when i criticize africa, i look over my shoulder. although there is much to criticize, i don't think it is "africa" i am criticizing; it isn't "africans" i am criticizing. it is bad people doing bad things in a location that happens to be on the continent. when i meet a congolese, i don't think, you are terrible because mobutu ruined your country. i think, mobutu did bad things, with the help of lots of bad actors at home and abroad, and some people really got screwed because of that. but the person i meet has his or her own life, people, accomplishments, or failures. not mobutu's.
that said, my right to be critical is somehow marked by my life, citizenship, residence, etc. which makes no sense, but nonetheless is how people will respond.
i don't feel "proud" of my country, the u.s., because there are some institutions, like universities, that have some good sides to them. there are also negative sides to our institutions, which are unenviable. there are horrible sides to our society, and i don't look over my shoulder when i accuse trump of being a fascist, or having enormous numbers of supporters whose views i find execrable. i don't feel proud because there is a decent candidate running for the president.
i don't want to conflate the institutions that work here with my country. i am happy to praise wonderful things and people, but why extend this to the nation itself? and if i do, then how do i understand that praise in the same breath that i use to criticize the really had sides to our country?
i know that you, john, understand what works and what doesn't work. should we be giving a country credit for what works, while not simultaneously denigrating it for what doesn't work?
there is a bottom line to all this. we erect structures of exclusion once we construct the nation-state as the site for identifying ourselves or others. there is a real cost to nationalism, which, at least at certain historical moments--most in fact--includes a great deal of bellicosity and xenophobia. a very heavy price to pay for saying, well, we are "the greatest." and in fact, one of those prices happens to be extreme-nationalist positions that harmonize with neofascist tendencies.
ken
I have been doing this for more than 25 years and this has included not just writing and publishing pieces in both academic and popular journals, but also engaging various stakeholders on the continent. Unfortunately, few them seem to be genuinely interested in learning about the American experience in political and economic governance. Many of the African leaders that I have talked to and worked with are quite aware of the American experience--some of them actually studied and lived in the United States for many years before returning home to work in government or currently work closely with or have access to advisors that are quite knowledgeable in the American experience. Yet, few of them are willing to do what is necessary to establish the type of institutional arrangements that form the foundation for the American success in many fields of endeavor.--
On Wed, May 11, 2016 at 7:45 PM, Kayode J. Fakinlede <jfakinlede@gmail.com> wrote:
--For many an African, there is a burning desire to live in America. There is a perception that indeed, America is the greatest country in the world.
We look at almost all areas of human endeavor, we see America in a position of leadership. Be it in the sciences, technology, arts or sheer physical exertion, America occupies either the top of the totem pole or quite near the top. All in all, America is a country that by and large, is the envy of the world.
Try as we may, not all Africans will ever have a chance to live in America. And even for some, a visit to this great land almost never affords the opportunity to see the internal dynamics of America to decipher what is responsible for its greatness.
However, for some of us, we have been privileged to be part of this society and some of us for decades. We consider ourselves Americans, by the privilege of being naturalized citizens. We also participate in the running of the country in one way or another. In other words, we individually consider ourselves as part of the engine that makes this engine move.
Nevertheless, we know that inside us, we are still Africans. We long for the day African countries will be as 'advanced' as America. For many, we may have lost the hope of coming back to live in Africa because we cannot leave the comfort of a smooth running society for where things just 'do not work'. We miss the accoutrements that our great continent offers: friends, family, the weather, the food, etc.
However, to personalize the song of the great Neil Diamond 'I am, I said', America is fine, but it ain't home; Africa is home but it ain't ours no more. We are now lost between two shores. What we do in some instances, is make blistering condemnations, sometimes justifiably, of those left at home, blaming them for our own malaise. But do we ever reason that these people just do not know how to do things right?
And there comes America to our rescue. We now have that great communications gear called the internet. This medium gives us the solace that we can live away from the continent and still be part of it. We know what is happening in as much as we care to know.
ALL I ASK: PLEASE EDUCATE US
Please take a few minutes of your time, reflect on what you have learned in America that makes it a great country; And, without any urge to criticize any African government, educate us.
We should be able to have some good materials coming from this exercise that our leaders can now use to educate themselves.
FAKINLEDE
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--
JOHN MUKUM MBAKU, ESQ.
J.D. (Law), Ph.D. (Economics)
Graduate Certificate in Environmental and Natural Resources Law
Nonresident Senior Fellow, The Brookings Institution
Attorney & Counselor at Law (Licensed in Utah)
Brady Presidential Distinguished Professor of Economics & John S. Hinckley Fellow
Department of Economics
Weber State University
1337 Edvalson Street, Dept. 3807
Ogden, UT 84408-3807, USA
(801) 626-7442 Phone
(801) 626-7423 Fax
Listserv moderated by Toyin Falola, University of Texas at Austin
To post to this group, send an email to USAAfricaDialogue@googlegroups.com
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-- kenneth w. harrow professor of english michigan state university department of english 619 red cedar road room C-614 wells hall east lansing, mi 48824 ph. 517 803 8839 harrow@msu.edu
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