{UAH} Pres. Idi Amin & Black American Civil Rights Movement.

Picture (source, UTV archives): Idi Amin with Black American civil rights leaders. On Amin's right (with a beard) is Roy Innis, the leader of the Congress for Racial Equality (CORE). Notice on Amin's left is a young Louis Farrakhan (wearing a black suit and bow tie and now banned on Facebook just last week along with some of Donald Trump's right wing extremists friends, otherwise I would have tagged Minister Farrakhan here).

If my memory is correct, this picture must have been taken between 1974-1976 at State House, Entebbe in Uganda. I am in the original picture as one of the kids but I cropped it so as to make the leaders abit clearer.

My father was so passionate about racial equality. He was so determined to see Africans running their own continent without Colonialism, nor Apartheid, nor any form of foreign political interference or economic exploitation. He strived for the total independence of Africa, both politically and economically.

He was also very passionate about the plight of black people around the world and gave immense material, financial and political support to the Black American civil rights movement that still struggles to this day against racism, discrimination and murder at the hands of US law enforcement.

In his famous 1975 UN General Assembly speech, he said that "Ever since the history of slavery, Black Americans have done as much, if not more than any other racial group in building the America that exists today".

President Idi Amin championed the struggle against Apartheid and gave African liberation movements all the support he could including refuge in Uganda, military training camps, weapons and even Ugandan passports so that they could travel around the world in their quest to mobilize the international community to support their cause. From Angola to South Africa including Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Namibia and many other African countries that were still under colonialism, Idi Amin stood for their freedom and independence and never asked them anything in return. In fact they all forgot about his contribution as the international Fake news media conducted a relentless demonizing campaign against Amin such that one can find for example today's generation of black South Africans also demonizing him because that's all they heard about him in the international media and therefore they have no clue how he actually struggled for the freedom that they are enjoying today.

On Apartheid he declared at the UN that: "There must be no compromise with Apartheid. It must be buried. And Apartheid South Africa must be deprived of its United Nations membership. The racist Apartheid is just stealing African minerals like gold and diamonds while oppressing the black majority."

The day African liberation leaders will tell the story of Idi Amin's true contribution to Africa's independence, many people will be shocked. Especially the extent at which he was involved in African struggles for freedom.

He actually fought alongside the legendary Che Guevara in Congo (1965) as they struggled to resisis the colonial plunder that had assassinated African independence hero Patrice Lumumba five years earlier. As a colonel in neighbouring Uganda, Idi Amin was the only African who went in with his battalion and helped the Lumumba freedom fighters in Congo against Belgium and the CIA who had murdered the Congolese Prime Minister in a heinous crime.

In the year that President Idi Amin was Chairman of the African Union (1975-1976), because of his relentless efforts and calls for an African force to fight colonialism militarily, six African countries immediately became independent. Free from colonialism. Including Angola, Djibouti, Cape Verde plus Sao Tome & Principe.

In all his speeches at the African Union and at the United Nations General Assembly, he raised the question of African liberation and the issue of racism in America plus the assassination of black activists. Being a former boxer Amin was a big fan of the legendary Muhammad Ali and all the black heavy weight boxers of the 1970's. He also offered the right to return to all African Americans and even hired many as teachers in Ugandan primary & secondary schools as well as black American professors at Uganda's Makerere University. One of them was my good friend Cyril Boyles Jr. from New York. He passed away on 18th January 2015 in Uganda where he had all along lived with his Ugandan wife, raised their children and run a successful tour agency at Metropole House in the capital Kampala. In 1975, Cyril who was a school teacher at the time, was the one who designed the famous 'Conqueror of The British Empire' T-Shirt with the picture of Amin being carried as "King of Africa" by four white Ugandans of British origin. I had not known him back then. Cyril first contacted me in 2012 after reading an article I had written in the local Daily Monitor newspaper about Idi Amin. He sent me an email thanking me for the article and told me where he was working. A few weeks late, I just popped by his tour agency. From that day, we remained friend's until his death three years later. But we had spent some good time discussing "the good old days". He had his share of fun back then as a young American in Africa, and he recounted the times he met and discussed with my father.

Trust me a black American in Africa gets almost royalty status and treatment from the locals. Especially once they identify you from the American accent. Since we are all the same skin colour, identification is not necessarily automatic until one speaks. But from then on its special treatment. Though that also means that one has to watch his/her spending as well lest one gets "carried away" so to speak.

I urge all African Americans to visit Africa at least once in their lifetime and enjoy this hospitality for themselves. Even if it's just for a week.

For the record, Roy Innis (the gentleman with a beard in the picture here above), passed away in January 2017 in America. But during that 1970's American civil rights leaders visit to Africa, he granted President Idi Amin a lifetime membership at the Congress Of Racial Equality (CORE) in America under the Black Power Movement. And he did so because of Field Marshal Idi Amin's untold support for Black Americans civil rights in the US. I hope Mr. Farrakhan will one day publicly discuss this episode. Especially how Amin was passionate about racial equality and the struggle against oppression and discrimination of black people. I remember that Mr. Farrakhan would even meet my father once or twice again in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia in the late 80's, early 90's, and the two would discuss racial equality issues over a cup of Turkish coffee which was my father's favourite coffee.

Even after he left Uganda in 1979, he continued offering advice and quietly networking as much as possible behind the scenes on the global issues that he held dear at heart. After championing some of these issues on the local and international scene for several years as president, many who met him later would find his understanding, vision, and experience on these issues quite useful even today. And while many in Europe couldn't get passed the English that he had taught himself (he barely went to school as a child), those who did discovered a highly pragmatic, intelligent and visionary person. As the saying goes "English is a language just like any other. Not a measure of intelligence."

By Hussein Lumumba Amin

Kampala, Uganda.

11/05/2019

Originally published on my social media page here: facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=10157565024616844&id=212665596843

--
Disclaimer:Everyone posting to this Forum bears the sole responsibility for any legal consequences of his or her postings, and hence statements and facts must be presented responsibly. Your continued membership signifies that you agree to this disclaimer and pledge to abide by our Rules and Guidelines.To unsubscribe from this group, send email to: ugandans-at-heart+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Ugandans at Heart (UAH) Community" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to ugandans-at-heart+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com.
To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ugandans-at-heart/CAGtzWLpQ3R%3D_BBbFwecZESjQ0XKytC-hMO2KxsK%2Bfsep_zQORQ%40mail.gmail.com.