AFRICAN DIASPORA FOUNDATION

  WE STAND FOR PEACE… IN AFRICA… IN THE DIASPORA… AND IN THE WORLD.

ADF Quarterly NEWSLETTER

The concept of the ADF was born in 1991 out of the concern that there is a wide gulf among the people of African descent across the globe, though marginal gains have been made in terms of economic and political emancipation. These gains, however, have not translated into increased economic and political participation of significant proportions.

From Left to Right: Louis Ebodaghe, Saady Zuma, Jacob Zuma, Nontokozo, Agrippa Ezozo, Stella Ukwuoma, and Joyce Ntshalintshali  taken at Jacob Zuma’s Residence.

Message from the President…

Issue 1, September 2005

Spotlight: DAYTRA HANSEL

Questions or comments?  Email us at info@theadf.com or check out our website at http://www.theadf.com

Newsletter Editor: Cathrin Ahrens

Daytra Hansel

The Third Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) Civil Society Network Session of the Fourth US-sub-Saharan Africa Trade and Economic Forum convened on July 18-20, 2005, in Dakar, Senegal.  ADF President Agrippa Ezozo was invited to participate in a Digital Video Conference hosted by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).  From Los Angeles, California, Ezozo served as a moderator, together with Fred Oladeinde in Dakar and Hypolite Fofack in Washington, D.C., in a discussion on “AGOA and Perspectives for Sub-Saharan Africa’s Development within the International Context”.

 

In August 2005, ADF President Agrippa Ezozo and Vice President Louis Ebodaghe visited South Africa for 6 days to meet with various leaders and community members. While en route to South Africa, they first stopped at the United Nations to meet with Mr. Tuliameni Kalomoh, UN Assistant Secretary General Political Affairs, who expressed interest in working with ADF to encourage African diplomats and heads of state to support the mission of ADF.

 

In South Africa, Ezozo and Ebodaghe met with Deputy President of the African National Congress (ANC) and former South African Deputy President Jacob Zuma to express gratitude to Mr. Zuma for his support of ADF, as well as to plan his visit to the United States to attend ADF’s peace symposium at UCLA on October 1, 2005.  Next, they met with community leaders of Bafokeng Province, the richest Province in South Africa, where they were presented with an economic development and educational package which ADF will review to determine the feasibility of a future collaboration.

 

 

News and Accomplishments…

Peace is not the absence of war; it is a virtue; a state of mind; a disposition for benevolence, confidence and justice.

 

— Baruch Spinoza —

17th Century Philosopher

Upcoming Events…

Although the United Nations declared 2001-2010 the “International Decade for a Culture of Peace and Non-Violence for the Children of the World,” the world still struggles with violence, or the threat of violence, thus challenging society to develop a system and means of communication to end, diminish, or reconcile human conflict. 

 

The ADF has responded to this challenge by endeavoring to develop a permanent African-centered peace education curriculum on the UCLA campus.  As a part of this effort, the ADF is hosting a Peace Symposium on October 1, 2005, to explore ways of making peace, non-violence, and reconciliation a working reality throughout the world. 

 

In this day-long seminar, entitled “The Language of Peace: An Agenda for the 21st Century,” experienced non-violence practitioners in the tradition of Mohandas K. Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr. , Nelson Mandela, and Bishop Desmond Tutu, will discuss current practices and emerging trends in the development of a language of peace in the US and around the world. 

 

The symposium is intended for educators, social workers, community organizers and activists, international aid workers, students, and anyone who is interested in advancing peace initiatives. 

Topics and speakers include:

~ Guest Speaker Mr. Jacob Zuma, Deputy President of the African National Congress (ANC) and former South African Deputy President

~ “Advancing Social and Economic Justice: the lesson of creative tension” - led by Rev. James Lawson, Pastor Emeritus, Holman United Methodist Church, Los Angeles

~ “Creating Space for Peace: the legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr.” - led by Rev. Albert R. Sampson, President, Metropolitan Council of Black Churches, Chicago

~ “Cultivating a Movement and Developing Institutions: an international perspective” - led by Bernard Lafayette, Jr., Director, Center for Nonviolence and Peace Studies, University of Rhode Island, Distinguished-Scholar-in-Residence

~ “Training Youth Peacemakers: non-violence education in the Detroit Unified School District” - led by Alicia Reneé Farris, Executive Director, Michigan Institute for Nonviolence Education, Detroit

 

This symposium joins the global movement to educate humanity for a sustainable culture and language of peace, and it demonstrates how peace and nonviolence centers have become viable in local, national, and international communities. 

 

Join us on October 1, 2005 for our peace symposium, “The Language of Peace: An Agenda for Today”. 

 

Special Guest Speaker:

Mr. Jacob Zuma, Deputy President of the ANC and former South African Deputy President

 

Guest Speakers also include:

Rev. James Lawson

Rev. Albert R. Sampson

Bernard Lafayette, Jr.

Alicia Reneé Farris

 

Register online today:  www.uclaextension.edu

700.01 Afro-American Studies

 

Saturday, October 1, 2005

9:30am-4:30pm

UCLA 39 Haines Hall

$75 / $35 students with ID

Recent Events…

“Uyoyo!” 

 

On Tuesday, August 11, 2005, the ADF, together with the City of Los Angeles 10th Council District, hosted a Peace Breakfast at Los Angeles City Hall in the Tom Bradley Room. 

 

Gathering on the 40th Anniversary of the Watts Riots, the ADF and esteemed guests assembled to celebrate the peacemakers who came before us and to honor those among us today. 

 

Displaying a wide representation of society, the attendees included the Consul-Generals of Ethiopia, Kenya and South Africa, Albert Lord, Rabbi Allen Freehling and Ed Sanders of the City of Los Angeles, Dr. Maida Hastings from UCLA Extension, Gary Dalin from Faces of Israel, Rev. Daytra Hansel from Agape International Spiritual Center, actress Jayne Kennedy-Overton, and International Youth Ambassador for Peace Savannah Overton. 

 

The Keynote Speaker, Dr. Carlton Green, author of “What is the Purpose of a Banana?,” challenged those in attendance to grapple with the struggles of violence and hate that obstruct peace, while solo vocalist, Melida Skeete-Smith, moved the audience to unite voices as everyone sang “Uyoyo!” (which means “peace” in the Isoko language in Nigeria). 

 

The spirit of peace captivated all of the attendees, inspiring many members of the audience to share impromptu words of peace and inspiration.  Several passages were shared from the writings of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Deepak Chopra.

 

The Peace Breakfast was a huge success, and moreover, it heightened awareness of the ADF’s ongoing mission of establishing a permanent peace education curriculum on the UCLA campus.

The ADF Mission & Vision…

The African Diaspora Foundation is dedicated to developing peace centers, peace curricula, teachers, and to supporting outreach programs that promote peace, nonviolence and reconciliation in Africa and other parts of the world. Ultimately we strive to empower individuals to have a choice to choose peace instead of violence to build stable communities and progressive nations.

The African Diaspora Foundation is committed to developing a coalition of national and international leaders and organizations to address critical issues concerning peace, nonviolence, and reconciliation in Africa. As a non-profit organization, ADF has proposed in partnership with United States universities, to develop peace education centers in Los Angeles and in Africa offering a curriculum aimed at overcoming issues that threaten survival in countries affected by conflict. ADF's plan is that this model program will become an international force in preparing educators for the key task of making peace, nonviolence and reconciliation a working reality.

Daytra Hansel is one of the countless quiet heroes in the global movement for peace.  She has dedicated a large part of her career to serving the world’s youth through distance-learning programs, and it is through her efforts that students from all over the world have confronted and challenged prejudiced stereotypes, as well as, explored educational concepts by engaging in her educational cross-cultural exchanges. 

 

Born in Berkley, California, Ms. Hansel received her B.A. in Sociology from San Francisco State University, her Masters in Public Administration from Cal State University at Northridge, and has taken classes toward a doctorate degree in education. She developed an expertise in distance learning and instructional technologies and has served as an interactive technology facilities manager and distance learning consultant for UCLA‘s Office of Instructional Development. 

Over the years Ms. Hansel has successfully developed distance learning programs for UCLA  that served students in a number of educational institutions in South Korea, Spain, Japan, Russia, England, Czech Republic, Canada, Mexico, Israel, Gaza as well as several countries in Africa. Most recently, Ms. Hansel works in UCLA’s Community Based Learning Program where she is an educational technology consultant to a community-based organization and its recently opened college prep charter high school in South Los Angeles. She provided leadership in the creation of the charter high school and also developed a Media and Technology Program for the organization that includes the curriculum and 230 page Teacher’s Resource Guide.

 

Currently, Ms. Hansel is working together with members of the ADF to found a Peace Library and Distance Learning Center at the King-Lithuli Transformation Center in Johannesburg, South Africa.  Although the project is still in the planning stages, the intention is to develop a Peace Library that circulates books, provides workshops and related activities on peace, nonviolence, and reconciliation.  Recognizing the importance of making computer usage and distance learning more accessible in Africa, Ms. Hansel’s goal is to establish a Media and Technology Center within the library that offers Internet access, research capabilities, and online instructional programs.  This Center will be open to the public and will train individuals in how to use a computer, various software and related resources which will impact their lives and local societies by enabling them to teach others and encourage them to further their education through online instructional programs.  Ms. Hansel would like to collaborate with institutions around the world to technologically link them to schools and organizations in South Africa.

 

In addition to her work at UCLA, Ms. Hansel is actively involved at Agape International Spiritual Center, a non-denominational church in Culver City, California.  She served for seven years on the Board of Trustees before becoming a minister five years ago.  Ms. Hansel’s dedication to peace and justice is also reflected in her devotion to the Global Works Ministry that she leads at Agape.  This ministry has organized various inter-faith humanitarian programs that work with non-governmental organizations (NGO’s) globally to serve HIV/AIDS victims, orphans, disaster survivors and other community needs.  Recently, funding from Agape built a school in Malawi, Africa. 

 

Daytra Hansel serves as an inspiration to every person committed to cultivating peace throughout the world.  She is an example of how one individual can make an impact in a world and in a cause that can seem overwhelming.  Not only does she serve communities through her humanitarian projects at Agape, but she also serves the youth throughout the world everyday through her career in distance learning.  By bringing students from different cultures and backgrounds together, Ms. Hansel facilitates peace and understanding by enabling these students to see the commonalities between cultures, to humanize their counterparts in warring environments, and to work together to create a world that reflects greater tolerance and peace.

Ezozo and Ebodaghe also visited AISA (African Institute of South Africa), meeting with Dr. Eddy Maloka, Dr. James Karioki, Ms. Yaziniz April, and AISA Young Graduates who will be launching a program in October that will address the response of youth to conflict in Africa.  They have compiled a CD whose theme song is entitled “Let there be peace for Africa Now”. Their vision is for this peace song to have the same worldwide impact as “We Are the World”, and they are counting on ADF to produce the CD.

 

The visit to South Africa was concluded with a meeting with Mr. Sandy Malapile, NEPAD (The New Partnership for Africa’s Development ) Project Coordinator, who has agreed to work with ADF. There may be an opportunity for ADF to present its mission at the next NEPAD meeting which is planned for December 2005.

In almost every society, the people of African descent often constitute the majority at the bottom rung of the economic and political ladder, relative to their overall number in the population. This is not a result of lack of skills or natural intelligence, but rather the consequences of historical subjugation spanning more than four centuries of oppression.

Our history reflects a people subjected to the vagaries of international trade and exploitation. There was the slave trade, colonization, and economic exploitation through unequal exchange. This historical subjugation has left Africa's people oppressed and their continent in great conflict, both in physical devastation and in terms of human lives taken.

While the African Diaspora span the globe and embrace the global culture, little effort has gone into building the necessary infrastructure that would promote Africa's economic, technological, social, and political interactions.

If the people of Africa are to enjoy human security and economic opportunities in their homeland, we must build on the necessary infrastructure of durable peace. Peace through education, although it is a long journey, is the basis of a sustainable infrastructure for leaders ... our children.

Please join us on October 1, 2005 at UCLA for our first peace seminar, “The Language of Peace: An Agenda for Today”.

— Agrippa O. Ezozo—

 Founding President