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Here in the U.S., we rarely have the opportunity to hear African views on world
affairs. On the next page, I have linked to two articles which create an interesting juxtaposition of Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela's views on US foreign wars. Martin Luther King was expressing his views against the Vietnam war and 40 years later Nelson Mandela is speaking out against the Iraq war. The ongoing crisis in Kenya is covered by Pambazuka New, a online news source from Kenya. I have also culled three opinion pieces on September 11th and its aftermath.
The first view is by Nobel Peace laureate Desmond Tutu of South Africa. The
second and third are both from Kenyan newspapers. Two views from one country,
different in tone and focus, offer the reminder that there is no one "Kenyan"
much less "African" viewpoint. When I received Ms. Patel's op-ed from Nairobi,
I emailed her asking what sources she had found useful on the issue. She sent
me two sources: one was an Israeli paper and the other the New Yorker magazine.
This shows how interconnected we so often are.
Before I turn you over to these commentaries, let me say that I do not
necessarily ask for agreement (or, for that matter, disagreement) with the
views expressed. I ask only that you read thoughtfully so that you can
experience some of the variety of African views.
Please click on the following link to see an introductory video for this unit
on politics: Politics - Video Introduction.
(When the video is completed, close down the window to return to the course.)
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