The curious case of the 'LAFA'

                     Van Vicker -- shameless 'LAFArian'

Look i dont know what the whole fuss is about with this 'LAFA' ( which stands for Locally Acquired Foreign Accent for those of you who arent in the know) phenomenon as we call it locally. When you really think about it how do people in general acquire their accents? How does someone who has lived all his life within the shores of his/ her mother country, end up talking like someone from east London or New York? Answer: Very simple. Human nature.

When we as human beings, get exposed to a certain culture whether we get to experience it first hand or long distance we will end up picking up elements of that foreign culture; Accent, food, fashion sense and yes, even our taste in women or men for that matter. Whether this happens consciously because one finds it more appealing and cooler to talk like an American or we just slip into the tongue just because we watched too much TV flooded with foreign programs is beside the point. The fact is it happens; its human nature.

 

People who acquire LAFA are constantly exposed to MTV, CNN, listening to music reading foreign entertainment mags etc...( yes you can acquire LAFA by reading; i was once told i had a Brit accent just because i said 'pity' instead of 'its a shame' ; and this was when i was instant messaging!

So for me the hating from all of these expats and locals alike is unjustified.The same way our brothers from abroad get offended when we, who are supposed to be their brothers and sisters at home, call them 'obroni' or when you call someone a 'villager' (derog) because he cant speak proper english we shouldnt label LAFArians as frauds.

There I've said my peace so until next time its Later Homies !! :-)