When she went home to Kenya to have her child, she observed how the babies were carried. She said you could barely see the children. Let me explain. They were so well wrapped in protective blankets that they were hard to see. This was even the case with older children. They would just be wrapped in larger blankets, like a cocoon.

After giving birth Claire’s child did cry. She cried a lot. She had forgotten everything she read from the books and was feeling overwhelmed. That was until her grandmother came to visit and gave her pearls of wisdom. She told her that the crying would stop if she just breastfed, even when the child was not hungry. The loving gesture and posture needed for breast-feeding comforts the child’s in a very natural way.

Here is Claire’s grandmother’s wonderful philosophy:

Offer the breast every single moment that your baby is upset – even if you have just fed her.

Co-sleep. Many times you can feed your baby before they are fully awake, which will allow them to go back to sleep easier and get you more rest.

Always take a flask of warm water to bed with you at night to keep you hydrated and the milk flowing.

Make the feeding your priority (especially during growth spurts) and get everyone else around you to do as much as they can for you. There is very little that cannot wait.

Read your baby, not the books. Breast-feeding is not linear – it goes up and down (and also in circles). You are the expert on your baby’s needs.

This worked for Claire, although extremely time-consuming.

Many fewer African women who now live in the Wester countries initiate this practice. It is said to be due to financial reasons as well as the fact that they must return to work much quicker, making breastfeeding this frequently impossible. This is not to say that African women in America do not breast-feed, many do, but research shows that much less do than those living in Africa.

© EthLeen

The post Why African Babies Don’t Cry From the African Perspective appeared first on Alaafia African Family Center.

2. Fashion Blog Daily – if you want to date in the fashion industry, fashion blog daily is the place for you. Fashion Bomb Daily carries so much variety, including celebrity style, runway style, what to wear, Claire’s personal style, bloggers’ style, and street style with an African twist.

3. Faintly Masculine – The philosophy behind faintly masculine is, “In a world that celebrates a docile woman, we stand to affirm her strength. A product of strong women, we feel that we represent a majority not expressed. Our bodies speak to our power. Creatures mystified in fiction mused in the foundations of art. We Are Women. Contradictory in nature and descriptive in the flesh, we believe that we are each, and all, men, personified. That confidence that is modernly defined as masculine lends us our title.”

4. NuSophisticate – Here is its creator’s philosophy – “My name is Jillian. I’m an attorney from 9-5 and a lover of all things fashionable and fabulous 24/7. Let’s chat about ways to stay fly both on and off the clock.”

5. Tiki’s Thoughts – Not your usual fashion/style blog; “Tiki’s Thoughts delves into her daily encounters and gives insight on juicy topics that we all love to read about: Sex, dating and yes her close encounter with death.”

Take a peek at these top 5 African fashion blogs based in the U.S. make your decision on which suits you best and follow along.

© EthLeen

The post Top 5 African Fashion Blogs in the United State appeared first on Alaafia African Family Center.

Semhar Araia – State of Eritrea/Washington, D.C.

Semhar Araia was born in New York City whose parents are Eritrean immigrant. You will see from the amazing accomplishments outlined below that she has an incredible passion for the well-being of African women around the world. This is evident 30 countries she has visited, worked and lived throughout her life.

Semhar Araia is the founder and Executive Director of the Diaspora African Women’s Network (DAWN), an organization whose mission is to develop and support the next generation of African diaspora women focused on African affairs. With her law background, she specializes in US African affairs, diaspora engagement, humanitarian affairs, conflict resolution & international development. She is an adjunct professor at George Washington University, teaching on conflict, identity & development in the Horn of Africa. Before this, Semhar Araia worked for Oxfam International, US Congress, Nelson Mandela’s organization The Elders, and as an attorney for the implementation of the 1998-2000 Eritrea-Ethiopia peace process.

Semhar is also a community organizer with extensive grassroots and leadership experience working with communities in the diaspora and East Africa. She is a White House Champion of Change and African Union Diaspora Awardee of the Year, recognized for her outstanding contributions in the African diaspora community. She has lived, worked and visited over 30 countries in East Africa, the Middle East, South Asia and Europe. She earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of Saint Thomas and her law degree from Marquette University Law School.

Amanda has made an amazing difference in the lives of children and young adults.

Amanda A. Ebokosia is a Nigerian-American freelance journalist and founder and CEO of The Gem Project, Inc., a nonprofit organization that educates school-age children, youth and young adults about the issues that affect them and their communities. Through the involvement as activity leaders, youth strengthen skills of leadership and community organizing. The Gem Project has directly impacted the lives of thousands of youth and young adults through educational workshops, weekly programs and events.

Amanda A. Ebokosia has been honored by The White House, The City of Newark and the annual FORBES Magazine 30 under 30 list, Ebokosia and her team have demonstrated a great ability to engage communities and young people in ways that develop their leadership skills, which have the capacity to change their lives. The Gem Project and Ebokosia have been featured in many magazines and news programs to share their incredible accomplishments.

In her freelance writing Amanda explores the psychology of people as it relates to their leadership styles. She also focuses on business, women issues and education. She earned a BA in biology with a minor in psychology at Rutgers University. She has also completed the Nonprofit Executive Certificate program from the Rutgers Institute of Ethical Leadership at Rutgers Business School.

©EthLeen

The post African Women with Powerful and Inspiring Voices appeared first on Alaafia African Family Center.

One example that she gives to back up this statement has to do with the French public education system. She states that the sons and daughters of African immigrants are told that the can enjoy the same ranks as any other citizen, but in reality that is not what they feel, according to Loretta Bass.

She found in her research that African immigrant families live in isolation from the rest of French society. She states, this has caused them to have an identity crisis. She would hear the comments like this from young they young people, “I’m French on the inside, African on the out.”

Loretta Bass this is true for roughly 1.8 million people who were easily identified by their dark skin and were part of families who immigrated to France from Sub-Saharan African countries. She further maintains this by stating, “In France “[being black is] a special category, definitely … Over and over again in my interviews, people would talk about the puissance de la peau … ‘the power of skin.’”

Many of the children of Sub-Saharan immigrants are treated as outsiders by French Society causing them to internalize their sense of otherness. Loretta Bass states, this happens because people are continuously asking them where they are from and when they state France they once again ask them, where are you from? So, they state they are from Africa, even if they have never been to Africa. One woman told Loretta Bass, “‘My kids have not even been to Africa. But you ask them where they’re from, and they’ll tell you they’re from Guinea.’”

Bass states, this is much more than an identity crisis for many immigrant families. The hardships the immigrants face is the complete opposite of what they learn the French national values to be, which are liberty, equality and fraternity.

Things need to change so that everyone in France, regardless of their status, knows the true meaning of liberty, equality and fraternity.

©EthLeen

The post France’s African Immigrant Population live in Another France appeared first on Alaafia African Family Center.