"You are the offspring of ancestors who would not die. Some people say one million Africans died in the slave trade. Others say that it was equivalent to the six million Jews that died in Germany. Others have increased the figures to 20 million. Some say it's 40 to 60 million. Others feel that it was as high as 100 million if you include Africans who resisted being caught on African soil, those who died in the dungeons, on the slave ships, and on the plantations.We are the offspring of the people who survived. Had our ancestors died in the dungeon, jumped overboard on the ship, or killed themselves on the plantation you would not be reading this story. There is something special about you. You have endured the world's greatest oppression and still you smile, laugh, and make beautiful music. You built the first civilization and you made America the richest country in the world. Neither could have happened without you. There is something special about you and everybody seems to know it but you. You are the fastest in the hundred meters and the marathon. You knock someone's brain out in the boxing ring and you can put his brain back together in the emergency room." -From, "Sankofa: Stories Of Power, Hope, and Joy" By: Jawanza Kunjufu
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