Lagos, Feb. 23, 2021 – A don, Prof. Muyiwa Faleye, has called on Africans, especially Nigerians to intensify efforts toward changing the perception of the western world about the black man.
Faleye, who is the Director, Institute of African and Diaspora Studies, University of Lagos made the call at the 2021 celebration of ‘Black History Month’ on Tuesday in Lagos.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the theme of the celebration is “Black Family, Representation and Diversity”.
According to the director, the wrong perception of the whited about Africans is worrisome, just as it is unfortunate.
He said that there was the need to come together as a people and as the black race to take up the challenge and rewrite the story for the benefit of the black man in a more positive manner.
“Today, we are celebrating black achievement, black culture, black civilization and everything that is good about the black race.
“The black man has a badge of black contempt; he wears the badge of black contempt and it is up to us to rewrite the narratives that will show that there are a lot of things that black people have achieved and could achieve.
“But, running away from our country to other people’s country, without first looking inward on what we can do to improve our country, is never a great way to celebrate black achievement,’’ Faleye said.
He noted that the history of humankind showed that black people had done a lot in the civilization of the world.
“Therefore, it is important for us to hold onto these achievements, build upon them and make black people believe in themselves
“We should believe that we can achieve.’’
The director said it was disheartening “to see how people will want to hold onto and believe the narrative the west tell about the black man’’.
Allowing other people to shave your head in your absence or allowing them to tell your story without you having an input to the story is one of the greatest challenges we have as blacks and black scholars, he added.
The immediate past Dean, Faculty of Arts of the institution stated that part of the activities lined up for this year’s celebration was an essay writing competition on the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic by students from notable schools in the state.
Before now, Faleye recalled that the annual event, which usually held for a week with various activities, had been compressed to just a few hours.
This, he said is in compliance with the social distancing order by the Federal Government against the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Also speaking, the keynote speaker, Prof. Adesina Afolayan of the University of Ibadan, said that despite the happenings in and around the country, there were still many positive things that should be celebrated about Nigerians and their country.
According to him, these things should serve as the basis for individuals and for building a pleasant society for all.
Afolayan added that the essence of the celebration was to strike a balance between the people’s root in the country and the desire to flee whatever challenges they may currently be facing.
