Call me old fashioned, too African, patriotic or rather yet too black for my own liking.  This is my opinion and mine alone, and I must say for it to be changed a lot of the world has to change, dragons have to rise, people have to walk on water, miracles should be performed and the Messiah to whom all my faith lays would have to come down from haven to give me a new perspective on this issue.

E.N.N (2010)

The ideal Africa

If not for the boarders Africa would have been Africa. It would be here with its native people, its richness and its own level of civilization, un-touched un-harmed and definitely not confused. Many people constantly fall under the negative impression that were it not for Westernization and colonization Africa and its people would have been barbaric, people like animals, a desolate place, with individuals unable to communicate like humans, not civil. In my case and my opinion this is definitely not so.

Many, many years before settlers came to Africa, it was here, and there were people native to this land and happy to be in this land. They lived their lives the best way they could, in the best form that suit them. Civilization was at its optimum, original to the people and to the environment. They were happy hunters and gatherers, living in harmony and the way that was African and true to them.

Great minds lived in those times, brave men and women ruled the lands, vast and rich in its soils, culture and the people that the land took care of. They came up with many forms of technologies that helped them in their daily lives, the use of fire, discovery of salt, weapons, the likes of axes, spears and bows and arrows. Life improved, food increased and the environment was still taken care of by the people.

Africa prayed to its Gods that gave them rain, wind, fertile soils, they prayed for strength peace, food and people out at work, the Gods gave them wisdom they passed on to their children over and over again in oral traditions, songs, dance and stories. This was Africa before it was disturbed from its way of life. Africa was developing at its own rate that was suitable to the environment and the people. We all know that “necessity is the mother of invention” and practically speaking that was exactly what was happening in Africa, the rate of civilization was directly proportional to the needs that were arising.

As soon as the boarders open to people who had a much different ideology and who felt that their culture and way of living was much more superior to that of Africa, confusion brewed in the land that was once peaceful and whole. The dilution of the culture and the way the African culture was made inferior, posed and is still posing a lot of controversy in the lives of people in Africa.

Many at times people feel like they do not know who they are, they do not have a sense of belonging, where they come from and if they are original. This is and was all caused by cultural imperialism. Today, people cannot identify themselves and where they came from, we do not know our culture and we try take on that was “sort” imposed on us in Africa. This new culture seems in a way not to define who we are; who I am, or were we are/I am from. It lacks somewhere the substance to give us meaning, to give me the sense of wholeness. Hence, the problem were lies the greatest confusion of the Africa child. Only and only if things were never changed I would have known who I am and where I am from, what being African meant and what it is.

Within Africa

Were it not for the continental boarders, local to Africa not open, life would still be normal, hunters would hunt in their lands, nomads would move within their boarders and hunt only that was in their land. Very few tribal wars would have been recorded and truly culture and tradition native to a country would have remained preserved to the people native in that land.

But then again, the opening of local Africa boarders enabled the people to communicate with each other, trade and learn from their fellow Africans. Definitely people learnt new languages, people travelled to new lands and found areas were they felt they settled better.

Globalisation

I will not deny that the effects of globalisation, the opening of all boarders’ has in a way brought in its remarkable contributions. Ideas have been shared; languages and we have managed to travel. From any angle in the world, we have had the ability to communicate with individuals far away from us, talk with family members and friends who are so far but yet so near with the introduction of technologies hat allow us to net work. Problems have been solved, medicines shared and mysteries solved with help of combined knowledge from different angles, we have been given an opportunity to be educated about the world all because of globalisation.

Globalisation has not only been very positive in the impact I has had on Africa and other nations. It has caused so much confusion because of the increased and highlighted and unnecessary poverty gap that has caused many problems. Those with and without treating each other like nothing, people end up fighting. Families are separated due to this need to fill that gap that has been caused by globalisation. Children are left by themselves to fend for themselves while parents, brothers and sisters work in harsh conditions in foreign lands where they ate treated like they are not human.

Look at Africa today; we cannot even male peace with each other, as people of land, children of the soil. Xenophobia has gripped many of our people and were are fighting wars with one another, with our people that we once shared a home with, people that once sheltered us when the enemy and hard times were upon us. Where is the spirit of Africa the spirit of Ubuntu, Uhuru?

Were it not for the boarders will things have been different, better? Are we better of were we are today, confused and bitter?

*NB. This is not by any means meant to be racist, just a general thought, what would have been if things were different

Written by:

Ennzo1