Business

COMMENTARY: We did not die, we multiplied

CHICAGO CRUSADER — It is without question. Blacks, as a race of people, are the most resilient human beings walking on God’s earth.

Published

6 years ago

January 11, 2019

crusader

By Harry C. Alford & Kay DeBow

It is without question. Blacks, as a race of people, are the most resilient human beings walking on God’s earth. Starting in the 1500s, Europeans began the greatest holocaust known to history.

The enslavement of Africans would last for over 350 years. A good portion of the captives died within weeks during the passage across the Atlantic Ocean. Many of the females arrived pregnant from the rapes of their captors during the voyage. But as a people, a noticeable number survived, only to be put under the harshest of conditions from the cradle to the grave.

There have been different forms of slavery throughout history. The form used throughout the “New World” was the most vicious and heartless. Victims were denied their religion, language and every aspect of their culture. The treatment was quite like that of the management of livestock. Any resistance would result in certain death. Governments would encourage settlers to utilize slaves on their farms. There was a tradition to award settlers for utilizing slaves. For each new slave purchased by a farmer there would be a fifty-acre bonus of new land.

After going through this holocaust for nearly four decades, African Americans of the western hemisphere developed into some of the strongest human beings known to the world. Every four years we go on display during the Olympics. Popular sports such as football, basketball, soccer, baseball, boxing, etc. prove our strength, speed and courage. Every person, regardless of race should visit the National Museum of African American History and Culture in DC. Blacks, descendants of slaves, come out of the museum inspired by the achievements despite the adversities we have experienced. Whites, descendants of slave owners, come out educated and surprised.

We won our freedom in the United States in 1865. However, for the next one hundred years many of us had to endure the evilness of Jim Crow segregation. We were slotted into the lowest jobs, poorest healthcare, smallest amount of education that could be.

Blacks living in the rural South were denied proper education. Most rural Black children went to elementary school during the winter months. The rest of the year was spent working the fields.

Harry’s parents grew up in Louisiana. They went to school up to the eighth grade. They would work as adults from there on, as the nearest Black high school was 40 miles away. When the Dutch descendants of South Africa wanted to apply apartheid, they modeled this Jim Crow example.

During the George W. Bush administration, we became Cultural Ambassadors. One of our journeys was to Mexico City. We were amazed when we toured La Puebla and Vera Cruz. There were Blacks there. Some did not know how their people got there. So, we did some research. When the French and British drove the Spanish settlers out of the Gulf Coast region, many of the Spaniards fled to Mexico and brought their slaves with them.

Amazed would be an understatement when we journeyed to Brazil in 1999. Brazil has the largest population of Blacks in the Western Hemisphere. In fact, only Nigeria has a greater population of Blacks.

Many Brazilians of European lineage try to ignore that fact.

They divide Blacks by the darkness of the skin color. Light skins are referred to as “mixed.” They are trying to dilute the fact that nearly most of the population are “children of Afri- ca.” Some of the brothers and sisters wear T-shirts that say “100% Negro” (Black in Portuguese). They aren’t buying the toned-down moniker.

Despite their slight majority population, Blacks in Brazil represent less than 18% of the wealth. Such is the same throughout South America. Blacks are at the bottom “rung” of the economic ladder. We are committed to help change that.

This March we will visit Columbia on a follow-up Trade Mission. Our affiliated chapter there is quite ambitious and is headquartered in the Cali region. This country is going through a positive change in terms of civil and economic rights for the African descendants and the indigenous (Indians) people.

It is our mantra to provide “Best Practices” in terms of civil and economic parity. Besides the Pacific Coastline we will meet dignitaries (the president and his cabinet) in the capital city of Bogota. See the details on the NBCC website.

The coast lines of South and Central America are home to the majority of African Americans. As slaves, they would work the harbors and ports in addition to the farmlands. The undeniable truth is that descendants of the “Great Holocaust” have survived and will now begin to economically thrive. It is our destiny. Our Lord is watching over us and will become our guiding light throughout this “journey.”

Mr. Alford is the Co-Founder, President/CEO of the National Black Chamber of Commerce®. Ms. DeBow is the Co-Founder, Executive Vice President of the NBCC. Website: www.nationalbcc.org Emails: halford@nationalbcc.org kdebow@nationalbcc.org.

This article originally appeared in the Chicago Crusader.

crusader

Posts by crusader

Up Next

Fifty-Five Strong: The Largest Congressional Black Caucus Kicks Off the 116th Congress

Don't Miss

Preckwinkle gets $500K campaign donation from labor union

crusader

Click to comment

Activism

Oak Temple Hill Hosts Interfaith Leaders from Across the Bay Area

Distinguished faith leaders Rev. Ken Chambers, executive director the Interfaith Council of Alameda County (ICAC); Michael Pappas, executive director of the San Francisco Interfaith Council; and Dr. Ejaz Naqzi, president of the Contra Costa County Interfaith Council addressed the group on key issues including homelessness, food insecurity, immigration, and meaningful opportunities to care for individuals and communities in need.

Published

2 days ago

June 14, 2025

Oakland Post

Troy McCombs (from the state of Washington), Elder Mark Mortensen (from Irvine, CA), Michael Pappas, Rev. Ken Chambers, Dr. Ejaz Naqvi, Elder Sigfried Nauman (from the state of Washington), and Richard Kopf. Courtesy photo.

Special to the Post

Interfaith leaders from the Bay Area participated in a panel discussion at the annual meeting of communication leaders from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints held on Temple Hill in Oakland on May 31. Distinguished faith leaders Rev. Ken Chambers, executive director the Interfaith Council of Alameda County (ICAC); Michael Pappas, executive director of the San Francisco Interfaith Council; and Dr. Ejaz Naqzi, president of the Contra Costa County Interfaith Council addressed the group on key issues including homelessness, food insecurity, immigration, and meaningful opportunities to care for individuals and communities in need.

Chambers, said he is thankful for the leadership and support of the Church of Jesus Christ Latter-Day Saints’ global ministry, which recently worked with the interfaith congregations of ICAC to help Yasjmine Oeveraas a homeless Norwegian mother and her family find shelter and access to government services.

Oeveraas told the story of how she was assisted by ICAC to the Oakland Post. “I’m a Norwegian citizen who escaped an abusive marriage with nowhere to go. We’ve been homeless in Florida since January 2024. Recently, we came to California for my son’s passport, but my plan to drive for Uber fell through, leaving us homeless again. Through 2-1-1, I was connected to Rev. Ken Chambers, pastor of the West Side Missionary Baptist Church and president of the Interfaith Council of Alameda County, and his car park program, which changed our lives. We spent about a week-and-a-half living in our car before being blessed with a trailer. After four years of uncertainty and 18 months of homelessness, this program has given us stability and hope again.

“Now, both my son and I have the opportunity to continue our education. I’m pursuing cyber analytics, something I couldn’t do while living in the car. My son can also complete his education, which is a huge relief. This program has given us the space to focus and regain our dignity. I am working harder than ever to reach my goals and give back to others in need.”

Richard Kopf, communication director for The Church of Jesus Christ in the Bay Area stated: “As followers of Jesus Christ, we embrace interfaith cooperation and are united in our efforts to show God’s love for all of his children.”

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Alameda County

Council Approves Budget to Invest in Core City Services, Save Fire Stations, Invest in Economic Development

I am most proud of our ability to fund these critical city services without the use of one-time fixes. We are still suffering the consequences of last year’s budget, where a majority of the Council, myself not included, chose to incorporate anticipated proceeds from the sale of the Coliseum to fund essential services. Since the sale has still not yet been completed, the lack of funds led to drastic cuts in city services, including the temporary closure of fire stations, staff layoffs, and the cancellations of many service contracts.

Published

2 days ago

June 14, 2025

Oakland Post

District 4 Oakland City Councilmember Janani Ramachandran. Photo courtesy City of Oakland.

By Janani Ramachandran, District 4 Oakland City Councilmember

On Wednesday, June 11, City Council took a bold step to prioritize investing in essential city services to get our beautiful Town back on track. As Chair of the Finance Committee, I am proud to have led a collaborative process, alongside Councilmembers Rowena Brown, Zac Unger, and Charlene Wang, to develop a set of amendments to the proposed FY 2025-2027 budget which passed successfully with a vote of 6 – 1. Despite facing a $265 million structural budget deficit, we were able to restore funding to ensure that all 25 fire stations remain open, fund 5 police academies, invest millions of dollars to combat illegal dumping and sideshow prevention, improve our permitting processes, fund a “business incentives” program to revitalize our commercial corridors, improve upon our homelessness prevention work, amplify the city’s anti-trafficking programs, re-instate our tree services division, staff up our Auditor’s office – all while preventing any layoffs of city staff, keeping our senior centers and after-school programs open, and crisis services like MACRO funded.

Our budget comes in response to the widespread and consistent calls from across Oakland’s diverse communities asking us to prioritize funding solutions to the issues that have most directly impacted our residents’ safety and quality of life. Our priorities are also inspired by our belief that Oakland is on the way not only to financial recovery, but also to global recognition. Oakland can attract and preserve businesses of all sizes with safer, cleaner streets. We can and will have more large-scale festivals that celebrate our culture, concerts that uplift our incredible local musicians, conferences that attract patrons from across the world, and award-winning restaurants that top national charts. We are on our way to rebuilding a thriving economy and having a cultural renaissance will create more jobs for Oaklanders while also generating more revenue for the City through sales and business taxes.

I am grateful for the close partnership with our new Mayor Barbara Lee, and know that she shares our values of ensuring we are prioritizing keeping Oakland’s residents safe, our streets clean, and our businesses prosperous in an open and fiscally responsible manner. I am also thankful to our City Administrator, Jestin Johnson, and former Interim Mayor Kevin Jenkins’ efforts to produce the initial proposal that our Council budget team used as a starting point for our amendments, and for their shared commitment to transparency and ethical government. I am especially grateful for every resident that took the time to make their voice heard throughout this rigorous budget process. I have no doubt that we are on the verge of true change, and that together we will bring Oakland back to being the world-class city I know it can be.