an imaginary Egyptian religion based upon sources which described Greek and Latin rites as if they were Egyptian (Lefkowitz). Hence, one of the main sources for Afrocentric Egyptology turns out to be Greece and Rome. The Greeks would have called this irony. I don't know what Afrocentrists call it.
James's pseudo-history is the basis for other Afrocentric pseudo-histories such as Africa, Mother of Western Civilization by Yosef A.A. ben-Jochannnan, one of James's students, and Civilization or Barbarism by Cheikh Anta Diop of Senegal.
Afrocentrism is being taught in many universities, colleges, and public schools.
http://skepdic.com/afrocent.html

[jcs]

Afrocentrism is being taught in many universities, colleges, and public schools.
My sociology and anthropology teacher in high school was a former Rastafarian. We got to hear a bunch of this crap.

My college only teaches that African civilizations, though they failed to develop any empires, are equal to European, Indian, Middle-Eastern, and Chinese civilizations (Meso-American civilizations are equal, too). My professor made the effort to emphasize this numerous times. I made the effort to point out that 'equality' is completely meaningless outside of mathematics, and promptly asked her to prove her claims. "Respected historians say they're equal." Ugh. Well, at least we actually learned that North Africans are Caucasoids while sub-saharan Africans are Negroids. "But the idea of 'race' is problematic. This is only due to the climate of the Sahara desert. Oh, and we're all only separated by 10,000 years."
But, hey, no "Egyptians were pitch black!" garbage.

[daisy]

jesus, socrates and cleopatra, among others, were black; and jews created the slave trade of black africans.i don't believe one word of any of this. cleopatra looked kind of white/jewish to me. if jesus was black how could a white albino with not one drop of black pigmentations like me have the same blood type as jesus.
when i was growing up they had all us white albinos segregated for around 10 years. we were taught that God and Jesus were white like us. i suspect they could have been teaching the blacks just the opposite that God and Jesus was black like them.

[jcs]

i don't believe one word of any of this. cleopatra looked knid of jewish to me. if jesus was black how could a white albino with not one drop of black pigmentations like me have the same blood type as jesus.
when i was growing up they had all us white albinos segregated for around 10 years. we were taught that God and Jesus were white like us. i suspect they could have been teaching the blacks just the opposite that God and Jesus was black like them.
You're so fucking weird.

[daisy]

you're so fucking weird.
well now they should change their teachings at the universities, colleges, and public schools and let the blacks know that many of them are now white albinos with black pigmentations. yet no i am pretty sure that won't happen. the world would rather stick to their ancient outdated historical roots rather than to face truths. well maybe it is not so bad. if they think they are black they can celebrate black history. if they find out they are albinos and they try to look their history up all they will mostly find is albino plants and albino animals.

[Petr]

The most credible representative of "Afrocentricism" (which isn't that much) is probably (non-Black) Martin Bernal, who I believe has managed to demonstrate that 19th-century historians displayed active dislike and neglect towards old traditions of Greek civilization's debt to Egypt and Middle East.

If you're genuinely interested on the subject, you can read Bernal's review/response to Mary Lefkowitz's book here, on Bryn Mawr Classical Review:


Mary Lefkowitz, Not Out of Africa: How Afrocentrism Became an Excuse to Teach Myth as History.

Reviewed by Martin Bernal, Cornell University.

http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/bmcr/1996/96.04.05.html


Petr

[Felix the Cat]

Hindus claim their ancestors invented nuclear weapons, rockets and spaceships...

Muslims claim that Quantum Mechanics and the Theory of Relativity are provable from the Koran...

[Sinclair]

The most credible representative of "Afrocentricism" (which isn't that much) is probably (non-Black) Martin Bernal, who I believe has managed to demonstrate that 19th-century historians displayed active dislike and neglect towards old traditions of Greek civilization's debt to Egypt and Middle East.

If you're genuinely interested on the subject, you can read Bernal's review/response to Mary Lefkowitz's book here, on Bryn Mawr Classical Review:


Mary Lefkowitz, Not Out of Africa: How Afrocentrism Became an Excuse to Teach Myth as History.

Reviewed by Martin Bernal, Cornell University.

http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/bmcr/1996/96.04.05.html


Petr

Flipping through it, I'm not really sure what he's trying to say. He points out a few errors, argues on a few points that may or may not be provable, etc.

But this line is particularly telling: "Thus, for African-American children to be taught about African and diasporic triumphs is not unusual and is particularly useful given the constant psychological battering they receive in a racist society." What is he trying to say here? Is he admitting that Afrocentrism is feel-good? It sounds sort of patronising coming from a white guy.

If there was enough proof that Greece owes Egypt and the Middle East more than is generally acknowledged today, then it would be admitted. Why exactly there is more "pride" for whites in saying "It all comes from Greece" than "It all comes from Egypt" or whatever makes no sense... I mean, I'm German-Dutch-maybe Scottish-little bit of Jewish. The latter is the group that's been "civilised" the longest... Am I supposed to be proud that contact with Greek-derived* Roman civilisation and Christianity (which is not originally descended from Europe) are the reasons that the vast majority of my ancestors were civilised, in a way I would not be proud was it all descended from Egypt?

There's quite a bit of non-Greek influence in Greek culture... How could there not be? Groups that can reach each other influence each other. But when it comes to speculating about an original Egyptian origin of Greek civilisation, as opposed to Greek borrowings, Greek historians can't really be trusted that much.

The whole idea of history, historical correctness, etc, is relatively recent. Look at a Renaissance painting of the Crucifixion: It is not uncommon to see Roman soldiers standing about in contemporary armour. Greek "history" is to actual history what Robert Graves' "Goodbye to All That" is to military history (Graves portrayed anecdote, rumour, etc as truth and did not explain that, because he was portraying how he had percieved the war, not how it actually was). In fact, the Greek historians were probably less reliable... At least Graves actually served in the war.

Anyway, the whole thing is stupid. It might be telling that Afrocentrism is heavily tied up in "worldview history", which is rather harmful... Just as modern literary criticism is more about the critic than the writer, history viewed through a "worldview" is more about the "historian" than the history. This is a bad thing.

[jcs]

Hindus claim their ancestors invented nuclear weapons, rockets and spaceships...
The Ramayana is a crazy ass book. Uber-monkeys.

[The Retard]

Afrocentrism is a powerful tool to shape the minds of the African American youth. By maintaining these mythos the impoverished children of the inner city are empowered with unbridled hope and self-esteem. This sort of myth is necessary for the children(of Detroit IMO) to be rescued, it might not be true, but it is necessary. The Afrocentrism movement gives meaning and purpose to millions of untold African American lives. We need to succeed and make this ideological fiction a truth in American society and around the world.

[Petr]

Afrocentrism is a powerful tool to shape the minds of the African American youth. By maintaining these mythos the impoverished children of the inner city are empowered with unbridled hope and self-esteem. This sort of myth is necessary for the children(of Detroit IMO) to be rescued, it might not be true, but it is necessary.

Ah, you are a true admirer of Leo Strauss and his concept of "noble lie". :p

Are you also aware of Georges Sorel's application of this idea?


"Sorel rejected those Marxists who believed in inevitable and evolutionary change, preferring direct action. (He may even have coined the phrase, "direct action".) These approaches included general strikes, boycotts, sabotage, and constant disruption of capitalism with the goal being to achieve worker control over the means of production. Sorel's belief in the need for a deliberately-conceived "myth" to sway crowds into concerted action was put into practice by mass fascist movements in the 1920s. The epistemic status of the idea of "myth" is of some importance, and is essentially that of a working hypothesis, with one fundamental peculiarity: it is an hypothesis which we do not judge by its closeness to a "Truth", but by the practical consequences which stem from it. Thus, whether a political myth is of some importance or not must be decided, in Sorel's view, on the basis of its capacity to mobilize human beings into political action; the only possible way for men to ascend to an ethical life filled by the character of the sublime and to achieve deliverance. Sorel believed the "myth" of the general strike would serve to enforce solidarity, class consciousness and revolutionary élan amongst the working-class. The "myth" that the Fascists would appeal to, however, was that of the nation.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georges_Sorel


Petr

[jcs]

Stirner fittingly called these myths 'spooks,' as they create the appearance of some great threat, a need for imperativistic action, and frighten the masses into such action.
The 'noble lie' is the positive compliment to the negative 'spook.' Same nonsense, different approach.
But hey, it works, and in this era, that's all that matters. Yay politics! :mad:

[Starr]

I suppose if I was black I would desperately want to believe these things, also. It is much better than the reality. And if they want us to believe "we are all equal" they are going to have to push these ideas in schools,etc.

[daisy]

we need to succeed and make this ideological fiction a truth in american society and around the world.oh yeah anything for the blacks. guess what the secret is out many of your true love blacks already know they are white albinos. yes i got it this time since the blacks are us. it's about time the state did something for white albinos instead of calling us plants, animals, and albinism.

the gov/state might as well face the fact that white albinos are not as dumb as they think we are. we are still white albinos no matter how much pigmentations they breed onto us. yes they did it up good and closed all the doors behind them. anything to erase our whiteness. they told the world we are not white we are albinism. they called us white albinism, albino blacks, albino plants, albino animals, albino pumpkins, anything but white albino humans. now it's time to turn it all around because i will keep on until i find an open door. it is time for them to make white albinos human again. maybe even let us have a human history too.

[Empress Cheesatine]

I recently read Afrocentrism described as being "therapeutic" and that's exactly what it is. Its amazing these morons who push it dont see the discrepancy by their pushing for black pride and hatred of white pride. Low IQ apes.

[Fade the Butcher]

I've been thrashing some of these guys over at Stormfront.

http://www.stormfront.org/forum/showthread.php?t=232145