Explosive Article: Nigeria, Ebola And The Myth Of White Saviours - Politics - Nairaland
Nairaland Forum / Nairaland / General / Politics / Explosive Article: Nigeria, Ebola And The Myth Of White Saviours (937 Views)
Google Is Celebrating The Saviours Birth / Meet The Explosive Device Expert Who Is Ready 2 Die In Fighting Boko Haram(pics) / Nigeria, Ebola And The Myth Of White Saviours By Aljazeera (2) (3) (4)
| Explosive Article: Nigeria, Ebola And The Myth Of White Saviours by vedaxcool(m): 1:11pm On Nov 08, 2014 |
In a 2012 article published by The Atlantic, Nigerian writer Teju Cole exposed the white saviour industrial complex for what it is: a pathology of white privilege. According to Cole, white saviours fundamentally believe they are indispensable to the very existence of those on the receiving end of their "interventions". Like some potted plants, they tend to bloom in "exotic" environments far removed from their natural habitats. At the height of Ebola, the myth of the white saviour has resurfaced again and again, framing Africans as infantile objects of external interventions. The white saviour complex has placed a premium on foreign expertise, while negating domestic capabilities. We've been assailed with images of mostly white foreigners flown out of the Ebola "hot zone" with the promise of expert care abroad. As spokespersons for the thousands "left behind", they have been catapulted into the heady limelight of overnight stardom. We've been bombarded with a cacophony of non-African "expert" opinions about how to "save" Liberia, Guinea, and Sierra Leone from Ebola. Yet, Ugandan and Congolese specialists, who contained the virus repeatedly in their own countries, have been sidelined in the mainstream international press. Deliberately silenced Indian writer and human rights activist Arundathi Roy once said, "there is no such thing as the voiceless, only the deliberately silenced or the preferably unheard". Indeed, narratives about African ingenuity, African agency, and African heroism in the age of Ebola have been preferably unheard. As an African proverb aptly puts it: "Until the lion learns to write, tales of the hunt shall always glorify the hunter." Most recently Nigeria positioned itself as a lion that completely unsettled the narrative around Ebola and the white saviour complex. As the regional West African hegemon and Africa's fastest growing economy, Nigeria contained Ebola in three months without foreign intervention. While the US has been scrambling to address the few cases of Ebola on its shores with a series of policy missteps, Nigeria showed that it could be done by an African country on its own terms. With 31 percent of overall healthcare spending accounted for by the federal government in 2012 alone, Nigeria used infrastructure and systems already in place to fight polio, to contain Ebola. Institutions such as the Nigerian Center for Disease Control, the Nigerian Field Epidemiology Training Program, and the Lagos State Ministry of Health responded quickly by quarantining and treating suspected Ebola patients, tracing the contacts of those infected, and launching a massive public awareness campaign about how to avoid further transmission of the virus. With more doctors than Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone combined, Nigeria also galvanised the support of healthcare workers who had previously been on strike. Beyond Nigeria's technical expertise and rapid response, equally important is the country's unique brand of superiority that fundamentally challenges the white saviour complex. Quite naturally, detractors attempted to undermine Nigeria's success. When the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the country Ebola-free a few weeks ago, the fanfare around this feat was short-lived. I even sensed some unspoken incredulity. Folks were quick to react that Nigeria wasn't completely out of the woods yet, that there could be a resurgence of Ebola. Local, not international efforts Some narratives erroneously attributed Nigeria's success to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the WHO, and the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC). Yet, Nigerian novelist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie responded with a sharp smack-down of this "lie". She openly criticised The Washington Post and The New York Times for deliberating concealing the fact that local, not international efforts, had contained Ebola. For instance, it was a Nigerian woman, Dr Ameyo Adadevoh, who insisted on isolating the country's first Ebola patient before eventually succumbing to the virus herself. Less incredulous individuals praised Nigeria, wondering why they weren't being consulted about the do's and don'ts of Ebola containment. Consultations with Nigerians were largely shirked to the side because they invalidated the white saviour complex. One thing Ebola has exposed about the white saviour complex is that it is voracious and unapologetic. It simplifies complexity, appropriates ideas without crediting the source, upstages local efforts that preceded it, thrives on "I" statements, and soaks up media attention. In her celebrated essay, "Can the subaltern speak?", Gayatri Spivak rails against the problematic narrative of "white men saving brown women from brown men". In actuality, no one has the capacity to "save" another human being. Believing that one can is the greatest form of self-delusion and narcissism. Contrary to the dominant Ebola foreign intervention narrative, Liberians, Guineans, and Sierra Leoneans are not waiting around idle, eager to be rescued by white saviours. While we welcome genuine collaboration, we remain our own heroes and heroines. The fact that more than 200 local healthcare workers died from Ebola is a testament to that heroism. They risked their lives long before international actors woke up from their slumber. No externally driven intervention narrative can change that fact, as Nigeria has proven. So, thank you, Nigeria, for completely exposing the white saviour complex for being a figment of western imagination. Like other psychological disorders, it must be treated with regular doses of reality, now and after Ebola. Robtel Neajai Pailey is a Liberian academic, activist, and author based at SOAS, University of London. The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera's editorial policy. http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2014/11/nigeria-ebola-myth-white-saviours-201411654947478.html 1 Like 1 Share |
| Re: Explosive Article: Nigeria, Ebola And The Myth Of White Saviours by thegoodjoehunt3(m): 10:53pm On Nov 18, 2014 |
Amazing article. It is high time we get up as people in charge of our lives and environment. There is always something we can do to save ourselves and those we love from catastrophe. I think we should speak out louder against evil in our government. If we do not, we risk ourselves. For instance, we have no testing facility to help local researchers fight diseases. No matter how long we criticise the foreigners, we inhibit ourselves by letting corrupt ones rule and destroy the society. Let us act and speak out. Slowly, we will see the change we want to see in the world. 2 Likes |
| Re: Explosive Article: Nigeria, Ebola And The Myth Of White Saviours by tuffgongjo(m): 4:34am On Nov 19, 2014 |
thegoodjoehunt3:words seems not to penetrate our leaders,(pardon my naievity)I think not until we act like the citizens of Burkina faso will we get something tangible going in this our nation. |
| Re: Explosive Article: Nigeria, Ebola And The Myth Of White Saviours by proffemi: 6:21am On Nov 19, 2014 |
thegoodjoehunt3: It's an amazing article only because it is pointless. Sure, there's white saviour complex or whatever you call it (most notable in Hollywood movies where the white guy always saves the day, no matter the setting) but you don't have to look at every situation through racist lens. Just as there are bad white men who spread only the worst news about Africa with glee, there are good white men who risk lives and all to fight for Africa. I personally know a few. On Ebola: I thought that while a section of the Western press was up to its usual antics, on the most part, the reports were complimentary to Nigeria. Even CNN that seems to love hating spent a whole program discussing what Texas could learn from Nigeria (didn't watch the segment myself, so correct me if I'm wrong). Nobody that I know has tried to steal the credit entirely from Nigerians. They have simply also given credit to western sources where appropriate. For example, Fashola himself said: "Dr. David Brett-Mayor of the World Health Organization saw and conquered Ebola. He single handedly started the Ebola isolation ward having cleared and cleaned the room. He admitted and cared for the patients before any Nigerian doctor joined him" (https://www.nairaland.com/1929467/fashola-sets-record-straight-ebola). I have also not see any evidence that the role played by the Gates foundation funding was overblown, so pardon me if I fail to get your point. For me, the fact is: Nigeria beat Ebola because for once we were proactive, decisive and cooperative(we take credit for that entirely). We however also benefited from some help from the WHO (e.g. see above) and used some external funding, personnel, and advice to bootstrap our efforts. Is there any major news outlet saying anything to the contrary? Yawn. Please educate me. Thanks. |
| Re: Explosive Article: Nigeria, Ebola And The Myth Of White Saviours by thegoodjoehunt3(m): 9:46pm On Nov 19, 2014 |
proffemi:How is one article talking about the fact Nigerians played most of the role in curbing Ebola mean all articles are looking at it through the racist lens? Dr David Cared for the patients. We respect him. However, the most of the funding came from Gov. Fashola. The workers were mostly Nigerians. When it comes to the curbing of Ebola, for the first time we did it on our own. Nigerians submitted themselves for quarantine. From that perspective, the whites, did not fly in to rescue us. We helped ourselves. Good point from the article. 1 Like |
| Re: Explosive Article: Nigeria, Ebola And The Myth Of White Saviours by proffemi: 5:03pm On Nov 20, 2014 |
thegoodjoehunt3: I wish you people would chill a bit to digest posts before hitting the "reply" button. Who said all articles are looking at it through racist lens? I'm saying this one article is doing that. You don't have to go at the issue with an us-versus-them mentality. You said Nigerians played "most of the role" abi? While Nigeria deserves most of the credit, personnel and organizations from the west also deserve some of the credit, right? Show me one, ONLY ONE important western news outlet that says otherwise...which takes me back to my initial submission: if the article simply states the obvious (accompanied with racist undertones), it is pointless. |
| Re: Explosive Article: Nigeria, Ebola And The Myth Of White Saviours by thegoodjoehunt3(m): 9:15pm On Nov 20, 2014 |
proffemi:The article is talking about a complex. Africans can not save them
Do you consider this pointless? Are you saying the top media companies are talking about this? |
(1) (Reply)
I Hardly Get What I Want In Life, Says Jonathan / Jonathan’s Leadership Style Defective -kolade / Bizarre Laws Around The World
(Go Up)
| Sections: politics (1) business autos (1) jobs (1) career education (1) romance computers phones travel sports fashion health religion celebs tv-movies music-radio literature webmasters programming techmarket Links: (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8) (9) (10) Nairaland - Copyright © 2005 - 2024 Oluwaseun Osewa. All rights reserved. See How To Advertise. 52 |