Africa And Reclaiming Its Identity

From time immemorial, after the European invasion of Africa, Africa has always been in the battle of regaining its lost identity. This included its territory, culture, and traditions that are peculiar to its people.

The struggle started during the 19th century when the Europeans laid out plans for industrial and economic expansion. This culminated in an agreement called the Berlin Conference of 1884–85, which saw the division of African territories among the powerful countries of Europe, like the United Kingdom, France, and Portugal.

However, this arrangement met strong resistance from African natives. It led to fierce battles between the colonial masters and Africans. A typical example is the Ekumeku War (1883–1914). This war emanated as an opposition to the British conquest of their land, palm trees, and the imposition of taxes on the local people. The rebel group, which was made up of Western Igbo (Anioma), fought against the British for thirty-one years. Although the Ekumeku warring group was defeated by the British in 1914, the war went on to become one of the fiercest uprisings of the African people in colonial history.

Other notable examples are the Aba Women's Riot of 1929 and the Mau Mau Emergency.

However, the fight to regain Africa's identity became intense during the 1950s. At the time, African students who were residents in Western countries like the USA and Britain came together to create organisations that promoted the ideologies, culture, and traditions of the African people. These organisations aimed at debunking the fallacies built around Africa and strengthening the spirit of brotherhood among Africans. Thus, the term "Pan-Africanism" was propounded.

Pan-Africanism is a political, cultural, and social movement that promotes the unity, solidarity, and cooperation of all people of African descent, both on the African continent and throughout the global African diaspora. This movement began in the early twentieth century by W. E. B DuBois, Marcus Garvey and strengthened by Kwame Nkrumah.

One of these organisations is the West African Students' Union (WASU), founded in 1925 by African students in London. It remained active throughout the 1950s. This organization published journals and promoted the culture of the African people.

Among these students were Kwame Nkrumah and Nnamdi Azikiwe, who established themselves as forces to be reckoned with in African politics. Nnamdi Azikiwe, a journalist and politician, established a newspaper, West African Pilot. This newspaper curbed misinformation and increased political awareness among Africans.

Kwame Nkrumah went on to become the president of Ghana, formerly known as the Gold Coast.

Furthermore, literature has always been a vital tool for promoting African culture.

In 1958, Chinua Achebe published Things Fall Apart as a response to the lies peddled by Western writers. Some years earlier, Joseph Conrad published Heart of Darkness, which appeared to be normal, but beneath it was the depiction of African people as savages.

The title Things Fall Apart is a line from The Second Coming by W. B. Yeats. Things Fall Apart went on to become the most-read book in African literature, selling over 30 million copies. Its success challenged colonial narratives around African literature.

Renowned Kenyan writer Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o, in his book, Decolonizing the Mind: The Politics of Language in African Literature, argued that the only way to reclaim our identity as Africans is by speaking our language.

Binyavanga Wainaina published a satirical essay, How to Write About Africa. In this essay, filled with sarcasm, he spoke about the limitations placed on African writers and literature. This includes ways to explain or talk about Africa to fit the Western reader's imagination.

To further make it known,Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, in her viral 2009 TED Talk, The Danger of a Single Story, criticized the West for its continuous depiction of Africa as a poor continent. She said, "The consequence of a single story is this: it robs people of their identity."

To promote African culture and fashion, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie launched a campaign in 2017 called "Wear Nigerian." This campaign was initiated to inculcate African style into global fashion. For her public appearances, she wore outfits made with African textiles by indigenous brands.She went further to create an Instagram page dedicated to African fashion, which garnered over 600,000 followers in 2020.

In 2018, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie clapped back at a French journalist who asked if Africa had bookshops. She bemoaned France for upholding the belief that it is still a world power of the colonial era.

In 2020, at an event, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie spoke about African artefacts held captive in European museums. She urged the governments of these countries to return these works of art to where they belong.

Worthy of mention is the role of the movie industry in reclaiming Africa's identity. It has contributed significantly to the growth of the culture and traditions of Africa.

Nigerian director and actress Genevieve Nnaji emphasized the need for authenticity in African stories, especially when they are told by foreigners. She said during the Toronto International Film Festival in 2016. To establish this opinion, Genevieve Nnaji went ahead to produce Nigeria's first Netflix Original, Lionheart, in 2018. Ever since then, Africa, most importantly Nollywood, has produced authentic films based on African culture and traditions. Some of these films include Mami Wata by C. J. "Fiery" Obasi, Izu Ojukwu’s “76(with a sequel,”77), Funke Akindele’s Jenifa etc.

Moreover, the music industry has produced icons who have used their platforms to promote African culture. Notable examples include Flavour, Angélique Kidjo, Davido, Ayra Starr, Wizkid, and the late Onyeka Onwenu.

Reputable Africans have also held important positions on the global stage, thereby confirming that intelligence knows no bounds. Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, for instance, became the first African and the first woman to be appointed Director-General of the World Trade Organization. She is currently serving her second tenure.

In the new age of technology, content creators have devised means of inculcating Africa into their brands. An example is Charity Ekezie, a journalist and influencer who uses sarcasm to dispel fallacies about Africa.

Spoken Word Artistes like Deborah Johnson, Havfy Abudullahi and Victory Ashaka have used their global platform to shun the depiction of Africa as a wretched continent. 

However, despite all these moves, Africa is still under the claws of neocolonialism. It has solely depended on foreign loans and aid for economic survival. Nigeria's foreign debt is 51.86 billion dollars, which is approximately 74.43 trillion naira. This underscores the level of dependency of Africa on foreign banks and loans to ease the cushioning effect of poverty on the continent.

The exploitation of mineral resources has continued non-stop. There is an exclusion of Africa in the Security Council of the United Nations, which many have seen as deliberate.

Even with years of battle, there is still perceived superiority of white people over Africans. To add to this is the poor documentation of the history of African people.

Therefore, to reclaim Africa's identity, all hands must be on deck. Economists, technocrats, and industry experts must come together to decide the future of Africa.

Government institutions must support the use of African language to educate students in primary and secondary schools. This is to avoid the extinction of our value as Africans.

History should be introduced in the school curriculum at all levels. Young people should be encouraged to read and learn about their culture and traditions.

This will aid in building an ecosystem where people are culturally and politically aware of their rights as Africans.