End of an Era--Shutting of Operations

 I have not posted here in a looooooooooooong while.  I apologize for that.  That falls on me.  Well...it falls on me, and Blogger was acting weird, and wasn't allowing me to log on a number of years ago on some dumb shit. But, getting to the matter at hand...

As of February 26, 2021, I have official shut down the Universal Africana Literary Arts Movement.  Now...what does that mean, exactly?  Simply put...I/we will no longer be sending out the Schedule of Events (SoE) lists via email anymore.  I will not be doing any other promotional, or informational e-blasts, either. The only arm of the Movement that will remain functional, is our Facebook Fan Page, where I will occasionally post some promotional information.  Other that that, no other activity will be taking place in the name of the Movement.

 

Now...what made me come to this decision?  Simply put...the COVID-19 shutdown put a hurting on all of us, and as the founder/organizer of the Movement, it put an additional strain on me, as the Movement is operated by one person...ME!  Many of the events that I'd listed in the SoE were shut down, and there wasn't much that I could do informationally to help the other members.  Also, I had to concentrate on how to maintain my own literary career at the same time.  It was impossible for me to serve 2 masters, and I had to make a serious choice.  I chose to maintain my own writing career; that was more important for me.  I love representing for our brothers & sisters in this literary field & industry, but I have to maintain my own house, first.  Everything that I did was for the good of our people; both the creators/creatives, and the consumers in the community, alike.  At the same time, it was very solitary for me, as I'd received absolutely NO assistance in maintaining the Movement.  I never had the financial resources, the manpower to do the research and other projects, nor the technical expertise to do other things online that would've helped the Movement to grow.

I am not bitter about this.  I was able to maintain this Movement...BY MYSELF, I might add...for 13 years.  It was a good and long run, and I am proud of what I was able to accomplish.  Some people stuck around until the end, others have fallen to the wayside.  Some were true to this mission and their craft & careers, others were nothing more than egomaniacs, and buckelisters.  The impact that I've had on people and our community is incalculable.  I have no regrets at all.  If I would've gotten the support that I needed and wanted, who knows how much more of an impact I could've had?  I never wanted to be commercialized by what I was doing.  I never cared for mainstream accolades.  I was strictly grassroots with everything that I did.  Others cared for mainstream acceptance, or were in it strictly for the financial gain of it...I  wasn't.  I was an activist, first and formost.

So, from when we came on the scene in our first incarnation as the Black CapaCity Literary Arts Festival/Movement, to our current incarnation as the Universal Africana Literary Arts Movement, it was an excellent 13 years of celebrating the Black literary voice.  To all of you that have followed and supported us...thank you.

Your humble servant,

Kevin Sabio

"Knowledge As Supreme"

Founder/organizer