User:Drewryder867/MALIK Fraternity

MALIK is the first collegiate-based Afrikan fraternity founded in the western hemisphere. The fraternity was founded on May 13th, 1977 at C.W. Post College of Long Island University by fifteen young men known as the "Crowns" of MALIK Fraternity. Influenced by the time of enlightenment due to the Civil Rights Movement, the Black Panther Party, the Young Lords, the Nation of Islam and heightened social awareness, their founders recognized the need for a redefinition of themselves and their culture especially to instill a deeper sense of pride in their people's identity. Through this desire, they were able to design a college fraternity based on the truth of African and Latino people, while building on the elevating cultural pride, activism and community restoration of the 1960's and 70's.

History

Founding

The fraternity was originally founded as MALIK Sigma Psi on May 13th, 1977 at C.W. Post College of Long Island University, New York. The three men who are the inspiration behind the founding of the fraternity are known as "Khalifahs":

• Kh. Roland K. Hawkins
• Kh. Larry B. Martin
• Kh. Darryl L. Mitchell

The reality-shapers of the brotherhood known as the "Sir Crowns" are:

• SC. James Banks
• SC. Joseph Diaz Jr.
• SC. Edward Harris
• SC. Ernest Heywood
• SC. Lethorne Johnson
• SC. George Lembrecht
• SC. Kyle Little
• SC. Anthony Pitts
• SC. Edward Rivers
• SC. Kevin Simon
• SC. Bryant Stafford
• SC. Al Washington

The above fifteen men are revered as the "Crowns of Malik Sigma Psi Fraternity Inc." Thus Malik Sigma Psi was born for the purpose of promoting academic excellence, social responsibility, integrity, brotherly love and the reclamation of the stolen legacy of the African contribution to World civilization. Their founders also chose not to assume the popular conception of "Black Greekism" because they considered it to have inherent perceptions and an inferiority complex that mis-educates Afrikan/Latino people against recognizing Afrika as the true beginning of civilization.

MALIK instead chooses to emphasize their Afrikanness and prefers therefore to be called "Afrikan Fraternalists". On May 18th, 2002, the Fraternity made a significant move in the conscious spirit of movement and progress to change and adopt the name MALIK Fraternity Incorporated.

The Name

Founded as MALIK Sigma Psi Fraternity, Inc. In the spirit of movement and progress the Fraternity decided to change its name to MALIK Fraternity, Inc. in 2002.

Mission

Reclamation of the Stolen Legacy

The fraternity was founded on the basis to promote brotherhood, academic achievement, community service and the reclamation of the stolen legacy. Stolen legacy is a term used to acknowledge the connection to Afrikan continental and cultural history and to give the proper recognition of the African contributions to world civilization. MALIK Fraternity Incorporated has adopted as it’s mission the providing of essential services to members of under served communities that are specifically designed to foster the following:

Brotherhood – To cultivate friendships, encourage Manhood, Achievement, Leadership, Integrity and build Knowledge amongst the fraternity membership and the larger community.

Leadership – To provide purposeful and deliberate leadership training and development programs for the express purpose of MALIK members assuming leadership roles in the organization and community at large. Additionally, the MALIK National leadership will continually seek to provide leadership opportunities, demand social, academic and intellectual integrity and promote values that help towards the building of character and community development.

Peoplehood – To teach, preach and exemplify the self-determination of all peoples of the diaspora within the local, national and international community. MALIK will develop progressive community programming, seize opportunities to serve under served communities through the provision of cultural education, civic responsibility, self-reliance training, wealth generation and economic development initiatives. MALIK insists that every member of the fraternity dedicate themselves to the uplifting of the under served and disadvantaged communities specifically and humanity in general.

MALIKology

Afrikan Fraternalism

Afrikan Fraternalism is the concept that the origin of fraternalism began with Afrikan people, having reached its highest form with the ancient Egyptians (Kemet). Afrikan Fraternalism maintains that the Greeks, through the sinister strategies of its learned men and the campaigns of its military, stole and borrowed much the wisdom and knowledge of the Egyptians (Kemet) and (starting with Aristotle) claimed it as their own invention. Thus, western civilization marks its beginnings with the Greeks. In honor of the Greeks’ “thievery”, the academic institutions of America formed study groups that eventually developed into social organizations as well, called fraternities and sororities. These groups were named after letters from the Greek alphabet. When African- American fraternities and sororities were formed in the early 1900s they imitated this trend and became known as “Black Greeks.” Today “Blacker and Latino Greeks” continue to follow this psychologically destructive and culturally contradictive trend. The practice of African Fraternalism notes the importance that the true origins of all secret societal life evolved from the loins of Africa, reaching its height in Kemet with the Mystery Systems and not with the Greeks as taught by western scholars. Bear in mind, we purposely spell Afrika with a 'k' because the popular spelling of Africa with a 'c' was first used when Afrikans were dispersed over the world. We prefer to use Afrika to symbolize our unity and awareness of our past.

Latino Connection

MALIK Fraternity Inc. takes great pride in the development of sincere relationships with all members of the community. Of important note is the organizational ties to the Latino community. A Latino is predominately any individual of Spanish-speaking descent. The racial makeup of a Latino is usually one of a mixture of the African, the Spanish European and the Indigenous (incorrectly called ‘indian’).A quick glance at our present history reveals a number of facts. African-Americans and Latinos are currently at the bottom of America’s social ladder. They live side by side in the neighborhoods of the ‘inner cities.’ They share the same poor quality health care and education services; they overpopulate the prison systems and share higher mortality and morbidity rates in America. However our society has major difficulty when it comes to recognizing the similarities that are inherently common among us.

A further look at the history of Spain will dispel the popular myths about the connection between the Latino and the African. Before Spain became a part of the Roman empire, it was colonized by the African Empire of Carthage. This empire is now known as present day Libya. The ruler of Carthage, founded and named the city of Barcelona, Spain after himself. He is also known as the father of the legendary Hannibal. Hannibal is famous for successfully leading a massive African army on the backs of elephants over the Alps mountains to conquer the arch-rivals of the Carthaginians, the Romans.

Incidentally, Spain and the Iberian Peninsula was ruled for over 500 years by the Black African Muslims known commonly as the Moors. During their control of this section of Europe, the Moors established an enriching culture incorporating the arts and sciences providing education on architecture, navigation, and irrigation to geology, physics and music. After the rape and destruction of Egypt, we see that the knowledge was preserved and utilized through the contribution of our Moorish brothers. It would also be interesting to note that the same systems of navigation and ship-building lead to the development of the Spanish Armada and the so-called discovery of the ‘New World’ by Columbus. Predating the intrusion of the European into the Western Hemisphere,the native indigenous people document their communication and contact with Africans. The earliest Meso-American peoples were known as the Olmec who left a lasting impact on the later peoples of Central and South America (namely the Maya, Inca and Aztec). The Olmec were the first in the Western Hemisphere to devise a 260 day calendar in addition to being the first to utilize hiero/petroglyphic writings. Ironically, the giant Olmec heads left in Mexico and Central America serve as proof of the racial identity of these people while historians and anthropologists refuse to acknowledge the Africanness of the Olmec statues. (‘They Came Before Columbus’ by VanSertima)

It is known through the experience of slavery in the Western World, that the enslaved Africans mixed with the Indigenous peoples and the Europeans. In areas such as the Caribbean islands, Peru, Costa Rica, Brazil, and Ecuador, the oppressed also fought alongside each other to win their freedom. So why is there a distinct line of separation between the African-American and Latino-American descendents of these proud people? Despite the fact that a perverse mental enslavement perpetuates itself to this date, it is the hope of MALIK Fraternity Inc, that our brothers and sisters can realize, accept and uphold with pride the historical validity to the Latino ties to Africa.

National Initiatives

MALIK Foundation

The MALIK Foundation, Incorporated was formed by MALIK Fraternity, Inc. in 2013 to be a 501 (c) (3) tax-exempt non-profit foundation. The Foundation was created to assist the fraternity in its charitable works and programming endeavors that seek to enrich and uplift the lives of those that are part of underserved populations. The MALIK Foundation will operate to further the best interest and general welfare of the Fraternity and our community through fundraisers, donations, grants, receiving and acquiring gifts and bequests of money, and property. By nature, The MALIK Foundation is philanthropic; The MALIK Foundation’s mission is to acquire and direct resources for the educational, cultural, leadership, and philanthropic programs of the Fraternity and for the scholastic, professional, and service pursuits of its members. The goal of The MALIK Foundation is to ensure that the Fraternity realizes its vision to develop progressive community programming, seize opportunities to serve underserved communities, provide leadership opportunities through the provision of cultural education, civic responsibility, self-reliance training, wealth generation and economic development initiatives.

Initiatives

The MALIK Foundation, Inc. will be the non-profit charitable arm of MALIK Fraternity, Inc. As the philanthropic counterpart of the Fraternity, the Foundation will obtain donations, grants and other contributions to further the mission of the Fraternity and its membership. Some Founding initiatives are: You Too can go to College MALIK R.O.P.E.

Partnerships

The MALIK Foundation seeks to partner with and be a benefit to those that are serving a similar purpose and have similar objectives as the brotherhood. One such partnership is with The Chionesu Bakari Program.

Membership

Rites of Passage

MALIK Fraternity Inc. patterns its initiation from a constructive updated version of a rites of passage process which marked the beginning of manhood. Realize that we are already men (age wise) when we initiate, but in this society there is no event to mark such a transformation. Ra Un Nefer Amen stated in his book 'Metu Neter' that becoming of age is not enough.

To qualify for citizenship in a traditional African society, with its rights to marry, bear arms, to claim ownership of land etc, the individual must achieve a certain degree of proficiency in the ability to ignore emotional pain, sensual temptation, physical tests etc. He must learn to place the needs of the many above those of the one. He must appreciate the value of accumulated experience through a show of respect for elders and wise men.

The gentlemen of MALIK do not seek to break brothers down and brainwash them into believing that they are inferior beings but instead they build brothers up, so as to make them better able to handle a society that 'pledges them on a regular basis.' It is also their desire to teach a perspective of where the fraternities and civilization as a whole originated. Just as the Greeks acquired portions of their alphabet from the African people so to did they receive their philosophy and culture. This is the concept of the Stolen Legacy.

References

http://www.trinicenter.com/kwame/2002/Feb/172002.htm Ivan Van Sertima, "Golden Age of the Moor" G. Mokhtar, "General History of Africa: Ancient Civilizations of Africa"

External links

• example.com