All stories are the property of Baba Jamal Koram. All
Rights Reserved. This stories may not be reproduced by any means.
Busara is a word that describes African Americans or Blacks born in the
Americas. It is a word that has roots in the Bantu languages as well as in other
world African languages. It enables us to at once connect to Africa
linguistically, while at the same time allows us to respect the uniqueness of
our "western" cultural development. Baba Jamal first heard Dr.
Wade Nobles use the word "Busa" to describe Africans in America.
In fact, B-U-S-A stood for Blacks in the United States of America. Baba
Jamal then thought about the Nigritians in California, and the Nuswabians
in Georgia who represented distinct groups of Black people; like the Gullah, and
the Creole, the Washitaw, and others represent distinct groups. In the
spirit of all that is good with self identification and Kujichagulia, Baba Jamal
and others affirm that the name Busara represents the whole of New World
Africans. The name Busara reflects prudence, sagacity, strength in
adversity, overcoming, a call to valor, and uncommon strategy in difficult
situations. How can we not be Busara?
The
New
The
New African
President 
by Baba Jamal Koram
Once, the president of a small African country issued
a proclamation. It was a freedom
proclamation. It read, “Wherever
our people are held in bondage, they shall be free. It read, “Where ever our people cannot read, they must be
taught. Further it said” Wherever
our people are diseased or addicted, they must be cured. “And, where ever they lack food, they must be fed.
The president gathered the men and women of the
capitol city and stated: “Where
ever there is no money it must be
earned, and wherever there is no land it must be had.
“There must be African decency, drumming, dancing,
singing, storytelling, crafts, and peace, where ever our people are. Wherever
our people are, there must be an African worldview. African politics, African
science, African social patterns, African life, with black girls and boys not
having to give up themselves to learn next to someone else.
Now, the people of this small African country were
spread out around the world. Once,
long ago, they had been invaded, stolen away, oppressed, and imprisoned against
their will to be free. And here it
was hundreds of years later. But,
this president understood, that in order for Africa to be strong, all of the
people of Africa must be together and must be healed.
And so, the president said, “Where ever there are
chiefs, community leaders, legislators, priests, teachers, ministers,
organization and family leaders, they must spread the word of this proclamation!
Soon, other leaders of other Africa - - kings,
priests, queens, prime ministers, took up the banner.
They said:
Africa
must be united
Africa must
stay free
Africa is for
Africans at home and abroad
Uhuru
Sasa! Harambee na
Masakhane! All power to the people! Free the Land!
There is no culture without agriculture!
Save the Children! Feed the
Hungry! Unity in our Lifetime!
Akwabaa!
Now, in the west, across the Afrikan Ocean, called
Atlantic, there lived a small but important group of Afrikans called Busara.
These were those Africans that survived the Maafa.
Who challenged enslavement. Who
conducted the UGG and who created Africa in everything they did, despite
mindless challenges by other unnurtured Africans.
These Busara Africans were healers, spoken word artists, preachers,
teachers, engineers, mechanics, stock traders, inventors, farmers, and warriors.
They heard the freedom proclamation pn the wind, and decided that what
was said, must be done. So they
prayed. And lo and behold, God
said, “Put freedom and power in
your stories and in the rhythms of the drum! Keep on healing with your presence,
teaching with your talk, raising all the children all the time!"
And these Busara people heard the spirit and did what
they were told to do. The circle
continues.
All stories are the property of Baba Jamal Koram. All
Rights Reserved. This stories may not be reproduced by any means.
