By Ile Emi Ifa
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www.wejobs.blogspot.com Jobs in Africa
-- Some time ago I was asked what does it mean to be African. As if I'm some expert. I asked the questioner for a little time to get back to them because I wanted to give some thought to the answer. To be born in Africa easily qualifies. But what does it mean to be African from a more Diaspora-tic perspective. It should go without saying that being an African in the Diaspora could mean something different to each individual asked. This is just my opinion.
About a week after the question was posed, Coming to America came on. I used to think it was an example of Eddie Murphy's best work, and that's not really saying much. I don't know how long it's been since I've seen the movie last. But I watched the opening sequence and I was disappointed by what I saw. It hit me that whoever did this movie thinks that wealthy people in Africa, or in Prince Akeem's African country, model their weddings after European culture where men wear tuxedoes and women wear gowns that could easily pass for something out of Cinderella. And the wedded couple being carried away in a horse and carriage with all the finery seemed out of place.
And the dancers! All the men and women had medium to light brown skin. All the women had long hair and European features. The only person who looked like they may have stepped out of Africa was possibly the late great Madge Sinclair as Queen Aoleon. Not a very convincing display of genuine African culture.
Some of the most authentic looking African places that I've seen in the little corners of the Diaspora that I've visited have been the various Orisa houses that I've experienced. A lot of them have authentic looking African decorations and everybody dresses in authentic looking African clothing. And the clothes and decorations truly came from Africa. But I have also learned that the authentic African environment is by design to help foster an impression that the people there are indeed traditional African practitioners with a genuine sense of spirituality. Everything must be done by tradition otherwise the sanctity of the moment be disturbed. Yet, when it was time for payment for spiritual services rendered modern dollars were just fine.
And the dancers! I've actually seen people in these houses of African spirituality judge people's connection to African on someone's ability to dance or recite prayers or ability to sing or use of African language. Being someone without the ability to entertain and without the drive to learn rote prayers or African dialect, my devotion to the African ways was found wanting. I actually believed it was at one point. I never said I was the deepest oar in the ocean.
I wondered if being an African in the Diaspora is to have a genuine concern for Africa or a connection to African people. It is nothing that can be accurately quantified or measured. It is nothing based on an appearance or style of clothing. Some people who dress themselves in some of the most authentic African garb on the planet could give a rat's ass about Africa or the African community. Some people whose mother tongue is one of the many African dialects could care less about Africa or African people.
I wondered if being African is to have a love and appreciation of nature, both the physical and the spiritual even though we may not completely understand everything we experience. I wondered if to be African is to be respectful of cultures different than our own. I know a lot of people think that I may not respect my American culture, but I have the utmost respect and appreciation for my national collective. My appreciation for my national collective does not blind me to the fact that it is neglecting and abusing the African American culture that I also have the utmost respect and appreciation for.
But again, there are Africans from Africa who don't have much appreciation for the African cultures. I met an African, steep in the Christian belief system who thought I was foolish for my Ifa belief system rooted in Yoruba or Nigerian culture.
Maybe to be African is to recognize that a successful, strong community is a collection of varying talents and abilities for common goals. A strong community isn't one where only the strong do well and the weak are left to scrounge off the weaker. Everybody has a job to do. Call it socialism if you want but when we feed everyone, when we take the steps to educate everyone, when we work to make sure everyone is in good health, we become a stronger society for it. Maybe to be African is to recognize the fact that a community is a chain that is only as strong as its weakest link.
But then again, I know many Africans who strongly support an economic system that would allow a handful to become insanely wealthy while many wallow in stark poverty. I remember seeing a report that some African king with a failing economy and responsibility for something ridiculous like upwards of forty percent unemployment rate and rampant healthcare problems was in the middle of building his umpteenth royal palace. He claimed that the people wanted him to live a life of ultimate luxury while the majority of his people lived in abject poverty. And this was an African king. His leadership provides the model of behavior for many of his fellow Africans. So it really is no surprise to see so many examples of modern economic concepts not working very well in Africa for everyone. Countries with all the natural resources necessary to support its own people are raped for their riches while entire communities of people go without.
So now that I've thought about it, I've come up with a well thought out, carefully considered answer for the question, what does it mean to be African? To be African is to be from Africa and nothing more and nothing less. I'm sure that many people would like to think that Africans are people imbued with some kind of gift of humanity. But in the end, Africans run the gamut of human behavior just like everyone else. Ultimately, I guess to be African is nothing more than a geographical reference to someone's place of birth.
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