It is not often that one comes across someone like Ismael Ahmed, a cultural and community warrior supreme. January 31st he departed us. Forgive me but I can’t believe Ish is gone! He is still with us! Following my Caribbean spiritual ways I have been moved to close my eyes and can see his face so clearly. I can imagine having a conversation with him right there and then. He had that distinctive smile and way about him that puts you at ease so quickly. Though he is not with us physically he is with us spiritually and culturally!
Much has been written about him in the short time since his passing. His achievements and long-lasting impact cannot be understated. So, the purpose of this article is to reflect on how he influenced me and of his love for our Southwest Detroit community.
My friendship with him goes back decades to the early 70’s when we first crossed paths at a number of civil rights and anti-war events. We first met when we were in our 20’s. A few years older than me he already was a veteran of the civil rights and workers movement.
That friendship grew and became stronger with each encounter and activity. By the early 80’s we started working on activities jointly backed by our respective organizations. He with what would become the powerhouse organization ACCESS and I through my affiliation with the groundbreaking Latino arts organization Casa de Unidad in Southwest Detroit.
ACCESS was often represented by a number of performing arts troupes during the early 80’s, Casa de Unidad’s formative years, at that organizations’ Unity in the Community festivals which were held annually in Clark Park. These were among the first major signs of fraternal cultural solidarity between our communities.
The relationship was only strengthened when Ismael’s grandmother, the great Aliya Hassan, one of ACCESS’ founders and a well-known activist in her own right, would serve on Casa de Unidad’s board during Casa’s early years.
I cannot let this opportunity pass without sharing a bit about Allya Hassan. A close confidant of Malcolm X, she helped him enter the world of orthodox Muslim religious practice after his departure from the Nation of Islam. A very humble woman I remember Ish sharing stories about how she helped Malcolm X plan for his trip to Mecca, the Moslem holy rite of passage, and when Malcolm X was assassinated she helped plan his funeral. I recollect seeing a copy of Malcolm’s funeral program exhibited in an artifact display in the ACCESS offices. This was during the period when I briefly worked there as the Mental Health Director during the mid-90’s. I found great spiritual and practical support for my administrative work from Ish and assistant director Hassan Jaber as I went about doing my job.
In fact, Ish served as my direct boss for a total of five years. First for two years at ACCESS and later for three years when I worked at the State of Michigan’s Department of Human Services in the central administration. On both occasions his supervisory hand was clear and supportive. At no time did I feel our friendship was ever at stake, even when there were difficult times.
This joint work led us to believe we needed to more consciously strengthen relations between the Arab American and Latino communities. That got an early start in the middle 80’s when Casa de Unidad and ACCESS co-sponsored at least two joint dinner/”confabs” on building bridges between our respective communities in an effort to build a multicultural coalition. A few decades later, that was revisited during the 2010’s when ACCESS along with a coalition of Latino activists sponsored at least two Arab and Latino forums/cultural celebrations at the National Arab American Museum in Dearborn.
Ish was always clear that cultural work and music could bring our communities together so he jumped at the opportunity to become a member of the community planning committee Casa de Unidad and Palante Productions set up for the 1988 1st National Machito Memorial Concert which was held at the Paradise Theatre, now home to the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. The importance of the event? Machito and his brother Mario Bauza, through their group Machito y Sus Afro Cubanos, are credited for having laid the foundation for Latin Jazz and what we now call Salsa back in the 40’s and 50’s. Their work set the conditions for many like Tito Puente, Dizzy Gillespie with his CuBop movement among so many others to expand our musical heritage. Yes, Detroit, not known for being a Latin music hotspot, played a major role in recognizing this historic juncture in Latin music history.
Ish would continue this focus on celebrating the giants of Latin music for decades when he invited the Machito band twice, the Big 3 Palladium twice, Eddie Palmieri twice and other similar bands to play at the Concert of Colors.
Yes, the iconic Concert of Colors. I was lucky enough to be invited by Ish to join the Concert of Colors committee when it first started in the early-90’s. I continued supporting these efforts in one way another over the years, whether planning community workshops, promotions or on a number of occasions as a performer. For many you are all too aware of the power of being involved in such a powerful and liberating act of expression and multicultural unity. WOW is the only way to explain it.
So, in ending, how can I sum up sharing my life with the great Ish? I am sure many of you who knew him can relate. He elevated brotherly love bred in struggle and in loving our communities and their cultures. He is with the ancestors and following Caribbean spiritual beliefs, that means he still walks amongst us and continues to guide us.
Ish, follow the rhythm of the drums, dance your heart away with the Orishas up in the heavens. Dance one more rumba for us!!!
ACHE!!!
