By: Drake Ssempijja
Africa is a country so they say. That belief was finally debunked on the 22nd of June 2019 at the “Africa in Athens” event held at the beautiful Athens Museum of Art. The event was meant to showcase the cultural diversity of the African continent especially to Americans and the Athens community by the fellows. It turned to be one of the most exciting events I have ever been to. The smiles, color, multiculturism, diversity was there for all to see.
The event, brought several fundamental truths to light, that Africa is more than a collection of 55 countries, that and what separates us is insignificant compared to what brings us together as a people and a continent. The event was well received with a lot of enthusiasm by the Athens community as families and individuals came in to see the displays from the major regions of Africa and interact with fellows from the different countries. Although most of the visitors I interacted with had never been to the continent, it showed a clear change in the perceptions of the American people about the continent.
The ‘Hands of Fire’ drumming group brought spark to the event with their superb drumming which got everyone on their toes, dancing, laughing spreading joy, love and happiness, and for one brief moment in time, everything seemed perfect, for one brief moment, the dream of Martin Luther King seemed within reach and in that moment, Athens, Georgia became the African culture capital not only of the United States of America, but of the world.
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