What is the colonial hangover one may ask? It's the situation where Africans really strive to look and behave like them white folks. The colonizers. Wanting to speak the Queen's English, and using the English tea cups, dressing in suits, conducting oneself like a Briton, you know, that kind of thing, Is it wrong? Well, I say it isn't but what is the underlying reason behind an African being encouraged to speak like the Queen? Most times it is because our African languages have been regarded as primitive and prevalent in our 'ushagos.' So African languages and things used at these ushagos like the steel cups belong to a lower class of people.
So it begs the question, are our languages really for a lower class of people? Why do many people despise being associated with where they come from? What is so nice about perming your hair or dressing up in suits, yet we have African wear that can be so official? In fact, dressing in African attire sets a different tone even for one's mood. Try it. Whenever a small child can speak English so well, it mesmerizes people to the point where they just make the child the centre of attraction, making all the other children jealous because they only communicate in Nandi or Kiswahili, yet these children actually, will always have a cord to use when they want to explore where they come from and thus will have an easier time accessing their cultural heritage.
The whole point of colonization by the way was to disconnect the Africans from their beliefs and values. They demonized our ways actually. That way, the white man would easily plunder our economic resources and create a mindset in our people that even their intellectual capabilities are better off serving the white man than the African man working hard for himself to develop himself and his community.
Our ways are inherently good. In fact, if we look at diet or traditional education, lots of problems in today's modern society would be eliminated. If we went back to our diet, we would not be chronically ill. If our children learn our African languages and go through cultural initiation (without the negatives like FGM and Kipkaa type of circumcision where boys are given alcohol) children would not be dismissive towards their parents, acting all rude and entitled and we would have more cohesive homes which translate to a cohesive community instead of the disconnect that runs the town.
You know, we are the ones who can decide what is good for us. We don't have to go with everything that our ancestors did. We are in a more liberal environment. But we should not despise our culture and heritage and matters to do with it. Only a fool lets go of this integral part of him/herself. Culture makes a person. Without this, one loses themselves. One has no grounding and therefore any other person with grounding can easily use and manipulate them.
Get over the colonial hangover. Start appreciating who you are. Start developing your own community and start to embrace one another. This is the only way to flourish. It is what the colonizer wanted to take away from u, to use for his own personal gain and he doesn't even do it right. The world is more wrong and the world is sicker. It is time we brought in some sanity by being ourselves.
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