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Myths Lies and
Other Untruths
By Junious
Ricardo Stanton
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Cairo—Egypt displayed on Monday newly
discovered tombs more than 4,000 years old
and said they belonged to people who worked
on the Great Pyramids of Giza, presenting
the discovery as more evidence that slaves
did not build the ancient monuments. The
series of modest nine-foot-deep shafts held
a dozen skeletons of pyramid builders,
perfectly preserved by dry desert sand along
with jars that once contained beer and bread
meant for the workers' afterlife. The
mud-brick tombs were uncovered last week in
the backyard of the Giza pyramids,
stretching beyond a burial site first
discovered in the 1990s and dating to the
4th Dynasty (2575 B.C. to 2467 B.C.), when
the great pyramids were built on the fringes
of present-day Cairo. The ancient Greek
historian Herodotus once described the
pyramid builders as slaves, creating what
Egyptologists say is a myth later propagated
by Hollywood films.”
Katrina Kratovac, Associated Press Writer –
Mon Jan 11, 5:11 pm ET |
All human cultures
engage in myth building. Myths are an important means to
provide group identify, esteem, and a disseminate to the
members a sense of how the group fits into the
overarching scheme of things. Myths are an essential
part of a racial or ethnic group’s psychological well
being. What is tragic is when one group’s myths distort
actual history and have a negative impact on the
self-image, esteem and place in history of another
group. Recent archeological findings suggest the
prevailing myth that the
pyramids of Giza were constructed by slave labor are
a gross misrepresentation of the facts. Tombs discovered
outside of Cairo not far from the pyramids of Giza prove
the laborers who helped construct the giant edifices on
the Giza plateau were paid workers not slaves, a notion
propagated by many adherents and devotees of the Jewish
and Christian religions.
This new found
information validates the teachings of Afrocentric
scholars who challenged the notion that foreigners or
captives built the pyramids. Afrocentric researchers
stated with authority the pyramids were built by Nile
Valley Africans who shared the cultural values of the
pyramid’s designers and an affinity with the project.
In his book
Nile Valley Contributions to Civilization, Anthony
T. Browder says on page 104,
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One of the greatest
misconceptions regarding the Great Pyramid
is that it was constructed by Jews during
their enslavement in Kemet. Examination of a
time line will show the error of this
belief. Abraham who was the founder of
Judaism, was said to have been born around
1675 B.C.E., which was at least 900 year
after the Great Pyramid was believed to have
been constructed |
The latest archeological discoveries were reported by
the Associated Press. In the article carried by Yahoo
News Egypt’s head of archeology who is of Arab
extraction, not an indigenous African stated,
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The builders came from
poor Egyptian families from the north and
the south, and were respected for their work
— so much so that those who died during
construction were bestowed the honor of
being buried in the tombs near the sacred
pyramids of their pharaohs. Their proximity
to the pyramids and the manner of burial in
preparation for the afterlife backs this
theory. No way would they have been buried
so honorably if they were slaves. |
I have heard
African scholars say on numerous occasions the builders
of the pyramids were Africans who did it out of a deep
seated sense of devotion and commitment. These laborers
were artists and artisans who gave of themselves, shared
their talents, skills and expertise for the good of the
society. I have been to Kemet on several occasions and I
can tell you unequivocally the temples, pyramids, and
other monuments there would not have stood the test of
time had they been created and constructed under duress.
The giant stone blocks used to construct the pyramids
came from the interior of the Nile Valley because the
Nile River flows South from the interior North into the
Mediterranean Sea. The Nile River is one of only two
rivers on the planet that flow South to North! Since the
Africans knew they originally came from the interior,
the orientation of the builders was a southernly or
interior one. They venerated their ancestors who had
traveled down the Nile from the interior of Africa so
much they used stones from the South to construct their
great monuments. They transported the stones by barge
down the Nile River.
Mythical teaching buffeted in modern times by fictitious
images of white Egyptians helped conceal our legacy,
allow Europeans to plagiarize our culture and pillage
our history. The fact of the matter is, early Egypt was
an African civilization, not Indo-European, Caucasian or
mixed. This fact along with the recent discoveries
should put to rest the lie foreigners (Hebrews) built
the pyramids and absolve their religious devotees of
their inaccurate role as victims of Egyptian oppression.
Of course if they are honest with themselves and value
truth, they will be forced to alter their myths about
the Hebrew’s mythical sojourn in Kemet, the plagues, the
Exodus and other tales. But I suspect the truth will be
ignored since they have too much vested in their
religion to let a small matter like the truth get in
their way.
Myths are allegorical, metaphorical and often contain
symbolic, psychological and deep lessons of ethical,
moral and character development. Myths play an important
role in society. Myths can be historically accurate or
fictitious. What does it say about a people who create
myths that over exaggerate their accomplishments, lie
about their history and denigrate others who when the
truth is told, when the facts are compared have a far
more extensive history and legacy of accomplishment then
they do? Is their over exaggeration a psychological need
and attempt to compensate for feelings of inferiority?
White supremacy is not a myth. It is a delusional
attempt to overcompensate for what the perpetrators
know is a short and rather so-so legacy of
accomplishment on the stage of human existence. This is
not to discredit European history or accomplishment. For
their relatively brief appearance on the world stage,
they have done some impressive things; both good and
bad. However, others like the Africans, the Chinese,
Southern Asiatics and Native Americans have a longer,
more vibrant and humane history. If Europeans were not
so insecure about their lack of melanin, their real
history and accomplishments they would give credit where
credit is due. It is obvious their deep seated
inferiority complex and their need for a compensatory
self-image precludes them from seeing human history as
it truly is: a continuum of trial and error, great leaps
and bounds, setbacks, reversals and cycles.
For Europeans to
disingenuously put themselves at the epicenter of human
history and accomplishment when they are the most recent
group to emerge on the world stage is preposterous. It
bespeaks of serious psychological issues on their part.
It will be interesting to see how these latest
archeological findings in Egypt impact Western thinking
and religious historiography.
See
also
Cleopatra’s mother 'was African'
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Weep Not, Child
By
Ngugi wa Thiong'o
This is
a powerful, moving story that details the
effects of the infamous Mau Mau war, the
African nationalist revolt against colonial
oppression in Kenya, on the lives of
ordinary men and women, and on one family in
particular. Two brothers, Njoroge and Kamau,
stand on a rubbish heap and look into their
futures. Njoroge is excited; his family has
decided that he will attend school, while
Kamau will train to be a carpenter. Together
they will serve their country—the
teacher and the craftsman. But this is Kenya
and the times are against them. In the
forests, the Mau Mau is waging war against
the white government, and the two brothers
and their family need to decide where their
loyalties lie. For the practical Kamau the
choice is simple, but for Njoroge the
scholar, the dream of progress through
learning is a hard one to give up.—Penguin
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Sister Citizen: Shame, Stereotypes, and Black Women in
America
By Melissa V.
Harris-Perry
According to the
author, this society has historically exerted
considerable pressure on black females to fit into one
of a handful of stereotypes, primarily, the Mammy, the
Matriarch or the Jezebel. The selfless
Mammy’s behavior is marked by a slavish devotion to
white folks’ domestic concerns, often at the expense of
those of her own family’s needs. By contrast, the
relatively-hedonistic Jezebel is a sexually-insatiable
temptress. And the Matriarch is generally thought of as
an emasculating figure who denigrates black men, ala the
characters Sapphire and Aunt Esther on the television
shows Amos and Andy and Sanford and Son, respectively.
Professor Perry
points out how the propagation of these harmful myths
have served the mainstream culture well. For instance,
the Mammy suggests that it is almost second nature for
black females to feel a maternal instinct towards
Caucasian babies.
As for the source
of the Jezebel, black women had no control over their
own bodies during slavery given that they were being
auctioned off and bred to maximize profits. Nonetheless,
it was in the interest of plantation owners to propagate
the lie that sisters were sluts inclined to mate
indiscriminately.
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The White Masters of the
World
From
The World and Africa, 1965
By W. E. B. Du Bois
W. E. B. Du Bois’
Arraignment and Indictment of White Civilization
(Fletcher)
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Ancient African Nations
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Enjoy!
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The Death of Emmett Till by Bob Dylan
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The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll
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Only a Pawn in Their Game
Rev. Jesse Lee Peterson Thanks America for
Slavery
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The Journal of Negro History issues at Project Gutenberg
The
Haitian Declaration of Independence 1804
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January 1, 1804 -- The Founding of
Haiti
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posted 12 January 2010
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