EIGHTH BLACK DIASPORA CONFERENCE (Formerly the Black Atlantic Conference): BLACK INTELLECTUALS OF THE DIASPORA

Conference Announcement & Call for Papers

EIGHTH BLACK DIASPORA CONFERENCE (Formerly the Black Atlantic Conference): BLACK INTELLECTUALS OF THE DIASPORA

Under the sponsorship of the Department of Humanities, Central State University,
Wilberforce, Ohio 45384

Venue: Central State University, Wilberforce, Ohio
Conference Date: March 29-30, 2012

The Black Diaspora Conference is an annual interdisciplinary forum bringing together scholars and thinkers to reflect on issues and concerns related to people of African descent. The objective of the series is to promote and expand public awareness, scholarship and research in the area of Black Diaspora studies. Themes and discussions at the annual conference will focus on achieving a qualitative and quantitative impact on the various Black Diaspora micro-communities in the Diaspora as well as on the African continent.

The theme for the 8th Black Diaspora Conference is “Intellectuals of the Diaspora.” We invite submissions for papers and panels from scholars, faculty members, graduate and undergraduate students. While papers on any aspect of the theme are welcome, the organizers are particularly interested in papers that explore the experience of Black people as they have and continue to navigate the spatial world within the world of Black and pan-African reality in the following areas: history, culture, literature, religion, politics, social organization, race relations, gender, internet networking, psychology, performing arts, etc. Contributions may be historical, theoretical, empirical, or comparative. Innovative approaches are especially welcome.

Paper contributions should be for a 20-minute presentation. Acceptance of a submission implies a commitment to register for and attend the Conference. (Registration Fee: $100; $15 for students and retired scholars).

Extended Deadline for Submission of Abstract and/or Papers: February 15, 2012
Extended Date for Notification of Acceptance: February 22, 2012

Please mail or send via email your proposals for panels and papers (with abstracts of about 150 words) as well as a brief c.v. to:

Dr. Obiwu Iwuanyanwu
Black Diaspora Conference
Department of Humanities
P.O. Box 1004
Wilberforce, Ohio 45384
Telephone (937) 376-6215; Fax (937) 376-6029
Email: oiwuanyanwu@centralstate.edu

Or

Dr. Anthony Milburn
Black Diaspora Conference
Department of Humanities
P.O. Box 1004
Wilberforce, Ohio 45384
Telephone (937) 376-6459; Fax (937)376-6029
Email: amilburn@centralstate.edu

Glen Owen: Interstices

By Conrad Zagory, Jr.

Those who have had occasion to view Glen Owen’s work will have little trouble identifying the lineage of his present sixteen-piece collection of black and white line drawings. Over the years there has been, simply put, a process of miniaturization resulting in an ever-increasing complexity: drawings become writings; scripts that organize themselves in our variously differing human minds which somehow make sense to us. It is especially so for those who can distinguish from among writing systems, past and present: Sumerian, Egyptian hieroglyphs, Sanskrit, Hebrew, Chinese, Linear A & B from Crete, Runic, Japanese, Mayan, Korean, and so on. Furthermore, these varying, quasi-scripts are to be found in the interstitial tissue of these drawings: those areas which define the borders between geometric patterns, sometimes separating and other times, melding one into another, especially where we find circular as opposed to linear delineations. We have been presented with a Borgesian Library, infinite in concept and limited only by the size of the drawing.

What is of import to Glen is his long-held conviction that the sacred, the holy, resides in these interstices, the blank areas encompassed by the lines, much as the Taoist, who instructs us that it is the emptiness contained in the vessel that is the proper focus of our meditations. It is here we find the spirit of the creative force, and art as a universal language. It is why we are entranced by Indian miniatures, Korean celadon, or Japanese sumie, without belonging to any of those nationalities or traditions.

Two other themes should be noted: colorization and rebirth. Glen would describe himself as an abstract expressionist and colorist, and ultimately as sui generis. He has begun a new series: the same architecture but now colorized. But more importantly, we should realize that we almost lost this dear man to illness, had it not been for the ministrations of his cardiologist, Dr. Bob Scott of Springfield, Ohio. For seven months, Glen looked like death warmed over, so this series is also an expression of his renewed appreciation for life. Painting, drawing, in effect what we call art, is for him not a matter of choice, but a compulsion. His return from the abyss, while disappointing to those collectors who await a sudden jump in value with his demise, has allowed him to indulge that passion. And thus, it is with profound gratitude, that Glen has dedicated the first series of sixteen to Dr. Bob and his wife, Jane Scott.

Nigerian Security's Arrest of Dr. Okey Ndibe

We, Writers Without Borders, wish to express our profound dismay at the arrest and interrogation of the Nigerian academic and journalist Dr. Okey Ndibe, as well as the seizure of his passports by agents of the Nigerian State Security Services (SSS).

We consider this despotic action as an attempt to muzzle the voices of dissent to the government of President Goodluck Jonathan. We believe that such acts have no place in our democracy.

We urge President Goodluck Jonathan to quickly put an end to this shameful act by returning Prof. Ndibe’s passports forthwith. We want to believe that this was a case of overzealous agents stuck in the mindset of the past when lawlessness was the way of carrying out the business of the nation. If the goal of the security agency is to frighten writers into silence, let it be known to them that this will have an opposite effect. Nigerian writers will continue to exercise their right to free speech. They will continue to advocate for a decent life for all Nigerian citizens. They will continue to oppose the culture of impunity and lawlessness that breed corruption, injustice, and insecurity.

We consider the harassment of Okey Ndibe as a harassment of us all. We hope that the Nigerian government will pull back from this descent into the abyss. We have been there before and we all know that it did not work out well for both the oppressed and the oppressors.

Signed:

Obiwu & Rudolf Okonkwo
For: Writers Without Borders
Address: writerswithoutborders@yahoogroups.com

Irobi & Brutus

For Esiaba Irobi (1960-2010) and Dennis Brutus (1924-2009)

By Obiwu

Irobi was my friend. We met once, though he taught college an hour's drive down the road. We talked a few times over the phone. We exchanged some emails over the years. When we met at Harvard we hugged & high fived. Olu was on the floor. Chimamanda weaved and waved. Okey took an early exit. Irobi and Brutus danced all night like it was their last.

Blogger Buzz: Blogger integrates with Amazon Associates

Blogger Buzz: Blogger integrates with Amazon Associates

A Sick Man Shall Rule Over You

By Obiwu

And it was said: In the millenium of our lord, a sick man shall rule over you, with a sick brain and sick eyes and sick limbs. And then he shall disappear in a cloud of stone and gown and silence. And it was said: His sick wife shall rule in his place and from his sickbed. His children shall sing and dance and praise their god. Thank you god, they shall sing: For you gave unto us a sick son and a sick father and a sick husband. And his sick wife ruled over the sick land from his sickbed. Thank you god, they shall dance: For you gave unto us a sick man and a sick woman to rule over a sick people who are sick in spirit and sick in body and sick in mind. And in the millenium of our lord, all your Empty Word – to which nothing was added or removed – shall come to pass. Sickness and praises shall be unto your sick name.

We are no Longer at Ease (An Open Letter from Nigerian Writers)

Nigeria’s failure to make the progress commensurate with 50 years of nation-building is not just a failure of leadership. It is first and most catastrophically, a failure of followership.

As ordinary Nigerians, we have failed to create an environment where good leadership can thrive. By glamorising fraud and ineptitude, we have created a country hostile to probity. Our expectation from Government House is mediocrity, so that good government surprises us pleasantly and excellence continues to amaze us. Instead of an environment of accountability, we have fostered sycophancy. We have been content to follow every stripe of leader, from the thief to the buffoon. The consequence is that for months we have been happy to be ruled even in absentia.

Today, we say, no more.

Protest is not a dirty word. Even babies have a voice, long before they learn language or discernment. The child that is too docile to cry when it hungers or ails might die in the hands of the most benevolent mother. A leadership, however benevolent, requires an intelligent, demanding, and courageous followership to excel.

It is the responsibility of every Nigerian to voice the legitimate expectations of nation and to establish the standards to which our leaders must be held. We must expect great things from this country, so we must look for the leaders who can deliver. There is an acceptable standard of leadership, and then there is an unacceptable standard. We must honour leaders who excel, and censure leaders – at every level, and in every arm of government – who betray our trust.

If failure is not censured, there is no incentive in pursuing excellence. If sacrificial leadership is not recognised, then leaders of merit will not come forward, and the heroes in our cenotaphs will be the very architects of our failure as a nation. Although we are justly famous for our generosity of spirit, for our ability to forgive and forget the gravest transgressions, Nigerians must also now boldly condemn the errors of leadership, and end the complacency that has brought us so low as a country. The only reason for the existence of political leaders is to offer service to nation. Leadership is not an end in itself. It is a privilege to serve your country; leadership is not a right to be served by your country.

Today, Nigeria stands on a precipice. Behind us is a history that can push us, irrevocably, over the brink. Yet, we are writers. If we bring anything collectively to society, it must be the imagination and the inspiration to bridge impossible gulfs. Today, we must plumb our history, not to evoke despair, but to inspire resolve. Today, we call on Nigerians to hold hands across the trenches of our deep divisions and, somehow, find the resolution to dream again. Let us, as ordinary Nigerians, reject the ethnic fictions that local despots have used to colonise this country over the past five decades.

Let us dream a simple dream made fantastic by our present circumstances. Let us dream of a Nigeria that works, that evokes pride, and that inspires faith. Let us dream of a Nigeria of servant-leaders and sacrificial statesmen, a Nigeria which calls the best characteristics out of ordinary men and women. Let us call on that capacity for renewal to bring opportunity out of this crisis.

Let us recreate the excitement – and the possibilities – with which we approached the Independence Day of 1960. In 50 years, the resources and destiny of this great country have been hijacked by private carpetbaggers and adventurers. Let us take back the sanctity of our polls. Let us rejuvenate the recall process. Let us police our resources, our leadership. We must liberate Nigeria anew. Today, we must take back our country.

As writers, the past and the future are fertile fields for the work of our imagination. Today, in this love-letter to our nation, we call on all Nigerians to take authorship of our nation’s next 50 years. Our destiny is in our own hands. Shall we write into it a bigger civil war? Another half-century of mediocrity and international disgrace? Then we need do nothing.

But if we, the people of Nigeria, must write an inspirational epic of a humbled nation on her knees, who, breaking free of bondage, soars into the keep of eagles, we must begin by demanding only the best of our leaders. In the days and months to come, we the people must find our voice, our votes, and our true values. And we must make them count.

Thank you.

Chuma Nwokolo • Abdul Mahmud • Afam Akeh • Helon Habila • Paul Onovoh • Chika Unigwe • Jude Dibia • Okey Ndibe • Chilo Zona Eze • EC Osondu • Tade Ipadeola • Unoma Azuah • Shola Adenekan • Amatoritsero Ede • Lola Shoneyin • Uzor Maxim Uzoatu • Ikhide Ikheloa • Uche Peter Umez • Nnorom Azuonye • Richard Mammah • Chike Ofili • Obiwu • Uche Nduka • Ogaga Ifowodo • Richard Ugbede Ali • Maik Nwosu • Akin Adesokan • Obi Nwakanma • Kachi A. Ozumba • Odili Ujubuonu • Emman Shehu • Ibrahim Sheme