Gil Ingles:
The New African in the Diaspora
Angola
Decades ago when our parents landed on
American soil in pursuit of a better education or to escape political persecution,
it was with the understanding that they
would eventually return home equipped
to contribute to society and provide good
lives for their families. Time and circumstance, however, have a way of altering
plans. We and our parents find ourselves
still in America living very different lives
than planned. This change in plans has
given rise to the evolution of the New
African. The New African has shifted
focus from the distant shores of Africa
only and redirected his energies toward making a mark in the communities in which he
finds himself.
H. Gil Ingles is one example of the New African. Born in Angola, South West Africa, Gil’s
mother sent him to the United States to study under the care of his aunt following numerous
assassination attempts against his father. Suddenly, he found himself in a strange land immersed in a different culture. Gil adapted to his new environment and reworked his plans.
Hard work paid off and Gil made a name for himself in the entertainment industry via XPosure Entertainment, the production and management company he co-founded in 1995.
Beyond entertainment, however, Gil has most recently been making an impact within the
African Community in the U.S. in the areas of community building, activism and government.
For over ten years Gil has served as host and co-producer of the public television program
Afrika Plus. The show presents modern Africa to a US audience through in depth interviews
with various African Heads of State, US government officials serving the African continent,
African ambassadors to the US and to the United Nations. He is a member of the Cameroonian American Council Press Corps, an organization that works with the White House to
disseminate information from the executive level of government to the African community
in the States. Gil not only stays involved on the executive level, he is involved at the local
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