Country vs Continent 28 December 2015

Let’s take a stroll down memory lane. I remember in elementary school being quizzed often on how many continents there are, what are their names, and where are they. The answer of 7 was quickly followed by Asia, Africa, Europe, South America, North America, Australia and Antarctica. Coloring maps was a common practice to distinguish between continents and countries that fascinated me. For example America is the mid-belt section of North America. However, I recognize elementary school was a long time ago for many of us, so here is a quick reminder on some key geographical terms (the importance will arise shortly, I promise).

con·ti·nent (n)

1. any one of the seven large continuous land masses that constitute most of the dry land on the surface of the earth.

2. the part of the earth’s crust that rises above the oceans

coun·try (n)

1. a nation or state that is politically independent, or a land that was formerly independent and remains separate in some respects

2. the nation or state where somebody was born or is a citizen

3. a large area of land regarded as distinct from other areas, for example, because of its natural boundaries or because it is inhabited by a particular people

4. an area that is farmed or remains in a relatively undeveloped state, as distinct from cities, towns, and other built-up areas

5. a region that is distinguished by particular characteristics or is associated with a particular activity, person, or group of people

6. the people of a nation or state, especially when affected as a group by political or other events

7. See also country music

Encarta® World English Dictionary © 1999 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Developed for Microsoft by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc.

            To put it all in simple terms, like I often do for my 200+ ELL kiddos, a continent is a geographically huge, dry landmass and a country is a political nation or state where nationalities stem from.  You may be wondering “So, if these concepts are easy to understand for elementary students, why is Jessie bringing these up?” Here’s the thing, we do know them, but we are ignorant in our speaking and writing and unknowingly create biases, generalizations and assumptions about a place with improper English.

            In the September 21, 2015 issue of People Magazine, Pippa Middleton is featured for her great athleticism. “Although she has pulled off previous athletic feats – including running a marathon in Africa just one week after completing a 54-mile bike race in Sweden.” Africa, the second largest continent of 11.62 million sq miles/31.1 million sq km divided into 54 countries, and it is listed like a country in relations to Sweden. The article below features her brother-in-law, Prince Harry, acting like a “real African man, sleeping outside under the stars” on his three week dream job in Africa.

            If you’re wondering about what the big deal is, remember that proper English grammar has the rule that things in a list must be alike. For example: “I visited England, France and Spain.” or “She went to Addis Ababa, Nairobi and Moscow.” (I’m blanking on the rule, but this does exist.) Saying Pippa’s run proved her strength in Africa and Sweden is grammatically incorrect. Either the country she ran her marathon in needs to be listed or Sweden needs to be replaced with Europe.

While I understand that security needs to be maintained for Prince Harry (he is part of a ruling monarchy after all), generalizing an entire continents inhabitants as being “African” is a broad, politically incorrect, and an absurd comment. There are over 80 ethnic groups and nationalities just in Ethiopia. If we guess there is an average of 50 different ethnic groups in each African country, to cover between large masses like Congo with smaller countries like Togo (though probably on the low side), that would mean there are 2,700 different ethnic groups. So, what would an “African man” have to be to adequately represent every one? For starters, I haven’t met an Ethiopian yet who wants to sleep outside.

The truth is, Americans, tend to generalize a giant continent to treat it like a country which we can understand better. People Magazine isn’t the only ones that do this. In Times Magazine, a map depicting refugees had country borders depicted for European countries, but not for African countries. While Iraq and Syria are the only countries labled, the entire northern region of Africa is titled “North Africa” like a country. Egypt isn’t even listed. Instead it is treated like a name similar to South Africa, which is actually a country.

Why are generalizations             made about Africa? We would never say “We are North American” so why do we write about “Africans” like they are one group? What does “an African sunset” really mean when the continent reaches between the Indian and Atlantic Oceans, touches the Mediterranean and Red Seas, only connects to another continent by the Isthmus of Suez, has giants cities and small town in deserts, forests, mountains and islands? How does a sunset really different from a “European sunset” or an “Asian sunset?” Why ask someone in Ethiopia, “How is Africa?” when we would never ask someone in Portugal, “How is Europe?” or someone in Nepal, “How is Asia?” and expect them to adequately report on an entire continent? Are you starting to see the absurdity in generalizations or should I continue?

Americans love pride. We claim our country, states, sports’ teams, and hometowns with enough pride to fill many country songs. While New York and Massachusetts are less than a day’s drive apart, we all know the line between Yankee and Red Sox fans. Online tests can guess where you are from in the 50 states based on colloquialisms like “pop” vs “soda.” Ethiopians have this pride, too. Pride in their country, region and ethnic group. In Tigray, the northern region or Ethiopia, people are proud fighters that have also enjoyed being part of the ruling party. Right now there are great struggles between the Oromia people and those living and ruling in Addis Ababa.

In civics class last week, we talked about discrimination. The simple definition being “to set aside as different.” While gender, race, religion and ability were traits we focused on in class, I’d like to warn about discriminating based on generalizations. Don’t treat Africa differently than Asia, Europe, North America or South America. (Australia is a country so it can be treated as such if circumstances provide reason.) Recognize that it is diverse, unique and filled with countries that may or may not be designed by white people looking at a map. Allow all of the people inhabiting Africa to have a voice to their country’s nationality like we often demand of ourselves. (How would Americans like to be clustered with Canadians?) Be specific when addressing where something happened. Become informed. In 5^th grade, I had to memorize all the US states and capitals so that I would know what was happening where around my country. Be informed about where countries are in relation to each other. Lack of understanding led to many Peace Corps families unnecessarily worrying about Ebola outbreaks when we were farther away from it than some Americans. Just because first world authorities drew arbitrary lines on a map to distinguish who is where, doesn’t mean we can continue to form generalizations in vague statements.