From the Nile to the Potomac
Remembering What We Were Forced to Forget About Our African Origins
Anthony Browder
Apr 09, 2025
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Enslavers made it illegal for Africans to read and write.
They were forced to forget all they had learned and taught.
After 400 years of forgetting, they forgot they had forgotten.
That changes today.
To understand why this change is so essential, we must first understand the profound wisdom of the man whose name graces our project.
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Dr. Clarke's Wisdom Guides Our Mission
Dr. John Henrik Clarke taught us that history serves as both a clock and a compass to help a people reorient themselves on the map of human geography and sync themselves with the great and mighty walk of their ancestors.
This profound understanding is why our project bears his name.
As one of my most beloved Jegna, colleague, and friend, I had the honor of knowing Dr. Clarke personally and spending hours discussing historical and current events. His passing has afforded me the opportunity to honor him as an ancestor by creating something that will ensure his legacy lives forever.
Beyond his philosophical understanding of history, Dr. Clarke offered practical insights that remain critically relevant in today's political climate and continue to shape our understanding of power dynamics in society.
Clarke's Transformative Insights
Think about that statement in the context of what's happening today with the erasure of African history.
Powerful people understand that:
This isn't about begging someone to give you reparations. It's about:
- Realizing you're responsible for restoring what was taken
- Understanding that power has always been in your hands
- Withholding your economic resources until group demands are met
Dr. Clarke's powerful insights didn't emerge out of a vacuum - they were formed through transformative encounters with scholars and thought leaders who recognized the importance of reclaiming our narrative.
His journey of intellectual development offers crucial lessons for all of us seeking to understand our history.
The Inspirations That Shaped Dr. Clarke
Dr. Clarke's journey began when he discovered Arthur Schomburg's essay "The Negro Digs Up His Past," which was published 100 years ago.As a 10-year-old youth, living in the rural South, Clarke read this transformative piece that challenged the lie that Black history began with slavery. Inspired by Schomburg's call to become "enthusiastic antiquarians" of our past, an 18-year-old Clarke jumped on a freight train to Harlem where he met Schomburg himself.
Under Schomburg's guidance, Clarke learned how to:
- Study the history of his oppressor
- Study African history
- Study world history
- Synthesize these studies for a comprehensive understanding of his place in the world
Dr. Clarke’s Impact and Legacy
Clarke's influence extended to key historical figures:- He met a young Kwame Nkruma when he was a student at Lincoln University and frequented Harlem on weekends. When Nkruma became president of post-colonial Ghana, Clarke was one of his political advisors.
- He counseled Malcolm X after his departure from the Nation of Islam, compiling information for Malcolm's speeches on African affairs and writing the charter for the OAAU (Organization for Afro American Unity).
Dr. Clarke was the founding president of the African Heritage Studies Association, an organization he established after leading a walkout from the white-led African Studies Association which refused to properly tell the story of African people or make space for African scholars.
These two organizations later came to Addis Ababa for an international conference on African historians, and only one would be allowed a meeting with then-president Haile Selassie.
It was Dr. Clarke who led his delegation to that historic meeting.
Dr. Clarke was also one of the founding members of ASCAC, the Association for the Study of Classical African Civilization. His organizational leadership reflects his understanding that institutional change was necessary to properly document and teach our history.
One of the proudest moments in my life was in 1992 when Dr. Clarke wrote the introduction to my second book, "Nile Valley Contributions to Civilization."
He blessed me with a copy of the introduction at an event we hosted for him here in DC, which humbled me to no end.
This is a man who still means the world to me, and to honor him is my obligation to ensure his name is never forgotten.
It is in this spirit of honoring Dr. Clarke's legacy that we have created the project that bears his name.
The Clarke Enhanced History Project's Mission
The John Henrik Clarke Enhanced History Project is a retrospective of African and African American history that provides context for the enslavement of Africans in America.It documents the historical accomplishments of people of African ancestry thousands of years before enslavement. The primary goal of the project is to correct distorted perceptions of African and African American history and tell the story of African migration from the Nile to the Niger to the Potomac.
The project consists of 12 displays documenting little-known aspects of African, African American, and US history.
It's part of an upgrade to the displays for the Egypt on the Potomac Field Trip, merging historical information to present a powerful narrative of the African presence in America before and since our enslavement.
To truly grasp the depth of this history, however, requires a commitment to studying the foundational texts that have preserved our story.
Essential Reading for the 21st Century
You cannot consider yourself prepared to play an active role in the liberation of Black minds without reading these 10 essential books:- Africa at the Crossroads: Notes for an African World Revolution - John Henrik Clarke
- Africa: Mother of Western Civilization - Yosef Ben Jochannan
- SBA: The Reawakening of the African Mind - Asa G. Hilliard
- They Came Before Columbus - Ivan Van Sertima
- Wonderful Ethiopians of the Ancient Cushite Empire - Drusilla Dunjee Houston
- The Isis Papers - Frances Cress Welsing
- Stolen Legacy - George G. M. James
- The Destruction of Black Civilization - Chancellor Williams
- Introduction to African Civilization - John G. Jackson
- Miseducation of the Negro - Carter G. Woodson
While these texts provide theoretical and historical foundations, our exhibits translate these scholarly insights into visual timelines that document our ancient presence across the globe.
Milestones in African History: Human Origins
One of my favorite displays at the Clarke Enhanced History Project is a 9-foot-long, 5-foot-high timeline covering an entire wall.
It highlights milestones in African history and showcases mitochondrial Eve, documenting the fact known by geneticists that every human being on this planet is of African genetic origin.
This timeline begins 300,000 years ago when Africans were the only humans on the planet. To ensure accuracy, I consulted multiple sources, including the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History's David H. Koch Hall of Human Origins.
The scientific evidence confirms three critical facts:
- Africans were the first human beings on the planet (300,000 years ago)
- Africans were the first human beings in Asia (65,000 years ago)
- Africans were the first human beings in Europe (45,000 years ago)
But understanding this history isn't enough - we must also use it to build our future.
From Sankofa to Kofa: Moving Beyond Reflection
Everyone talks about Sankofa, but it's important to go beyond Sankofa to Kofa.Sankofa means to look back, to study your history, to preserve your ideas, and to pass them on. But you can't just spend your life reflecting on the past - you must apply that knowledge to create the future.
Kofa means creating your future by applying and expanding upon the historical information you've studied. This requires:
- Not just talking about what you've read
- Internalizing what you’ve read and tapping into Ancestral Intelligence
- Using all available resources to ensure our proper place in a rapidly changing world
The Creative Process: Bringing History to Life
My working relationship with Free Benjamin has evolved beautifully over the years to create powerful visual narratives.I would develop a sketch or concept, and Free would expand and improve upon it. One example is the Egypt on the Potomac display - my simple sketch became an 18-foot mural spanning an entire wall.
This mural vividly illustrates highlights of our field trip through Washington DC.
Another example is our work on the National Museum of African American History and Culture display.
We created an image highlighting specific symbolic elements encoded into the architecture of this building. The architects very skillfully used available resources to tell a story within a story - the migration of African people from the Nile to the Niger to the Potomac.
The Africa Eye’s mural is a 25-foot work, wrapping around three walls, that documents this same migration story.
At its center is the Olmec head, connecting to Dr. Van Sertima's research showing that ancient Egyptians from the 25th dynasty traveled across the Atlantic and interacted with indigenous people in the country now called Mexico.
This powerful visual storytelling has attracted recognition beyond our immediate community.
Award-Winning Documentation
One of the elements we'll be sharing at the Clarke Enhanced History Project is a 23-minute video documenting the Africa Eye’s mural.This film won three Telly Awards last year—prestigious recognitions given to television and video productions that amplify the teaching of history and culture. I worked with a talented producer and videographer at Imagination Media who created this documentary of me explaining the Clarke Project.
This recognition affirms that our work has the power to transform understanding on a broader scale. The video is just one example of how we're applying multiple layers of communication to convey our essential message of historical reclamation.
Transition 14: The Aset Principle
For those familiar with my work, you've likely encountered this powerful declaration:This is a modified version of the poem "Transition 13" from my first book, "From the Brower File."
I revised it for students I worked with in California. I turned it into a pledge they recited at the beginning and end of each monthly session.
I named this revised piece "Transition 14: The Aset Principle."
Those familiar with the story of Aset (Isis) know she was the wife of Asar (Osiris) and responsible for literally “re-membering” the body of Asar.
We're at a phase in our struggle where we must activate the Aset principle—remembering those stories and histories that were made illegal and forgotten.
This principle of remembrance and restoration is powerfully embodied in the architecture of our national museum.
The Museum: More Than a Building
The National Museum of African American History and Culture represents far more than just an architectural achievement.
This building is a repository of artifacts that belonged to formerly enslaved Africans and African Americans who struggled for freedom in this country. We know that objects worn or carried by a person contain their spirit, and that energy lives on in these artifacts.
The true shape of the corona—the three-tiered bronze-colored inverted pyramids that grace the exterior of the Museum—is modeled after a Yoruba shrine post, which had three inverted pyramids atop the head of a priest. This design represents the descent of ancestral spirits into the consciousness of that priest, who was responsible for sharing their wisdom with everyone in the community.
In this context, the museum is more than an exhibition space—it's a shrine house.
When you enter a shrine with the right consciousness, you can access the spirit of the ancestors inside.
This is why understanding ancestral intelligence is key to unlocking our ability, not only to survive the onslaught others have planned for us, but to endure, thrive, and build a better future for yourselves and your descendants.
Now is the time for you to experience this ancestral wisdom firsthand by visiting our project or watching the online version.
Join Us for This Historical Journey
The Clarke Enhanced History Project formally opened on April 12, 2025. It is located on the second floor of the Thurgood Marshall Center, 1816 12th Street, NW in Washington, DC.The exhibit is free and open to the public 9-5 Monday through Friday and 9-3 on Saturdays.
Each display includes a QR code that provides access to additional video content via smartphone, creating layers of information for visitors.
This project represents our commitment to restoring the historical and cultural memories of people of African descent. It's the latest effort in our mission to help us become the people we have always been.
I invite you to bring your family to this transformative exhibition.
I ask you to bring an open heart and mind and receive the knowledge that awaits you.
Thank you for reading
Anthony T. Browder
Founder of IKG Cultural Resource Center
PS.
If you liked this newsletter and want to find out more about the history of Kemet, check out my book Nile Valley Contributions to Civilization
Join me on my field Trip in Washington DC: Egypt on the Potomac
And (if you haven't already), check out the online Clarke Enhance History Project
