Stereotypes to Avoid about Africa

To avoid stereotypes when curating materials about Africa, use this list for own self-reflection. It can also be used as a classroom activity to cultivate students’ critical thinking, too.

Compiled by Elsa Wiehe, adapted from existing resources from Africa Access & Dr. Barbara Brown, Boston University.

Your Comments
General
Is Africa characterized as a continent without any countries?  The country is named or it is clear which country it is through the illustrations and other features.
North Africa is framed as part of the Middle East North Africa is part of Africa.
Villages, savannahs, rural life Cities, urban scapes, modern scapes
General features (unnamed savannahs or villages) Specific features (e.g. a recognizable building or landscape feature in a specific city or place.
Problems
People are portrayed as needing help. Problems are resolved by someone external to that community, or  by a  white “savior.” People are autonomous and in control of their lives; Africans are described as making decisions, trying to improve themselves and their community, and assuming leadership roles.  Problems are resolved by someone belonging to that community. 
People
Typical Groups Atypical groups (Koi San, Maasai)
Are the characters represented as flat, similar to each other? Do characters express a range of emotions?

Are the characters portrayed as individuals, with interesting & complex identities?
Animals are the center of the story, needing to be saved from humans; or humans are not present and Africa is represented through the stereotype as a place of wildlife devoid of humans. Animals, if present, are portrayed with humans in complex relationships.

If animals are central characters (such as in folktales), they are shown to have complex personalities and further information is given in the book about the social and cultural dimension of the folktale.
Are the customs – speech, clothing, food habits, religious practices, and values – judged according to the norms of western culture? For example, are arranged marriages, the strong family unit, and assuming one’s traditional role represented negatively? Are the customs represented according to the norms of insiders of the culture written about?

 
Activities
Dangerous, atypical, or extraordinary scenes Every day scenes (families, school, street, markets, workplaces, roads, buildings, etc.)
Atypical jobs (Massai herders, healers, chiefs) Typical jobs (farmer, bus driver, teacher, nurse, street vendor, lawyer, sales person, etc.)
Desperate scenes of social ills (poverty, disease, conflict etc.) Scenes of people having fun; scenes of people resolving problems; every day life, banal moments, universal moments
Education is portrayed as a problem. Children are in school.
Girls and women need saving. Girls and women are empowered.
Topics
Inaccurate, biased views of a current topic Historical and cultural accuracy. Further research is usually needed for you to ascertain historical and cultural accuracy. Check out the Review Database on Africa Access’ website to get additional information about accuracy and/or email africa@bu.edu 
Slavery and colonialism emphasized without complex, humanized stories of Africans who have resisted. Humanized stories of resistance; accurate stories without romanticization. See for example, John Thornton’s review of Nicole Hannah Jones’ 1619 Born on the Water 
Colonialism portrayed as balanced or two-sided.  Colonialism portrayed accurately in all of the ways that it disrupted and destroyed people’s societies, cultures, and livelihoods. The story shows that Africans resisted colonialism in various ways. The voices and perspectives of Africans are at the center.
Trans-atlantic and trans-Indianoceanic slave trades These histories are portrayed accurately from the perspectives of those who were enslaved. The enslavers’ actions are not erased or ignored. Attention is given to first person narratives and stories and the legacies & knowledge they carried with them.
Abject poverty  Working class, middle class families, farming families.
Irrational violence of conflict  Conflict is contextualized historically and leading factors are well explained.
Governments are portrayed as corrupt. Both successes and failures of governments are shown, and systems of governance are contextualized historically.
No additional information or links provided about a topic. Additional information about a topic provided for further research.
Africa devoid of technology Technology is represented through people’s innovation; technology is represented accurately in the ways it is used daily by millions (e.g. cell phones, internet, etc.) and historically (e.g. the development of iron technologies, etc.)
Images & Illustrations
Non-African author and/or illustrator African author or illustrator or non-African author or illustrator with deep connection to, and knowledge of, the place they write about.
Stereotypical images and drawings of people Careful drawings of people that show a range of complex emotions, without any stereotypical physical features.
Word Choice
Uses words such as slave, tribe, underdeveloped or developing civilized/uncivilized, traditional, timeless, lost Uses words such as enslaved, ethnic group; avoids classifying any country in terms of development or civilization altogether. 

Note: the use of these words is a good opportunity for critical discussion with students. For example, the word tribe is often used by indigenous people in the Americas, and also in use as in-group designation by Africans. However, outsiders need to avoid the use of this term because it carries colonial ideologies.