Ramarni Wilfred Meet the Black Teen Genius
Africa’s Most Underrated Country NAMIBIA
Vol. 2 Issue 48, 23th July – 2nd September 2021
Takes A
! k a e r B
in conjunction with
Credit: Anna Giles
BUTTERFLY
Credit: code.likeagirl.io
From the
Editor’s desk
Speaking the truth may be controversial to some, however, it is the right thing to do.
British High Commissioner Dismisses 10-Billion Pound Reparations’ Claim
Ubuntu – I am who I am because of you
“Who do we pay it to?” Every Caribbean and African country crippled by IMF, World Bank loans, Western greed with a grip on our natural resources. Cancel the debt immediately with no penalties and then give us the money. We can look after ourselves. Work hard for what you have – it’s difficult to proudly proclaim ill-gotten gains “The people who were harmed directly are no longer here” Oh yes, we are! You destroyed our legacy, stole our names, our history and our land. Don’t insult the alligator until you’ve crossed the river Who would it be paid back by? The same people who benefitted from the £20million as compensation at the end of the slave trade and divided our continent in 1884. Their descendants sit in the Governments and Corporations today.
Dr. Claude Anderson On Reparations! All correspondence to: admin@butterflymagazine.net For Advertising enquiries contact: sales@butterflymagazine.net Butterfly Magazine is published by The Lion and the Lamb Media House Ltd, 86-90 Paul Street, London EC2A 4NE , UK. Tel: (44) (0) 203 984 9419 Butterfly ™ 2015 is the registered trademark of THE LION AND THE LAMB MEDIA HOUSE LIMITED ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Reproduction in whole orin part is prohibited without written permission fromthe publishers THE LION AND THE LAMB MEDIA HOUSE LIMITED. No copyright infringement is intended.
“Stealing a drum is easy, but finding a place to beat it is not” How can it be paid back? Go figure – You did not ask us when you were stealing it from us. “Ears that do not listen to advice accompany the head when it is chopped off” (The British High Commissioner to Jamaica)
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Fayida’s Black History in 60 Seconds
Mary Thomas: Leader of A Danish Labour Revolt
Credit: igraderecords
Pressure Virgin Island Nice
Credit: Anders Dernback
The Danish West Indies was a Danish colony in the Caribbean, consisting of the islands of Saint Thomas, Saint John, Saint Croix and Water Island. The USA purchased the islands for $25 million in 1917 and they are now called the United States Virgin Islands.
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Cover
Story
BUTTERFLY
! k a e r B A s e Tak By Karen Ferrari
KF: I am here interviewing Beverley CooperChambers, the founder and inspiration behind Butterfly Magazine. Hi, Bev! BCC: Hi there, Karen.
I just thought we’ve had a long academic journey, haven’t we? We have indeed. As your university academic mentor, we’ve been together throughout your academic life. From 2009 when we met at Birkbeck right up to present-day at De Montfort doing your PhD. I do have to share with you one of my early memories of one of our times together. It was my birthday, and you, as a complete surprise, brought me a birthday lunch. And it was the first time I’d had Caribbean homecooked food, jerk chicken, rice ‘n’ peas, and coconut water. And it was just such a unique and amazing gift from you and such a powerful memory. I said thank you at the time, but I want to thank you again because it’s a fantastic memory. Going back now to the academic journey, tell me how you’ve got here to be doing a PhD now? Well, first of all, regarding the Caribbean meal, you mentioned something about not having had a Caribbean meal before.
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Yes. My immediate thought was, “ Why not?” I’m a Jamaican woman, and preparing fantastic food is what we do well. So, I’m glad it made a good impact. A permanent memory there. I did not plan my education journey at all. I loved living in Jamaica, but it all goes down to my faith. I’m a strong Christian woman, and God said it’s time for me to leave Jamaica and come back home to England. I was born here, so I did. I remember sitting on the plane looking at the beautiful bright red, Caribbean sunset sobbing my eyes out, saying, “God, I don’t want to go, but I know I can’t stay.” At that time, I had no intention of going into education, but a ‘chance’, nothing happens by chance’ meeting in Stratford
well, we need to address that situation.” And I did it by writing a TV series, which puts Black people back into British history, not as enslaved people but serious contributors to the British landscape, making us no longer invisible.
Photo by Anna Giles
Brilliant, and you’re still doing this. When do you hope to finish your PhD? God willing, December 2022.
Shopping Mall with people promoting Birkbeck University ended up with me starting a BA in Film and Journalism. That only lasted a year before I then changed to a BA Hons in Film and Media under protest. Again, not my idea the Lord told me to do that. I realised that I only had one module on Television Storytelling but not much else on television. And so, I found myself driving to De Montfort in Leicester every week to do an MA in Television Scriptwriting. I realised there’s not a lot done with regards to Black characters, which was not stereotypical. I felt, and still do, that we need to tell our story our way, and therefore I decided, “Okay, I’m going to do a PhD. On British Television Drama and British Caribbean families.” And I use Downton Abbey as my springboard because I realised that I didn’t see any solid Black characters in there when I watched it. And I thought, “Well, there must be Black people in history at that time.” When I researched history and found out that there were, I said, “Okay,
Tell me how Butterfly Magazine came into fruition? As I started my PhD, I needed to know, “ As Black people, what are people watching?” Alright. I realised that we tended to be on YouTube with web series. We were creating our own material outside of mainstream media. When I investigated why, it was because mainstream media always wanted us to present ourselves in the way that they want us to be seen, which was not authentic but stereotypical. I decided, “Okay, that’s not going to work.” So, I started to look for Black programmes all over the world. In the Caribbean, on the African continent, or in the USA, to see what was out there back in the day, coming right up to now, and I realised the Gatekeepers of mainstream media were all singing to the same tune, not authentic but stereotypical. I started Butterfly Magazine from that point of view of introducing the groundbreaking work of Black creatives to a global audience. It did not begin as a business enterprise; it forms a basis for my research which evolved into a business.
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I just wanted to create a format that enables us to look and see what was out there. It developed into something so much more than that because I also needed to introduce all African and Caribbean countries. There was something on the news recently with presenters talking about Africa as if it is one country. It’s not. Then there’s a whole issue of highlighting Black history and TV shows and films from other countries. We did it in a digital format so that people could look at it online and watch the trailers. That went down very well. People like it. Wow. That sounds good. I just want to take you to an interview you gave to Ageing Better, which is on your website under the Founder’s Journey. In this interview, you said, and I quote, “That you wanted to make a contribution and leave a legacy.” So, is this what you see you’re doing with your PhD and Butterfly? Yes, and I can explain the legacy part. Yes. The magazine comes out every Friday. I saw my four-year-old grandson looking at it, and I asked him, “What are you doing?” And he said, “Oh, I’m just looking to see what’s in Butterfly this week.” I said, “Oh, okay.” Then he said, “So Grandma, why are you doing this magazine?” And I said, “Well, baby. I’m doing it because I need to leave a legacy for you all. So, you know where you come from, and you know your history, and you know about strong Black men and women through the years.” When I say we, I mean we, as Black people, especially Black Caribbean people, have to start creating a legacy for our children because of our history. We don’t have the legacies that other ethnic groups have. You sound incredibly busy, Bev. What do you do for relaxation if you do? Watch television. Oh, of course. I watch television, and I’m an avid reader. I love music and dancing. Everybody knows that I love reggae, gospel, and worship music. I love to spend my quiet time in prayer. 6 Transform your viewing...
Yes. Butterfly Magazine started in April 2020, and it had a lot of ups and downs. A lot of people have come, and people have gone. They primarily realised that it is not a lifestyle magazine where we’re doing the hair, fancy clothes, and gossip. It is about us reestablishing our identity. Not everybody gets it because mainstream media have programmed us to embrace their version of us and their values. Does that explain why Butterfly’s taking a break? It’s hard work doing the magazine and the PhD. I just need some time. Well-deserved by the sounds of things as well. I think I can speak probably for all of us, just to say that we look forward to Butterfly Magazine winging its way back into our inboxes in September. So, thank you so much, Bev. Lovely to talk to you. And I wish you all the very best and have a great break. You deserve it.
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Credit: BBC London
RAMARNI WILFRED
AGE 16 and A BLACK GENIUS Ramarni Wilfred went to comprehensive school and scored a remarkably high IQ. Now he wants other young Londoners to realise their potential.
Meet the Black Teen Genius With an IQ Higher Than Bill Gates and Albert Einstein 8 Transform your viewing...
DMX’s Ride or Die
Credit: TheBlackFinancialChannel.com
No Estate Plan
Your Will is Your Last Love Letter to Your Family DMX’s “fiancee” Desiree Lindstrom just got some bad news.
Making a Will Transform your viewing...
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Cinema/
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THE RIDE From the inspiring true story of extreme sports legend John Buultjens, THE RIDE follows John McCord, an athletically gifted youth who triumphs over a troubled upbringing. After a violent, racially-charged incident lands John (Shane Graham) in juvenile detention, he is finally placed with an unlikely set of foster parents, Eldridge (Ludacris) and Marianna Buultjens (Sasha Alexander), an interracial couple who want to provide a fresh start for the tormented youth. Eldridge makes it his mission to overcome the challenges of John’s white supremacist upbringing and slowly begins to forge a relationship through his foster son’s fascination with extreme sports by giving John his first bike. Rooted by this newfound passion, the family builds a bond of mutual respect, love and together they speed toward BMX glory and ultimately, redemption. Credit: Movie Coverage Transform your viewing...
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COMEBACK DAD Credit: Uptv/Amazon Prime
35 and Ticking Credit: Amazon Prime 12 Transform your viewing...
Sylvie’s Love In SYLVIE’S LOVE, the jazz is smooth and the air sultry in the hot New York summer of 1957. Robert (Nnamdi Asomugha), a saxophonist, spends late nights playing behind a less-talented but well-known bandleader, as member of a jazz quartet. Sylvie (Tessa Thompson), who dreams of a career in television, spends her summer days helping around her father’s record store, as she waits for her fiancé to return from war. When Robert takes a part-time job at the record store, the two begin a friendship that sparks a deep passion in each of them unlike anything they have felt before. As the summer winds down, life takes them in different directions, bringing their relationship to an end. Years pass, Sylvie’s career as a TV producer blossoms, while Robert has to come to terms with what the age of Motown is doing to the popularity of Jazz. In a chance meeting, Sylvie and Robert cross paths again, only to find that while their lives have changed, their feelings for each other remain the same. Writer/director Eugene Ashe combines romance and music into a sweeping story that brings together changing times, a changing culture, and the true price of love. Credit:Amazon Prime
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Our NHS – Hidden History Credit: BBC iPlayer
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Legacy: Stories of Black British Entrepreneurship
The Impact of Grenfell Athletic FC Credit: BBC Three
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Diary of A Future President Credit: Disney +
ENCANTO Credit: Disney
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Here Today Credit: Sony Pictures
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Viewer’s Choice
This week from Lisa M. Colorado USA
Gunpowder Milkshake Sam (KAREN GILLAN) was only 12 years old when her mother Scarlet (LENA HEADEY), an elite assassin, was forced to abandon her. Sam was raised by The Firm, the ruthless crime syndicate her mother worked for. Now, 15 years later, Sam has followed in her mother’s footsteps and grown into a fierce hit-woman. But when a high-risk job goes wrong, Sam must choose between serving The Firm and protecting the life of an innocent 8-year-old girl - Emily (CHLOE COLEMAN). With a target on her back, Sam has only one chance to survive: Reunite with her mother and her lethal associates, The Librarians (MICHELLE YEOH, ANGELA BASSETT and CARLA GUGINO). These three generations of women must now learn to trust each other, stand up to The Firm and their army of henchmen, and raise hell against those who could take everything from them. Credit: Netflix
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Angela Bassett In A Gunpowder Milkshake Credit:@NetflixStrongBlackLead
Women Are Drinking As Much As Men For the first time in history women are drinking as much as men. On this important and enlightening RTT, Jada’s shares her struggles with alcohol and addiction. Credit:Red Table Talk
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Credit: The Hidden Science Academy
Health
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Africa’s Most Underrated Country
NAMIBIA The image of Africa has been distorted around the globe and we are changing the narratives via Youtube videos One Country At Time. Until the history of Africa is told by Africans, the story of greatness will always glorify the imperialists! Credit: Wode Maya
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Credit: Thegirlwhobelievesinmiracles
IChurch
The Girl Who Believes In
Miracles
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Laughter
The Knock Out
She called the wrong Reader Man
SOMETHING TO PONDER ON A mouse was placed at the top of a jar filled with grains. It was so happy to find so much food around him that no longer he felt the need to run around searching for food. Now he could happily live his life. After a few days of enjoying the grains, he reached the bottom of the jar. Suddenly, he realise that he was trapped and he couldn’t get out. He now has to fully depend on someone to put grains in the jar for him to survive. He now has no choice but to eat what he’s given. A few lessons to learn from this: 1. Short term pleasures can lead to long-term traps 2. If things come easy and you get comfortable, you are getting trapped into dependency 3. When you are not using your skills, you will lose more than your skills. You lose your CHOICES & FREEDOM. 4. Freedom does not come easy but can be lost quickly. NOTHING comes easily in life and if it comes easily, maybe it is not worth it Don’t curse your struggles. They are your blessings in disguise
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Credit: Poetry Slam
Last Word
Dear White People