Africa: Africans Share Childhood Memories Online
That African Girl is a blog with a series of posts written by Africans around the world about their childhood. It is a blog about growing up in an African family and learning to live in two worlds. The bloggers sharing their memories have lived both in Africa and the West.
The blog was started by Makafui Fiavi and Adey Teshome. Makafui was born in Togo and grew up in the United States and Adey is young Ethiopian-American.
This is Makafui's introduction:
During the college years, many people take the time to better understand themselves and their place in the world. Most people do it by trying out different identities, or exploring different social circles and ideologies. For me, the 4 years brought an exploration of my various sub-identities and a strong desire to learn how to live between 2 worlds. Born and raised in Togo and growing up in the United States has given me the desire to explore and understand various cultures, to listen to stories and to learn about what brings people together. That African Girl (TAG) is the culmination of ideas, conversations and a desire to continue learning and sharing. Here’s where I share about things, people, places, stories, dreams and passions that inspire me.
Adey Teshome considers the blog as “a place for the cultural hybrid, multi-interest, eclectic children such as ourselves to air our thoughts”:
When I first agreed to contribute to this blog, I was super-inspired by Mak’s idea–a place for the cultural hybrid, multi-interest, eclectic children such as ourselves to air our thoughts. And as I like to say, this is why we’re friends. She has such an eye for self-expression and such cool views to share. And I loved the thought of being part of that. So that’s who I’ll try to be for this blog– a young Ethiopian-American, recent (well, in the works) college grad, trying to figure out my place and get my grounding in life, who can put in her two cents every now and then.
Liz A. is a contributor from Uganda/Kenya living in the United States. These are her childhood memories:
1) Being beaten as punishment. I always found it interesting when my White or Asian friends would talk about being told to sit in a corner, or were sent to their room as a form of punishment. For us, we were beaten. My mum would usually get very thin branches that had fallen off the trees in our compound and my dad would get the thick ones, sometimes we would be sent to get them ourselves, and we would be given a few lashes on the calves of our legs.
In America, it seems that such a thing can result in social services being called in to review the situation or children here feel some sort of resentment towards their parents for it. But I have
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Sub-Sahara Spring!
We heard a lot about the Arab Spring? What about the Sub-Sahara or African spring? Sub-Sahara has a similar, if not worse political and economic situation. Worse there are ethnic, Communist and other dictators who have no clue about the plight of their people or economics.
Most of these dictators prey on the weakness of the African people to stay in power. For example, in Ethiopia, dictator Meles manufactured tribalism in Ethiopian in fashion much clever than the European to stay in power. Though he came as a Communist guirrela fighter, but in 1991 he saw the end of Communism, thus shifted gear to another tool in order to stay in power with severe and serious damage to the body politics and economic well-being of Ethiopia. Currently, famine is raging in Ethiopia despite Meles false claim to have created an economic miracle similar to the BRIC nations
In Eritrea, Uganda, Chad and many other places dictators despite their abysmal failure to lead politically and economically still cling to power. Africa’s future, especially that of sub-Shara remain as bleak as ever.
So the question is where Africa’s Spring? Who is going to spark it, who is going to lead it? Are Africans more coward than other revolutionaries or what are they waiting for? Has the devices politics of tribalism, the powerful arm of dictators has sapped their will to live and even die with dignity. Look at the people in Ethiopia, over 13 million suffering from famine year after.
In Eritrea fleeing by the thousonds, why can not they take a stand and fight back and see what happens? What is happening to the African mind set to liberate itself from self-appointed, destructive dictators once and for all.
Where is Hanibal? Where is the freedom fighters for Africa? The Arabs have shown the aguility and the courage to resist the most ferocious dictators in Libya, in Syria, and Yemen? Where is the African spring or courage to stand up and fight for their rights and for their future?