Wow….racism, really?

By Hailu Nega


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Dear Mr. Al Mariam,

I gathered you are or were a staff member at a higher learning institution. I am, therefore, going to try to appeal to your reasoning abilities to help us draw different conclusion than what you did about the senator’s statement. Senator Inhofe went, saw and then spoke. Unfortunately, part of what he saw was ugly. You are calling the description of ugly fact racism. In a scientific world, one would want every detail of the subject in order to draw a complete and accurate picture. Wax and Gold does not apply.

Let me make two points very clear to you and others like you who are crying wolf.

Babies are damped (pardon the insensitivity, I guess a “civilized” person like yourself may prefer “abandoned”) not only in Ethiopia and Africa, but also in developed countries, including the USA.
I am going to describe a scene around a municipality dumpster in Addis Ababa. I am sure it will make you sick. It has, however, nothing to do with racism but a lot to do with realism of poverty in your country. It is a typical scene and if you still insist for evidence, I will get you a picture from Addis Ababa: the municipality garbage dumpster is the feeding ground for homeless children, goats, crows, vultures and dogs; yes starving stray dogs. Are you beginning to get the picture? Unfortunately, it is also a common damping site of teenager-birthed babies. Now tell me if the stray starving dogs will spare dead and nearly dead babies.
I guess the above description makes me a super racist or perhaps one of those “non-Ethiopian” nationalities trying to destroy the Ethiopian image. Where have you been and what in God’s name are you trying to pull? Are you and your vocal friends trying to cover up the ugly realty of abject poverty in Ethiopia or scare the world to submit to your views only? I am now beginning to understand why the Ethiopian Diaspora has capitulated into silence and has allowed you and your likes to dominate the US political and social scene. You have successfully scared them off with rabid accusations like this from expressing their differing views and taking steps to help their.

I hope Ethiopians and Ethiopian-Americans will read and circulate this short note and speak out. Judging from the articles you have authored and pictures you have posted on the internet, Ethiopia is nothing but a flag and a map to you. I guess it is easier for you to glorify inanimate objects than deal with real people and their problems. No sir, Ethiopia is any of those but a wonderful and beautiful mosaic of nations and nationalities. Unfortunately, most are poor but honest and hard working people, trying very hard to pull out of poverty on their own. And yes, homeless underage mothers are part of the society and do like anywhere else in the world abandon babies. Mr. Al-Mariam sir, abject poverty, and trust me that is not government created either, is the root cause of shocking occurrences like this.

As you have your own definition of democracy, which accepts a flag and a map, but not the people they represent, it is apparent that you also have a variant definition of racism. Those who dare point out ugly facts are racists in your eyes. I realize the message that babies are abandoned by their teenage mothers and get eaten by dogs is stomach churning and nauseating and add whatever superlatives and descriptors you would want to. Nonetheless, the fact still remains that it did and does happen in Ethiopia. Your anger and accusation of the person who said it after he witnessed it will not erase the incident.

So, why sir are you trying to turn this into such a controversy? You and I know better that it will not get you support, but stands to discredit you by those better informed. If your intent is to scare those less informed you should perhaps be considered a racist yourself. It is extremely presumptuous and unfortunate. if your intent is to scare the remaining members of the senate from speaking out against HR 2003. I have a better and plausible explanation, yes, it is partly to destroy the credibility of the first US senator for speaking out against your HR 2003, but more importantly, you are trying to rally disintegrating party around drummed up controversy.

The poverty and hardship of Ethiopia will not disappear because you wished it or are ashamed of it. We, the supposedly educated but intolerant and hateful Ethiopians in America should be ashamed of ourselves because we failed to lift a finger to accelerate the rate of poverty reduction in our birthplaces. Worse yet, we have taught our children to hate and portrayed to them Ethiopia as the nation it is not instead of what it is and what it will likely be. Your articles of hate and arrogance dear professor are my references and I do not have to provide any. However, should you, dear professor insist about the lack of evidence of what I described above, I will get you a picture…it is your call.

Hailu Nega