Most people who
know me, know that I am a very proud Congolese and African woman. I take great
pride in my native land, culture, and background. Though, I have to say, I
didn’t always appreciate who I am and where I come from. In fact, it wasn’t until
I moved to the United States when I begun to embrace my origin and cultural
heritage. I was 11 years old then. Since I moved to the U.S, I've met many
people and made many friends. When I meet people for the first time, the first
thing most of them ask me after noticing my accent is where I am originally
from. I say I am from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and then I would
see a blank look on their faces like they have no idea where DRC is. So I say
Africa, I am from Africa, and then they would say “oooh OK”. The next question
that usually follows is if I lived in huts with lions (or some wild animal)
while I was in the Congo. I've even been asked if I had seen a car or tall
building before coming to the U.S or if I had food to eat while living in
Africa. As ridiculous as these questions are, some people do actually ask them,
believe it or not.
I used to ask
myself, how ignorant, uneducated, and uninformed can someone be to even ask
such questions? Then I realized those questions reflect what people learn from
the media. The West’s media representation of Africa usually involves naked,
malnourished, and sick children living on the streets; adults who are suffering
from HIV/AIDs, TB, and Cholera; contaminated foods and water; beggars on the
streets; animals, forests, and jungles. This is how most Westerners I’ve met who
have never traveled outside the boundaries of their countries think of Africa.
Though all of the above is true about some parts of Africa, it does not define
Africa. Africa is much more than just hunger and poverty. It is much more than
naked hungry children and sick adults. Africa is love, peace, and joy. Africa
is the past, the present, and the future. Africa has some of richest countries
in the world with abundance of natural resources. Because of its riches,
it has been exploited, degraded, neglected, and savagely suppressed for
centuries and its recovery from this has been nearly impossible to achieve.
That is not to say that Africa is as dark as some people think it is, because even
with all the misfortunes that have happened, Africa and its people are always
on top of the world. They never stop moving forward. Their determination,
achievements, and strive for independence and development are something that
the media in the West fails to show to people.
During the past
years, I’ve spent quite a bit of time teaching my friends, and some strangers,
about the beauty of the MOTHERLAND. Through teaching them, I’ve also learned to
appreciate her. I’ve learned to appreciate my land and my culture and traditions.
I’ve learned to appreciate who I am and where I come from.
I was watching
TV a few days ago and saw something that put a smile on my face and made me
even more proud to be an African. It is the latest Coca Cola TV ad for
Africa. It inspired me to write this post. In the ad were 7 short phrases that
say:
·
While
the world shakes and stumbles, Africa dances to a different beat
·
For
every bank bailed out, 2 million Africans send money back home
·
1
in 5 European club players is African and million more are ready to shine
·
As
authorities try to tame the internet, Africa becomes the most mobile- connected
place on the planet.
·
For
every international band trying to sell a song, 5000 African bands go live.
· The world’s most admired man is African,
and so is the most beautiful woman.
· While the world turns grey, we (African
people) live life in full color.
No comments:
Post a Comment