Is It Time for New Black Leadership? A View from the Left
Date: Monday, February 23, 2004
Author: Raymond Winbush
We need more Jegnas.
I first heard the term a couple of years ago from Marimba Ani, the author of “Yurugu” and “Let the Circle Be Unbroken.”
Jegna is an Ethiopian (Amharic) word that means "a very brave person who is a protector of a culture, the rights of his or her people and their land."
A Jegna is more than a "leader." She or he is someone who is not afraid to speak truth to power, is uncompromised, full of integrity and at the very core of his or her being sees the welfare and protection of their people as paramount. They are literally prepared to die for the community they represent.
Denmark Vesey was a Jegna. So was Harriet Tubman. Yaa Asantewa. Malcolm X and Martin Luther King.
Where are today’s black Jegnas? They are few and far between.
In a recent article in the Village Voice, columnist Thulani Davis writes, "The problem of black leadership is not [Al] Sharpton, but a lack of other voices outside of the presidential contests who could exert enough influence on the Democratic Party to stem the rightward drift that has sacrificed our interests. It's time to throw out some of these cult-of-celebrity tactics and go back to organizing around the real needs in our communities."
She’s right. I have always been suspicious since the death of Martin Luther King about "national black leaders" who appear on the scene and never saw a camera they didn’t like. Many of them invoke the name of King but neglect King’s least written about but most important talent -- organizing at the local level for social change.
I once attended an event where Jesse Jackson said that there are "tree shakers and jelly makers" and then proudly described himself as the former.
The idea of "jelly maker," I suppose, is a long-term commitment to a cause that sees tangible results -- a Jegna if you please. That's opposed to a person who moves swiftly from one issue to the next (tree shaker), draws media attention in large part to him or herself then moves on to the next "cause."
Though the audience around me loudly applauded Jackson’s self-description, I winced at it, and thought that drive-by organizing should never replace long-term community involvement.
Posted by P6 at February 23, 2004 02:15 PM
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Comments
Good Evening:
I am writing to inquire about information related to the concept and function of the "Jegna". Can you point me toward some good sources to help me understand this concept of Jegna? Thank you.
Menelik
This article is the first time I'd run across the word. It's still available on the other side of the link.
Knowing Ray, I don't think Jegna represents a formal role or concept. He like pulling deep symbolism out of terminology (or putting it in). If I had written an article to get across the same point, not having an African language to draw from, I'd have likely used the word "hero" where Ray used "jegna."