He's not just a pretty face
Barack Obama is a human magnet, pulling Africans towards him—even in politically-warped Zimbabwe, writes Chief K Masimba Biriwasha
His brains aside, Barack Obama is handsome, cool and as energising as a drop of dew on an October morning.
By ancestry, Obama is an African, and it’s not far-fetched to say through him the ancestors have spoken with a voice that has resonated across the globe, rebranding the black image.
Like me, my friend Innocent has been glued to Obama’s presidential campaign.
Innocent gets fired up: “Obama is a shining star of our generation. He represents a line of inspirational and transformational leaders like Nelson Mandela, and he’s making history right before our eyes.”
I couldn’t agree more: Obama’s decision to run for US president is one of the best things to happen to Africa since Mandela. His message of hope is one that can potentially heal global wounds inflicted by the increasingly belligerent US policies of George W Bush’s rule.
Besides Innocent, I have three friends who have adopted Obama’s campaign tagline: “Yes, We Can” as their email and Skype signatures.
Even the always-persevering local opposition party, Movement for Democratic Change, made a play on Obama’s other campaign tagline: “Change You Can Believe In” adapting it to “Change You Can Trust”. And in the politics of change and accountability, Zimbabweans can only hope, believe and trust.
It’s not just that Obama is black and has an African birthright that endears him to many in Zimbabwe. His appeal lies in a combination of the personal characteristics that turn him into a human magnet. It’s in his poise, his dress sense, his gait, his stable family, his faith and his jewel-like oratory.
And of course, in Zimbabwe’s case, Obama is a symbolic alternative to our warped, stagnant and geriatric political scene.
In a way, Obama perfectly articulates the spirit and desire of the majority of Zimbabweans who are desperate for change and transformation. The post-colonial period in my country as in most parts of Africa has been characterized by corruption and political inefficiency, and by virtue of his paternal consection to the continent, Obama’s message strikes a deep chord.
For me, as a young black man with dreams to make a contribution to society through writing and publishing, Obama is a role model who has helped me to reshape a paradigm free of the confined identities of slavery, subjugation, racialism and colonialism.
Obama has set himself so high a standard and will have to prove himself (if elected US president) but the fact remains: his mantra “Yes, We Can” will forever be imprinted on our collective African imagination.
Chief K Masimba Biriwasha is a children’s author, poet and playwright. He lives in Harare
