BLACK PANTHERS, MAU MAU, AND THE BUFFALO SOLDIERS

Some years ago I wrote an article about the Black Panthers and their role in the history of the United States of America. I was shocked at the thousands of hits this article gets up to this day. One of the reasons may be because the English is simple and the facts Direct. African Americans those born free and those who have suffered the burdens of slavery should remember that this land first and foremost belongs to the Native Americans. While Native Americans always harbored the Black Slaves and Free Slaves — we cannot say that of those who proudly called themselves Slave Masters and some still think they are do this day in the way they behave and their mentality. I am very proud in my lifetime to have known and lived in the times of the Black Panthers and the Mau Mau. I was born in Nairobi, Kenya. I am doubly proud to have helped the Buffalo Soldiers and more known and enjoyed the company of live Buffalo Soldiers to this day. If it were not for the Buffalo Soldiers much of California would not be developed. Buffalo Soldiers accompanied the First Settlers and where the go between the First People and anyone else. Native Americans have always had the greatest respect for the Buffalo Soldiers. The Native Americans likened the Buffalo Soldier with his coat of fur and stellar ridemanship to that of the Buffalo. Hence the respected name given to all Black regiments — the 9th and 10th Infantry the 24th and 25th Regiments all stationed at the Presidio of San Francisco. At the Presidio Veteran Cemetery over 450 Buffalo Soldiers lie in state. Back where I born in Nairobi, Kenya — the Mau Mau took on the imperialist British and brought them to their knees. The Mau Mau perhaps will never ever be recorded in history for their bravery. But let me assure you the very name Mau Mau brought the British to their knees. This was in the hey day when the British bragged that the sun never set on all the colonies and lands they ruled over. Here in the Bay Area we still have many Black Panthers. Many of them are proud of their role in contemporary American history. They were proud of the discipline they brought to the front line. This was the one singular denominator found among the Buffalo Soldiers, the Mau Mau, and the Black Panthers. Discipline. In recent years it has been heart breaking to see he-thugs and she-thugs mostly Black kill one another. This unwanted Black on Black killing must stop. If there is anyone that reads my articles — I request in the spirit of Black Brotherhood and Sisterhood to bring about a change and address this chronic disease that makes no sense. Black leaders women and men should do all in their power to join forces to bring an end to this sad malaise. I am one that has connections and I do interact with present and former gang members. I do for their good and for progress. I have spoken to many of them and those that need jobs — I have strived to give them good jobs. I admire anyone that has discipline and what is lacking among our Black youth is discipline and being focused on values that have been traditionally embraced by Black for thousands of years. The Buffalo Soldiers and the Mau Mau were discriminated. The Buffalo Soldiers stood firm and were a force to reckoned with. In all their missions all over the world they were First Class. The Buffalo Soldiers were in Alaska, in Burma, in Cuba, the Philippines, the Middle East, all over Europe in the Second World War — and here in the United States especially in the Western States — especially Arizona and California — they were First Class. The Buffalo Soldiers saved Jews even as they defeated the Nazis. The Buffalo Soldier built a Highway from Canada to Alaska through thick snow. The Buffalo Soldiers also built a road in the Burma Theater. The famed Buffalo Soldiers were the trainers at the West Point and are respected to this day. The same holds good for the Black Panthers and all the help they gave their neighbors. The Mau Mau could live in the forests for so many years because they always got the support from the neighboring villages in Kenya. It is the community support that makes a difference. In all the skirmishes with the U.S. Army — the Buffalo Soldiers did not harm any Native Americans. There was an especial bond among the Native Americans and the Buffalo Soldiers. My good friend Anthony Powell will agree with me on this bold statement. I have done my research and have found this to be a fact. The Buffalo Soldier was good at what he did and we even have one single Buffalo Soldier woman among their ranks. For those Black women reading this article I believe that every single Black Woman deserves our respect and we honor you all for all the courage and good throughout the sojourn on this land we call America. Black women should feel singularly proud in America — I am repeating this statement because I have seen their role on every level of human endearment within the Black family. In the 1950s the British thought at first that the Mau Mau movement would fade away. The Mau Mau rebelled because the British stole the good land and gave them the worst land to cultivate and live on. The British used the recruits from Sudan and Somalia and other tribes who were not Kikuyu to try to wipe the Mau Mau. The British did not succeed and to this day the British consider it taboo talking too much about the Mau Mau. In the bargain the British murdered thousands of innocent Kikuyu and do this day the Kikuyu remember the atrocities. Many may not believe it but the Mau Mau were so entrenched with the brotherhood and sisterhood of unity that even in the late 1990s — long after Kenya got its independence in 1963 — the Mau Mau still embraced the warmth of the forests of Kenya and came out of hiding only to be shocked that the British were no more there masters. They could not do this if they did not have a singular purpose of mind and more the discipline required to fight the discrimination meted out to them by the colonial British. They also had the support of the various villages in Kenya. Today in the year 2005 the Black Panther movement and its 10 Principles are needed to revitalize our Black Communities. Young Black men and women have no good role models. Not everyone can jump and slam-dunk those hoops and make those touchdowns. Today our Black youth should embrace education and take the challenge of the Buffalo Soldiers, the Mau Mau, and the Black Panthers to the highest level possible. The common denominator being discipline and singular focus of mind. The highest standard when it comes to Accountability and Transparency. Let not the White Readers and those that purport and think they safeguard our Nation think that I am encouraging violence. I am encouraging discipline among the youth and among all people of good faith. I see that from the times when Hannibal the Great defeated the armies of Europe. I see that in the Buffalo Soldiers in Cuba. I see that when the Black Panthers fed thousands and cleaned our dirty neighborhoods. Educated thousands and instilled in many discipline. If it were not for the Mau Mau many movements and much progress in the liberation struggle in Africa and all over the world would not have taken place. Here in San Francisco we have some Board of Supervisors who are the most racist that I have come across. Foremost among them Bevan Dufty and Aaron Peskin. We also have a sellout Black Supervisor Sophie Maxwell. I am stating these names because daily in our lives we have to fight discrimination. The above mentioned crooks will not permit ordinary citizens to speak up during Public Comment. Dole out a minute or two while they wag their tongues for hours on end. We have Mayor Gavin Newsom who is the Mayor of San Francisco uneducated on issues. He will encourage fake discourses and dog and pony shows to deceive people and use Media and Spin to bluff people. Most of the folks that suffer are people of color. It is at times like this that I turn to the Buffalo Soldiers, the Mau Mau, and to the Black Panthers for inspiration. Daily our Black Youth are dying because we Blacks are not United. Here in the Bay Area if all the Blacks and other Minorities pooled all their resources we could send those who discriminate packing to the abode of the cesspool where they all belong. Long live the Buffalo Soldiers, the Mau Mau, and the Black Panthers.

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