B. UMEOGU
Identity
As regards identity, globalization has contributed to the
alienation of individuals from their traditions. Identity here is
all about cultural identity; what distinguishes one culture from
another. It can be seen as the traits, characteristics, qualities,
beliefs that make a group stand out among many. Ogugua 2007
in Ogugua & Oduah (2007: p. 5) submitted that “culture is a
mark of identity; it separates man from the animals and at the
same time divides societies … globalization distorts the culture,
changing people’s pattern of editing, dressing, talking etc.”
Capturing this was Dukor who poignantly asserted that,
… in globalization, the identity of minority ethnic groups
among nations is as important as the identity question of
races among races … In a globalized world, ethnic iden-
tity is mostly one unique element that is usually under
threat. All ethnic groups, be it so called majority or mi-
nority, easily identify their ethnicity by their cultural val-
ues which are sacrosanct to them. In other words, ethnic
group identities find meaning in their cultural forms, so-
cial situation, history and kinship system that make up
their social intercourses Dukor (2010: p. 140).
Culture distinguishes a group of people from others. It is so
unique to a group that it is meant to be guarded jealously. It is
that “thing” that will make you say that; this person speaks like
a South African or she dresses like an Igbo woman. By way of
definition, Umeogu & Ojiakor (2012) saw “Culture as the cus-
toms, beliefs, art, music, and all other products of human
thought made by a particular group of people at a particular
time. This culture is what distinguishes one culture from an-
other, or a kind of identification which when exhibited reveals
or gives inkling to where you came from”. Can the African
cultural identity stand in the face of cultural globalization?
Globalization and Cultural Identity
To address the Socio-cultural impacts of globalization on na-
tional identity, I must say that it is two legged in that one can-
not eat one’s cake and still have it. Every society that has been
touched by globalization has had its identity changed either
positively or negatively. National identity according to Burton
is “the shared beliefs and behaviours of a group, which form the
basis for creating meaning for the persons who count them-
selves to be a part of the culture”.
One of the impacts and which happens to be the thrust of this
paper is that people have become confused of who they really
are. They have confused their beliefs with the western ones and
the behaviors of foreign countries have become the yardstick
for measuring acceptable and current behaviors. The bitter truth
is that our culture and its identity have been lost under the
overwhelming influence of foreign culture. Foreign here means
cultures that were not adopted from other African countries that
have similarity in ways of life.
Most if not all cultures have been undergoing changes within
the context of the current variety of globalization, so the likeli-
hood of cultural change within the range of just the culture’s
needs is quite remote. There has been a drastic change in the
mode of dressing, the popular language of communication,
eating habits, and to the extent of sexuality. These changes have
been either in the negative or positive. There are forms of
dressing that identify a particular country like the Indian sari,
the South African skin, the Igbo wrapper and what have you.
Nowadays, jeans, pants and suits have replaced all this. There
has been a mix up that in some cases, it is the skin colour that
tells people apart.
Also, there is technological advancement especially in the
area of communication, connectedness. According to Burton,
“The main tool for the transfer of cultural values from one
country or location to another is through various communica-
tion channels such as the media, the internet, other telecommu-
nication tools and trade”.
To contextualize it, globalization has given minorities a
sense of belonging in the sense that one can be here and be
updated of what is happening there. Again, physical contacts
have been heightened because travelling especially by air has
been made affordable even to the common man who wants to
experience the world from above. Globalization has also helped
people to relax in the sense that people have come to realize
that life is managed. This has led to a situation where people go
on vacations to unwind and destress for a longer and healthier
life. Be that as it may, let us concentrate on the effect on cul-
tural identity.
Coming to globalization and cultural identity proper, one
may say that Globalization has had disastrous consequences on
the governments and people of the African continent. We begin
this section with the words of Dukor (2010: p. 135) that, “there
has been a historical erosion of African identity and authentic-
ity through the process of colonialism, neo colonialism and
imperialism”. That is, there is the tendency of loss of cultural
identities by the one thing that is meant to work for us.
With regards to the relationship between globalization and
identity loss, Ugwueye submits that,
Africans risk losing their cultural heritage in the face of
globalization, not because their heritage is obsolete or in-
ferior but because people have been so taken in by what is
western. This sort of cultural imperialism, which seeks to
enslave the African mind, has left in its wake a cultureless
or culturally disoriented people … Ugwueye (2007: p. 109).
Why won’t the people be taken in by westernization when
the only readily available form of cultural program is the West-
ern ones? Globalization has always had a great impact on cul-
tural identity. “Today, in an age when discrete cultures them-
selves are under threat, the question of cultural identity be-
comes newly problematic and takes on new urgency. The rea-
son for this importance lies in the preservation of the tradi-
tional cultures and values that are carefully being sewn into the
entanglements of globalization” Malgaj (2009).
How did globalization become so powerful to the extent of
threatening national identities? The answer is in the massive
flow of cultural products from developed country so much so
that there is little or no room for indigenous cultural products in
the cultural market. The resultant effect is cultural synchroniza-
tion which invariably leads to identity loss of the recipients.
The picture of identity loss was captured by Umeogu & Oji-
akor (2012) in the following words:
Who am I? Who are we? This is the type of question that
subsequent generations will ask if the rate of cultural de-
pendency on foreign material is not checkmated. This
situation will be an aftermath of the elimination of culture.
When a country consciously or unconsciously loses its
identifying traits, what will they become? If “A” ceases to
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