…In one interview I did I
asked about what forces needed to come to the aid of salvaging agriculture in
Ghana (for example, the government). The teacher I was interviewing said that
in his opinion, the Western nations should step in. He said that their economies
had risen to the superior power they now hold on the backs of slaves,
especially in America, and when the British colonized areas of Africa,
including Ghana. The country was exploited for its riches, and left in the
ashes of this exploitation to now be in the undeveloped state it is in. It
wasn’t my place to respond of course, because I was conducting an interview,
but how could I respond to that anyway? Its not like that’s the first time I’ve
heard this – its basically all we talked about in my development classes last
semester – how the Western nations exploited their way to the top, and continue
to in many ways through neo-colonialist behaviors. However, to hear it from a
real person who does not live in America, and experiences the aftermath of these
recent world affairs each day, and who is now my friend, and is a familiar
face, was a different experience. With all of the many despicable acts of
marginalization and barbaric exploitations of people and races in the world’s
history, I just pray to have faith that through the Atonement, all of God’s
many children here will someday be rectified for these wrongs and blessed with
healing power and great relief after burdens are lifted…
…We toured the Cape Coast
slave castle after breakfast, and that was a heavy experience. It is hard for
me to explain my exact feelings, but I just cannot fathom how such brutality
occurs, and in the name of religion in many instances. The castle has a chapel
where the European colonialists could hold worship services, and ironically
right underneath it is the male slave dungeon, where hundreds of slaves were
kept in small vaults where it was almost completely dark besides tiny windows
near the ceiling for ventilation, and where they had to lie on the stone hard
floor and defecate there, and many died before they even reached the slave
ships. What a horrible end. Stripped away from your family, housed like cattle,
and then sold as merchandise. They said anyone who resisted would be made an
example of and punished, maybe killed. Women could be punished for refusing to
sleep with the colonists or for showing other forms of resistance. Anyway, I
felt pretty weighed down thinking about that, and how my ancestors could very
well have been brought to America through the slave trade…
…After, we packed into a taxi
to Hans Cottage, a place Madame Esther’s daughter Grace had told me about. It
ended up being a restaurant set up right on top of a pond that is home to a
bunch of alligators! I was wondering if we would actually see any, when immediately
after walking over the bridge that takes you to the restaurant we saw one huge
one sitting in the grass with its mouth propped open and all the jagged, evil
teeth showing. Another was lurking with its eyes and back just showing above
the murky water and it was super creepy. I would have been happy just to see
this, but was elated when we went around the corner, and they let us into a
little gated area where you could stand 10-20 feet away from ones that had come
up onto the shore to sun bathe. The people in charge keep them well-fed with
meat so that they wont be hungry to eat us, but we still had to be careful to
not all get too close or anything. However, we did get to approach them from
behind and get a picture with our legs straddled over them and touching its
back. I felt slightly scared when I did this. However, now I have a sweet
picture touching a gator…
…It is weird hearing from all these farmers how many
of them either did not get an education, or even if they did, they have not
been outside Ghana or even their small towns or communities, yet their children
are being put through school, getting white collar jobs, and some traveling
abroad. I wonder what it is like to be somewhere like London, like two of
Saffo’s children, and have this scope and perspective of the world that many
Ghanaians don’t get exposed to, and still relate with your parents when they
have not experienced anything like this. It is really interesting, and that is
why my project, that might seem bone dry boring on the outside, is actually
interesting because it is a study of the rapidly developing change between this
older, under-educated, rural generation, and this new youthful generation that
has been pumped with dreams of “becoming someone” “going places” “seeing things.”
They have this whole new aspiration, and are exposed to globalism and
technology. It is interesting to see how these factors can drastically alter
culture and behavior...
…Mike then told me he wanted to ask me something. He
said that he had had an American friend whom he had catered to, taking her
around all over to see things, and even spending money to accommodate her.
However, she had never called him once she left, not even to say thank you. He
asked me straight up if we just come and use people to get the information we
need and then drop them. Of course I hardly knew how to respond. Several people
have voiced similar concerns to me here. On one hand, it is purely a cultural
issue – Baron gets annoyed with me that I do not call him and tell him that I
am in Kumasi and will not be passing his bench on days when I do not, and
obviously I don’t think of doing this since he is not my father or something
and that is not what I have grown up doing. Also, they often do not realize how
expensive it would be for me to call all my new friends here from America, and
that this is just not feasible. For one, their phone plans are different than
in America, and I am not nearly as rich as they think I am. However, on the
other hand, he has a point. I have been thinking about this a lot. I figure
that I will inevitably disappoint some of the people I have met here when I
never contact them again because they have no access to a computer, but that
also does not give me an excuse to not think of reciprocation in small ways, or
to try to stay in at least limited contact with those who really helped me over
the internet if they have access. Like I wrote a long time ago, it is really
easy to make this experience somewhat like a game, like I am living in this
little fake village that is my temporary quaint experience – I shop in the
little market place, go to the little schools, visit a few farms, but in the
back of my mind always I know that I will never have to live without
electricity, fetch water every day from a well, carry a baby on my back and
have as many children as my husband tells me to have, and never know the
convenience of a grocery store or a car of my own. I have to remind myself that
this place is every bit as significant and real and worthwhile as the places I
know so well back home in America where I relate to the culture and behavior. I
tried to explain to Mike about the cultural differences, and that sometimes we
just don’t think, and that is not something intentionally offensive, and that I
would not be able to call the people I had met on a regular basis, but that I
would facebook, email, or write letters to anyone who decided to contact me in
this way…
…Something funny happened this
week when one of the teachers came up to me and told me America had been on
fire the day before. The day before was the Fourth of July, so I said oh yes!
Fireworks! Like they were so great, and I went on to talk about the country’s
independence. He seemed somewhat confused, and then he mentioned Colorado, and
I finally realized he had been talking about the forest fires! Haha. So then I
said, oh yes, I had heard of those. He said that it had been 100 degrees and
that even here it does not get that hot! I was thinking uhhh yeah right it gets
way hotter, but he probably does not realize that is in Fahrenheit, and then he
said the lights were out for 5 days in Colorado (also don’t think that all of
Colorado had the electricity go out haha) but he found this amusing and said
“First time lights off for America!” Haha. Well he is kind of right, five days
would be no big here, but in America I’m sure people were freaking out when
they couldn’t charge their iPhones!
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