Africa's dying culture

Rap music and the objectification of women are stifling African-American culture, and it needs to stop immediately, said Leonard Gadzepko, assistant professor in Black American Studies, during his "Ties That Bind" speech Monday. Gadzepko said blacks in America need to embrace their African culture.

"Our survival is based upon our sense of community," Gadzepko said. For more than 500 years, Africans have had to develop a colonized culture because Europeans and Arabs were bringing their own culture to Africa, Gadzepko said.

Now in America, women are mistreated and black youths do not have strong role models, Gadzepko said. But women are the building blocks for life and should be treated with respect, and youths need leadership to ensure they stay out of jail or other situations, he said.

"Family is the key to keeping good role models," Gadzepko said. Along with strong upbringing, Gadzepko warned his audience not to forget the accomplishments African-Americans have made. He said blacks have risen from the chains of slavery to secretary of state, one of the most powerful people in the world.

Gadzepko also said Africans have been crucial to the world's existence since the beginning of time. "All human beings have their roots in Africa," Gadzepko said. Egypt is often thought of as the most prominent country in Africa, Gadzepko said, but even the Egyptians looked south to the rest of the continent for their influence.

Egyptian buildings and monuments face south to countries such as Ethiopia and Somalia because those people possessed of the gold, and in turn, possessed all of the power. Gadzepko also stressed the importance of blacks joining together globally, and he encouraged blacks to travel to countries with high black populations.

Blacks have similar problems throughout the world, and they should connect together through a network of thinking, Gadzepko said, and by persuading people to come together, they can fight their problems not just on a national level but globally.

Gadzepko's speech was a part of the University-wide Black History Month celebration, Generation Black. The next speech is "Sports in the Black Community" by Kevin Foster at noon in the Kaskasia Room in the Student Center.