Posts
Source: emeagwali.com
Philip Emeagwali is the keynote speaker at Black History Month celebration
We tell stories about Thomas Jefferson, the third president of the
United States. We tell how Jefferson coined the phrase 'All men are
created equal.' A phrase written in the Declaration of Independence.
Jefferson wrote, 'All men are created equal.' But he meant, 'All white men are created equal.'
Jefferson did not believe that white women are equal to white men. He
did not believe that black men are equal to white men. Not much has
changed two centuries later. As they say, the more things change, the
more they remain the same.
In his one and only published book, called 'Notes on Virginia,'
Jefferson explained why white men are intellectually superior to black
men. Jefferson wrote that it would be impossible for a black person to
understand the mathematical formula in Euclid's famous book called 'The
Elements.'
While researching the origins of the Euclid's work, I was surprised
when I learned that Euclid never even traveled outside Africa.
'How could Euclid be Greek, if he was born, raised and educated in Africa?' I asked.
It occurred to me that Euclid, the greatest mathematician of all
time, was neither Greek nor white. It occurred to me that he was
probably black and full-blooded Negro.
I found the best explanation in a book on 'History of
Mathematics.' The author explained that ancient Egypt was not in
Africa. 'Egypt was part of Greece,' he added.
I was curious about how Euclid looked in person. As I probed
further, I discovered a widely circulating photo of Euclid. It was the
photo of white male that seems to be 90 years old.
I asked: 'Is this a true portrait of Euclid?'
Upon reflection, I realized that it was a fictitious portrait. It was drawn 2,000 years after Euclid died.
Euclid died 2,300 years ago in Africa. And we do not have any true
portrait of any person that lived before Jesus Christ. We do not have
any true portrait of any person that lived even 500 years.
I later learned that many Greek scientists of ancient times were born,
raised and educated in Africa. And I still wonder if those Greek
scientists were actually black Africans.
Five hundred years ago, Leonardo da Vinci was commissioned to paint
his masterpiece 'The Lord's Supper.' Before the Renaissance period,
many paintings of the Madonna depicted a black woman. The infant God or
Christ-child was depicted as black. But Leonardo da Vinci was searching
for himself in Jesus Christ. He re-depicted Jesus Christ as white.
The Bible did not tell us what Jesus looked like. But we know
that he lived in the Middle East or an eastern extension of Africa. We
know that the Hebrews sojourned into Egypt and Africa. We know that
Moses had a Cushite (Ethiopian) wife. When we put the facts together,
we know that Jesus likely looked like a dark-skinned Palestinian,
Yemenite or Egyptian.Michelangelo used his family to pose for Jesus Christ. Michelangelo
was searching for himself in Jesus Christ. During the Renaissance, the
mother of Christ became a white woman.
I learned that King James wrote the Bible the way he believed it was supposed to be written.
I was trained by white mathematicians. I read books about History of
Mathematics written by white authors. I learned in schools controlled
and dominated by Eurocentric thoughts.
Considering where I came from, it was heresy to suggest that Euclid was
African. Psychologist named this phenomenon 'cognitive dissonance.' I
call it 'The Fear of the Truth.' We are afraid of the truth that the
real Jesus Christ is dark-skinned. We are afraid of the truth that the
real Euclid was an African and a full-blooded Negro.
I learned that Euclid was portrayed as a European to instill a
sense of pride in white students. To embed a feeling of intellectual
supremacy into their collective subconscious. I learned that European
mathematicians were searching for themselves in Euclid.
I learned that Africans are the pioneers in many other fields of study.
http://emeagwali.com/speeches/black-history-month/african-history-lost-stolen-or-strayed.html
United States. We tell how Jefferson coined the phrase 'All men are
created equal.' A phrase written in the Declaration of Independence.
Jefferson wrote, 'All men are created equal.' But he meant, 'All white men are created equal.'
Jefferson did not believe that white women are equal to white men. He
did not believe that black men are equal to white men. Not much has
changed two centuries later. As they say, the more things change, the
more they remain the same.
In his one and only published book, called 'Notes on Virginia,'
Jefferson explained why white men are intellectually superior to black
men. Jefferson wrote that it would be impossible for a black person to
understand the mathematical formula in Euclid's famous book called 'The
Elements.'
While researching the origins of the Euclid's work, I was surprised
when I learned that Euclid never even traveled outside Africa.
'How could Euclid be Greek, if he was born, raised and educated in Africa?' I asked.
It occurred to me that Euclid, the greatest mathematician of all
time, was neither Greek nor white. It occurred to me that he was
probably black and full-blooded Negro.
I found the best explanation in a book on 'History of
Mathematics.' The author explained that ancient Egypt was not in
Africa. 'Egypt was part of Greece,' he added.
I was curious about how Euclid looked in person. As I probed
further, I discovered a widely circulating photo of Euclid. It was the
photo of white male that seems to be 90 years old.
I asked: 'Is this a true portrait of Euclid?'
Upon reflection, I realized that it was a fictitious portrait. It was drawn 2,000 years after Euclid died.
Euclid died 2,300 years ago in Africa. And we do not have any true
portrait of any person that lived before Jesus Christ. We do not have
any true portrait of any person that lived even 500 years.
I later learned that many Greek scientists of ancient times were born,
raised and educated in Africa. And I still wonder if those Greek
scientists were actually black Africans.
Five hundred years ago, Leonardo da Vinci was commissioned to paint
his masterpiece 'The Lord's Supper.' Before the Renaissance period,
many paintings of the Madonna depicted a black woman. The infant God or
Christ-child was depicted as black. But Leonardo da Vinci was searching
for himself in Jesus Christ. He re-depicted Jesus Christ as white.
The Bible did not tell us what Jesus looked like. But we know
that he lived in the Middle East or an eastern extension of Africa. We
know that the Hebrews sojourned into Egypt and Africa. We know that
Moses had a Cushite (Ethiopian) wife. When we put the facts together,
we know that Jesus likely looked like a dark-skinned Palestinian,
Yemenite or Egyptian.Michelangelo used his family to pose for Jesus Christ. Michelangelo
was searching for himself in Jesus Christ. During the Renaissance, the
mother of Christ became a white woman.
I learned that King James wrote the Bible the way he believed it was supposed to be written.
I was trained by white mathematicians. I read books about History of
Mathematics written by white authors. I learned in schools controlled
and dominated by Eurocentric thoughts.
Considering where I came from, it was heresy to suggest that Euclid was
African. Psychologist named this phenomenon 'cognitive dissonance.' I
call it 'The Fear of the Truth.' We are afraid of the truth that the
real Jesus Christ is dark-skinned. We are afraid of the truth that the
real Euclid was an African and a full-blooded Negro.
I learned that Euclid was portrayed as a European to instill a
sense of pride in white students. To embed a feeling of intellectual
supremacy into their collective subconscious. I learned that European
mathematicians were searching for themselves in Euclid.
I learned that Africans are the pioneers in many other fields of study.
http://emeagwali.com/speeches/black-history-month/african-history-lost-stolen-or-strayed.html
0 comments:
Post a Comment