Notre Dame Students love Africa. They love it so much that it was the only logical place to start when considering the many things they like. Every night, all across campus, Notre Dame Students fall asleep with dreams of one day traveling to Uganda, or Kenya, or Burundi, or the DRC. Visions of health clinics, genocide, subsistence farming, and Somalian Pirates dance through the heads of Notre Dame Students each night as they devise their plans to impact change in the far off continent.
Many students here actually do travel to Africa at one point or another for various reasons. Some go to do service work or tourism, but there are a lucky few that are able to go to Africa to do research. Researching people of another culture is probably the best way to tell those people that we are better than them. It is very easy: the plane lands in Uganda and one bright, chirpy Notre Dame junior exits wearing her UGG boots or his Polo Brand shirt and proceeds to feverishly take notes with his or her MacBook about the farming practices of the natives.
So many students travel to Africa that it is a wonder South Bend Airport does not run a direct flight to Kampala. This would probably be the more profitable than simply investing in the continent. Imagine an airport that runs four flights: daily flights to Chicago, Detroit, and Cleveland; and a weekly flight to Uganda. Not only would the students use this often, but Fr. Jenkins would be able to easily satisfy his cravings for all things Uganda.
Regardless of what students do when they arrive in Africa, the ones who go there love to talk about the continent when they return. Rare is it that a Notre Dame Student finds himself in a conversation with one of these privileged few and they don’t mention their trip at least three times. These students love to use their stories to show how cultured they are and how much they care about the world, and they typically cannot wait to go back.
Posts
11 comments:
Can I tell you that when I saw "Africa", I immediately thought of Toto? lol
Ah, the Backer.
Thanks for a fun blog...
Yeah, the key thing you are forgetting about Africa is the fact that Notre Dame Students incessantly play this song in all situations and at all events. While wearing THE SHIRT at football games, the students get more excited for "Africa" than for the football team.
What? Pretty sure this is not an actual ND stereotype
Above post obviously doesn't go to notre dame....I know at least 7 people that went to africa last summer or are going this summer...most likely to do a #10 (or attempt to fill a resume)
Seriously? They don't shut up about it.
i played the song at my wedding.
i feel like bangladesh should be added to this...
You definitely meant Toto.
Toto.
haha so true!
Africa needs to be expanded to the "exoric poor." Africa boasts some distinct advantages in both those measures. It is (in many regions at least) both the poorest and the most exotic place most ND students can imagine.
Notre Dame students love the exotic poor because helping them allows them to go on a vacation while simultaneously developing their moral supperiority, resume, and cock tail party routine.
When you help the exotic poor you do so on your own time. None of that oh-so-irritating spontaneous and persistent human suffering that can barge into your life at any moment.
You know how much time you are giving them, and they can't very well ask for more. Its not as if the exotic poor have airplanes, cell phones or the internet. It's not as if you will have to see or hear of them after you leave. They are non-existent to the American media. And the exotic poor are considerate enough to populate tropical regions of the globe. I wonder why ND students do not boldy bring thier unwavering Catholic charity to the Siberian poor?
It's the ultimate no strings attached hummanitarian misson.
Post a Comment