Two interesting things happened for me during Tuesday’s session. One pushed me to question all that we assume to be true, and the other asked me to stand more firmly in the face of what we are constantly told to be true.
The day began with a talk from Prof. Lindsay Hoffman from UD’s Department of Communication. The focus was on US presidential elections and the chronology of how they have changed with technological advancements. Prof. Hoffman showed us that there has been increasing polarization between supporters of the two major political parties in the US, which is reflected in many countries across the world, raises the question about the possible correlation between partisanship and technological advancements, and motivates us to discern what must be done to bridge this gap between citizens. The norm in the internet age is that you will have a tendency to reinforce your own beliefs or ideology in the news sources you choose to access. This creates an ideological echo chamber where all that you already believe is reaffirmed. The danger in this is that you don’t have to engage with anyone who does not agree with your own opinions and, as brought out in yesterday’s discussion, are more inclined to disbelieve it even more when challenged. A flicker of hope lies in research pointing to us as the generation most plugged in and least polarized. The onus falls on us to change this trajectory of polarization by (1) engaging with ideas and opinions that we may not agree with, (2) questioning what we think is true, and (3) emphasizing this message to our peers and within our spheres of influence.
In the afternoon, we paid a visit to a Historically Black College and University (HBCU): Lincoln University near Oxford, PA. The school has an impressive roster of African leaders who called Lincoln their alma mater, including Nnamdi Azikiwe, Kwame Nkurumah, and Patrice Lumumba amongst others. We had a session with Prof. Emmanuel Babatunde from Lincoln University’s Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice on some of the challenges facing the African continent. He called on us to think of the reasons why there has been a continued division incongruent to the unifying aspirations of earlier African leaders. He emphasized that the reasons used to divide us are, in fact, our greatest strengths.
As Prof. Babatunde presented his lived and learned experiences of the continent, I felt that young Africans like us need to be more sanguine about the future of the continent, which is, in my view, not daunting, but actually exciting. There are numerous success stories coming out of the continent, as evidenced by the range of incredibly talented fellows represented in this program. These narratives have shown the nuances and back-stories behind the single (largely negative) story that has become synonymous with Africa for so long. As shown by the work of a group of African photographers here (http://everydayafrica.tumblr.com/), Africa’s story is not singular and, admittedly imperfect, it is one that is continually shifting to reflect the complicated realities of a continent in flux—a continent in which we must continue to believe.
“When brothers fight to the death, a stranger inherits their father’s estate.” ~ Igbo proverb