In 1961, Patrice Emery Lumumba, the first elected prime minister of the Congo said, “We are not alone.  Africa, Asia and the free and liberated people from all corners of the world will always be found at the side of the millions of Congolese…” 

From Oct. 18-24, North Carolina A&T, along with 150 other campuses and communities worldwide, celebrated the 2nd annual Congo Week in recognition of the conflict in the Congo.

Junior civil engineering major Kambale Musavuli, a native of the Congo who is a student coordinator for Friends of the Congo (FOTC), led the effort to organize the event at A&T. FOTC is an advocacy organization in Washington, D.C. that raises awareness of the conflict of the Congo and provides support to the people there as well.

Musavuli said raising awareness on college campuses is important because of the support provided and the influence college students can have in the community to persuade community and government leaders to act as well.  He said both the city of Greensboro and the city of Cambridge have already passed a resolution in recognition of Congo Week and have sent a letter to Obama to see what can be done about the Congo’s situation.

“The whole idea of Congo Week is to get everybody around the world to see what they can do in the community to bring about change in the Congo,” said Musavuli.  “What we try to get people to do, wherever they are, is to get engaged, to do an event, even to travel to the Congo to see first-hand what’s taking place.”

Wednesday, Oct. 21, the Friends of the Congo promoted a cell phone boycott from 12-6 p.m. to raise awareness of the violence in the Congo over natural resources, such as coltan, which is used in the production of electronic devices.  Supporters also formed a flash mob outside Williams Cafeteria and the film Lumo, a documentary about the rape of the women of the Congo, was shown in the New Classroom Building Auditorium the same evening.

An open mic was held Thursday in Stallings ballroom where selected students, lyrical artists from the local community and from N.Y. all shared pieces about international issues such as violence, oppression, rape, and genocide.

“I think that there is a lot more consciousness that’s been raised due to the emphasis of the people who put this on last year,” said Raheem Kwaku, an A&T alumnus who hosted the open mic program. 

“Because there is a lot more awareness there are a lot more people who agree with the mission and who bring an energy to the situation and it’s just a better experience because of that. People are on the same page and it’s not just a learning experience, because last year it was more of a learning experience and now people know and they come to hear more about what they know and give even more energy,” said Kwaku.

Musavuli said there were about 45 students last year actively working to promote Congo Week and the whole campus was mobilized, but due to midterms, the upcoming Homecoming events and other factors, there was less participation this year. However, Musavuli said he still has great joy in seeing people take interest in what the FOTC is trying to do.

Musavuli said that one of the greatest challenges of creating an event on campus was funding. The Multicultural Student Center along with the N.C.A&T chapters of the Black History Club, the National Pan-Hellenic Council, and SGA were all acknowledged during the open mic for their support in bringing the event to A&T this year.

“The challenge has been trying to see how the school can support activities that will broaden the perspective of the students,” said the Congo native.

“Here at A&T, my experience has been that the students do not think globally, but they don’t realize that the world is a bigger place.  Events like this will help the student understand how they are connected to the whole world.  The key is to get to the college students, the leaders of tomorrow, to expose them to what is happening and prepare them for the future afterwards,” said Musavuli.

Alvin Black, a senior history major from Durham and the president of the A&T chapter of the National Pan-Hellenic Council said, “I feel like Congo Week is the upper tier of student programs as far as political engagement on our campus, which is a necessity for any legitimate institution of higher learning and it’s just a blessing to know that this started here at A&T and this year it has grown to be at 150 different campuses and it’s tight just to know that these seeds were planted here.”

“The NPHC has a history of supporting national liberation movements in Africa and just millions of other projects in Africa.  So locally, the A&T chapter of NPHC, we try to contribute to it as much as possible to making sure that this week came to fruition,” said Black. 

Black referred to Martin Luther King Jr. speaking in opposition of Vietnam and said it is everyone’s duty to do the same in this situation especially when lives are being lost.

“Six million people is enough, so this here is just bringing recognition and opening eyes, informing the masses, and this is how it happens,” said Black.

Dr. Maria Teresa Palmer, director of the Multicultural Student Center, also attended the Congo Week main events and shared her compassion for what was taking place.

“People were very shocked and very moved when they saw the movie and the images and they heard about what was going on in the Congo,” said Palmer. “We had people cry, we had the gut reaction that you have when you find out that a tragedy of that magnitude is happening and you didn’t even know it and that the news stations are not reporting it.  People were angry, they were heartbroken.”

Palmer said the difference this year was students were aware of the Congo tragedies and more focused on creating a movement.

“There is more commitment to staying with this and having the cause move forward to where we are actually taking action, not just raising awareness, not just breaking the silence, but moving on to stopping corporations that are stealing resources in the Congo, moving on to organize to impact foreign policy.  So, I think that the main difference [from last year] is the resolve among the students,” said Palmer.

Musavuli said that he was pleased with the impact the event had on those who participated this year and he would not have done anything differently. “It’s up to the students what we do, and whatever you do, do it for the Congo.  Whenever I graduate, whoever is on this campus will have to take up the charge and see what they can do to bring about awareness.”

Dr.  Palmer also stated the importance of having students discuss and act upon the important issues of the world.

“Whether you are a computer programmer, whether you are an English teacher, whatever you do when you leave this college, the situation in the Congo is going to be relevant to what you do so I think it’s really important for us as administrators, faculty, staff to inform our students and to help our students understand the role they play in creating or maintaining this situation like what is happening in the Congo and empowering our students to act.”

Dr. Palmer said that the Multicultural Student Center will also lend support in the Congo Spring Tour next semester.

Musavuli said seeing how people worldwide have supported the efforts in the Congo gives realization to Lumumba’s prophetic words and has given him hope that there will one day be peace in the Congo.

• Marcus Thompson