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Mr. Lopate,

I applaud you for hosting Richard Dowden, who exemplifies the true spirit of diversity: a world citizen who respects and values the potential that each individual and community can contribute if given a fair chance.

You seemed to have trouble with the choices that Mr. Dowden has made in explaining the dynamics of conflict in Africa. It is said: LANGUAGE IS A MIRROR OF THE SOUL. When it relates to Africa, that language in mass media tends to be evaluative and often devaluing. In addition to tribe--you clearly had trouble understanding why Mr. Dowden rejected the almost sole application of this concept to Africa--where else has mass media applied labels such as war lords?

Most Americans underestimate the real worth of Africa, Africans, and anyone with visible traits of African descent. Until we (the collective global community) overcome that malaise, we will forever fall short of realizing our full potential and humanity. That is the tragedy.

I went to the program at nyu...wow!!

My heart swells with joy when I hear people like Mr. Dowden eloquently discusses the story of Africa. The potential energy in Africa will soon be converted into kinetic energy and at that point, the world will come to understand Mr. Dowden's assertion. More than anything, I have an enormous faith in Africa's success. I was opportune to study in and gain some experience in corporate America and I will be returning home to Ghana with my family to participate in the ongoing economic development. Words can't express how much I love the continent.

Amy my suggestion is that we leave it be, but encourage people like myself, western educated folks to go back and give back, there are a lot of us here in the us, doing well and getting used to our Sunday brunches and fri happy hours, I truly believe that africa's problem must be solved by Africans, we just gotta get back home

I don't hear Tony Blair's comment as insulting. "A scar on the *conscience* of the world" sounds like he's saying conditions in Africa result from how the rest of the world treated the peoples & the land, not about the nature of Africa itself. (Maybe he should've said it that way, but it seems implied--otherwise why mention conscience at all?)

Regarding your African friend's shock in observating that Western co-workers aren't necessarily friends with each other --

I suppose this is one of the casualties of meritocracies. Some co-workers aren't friends or family.

Having lived in another place that places supreme value on friendship over all else, Hanoi, Vietnam, what struck me upon returning to the US is that even friends do not act like friends. It is normal here to be too busy to have lunch or spend an hour with one another on a regular basis, with this going on for years -- even while you are both among each other's favorite people. It is the thing that Vietnamese comment on first.

Leonard your snide baiting tone in this interview is disturbing. If you take this tack with a man who looks like you and is speaking from the perspective of one who has been on the ground I hate to imagine what it would be like if you were interviewing an African or a member of the African Diaspora who was trying to get out this message.

Get out of your narrow eurocentric posturing chair and GO TO AFRICA!!! Visit the countries and learn to appreciate the humanity of the ordinary people and come back with a greater sense of respect and empathy rather than superiority informed ONLY BY media and literature!

How would Mr. Dowden advise people who want to support a better approach to helping solve the problems being discussed? Is there something more effective than supporting organizations like SaveDarfur?

I appreciate the decision of Mr. Dowden & his colleagues to avoid the word "chaos" in describing situations in African countries, mainly because it recognizes that Africa is made up of individual, complex countries that have specific, complex problems w/different, complex causes.

I love this book and this approach is so pervasive that Leonard Lopate can't seem to grasp the point. The use of the term tribal is such lazy shorthand for what are very much understandable issues around scarcity of resources and vying for political power. I grew up going to Sierra Leone as a child remember loving it and feeling freer there than anywhere else. I remember reading in high school that it was the poorest nation on Earth. Its not that there is extreme poverty in Africa but there is also extreme happiness and everything in between. These are not simply semantics. I currently work with African immigrant youth in New York and the degree of teasing and bullying they experience is directly related to the ways Africa is discussed in the media.

Yay!!!! It's so funny because I just had a series of correspondences with chris cleave, the author of little bee about the description of Africa, all isn't gloomy and while we must tell the stories of those who suffer must be told, we should not forget folks that against all odds thrive..