A Look at Gloablization's Penetrating Influence: The West's Intervention - Past, Present, Future?

With a long bus drive ahead of us, we decided to abandon the reggae cd we had had on repeat for the entirety of the trip and listen to the local radio, and am I glad we did. Listening to Ghana Today, we heard so very interesting things....

First, we heard an announcement about President Obama's upcoming visit to Ghana in July and the excitement surrounding it. One can certainly tell that Ghanaians are ecstatic over Obama's election. When we have met people, they have spoken with us positively about American politics rather than condemning our system and philosophy. Also, on our regular driving route around Accra, we pass a Hotel Obama.

Next, we heard an interview with Charles Taylor's defense attorney. The attorney was a Jamaican who has spent most of his like in the UK. He was addressing not only the nature of Taylor's incarceration but also the characterization of his trial, by far the more interesting issue. He said that it found it ridiculous and offensive that Taylor should be tried in The Hague as opposed to in an African court. He declared that the trial had become a matter of politics instead of justice, which can often be said. He believed that Western states, particularly the US and UK, were playing far too great a role in Taylor's prosecution, urging that his removal to The Hague intentionally limits Africans' knowledge of the trial and concerns about related events. While I personally doubt Taylor's innocence, I did agree with or find interesting some of the attorney's arguments, such as this trial's being a new form of imperialism.

He and the interviewer debated the appropriateness of Western intervention in Africa, an age-old question. Is the West a rescuer or an unwanted, unneeded pest? Is continued intervention not simply slowing the process toward African unity and development? Can Africans not try a man (e.g. Charles Taylor) whose action most directly and greatly affected their own well-being? Do Africans resent or appreciate Western intervention in this high-profile, political case?

After a few hours of driving, we arrived at Elmina Castle in Cape Coast where the slave trade was previously conducted, first by the Portuguese followed by the Dutch and the British. While the castle's exact function shifted over time as it changed hands, the spirit of exploitation and domination remained constant.

I was moved during the tour of the castle due to the vividly descriptive and horrific narratives provided, such as the nature of women's confinement. While I was familiar with such information from my studies, standing among the history made it all the more real and meaningful. Additionally, I really enjoyed the beauty of the castle itself, but I had to remind myself of the atrocities committed within its gates. The castle and the surrounding town at the time of the trade represented a microcosm of imperialism, expanding inequalities through exploitation.

On a lighter note, the afternoon was a whirlwind of fun...
lunch at a restaurant with a crocodile pond; photo with a croc; consumed yet another traditional Ghanaian dish new to me...

drive to national park; short hike; canopy walk through/above the rainforest - most amazing thing!