Out of Africa: Angolans In Oregon
/On this episode of Black Beat Podcast, Mimi Abdulai, President of the Angolan Community Organization of Oregon(ACOO) illuminates the work of the nonprofit organization, whose main focus is to build solidarity and friendship between Angolan immigrants and the diverse Portland communities where they reside. The organization's work centers around raising awareness and preserving the cultural and humanitarian purposes of Angola through education and outreach geared towards understanding and uniting with the Black community as a whole.
What Black Beat Host, John Washington and Mimie Abdulai talk about:
Ms. Abdulai’s history and background
What led her to be an advocate for the Angolan community in Portland
Her successes and challenges as a Black female non-profit President
Her thoughts and perspectives on race relations
in America and how they differ in Angola and Africa
What are your long term personal and professional goals?
Her advice for other females in the world of non-profits
How listeners can connect with the Angolan Community Organization of Oregon
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As President and eloquent Ambassador to the community on behalf of The Angolan Community Organization of Oregon, Mimie Abdulai is passionate about fostering knowledge and understanding of the roots and origins of Angola and Africa as a whole. "Angola is a former Portuguese colony so the official language is Portuguese,” she explained. “While most people speak Portuguese in Angola, we have over 20 dialects which we would like to promote because Angola was under Portuguese colonial governance for over 500 years. As the last African nation to be freed and obtain its independence in 1975, most of our culture and languages were erased and older generations are the only ones left speaking our dialects. We would like to bring back those things that make us Angolan.”
With a population of about 400 Angolans living in Oregon, the focus of ACOO is to build solidarity and friendship within the larger community, raise awareness and preserve the African nations cultural and humanitarian purposes. “The earliest settlements were established in the early 90's by refugees and since then, others have migrated here, mostly college age students and people who have settled here integrating into the Portland community,” Ms. Abdulai reflected. “As Angolans, we are known for our culture and dance, Kizomba, which is known all over the world. During the pandemic, there was the song ‘Jerusalema’ that was choreographed by Angolans and helped provide relief all over the world during this pandemic. We are a very friendly people and we adapt to change as evidenced by our colonial history.”
Her tone took on a somber note as she shared the history of slavery in her native country. "Portugal is not well known currently, but in the past, was considered the United States of their time because they led all the slavery and migration. When Christopher Columbus discovered America, it was Portugal that was on top of the business in the era of slavery. We saw many of our Brothers and Sisters shipped off to Europe, both Southern and Northern Americas, and to some Asian countries as well."
Seeking to broaden her horizons, Abdulai relocated to the Pacific Northwest. "I moved to OR because my husband was working for a tech company which I worked for as well. I was doing medical interpretation in Swahili at OHSU in 2017 when an Angolan gentleman approached me. He asked where I was from and when he found out that I too was from Angola, he invited me to Thanksgiving where I met a wonderful family, one of the earliest Angolan settlers in Oregon, the Capuia family. Daniel Capuia and his wife Alisha Moreland Capuia, who is an incredible figure, activist and Doctor who worked at OHSU and now at Harvard University, told me of their plan to move to Cambridge, Mass. and because of my interest in the community, they suggested that I should be the next President. So voting happened two years after that and the people spoke, democracy spoke and here I am", she said with a laugh.
Being a female non-profit leader has not always been easy. "Challenges, which I will call opportunities, are many because most Black non-profit leaders are dominated by male figures, so trying to break into that position is challenging in the fact that people don't know Angola exists. Being a Black non-profit, we face challenges getting our community recognized, getting funded and penetrating the non-profit community. Thankfully, there is always a helping hand to help, always a good Samaritan willing to show us the ropes and introduce us to the right people; however we still have a lot of work to do in establishing our Black nonprofit here in Oregon.”
As someone with a deep and abiding interest in history, Ms. Abdulai delved into the roots of Angola and found patriarchal influences upon her country were pre-dated by a matriarchal government. "I studied the history of Angola and I believe the patriarchal element in society came after our encounter with the Portuguese community. We used to have a very strong Queen, Nzinga Mbande, who was not just strong in Angola but also in Africa because she dealt very well with the Portuguese who came to Angola as traders. In the present, however, we are a very, very male dominated society and we are trying to break away from that. We have seen a lot of higher public offices being occupied by women but there is still work to be done to change this."
In terms of racial relations in America as opposed to her experiences growing up in Angola, Ms. Abdulai shared her perspective upon the stark differences. "The way we were raised in Angola was to look at people and not race. Race was not an issue in my house. We had every race imaginable in our neighborhood and we never looked at race. In moving to the US, I had to confront it and in the beginning, I didn't want to lose my ingenuity and didn't want to deal with it, but in reality, we have to deal with it because when you move here they are not going to ask you if you are African, or from France or anywhere else, the first thing they see is color, that you are Black. It defines you a lot here in America. This conversation is overwhelming and sad and has to happen so that my children and children's children don't have to deal with this. I dread having to talk to my 8 year old about race and the things she will encounter out there in the world and also dread my male nephews having to worry that they will be judged based on their stature, whether they are they too nice, too assertive or belligerent and it keeps me awake at night. I hope we come together as a human race and address that.”
While the Black community in Oregon has been largely supportive and accepting, racial tension has created a dynamic that is foreign and disturbing to Ms. Abdulai and other Angolans who have relocated here. "The Black community here are very very nice and the majority has accepted us as Brothers and Sisters, however, we have to address the problems we have with each other and the distinctions among ourselves as well otherwise it makes it easier to break us apart,” she said sadly. “We are not really united as one front, because even amongst ourselves, we discuss skin color. It was very sad when I first heard the term "light-skinned" in my 20s. In America, if you are less than 98% white, you are BLACK. So we need to unite knowing that we are Black, like it or not. It is really shocking to a lot of Africans in America and we do not relate.”
Despite the challenges and difficulties acclimating to a completely new way of life, the ACOO has many accomplishments to celebrate, even in the wake of a global pandemic. "We are very motivated to see that our numbers are remaining the same and it is a reason to be happy that we can see our Grandparents, nieces and nephews now,” she observed. “During the pandemic, we saw the most engagement as a community with the state of Oregon. We had the pleasure of working with the Oregon Health Authority and received a grant to fund our community so that we can get through the restrictive time at the beginning of the pandemic. We were given masks and given food to distribute at various locations and we worked closely with the Oregon Health Authority in making sure that everyone knew about the safety measures that the CDC were coming up with. We applied that in our outreach, not just in the Angolan community, but in the other non-African communities in general. This year we have been busy with the vaccination campaign and letting people know the pros and the cons on this very touchy subject amongst not just African communities, but the Black community, which is something that unites us in regards to concerns around mass vaccinations. We are also busy planning for after the pandemic, because we as Black people know that this too shall pass and it's important to be prepared for that."
Ms. Abdulai’s passion for helping others in her community extends to other Women seeking to enter the field of non-profit work. "For those who want to get into nonprofit work, the most important thing is to know why you want to do so because even though it is rewarding, there is no money in it but there is joy in doing something selfless for your community,” she shared. “You need to be really dedicated to your cause, you have to figure out your reasons and they have to be the right reasons. You will have days where you will feel that you are done so it is important that you have to have passion and your faith has to be strong. Don't give up, keep on going, keep on helping your community and know that stone by stone you will build your skyscraper. One thing I learned from my Father is that your life is fulfilled when you put it to the service of others and your community. I never understood why he wrote this in the family album, but now as an adult I am understanding it more. I saw my Father doing work for our community and it was that passion that was passed down to me to help our Brothers and Sisters climb up that podium and get out of whatever circumstances that keep us on the bottom. If we are holding hands and helping each other, there are going to be many of us on top, many of us in those meetings where those decisions are being made and our voices will be heard."
Her long term goals, personally and professionally, reflect her desire to continue helping others to know their roots and unite as a people to achieve a common purpose. “I want to inspire people, not just in our Angolan community, to unite as a Black community all over the world. We need to stop defining ourselves as African-American--we are Black and maybe that's not a good definition, but we know where we come from. Knowing where we come from is the definition of strength because when we know who we are and no one is going to tell us differently. My future is to speak to all Black people regardless of where they are geographically located, we are Brothers and Sisters and stronger together. We are a powerful race, we just need to know that we are and to believe that we are and we will achieve whatever we have set out to achieve.”
For more information on the Angolan Community Organization of Oregon
visit their website at www.angolansoregon.org
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Angolansoforegon
or email oangolacommunity@gmail.com
