IANA Blog- July 2026

Blog

Happy July,

One more week before the IANA Convention in Detroit, but for this month’s blog, I wanted to talk about something personal. I know that members of IANA wanted me to focus on something personal, so that is what I’m gonna do.

This year, in 2026, I am celebrating the ten-year anniversary as a member of two organizations that I have been a part of, in the Bay Area. Urban Peace Movement and the Committee For South African Solidarity.

In 2016 around June, I met artist and educator Adimu “WolfHawkJaguar” Madyum at Merritt College. I was taking one of his classes, and he told the Black men about being part of an opportunity. I went to a barbecue in Downtown Oakland, and I saw Adimu there, along with educator and activist Dr. Prince White, along with other Black men around my age. I was introduced to DetermiNation Black Men’s Group, one of the main programs of Urban Peace Movement.

Urban Peace Movement (UPM) is an organization based in Oakland, that focuses on building leadership within youth-of-color, especially with Black youths, known as “Healing-Centered Youth Organizing” and transforming the culture that leads to community violence and mass incarceration in communities of color. UPM was founded by activist Nicole Lee, who was a part of the Silence the Violence campaigns that were happening around Oakland. UPM is also home to many programs, one of them being DetermiNation Black Men’s Group.

DetermiNation Black Men’s Group, aka DetermiNation aka DMG, is a brotherhood circle focused on cultural healing and social justice for young Black men, especially Black men who were heavily affected by the incarceration system. Like I said, I went to a barbecue they were having and then the week after, they had a meeting with other Black men, there was free food, and there were just some positive discussions about the problems that affect us today as Black men. It was Black men from different parts of Oakland, from East Oakland, to West Oakland, to North Oakland, other parts of the Bay as well, including Berkeley and Richmond, other parts of California like Los Angeles to Fresno, and other parts of the US. We also had people from the Caribbean and Africa come to our circle.

I kept coming to every meeting, and the more I kept going, the more relationships and friendships I was forming. Hearing the stories from our members and the goals they are thriving for, made me appreciate this group more. One of the biggest achievements I accomplished while being a part of DetermiNation was helping free a young Black man from being incarcerated. DMG along with UPM and other organizations were working to free Da’jon Ford, a football star at McClymonds High School in West Oakland, who was about to do 20-40 years in prison for a crime he didn’t commit. He is also a cousin of one of our members. We ran rallies and showed up to his trials, and with our support, he was free. He would then become a member of DMG.

Another reason for my appreciation of DMG was that a lot of members were artists, like me. From graphic designers, to musicians, to dancers, to rappers, to beatmakers, to designers, to filmmakers. DetermiNation and Urban Peace also used to meet at United Roots Center, an organization that provided many opportunities for youth-of-color. They also ran a media program, which many of the members were a part of. I became a part of the media program and learned how to make films. Next thing you know, I’m on movie sets, helping make music videos, documentaries and short films. I learned how to work as a best boy grip on a film set. United Roots also had a graphic design program, which I also became a part of. I was helping make logos for DMG, and members of DMG.

What I also appreciate about DMG, was how the leaders were connecting the members to other parts of the Diaspora, especially Africa. Like I said, we had members from different parts of the Diaspora come to DMG. We had Afro Brazilians teach members how to do Capoeira, we had members of the Rastafari come through to celebrate the birthday of Hail Selassie. We definitely had multiple members from Africa. We even had an Oba become a part of our group, and members got to learn more about African spirituality. I especially learned more about African spirituality and it’s something that I’m definitely using more, especially as a Catholic and learned how to do an Ifa version of Libation.

Being a part of Urban Peace, they heavily encouraged me to get more involved with social issues happening around Oakland then just to write about social problems online. I found myself along with fellow DMG members and other youths leading campaigns, informing the public about certain issues, even speaking to fellow politicians…although that’s my least favorite.

Although there were backstage politics involved, which caused some members to leave, along with friction between a couple of members, and some discussions I disagreed with, I felt like that if I missed a meeting, I’d be missing out.

In 2023, DetermiNation celebrated its 10th Anniversary, and I got to be a part of it. It was an honor and a privilege to celebrate the anniversary with members of the past and present. It is also an honor to be a part of a brotherhood, just as much of it is to be a part of Urban Peace.

Now let me speak about another organization that I joined a month after I joined DetermiNation/Urban Peace. This organization is called The Committee For South African Solidarity.

I learned about the Committee For South African Solidarity (COSAS), an organization located in Berkeley, while at an event in Downtown Oakland called First Fridays. My brother and I met a woman named Nicole “Nikki” Richards. She was from Johannesburg and she was clip boarding and telling people about her organization. She told me about how they were continuing to organize for the people of South Africa, especially since the country is still feeling the effects of Apartheid.

She told me about how any money South Africa made was going to these corporations and companies who supported Apartheid instead of to the schools, hospitals or to the people. These same companies were the ones harming us here in America and she mentioned that being the reason why we should organize.

She told me about the activities that volunteers can do at COSAS. One of the activities is their sort & pack sessions. Usually every Saturday, but on certain days, COSAS volunteers would sort through school supplies and school books, pack them in boxes and prepare them to be shipped to schools in South Africa. COSAS members would collect books and supplies from schools in the Bay Area. That’s what really caught my attention to volunteering. Another activity is working on their newsletter, the South African BEACON. The newsletter was created to counter the lies, the misinformation and disinformation that the Western media creates about South Africa and other parts of Africa as well.

COSAS also has different activities. On some days, volunteers/members help with doing outreach. We’ll go out in public and inform the people about our organization. We have done outreach via information tables at stores, events or on college campuses, speaking engagements where we’ll go to college/university lectures, churches and other organizations and inform them about COSAS, and business canvasses, where we’ll go to different businesses around the Bay Area, and inform them about COSAS and see if they’ll support us in any way. Many small businesses have supported COSAS through donations. COSAS also holds education classes, where we are educated on the real history of South Africa, different parts of Africa, and the movements that played a heavy influence on COSAS, such as the Anti-Apartheid Movement and the U.S. Labor Union Movement.

We also have film and documentary showings at COSAS, especially films that focus on South Africa, other parts of Africa, the African diaspora and the Anti-Apartheid movement. I’ve also taken part in many different events with COSAS. I helped take part in a memorial service that COSAS held for the legendary Winnie Mandela. From what I heard, COSAS was the only organization in America to hold a special event for Winnie Mandela, which I shouldn’t be surprised, as the American media loved to talk down on Winnie Mandela. I’ve taken part in the Day of Solidarity event, which is where we connect volunteers and members of COSAS here in America to members in South Africa. I was also in attendance for the organization’s Anniversary Dinners, where we would bring together the multiple volunteers, members, organizations and businesses that have supported COSAS for years and celebrate the anniversary of COSAS, which has been an organization since 1993. I took part in the organization's 30th Anniversary in 2023.

COSAS has been active since 1993. It was started by N.T. Naicker, a South African attorney of Indian descent, who was fighting the Apartheid system with Nelson Mandela, Steve Biko and the rest of the freedom fighters in South Africa. He was eventually exiled from South Africa and found himself in California, taking part in the Anti-Apartheid movement. As Apartheid was slowly fading away, the U.S. media was lying about South Africa returning back to normal, and Naicker said, “That’s not true,” as South Africa is still recovering from the legacy of Apartheid, so he created COSAS to continue to organize for South Africa. Naicker would continue to organize, until his death in 2003.

What separates COSAS from other organizations is that COSAS is a non-government funded, all-volunteer, independent, private membership organization that uses strategic organizing, so they’re not a nonprofit organization, they’re not a 501C3 and they’re definitely not a charity organization. They do this so that they remain independent and it makes sense, because why work with the US government, especially when they supported Apartheid in South Africa…and supported taking out many of our African leaders…and our real leaders here…and continue to screw over millions of people here in America.

The best part about COSAS is that you don’t have to be from South Africa to be a member. We have members who have different connections to Africa. We have members who are from other parts of Southern Africa, members from East Africa, Central Africa, North Africa and West Africa…and of course, different parts of the African diaspora. COSAS is also made up of teachers, doctors, lawyers, writers, artists, politicians, engineers, retirees, activists, people who were a part of the Anti-Apartheid movement, college students, and everyday people. Anyone can join, especially if you want to see change in South Africa and other parts of Africa too, and if you agree with the South African Freedom charter, which was a set of rights that people wanted to see for South Africa and was signed by N.T. Naicker, Nelson Mandela and other freedom fighters.

It’s an honor to be a part of COSAS, because as I mentioned to Nikki when I first met her, I can relate to South Africa’s struggles, being Nigerian (even though there’s an Afrophobia problem currently going on with South Africa and Nigeria and that was definitely a topic I thought of talking about for an upcoming blog). I also had a feeling that COSAS didn’t just care about South Africa, but Africa as a whole. That’s when I figured this is an organization I can be a part of. I remember learning about the 1955 South African Freedom Charter. It was a list of rights that people in South Africa wanted to see. It reminded me of the 10-Point program that the Black Panthers had. When I was able to help actually ship boxes of school supplies to schools in South Africa, and actually seeing videos and pictures of the schoolkids receiving boxes of books and school supplies and thanking me and the other volunteers puts a smile on my face. We make sure not to send them any racist or pointless books either (like books on George Washington or the American Revolution).

Even with the disagreements and debates that I have with Nikki and our Administrative Assistant Tsarina Secyugu, we pretty much have more agreements than disagreements. Even when I did leave for a little bit in 2019 after an unfortunate incident, a friend and my mother convinced me to come back.

As I mentioned, celebrating my tenth year with both organizations, I’ve seen both how and downs. I’ve seen members come and go from both. I remember being part of meetings where we had 50 young Black men come to DetermiNation. I’ve also been part of meetings where it was just 10 of us. For COSAS, I remember when it was just me and Nikki volunteering on some days. I also have been part of sessions where we have 10-plus volunteers every week. Even with all the transitions and changes with both organizations, it’s an honor to be part of both. My life would be pretty different had I not joined these two organizations, so much appreciation to both. My appreciation towards DetermiNation Black Men’s Group and Urban Peace Movement, for letting me be part of a brotherhood, and for continuing to fight for these youths out here, especially these Black youths. My appreciation for the Committee For South African Solidarity, for not just fighting for Africa, but for something bigger, and for helping me enhance my views on what social justice should be.