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Worthy achievements of 2007

“No race can accomplish anything till its mind is awakened,” said Booker T. Washington, a legend in the collective history of Africans – which, according to Dr Hippolyte Fofack in this opinion piece, makes Oprah Winfrey, on account of building a Leadership Academy in South Africa, stand out as “the Mother of Compassionate Philanthropy” and worthy achiever of 2007.

The people of African descent made great strides in their quest for dignity and development in 2007, which in the view of many will be the greatest year in the long walk towards a collective awakening of minds since the successful struggles for the abolition of the slave trade, independence of African nations and more recently the defeat of the apartheid system. The world witnessed some of the most talented and committed sons and daughters of Africa draw on their personal wealth to genuinely assist the least fortunate and economically endowed in their aspiration to greater opportunities, while at the same time promoting the culture of African dignity on a grand scale. Topping the list in this league of exceptional Africans is Oprah Winfrey who opened 2007 with the inauguration of the Oprah Winfrey “Leadership Academy for Girls” in South Africa and closed it with the movie “The Great Debaters”. Interestingly enough, these exceptional contributions and achievements were all made during the year of the bicentennial commemorations of the abolition of the slave trade on 25 March 1807 by the UK. “The Great Debaters” is a movie based on a real life story about the intelligence of an all-black team that went on to upset more resources-endowed all-white teams from Ivy League institutions at a time when blacks were considered inferior in the 1930s. It addresses the perceived bias in the distribu

tion of natural intelligence across races, and hence highlights potential benefits of selfconfidence and determination for success. As we all know, the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy aims to provide the best education to hundreds of girls from lowincome families and previously disadvantaged communities in South Africa. For a continent and race that is generally more accustomed to receiving aid from others, rather than from its own, the establishment of the Leadership Academy by one of the most highly praised and acclaimed Africans in the world is certainly a grand premiere that could hardly go unnoticed at a time of an annual overview of worthy achievements in 2007. In a related vein, while the movie is about the collective memory in the face of prejudice and oppression – a relic of the institution of slavery in the post-abolition era – the Academy, which emphasises leadership, is about the future. And this is especially so because leadership is about inspiring and motivating the people to attain higher goals and success in institutions and nation building. In cutting the ribbon leading to a formal opening of this Academy in January 2007, Oprah, on returning to the Motherland declared: “I wanted to give this opportunity to girls who had a light so bright that not even poverty could dim that light.” And she achieved it in such a splendid and dignifying way, providing a world-class institution with first-rate facilities, which are generally found

in more advanced nations, to economically impoverished girls in a developing country. By aiming for the best institution, Oprah has emerged as a true Globaliser. She clearly understands that in an increasingly flat world created by the process of globalisation, children, whether rich or poor, whether in North America, Europe or Africa, are all aspiring to the same goals and high standards – global standards – and hence should be given the same opportunities. After all, it is interesting that for more than five decades of continued development

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Oprah Winfrey - the Mother of Compassionate Philanthropy?

assistance to Africa, the donor community taken collectively has not been able to establish a single academic institution on par with the best world standards, leaving millions of African children with no option but to risk their lives and fuel the brain-drain chain in search for better education and employment opportunities in the more advanced economies. However, the globalising spirit of this legend in the world of philanthropy and development is certainly not the only attribute that sets her apart from the traditional practice

of development and institutions of foreign aid. How many wealthy philanthropists have clearly enjoyed the company of those at the receiving end of their charity? The old adage stating that “the hand that receives is always below the one that gives” has consistently prevailed, hence reinforcing the income gap and inequality between the needy and the well-intended sponsors and entertaining the entrenched culture of dependency. Departing from this secular trend of persistent inequality carried across generations,

Oprah truly embraced the recipients of her charity through her original sense of caring and a genuine commitment to their wellbeing, and her humility in understanding and sharing their burden and constraints. In spite of her multiple commitments and the distance between South Africa and North America, she managed to spend time with every single girl admitted into her Academy. She also experienced the burden of their daily life and chores. This high sense of humility and compassion was most notably illustrated by her attempt to carry a bucket of water on her waving and curly hair that could hardly sustain a single drop of water. Fetching water has indeed been the daily chore of most of these girls, and Oprah, who never shies away from her past and history, could easily identify with these girls growing up. In this regard, she further highlighted the connection and similarity of recent history when she declared: “I was a poor girl who grew up with my grandmother, like so many of these girls, with no water and electricity.” By embracing these girls, Oprah established a natural connection, and hence entrusted most of them with the confidence and power that money alone would never have achieved. At the global and strategic level, she also moved the otherwise stagnant frontier of the development business and philanthropy to a different level: that of a global compassionate philanthropy. Indeed, global compassionate philanthropy may just be the missing ingredient to effectively enhance development effectiveness. As Otto Von Bismarck, the German chancellor, once wrote: “A really great man is known by three signs – generosity in the design, humanity in the execution, and moderation in success.” As the Mother of Compassionate Philanthropy at the global level, Oprah Winfrey embodies all these three attributes. She is always ready to carry good causes that strengthen the humane dimension of humanity, a stand which makes her an exception in a highly competitive world where prime drivers are increasingly accumulation of personal wealth. Furthermore, the fact she is herself a direct descendant of those who have consistently been perceived as the most needy and poorest of the world, especially given the

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