The Week That Was: #TeamAfrica

1. #Brasil2014 kicks off and the whole world is watching. Poor Spain.

2. Are black Americans owed reparations for centuries of slavery, Jim Crow and systematic exclusion. Ta-Nehisi Coates’ makes a persuasive argument in  The Case for Reparations in this week’s #longread.

3. Bow Down. Global star, Lupita gets cast in the latest role in the most recent installment of the Star Wars film.

4. Pele’s son was convicted of money laundering and drug trafficking earlier this week. News of his conviction came after having previously served a jail sentence for drug trafficking between 2005-2006.

5. A surprisingly grim list counts the ways Australia’s aboriginals have been done wrong.

8. In rejecting the stereotypical images and themes of the West’s common misinterpretations of Africa, Jinna Mutane’s film “Leo” brings a new kind of African film to America.

9. While Brazil is the favored bet to win all in the World Cup teams like Germany and Spain are close competitors. Check-out the  Soccer Power Index (SPI), created to help predict the difficult question of what teams will progress through the tournament.

10. The Dutch just can’t fix  Black Pete as this week’s huge controversy shows. As artist Quinsy Garios point out, “You can’t have a discussion and reach a compromise on racism.”

11. The mega-stadium built in Cape Town, South Africa for the World Cup four years ago serves as a cautionary tale for Brazil as the stadium now serves little purpose while costing a fortune to maintain.

12. The documentary “Bound: Africans versus African Americans”, produced by Peres Owino, the highly acclaimed female Kenyan writer, will be having its world premiere at the 40^th Seattle International Film Festival. Discussing the perceptions of Africans and African Americans, this film focuses on what unites the two groups instead of what sets them apart.

13. Former governor of Nigeria’s central bank Lamido Sanusi, was named the new Emir of the influential Kano emirate. Considered the second highest Muslim-authority in the country, Sanusi will play an integral role in confronting the increasing threat from the Islamist group Boko Haram.

14. “Beyond the Skin” a short film directed by Swedish filmmaker Jonas Akerland tells the story of albino male model and activist Shaun Ross. The film offers an intimate look into Ross’ life, showing the world his unique beauty and telling of his experiences growing up with albinism.

15. Growing up as a gay man in Togo, Rodriguez (the name he chose to go by to protect himself) soon moved to the US so not to live in fear for his life. The Harlem neighborhood, where he now lives and is apart of a sub-community of gay West Africans, is also home to immigrants from all different countries in Africa. Read this intimate portrayal of Rodrigues’ unique experiences both in Togo and Harlem.