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181 17 Shaping U.S.-Based activism toward africa The Role of a Mix of Critical Pedagogies amy c. finnegan an influx of american students traveling to study or volunteer in africa and other regions of the global South (grusky 2000; Panosian and coates 2006; Parker and Dautoff 2007; roberts 2006), the success of several hollywood films set in africa (e.g., Blood Diamond [Zwick 2006], The Constant Gardner [Meirelles 2005], Hotel Rwanda [george 2005], and The Last King of Scotland [Macdonald 2006]), and celebrity philanthropy performed for africa-related causes by Bono, angelina Jolie, and Oprah Winfrey (Bono 2007; Z. Magubane 2007, 2008), all have contributed to a notable increase in young americans’ interest in addressing social problems in africa in the past decade. Yet, uncritically performed, activism to address “problems in africa” can entrench essentialized identities, serve as an escape from examining and addressing social problems closer to home or those issues that may directly implicate americans, and lead to a narrow understanding of social change that does not take into account the efforts of african activists. Based on critical reflections from teaching at universities in both the United States and Uganda, alongside ethnographic fieldwork conducted with U.S. activists involved in the invisible children campaign, this chapter seeks to illuminate the relationship between pedagogy about africa in the university classroom and students’ decisions to participate in social action aimed at addressing social problems experienced on the african continent.1 it argues that a mix of critical pedagogical approaches is essential to mobilizing young americans to prudently engage problems experienced in africa. Specifically, it advocates for a curriculum that includes a focus on african narratives, a critical structural analysis, a social movement analysis, a framework 182 | Application of Approaches for conceptualizing intervention in africa, and dialogue on Western perceptions of africa. Since there is danger of heightened essentialization and paternalism when outsiders focus on social problems in africa, these varied pedagogical approaches not only require both teachers and students to be deeply reflexive, but they also convey the gravity of social problems such as famine and collective violence, analyze global and regional responses, and inspire thoughtful activism as students recognize their own (and their country’s) role in the global context. The backdrop that currently informs much of the U.S.-based activism toward africa includes the tendency for young americans interested in working in africa to resist risky confrontation through the ongoing efforts of groups such as invisible children and the Save Darfur coalition, the impact of the rwandan genocide on the contemporary U.S. consciousness, and the historical american politico-cultural orientation toward africa. it is in response to this backdrop and in an effort to understand it that the mix of critical pedagogical approaches presented in this chapter was developed. contemporary activist efforts for africa: averting confrontation Since its inception in 2004, the Save Darfur coalition—an alliance comprising over 180 national and regional nonprofit groups that are organized primarily on the basis of race, politics, and religion—has relentlessly called for “military involvement in Darfur and pressure on the United nations” to address the violent conflict occurring in this region in western Sudan (eichler-Levine and hicks 2007:713). The tactics of the Save Darfur coalition have included public rallies and die-ins, various speaking tours, letters to politicians, school fund-raising for humanitarian relief and further advocacy efforts, and a divestment campaign.2 Similarly, invisible children—a U.S.-based education and advocacy organization that began work in northern Uganda and is striving to “end the longest running war in africa”—has mobilized hundreds of thousands of young people since its inception in 2003.3 Primarily through the production and circulation of various creative forms of media (e.g., films, podcasts, websites, and social media such as Twitter and facebook) about the Lord’s resistance army (Lra) insurgency and its impact on children, invisible children has compelled thousands of young americans to fund-raise millions of dollars and volunteer months of their lives. Within both the Save Darfur coalition and invisible children, activists demonstrate “their americanness by assuming the identities of powerful saviors” (eichlerLevine and hicks 2007:712). furthermore, focusing on exotic “othered” locations— such as Sudan, Uganda, South Sudan, the Democratic republic of the congo, and the central african republic—allows the activists to face less controversy and less personal implication. This circumstance is due in part to the general public’s minimal understanding of the history of east and central africa...

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