Participants Blog

We Are All Different But Equal

Kara (STU/Ghana/2010) is saddened by how some Ghanaians associate being white with being superior and hopes her presence this summer can help people see that everyone is different but equal.

I struggle to know how my presence in the community is effecting those around me. To be honest, I feel a lot of guilt being here at times for one reason specifically: my skin color. When I am home, in Eastern Canada, it is not something that I consider much as it is the norm to be Caucasian there. Living in Ghana has certainly stripped me of the comfort and security that I am accustomed to. It is uncomfortable to be forced to look at myself with new eyes, but it was also needed. Many of the people that I am surrounded by each day constantly point out my white skin. I have come to learn that this is more of a compliment than anything.
My host mother and I have been becoming closer and one evening I invited her to my room to look at a picture book of PEI (my home province). We sat there for an hour and a half carefully studying the pictures. She was memorized at how much knowledge white people have (she said this in reference to our highways, buildings, farms and so on). She continued to say she wished that ‘black people’ had as much knowledge as we do in Canada.
It saddened me greatly to hear her say this and I was unsure how to communicate to her that Canadians have faults as do all people and that we are not as ‘knowledgeable’ as she thought.The language barrier made it difficult from saying anything to open her eyes to this reality.
By some small miracle we were able to have a conversation about equality, different cultures and ways of living and the importance of not comparing one group of people to another. It was amazing for me to see her eyes light up when I explained that in Canada we do have lots of stuff but that this stuff distracts us and scares us away from relationships and genuine human caring. I find the opposite to be true in Ghana. Here life is more simple, with fewer material distractions. People seem to have a greater care and appreciation for their family, friends and even strangers. (I am learning tremendous amount about what love is!)
That evening was a simple situation and a brief conversation, but in that hour I saw a glimpse of how many people probably perceive me as white and therefore superior. This bothers me deeply and I am saddened that so many people have this idea. I now see that I have an opportunity to build relationships that have no barrier based on color and race. I know that I am not here to create a change but if my presence in my village can help my family and neighbors to see that we are all different and equal than it will be more than worth it.