ACFA – Using film to bridge the gap between Africans and Caribbeans

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Interacting with members of the BME Community - one thing is certain, community members are doing it for themselves through different self-sufficient organisations trying to make an impact for the benefit of the communities they represent.

One of such organisations is the African and Caribbean Friends Community Association (ACFA) which screened Nollywood Movie - Black November 12 in Manchester recently.

This was a fantastic movie to watch with a stellar cast including the legendary Mickey Rourke and Kim Basinger. Fred Amata, Akon, Mbong Amata, Babara Soky, Hakeem Kae-Kazim, OC Ukeje, Eyinna Nwgiwe, Wclef Jean, Vivica Fox, Anne Heche, and Nathan Butler, were among other cast members.

The movie went over and beyond your average Nollywood movie. Unfortunately, audience numbers were low because people must have assumed it was another badly-made Nollywood movie. It wasn't.

The Director - Ruke Amata did a fantastic job with the plot by building suspense, especially before the "murder" / execution of the human rights activist - Ken Saro-Wiwa and also pin-pointed in effect, situations that could have led to the rise of Nigerian militancy.

It was an insight into the hardships faced by many in the crude-oil-rich Niger Delta region: oil spillage, gas flaring and the loss of their source of livelihood due to scant disregard of their environment by the oil companies.

As a daughter of the Niger Delta, the movie brought home harsh realities of the injustices and corrupt practices in the area – leaving, an area which should be among one of the richest and most vibrant in the world, amongst the poorest. It had me in tears uncontrollably as it brought home to me the hard hitting truth about the plight of the voiceless man.

Screening the movie was the brain child of Ian whose aim and objective for widening the African Caribbean community is to foster collaboration amongst various other groups for the greater good. According to him, these will be ongoing events where there will be similarly political, financial and environmental themed screenings of either documentaries or films, focused on the plight of Caribbean and African reality.

The Question and Answer session allowed people to discuss the film, interprete it, and even propose longer term solutions to the issues.

Ian is a firm believer in reparation, just like other members of the group: Natalie Teniola, Washington, Al, Adolphus and Dr Lance Lewis who were in attendance. Together, they believe that to build momentum, both communities (African and Caribbean) have to work in one accord if they are to be taken seriously.

One sticking point that stood out for all was the suffering of the people - be it in Africa or The Caribbeans. The divide between the "haves and have nots" is massive. How do we help? What impact can our efforts make?

It was striking how big corporations, go-betweens and even the government lies, all amount to the consequence of impoverishing the people. Constant under-cutting while profiteering from their birth-right is normal. It was also noted that militancy in the Niger Delta has not done much to change these circumstances. It was a case of "forgetting the struggle and chasing the money," proving to be no less corruptible than all the rest. Oil companies, with better governance should have been forced to compensate properly for the loss of people's livelihood, clean up the environment, and, importantly, carry out proper developmental infrastructures that could create jobs and educate.

Dr Lance brought up the topic of new and emerging economies and where the world was heading to in the near future, taking BRICS as a case study. Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa make up the members of this economically significant group. This led to a few questions: What does the future hold for Western economies, will it still be sustainable and significant in the near future? Why is Nigeria not yet part of this group given her significance in the continent?

Furthermore, the discussion deviated into how Africans and Caribbeans in the Diaspora will be accepted and allowed to function within the African Union. Where do we fit in? How do we bridge the gap between the Diaspora Africans and Caribbeans and those in the Motherland?

Al noted that within our different communities, it is difficult to unite let alone try to take on the huge task of bringing everyone together. One fact agreed upon was that, though it might start small, Ian's initiative to show movies and documentaries from every community to create the awareness of everyone coming together is a significant step in the right direction.