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Nubian Civilization

Verses National Geographic Society Racist Pathology

In February of 2008 publishers of National Geographic Magazine featured on its cover a contemporary painting depicting a fictitious battle between Nubia and Kemet (misnomer: Egypt), and featured an essay by one Robert Draper entitled The Black Pharaohs alleging Black Pharaohs, of the 25th Dynasty, invaded a non-Black, but White, Kemet. Here again African people are confronted with the racial pathology exhibited by another bastion of White racism and the myth of 'White Supremacy'. In spite of the overabundance of facts and documentation that proves beyond any doubt that the Kemetians (Egyptians), like their Nubian relatives, were Black the pathology of White racist apparently will not allow them to accept reality, so instead they persist at propounding a contrived myth of 'White Created Ancient Civilizations' as though it were history. This contrivance reappears frequently, as if it were a person suffering with the hiccups. Nevertheless, we find it important to address these episodes of 'psychopathic-hiccups' as they occur.

(l to r) 4 Libyans, Nubian, Semite, Kemetian [Egyptian] - Tomb of Sety I National Geographic Magazine and Robert Draper's essential contention is that Black's invaded and conquered Kemet (Egypt) in the 8th century BC, and crowned themselves Pharaoh. Draper states: "Piye was the first of the so-called black pharaohs - a series of Nubian kings who ruled over all of Egypt for three-quarters of a century as that country's 25th dynasty."¹ Further, inferring that the Kemetians were White, or at least, non-Black he states: "The ancient world was devoid of racism. At the time of Piye's historic conquest, the fact that his skin was dark was irrelevant. Artwork from ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome shows a clear awareness of racial features and skin tone, but there is little evidence that darker skin was seen as a sign of inferiority.¹ Drapers' article, true to form uses inference and subterfuge to suggest it is an accepted fact that the Kemetians were White. Of course he produces no artifacts or images from the time period he speaks of that gives even the remotest support. In addressing these issues our comments will focus on the race of the Kemetians, the perception of race in the ancient world, and on the racist pathology of National Geographic Magazine and its surrogates.

Our rebuttal starts outside of Africa, in Greece. Why? You might ask. Because it is to Greece that the White world of academia suggest is their beginnings of 'civilization'; and it is Greece that informs us about the 'Ancient White View' of the Kemetic race. Scholars date the infant beginnings of Greek civilization to the 9th or 8th century BC depending upon how you view the writings of Homer - The Iliad and the Odyssey - works that are considered to indicate the beginnings of Greek thought and identity in the Ancient world. I reference this period because prior to this period there is no alleged Greek Civilization to speak of and therefore no Ancient White European of Mediterranean Civilization to speak of. Also it is in this light when we point out that the Kemetians (Egyptians) were Black and certainly not White Europeans.

(l to r) Semite, Kemetian [Egyptian], Libyan - 19th Dynasty / 1200 BC, Tomb of Ramesses III In spite of the claims of earlier beginnings it was not until the 5th century BC that the Greek state is fully established, prior to said time there were a conglomerate of cities and towns of sworn allegiance to one fraternity or another. During the forth century Greeks, and those from their conquered territories began to matriculate in Kemet in search of a better lot in life. All of them who visited noted the race and similarities of both the Kemetians (Egyptians) and the Nubians, the only distinctions drawn were in complexion, dress, and dialect. Without recounting each visitors comments suffice it to consult the books by Dr. William Leo Hansberry: Africa and Africans As Seen By Classical Writers, and the books by Dr. Martin Bernal: Black Athena (3vols). As pointed out in their works not one of the ancient writers mentions seeing a White Kemetian (Eyptian).

We continue on to Mesopotamia (Sumer, Elam, Babylon) - the so-called Middle East - to discern if there were Whites there who could have been part to the Kemetic Civilization. However we discover that Black Civilizations there were recently overrun by Whites known as the Martu, now called by modern scholars after the Black God Asur/Assur/Ausar - Assyrians. These Whites of barbaric origins (of course meaning 'without civilization') managed to conquer the Black civilizations after more than a thousands years of invasion and warfare, and subsequently invaded Kemet for the first time in 725BC. We point this out because prior to their defeat of the Sumerians and Elamites in Southern Mesopotamia, there were no Whites powers of consequence in the area; there were no signs of White civilization anywhere on the planet, much less in or near Kemet (Egypt). See the Kemet Digest article "Faces of the Invaders" for more details on this topic. Click Here

(l to r) Libyan, Nubian, Syrian, Bedouin, Hittite - 1200 BC, from a temple of Ramesses III Regarding race in the ancient world it's significant that in spite of having other names for their homeland each major Black Civilization also referenced themselves by skin (race) color: Kemet - Land of the Blacks (North Africa), Sa-Gi-Ga - The Black Headed People (Sumer), and Meluha - Land of the Blacks (Indus/Dravidian). Of course one is compelled to ask the question, Why? Would Black people find it necessary to designate themselves as 'Black' in relationship to each other? Most likely not. However, more likely than not, the designation 'Black' as an identification was in response to the Aryan (White Semite and Europeans) invasions that persisted from the 2nd millennium with the invaders intent on conquering and plundering each of the 'Black' societies. This is what the historian Legrand Clegg termed: "Ancient Racism"; which he defined as: "The persistent, systematic and pervasive acts of aggression by white and yellow peoples against Black people from about 20,000 B.C. through the beginning of the Christian era that invariably resulted in the conquest, expulsion or extermination of the Blacks and the concomitant usurpation of their territories by non-Blacks."

(l to r) Kemetian [Egyptian], Libyan, Nubian, Semite Draper's earlier quote: " At the time of Piye's historic conquest, the fact that his skin was dark was irrelevant" is true only because it was the act of one Black nation-state conquering another Black nation-state. Yet skin color was not lost on Blacks of the ancient world as earlier indicated by their designated names - Kemet, Sa-Gi-Ga, and Meluha. Further the Kemetians (Egyptians) left us hundreds-of-thousands of images as to who they were and what they looked like. One such instance is taken from a tomb of the 19th Dynasty where Pharaoh Rameses II had the then know races of the world depicted. A composite of which is shown here - i.e. the four racial types. Going from left to right we have the Kemetican (Egyptian), the Libyan, the Nubian, and the Semite. Note that the Kemetians depicted themselves to be just as African and Black as the Nubian, their relatives. If the Kemetians (Egyptians) were White certainly they would have depicted themselves as such. In all the temple paintings on this page it is obvious who is 'Black' and who is 'White'. Whereas the Nubians and the Kemetians [Egyptians] are represented by the Kemetians [Egyptians] as Black (with varying hues), the other groups are clearly White. Interestingly, the White ideologues and pseudo-scholars cannot produce one such painting by either the Nubians or the Kemetians representing the Kemetians [Egyptians] as White.

Nubian Royalty Bearing Tribute In another instance (the image to the left) the nuance of colors of the Kemetians and the Nubians is indicated. However, White ideologues and pseudo-scholars, as in the case of Robert Draper, are fond of showing only the very top-right portion as a way of inferring Nubian subordination to the Kemetians; doing so deliberately takes the scene out of context. Yet when viewed in context we have the following: In the top register (row) Nubian leaders prostrate and stand before the Pharaoh (who is always depicted as larger and in other ways superior to his subjects); they are royally dressed and bare precious gifts. In the second register (which is considered to follow the top, or fist register) subordinates present to the Pharaoh 'exotic' gifts of unique foods, animals and other gifts. In the third register more subordinates present gifts of jewels, gold and other articles. In the forth, and bottom, register additional gifts, including White Slaves/Captives/Servants are presented to the Pharaoh.

When looked at as a whole we see that the Nubians and Kemetians are represented alike in varying hues from black, to dark brown, to light brown or reddish-brown. The Nubians are presented with dignity as befitting their standing, they are bearers of immense wealth, and it is the White's and not the Nubians who are presented as slaves/captives. Notice the images in the center of the bottom register with the blond and red hair. It is clear that the Whites are neither the Nubians nor the Kemetians (Egyptians); they are foreigners. Yet, this scene is always edited and falsely labeled by the White ideologues and pseudo-scholars to give the impression that there is a racial difference between the Nubians and the Kemetians, when it is apparent that the real difference is between them and the Whites who are on the lowest rung in the society as evidenced by this temple painting.

Nubians presenting White slaves/captives (in center) We turn our attention to National Geographic, its publishers and contributors. From its inception National Geographic consciously participated in the denigration of Black (African) people and in the pathological acts of proclaiming Black (African) Civilizations to be the creation of White people. The February 2008 edition of their magazine is no different. Using as surrogate Robert Draper they make the contention that Black Pharaohs of Nubia invaded a White Kemet in spite of all facts and evidence to the contrary - there was no White Egypt to invade. To make its point the author and the racist bastion at National Geographic resorted to using contemporary drawings by white artist depicting the Kemetians as White. This would be no different than if the Asians said the Kemetians were Asian and had their artist to draw pictures depicting them as such. It doesn't change the facts. Ignoring and mis-labeling the images the Kemetians used to depict themselves, National Geographic resorted to the pathological practice of Identity Theft - simply depicting White people in the image of the people and cultures they seek to appropriate. Identity Theft, vis-a-vis Black Civilizations, has been a practice of this magazine and its organization since the time of its inception. This type of pathological racism is a crime against humanity for which National Geographic should be held accountable. National Geographic should be sanctioned by scholars, scientist, and institutions of learning, and legally sanctioned by a world court.

The relationship between the Nation-States of Nubia and Kemet (Egypt), both constituents of the 'Nile-Valley Civilization', deserves to be told truthfully, supported by the facts and evidence, and not by the machinations of psychopathic predators using whatever means at their disposal to append the culture and identity of another people as their own. That Kemet is but one of the African societies that developed out of Nubia, and that the Nubians on more than one occasion conquered Kemet and re-set it on the path consistent with it guiding philosophy should be appreciated on its own merit. Kemet, deserves no less of said treatment; and certainly not to have the descendants of the invaders and destroyers of its society claiming to be its progeny. How much more insulting and criminal could this be.

©2009 Ta-Nefer Ankh / site design: African American Media LLC