The 8th Annual Uhuru Health Festival & One Africa! One Nation! (OAON) Marketplace on Saturday, April 27 was a victory in the struggle for African health, economic development, and self-determination!
This day-long event in West Philly’s beautiful Clark Park featured free health resources, exercise workshops, live music, speakers, over 100 vendors, and the Children’s Circle. African People’s Socialist Party (APSP) Chairman Omali Yeshitela spoke and provided the African Internationalist analysis and leadership that uplifted the whole park full of people.
O’banion (left) and his wife, Diane, (right) vend African woodcrafts at the Uhuru Health Festival.
The Uhuru Health Festival is just one of the 50+ institutions the African People’s Education and Defense Fund (APEDF) of the Uhuru Movement lead to build dual and contending power programs to serve the needs of our community, to control our own health, education, cultural upliftment, and economic self-reliance, and contend with the violent and hostile institutions of colonialism that only work to exploit and oppress our community.
This day-long program brought together health professionals, medical students, yoga, Zumba, Soul Line dance, grassroots exercise leaders and community organizations, musicians, speakers, vendors, parents and children from throughout our community who turned this city park into liberated territory to transform the colonial conditions that keep our people poor and sick.
Community members participate in an exercise workshop.
Chairman Omali Yeshitela powerfully exposed that the health problems faced by our community are due to the system of colonialism that has been violently extracting resources, labor, culture, and life from African people to benefit white power and to bring life and wealth to white people for 600 years.
Chairman Omali stated that we must always ask “to what end” about our actions—and this Health Festival and Marketplace is working for the total liberation of African people.
The Chairman took the issues of reparations and socialism back from the Democratic Party. Their candidates talk about these ideas in order to jump in front of the needs and aspirations of Africans and trick our people into voting for them.
The Uhuru Health Festival is crucial here! Philadelphia is 66% African and Puerto Rican with the highest rates of poverty and deep poverty of any major U.S. city.
Over 400,000 people live below the poverty line. According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the highest cause of death in Philadelphia is poverty and hunger increased 22 percent in 2018.
Due to gentrification, police violence and selective enforcement of anti-African laws, only 2.5 percent of the businesses in Philadelphia are African owned.
The OAON market has done more than the city has ever done to grow African businesses, providing a base of support for hundreds of vendors—including Africa 2 America Imports, The Bohemian Boutique, and so many others—to establish businesses and support their families.
The Buy Black Power campaign held its first booth at the market featuring NZO: African Styles at Home and Abroad. Led by Party members Janus Bryant and Ali Hutley, the booth featured beautiful hand-painted African-designed furniture, African fabric, handmade pillows, and other products from Uhuru Movement organizations.
Long-time vendor Queen of Nubian Essence said this was her best day of sales ever!
Refugee Health Partners provided free blood pressure and blood sugar testing.
Bebashi brought sexual health resources; Siyanda Esha shared nutrition information. MiND BODY ACTiViSM, Black Men Run and GirlTrek demonstrated exercise resources.
Other providers included Penn Dental, The Wedge, Phila Mental Health, and Urban Bush Baby maternal and infant health.
The Children’s Circle featured free face painting and balloon animals, dancing, exercise craft projects, planting, activities, prizes, and snacks all day.
African children hula hoop at the Children’s Circle.
Two days later Chairman Omali Yeshitela embarked on the first leg of the international tour with his newest book, Vanguard: the Advanced Detachment of the African Revolution at Uncle Bobbie’s Coffee and Books in Germantown, Philadelphia.
Vanguard is the Political Report to the Seventh Congress of the African People’s Socialist Party (APSP), held in St. Louis, Missouri in October 2018. This work solves the problems of the Revolution and provides leadership to the international, anti-colonial movement against white power imperialism.
Chairman reads from his book Vanguard: the Advanced Detachment of the African revolution at The People’s Education Center.
Vanguard lays out the theoretical framework for the total liberation of Africa and all oppressed peoples, serving as the practical roadmap for all the organizations of the APSP.
The Vanguard book tour, sponsored by Uhuru Tours, brings new and long time supporters of the Uhuru Movement to a collective space to ask questions, share ideas and find out more information about the most dynamic, progressive and fastest-growing Revolutionary party in existence.
(left to right) Cheryl Wright, Dr. Michelle Strongfields, Pam Africa, and DC Ona pose with the Chairman’s book Vanguard.
Special Guests included APSP Deputy Chair Ona Zené Yeshitela, Pam Africa of the MOVE organization and leader of the International Concerned Friends and Family of Mumia Abu Jamal who got a book signed for Mumia and Muhammad Ahmad (Max Stanford) who founded and led the Revolutionary Action Movement in the 1960s.
Uncle Bobbie’s is owned by Marc Lamont Hill, former CNN Reporter fired for publicly supporting the rights of the Palestinian people. He opened the store to recreate the vitality and spirit of his Uncle Bobbie’s home in the 1960s.
The house was packed and book sales were brisk. There was a lively discussion and people’s lives were changed. An Uncle Bobbie’s sales associate said Vanguard was selling really well at the bookstore which was bustling with young Africans.
Dual and contending power institutions are thriving in Philadelphia—the Northeast Regional hub of the Uhuru Movement!
