The Boston Globe

Editorials

Editorial

Achebe: Fighting corruption with fame

The revered Nigerian writer Chinua Achebe says there is a moral obligation “not to ally oneself with power against the powerless.’’ The author of the 1958 novel “Things Fall Apart’’ recently lived up to his words once again by rejecting one of his nation’s highest civilian honors for the second time in seven years as a protest against public corruption. It’s an inspiring example of how an individual can use his fame to hold governments accountable.

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