On October 11, at 2:30pm, a group of individuals gathered on the 8th floor of the Healey Library to embark on a journey through the past.

One of the members of this group, Professor Vicky Meredith, a specialist in Ancient African Women and Culture, said, “Black people are like a person with a treasure chest that has lost the key.” The group that assembled in the conference room were investigators searching for keys that would unlock history.

The conductor of this journey was Dr. Rosalind Jeffries. Dr. Jeffries has scoured the earth in search of history and its mysteries. Dr. Jeffries travels nationally as a curator of African art and internationally, many times to Africa, in an educational capacity. The title of her lecture was “Black Women in Antiquity.” It could have been renamed “A Reaffirmation of Discrepancies in Popular History.”

It is impossible to convey, with clarity, decades worth of study and research within a period of two hours. Dr. Jeffries chose to take on that challenge and began her lecture with a type or vigor that was one level below urgency. Those who chose to take notes during this speed trip through history found themselves unable to keep up; their fingers could not move quickly enough to record this onslaught of information. This was definitely a lecture that begged you to listen now and understand later, and a mind without previous comprehension of the topic could not fully involve itself.

Dr. Jeffries began with an outline of the misconception of women’s roles. Women were more than mothers and homemakers. There were women warriors that fought fiercely against invaders from other tribes and countries. Dr. Jeffries used the example of Azinga, who fought against the British and Dutch implementation and creation of slave castles. She also spoke of women so militarily involved that they chose to amputate their breast so that they could more efficiently pull back the string of a bow.

Not only were women warriors for their countries and tribes, but they helped to build and rule them as well. In Egypt, the 18th dynasty was a dynasty of women rulers. Queen Hatshepsut ruled in the capacity of a king and often wore a fake beard as a status symbol. During this time there was also a Divine Kingship System in existence that gave a council of women the power to choose the next king.

Oftentimes, an image of a vulture decorated the king’s throne. The vulture was one of the animals that symbolized women. Vultures during this time were looked upon as noble creatures because they would pierce their own flesh in order to feed their offspring in times of need. Other animals that symbolized women in many African cultures were cows and lionesses.

Dr. Jeffries wove together the many different parts of her lecture, relating the several topics to one another.

The origin of all of humankind was an important subject during her presentation. The relevance of the subject stems from the idea of African Antiquity as a global concept. All of the sciences have come to the consensus that the oldest bones were found in Africa and that all people came from a common ancestor.

During a slide presentation Dr. Jeffries showed a map representing the world 175 million years ago. In this map Africa is at the center of the world with the other continents surrounding it. Jeffries then discusses the eventual migration out of Africa to the surrounding areas.

A US News article, “Tracing your Genetics”, dated January 29, 2001, was briefly mentioned because of its implication through vague language that all people came from the Middle East and not through the Middle East from Africa.

Dr. Jeffries then spoke about the African influences in Asian and European art, giving examples of several of Picasso’s works. She ended by discussing the misinterpretations of passages in the Bible and how lack of cultural understanding can lead to such mis-education.

Dr. Jeffries received applause and held briefly for questions before insisting that Dr.Yosef ben-Jochannan say a few words. Dr. Ben- Jochannan spoke briefly about the struggles he as well as others faced when trying to research the origin of man. He was critical of historians who purposely spread untruths and who are unwilling to accept certain ideas. Dr. Yosef ben-Jochannan, a true man of history, vowed to always speak the truth and let the chips fall where they may.