Conclusion

Chapter 7, “Conclusion: Multiculturalism in a Multicultural World,” discusses the implications of the book’s findings for our understandings of multiculturalism, nation-building, and counterterrorism in Nigeria and in societies around the world. Nations with risk factors similar to those of Nigeria—such as deep demographic divisions, state fragility, and escalating conflict—may not have the luxury to “celebrate diversity.” As more countries around the world are facing challenges from religious extremism and terrorism, many are questioning the feasibility of multicultural approaches. In nations experiencing ongoing conflict, multicultural educators may need to recalibrate the balance between celebrating diversity and promoting unity, focusing more on commonalities between groups. This chapter explores other approaches that may at least help to mitigate the potential negative outcomes of multicultural education. More broadly, it concludes that peacebuilding approaches—including soft power media and education interventions—must be tailored to the particular contexts in which they are implemented.

Introduction

Chapter 1 introduces the book by discussing the key dilemmas that arose during the creation of Sesame Square, the Nigerian version of Sesame Street. It outlines the program’s goals to teach tolerance and peaceful coexistence to Nigerian children and the challenges of promoting these goals in the Nigerian context. This chapter introduces two dilemmas that form the central arguments of the book: first, that multicultural education and celebrating diversity can inadvertently exacerbate stereotypes; and second, that a violent and unjust context can undermine tolerance messages. This chapter reviews historical, political, and cultural aspects of the Nigerian context, including the rise of the extremist group Boko Haram, whose name means “Western education is forbidden.” It also explores what the United States government (which funds Sesame Square) believes the program might do to build stability, peace, and American goodwill in Nigeria. The chapter closes by previewing the content of the following chapters.

Imagining the Nigerian Audience

Chapter 3, “Imagining the Nigerian Audience,” describes some Sesame Square creators’ beliefs that their audience—particularly their northern Muslim audience—is intolerant, uneducated, repressive of girls, and “backward.” These imaginings replicated prior discourses in Nigeria (and prior media initiatives) that aimed to “civilize” and “modernize” people. Creators faced a fundamental conundrum of multicultural education: How can educators respect cultural differences while simultaneously trying to change the attitudes and behaviors of their target audiences? It was more difficult for creators to maintain positive views of their target audience when they had evidence that northerners do indeed have lower education levels, and some northerners are waging a violent insurgency. This chapter explores whether it is possible to be culturally sensitive without “othering” a target audience. It supports the first overarching argument of the book—that multicultural education and efforts to be “culturally sensitive” can ironically end up reproducing stereotypes.

Can Zobi Build National Unity?

Chapter 5, “Can Zobi Build National Unity?,” examines the depiction of the Nigerian nation—and the calls for national unity—on Sesame Square. It explores the hopes of Sesame Square’s creators that the program could create a sense of “Nigerian-ness” among young viewers. Feelings of national pride were seen as antidotes to the ethnic and religious allegiances that were allegedly contributing to ongoing conflicts, so creators included symbols, songs, and messages celebrating Nigeria. Yet calls for viewers to be proud of their country seemed unrealistic in a context where the fragile Nigerian state is failing to provide basic services for its citizens (including education) and is indiscriminately arresting and executing thousands of Muslims. This chapter focuses on the book’s second overarching argument: that a violent public curriculum undermines messages of unity and peace.

Can Kami Promote Ethnic and Religious Tolerance?

Chapter 4, “Can Kami Promote Ethnic and Religious Tolerance?,” also supports the book’s first argument that multicultural education can inadvertently reproduce stereotypes. As Sesame Square’s creators celebrated ethnic diversity on the program—by showcasing ethnic clothing, languages, names, foods, and customs—they lapsed into stereotypes to represent different groups. Representing religious diversity raised further conundrums. Muslim symbols were seen as “anti-Christian,” and vice versa. Some creators feared that representing religious diversity was too contentious given the fact that religious intolerance was seen as the cause of escalating violence. For this same reason, however, other creators believed that highlighting religious integration and tolerance was more important than ever. Some creators believed that if children learned about ethnic and religious others, they would become more appreciative of diversity. Others, however, feared that highlighting differences could exacerbate divisions.

Learning on “The Longest Street in the World”

Chapter 2, “Learning on the Longest Street in the World,” explains the history of the international versions of Sesame Street. In the early 1970s, Sesame Workshop began working with local teams around the world to create “co-productions” of Sesame Street that are tailored to local contexts. The international network—which has grown to more than thirty co-productions viewed in over 150 countries—provides a fascinating example of a media program that is both global and local. Chapter 2 also describes how Sesame Square came to Nigeria and discusses the program’s focus on helping northern children, who were believed to be the most susceptible to recruitment by Boko Haram. It describes the details of the Sesame Square project: the goals of the program; the people involved; the steps of the production process; and the episode content. It also includes numerous examples from other Sesame co-productions to compare with Sesame Square.

Can Big Bird Fight Terrorism?

Chapter 6, “Can Big Bird Fight Terrorism?,” examines some creators’ hopes that messages on Sesame Square—particularly messages about school attendance, gender equality, and tolerance—could counter Boko Haram’s messages. This chapter addresses both of the book’s overarching arguments. First, as creators decided what messages northern children needed to hear to make them less susceptible to extremist ideologies, they sometimes stereotyped northerners as all being connected to Boko Haram—supporting the book’s first argument that multicultural efforts can reproduce stereotypes. Second, the public curriculum in Nigeria undermined Sesame Square’s antiterrorist messages. Moreover, some creators seemed skeptical that an iconically American educational television program could be a match for an extremist group whose name means “Western education is forbidden.” The current conflict is further eroding intergroup trust and reinforcing stereotypes between groups, making Sesame Square’s messages seem increasingly unrealistic. This chapter explores the particular challenges that terrorism poses to educational soft power efforts.