In his memoir, The Man from Africa, author Christopher Osagie describes the cultural differences that he experienced when he moved from Africa to the United States. In spite of these differences, he adjusts to his new life and learns to appreciate the higher moral standards in his new country. From being a pest control technician to becoming a poultry specialist, he demonstrates the abundance of opportunities available to anyone who is ready and willing to work very hard. In Nigeria, as in many other African countries, immigrating to the United States is a common dream. The United States is usually referred to as "God's own country" because of the perceived limitless opportunities available to all those willing to work hard in order to achieve their individual ambitions. Consequently, Nigerians with successful careers-even established professionals, such as medical doctors, lawyers, and engineers-have chosen to leave behind all that they have achieved in order to immigrate to the United States, where they believe they will have the opportunity to attain even more. The Man from Africa was written to enlighten new immigrants from other countries in Africa and from all over the world about what to expect if they choose to immigrate to the United States.

THE MAN FROM AFRICA

The Cultural Differences Experienced by an African Immigrant Living in the United StatesBy Christopher Osagie

iUniverse, Inc.

Copyright © 2011 Christopher Osagie
All right reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4620-6767-1

Contents

Introduction.................................................................................................ix1. What's in a Name?.........................................................................................12. My American Girlfriend and Her Six Beautiful Bunnies......................................................73. My Nigerian Girlfriend and the Slum of Lagos..............................................................104. My Uncle and the Cat......................................................................................155. Educational Disparity.....................................................................................186. Marriage..................................................................................................217. Divorce, Child Custody, and Alimony.......................................................................248. The Botanist/Optometrist..................................................................................269. Uncle Daniel, the Farmer..................................................................................2810. Invitation to a Restaurant...............................................................................3111. Marrying a Nigerian Wife.................................................................................3412. Good Neighborliness......................................................................................3713. Scholarship Awards: The United States vs. Nigeria........................................................4014. The Sport Utility Vehicle and the Janitor................................................................4215. White vs. Blue Christmas.................................................................................4516. Corrupt Politicians......................................................................................4917. The Christmas Day Bomber.................................................................................5218. A Visit to Nigeria.......................................................................................5519. Working in the United States.............................................................................6020. Elections................................................................................................6521. The President, the Professor, and the Police Officer.....................................................7122. Town-Hall Meetings, Health Care, and the Debt Ceiling....................................................7423. The Governor and the President...........................................................................7724. The Middle East Crisis...................................................................................8025. Governor Sarah Palin and the Unlimited Opportunities in the United States of America.....................83Conclusion...................................................................................................85

Chapter One

What's in a Name?

African names reveal much about the person. I would quickly learn that American names do not.

For example, Joan Thatcher is a doctor of veterinary medicine at Penn State, where I was in the graduate program, pursuing my doctorate. While pursuing my degree, I worked as a poultry specialist for a livestock feed company. I had gone to meet with Dr. Thatcher because one of my client's chicken flocks had high mortality rates, and we needed a qualified doctor of veterinary medicine to diagnose the cause of these deaths. I found it quite frustrating that all the veterinarians in the clinics near my client's farm only focused on cats, dogs, horses, and cattle. I just could not understand why none of these veterinarians specialized in poultry diseases. I knew of John Foster, a seventy-year-old man who spent most of his time reminiscing about his days as a famous doctor of veterinary medicine who did, in fact, specialize in poultry, but his name does not indicate much about him; neither does Dr. Thatcher's.

Consider George H. W. Bush, the father, and George W. Bush, the son are both former Presidents of the United States, and yet their names do not reveal much about them. The names of other famous people—broadcasters and journalists, such as Andrea Mitchell, Chuck Todd, Diane Rehm, Melissa Bloke, Mitchell Norris, John King, and others—do not indicate anything about them. I grew more and more curious about this. In graduate school I encountered American students with names like Jennifer, Thomas, Andrew, and Judy. As I got to know my fellow students I began to ask them about the meaning of their names; however, as much as I have inquired, no one has been able to tell me the meaning of these names or what they stand for. So, my question remains, What do these American names mean? Foster, Thatcher, Bush, Bloke, Norris, George, Melissa, Mitchell, Jennifer, Thomas, Andrew and Judy must signify something, but no one could tell me exactly what their names meant.

Let me explain more about African names. In Africa, your name reveals the region where you are from, the circumstances of your birth, and even the beliefs of your people. So, the name Mbeki indicates that you are South African, and if your name is Afrifa you cannot deny that you are Ghanian. Mr. Abiola is most certainly from Nigeria, as is Mr. Ikechukwu. Mr. Adebola is a Yoruba man from western Nigeria, while Mr. Okonkwo would be an Ibo from eastern Nigeria. If your friend's name happens to be Alhaji Buhari, know that you would have to go to the Sokoto Caliphate in northern Nigeria to look for him. In terms of religious beliefs, Mr. Igbinosun worships a deity called Osun, and you would most likely find him near the river, making sacrificial offerings to the goddess of that river. You would definitely find Mr. Igbinosa at church on any given Sunday morning. If Mr. Ikpiha is your neighbor, be careful about how you talk about childless couples, because he was born after his mother spent a minimum of three years of marriage praying to the good Lord to give her a child. In Africa, three years of marriage without a pregnancy is a tragedy for the woman, whereas this is commonplace in the United States, as are childless marriages.

My full given name is Osagiemwangbon (Osagie for short), which means that the good Lord sent me into this world for a purpose. Upon learning the meaning of my name, you might wonder why my parents chose it, which means that you must not know that I was born during the Nigerian Civil War.

Perhaps my parents had not realized that going to the doctor for prenatal checkups, or to the hospital for the delivery, would be a safety hazard in wartime. Had they realized this, they might have practiced birth-control measures or abstinence during this period. In any case, they forgot that they were in a war zone—or ignored the fact—and my mother became pregnant. Instead of the routine visits with the gynecologist, my mother had to make do with only my grandparents and my uncles. While doctors usually tell pregnant women to have sufficient bed rest and come to the clinic for regular prenatal checkups, my mother likely spent her pregnancy avoiding flying bullets and exploding mortar shells by staying under the bed and keeping away from the windows. This explains why I was born at home...