Kofi's Inauguration Journal: Part I

Last week Barack H. Obama was sworn in as the 44th President of the United States. His part was well orchestrated and quite dramatically portrayed on an international stage. With the exception of John Roberts misstep during the swearing in ceremony it appeared to go off without a hitch.

When Obama's in town it's as if a hurricane just landed. Thousands of people rallied to his cause during his presidential campaign. Millions attended his inauguration and now the hopes of the nation rest at his doorstep. Will he be up to the challenge? Will the Congress back him to the hilt or will his flower wilt and die along with the hopes of the nation.

I was in D.C. for the inauguration with my oldest daughter, Miri Muhammad and Rita Rogers, a teacher from Stewart Africentric Elementary School in Akron, OH. Our first night in town we attended the African Inaugural Ball at the Hilton hotel in Silver Springs, MD.; a well attended international affair. The program and the participants were from numerous countries on the three most populous continents in the world. Africa was well represented, of course, but there were also guests from the U.S. and the U.K. as well.

The entertainment on Sunday evening derived from Africa, and the Americas. Countries represented included Canada, Zimbabwe, Senegal, Nigeria, USA and Kenya. The organizers of the event are US residents from Nigeria. Featured performers of the evening included a Nova Scotian African dance troupe and Emma I.K. Agu, a Nigerian singer who regaled us with his rendition of "Obama: the Wind of Change." Marcia Griffiths, one of Bob Marley's back-up singers, ended the evening with her hit song "Electric Slide." Everyone had a good time dancing the night away.

Following the Ball we went around the corner to Langon Ethiopian restaurant, where we enjoyed a well deserved meal of beans and vegetables. This was to be the first of a number of Ethiopian establishments we visited that evening. At each location we visited the excitement level was high and everyone was planning on attending the ceremonies the next day. It appears that Obama has broken down many of the barriers and eliminated many of the stereotypes of Black American men.

We spent the day before the inauguration and inauguration day in and around the National Mall. The day before the inauguration we visited the Pavilion below the Old Federal Post Office and traced part of the parade route down Pennsylvania Avenue, all the way to the North side of the White house to the see the presidential reviewing stand. Spirits were high and the atmosphere was congenial. People were in town from all over the world, not just the U.S. We got to meet many of these people and recorded their stories. It seemed like everyone was a vendor or a news reporter. There were armies of both in town for the swearing in ceremony.

Traveling to and from the mall was a breeze on the Metro. I was glad that we planned to stay with friends who had the foresight to plan ahead and purchase our commemorative passes in advance. The lines to get any kind of pass at the station were extremely long. But, with our prepaid passes we breezed right on through to the lower level where we got on board a train to the Federal Triangle station.

The next day we arrived at the Metro station at about 4am. The rush to get to the National Mall had already begun. Cars were lined up to get into the Park & Ride lot at the Old Branch Metro station. We managed to skirt some of it, by coming in another entrance. But, long lines would be the rule from then on out.

We had been told not to bring folding chairs, ice chests, back packs or even a thermos because of security concerns. So, upon exiting the Metro station the first thing we did was go to Star Bucks, where we encountered 2 uniformed Secret Service agents in line to get their morning cup of Joe. However, when we actually got to the National Mall very little of the security we had been expecting was in place. We arrived at the ninth street entrance at about 6:30am and waited patiently for the gate to open at 7:00am.

The crowd continued to grow larger by the minute. Everyone was in high spirits and on several occasions started up an Obama campaign chant, "Fired Up, Ready to Go!" As the crowd continued to grow several people passed out. In order to get to them the authorities sent a truck directly into the crowd. This caused a lot of confusion. A few cool heads prevailed and disaster was averted not once, but twice as the first vehicle was followed by a Humvee going the opposite direction. Soon after these incidents concluded we expected the gate would open, however we were informed that we needed to go to another gate on 14th Street.

We headed down the street to the appointed gate, but before we arrived someone in the crowd saw a gate that was open near the Smithsonian Castle. It was an unmanned gate hanging wide open. No metal detectors, no TSA officers, nothing but an open gate to the inauguration. People streamed through that gate with metal folding chairs and anything else they cared to bring with them. We had diligently come with only what was officially allowed according to information on the Secret Service website. Among the items we did bring with us were included three blankets. Each of us carried one of these blankets to the Mall.

Once we reached the Mall things went pretty smoothly. We found ourselves a spot with a good view on the hill around the Washington Monument and laid out some of our blankets. Rita and I headed across the street to the National Museum of American History (NMAH) to get warm. We were met there by throngs of people with the same idea. Here we did have to go through the pretense of security. But, by the time we arrived there at 9am the museum was packed to overflowing, seriously beyond capacity.

We stayed in the museum until 11:30am, before we finally ventured back out onto the Mall. By this time it was impossible to cross 15th street to return to the base of the Washington Monument and there was a huge crowd in front of the Capitol. so, we reconciled ourselves to a clearing near a jumbotron on the Mall just outside of the NMAH. This turned out to be a good spot, as we had plenty of room around us and an unobstructed view.

No sooner had we stepped on the Mall many of the noted dignitaries made their grand entrance, including Malia and Sasha. Cheers rose up from the crowd at the mention of their names. Then Joe Biden took his oath and the crowd roared with delight. Last, but not least it was Obama's turn to take the stage. Right before he took the oath of office Cellist Yo-Yo Ma, violinist Izhak Perlman, pianist Gabriella Montero and clarinetist Anthony McGill performed a special piece composed especially for the inauguration of Barack Obama entitled "Air and Simple Gifts." We are not told that what we heard was actually a recorded rendition of the piece, as it was too cold to keep their instruments in tune. Obama took the oath and gave his inaugural address and the crowd dispersed.

Many of them did as we did and reentered the NMAH. The cold was bone-chilling, penetrating our outer garments in short order. All of the Smithsonian buildings were open that day. It purportedly cost the Inaugural Committee approximately $700,000 for these accommodations and was well worth it. Many of us would not have made it through the day without the respite offered us by the Museum complex.

Our plan was to give people a chance to exit the Mall before heading to the nearest Metro station, which on that day was at Le Enfant Plaza. We had found a cafe in the NMAH and decided 12:30pm was a good time to get something to eat. There are 2 cafes in the NMAH. We decided to go to the largest one on the Lower Level. There was a long line there, but it moved quickly. We went through the line and got our food.

The place was packed with people like ourselves from various places. Some of the most interesting people we met during our stay were seated at our table. One woman we met had been to the March On Washington, The Poor People's Campaign of 1968, three inaugurations and numerous other major events on the Mall. Everyone agreed the camaraderie was the main attraction for the day, not the swearing in ceremony, not the celebrities or the media, but the everyday people who willing and patiently shared their stories, they were the main attraction.

Announcing publication of, "Blakfacts Volume 1"

Featuring updated facts about President-elect Barack Obama!!!

It's been a long time coming, but it's finally ready for prime time. "Blakfacts Volume 1" is a compendium of notable facts in the history of the African diaspora. You'll encounter heroes and sheroes; warriors and peacemakers; presidents and popes. In fact there's no telling what kind of folks you'll encounter.

This book is for young and old! You'll learn about things your teacher never told you in school. They say,

"those who do not know their history are destined to repeat it!"

This fully illustrated volume is the first in a series of books which will broaden the horizons of its readers. If you thought you knew something about African American history, think again.

As the editor of this series, based on the research of J.A. Rogers and the illustrations of A.S. Milai, I am particularly proud to present this unique offering to the children of today following the most auspicious occasion of the election of the first Black President of the United States, in the 21st century.

Buy it now by selecting this live link to PayPal's secure server. PayPal can accept Mastercard, Visa, Discover, American Express and other forms of payment. Take advantage of our low introductory price.

Shipping is free and tax is included!

For those of you unfamiliar with eBooks, you will be sent a link to your eMail address within 24 hours of your payment, which will allow you to download this digital book and print it out in its entirety or one page at a time.

This book is recommended for children and adults alike. The short bios are no more than 1-2 paragraphs and there are numerous illustrations on each page to engage your readers. They're perfect for ages 8 and up. Download your copy now and give them away as Kwanzaa gifts! Use the colorful depictions on the cover to inspire further research by your students.

Please feel free to suggest new subjects for upcoming volumes.

Yours Truly,

Kofi Khemet, M.Ed.
Editor and Researcher

All Hail Commander-in-Chief Obama!!

President Obama

Another long campaign comes to an end. We now know what we may have been unsure of yesterday. The most powerful man in the world is a Black man! The Obamas will soon be occupying the White House, not as a butler and maid, but as the residents of the house.

This is a significant occurrence in American history, but not like some of us may think. "Race" has been a significant issue during this run for the White House. However, this is not the first time an African American has occupied the White House!! According to J.A. Rogers, their have been 4-5 African American presidents already! Now, just in case you missed this lesson during American history class I'll give you a quick recap.

In 1963 Attorney-General Robert Kennedy and Senator Jacob Javits stated:

"there might be a Negro President in the next thirty or forty years, FACT, most outspoken of the big magazines, replied there was already one and in its January-February, 1964 issue had an article 'America's First Negro President.' It named Warren G. Harding as the one and had affidavits from elderly whites who knew the Harding family.

But before Harding three other Presidents had been loudly proclaimed by white people as being of Negro ancestry . . . . Thomas Jefferson, Andrew Jackson and Abraham Lincoln."

J. A. Rogers published a small booklet entitled "The Five Negro Presidents: according to what white people said they were" in 1965, offers up more evidence to back up these claims. Oftentimes, these claims of the first Black this and the first Black that is not only overblown, but is actually incorrect.

Ask anyone who the first African American in professional baseball was and they'll readily cite Jackie Robinson. When were the first "Freedom Rides?" Of course, everyone knows they occurred in the 1960's. Who was the first Black Astronaut? That's an easy one, Guion Bluford. However, when we go back and check the records we find that Moses "Fleetwood" Walker preceded Jackie Robinson by about 50 years. The first "Freedom Rides?" Well, as a matter of fact my cousin's husband went on the "Journey of Reconciliation," with Bayard Rutsin and other members of CORE in 1948. This was a test of an interstate transportation law enacted by President Truman outlawing segregation in interstate transportation. Last, but not least, Guion Bluford, one of our best and our brightest was preceded by Capt. Edward J. Dwight, Jr. who entered an astronaut training program in the early 60's.

As you can see from this short list, it can be a lot more difficult to nail down some of these so-called firsts than is apparent at first glance. I have purposely left a lot unsaid. My feeling is that in order to really know something it's best if you find it out for yourself. I will be returning to this topic as we continue to cover the story of Barack Obama, which has become decidedly presidential at this point.

Obama Delivers Closing Argument: Assassination Plot Foiled!

Today Senator Barack Obama wrapped up the presidential campaign that began "on the steps of the Old State Capitol in Springfield, Illinois, "with his "closing argument," delivered to a full house at the Canton Memorial Civic Center in Canton, Ohio. His closing argument summed up the current state of the campaign and, I'm sure, inspired many residents of Northeast Ohio to continue to work even harder to put him in the White House, on November 4th, 2008.

Even as the diverse crowd basked in the words of the presidential candidate, plans to implement the "final solution" for African Americans, Barack Obama in particular, were being foiled by federal agents in Jackson, Tennessee. This makes the 4th assassination attempt on Baracks life, that's been publicized, since he began his campaign on the steps of the Old State Capitol.

The first incident was the sabotage of his plane by deploying one of the emergency ramps while the plane was in flight, creating a situation where the plane was very difficult to control. Luckily, the pilots were seasoned enough to land the plane without further incident. Aviation authorities said they'd never had an incident like this occur.

The second incident occurred just before the Democratic Convention in Denver, when a conspiracy was uncovered amongst a well armed group of young, White, methamphetamine users in Denver, CO. For those of you unfamiliar with methamphetamines, people who use them become extremely violent and prone to uncontrollable fits of violence.

The third incident was particularly perplexing because it had nothing to do with a White supremacy philosophy or organization. In fact, it involved the grandson of the publisher of one of the oldest African American newspapers in the country, who already had a felony rap sheet. Therefore, he should be doing some hard time.

But, this latest incident, which happened today, involved some White supremacists. In all of these cases, with the exception of the very first incident, heavy firearms and protective gear was involved. However, from the commentary that aired on MSNBC on the "Countdown with Keith Olberman" it appears that this too will be swept under the rug.

Each of these incidents, with the exception of the first one, was serious enough to illicit conspiracy charges and lengthy jail time for the perpetrators. However, we've yet to hear of even one of these cases resulting in a trial, and or jail time. In fact, what we have heard is that the conspirators have been sent home as if to say "boys will be boys." This is not gonna fly, not today, not tomorrow, not ever!

As if all that wasn't enough we also had another incident occur earlier this week involving a young woman who claimed that a "big Black man robbed, assaulted and disfigured her" in part, because she was a supporter of John McCain. This was a ridiculous claim, which was not investigated by the McCain staff, but was instead taken at face value, as evidenced by the calls of support from McCain and his running mate. Even after the young lady confessed to having made a fraudulent claim, which could have led to violent attacks being perpetrated on innocent people McCain has yet to address the issue.

This is a pattern that we've taken note of over the course of the campaign. In fact, the whole tenor of the McCain campaign is having the effect of enabling or endorsing this type of activity. The calls for "Obama's head," the crys of "kill him" when his name is mentioned at McCain rallies have not been addressed by the McCain campaign.

Black folks take these threats seriously. The response of White people is not that these are serious incidents but, rather just some "young knuckleheads." For Black folks these threats are much more serious than White people can even imagine because, many of us have had members of our families discriminated against, threatened with physical violence, murdered and lynched. In many instances we've experienced these things ourselves.

Our wealth, celebrity, educational background, etc. do not usually come into play when these incidents occur. It's the rare exception when our social status comes to our aid. In the case of O.J. Simpson we saw a good example of social status and wealth coming to his aid. Everything about the way he was dealt with was atypical, from the "slow speed" chase to his arrest following the chase. The whole thing was tightly choreographed, all according to the book. It was nothing like the Rodney King incident where he was in a high speed chase and was mercilessly beaten by some of L.A.'s finest.

If his beating hadn't been caught on tape by an amateur videographer he would have just been another number in the system. So, when these kinds of threats are issued, no matter how amateurish they may seem Black people take them very seriously. The federal authorities need to take these incidents just as seriously, because there have been too many nameless African Americans that have been murdered by "amateur" White supremacists. These, so-called amateurs, oftentimes are trying to make a name for themselves and, in fact, could care less whether or not they are killed in the process. Either way, they figure they're going into the history books as die-hard patriots who went down for the count.

Everyone who's interested in seeing Obama actually occupy the White House needs to write a letter to their state representatives and the local newspapers effectively putting them on notice. We should not delay, not even one day in carrying out this task, Obama's life could hang in the balance.

This is an issue that has not and will not be dealt with in any significant way by the media, unless we call them on the carpet. They've shown us this repeatedly, by how they've dealt with all of the incidents mentioned above (I'm getting reports of more incidents as we speak). They'd like to just sweep it under the rug and continue to talk about the issue of "race," without dealing with the reality of race that we're dealing with down here on the ground every day and that Barack and his family is dealing with every day.

All of us have been praying for them since this campaign started. So far, our prayers have been answered. But, prayer without works are futile and works without prayers are empty. We've got to combine positive action with affirmative prayers.

The Five Black Presidents of The United States of America

Joel A. Rogers and Dr. Auset Bakhufu have both written books documenting that at least five former presidents of the United States had Black people among their ancestors। If one considers the fact that European men far outnumbered European women during the founding of this country, and that the rape and impregnation of an African female slave was not considered a crime, it is even more surprising that these two authors could not document Black ancestors among an ever larger number of former presidents. The president’s names include Thomas Jefferson, Andrew Jackson, Abraham Lincoln, Warren Harding, and Calvin Coolidge.The best case for Black ancestry is against Warren G. Harding, our 29th president from 1921 until 1923. Harding himself never denied his ancestry. When Republican leaders called on Harding to deny the "Negro" history, he said, "How should I know whether or not one of my ancestors might have jumped the fence." William Chancellor, a White professor of economics and politics at Wooster College in Ohio, wrote a book on the Harding family genealogy and identified Black ancestors among both parents of President Harding. Justice Department agents allegedly bought and destroyed all copies of this book. Chancellor also said that Harding's only academic credentials included education at Iberia College, which was founded in order to educate fugitive slaves.Andrew Jackson was our 7th president from 1829 to 1837. The Virginia Magazine of History Volume 29 says that Jackson was the son of a White woman from Ireland who had intermarried with a Negro. The magazine also said that his eldest brother had been sold as a slave in Carolina. Joel Rogers says that Andrew Jackson Sr. died long before President Andrew Jackson Jr. was born. He says the president's mother then went to live on the Crawford farm where there were Negro slaves and that one of these men was Andrew Jr's father. Another account of the "brother sold into slavery” story can be found in David Coyle's book entitled "Ordeal of the Presidency" (1960).Thomas Jefferson was our 3rd president from 1801 to 1809. The chief attack on Jefferson was in a book written by Thomas Hazard in 1867 called "The Johnny Cake Papers." Hazard interviewed Paris Gardiner, who said he was present during the 1796 presidential campaign, when one speaker states that Thomas Jefferson was “a mean-spirited son of a half-breed Indian squaw and a Virginia mulatto father.” In his book entitled "The Slave Children of Thomas Jefferson," Samuel Sloan wrote that Jefferson destroyed all of the papers, portraits, and personal effects of his mother, Jane Randolph Jefferson, when she died on March 31, 1776. He even wrote letters to every person who had ever received a letter from his mother, asking them to return that letter. Sloan says, "There is something strange and even psychopathic about the lengths to which Thomas Jefferson went to destroy all remembrances of his mother, while saving over 18,000 copies of his own letters and other documents for posterity." One must ask, "What is it he was trying to hide?"Abraham Lincoln was our 16th president from 1861 to 1865. J. A. Rogers quotes Lincoln's mother, Nancy Hanks, as saying that Abraham Lincoln was the illegitimate son of an African man. William Herndon, Lincoln's law partner, said that Lincoln had very dark skin and coarse hair and that his mother was from an Ethiopian tribe. In Herndon's book entitled "The Hidden Lincoln" he says that Thomas Lincoln could not have been Abraham Lincoln's father because he was sterile from childhood mumps and was later castrated.Calvin Coolidge was our 30th president, and he succeeded Warren Harding. He proudly admitted that his mother was dark because of mixed Indian ancestry. However, Dr. Bakhufu says that by 1800 the New England Indian was hardly any longer pure Indian, because they had mixed so often with Blacks. Calvin Coolidge's mother's maiden name was "Moor." In Europe the name "Moor" was given to all Black people just as the name Negro was used in America.All of the presidents mentioned were able to pass for White and never acknowledged their Black ancestry. Millions of other children who were descendants of former slaves have also been able to pass for White. American society has had so much interracial mixing that books such as “The Bell Curve”, discussing IQ evaluations based solely on race, are totally unrealistic.1. Andrew Jackson was the first president to have an attempt on his life2. Thomas Jefferson's wealth died before he did. At his death he was living with a Black Woman, as the father of their Black Children. Wasn’t he the one who insisted on the phrase "All Men Are Created Equal"? What did those words betray? Why would a White slave owner push that theory at that time?3. Abraham Lincoln was killed in office. For almost a week while he was president, hundreds of Black people were targeted and killed on the streets of New York in response to his policy. The White rioters even killed a Black child when burning down the Colored Orphan Asylum. Dr. Vaughn writes "Lincoln's presidential opponents made cartoon drawings depicting him as a Negro and nicknamed him "Abraham Africanus the First." The picture book has the cartoon.4. Warren Harding died under unclear circumstances that could have included murder The year he was elected, the Negro Wall Street riots happened where hundreds of Black folks were brutally killed in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Rosewood, Florida’s Black community was also the target of rage killings.5. Calvin Coolidge - though he was president during the prosperous roaring 20's, never received much credit for his work and within a year after he left office the country fell apart with the stock market crash. According to Groiler "The number and variety of Coolidge's accomplishments as president were substantial. Unhappily, wiser ones were needed to meet the growing problems of the time. His major achievements--tax and debt reduction and the Kellogg-Briand Pact renouncing war--were soon made mockeries by the events of the 1930's, and his lesser accomplishments were largely forgotten with time's passage." Reads like PhD level historians have decided to kill his reputation. He was good while he was there but nine months after he left things fell apart so he wasn't that good. Nine months can unravel a lot of things. The Roaring 20's were among the best times this country ever experienced.