The National Black United Front (NBUF), a grassroots, Pan-African organization working and organizing towards the advancement of all people of African descent is hosting its 26th Annual Sankofa Caravan to the Ancestors on Saturday, Oct. 21.
“’Sankofa’ is a West African concept sometimes symbolized in the Adinkra symbols… which means ‘Go back to your past, retrieve what you have lost and bring forward to today past values that are needed,’ or put simply, ‘Go back and fetch it,’” said NBUF National Chairman Kofi Taharka, who added the Caravan is a sacred and special opportunity to reconnect with our history, culture, spirituality and current mission.
The Defender spoke with two of this year’s principal organizers, Taharka, Obafunso Gaidi, who was born the first year of the Sankofa Caravan, and Iya Oriyangi, a spoken word artist and spiritualist, and the Caravan.
DEFENDER: What actually is the Sankofa Caravan to the Ancestors?
ORIYANGI: So, the Sankofa for, um, the caravan to the ancestors was started 26 years ago. Organizations came together to figure out a way to honor our ancestors. And it was supposed to be something that was educational, but it became something more spiritual as they started to bring awareness to how they wanted to honor and bring light to our African ancestors and also talk about liberation at the same time. Some people who started this out are now ancestors. We give thanks to those ancestors, honor our ancestors… understanding of who we are and our ability to come together no matter what background we come from, or what religion we are; to come together on one common goal.
GAIDI: We’re venerating our ancestors, but not only our ancestors, we’re venerating ourselves, celebrating ourselves and how far we came through the help of our ancestors, through the steps they made for us and how far we continue to go. That’s why we’re looking back [Sankofa] to make sure that we’re moving in the same spirit, we’re moving in harmony. Because that’s the only thing that got us this far in the first place; harmony and working together. There’s a lot of different religious faiths at the beach. We’re just trying to expose people to more traditional African practices and connect us to our culture and tradition, and undo all the work that’s been done these past few generations and bring us back to connection to the motherland.
DEFENDER: Why is this connection or reconnection to the ancestors so important for Black people? What can that do for us right now?
ORIYANGI: Well, I know spiritually it’s a major thing for us because the ancestors are our guides. They’re our healers. They see what we can’t see. And this is just from a spiritual standpoint of our practice and our tradition of Ifa and Orisha; having an understanding of Egun meaning “Bone of my bone, flesh of my flesh, blood of my blood.” Sankofa means to look back and retrieve the things that we lost. So, if we’re going back to get the things we lost, we need to go and look into our ancestors and find our way. We need to depend on the elders that are still here to give us the information that is valuable towards our future.
DEFENDER: If this is my first time going, what do I need to know? Is there a dress code? Is there a fee? Are there buses? Am I driving my own car? How does all that work?
ORIYANGI: The dress code is white. White is for spirit, for purity, for connection without negativity. And regarding the way everything is set up, you have to be on time or before time. Because again, we have to remember this is a Caravan to the Ancestors. So, that means we need to be on time showing up at NBUF. Make sure you bring some snacks and some water. But make sure you don’t leave any trash on the beach. The caravan is gonna leave at 7 a.m. and reaching the beach about 8 a.m. The program starts at a certain time, so we don’t wanna delay the caravan, because if the caravan is delayed, then the whole program on the beach is delayed. But one of the things that you’re going to definitely get when you show up at the caravan is unity, love, peace, spirit, vibrations that are bringing you higher elevation. You’re gonna meet people of different cultures and backgrounds that all look like us. You’re gonna have drumming, veneration, a lot of things. All I can say is be prepared for some type of elevation in your life.
TAHARKA: It’s a physical caravan of cars from Houston to Galveston. We meet at 6 a.m., depart at 7 a.m. And people should expect to drive their own vehicles in an escorted caravan, which is about 45 minutes to an hour to the beach. And then plan as if you are going for a day on the beach, where you gotta walk and be in the sand and all of those things. So, from a logistics standpoint, that’s what we’ll be looking at.
DEFENDER: So, folk ain’t coming in heels?
TAHARKA: Hey, you know, we be styling and profiling. I’ve seen some people coming in heels, but after they hear them drums and everything, the heels might go up in the air . So, we’re actually going on the beach where you gotta walk three, four blocks sometimes off onto the beach and be out in the elements, in the sun, in the sand. So, people should prepare, with snacks or beach towels or whatever it is that you might take to the beach in general.
DEFENDER: Brother Oba, what are you most looking forward to this year?
GAIDI: It’s an event that very much embodies unity and harmony, and I always end up seeing people I haven’t seen in a while, and having a good time jumping and dancing. It’s always like good energy. We’re not worried about whatever’s going on on any other day. On that day, we’re coming together and we’re all doing the same thing. We’re all praying together, we’re all celebrating together, and we’re all embracing our culture and our traditions together. So, I’m just looking forward to doing that again.
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Email: NBUFHouston@gmail.com
Phone: 832-422-7806
