Tag Archives: Sterotype

Stereotypical Biases: Black Africans

Throughout time, stereotypes have gradually transformed into epidemic ideologies. The majority of people are unaware of the truth behind myths that stereotypical behavior is based on. For example, Africans are some of many people who are usually targeted by this convention. The stereotype that affected the overall image of Africans or people from the Africa is that they are wealthy regardless of their background. Africa endured many struggles and obstacles to reach its current status. Thus, the most common stereotype about Africa is their dark skin, some of the comments that really surprised me were:

“ The continent itself calls images of Darkest Africa with jungles, savanna, diamond mines, undiscovered civilizations or creatures, elephants, lions, monkeys, gorillas, chimpanzees, baboons, pythons, hippopotamuses, rhinoceroses, leopards, hyenas, ostriches, crocodiles, antelopes, wildebeest, etc. Usually whenever people visit Africa they almost trip over all these omnipresent animals, which they invariably always encounter at a dangerous moment. Africans are generally assumed to an entire continent full of black people. If there are whites they are always Great White Hunter or Mighty Whitey: there are no other options. Apparently all the Coloreds, Indians, Asians, and all the rest of them have vanished overnight. In addition, it’s a common stereotype that all black Africans essentially look like West Africans, with none of the variety in phenotypes found in Europe or Asia. This stereotype is especially common in the US, because it’s assumed that all Africans look like African Americans, who are mostly descended from West Africans. As a result, East and Northeast African phenotypes in particular are extremely rare in depictions of black Africans.”

It is important because it shows how people treat others differently just because of their skin color, this is definitely a negative thought since now most people will think that being black means being African which is wrong. And now Africa has the world’s attention just because of the myths about this part of the world. Although all countries show interest in Africa now yet racial stereotypes keep on wondering around it.

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKOWERczykU

This video explains more about black Africans, and as said “It has gone on for many many years. We’ve all seen the ignorant remarks from ignorant and uneducated racists who say things like “Black African’s had no history”. “Black Africans had no culture”. “Black Africans had never even discovered the wheel”. “When the white man discovered black Africans they were just naked savages and cannibals living in mud huts”. But this video explains how ignorant people are when it comes to this topic and actually Africans made history not whites. One of the Pre-colonial economics that is affecting Africa is The demand for slaves rose as the European sugar plantation arose, which led to an immediate impact on the African economy by a decrease in the agricultural production. Which created the Euro African who are called “Black Africans” in Europe and “Europeans” in Africa. “The African country with the largest White African population of European descent both numerically and proportionally is South Africa, at approximately 4.6 million (9.2% of the population). Although White Africans no longer have the exclusive rule of single nations, they still hold a substantial ownership of the economy and land in specific nations”.

 

Read more: http://www.apa.org/science/about/psa/2006/04/maddox.aspx

 

The Ebola Epidemic Stereotype

http://edition.cnn.com/2014/09/01/world/africa/ebola-ghost-town/index.html?hpt=iaf_t2

For this assignment, I read the CNN article “Funerals, Ghost Towns and haunted health workers: Life in the Ebola Zone.” The article discusses the Ebola epidemic that is currently plaguing the northern Liberian area of Africa. Ebola is not only stealing human life from the infected villages- it is robbing them of religious practices as well. Due to the level of contagiousness equated with Ebola, individuals are stripped from being able to practice their typical burial ceremonies. This is important not only because of the number of lives it has claimed, but also because of the multiple levels in which it violates the families. The article continues to deeply describe the extreme precautions that are being taken in order to avoid Ebola. It describes men dressed in “space-suit-like outfits, cautiously throwing the dead body into the grave, [pausing] only to toss in anything else they are wearing that came into contact with the deceased.”

The key words that are used within the article are mourning, burying, devastating, suffering, deaths, and abandonment. Judging by the frequency and duration of the words used, the tone of the entire article is a mix of fear and morning. The author wants the reader to feel the pain that the affected individuals are subjected to. I suppose that CNN could be giving a stereotypical impression of Africa because of the bleak and pitiful nature of the article. It projects a vibe of helplessness towards the reader, which can be found in the majority of articles written about Africa. CNN is also known for having biased views on a myriad of topics.

Even though the language suggests differently, it’s hard for me to personally label this article as stereotypical. The reason behind this lies within the attached video, in which locals are interviewed and asked about how Ebola is currently affecting them. It might be easy to believe that the author is exaggerating the torment Ebola is inflicting upon Africa, but the words that came from the mouths of the locals makes the suffering seem real. For example, there’s a section in the article that describes the Ebola response team had been called to a village where a woman died of unknown causes. The health team is required to cover their entire body with gowns, goggles, and gloves in order to collect the body; which is then placed in an airtight polythene bag. When the team exits the house, the article states “those crying are the dead woman’s family members; for their own safety, they can only mourn from a distance.” I personally feel that whether the article is biased or not isn’t an issue. I doubt that the writer would go into such detail about the pain that is experienced if it was not true (at least on some level). It’s heartbreaking to hear about the abrupt fashion that Ebola steals loved ones. Whether you’re from Africa, the United States, Germany, or even the North Pole- death is devastating. It’s devastating to live through and it’s devastating to read. Ebola is largely equated with death, so no matter what, this article is going to be an unpleasant read. I’m not sure how the author could have rewritten it in order to not give off a bias view of Africa.