By Florence Mbuyi
“We shall show the world what the black man can do when working in liberty, and we shall make the Congo the pride of Africa.” There have been many attempts to vilify these words, if not to bury them altogether. Last Thursday they could be heard in the community space of the Black Archives. In collaboration with Africadelic, TBA organised an event to commemorate the Congolese struggle for independence. Honoring Lumumba Day and the 64th anniversary of this Pan African hero’s assassination, they devised a program to look back on his anti-colonial resistance, and reflect on its significance today. As a thought-provoking framing device to the ensuing panel discussion, Philosopher Grâce Ndjako, offered insights into her Phd research on Patrice Lumumba’s independence day speech. A recording of the famous address to the Congolese people was played to the room of listeners. Modest words, as Ndjako pointed out, and yet they caused a backlash amongst Western politicians and academics alike, in which accusations of anger were wielded to “problematise and punish Black speech”. One of the critics alleged that Lumumba’s speech lingered too much on the horrors of the past. But as Ndjako explained, anyone who fails to recognize its visionary optimism, hasn’t listened to his words in full. “We shall see to it that the lands of our native country truly benefit its children.” It’s in the second part of his speech that Lumumba directs his gaze into the future and shares his elaborate vision with the public. This Lumumba Day event, similarly asked what can be written after our verses of remembrance have dried on the paper. What can we hope for and what can we build? Like the second part of the speech, the event lived on the precipice of colonial trauma and on the ridge of informed hopefulness. Moderator Carla Kabamba, facilitated the panel talk between Ndjako, activist Donna Senders, and MP Mpanzu Bamenga, who shared how their lives and advocacy work have been impacted by Lumumba’s legacy. Mpanzu highlighted specifically how he associates Lumumba with the act of building new structures upon the ruins of injustice. In his own life this led him to a career in human rights activism and anti-racist policy-making. A discussion of Andrée Blouin, a close political advisor to Lumumba and his government, led Senders to call attention to the situation of Congolese women today, who suffer massive rates of sexual violence at the hands of armed forces. Blouin has been a champion for the social progress of Congolese women during her time in politics. And haven’t we inherited her resistance fight too? Nuanced and bittersweet, each spoken contribution held a combination of anguish and appreciation, weighing the labour of overcoming against the gift of empowerment. Some expressed mournful realism about the fact that Congolese people still have to fight the same battle that has been killing their people for generations. As Kabamba said, growing up Congolese in the Netherlands, you acquire the understanding that there is no other way but to suppress the pain you feel for your country. And yet there is always reason to hope, if the actors of the present stay alert to the waves of history, if our defiance is loud and our solidarity far-reaching. At the very least it can be said that the fog of ignorance around the Congolese struggle is lifting. Long after Lumumba presented the second part of his independence speech. It’s the second life to an old hope.
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The Black Archives BlogArchieven
Januari 2025
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Openingstijden/Opening TimesWoensdag/Wednesday 11.00 - 17.00 uur
Donderdag/Thursday 11.00 - 17.00 uur Vrijdag/Friday 11.00 - 17.00 uur Zaterdag/Saturday 11.00 - 17.00 uur Onze nieuwe locatie in Amsterdam Zuidoost is geopend. Neem contact op via de pagina contact voor rondleidingen buiten het programma. We moved to South East Amsterdam. Contact us via the page contact for tours outside our program. |
(Rolstoel)toegankelijkheid/Accessibility
Momenteel beschikt The Black Archives niet over een speciale ingang en lift voor personen met een fysieke beperking en voor rolstoelgebruikers.
At this moment, The Black Archives does not have a special entrance or lift for person of disability. |