TELLING OUR OWN STORIES, OUR HISTORY, OUR HERITAGE
Storytelling, especially about our history, has always been at the heart of African culture and life. Through song, art, poetry, dance and prose, we’ve told the world who we are – unapologetically. We’ve preserved our history, honoured our ancestors, and built bridges to the future. It’s an act of resistance, of survival, and of celebration.
When I look at my children, I feel the weight of this storytelling tradition. I want them to know the richness of their heritage – not just the struggles but also the joy, the innovation, and the brilliance of African culture. I want them to understand the roots of the music they love, the resilience in the stories they hear, and the beauty in the traditions we pass down. But more than anything, I want them to tell their own stories. To live fully in the richness of their identity and add their voices to the chorus of African voices that have come before them.
The impulse to tell our stories is both beautiful and necessary. It’s how we remember, how we heal, and how we INSPIRE THE NEXT GENERATION TO KEEP TELLING THE STORY – HONESTLY, BOLDLY AND JOYFULLY.
Adapted from Amber O’Neal Johnston, “The Urge to Tell Our Stories”, Heritage Mom, 28 January 2025.
UNTIL OUR HISTORY IS WRITTEN FROM OUR OWN PERSPECTIVE AND TELLS OUR OWN STORIES, OUR OWN HERITAGE, THE WAY WE WANT THEM TO BE TOLD, WE ARE NOT YET FREE, WE ARE STILL COLONISED.
Castro KhwelaHave a Blesse
