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| List of myths |
# | Myth/stereotype | Description |
1 | Myth of Lack of Progress | This myth promotes the idea that Africans are isolated from global processes and not―modern or―advanced, instead they are considered a?backward people. |
2 | Myth of the Timeless Present | This myth promotes the idea that Africa is a timeless place where everything has always been a certain way (i.e. timeless). Therefore, Africans are less evolved than others, specifically Europeans and Americans. |
3 | Myth of the Primitive/Exotic | The uses of the words primitive or exotic encompass a value judgment. Their use means that there is something better (less primitive, more modern/advanced, smarter). These are reference points generally used to demonstrate how one culture is better than another (because I use a stove to boil water instead of an open fire does not make me a better or smarter person). This is a problem of the language of description. Similar problems occur with use of the words?tribe and?tribal. |
4 | Myth of Tradition/Ceremony/Ritual | This myth promotes the idea that African History is static rather than dynamic. African traditions are viewed as always existing in an unchanging way. |
5 | Myth of African Continuity | Africa is often viewed as one country or one similar place. However, over 800 different languages, wide cultural differences, economic disparities and other differences dispute this myth. |
6 | Myth of the Lack of History | This myth states that Africa is a place without history and arises from colonization efforts to justify racist policies that focused on constructing the idea that white people brought history to Africans; it plays into the ideas that Africa is timeless and static. |
7 | Geography Myths | These vary but include the idea that Africa is mostly jungle or desert or that there are no?modern‖ cities and that wild animals are?everywhere. |
8 | Population Myths | These vary but include the contradictions that Africa is either over-populated (because Africans cannot restrain themselves from having children) or it is under-populated because the people are poor and dying of hunger and AIDS. |
9 | Poverty Myths | Many of these are specific to poverty in Africa, for example, the belief that all Africans are poor. |
10 | Hopelessness Myth (i.e. Africa is a lost cause) | There is so much violence, instability, corruption, poverty, disease, and other problems that these issues can never be resolved; therefore, it is not worth trying to help or concerning oneself with the continent. |