Ivan Van Sertima — The Scholar Who Rewrote the Map of Discovery

They said our history started with slavery.
He said, “Check your maps again.”
Hmm.

In 1976, Guyanese scholar Dr. Ivan Van Sertima published They Came Before Columbus—a book that forced the world to confront a buried truth: Africans reached the Americas long before Columbus ever set sail.

Born in 1935 in Guyana and trained in linguistics and anthropology, Van Sertima followed evidence, not opinion. He connected artifacts, architecture, crops, oral histories, and ocean currents to show African contact with pre-Columbian civilizations—especially the Olmecs, whose colossal stone heads bear unmistakably African features.

He documented West African maritime mastery and revealed how the Mali Empire, under Mansa Abubakari II, launched transatlantic expeditions around 1311—driven not by conquest, but curiosity. History didn’t forget these voyages. It erased them.

The backlash was fierce. Critics called him fringe. But his scholarship was meticulous. He founded the Journal of African Civilizations, creating space for Black scholars to challenge Eurocentric narratives with rigor and receipts.

Van Sertima taught us this: until you control the frame, you can’t change the picture.

???? The Hmm Moment:

What if “discovery” was really rediscovery, and we were edited out of the voyage?

✨ Why This Still Matters:

Because who you think you come from shapes who you believe you can become. Van Sertima reminds us to question every “first,” test every textbook, and treat Africa not as the world’s past tense—but its continuous presence.

In an age of misinformation, his method still matters: research, rigor, respect.
Don’t just share memes—share footnotes.

Because five minutes a day keeps the miseducation away.
Stay curious. Stay consistent.
And keep learning what they tried to bury.

???????? Build your foundation with the Black History Flashcards: