AIM Magazine July 2009, 8th Edition

Kemo Camara founder of African

Vision 360 Minnesota….talks

about the 2009 African Cup.

 

 

Dear Friends, 

It  is hard to believe that  it has already been a month since we last wrote you! It has been a year since we started AIM and we would  like to thank you all for sticking with us this whole time. Time  is  flying by  so  take advantage of  the  time you have now and… dare we say it… Winter is just around the corner…  

First and foremost we would like to thank everyone who joined us for the Happy Hour at our now adoptive home of Picosa on June 26th 2009. Once again it proved to be a fun event filled with stimulating conversation. Please be on the lookout for our next one. You will not want to miss it. 

We have a busy month ahead of us! The African cup is currently underway with  games  scheduled  every weekend.  Please  visit www.AfricanVision360.com for more information on where and when  the games are. AIM has  the pleasure of  featuring Kemo Camara,  who  is  the  heart  behind  organizing  the  Minnesota Africa Cup  In this newsletter. He  is a true example of someone who gives of himself for the benefit of others. 

We  also  have  the  African  Arts  Festival,  presented  by  African Global Roots, coming up on July, 25th 2009 at 7pm. This festival will  be  an  exciting  night  filled with  African  artists  showcasing their vast talents and will be hosted by our very own Linda Obel. A fashion show featuring beautiful designs by Utamaduni Wear and  Both Doll  Fashions.  Advance  tickets  are  now  available  at Tempo Afric (1315 E Lake St, Minneapolis, MN.). Come out and show your support for our African brothers and sisters. 

We are excited to share with you that we are  in the process of organizing a regular column by our very own Gerald called  the G‐spot. He is as insightful as he is thoughtful and honest and we are honored  to have him as one of our  inspirational writers.  If you have questions or need advice, please email us and we will feature  it  (anonymously of  course) on our next  issue with his answers.  Take  advantage  because  he  should  be  charging  for this! 

Once again  thank you all  for your continued support! We  look forward to your continued partnership as we grow to bigger and better things.  

Best Wishes, 

AIM Network 

 

Linda Obel, Evalyn Githina, Wangechi Ruguaru aimminnesota@gmail.com 

Who is Kemo Camara and what’s his vision? By Evalyn Githina

On the cover of this month’s issue of AIM Magazine is Kemo Camara from Guinea, I met Kemo at our first Happy Hour @ Drink, around this time last year, while he was promoting the 2008 African Cup. We attended the final match and we were blown away by all his hard work and love for the African Community here in Minnesota. Ever since that first meeting, we have seen Kemo at work, spreading the love for the African people and we applaud all the support he has given us here at AIM. It is important that we also remember that the Minnesota Africa Cup will be taking place Starting July 30 through August 15, 2009. For those of you that have yet to meet Kemo, we decided that we should introduce you to him through this short Q&A session. 1. Please tell us a little about yourself as an African in Minnesota. Minnesota is a great place to live as an African. We have one of the fastest growing communities in MN right now. I enjoy living here with all the opportunities that the state provides, good schools, job opportunities, and people are nice and friendly. 2. What is African Vision 360? African Vision 360 is a non profit organization that hosts the Minnesota Africa Cup and other African

Festivities in the future. African Vision 360 gives a broader look at African culture and education. We hope to bring together the African communities in Minnesota, and show the Minnesota community and the media a more comprehensive/ positive view of Africans. 3. What inspired you to come up with the Minnesota Africa Cup? The spirit of the game when I play against other African teams. The friendships which are formed from those games. No one walks away

from a game as an enemy. It reminds you of back home. Nothing is like being with bunch of other African. The opportunity to meet others from your culture, share your stories and network with them is priceless. 4. What hurdles do you still need to overcome in preparing for this year's tournament? Gaining the support of the communities involved. Getting the community leaders to help promote our goals throughout their respective communities. Also, getting commitment from some teams. 5. What has inspired you about putting together this year's Minnesota African Cup? Last year’s success. I was amazed by the amount of enjoyment and fun we had playing each other. Players were having fun playing against other African teams. On our final day, it was just beautiful and very rewarding to have hundreds of people coming to celebrate the final game. It was a special moment, kids, women, fans; players were just having a great time. This made us wanted to have event a bigger and better even this year. We want to see more teams and more fans involved this year. I would love to see a tournament which has 16 teams participating; this vision is always an inspiration to me.

6. What advice do you have for others trying to make a positive impact on their communities? Keep going. Don't give up, even when no one returns your phone calls. And try to reach out to other community organizations out there to work together. Networking will open a lot of opportunities and help to your organization or activity. 7. Who are your role models? My dad for working so hard to provide us a living. Obama for proving that impossible is nothing.

“Keep going. Don't give up, even when no one returns your phone calls.” Says Kemo

JULY 30 – AUGUST 15, 2009

AFRICAN VISION 360 AND AFRICANS IN MINNESOTA (AIM) PRESENT THE SECOND ANNUAL

Contact Kemo Camara @ 612 226 7679 or kemocamara@yahoo.com- if you are interested in forming a team- inquire about media, corporate or non-profit sponsorship- having a booth at the Quarter finals, Semi finals and Final event- performing at the Final event- volunteer opportunities

The African Community is inviting Minnesota to be part of their annual African soccer tournament and festival. Expect to experience African cuisine, traditional dances, and live music.

FOR MORE DETAILS

BROOKLYN PARK & MINNEAPOLIS, MN

AHA SECOND ANNUAL BACK TO SCHOOL EVENT Contest open to any African youths ages 15 to 24. Become one of the Top 10 winners for this contest!! Prizes: - One wireless 3 in 1 printer for the top three winners - One flash drive for the four and fifth winner In addition, the 3 top winners of the contest will read their essay, poem or present their artwork at the event on September 5th or have their art shown at the up-coming AHA 2nd Annual back to school event. *In addition back packs + school supplies will be distributed to the best 10 youth participants. Why should young people care? This is your opportunity to:

• Speak out and have your voice heard. • Share your thoughts on how HIV/AIDS,

Sexually Transmitted Infection or viral Hepatitis affects you and/or your community

Why should you enter? Inspire others with your poem, spoken word or artwork and make a difference It's your chance to educate the folks out there about HIV, spread the word, in your very own words or style. Submission Deadline: Entries will be accepted by email [TakeControlContest@gmail.com] between June 5th, 2009 and July 21st, 2009. Contest Rules: Participants should write an essay or poem or create and submit a poster that raises awareness in one of the following categories:

• Category 1: HIV/AIDS Discuss HIV/AIDS among African Youths and how it affects them

o HIV/AIDS is a serious public health problem.

o Many Africans youth are infected with HIV.

• Category 2. Hepatitis B Discuss acute or chronic infection with

Hepatitis B virus (HBV). Poster themes can include, but are not limited to, the following:

o Many people are infected with HBV and don’t know it.

o People from Africa are disproportionately affected by chronic HBV infection.

• Category 3. Hepatitis C Discuss chronic infection with Hepatitis C virus (HCV). Poster themes can include, but are not limited to, the following:

o Many people are infected with HCV and don’t know it.

o Hepatitis C is a silent disease. • Category 4: HIV or HCV testing

Entries should promote HIV or Hepatitis C testing

Each individual or organization is allowed only one entry per category. We're looking for roots, rhyming style or posters that provoke thought Make an impact in your community and have fun doing it! Poems and essays should typewritten and submitted in Word or PDF format and be between 250 - 300 words long. The structure is entirely up to you. It's about honoring the different styles of writing and performing out there, so remember, just be you!

 

Like Father, like Son By Gerald Montgomery

“In 1950, five out of every six black children were born  into a two‐parent home.   Today that number is less than two out of six.  In poor communities that number is lower still.  There are whole  blocks  with  scarcely  a married  couple,  whole  blocks  without  responsible males  to watch out for wayward boys, whole neighborhoods in which little girls and boys come of age without  seeing  up  close  a  committed  partnership  and  perhaps  never  having  attended  a wedding.”   ‐Bill Cosby, Come on People: on the Path from Victims to Victors  The mother may be  the primary  teacher of  the child but  the  father  is undoubtedly his  first mentor!   Both male and female children benefit tremendously from a functional relationship with  their biological  father assuming he  too  is a well‐rounded  individual.    In an  ideal world children  need  only  remember  the  virtuous  lessons  taught  by  their  mother,  that  being compassionate,  patient,  tempered  and  fair.    But  the world we  live  in  is  far  from  perfect, plagued  with  hatred,  selfishness,  intolerance  and  injustice.    Thus  it  is  the  father’s responsibility to provide his children with a “fight or flight” blueprint.  If we are to coexist with all manner  of  humanity  (good  and  evil) we must  be  trained  in  the  art  of war  as well  as nurtured in the science of peace (e.g. Eccl 3:1‐8).  Although a child’s parent  is the most  logical choice to be his mentor, this tends to be a very awkward arrangement  for most parents.   Perhaps  there  is  (or at  least  the perception of) a much greater  risk‐to‐reward  factor with our own  than with other children‐  too much praise might  spoil  him,  undermining  our  disciplinary  authority  while  not  enough  appropriate criticism  makes  the  child  complacent  or  irresponsible.    Perhaps  we  as  parents  have subconsciously deemed ourselves unworthy to be our children’s mentor‐ disqualified by our own imperfections and the follies of our youth.   

 Yet  it  remains  that  children  intuitively  look  to  their  fathers  for  guidance, perhaps, because traditionally  it  is dad who plays the enforcer to mom’s best friend role.   All else being equal we  tend  to value  the guidance of a  friend who  is a disciplinarian over one who  is passively non‐confrontational.  Likewise a father’s love is reflected in the discipline he administers (Heb 12:5‐11).  Consequently, when the father is absent the child is in many ways lost to the world (i.e. increased teen pregnancy, teen suicide, delinquent behavior, etc).    I  don’t  deny  that  in  some  cases  “the  village”  (as  in  it  takes  a  village  to  raise  a  child) may somewhat compensate for this void, producing a stellar and upright individual, but too often this  “plan B”  is  the  only  option  for many  black  youth.   A  child  being  reared  by  his  or  her biological parents is the ideal scenario for obvious reasons but what is most important is that children  are  consistently  exposed  to  the  ideal  father mentality which  I  believe  transcends generation (e.g. paternity) and gender (i.e. a tough‐loving aunt versus an uncle).   However a father’s place in the family structure is undeniable and irreplaceable. 

Men, please recycle‐ be a father to your child!  

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The Origin of a Hurricane By Gerald Montgomery

Mum Afrika misses her American children! It hurts her to the bone that they don’t call or write. They left her rocky shores many centuries ago, on ships bound to the new world. The years and the seasons come and go, Still nothing, not even so much as a Mother’s Day card. Yet her love for each and every one of them is undying. She calls them all by name in her prayers, the names she gave them. “Saah”, “Tamba”, “Sia”, “Kumba” and on and on. She hopes that they are doing well. At sunset she blows a single kiss from her sandy beaches. As the breeze-like kiss travels across the Atlantic the souls of her children, Those tossed from the slave ships into the sea, Those who ended up in the bellies of sharks, Those who still haunt the ocean floor, Their souls begin to cry out to mum Afrika’s kiss. “Please send word to our mother, please tell her of our fate,” they wail. But the kiss cannot turn around. One by one the lost souls solicit, “Please send word to our mother, please tell her of our fate,” they beg. Hundreds of thousands of souls! Frustrated the kiss continues across the Atlantic now at almost a mile a minute, Growing larger and bitterer with each request to turn around and go home. Go home and tell mum of our fate. It continues across the Atlantic, Troubling the waters as it passes, swelling as it moves. Getting larger and angrier as it gets closer to America. Closer as it tosses wind and wave to and fro. Full of rage and pain. Bigger and meaner, closer and closer until…

AFRICANFESTIVAL NIGHT

LA NUIT DUFESTIVALAFRICAN

Call for ticketsand detailsKemo 612-226-7679Sekou 612 226 0349

Lamine 612 876 8040

MAND

EN PRODUCTIONS PRESENTS LIVE IN CONCERT

$20 IN ADVANCE $25 AT THE DOORJOHN�MARTIN�AUDITORIUM

5801 John Martin Dr, Brooklyn Center, MN 55430

Parrain • Amadou Damoro CamaraMarraine • Madusu Fofana

President D’Honor • Hamady SeckPresidente D’Honor • Delphine Magassouba

Garcon D’Honor • Mon Amie Fille D’Honor • Madam Abers M’mah Thiam

SPECIAL GUESTS

FRIDAY

AUGUST 7

10 PM

THE �ST BIG CONCERT OF THE SUMMER

Call for Ticketsand DetailsKemo 612-226 -7679Sekou 612-226-0349Lamine 612-876-8040