USA Africa Dialogue Series - A silly tale about the Kingdom of Trump

In the year of the Thunderbolt, a  deadly disease erupted in the Kingdom  of Trump. The king didn't know what to do.

 "I can wish it away and tell my silly subjects  that it would disappear," he said to himself.  So this he did. 

Peasants and courtiers  began filling the hospital beds, and cemeteries began to overflow with dead bodies, however.  There was much wailing and gnashing of teeth in the kingdom. So he  finally decided to get together a group of priests, magicians, psychics and doctors   to address the people and calm them down.

Lo and behold, one of the members of the group began telling the truth. "Hundreds of  thousands  of people will die, " said the brave man. "Everybody must wear a mask. Declare  a state of emergency. The disease will not go away just like that. Many will die," he pleaded.

The long and short of this little tale is that the 

King decided to behead the brave messenger and declare the pandemic  over. He  then 

anointed himself as "Conqueror of Covid." This was a new designation and honorific title in the kingdom, promulgated overnight, to delude himself and the people.

Dead bodies continued to pile up by the hour. Hospital beds overflowed.  The chariots used for transporting produce  from  the peasants,  now conveyed dead bodies. 

A dynastic struggle ensued.  The war was bloody, and the King lost  a leg in battle and thousands of his troops,  but refused to give up the throne. Then a  massive unexpected bolt descended from the sky. The King succumbed.

A new king and queen emerged to save the kingdom from total collapse. The people of the kingdom rejoiced, and although a few of the king's former allies gathered together in secrecy,  to plot revenge for their losses  in battle, the kingdom survived the very close threat to its existence.

 Its enemies, however, who had watched the tragedy unfold  with glee,  were somewhat emboldened by what they saw. " Their gods are made of clay feet and  papier-mâché," they told themselves. So they started to plot against the Kingdom of Trump.

 As fate would have it, however,  the new monarchs   ..............

Gloria Emeagwali

Professor Gloria Emeagwali
Prof. of History/African Studies, CCSU
africahistory.net; vimeo.com/ gloriaemeagwali
Recipient of the 2014 Distinguished Research
Excellence Award, Univ. of Texas at Austin;
2019 Distinguished Africanist Award
New York African Studies Association