Many will be familiar with the TED Talks online forum, and particularly with the Nigerian writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s acclaimed and thought-provoking 2009 talk on ‘The danger of a single story.’ The single story creates stereotypes, she explains in the talk, and the problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue, but that they are incomplete. They make one story become the only story. While the talk is anecdotal and draws from an evocative medley of Chimamanda’s recollections growing up and self-discovery in the complex social environment that is Nigeria, her message is universal and resonates anywhere in any social context. Earlier this month, a more focused version of the online talks, the TEDx, was held at the Kakuma Refugee Camp in Northern Kenya, the first ever in a refugee camp. It showcased stories of resilience and creativity by former refugees from the camp, who have managed to overcome their predicament to achieve great personal heights. They included an international model, a poet, teacher and an athlete, among others. In the weaving of their various personal experiences, they dispelled the often sad persona of the refugee – ‘the single story’ one often may see in the media of misery and tragic fate. For those who may not have been aware of the likes of Somali-American Halima Aden, who was born a refugee in Kakuma and is now an international fashion model, or of Pur Biel who fled war in South Sudan at the age of 10 to become an Olympic athlete through sheer determination, it is easy to be caught up in the ‘incompleteness’ of the story Chimamanda cautions against. Think, particularly, of the refugee who may self-pityingly view herself or himself as hopelessly condemned to their situation. The TEDx event offered hope; it showcased the possibilities in the inspiring experiences of Kakuma’s own in an effort to change perceptions and break stereotypes both for the refugee and the global audience (view event at tedxkakumacamp.org). For the uninitiated, TED stands for Technology, Entertainment and Design, but its talks cover a broad range of topics from science to business to global issues. Started in 1984, it is a nonprofit devoted to spreading ideas in a network of conferences, and usually in the form of short, powerful talks. TEDx events are a diffused version to cater to diverse themes in communities around the world. The timing of the event at Kakuma was apt, as the World Refugee Day was observed this week under the theme ‘Now more than ever, we need to stand with refugees’. The day was however observed against the reality of grim statistics around the world. The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) reported how, thus far, a record 68.5 million people have been forced to flee their homes due to war, violence and persecution around the world. Regionally, millions have been displaced with Ethiopia, Uganda and Kenya hosting some of the biggest refugee camps in the world. Uganda, for instance, hosts nearly 1.5 million refugees while in Kenya there are over 500,000. As of late 2017, according to UNHCR, Rwanda hosted some 172,000 refugees, including nearly 46 per cent from the Democratic Republic of Congo hosted in five camps, and 53 per cent from Burundi hosted in Mahama camp and urban areas. Conflict and political instability in South Sudan and Somalia remain some of the major causes of displacement in the region. South Sudan saw the largest increase in 2017, with the number of refugees fleeing the country rising from 1.4 million at the beginning of the year to 2.4 million at the end of that year. As of April 2017, more than 876,000 people had fled Somalia. While the experiences highlighted at the TEDx event tell the more triumphant side of the story, the focus for the majority has, for a while now, been on reducing dependency among refugees, while advocating self-reliance with self-help projects that have included farming and small businesses. This is in addition to the refugees receiving other welfare support with Rwanda and Uganda having some of the most liberal policies in the region. In Rwanda, for instance, refugees are granted the right to work in addition to the government has a policy of progressively integrating refugees into national systems for health and education. Overall, however, 13 million people around the world are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance, including more than seven million suffering from acute hunger. Thus, with such desperation, TED Talks is not without its cynics. The sceptics charge that while personal stories of transformation such as those at the TEDx in Kakuma may make us feel good, they are sadly also laden with unrealistic promises. The solution is not in highlighting the few individuals’ salvation, but rather in addressing geo-political flaws in national and international politics for the many. Otherwise, the talks are little more than a concerted distraction. While some of us may not entirely agree with the perception, it finds its genesis in a deeper criticism of the essence on which TED is founded, but which, for now, will remain a subject for another day. Twitter: @gituram The views expressed in this article are of the author.
