IANA Blog

   Blog Happy December. The year is almost over, I think we need a recap of what happened over the past 11 blogs. A link to some of the blogs over the past year. January: https://issei2ndgen.blogspot.com/2023/01/iana-blog-january-2023.html February: https://issei2ndgen.blogspot.com/2023/02/iana-blog-february-2023.html March: https://issei2ndgen.blogspot.com/2023/03/iana-blog-march-2023.html April: https://issei2ndgen.blogspot.com/2023/04/iana-blog-april-2023.html May: https://issei2ndgen.blogspot.com/2023/05/iana-blog-may-2023.html June: https://issei2ndgen.blogspot.com/2023/06/iana-blog-june-2023.html July: https://issei2ndgen.blogspot.com/2023/06/iana-blog-june-2023.html August:  https://issei2ndgen.blogspot.com/2023/08/iana-blog-august-2023.html September: https://issei2ndgen.blogspot.com/2023/09/iana-blog-september-2023.html October: https://issei2ndgen.blogspot.com/2023/10/iana-blog-october-2023.html November: https://issei2ndgen.blogspot.com/2023/11/iana-blog-novemb...

  B log Happy November, As I’ve been continuing to pay attention to what’s going on in Palestine, one memorable moment I found myself in was arguing with a Nigerian on Facebook. He basically had a stupid way of saying “Palestinians are getting what they deserve,” and blamed it on their religion. I told him basically that he doesn’t know what he’s talking about. I even tried to explain how it’s all connected, unfortunately he wasn’t listening. Back and forth, the argument pretty much turned into insults and threats, and the argument ended with me telling him that he sounds like an idiot and needs to get off my page. As I was continuing to spread awareness on what’s going on in Palestine, I remembered that there’s genocides happening in the Congo, in Sudan and the situation that’s going on in Haiti. Let’s look back at a small bit of history for each country and how they got where they are right now. Congo: -The Democratic Republic of the Congo aka Congo and formerly known as Zaire an...

  Blog Happy October, For those that don’t know, October is one of my favorite months, not just because of Halloween, but it’s also my Birthday month along with the Birthday month of Fela Kuti and the month of Nigerian Independence Day and the anniversary of the Black Panther Party. Unfortunately, I couldn’t fully enjoy my Birthday week, especially with what’s going on in the world that week. In case you missed it, the Israel-Palestine “conflict” has gotten more intense although it’s been like that every year. If you don’t know much about the Israel-Palestine “conflict,” there is definitely a good Google search to learn more about it, especially since it would take me forever to explain the conflict, so I’ll just keep it short and sweet…a story of settler colonialism, ethnic cleansing and imperialism; the involvement of Palestinians having their land taken away by Israel. In other words, Israel=Bad Guys, Palestine=Good Guys, while the media is doing what they do best, depicting Isr...

  Blog Happy September, This blog is going to be different from the last ones. It’s going to be about music. This is Jan Wenner. He is a rock music journalist and the founder of the legendary Rolling Stone magazine. He is also one the founders of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame… …He is also an idiot…a privileged idiot… This September, it was revealed that Wenner released a book called “The Masters.” In this book, Wenner interviews legendary rock stars and musicians who are legends (and who he considers the “masters,”) in the music industry. The problem is…the musicians he selected to interview are all White males. Some of those musicians include Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen and Mick Jagger. Guess who he didn’t include in his book…Black musicians…and Female musicians. When asked why he didn’t include any Black or female musicians, he said they weren’t articulate enough… As soon as I heard that, I was like…Get the **** Outta Here! Because of that statement, Wenner was kicked off the R...

Blog Happy August, Also, Happy Black August. For those that don’t know, Black August is a commemoration and acknowledgement of the many organizers, activists, freedom fighters and political prisoners who sacrificed their freedom and lives in the continued struggle for Black liberation in the U.S. It was initiated by the Black Guerilla Family in 1979, to commemorate the deaths of fellow freedom fighter George Jackson, along with his brother Jonathan.  August is just as important as Black History Month is, in some ways, even more important, especially since some dates are very important footnotes in Black History. August 1st is Emancipation Day in many Caribbean countries, August 17th is the birthdate of Marcus Garvey, August 21st was the beginning of the U.S. slave rebellion led by Nat Turner, August 23rd was the day enslaved Africans revolted in Saint Domingue in Haiti, which was the beginning of the Haitian Revolution and August 30th is the birthdate of Fred Hampton. I bring this ...

Blog Happy July, During this month, I was celebrating Nelson Mandela Day. July 18th would have been his 105th Birthday, and a couple months later would be the Tenth anniversary of his transition to an ancestor. So, I figured I would take some time to make this month’s blog on a man that influenced me, one of my favorite leaders, and in my opinion, one of the greatest men to step foot from the African continent, Nelson Mandela. Now I know what you’re thinking, what does Nelson Mandela have to do with IANA? He’s South African… I know…and for those that remember…he was a revolutionary…freedom fighter…philanthropist…leader of the African National Congress…former President of South Africa…the symbol of the Anti-Apartheid movement, a movement that impacted the world…and it wasn’t just South Africans fighting back against the Apartheid system, the whole continent of Africa joined the fight…especially Nigeria. Late Nigerian artists Sonny Okosun, Ras Kimono and Majek Fashek made Anti-apartheid ...

Blog Happy June, For those that don’t know, Juneteenth became a federal holiday in 2021. This holiday commemorates the “emancipation” of Enslaved African Americans, especially the enslaved African Americans in Galveston, Texas on June 19, 1865. In Texas and the American South, it’s been celebrated for years…in the Bay Area…especially Oakland and Berkeley, we’ve been celebrating Juneteenth. Like I said, now that it’s being celebrated as a federal holiday, and when I found that out, I already knew that…well…let’s just say…something was about to happen… First off, I know what you’re thinking…why am I bringing up Juneteenth…on the IANA blog, besides from the fact that it’s June. Well, Juneteenth did originate in Texas, and Texas is home to a lot of Nigerians, including members in our association, and a majority of Black Americans do have West African blood, especially Nigerian blood, so it’s all interconnected. I still remember in 2022, I was celebrating Juneteenth at the Juneteenth Festiv...