American TV personality Steve Harvey has urged Americans living abroad to visit Africa and set aside their preconceived notions about it.
He claims that through travelling to these countries, Black-Americans in particular will have a better appreciation of African culture and its influence on the rest of the world.
Speaking in a podcast, Steve Harvey said “Forget everything you’ve ever heard. After you go to Africa, you got to go to Ghana first, then you need to go to Botswana because you need to see (these places).”
The philosophy and panAfrican. Thank you Steve Harvey. We are Africans. We are not indigenous to North America. Yes DNA is from Africa. pic.twitter.com/tuiEDQq7NB
— Black diaspora Voice. (@BlackdiasporaV1) March 1, 2023
“Botswana is the second richest diamond producer nation in the world – them black people over got something. And then you got to go to Johannesburg, that’s what you’ve got to do. You’ve got to do that jump right there. Once you see that, you’ll understand who we are,” he told a crowd.
These African vists, according to Steve Harvey, would refute the myth that Africans, particularly musicians, are “stealing” from the west, as many African Americans think. “Them Africans ain’t stole nothing from us. “
“They talk about, Burner Boy stole this? No. We stole from Burner Boy. Them Africans is us, man. They’re the beat. They the rhythm. They the soul. They the hard work. We get our courage from them. When you see them people, they look jack like your family,” he said.
Steve Harvey first visited Ghana in 2019, during the well-known “Year of Return,” when African-Americans and diasporans were urged to travel to Ghana to discover their roots.
Since his visit, the TV show host has spoken openly about his love for Ghana and the African continent as a whole.
He also introduced the popular game show ‘Family Fued’ to Ghana and South Africa.
According to him, Africans are the kindest and most sincere people he has ever been around. He then went ahead to mention some countries in Africa that people from his side of the world need to visit and experience.
While explaining his point on Black Americans also being Africans, he added that once his people have been to these different countries in Africa, then they would understand who they really are. According to him, Africans did not steal anything from them, they stole from Africa.
