Ghanaian Professor Joseph Mensah Admonishes Immigrant parents
Immigrant parents, especially parents and care-givers in the Ghanaian community in Canada have been strongly advised to provide active and strong support for their children’s education here in Canada. This support is crucial to enable the youth to achieve the much-needed first university degree, the basic requirement for future success in the current job market. Strong financial support from parents will also prevent the youth from being burdened with heavy student loans on completion of a first degree.
Delivering the Key-Note Speech at the 10th Anniversary Ghanaian-Canadian Achievement Awards Night in Toronto, Professor Joseph Mensah, who is also the Coordinator of International Development Studies at York University in Toronto, emphasized that much as initiating projects “back home” in our country of origin is important, immigrant parents need to pull every string and nerve to support their children’s education up to at least the first Degree level with very good grades. After that there is the likely possibility that they will receive financial support and assistance for Graduate School from most universities.
Describing his presentation as a “personal reflection, observations and constructive suggestions for all of us as we make our life here in the Diaspora easier and productive”, Professor Mensah laid much emphasis on the problem faced by the second and third generation which he described as the “Sandwich Generation”.
Professor Mensah analyzed the hibridity of the immigrant experience in the diaspora. He pointed out that first and second generation African immigrants, especially Ghanaian immigrants, don’t seem to belong anywhere. Pressures from above from parents, pressures from the side from siblings and extended family members, and pressure from the bottom—our own children make life very difficult to navigate at times in the diaspora. “The pressures of racism, racial profiling, difficulty in accessing good jobs due to the “proverbial Canadian Experience” all contribute in making the first generation experience a never-have-landed syndrome. “You don’t seem to belong here or there”, he said, “but you belong somewhere”.
Admitting that racism exists and is strong in Canadian society, Professor Mensah however strongly admonished immigrants, especially the youth, not to let racism control their destiny. “Racism exist, it is overt, covert, subtle, yet consequential. Its implications include profiling, stereotyping and other negative perceptions”. But you should not allow this to drag you down. “Your destiny is in your own hands; don’t let racism consume you”, he challenged.
The answer to these challenges and pressures, he advised, is hard work, perseverance, and intense focus in whatever you do which will lead to success. He advised the youth to develop what he termed Allergic to laziness. “Don’t pray for your life to be any easier—it softens you; you become complacent. The only way to polish any gem (gold, diamond etc) is to pass it through extreme heat”, he said to applause.
Using the life of Abraham Lincoln [1809-1865] and Perseverance as his analogy, he ended his speech with some words of wisdom from some well-known personalities: * Denzel Washington: Luck is when opportunity meets preparation * Homerun: You hit homeruns not by chance but by preparation. * Luck: Luck is being ready for the chance. * Work hard to increase your exposure to providence. * FOCUS: Laser is light; but when focused it is able to cut through steel. * LASER: Light amplification through the stimulation emission of radiation * FOCUS IN DRIVING: Don’t focus on what you want to avoid, but focus on where you want to go. Camera: Don’t be afraid to make mistakes: Life is like a camera; and you can use the negatives to develop.
Source: Ghanaian News Canada
