Let me add a small footnote to the posting below. There are more countries caring for refugees in Africa than anywhere else in the world. By far.
And they do so not because they are forced to , but because they recognize this as an obligation.
Unlike the u.s., unlike much of Europe. Unlike japan. Unlike Australia.
But like turkey, Jordan.
Countries that are rich rarely recognize the human obligation. A great exception to that is merkel, and also Sweden.
As for the others, …. They somehow can't imagine that they will ever be a refugee, ever be anything but rich and powerful, and therefore anything other than being the one who says, with nose in the air, noblesse oblige while they dole out their surplus wealth.
Today trump officially declared he would deport 200,000 salvadoreans. What a shame!
Of course there have been equivalent events in Africa; equivalent cruelty, as when Ghana deported its foreign population in the 1970s, when Nigeria did the same, when cote d'ivoire did so, and kourouma put that into his Soleils des indepdendances.
But the millions put up in camps in Uganda and kenya attest to another side; and we all know that africa's open borders, since independence, meant people in need could look for work in other countries without impediment.
That was another time, another place. I see europe's fortress mentality, like the u.s., like japan, as exhibiting the other side of humanity.
Ken
Kenneth Harrow
Dept of English and Film Studies
http://www.english.msu.edu/people/faculty/kenneth-harrow/
From: usaafricadialogue <usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com> on behalf of ken harrow <harrow@msu.edu>
Reply-To: usaafricadialogue <usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com>
Date: Monday 8 January 2018 at 14:40
To: usaafricadialogue <usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com>, Toyin Falola <toyinfalola@austin.utexas.edu>
Subject: Re: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Why 2017 Was the Best Year in Human History - The New York Times
Good question.
In an age of globalization I would have thought prognostications for the future would be considerably more pessimistic, especially if we continue on w idiots in power, or with hard, cruel rulers in power, everywhere from Russia to the US.
Maybe we are supposed to be happy with a future carved by non-democratic rule, as in china, as opposed to the EU.but I think we all know china is actually increasing in influence everywhere as opposed to the EU, with its walled off east, its coast guarded south, its great openness to tourists more than refugees. And the US? Une honte.
According to the comaroffs, our future has to come from the global south—from Africa, and, why not?, latin america
ken
Kenneth Harrow
Dept of English and Film Studies
http://www.english.msu.edu/people/faculty/kenneth-harrow/
From: usaafricadialogue <usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com>
Reply-To: usaafricadialogue <usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com>
Date: Monday 8 January 2018 at 08:35
To: usaafricadialogue <USAAfricaDialogue@googlegroups.com>, usaafricadialogue <usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com>, Toyin Falola <toyinfalola@austin.utexas.edu>
Subject: Re: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Why 2017 Was the Best Year in Human History - The New York Times
"As recently as the 1960s, a majority of humans had always been illiterate and lived in extreme poverty. Now fewer than 15 percent are illiterate, and fewer than 10 percent live in extreme poverty. In another 15 years, illiteracy and extreme poverty will be mostly gone. After thousands of generations, they are pretty much disappearing on our watch . . ." (emphasis, mine)
I would like to know from where Kristof obtained this amazing information, and what gave him the promise of a total eradication of poverty and illiteracy within the next 15 years!
Just curious . . .
Michael
On Monday, January 8, 2018, 4:54:13 AM PST, Toyin Falola <toyinfalola@austin.utexas.edu> wrote:
Sent from my iPhone
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