There is an amazing amount of diversity on the continent of Africa. Unfortunately the focus of non-African media seems to be on death, destruction, danger, and disease in Africa. Americans would be offended if the world defined the United States through sensational murders, natural disasters, misguided political leaders, and epidemics. That’s exactly what we do to other parts of the world. “Understanding Africa for Dummies” is my satiric attempt to get people to think about how we perceive the rest of the world, especially Africa. I would like to see the book become a reality by bringing together several writers to accurately represent the African narrative. Each chapter would focus on a unique subject matter: climate, environment, education, technology, government, history, health, trade, politics, art, music, food, and so on. Each chapter would be written by a respected African personality who is qualified to write about the subject matter. Ignorance and misunderstanding can be alleviated through education.
UPDATE: Africa is a Country featured the idea and motivation behind “Understanding Africa for Dummies”. Click the link below to read the article.
UPDATE: This German website translated an article about about “Understanding Africa for Dummies” into English. Click the link below to read the article.
[...] Africa for Dummies (Kategorie: Textbeiträge) Idee: Michael Kirkpatrick/Independent Global Citizen [...]
This sums up totally the non pragmatic UN / NGO aid community perfectly
Love it!
Would this be tongue-in-cheek, similar to Binyavanga Wainaina’s “How to write about Africa” or is this a serious effort.
The cover is tongue-in-cheek to attract people to read the serious content inside. It would be impossible to cover everything in one book, but there needs to be a catalyst to get people interested in learning facts about the diversity of Africa.
Brilliant idea!!