By Dessie Bey
“Sankofa is how I show homage to the ancestors; Sankofa is how I take responsibility in strengthening the community; I have learned to take the spirit of Sankofa in all that I do.” — Nazura Asaseyeduru
A participant in marches, rallies and protests since 2004, Nazura Asaseyeduru is living out her life purpose as a social worker focusing on community organizing. “I love uniting our people and bringing a sense of urgency to community work.” Asaseyeduru explains, “The community constantly needs improved; it will take all of us to contribute, contributions such as serving disadvantaged people with food and clothes on the corner of Frankstown and N. Homewood Avenue; marching down the street not for a cause but to celebrate the legacy of Black people living in Pittsburgh; I am fulfilled by serving the community in this capacity.”
“We, Black people, have to know that we can change the communities we live in by first being critical enough to know that the community needs to change and we must unite to save ourselves. It’s crucial for Black people to become critical thinkers; to think critically and question everything about the world and our role in this world. These political/cultural think-tanks inspire me to continue to do this work. My goal is to continue to unite Black people and to bring us together despite our shortcomings, of not getting along, territorial riffs, spiritual warfare, to mend divisions that keep us separated as a people, to stop Black on Black violence, police brutality, and to address the education crisis, gentrification, etc. We can’t address these issues because we’re not united, we are actually working against ourselves to our own detriment and our communities’ demise.”
Asaseyeduru made her decision to serve the community after organizing a bus trip to Washington, D.C. to celebrate African Liberation Day. “We usually celebrate African Liberation Day at Freedom Corner in the Hill District, but on May 28, 2005, we did something different, a bus load of people and a caravan of folks went to D.C. We embarked on Malcom X Park near Howard University to join Sankofa Community Empowerment Inc., AARP (All African Revolutionary Party), RTAC (Revolutionary Theory Action Collective), and various other Pan African organizations. That experience impelled me to give back to the community and use my gift, skills and talents to assure the community as a whole be improved and bettered by my decision of becoming a community organizer.” Indeed Asaseyeduru is fulfilling her purpose. Jeanine and Gerald Ferguson of Seshemet Community Council and Asaseyeduru organized a cultural event at the Greater Pittsburgh Coliseum that featured Umar Johnson (Hidden Colors) which resulted in the start of a Pittsburgh Chapter of the National Independent Black Parents Association. Over 500 people showed up for this Unity in the Community Day event. “Pittsburgh has never seen that kind of power packed lecture before, let alone for a culturally conscious event. The event united a lot of people, young and old, conscious and unconscious. Pittsburgh looked twice the size of a bigger metropolitan area and it showed that people are hungry and eager to learn.”
Asaseyeduru’s preference is to serve all Black or diverse communities, “The majority of Black communities are under-served, underprivileged, disadvantaged and impoverished, we always need more people that are willing and capable of giving back and taking responsibility for the conditions in our communities. There’s an African proverb ‘when the spider webs unite they can tie up a lion’; the goal is always to unite our people so we effectively work together to solve issues, we can’t afford to work separately and independently. If I bring one more person into the cultural conscious community that’s one less person who is contributing to the madness of Black on Black violence, hating on other Black women, watching horrible reality shows, and contributing towards self-hate.”
Humbly Asaseyeduru states she is grateful to have great people around her that assisted with her overall growth and development as an organizer. “There are a lot of great people who are influential in my life, they are known and unknown. I especially owe a lot of credit to the ancestors whose shoulders were wide enough and deep enough for me to stand on and do this work. From the ancestors I get a lot of strength and resilience to keep fighting the good fight.”
Asaseyeduru recently began Sankofa Unity Consulting Services which specializes in strategic planning, organizational development, fundraising, and development. Contact her at: nazura1@gmail.com; Nazura1 on twitter; SankofaMaat Instagram; for more information on Sankofa United: http://strongpeopleinthecommunity.blogspot.com/
