The African Child: Andrew Mwenda

This post really began last week when I was at church. A video was shown for missionary work around the world and it struck me, over and over, that the only African's I see within this context are poverty stricken, malnourished children whose long gazes into the camera are designed to inspire pity.

I was thinking of The African Child as I knew him or her, my friends growing up all gifted and rich in so many different ways: Arthur, a skinny 10 year old who made the school's varsity soccer team and dazzled us with on-pitch heroics, or Paul, the rowdy ball of obstinacy who wasn't afraid to challenge authority. I kept thinking about these children and how far they were from that picture and lamenting, as many Africans do, the imagery of Africa as seen in the west.  Arthur is a pediatrician these days and Paul is a social activist and their stories are not unique among the lot of us that grew up in Nairobi.

But back to that voice thing I couldn't find words that were short and punctuated to describe my reaction. I'm too given to long stories and invisible connections. 

So this morning I ran into a talk at TED by Andrew Mwenda, a fellow Ugandan. His words put together everything that I was thinking but with a lot more directness and challenge in their tone.