Hello friends,
It is important to know your blood group. It could mean life or death during an emergency.
The fearless Dahomey women warriors (black panther inspiration)
Between the 18th and late 19th centuries, there existed an intimidating army of all-women warriors in the Kingdom of Dahomey, present-day southern Benin. They were known as mino(our Mothers)or ahosi(king’s wives). However, the European referred to them as Dahomey amazons due to their similarity with the Amazons of Greek mythology.
Different narratives claim their emergence, and Messynessy explains the two main accounts believed to have led to the existence of this fearless army and their roles in the Kingdom.
The women trained in intense physical exercise and learnt survival skills while disregarding pain and death. They were not allowed to have children or participate in family life, as they were formally married to the king, albeit he did not have sexual relations with them.
This fierce army that was second to none was the inspiration for the all-female special forces unit in the Marvel film Black Panther.
Kente cloth of the Ashanti and Ewe people
Legend has it that in exchange for a few favours, Anansi the spider taught the Ashanti people how to weave, just like the beautiful designs of its web. That is how the famous fabric design, kente, was birthed.
Kente is a Ghanaian textile made of handwoven cloth, strips of silk and cotton. Kente comes from the word kenten, which means basket in the Asante dialect. Akans also refer to it as nwentoma, meaning woven cloth.
Originally it was a reserve of the Ashanti and Ewe royalty who wore it during special functions. However, it has presently become popular and is donned by people of all walks of life. It is a source of identity for Ghanaians and Africans in general. Its colourful prints are attractive and hard to resist.
Each colour used in weaving the kente is symbolic;
✔️Black: spiritual strength, maturity; mourning and funeral rites
✔️Red: blood, death, political passion, strength
✔️Blue: peace, love, unity, and harmony
✔️Gold or yellow: wealth, royalty
✔️Green: growth, harvest, renewal
✔️White: purity, cleansing rites, festive occasions
✔️Purple or maroon: Mother Earth, healing, protection from evil
To dive deep into the dynamics of this versatile clothing, check out an in-depth description done by kitenge store.
The Rise and Fall of Samuel Doe
Live by the sword, and you will surely die by the sword. This best explains the life of President Samuel Doe, whose rise and fall from power were equally brutal.
On April 12th April 1980, Master Sergent Samuel Doe of the Krahn tribe assumed power through a bloody coup détat that resulted in the death of the then-president William Tolbert and the public execution of his close associates.
He would suspend the constitution and rule the country as the general of the military for the next five years until 1985 when he called for an election that he controversially won to become the 21st president of Liberia.
Background
Before Samuel Doe, the black American Liberians had ruled over the majority indigenous Liberians with an iron fist for over 113 years.
How ironic that the black American slaves who had suffered through centuries of slavery chose to enforce the same cruelty on fellow Africans.
The Fall
As fate would have it, in September 1990, President Doe was captured and gruesomely murdered by Prince Y. Johnson, leader of INPFL, a breakaway faction of Charles Taylors NPFL. He was tortured, mutilated and eventually brutally killed.
The brutality of Doe and his Krahn-led military against the Mano and Gio tribes and ultimately his popularly televised death would lead to a full-blown civil war in Liberia that lasted more than a decade.
Special Mentions
📌 Mau Mau barbed-wire detention camps - wnycstudios
📌 The Rise of Foday Sankoh and the Revolutionary United Front of Sierra Leone. - African Biographics
📌 I got sold at a Slave Market in Libya - Vice
TONGUE TWISTER 🧠
Kana koona kora koora kera kana kao koore, kana kao karega kuura kooya kamuti karige kora, kora koora keehitha kahigaini.(Kikuyu)
Translation: The child saw a frog and ran, told the sibling to run away, the sibling refused to run away, took a stick to hit the frog, the frog ran away and hid under a stone.
DID YOU KNOW 🤯
Gabon is home to the world’s largest species of sea turtle, the leatherback. Leatherbacks can grow up to 2.1m(7ft ) in length and weigh as much as 900kg (2,000lbs).
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I crown them the best Hip-hop group in Africa. Enjoy one of Wakadinali's best albums, the Victim of madness.
Special thanks to Stephanie for editing this issue.
Thanks for reading. Until next Monday.- Mike
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