Jihad vs McWorld

I had to do a book review of the book "Jihad vs McWorld" for one of my sociology classes. In it the author argues that the duel spread of globalism and technological uniformity (McWorld) and tribal separations and hostility based on religion, ethnicity, race, etc (Jihad) combats democracy and is a threat to the sovereign national state. Barber begins by defining globalism by giving a myriad of examples of capitalism and technology that have become uniform nearly worldwide. This includes the trade of natural resources, the global advertising of companies such as Coca Cola, and the international television broadcasting of American based media such as MTV music videos. He then goes on to discuss what he calls Jihad, the boundaries and separations caused by international tribalism. He draws examples from places like Islam, China, Russia, and the Pacific Rim. Throughout, Barber emphasizes that McWorld and Jihad are inevitably linked and dependent, globalism spawning from colonialism, and tribalism the backlash of the same. Both McWorld and Jihad threaten democracy, the former making nations dependent and weakening their sovereign power, and the latter splintering nations into sects, which then become more dependent on McWorld.

The book made me recall a conflict I have thought about before: the beauty of diversity vs the hatred and resentment it seems to cultivate. Often, I have felt extremely depressed about the seemingly natural proneness humans have towards ostracizing those different from the majority, and assuming that the way they live/look is by default the "correct" way of living/looking. This has led to inconceivable amounts of sadness and suffering throughout the world in all areas - physical, mental, emotional, spiritual. However, some of the moments in my life when I have felt the most exhilarated have been the times when I was experiencing new culture, different from my own. The beauty behind the variations in human existence is mind-boggling, and provides for an inexhaustible way of looking at things and behaving. So, what would be better? Living in one giant, homogenous world to prevent against the pains of negative group mentalities that foster ethnocentrism, tribalism, racism, etc? Or continuing to encourage diversity and cultural differences because of the massive benefits they bring to humanity?

In my opinion, although the world is far from ideal, diversity is worth it. I am so excited to visit Ghana because I feel I can learn so much from a new experience of place, time, behavior, materialism, etc. New doors will be opened in my mind that would have remained locked while remaining only under the American ontology. Cultural exposure opens up new spiritual, psychological, and even physical routes. I think it is one of the most significant and effective ways of gaining an education.

Group Relations

First and foremost - my IRB has been approved!! YES! So glad that stress is finally over.

So this post will be somewhat similar to the one prior about beauty perception. It is about an issue I have encountered time and time again here in America, and I am wondering if similar issues exist in Ghana. I think comparing and contrasting between what I known and what I will discover is effective in better understanding a foreign culture.

Actually, my post is about race relations, which is not a singular issue, but encompasses a world of issues that have perpetuated in America since its conception and remain today. Racism and related problems are basically always on my mind, but have been brought to the forefront of a lot of my news reading lately with the whole Trayvon Martin case. Although I realize it is often bad to come to hasty conclusions about murky scenarios, like what happened in Trayvon's gated community the day he died, the official information about the case is still enough to make me feel sick.

Basically, Trayvon, a black boy in a hoodie, was on his way back to his house in a gated neighborhood after walking to the store to buy skittles, was followed by a neighborhood watch volunteer, and eventually shot dead by the man before making it to his front door. The shooter claims he killed in self defense, because he was attacked, although witnesses claim they heard the boy yelling for help. The shooter says he had initially followed the boy because he looked suspicious, although he was just wearing a casual hoodie and tennis shoes, and the only things in his hands were skittles and iced tea. The shooter, although a neighborhood watch volunteer, did not have the legal authority to even be armed. When the boy's body was picked up, the shooter was not arrested, and the victim remained unidentified, some speculating because authorities could not believe a black boy in a hoodie actually lived in the gated community.

Now, a huge nationwide backlash has occured against the police department of the boy's city in Florida, criticizing the way the case was handled since the shooter has yet to even have been arrested, let off merely because he claimed self defense. An online petition gained over 800,000 signatures calling for justice for Trayvon's death. Many say had the shooter been a black man, and the victim a white boy, or of any race for that matter, he would have immediately been arrested, and harsh legal action would have been attempted against him. As much as I hate to say it, I basically agree.

I could go on and on about the deeper issues this story and similar ones say about the long, LONG way America has to go before it becomes post-racial, but this post is meant to relate to my project. This is where this post becomes similar to the beauty perception post. I am very interested in whether racial or ethnic differences affect society and culture in Ghana in the same large ways it does in America. Do Ghanaians treat others differently based on various racial, ethnic, or tribal identities? Are some groups faced with a perpetual perception as guests in their own country, or the fear of being viewed in the negative light of suspicion or condescension? How do these issues affect social classes, community structure, government, etc? These are some other issues I would like to at least passively keep in mind and observe during my time in Ghana.

Here is a fairly unbiased version of the updated story of Trayvon Martin, as of today:

http://www.cnn.com/2012/03/27/justice/florida-teen-shooting/?hpt=hp_t1