Child Soldiers

It is believed that there are more than 120,000 children (under 18) participating in military armed conflicts just in Africa today, some of the children as young as 7 years old. I cannot believe such a huge number...i know that there are milions and millions of people in just one country of Africa, but still, considering these kids are equivalent to US 2nd, 3rd or 4th graders 120,000 is an overwhelming amount...in my opinion 1 would be too many. And becasue these children are obviously emotionally/pyschologically immature as well as physically, they are willing to take greater risks...this is probably becasue the kids think that they are part of an elaborate game and dont really realize the harsh consequence of their actions. These children can begin as porters (carrying food or ammunition) or messengers, others as spies. It bad enough that these kids have to be subjected to this lifestyle but to use them as spies really demonstrates the extremity of their exploitation, obviously they are much less likely to be suspected on enemy territory than a grown soldier, so the men use this to their adavntage and utilize every aspect of these children, including the preconcieved notion of their innocence...completely disgusting.

I also though that it was very interesting that girl children are also used as soldiers, which we werent really exposed to in Johnny Mad Dog. In Liberia, about 1% of child soldiers were girls. However, girls play other roles as well: girlfriends or wives of rebel leaders, through researching I found out that they refer to themselves as "wartime women". Many times girls are forced to become girlfriends of rebel soldiers, and if they refuse they are simply killed; however if they do become a part of the group the risk for sexually transmitted diseases or unwanted pregnancies are enormous.

Johnny Mad Dog

I had mixed emotions about Johnny Mad Dog...although I found the book entertaining I never once stopped thinking that this kind of stuff happens all the time in Africa which made it frustrating and difficult to read at times. I was watching Tropic Thunder not too long ago and in the movie, the characters have a run in with a group of drug smugglers and the leader of them all is a homocidal child...although the movie mocks the idea of "child soldiers" or more specifically drug lords and poverty, I couldn't help but be reminded of the harsh reality of this lifestyle that was more truthfully depicted in Mad Dog. In a way it almost seems comical reflecting back on it now, because the whole idea seems completely absurd, however for the children in Johnny Mad Dog this way of life is very real (and very, very gruesome) and what these children fail to realize is that they are really nothing more than just brain washed little machines that have been programmed to lie, cheat, steal and kill. One aspect of the book that I did appreciate was Laokole's character, she seemed to provide some kind of humanity and relateable quality that made me realize the realness and effect of all of the destruction caused by Mad Dog and the other soldiers in the text. While the young boys glorify and glamorize killing (through strange yet eerie Western pop culture nicknames and clothing) and the power that coincides with it, she seemed to represent the real life consequences of all of this needless death and destruction. One part that really made me realize the stark contrast between Laokole and Mad dog's lives was when the book describes Laokole pushing her father on a wheelbarrow and trying to find her brother...I cannot imagine the immense frustration and hopelessness of her situation, and to make matters worse it seems like all of the child soldiers (the same age as her) have been completely transformed into killing machines. Whats even worse is that these kids justify their actions by mistaking their heartless savagery with the lifestyle of "real soldiers", their minds have been so distorted that they cant even distinguish wrong and right because all of their horrible behavior has been associated with masculinity and adulthood...things that any child naturally aspires for.

The Problem of Deforestation in Africa

As I'm sure many people already now, rain forests do more than just act as a home for exotic birds and cute monkeys...they operate as a sort of "lung" for the environment, recycling nutrients and helping to regulate the quality and flow of water (clean water is another big problem in Africa...kind of a vicious cycle situation).

The deforestation occurring in Africa is adding to a world wide air pollution problem. However the thing that makes this such a complicated issue is that because Africa is largely a suffering continent, many of the developing countries use wood fuel for heating and cooking (which are basic necessities to pretty much everyone).

Just to give an idea of how integral wood fuel is to African lives, I have some statistics... around 90% of the entire population of the continent relies on wood fuel for cooking, that's A LOT of wood! Its no wonder then, that even though forests cover about 22 % of the region, but they are disappearing faster than anywhere else in the developing world. It seems like, as always, Africa is in a complex situation...whereas other countries use the products of deforestation for logging or commercial use, the African people rely on the destruction of their rainforests just to survive.

Waiting for an Angel

Wow! I really liked this book, and usually I'm not a big fan of novels jumping around in time but this one was a lot easier to follow than Ancestor Stones. I actually appreciated the jumping around by the second half of the book because anything that was mentioned I felt like I knew because of the past history that was already provided.
I thought it was nice to see that for once the guard (or any kind of authority figure for that matter) was willing to help Lomba, but once he started his writing he had to do so secretly and half of the time didn't even know the right date...that aspect of prison is oddly what I found to be the most terrifying. Lomba seems to be completely isolated and detached from the rest of the world, which is why its so hard to read about him in prison within the first portion of the book. The further Waiting for An Angel develops the more I keep wishing for a different outcome than the one I already know.
One part that I found to be especially interesting was during the fortune teller scene. It was strange that the fortune teller knew that prison was in his future, but when asked about death the fortune teller only replies with "A wise man is always ready for death. Assume it will come tomorrow, or in the next minute." Parts of the book like this made me feel like Habila provided all around great life lessons and advice through his work, but when looking at the big picture I realize that what made this book feel like such a personal read was because it deals with the social issues of the time by exploring the life of one individual. I like that the novel was trying to accomplish too much, focusing on just a single person's experience made me understand the gravity of the situation a little better.

Oil...

I have reached my limit. I'm finally really, truly realizing that something SERIOUSLY needs to be done to correct the vicious cycle of death, exploitation and poverty that runs rampant through Africa. hearing about it in lectures and on the news is one thing, but to actually read specifics and understand the injustices occurring everyday is sickening. Reading about the oil in Nigeria is just another prime example of Africa's goods and materials being jerked out of their hands almost immediately. Nigeria has managed to get screwed over simply for being lucky, it seems as though Africa is the little kid who gets bullied by all of the other power hungry countries, and every time yet another resource has been discovered some other country comes in before Africa even figures out what should be done. I saw in the reading that Nigeria's biggest source of gaining income through exports is oil, and today they import more than they export! What I cant get past is that oil always equals money!!! and despite this Nigeria rates below all of the other oil nations and has an annual per capita income of $1400! Although there are some good people in this fight, trying to defend Nigeria, there are still too many power hungry people coming from inside and outside of Nigeria, if the people of Nigeria cant even unite to protect their resources, why should anyone else not want to take advantage of the "fragile state" of this country. Its so tragic to see what material goods can do to people, and this is Africa's blessing and curse. As long as Africa has been being taken advantage of, it has been for good reason: they have tons of natural resources and other countries will take whatever ruthless action they need to to ensure an uneven distribution of wealth and profit.

African Soldiers in WWII

As soon as I saw this topic I knew it was something particularly interesting to me, my grandpa was in WWII and received a Purple Heart amongst other honors and I know how important that is to him. The thought of someone being willing to risk their life yet not be rewarded with the same honors because of skin color is appalling to me.

African-American soldiers played a significant role in World War II with more than half a million serving in Europe. However, even though the numbers were high there was still discrimination. Just because the numbers say that black were a part of WWII it doesnt mean that they were out on the front lines of combat. They were mostly given support duties, and were not allowed in units with white soldiers, I know that this had been a widely known fact but just actually researching and reading about it blows my mind. War seems to be such a primal to me, its always over essentially some product or land and the winner is whoever does more damage; I just dont understand how even in such a do or die situation people were still influenced by racial and social stereotypes. So its okay to blow eachother's heads off but heaven forbid I stand next to a black guy?? COME ON!...
That changed in 1941, when pressure from African-American civil rights leaders convinced the government to set up all-black combat units, as experiments. They were designed to see if African-American soldiers could perform military tasks on the same level as white soldiers.
A man named Woodrow Crockett was a part of that experiment. He was a Tuskegee Airman, and flew 149 missions between 1944 and 1945, protecting harbors in Italy and American bombers from German fighter planes. I can only imagine the pressure these men had weighing on them, not only were they fighting for their lives but they also had to try to prove their abilities to their fellow countrymen--something that Im sure alot of white soldiers took for granted! One of the most amazing things that I read about this group was that in 200 missions they never lost a bomber to enemy fire.

Now of course, even despite all of the accomplishments Ive mentioned (in addition to many more Im sure) no African American soldier was ever awarded the Medal of Honor during World War II. In fact it wasn't even until 1993 that the Army did some research to prepare a study "to determine if there was a racial disparity in the way Medal of Honor recipients were selected." Eventually the research team agreed that there was disparity and recommended the Army consider a group of 10 soldiers for the Medal of Honor. Of those 10, seven were recommended to receive the award. In October of 1996 Congress passed the necessary legislation which allowed President Clinton to award these Medals of Honor since the statutory limit for presentation had expired. The Medals of Honor were presented January 13, 1997 and of all seven, Vernon Baker was the only recipient still living and present to receive his award...sad.

I guess all we can do now is be thankful that we no longer live in world like that, even though these medals and awards are just material possessions what they represent is so much more than that. To risk one's life and get no recognition for it (AND be doubted the whole time), these men really were and are heroes...

Women in Ancestor Stones

The thing that I find to be the most interesting about the women in Ancestor Stones is that despite their genetic obligation with one another, they all seem very different. Although they all suffer some form of injustice because of they're gender, I think its crucial to remember that all of these stories are ranging over a very revolutionary period in African history.

Asana (the eldest) is the daughter of the first wife Namina. Her story begins in 1926 with her father's journey into a forest leading to him to find a new village (Rofathane) and start a coffee plantation. Then, at 10 years old her (favored) twin brother dies. As a result, Asana hopes to win her mother's affections, but instead her mother is convinced that she is possessed by the dead twin becoming obsessed with exorcising his spirit instead! In comparison to some of the other stories this doesn't seem too tragic, yet this kind of familial isolation can be equally traumatizing.
Next, in 1931, is Mariama (Mary later on...thanks to those overwhelmingly generous do-gooders in Idaho), whose mother Sakie is the third wife. I found Sakie to be as fascinating as she was mysterious...she has two preoccupations, selling snuff and partaking in the spiritual practice of reading stones. The bond that is described between Sakie and Mariama seems almost elemental and spiritual, but all this changes when a Muslim preacher comes and imposes a ridiculously strict moral code in which virtually everything that Mariama enjoys is deemed haram. Sakie is eventually forced to give up her religion and falls into depression and then hazily enters and reenters until one day she never returns. After this, Mariama is sent to a convent where she gets baptised and becomes Mary.

Then comes Hawa, her portion begins in 1939. She is the daughter of the the sixth wife, Tenkamu, who is the favorite wife. envied by the other women, when Tenkamu falls sick she gets blamed for anything bad that happens to the village (its already bad enough being sick, but then being blamed for things completely out of her control...? ridiculous). After she dies, Hawa tries to avenge her mother' and goes after her accusers.

The youngest is Serah (1950), her mother Saffie is ranked at number 10 and has basically little to no status. She is (falsely) accused of adultery leading to her eventual departure from the village. Serah initially appears to be the most modern character...she gets married and studies in Britain, but when she returns home she is faced with the dilemma of an unfaithful husband who abuses the cultural polygamy.

It seems like all of these women experience loss at the expense of a power hungry male. None of these stories would be complete without the narrator's mothers, and the reason behind this is that these women have all witnessed their mother's "fall from grace"; whether it be from a failed marriage, envy, or sickness they are all subject to the male dominated hierarchies of society.