A Post-Colonial Mentality Persists in Africa

Fredrick Ngugi January 18, 2017
Kenyan villagers rounded up by British soldiers during the colonial era. The Guardian.

After enduring many years of servitude and domination by their colonizers, Africans decided to take up arms and reclaim their freedom and possessions. The battle was tough and many people paid the ultimate price, but it was eventually won.

Throughout the colonial era, Africans longed for a return to their original ways of life, free of subjugation and abuse. So when freedom finally came, there was a sense of optimism as Africans hoped to shape their own path to the future.

But decades after independence, questions still abound as to whether Africans were indeed decolonized, since a sincere look at modern African society reveals the existence of numerous colonial legacies that continue to dictate life across the continent.

While it would be naïve to imagine that Africans could have gone back to many of their original traditions after independence, it’s sickening to see many of them behaving like they are still under colonial rule. The fact that many Africans continue to choose Western cultures and doctrines over their own means they still view themselves as inferior and inadequate.

Here are just some examples of the enduring post-colonial mentality in Africa.

Last Edited by:Abena Agyeman-Fisher Updated: January 18, 2017

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