[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 66 (Monday, May 13, 2013)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E644-E645]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        IN HONOR OF ELOMBE BRATH

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. CHARLES B. RANGEL

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                          Monday, May 13, 2013

  Mr. RANGEL. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to honor a living hero of 
Harlem and an international warrior for the African People, the great 
Elombe Brath. For more than a generation, Elombe, as the chairman of 
Patrice Lumumba Coalition (PLC), helped to coordinate hundreds of 
forums with the purpose of educating the masses, not only about the 
struggle in Africa but also about the conditions oppressed people faced 
all over the world.
  Born in Brooklyn, NY on September 30th 1936, to parents who had 
immigrated to the United States from Barbados, the Caribbean Island 
geographically closest to the African continent, his early training of 
a political character was hearing his mother speak of her first cousin, 
Clennell Wickham who was the editor of the renowned Herald newspaper.
  Brath's political commitment evolved in 1956 simultaneously with the 
struggle to eliminate ``Negro'' as the nomenclature of African American 
people. From this moment of Black consciousness it was an easy and 
logical step for him to create the ``Black is Beautiful'' campaign in 
1961 following the creation of AJASS (African Jazz-Arts Society and 
Studios) with his brother Kwame and a cadre of other local activists in 
1956.
  Removing ``Negro'' from the lexicon, insisting on the beauty of 
Blackness, and refusing to accept the Eurocentric worldview, Elombe and 
his cohorts were in the vanguard of change as they launched the 
Grandassa Models and ``Naturally Shows,'' beginning in 1961, featuring 
Black women in all their natural-born beauty.
  All of these activities were the foundation for his total involvement 
in African affairs, including his association with FOPANO (Federation 
of Pan-African Nationalist Organizations),

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which eventually set the stage for African Liberation Day and the 
development of the African Liberation Support Committee (ALSC) that 
played such a critical role in educating and organizing thousands in 
the fight against imperialism, colonialism, and neo-colonialism on the 
African continent.
  One of the pivotal moments in Elombe's constantly evolving political 
philosophy, an outlook grounded in the ideas and actions promoted by 
Marcus Garvey and Carlos Cooks, was the formation of the PLC in 1975. 
The PLC came at a most propitious time when there was much confusion 
about which liberation movement to support in the war against colonial 
domination in Africa. It was a matter of separating the truly 
progressive organizations from the reactionary ones, and Elombe and 
members of the PLC were indispensable in providing the correct guidance 
and understanding of the often fractious and contentious forces vying 
for hegemony.
  Despite his total immersion on the international front as well as 
countless battles against racism at home, Elombe was employed at WABC-
TV where as a graphic artist--skills he had acquired in high school and 
at the School of Visual Arts--he was a vital consultant, particularly 
on African affairs, to Gil Noble, the esteemed host of ``Like It Is.'' 
``Elombe was instrumental in facilitating the presence of many of the 
African leaders on the show,'' said Robert Van Lierop, an attorney and 
filmmaker formerly affiliated with the show.
  None of these activities, however, detracted Elombe from taking care 
of his family, and along with his wife, Nomsa, they raised six very 
successful young men, and a daughter all of whom are endowed with their 
parents' spirit for freedom and justice.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask that you and my distinguished colleagues join me 
and the New York Congressional Delegation in paying tribute to Elombe 
Brath. Elombe's legacy remains as significant today as it did when his 
voice was a clarion call advising us along the right path to total 
liberation and independence.

                          ____________________