Disinfecting the African Psyche – Fighting the Psychological Residuum of Linguistic Imperialism

Abstract

The Euro-centric tragic trilogy of slave trade, colonialism, and neo-colonialism has left an indelible imprint on the African psyche. Although the physical manifestations of the aforesaid trilogy have now been well documented, what often escapes public estimation is the psychological residuum of colonialism and its neo-colonial slough. It is intriguing to note that, half a century after colonial structures have been dismantled, it is not yet ‘uhuru’ for African cultures. African states have failed to shake off the vestiges of their colonial encounter. They have continued to blindly sacrifice their dignity, integrity, and identity on the altars of cultural universalism – a vacuous prescription from the west. The western civilisation, itself a by-product of the aforesaid trilogy
has stealthily presented as normalised givens, the European languages and cultures to the extent that African nations have neglected their languages with reckless abandon in pursuit of the ‘givens’, thus becoming willing accomplices of their own victimisation. Arguments in support of the globalisation of European languages are slyly packaged and presented in ‘masked’ intrinsic nature and the functional utility of these languages which render them superior to African languages (what is). It is the contention of this paper that the most daunting task confronting us Africans is cleansing the post-colonial mindset en route to restoration of African agency, intrinsic tenacity and confidence in appreciating and developing their languages.