Date of Award
5-2022
Document Type
Thesis
Publisher
Santa Clara : Santa Clara University, 2022.
Degree Name
Licentiate in Sacred Theology (STL)
Director
Julie H. Rubio
Abstract
This thesis demonstrates how the African ethics of Ubuntu and African liberation theology can be a response to the environmental-migration crisis that the Sub-Saharan African region faces today. It explains the relevance of the appreciation of the African cultural heritage to the restoration of the human dignity of the African, especially the migrants, and the recognition of the obligation of the human beings to protect the integrity of all creation. It shows the connection between the root causes of the environmental crisis and migration. These interconnected root causes need a holistic understanding of creation that Ubuntu ethics provides mainly in its concepts of interconnectedness, hospitality, and ecological harmony. To address the root causes of migration, the thesis proposes actions mainly in the domain of education, cultural formation, and religious practice. While I have drawn on the essential works of African authors in areas of environment and ethics, I also benefited from lived experience and cultural practices to proffer solutions to the crisis of migration. In addition to creation of employment and the fight against environmental exploitation, I argue for the reform of the colonial-sanctioned African educational system that excludes the rich cultural and spiritual practices and creates identity crisis in the youth and alienates them. Hence, they always think that to live abroad is more socially rewarding, even if they end up suffering in the process of searching for the elusive wealth abroad. The argument from the thesis is a holistic application of African and Christian values to addressing the challenges that young people face in Africa today which push them on the road of migration. As a result, the resolution of the current crisis will be to encourage young people to use their cultural heritage to create a new narrative and vision of their future rather than taking a perilous route journey of the desert and the Mediterranean Sea to Europe.
Recommended Citation
Fikiri, Deogratias K., "Ubuntu Ethics: A Frame for an Ethical Analysis of Environmental Migration of Unaccompanied Minors Through the Mediterranean Sea" (2022). Jesuit School of Theology Dissertations. 99.
https://scholarcommons.scu.edu/jst_dissertations/99