Brando Akoto, 1964-2015

I hardly know where to begin or to end in speaking of the life of our dear
brother, friend, and Yo Ghana! board member, Mr. Brando Akoto, who passed away October 28 after a long struggle with a rare form of cancer, at home with his wife and two sons, the family he loved so deeply and fiercely.  There are so many stories, so many memories.  I knew Brando for less than three years, but he left a deep mark on my life and the life of Yo Ghana!

Brando taught me that although there may be a million and one things to worry about in running a nonprofit or one's life, only one thing really matters: to love and attend to the person in front of you.  Whether he was talking to students in Ghana or Oregon, listening to the challenges faced by teachers, administrators, street vendors, a child at church or one of his countless friends, no one could doubt that he or she had his complete attention.  His solution to every problem seemed to boil down to taking care of relationships.  Once people cared about each other, everything else would work itself out.

There are so many ways to spend a life, particularly here in the U.S., countless hobbies or pastimes, no end of distractions to keep us preoccupied until the end of a day--or all of our days.  Brando illustrated that we are at our happiest, our best, when we elect to care for each other every chance that we get, that our numbered hours are best shared.

We are relieved that he is free from the terrible suffering that marked his last days and weeks and months.  But his absence is as deep a wound as his life was a blessing.  Thank you, dear friend, for lighting the way.

For those able to get to Portland, here are three events to mark Brando's passing:
Viewing of Body: Omega Funeral and Cremation Services, 223 SE 122nd Ave., Friday November 6, 5:00 to 9:00 p.m. and Saturday, November 7, 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Community Remembrance: African House (IRCO), 10301 NE Glisan Street, Saturday November 7, 4:00 to 9:00 p.m.
Remembrance Church Service: Portland International Church, 22 NE 80th Ave, Sunday, November 8, 10:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Trevor Noah on Donald Trump

One of the themes that I am developing in my book on American
views of Africa is that it has become more and more difficult for Americans to imagine Africa without Africans making themselves heard.  African academics teach at hundreds of American colleges and universities, African writers are read more and more widely, African pundits take to twitter and the internet to contest movements like KONY 2012.  And then there's Trevor Noah.

Trevor Noah is the South African comedian who not long ago came to the U.S. (whereupon he finally became black) and recently began hosting The Daily Show.

So Noah's very presence in what has become an iconic American TV show confounds assumptions about Africa being completely "other."  But of course he doesn't settle for that.  One of his latest routines makes the case that Donald Trump would make a wonderful African president, that his megalomania, disregard for science, thin skin, and antipathy for immigrants evokes some leading African despots, past and present.

For believers in American exceptionalism, people who believe that the U.S. is simply better than and completely different from other nations, regardless of what we do or become, watching an African comedian draw parallels between the front-runner for the Republican nomination and African tyrants such as Idi Amin may cause some much-needed discomfort.

John Donnelly, A Twist of Faith, and Heroism

I just read a fascinating little book, John Donnelly's A Twist of Faith: An American Christian's Quest to Help Orphans in Africa.  It follows the struggles of  a North Carolina carpenter, David Nixon, to run an organization helping a community in Malawi, and it certainly serves as a cautionary tale of the dangers of good intentions.

Nixon, to be sure, is much more humble and flexible than are most Americans going to Africa determined to do good.  For example,  when a government official tells him to give up his dream of an orphanage because they are expensive and ineffective, Nixon is at first angry, but then sees the wisdom in adjusting.  Donnelly contrasts this approach with Madonna's nonprofit, which insisted, despite the government's objections, on giving very large grants to organizations unaccustomed to handling such large funds, a practice that often led to conflict and chaos.

But Nixon also faces a lot of troubles, from a spurned chief who threatens one of his worker's families to a supervisor who abuses his authority.  It turns out that running a small business in America is not sufficient preparation for running a large charitable organization in Malawi--though we should join Donnelly in giving Nixon props for his determination and flexibility.

Donnelly points out that problems inevitably occur when Americans start large projects in Africa before first understanding local cultures.  We see in Africa an opportunity to do something big, and we get in a hurry to become a hero.

The original sin of so many Americans, Christian and otherwise, is that we want to make a name for ourselves in Africa, want to star in movies of our own making.  So we often ignore or dismiss the fine work already being done by local people.

Yo Ghana! tries to avoid the pitfalls of western ignorance and individualism by: 1) Having a board of directors, a group of decision makers, that includes large numbers of Ghanaians; 2) Working with existing schools, with Ghanaians who have already been doing great things in their communities.

Africa can use the help of Americans such as David Nixon.  But it already has plenty of heroes of its own.

A Story with a Happy Ending

Last spring a friend of mine was really depressed about two things: the acute plantar fasciitis in her

right foot that made it painful to walk, and how difficult it was to get a good fish dinner in Portland, Oregon.

She decided that a vacation in Portland, Maine, on the Atlantic Coast might do her good.

And, sure enough, two weeks later, after an afternoon of pain-free walking and over a delicious fish dinner, she turned looked up with a big smile on her face, then pointed to her foot and then to her meal, and sang, with great enthusiasm: "It is well.  With my sole.  It is well, it is well, with my sole."

Ghana, the U.S., and a Sense of Purpose

Some Peace Corps Volunteers have referred to living in Africa as being "at the heart of things."  That could be meant to imply that living in the U.S. means living on the periphery of things.  And I think there is a certain truth to that.

Most of us in the U.S. are tempted to think that we have control over our lives.  Most of us have arranged things--or have had them arranged for us--in such a way that we do not confront acute need on a daily basis, and we generally expect that lights will go on when we flip a switch, paychecks will be deposited in bank accounts as scheduled, and that our lives will unfold in a generally predictable and pleasant fashion.  When we confront some little problem, we often respond with great indignation.

Of course life everywhere is essentially chaotic.  The lights may stay on in our homes, but people we care for die, jobs that seemed secure can disappear; life is much more unpredictable, even for middle-class Americans, than it seems.

But chaos is harder to ignore in Africa.  It is very difficult to live in Ghana under the impression that all is right with the world, or that life is predictable or, for that matter, boring.  Maybe that's why such a high proportion of the people Elizabeth and I met in Ghana are doing great things: it is very obvious both that great things need to be done, and that some people are going about doing them with great gusto and persistence.

So returning from Ghana, for me, always raises the question: If all is not right with the world, at home and across the globe, then why am I ignoring those tragedies?  What am I doing with my life, with the privileges of time and other resources that life has handed to me?  And if people with far fewer resources are devoting themselves so fully, so happily, to sharing with and serving others, then what's stopping me from doing the same?