“Africa is a continent, not a country!” Have you noticed that folks all too often flatten out the mind-spinning variety of African topography, countries, cultures, languages, beliefs, architecture, conflicts, joys and sorrows…by referring to the single word “Africa”? It’s easy to do. I’ve done it myself. But, remember the nuance. Remember the vastness.
I’ve lived so many places in my life that long term friends are precious.They hold the thread of my life. They knew me when and they know me now. Thus it is with Alan and Mary Brody. We met in 1973 in Ghana, West Africa when we were all young. The Brody’s went on to…
Wole Soyinka, playwright, “The Lion and the Jewel” The Lion And The Jewel opens Friday, April 18, 8:00 p.m.at Washington University: Edison Theatre St. Louis, St Louis, Missouri. “The Lion and the Jewel” by Wole Soyinka is diirected by Ron Himes and presented by the Washington University Performing Arts Department. VENUE Edison Theatre St. Louis…
Sankofa can mean either the word in the Akan language of Ghana that translates in English to “go back and take” (Sanko- go back, fa- take) or the Asante Adinkra symbol. A cloth supporting Adinkra symbols is termed an “Adinkra cloth” and has its own particular uses and meanings. As a young woman in the…
Photo: Richard Barnes/Museum of Modern Art One of my favorite artists, Marin Puryear is an African-American artist who has prevailed and brought it on home. Read Roberta Smith’s comprehensive review “Humanity’s Ascent in Three Dimensions” at the NY Times online and see a slide show of Puryear’s visually pure, carefully wrought, and deeply felt work….
At the Albuquerque Airport I stepped out, curbside, looking for some sensible way to carry four containers with only two arms. I was toting two small suitcases, a side bag, and the familiar family solution for overflow—a cardboard box. My friend chauffeuring me spotted the carts. The price seemed right—just a quarter. Yippee! I had…
Wole Soyinka defies categories and boundaries: Scholar, poet, playwright, actor, human rights activist, Nobel Prize winner, former political prisoner. Born in 1934 in western Nigeria. He studied at Government College in Ibadan. In 1973, he earned a doctorate from the University of Leeds. Dramaturgist at the Royal Court Theatre in London in 1958 to 1959….
So very true, Janet. I guess part of the challenge is that many people in the Western world do not travel to Africa, so they have no concept of the vastness, and the differences. And mainstream reporting sometimes gives the impression that one country is the same as the other; and they all face the same challenges.
After reading Dark Star Safari by Paul Thereoux, I wasn’t sure I wanted to go anymore, But, Africa even in it’s most tragic aspects still holds an enduring appeal. I will go. Soon, I hope.
Linda