Bring The Africa Channel to Prince George’s

It is difficult to get a realistic picture of national and international news and events. This seems especially true for Africa. It seems that Africans only come out to starve or murder each other and then disappear. For much of the world, it is still the ‘‘Dark Continent” in more ways than one.

We need a balanced picture.

American network news provides little context or analysis of international events. The BBC online is much better, but often news and events are not directly from the source.

In a world made smaller by rapid modern transportation and communication, world events often and quickly become local. Africa plays an important role in world events:

* Africa is the world’s second largest and second most populous continent.

* It covers 11,668,545 square miles, 6 percent of the Earth’s total surface area, and 20.4 percent of the total land area.

* Africa has a population of more than 900 million people about 14 percent of the world’s population.

* There are 53 nations on the continent.

* Most of the scientific community believe humankind evolved in Central East Africa about 7 million years ago and migrated from there to the rest of the world.

* Africa straddles the equator and stretches from the northern temperate to southern temperate zones.

* More than 100 languages are spoken.

* Africa has an abundance of every natural resource and could be a super power if unified.

Equally important is the psychological needs of the African diasporas – primarily in the Western Hemisphere, the results of more than 400 years of slavery — and their burning desire, consciously or unconsciously, to learn more about and find their roots in their ancestral homeland.

I believe it was author Zora Neale Hurston who said we are like trees with branches but no roots. She described the dilemma for most, especially the descendents of slaves in the Western Hemisphere.

Self-hatred was part of the process of slave making. Regaining our mental health has taken a long time, and we have a long way to go. The Africa Channel will help, especially our young people whose self-concept and values are still largely shaped by European-American values.

Even as Democratic candidate Barack Obama seems headed for the presidential nomination, self-hatred manifests in many ways — individual and collective inferiority complex, low academic achievement, self-destructive behavior such as drug use and chronic criminal behavior.

How we and the world view and feel about Africa affects how we feel about our ancestral homeland and, consequently, about ourselves.

The Africa Channel is about consciousness and consciousness raising. Good mental health requires a relatively stable positive self-concept. Our self-concept has been severely damaged, and we need to use every resource to heal.

We are what we know and understand. Knowledge and understanding can be empowering. Generally we can expect those who know better to do better.

Van Caldwell, a lawyer, lives in Kettering. He can be e-mailed at wvcaldwell@comcast.net.