Although local issues sparked numerous recent disputes, external political and military interventions altered their dynamics and rendered them more lethal. Many of today’s challenges are the outcome of colonial political and economic practices, Cold War alliances, and attempts by outsiders to influence African political and economic systems during the decolonization and post-independence periods. When the historical roots are examined, it is clear that much of Africa’s current predicaments of poverty, corruption, and violent conflicts are not solely the result of African decisions, but are also the consequence of foreign intrusion into African affairs. I argued that these simplistic misconceptions are not only inaccurate, but they are also dangerous because they mask the complex causes of contemporary crises, such as those in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Libya, and Sudan, and diminish the chances of resolving them. African people are regularly blamed for their plight-they are presumed to be intolerant of ethnic and religious differences and unwilling or unable to govern themselves. For many outsiders, “Africa” evokes images of a continent in crisis, riddled with war and corruption, imploding from disease and starvation. I opened my presentation with a stereotype. President Nixon meets with President Mobutu Seko of Zaire (now known as the Democratic Republic of Congo) in the Oval Office in October 1973.
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