Nubian Message, Sept. 16, 2021 — Blackness through time

NUBIANMESSAGE NORTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY | RALEIGH, NC | THENUBIANMESSAGE.COM | Thursday, September 16, 2021

BLACKNESS THROUGH TIME

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Letter from the editor Hey y’all, It’s been another two weeks on campus and I’m still getting COVID contact emails, with no sort of idea of who actually has COVID-19. I’m not gonna lie, the fourth and fifth weeks of class have been kicking us in the a** and it’s only gonna get rougher from here.

This week’s issue includes features on the AACC’s Fall exhibit opening and the Meat NPHC cookout. We also cover a few events that happened all over the world in the past couple of weeks and how Black people are in danger from the effects of climate change.

THISISSUE 4

SANKOFA: LEARNING FROM THE PAST

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MEDIA PAGE

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MOTHER NATURE AND THE EPA

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WASSAPENED THIS WEEK

The AACC presents Sankofa an art exhibit

Everyone wants to see us dead, and we do too!

Black people endangered from climate change Events happening around the world

Basically, there’s a lot of people who want to see us dead and gone, and sometimes we feel that way too. But we’re gonna keep going because we’re getting these degrees. We’ve paid NC State way too much money to leave empty-handed!

Cover Photo Sourced from OIED

Check out our media page that features a staff playlist on this theme and another poem by Elikem.

The Sentinel of the African-American Community at NC State Since 1992

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Everybody wants to see us dead and sometimes we do too.

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Andie

Andrea/ Andie Alford (They/Them) Editor-in-Chief

nubian-editor@ncsu.edu Elikem Dodor (She/Her) Managing editor

nubian-managingeditor@ncsu.edu Arana Blake (She/They) Ugonna Ezuma-Igwe (She/Her) Layout designers

Only with the permission of our elders do we proudly produce each edition of Nubian Message: Dr. Yosef Ben-Yochannan, Dr. John Henrik Clark, Dr. Leonard Jeffries, The Black Panther Party, Mumia A. Jamal, Geronimo Pratt, Tony Williamson, Dr. Lawrence Clark, Dr. Augustus McIver Witherspoon, Dr. Wandra P. Hill, Mr. Kyran Anderson, Dr. Lathan Turner, Dr. M. Iyailu Moses, Dokta Toni Thorpe and all those who accompany us as we are still on the journey to true consciousness.

Features

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nphc hosts social to reach NCSU Community Andrea Alford Meat NPHC was a social outreach Editor-in-Chief

event hosted by the National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) at NC State. The event was hosted on Sept. 8 in the Witherspoon Student Cinema and the African American Cultural Center.

Meat NPHC was marketed as a social cookout event where students who were interested in NPHC sororities and fraternities could mix and mingle and learn more about the organizations. This setup was different from its past iterations which consisted of a Q&A session and a panel discussion on Black Greek life on campus and how to prepare yourself to complete research on interested organizations.

When speaking with members of the executive board (e-board) of NPHC, they spoke on how they hoped this event would be a chance to show the campus who the faces of NPHC are so that students could get to know them and the organizations in an informal setting.

On this topic, Jaylen-Kye Jones, the NPHC Parliamentarian, said “Meat NPHC [was] a great way for unaffiliated folks to learn about what Black Greek letter organizations are [and] what we do. But also [for students] to get to know who we are as people as well as behind the letters.”

This sentiment was shared by several e-board members, including Jala Royster, NPHC special events co-chair, "This event was to have the student body come out so they can see that all the Greeks can get along and work together to get a job done. I want everyone to see all the [organizations] just gathered together laughing, joking [and] showing that we're all friends.”

There were over 100 students at the event, which began as a mixer where interested students would talk to students in NPHC to get to know them and their organizations.

Conversations were encouraged by the emcee of the event. A few students were talking about different classes they had and various service opportunities they had completed or were looking forward to participating in.

Montray McNeil/ Nubian Message National Pan-Hellenic Council executive board members gather for a photo as the main events conclude Sept. 8 at Meat NPHC in Witherspoon Student Center.

Since NPHC is comprised of servicebased organizations, Nubian also took the chance to ask NPHC community service chair, Jada Jant, about community service and outreach initiatives.

“As a council, [NPHC] actually [does] community service every month.

This month we're [doing] community service [by] volunteering at the Black farmers market. [This year we] want to incorporate more community members in our community service, not just [our] organizations,” said Jant.

After these conversations, NPHC served a few Black cookout staples: grilled chicken, burgers, hotdogs, mac and cheese and baked beans. Many students lined up outside the African American Cultural Center in hopes to receive a plate and get some good food while continuing to learn about the organizations.

At this point, Nubian was able to catch a few more e-board members to discuss the importance of strong leadership and what to look out for this year from NPHC. Kayla Beasley, NPHC Vice President, had a few

things to say on the matter at the event.

“Being part of the e-board is just another step of leadership. Being able to help facilitate different programs, events, and be a voice to help guide and just plan. It's an opportunity to work closely with people in other [Greek organizations],” Beasley commented.

When asked about the future of NPHC for this year, the NPHC President, Alvin Mutongi, directed any interested parties to follow them on social media. The NPHC Instagram page is @ncstatenphc and the fraternity and sorority organization pages are linked there as well.

Overall, Meat NPHC was able to adapt to unexpected weather conditions to host a casual, social and informational event for interested students to discuss community service and get to know members of Black Greek life on campus.

Montray McNeill/ Nubian Message National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) members serve food to other members and campus community after socializing Sept. 8 at Meat NPHC in Witherspoon Student Center.

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Features

The African American Cultural Festival of Raleigh and Wake County Returns After a year off, the Tim African American Havens Cultural Festival of Correspondent

Raleigh and Wake County returned to bring the community together.

Last year, COVID-19 caused the annual festival to go virtual, but after moving to a new location and adding regulations to accommodate the pandemic, the festival was back for 2021.

The festivities began with Afrochella on Aug. 28 at Raleigh Union Station where a limited audience gathered outdoors to watch musical acts perform.

Events continued the following weekend of Sep. 4-5 where participants could enjoy family time at Moore Square Park or Chavis Park in the afternoon while they took in the warm summer of Raleigh. From 1-7 p.m, attendees could visit the Duke Energy Center for Performing Arts to get artwork, jewelry, clothes, soaps, oils and much more at the Vendor Village market. The vendors working the market were dreamers and leaders selling merchandise beholding powerful slogans like “I love my history” and “we don’t need their approval”. Artists looking to spread a message through the face of the subject of a painting or the tones of colors on the background of a landscape.

It was in this busy market full of inspiration, drums and dreams where the Nubian Message was able to meet and talk to local artist, art teacher, and entrepreneur Eric McCray, who was participating as a vendor selling his paintings.

Nubian Message: “How was your experience at the festival this year?”

Eric McRay: This was my first time coming as a vendor. I usually come with my family, which has become a labor day tradition for us, but this year I wanted to participate as a vendor/exhibitor and it was a smashing success… and my children found it to be uplifting, encouraging, and inspiring experience NM: What does it bring to the family?

EM: Well for me, my daughter started working with a vendor across from me from New York who was selling T-shirts. She did so well that the gentleman offered her a job at a new business he was starting! My son introduced himself to the other vendors and told them about my artwork and he ended up getting a job offer too. Keep in mind my children are only 17 and 15 but now we had

people coming to the table complimenting [Eric and his wife] on how well we raised our children. I was really impacted by… how entrepreneurial, uplifting, spiritual, unifying, positive and enlightening the environment was. My children [grew] up in Raleigh which is a wonderfully diverse community.

But I think the positivity and unity shown by the Black vendors... impacted them and may be contrary to some things they see in the media about our culture or attitudes. It really cemented a greater confidence in their community, culture and self identity.

NM: What’s it mean to be an Black artist in NC? EM: I started in the mid to late 80’s where there were little opportunities. The only events where I was able to exhibit my art was something like Black history month.

I tried to push through that to make my work available 12 months a year. There were lots of [lack] artists here that had trouble attracting a broad audience. Oftentimes people wanted to pigeonhole and demean the work of my peers and I as just for a specific crowd. I had to be a trailblazer in order to impact local communities.I’m thankful to say I did that.

NM: What is Black art?

EM: That’s tricky. For instance Martin Luther King’s statue in D.C. was made in China and the original version had to be sent back because he looked Asian Is that Black Art? Now how about if a Black artist paints a landscape with no cultural references? It’s a double- edged sword but to me any art created by African Americans is African American art.

After a day of shopping, eating and entertainment participants could end both Saturday and Sunday evening with outdoor concerts at the Duke Energy Center For Performing Arts Plaza.

Music, art, fashion, food and much more.

Whatever your interest is, the African American Cultural Festival of Raleigh and Wake County brought it all in order to bring a community together (in accordance with local safety guidelines of course).

For more on the festival visit The African American Cultural Festival of Raleigh & Wake County (aacfestival.org) For more on Eric McRay Welcome - Mid-Century Abstraction, Jazz, Coastal, and More. | Artist Eric McRay of Raleigh, NC

Sankofa: Learning From the Past To Build The Future Milan Hall Correspondent

A small room covered with the history that inspires the future. The Sankofa exhibition opened Sept. 10 at the African American Cultural Center (AACC) and it was an experience like no other.

As the doors of the exhibition opened, the guests were greeted with music and photography of important moments of Black students at North Carolina State University. The photography featured was over a range of time and conveyed varying emotions. One photograph featured NC State's first Black homecoming queen, Mary Evelyn Porterfield, being crowned in 1970. Another photograph featured the protest put on by Black students in June 2020. After guests were seated, Toni Harrison Thorpe began telling the story of the AACC. Thorpe did not just focus on the AACC’s history but also on her own personal stories from her time at NC State.

Once done telling stories about the AACC, Thorpe told the story of Sankofa.

In summary, Sankofa is constantly told that she is the most beautiful bird in her village, she receives non-stop compliments and is confident in herself. That is until her curiosity gets the best of her, and she goes outside the village to see what others think of her. Sankofa meets an all-black bird who insults her colorful feathers and calls her the ugliest bird that they have ever seen. Sankofa lost all sense of self. She is reassured by her mother and elders, who then push her to confront the bird who insulted her. Sankofa stands up for herself and the bird who insults her gets smaller and smaller until they disappear.

Thorpe engaged the audience by interacting with them as well as including humor, sadness, and confidence in her retelling of the story. This fictional story paired with the real ones of the AACC was impactful. There were some audience members who were even crying afterward.

We spoke to some of the people behind the exhibition to get a better understanding of how it came to be. The program coordinator for the AACC, Isaiah Lucas, wanted to create something that celebrates Blackness for students. Lucas spoke about the pressure that he felt as this was the first

exhibition in 2 years. He wanted to create a transformative experience for the Black community of NC State.

“Each picture in the gallery tells a story,[it] tells our story that's rooted in joy, rooted in pain.”

The event planning team chose to focus on the theme of how Black students could learn from the past to build the future.

They worked with University Libraries, Victor Betts, and Jacqueline Perry to try to capture this theme. Archival photos were used to tell a story.

Lucas states, “Each picture in the gallery tells a story, [it]tells our story that's rooted in joy, rooted in pain.”

Lucas also experienced his own pain as his father passed Sept. 7 and the passion and perseverance he showed for the exhibition are clearly reflected in it. Lucas invited Thorpe to take part in Sankofa.

Thorpe’s performance was inspired by her time at NC State, as well as the students she got to see during that time. Thorpe’s ‘memory walk’ and storytelling captured the audience and in a sense, it really was the past connecting with the present.

The exhibition seemed to leave a lasting impression on its viewers. Many people stated how they were moved after leaving the exhibition. It was a display of the history of black students at NC state. Sankofa will run through Oct. 10, 2021, from 8 a.m.

– 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, at the African American Cultural Center Gallery at Witherspoon.

Opinion

The N***as Want To Die playlist by Nubian Message Staff Everyone wants to see us dead, and we do too!

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Waiting On Time Time has shown me that my existence doesn’t matter That I am nothing but a singular pepper speck in a sea of salt

Graphic by Kyle howe

(No One Knows Me) Like The Piano Heaven All Around Me Don't Shoot

Sampha Saba Isaiah Rashad

Life's A B*tch

Nas

Six Feet Deep

Geto Boys

Eternal Sunshine Black Sheep, White Dove Life Goes On Tombstone

Jhene Aiko IDK 2Pac Rod Wave

PTSD

Dreamville

Lean

Kenny Mason

Letter To You Ghetto Angels Keep Doing What You're Doing Emotionally Scarred

Ryan Trey

That I am meaningless, worthless, and often irrational That I am just an angry Black girl filled with emotions that I’m not allowed to have That maybe, just maybe, life would be better without me in it That my life holds no significance and holds no weight here on this earth So now I just wait Waiting for the time when this will be over Praying for the time where I can finally rest

NoCap Bryson Tiller Lil Baby

-Elikem

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News

Mother Nature and The EPA send urgent warnings to the African American community

Black Americans are going to face the worst impacts of climate change according to a new prediction by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

The Report titled Climate Change and Social Vulnerability in the United States: A Focus on Six Impact Sectors predicts that Black people in the US are more likely than other races to have their livelihood negatively affected by climate change. The negative impacts will significantly worsen as the climate warms. The predictions were also grim for those in lower socio-economic classes.

The study, published nearly half a year after Michael Regan became the first Black administrator of the EPA, examines how different populations of races and ethnicities, income classes, educational backgrounds and ages will be exposed to the highest impact of change in six categories.

The categories are air quality and health, extreme temperature and health, extreme temperature and labor, coastal flooding and traffic, coastal flooding and property, and inland flooding and property. It urgently warns that Black populations are living in areas projected to face the highest effects in all six categories.

Specifically, the report states that Black populations live in areas with the highest projected increase in cases of childhood asthma, mortality rates, rates of labor hour losses for weather-exposed workers and more because of the increased temperature from changes in the climate.

Black people disproportionately suffering from health defects due to poor environmental conditions is not new. The United Nations recently expressed their concern that environmental racism is entrenched in St. James Parish, Louisiana known as “Cancer Alley'' (originally dubbed as plantation country). Here, pollution from nearby industry causes respiratory disease, cancer and other pollution-related health issues. Experts have shown that white areas of “Cancer Alley” face a significantly reduced risk and have called for reparations in environmental racism that trace directly back to slavery in the U.S.

Tim havens Correspondent

Photo SOURCED FROM CREATIVE COMMONS

States in the Southeast like Alabama and Louisiana, are ranked first and second (respectively) in the percent of population that is Black and have been devastated by storms such as Hurricane Ida. Scientists say that increased temperatures will bring storms with more rain, volatility, range, staying power and high winds.

The Congressional Black Caucus predicted these outcomes back in 2004 when they published African Americans and Climate Change: An Unequal Burden.

It stated that Black health was already disproportionately burdened due to the effects of climate change and warned of

future economic hardships. The study adds that Black people are less responsible for climate change than other Americans. It concludes by stating economic and health opportunities can arise for the Black community if the policies designed to mitigate climate change are structured with these goals in mind. Their warnings went unheard.

The Executive Branch of The Federal Government has recently acted on environmental justice by issuing Executive Order 14008, which establishes three different federal judicial organizations designed to directly improve the predicted

outcomes for Black and other disadvantaged communities. The Federal government committed to addressing climate change in the past and then left the Paris Climate Accord right after joining. They later returned four years later.

The EPA’s report makes it clear that if actions aren’t taken to mitigate the effects of climate change the Black community specifically will suffer.

Opinion

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Wassapened This Week: September 5th- 12th *Authors note* These are events that happened this week that I chose to highlight. These are in no way everything everyone needs to know.

I highly encourage Ugonna everyone to read the news Ezuma-Igwe Staff Writer themselves, from reliable sources and to develop their own opinions. My opinions have been italicized. With that being said all opinions stated in this article are my own so if you don’t like them then drink water and mind your business.

The theme of Wassapened This Week is death. We discuss dying young, remembrance of victims, COVID-19 regulations and a coup d'état.

Coup d'état

On Sunday, Sept. 5, gunfire erupted early in the morning at the capital of Guinea, Conakry. Within hours the President of Guinea Alpha Condé had been held hostage. The coup was led by Mamady Doumbouya, a Guinean military officer who is a member of the Special Forces Group. Doumbouya has said he doesn’t plan to harm the president but how long will he just let him live? Who’s heard of a person that has been overthrown living to tell the tale?

It’s almost unheard of. Doumbouya publicly announced on national television that the current constitution, government and all other institutions had been dissolved. In the video, he said that "We will no longer entrust politics to a man. We will entrust it to the people. We come only for that; it is the duty of a soldier, to save the country."

He claims he’s there to bring unity to the country yet Doumbouya was among 25 Guinean officials the European Union had been threatening to sanction for alleged human rights abuses. How you gon bring unity if you’ve been committing human rights violations? It’s giving suspicious. Africa is no stranger to coups as there have been over 200 coup attempts in Africa since the late 1950s, the beginning of African nations' struggle for independence. This coup in Guinea marks the fourth in West Africa this year as there were two coups in neighbouring Mali and succession in Chad being called a “covert coup.”

Graphic By ugonna Ezuma-igwe

Michael K. Williams

On Monday, Sept. 6, renowned actor Michael K. Williams passed away at the young age of 54. He was best known for his outstanding performances in the HBOdrama series The Wire as Omar Little and Boardwalk Empire as Albert "Chalky."

While his exact cause of death has not been confirmed, it is being investigated as a possible drug overdose. Michael had been very open about his lifelong struggle with drug addiction and credited Rev. Ronald Christian, a pastor at Christian Love Baptist Church in Irvington, New Jersey, with helping him get clean. An outpour of love came from fans and celebrities as they spoke about the impact Michael’s life and performances had on them. Michael may have passed away from an overdose but that was only part of his story. Don’t let his struggles overshadow the numerous accomplishments and influences he had on the entertainment industry. This man was ICONIC in more ways than one.

Mask Up

On Thursday, Sept. 9, President Biden announced a new federal mandate stating that all employers with more than 100 workers must require them to be vaccinated or get tested for the virus weekly. Thank God! He’s applying pressure as he should.

This mandate is expected to affect twothirds of America’s workforce which is about 100 million Americans. Companies who dare to refuse to comply could face fines for $14,000. Hahahaha. Biden’s tone has changed significantly toward Americans who continue to refuse to receive a vaccine despite multiple sources proving it’s safe.

He’s not playing with y’all. Weren’t y’all complaining that the vaccines weren't FDA approved? Well, Pfizer has now been approved. FDA town criers what are yall gonna shout about now? Biden said,“We've been patient, but our patience is wearing thin, and your refusal has cost all of us."

Biden also signed an executive order stating that all government employees must be vaccinated and that there was no option for weekly or regular testing. Biden has made an exception for workers seeking religious or medical exemptions from vaccination.

Otherwise, those who don’t comply will be sent to human resources departments for counseling and discipline, meaning you could get fired.

Remembrance

On Saturday, Sept. 11, marked the 20th Anniversary of the four coordinated terrorist attacks orcastrated by the militant Islamist terrorist group Al-Qaeda against the United States of America. Hundreds

gathered in Lower Manhattan at the National September 11 Memorial & Museum as that was where the World Trade Center's twin towers once stood as they commereated the almost 3,000 victims of these attacks. While 20 years have passed, 1106 victims have yet to be identified/ found. This means about 40% of victims' families have yet to receive the remains of their family members so they can give them a proper burial. The New York City Medical Examiner’s Office has been actively conducting the largest missing persons investigation ever undertaken in the nation.

They have been testing the 22,000 body parts recovered from the wreckage from all four attacks. I don’t care how long it takes!

If the remains of their lost family members can help these families bear their unbearable loss then the government needs to continue identifying every body part found. Also why in the h*ll is Khalid Sheikh Mohammed (He was the mastermind behind 9/11) still alive? This man literally tried to plead guilty and asked to be executed more than a decade ago yet here he is still smiling and waving on his way to his military hearing.

LATINX HERITAGE MONTH 2021

Hacia adelante Moving forward together SEP. 15 – OCT. 15 go.ncsu.edu/LHM