Mali & Peace - Ambassadorial Visit - Fabulous Fabrics
Dear Friends Everywhere
October 24th is the date we all celebrate United Nations Day.
The U.N. was created in 1945, with two big missions:
to preserve peace - pour préserver la paix
to fight poverty - pour lutter contre la pauvreté
The peace keeping role is important, and yet UN troops have been asked by the military junta in power, to leave Mali by the end of 2023.
Why? The Richmond Chiwara has no answer: only a question – how does Mali benefit by cutting external ties? Is this the right decision?
L’ONU existe pour préserver la paix. Or, la junte militaire au pouvoir à Bamako exige le départ des troupes onusiennes avant fin 2023. Pourquoi ? Sans offrir une réponse, on pose quand-même la question : est-ce à l’avantage du Mali de couper les secours externes ? Est-ce la bonne décision ?
The United Nations Mission is drawing down its presence in Mali before its departure on 31 December 2023. The U.N. base in Kidal was closed on September 14th with a presentation of medals to the remaining 75 members of the Bangladesh airforce by Brigadier General Mamadou GAYE, MINUSMA Force Commander a.i., and the guest of honour at the award ceremony.
Les forces des Nations Unies termineront leur mission malienne le 31 décembre 2023. Lors de la fermeture le 14 septembre 2023 de leur base à Kidal, le général Mamadou Gaye avait salué le travail du Bangladesh.
General Gaye highlighted the significance of Bangladesh's participation in Mali over the past ten years. Beginning in December 2014, the Bangladesh Air Force's Airfield Services and Management Unit was deployed to the Northern region of Kidal: the sole contingent offering airfield services in the area.
Their sphere of operations, expanded to the northernmost Tessalit town in July 2016.
“Notably, in MINUSMA, our contingent boasts the highest number of female peacekeepers, with seven women serving in different roles. This is a significant contribution on our part. Additionally, we have female aviators serving as helicopter pilots” said Group Captain Irfanur RAHMAN, Commander of the Bangladesh Airfield Services and Management Unit.
L’armée de l’air du Bangladesh avaient fourni un appui MINUSMA à Kidal depuis 2014, à Tessalit depuis 2016. Leur commandant souligna l’importance des femmes, dont certains pilotes d’hélicoptères. Le Bangladesh avait le plus de femmes dans son contingent.
https://minusma.unmissions.org/
Le soleil se lève en Virginie et au-dessus du désert malien.
Sunrise in Virginia and sunrise in the Malian desert.
MALI’s NATIONAL DAY September 22nd 2023
His Excellency Ambassador Sékou BERTHÉ visited RICHMOND
Ambassador Sékou BERTHE meets VCU students studying French, West Africa & Mali.
Son Excellence l’Ambassdeur reconcontre des étudiants en français qui étudient le Mali.
The VFoM griot Cheick Hamala DIABATE (seen wearing shades) played for Mali’s National Day. He received a certificate of appreciation from the Richmond Sister Cities Commission (RSCC) for his Malian music and for his teaching about Mali throughout Virginia. French Professor Pat Cummins (in beige) is RSCC vice-chair. Wearing red is elected City Councilwoman Ann-Frances Lambert, member of the RSCC.
Notre griot Cheick Hamala DIABATE avait joué à Richmond pour célébrer le jour national du Mali. Il avait reçu des mains de l’Ambassadeur et de la Professeure Patricia Cummins – professeure de français à la VCU et vice-présidente de la Commission de Jumelage à Richmond - un certificat d’appréciation pour sa musique et pour ses efforts pédagogiques en Virginie. La conseillière élue Ann-Frances Lambert, la City Councilwoman Membre de la RSCC, est habillée en rouge dans notre photo.
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Ana Edwards, VFoM vice-president, now a faculty member of the VCU School of AFRICAN AMERICAN STUDIES, photographed with H.E. the Ambassador during his visit.
Ana Edwards, vice-présidente des Amis du Mali en Virginie et membre de la faculté des Etudes africaines et afro-américaines, prise avec Son Excellence l’Ambassadeur BERTHE.
Richmond & Ségou Jumelage = Friendship
FABRICS ARE FABULOUS in Mali …… but not only in Mali ……
Il y a des tissus magnifiques au Mali et aussi en Virginie
We are proud to support the Indigo creations of our friend Mamoudou Nango…. But our RICHMOND CHIWARA editor Elisabeth Drumm (named Aminata Konaté during her visit to Ségou, as part of the Richmond delegation in 2019) is also famous for making fabrics.
Nous sommes fiers d’appuyer les créations en INDIGO de notre ami styliste Mamoudou Nango ; mais l’éditrice du RICHMOND CHIWARA est également spécialiste en créations.
Here is a stunning autumnal picture of a Virginian fabric TITLE: Rain On Water (the name of the shawl knitting pattern) in Lime Medley colors. This is an artist’s photograph of art.
Designed by Mona Zillah for https://www.wollesyarncreations.com/
'Rain On Water’ shawl in Virginia’s Fall Season. Photo Elisabeth Drumm
Ce n’est pas seulement au Mali – connu pour ses bogolans, ses indigos, ses wax, ses femmes en beaux costumes - qu’on trouve des tissus extraordinaires. Voici un chale tricoté en Virginie appelé ‘Pluies sur de l’Eau’ et photographié par un temps d’automne coloré de Richmond.
Malians love bright colors, and they also look good in dark blue INDIGO which creates beautiful fabrics for women, and magnificent dark turbans for Tuareg men. Our friend Mamoudou Nango is a couturier specialized in INDIGO. His Ségou Festival exhibitions have been poudly supported by VFoM Richmond and by the U.S. Embassy in Bamako.
Au Mali les couleurs sont vives. L’INDIGO peut servir aux dames pour leurs beaux habits bleus, tout comme il produit les magnifiques turbans touaregues. L’exposition de notre ami couturier NANGO à Ségou fut appuyée par VFoM à Richmond et par l’ambassade américaine à Bamako. Voici Nango à droite avec son épouse Erica à gauche de la photo.
Even in their everyday wear, Malian women are beautifully and brightly adorned. Virginian clothes seem gray and dull (stone-washed blue jeans, anyone?) compared to the striking colors of West Africa.
Même dans le quotidien, les Maliennes paraissent gaies et colorées, surtout comparées aux habits gris de la Virginie (ex : les blue jeans délavés !). Parfois les vives couleurs en Afrique de l’Ouest dépassent les capacités des visiteurs occidentaux.
A young French girl visiting the central market in Bamako, Mali once begged her aunt : ‘Auntie, please take me home. Here the colors are too bright.’
Humor Corner: un coin d’humour
Living together as a couple is simple: just do everything together !
She decides and you say ‘OK’
She speaks, and you listen.
She makes a mistake, and you say that you are sorry.
Ségou, une ville du Mali
SEGOU, a city in MALI
A series written by écrit par Madani Sissoko & Macky Tall
SONNI ALI BER, l’empéreur sonrai décédé en 1492
SONNI ALI BER - the Mali-Sonrai Emperor who died in 1492
L’empire Mali-Sonrai créé en 1235 par Sunjata, le Roi Lion, sur les fondations de Soso et Kangaba (et même de Wagadu, 800 années avant Sunjata), va durer 350 ans jusqu’à la destruction de l’armée sonrai en 1591. La dynastie KEITA de Kangaba cédera la place aux dynasties de Gao. L’Empire disparaîtra après la bataille de Tondibi : l’armée marocaine conquérante avait des armes à feu, ce dont les Sonrai ne disposaient pas.
The Mali-Sonrai Empire was created in 1235 by Sunjata, the Lion King, on the foundations of Soso and Kangaba and – going back 800 years – on the foundations of Wagadu. It lasted 350 years. The Keita dynasty of Kangaba gave way to royal dynasties in Gao who were finally destroyed at the Battle of Tondibi in 1591, by Moroccan soldiers with firearms. The Sonrai army had no gunpowder.
Le plus grand des Empéreurs sonrai fut sans doute Sonni Ali Ber (‘Sonni le Grand’) qui règnait 1464 – 1492. Il est mort l’année de la traversée par Christophe Colomb de l’Océan Atlantique. Pendant les 28 années de Sonni Ali, l’empire Mali-Sonrai atteindra de nouveaux sommets de sa puissance et de son étendu.
The greatest Sonrai Emperor was probably Sonni Ali Ber (‘Sonni The Great’ in the Sonrai language) who reigned from 1464 until 1492. He died in the year that Christopher Columbus crossed the Atlantic Ocean. His reign of 28 years saw the Mali-Sonrai empire attain a new heights of power and reach.
Sonni Ali était un prince de Gao, aujourd’hui le Nord Mali. Hôtage royal à Kangaba, il avait grandi parmi les Maliens à la cour des Keita. En 1460 le pouvoir central du Mali s’était affaibli, les empereurs perdaient de leur autorité. Devenu jeune homme, Ali s’est échappé – passant par Ségou Koro pour rentrer chez lui et lancer une rebellion à Gao. Il s’est saisi du pouvoir royal, fondant la dynastie Sonni avec l’ambition d’étendre l’empire vers l’ouest et vers le sud pour dominer les terres de l’océan Atlantique jusqu’au Lac Tchad.
Sonni Ali was a prince from Gao, in North Mali. He was raised as a hostage in Kangaba, at the court of Mali’s Keita dynasty. By 1460 Mali had weak emperors and central power was in decline. As a young man, Ali escaped from Kangaba, passing through Old Ségou on his way home to launch a rebellion and create the Sonni dynasty. He expanded the Empire west and south until it stretched from the Atlantic Ocean to the borders of Lake Chad.
Sollicité par les Sonrai à Tombouctou, sous le contrôle des Touareg depuis 1434, Sonni Ali prendra la ville en 1468. Il tuera le clergé musulman pour réduire la puissance de l’Islam. Son armée bien structurée (avec des régiments de cavalerie et d’infanterie) sera doublée d’une flotte fluviale : les pêcheurs Sorko contrôlaient le fleuve Niger et son commerce pour l’Empire. Ses ministres et gouverneurs koy dominaient son état centralisé. Soudain en 1492, Sonni Ali mourra noyé au retour d’une victoire contre les Peul du Gourma.
In 1468 Sonni Ali was invited by the Sonrai people of Timbuktu to oust the Tuareg who had seized control from Mali in 1434. Sonni Ali took the city and murdered Muslim scholars to reduce the power of Islam. He had well-organized infantry and cavalry regiments and a powerful navy manned by Sorko fishermen controlling the Niger River and its trade. He installed ministers and governors (‘koy’) to run his increasingly centralized State. Then in 1492, Sonni Ali was drowned while returning home after a victory against the Fulani of Gurma.
L’état sonrai existait depuis le 7e siècle comme royaume métissé des Berbère et Sonrai (ou Songhoy, suivant le dialecte) qui partageaient la richesse des pâturages fluviaux et semi-arides. Ce petit royaume soumis au Mali, deviendra sous Sonni Ali le centre de l’empire. Son fils Sonni Baro refusa l’Islam comme son père, protégeant ses croyances ancestrales. Il sera vite renversé par son cousin musulman, Askia Mohammed (1493-1528) qui donnera naissance à la dynastie des Askia. Les Askia disparaîtront avec la victoire en 1591 des Marocains à la bataille de Tondibi.
The Sonrai (or Songhoy, depending on the dialect) state existed since the 7th century, as a kingdom of Sonrai and Berber rulers sharing the river and semi-arid pastures. Sonni Ali turned this dependent province into the center of the empire. His son Sonni Baro, like his father, rejected Islam and protected his ancestral beliefs. He was soon overthrown by his Muslim cousin Askia Mohamed (1493-1528). The Askia dynasty lasted until the arrival in 1591 of the Moroccan army, victorious at the Battle of Tondibi.
Zakiyatou, the author, with Michelle, one of her translators
DESERT PASSIONS –
a modest VFoM contribution to peace
Translated from the French by Patricia Cummins and Michelle Poulton with an Introduction by Patricia Cummins
DESERT PASSIONS is a wonderful way to discover life in the Sahara Desert, which covers northern Mali, and a major prose-poem contribution to African literature and sustainable ecology.
BUY THE BOOK, KEEP IT BESIDE YOUR BED, dip into its wonderful anecdotes and discover life in a desert.
Here is a second book you need to buy for Christmas:
SISTER CITIES: Richmond and Ségou
Ana Edwards shows the book that has become a standard text for African and African American studies in USA: the story of Ségou and Richmond and their 400 years of shared history through enslavement and colonial oppression
WHAT PEOPLE SAY ABOUT THIS BOOK :
Laura Lay, Virginia teacher
I strongly commend Ana Edwards and Robin Poulton for writing the story of the Ségou-Richmond SISTER CITIES relationship, which brings into the classroom and into our emotional experiences so many wonderful and different lessons about inter-cultural friendships and successes. The authors – who know Mali well and have implemented several projects in and with Ségou - provide humor and insight regarding connections between Mali and Virginia. This partnership is key, particularly with the strong focus on elementary education. Virginia’s elementary students, as part of their mandated history Standards of Learning, delve into the medieval Empire of Mali-Sonrai. They learn about the medieval Islamic University of Timbuktu, the actual conquering Lion King, and the trans-Saharan trade routes exchanging gold (from the forest) and salt (from the desert). All this brings into the classroom an exciting set of discoveries about commerce, language, religion and different lifestyles...yet it sometimes seems too exotic and distant in time.
I wonder how many elementary students realize that they are actually studying parts of their own history when they are studying Timbuktu and the Lion King? That is what our “African Heritage” is all about. The Mali Empire, for example, is where much of our American pop, jazz, reggae, soul, blues, and rap music emerged.
SISTER CITIES is a story about shared Virginian and African heritage, today and for the past 400 years. Ana and Robin retell the story of Sunjata Keita, the Lion King, in their new SISTER CITIES, but here it is updated because Mali, Ségou, and Timbuktu become real places with live people, some of whom visit Richmond. In SISTER CITIES, we meet plenty of colorful Malians from Ségou who discuss commerce with Virginia businesses. And while they are not selling salt from the Sahara desert, they are playing and dancing at the Richmond Folk Festival.
The Malian visitors also meet students in school classrooms, bringing Mali into their modern reality. This new book allows teachers and students to relate a real-life story to our common heritage: our American music was originally Malian music; our Southern food is largely Malian food; our houses have porches because Malian houses have porches; many of our Virginia citizens share some of the same DNA.
This is why SISTER CITIES is an important educational book that deserves to enter the classroom in elementary, middle, and high schools, as well as colleges and universities throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia.
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Laura Delmore Lay is a teacher working with VCU's School of Education and with Richmond Public Schools. She is a Board member of the Virginia Council of Social Studies (VCSS), and of the Virginia Conference of Social Studies Educators (VCSSE) – which is a valued partner of Virginia Friends of Mali.
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Please share this newsletter with your own friends and contacts, ESPECIALLY with TEACHERS, with African-American students, and with African readers and students of English living in Africa.
This is the link to past issues of our monthly Richmond Chiwara newsletter from VFoM
Pour retrouver nos éditions précédentes :
https://us20.campaign-archive.com/home/?u=3fc13b3ee64508366fa23697c&id=e398f1452d
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