The mainstream media has largely ignored the year. I have yet to see any serious coverage by US television, radio or print media on IYPAD. The black press in the U.S. has also barely covered any of the issues, events and programs associated with IYPAD. Therefore, the level of the awareness of the Black Diaspora in the U.S. has also been negligible. Main stream media coverage in the Caribbean, Africa and Latin America has been equally minimal.
The United Nations clearly did not promote the year as it should. It made, in my opinion, no serious effort to raise the funds necessary to support the kind of events and programs that would align with their grandiose proclamations. The OHCHR (The Office of the High Commission for Human Rights) at most provided logos for print media. They were no radio or television spots produced. Consequently, the year has gone by quickly without much consequence.
It is fair to say that the majority of the African descendant populations in Latin America, the United States, Africa and the Caribbean have minuscule knowledge of IYPAD and have in fact not benefited at all from the International Year for People of African Descent.
Nevertheless, the International Year for People of African Descent gives us (particularly enlightened people of African descent) a unique opportunity to examine our current strategies as it relates to the systemic socio-economic and political problems of African Diaspora people in the world. It is time for African descendants to take full responsibility for creating solutions for our problems in the world and work tirelessly to create communities and societies in which we honor and respect ourselves.
IYPAD most importantly gives us another reason to reflect on our challenges and to remind the international community of the continued devastating impact that the institutions of slavery, colonialism and racism have created for millions of Africans in the diaspora.
It is also a year for black people to think about our collective histories and to figure out ways to share information and resources that contribute to our spiritual, economic and political growth. It is encouraging to see the number of online groups that have emerged to share information (IYPAD Central, IYPAD Africa, IYPAD Nigeria, IYPAD Caribbean and IYPAD-St. Thomas). IYPAD therefore clearly represents an opportunity for Afro-descendants to create new ideas to motivate people of African descent to work together to empower themselves to move beyond the barriers of nationalism and tribalism. It is time for the people of the African Diaspora to clean up their politics.
I spoke about this exact thing just a few weeks ago; and wondered how it could slip by so easily unnoticed.
This is why I make it a major part of my blogging and news reposts. I want to see my story; first and always.
