Sing Praise for the Words!

 A light breeze floated across Zimbabwe, picked up speed in Botswana darted north over Egypt, sailed west to Morocco, and then blew across the Atlantic. A zephyr carried voices of Africa to our ears and into our hearts. Two African poets share their verses; an American screenwriter conveys his behind the scenes treatment, Hollywood-style, of Ali and Foreman’s “Rumble in the Jungle;” and a woman studying elephants, like Goodall studied chimpanzees, cram this issue with unique views as diverse as the continent itself. Wonder along with us as Brian Wilkes ponders tribal customs of the Cherokee Nation that match those of Berbers (Imazighen) living in the Atlas Mountains. Be sure to read Moroccan born, Said Leghlid’s talk with Professor Noam Chomsky who looks beyond the obvious to help us understand the causes and possible aftermath of the Arab Spring.