BY ARIELLE HUTCHINSON – When I first heard the Band Aid 30 Single, “Do They Know Its Christmas?,” I was in love. Who could possibly hate a song created to raise money for Ebola sung by artists like One Direction, Ed Sheeran, Bono, Chris Martin and Sinéad O’Connor?
However, under closer speculation of the lyrics, I realized it has been thirty long years since the first Band Aid single, and yet nothing has changed. They still run the same patronizing, demeaning and supposedly well-meaning project that is based off a stereotype grouping all the people and nations of Africa into a single place where nothing positive occurs except for disease, conflict and famine.
The lyrics describe Africa as “a world of dread and fear, where a kiss of love can kill you and there’s death in every tear, and the Christmas bells that ring there are the clanging chimes of doom.” It also promotes the notion that non-Africans need to feed Africans, feed the world and heal the world.
Though the problematic song may raise money in the short term, the long-term damage from the perpetuation of this stereotype will take far longer to heal. Hopefully this song can provide relief to the Ebola epidemic but not advocate the cultural misconception of Africa.