[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 35 (Monday, March 3, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E283]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           RECOGNIZING THE HISTORIC CONTRIBUTIONS FROM AFRICA

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. CHARLES B. RANGEL

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, March 3, 2008

  Mr. RANGEL. Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay special tribute to the 
historical contributions that Africa has made to civilization. Too 
often their contributions are overlooked. Rulers and leaders such as 
Tenhamenin, Sonni Ali, Abram Hannibal, Chaka, Nelson Mandela, Julius 
Nyerre and Kwame Nkrumah, just to name a few, are often briefly 
mentioned or forgotten. Africa is a diverse continent, with natural 
resources, growth opportunity and a strong history, which needs more 
recognition and support.
  In recognition of the importance of Africa, I am pleased that 
President George Bush has made his second trip to Africa, visiting 
Benin, Tanzania, Rwanda, Ghana and Liberia to encourage and support 
these countries' government stability and economic growth potential. 
During the spring district work period, March 17-26, 2008, I am leading 
a bipartisan Committee on Ways and Means delegation to South Africa, 
Lesotho, Uganda, Ghana and Mali to meet with government officials in 
regard to broadening and deepening trade and economic ties between the 
United States and sub-Saharan Africa.
  As a result of the President's visit to Africa and mine, I hope that 
Americans will become more aware of the contributions made by Africans 
and the importance of this great continent so that their contributions 
to civilization will no longer be ignored or forgotten.

                       [From the Caribbean News]

Stories To Be Told and Chapters To Ensure That African Contribution to 
      Human Civilization Becomes Common Knowledge Around the World

                             (By Tony Best)

       Turn back the hands of time.
       It's 1066 and the man history later dubbed ``William the 
     Conqueror,'' the illegitimate son of Duke Robert of Normandy, 
     invaded England to claim what he saw was his inheritance and 
     was crowned King on Christmas Day of that year.
       At the same time, Tenhamenin, the ruler of the vast Ghana 
     Empire, could place 200,000 warriors on the field of battle 
     in Africa and with precision and military strategy take on 
     all adversaries.
       Fast forward to 1488, a period of feudalism in Europe. It 
     was in that year that the rulers of Songhay, the third of the 
     great African empires, conquered Mali and took control of the 
     fabled City of Timbuktu, the site of the University of 
     Sankore, an important international center of learning in the 
     world that attracted prominent scholars, both Black and 
     White. These are but two nuggets of history, long hidden from 
     global public view and scholarly research in the major 
     universities of Europe and North America.
       Chances are thousands of students at some of America's 
     historically Black colleges and universities will hear this 
     month much about the empires of Ghana, Mali, Songhay and 
     Kanem that thrived on the African continent between the year 
     1000 and 16th century, promoting trade, developing seats of 
     learning and fostering the use of precio.
       The focus on Black achievement in February brings to 
     center-stage the vital and multi-faceted roles played by 
     peoples of African descent in advancing human development 
     globally. From their ancestral homeland in Africa to North 
     America, the Caribbean, Latin America and other parts of the 
     world, people of color have been instrumental in improving 
     the daily lives of human beings everywhere.
       It's a contribution that has been deliberately ignored, 
     downplayed or distorted by many white historians and 
     archeologists. Hence, the value of Black History Month in 
     North America.
       Names that run the gamut from Pianky, the military genius 
     and Black King of Nubia who conquered Egypt around 700 BC; 
     Antar, the African-Arabian poet and story teller; Sonni Ali, 
     the 15th century warrior king of Songhay, and Abram Hannibal, 
     the soldier and commander of 18th century Russia to Chaka who 
     led and forged the proud Black nation of South until his 
     assassination in 1828 and Estavancio, Arizona's African 
     ``discoverer,'' dot the page of history.
       Their presence and deeds underscore an essential reality: 
     Blacks have been part and parcel of world history, present 
     from exploration and revolution to scientific and other 
     technological achievements.
       Along with the Hittites, Blacks from Africa pioneered in 
     the making of iron, fashioned precious stones into historic 
     ornaments, statues and valuable works of art and used oil-
     bearing plants for both medicinal and dietary purposes.
       They developed cereal and transformed a wild plant into 
     cotton, thus opening up the world the art of weaving.
       They were among the world's first farmers, producing wheat, 
     groundnuts, yams, watermelons and possibly coffee.
       During the heydays of Greek civilization, when Herodotus, 
     the famous historian wrote about the ``Black and curly-
     haired'' soldiers in the army of Xerxes around 480 BC and 
     when the Roman Empire was at its heights and Kush was an 
     African province of Rome in the 4th century A.D. Blacks 
     weren't ignored.
       In much later times when the Empires of Ghana, Mali, 
     Songhay and Kanem and when Europe was experiencing the ``Dark 
     Ages,'' African states were flourishing with established 
     governmental systems, proud universities and successful 
     commercial activity.
       Today. after centuries of colonial and imperial domination, 
     Africa is emerging as a region with immense potential that 
     can be an example to the rest of the world in the decades 
     ahead.
       After being brutalized by 19th and 20th century European 
     expansionism, civilization and bigotry, the African continent 
     succeeded in gaining self-rule, beginning with Ghana in 1957. 
     In the decades since then, a mix of the residual and 
     pernicious effects of colonialism and dictatorial rule, 
     derailed many of the dreams of hundreds of millions of people 
     in Africa and stifled progress.
       But things have changed. More countries have embraced open 
     government, are abiding by the rule of law, the will of the 
     people and are harnessing their vast human and natural 
     resources for the upliftment of all.
       In addition, towering international figures, including 
     Nelson Mandela, a global hero of courage and principle, the 
     late Julius Nyerre, the first President of Tanzania, Kwame 
     Nkrumah. who led the way by becoming the first African in the 
     20th century to Head an independent nation as colonial rule 
     began to crumble and Jomo Kenyatta of Kenya, have taken their 
     rightful places as leaders who gave direction and purpose to 
     the international community.
       Unfortunately though, Kenya suffered a severe setback in 
     December 2007, when a scandalous hijacking of the 
     presidential elections by supporters of the incumbent leader, 
     Mwai Kibaki, triggered a bloodbath that left almost 1,000 
     dead and hundreds of thousands of Kenyans homeless.
       But that is expected to be a temporary setback along the 
     road of progress.
       As the story of the exploits of Black people emerges from 
     the bottom draw of history which recorded by Whites, 
     especially Europeans, the accurate picture that surfaces is 
     one not simply of grandeur of days past but of concrete 
     achievement and of a bright future.

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