Frustrations with the perception of Swahili from others (Mostly the Western Hemisphere)

Swahili can be a bit frustrating to learn. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy learning it even if I struggle with some of the grammar and sentence structures which are nothing like English or Japanese. It’s not easy, but I’m doing my best in being fluent in multiple languages, especially since I have a heritage incentive to learn Swahili. However, I get annoyed with so many people with how ignorant they can be. I can only last so long and not rant given how many years worth of internalized anger in me. Oh heck, I always see clouds in every silver lining.

1: “So why don’t you learn Spanish?”

This is a big one in America. I have no issue with Spanish or anyone who speaks it. I know some words and phrases, but the way people ask it is that Swahili barely has any speakers or is impractical. Sorry, but there are 50 million speakers of Swahili and multiple countries have it as an official status. I get that Spanish is spoken in several nations and I live in a region with a sizable Latinx population, but I want to be better at other languages. I almost put up a reason being the whole “This is ‘Murica, and we speak English, ya’ll!” mentality, but that’s too easy to critique. Oh, wait. Spanish is a European language, so it doesn’t get that kind of questioning.

2: People thinking I’m going to speak it all over Africa.

If I visit most of East Africa, that could work, but that’s not going to work in the whole continent. Speaking Swahili would be counterproductive if one was in Nigeria, Egypt, or even Sierra Leone. It also annoys me how people call that language “African” like how some idiots think that people in Mexico speak “Mexican”. Swahili is an African language, but it’s mainly in one area and there are hundreds of indigenous languages in the continent. Not everyone speaks that language on the Motherland. you wouldn’t say that about European or Asian languages, so why is it cool to oversimplify everything that’s spoken in Africa?

3: People saying “Jambo” as a way to say hello.

I used to think that was the right way to greet someone, but that’s not the case. I noticed it with Duolingo and when I had my first online class with my teacher, she said that it’s one phrase you should NEVER say in the Swahili-phone parts of Africa. Don’t worry, will get to another well-known phrase you shouldn’t say in Africa later, and I think you all can guess what it is. It’s “hujambo” if you’re talking to one person or “hamjambo” if you’re talking to multiple people. Man alive, even saying “mambo” would actually be putting in more effort in speaking it and that’s a regional dialectal example! If you’re going to say hello to someone in another language, then get it right, everyone.

4: The assumption that people think I’m only using this for mission trips.

I don’t know if I’ll do a mission trip, and if I take part in one to help others, I will make sure it’s legit. No one has said it to me, but I know they’re thinking it because people are stupid to assume that the African continent is nothing but poverty. I know people directly from the continent who will definitely tell you otherwise. Yeah, because poverty never happens in America, right? Go ahead and search videos from Wode Maya, Miss Trudy or even Phillip Scott’s videos about traveling to Ethiopia, South Africa, and Kenya and you will find cities that are on par with most Western cities and some are cleaner than here in the States. I don’t think you can eat lunch while sitting in a gutter in Portland, OR (take that, hipster jerks!) like you could in Kigali, Rwanda with how clean it is, for example. Don’t believe me, look up Kigali and how clean it is like Wode Maya’s videos or even some cityscape pictures! If you think African countries are nothing but mud huts, warzones, and rampant starvation, then you’re a racist POS. Don’t gaslight me about that!

5: Some people act like Kenya and maybe Tanzania are the only places you can speak Swahili.

Are they countries where Swahili is the #1 language? Yes, and I don’t deny that. But what ticks me off is when I see people say only Kenya or only that country and Tanzania know those languages. That is insulting and even I knew they weren’t the only ones years ago. The DRC has millions of people who know the language and it has official status there like Uganda and Rwanda even if they aren’t the most-spoken languages there. It’s even used as a lingua franca in East Africa much like English or French depending on the country. Then again, a lot of people treat Africa like it’s a country in America, so I’m not surprised they would have such ignorance about as statement like that.

6: Can we please stop the bloody Lion King references in these language sites? Also, I hate that movie franchise even more with the more I learn that language.

Raise your hand if you think I wouldn’t make any potshots against everyone’s favorite 90s Disney movie for this list. PUT YOUR HAND DOWN! Before I really rip apart Disney and their fanbase, let me preface by saying not all Lion King fans are like this, so I’m not talking about specific individuals, but I have noticed this about the collective.

We get it. We know what “Simba” and “Hakuna Matata” means in English. You can use other examples in pop culture. Also, not all the names are real Swahili (I’m not talking about Scar or Ed) or mean what you think they mean. The word for king in Swahili is “Mfalme” and NOT “Mufasa”! If you know about those prequel books in the 90s which also involve the potential real name of a certain character, the word for garbage is “Takataka” and not “Taka”. Oh, and the word for want is “Kutaka” and the “Ku” changes with the pronoun, so nice try! Shenzi should be “Mshenzi” which means savage. Wow, I guess that’s how the Lion King creators and certain groups of their fans see most, if not all melanated people, but won’t admit it. I’ll even go this far to use a variation on a meme: “I want to learn Swahili because I like The Lion King!” #SaidNoOneEver! Disney and most Lion King fans have minuscule knowledge about Swahili or African cultures like how they barely know anything about Hamlet (BURN!). If they were so respectful of these cultures, they would drop the “Hakuna Matata” trademark and finally credit Solomon Linda for “The Lion Sleeps Tonight”. Oh wait, none of those things have happened. I’m sure Lion King fans would love to see African cultures or at the very least someone like me derogated and exploited. Tell me when I’m telling lies! Remember how I said my Swahili teacher talked about what not to say in that language? “Hakuna Matata” is the other big one since you will legitimately offend people because there have been too many ignorant tourists (read: white people who don’t care about the culture) saying that phrase flippantly to the locals without trying to use other Swahili phrases and people know about the trademark in multiple African countries while being righteously angry about it. It’s a shame how no one gets questioned in that fanbase when they pretend to know something or blindly obey their mouse overlord. As I get older, I’m getting weary of this massive ignorance for those that aren’t called out on it because Disney always gives them a free pass to do whenever and think whatever they want with no consequences.

Critically Scared…

Bloodstained histories
Under threat of being blocked
By prejudiced hands

A delusional Karen is blaming so many Black people for something that didn’t happen

“I’m not getting justice because I’m white!”

I can’t make up this quote to save my life. Do I even need to say how fallacious it is let alone her “testimony” to say something like that? I swear this has become the age of exposure when it comes to racist idiots showing their behinds. You would think they would know better given the current racial tensions in America, but nope. This Karen has some nerve cussing them out, blaming whatever Black people are there, and even doing a “white lives matter” chant in front of everyone. She’s so lucky that the security officers and the other bystanders were calm because she would not fare so well against someone else who wouldn’t tolerate.

Phil also brought up a great point of white supremacists copying everything like how they come up with these “white lives matter” or “all lives matter”. I could go on with other examples in different fields (and have used multiple examples much a good portion of the songs from “Dear Innovare…”), but that’s just lazy. I don’t care if she was drunk or sober (I agree she comes off as the former). Nobody should be blamed for something they didn’t do. It’s also a good thing this was recorded and I hope the world shames this Karen for being such a bigot.

Cinema-Sanctioned Dehumanization (Is This How You See Me?)

Is this how you see me?

Preconceived notions of assuming I’d talk “street” or “urban” instead of being as articulate as I can are so predictable. The dog whistle language couldn’t be more obvious. Chains and grills are so unbecoming. I do have a sense of humor, but it’s more advanced and less crass than how one would guess. Spare me the images you perceive of me. I’m beyond over being one’s comic relief at best or some useless associate at worst in their eyes.

Is this how you see me?

These reverse compliments of me being having skills are meaningless when you want to brand me with outdated ideals. Regardless of the tonality of my skin, I would look nothing of the sort even if I had a darker hue. Centuries of minstrel shows and shucking around are far beyond the pale. It’s sad enough when the stars and stripes incorporate the images, but when the Land of the Rising Sun adopts it, it becomes just as problematic. I’m sure millions would scream if a character had prominent buck teeth and canary coloration. Whatever positive traits set are all for naught. International waters have no alibi appropriating unfortunate implications.

Is this how you see me?

Do those images conjure up in one’s mind as one assumes I could be up to no good? The expectations of sounding savage (pardon my wording) need to be erased in so many brains. Could this be the same imagery invoked since 1994 when the cell populace exploded regardless if anyone did anything or not? I refuse to see myself as such. I’m closer to being prey anyway. Shame on those who believe equality equates to chaos or how I should be starved out or hurt with impunity. Isn’t it odd how more people are rampantly denial of these images, but will (reluctantly[?]) call out crows, orangutans or Siamese cats?

I didn’t deserve to be declared subhuman.

Those who had those declarations should change the channel.

All images and videos are property of their respective owners and used under US “Fair Use” laws.

Skids and Mudflap are property of Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. The photo is from NY Daily News and is property of Hasbro and Dreamworks.

Mr. Popo is property of Dragon Ball Z. The photo is from Pinterest and is property of Funimation.

Shenzi, Banzai, and Ed are property of The Lion King. The photo is from Pinterest and is property of Disney.

 

3 news cases I have to vent about: Mass Shootings, Cultural Appropriation, and Dehumanization

I wish I wasn’t physically sick today. Over the past few days, I’ve been hearing stories and I just get emotionally sick hearing about these. This world is too cruel and bigoted for it’s own good. I couldn’t just have 3 different posts going on.

1: The mass shootings in El Paso, TX and Dayton, OH

This should be quite obvious since this was big news over the weekend. I wasn’t shocked at what happened. So many people died in two different shootings in El Paso and Dayton by Patrick Crusius and Connor Betts respectively. It’s not surprising at all with who the suspects were and I’m frustrated by how well they treated. When I saw the video of Patrick Crusius being arrested, he was taken alive (OF COURSE!) by only 1 single cop. Apparently he wasn’t in fear of his live for someone who gunned down over 20 people and people have been treated worse for less nationwide let alone in Texas. Oh, I’ll get to that reason why I namedropped that state in particular. When I saw a different video from the African Diaspora News Channel (FKA The Advise Show). Phil talked about the El Paso shooting and said something that really hit me in just four words “Mass murderers have privilege”. Think about that for a minute. How many unarmed Black people get gunned down for far less by the police, yet White killers get taken alive and the cops suddenly don’t feel scared even if the suspect is armed? This is the Injustice system on full display.

2: #TrademarkWars Pt. III AKA Be Prepared…because Disney is suing people because of a foreign phrase!

Disney…STOP GIVING ME REASONS TO BASH YOU REGARDING YOUR RIP-OFF MOVIE!

I swear if that company keeps up with this madness, then I might as well call Ospreyshire’s Realm the Lion King Thievery Expose Blog. As you all know, Disney trademarked the phrase “Hakuna Matata” which sparked outrage on and off the African continent. There’s a petition still going on right now. You should already know my thoughts about this issue. I remember some people being in denial that Disney wouldn’t be stupid enough to sue people despite having legal fiat to do so. It was only a matter of time, but those people would be wrong and I was proven right. You see, Disney is suing a Chinese company for trying to trademark that Swahili phrase, but as “HakunaMatata” in their claim. Here’s more information about that story. Let’s break it down. An American company is suing a Chinese company over a phrase they didn’t invent from a language that isn’t spoken in either place. Now, China wants in on stealing African culture, too. For me, this is like America and China’s predatory business practices in Africa in microcosm. Just look at all the people being exploited by companies from both countries in the continent. You even have Chinese people beating up Ugandan politicians or murdering Namibian employees there and that’s the stuff I know about. I’m sure China wouldn’t like it if Disney trademarked a common phrase like “Xie xie” or “Ni hao” if they did something idiotic to promote the upcoming Mulan live-action remake, and everybody knows it. Lion King fans, I dare you to defend this and the other forms of theft.

#3: A leashed Black man…HOW SHAMEFUL!

Going back to Texas, there was a mentally ill Black man who was apprehended by two cops on horseback and leashed him! If it wasn’t for the cars and fashion, I would’ve thought I saw a real life scene from the 1800s, not 2019. The slave catcher imagery was beyond sick and this goes back to the first news story. You get accused of trespassing (allegedly), then you’ll have two cops leashing you up with horses, but if you slaughter people in the double digits, you get to be arrested with dignity by one cop! This is just beyond sick. I don’t want just an apology for their racist actions, I want those cops involved to be punished and for Donald Neely to sue the police department. America is so freaking bigoted. I’ve dealt with being discriminated firsthand here and that’s something some of you will never deal with in your lives. Name one white person in 2019 who was treated like Donald Neely. Exactly. I can’t ignore the mistreatment of others just because of their race and I hate how demonic people get softer treatment. I’m beyond infuriated as I recover from being sick.

I had to get these things off my chest. This dehumanization needs to stop.

New(ish) Ospreyshire Single: They Dreamed of Devastation and Deceit (Circle of Lies)!

Some of you might remember me making this poem roughly a month ago. However, I decided to record that poem with my cajon and my trademark acousmatics. Unlike other Ospreyshire tracks, I don’t use that many effects with my sound manipulation. Expect there to be audio fridge horror with some subtle sounds especially in the context of the lyrics. When I wrote that poem, I was airing my grievances with how much I despise the misrepresentation of Africa let alone the diaspora.

I know some people who weren’t familiar with this poem are going to ask me an obvious question, and I’ll answer it right now. No, the recording isn’t just about making a potshot against that expensive piece of plagiarism even though I do make said quip in one line. The issue is bigger than that. Just sayin.

The song is free or your own price on Bandcamp!

Belgium “apologizes” to the DRC even if it wasn’t for a reason I expected

As soon as I saw this video from Dr. Mumbi drop, I really really had to talk about it.

Some of you might remember me talking about the sins committed by Belgium to the Democratic Republic of Congo not too long ago. This issue is mentioned again although there was something I legitimately didn’t know about the colonial atrocities. Belgium is saying sorry because that country STOLE biracial Congolese/Belgium babies from the DRC (then known as the Belgian Congo), separated them from their parents, and subjected them in horrific conditions. Not only that, these Belgian poor excuses of fathers who impregnated the Congolese women backed off and didn’t want to be in their children’s lives. Come on, if the races were reversed, Bill O’Reilly would scream “Where are the fathers?!”. So these kids had to grow up bouncing around from orphanage or foster home while their baby daddies didn’t want to own up to what they did (although I really doubt all of those so-called fathers had consensual relationships with the moms given historical patterns).

This was new information for me, but I wasn’t shocked at all. This only made me angrier about everything that happened to the DRC. That country lived through that genocidal maniac King Leopold II who took over the Congo which is 5 times the size of his own home country and his people slaughtered 10 MILLION people and never got punished. Leopold and his regime shot, raped, maimed, and starved out millions and no historical institution is ever calling this a genocide. One form of punishment that he did was to chop off Congolese hands if they were disobedient or couldn’t make quotas for the natural resources. You see that picture in the thumbnail with the chocolate hands? That’s how they got the idea for that demonic dessert and it’s still sold in Belgium to this day! Seriously, Belgium needs to pay big reparations for all the atrocities they committed against the Congolese.

Before any of you say that the people of the DRC should “just move on” or “forgive”, let me ask you something. Are you going to say the same thing to the families of those related to the Holocaust victims/survivors? Are you going to say the same thing to the 9/11 families? If you’re not going to say those things to the families of those afflicted by those tragedies, then you’re a freaking racist hypocrite.

I hope justice happens.

Video courtesy of Dr. Mumbi Seraki.

Alabama teens want Black people in concentration camps. How despicable!

[Warning: Video contains strong language, racial slurs, and genocidal waxing]

It’s just another day in America and it involves a story that’s more common than you think.

In Birmingham, AL, some stupid teens from Spain Park High School decide to video a conversation where they want all Black people to die in concentration camps. Do I even need to say how sick that is even as a joke?

America has been racist long before 45 was in office and it’s starting to be much more overt. While I do agree that The South is more overt about racism, it can be upfront sometimes in the North, too. Trust me, I’ve been called racial slurs on BOTH sides of the Mason-Dixon line, even though he is right about Yankees being more coded with bigotry (and this is coming from a Midwesterner).

Phil was also right about biracial people (in this case, those who are Black/White mixed) being seen as non-White. Trust me, I’ve had my wake-up call on that matter when I was much younger and a lot less conscious about these intricate matters. I seriously doubt they’ll get punished so severely, but they totally deserve it.

I’d also like to add one point in that video by saying that Black people have been in concentration camps before. The most obvious ones to me are The Devil’s Punchbowl in Natchez, MS which happened not long after the Civil War and Shark Island in Namibia. The latter was carried out by Germany’s 2nd Reich and some of those same people would also be indirectly and directly involved in the Holocaust, too. I actually talk about this matter when I reviewed the Namibian Genocide & The Second Reich documentary on Iridium Eye if you want more details on that matter.

Seriously, those teenagers are evil and I know that they know better. I would bet you money that if some Black kids were talking about doing they same thing to their Caucasian counterparts, you know they would be expelled and possibly jailed for a video like that. No one should ever have to go through genocide, and it sickens me how people make jokes about ethnic groups who’ve faced it.

Video courtesy of Advise Show Media.

Is the UN pressuring Belgium to pay off for what they did to the DRC?

This is a video I saw a few days ago, but I thought it would be good to share it on here with this blog.

What an interesting turn of events to say the least.

The UN is telling off Belgium to apologize and to pay reparations to the Democratic Republic of Congo. For those of you wondering why the DRC in particular, let me give you a breakdown of what happened. Belgium wanted to be a part of the Scramble for Africa and they managed to colonize what would be the DRC under the reign of King Leopold II. To the Belgians, he was known as “the builder king” as he did so many architecture projects in his home country and many of them are still up to this day. To the Congolese (or anyone with a shred of humanity), Leopold was a genocidal maniac. Him and his forces exploited the country for their natural resources, chopped off hands from those who disobeyed him, starved out and annexed several people like his own personal elephant graveyard where the Africans didn’t belong in his circle of life (I know that comparison was mentioned in an earlier article, but it bears repeating), and killed 10 million Congolese during his reign. Not to mention HE NEVER GOT PUNISHED FOR HIS ACTIONS! Can someone please explain to me why he’s never mentioned in the same sphere of infamy as Hitler, Pol Pot, or Stalin? Seriously, I never learned about this when I was in school.

A little side note about the middle of the video…that was the most satanic thing I have ever seen in my life. A guy dressed up in blackface while pretending to cry as a chocolate cake molded like a pregnant Black woman gets sliced by some attendees at a gala? How sick can you get? Shame on all of those people who did that.

Back to this story at hand, I do hope justice can be done. The DRC was exploited for far too long and I hope that their plight will be taken seriously.

NEVER FORGET!

The video is courtesy of the Dr. Mumbi Show.

#TrademarkWars: Have you no shame, Disney?

I know this is an older story, but I just have to talk about it.

I apologize if this issue is getting old especially for those in the aniblogger community, but holy crap…did Disney have to steal something else especially in regards to The Lion King? Ripping off Kimba the White Lion wasn’t enough for them?

Basically, Disney owns a trademark for the words “Hakuna Matata” which is stupid on so many levels for a common phrase in the Swahili-speaking community in Africa (Kenya, Tanzania, DRC, Uganda, etc.). I also didn’t know that there was a popular song in the 70s that used the phrase in it’s chorus.

Sure, some of you are rolling your eyes to me bashing Disney since I am a former fan of The Lion King. Besides the shameless stealing of Kimba, I couldn’t stand some of the plot holes, the protagonist centered morality of Mufasa, and the racist implications of the hyenas (come on, you don’t think they sounded like ethnic stereotypes?). Not to mention the whole Elephant Graveyard situation is much more disturbing in hindsight when you research things like the Congolese genocide, the Namibian genocide, or the genocides against Native Americans to name a few where people where exiled and starved out at punishment. Makes me wonder if Disney fans see the hyenas as proxies for Black people to be punished at all costs while claiming that company isn’t racist for hiring minorities as some rhetorical dodge for it not being racist (strawman defeated). Please, that’s like saying the porn industry can’t be sexist because they hire women.

The thing isn’t just about trademarking a common Swahili phrase or for me ragging on Disney for their business practices. The bigger picture is cultural appropriation. One other example that Dr. Mumbi gave in the video was Louis Vuitton capitalizing on traditional Masai cloth by giving it the luxury treatment which is idiotic and offensive to me. Culture isn’t some free for all object for people to steal. I would bet you money if someone were to steal stuff from Louis Vuitton or any other big company, then lawsuits would be handed like candy on Halloween. Screw that double standard. If you want to incorporate something like someone’s culture then do it respectfully and pay the price for it.

This trademarking is so shameful on many levels. If you want to sign the petition about this matter, then here’s the link: https://www.change.org/p/the-walt-disney-company-get-disney-to-reverse-their-trademark-of-hakuna-matata

Video is property of Dr. Mumbi Seraki.