IANA Blog

Happy August, From August 5th to the 7th, we had our 2022 IANA Convention and Regional Gala in Chicago. Like I said in my last blog, this year’s theme was Health and Education. It was also the first convention in person since the pandemic hit. Just wanted to give a recap of the Weekend for IANA 2nd Gen. Friday Friday was the first day of IANA Convention week. We started off with the Welcome Dinner and Cocktail. Then, IANA 2nd Gen and other 2nd Generation members would head off to the bowling alley, Bowlero. Saturday We started off IANA Saturday, with the Continental Breakfast and Registration and the IANA Membership Meeting, where we got to hear about 1st Gen passing the “torch” to 2nd Gen, along with a Panel featuring questions from 2nd Gen to members of 1st Gen. We also saw IANA 2nd Gen President Chiedu Nwaesei get promoted to Secretary at the IANA Meetings. After a long lunch, it was time to get ready for the Main Event: the Gala. Where we saw both 1st and 2nd Gen show off with thei...

  Happy July, Next week is the Annual IANA Convention in Chicago, Illinois. Back in 2020, we had the convention online. This year in 2022, we’re back on August 6th, but this time, we’re doing it in person. As shown on the flier, the event for the Convention is about health and education. As for IANA 2nd Gen, we have a special week as well. On Friday, we will have Bowling Night. On Saturday, IANA will be having an after party after the Convention. For any more questions, contacts are on the flier. To buy tickets, here is the link to the website: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/iana-2nd-generation-convention-2022-tickets-347945453217?fbclid=PAAaZRyfo65fkHUcfKp_BYzS6qfdDMIG-AKskAbEEftcT3dKZP5p5t5IuX0Jw Can’t wait to see ya there.

  Happy June, Happy Sunday, wanted to take some time to reflect on the month, especially hearing of the overwhelming events that have been happening around the world. June 5th, 2022, in Oakland, I was volunteering for the Nigerian embassy, helping Nigerians in the Bay Area renew their Nigerian passports so that way they can go home and when I look at the news on my phone and I see that there was a Church shooting that happened in Owo, Nigeria.  At least 40 people were killed in the attack. I heard a couple of people at the event talking about what happened, most in disgust. I think I also heard tears coming from another person. I remember seeing it, I was looking in disgust, thinking “this is the last thing Nigeria needs right now.” After hearing about what happened, the first thing that came to my mind  Here in the U.S., we just had to deal with two massive shootings that were all over the news. The shooting that happened in Buffalo, New York on May 14th and the shooting...

Happy May, For those that don’t know, May 1st was International Labor Day aka International Workers Day, which is the celebration of laborers and the working class. One of my friends, who is an organizer in Berkeley, invited me to this special May 1st gathering, showing a movie from the 1980s, Matewan , which focused on uniting labor workers (Black, White, Italian) in America, and always talked about how labor unions are important. Being that it’s a national holiday, it’s celebrated around the world and it is especially celebrated in Africa. It’s definitely celebrated in Nigeria. Every May 1st, Nigerians gather while the President of the Nigeria Labor Congress (NLC) addresses workers. Since May 1st was International Labor Day, I thought we could talk about the current situation of the labor unions/workers of Nigeria. The Nigerian Labor Congress (NLC) is an umbrella organization for labor/trade unions in Nigeria. The NLC was founded in December of 1978, as a merger of four different org...