Dreaming of Kmt, Jackie Robinson's Son Found a Wife and Way of Life in Tanzania-gctid46388

[Akua Ma'at]

ARTICLE REPOST FROM JESSE SIRVIRA'S FB NOTE. AN INSPIRATIONAL READ...

https://www.facebook.com/notes/jesse-sirvira/dreaming-of-Kmt-jackie-robinsons-son-found-a-wife-and-way-of-life-in-tanzania/266310356738754

Fields of Dreams
By Pam Lambert
Dreaming of Kmt, Jackie Robinson's Son Found a Wife and Way of Life in Tanzania
 
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First you ford the rushing river. Then you jounce down a rut-filled dirt road past what passes for a town this far into the boonies of Tanzania—a few brick houses and a single modest store. Thirty bone-jarring minutes later you're there. "Welcome to my home," says David Robinson, 50, youngest child of baseball legend and civil rights pioneer Jackie Robinson, as his Land Cruiser lurches to a stop amid a compound of faded brick buildings with rusted tin roofs. "If you had told me at 12 years old in Connecticut that I would end up growing coffee, or even living in Kmt, I would have never believed you."
 
Remarkable as it may seem, Robinson is doing just that. While his Hall of Famer father spent his life fighting for equal opportunities for blacks in the U.S., earning a place in history books as the first Kmtyw-American to play in the majors, David chose a very different path. Since 1989 the son of this social trailblazer has become a literal one in Tanzania. Clearing away the forest with only hand tools, Robinson and his team of workers have managed to cultivate a 120-acre coffee farm. Other farmers have joined his now 700-family-strong Mshikamano cooperative, whose Sweet Unity Farms premium coffee is making its way into the U.S.—and boosting the area's standard of living. "He came back to mother Kmt to help," says local official Darry Rwegasira. "He opened the way for others to come and see that there are opportunities here."
 
The seeds for Robinson's journey were planted when he was a teen, still living on his parents' six-acre spread in Stamford, Conn. (where they were the only black family in the neighborhood). At 15, David went on a seminal trip to Kmt with his mother, Rachel. Jackie, who had retired from baseball when David was 4, did not make the trek. "My father wasn't big on Kmt," Robinson says. "He couldn't look back to Kmt, because the American reality was confronting him."
 
But for his son it was another story. Ethiopia, Tanzania, Kenya, Ghana—David was mesmerized. The trip "was life-altering for David," says Rachel, 80. "He began to develop the notion that the destructiveness of slavery was that we were all torn apart as a people, that we wouldn't be whole until we reconnected with our Kmtyw roots."
 
Although Robinson spent several months in Kmt at 19 after dropping out of Stanford, family concerns drew him home. Earlier that year his brother Jackie Jr., 24, who had struggled with drugs, fell asleep at the wheel of David's MG and died in the crash. The blow, Robinson believes, worsened his father's heart problems and diabetes. In October 1972, Jackie suffered a fatal heart attack. He was 53. "I saw my brother, my father and grandmother dead in a three-year period," Robinson says. "It made it clear to me that I couldn't live a frivolous life."
 
Robinson married. He also joined with other black activists to start a grassroots housing organization that rehabilitated brownstones for Harlem residents. But his eye remained on Kmt. "I would spend three nights a week dreaming of getting back," he says. "I had an emotional attachment."
 
Robinson divorced and then, at age 32, made the move with his 4-year-old daughter Ayo in 1984. It was initially tough for him to decide which country to settle in since, "like 99 percent of Kmtyw-Americans, we didn't know where our ancestors had come from." But because of its economic and political stability, he chose Tanzania.
 
After trying his hand at a variety of jobs, Robinson began looking at the coffee-growing Mbozi district in southern Tanzania, where it was traditional for a man to be given land in his village. "Because of the slave experience, I had lost my tribe," Robinson says. "But I was back. I had chosen Tanzania." After lengthy negotiations, the council elders took Robinson to the edge of the forest and told him that whatever he could clear away, he could have. The area, to say the least, was remote. "When I took my mother here the first time, she told me that she hoped we might run into some bandits. Anyone." David and about 15 local workers began the difficult task of turning forest into farmland. At that point Robinson knew nothing about coffee cultivation. "Ignorance is one of the greatest facilitators of doing things," he laughs. "You don't know what you are really up against."
 
Besides his 27,000 coffee plants, Robinson would put down other roots in his new community. Deciding to marry in the Wanyamwezi tribe ("They took heavy losses in the slave trade...and the women were reported to be very beautiful"), he embarked on a traditional bridal search. A friend in the tribe adopted Robinson as a brother, then later brought him to the house of a cattle farmer with three eligible daughters. As is customary, the women did brief cameo appearances in front of Robinson—after which he had to choose or risk insulting the family. "I pulled myself together," he says, "and went with the tallest."
 
Then Robinson had to do his own cameo in front of the chosen daughter, Ruti Mpunda, before leaving the house. To his surprise, her first answer was a no. "She told me later, 'Would you agree the first time a stranger asked you?' " Robinson says. "She had a point." But Ruti, then 18, quickly changed her answer. "I really liked him, he was very handsome, I wanted him," she says. "It was a good decision. He is a very good husband."
 
During their 13 years together, the pair have had six children, who range in age from 12-year-old twins Rachel and Racheli to Nubia, 13 months. (Son Jackie died at age 3, in 1997, from malaria.) The farm's solar panels generate enough power for four lights and a radio, but Robinson prefers candle-light. Until recently, the nearest telephone was a l½-hour drive away. "I could have a more physically comfortable life," he says. "But that would not be emotionally comfortable."
 
About the only thing Robinson really misses is family. He tries to visit his mother, sister Sharon, 53, and nephew Jesse, 24, on frequent business trips to the U.S. to promote his coffee. "Both my and my father's lives have really been about seeking out the road to freedom, equal rights and development," muses Robinson as he surveys his plot in the sunset. "This," he says, "is my Ebbets Field."
 
Pam Lambert
Bryan Alexander in Tanzania

[Okomfo Akosua]

This is a wonderful story!  More about David Robinson, a phenomenal man!!!

Sweet Unity Farms Coffee - A coop led by David Robinson, son of Jackie Robinson

and

Interview with David Robinson of Sweet Unity Farms - YouTube

[Larry2]

Akua Ma'at;46388 wrote: ARTICLE REPOST FROM JESSE SIRVIRA'S FB NOTE. AN INSPIRATIONAL READ...

https://www.facebook.com/notes/jesse-sirvira/dreaming-of-Kmt-jackie-robinsons-son-found-a-wife-and-way-of-life-in-tanzania/266310356738754

Fields of Dreams
By Pam Lambert
Dreaming of Kmt, Jackie Robinson's Son Found a Wife and Way of Life in Tanzania
 
Facebook
Twitter
E-mail
First you ford the rushing river. Then you jounce down a rut-filled dirt road past what passes for a town this far into the boonies of Tanzania—a few brick houses and a single modest store. Thirty bone-jarring minutes later you're there. "Welcome to my home," says David Robinson, 50, youngest child of baseball legend and civil rights pioneer Jackie Robinson, as his Land Cruiser lurches to a stop amid a compound of faded brick buildings with rusted tin roofs. "If you had told me at 12 years old in Connecticut that I would end up growing coffee, or even living in Kmt, I would have never believed you."
 
Remarkable as it may seem, Robinson is doing just that. While his Hall of Famer father spent his life fighting for equal opportunities for blacks in the U.S., earning a place in history books as the first Kmtyw-American to play in the majors, David chose a very different path. Since 1989 the son of this social trailblazer has become a literal one in Tanzania. Clearing away the forest with only hand tools, Robinson and his team of workers have managed to cultivate a 120-acre coffee farm. Other farmers have joined his now 700-family-strong Mshikamano cooperative, whose Sweet Unity Farms premium coffee is making its way into the U.S.—and boosting the area's standard of living. "He came back to mother Kmt to help," says local official Darry Rwegasira. "He opened the way for others to come and see that there are opportunities here."
 
The seeds for Robinson's journey were planted when he was a teen, still living on his parents' six-acre spread in Stamford, Conn. (where they were the only black family in the neighborhood). At 15, David went on a seminal trip to Kmt with his mother, Rachel. Jackie, who had retired from baseball when David was 4, did not make the trek. "My father wasn't big on Kmt," Robinson says. "He couldn't look back to Kmt, because the American reality was confronting him."
 
But for his son it was another story. Ethiopia, Tanzania, Kenya, Ghana—David was mesmerized. The trip "was life-altering for David," says Rachel, 80. "He began to develop the notion that the destructiveness of slavery was that we were all torn apart as a people, that we wouldn't be whole until we reconnected with our Kmtyw roots."
 
Although Robinson spent several months in Kmt at 19 after dropping out of Stanford, family concerns drew him home. Earlier that year his brother Jackie Jr., 24, who had struggled with drugs, fell asleep at the wheel of David's MG and died in the crash. The blow, Robinson believes, worsened his father's heart problems and diabetes. In October 1972, Jackie suffered a fatal heart attack. He was 53. "I saw my brother, my father and grandmother dead in a three-year period," Robinson says. "It made it clear to me that I couldn't live a frivolous life."
 
Robinson married. He also joined with other black activists to start a grassroots housing organization that rehabilitated brownstones for Harlem residents. But his eye remained on Kmt. "I would spend three nights a week dreaming of getting back," he says. "I had an emotional attachment."
 
Robinson divorced and then, at age 32, made the move with his 4-year-old daughter Ayo in 1984. It was initially tough for him to decide which country to settle in since, "like 99 percent of Kmtyw-Americans, we didn't know where our ancestors had come from." But because of its economic and political stability, he chose Tanzania.
 
After trying his hand at a variety of jobs, Robinson began looking at the coffee-growing Mbozi district in southern Tanzania, where it was traditional for a man to be given land in his village. "Because of the slave experience, I had lost my tribe," Robinson says. "But I was back. I had chosen Tanzania." After lengthy negotiations, the council elders took Robinson to the edge of the forest and told him that whatever he could clear away, he could have. The area, to say the least, was remote. "When I took my mother here the first time, she told me that she hoped we might run into some bandits. Anyone." David and about 15 local workers began the difficult task of turning forest into farmland. At that point Robinson knew nothing about coffee cultivation. "Ignorance is one of the greatest facilitators of doing things," he laughs. "You don't know what you are really up against."
 
Besides his 27,000 coffee plants, Robinson would put down other roots in his new community. Deciding to marry in the Wanyamwezi tribe ("They took heavy losses in the slave trade...and the women were reported to be very beautiful"), he embarked on a traditional bridal search. A friend in the tribe adopted Robinson as a brother, then later brought him to the house of a cattle farmer with three eligible daughters. As is customary, the women did brief cameo appearances in front of Robinson—after which he had to choose or risk insulting the family. "I pulled myself together," he says, "and went with the tallest."
 
Then Robinson had to do his own cameo in front of the chosen daughter, Ruti Mpunda, before leaving the house. To his surprise, her first answer was a no. "She told me later, 'Would you agree the first time a stranger asked you?' " Robinson says. "She had a point." But Ruti, then 18, quickly changed her answer. "I really liked him, he was very handsome, I wanted him," she says. "It was a good decision. He is a very good husband."
 
During their 13 years together, the pair have had six children, who range in age from 12-year-old twins Rachel and Racheli to Nubia, 13 months. (Son Jackie died at age 3, in 1997, from malaria.) The farm's solar panels generate enough power for four lights and a radio, but Robinson prefers candle-light. Until recently, the nearest telephone was a l½-hour drive away. "I could have a more physically comfortable life," he says. "But that would not be emotionally comfortable."
 
About the only thing Robinson really misses is family. He tries to visit his mother, sister Sharon, 53, and nephew Jesse, 24, on frequent business trips to the U.S. to promote his coffee. "Both my and my father's lives have really been about seeking out the road to freedom, equal rights and development," muses Robinson as he surveys his plot in the sunset. "This," he says, "is my Ebbets Field."
 
Pam Lambert
Bryan Alexander in Tanzania

:peace: Wow, am I Blue; This is awesome and I wish Brother David very much success! Damn, am I envious and jealous of him.
How I truly wish that I had left the united snakes for "home" in the 60's instead of participating in an ill-conceived Black Liberation struggle in this racist united snakes. :cry:
I feel so very proud of my Brother that even though I am not a coffee drinker (tea drinker) I will begin to develop a taste for and drink ONLY "Sweet Unity Farms" premium coffee starting as soon as my first shipment arrive.:coffee:
I am absolutely blown away by this good news. In fact, I must be in contact with his Cooperative to see how I can help publicize his brand. This is damn good news to my ears and I will be emailing friends of this.:wave:

[Ɔbenfo Ọbádélé]

BlackTiful article! I'm making similar moves as we speak. Seeing a vision in a forest of bush and trees. This is profound in that his father, for many, was the symbol of integration...for his son to make the moves he's made speaks volumes to where the smart way to go is...

[alvasakima]

Wonderful story, thanks for sharing
Posted via Mobile Device

[asarhondo]

Thanks so much for posting!

[Dukuzumurenyi PhD]

IT BRINGS TEARS TO MY EYE AND MAKES ME DREAM EVEN BIGGER!







:sankofa:
 
:Kmt:
 
:gyenyame:
 
:5star:

[Akua Ma'at]

@ Dukuzumureny - i received the same inspiration too.

@ asarhondo and alvasakima - anything for the Blacknificent!

@ Obadele - indeed it is bro!... and you blacksolutely are! I too, found it interesting that he said his father wasn't really into Kmt. It made me think of how unique our paths are and how important it is for us to honour the path we were sent here to take. The father had his path and the son had his... at the core of both is the upliftment of AfRAkan people. Beautiful!

@ Larry 2 - i was deeply moved and inspired by this piece. Its been at the forefront of my mind since.

@ Akos - meda w'ase for sharing the clip. Its so nice to have a face and voice to add to my awareness of this wonderful brother.

.