The “Big Man Syndrome” isn’t a result of colonialism, Emanuel says.

Ezekiel Emanuel: Clearly Africa has huge problems. I actually – having traveled there many, many times – think that colonialism clearly has a part. But the fact is the “Big Man Syndrome” isn’t a result of colonialism, the corruption, the suppression of women is not . . . Those are not problems of colonialism. Those are endemic, cultural problems of people, and they need to begin to overcome that. And there are some places which are very helpful. Mali, which is an incredibly poor country – its average per capita income there is under $200 a year – has had a stable transfer of power and government. And you know, that’s a very hopeful sign. Now we have to give them a stable economy and figure out how they can actually develop, and work with them on that. And I think there are other places which can be big successes, but it’s gonna take patience; it’s gonna take investment. It takes a long term strategy. That’s not something the United States is very good at. I mean the long term, we are awful at the long-term.

Recorded on: 7/5/07