“Belachew Gebrewold takes us on an African journey of critical self-reflection, creatively using Girard’s mimetic theory to parse the deepest challenges facing the continent. Observing that many who are well-off want to migrate to the West, he asked “Why?” and this led to a profound realization that they are on a quest for recognition, driven by an internalized sense of inferiority. The West becomes the Model of a colonized mimetic desire that morphs into ontological mimetic desire—a desire to Be the Other. Gebrewold puts forth a powerful challenge to Africans—to own their own problems of corruption, social inequality, poor governance, and relative poverty. He claims that Africans can transform their continent by claiming their own ontological strength as Africans. For non-Africans, he becomes an exemplar of self-critical reflection leading to transformation of this wonderful world.” (Vern Neufeld Redekop, Professor Emeritus of Conflict Studies, Saint Paul University, Ottawa, Canada)