ALAN JOHNSTON: UPDATE

Two weeks ago, I posted here an appeal for support to the release of kidnapped BBC Gaza correspondent Alan Johnston.

Today, the good news is that Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) were told by Palestinian leaders that "he is still alive" (see here).

Meanwhile, among various initiatives to support his immediate release, the BBC has launched a petition and an online service to keep all those interested updated on any developments on the case.

You can access that service by clicking the picture above.

Two weeks ago, I posted here an appeal for support to the release of kidnapped BBC Gaza correspondent Alan Johnston.

Today, the good news is that Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) were told by Palestinian leaders that "he is still alive" (see here).

Meanwhile, among various initiatives to support his immediate release, the BBC has launched a petition and an online service to keep all those interested updated on any developments on the case.

You can access that service by clicking the picture above.

"GLOBAL DAY FOR DARFUR"

JUST ANOTHER DAY?

SEE MORE HERE

JUST ANOTHER DAY?

SEE MORE HERE

INTERESTING READINGS FOR THE SOCIAL RESEARCHER...

... OR JUST THE INTERESTED LAY READER

Critique of Anthropology is dedicated to the development of anthropology as a discipline that subjects social reality to critical analysis. The journal challenges received wisdoms inside academic anthropology and in society at large, presenting work that is innovative, challenging, sometimes experimental and often uncomfortable.

For more reading suggestions CLICK HERE.

... OR JUST THE INTERESTED LAY READER

Critique of Anthropology is dedicated to the development of anthropology as a discipline that subjects social reality to critical analysis. The journal challenges received wisdoms inside academic anthropology and in society at large, presenting work that is innovative, challenging, sometimes experimental and often uncomfortable.

For more reading suggestions CLICK HERE.

OH D(G)EAR!

Bom, isto e' que sao sortes ou azares...

Entao nao e' que o bom do Richard Gere, apesar dos ultimos longos anos de endoutrinacao Budista que supostamente lhe deviam ter ensinado suficientes licoes de contencao de impulsos, se deixou levar pelos mais "basic instincts" e vai de beijocar assim a Shilpa Shetty - lembram-se dela, de boa 'Big Brother UK' fame?

Nao foi nos labios nem nada, apenas na face, mas nem isso o safou de um mandato de prisao por alegada ofensa as sensibilidades conservadoras Indianas... com direito a queima de efigies na rua e tudo! A continuar assim, a boa da Shilpa ainda acaba por deitar toda a India em chamas... Mas antes disso, ela tambem tera' que comparecer perante um tribunal local daqui ha uns dias para dizer de sua justica sobre os beijinhos... Sempre gostava de saber o que, quando a coitada foi assim "assaltada" por um beijoqueiro todo tomado de "amores" durante um show televisivo de sensibilizacao para os perigos de contracao do virus HIV que ela apresentava?!

Coisas...

Bom, isto e' que sao sortes ou azares...

Entao nao e' que o bom do Richard Gere, apesar dos ultimos longos anos de endoutrinacao Budista que supostamente lhe deviam ter ensinado suficientes licoes de contencao de impulsos, se deixou levar pelos mais "basic instincts" e vai de beijocar assim a Shilpa Shetty - lembram-se dela, de boa 'Big Brother UK' fame?

Nao foi nos labios nem nada, apenas na face, mas nem isso o safou de um mandato de prisao por alegada ofensa as sensibilidades conservadoras Indianas... com direito a queima de efigies na rua e tudo! A continuar assim, a boa da Shilpa ainda acaba por deitar toda a India em chamas... Mas antes disso, ela tambem tera' que comparecer perante um tribunal local daqui ha uns dias para dizer de sua justica sobre os beijinhos... Sempre gostava de saber o que, quando a coitada foi assim "assaltada" por um beijoqueiro todo tomado de "amores" durante um show televisivo de sensibilizacao para os perigos de contracao do virus HIV que ela apresentava?!

Coisas...

AFRIKA: WHAT PRICE A BRAIN?

The attached two articles report on the on-going International Labour Organisation’s 11th Africa Regional meeting in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. While the first puts a price on the brain drain affecting the continent, the second blames the International Financial Institutions (IFI) for the poverty caused by lack of jobs in African countries.

Are the two interrelated? One would think so, although the causality links are not as clear cut as it might seem at a first approach. In fact, it is not entirely clear that stemming the brain drain is an item, let alone a priority, in both the IFIs and African governments agendas. And this is so because while much is made of the brain drain, little is seriously investigated about its root causes in the societies where it occurs – and these are a complex mix of social, political, economic and cultural factors that cannot be exclusively blamed on the IFIs' policies.

Interestingly enough, in the first article, a UNDP Administrator says that "African institutions are increasingly dependent on foreign expertise"... Has anyone ever cared to look closely at the recruitment practices of African institutions such as the AU, the ADB or any of the regional organisations spread across the continent? Has anyone asked why is it that such organisations (just like the member states that constitute them) are so reluctant, if not absolutely averse, to recruiting Africans in the diaspora, giving absolute preference to expatriates from other regions of the world, even when such Africans are more qualified both technically and culturally for many of the internationally advertised posts both in their headquarters and country or regional offices? Even when such posts are subsidised, or fully paid for, by institutions such as the EU, within programmes specifically aimed at repatriating Africans in the diaspora?

No one can truly understand the full dimension of this problem until they experience the institutional (or, in some cases, casual but not less hard-hitting) levels, open or disguised, of xenophobia and active systemic exclusion practices - to the point of denying them their own nationality of origin, even when they were forced by the very systems that institute such practices to leave the country and remain abroad - directed at African expatriates by the residents in their own country of origin, the self-entitled "insiders", all self-justified in their self-righteous "more african than thou" attitude... their fellow nationals or not! Clearly indicating that the average African brain, even if under-used and also treated as an "outsider" in the host countries, might be more valued/valuable, or just better preserved, out of Africa, particularly if it does not belong to someone clearly affiliated to the prevailing political system in their country of origin. And so the brain drain goes!

The attached two articles report on the on-going International Labour Organisation’s 11th Africa Regional meeting in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. While the first puts a price on the brain drain affecting the continent, the second blames the International Financial Institutions (IFI) for the poverty caused by lack of jobs in African countries.

Are the two interrelated? One would think so, although the causality links are not as clear cut as it might seem at a first approach. In fact, it is not entirely clear that stemming the brain drain is an item, let alone a priority, in both the IFIs and African governments agendas. And this is so because while much is made of the brain drain, little is seriously investigated about its root causes in the societies where it occurs – and these are a complex mix of social, political, economic and cultural factors that cannot be exclusively blamed on the IFIs' policies.

Interestingly enough, in the first article, a UNDP Administrator says that "African institutions are increasingly dependent on foreign expertise"... Has anyone ever cared to look closely at the recruitment practices of African institutions such as the AU, the ADB or any of the regional organisations spread across the continent? Has anyone asked why is it that such organisations (just like the member states that constitute them) are so reluctant, if not absolutely averse, to recruiting Africans in the diaspora, giving absolute preference to expatriates from other regions of the world, even when such Africans are more qualified both technically and culturally for many of the internationally advertised posts both in their headquarters and country or regional offices? Even when such posts are subsidised, or fully paid for, by institutions such as the EU, within programmes specifically aimed at repatriating Africans in the diaspora?

No one can truly understand the full dimension of this problem until they experience the institutional (or, in some cases, casual but not less hard-hitting) levels, open or disguised, of xenophobia and active systemic exclusion practices - to the point of denying them their own nationality of origin, even when they were forced by the very systems that institute such practices to leave the country and remain abroad - directed at African expatriates by the residents in their own country of origin, the self-entitled "insiders", all self-justified in their self-righteous "more african than thou" attitude... their fellow nationals or not! Clearly indicating that the average African brain, even if under-used and also treated as an "outsider" in the host countries, might be more valued/valuable, or just better preserved, out of Africa, particularly if it does not belong to someone clearly affiliated to the prevailing political system in their country of origin. And so the brain drain goes!

"DRUM JAM" IN THE WHITE HOUSE...

... ON THE PATH TO SELF-RIGHTEOUS "MORE AFRICAN THAN THOU"?

President Bush, accompanied by First Lady Laura Bush, plays the drums and dances with Assan Ronte (second from right) of the Kankouran West African Dance Company during a ceremony acknowledging Malaria Awareness Day in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, D.C.
(AP/Getty) Apr 25, 2007

... ON THE PATH TO SELF-RIGHTEOUS "MORE AFRICAN THAN THOU"?

President Bush, accompanied by First Lady Laura Bush, plays the drums and dances with Assan Ronte (second from right) of the Kankouran West African Dance Company during a ceremony acknowledging Malaria Awareness Day in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, D.C.
(AP/Getty) Apr 25, 2007

ANGOLA NAO E' SO' LU(A)NDA...

JA' ACONTECEU HA' MAIS DE UM MES

MAS APENAS ONTEM TIVE ACESSO AS IMAGENS

DAS INUNDACOES DO PRINCIPIO DE MARCO

NO SOYO

(AS FOTOS SAO DE MFUMA N'KONGO)

MAIS FOTOS AQUI

JA' ACONTECEU HA' MAIS DE UM MES

MAS APENAS ONTEM TIVE ACESSO AS IMAGENS

DAS INUNDACOES DO PRINCIPIO DE MARCO

NO SOYO

(AS FOTOS SAO DE MFUMA N'KONGO)

MAIS FOTOS AQUI

NO 25 DE ABRIL

CUBA! AFRICA! REVOLUTION!

Jihan El Tahri, 2007 Part 1: Tuesday 24 April 10.30pm-11.30pm; rpt 2.30am-3.30am; Part 2: Tuesday 1 May 10.30pm-11.30pm; rpt 2am-3am. Jihan El Tahri documents Cuba's interventions in Africa from Che Guevara's Congo campaign to Castro's role in Angola, and shows how the country's efforts to carve out an alternative path for Third World nations, and the USA's response to it, are still felt today.

The programme contains unique archive stills and footage of Che Guevara and Fidel Castro, and features interviews and testimony from the men who fought with them.

Acabo de ver, na BBC 4, a primeira parte deste documentario sobre a longa relacao entre revolucionarios Cubanos e nacionalistas Africanos. Esta primeira parte refere-se especialmente aos principios dos anos 60, detendo-se particularmente no Congo de Patrice Lumumba (incluindo o seu discurso, considerado de "lesa-majestade" pelos Belgas - que desde ali terao "jurado vinganca" contra ele - durante a cerimonia de independencia, em frente ao Rei Balduino; o papel dos recursos naturais do Congo, em especial o cobalto, no 'complot' ocidental contra Lumumba; depoimentos do oficial da CIA, Larry Devlin, instruido directamente por Eisenhower para assassinar Lumumba e o apoio dado a Mobutu nesse contexto), passando pela experiencia do primeiro grupo de 'internacionalistas cubanos' liderados por Che Guevara, chegados ao Congo via Tanzania, para apoiar a guerrilha anti-Mobutu liderada por Joseph Kabila (incluindo depoimentos de Fidel, do comandante do grupo cubano, Victor Dreke, do tradutor de Che e do seu assistente pessoal).

Registado o relativo falhanco da missao cubana no Congo, o documentario segue para a Guine-Bissau de Amilcar Cabral, em meados da decada de 60 (incluindo depoimentos de Paulo Jorge, dirigente do MPLA e primeiro Ministro das Relacoes Exteriores de Angola, de Luis Cabral, irmao de Amilcar e antigo Presidente da Guine-Bissau, Herman Cohen, antigo Secretario de Estado Americano Adjunto para Africa, entre outros).

O episodio termina com evocativas imagens do 25 de Abril de 1974 em Portugal. Como musica de fundo foi usado o "Balumukeno" do Bonga. Note-se que alguns documentarios da BBC, nao sei se sera’ o caso deste, podem ser obtidos em DVD.

[Segunda Parte]

CUBA! AFRICA! REVOLUTION!

Jihan El Tahri, 2007 Part 1: Tuesday 24 April 10.30pm-11.30pm; rpt 2.30am-3.30am; Part 2: Tuesday 1 May 10.30pm-11.30pm; rpt 2am-3am. Jihan El Tahri documents Cuba's interventions in Africa from Che Guevara's Congo campaign to Castro's role in Angola, and shows how the country's efforts to carve out an alternative path for Third World nations, and the USA's response to it, are still felt today.

The programme contains unique archive stills and footage of Che Guevara and Fidel Castro, and features interviews and testimony from the men who fought with them.

Acabo de ver, na BBC 4, a primeira parte deste documentario sobre a longa relacao entre revolucionarios Cubanos e nacionalistas Africanos. Esta primeira parte refere-se especialmente aos principios dos anos 60, detendo-se particularmente no Congo de Patrice Lumumba (incluindo o seu discurso, considerado de "lesa-majestade" pelos Belgas - que desde ali terao "jurado vinganca" contra ele - durante a cerimonia de independencia, em frente ao Rei Balduino; o papel dos recursos naturais do Congo, em especial o cobalto, no 'complot' ocidental contra Lumumba; depoimentos do oficial da CIA, Larry Devlin, instruido directamente por Eisenhower para assassinar Lumumba e o apoio dado a Mobutu nesse contexto), passando pela experiencia do primeiro grupo de 'internacionalistas cubanos' liderados por Che Guevara, chegados ao Congo via Tanzania, para apoiar a guerrilha anti-Mobutu liderada por Joseph Kabila (incluindo depoimentos de Fidel, do comandante do grupo cubano, Victor Dreke, do tradutor de Che e do seu assistente pessoal).

Registado o relativo falhanco da missao cubana no Congo, o documentario segue para a Guine-Bissau de Amilcar Cabral, em meados da decada de 60 (incluindo depoimentos de Paulo Jorge, dirigente do MPLA e primeiro Ministro das Relacoes Exteriores de Angola, de Luis Cabral, irmao de Amilcar e antigo Presidente da Guine-Bissau, Herman Cohen, antigo Secretario de Estado Americano Adjunto para Africa, entre outros).

O episodio termina com evocativas imagens do 25 de Abril de 1974 em Portugal. Como musica de fundo foi usado o "Balumukeno" do Bonga. Note-se que alguns documentarios da BBC, nao sei se sera’ o caso deste, podem ser obtidos em DVD.

[Segunda Parte]

IT’S FRIDAY!!!!

It was with this ‘jumpy shout’ conjuring up happiness and excitement at the beginning of the weekend that my favourite radio station in Botswana, Gabz fm, started its programmes on Fridays, while suggesting interesting things to do in the weekend: It’s Friday!!!! How I miss it sometimes…

One thing that particularly springs to mind at the weekend is dance: in a club, at home, wherever! It’s not just about happiness and excitement, it also acts therapeutically to cleanse body, mind and soul of all impurities accumulated during the week.

When thinking about dance, I recall my sparse dabbles at “structured” ways of doing this thing that always comes to me naturally, impulsively and instinctively since I was born, which is not to mean that my dance is not “naturally structured” by any sound I move to…

One such instance was in the early 80s in Luanda at a weekly “jazz dance” class given by the Swedish UN representative’s wife in her need to use her idle time. Another, also for “jazz dance”, was in the early 90s in Lisbon, at a formal dance company, where I had as teachers a female dancer/choreographer of French-Algerian origin and a Russian male former professional classical dancer, who had been forced out of the big stages and spotlights by a permanent knee injury. In both cases, I felt, with very rare exceptions, somewhat uncomfortable, due to being constrained to "perform" moves in ways that didn’t come naturally to my mind or to my body, added to the rigidity and extreme competitiveness characteristics of such environments…

Then, some 8 years ago, I attended a series of special African dance classes at the Africa Centre in London, given by one of the main female dancers/choreographers from Ghana. The music was played by African drummers from West Africa, including Ghana, Senegal and Cameroon, and the classes were attended by people of all races, ages and nationalities… it was my best “structured” dance experience so far! Unfortunately, it was cut short by the decision of its directors at the time to stop all “noisy” activities at the Centre (because the dance classes, which were accompanied by drums, were followed by African drum classes…), arguing that they interfered with the more “serious” events going on in there, such as conferences, workshops, roundtables and the like… Such a shame!

Anyway, I didn’t feel “lost in dance” because of that, since I always carry my natural dance and my music, as an intrinsic part of my life, everywhere I go…

Did I say anything about "art"?


I don’t know if the African drum’s classes were ever retaken at the Africa Centre, but one thing is for sure: you can catch them pretty much anywhere in London these days. They’ve joined activities such as yoga, pottery, etc. in the common menu of healthy things to do in your leisure time!

You can find them at such places as the Drum Jam or the evocatively named Nzinga Dance.

(All pictures © Nzinga Dance™)

It was with this ‘jumpy shout’ conjuring up happiness and excitement at the beginning of the weekend that my favourite radio station in Botswana, Gabz fm, started its programmes on Fridays, while suggesting interesting things to do in the weekend: It’s Friday!!!! How I miss it sometimes…

One thing that particularly springs to mind at the weekend is dance: in a club, at home, wherever! It’s not just about happiness and excitement, it also acts therapeutically to cleanse body, mind and soul of all impurities accumulated during the week.

When thinking about dance, I recall my sparse dabbles at “structured” ways of doing this thing that always comes to me naturally, impulsively and instinctively since I was born, which is not to mean that my dance is not “naturally structured” by any sound I move to…

One such instance was in the early 80s in Luanda at a weekly “jazz dance” class given by the Swedish UN representative’s wife in her need to use her idle time. Another, also for “jazz dance”, was in the early 90s in Lisbon, at a formal dance company, where I had as teachers a female dancer/choreographer of French-Algerian origin and a Russian male former professional classical dancer, who had been forced out of the big stages and spotlights by a permanent knee injury. In both cases, I felt, with very rare exceptions, somewhat uncomfortable, due to being constrained to "perform" moves in ways that didn’t come naturally to my mind or to my body, added to the rigidity and extreme competitiveness characteristics of such environments…

Then, some 8 years ago, I attended a series of special African dance classes at the Africa Centre in London, given by one of the main female dancers/choreographers from Ghana. The music was played by African drummers from West Africa, including Ghana, Senegal and Cameroon, and the classes were attended by people of all races, ages and nationalities… it was my best “structured” dance experience so far! Unfortunately, it was cut short by the decision of its directors at the time to stop all “noisy” activities at the Centre (because the dance classes, which were accompanied by drums, were followed by African drum classes…), arguing that they interfered with the more “serious” events going on in there, such as conferences, workshops, roundtables and the like… Such a shame!

Anyway, I didn’t feel “lost in dance” because of that, since I always carry my natural dance and my music, as an intrinsic part of my life, everywhere I go…

Did I say anything about "art"?


I don’t know if the African drum’s classes were ever retaken at the Africa Centre, but one thing is for sure: you can catch them pretty much anywhere in London these days. They’ve joined activities such as yoga, pottery, etc. in the common menu of healthy things to do in your leisure time!

You can find them at such places as the Drum Jam or the evocatively named Nzinga Dance.

(All pictures © Nzinga Dance™)

JEAN-MICHEL BASQUIAT, OR… THOSE “SIX DEGREES OF SEPARATION”

“Every line means something”

There is that fine line between reality and fiction, truth and untruth, face and mask, genuine and fake, real and imagined which we all claim to know… and it seems to me that nowhere in life that line is more blurred than in art… fortunately, or unfortunately. In fact, there’s those ‘six degrees of separation’ which some claim to have we all in the planet at a short distance from each other through a chain of interconnections, but in reality always seem to keep us apart… as if at such a short distance we could all claim to ‘know’ each other, but never quite so… or maybe not! Whatever the case, I always think of these things when I think about Jean-Michel Basquiat. And, when I think about Basquiat, I always think of the strange, often devious, ways in which issues of identity, authenticity and the like are resolved, or unresolved, in (or through) art and in life in general…

“I cross out words so you will see them more – the fact that they are obscured makes you want to read them”
"The History of Black People"

In the words of Robert Knafo, one of his biographers, “In his short life (1960-1988), Jean-Michel Basquiat came to personify the art scene of the 80s, with its merging of youth culture, money, hype, excess, and self-destruction. And then there was the work, which the public image tended to overshadow: paintings and drawings that conjured up marginal urban black culture and black history, as well as the artist's own conflicted sense of identity. He was, all at once it seemed, the ultimate party animal, a wannabe street kid and graffitist hiding his black Brooklyn middle class roots, an advocate and interpreter of the marginal and dispossessed at the court of the mainstream, an angry black aspirant to the all-white art canon, a precocious talent, a creature of cynical marketing and a fraud, a proto-multiculturalist, an American original.”

Indeed, in his angry aspiration to that "all-white art canon” he met Andy Warhol, the ring-master of the so called 'Neo-Expressionist movement' and of clever, cynical marketing fakery - some, certainly Knafo, would call it fraud - to whom in their first encounter he sold a postcard for one dollar, and went on to date Madonna while keeping his “real life” heroes Malcolm X, Jimi Hendrix and Charlie Parker close to heart until he died of a drugs overdose aged 28. Born of a Haitian father and a Puerto-Rican mother, his art is perhaps the best, albeit most disturbing, expression of a misplaced Black/African identity in spite of Knafo's claim of him being “an American original”… or maybe not… or maybe yes... because that’s what makes for “American originality”: misplaced identities, isn't it? Anyway, I’m not an art critic and after all here’s what he thought of them: “I don’t think about art when I’m working. I try to think about life… I don’t listen to what art critics say. I don’t know anybody who needs a critic to find out what art is.”

I also always think of Basquiat when I think of that movie, made out of a stage play, “Six Degrees of Separation” (1993), featuring Will Smith (in what I think is his best role ever!), Donald Sutherland and (Sir) Ian McKellen among other fine actors such as Stockard Channing, who was nominated for a Golden Globe and an Oscar for her role in it. Why? I haven’t got the faintest idea! Having seen it twice, I don’t recall anything in it relating to Basquiat… but maybe he was just away from the plot by six degrees... because Paul (Smith) - while presenting himself as "the son" of Sidney Poitier (something also evocative of "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner"), whose father was in reality, as Basquiat's, of Haitian descent - plays the ultimate faker and double-crosser in his angry quest for an all-white cultural "background" and behavioural and literary canon... or just because Louisa (Channing) and Flanders (Sutherland) play rich NYC art dealers, while their South African business partner Miller (Mckellen) brings them all to his “reality” about race relations… or, probably, because Paul eventually dies, just as Basquiat very young but not of drugs, in prison, when he was finally taken back to the "reality" of his own social and racial condition, or, put shortly, when he was taken back to "where he came from"!... I don’t know. There’s a movie that’s really about him though, “Basquiat” (1996), starring David Bowie, Dennis Hopper and Benicio del Toro, which I haven’t seen yet.

You can find Basquiat works (mostly print copies) and memorabilia pretty much everywhere these days. And it can come cheap too, from as low as ₤3 to an average ₤30 per print, on eBay for instance, unless you are well off enough to get a signed copy at something like ₤1200… but it doesn’t seem really to go over ₤2000-₤3000 on average, so apparently you don’t need to be very rich to buy something signed Basquiat these days (of course I'm not talking about the really pricey originals here - most of them held in museums and not for sale anyway; or auctioned by big houses, where they can get to millions of pounds)*.

I’m not rich, old or new, so I got mine some 12 years ago (a print copy titled “1960”, which apparently is rare since I couldn’t find it anywhere on the web…) for ₤10 at the ever so popular Camden Market!

[See more about Basquiat here and here]

*E.g. his Untitled (1981) sold one month after this post was written by Sotheby's (New York) for $14,600,000 or his Grillo (1984) sold by Phillips de Pury & Company (London) yet a month later that same year for £4,948,000!

“Every line means something”

There is that fine line between reality and fiction, truth and untruth, face and mask, genuine and fake, real and imagined which we all claim to know… and it seems to me that nowhere in life that line is more blurred than in art… fortunately, or unfortunately. In fact, there’s those ‘six degrees of separation’ which some claim to have we all in the planet at a short distance from each other through a chain of interconnections, but in reality always seem to keep us apart… as if at such a short distance we could all claim to ‘know’ each other, but never quite so… or maybe not! Whatever the case, I always think of these things when I think about Jean-Michel Basquiat. And, when I think about Basquiat, I always think of the strange, often devious, ways in which issues of identity, authenticity and the like are resolved, or unresolved, in (or through) art and in life in general…

“I cross out words so you will see them more – the fact that they are obscured makes you want to read them”
"The History of Black People"

In the words of Robert Knafo, one of his biographers, “In his short life (1960-1988), Jean-Michel Basquiat came to personify the art scene of the 80s, with its merging of youth culture, money, hype, excess, and self-destruction. And then there was the work, which the public image tended to overshadow: paintings and drawings that conjured up marginal urban black culture and black history, as well as the artist's own conflicted sense of identity. He was, all at once it seemed, the ultimate party animal, a wannabe street kid and graffitist hiding his black Brooklyn middle class roots, an advocate and interpreter of the marginal and dispossessed at the court of the mainstream, an angry black aspirant to the all-white art canon, a precocious talent, a creature of cynical marketing and a fraud, a proto-multiculturalist, an American original.”

Indeed, in his angry aspiration to that "all-white art canon” he met Andy Warhol, the ring-master of the so called 'Neo-Expressionist movement' and of clever, cynical marketing fakery - some, certainly Knafo, would call it fraud - to whom in their first encounter he sold a postcard for one dollar, and went on to date Madonna while keeping his “real life” heroes Malcolm X, Jimi Hendrix and Charlie Parker close to heart until he died of a drugs overdose aged 28. Born of a Haitian father and a Puerto-Rican mother, his art is perhaps the best, albeit most disturbing, expression of a misplaced Black/African identity in spite of Knafo's claim of him being “an American original”… or maybe not… or maybe yes... because that’s what makes for “American originality”: misplaced identities, isn't it? Anyway, I’m not an art critic and after all here’s what he thought of them: “I don’t think about art when I’m working. I try to think about life… I don’t listen to what art critics say. I don’t know anybody who needs a critic to find out what art is.”

I also always think of Basquiat when I think of that movie, made out of a stage play, “Six Degrees of Separation” (1993), featuring Will Smith (in what I think is his best role ever!), Donald Sutherland and (Sir) Ian McKellen among other fine actors such as Stockard Channing, who was nominated for a Golden Globe and an Oscar for her role in it. Why? I haven’t got the faintest idea! Having seen it twice, I don’t recall anything in it relating to Basquiat… but maybe he was just away from the plot by six degrees... because Paul (Smith) - while presenting himself as "the son" of Sidney Poitier (something also evocative of "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner"), whose father was in reality, as Basquiat's, of Haitian descent - plays the ultimate faker and double-crosser in his angry quest for an all-white cultural "background" and behavioural and literary canon... or just because Louisa (Channing) and Flanders (Sutherland) play rich NYC art dealers, while their South African business partner Miller (Mckellen) brings them all to his “reality” about race relations… or, probably, because Paul eventually dies, just as Basquiat very young but not of drugs, in prison, when he was finally taken back to the "reality" of his own social and racial condition, or, put shortly, when he was taken back to "where he came from"!... I don’t know. There’s a movie that’s really about him though, “Basquiat” (1996), starring David Bowie, Dennis Hopper and Benicio del Toro, which I haven’t seen yet.

You can find Basquiat works (mostly print copies) and memorabilia pretty much everywhere these days. And it can come cheap too, from as low as ₤3 to an average ₤30 per print, on eBay for instance, unless you are well off enough to get a signed copy at something like ₤1200… but it doesn’t seem really to go over ₤2000-₤3000 on average, so apparently you don’t need to be very rich to buy something signed Basquiat these days (of course I'm not talking about the really pricey originals here - most of them held in museums and not for sale anyway; or auctioned by big houses, where they can get to millions of pounds)*.

I’m not rich, old or new, so I got mine some 12 years ago (a print copy titled “1960”, which apparently is rare since I couldn’t find it anywhere on the web…) for ₤10 at the ever so popular Camden Market!

[See more about Basquiat here and here]

*E.g. his Untitled (1981) sold one month after this post was written by Sotheby's (New York) for $14,600,000 or his Grillo (1984) sold by Phillips de Pury & Company (London) yet a month later that same year for £4,948,000!

READY?... STEADY?... GO!!!

OK, SATURDAY HAS COME, AS MY GOOD FRIEND SAILOR GIRL JUST REMINDED ME!!!

SO...

HERE...

ARE...

THE RESULTS!!!!

1ro PREMIO: "ARTE AFRICANA ("O QUE QUER QUE ISSO SEJA")"

(EX-AEQUO)

***SAILOR GIRL***

***JUCA***

***MARTHA***

*****NO ENTANTO, POR TER SIDO A PRIMEIRA E MAIS ENTUSIASTICA PARTICIPANTE, A SAILOR GIRL LEVA UM PREMIO ESPECIAL DO JURI COM 5 ESTRELAS E SEM O "O QUE QUER QUE ISSO SEJA", POR TER DEMONSTRADO SABER BEM O QUE E' ARTE AFRICANA!*****

2do PREMIO: "GENERALISTA"

**ANONYMOUS**

3ro PREMIO: "ESPECIALISTA"

*NAO ATRIBUIDO - por isso guardo-o para mim!*

PARABENS A TODOS!!!!!!!

PALMAS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[N.B.: As pinturas genuinas estiveram aqui expostas num slideshow durante algum tempo. As imitacoes podem ser vistas neste site.]
...

Ver detalhes do Passatempo AQUI.

OK, SATURDAY HAS COME, AS MY GOOD FRIEND SAILOR GIRL JUST REMINDED ME!!!

SO...

HERE...

ARE...

THE RESULTS!!!!

1ro PREMIO: "ARTE AFRICANA ("O QUE QUER QUE ISSO SEJA")"

(EX-AEQUO)

***SAILOR GIRL***

***JUCA***

***MARTHA***

*****NO ENTANTO, POR TER SIDO A PRIMEIRA E MAIS ENTUSIASTICA PARTICIPANTE, A SAILOR GIRL LEVA UM PREMIO ESPECIAL DO JURI COM 5 ESTRELAS E SEM O "O QUE QUER QUE ISSO SEJA", POR TER DEMONSTRADO SABER BEM O QUE E' ARTE AFRICANA!*****

2do PREMIO: "GENERALISTA"

**ANONYMOUS**

3ro PREMIO: "ESPECIALISTA"

*NAO ATRIBUIDO - por isso guardo-o para mim!*

PARABENS A TODOS!!!!!!!

PALMAS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[N.B.: As pinturas genuinas estiveram aqui expostas num slideshow durante algum tempo. As imitacoes podem ser vistas neste site.]
...

Ver detalhes do Passatempo AQUI.

MAGAÍÇA... OU "QUANTO CUSTA UMA NOIVA?"

Foto: 'O sol nascendo a Oriente' by Ana Santana

MAGAÍÇA

A manhã azul e ouro dos folhetos de propaganda
engoliu o mamparra,
entontecido todo pela algazarra
incompreensível dos brancos da estação
e pelo resfolegar trepidante dos comboios
Tragou seus olhos redondos de pasmo,
seu coração apertado na angústia do desconhecido,
sua trouxa de farrapos
carregando a ânsia enorme, tecida
de sonhos insatisfeitos do mamparra.

E um dia,
o comboio voltou, arfando, arfando...
oh nhanisse, voltou.
e com ele, magaíça,
de sobretudo, cachecol e meia listrada
e um ser deslocado
embrulhado em ridículo.

Ás costas - ah onde te ficou a trouxa de sonhos, magaíça?
trazes as malas cheias do falso brilho
do resto da falsa civilização do compound do Rand.
E na mão,
magaíça atordoado acendeu o candeeiro,
á cata das ilusões perdidas,
da mocidade e da saúde que ficaram soterradas
lá nas minas do Jone...

A mocidade e a saúde,
as ilusões perdidas
que brilharão como astros no decote de qualquer lady
nas noites deslumbrantes de qualquer City.

(Noemia de Sousa)


A publicacao deste poema, que aqui fiz ha alguns dias, e agora tambem publicado no blog “A Materia do Tempo”, sugeriu-me uma das formas em que a blogosfera pode ser resgatada de uma certa tendencia de se a transformar em lugar de rivalidades, conflitos e “apartheids”.

O facto de o Denudado ter apresentado um breve glossario dos termos usados por Noemia de Sousa neste poema e o ter ilustrado com uma fotografia de “mamparras/magaicas” nas minas da Africa do Sul, sugeriu-me que talvez fosse oportuno ir desengavetar o texto em anexo (aqui), constituido por breves extractos de uma serie, que publiquei no Semanario Angolense (Luanda) em 2002, sobre a Historia Economica da Africa Austral. Nele faco uma breve analise historico-economica dos fluxos de trabalho migrante oscilatorio nas minas da Africa do Sul, de que o “mamparra/magaica” foi e, em grande medida, continua a ser, a figura central.

Com este post pretendo, portanto, contribuir para essa funcao de complementaridade, interaccao e partilha em que a blogosfera pode ser, positiva e produtivamente, usada e, tambem, salientar a funcao de analise e mensagem social que a poesia, quando escrita por poetas atenta(o)s e lucida(o)s, pode ter para o registo, ainda que apenas parcial, pontual e pictorico, da realidade social, economica, cultural e historica em qualquer pais ou regiao do mundo.

Stimela (Hugh Masekela)

“A análise económica, ou mesmo social, do trabalho migrante falhará em revelar o quadro completo dos seus custos em termos de miséria humana. Para apreender essa realidade, temos que ouvir a esposa solitária, a criança insegura... É ao nível familiar que o maior sofrimento é sentido e não nos podemos esquecer que a herança cultural Africana engloba um conceito de família mais abrangente e nobre do que a do Ocidente. A família alargada demonstrou-se uma excelente fonte de segurança para aqueles que, de outro modo, não teriam segurança alguma. O trabalho migrante destrói [esse tecido humano e social], ao retirar por longos períodos, o pai, o irmão, o marido e o amigo... e que ninguém tenha a ilusão de que esses homens podem viver vidas decentes num vacuum sexual.” (Barker: 1970)

“Há muito poucas dúvidas de que se grandes números de mineiros migrantes não especializados e com baixos salários não tivessem sido recrutados em todo o sub-continente, jamais teria havido uma indústria de extracção do ouro na África do Sul. Se depósitos similares aos da África do Sul tivessem sido encontrados na Austrália, no Canada, ou nos EUA, eles teriam certamente ficado por explorar devido à impossibilidade de mobilização da força de trabalho adequada. Ainda hoje, depois dos grandes avanços tecnológicos e da dramática mudança da estrutura de custos da indústria mineira, isso continua a ser verdade.” (Crush et al: 1991)

“De certo modo é até humilhante observar os mineiros a trabalhar... Levanta-se em nós uma momentânea dúvida sobre o nosso próprio status como ‘intelectuais’, ou pessoas superiores em geral. Faz-nos lembrar, pelo menos enquanto olhamos, que é apenas porque esses mineiros transpiram as suas entranhas até à exaustão que as pessoas superiores podem permanecer superiores. Você e eu, o editor do Times Literary Supplement e os poetas, o Arcebispo de Canterbury e o Camarada X, autor de ‘Marxismo para Infantes’ – todos nós devemos realmente a decência comparativa das nossas vidas aos pobres condenados nos subterrâneos... com as suas gargantas cheias de... poeira, erguendo e baixando as suas pás com braços e músculos de ferro” (George Orwell, Down the Mine, 1937)

Foto: 'O sol nascendo a Oriente' by Ana Santana

MAGAÍÇA

A manhã azul e ouro dos folhetos de propaganda
engoliu o mamparra,
entontecido todo pela algazarra
incompreensível dos brancos da estação
e pelo resfolegar trepidante dos comboios
Tragou seus olhos redondos de pasmo,
seu coração apertado na angústia do desconhecido,
sua trouxa de farrapos
carregando a ânsia enorme, tecida
de sonhos insatisfeitos do mamparra.

E um dia,
o comboio voltou, arfando, arfando...
oh nhanisse, voltou.
e com ele, magaíça,
de sobretudo, cachecol e meia listrada
e um ser deslocado
embrulhado em ridículo.

Ás costas - ah onde te ficou a trouxa de sonhos, magaíça?
trazes as malas cheias do falso brilho
do resto da falsa civilização do compound do Rand.
E na mão,
magaíça atordoado acendeu o candeeiro,
á cata das ilusões perdidas,
da mocidade e da saúde que ficaram soterradas
lá nas minas do Jone...

A mocidade e a saúde,
as ilusões perdidas
que brilharão como astros no decote de qualquer lady
nas noites deslumbrantes de qualquer City.

(Noemia de Sousa)


A publicacao deste poema, que aqui fiz ha alguns dias, e agora tambem publicado no blog “A Materia do Tempo”, sugeriu-me uma das formas em que a blogosfera pode ser resgatada de uma certa tendencia de se a transformar em lugar de rivalidades, conflitos e “apartheids”.

O facto de o Denudado ter apresentado um breve glossario dos termos usados por Noemia de Sousa neste poema e o ter ilustrado com uma fotografia de “mamparras/magaicas” nas minas da Africa do Sul, sugeriu-me que talvez fosse oportuno ir desengavetar o texto em anexo (aqui), constituido por breves extractos de uma serie, que publiquei no Semanario Angolense (Luanda) em 2002, sobre a Historia Economica da Africa Austral. Nele faco uma breve analise historico-economica dos fluxos de trabalho migrante oscilatorio nas minas da Africa do Sul, de que o “mamparra/magaica” foi e, em grande medida, continua a ser, a figura central.

Com este post pretendo, portanto, contribuir para essa funcao de complementaridade, interaccao e partilha em que a blogosfera pode ser, positiva e produtivamente, usada e, tambem, salientar a funcao de analise e mensagem social que a poesia, quando escrita por poetas atenta(o)s e lucida(o)s, pode ter para o registo, ainda que apenas parcial, pontual e pictorico, da realidade social, economica, cultural e historica em qualquer pais ou regiao do mundo.

Stimela (Hugh Masekela)

“A análise económica, ou mesmo social, do trabalho migrante falhará em revelar o quadro completo dos seus custos em termos de miséria humana. Para apreender essa realidade, temos que ouvir a esposa solitária, a criança insegura... É ao nível familiar que o maior sofrimento é sentido e não nos podemos esquecer que a herança cultural Africana engloba um conceito de família mais abrangente e nobre do que a do Ocidente. A família alargada demonstrou-se uma excelente fonte de segurança para aqueles que, de outro modo, não teriam segurança alguma. O trabalho migrante destrói [esse tecido humano e social], ao retirar por longos períodos, o pai, o irmão, o marido e o amigo... e que ninguém tenha a ilusão de que esses homens podem viver vidas decentes num vacuum sexual.” (Barker: 1970)

“Há muito poucas dúvidas de que se grandes números de mineiros migrantes não especializados e com baixos salários não tivessem sido recrutados em todo o sub-continente, jamais teria havido uma indústria de extracção do ouro na África do Sul. Se depósitos similares aos da África do Sul tivessem sido encontrados na Austrália, no Canada, ou nos EUA, eles teriam certamente ficado por explorar devido à impossibilidade de mobilização da força de trabalho adequada. Ainda hoje, depois dos grandes avanços tecnológicos e da dramática mudança da estrutura de custos da indústria mineira, isso continua a ser verdade.” (Crush et al: 1991)

“De certo modo é até humilhante observar os mineiros a trabalhar... Levanta-se em nós uma momentânea dúvida sobre o nosso próprio status como ‘intelectuais’, ou pessoas superiores em geral. Faz-nos lembrar, pelo menos enquanto olhamos, que é apenas porque esses mineiros transpiram as suas entranhas até à exaustão que as pessoas superiores podem permanecer superiores. Você e eu, o editor do Times Literary Supplement e os poetas, o Arcebispo de Canterbury e o Camarada X, autor de ‘Marxismo para Infantes’ – todos nós devemos realmente a decência comparativa das nossas vidas aos pobres condenados nos subterrâneos... com as suas gargantas cheias de... poeira, erguendo e baixando as suas pás com braços e músculos de ferro” (George Orwell, Down the Mine, 1937)

FREE ALAN!!!

Como muita gente no UK e no mundo, tenho estado nos ultimos dias quase paralizada pela ansiedade e angustia perante a possibilidade de, como reclama um qualquer grupo militar em Gaza desde ontem, Alan Johnston, nascido na Tanzania ha' 44 anos e de ascendencia Escocesa, correspondente da BBC na Palestina durante os ultimos 3 anos (depois de o ter sido no Uzbequistao e no Afeganistao), ter sido assassinado depois de ter sido raptado ha' pouco mais de um mes!

I would dread to have to post here an R.I.P. for Alan any time from now: SO PLEASE, WHOEVER HAS HIM, OR KNOWS HIS WHEREABOUTS, PLEASE HELP FREE ALAN JOHNSTON! He is just a humane, friendly and likeable journalist professionally performing his duty, in short, A HUMAN BEING: not any sort of "enemy"!!!

P.S.: Entretanto, um qualquer maluco acaba de cometer o maior "mass murder" na historia dos EUA, numa universidade da Virginia, tendo abatido a tiro cerca de 33 pessoas, incluindo a si proprio... gratuitamente! Porque tanta violencia???!!!

Como muita gente no UK e no mundo, tenho estado nos ultimos dias quase paralizada pela ansiedade e angustia perante a possibilidade de, como reclama um qualquer grupo militar em Gaza desde ontem, Alan Johnston, nascido na Tanzania ha' 44 anos e de ascendencia Escocesa, correspondente da BBC na Palestina durante os ultimos 3 anos (depois de o ter sido no Uzbequistao e no Afeganistao), ter sido assassinado depois de ter sido raptado ha' pouco mais de um mes!

I would dread to have to post here an R.I.P. for Alan any time from now: SO PLEASE, WHOEVER HAS HIM, OR KNOWS HIS WHEREABOUTS, PLEASE HELP FREE ALAN JOHNSTON! He is just a humane, friendly and likeable journalist professionally performing his duty, in short, A HUMAN BEING: not any sort of "enemy"!!!

P.S.: Entretanto, um qualquer maluco acaba de cometer o maior "mass murder" na historia dos EUA, numa universidade da Virginia, tendo abatido a tiro cerca de 33 pessoas, incluindo a si proprio... gratuitamente! Porque tanta violencia???!!!

IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT/ ANUNCIO IMPORTANTE (II)

DEAR ALL

AS YOU’VE NOTICED, IN THE LAST FEW DAYS, FOR PONDEROUS REASONS, I HAVE HAD THIS BLOG TEMPORARILY RE-OPEN TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC.
AS I MENTIONED IN MY FIRST POST ON THIS ISSUE (HERE), I INTENDED TO RESTRICT ITS ACCESS AT LEAST UNTIL BLOGGER/GOOGLE TOOK ACTION ON MY COMPLAINT. HOWEVER, DUE TO THE BUREAUCRACY INVOLVED, THIS IS PROVING TO BE A VERY LENGHTY PROCESS, EVEN THOUGH THEY’VE ALREADY TAKEN SIGNIFICANT MEASURES AGAINST THE OFFENDING BLOGGER. IN THE MEANTIME, I’VE SERIOUSLY CONSIDERED KEEPING ACCESS TO THIS BLOG PERMANENTLY RESTRICTED BUT UP UNTIL THIS MOMENT I HAVEN’T REACHED A FINAL DECISION ON THAT, SINCE, FROM THE OUTSET, I NEVER INTENDED TO RESTRICT ACCESS TO THIS BLOG IN ANY FORM WHATSOEVER.

I AM, THEREFORE, ANNOUNCING TO ALL OF YOU THAT FOR ONE MONTH FROM THIS DATE I WILL KEEP THE BLOG UNRESTRICTLY OPEN TO ALL VISITORS, ONLY KEEPING ‘COMMENTS MODERATION’ ACTIVATED. IF, BY THE END OF THAT PERIOD, I AM SATISFIED WITH GOOGLE/BLOGGER’S ACTION ON MY COMPLAINTS AND IF NO MORE OFFENSES/INFRINGEMENTS ARE REGISTERED, I WILL THEN DISACTIVATE ‘COMMENTS MODERATION’ AND KEEP THE BLOG UNRESTRICTLY OPEN.

I TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO THANK ALL OF YOU WHO HAVE REGISTERED YOUR INTEREST IN CONTINUING VISITING THIS BLOG.

I WILL KEEP ALL OF YOU AS SPECIAL FRIENDS OF THIS BLOG. WHATEVER HAPPENS YOU ARE MEMBERS OF THE VISITORS LIST AND WON’T NEED TO RE-REGISTER IN CASE I HAVE TO RESTRICT ACCESS TO THE BLOG AGAIN.

MANY THANKS FOR YOUR PATIENCE, FRIENDSHIP AND UNDERSTANDING!

CAROS AMIGOS

COMO TERAO NOTADO, POR RAZOES PONDEROSAS, NOS ULTIMOS DIAS DECIDI REABRIR TEMPORARIAMENTE O ACESSO A ESTE BLOG AO PUBLICO EM GERAL. COMO MENCIONEI NO PRIMEIRO ANUNCIO SOBRE ESTA QUESTAO (AQUI), TENCIONAVA RESTRINGIR O ACESSO PELO MENOS ATE’ QUE O BLOGGER/GOOGLE TOMASSEM MEDIDAS SOBRE A MINHA QUEIXA. NO ENTANTO, DEVIDO A BUROCRACIA ENVOLVIDA, ESTE ESTA’ A DEMONSTRAR-SE UM LONGO PROCESSO, APESAR DE ELES JA’ TEREM TOMADO ALGUMAS MEDIDAS SIGNIFICATIVAS CONTRA O BLOG OFENSIVO. NO ENTRETANTO, TENHO ESTADO SERIAMENTE A CONSIDERAR MANTER O ACESSO A ESTE BLOG PERMANENTEMENTE RESTRICTO, MAS AINDA NAO TOMEI UMA DECISAO FINAL SOBRE ISSO, UMA VEZ QUE, DESDE O INICIO, NUNCA PRETENDI ESTABELECER QUALQUER TIPO DE RESTRICCAO AO ACESSO A ESTE BLOG.

POR ISSO ANUNCIO A TODOS QUE, DURANTE UM MES A PARTIR DESTA DATA MANTEREI O BLOG ABERTO SEM RESTRICOES A TODOS OS VISITANTES, MAS COM A ‘MODERACAO DE COMENTARIOS’ ACTIVADA. SE, AO FINAL DESSE PERIODO, ESTIVER SATISFEITA COM AS MEDIDAS DO GOOGLE/BLOGGER E SE NAO SE REGISTAREM OFENSAS/INFRINGIMENTOS ADICCIONAIS, DESACTIVAREI ENTAO A ‘MODERACAO DE COMENTARIOS’ E MANTEREI O BLOG ABERTO SEM QUALQUER RESTRICAO.

APROVEITO ESTA OPORTUNIDADE PARA AGRADECER A TODOS QUE EXPRESSARAM INTERESSE EM CONTINUAR A VISITAR ESTE BLOG.

MANTER-VOS-EI A TODOS (COM A OBVIA EXCEPCAO DE M. SILVERA) COMO AMIGOS ESPECIAIS DESTE BLOG. ACONTECA O QUE ACONTECER VOCES SAO MEMBROS DA LISTA DE VISITANTES E NAO PRECISARAO DE VOLTAR A REGISTAR-SE CASO, POR QUALQUER RAZAO, EU TENHA QUE VOLTAR A RESTRINGIR O ACESSO AO BLOG.

MUITO OBRIGADA PELA VOSSA PACIENCIA, AMIZADE E COMPREENSAO!

DEAR ALL

AS YOU’VE NOTICED, IN THE LAST FEW DAYS, FOR PONDEROUS REASONS, I HAVE HAD THIS BLOG TEMPORARILY RE-OPEN TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC.
AS I MENTIONED IN MY FIRST POST ON THIS ISSUE (HERE), I INTENDED TO RESTRICT ITS ACCESS AT LEAST UNTIL BLOGGER/GOOGLE TOOK ACTION ON MY COMPLAINT. HOWEVER, DUE TO THE BUREAUCRACY INVOLVED, THIS IS PROVING TO BE A VERY LENGHTY PROCESS, EVEN THOUGH THEY’VE ALREADY TAKEN SIGNIFICANT MEASURES AGAINST THE OFFENDING BLOGGER. IN THE MEANTIME, I’VE SERIOUSLY CONSIDERED KEEPING ACCESS TO THIS BLOG PERMANENTLY RESTRICTED BUT UP UNTIL THIS MOMENT I HAVEN’T REACHED A FINAL DECISION ON THAT, SINCE, FROM THE OUTSET, I NEVER INTENDED TO RESTRICT ACCESS TO THIS BLOG IN ANY FORM WHATSOEVER.

I AM, THEREFORE, ANNOUNCING TO ALL OF YOU THAT FOR ONE MONTH FROM THIS DATE I WILL KEEP THE BLOG UNRESTRICTLY OPEN TO ALL VISITORS, ONLY KEEPING ‘COMMENTS MODERATION’ ACTIVATED. IF, BY THE END OF THAT PERIOD, I AM SATISFIED WITH GOOGLE/BLOGGER’S ACTION ON MY COMPLAINTS AND IF NO MORE OFFENSES/INFRINGEMENTS ARE REGISTERED, I WILL THEN DISACTIVATE ‘COMMENTS MODERATION’ AND KEEP THE BLOG UNRESTRICTLY OPEN.

I TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO THANK ALL OF YOU WHO HAVE REGISTERED YOUR INTEREST IN CONTINUING VISITING THIS BLOG.

I WILL KEEP ALL OF YOU AS SPECIAL FRIENDS OF THIS BLOG. WHATEVER HAPPENS YOU ARE MEMBERS OF THE VISITORS LIST AND WON’T NEED TO RE-REGISTER IN CASE I HAVE TO RESTRICT ACCESS TO THE BLOG AGAIN.

MANY THANKS FOR YOUR PATIENCE, FRIENDSHIP AND UNDERSTANDING!

CAROS AMIGOS

COMO TERAO NOTADO, POR RAZOES PONDEROSAS, NOS ULTIMOS DIAS DECIDI REABRIR TEMPORARIAMENTE O ACESSO A ESTE BLOG AO PUBLICO EM GERAL. COMO MENCIONEI NO PRIMEIRO ANUNCIO SOBRE ESTA QUESTAO (AQUI), TENCIONAVA RESTRINGIR O ACESSO PELO MENOS ATE’ QUE O BLOGGER/GOOGLE TOMASSEM MEDIDAS SOBRE A MINHA QUEIXA. NO ENTANTO, DEVIDO A BUROCRACIA ENVOLVIDA, ESTE ESTA’ A DEMONSTRAR-SE UM LONGO PROCESSO, APESAR DE ELES JA’ TEREM TOMADO ALGUMAS MEDIDAS SIGNIFICATIVAS CONTRA O BLOG OFENSIVO. NO ENTRETANTO, TENHO ESTADO SERIAMENTE A CONSIDERAR MANTER O ACESSO A ESTE BLOG PERMANENTEMENTE RESTRICTO, MAS AINDA NAO TOMEI UMA DECISAO FINAL SOBRE ISSO, UMA VEZ QUE, DESDE O INICIO, NUNCA PRETENDI ESTABELECER QUALQUER TIPO DE RESTRICCAO AO ACESSO A ESTE BLOG.

POR ISSO ANUNCIO A TODOS QUE, DURANTE UM MES A PARTIR DESTA DATA MANTEREI O BLOG ABERTO SEM RESTRICOES A TODOS OS VISITANTES, MAS COM A ‘MODERACAO DE COMENTARIOS’ ACTIVADA. SE, AO FINAL DESSE PERIODO, ESTIVER SATISFEITA COM AS MEDIDAS DO GOOGLE/BLOGGER E SE NAO SE REGISTAREM OFENSAS/INFRINGIMENTOS ADICCIONAIS, DESACTIVAREI ENTAO A ‘MODERACAO DE COMENTARIOS’ E MANTEREI O BLOG ABERTO SEM QUALQUER RESTRICAO.

APROVEITO ESTA OPORTUNIDADE PARA AGRADECER A TODOS QUE EXPRESSARAM INTERESSE EM CONTINUAR A VISITAR ESTE BLOG.

MANTER-VOS-EI A TODOS (COM A OBVIA EXCEPCAO DE M. SILVERA) COMO AMIGOS ESPECIAIS DESTE BLOG. ACONTECA O QUE ACONTECER VOCES SAO MEMBROS DA LISTA DE VISITANTES E NAO PRECISARAO DE VOLTAR A REGISTAR-SE CASO, POR QUALQUER RAZAO, EU TENHA QUE VOLTAR A RESTRINGIR O ACESSO AO BLOG.

MUITO OBRIGADA PELA VOSSA PACIENCIA, AMIZADE E COMPREENSAO!

SUNDAY PAPER

"GETTING TOUGH WITH THE PETRO-ELITES"

That's the title of the attached article, which my friend Luis, based in Lisbon, kindly sent to me during the week.

Inicially appeared four days ago in the International Herald Tribune, it has since been disseminated and quoted throughout other media.

I should perhaps note that one of its co-authors, Ricardo Soares de Oliveira, has contributed an article to the 2007 Norwegian Council for Africa Anthology, in which I've also participated (see here), making us the only two contributors from the lusophone world to that anthology. Hoping that some more will contribute in years to come.


Click here for some food for thought

"GETTING TOUGH WITH THE PETRO-ELITES"

That's the title of the attached article, which my friend Luis, based in Lisbon, kindly sent to me during the week.

Inicially appeared four days ago in the International Herald Tribune, it has since been disseminated and quoted throughout other media.

I should perhaps note that one of its co-authors, Ricardo Soares de Oliveira, has contributed an article to the 2007 Norwegian Council for Africa Anthology, in which I've also participated (see here), making us the only two contributors from the lusophone world to that anthology. Hoping that some more will contribute in years to come.


Click here for some food for thought

MAKAS NA SANZALA GLOBAL

Durante a semana que hoje termina, de tao absorvida que estive em "makas de sanzala", fui seguindo apenas de soslaio algumas das interessantes makas que se desenrolavam na sanzala global. Um pouco para "acabar de vez com a cultura", isto e', com a maka na sanzala local, deixo aqui este resumo das makas globais da semana.

I. IMUS FURORE

Don Imus, de 67 anos de idade, apresentador de um popular programa de radio da cadeia americana MSNBC, afirmou aos seus microfones que as atletas da equipa feminina de basquetebol do Colegio Rutgers (jovens negras de cerca de 19/20 anos) nao passavam de umas “nappy-headed hos”… intraduzivel, mas altamente ofensivo para as vizadas e nao so’! Porque disse ele isso? Aparentemente, por nenhuma outra razao senao porque lhe apeteceu… E tambem, ao que parece, porque se sentiu justificado pela moda de assim se tratar as jovens mulheres negras no mundo da musica rap e hip-hop (lembram-se da maka Ophra vs. 50 Cent que AQUI relatei nas primeiras semanas deste blog?).

("I got a little 50 cent in my i-pod")
Seguiu-se um furor nacional em que praticamente toda a gente que tem alguma coisa a dizer sobre sexismo e racismo nos EUA apareceu nas networks televisivas a dizer de sua justica, desde Whoopi Goldberg, a varios dirigentes do NAACP, passando pelos Revs. Jesse Jackson e Al Sharpleton. Barack Obama, por exemplo, disse: "He didn't just cross the line, he fed into some of the worst stereotypes." Por seu lado, Snoop Dogg, defendendo a sua “dama” (i.e. o rap e hip-hop), saiu-se com esta: "It's a completely different scenario, first of all, we ain't no old-a— white men that sit up on MSNBC going hard on black girls. We are rappers that have these songs coming from our minds and our souls that are relevant to what we feel. I will not let them mother—s say we in the same league." O que levou alguns analistas a considerarem se pelo menos parte da confusao de “linhas de demarcacao” nao adviria de as ofensas terem sido proferidas fora de um "contexto artistico"…

Resultado: apesar de se ter desculpado perante as ofendidas e o pais, Don Imus foi sumariamente despedido da MSNBC! ... Indeed, outros mundos!!!


II. PRESIDENTE DO BANCO MUNDIAL EM SARILHOS...


O Presidente do Banco Mundial, Paul Wolfowitz tem estado envolvido em grandes makas nos ultimos dias por ter sido apanhado em “flagrante delito”… Bom, nao exactamente, mas o que acontece e’ que ele e’ acusado pelo seu board e staff de usar o pior tipo de favoritismo para com uma sua ex(?) namorada, Shaha Riza, funcionaria do BM, facultando-lhe uma imerecida promocao e um aumento de salario que a pos a ganhar cerca de USD 200 mil/ano, o que se diz ser mais do que a remuneracao de Condolezza Rice…

Resultado: Wolfowitz emitiu um pedido publico de desculpas, mas nao parece que as tenha ainda obtido de todos quantos pedem a sua demissao imediata, a excepcao de George Bush que e’ o seu mais firme apoiante… Por isso vai dar hoje uma conferencia de imprensa e talvez durante a proxima semana se saiba o desfecho desta maka.


III. KASPAROV: DO XADREZ A POLITICA... AO XADREZ... AND BACK!


Gary Kasparov emergiu ha poucas horas do que parecia ser uma longa obscuridade, depois de ter feito as headlines mundiais como campeao mundial de xadrez durante varios anos, como um dos mais determinados oponentes do actual presidente Russo. Enquanto escrevia este post, ele estava a ser entrevistado, numa sessao pre-gravada do programa “Hardtalk” da BBC News 24 (... uma especie de combate de boxe entre entrevistador e entrevistado, nao aconselhavel aos de tensao alta ou de espirito enfraquecido por decadas de censura stalinista...), onde explicava como pretende aplicar as suas tacticas e estrategias de xadrez para dar um xeque-mate a Putin e como, possivelmente, ainda voltara' ao top do xadrez mundial… Mas nao foi por isso que ele fez as headlines.

Kasparov foi levado para o xadrez nas ultimas horas de ontem, entre varias dezenas de outros manifestantes que, em Moscovo, protestavam, no que apelidaram a “Marcha da Dissidencia” contra o regime de Putin, na historica Praca Pushkin, nas imediacoes do Kremlin, gritando: “precisamos de uma nova Russia”! Kasparov era um dos lideres da manifestacao, como dirigente do movimento “The Other Russia” (uma coligacao que engloba um vasto espectro de participantes, desde liberais pro-ocidentais a esquerdistas radicais) que acusa Putin de estar a desmantelar a democracia no pais.

A manifestacao aconteceu poucas horas depois de Boris Berezovsky, um bilionario russo que se tem destacado na oposicao a Putin, ter afirmado ontem ao ‘Guardian’ estar a planear uma revolucao a partir do seu exilio em Londres, o que contribuiu para uma ainda maior tensao nas relacoes Londres/Moscovo desde a misteriosa (?) morte por envenenamento ha’ alguns meses de um outro opositor do regime de Putin exilado em Londres, Alexander Litvinenko.

Kasparov foi, entretanto, posto em liberdade.


IV. WILLS & KATE JA' ERAM...


Finalmente, a grande historia que eclodiu nas ultimas horas e que certamente fara’ as headlines por muito tempo ainda: “Prince William and Kate Middleton are no longer an item!” Assim surgiu ontem a noticia como um exclusivo do tabloide londrino “The Sun” que, entretanto, se difundiu por toda a imprensa mundial.

Aparentemente, depois de 4 anos de namoro e alguns meses de quase noivado, o filho de Diana e a sua namorada, apenas um pouco acima da "middle England" no sistema de classes Britanico, decidiram seguir cada um o seu caminho. Do lado dele sugere-se que as razoes terao a haver com a prioridade que decidiu dar a sua carreira militar e, do lado dela, ao intenso escrutinio dos media e a perseguicao dos papparazzi (ring any bells?)…

Durante a semana que hoje termina, de tao absorvida que estive em "makas de sanzala", fui seguindo apenas de soslaio algumas das interessantes makas que se desenrolavam na sanzala global. Um pouco para "acabar de vez com a cultura", isto e', com a maka na sanzala local, deixo aqui este resumo das makas globais da semana.

I. IMUS FURORE

Don Imus, de 67 anos de idade, apresentador de um popular programa de radio da cadeia americana MSNBC, afirmou aos seus microfones que as atletas da equipa feminina de basquetebol do Colegio Rutgers (jovens negras de cerca de 19/20 anos) nao passavam de umas “nappy-headed hos”… intraduzivel, mas altamente ofensivo para as vizadas e nao so’! Porque disse ele isso? Aparentemente, por nenhuma outra razao senao porque lhe apeteceu… E tambem, ao que parece, porque se sentiu justificado pela moda de assim se tratar as jovens mulheres negras no mundo da musica rap e hip-hop (lembram-se da maka Ophra vs. 50 Cent que AQUI relatei nas primeiras semanas deste blog?).

("I got a little 50 cent in my i-pod")
Seguiu-se um furor nacional em que praticamente toda a gente que tem alguma coisa a dizer sobre sexismo e racismo nos EUA apareceu nas networks televisivas a dizer de sua justica, desde Whoopi Goldberg, a varios dirigentes do NAACP, passando pelos Revs. Jesse Jackson e Al Sharpleton. Barack Obama, por exemplo, disse: "He didn't just cross the line, he fed into some of the worst stereotypes." Por seu lado, Snoop Dogg, defendendo a sua “dama” (i.e. o rap e hip-hop), saiu-se com esta: "It's a completely different scenario, first of all, we ain't no old-a— white men that sit up on MSNBC going hard on black girls. We are rappers that have these songs coming from our minds and our souls that are relevant to what we feel. I will not let them mother—s say we in the same league." O que levou alguns analistas a considerarem se pelo menos parte da confusao de “linhas de demarcacao” nao adviria de as ofensas terem sido proferidas fora de um "contexto artistico"…

Resultado: apesar de se ter desculpado perante as ofendidas e o pais, Don Imus foi sumariamente despedido da MSNBC! ... Indeed, outros mundos!!!


II. PRESIDENTE DO BANCO MUNDIAL EM SARILHOS...


O Presidente do Banco Mundial, Paul Wolfowitz tem estado envolvido em grandes makas nos ultimos dias por ter sido apanhado em “flagrante delito”… Bom, nao exactamente, mas o que acontece e’ que ele e’ acusado pelo seu board e staff de usar o pior tipo de favoritismo para com uma sua ex(?) namorada, Shaha Riza, funcionaria do BM, facultando-lhe uma imerecida promocao e um aumento de salario que a pos a ganhar cerca de USD 200 mil/ano, o que se diz ser mais do que a remuneracao de Condolezza Rice…

Resultado: Wolfowitz emitiu um pedido publico de desculpas, mas nao parece que as tenha ainda obtido de todos quantos pedem a sua demissao imediata, a excepcao de George Bush que e’ o seu mais firme apoiante… Por isso vai dar hoje uma conferencia de imprensa e talvez durante a proxima semana se saiba o desfecho desta maka.


III. KASPAROV: DO XADREZ A POLITICA... AO XADREZ... AND BACK!


Gary Kasparov emergiu ha poucas horas do que parecia ser uma longa obscuridade, depois de ter feito as headlines mundiais como campeao mundial de xadrez durante varios anos, como um dos mais determinados oponentes do actual presidente Russo. Enquanto escrevia este post, ele estava a ser entrevistado, numa sessao pre-gravada do programa “Hardtalk” da BBC News 24 (... uma especie de combate de boxe entre entrevistador e entrevistado, nao aconselhavel aos de tensao alta ou de espirito enfraquecido por decadas de censura stalinista...), onde explicava como pretende aplicar as suas tacticas e estrategias de xadrez para dar um xeque-mate a Putin e como, possivelmente, ainda voltara' ao top do xadrez mundial… Mas nao foi por isso que ele fez as headlines.

Kasparov foi levado para o xadrez nas ultimas horas de ontem, entre varias dezenas de outros manifestantes que, em Moscovo, protestavam, no que apelidaram a “Marcha da Dissidencia” contra o regime de Putin, na historica Praca Pushkin, nas imediacoes do Kremlin, gritando: “precisamos de uma nova Russia”! Kasparov era um dos lideres da manifestacao, como dirigente do movimento “The Other Russia” (uma coligacao que engloba um vasto espectro de participantes, desde liberais pro-ocidentais a esquerdistas radicais) que acusa Putin de estar a desmantelar a democracia no pais.

A manifestacao aconteceu poucas horas depois de Boris Berezovsky, um bilionario russo que se tem destacado na oposicao a Putin, ter afirmado ontem ao ‘Guardian’ estar a planear uma revolucao a partir do seu exilio em Londres, o que contribuiu para uma ainda maior tensao nas relacoes Londres/Moscovo desde a misteriosa (?) morte por envenenamento ha’ alguns meses de um outro opositor do regime de Putin exilado em Londres, Alexander Litvinenko.

Kasparov foi, entretanto, posto em liberdade.


IV. WILLS & KATE JA' ERAM...


Finalmente, a grande historia que eclodiu nas ultimas horas e que certamente fara’ as headlines por muito tempo ainda: “Prince William and Kate Middleton are no longer an item!” Assim surgiu ontem a noticia como um exclusivo do tabloide londrino “The Sun” que, entretanto, se difundiu por toda a imprensa mundial.

Aparentemente, depois de 4 anos de namoro e alguns meses de quase noivado, o filho de Diana e a sua namorada, apenas um pouco acima da "middle England" no sistema de classes Britanico, decidiram seguir cada um o seu caminho. Do lado dele sugere-se que as razoes terao a haver com a prioridade que decidiu dar a sua carreira militar e, do lado dela, ao intenso escrutinio dos media e a perseguicao dos papparazzi (ring any bells?)…

MAFIKIZOLO'S EMLANJENI

The "videotrack" to 'Caminhos do Rio', Emlanjeni, is available at the bottom of the page.

"During an event sponsored by the South African Tour Board in London, I had the honor of hearing live one of the top Pop groups from South Africa, Mafikizolo. The audience, predominantly South African, who were singing and dancing along with the group, tells you that the band is very well known and carries a strong following in South Africa. Listening to them live and watching the energy they possessed, you could understand the attraction. This genre of music is known as Kwaito, African and carries a rhythm and beat that has you tapping your fingers, swinging and dancing to the sound, which we all did on the dance floor as we cruised down the Thames. I was honored when the group presented me a copy of their current recording entitled Kwela, of which many of the songs were performed live during the event. I have had time to sit back and enjoy this recording with my favorite cuts being Kwela Kwela, Udakwa Njalo, Ndizolila, Soka Lami and Emlanjeni. This was a unique evening of sights and sounds, and I was thankful I was a part of it. You can see into a culture from their music, and this group showed a passion, energy and love for their language, people and heritage that you could hear in the music and view in the dance."

(Review taken from here)

The "videotrack" to 'Caminhos do Rio', Emlanjeni, is available at the bottom of the page.

"During an event sponsored by the South African Tour Board in London, I had the honor of hearing live one of the top Pop groups from South Africa, Mafikizolo. The audience, predominantly South African, who were singing and dancing along with the group, tells you that the band is very well known and carries a strong following in South Africa. Listening to them live and watching the energy they possessed, you could understand the attraction. This genre of music is known as Kwaito, African and carries a rhythm and beat that has you tapping your fingers, swinging and dancing to the sound, which we all did on the dance floor as we cruised down the Thames. I was honored when the group presented me a copy of their current recording entitled Kwela, of which many of the songs were performed live during the event. I have had time to sit back and enjoy this recording with my favorite cuts being Kwela Kwela, Udakwa Njalo, Ndizolila, Soka Lami and Emlanjeni. This was a unique evening of sights and sounds, and I was thankful I was a part of it. You can see into a culture from their music, and this group showed a passion, energy and love for their language, people and heritage that you could hear in the music and view in the dance."

(Review taken from here)

PAVEMENT ART

(SPECIALLY DEDICATED TO MARIO & DIDI)

BATMAN & ROBIN

Vs.

SPIDERMAN

By Julian Beever

(SPECIALLY DEDICATED TO MARIO & DIDI)

BATMAN & ROBIN

Vs.

SPIDERMAN

By Julian Beever

DOGGY LIFE

Men Are Easy

SINGLE BLACK FEMALE seeks male companionship, ethnicity unimportant.

I'm a very good looking girl who LOVES to play. I love long walks in the woods, riding in your pickup truck, hunting, camping, and fishing trips, cozy winter nights relaxing by the fire.
Candlelight dinners will have me eating out of your hand.
I'll be at your front door when you come home from work, wearing only what nature gave me. Kiss me, and I'm all yours. Call 591-1234 and ask for Daisy.

{Over 15,000 men found themselves talking to the local Humane Society about an 8 week old Labrador Retriever.
Men are so easy.}

(story & picture from here)

...

VIDA DE CÃO

Algures na Park Avenue
mister Bull-Dog, imponente
e severo,
trincou a nádega do menino.

Nao era esfomeado o dog,
nem assaltante o menino,
o Bull apenas se enganara
ao aflorar o cravo
que sua ama para ele plantara
ali no jardim

onde o menino, impávido
e sereno,
se aliviava da desinteria
causada pelo leite
que ao bull-dog roubara
quando decidira
levar vida de cão.

A.S., “S.O.S.”, Luanda - 1984

N.B.: Coloquei aqui este poema ja' depois de ter feito o post e de ele ter sido comentado, por ter a ver com o titulo do post e nao porque tenha qualquer intencao ou sentido humoristicos. Quanto muito ele pretendeu ser uma satira. O menino aqui referido e', na actual realidade social angolana, um "menino de rua". Na altura em que este poema foi escrito, o fenomeno "menino de rua" em Luanda ainda nao era a desgraca a que hoje se assiste, mas ja' existia... embora o tipo de assimetrias sociais e economicas que o provoca, associadas ou nao a guerra, fosse considerado por muitos em Angola, incluindo alguns que hoje se reclamam de "criticos do sistema", como uma caracteristica exclusiva dos "paises capitalistas ocidentais". Dai que tenha colocado a estoria "algures na Park Avenue" (que na altura ainda nao conhecia e que podera' ser a de NY ou qualquer outra, porque ha varias no mundo)... E com isto acho que iniciei a minha "carreira" como 'critica literaria' da minha propria poesia... ;-)

Men Are Easy

SINGLE BLACK FEMALE seeks male companionship, ethnicity unimportant.

I'm a very good looking girl who LOVES to play. I love long walks in the woods, riding in your pickup truck, hunting, camping, and fishing trips, cozy winter nights relaxing by the fire.
Candlelight dinners will have me eating out of your hand.
I'll be at your front door when you come home from work, wearing only what nature gave me. Kiss me, and I'm all yours. Call 591-1234 and ask for Daisy.

{Over 15,000 men found themselves talking to the local Humane Society about an 8 week old Labrador Retriever.
Men are so easy.}

(story & picture from here)

...

VIDA DE CÃO

Algures na Park Avenue
mister Bull-Dog, imponente
e severo,
trincou a nádega do menino.

Nao era esfomeado o dog,
nem assaltante o menino,
o Bull apenas se enganara
ao aflorar o cravo
que sua ama para ele plantara
ali no jardim

onde o menino, impávido
e sereno,
se aliviava da desinteria
causada pelo leite
que ao bull-dog roubara
quando decidira
levar vida de cão.

A.S., “S.O.S.”, Luanda - 1984

N.B.: Coloquei aqui este poema ja' depois de ter feito o post e de ele ter sido comentado, por ter a ver com o titulo do post e nao porque tenha qualquer intencao ou sentido humoristicos. Quanto muito ele pretendeu ser uma satira. O menino aqui referido e', na actual realidade social angolana, um "menino de rua". Na altura em que este poema foi escrito, o fenomeno "menino de rua" em Luanda ainda nao era a desgraca a que hoje se assiste, mas ja' existia... embora o tipo de assimetrias sociais e economicas que o provoca, associadas ou nao a guerra, fosse considerado por muitos em Angola, incluindo alguns que hoje se reclamam de "criticos do sistema", como uma caracteristica exclusiva dos "paises capitalistas ocidentais". Dai que tenha colocado a estoria "algures na Park Avenue" (que na altura ainda nao conhecia e que podera' ser a de NY ou qualquer outra, porque ha varias no mundo)... E com isto acho que iniciei a minha "carreira" como 'critica literaria' da minha propria poesia... ;-)

RECENT PUBLICATIONS ON ANGOLA AND MOZAMBIQUE

John K. Thornton, "Elite Women in the Kingdom of Kongo: Historical Perspectives on Women's Political Power," Journal of African History 47, 3 (2006): 437-60

Armando Marques Guedes and Maria José Lopes (eds.), _State and Traditional Law in Angola and Mozambique_ Coimbra: Edições Almedina, 2006 (261 pages)

Linda Ledford-Miller, "'So Few and Yet So Little Known': Historical Recovery and Reconstruction in the Work of Lilia Momplé," in Africa Rivista trimestrale di studi e documentazione dell''Istituto italiano per l'Africa e l'Oriente, 61, 3-4 (Settembre - Dicembre 2006):564-582

Joao Milando, _Desenvolvimento e Resiliencia Social em Africa: Dinamicas Rurais de Cabinda_, Coleccao Sociedades Africanas, Periploi (Instituto de Investigacao Aplicada), 2007

José Soares Tavares, _O campo de concentração do Tarrafal, 1936-1954, a origem e o quotidiano_ (Lisboa : Edições Colibri,2007)


Compiled by Kathleen Sheldon (UCLA/ H-Net)
Picture: "Encyclopedia of Pleasure" (Ghada Amer, Egypt)

ADENDA:

IMPORTANTE ESPÓLIO CULTURAL LUSO-BRASILEIRO

Informacao gentilmente enviada por e-mail pela amiga Bato' (Veja Aqui)

John K. Thornton, "Elite Women in the Kingdom of Kongo: Historical Perspectives on Women's Political Power," Journal of African History 47, 3 (2006): 437-60

Armando Marques Guedes and Maria José Lopes (eds.), _State and Traditional Law in Angola and Mozambique_ Coimbra: Edições Almedina, 2006 (261 pages)

Linda Ledford-Miller, "'So Few and Yet So Little Known': Historical Recovery and Reconstruction in the Work of Lilia Momplé," in Africa Rivista trimestrale di studi e documentazione dell''Istituto italiano per l'Africa e l'Oriente, 61, 3-4 (Settembre - Dicembre 2006):564-582

Joao Milando, _Desenvolvimento e Resiliencia Social em Africa: Dinamicas Rurais de Cabinda_, Coleccao Sociedades Africanas, Periploi (Instituto de Investigacao Aplicada), 2007

José Soares Tavares, _O campo de concentração do Tarrafal, 1936-1954, a origem e o quotidiano_ (Lisboa : Edições Colibri,2007)


Compiled by Kathleen Sheldon (UCLA/ H-Net)
Picture: "Encyclopedia of Pleasure" (Ghada Amer, Egypt)

ADENDA:

IMPORTANTE ESPÓLIO CULTURAL LUSO-BRASILEIRO

Informacao gentilmente enviada por e-mail pela amiga Bato' (Veja Aqui)