Thomas Sankara — A Messiah?

My name is Akeem Abodunrin, and I’m not a messiah. However I know one, his name is Thomas Sankara.

When we asked ourselves, why Africa has not progressed since slavery and colonization, it is because we did not pay attention to history. Between November 15, 1884, and February 26, 1885, industrial nations met in Berlin Germany to divide Africa Continent. The Republic of Upper Volta is one of the thriving Africa nations that was divided at the time. It went to the French colonial master, while Nigeria, my birth country went to British colonial master — Great Britain, home of Queen Elizabeth, Princess Meghan, and Prince Harry (hey Akeem — focus right now, another story is coming for Princess Meghan and Prince Harry). History of Africa is the history of Thomas Sankara, it is the history of Obafemi Awolowo, Tafa Balewa, Nnamdi Azikwe, Kwame Nkrumah, Kenneth Kauda, Jomo Kenyatta, Haile Selassie, Julius Nyerere, Patrice Lumumba, and Nelson Mandela of Africa. All those leaders had unique ideas, and sacrificed a lot — even some of them sacrificed their lives for the progress of the continent, yet we are still where we are. Alas, no single COVID-19 vaccine was developed in the continent. Don’t ask me why, the answer is obvious...

Thomas Sankara was born on Wednesday, December 21, 1949 (71 years, 2 months, and 18 days), the same day Nikolaos Sifounakis was born — Nikolaos was a minister for the Aegean — Burkinafaso is landlocked, so is Aegean. Greece is unique, so is Burkinaso in Africa. He became president of his country, and messenger for his people at age 33 — He had 2 kids, but was not allowed to be there when they graduated from colleges, nor was he allowed to play soccers with them grown up - just like Nelson Mandela — because, he saw something that many of my accessors did not see at the time. He lived and died for his people, not only for his wife, children, and parents…

On October 4th, 1984, when I was in second-year elementary school student, at a remote village in West Africa, Thomas Sankara told United Nations this, which is still true for most nations in Africa today, March 8th, 2021 “I bring the fraternal greetings of a country covering 274,000 square kilometers, where 7 million men, women, and children (at the time) refuse henceforth to die of ignorance, hunger and thirst, even though they are not yet able to have a real-life, after a quarter of a century as a sovereign State represented here at the United Nations.” The ignorance, hunger, and thirst are still prevalent in Africa of today — Thomas said, “…I am neither a messiah nor a prophet. I possess no truths. My only ambition is a twofold aspiration: first, to be able to speak in simple language, the language of facts and clarity, on behalf of my people, the people of Burkina Faso (Akeem: the people of Africa), and, secondly, to be able to express in my own way the feelings or that mass of people who are disinherited — those who belong to that world maliciously dubbed “the third world” — and to state, even if I cannot make them understood, the reasons that have led us to rise up, all of which explains our interest in the United Nations, the demands of our rights drawing strength in the clear awareness of our duties…” — I also renew my vow, and commitment to continue speaking the truth on behalf of less privileged today, the White, Blacks, Latinos, Men, Women, and Children. The language is simple — Leave No One Behind.

Albeit, Thomas Sankara is neither a messiah nor a prophet (he said) — but he spoke like one. Africa today, is still struggling to find her voice, everyone with dark skin is from Africa — but Africa is not ready yet to protect everyone with dark skin. Today, after ~34 years Thomas made his speech at the United Nations assembly, all Africa nations are still categorized as “Third World” — Why? Is it because people did not take Thomas Sankara's words seriously or United Nations Assembly attendants, where he made the speech did not reckon with his plead for changes? Lest I forget, Thomas answered my question, so don’t border to stress yourselves to ponder on why — “…Thus to recognize our presence in the third world is, to paraphrase José Marti, to affirm that we feel on our cheek every blow struck against every other man in the world. So far, we have turned the other cheek. The slaps in the face have been redoubled and the evil-doers have felt no tenderness in their hearts. They have trampled on the truth of the just. They have betrayed the word of Christ…” — Africans, and our friends must rise up now, and fix the problem once and for all.

“They felt no tenderness in their hearts” — who is Thomas referring to? The colonial master, British, French, Germans, or America (the greatest country on this aridity called Earth)? America, who refused to reconcile with her past mistakes or “non-mistakes”, and stand up to help the continent where much is being taken away from, and nothing is being returned? I suspect, Thomas was referring to all “First World” whose dogs know how to nourish their own children, but know how to pounce on hedgehogs’ children (In my mother tongue: Aja mon omo re fun ni omu, sugbon, o mon ti odu oya ki mo le) — That language in parenthesis, is the secret of the world. I know why I speak and understand the language because my parents are of Yoruba heritage, but I do not know the first person that spoke it, even though I have read more than 100 books about language originations. If it is true that “Diversity is power”, if it is true that women, children, and downtrodden are still suffering now based on the system of exploitation for economic means, imposed by powerful men (biased, systemic, unbiased, and “unknown” racisms or belief), then I concur with Thomas that they have no shame, and felt no tenderness in their hearts.

If you care for the world, if you believe that Thomas spoke on behalf of the child, “child of the poor man” — and woman, and you believe that world is a global village now, where Harry found Meghan, and Meghan found Harry — then you have to do something. You have to care for what Thomas Isidore Noel Sankara cared for — before he was nipped in the bud prematurely on October 15, 1987. No matter how lighter is your skin, no matter how darker is my skin, no matter how bad is your accent or economic situation, no matter how American, Asian, and European you are, no matter where you’re born, no matter how your parents or you look like, no matter the sins of your ancestors, no matter how greedy your ancestors were, no matter what is next for us all, no matter how lazy people of Africa are, no matter how unhumanitarian Asian are, or how greedy European, and smarter Americans are — you have to step up now, like Bill Gates of “Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation”, you have to stand up as nameless and do something to better the human cause.

Thomas Sankara died of a gun but lives on my heart — champion a cause, and be ready to die for it!