By Kola Edokpayi
Yesterday marked the fons et origo of Neo Blackism that was formed on Thursday the 7th day of July, 1977 on Ekenhuan Campus by nine undergraduates of the University of Benin who were concerned and aggrieved about the plight of the Black Man specifically in South Africa after the Soweto Uprising in June 16, 1976 where Secondary School Students including Hector Pieterson were shot dead by the South African Police for protesting against the introduction of Afrikaans as medium of teaching.
The Founding Fathers of the Movement were: 1. John Okogie 2. Nicholas Idemudia 3. Tokonbu Brown 4. Uche Alumona 5. Marvel Akpoyibo 6. Olagungu Ojo 7. Gbolahon Dosunmu 8. Bernard Ojishua 9. Godwin Ehigiator.
The patron was then Professor Onwuejiogwu (a professor of History and Anthropology).
The Founding Fathers of the Movement got inspirations from Revolutionary cum historical activities of Marcus Garvey, Martin Luther King Jnr, W.E.B. Du Bois, Kwame Nkurumah, Nelson Mandela, Steve Biko, Sundiata Keita, Shaka Zulu, Ewuare the Great, Oba Ovoramen and the Pan-africanist teachings of musical icons like Bob Marley, Peter Tosh cum Fela Anikulapo Kuti.
My humble message to all the colours is to come together in unison to defeat the common enemies of the pleibeians that have emasculated and subjected the people to economic quagmire and phanstasmagorism instead of fghting one another.
According to Martins Luther Kings Jr. “whenever Pharaoh wanted to prolong the period of slavery in Egypt, he had a favorite, favorite formula of doing it. What was that? He kept the slaves fighting among themselves. But whenever the slaves get together, something happens in Pharaoh’s court, and he cannot hold the slaves in slavery. When the slaves get together, that’s the beginning of getting out of slavery. Now let us maintain unity.”
ubi concordia ibi victoria.
Different Colours / One People. Unity is the way out to defeat the common enemy of the people.
Uhuru is achievable.
