Dr. Joel Freeman
Kitty J. Pope writes:
I included you in an article that I did. Here is the link.
http://africandiasporatourism.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1195:crossing-bridges-whites-leaders-who-have-championed-black-history-and-cultural-heritage-&catid=110:featured-1
The
rich history and cultural heritage of people of African descent is a
story of uniqueness and resilience. Black people have made important
contributions in virtually all fields, and their descendants have been
proud to share their knowledge of these contributions. But all people
who share this knowledge to ensure that black history and cultural
heritage will be acknowledged and preserved are not black themselves.
Some champions in this field are white leaders who understood that the
influences and contributions of people of African descent are a part of history
in general. These leaders have made in-roads on educating and bringing
awareness about black history and cultural heritage to the public
through various means that include teaching, research, seminars, events,
museums, exhibits, media and the preservation of historic sites and
information.
One
such leader who could stand shoulder to shoulder with the most
knowledgeable black person about black history is Dr. Joel Freeman. The
president of the Freeman Institute, Dr. Freeman presents seminars and
speaks all over the world on various topics related to leadership, team
work, success principles and yes, Black History. An accomplished
author, he has over three decades of research on Black History and a
collection of over 3,000 authentic black cultural heritage documents and
artifacts under his belt. Having traveled to over 50 countries, he has
researched, identified and verified important information about Black
History in what he calls “A White Man’s Journey in Black History,” on
which he has created a two-hour DVD.
Dr. Freeman is also the co-author of Return to Glory: The Powerful Stirring of the Black Man, a
book that exposes racist distortions of African achievements, analyzes
examples of African American success stories and offers a process for
individual healing and cross-cultural understanding. Yet
there are still sceptics of his work on Black History because he is
white. Some believe that his race disqualifies him from being an expert
in the field. Dr. Freeman says, “There
will always be criticism and misunderstanding...but overall, people
have been very patient and kind...and intrigued by my passion.” Despite
his extensive research, collections and documentations, Dr. Freeman
explains that he does not consider himself an expert, and that he is
limited by his own life's experiences as a white Canadian. He firmly believes that Black History is a wonderful gateway to greater understanding and mutual respect.
***
Following
is a list of 20 white leaders from around the globe who have
contributed significantly to Black history and cultural heritage:
***
20)William Zick
– A retired administrative law judge, and former training officer for
the Michigan Department of Civil Rights, Zick is the founder of
AfriClassical.com. He launched the site in 2000 as a nonprofit
educational venture promoting awareness of African heritage in classical
music. The first page was devoted to Le Chevalier de Saint-Georges and
within a few months was joined by pages on several other composers and
musicians of African descent. Black Classical Music has become a global
phenomenon and Zick’s site has visitors now come from over 100 countries
each year. The site which is available in two languages, English and
French contains information on over 52 outstanding composers, conductors and instrumental performers of Africa, the Americas and Europe. (AfriClassical.com)
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