what do people take malawians for?

micahj3k · Member

what do people take malawians for?

NCHEWA · Newbie

micahj3k wrote:

i was very ticked off to be asked questions by so british people? how comes you are pretty, arent africans meant to be dark, and ugly. why are you civilized and how comes you are educated and you can sing? are we supposed to be ugly or something? are africans not civilized what was they trying to prove? about africans are usually savages, am i mising something here? How are the majority of us presenting ourselves for them to think that we are that uncivilized and stuff, i refuse to present malawi as an uncivilized country we have dignity andy intergrity and more or less much more educated than most of them will ever be. anyway i will not stoop low to their level. what should we do people.

It is not how Malawians or Africans present themselves, It is a matter of some ignorant whites or non, whites who are not from the continent or From Malawi, to assume that Africa is black and ugly, most of all ignorant. As far as not being civilized , I think there is alot to be developed in the infrastructure and technology of Malawi. Why get pissed off, just look at the leader of the U.N. and many Africans who are as intelligent and as gorgeous, I wouldn't sweat about the dark complexion, because we come in different hues. Stop being pissed of at some ignorant whitey or darkie who has never been to Africa and just watches a clip over there on CNN OR BBC, and assume that all Africans are ugly and miserable. You should know that by comparison to most of the countries even in Africa Malawi, is one of the poorest though still beautiful. Proudly MALAWIAN. " I am an African" Thabo Mbeki President of the Republic of South Africa. On 25 May 2005 which is AFRICAN day.

Manyazi · Newbie

Honey, it is my sincere hope that you do not speak the way you write because if you do then no wonder the British people look down upon Africans.Surely that's not the kind of English you SPEAK??? How comes and we was???? NO NO NO! And do they surely think you're the only African that's pretty and can sing? Lady, who are you hanging out with and where????????Get new friends.

Karma Sutra · Member

Dont blame them, all they have is television to rely on,and what else does BBC show apart from either africans starving or dying from Aids? Its just a shock to their system,they are not used to the fact that althuogh we are from africa and our accent may be different our grammar is SPOT ON ALSO!!!! Do like what i do,shock the krap out of them!!!!!

micahj3k · Member

Manyazi wrote:

Honey, it is my sincere hope that you do not speak the way you write because if you do then no wonder the British people look down upon Africans.Surely that's not the kind of English you SPEAK??? How comes and we was???? NO NO NO! And do they surely think you're the only African that's pretty and can sing? Lady, who are you hanging out with and where????????Get new friends.

Before anyone gets heated up i mean this in the most civil way.

hey, what do you mean, i was raised in england, i know we should never boast and all, but i highly appreciate my roots, i was raised here since i was a really young kid and have grown here and are still growing up here and have only been back home once ever since i have been here and me speaking like a british is only result of the fact that i have grown up here. and no i dont speak funny english, please i ask you to pardon me and please dont torture me with comments that can kill me.

remember constructive criticism.

mamacita · Member

Darling Micah,

I am a teacher and can tell off-bat that you DID NOT grow up in England. Have you heard yourself speak? And do you EVER read your writing back to yourself? I was not going to join in, but since you are looking for constructive criticism, here goes.

First, I don't know if others noticed it, but your first entry was full of sarcasm and irony. You were basically calling the rest of us Malawians ugly while patting yourself on the back and saying..."I am pretty and can sing." (Whatever that means!) Enjoy your prettiness...I wont hold it against you. But please do not ever get delluded into thinking that you are the ONLY pretty Malawian girl out there. Actually, there are some BEAUTIFUL AND GORGEOUS Malawian girls out there. Please note the difference in the three adjectives. And while you say you can sing (I haven't heard you to make a judgement), I also do know girls who can belt some notes out and have chosen not to have a career in music.

As for the English that ask you dumb questions about Malawi, are you sure that they are just not asking about YOU? There is that possibility you know!! (YOU WANTED CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM!!)

Therefore, stop with the innocent act...you have been had! And get with the program. You are only what you surround yourself with! If you are surrounding yourself with uninformed, uneducated savages, THAT is also what they will take YOU for. And wake up from that dream of "O...I grew up in England and are still growing up here..." Honey...please! If what you wrote is English bred, then my name is certainly Mamacita! (If you get the colloquialism.)

...constructive you wanted...constructive you have had...

micahj3k · Member

mamacita wrote:

Darling Micah, I am a teacher and can tell off-bat that you DID NOT grow up in England. Have you heard yourself speak? And do you EVER read your writing back to yourself? I was not going to join in, but since you are looking for constructive criticism, here goes. First, I don't know if others noticed it, but your first entry was full of sarcasm and irony. You were basically calling the rest of us Malawians ugly while patting yourself on the back and saying..."I am pretty and can sing." (Whatever that means!) Enjoy your prettiness...I wont hold it against you. But please do not ever get delluded into thinking that you are the ONLY pretty Malawian girl out there. Actually, there are some BEAUTIFUL AND GORGEOUS Malawian girls out there. Please note the difference in the three adjectives. And while you say you can sing (I haven't heard you to make a judgement), I also do know girls who can belt some notes out and have chosen not to have a career in music. As for the English that ask you dumb questions about Malawi, are you sure that they are just not asking about YOU? There is that possibility you know!! (YOU WANTED CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM!!) Therefore, stop with the innocent act...you have been had! And get with the program. You are only what you surround yourself with! If you are surrounding yourself with uninformed, uneducated savages, THAT is also what they will take YOU for. And wake up from that dream of "O...I grew up in England and are still growing up here..." Honey...please! If what you wrote is English bred, then my name is certainly Mamacita! (If you get the colloquialism.) ...constructive you wanted...constructive you have had...

hey, thank you for your constructive criticism, i am not about to try and justify or defend myself, only the truth sets us free anyone and everyone who knows me, knows that i came to england when i was really young, but thats ok since you dont know me that well and i wasnt saying im the only one who can sing in malawi that was not my intention, i'm sorry that maybe i did not elaborate what i was trying to get across very well, any way i apreciate the time you took to criticise me constructively. by the way i would appreciate it if you could please take the time out to hear my track at www.myspace.com/lydiajohns .

ushergirrl · Newbie

mamacita wrote:

As for the English that ask you dumb questions about Malawi, are you sure that they are just not asking about YOU?

well i've met lots of british people that ask me those kind of questions so i dont think its something to do wit 'her'..i was even surprised that british-born asians even ask the same things about being a civilised african when most of them originated from poor countries themselves(bangladesh for example)!!! but like someone has said its all because they only rely on tv for the knowledge on africa issues after all nobody is bothered to talk about the type of life pple lead in urban areas in malawi!

micahj3k · Member

ushergirrl wrote:

mamacita wrote: As for the English that ask you dumb questions about Malawi, are you sure that they are just not asking about YOU? well i've met lots of british people that ask me those kind of questions so i dont think its something to do wit 'her'..i was even surprised that british-born asians even ask the same things about being a civilised african when most of them originated from poor countries themselves(bangladesh for example)!!! but like someone has said its all because they only rely on tv for the knowledge on africa issues after all nobody is bothered to talk about the type of life pple lead in urban areas in malawi!

oh thanks ushergirrl, and yeah you are right about the asians aswell. When they ask especially the ones who came from countries such as bangladesh and others you sit there thinking who are you to be speaking or even talking. but yeah i guess its the knowledge and perspective they are given about africa on tv.

abre les ojos · Guru

I hate to break up this parade but I must ask what calibre of people you mix with? I mean it might not be surprising that people have never heard of Malawi - in fact it is probably more surprising when they have - but as for the education bit? I really cannot believe that there are people out there in ANY country in the world who actually say stuff like that.

Unless you are some Hick in the moutains of Montana or Utah or something. But in this century, i think every person knows that African are educated people (even more so) Anyone who's been to Uni would know that because of the amount of black students there are overwhelmingly African.

Plus every idiot knows that black people CAN sing. In fact that is THE stereotype.

You need to check the folks you hang with. Maybe they are just plain racist or maybe really, really stupid...

Karma Sutra · Member

Thank God you are not teaching my child< talk about Tough Love!!!!

abre les ojos · Guru

Karma Sutra wrote:

Thank God you are not teaching my child< talk about Tough Love!!!!

Huh?

Khetwayo · Newbie

Iwe Micah usatitopese ife pano. Akukunyenga kuti you are beautiful ndani? I think they are just trying to get in your pants. As for singing, I think you have a long way to go. Your music is weakest. These are just my opinions

skillzmanifest · Senior Member

Then again, you get Malawians that feel as though they have to change everything. Many of whom are led to believe that being educated means rejecting culture all the way through and 'adapting'. A lot of Africans have fallen victim to paternalistic British colonialism and the appeal of being percieved by whites as 'civilised'. Some of whom, back home, are drawn into this 'sophisticated' elite that the British sought to create in Africa. The illusion or should I say assumption is the ideology that ALL white men are 'progressive' , 'smart', or 'sophisticated'. It only takes a walk in the sub urbs of pittsburgh or the market town of Hoddesdon in Hertfordshire to see that they are not as we make them out to be.

Malawi tries too hard to mimick its power british power, especially when it comes to the social order where you have certain people treated differently from others. Like the UK and other "kingdoms" where a royal blood line is held with highest regard in society, I've been made aware of howthis ideal has persisted in generations during, and even following Banda's time. This has brought forth a group who because of thier association with the late Ngwazi, have become Malawi Royalty.

-- Edited by skillzmanifest at 23:54, 2006-01-08

Khetwayo · Newbie

Skillz, the only Royal family I know are the Chikulamajembe, the Kachindamotos etc. But are these related to Banda? I may be misled

mamacita · Member

Ushergirl and Micah:

You both are just NOT getting it!! People will ONLY get away with those things that you let them do. In simplicistic terms, they are asking you dumb questions perhaps because your answers or the way you present yourselves are just not doing it. There is NO WAY that an Indian or Pakistani would get away with asking me a "dumb-ass stupid" question like that. In the first place though, they wouldn't even dream of asking ME and MINE.

I hate to burst your bubble, but if you portray yourselves as "Africans who only now have learnt to behave because they went to school"...you will get asked stupid ass questions! But if you start going about as a Malawian lady, different perhaps, but nonetheless proud of her heritage and upbringing...trust me, they will notice the breeding that you all have. Micah since perhaps as you say you were "raised" in England, you have NO IDEA of what I am talking about here.

And Micah, it is writing like this "only the truth sets us free anyone and everyone who knows me, knows that" that makes me doubt very much that you were raised in England. If so, then you are as hard headed as goodness knows what! Read your stuff before you post it if you are going to make such proclamations. Run-on sentences and grammar, grammar, grammar!! I cringe reading your stuff and knowing that you are Half-English...

Just my 2 cents of a stank opinion...kudos

ice · Newbie

mamacita wrote:

Ushergirl and Micah: You both are just NOT getting it!! People will ONLY get away with those things that you let them do. In simplicistic terms, they are asking you dumb questions perhaps because your answers or the way you present yourselves are just not doing it. There is NO WAY that an Indian or Pakistani would get away with asking me a "dumb-ass stupid" question like that. In the first place though, they wouldn't even dream of asking ME and MINE. I hate to burst your bubble, but if you portray yourselves as "Africans who only now have learnt to behave because they went to school"...you will get asked stupid ass questions! But if you start going about as a Malawian lady, different perhaps, but nonetheless proud of her heritage and upbringing...trust me, they will notice the breeding that you all have. Micah since perhaps as you say you were "raised" in England, you have NO IDEA of what I am talking about here. And Micah, it is writing like this "only the truth sets us free anyone and everyone who knows me, knows that" that makes me doubt very much that you were raised in England. If so, then you are as hard headed as goodness knows what! Read your stuff before you post it if you are going to make such proclamations. Run-on sentences and grammar, grammar, grammar!! I cringe reading your stuff and knowing that you are Half-English... Just my 2 cents of a stank opinion...kudos

What wrong has this girl done to you, it looks like you are on a mission to shut her down and your critisicism has turned from constructive to personal, what's bugging you so much???Ok you handle yourself better,you are hard and all, WE GET THE MESSAGE!!!!! Basi.

Khetwayo · Newbie

Khetwayo wrote:

Iwe Micah usatitopese ife pano. Akukunyenga kuti you are beautiful ndani? I think they are just trying to get in your pants. As for singing, I think you have a long way to go. Your music is weakest. These are just my opinions

Micah, I looked at your picture again. If it's true that a picture does not lie, then you are alright. You are not bad looking. Appologies

mamacita · Member

No hard feelings and nothing personal...but it irks me everytime someone does NOT take responsibility for their behavior. We need to get past the thought of: what's wrong with people? Rather, we need to ask ourselves: "what am I doing wrong?" "What behavior can I change?" That is the message I am trying to put across. I do not know Micah, and I certainly hope that she is pursuing her goals and dreams (sounds like she is)...and certainly, I wish her the very best that life has to offer. (I still need to check out that song though). I will be proud of her as a Malawian if she makes it into the mainstream and will support her.

But in so doing, SHE too will have the responsibility even as she does now of carrying the entire Malawi nation on her shoulders. We certainly do not like to admit it, but people will make decisions and thoughts about Malawi, based on those Malawians they meet. Think of how you view Nigerians...and why you see them as such!

Thus said, I certainly would hope that anyone who makes it on the international scene would behave in such a way as to make us proud...not serve cold/uncooked samoosas at a dinner party! Lende nkukankhana!! When Micah does get to the mainstream, I hope she will say loud and clear: I am Malawian and proudly so...and make us proud too. Not have us say instead..."No, I am from Zambia/South Africa for fear that they will ask us about the "horrendously behaved uninformed malawian who sings".

I hope you get my point...Ice

2 cents...kudos

ice · Newbie

I finally got your point and what a good one!!!

skillzmanifest · Senior Member

Khetwayo
As most kingdoms have a bloodline, Malawi has this group that share some special affiliation with the late Ngwazi. when I mention the royal family, I am reffering to the names you are most likely to see in the history books under Banda or next to Malawi. As England has her queen, Malawi has the mama. Yes, the woman that was rumored to have been his wife. Then you have the henchmen and key players.....the Gwandas, Tembos etc. And those that branch of, offspring and relatives, are made the nobility.

game · Guru

micah.

as for me,i really understand your concern,it was an innocent one but people especially on this forum interprett stuff to their own limit of intellect so dont let it get to you.