Africa 101: The Wake Up Call by Arikana Chihombori-Quao

Author:Arikana Chihombori-Quao
Language: eng
Format: mobi, azw, pdf
Publisher: BestSellersGuild.com
Published: 2020-07-05T04:00:00+00:00

BELIEVE IT OR NOT, THIS IS THE AFRICA THE MEDIA DOES NOT WANT YOU TO SEE

Cairo, Egypt

Casablanca, Morocco

Maputo, Mozambique

Harare, Zimbabwe

Johannesburg, South Africa

Nairobi, Kenya

A NEW COMMITMENT

A friend of mine attended an international media summit in 2019 and shared this story with me. During Q&A, one African journalist stood up and asked the western journalists why their coverage of Africa is so skewed towards negativity. The response she received from a journalist working for a renowned New York based print media organization was shocking. He said “nobody challenges us.” A very simple and revealing answer which makes a mockery of the integrity of the journalism profession. On the other hand, however the journalist was right. We the Africans must challenge them and insist on them telling the truth and only the truth about our Africa. Mischievous journalists who blatantly lie or misconstrue the truth must be held accountable.

Media organizations need to make a new commitment to accurately report African affairs. This can only be achieved through mutual respect and an appreciation for all races. We must love and accept each other as equal regardless of our skin color. Africa is a truly amazing continent which must be enjoyed by all. The African Heads of State are inviting the world to take another look at our continent, this time with 20/20 vision.

International news outlets must not continue to promote propaganda about Africa as it benefits no one. The world deserves to know the truth about Africa. Speaking the truth about Africa is the right and responsible thing to do. When journalists intentionally misrepresent Africa, they are doing a serious disservice to the world especially our children regardless of their skin color. Our children are growing in a different world and many no longer see color. They simply see friends. It is us the adults who are trying to confuse them with our own prejudices. Our children deserve to live in a world free of discrimination and falsehoods. This world is theirs and they must enjoy all of it without limitations.

While the journalists have a responsibility to report the truth and nothing but the truth, we the Africans also have a responsibility to push back against these falsehoods and speak our truth. We must be vigilant and fearless in our defense of our beloved Mother Africa. It is easy to defend Africa and her children around the globe as we have been the recipients of western aggression for centuries. The west on the other hand has a lot of explaining to do as they have been the perpetrators of the aggression against Africa and her children around the world. All we have to do is speak our truth.

Our leadership at every level must be fearless in their defense of Africa. They owe it to us to demand our respect and challenge the lies and propaganda in every board room around the world. The men hold the majority of the leadership roles in Africa. We are counting on them to defend us as their grandmothers, mothers, wives, daughters, sisters’ aunts and nieces.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.