What do you think of when I say Africa? That was the first question I remembered you asking.
As I sat somewhere in the middle of the classroom, I was suddenly overwhelmed by a series of stereotypes that for as long as I have been American I have heard and seen. The Starving children crying and a feminine voice saying donate today, that is the image that pops into my head when I think of Africa but that is not what Africa means to me. Perhaps it is because I come from Haiti, the first black nation to be free and my pride in my culture but my view of Africa originally was one of pride. Then when I came to America I was constantly seeing images of starving children on the Television and a number of different websites, hearing tales of broken …show more content…
Parts of me such as my language and values were slowly becoming a distant memory. I knew I wanted to fit in but I didn’t want to lose everything and forget myself completely so I began researching about my country and Africa and watching documentaries. For the longest time that was all that I did. As if I was a theorist searching for credible resources and pieces of solid evidence that supported my theory. Then I discovered African music, specifically Nigerian music and if I were to be more specific I would say Naija music. I remember listen to Iyanya’s Kukere, I remember thinking “Wow this is some really good music I wonder what he is saying!? Obviously, he is speaking English but he was also speaking something else and it is really beautiful! But why is he speaking English?” and so I began my research on Nigeria where I learned that Nigeria was colonize by the British, Thus why Nigerians speak …show more content…
They are biased perceptions maintain throughout history so that Racism can continue to exist and so that certain people especially whites can maintain power. After everything I learned I couldn’t just keep learning by staring at a screen and so when my mom told me about this really great summer program called Tyree Scott’s Freedom School at a local church I was more than eager to participate. I ended up falling in love with freedom school and I went on to become an intern with other youth who were also wanting to change society’s perception and raise awareness so that one day rather it be in this lifetime or centuries beyond Instutionalize racism will no longer be a barrier in our relationships with each other or an obstacle stopping us from fulfilling our full potential not just as people of this race or that but as human beings who all want to be happy and thriving. I did that internship for three years. In addition to those three years of being an intern I also went to Senegal West Africa. Thus my perception of Africa entering this course wasn’t skewed or distorted because not only have I gone out of my way to learn more about the continent but I’ve also been to one country in Africa, so I know a lot more than a lot of the students in the class who only learned about Africa through the curriculum taught at their schools and the media portrayal of Africa and black
As I sat somewhere in the middle of the classroom, I was suddenly overwhelmed by a series of stereotypes that for as long as I have been American I have heard and seen. The Starving children crying and a feminine voice saying donate today, that is the image that pops into my head when I think of Africa but that is not what Africa means to me. Perhaps it is because I come from Haiti, the first black nation to be free and my pride in my culture but my view of Africa originally was one of pride. Then when I came to America I was constantly seeing images of starving children on the Television and a number of different websites, hearing tales of broken …show more content…
Parts of me such as my language and values were slowly becoming a distant memory. I knew I wanted to fit in but I didn’t want to lose everything and forget myself completely so I began researching about my country and Africa and watching documentaries. For the longest time that was all that I did. As if I was a theorist searching for credible resources and pieces of solid evidence that supported my theory. Then I discovered African music, specifically Nigerian music and if I were to be more specific I would say Naija music. I remember listen to Iyanya’s Kukere, I remember thinking “Wow this is some really good music I wonder what he is saying!? Obviously, he is speaking English but he was also speaking something else and it is really beautiful! But why is he speaking English?” and so I began my research on Nigeria where I learned that Nigeria was colonize by the British, Thus why Nigerians speak …show more content…
They are biased perceptions maintain throughout history so that Racism can continue to exist and so that certain people especially whites can maintain power. After everything I learned I couldn’t just keep learning by staring at a screen and so when my mom told me about this really great summer program called Tyree Scott’s Freedom School at a local church I was more than eager to participate. I ended up falling in love with freedom school and I went on to become an intern with other youth who were also wanting to change society’s perception and raise awareness so that one day rather it be in this lifetime or centuries beyond Instutionalize racism will no longer be a barrier in our relationships with each other or an obstacle stopping us from fulfilling our full potential not just as people of this race or that but as human beings who all want to be happy and thriving. I did that internship for three years. In addition to those three years of being an intern I also went to Senegal West Africa. Thus my perception of Africa entering this course wasn’t skewed or distorted because not only have I gone out of my way to learn more about the continent but I’ve also been to one country in Africa, so I know a lot more than a lot of the students in the class who only learned about Africa through the curriculum taught at their schools and the media portrayal of Africa and black