Interviews With Africans Abroad

This article is one that will combine a series of interviews that i have and will be having, within the next week or so, with African youths who are living abroad. I find it necessary to see how other African youths feel about the mother land as well as their views on living in a country that is not entirely theirs. I will interview both males and females, making sure to include those born abroad and those born in Africa.


Interview 1 with Ms. P: a 19 year old female from Ghana, residing in Canada since the young age of 7 months

Afrika: Do you consider yourself to be an African, Canadian or a mix of both and why?
Ms. P: I consider myself to be an African-Canadian because I was born in Ghana and I always have my roots there. But I embrace my Canadian culture aswell as my Canadian heritage
Afrika: As an African living in Canada, what disadvantages are presented to you due to your status as a non-white
Ms.P: Some of the disadvantages that I face come through the schools and employment. An employer, seeing my last name may recognize its an African name and may ponder upon some stereotypes and therefore have his decisions in hiring or dealing with me effected. I truly believe that I do not receive the same amount of respect because of my skin colour.
Afrika: Being an African living in Canada,do you believe you possess more advantages than a youth in Africa
Ms. P: Yes I strongly believe that because I have greater opportunities to succeed here than I do in Africa…I'm here for a better life.
Afrika: Do you plan on living in Canada the rest of your life or do you see yourself established in Ghana?
Ms. P: (giggling) I don’t see myself going back to Ghana unless it is for a visit
Afrika: are you familiar with Ghanaian politics or even the general activities going on in Ghana. If no, why?
Ms. P: No I am not. I guess it’s just a lack of interest.
Afrika: Who would you be supporting in a football match if it was between Canada and Ghana
Ms. P: Ghana! Because that is where I'm from. I consider myself more of a Ghanaian than a Canadian because plainly, that’s just where I’m from
Afrika: Why do you think youth today are running away from their heritage and absorbing only that of the Canadian society’s?
Ms. P: I guess it’s a lack of knowledge. Some youth don’t know their heritage. At times it’s just a huge embarrassment to them, especially from what they see on t.v (world vision commercials) and the rest of the media
Afrika: What is one word you would use to describe Africans
Ms. P: Cultural. We have just so many distinct cultures among us
Afrika: What is one word you would use to describe Canadians
Ms. P: We’re not like Americans, we’re very friendly so I guess one word I would use to describe Canadians is 'friendly'
Afrika: When you think of the name Africa, what comes to mind?
Ms. P: A continent in need
Afrika: In concluding, what are your thoughts on youths that live in Africa
Ms. P: I don’t know that much about the youths in Africa so I cannot give a specific answer to this question but i think they hold their own advantages as we do here in Canada Read more!

Africans the best Christians?!

Quoting one professor at the Christian College, an evangelist once said to me, "No one man can compete with an African when it comes to quoting scripture, but when it comes to practicing those quotes it's a totally different issue."

This made me think and as I was deeply bombarding my mind with many thoughts I came to the conclusion that the professor is somewhat in error in regards to the second half of his statement. Africans are truly the most peaceful, honest, and God fearing people on this earth; therefore does this not make us the best Christians since those characteristics are a sum of a real Christ-like person? Before I go further let us get an understanding for the word Christian: the word literally means ‘follower of Christ’.

To follow Christ is to emulate his actions and follow the instructions given to us by him. When I take a look at a predominant black church and I compare it to a predominant white church, the differences are too numerous to list. Black people can really praise God; emphasis on the word really! The way we dance, sing, jump up and down, and even clap our hands cannot be compared with. It is obvious that this kind of passion is very hard to find in other ethnical churches. “And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love”[1] 1 Corinthians 13:13; the brotherly love displayed from one African to another is quite like no other, because we tend to believe that Africa is one big country in terms of family.

On my trip to Cincinnati, Ohio a couple of weeks ago I arrived at the conclusion that Americans are really rude and inconsiderate towards their fellow Americans and even visitors. I was counting down the days left on that trip because I had just grown sick of the attitudes I was coming across. Statistics show that 75% of American adults consider themselves Christians but this stat only makes me wonder what kind of Christians these non Africans are.

Following Christ’s instructions in Mathew 28:19 “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations …” Africa is quickly and powerfully turning these words into action. George Weigel stated in his article “Christianity, by the numbers”: Indeed, Christian growth in Africa is nothing short of astonishing. There were 8.7 million African Christians in 1900; there are 389 million African Christians today; and Barrett projects almost 600 million African [2]Christians by 2025 (when Europe's Christian population will have fallen to 513 million). Evidently, the Christian population is growing among Africans and following the instructions given to the world by Christ, the other nations unfortunately are falling a bit behind...some are not only falling behind but dropping down as well.

Perhaps I’m a little bias in this article but that's perfectly fine because I’m an African and also a Christian, a pretty good one if I may say. I sign off with this quote written by Sam Pascoe an American scholar (perhaps by not mentioning Africa he is indicating that Africans are the best Christians?!): Christianity started out in Palestine as a fellowship; it moved to Greece and became a philosophy; it moved to Italy and became an institution; it moved to Europe and became a culture; it came to America and became an enterprise.[3]

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[1]Zondervan Teen Study Bible: NIV

[2]Sam Pascoe, American scholar. http://www.religioustolerance.org/christ.htm

[3]George Weigel: Christianity, by the numbers. http://www.the-tidings.com/2005/0204/difference.htm

Read more!

Befriend the Police

In a workshop recently held at the African Community Services of Peel office in Brampton, On, the topics crime and safety in our communities were approached by teens, adults and the guest of honour Constable Andrew A. Cooper.Constable Cooper, a 17 year veteran on the force, is an African American officer for the Peel Regional Police who is dedicated to serving, protecting and educating the public on safety and crime. Currently he is involved in the Diversity Unit which provides a multi cultured team of police officers to deal with the ever growing diverse population of of the Peel region and also deals with bridging the gap between police and the public. Not surprisingly, the main discussion that took place was firmly based on police-public relations.

It turns out it is not only the youth that have a deep rooted dislike for these authority figures, the adults as well complained about bad treatment and an abuse of police power by arresting officers. There seems to be an overwhelming fear for the police which causes a huge distress for the police because there has to be mutual cooperation between high authority personnel and the community. Answering the question: what has to be done in order to dwell in a peaceful community, Cooper responded by stating "there has a be an effort put forth by the community as well as the police so that we can all work together to make our society safer".

The police have already taken initiative by taking part in the Neighboring Police Unit which is a selected amount of police officers who go to different schools in the community to educate as well as interact with the children and teachers. This is indeed a tremendous effort on behalf of the police and they deserve kudos for this. They are also involved in creating basketball, soccer and other sports related activities that involve interaction with community members. "The community has also been doing its part in coorporating with police and investigators" says Cooper. After the murder of a 18 year old black male in 2005 , who was on his way home after a basketball tournament in Brampton, investigators were really in dire need of assistance from individual witnesses and families but were getting nothing. After many interviews, an average of questioning periods per an individual or family, police were still not getting any leads. "It's like everyone was scared of something"; but eventually they saw the need to help a grieving mother and to remove ruthless criminals from the streets. Answers started pouring in and in no time the shooters were apprehended.

It is proven that when police and the public work together with one mind, crimes are solved and when possible, prevented! Therefore as citizens of a democratic nation it has to be our duty to do our part in insuring that our families are safe by becoming officers who protect and serve our communities. Read more!

IN TOUCH WITH AFRICA

A new page in our book has been opened, and Africa, it is now time to take the world by storm! a new day and age has arrived and we shall no longer be on the defensive but on full attack mode. This is indeed a bold statement but one only needs to stop, take a look around and realize that the ball is truly in Africa's court now. Africa has not always been as deprived as the western world perceives it to be; the times of Kwame Nkrumah, Julius Nyerere, Patrice Lumumba, Kenneth Kaunda and many others were times of peace, prosperity and great economical advancement. Due to this fact, Africa is proven to have the capability to not only govern its states but also implement ideas for the constant improvements in the Motherland. I look around and say to myself that Africans have come very far in a variety of ways: sports (Dikembe Mutombo); global associations (Kofi Annan); equality and justice (Nelson Mandela) and even the average joes who bring a little bit of Africa to those abroad through grocery stores and restaurants. We cannot remain seated in our slumber chairs and blame the world of injustice and inequality whilst there are so many opportunities available for us. There is nothing that exist that cannot be achieved! This is the moto which we must live by. Africa, lets rise up and say 'enough is enough.' Let us unite and bring our motherland to a place of prosperity and happiness that it once had. Africa, Wake Up!! Read more!