In the 1970s, scholars of Africa realized that American high school textbooks were filled with stereotypes about Sub-Saharan Africa. With the coming of independence for African countries in the 1960s and with the American civil rights movement, the most glaring myths had disappeared, but less obvious myths persisted. In a 1978 study, Africa in Social Studies Textbooks, Astair Zekiros and Marylee Wiley detailed the extent to which our public schools were perpetuating myths and inaccuracies about Africa. They noted that most textbooks were written by “‘armchair’ authors who rely on weak sources for their own information.”4 Thus, no matter what the textbook authors were discussing, they tended to make Africa look like the place they imagined rather than the one that existed.

Africa is, however, very much a part of the American subconscious. Ironically, although we know little about Africa, we carry strong mental images of the continent. Once you begin to notice, you find that Africa appears in the American public space quite frequently. Although it may not figure often in the news, it shows up in advertising, movies, amusement parks, cartoons, and many other corners of our society. And although most Americans do not possess many facts about Africa, we do “know” certain general truths about the continent. We know, for example, that Africans belong to tribes. And we know that Africa is a place of famine, disease, poverty, coups, and large wild animals