IANA Blog- March 2025

 Blog

Happy March and Happy Women’s History Month,

First off, I want to congratulate one of our IANA 2nd Gen members, Ifeoma Ugeh on being a new member of the Dream Team and being a Public Relation Officer. Ifeoma will come in handy as we prepare for the IANA Convention in Maryland in 2026. But now, I wanted to talk about something different.

For the past couple of blogs, I talked about certain topics, such as diaspora wars, the FBA/ADOS movement, and Pan Africanism. I’ve been mentioning Pan Africanism in many of my blogs, and in one of my blogs, I mention Dr. Umar Johnson. I figured I’d make this year’s blog about him, especially since news broke out about how he’s not taking care of his kids, but here it is.

For those that don’t know, Dr. Umar Johnson aka Dr. Umar Ifatunde Johnson is an African American psychologist, activist and motivational speaker. He also refers to himself as “The Prince of Pan Africanism.” In 2011, he appeared in Tariq Nasheed’s documentary, Hidden Colors. He also had some YouTube videos online and he was accused of being misogynistic and homophobic. He was also accused of being a Black nationalist, an antisemite, and the “hotep” stereotype.

I remember hearing about Dr. Umar Johnson in the mid-2010s, seeing him on radio talk shows and seeing his face. Hearing him talk, he spoke about social issues involving Black people, he preached Black unity and criticized those who were detrimental to the liberation of Black people. Unfortunately, I’d also see him disrespect Black people who don’t fully agree with his views. In some videos, he’ll preach Black love, but also disrespect Black women in others. In some videos, he’ll talk about how he fights for all Black people, and in others he’ll bash the hell out of LGBTQ Black people. He’ll defend Black immigrants, but will criticize other immigrants, from Latinos to Asians. One thing that I notice that Umar brings up is how he’s “building” a school, known as the Fredrick Douglass Marcus Garvey Academy, but others have asked him when that school is going to be finished. Umar hasn’t answered that question or he’ll be on some bulls**t. Because there is no update of that school, and that he asks for money from Black people, he’s been accused of being a scammer.

It’s a damn shame, because there’s some things that I agree with him on. Whenever Tariq Nasheed and the FBA Movement bashed Africans, Caribbeans and Black immigrants, Umar was there to criticize Tariq and the idiots of that trash movement. I agreed with his views of how non-Black people have co-opted the Civil Rights Movement and other Black movements, I agree with his views on Black love and why it’s important, and I definitely agree with his advocacy for Pan-Africanism. I also have no problem when he calls out certain Black entertainers/celebrities, Black politicians and the Black bourgeoisie. Unfortunately, I can’t take Umar fully seriously with anything, when he contradicts himself. He talks about fighting for all Black people, but he criticizes LGBTQ Black people. He’ll defend Black immigrants, but not the Afro Palestinians living in Palestine (since he said that he didn’t care about the Palestine-Israel “conflict”). He claims to love Black women, but he’ll always have some disrespectful thing to say about Black women. Not to mention he brags about how the Black family is important (which I agree with), but he was exposed for being a deadbeat dad with multiple baby mommas. One of his daughters, who he has never taken care of, exposed himself this month, although there have been multiple accusations for a while. 

Oh yeah, forgot to mention…he is totally against interracial marriage. As he says, “Black Queens Forever…Snowbunnies Never!” He is against interracial marriage/relationships, but he is out here having broken relationships with different Black women. Not to mention that he is a fan of Kwame Nkrumah, who is a Pan Africanist, but if he knew, he would know that Kwame Nkrumah’s wife wasn’t Black, she was Coptic, although she is technically still African (by nationality). 

It’s always good to see him speak on the issues in Africa as well, but in terms of Pan Africanism, he may call himself the “Prince,” but not to be taken seriously compared to other great Pan-African leaders. When it comes to examples of great Pan Africanists, I look to Malcolm X, Marcus Garvey, W.E.B. Du Bois, Kwame Nkrumah, Patrice Lumumba, Thomas Sankara, Amilcar Cabral, Kwame Ture, Walter Rodney, Nnamdi Azikiwe, Dr. John Henrik Clarke, Omali Yeshitela, Bob Marley and Fela Kuti, not Umar Johnson. When it comes to examples of what Pan Africanists or organizations are doing, I look to the All-African People’s Revolutionary Party, or the African People’s Socialist Party, or the Sahel Alliance, not what Umar Johnson is doing. Personally, I hate when people use the word “hotep” as an insult, especially since “hotep” means peace, but Umar is the walking example of a “hotep”…the fake, conscious brotha.

I’ll say it like this…Umar is a damn good orator, he knows how to talk, but then again, he’s all talk…no action…and definitely should not be the face of Pan Africanism. Even with some of the things I agree with him on, he shouldn’t be taken fully seriously…if anything, he’s a meme.

That's just me, how do y’all feel about Umar Johnson? Have you ever heard of him? Let me know.