Lessons from Rwanda: What living abroad taught me about communication in NYC

In the most diverse city in the US, intercultural communication reflects and enhances the richness of our communities.

Written by Hannah Wood

Four years of living and working in Rwanda, a small country in East Africa, has inspired me, an American woman, to believe that a person’s communication style, or choice of language, is a valuable piece of one’s story. Diversity, languages, and accents should be celebrated, not stigmatized.  

Back in the US, I find myself carefully examining intercultural communication in NYC, the most linguistically diverse city in the world. My favorite borough, Queens, is the most diverse place on earth. Here, we are obliged to integrate inclusive language and actions into our everyday routine — that makes life better for all of us. From our local bodega to a family-operated Greek diner, we share intercultural interactions and experiences as New Yorkers more often than we may realize. Everyone has a unique story in this immense metropolis. I urge readers to focus on the commonalities that surpass our differences. Intercultural understanding can begin with a word, a conversation, or a work of art. Start to look around, notice patterns, ask critical questions, open  a conversation with someone new. There are beautiful stories waiting to be told.

In a 2009 TED talk, my favorite author, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, speaks about “The danger of a single story,” arguing that a single narrative about a person, place, or thing is dangerous. Single narratives foster stereotyping, diminish dignity, and lead to gross misunderstanding. We could sit together with those facing struggles different than our own to build community, dismantle stereotypes, and harness mutual understanding. Storytelling and active listening could help us correct the misconception that English proficiency equates to intelligence. Foreign accents are signs of bravery and, honestly, we lose too much when we limit ourselves to one vernacular.  

There is beauty in multilingualism — many of my friends come from diverse backgrounds. Several are multilingual and identify with the Rwandan diaspora or grew up in neighboring countries. Quite a few have the uncanny ability to speak in as many as six languages. One friend shared how she makes this look so effortless: Some words do not exist in Kiswahili but might exist in English or French. Each language has the perfect word for expressing a thought or idea. Thus, this interchange optimizes the speaker’s ability to communicate with those from a similar linguistic background.

While many Rwandans are multilingual they do share one common language, Kinyarwanda. This common tongue was the seed to success in Rwanda when, in 2001, the Gacaca (Gah/cha/cha) Courts were established. In less than a decade, the community-led courts tried nearly 2 million crimes of genocide. In the Rwandan context, this transitional justice approach was a turning point in re-establishing national security and unity. Beforehand, and for nearly 50 years prior to the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi, Rwandans had been heavily segregated. Communities were strained by differences in social class, trust was broken, and youth were manipulated. After putting a stop to the genocide, the Government of National Unity called upon Rwandans from various backgrounds to reach across the table at the Gacaca Courts for the sake of rebuilding their country and healing years of tremendous national suffering. This helped establish peaceful coexistence among diverse groups. Continued efforts include a national remembrance week to honor the victims, survivors, and rescuers of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi. Today, Rwanda is one of the fastest developing, cleanest, and safest countries in the world, according to World Economic Forum and the UN Human Development Index.

The US could learn from the Rwandan model. Rwandans and their leaders have committed to their healing journey. Americans too, can grow and advance beyond their historic pain and suffering. We must celebrate our diversity as it has always been the essence of this nation. Yet, until we require reparations for historic marginalization, until we end discrimination, and until immigrants are treated with the same dignity and respect as our founding fathers, we will fall even further behind as a country. Imagine if all citizens and immigrants could have equal opportunity and access to basic services: We could begin to eliminate poverty and unite as a nation with more wealth and economic opportunity than ever before. 

Hannah Wood is a program coordination specialist. She began her journey in peacebuilding work while serving in the United States Peace Corps in Rwanda from 2015 to 2017. Most recently, Hannah worked alongside the peacebuilding department team at Never Again Rwanda from 2018 to 2019.