Repatriation, “Obruni” and Exclusion

Whites/Europeans invaded West Africa in the 1400s, and arrived not only with trinkets, pots/pans, and dated guns to trade, but disease and conflict. There were many whites who had a total disregard for Black/African cultures, and others who just wanted to learn how to manipulate the cultures and run roughshod over African people for their own benefit.

Upon whites arrival indigenous slavery was minimize and then entangled into chattel slavery by several money-hungry wicked chieftaincies (i.e. Asante; Akwamus; Akyem; Kwahu; Fante; Krepe—see A. Perbi), and Europeans’ strategies to ignited internal conflicts among Africans to feed their insatiable appetites for forced free labor—that is to enslave Africans to work their plantations and build their nations.

What is amazing, during that period in history there were no European Berlin Conference borders, not until 1844. Even after European colonialists were ushered out via Pan Africanists independence and Nkrumah-Selassie OAU (Organization of African Unity), African politicians still maintain European borders as they continue to do business with families of former European colonialists enslavers, European religious systems, and white secret societies (i.e. Freemasons; Skull and Bones; .

Europeans, the real a.k.a.” obruni” (Akan) meaning—whiteman or foreigners, is a term used by Black/Africa ancestors directed at European colonialists and slave masters—which the abused and exploited African ancestors in retaliation, bitterly cursed the whiteman and blasted the term obruni through clinched teeth.

Africans ancestors nor are their repatriating Ascendants, and any other Africans for that matter an obruni-- nothing endearing about this, no more than calling another African a ‘nigger’, ‘coon’, or ‘monkey’, which are also insulting derogatory terms. The terms are not descriptive of Africans, and there have never been any African lands named to represent those terms.

In this case, the term is misdirected and Africans calling other Africans obruni is neither appropriate nor applicable to neither African Diasporans nor Africans in other parts of the continent.

Black/African diasporans are not “whites”, of course; nor are they “foreign” to Mother Africa. European colonialists’ languages were forced on the tongues of enslaved Africans in the diaspora. Likewise, enslaved and colonized continental Africans were able to maintain their tribal/mother tongues--especially those teaching European missionaries and traveling Dutch merchants the local languages. And still, after gaining independence, the official language of Ghana today is British English, and youth are taught in schools they are surrounded by so called “Francophone nations”. They are African nations! --that happen to speak French via European colonization and indoctrination, similar to the African diasporan experience.

What must be taught and understood, both Continental Africans and Diasporan Africans beginnings, their ‘Blackness’ is in Africa’s Nile River Valley areas and Asia (see D. Houston: C. Diop; Y. Jochannan; J. H. Clarke; J. Jackson; C. Williams; E. Muhammad; F. Cress Welsing; I. Sertima; A. Hilliard; C. Acholonu; L. Jeffries; M. Asante; R. Rashidi and many other African historians). Blacks/Africans are one people!

The history must be taught, and then Sankofa-ism will flow fluently. For those unaware, the repatriation of African diasporans is nothing new, those who were STOLEN FROM AFRICA (B. Marley) have been returning since the 1700s, even after fighting in the American Revolutionary War against England.

In the 20^th century, the repatriation process continued with President Dr. Kwame Nkrumah and the Fifth Pan African Congress. Nkrumah’s bridge building efforts were about ushering in African diasporans (not obruni) to their place of origin-- Mother Africa.

Those who overthrew President Nkrumah made no efforts to further build the Pan African Bridge. Many were too entangled in additional military coup d’états, busy jocking for prime ministership or presidency, and scrapping to control valuable natural resources.

However, in 2000, President J. J. Rawlings’ pushed ‘Right of Abode’ involving a ten (10) year required residency, no political rights; in 2016, President John Mahama’s “34” as he was making his exit out of the presidency—nothing constitutional; and in 2019, President Akufo Addo’s ‘Year of Return’ 200+ economic citizenship, also no political rights.

In 2020, Addo’s ‘Beyond the Year of Return’ supposedly a follow up to the Year of Return, simply put was a vague project, be it intentional or unintentional. Question is-- was Ghana prepared for African diasporans repatriation? Emphatically, no-- today, poor infrastructure and corruption.

There are over millions African diasporans, many planning to repatriate, some not, and others who would just find it healing to know they have a right to return and political rights just as any other Africans.

In 2000s, many Ghana’s politicians’ contemptuous schemes became increasingly noticeably, more about money—a price tag was even placed on the heads of African diasporans. A little more sophisticated than the old chattel slave markets. During the Year of Return, it was even declared by repatriation organization leaders and rallied by Ghana media that African diasporans worth was a whopping $3 billion dollars.

Ghana government actions were probably appeasing to European neo-colonialists and/or anti-Pan Africanists. President Addo’s Presidential Executive Order as it pertains to issuing African diasporans ‘economic citizenship’ sent out a clear message and reassured European neo-colonialists that diasporans can come spend their dollars, euros and pounds, and build houses, businesses, and pay taxes, BUT—they are not allowed to play a role in the political scheme of things in Ghana— of course, to many African diasporans this is unacceptable.

To date, Ascendants of Africans who were chattel enslaved throughout the diasporan (with or without Ghana’s economic citizenship) are repatriating African diasporans, and they have no political representation on Ghana’s parliament floor or within the presidency and its administration, and yet certain continental Africans travel abroad to campaign for African diasporans to invest-- funnel money into Ghana/Africa, especially for construction of ‘Wakanda’ cities. Why should they—because they are Africans? Then those continental Africans and Ghana government must understand, Ascendants of Africans who were enslaved should be treated as Africans, FIRST.

Many Ascendants of Africans are seeking full citizenship from Ghana, especially from an African nation that was able to claim independence via the Pan African movement (started by African diasporans in 1900 in the West); and an African nation that proclaims democracy (reflecting on “taxation without representation is tyranny”—J. Otis), and thus far, African diasporans are returning to Ghana without being given full citizenship, BUT-- there is no problem requesting diasporan to invest; informing diasporans they are categorized and carded as “non-citizens” for $120 by an Africa nation; including xenophobic and/or undereducated locals labeling African diasporans (members of the Sixth Region of Africa (AU)— “obruni”.

With this being said, one must ask are there more executive orders and economic citizenry waiting for African diasporans?

If full citizenship is eventually provided for African diasporans, will it be possible to acquire it without a private repatriating organization leader standing guard at the threshold of Ghana’s Diasporan Affairs office with hands out for a membership fee? If not, this would be another scam that has to be dealt with.

The Year of Return debacles became so prevalent Ghana Professor Stephen Kwaku Asar, CDD-Ghana Democracy and Development Fellow in Public Law, posted an article on ‘Ghana’s year of return: Citizenship without political rights’ (2019); in addition Kwabena Agyare Yeboah, posted ‘We need to talk about Ghana’s Year of Return and its politics of exclusion’ (2019). Question is- why was the Year of Return problematic?

Rawlings, Mahama, and Addo, never referred to African diasporans as obruni, but some could say they were/are treated as so. Are African diasporans viewed as walking “money bags”, having to prove their worth or buy their way back into Africa --by way of some of the same tribes/nations that placed African ancestors in holdings to be sold and stolen away by European slave traders?

For those unaware, African ancestors were enslaved, brutally forced into the filthy bowels of European slave ships and taken to America as early as 1502, not 1619 as proclaimed by President Addo-- history from the British’s perspective. Let’s not exclude enslaved African ancestors who arrived in Mexico and South Carolina long before other Africans were brought to Virginia (W. Katz).

Are the Ascendants of African ancestors being excluded? As Maya Angelou once stated as it pertains to early repatriates in Ghana, which Angelou was among them-- “tolerated a lot to be ignore.” (T. Lubabu). The saga continues.

Some African diasporans have repatriated and there are others planning to repatriate to Ghana (Africa). How can an African nation ignore or exclude the Ascendants of Africans who were enslaved as they return to the scenes of the crime, which is right in Ghana’s government’s backyard — slave castles/dungeons (Ascendants charged entry fees), slave markets, and an area of West Africa once known as the “hub of slavery”? And, then to add insults to injury-- deny full citizenship after a grueling over 400 year abduction and brutal enslavement—this is not only repeating slave market piracy behavior, but exclusion, and it is unacceptable.

There must be a healing process, reconciliation committee and a developed African-centered education.

Solution: Communicate with the office of Diasporan Affairs Office concerning Ascendants of Africans who were enslaved repatriation process, which should not be handled by a private organization no more than the slave castles/dungeons should be and the handling of Ghanaian diasporans by a private group?; and

Minister of Education and NaCCA (National Council for Curriculum and Assessment), inform them ourstory/history is to be taught in classrooms and written in textbooks from an African-centered perspective, and students must be taught how to apply the learning to African cultures and Black economic empowerment (see C. G. Woodson), which would bring an end to such exclusion and misconceptions.

References:

Katz, W. L. (1974). Eyewitness: The Negro in American history. Belmont, CA: Pitman Publishing Corporation.

Maya Angelou’s meeting with Africa by Tshitenge Lubabu (2011)

https:www.theafricareport.com/7921/maya-angelous-meeting-with-africa/amp/

Dr. K. Makeda Muhammad is a ‘Repatriate’ a returnee to Africa via Ghana in 2011. Dr. Makeda’s field of study is Black Studies; she is an educator, writer, Pan Africanist, community activist, and social media freedom fighter.