Somalia was very anti-Apartheid and anti colonialism in Africa. We do feel empathy towards other Africans. However things have changed since then. Other black Africans are usually Christian and sadly this translates into anti Muslim. In Kenya, South Africa and I'm sure elsewhere, Somalis are targeted violently either by the public or by police. We're singled out all the time and this 'Arab' label is the perfect sheild in post colonial Africa. Other Africans don't see us as native to Africa no matter how dark skinned we are so why is it a problem when a minority of Somalis chime similar sentiments?
Right, it looks like more and more the feelings are becoming mutual...i.e. the rest of africa see somalis as arabs and not africans and somalis not having any kind of affinity to other africans and other afro descendants in the diaspora....infact hostility between the two is most evident. Begs the chicken or the egg argument as to which one came first.
I think all of this is ok though as again i think much of the world would have been ignorant to this were it not for the internet and the vociferous writings of somalis all over it. It is all quite messy at times because you do have somali opinions that run the gamut but by and large it is clear where most of them stand, they are muslim first and everything else after....so their empathy, connective-ness, affinity, affiliation are all dictated by this. In some ways given the demonization of muslims around the world today it can be seen as admirable that somalis are so devoted.
The only time that i will take exception is when individuals who have decided that they didn't want to tow the line and wanted to blaze their own individual trails are ganged up on and called all kinds of names....that and the demonization of other groups particularly blacks creates an unnecessary layer of animosity that perverts, clouds and takes away from the nobility of the dominant somali point of view.
