That night we watched a documentary called The Boys of Baraka, about middle school age boys from Baltimore who are accepted into a program where they spend two years of schooling in rural Kenya. In Baltimore, 76% of black males do not finish high school. And watching the boys' situations and how their demeanor and attitudes changed when they were taken to Kenya was incredible. One of them was reading at a 2nd grade level even though he was in 7th grade, and his learning disability had not been identified until he got to Kenya.They were also forced to learn how to deal with their problems without resorting to violence, and were given the chance to just be boys in the outdoors. The movie took a sad turn when after the first year they had to close the program because of wars in Kenya. It was heartbreaking watching the response of the boys and their parents. The parents wept, knowing their sons were now likely to end up in jail or on the streets selling drugs. The boys too, knew they had a diminished chance of succeeding in school, and they voiced their own realizations that their futures were dim. Since the movie came out in 2005, we were able to look up some follow up news. Sure enough, only one had finished high school and gone on to college, the other three had not completed high school.
After the film we had a discussion about the state of African Americans and how Afrocentric interventions (for example focusing on collectivism and reclaiming African culture) have led to increased success in education and self-esteem. We talked about the effects of historical trauma on both African Americans and Africans, and how although both experienced it from slavery and colonialism, respectively, African Americans suffered a loss of culture which has caused a loss of self-worth. An example of this is that most Africans can trace their families back generations, while most African Americans know little of their family history. Our Ghanaian peers agreed; they said that in Ghana people view slavery as in the past and are more affected by colonialism, which has formally ended but as I mentioned in a previous email, is present today as neo-colonialism. As we talk about all of these issues, I keep thinking about how I wish I had been exposed to more of it at a younger age. Issues surrounding race, class, gender, are never discussed in public education until college, and only then in specific classes. I think most students (including myself) are surprised to realize the poverty that prevails in America, and how it disproportionately affects women (i.e. the feminization of poverty) and people of color.
On a lighter note though, we spent most of the next day at the beach and pool, which was a lot of fun. It's funny, even though Ghana is on the coast, Ghanaians don't really swim. Our Ghanaian peers were with us at the resort and two of the three guys had never swam before, and only one had a swimsuit! Even then he wore it with a shirt, and the girls wore spandex shorts and a tube top to swim--no bikinis or even one-pieces. Then we had an impromptu dance party by the pool, and I think the Ghanains were pretty shocked by the way our American youth music and dancing is very sexualized. After dinner we had a different kind of dance show--there was a traditional dance troupe that came and performed, and then taught us a dance. It was quite a workout! Very fun though.
Today we left Coconut Grove and drove to Kakum National park where we walked on rope bridges over the canopy. Needless to say it was beautiful, worth the hike up the leaving point. The next four hours on the bus were not as fun, but there's still a lot to see and take in on our drives. Oh, I think I mentioned that a lot of people sell things in the streets, mostly from boxes or bins on their heads. So it does come as a convenience when we're stuck in traffic and I need to buy phone minutes, or want some plantain chips, and we just open the window and exchange with the passing sellers. Tonight we went to dinner at a restaurant/bar that had some American food (which pretty much means pizza and burgers). Let me tell you, even as a rice lover, eating it two times a day for a couple weeks makes you miss variety. And as a Texan/Austinite, I have been craving queso for quite some time.. But anyway the thing about service is that it runs on Ghanaian time--which is even dare I say slower than Greek time. We wait about an hour for food generally, and the concept of all of it coming out at the same time also doesn't exist. So I happened to get my food first, and the last person in our group got it about 45 minutes later. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that they don't tip? As my professor says though, sometimes we need to "sit with" discomfort. I think that has been really valuable on this trip. Especially being in a place where a lot of people don't have the luxury of food variety or air conditioning, or even a well-functioning police system. So, I'm learning to sit with it. It helped me be more grateful for all I do have and able to focus on taking in the experience around me rather than focusing on discomfort. It does make you more annoyed with whiners, however.
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