You do not have to be a sage to tell that Africa has an image issue. It is right there in everyone’s face! And this has a lot to do with the erroneous perception of it as one country
Africa
Think about it: as a Westerner, how likely is it that something positive comes to your mind when you hear “Africa”? Poverty, famine, undernourished children, and civil wars are most likely a few of the bad things that come to mind. But is it all miserable for Africa as a whole?
The Country of Africa
Without a doubt, many people in Western countries and other parts of the world consider Africa as one backward country somewhere. The media played and continue to play, a major part in this flawed perception. Hollywood movie titles (think Out of Africa) and portrayals help to fuel the flame.
Many of the negative things that are associated with the continent can be ascribed to the “country” notion. It is easier for the media, for example, to treat Eritrea or Somalia and Africa as synonyms but not Mexico and North America.
Africa is a continent of about a billion people spread across more than 50 countries. In terms of size, it has been described to be about equal to the landmasses of China, India, the U.S., Japan, and much of Europe combined. People in Africa speak around 2,000 languages and have distinctive traditions, cultures, and histories.
However, people who are not from or living on the continent are often made to believe that all African people are the same and lack a distinctive culture and history. It can also go in line with this narrative that the single language spoken in this “country” is “African.”
It is not impossible to still find people in other parts of the world who assume that Africans live on trees or in mud houses! That’s what they could conclude from images presented by the media and Hollywood.
People imagine Africa as having the bulk of its areas being uninhabitable. They think of it as comprising mainly wild savannahs, jungles, and a scorching desert. But the continent boasts rich rainforests, wetlands, mountain ranges, great lakes, and coastal areas as well.
There is also the assumption that wild animals are more like domestic animals in Africa. Yet, most people there only see these animals at zoos.
A History of Generalizations and Stereotypes
A great example of stereotypes and sweeping generalizations about Africa was given in one The Wire article years ago. The author cited a Time magazine article that declared “Africa has a drinking problem.” Yet, that conclusion was based on insufficient data relating to Kenya – a country ranked 118th out of 189 globally for heavy drinking!
Such sweeping generalizations didn’t start recently or even decades ago. Some people trace them back to the colonial area when “superior” Europeans decided to save “uncivilized” Africa. As Basil Davidson wrote in “Africa: History of a Continent,” the European conquerors wanted to bring “civilization to peoples against whom the Gates of Eden had barely closed.”
Robert Bates even traced such sentiments further back to Herodotus in a Think Africa Press article. The Greek historian, who is often regarded as The Father of History, cautioned that “Africa was not only different, but also more threatening, sinister, and dangerous than Greece.”
Generations and generations of Western writers have furthered that negative narrative ever since. Sweeping generalizations made it easier for the European conquerors to justify their invasion of Africa. They easily explain why some people today still think of Africa as a backward country.
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How Africans Feel About Negative Perceptions
It goes without saying that most Africans, especially the educated or more enlightened ones, are peeved by the notion of Africa being one country. They find it annoying that what happens in one country is often easily used to generalize the entire continent. This certainly is not good for the self-esteem, self-image, and maybe mental health of Africans.
Many people outside Africa depend almost exclusively on the media or movies for what they know about the continent. And the pictures they are presented with are more often than not negative ones. The bad news is mostly the news these days after all.
Award-winning Nigerian author Chimamanda Adichie described an experience that was influenced by this “single story” in her 2009 Ted Talk. She narrated how her roommate at Drexel University in the US treated her with “a kind of patronizing, well-meaning pity.” The roommate purportedly felt sorry for her even before they met knowing that she was an African.
Adichie’s experience was certainly not an isolated case. There are many others, mostly untold. As incredible as it might seem, some persons in the West still think (all) Africans live on trees and mud houses!
It’s Not All Doom and Gloom
There’s no denying that there is a myriad of serious problems in Africa. For example, the continent has a critical poverty problem in some places. A large proportion of people in Sub-Saharan Africa live below the poverty line.
There is also a serious unemployment problem in Africa. According to estimates, about 2 in every 3 young people are unemployed, under-employed, or doing at-risk, low-paying jobs.
However, it is not all a tale of woes. African countries are regularly featured in the top 10 lists of fastest-growing economies in the world. The continent also boasts a young population – actually, the world’s youngest.
And, yes, all Africans don’t live on trees or in mud houses in some jungle or savannah. An estimate has it that up to about 43 percent of the people live in urban areas. Perhaps, living in a jungle or savannah is also synonymous with urban living.
Also, contrary to the belief elsewhere that Africa has no access to modern-day technology, many people there do enjoy that. For instance, 80 percent of the people on the continent had mobile access as of 2013. Internet penetration is also quite significant.
The Western narrative of Africa as a place plagued by problems must change. Yes, the continent does have a lot of challenges but it is not totally bleak for the continent. Some countries are doing way better than that portrayed in the media or are having improved conditions.
Read Also: Cancer a Major Health Threat That Is Overlooked in Africa
References
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stereotypes_of_Africa
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jan/24/africa-clinton
https://academicjournals.org/journal/JASD/article-full-text/09E187350806
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