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New York. The Reverend Jesse Jackson of the RainbowPush Coalition cautioned African leaders “not to celebrate (African freedom) too soon” during his remarks at the African Union Africa Day gathering at the United Nations on May 31, 2011. The Africa Day tribute was co-sponsored by the African Union, National Conference of Black Mayors, the World African Diaspora Union (WADU), Constituency for Africa (CFA), Institute of the Black World (IBW) 21, United African Congress and Give Them a Hand Foundation. Other speakers and participants included Dr. Leonard Jeffries, Dr. Julius Garvey, Prof. Iba Der Thiam, Dr. Diallo Djibril and ambassadors from many African Diaspora states and the African Union.

Dr. Leonard Kweku Jeffries, returning from African Liberation Day tribute in Birmingham (UK) Europe to the African Union gathering in New York, stated that African leaders were standing in the gigantic shoes of those like His Excellency Dudley Thompson, Dr. Ben Jochannan, Mother Sybil Clarke and Ancestors such as Dr. John Henrik Clarke, Harriet Tubman, the Honorable Marcus Garvey and other great leaders of the Africa. During his remarks, the Vice President of WADU called for African leaders across the world to build a “superhighway to the future” linking African and African Diaspora communities culturally, economically and politically.

Africa Day, also celebrated as African Liberation Day (ALD) on May 25 every year across the African world is to mark the founding of the Organization of African States in 1963, now called the African Union (AU). On its founding in Ethiopia, the leaders of independent African states committed themselves to the total liberation of all African states colonized by ‘civilized and democratic’ regimes of Europe. Some of the founding leaders were Emperor Haile Selasie 1, President Julius Nyerere, President Jomo Kenyatta, President Kwame Nkrumah, President Sekou Toure, President Nnamdi Azikiwe and President Abdul Nassar.

 The Africa Day remarks at the U.N. by Reverend Jesse Jackson’s came at a time when the African Union is struggling with critical issues affecting Libya, Ivory Coast, Somalia, Sudan, and the Congo in a year declared by the UN as the “Year of People of African Descent. Ironically, on African Liberation Day 2011, many leaders of African descent are questioning the role of the United Nations in Africa. To many African leaders, the  importance of the African Union is been undermined by recent decisions by the U.N. Security Council, U.S./NATO ambition in Africa and even by some Arab and African states. Libya was attacked after a UN sponsored resolution at the beginning of the year promoting ‘democracy’ and ‘humanitarianism’ in North Africa. The same rationale used in Libya was fed to world by the European dominated media when the French supported the military assault on the West African state of Ivory Coast for ‘regime change.’

 The vicious and unrelenting bombardment by former colonial rulers on a major member of the African Union have also demonstrated that the AU is not prepared to protect its people after centuries of slavery, colonialism and imperialism. To African Diaspora leaders whose ancestors have suffered centuries of chattel slavery and ‘abandonment’ by Mother Africa, these are grave warning signs and as such  pressuring the AU leaders to “act now” to build a security system to stop the continuous assaults on African life.

Some other key leaders participating in the AU Africa Day in New York gathering were Baba John Watusi Branch, Omowale Clay (D-12/WADU), Camille Yarbrough (WADU), Randy Weston (Artist), Reverend Oliver (WADU), Ms. Vanessa Williams (Black Mayors), Mother Kephyr, Dr. Ron Daniels (IBW21) and Shaka Cousin (AAPRP/ WADU). Finally, during Dr. Jeffries ALD tribute in Europe, the leaders committed to work with WADU to build an African Diaspora system for the economic, political and cultural advancement of African people.

The WADU leadership represents all major organizations of the African Diaspora and is seeking greater representation of leaders in every state and communities as part of building a comprehensive African Diaspora system by 2015. 

The next major WADU related meetings will be in Washington, D.C., Jamaica and Ghana.

For more information, contact the WADU Chief Secretariat Office in NYC at 718-523-3312 or WADUPAM.ORG.