Monday News

From 1,000 to 500 B.C., the Middle East saw the growth of imperial powers following one another in succession. There was the Assyrian Empire, then the Babylonians, and the Medes grew. The Persian Empire grew to be a very strong powerful Empire. The Persian Empire was the largest state in the history of the ancient world before Alexander the Great’s Empire. It covered all of the Middle East, parts of India, Central Asia, Egypt, and Asia Minor (or Turkey). The Persians allowed the Jewish people to return to Israel from Babylonia. Previously, the Assyrians and the Babylonians re-settled conquered peoples throughout their territories. This caused old languages to end and Aramean was once the main lingua-franca of the region. A simple to learn alphabet greatly stimulated international trade and inter regional communication. The Lydians, Phrygians, and Ionian Greeks of Asia Minor including the Phoenicians (who by this time traveled into North Africa. Their trade extended into Spain and as far as Great Britain) were under one regime of the Persians. Mesopotamian areas reached new heights and Arabian kingdoms grew in Saudi Arabia. Soon, the Middle East was conquered by the Greco-Macedonian Empire. Alexander the Great, king of Macedonia, had an ego and wanted to conquer the whole world. He didn’t, but he conquered a wide spectrum of territories. He, his generals, and his soldiers were involved in a campaign that formed an empire from Greece to India. When Alexander the Great died young, his generals with some local princes divided the lands amongst themselves. These rulers and their descendants became the Ptolemies in Egypt, the Seleucids in Syria, Mesopotamia and Iran, and other dynasties in Asia Minor cam about (which was Greek city states and other areas like Armenia, Media, Pontus, etc.). Greek culture mixed with Middle Eastern culture became Hellenistic culture. Greek architecture and art spread across the ancient world, but Greek culture was heavily influenced by African and Middle Eastern culture too. In the Middle East, there was the area of Judaea where Hebrews lived. From 200 to 30 B.C., the Middle East was heavily ruled by the Roman Empire, the Parthian Empire, the Scythian Empire, and the Arabian Kingdoms.



The Afro-Uruguayan people have been rarely discussed in many circles. Now, information about them should be readily known in the world. Afro-Uruguayans have made great contributions in the world. They have suffered unjust enslavement and now they are fighting for genuine equality and justice to this very day. They have formed organizations like Mundo Afro as a means for them to lobby the national government to recognize its black minority as an equal member of the national community. Afro-Uruguayans continue to face pervasive discrimination and racial prejudice. We know about the nations where the African Diaspora exists in Brazil, Cuba, Haiti, the United States, etc. Yet, we have to learn about the African Diaspora in the South American republic of Uruguay as well. Uruguay is a nation that had almost 600,000 European immigrants between 1880 and 1930. Most of its citizens consider themselves as white. Yet, like in many other Latin American countries, there has been an upsurge in black civic and political mobilizations. Organizations such as Mundo Afro (Afro World), the Asociación Cultural y Social Uruguay Negro, the Centro Cultural por la Paz y la Integración, Africanía, and others have demanded that the nation of Uruguayans acknowledge its black past and present. They want to work toward the full integration of its black and indigenous minorities into national life. There was the black mobilization occurring in the early 1800’s. There was the salas de nacion or the mutual aid societies organized on the basis of the members’ African origin. Montevideo is Uruguay’s capital. It was once a required port of call for slave ships brining African to the Rio de la Plata region. Most of those Africans continued on to Argentina, but during the late 1700’s and early 1800’s some 20,000 disembarked in Montevideo and remained in Uruguay. By 1800, the national population was an estimated 25 percent African and Afro-Uruguayan.


There is a list from the 1830’s of 13 salas de nacion in Montevideo that shows 6 from West Africa, 5 from the Congo and Angola, and 2 from East Africa. The salas bought or rented plots of land outside the city walls, on which they built headquarters to house their religious observances, meetings, and dances. They collected money for emancipation funds to buy the freedom of slave members, lobbied public officials, and provided assistance in disputes and conflicts between slaves and their owners. Free and slave Africans including Afro-Uruguayans served in the independence wars of the 1810’s and 20s. They fought in the civil wars of the 1830’s, 1940’s, and the second half of the 1800’s. The Afro-Uruguayans fought for full civic and legal equality for centuries as guaranteed by the Constitution of 1830. Black journalists between 1870 and 1950 formed at least 25 newspapers and magazines in Montevideo and other cities. This compares to between forty and fifty black-oriented periodicals during the same period in Brazil, where the black population is today some 400 times larger than Uruguay’s; and fourteen in Cuba (black population twenty times larger than Uruguay’s). This strong journalism of the Afro-Uruguayan people caused their economic and educational achievements to grow. Uruguay grew its literacy and educational system. Still, discrimination and prejudice prevented black people in Uruguay to have true freedom. During the 1980’s and 90’s, Uruguay saw a new wave of black civil mobilization. Mundo Afro was created in 1988. The struggle continues and we are in solidarity of the Afro-Uruguayan people, their culture, and their human rights.



Bradley Ballard’s death was a tragedy and an injustice. Bradley Ballard never deserved to be treated in that fashion at all. Animals have been treated much worse than Bradley Ballard and that is a total shame. To crooked cops and racists, black human life doesn’t matter. Yet, that perspective is a total life. The truth is that black human life does matter and when they have mistreated Brother Bradley Ballard, they have attacked the dignity of all of us. Obviously, the family Bradley Ballard should sue. Those with mental illness have to be treated better not only in America, but throughout the Earth. The dignity of people has to be respected. The family is suffering immeasurable pain and suffering because of the incomprehensible neglect that has been executed by Rikers prison authorities. Any prison authority member involved in the neglect of this man should be punished outright. RIP Bradley Ballard. When many witnesses tell similar stories and many of these witnesses don't know each other or know who Michael Brown was, then that is more than enough reason for an arrest of Wilson to take place. They have spoken about how he had his hands up and the cop still killed him. Some people using the tactic of discrediting the witnesses will not work, because these witnesses come from different areas, but their stories share cohesiveness and similarities with each other. One witness said that Michael Brown said OK repeatedly and the officer murdered him afterwards. The new video show a person said that the shooting was unjustified and other words as well. The people of Ferguson have every right to protest and outline their legitimate grievances. Michael Brown, as said by many witnesses, was not coming back to the officer full speed at all. The Sister Piaget should be treated with dignity and respect. There must be accountability and I am in favor of justice. People should have standards and character. Life is a journey and people need real teaching as a means to conduct themselves in the best possible way. No matter who does domestic violence, it is wrong. Men and women should treat each other as human beings. When we have discussions like these and do constructive action in solving our issues, then that is very important in enriching our community in general. We should build, learn from each other, and WORK TOGETHER as a community and as a family. Any abuse is evil. Others who promote divisive rhetoric, deception, and slanders will reap what they will sow. That is why when we will continue to advance righteousness and justice, and then we will have more blessings. You and others have shown excellent truths and wisdom like usual.


The two members of the popular K-POP band Ladies’ Code lost their lives tragically in a car crash on September 3rd. Like always, we send prayers and condolences to their families and friends. Their last video depicted them flirting with death. The K-POP industry of course has blatant symbolism and mind control references as these things are found throughout the mainstream entertainment industry. K-POP is based in South Korea. Their video called “Hate You” had mind control references and other disturbing imagery. The video shows the singers as puppets with strings controlled by unseen handlers. In the video there are dolls all around. Some interpret this as multiple personalities. There are markings on the wall in the video. This refers to forced confinement. A butterfly flashed for a split second. This image is similar to the Monarch Programming. Two members of the group died in a violent car crash. They were returning to the South Korean capital after filming a TV appearance in the southeastern city of Daegu. The camera inside of the van (where the musicians were in before they crashed) had been sent to the National Forensic Service. Singer EunB lost her life at the crash site while RiSe passed away a few days later, after hours of intensive surgery. Shortly after the car crash, a few strange facts surfaced, causing some observers to believe that the van used by Ladies’ Code was sabotaged. First, the van was not the group’s usual vehicle but a rental that was “used for the first time”. Second, the airbags did not deploy. Finally, a wheel completely flew off from the vehicle. This is a rare occurrence, especially with recent vehicles. One of the wheels completely flew off the vehicle. The lyrics of the song Kiss Kiss overtly talks about kissing. That video begins with members of Ladies’ Code visiting a dead man lying inside of a casket. The girls oddly act as if they are attracted to him. Later in the video, each member visits the dead guy and attempt to kiss him (why?). When EunB (one of the two singers who died in the car crash) visits the man, he gets up and kisses her. In another scene, EunB is shown sitting in front of a target while arrows are shot at her. She covers up one eye in the scene too. The scene is inspired by Guilaume Tell and she seems to not appreciate the event like she was forced into it. Death is represented by the use of a poison. The other scenes deal with images of a Pentagram looking similar to the Seal of Solomon, pulling the plug, and other disturbing images. So, we should know the truth and the truth is that symbolism and messages are found in numerous music videos. We should use discernment, strength, and courage to stand up for real wisdom.


By Timothy