NEIGHBOR NEWS PAN-AFRIKAN NEWS SERVICE WWWW.NEIGHBORPROGRAM.ORG @CMB.NEIGHBORPROGRAM | @NEIGHBORNEWSPPR
Neighbor Program News Service Vol. 44 Feb , 2024
Table of Contents
Poetry - 3 MXA Update - 4 Events - 5 We Honor Our Ancestors - 6 Free Em All - 7 Art & Culture - 8 Neighbor Series - 9 Politic & Acknowledgments - 10
Land Acknowledgement WE ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THE NISENAN PEOPLE ARE STILL HERE AMONG US TODAY, THOUGH NEARLY INVISIBLE. WE UNDERSTAND THAT WE ARE ON NISENAN LAND THAT WAS NEVER CEDED AND THE ORIGINAL TRIBAL FAMILIES HAVE YET TO RECOVER FROM THE GENOCIDE OF THEIR PEOPLE. AS A RESIDENT OR VISITOR IN NISENAN LAND, WE SUPPORT THE NEVADA CITY RANCHERIA NISENAN TRIBE IN EFFORTS TO STABILIZE THEIR PEOPLE AS WELL AS THEIR CAMPAIGN TO RESTORE FEDERAL RECOGNITION.
January Updates 688 grocery boxes 2 breakfast distro’s 8 mindfulness classes 2 community learnings MXA Field Trip 2 Oakland
Thank You
Your support allows us to continue our work for the community
poetry I Always Loved School But School Never Loved Me I always loved school But school never loved me It never taught me how to cope with my issues Outside of gettin As & Bs I always loved school But school never loved me My daddy taught me to love to learn But school really didn’t want my curiosity I remember being told what to think And what I should believe in Regurgitating white lies Equals academic achievement I remember being shamed for not knowing 69 was more than just math I was in the 4th grade But I can still remember that yard duties laugh U see Im starting to learn I always loved school But school never loved me I remember my teacher giving me an F Because we couldn’t afford a PC
MXA writing letters to Sekou Odinga
The paper must be printed He pointed to the rubric Mine is typed So what if I used a type writer to do it? This is a 0 My teacher said with a smirk You can still pass You’ll just have to do some extra work With tears in my eyes I walked out that class The next time I walked in My pops was on that teacher ass I always loved school But school never loved me I remember pigs walking through the halls Dogs & straps, punkin a buncha teens I remember the questions I wanted to pose Almost always disrupt the flow Asked nancy in band class Why the dems wasn’t doing more?
giants cast shadows large enough to rescue you from your prison as you stare in wonder at the ones they’ve escaped from time and time again giants leave their footprints behind like craters in the sand stand back and watch us build sandcastles loving glimmers in their eyes giants hold everything we can’t and let us stand below them to pick whatever they drop if and when they can no longer hold the things alone giants are all around me i wonder if they know… i am becoming a giant because of what they’ve told me sekou. - mel
The ways I wanted to learn Fell outside of their lines But daddy said play the game Learn all the tricks to the oppressors mind So I studied all the things they said made them great & dissected all facts & seen it was all fake I always loved school But school never loved me & maybe that’s why I have never felt free I have never ever known a school built from love A school that would tell you Baby you’re enough So maybe that’s why Me & my niggas built a school Because now our school loves us & it’s pretty damn cool
MXA at the beach!
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max recap Our first week back in January, we grounded back into our purpose as a community school with a review on the Oakland Community School.
Using what we learned, we
started to plan for our own student justice committee at MXA.
We also learned
about the Heart of the Earth Survival school which was an Indigenous-led community school program. We had a great photography lesson with Mr. Kachiside and continued boxing. We did a STEAM experiment as a group, and finally, we spent time honoring Sekou Odinga by writing him get well letters and then reflecting on his legacy after his passing on Friday morning. The following week, we focused on learning about kkkolonialism. We watched the movie, Home, and talked about how the themes from that moview related to kkkolonialism. We also spent time in geography learning about the 13 original kkkolonies on the East Coast. We wrapped up our week with a field trip to Oakland! While there, we visted the West Oakland Mural Project museum where Ms. Jil led us through a scavenger hunt of the Black Panther Party’s Survival Programs and talked about the Women of the Black Panther Party mural. We also were joined by Mama Kim while we visited the Black Panther Party Museum where former OCS teacher and elder, Ms. Asali shared her reflections on the Oakland Community School exhibit. During week 3, we focused on learning about Chattel Slavery. We watched the movie, Nightjohn, and talked about the overall conditions of slavery. We did an Ms. Asali with the babies at the OCS Exhibit.
interactive activity about the Transatlantic Slave Trade and did some creative writing/reflection on the conditions and impact of Afrikans being enslaved.
We had to cut the week short because a lot of our learners and learning guides ended up sick and, especially given the COVID19 epidemic, we wanted to continue to promote safety first at MXA. We encouraged familied to spend the rest of the week at home watching videos about the various ways enslaved Afrikans resisted and to practice boxing at home as a core principal we espouse is self-defense. And to end January we focused on learning about kkkapitalism! We watched The Lorax and discussed how kkapitalism showed up in the movie and ways we see it happening in our community. We played a econmy simulator where scholars examined kkkapitalism and socialism and reflected on how kkkapitalism effects people’s basic human rights. This allowed us to transition into our political prisoner lesson, where we spent time listening to Veronza Bowers music, reading his words and writing him happy birthday letters. We also spent time working on our self-defense skills at the Big Park, after which left us with plenty of free play time!
above:MXA babies at West Oakland Mural Project below: MXA babies at the Big Park practicing boxing left: MXA scholars write letters to Veronza Bowers
Events
Community learning Mindfulness Program Every Monday @ 6:30pm @Functional Elements
Community Learning Every 2nd & 4th Monday @7pm @ the Shakur House
Mindfulness
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ancestors
we honor our ancestors. earlier this year, another elder - revolutionary baba sekou odinga - transitioned to becoming an ancestor. sekou was a giant and i feel privileged to have been able to work alongside him even briefly in our presence within the Spirit of Mandela International Tribunal which found the so called united states guilty on 5 counts of genocide in 2021. sekou never stopped struggling for the people. and amidst his struggle he also found joy, and community and love. following a fall semester where showing love and respect to our friends was a big theme, we decided to go back to reading r/evolution is love every morning. at the end of our reading one of the babies shouted “assata!” completely on her own accord. i almost cried lol. that same day, we told our students the story of sekou odinga and his relationship to assata. our team talked to the babies about why we value sekou and how we see ourselves in the stories of these great revolutionaries. how they are our heroes. when it came time to write him get well letters, there was no fight from any of them (a wildly unheard of phenomenon at our school). unfortunately, sekou transitioned that next morning and i learned the news right as i was preparing to email them over to his wife. the timing felt spiritual in a way. the next day we told our learners that sekou had passed and we mourned together as a community. our fourth (and my niece’s favorite community agreement) is we honor our ancestors and because of that. we’d talked with the kids about how that also means we honor our revolutionary elders. as we closed out january, we decided as a team that that means moving forward, letter writing will be a weekly part of our curriculum and will lay a consistent foundation for our Political Prisoner program moving forward. what resonated for me from the team group chat as we continue to send off a man who i admire deeply and whose story i’m glad will be kept in the hearts of our mxa babies: “Inshallah his transition to an ancestor brought him peace ”
Free Em All
Gather your people! Boost this call for support. Call and email! Virginia Department of Corrections: Chadwick S. Dotson, Director Phone: (804) 674-3081Email : chadwick.dotson@vadoc.virginia.gov Virginia Department of Corrections: Kyle Rosch, Interstate Compact Liaison (responsible for Rashid’s transfers) Phone: (804) 887-8404 Email: kyle.rosch@vadoc.virginia.gov Glenn Youngkin, Virginia State Governor Phone (804) 786-2211. Email: glenn.youngkin@governor.virginia.gov Sample script: “Hello, I am calling in support of Kevin “Rashid” Johnson and the hunger strikers at Red Onion State Prison. I am deeply concerned about the continuing brutality and use of long-term solitary that people inside and outside have been protesting. I am also deeply concerned to hear that Rashid is not receiving appropriate care for his prostate cancer and congestive heart failure. Please transfer Rashid to a facility with a medical center that can address his conditions. Thank you.”
Please keep your eyes and ears on what is happening at Virginia’s Red Onion State Prison. Accounts differ depending upon your sources, of course the fascist Virgina Department of Corrections claims only 7 people are on a hunger strike and are isolated incidents while reports from inside bring numbers near 30 participants of the strike. Those supporting the hunger strike are asking for the end of illegal solitary confinement practices and universal basic human rights such as proper healthcare, especially for those with serous conditions such as Rashid. while we know the pigs wil do all in their power to lie and paint the picture it is up to us to support our siblings who are trapped inside these plantation/concentration camps. at the end of January, Rashid was taken to court by prison officials to be declared incompetent in an attempt to force feed him and violently end his hunger strike . Rashid was able to win his case but since then VA Department of Corrects has removed his inmate number and record from their system. this would. Eans he was being transferred typically but neither his supporters nor his lawyer has been able to contact him., nor been given information about his location. This is especially dangerous given Rashid’s health conditions, in fact many of the hunger strikers have underlying health conditions making this strike particularly dangerous. These people are putting their lives and health on the line for a chance to have their voices be heard!
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arts & culture I don't think Sacramento understands how different things are going to feel without @the_brickhousegallery and Miss Barbara here. 14 years she gave us and in those 14 years it was one of the few spaces I spent time in that I felt at home. Comfortable.Welcome. Miss Barbara don't play. She's one of the realest people l've ever met. And she's consistently been one of the realest and most wonderful people to grace Sacramento with her presence. Her vision. All that she created and the space she provided. And l've considered myself personally blessed (and if you know me you've heard me say this) to know that she supported me in the work I did over the years. And she did the same for so many others. If she believed in you. That was it. You were going to make it happen. And after 14 years. As sad as I am that she and Brickhouse won't be there... I'm so excited for the next step on her journey. And best believe imma stalk her in a couple weeks at Sugar Mill for the BHM art showing. It behooves all of you to do the same. Where would we, this wild community of artists, be without you, Miss Barbara? I'm grateful that I didn't have to find out. I love you. We love you. Thank you for everything.
We would like to take some time to thank Ms. Barbara Range for all of her work, guidance, love and support! although Oak Park will forever feel the loss of the Brickhouse Art Gallery as a space haven for revolutionary art and resistance; the history left behind, the memories and the spirit of what Ms. Barbara built will forever live in our hearts and in the heart and soul of Oak Park. Neighbor Program and Malcolm X Academy have a deep history and relationship with the Brickhouse - from housing our first inperson political education/community learning classes, to the 55th Black Panther Party Celebration, our first Malcolm X Day, our Soulful Sunday Brunch, to countless walking field trips; the Brickhouse has always been a second home. One we are eternally grateful for. Ms. Barbara - We love you and salute you and your love and service to the people, the city and more specifically The P. The Shakurs’
— Liv Styler via Instagram
Neighbor series Pan-Afrikan Parenting: R/evolution Is Love Jordan McGowan Parenting is tough - but being an Afrikan parent inside of empire? Sheesh. It’s a full time job just trying to keep our babies away from the constant kkkapitalist propaganda that seems to be EVERYWHERE. And honestly, as much as I want to believe I always resist it, I don’t. I always wanna buy my daughters Jordan’s, or some jewelry. My boys are getting into(also read as stealing mine) shoes and clothes, and I remember going through these phases myself. I remember my daddy wearing the same pair of Levi’s for damn near my whole life, I remember how he taught me to take care of my things. But as a kid I just remember feeling like I didn’t have enough. I remember one birthday in high school my pops gifted me a graphing calculator that I needed for school because that was the only time he could afford it. Now, by no means did I have nothing; my pops always made sure I had all the sports equipment necessary for me to compete at my best. But I am also learning, as a father myself, the ways in which who he was gave me privileges in my life. I see that with my babies now, and I am so thankful for it. My babies get to experience things and met people and been loved on folx that I know when they are grown they will forever cherish. One of things that me and my oldest have learned to cherish is our time in the car together. He lives with me but visits his mom who lives a few hours away on the weekends, so we spend a lot of time in the car together. It gives us time to talk, to laugh, to cry, to fight, to make up, to freestyle and recently to begin writing a music project together. It’s teaching both of us so much; about each other, about how similar we are, how to be creative, how to silly, how to communicate ideas, how to dream, how to create. It’s so beautiful, and for me it’s something that allows us to be learning about what it is we believe in - and that’s love. I am able to witness my son gain confidence in his voice to speak his truth, and what I am seeing is that he sees and believes that r/evolution is love. My oldest daughter, that girl KNOWS r/evolution is love. When I say she KNOWS it, that girl KNOWS it. She is still learning to read but she has almost memorized the whole poem. When Assata says “r/evolution means protecting the people. the plants. the animals. the air. the water.” baby girl is trying to protect the people. the plants. the animals. the air. the water. She’s ready to fight the older boys at school because they don’t like the cat that had adopted our house. She makes sure the cat is fed, and she builds the cat a house almost every day. Her art depicts how much we love our people, and particularly our babies, and how serious it is that we fight for them. It alarms or shocks some adults, even mom(my wife) at times, but me and her aunties see it - she understands what it means to love our people. She is still so shy though, she has her voice and it is so strong and loud, but she only wants to use it in front of the people she trusts right now. She isn’t sure enough yet to be proud of her voice no matter what, but she is getting there, and that growing process has been so beautiful to see. My children’s breathing practices is something I have become so grateful to witness as well. In the middle of my son’s intense basketball game he was fouled and with big free throws on the line, I watched him take 3 deep breaths before making both free throws. Now, again maybe to you that’s normal but I know my 11 year old scorpio child and that nigga can have BIG emotions. And to watch him, on his own take those breaths made me understand that it is working; despite all the rolled eyes and big sighs we have gotten at school when we practice our breathing, it is paying dividends. Despite my background in sports, my son still has a hard time believing, or maybe better listening, to my advice on how to best pursue his athletic ambitions but one thing we do together is watch games and break them down, no matter the sport. After his games last week, we watched the NFL playoffs, and it gave us a chance to breakdown a lot. My son cries about the refs a lot in his games, something I can’t stand and tell him to play and let his coach and/or the stands handle that. So watching the AFC game we talked about the economy of pro sports and how the chiefs were the more favorable/marketable team for the NFL because of the Taylor Swift effect and Mahomes. But it also gave us a chance to dive into the “Black Quarterback” conversation and colorism and even how Mahomes has a european partner, while Lamar Jackson is a dark skin, hair braided Afrikan, who doesn’t seek to speak the kkkolonizers language “properly” in a Chocolate City. My son began to question the fairness in some of the flags, despite being a Chiefs fan. We spoke about how these leagues are a business which was great because the following week at school we discussed kkkapitalism. In one of the lessons, scholars were given job roles and asked to pay rent, bills, and the things to live. In the simulation, my son randomly got the athlete role, but quickly learned that despite his larger salary than most of the other players, he was still simply a worker in the trap of kkkapitalism. He had began to understand how even pro athletes are not above the ramifications of speaking out and why some choose to be quiet. I can see him doing the work to wrestle with those contradictions and that makes me proud. My youngest, well that baby is our reminder that “we will fight if we are forced to, but the fundamental goal of r/evolution must be peace.” Getting ready to turn three in a few days, her emotional intelligence is out of this world. And despite all the best loves she can give, she can also be our most fierce fighter when it’s time to do something. “Me no want to do that!”, “but I don’t want to”, “no”; the other day she even told her sister “you don’t have to be so rude about it” and her mom “I’m mad at you for brushing my hair when I didn’t want to.” But the conversations we are able to have with our almost three year old about autonomy and needs is a gentle reminder “r/evolution means respecting and learning from your children.” Parenting is hard y’all. But intentional parenting through a pan-afrikan lens can be especially difficult given our terrain. But I encourage all of our people to spend time to actively and intentionally parent our babies away empire and to draw out the contradictions for them. Do not allow our babies to be sucked into the illusion empire paints. We must paint our own pictures for our babies, so they too can paint, not only their truths but our future as well.
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Acknowledgements
Support the
Special thanks to all who contributed their time, labor, effort and work to this February issue of Neighbor Newspaper.
Shakur House
Thank you to Nicole Crawford, mel olugbala, RaiiN Ali, Dejay Bilal, Shane Williams, the MXA babies, Mama Kim,
Community Movement Builders and EVERYONE working towards Afrikan Liberation! Afrika WILL Unite!
Scan the QR code to visit our GoFundMe page
Community Agreements By MXA (@916MXA) We show love and respect to our friends - Tunaonyesha upendo na heshima kwa marafiki zetu We communicate with our friends - Tunawasiliana na marafiki zetu We know being here is enough - Tunajua kuwa hapa We honor our ancestors - Sisi ni heshima ya mababu zetu We are leaders - Sisi ni viongozi We breathe when we have big feelings - Tunapumua tunapokuwa na hisia kubwa We keep our space clean - Tunaweka nafasi yetu safi We try hard things - Tunajaribu mambo magumu We eat together - Tunakula pamoja
10 Point Program & Platform 1. WE WANT freedom. We want power to determine the destiny of our Afrikan and Indigenous Communities. 2. WE WANT full employment for the people. 3. WE WANT an end to the robbery by the kkkapitalist of our Afrikan and Indigenous Community domestically and globally. 4. WE WANT decent housing, fit for the shelter of human beings. 5. WE WANT education for our People that exposes the true nature of this decadent amerikkkan society. We want education that teaches us our true history and our role in the present-day society. 6. WE WANT the abolition of the Military-Industrial Complex 7. WE WANT an immediate end to POLICE BRUTALITY and MURDER of the People. 8. WE WANT freedom for all Afrikan People held in federal, state, county, and city prisons and jails. 9. WE WANT abolition! We believe the carceral system is inherently racist and that there are better alternatives to reduce harm. 10.WE WANT land, bread, housing, education, clothing, justice and peace. And as our major political objective, a new world where radical love for human beings is found and the land is given back to its indigenous People. Peace, Love, Freedom, All Power to the People
AFRIKA UNITE!!! The 10 Point Platform & Program was written by Huey P Newton & Bobby Seal in 1966 & was the guiding ideological base for the Black Panther Party. Neighbor Program has adopted the 10 Point Platform & Program & edited some language based off guidance provided by elders to affirm the people's victory.
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