Hamjambo! Unaendeleaje!
Mimi ni Ospreyshire.
Nimefurahi kukutana na wewe!
Some of you know I’m doing my best to learn other languages. I have been using Duolingo for over a year now, and I hired an online tutor months ago. I felt compelled to learn this given how many people speak in the world. I got a chance to use some of it when I met a Congolese person earlier this year at an off-site event involving my job. I wish I learned that language when I was younger. This language needs to be respected a lot more and it’s not because of the low-hanging fruit of a certain mouse “owning” a specific phrase everyone knows. If you’ve known me long enough, you know exactly what I’m talking about. However, I want to be positive with this post because I swear I’m not an angry person all the time on here.
1: It allows me to see roots in other languages.
I still think it’s interesting how words like “safari”, “Uhura” (Yes, the Star Trek character), and “Jenga” are originally Swahili words. I’ve noticed other words that are from English, Portuguese, and Arabic origins mixed in even though it is a Bantu-based language. Learning about some of the vocabularies, I noticed some connections to Lingala, Kinyarwanda, and Kirundi which was very fascinating.
2: There are multiple countries and communities where I can speak to them.
There are currently 5 countries where it has official status: Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, and the DRC (this country will come up again!). That’s not even counting countries where it has minority status or at least have pockets of people who know it like Burundi, Mozambique, and Zambia, for example. Even in Comoros, their language of Comorian has multiple intelligible similarities. Interestingly enough, Burundi has more Swahili speakers than Rwanda despite not having it as an official language. Learning another language can really open up a new world.
3: I feel (somewhat) smarter learning.
I don’t want to call myself a genius and I hesitate calling myself intelligent at times, but I do feel like I’ve been gaining brainpower as I get immersed in learning Swahili. It does get difficult with the grammar system and sentence structure, but it helps me do problem-solving. My tutor said my listening skills have improved in understanding what is spoken of me even if I don’t always know the right word to respond. Yes, I’ve resorted to Swahin-glish at times with English words I said to replace words I didn’t know, but at least the tutor said I knew what I she said and saw I’m trying. I then learn new words after the fact and use them in future classes.
4: It forces me to learn cultural nuances I never thought about.
If you learn a new language, you low-key learn about the culture. This can be why certain words have specific meanings or you can’t find words that you can directly translate into English. I asked why certain words worked in certain ways, but what really threw me off were the times. East African nations operate under a different clock that revolves around the sunrise and not just an AM/PM system which really forced me to use math with timezone differences and comparing AM/PM to “Swahili time”.
5: It’s part of my culture.
Some of you know this, but I’m part Congolese which I found out via DNA test through my Mom’s side of the family. It was one of the biggest ethnic samples I got and tied with being Cameroonian as far as African ethnic groups are concerned. Yes, I have various smaller samples of West African nations, but most of the stuff from the motherland came from Central Africa. Swahili is one of 5 official languages in the DRC with millions of speakers. Many of them are multilingual since they also know either Lingala, French, Tshiluba, Kikongo, and/or regional langauges in that nation (over 200 in the DRC alone!). This gave me an incentive to find out more about the heritage I didn’t know about for most of my life. Anyone who’s African-American realizes how tough it is to find ancestry without legit documents and/or DNA tests given how those who were enslaved where metaphorically and literally programmed to forget their ethnic groups, cultural practices, and languages. It’s my way of honoring my ancestors as I learn a language they could’ve spoken back on the continent. Heck, I might have unknown relatives in the Motherland right now!
Those are some reasons why Swahili has helped me. So what do you think?
Anyways, Tutaonana Baadaye!
Tag Archives: Kenya
A 16 Year Sentence Isn’t Enough (Dows=Devils)
Did you feel happy defiling so many innocent souls?
To say there were kid’s gloves involved would be a gross understatement
#MeToo ignored you and your wife, but I didn’t
About time the consequences rained down on you
But it still looks like a slap on the wrist
When others faced more time for less
How many people would be able to get away with destroying children
Especially after they were on THAT registry back in their home country?
How many people did you bribe in one or both nations?
You better thank your privilege for only serving 16 years
For those that don’t know what I’m referring to, then you can watch Preying Missionaries and this news clip from Kenya.
Also, the fact Edmond Nyabola doesn’t have any journalism awards for breaking this story is a travesty, too.
May God bless the victims and their families.
Let the spectrum in! The Colo(u)rful Stories Tag!
It has been a long time since I’ve been tagged on this page, but it has happened. I was tagged by 7mononoke from Anime Rants. Thank you very much! This sounds like a very unique tag to be a part of. Also, bonus points if anyone gets the music reference in my title for this post.
Here are the rules for this tag:
#1 Share your favourite stories—movies/books/anime/manga/drama/songs—by classifying them on these seven colours’ traits:
- red: passionate, exciting, invigorating
- blue: peaceful, calming
- pink: romantic, caring
- orange: warm, motivating
- black: mysterious, thrilling
- green: fresh, unexpected
- white: random
#2 Send this challenge invitation to at least one of your friends. Let them fear your superiority, as you—decide their fate.
#3 Link back to the original post here! And, enjoy!
Alright. Let’s do this!
RED
Paprika
This would be my pick for red. Paprika is certainly experimental like most of Satoshi Kon’s work, but it’s very exciting and passionate with the imagery and multi-tiered storytelling. Some of you know about my strong feelings when it comes to an obvious film plagiarism issue associated with this movie, but I’m going to focus on the obvious original factors. Paprika also plays with passion or in Konakawa’s case lack thereof and the journey between dreams and reality is surreal, but forces you to pay attention.
BLUE
Alamar
This is more of a recent-ish watch since I first saw it a couple of years ago. There’s certainly lots of blues since most of the movie takes place near or on the ocean, but this really was a calming movie. Alamar wasn’t some deep watch, but it was very relaxing with this father and son bonding near the water. I first saw it during the winter when it was insane with the extreme polar vortex and with tons of snow on some days. It was a peaceful movie of characters just living life and there’s a healthy family relationship that doesn’t involve family drama nor does the father die in this film.
PINK
The Place Promised In Our Early Days
This one was tough because I’m not a fan of romantic movies. The closest thing to a romance work that I really like is Makoto Shinkai’s first full-length film. The Place Promised In Our Early Days would be far closer to describe as a war drama with some sci-fi elements given the concept of the parallel universes playing a major role in the plot. This has one of the best love triangles I’ve ever seen in movies and there was some great characterization. Of course, most anime fans will Stan harder for Your Name, Weathering With You, or (GOD FORBID!) The Garden of Words, but The Place Promised is still an impactful watch even years later.
ORANGE
Hikaru no Go
Hikaru no Go is one anime and manga series I’ve enjoyed since I was in high school and it still holds up. I’ve certainly praised it for it’s originality, believable characters, and destroying multiple shonen anime tropes. Heck, this series was a major inspiration for the last single and video I made (notice the go imagery) late last year. This was a motivating series to watch not just with learning about the game of go, but it also shows perseverance in a non-cheesy light while being genuine about it.
BLACK
Maasai: The Rain Warriors
Even more recent than watching Alamar, I discovered this Kenyan movie not too long ago. I don’t want to just put anime on this list even though I certainly have a reputation for talking about that subject on one of my other blogs. Maasai: The Rain Warriors was a very fascinating watch with it using actual Maasai actors, using the Maa language as opposed to English or even Swahili, and incorporating Afro-fantasy with a low-key magic realism to it. There’s mysterious aspects with the adventure to stop this demonic lion from cursing the land with drought. There were some nice twists and turns while being respectful to this indigenous tribe in Kenya. No, there is absolutely no pun involving the choice of movie with this color, so calm down.
GREEN
Lunch Time Heroes
This is the first Nollywood movie I have seen! I know there were some pacing and plotting issues, but Lunch Time Heroes was one movie that I thought was better than what most critics said. It was fresh and unexpected with how much I enjoyed this movie. Sure, the plot is simple with a teacher thrust into a classroom full of troublesome students while taking part in an academic competition against other schools in Nigeria, but how they did it was entertaining and in some cases deconstructive. I’m not a fan of “save our students” plots, but this was done right. Lunch Time Heroes was also the 2nd “save our students” movie I’ve seen in my life that DIDN’T resort to white savior tropes (the 1st is Stand and Deliver) even if it was due to the geographic location. Not only that, but it’s an African movie that takes place in a middle-class setting which is something Hollywood wouldn’t dare show that side of the continent. Lunch Time Heroes was a simple, yet very unexpected watch for me.
WHITE
Shinesman
You know, my interests can be quite random. I can delve into avant-garde and arthouse works, but at the same time I can watch something wacky from time to time. I’m not always this super serious or highbrow person, everyone. I do have a sense of humor and a sense of levity. Shinesman is one of my favorite anime comedies and parody works in general. When I tell other people about this, I mention that Shinesman is like a mix between Power Rangers and The Office, but that’s scratching the surface. It has one of my top 3 dubs that are better than the original Japanese version. The humor consists of over-the-top tokusatsu spoofing, low-key zingers, and even makes some cheeky jokes about anime fandoms. This still makes me laugh to this day seeing this obscure 90s OVA series. I would also like to see a remake and if they could get as many of the original dub cast members to reprise their roles, I’d be elated.
I will nominate the following people:
Never Argue With a Fish
Fiddletwix
Traditional Catholic Weeb
Aizen_Kuro
James Humphrey
Red Metal
Scarlettiger
All photos are property of their respective owners and used under US “Fair Use” laws.
Paprika is property of Satoshi Kon, Madhouse and Sony Pictures Classics. The GIF is from Gfycat and is property of Satoshi Kon, Madhouse and Sony Pictures Classics.
Alamar is property of Film Movement. The screenshot is from Cinema Tropical and is property of Film Movement.
The Place Promised In Our Early Days is property of Makoto Shinkai and ComixWave. The screenshot is from Madman Entertainment and is property of Makoto Shinkai, ComixWave, and Madman Entertainment.
Hikaru no Go is property of Yumi Hotta, Takeshi Obata, Studio Pierrot, and Viz. The screenshot is from YouTube and is property of Studio Pierrot and Viz.
Maasai: The Rain Warriors is property of ArtMattan and Facets Video. The screenshot is from ArtMattan and is property of ArtMattan and Facets Video.
Lunch Time Heroes is property of PHB Films and FilmOne Distribution. The screenshot is from YouTube and is property of PHB Films and FilmOne Distribution.
Shinesman is property of Production I. G. The Japanese DVD cover is from My Anime List and is property of Production I. G.
Some positive things despite the insanity of the world: African travel vlogs, traditional Burundian drumming, and Hikaru no Go song covers
I know things are still very intense in this world. I’m not ignoring them at all. This is just a slight change of pace. I had some rough emotional moments earlier this week, but I’m better now. It’s been amazing by getting some encouragement from offline and online friends recently. Here are some things that I thought were fascinating recently.
I’ve been getting into Miss Trudy’s videos a lot over the past few weeks. Miss Trudy is a Kenyan YouTuber who makes travel videos mainly of different African countries. I checked out some of her videos on Sierra Leone and Liberia among other countries and I was astounded by the beauty of those nations. That’s the Africa they NEVER show you especially in the West. Here’s one of her videos where she’s in Freetown (the capital and largest city). Also, did you know Freetown was actually created by freed African slaves from America, the Caribbean, England, and Canada? I thought that was very fascinating.
Burundi has been one country I didn’t pay too much attention to, but I have to thank Miss Trudy as well as Dr. Y. for exposing me to more things about that country. One cultural tradition in that country is their drum corps. These drummers carry on a legacy dating back centuries when Burundi was a kingdom. The drummers would play for the king and they had their own unique rhythms. This was wonderful and I even picked up the live album of the Drummers of Burundi on Bandcamp where they played at Real World Records which is owned by Peter Gabriel.
I got back into the anime and manga series Hikaru no Go this year. It was one of my favorite series during my high school years, and after rediscovering it, HNG still holds up. Seriously, if you think all anime is nothing but martial arts ultraviolence, collectable monsters, or hentai, then please rethink your priorities. I found a cover of the 2nd opening theme “I’ll Be the One” by HAL that was performed by this Thai singer named MindaRyn. I thought she did a great job at singing this song. This was almost as good as the original in my opinion.
Besides all of that, I’ve been having some thoughts about what to post, but I’m debating about having it here or on my other blogs involving different topics.
Hope you all are doing well today.
Double Neat! I was nominated twice for the Real Blog Award!
Here I go again with these delayed award posts! Sorry about that. Recently I was nominated by two different bloggers for the Real Neat Blog Award. They are AK from Everything Is Bad For You and Red Metal at Extra Life. Thank you so much, guys!
Here are the rules:
1. Display the logo
2. Thank the bloggers for the award.
3. Answer the questions from the one who nominated you.
4. Nominate 7 to 10 bloggers.
5. Ask them 7 questions.
Here we go now, and I’ll start with AK’s questions first.
1) Is there a game, book, or other work that you’d like to experience but that you can’t because it’s untranslated, not ported, or otherwise inaccessible?
Good question. It would be cool to play Dance Dance Revolution Club Version for Dreamcast.
2) What’s one work that really affected you or stuck with you in the last year, and why do you think it did?
Since discovering Ousmane Sebene, his debut feature film Black Girl really affected me. As someone with a film background, I was angry not knowing about this director. This work was incredible as it had great metaphors about neo-colonization and some of the most realistic displays of racism with various dog whistles from the French people against the Senegalese main character and the story was so believable and still relevant despite being made in the 60s.
3) If you could revive one series of works that’s been abandoned or dropped by its creators for any reason, what series would it be and why?
Despite the stream of remakes going on over the past few years, I would actually like to see a remake of Shinesman. I know the manga went farther and the satire could still work especially with the glut of superhero media even if Shinesman parodies Power Rangers/Super Sentai. If that got dubbed, then need to get the original English VA cast for it if they can still pull off the voices.
4) When it comes to music, do you prefer songs with vocals and lyrics or instrumental pieces, or do you have a preference at all? If you prefer one type over the other, why do you think that is?
I don’t have a preference at all, actually.
5) When was the last time you bought a magazine, newspaper, or other form of print media?
This was months ago and I bout a book from Dr. Amos Wilson. I’m glad to discover his work on anti-racism and black psychology last year. I’m also not counting e-books, by the way.
6) Is there a holiday you don’t get to celebrate/take off because of family or work reasons but that you wish you could?
Depends on my schedule with work. I know I get Christmas and Easter off which is guaranteed. I’d say Juneteenth would be excellent having that off on so many levels.
7) If you had to create a new holiday, when would it be and what would it involve?
I would make a commemorative holiday for Black Wall Street. This will be a federal holiday where schools and businesses will close to honor those that were affected by that horrific attack. Next year will be the 100 year anniversary. NEVER FORGET!
Now for Red Metal’s questions:
1. What is your favorite variety of meat? Or if you don’t eat meat what is your favorite meat substitute?
Seitan. News flash, I’m a vegetarian! Most of you didn’t know that fact about me.
2. If you could permanently remove one installment from a series you like (which would erase its existence from everyone’s memory), which one would you choose?
I do like Ghost In The Shell. As much as I was disappointed in the GITS sequel and some of the Arise prequels, but at least they offer decent elements to the overall story. If there was one thing I could erase from that series, then (to the surprise of no one) I would erase that live-action remake. Shame on the directors and shaming on the casting agents who thought it was a good idea to let Black Widow play the Major. #Whitewashing
3. If you lost a bet, would you rather read the worst book, play the worst game, listen to the worst album, or watch the worst film that you know of?
I’d say reading the worst book because I’d likely forget about it the most out of those options.
4. If you won a bet, what kind of punishment would be in store for your friend?
MWAHAHAHAHAHA!!! If this was a good friend of mine, I would be a bit soft by making them do 100 pushups and then a mile run. Side note: I did 100 pushups a day all throughout December. If this was a frenemy, I would have them be a part of a pro wrestling match against “Big Wavy” Roy Johnson. Here’s a sample of what would happen. #PounceParty
5. What is your favorite month of the year?
October. I’m biased since I was born that month.
6. What is a piece of obscure trivia you like to mention during social gatherings?
I’m full of obscure trivia. Hahaha! I think the ones I mention somewhat frequently are smart apartments in Kenya that use iPads to control the AC, kitchen stoves, ovens, lights, etc. It’s great mentioning facts that destroy stereotypes about Africa.
7. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you choose? In this hypothetical situation, assume your choice would grant you complete fluency in the area’s official language.
Speaking of Africa, one place I would like to live would be Brazzaville, Republic of Congo. I have a bit of fluency in Lingala, but being fully fluent in that and the other Congolese languages would be sweet. I saw very fascinating things in pictures and video, it’s quite modern, and there’s lots of things to do in the country.
8. What is the longest amount of time you’ve ever driven a car or other vehicle in one sitting?
It was en route to Cornerstone Festival in Bushnell, Illinois. That’s a 4.5-5 hour drive despite being from the same state. I’m from the Northern part of the Land of Lincoln and Bushnell is a tiny farm town in West Central Illinois. The closest city to it is Macomb which is 20 minutes away and there’s nothing major besides Western Illinois University. Driving can be a bit easy once you get outside the Chicagoland area, but it can be tiresome seeing cornfields and farms for most of the scenery.
9. What is the most annoying fictional character you can think of?
I can think of several. Haha! I think a ton of the Disney Princesses are annoying to me with most of them being Mary Sues, spoiled brats, get helped by too many plot coupons/plot conveniences, and I can’t see how people can relate to them.
10. What is the most underrated fictional character you can think of?
Yugo Beppu from Yugo the Negotiator. I like how he’s intelligent, culturally aware, and has an extraordinary level of toughness despite not being a violent person. However, there’s one superhero I want to check out called Mr. Terrific. I heard he is good in the comics and that his character was butchered in Arrow.
11. With the decade coming to a close, would you say this was a good period for films, comics, animation, music, literature, or video games?
It was good with the indie and international films I saw, more or less. It was the decade of mediocrity and a tremendous lack of originality in Hollywood with pointless sequels, prequels, adaptations, and of course…so. Many. Freaking. Useless. REMAKES!
Alright. Here are my 7 questions for my nominees.
1. If you’re favorite band’s lead singer quit, who would be a good replacement for them?
2. Who is a supporting character in a movie or TV series that should get their own spin-off? (this can be live-action or animated)
3. The world would be a better place to live in if…?
4. What was the biggest fact or story that really opened your eyes about reality?
5. Which language would you want to learn that isn’t an official tongue in your nation and which places would you visit that uses that language?
6. What is something that you wished never got ripped off or stolen?
7. If you can give great advice in just four words, what would they be?
Nominees:
Rodrovich
Al’s Manga Blog
Kreb
David Boone
Bill Ziegler
The Alchemist
Nesie’s Place
The College Cheating Saga Continues! American and UK-based college/university students pay Kenyans to write their essays. (or, If entitled racist jerks insist Africans have low IQs, then why are they paying them to write essays for them?)
I found out about this story and all I can say is WOW! JUST, WOW!
In addition to the drama going on with Lori Laughlin and company in court with all of this college cheating going on, apparently there was a trend of college students in America and the United Kingdom at large where students have been caught paying Kenyans dirt cheap to write their papers for them. It’s not just undergrads, even graduate and PhD level students have gotten these Kenyans to write full-on theses and dissertations. Apparently, there are essay factories down in that country where these writers work twelve hour shifts while getting paid slave wages to write papers for the Americans and the UK. The latter has a brutal sense of irony when you consider that Kenya was a former British colony. Just saying.
You see, I went to a four year private university to get my Bachelor’s Degree. I got in on my own merits and did everything I could while working two campus jobs and I still graduated on time. I’ll let you in on a little secret during my tenure there. There were students who would fake their way in classes like reading only Cliff Notes or online summaries in the English/Literature courses I took without reading the full books, admitting to cheating in tests in classes I didn’t take with them, and those same people graduated while some are making more money than me. Well pardon me for being an honest student. I’m sorry to have a little thing called integrity to not steal, cheat, or plagiarize compared to those who claimed to have higher IQs than me.
So if I want to expose myself to plagiarized works involving Africa, I can either read some of these paid essays or watch The Lion King. SHOTS FIRED!!!
Seriously, shame on all of those students for plagiarizing their works and shame on that essay factory owner for being a part of this scandal. You wonder why I hate it when people steal and copy from others without crediting people? I bet you money these plagiarists are from far far richer families than mine (okay, I’ve been middle-class for a good portion of my life), and got away with it for years now, and have well-paying careers. Inexcusable! If honesty, integrity, and hard work were merited as much as the media lies to us, then I’d be a millionaire by now.
The video is property of African Diaspora News Channel. That’s more credit than these thieving douchebags will ever give for these paid-for essays.
Update: The Dows are FINALLY arrested! #PreyingMissionaries
https://www.nation.co.ke/news/US-man-arrested-over-Kenya-sex-abuse/1056-5194154-o7440pz/index.html
What’s this? A child predator is FINALLY facing a courtroom for his crimes? I couldn’t believe it!
For those of you don’t know, Gregory Hayes Dow and Mary Rose Dow are so-called missionaries who opened up an orphanage in Bomet, Kenya. For almost a decade, they didn’t give the kids any love or safety. They would torture, sexually abuse, starve out, and even kill children in their compound. Also, Gregory was a registered sex offender who molested his own daughter from his previous marriage prior to going to Kenya. This was documented in the Kenyan documentary Preying Missionaries which you can watch on YouTube for free legally.
I’ve talked about this issue before.
I’m glad people are finally going after the Dows. It’s high time that justice came knocking on their doors. We arrest and execute people who’ve done less in this country assuming if they actually committed crimes. I hope they get the maximum sentence in locking them up for the rest of their days. America, this is your chance to do the right thing. This isn’t The Central Park Five. These devils were found dead to rights for their rampant abuse. These pedophiles need to suffer.
Again, where’s #MeToo and #TimesUp at?
Seriously, I can’t stand how all those innocent children were mistreated beyond belief or having more people who want to bash Africa.
#PreyingMissionaries Pt. II: Petition to get justice for the innocent Kenyan orphans abused by Gregory and Mary Rose Dow
I’m glad there’s a petition for this case, too.
After watching the Preying Missionaries documentary on YouTube, I was beyond sickened by hearing the stories of those poor Kenyan children that were beaten, starved, raped, and some of them even killed by the Dow couple. It was even more infuriating that Gregory Hayes Dow was a registered sex offender and child molester (his victim was his own daughter, by the way) before opening up an orphanage in Kenya and got away with it for nine years.
Don’t you dare complain and cause a fit about Bill Cosby or R. Kelly when you stay silent about sexual abusers like the Dows or those who look like them. You are hypocrites and cowards if you do that. It makes me wonder if those same people barking about those two are getting away with violating children while accusing those of a certain complexion.
I hope justice can be done, so all those children can know something happened to these monsters who ruined their lives. I hope Gregory Dow and Mary Rose Dow serve hard time especially when there are people in jail who have served decades for non-violent crimes assuming if they were guilty to begin with.
#FirstThem
#PreyingMissionaries: May those children get restitution against these devils!
I just found out about this expose documentary that NTV (a Kenyan news station) recently premiered when I checked out The Advise Show and I’m still bawling my eyes out while also feeling enraged. Just as I thought the Hakuna Matata trademark issue was bad enough in Africa, my heart just broke when I found out about this story.
These demons in missionary’s clothing known as Gregory Hayes Dow and his wife/partner-in-crime Mary Rose Dow opened up an orphanage in Bomet, Kenya in 2008. For 9 straight years, these thugs beaten, abused, dehydrated, starved, and raped over 83 children in their home. Also, 3 children died with the youngest being at 1.5 years old. I cannot tell you the fury that I feel from hearing about this case and watching the full documentary on YouTube (you can watch the whole thing here). One thing that was a huge kicker in this case was that Gregory was a registered sex offender and child molester who violated HIS OWN DAUGHTER from his first marriage!
How the hell was this guy allowed to build an orphanage let alone allowed to work with children? Did he pay off some government officials or something like that? This orphanage makes the one in The Promised Neverland look like a utopia (you’re welcome, anime fans). I hope these two demons get punished for their atrocious crimes. R. Kelly was treated worse than the Dows and he has more money than them! You might as well call this Surviving Gregory Dow for crying out loud. Definitely a #FirstThem case on so many levels.
Now, I’m going to have to call out certain people on this matter. If you call yourself a feminist and don’t call out this behavior, then you are a hypocritical piece of crap. I bet you if Gregory and Mary Rose weren’t white, you know this would be global news. All you #MeToo and #TimesUp people better call these people out like they did Bill Cosby. I’m sure Gloria Allred is silent about this matter. Yeah, I said it. If you care about the well-being of children, then this story should make you grieve and beg for the Dows to be punished. Stories like these have made me cynical about humanity as so many so-called humans are just plain monstrous. We have people in jail (America, Kenya, or otherwise) who’ve been punished worse for much MUCH less! Kenya and the rest of the world need to vet these missionaries with iron rigid standards. I hope this story goes viral and I want the Dows to be the freaking face of child abuse and pedophilia.
NEVER FORGET!
Video courtesy of NTV Kenya.
#TrademarkWars Pt. II: Drop the Hakuna Matata trademark because cultural appropriation sucks!
At the time of this post, over 187K+ people signed the petition in that link above. I’m one of them because I practice what I preach.
Some of you may have seen my #TrademarkWars post not too long ago. I’m not sorry for repeating the information, but some of this maybe new to some of you. For those of you who didn’t see that earlier post, let me give you the scoop. Disney owns a trademark for the words “Hakuna Matata”.
“But Ospreyshire, that’s a stupid thing to worry about!” You might say. “What’s the big deal?”
It’s because making a dollar of a foreign phrase is cultural appropriation. That’s why.
This offends me more than The Lion King ripping off Kimba the White Lion, and that’s saying something. The thing is “Hakuna Matata” has been a very common phrase that the Swahili-speaking world (examples: Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, DRC, etc.) has said for centuries. Disney acts like they can just own foreign words like some kind of hidden treasure. That’s colonizer thinking right there. Could you imagine the outrage if Disney or any other conglomerate were to trademark foreign phrases such as “C’est La Vie” from the French or “Que Sara Sara” from the Italians? Everybody would riot if that were to happen. Even English speakers know what those phrases mean and would call out something like that. Keep in mind, even Paris Hilton couldn’t trademark “That’s hot” and Donald Trump couldn’t trademark “You’re fired” when The Apprentice was a hit show, so what does that tell you? I guess since this involves Africans, then they don’t matter in Disney’s eyes by taking a common saying that’s spoken throughout multiple countries in that continent.
Cultural appropriation is another form of racism as it steals from others while benefiting the appropriator. I’m sick and tired of people getting away with thieving cultural elements that clearly never belonged to them to the first place. The Swahili speaking public got nothing out of this trademark even though they’ve been saying it long before the invention of animation.
If this irks you that colonialism still permeates even in kids movies, then I would urge you to sign.
Hakuna Matata: Not some remorse-free philosophy
Ospreyshire's Realm 