Hospitality is not only imbedded in the fabric of our culture, it is one virtue we hold at a very high standard. Growing up, I watched the way my mother welcomed guests into our home as if they were royalty. Time and time again she emphasised the importance of knowing how to make people feel welcome, especially with me being a woman who will one day have a home of my own. And so, being hospitable was naturally engrained into my mannerisms and throughout my journey to adulthood, I’ve seen the impact that the slightest gesture of hospitality can have on a stranger’s experience. This standard of hospitality is a way of life. In the past few months that I’ve been in the country, I’ve noticed how Rwandans go out of their way to make foreigners feel comfortable, how they try to ease the experience of being in a completely new environment from what they know and call home. While I understand the need to be nice to foreigners, I am not in favour of bias. Last week, I was at the police station to report a stolen ID. Anyone who has been to the station knows that it takes hours to get service due to the crazy lines. I had been waiting for an hour when two white women walked in to report a stolen phone. Immediately, a police officer rushed to their rescue and before I knew it, they were being escorted into a room to be helped. Naturally, I interjected before they could proceed. When I expressed my frustration to the officer that it was unfair the women were being accommodated before the rest of us, she explained to me that white people got priority. When I asked why, she said that it was due to their quarrelsome nature. I then told her that everyone waiting in line for hours was also capable of being argumentative, especially when people are given priority because their skin is lighter. I see this kind of behaviour in restaurants, banks, bars—you name it. The notion that westerners are superior has been drilled into the minds of Africans for so long that even in our own homelands, this mentality seeps through our actions. Our president is constantly endorsing the Pan-African ideology—charging Africans to be more self-reliant, to rise to the occasion and take our future into our own hands instead of looking to the west for leadership. It is impossible to see this vision come to life with mentalities like that of the police officer. As our continent works on economic and social development, it is just as, if not more important, to invest in the development of our peoples mindsets. It is no secret that foreigners in western countries face racism on a daily basis and while discrimination should never be accepted anywhere, there is something to be said when people are not treated fairly in a place they call home. Follow Rita Umuliza on twitter: @umulizaa
