It is no news that Africa and Africans have suffered and continued to suffer the double misfortune of, being underappreciated and despised. In spite of stupendous continental impact and individualistic human achievements in every area of human endeavors, both in the past and now the present. Foreshorteness continues to trail Africa’s contribution in the human histories.
The European invasion carpeted the black, for their own elevation. They inserted themselves in an overrated picture after African histories had been destroyed and their particularistic features ceded. Perilously Africa had been plunged into patrilineal self-abnegation and condemnation since the unhallowed contact with Westerners, resulting to glaring inferiority complex and unpatriotism for the host. Africa became a state that suffers detachment of rich and complex past and turbulent present because of ‘historiae lacuna ‘ which switched off the pattern of change and continuity.
Noteworthy, that the popular African saying “ European brought us every good, our ancestors are failure “(championed by educated African religious bigots) is age-long hogwash that must be disregarded. Such brainless assertion credits evolutionary developments to Westerners all because evolution and colonization seemed to have happened in the same time and age.
It will be requisite to note that Westerners had long sought to exterminate resilient Africans , but unfortunately succeeded in semi-extirpation of it histories. Proofs to these claim are the massive killing of human depositories of histories in pre colonial era wars and emulous burial of unlooted historical artifacts and structures recently unearthed throughout different sites in Africa.
These Aforementioned been the obtainable status quo in our clime; our youths are left with a single option of pursuing White or Western life, whom they found inimitable. Such common Neo-Afro idiosyncrasy and mannerism, no doubts had regulate the black child to be apish and propelled to think that ‘ Whiteman brought me everything {education, approved diet, veritable culture, science, and techniques, redeeming God and many to mention} as juxtaposed to “ my black father has nothing to offer and evidently useless “. As such they became an enemy to themselves rejecting their ancestry and heritages.
Contrarily , Africa had the best of civilization, education and literacy, medicine, technology and science, cultures and religion in pre-colonial era. That seeks to be canonized and idolized because of it’s peculiar and massive contributions to the development of the world.
In education, literacy, and Academics; Africa had the best as against the widely spread hoax that “ Africans had no writing and reading methodologies “ or that “ generally Africans are a bunch of illiterates and academic ineptitudes’ in the pre-colonial era. Africa owned the first library in Kemet, ancient Egypt. A library that contains numerous papyrus that deals with advanced fields such as astronomy, physics, mathematics, and philosophy. It will be worthy to note that Pythagoras, Aristotle, Picasso, and other Western scholars are beneficiaries to this exquisite Library. In fact, the fractal geometry, the binary system were used in the primeval Africa before adoption into arithmetic use.
Other numerous literacy records include the undecipherable Nubian writing in Moròe Sudan that dated back to 800BC discovered in the Nubian pyramids, South Africa’s writing symbol that was similar to Egyptian hieroglyphics, Cave paintings of hunting mythology, presence of griots, Nsibidi writing used in the Coastal areas of Ancient Igbo nation, and many more.
Religiously, most part of Africa enjoyed more spiritual intimacy with their maker in the primordial times, when such relationships were devoid of imposed violence and imposed economic milking. Sequentially too they contributed more to the modern world religions, who borrowed most of it symbols, prayer postures, commandments or laws, et al to decorate itself without credit. Some included; 42 laws of Maàt which were refined into Judaic decalogue now rebranded ten Commandments, the sign of Cross which was also imitated from the Kemet religion, facing of the Sun to pray copied from ancient Nubian, and numerous others.
Healthwise, Africa had undoubtedly the best roots and herbs, though unorthodox, yet efficient in solving their health challenges. It will be noted too that surgical operations had been done with much success before the arrival of the West. As such Africa was health convenient in the pre-colonial era.
We could go on and without end listing and celebrating those pristine memories worthy to be canonized. And how they are unanimously recounted by discoveries of archeology and ethnographic sites such as; the Igbo Ukwu bronze roped pot and pendants, The SeneGambia stone circles, the obelisks, the Giza pyramids, Cave pictograms and many more.
If we could not answer ‘how our ancestry was able to invent and create these significant structures without so-called Western aid, we cannot also question how the primordial Ghanaians gold manners, Indigenous Awka blacksmiths, primitive hunters, and carvers got their tools and methodologies in meeting up with their problems.
Persuasively, it will not be fallacy to conclude that evolution did not happen in colonization, rather colonization coincidences in an era that was greeted with massive evolutions.
By Bernico Reds Ndubuisi
AFRICA DAILY NEWS, NEW YORK
