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I was looking at various surveys regarding some social issues and it shocked me how high African countries tend to rank in these. Here are a few:
The survey about racism asked a representative group of people in various countries the following:
Could you please sort out any that you would not like to have as neighbors?
This was the percentage in African countries that mentioned people of a different race:
Rwanda 36.8%
Egypt 34.2%
Nigeria 30.4%
Zambia 29.5%
Morocco 23.1%
Ghana 22.4%
Mali 22%
Uganda 19.4%
Zimbabwe 18.6%
Tanzania 16.7%
Ethiopia 16.6%
Burkina Faso 10%
South Africa 6.4%
This is how some European and American countries ranked:
France 22.7%
Russia 16.6%
Italy 11.1%
Mexico 8.3%
Netherlands 8.1%
Germany 7.6%
Spain 6.9%
Peru 5.9%
Switzerland 5.9%
Great Britain 4.9%
Brazil 4.4%
Puerto Rico 4.4%
Colombia 4.3%
Australia 4.2%
Uruguay 3.9%
United States 3.8%
Canada 2.9%
Trinidad & Tobago 2.5%
Argentina 2%
Another survey, but this time regarding the acceptance of homosexuals, asked the following:
Could you please sort out any that you would not like to have as neighbors?
This is the percentage in African countries that mentioned homosexuals:
Egypt 99.6%
Ethiopia 82.2%
Algeria 80.7%
Burkina Faso 80.5%
Ghana 79%
Uganda 75%
Tanzania 74.1%
Nigeria 73.6%
Zambia 73.3%
Zimbabwe 67.8%
Mali 66.2%
South Africa 42%
This is how some European and American countries fared:
El Salvador 78.3%
Trinidad & Tobago 65.2%
Venezuela 57.4%
Mexico 29.8%
France 28.7%
United States 26.1%
Puerto Rico 21.9%
Italy 21.7%
Brazil 21.3%
Australia 20.2%
Great Britain 16.3%
Uruguay 16.2%
Guatemala 15.8%
Germany 15.1%
Argentina 14.5%
Canada 14%
Switzerland 11.1%
Spain 7.4%
Norway 5.7%
Sweden 4%
Does anyone knows what might explain this?
Before this I thought African countries were much more accepting of different people and on par with Western countries.
Education breeds tolerance towards people who are different than you. Most of the African nations, in which the vast majority would not want to have a gay neighbor, do not have highly educated populations.
Education breeds tolerance towards people who are different than you. Most of the African nations, in which the vast majority would not want to have a gay neighbor, do not have highly educated populations.
At the time of WWII the Germans were the most educated society on earth. Middle-class Germans were reading the classics while middle-class Americans were reading comic books.
It's not an issue of "education" it's an issue of indoctrination.
Americans are indoctrinated. Every nation indoctrinates its children and adults. It's easier to mold a child's and young adult's mind though than it is a middle-aged adult's mind.
[in-dok-truh-neyt] Show IPA
verb (used with object), in·doc·tri·nat·ed, in·doc·tri·nat·ing. 1. to instruct in a doctrine, principle, ideology, etc., especially to imbue with a specific partisan or biased belief or point of view.
2. to teach or inculcate.
3. to imbue with learning.
There is a method of pedagogy that American schools are not found of. That would be one of telling a student to find the meaning of thing on his or her own, then figure out how to place it or apply it in the context of a particular issue or problem.
Rather... American schools "educate" by telling students, "This is what you must understand this to be," and "When this issue or problem arises this is the answer...."
Before this I thought African countries were much more accepting of different people and on par with Western countries.
Seriously? Africa is the last place on Earth besides maybe the Middle East that I would expect to be a tolerant place. At least as far as their views on gays, religion (particularly the Abrahamic kinds) + masculine culture do not mix with homosexuality.
The use of the word "neighbors" is problematic. In some cultures, people live much closer to their neighbors than others, in the sense that it is much more important that neighbors can be relied on to be a part of your extended family or a part of your social group. In fact, neighbors are often literally extended family, as there is often intermarriage within a neighborhood. The more tightly-knit your "neighborhood" is, there more people will express concern about the character of the people who live there.
Americans don't care who their neighbors are because they don't even know their names, or even recognize them in the street. But in Africa, is of critical social importance to be in good standing with your neighbors, who will probably remain your neighbors for your entire life, owing to a lack of mobility options..
The use of the word "neighbors" is problematic. In some cultures, people live much closer to their neighbors than others, in the sense that it is much more important that neighbors can be relied on to be a part of your extended family or a part of your social group. In fact, neighbors are often literally extended family, as there is often intermarriage within a neighborhood. The more tightly-knit your "neighborhood" is, there more people will express concern about the character of the people who live there.
Americans don't care who their neighbors are because they don't even know their names, or even recognize them in the street. But in Africa, is of critical social importance to be in good standing with your neighbors, who will probably remain your neighbors for your entire life, owing to a lack of mobility options..
Good point. Often true.
I get the sense "community" is much more important in Africa too.
Liberals in the U.S. when in comes to "society" reminds me of conservatives when conservatives speaks about "economics."
The liberal will claim with respect to the society around a child, that it does not matter what is going on around him, that he should pull himself up by his own bootstraps morally, so to speak. The conservative says this about financial/economic matters though and not morals.
They both are wrong in my opinion.
And I regard the United States as a very morally corrupt place. If I were to describe America in a few words I would say: serial killers, child abductors, serial rapists, pedophiles, hypocrites, and just overall bad people. Americans remind me of NAMBLA members who talk about how good they are. I think NAMBLA given its name was even started in the United States.
I remember reading a book for my Africology course (a liberal, feminist, Afro-centric field of study) that said no other industrialized nation on earth suffers from so high rates of social pathologies as the citizens of the United States of America. Even our liberals are mean and hateful when one dares even question one of their sacred dogmas.
And I regard the United States as a very morally corrupt place. If I were to describe America in a few words I would say: serial killers, child abductors, serial rapists, pedophiles, hypocrites, and just overall bad people. Americans remind me of NAMBLA members who talk about how good they are. I think NAMBLA given its name was even started in the United States.
Your comment is loaded with ignorance. Lets see if I can "ejumacate" you a bit
1. "United States as a very morally corrupt place"
Every countryhas their opinion on what is morally acceptable or not. The big difference with the US is that you have a right to that opinion. And you have the right to make the opinion public through free speech.
2. "If I were to describe America in a few words I would say: serial killers, child abductors, serial rapists, pedophiles, hypocrites, and just overall bad people."
Really? So all 300 million of us are serial killers etc. If that were the case wouldnt we have run out of people to kill?
The irony of your stupid comment is that you live in the US (Milwaukee from your info). Now why would you live in a place with "overall bad people"?
If you are in America only to take advantage of the opportunities she offers but deep down you hate her, then you must be an overall very bad person yourself.
You cannot keep sleeping with the "prostitute" and then accuse her of "prostitution" - that would make you a hypocrite.
I was looking at various surveys regarding some social issues and it shocked me how high African countries tend to rank in these. Here are a few:
The survey about racism asked a representative group of people in various countries the following:
Could you please sort out any that you would not like to have as neighbors?
This was the percentage in African countries that mentioned people of a different race:
Rwanda 36.8%
Egypt 34.2%
Nigeria 30.4%
Zambia 29.5%
Morocco 23.1%
Ghana 22.4%
Mali 22%
Uganda 19.4%
Zimbabwe 18.6%
Tanzania 16.7%
Ethiopia 16.6%
Burkina Faso 10%
South Africa 6.4%
This is how some European and American countries ranked:
France 22.7%
Russia 16.6%
Italy 11.1%
Mexico 8.3%
Netherlands 8.1%
Germany 7.6%
Spain 6.9%
Peru 5.9%
Switzerland 5.9%
Great Britain 4.9%
Brazil 4.4%
Puerto Rico 4.4%
Colombia 4.3%
Australia 4.2%
Uruguay 3.9%
United States 3.8%
Canada 2.9%
Trinidad & Tobago 2.5%
Argentina 2%
Another survey, but this time regarding the acceptance of homosexuals, asked the following:
Could you please sort out any that you would not like to have as neighbors?
This is the percentage in African countries that mentioned homosexuals:
Egypt 99.6%
Ethiopia 82.2%
Algeria 80.7%
Burkina Faso 80.5%
Ghana 79%
Uganda 75%
Tanzania 74.1%
Nigeria 73.6%
Zambia 73.3%
Zimbabwe 67.8%
Mali 66.2%
South Africa 42%
This is how some European and American countries fared:
El Salvador 78.3%
Trinidad & Tobago 65.2%
Venezuela 57.4%
Mexico 29.8%
France 28.7%
United States 26.1%
Puerto Rico 21.9%
Italy 21.7%
Brazil 21.3%
Australia 20.2%
Great Britain 16.3%
Uruguay 16.2%
Guatemala 15.8%
Germany 15.1%
Argentina 14.5%
Canada 14%
Switzerland 11.1%
Spain 7.4%
Norway 5.7%
Sweden 4%
Does anyone knows what might explain this?
Before this I thought African countries were much more accepting of different people and on par with Western countries.
1. Is this intolerance, would want to have a drug dealer or a crack head as a neighbor?
Its not Africans are intolerant it is that Africans and Asians are more likely to admit to their intolerance than Europeans. You also have to bear in mind most white people do not think of other races except as peripheral people. It has a racist subcontext but it doesn't mean they are racist. Get 10 white people in a room none of them are going to think about non whites generally speaking. Live in a diverse community which most Africans do, then it becomes at the for front.
2. Lets look at some of these countries
Rwanda 36.8%
-Genocide just in 1991 enough said
Egypt 34.2%
-Very anti black people and anti jew and lots of sectarian division amongst copts and muslims and radical muslims and regular muslims
Nigeria 30.4%
-Lots of animosity between muslims and christians, mainly the arab terrorist boming the christians
Zambia 29.5%
-No clue about that one. No muslims, few whites, but I am not that familar with its history.
Morocco 23.1%
-Same as Egypt, but with a huge population of black people and the arabs view them with contempt as in calling them black or mixed with black is tantamont to call them slave. No real surprise here.
The rest of those countries had problem with colonizers during the colonial era who murdered lots of people so no surprise they don't want to live near people who murdered them.
Also though there is a bias, Africans do not understand the concept of prejudice or racism because generally speaking there is not systematic discrimination in law in these countries today. People do not unders
tand or see what is wrong with saying I don't want to live beside muslims because muslims are terrorist and bomb things. But as another poster alluded to living beside someone means alot more in Rwanda or Egypt than it does in Canada or USA. In Canada and USA you tend not to even know your neighbours name, you will at most wave to them but not even recognize them. I have not seen one of my neighbours kid in YEARS. In rwanda or Egypt in some rural areas they may not have doors, it may require more trust and mutual culture just to be nieghbours those people can likely walk through your house willy nilly, you will spend lots of time with them and likely intermarry with them. It means alot more than being neighbours.
Further people from alot of these WEstern countries are liars. They know what the right answer is but it is not how they truly feel. I can assure you that more than 2% of Norwegians, swedes and Finns care who their neighbour is. You put a dark skin Somalian or a paki with dark skin or a turk or a persian, I guarantee you that if you say your neighbour is any of these and you would say have to share a kitchen area and bathroom (like student housing) with them the number would rise to 99%. You see neighbour in Norway means person lives in an adjacent unit to you and you have ZERO contact with the person. It is easy to be tolerant of someone you do not have contact with. But when I lived in the nordic countries I heard muslim/arab types that i listed having trouble to rent in these style apartments especially if it was female nordic.
Come on, France more racist than Russia. France has the 2nd largest amount of blacks after turkey and probably the most muslims after turkey in europe. No way they are that racist. I suspect the French were just more honest as they often are.
3.
On the homosexual thing, well it is a moral issue. If you live in a moral country like Egypt or the other ones in Africa that are very moral about sex, then of course people are going to oppose a neighbour, who comes into their house and has an immoral life style. I don't care if you smoke drugs, are gay, swing, and have an otherwise immoral lifestyle, but when I have to share facilities with you, I might rethink that position because I am exposed to it daily. I would take the homosexual thing with a grain of salt. If you believe in the bible or quran you will not accept a homo neighbour.
Education breeds tolerance towards people who are different than you. Most of the African nations, in which the vast majority would not want to have a gay neighbor, do not have highly educated populations.
Americans are no different they've just been browbeaten to conform publicly. Racial segregation is pretty thick in the USA.
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