Update and New Blog

I have realized that I haven’t updated this blog in over a month. Thank you to those of you who have subscribed. For the 2 plus years I had this blog, most subscriptions came during the time that I was blogging the story and now that I am not, I kinda feel “imposing” with the randomness of my posts. I know it’s my blog and I can do with it as I please, but I have never been the type of person, who thinks just about what I want even online. As strange as this may sound, I don’t wish to annoy those of you who have subscribed to this blog, because of the story I was blogging. I feel like you are my guests to my home, and came for a reason (the story), and I don’t wish to give you something you didn’t come for ie my randomness. (I am kinda strange, I know, but that is my feeling). 

For a reason I can’t quite explain, I get a different feeling with using different mediums. On twitter and now tumblr, I feel like I am in my own world and I share whatever I want to share, as random as it maybe, as silly as I want to be, or as serious and so forth. It’s just me and my thoughts, that’s how it feels, although it’s not quite true since it’s of course its online. 

However with wordpress, especially with subscribers, i feel less free to be random, annoying, thoughtful, or whatever. 

What I am trying to say, is that I came to the conclusion to start a new blog over at tumblr to post and be my random self. I will always love this space, because it allowed for me to express myself and to grow, and interact with wonderful people, who I will always be grateful for. 

I am not completely abandoning this blog. I just won’t be posting here, however I will update it when the book comes out and so forth. 

We are still in the editing phase, but very close to being finished. I still haven’t told my parents what the story is about, which is something in itself that I hope to blog about soon.

That’s my update. I wish everyone is having a wonderful start to the New Year. Peace & Love to you all.

Here is my new blog: http://fatimawarsame.tumblr.com/

Thoughts on Django Unchained * spoiler alert*

Last night, like many people around the country, I went to go see Django Unchained. According to the description for the film, it’s an American western, which is directed and written by Quentin Tarantino, the filmmaker who brought us Pulp Fiction and Kill Bill to name just two. Django, the lead character played by Jamie Fox along with his German mentor, Dr. Schultz (Christoph Waltz) set out to rescue Django’s wife, played by the lovely Kerry Washington, from a brutal Mississippi plantation owner. In signature Tarantino style like film as many like to say, this film too has a lot of violence and shooting in it.

This post is not a film critique nor am I a film critic. I leave that to the professionals. Particularly those with a keen eye on how film influences culture and attitudes.

Before watching the movie, I did come across some criticisms, most notably by Spike Lee, who said:

“American Slavery Was Not A Sergio Leone Spaghetti Western. It Was A Holocaust. My Ancestors Are Slaves. Stolen From Africa. I Will Honor Them.”

Spike boycotted the film, but didn’t elaborate on the reasons beyond what I just quoted.

Others took issue with the excessive use of the N-word in the film, while others applauded the storyline of “finally” having a leading black man “go through hell” to rescue his black wife. That’s the summary of what I came across regarding the film. I did go with an open mind and thought I share some of the observations that I had after watching the film.

Before I do that, I would like to make a distinction between individual artists, and their art and the industry of Hollywood. To me there is a huge distinction.

Not long ago, I was reading criticism of the HBO show “Girls”. Lena Dunham is the creator of that show and she was criticized for the lack of diversity in her characters, all whom are white from a certain socioeconomic background. Though I can sympathize with where the critics are coming from, certainly American TV lacks diversity, I believe it is wrongly directed when the artist is asked to repackage their art. I don’t think Lena Dunham should write for black or brown characters, anymore than I think K’naan should repackage the soul of his music in order to reach “mainstream” audiences. Artists are shaped by their world. Lena Dunham comes from a certain world and those characters she writes will reflect that world, same goes for K’naan, and Mr. Tarantino.

I don’t think artists have an obligation to fulfill the “diversity quota” in their art if that makes sense. Their role as artists is just telling stories, authentically for the characters in those stories. I think that is when an artist feels most free and their soul is at peace with their creation. So that’s how I view Mr. Tarantino. He is an artist, first.

This is not to say, individual artists can’t be bigoted, sexist, or racist. They certainly can and some are, and what they create and pass as their art can be very offensive and degrading to certain groups. This has happened and continues to happen. It’s up to people ie audiences to be alert to what they are consuming, boycott, and protest peacefully if need be. The point I am making here is that individual artists as the examples above should not have the burden to tell multiple and diverse human narratives, that obligation I think befalls the industry, in this case Hollywood to provide a platform that shares diverse human narratives.

So rather than criticizing creators of “Girls” or the show “Friends” for lacking diversity, Hollywood is the problem, not the individual artists. At the times it does engage, Hollywood continues to miss the mark in telling the narratives of Non-European communities. Consider the repeated images and narratives of Native Americans in the history of Hollywood or African Americans, or Africans, or Asians, or Russians, or Arabs and Muslims. What’s the dominate or subtle messages in those films when depicting those communities?

One would be hard pressed to say films don’t influence the average film goer in how they view the world, themselves, and people unlike themselves. Of course the same can be said of the educational system as well, we are indoctrinated in viewing the non-European world as inferior and at times inhumane.

I believe this is what has led filmmaker Ava DuVernay to form the African-American Film Festival Releasing Movement (AAFFRM), to help release films that explore many narratives, which continue to be ignored by the Hollywood establishment. Bravo.

Now onto Django.

The film was entertaining and funny on several accounts. If the film was a western, revenge type film no issues would have arisen for me. But the subject matter was slavery and that changes everything. I don’t have quarrels with the usage of derogatory language, like the N-word in a film or in literature. In fact, given the context I think it is censorship and being unauthentic not to portray history as ugly as it was. So the issue was not the excessive usage of the N-word, but rather, the cartoonish, detached, Borat like way the word was thrown around in the film. Particularly when Samuel Jackson’s character, the Uncle Tom character, used the word. The audience laughed in various parts of the film when that derogatory, hateful word was being used to dehumanize a black man especially when it was being done by another black man.

Now, I may be able to see how it could be remotely funny if say the film was designed to be a parody like Borat or like David Chappelle comedy shows, but it wasn’t and this film was a serious story line. Consider the Bosnian genocide or the Holocaust, or any other human tragedy, a ugly history you can think of. I am sure the Serbs had derogatory, dehumanizing language for the Bosnians as did the Nazis for the Jews. Do you think if those derogatory words were used in a film similar to Django to refer to Bosnian Muslims or European Jews by their oppressors, do you think the audience would laugh as they did when the N-word was used? I find that very hard to imagine. Consider homophobes in a film, a bigot who upon saying gay people uses derogatory language in order to dehumanize, do you think the audience would laugh? I find that very hard to imagine. So why then did people, including black people laugh so hard when black people were being dehumanized by that ugly word? I don’t understand. You may ponder on that.

Another aspect of the film I found interesting, was the German folktale behind the name Broomhilda, which is the name for Django’s wife. It is the German dentist, the friend of Django, Dr. Schultz who tells Django about a man who risks everything, ie “goes through hell” to safe his wife. Django replies, he knows the feeling of that man in the story. However before this point, I am unsure, perhaps I missed it, if Django from the beginning was on a quest to safe his beloved or did the story the German tells inspire him to take that path. Whatever the case maybe, the black hero in the movie is helpless on his own and it is the German who sets the freedom of his wife into motion. You may ponder on why this is a repeated Hollywood narrative, ie Invictus, Avatar, natives (aka not white) being unable to safe themselves.

A crucial moment of the film in my opinion was when DiCaprio’s character, the slave master, brings out the skull of a dead black man, who was a slave of his father. He uses the black man’s skull to demonstrate “scientifically” the skull of the African is different than that of the European, and thus why the black man is fit for slavery due to his submissive nature.

Historically there hasn’t been a shortage of European scientists who have reasoned the intellectual inferiority of the black race. There is no doubt this racist viewpoint is not isolated to just a few people. It was not long ago when a Nobel Prize geneticist said just that. So when DiCarprio’s character made those charges, it was a missed opportunity to challenge those theories, instead it was just left to hang in the air. Django’s character for example challenged Dr. Shultz, a bounty hunter by trade, when Django questioned the morality of a man who would not bat an eye for killing a father in front of his young son. The morality of slavers, the inhumanity, beastliness of the slavery system was not similarly questioned and condemned intellectually in the film.

I did like the love story a lot. I wish that was the main focus. I can’t understand how one can have a leading lady like Kerry Washington and not utilize her talent. I wanted more out of the love story. I understand, Tarantino has a certain style (shoot em up is his thing I hear) but it could have been an epic love story. It could have been an epic tale about honor, fighting the good fight, Braveheart style.

In the end, the audience laughed mostly. I don’t think it stirred any emotional depth that a movie like Braveheart did nor make people feel outraged at the horrors of slavery.

Sweetest Video Ever

This was just too sweet to not post. Hope it makes you smile, as it has made me.

The ethics of justice and legitimacy of which victim (s) matter

Please forgive the title of this post (I am not even sure if it makes sense) and the disorganization I am sure that will be found in this post and perhaps most of my posts. My mind is clouded, jumbled with a lot of disconnected thoughts and it’s difficult to put it all together. I tend to be very impatient to organize my thoughts for posts. Something triggers my thoughts and I just write it, otherwise I will never get around to posting anything.

Several years ago I read a book called: At the Dark End of the Street: Black Women, Rape, and Resistance–A New History of the Civil Rights Movement from Rosa Parks to the Rise of Black Power.

It is an amazing and informative book on the pivotal role of black women in the fight for freedom. It was very eye opening. I couldn’t put it down. I felt a lot of emotions reading this book. This is an entirely different topic, but I don’t think recent immigrants appreciate the struggle for freedom in this country. Perhaps one can say the same about Americans, whose ancestors arrived several generations back.

The book provides an extensive coverage on the freedom struggle and one historical figure that the book focuses on is Rosa Parks. The real Rosa Parks was very different than the Rosa Parks we were taught in school, a quiet, sweet, gentle lady, who was just too exhausted to give up her bus seat to a white passenger. The real Rosa Parks was anything but that sweet church lady image we have been told, rather she was a fierce, courageous, and seasoned activist.

The relevance here in which I am aiming to provide is that before Rosa Parks, there were several others, like Claudette Clovin, a young teen, who took a stand against Jim Crow laws. The leaders of the movement didn’t get behind Claudette after her arrest for refusing to give up her seat, because she was an unwed pregnant teenager. Taking a stand for the rights of an unwed teenage mother may not help the cause, they feared due to the social norms of the day. When the same unjust act happened to Rosa Parks, the movement leaders rallied around her, and it ignited an uprising.

The moral of the story, even within the fight for freedom, justice is selective.

Recently I shared the tragic story of the university student, who was brutally raped in India. I didn’t think that story could get any more horrific, but it has. In the previous post, I mentioned more than once that I didn’t know the region, or the politics of the region. I was horrified and sickened at the gruesomeness of the crime. I cried for the girl and in spirit, I protested with the protestors on the streets of New Delhi.

Reading up on the reports of the story, I came across this article, which brings into attention the legitimacy of which victim matters. Like the rallying behind Rosa Parks, this article stated similar sentiments.

The 23-year-old was clearly English-educated (she’d gone to watch The Life of Pi), she had a boyfriend who was an engineer, she was a physiotherapist — all markers of an independent, upper middle class, urban identity. This is why we are collectively angry. It is an affront to us, India’s small English-speaking elite.

Yesterday, an 8-year-old girl was raped in Bihar, a desperately poor state in central India where one-third of the population lives under the poverty level. Think about that. AN EIGHT-YEAR-OLD. The trauma of any incident of sexual abuse is, of course, impossible to quantify or compare, but the crime against this little child is perhaps just as horrifying as the Delhi rape. And still, I’m writing about this little girl’s rape only because that rape in Delhi is legitimizing our conversation about sexual violence against women in India.

This is just one article and I am not at all, in the slightest, concluding the part I quoted is the real reason why Indian citizens are outraged and took to the streets. It would be very unfair to make that assessment, hence why I felt it was right to keep repeating I don’t know the region or what’s happening beyond what I read to come to a informed conclusion, however in the greater context of the differences in people’s reactions towards victims of injustice, I do think the examples above are revealing (very unfortunately) about the state of our humanity.

Why is there a great difference in the reaction of people towards victims, who suffer the same act of injustice or any injustice for that matter?

This same question was asked by many following the recent massacre of children in Newton, Connecticut. Many commentators pointed out the differences of reactions towards the kids killed in Newton, to those kids killed in US inner cities by gun violence, and kids killed in Yemen, Pakistan by US drones.

Journalist Glenn Greenwald, points out the reasons why stark differences between all those tragedies exist and further identifies the importance of ethics in caring for all victims, be they in Newton or Pakistan, be they a Rosa Parks or Claudette Clovin, be they rich or poor.

To begin with, it is a natural and probably universal human inclination to care more about violence that seems to threaten us personally than violence that does not. Every American parent sends their children to schools of the type attacked in Newtown and empathy with the victims is thus automatic. Few American parents fear having their children attacked by US drones, cruise missiles and cluster bombs in remote regions in Pakistan and Yemen, and empathy with those victims is thus easier to avoid, more difficult to establish.

One should strive to see the world and prioritize injustices free of pure self-interest – caring about grave abuses that are unlikely to affect us personally is a hallmark of a civilized person -Source

All of these examples I believe raise ethical questions, not just for nations, movements, organizations but for each individual. I do commend those, who raise our consciousness, by highlighting the double standards that exist in national conversations regarding tragedies in our borders and beyond our borders.

And if we are honest with ourselves, we all face ethical/moral questions. And when we think about those questions we are all guilty, not just the media when it comes to legitimizing some victims while ignoring others.

Reflect on this AD by UNICEF (Bad Water Kills More Children than War) and listen to Peter Singer talk about ethics.

Victim-blaming and shaming needs to stop

I read an article today on Al Jazeera English about a brutal gang rape of a young university student in India. She was brutally beaten and raped by several men. She is now in critical condition. Her companion was also assaulted and is recovering in the hospital. There is little one can say on something horrible like this. No words can express how depressing, infuriating and sickening it is to read stories like this. I pray for this young woman’s recovery and that justice is done for all victims.

Unfortunately, as we all know our world has no shortage of atrocities, as recent news has sadly demonstrated. Although I don’t know the details of this particular case or the politics of the region beyond the articles I have read, I was very moved by the responses of high officials such as the New Delhi police chief and some other key officials. The police chief called for the death penalty for the rapists and other political leaders called for the hanging of the rapists. As I have mentioned I am not familiar with the politics of the region or know if this is merely empty political talk without implementing the much needed courageous actions to bring those criminals to justice and prevent horrific crimes like this from taking place again.

What I do know is that the outrage in India following this case by citizens, the media, the police chief and some politicians is very much welcomed and needed in every society, which sadly doesn’t happen too often.

Contrast this to what occurred following the case of the 11 year old baby, who was gang raped in Texas last year. That gruesome case was not on the front pages of newspapers around the country nor did Congress hold an emergency meeting to address violence against girls and women in this country. (Laws designed to protect Native women for example are still lacking political momentum in this country).

Instead when cases like this arise there is a lot of victim blaming and shaming that accompanies them. Even with all the hard work done by feminism and women rights activists, which helped put in place not only policies and protections for girls and women, but also educational resources, there is still a lot of work to be done. Just consider this recent case in Ohio, in which football players raped a young girl, took photos of her naked, and bragged about it online. Prinniefied.com documented the rape and here is an article on the New York Times about the case.

Popular blogger Franchesca Ramsey recently gave a powerful testimony about her ordeal here.

This issue has been covered by people far more articulate and insightful than I. And I hope we keep covering it and highlighting it again and again, until there is no one left to say, “I feel really bad that happened to her, but she shouldn’t have …….”

When the movie “for colored girls who have considered suicide when the rainbow is enuf” came out, I went to go see it with a group of friends and afterwards we had a big discussion about the rape scene. I am not even sure if I had blogged about it already, but one of my friends said something along the lines of, “she shouldn’t have invited him to her home.” Instead of putting the blame on the perpetrator and holding him accountable for his criminal actions, it was the victim who “should’ve known better.”

Unfortunately such reasoning is not isolated. It is horrible logic and terrible ethics. It reminds me of the justification of “collateral damage”, ie destroy an entire neighborhood with innocent children, men and women, because a suspect might be hiding among them and afterwards say, “they should’ve known better and taken the necessary steps to avert their slaughter.” This reasoning does exist and these crimes do continue to happen. The root of all these crimes, international or domestic is not seeing the victim (s) as fully human therefore the victim (s) becomes unworthy of a right to life, dignity, and protection.

Certainty one should make smart decisions and avoid risky situations. The problem, rather the moral crisis is how some of us discuss the issue when the crime of rape/sexual assault has been committed. A more powerful party taking full advantage of a weaker party in a certain situation is oppression, is it not? Who will disagree with this? I hope no one, who has a conscience. Therefore when oppression has occurred of a weaker party, and rape is oppression, the conversation shouldn’t be about what the oppressed did or didn’t do to prevent her oppression, but rather the oppression committed by the oppressor. If our conscience doesn’t put full accountability and blame on the oppressor, than that is to provide both a refuge and a moral validation for oppressors (rapists). You might as well go ahead and say slaughtered innocents should’ve known better than to attend an unprotected school, because madmen exist in the world. Why is that logic unacceptable, but shaming rape victim isn’t?

That just reminds us how important it is to keep reiterating victims are not to blame for the crimes of oppressors.It is the oppressors who should be shamed, blamed, and be held accountable for their crimes. And we must support those brave souls like Franchesca, who tell their stories so that through them a young girl or a woman somewhere in the world, who blames herself will know it was never her fault, that she never invited or asked for to be raped.

I will end this post with a famous story shared by a large percentage of humanity. That story is the story of the Prophet Joseph or Yusuf (alayhi salaam) as he is known to Muslims. Most of us probably heard or read of this story. Movies and mini-series have been made of this story. He is said to be the most handsome human being to have ever walked the earth. So much so that upon seeing him, one could not engage in any activity but stare at him awestruck at his remarkable beauty. The wife of Pharaoh, a powerful woman desired him, and he was a slave at that time.

The story goes that she desired him so much and sought to seduce him. He rebuked her advances, which eventually led to their confrontation and then the incident was brought to the King. Yusuf alayhi salaam, a slave, and thus in a weaker, more vulnerable position in that kingdom told the King she sought to take advantage of him, and if he was weaker physically he just may have been raped.

I heard that story growing up on so many occasions, as it is a major story in the Quran, but never had I thought of it in the light of sexual assault/molestation/rape, and victims taking the power to shame their abusers until I heard a lecture from an Imam, who was using that example to encourage the empowerment of victims and not their silence as often done by their conservative communities more concerned about image rather than justice.

Two letters on strength and falling in love

I’ve read these two letters before, but today I saw them again on twitter. I’ve always loved both letters and wanted to share it here. If you are like me and a fan of intimate letters, this website maybe of interest to you.

The first letter is from W.E.B. Du Bois to his 14-year old daughter, Yolande. It’s just a powerful letter from a father to a daughter, but also a message that can be a great benefit to all of us. The second letter is from John Steinbeck to his son Thom, who has written to his father that he has fallen in love. It’s simply a beautiful letter that puts a smile to your face. Both letters and their sources are below. Enjoy reading them. They are a treat to read!

Dear Little Daughter:

I have waited for you to get well settled before writing. By this time I hope some of the strangeness has worn off and that my little girl is working hard and regularly.

Of course, everything is new and unusual. You miss the newness and smartness of America. Gradually, however, you are going to sense the beauty of the old world: its calm and eternity and you will grow to love it.

Above all remember, dear, that you have a great opportunity. You are in one of the world’s best schools, in one of the world’s greatest modern empires. Millions of boys and girls all over this world would give almost anything they possess to be where you are. You are there by no desert or merit of yours, but only by lucky chance.

Deserve it, then. Study, do your work. Be honest, frank and fearless and get some grasp of the real values of life. You will meet, of course, curious little annoyances. People will wonder at your dear brown and the sweet crinkley hair. But that simply is of no importance and will soon be forgotten. Remember that most folk laugh at anything unusual, whether it is beautiful, fine or not. You, however, must not laugh at yourself. You must know that brown is as pretty as white or prettier and crinkley hair as straight even though it is harder to comb. The main thing is the YOU beneath the clothes and skin—the ability to do, the will to conquer, the determination to understand and know this great, wonderful, curious world. Don’t shrink from new experiences and custom. Take the cold bath bravely. Enter into the spirit of your big bed-room. Enjoy what is and not pine for what is not. Read some good, heavy, serious books just for discipline: Take yourself in hand and master yourself. Make yourself do unpleasant things, so as to gain the upper hand of your soul.

Above all remember: your father loves you and believes in you and expects you to be a wonderful woman.

I shall write each week and expect a weekly letter from you.

Lovingly yours,

Papa
Source

New York
November 10, 1958

Dear Thom:

We had your letter this morning. I will answer it from my point of view and of course Elaine will from hers.

First — if you are in love — that’s a good thing — that’s about the best thing that can happen to anyone. Don’t let anyone make it small or light to you.

Second — There are several kinds of love. One is a selfish, mean, grasping, egotistical thing which uses love for self-importance. This is the ugly and crippling kind. The other is an outpouring of everything good in you — of kindness and consideration and respect — not only the social respect of manners but the greater respect which is recognition of another person as unique and valuable. The first kind can make you sick and small and weak but the second can release in you strength, and courage and goodness and even wisdom you didn’t know you had.

You say this is not puppy love. If you feel so deeply — of course it isn’t puppy love.

But I don’t think you were asking me what you feel. You know better than anyone. What you wanted me to help you with is what to do about it — and that I can tell you.

Glory in it for one thing and be very glad and grateful for it.

The object of love is the best and most beautiful. Try to live up to it.

If you love someone — there is no possible harm in saying so — only you must remember that some people are very shy and sometimes the saying must take that shyness into consideration.

Girls have a way of knowing or feeling what you feel, but they usually like to hear it also.

It sometimes happens that what you feel is not returned for one reason or another — but that does not make your feeling less valuable and good.

Lastly, I know your feeling because I have it and I’m glad you have it.

We will be glad to meet Susan. She will be very welcome. But Elaine will make all such arrangements because that is her province and she will be very glad to. She knows about love too and maybe she can give you more help than I can.

And don’t worry about losing. If it is right, it happens — The main thing is not to hurry. Nothing good gets away.

Love,

Fa

Source

Novel: Update

I think the last I updated was in July. Oh how time flies. Although I don’t have any specific dates to report, I thought it was a good idea to update anyways. Since the last update, the story has been out of my hands and with the publisher to be edited. We communicate through email, since my publisher has relocated to California. I think I may have implied, everything would be finished by September, and boy was I off. Rookie mistake. The process takes a lot of time and my publisher has been very kind to let me know patience is needed. And I totally understand and just grateful for the opportunity so waiting is nothing major.

I was informed that they are in the last stages of editing and then the changes will be given to me to look over. Hopefully this will occur within a week or so, but I can’t say for sure. The process should be at its latest completed by December. This is what I was told. I was not given a set date, but when I do get a date, I will be sure to update. Any new update about the project, I shall post here. A graphic artist is also working on the book cover and I hope to post the finished design here as well. That’s pretty much it. Things should pick up after the editing process is completed.

I thank you from the bottom of my heart to each one of you, who has shared this journey with me from the beginning. Take care and will write soon. Peace & Love.

Alice Walker on Democratic Womanism, Color Purple, Justice and the Election

I know this sounds like I live under a rock, but I have yet to read the Color Purple. I’ve heard of this book so many years ago and watched the movie, but never read the book. Nor can I say I have ever read literature by the great Alice Walker. Watched her lectures and read articles, yes. But books, no. After watching her interview with Amy Goodman on Democracy Now, I was reminded about how much I have missed out on. I am a huge fan now and am so much in awe of her, that I can’t wait to read more of her work. Even Amy Goodman seems a bit giddy by interviewing Alice Walker. The full interview can be found here (It starts at 16:23 and it’s well worth the watch, simply brilliant!) but I wanted to share the poem she read at the end of the interview. Just Amazing.

(More on Alice Walker, NPR does a section on Alice Walker’s rediscovery of Zora Neale Hurston found here. Visit Alice Walker’s Website and be inspired!)

Democratic Womanism A Poem by Alice Walker

You ask me why I smile
when you tell me you intend
in the coming national elections
to hold your nose
and vote for the lesser of two evils.
There are more than two evils out there,
is one reason I smile.
Another is that our old buddy Nostradamus
comes to mind, with his fearful
400 year old prophecy: that our world
and theirs too
(our “enemies” – lots of kids included there)
will end (by nuclear nakba or holocaust)
in our lifetime. Which makes the idea of elections
and the billions of dollars wasted on them
somewhat fatuous.
A Southerner of Color,
my people held the vote
very dear
while others, for centuries,
merely appeared to play
with it.
One thing I can assure
you of is this:
I will never betray such pure hearts
by voting for evil
even if it were microscopic
which, as you can see in any newscast
no matter the slant,
it is not.
I want something else;
a different system
entirely.
One not seen
on this earth
for thousands of years. If ever.
Democratic Womanism.
Notice how this word has “man” right in the middle of it?
That’s one reason I like it. He is right there, front and center. But he is surrounded.
I want to vote and work for a way of life
that honors the feminine;
a way that acknowledges
the theft of the wisdom
female and dark Mother leadership
might have provided our spaceship
all along.
I am not thinking
of a talking head
kind of gal:
happy to be mixing
it up
with the baddest
bad boys
on the planet
her eyes a slit
her mouth a zipper.
No, I am speaking of true
regime change.
Where women rise
to take their place
en masse
at the helm
of earth’s frail and failing ship;
where each thousand years
of our silence
is examined
with regret,
and the cruel manner in which our values
of compassion and kindness
have been ridiculed
and suppressed
brought to bear on the disaster
of the present time.
The past must be examined closely, I believe, before we can leave
it there.
I am thinking of Democratic, and, perhaps
Socialist, Womanism.
For who else knows so deeply
how to share but Mothers
and Grandmothers? Big sisters
and Aunts?
To love
and adore
both female and male?
Not to mention those in between.
To work at keeping
the entire community
fed, educated
and safe?
Democratic womanism,
Democratic Socialist
Womanism,
would have as its icons
such fierce warriors
for good as
Vandana Shiva
Aung San Suu Kyi,
Wangari Maathai
Harriet Tubman
Yoko Ono
Frida Kahlo
Angela Davis
& Barbara Lee:
With new ones always rising, wherever you look.
You are also on this list, but it is so long (Isis would appear midway) that I must stop or be unable to finish the poem! So just know I’ve stood you in a circle that includes Marian Wright Edelman, Amy Goodman, Sojourner Truth, Gloria Steinem and Mary McLeod Bethune. John Brown, Frederick Douglass, John Lennon and Howard Zinn are there. Happy to be surrounded!
There is no system
There is no system
now in place
that can change
the disastrous course
the Earth is on.
Who can doubt this?
The male leaders
of Earth
appear to have abandoned
their very senses
though most appear
to live now
entirely
in their heads.
They murder humans and other
animals
forests and rivers and mountains
every day
they are in office
and never seem
to notice it.
They eat and drink devastation.
Women of the world,
Women of the world,
Is this devastation Us?
Would we kill whole continents for oil
(or anything else)
rather than limit
the number of consumer offspring we produce
and learn how to make our own fire?
Democratic Womanism.
Democratic Socialist Womanism.
A system of governance
we can dream and imagine and build together. One that recognizes
at least six thousand years
of brutally enforced complicity
in the assassination
of Mother Earth, but foresees six thousand years
ahead of us when we will not submit.
What will we need? A hundred years
at least to plan: (five hundred will be handed us
gladly
when the planet is scared enough)
in which circles of women meet,
organize ourselves, and,
allied with men
brave enough to stand with women,
men brave enough to stand with women,
nurture our planet to a degree of health.
And without apology —-
(impossible to make
a bigger mess than has been made already) -—
devote ourselves, heedless of opposition,
to tirelessly serving and resuscitating Our Mother ship
and with gratitude
for Her care of us
worshipfully commit
to rehabilitating it.

Could you survive on a weekly paycheck? Play spent and find out

I saw someone post this game on twitter called “Spent” from Urban Ministries of Durham. I am not familar with the organization, but was deeply taken by the game. I played it twice, before deciding to share it here and let others also experience it for themselves. The first time I played it, I cashed out on day 8. Damn, I would be homeless. I know it is only a game, but it is very scary and eye opening, because it is real life for many folks and allows us to “experience” such an experience. It is one thing to read reports as I often do and I do deeply care about these issues, but a whole different ball game to put yourself in that situation. Even when you think you know, reality is you don’t know jack and this game just showed it to me.

Reminded me of the book Nickel and Dimed and how author Barbara Ehrenreich took on the role of a minimum wage worker. I encourage you to read that book if this subject is of interest to you, it’s short and very informative.

The game throws at you, real life situations (as also described in Nickel and Dimed), such as paying for health insurance, medications, or your child’s after school programs just to name a few. What was interesting is that I ran out of money by doing the “right thing”, such as paying for any loans, putting the kid in after school programs, or going to the doctor before it was too late. My money ran further when I skipped those things in order to buy food or pay rent/gas, however this choice led to my debt increasing, car being possessed, unhappy kid, and putting my health in danger. Either way, I couldn’t win.

Try it for yourself here and let me know how you did.

One woman’s painful story of migration from Africa to Europe

Somalia, as most of us know from the news for the past two decades has experienced every human catastrophe imaginable. Wars, terrorism, diseases, and famine are just among some of the enemies of the Somali people and many who survive these foes, fall victim to equally devastating and humiliating afflictions.

Nowhere are these afflictions more pronounced than for women. Even in privileged societies like North America, where law and order is intact, women not only fall victim to sexual violence and domestic abuse, but at times are victimized twice. So one can imagine the catastrophe which befalls vulnerable groups, most specially women in a war torn society like Somalia that has no such protections in place.

(Note: Not the picture of “Marwo”.)

The phenomenon called “Tahriib” or migration exposes an already very vulnerable group to more dangers, rape often being the weapon of choice. Historically, civil unrest has always been accompanied by sexual violence.

Women are raped along the journey as they flee the conflict or extreme poverty conditions. They are raped once they reach “safety” at a refugee camp. As if that was not enough torture for a soul to endure, some contract deadly diseases like HIV. For the lucky ones who escape the wretched life at camps and end up in lands far beyond their borders, misery is never far too behind.

Below I will do my very best to translate into English one such story of a Somali woman migrant, who recently did an interview with a Somali channel about her tahriib (migration). English is the leading world language. The vast majority of people around the world, who use the internet, can read English. This is only a personal blog with minor viewership, however with the world being interconnected than ever before, it is my hope people will come across this post and have the interest to get a glimpse of a heartbreaking human story, which often goes untold.

When we read about human tragedies it rarely goes beyond headlines like “scores of Africans dead at sea attempting a voyage to Europe”, we never see names, faces, or read their intimate narratives. What were these people like? How was their childhood? What were their fears and their dreams? What made them happy, laugh, or sad?

When the tragedy concerns privileged societies or individuals we get to see the narratives beyond the headlines. They are not just numbers or “scores dead”, but people with names, faces, interests, and loved ones. But when you are both poor and black such a privilege is usually not granted.

Ultimately the weight of the responsibility to document and tell these narratives and make African lives significant on the world stage falls upon Africans themselves. Tahriib or migration of Africans out of Africa is a major area that needs to be spotlighted and documented, but this has been so far neglected.

It is my hope in my limited capabilities at this moment to at least try in this post to give English readers a sense of what it is like for a migrant, who undertakes the dangerous journey to Europe from the Horn of Africa. It will be impossible to capture the hurt, the pain, and the suffering of this woman in simply writing this post, but I’d like more people to at least hear this story outside of those who watched the interview on Somali channel. I will do my best to translate word for word or when I am unable then summarize the narrator and not project my own voice into the story. When I do so I will use brackets.

******************

The source for this summary is from: Somali Channel episode 10/14/2012. The video can be found here.

The segment is titled: The troubles facing women migrants.

The host of the interview begins with a prayer and welcoming her viewers to the show. In the past several segments, the show has been highlighting stories relating the troubles facing Somali women. The host tells the viewers this particular upcoming story is a story which is the most shocking story she has covered on her show. She mentions how such stories are hidden by victims because of the fear of being treated like pariahs. She admonishes the culture of Somali’s, concerning hiding shocking/painful experiences. She compares this phenomenon to having physical pain, saying if one hides the pain and does not seek treatment; the pain will continue to persist. Then a news clip is shown about 30 migrants from Ethiopia (of Somali descent), who were fleeing to Yemen, but instead were arrested by Somali authorities in the coastal city of Bososso. Recently there has been a spike of migrants from the city of Burco and other areas of Somaliland and Puntland. People are fleeing poverty and drought. The policemen being interviewed has harsh words for any would be migrants, stating they will be arrested and taken to court.

Host: Discusses the economic troubles facing young people in Somalia. No work, no livelihood. Mentions these young people are the very people, who would build the nation as the next generation, but don’t have the environment to facilitate their talents and strengths, and thus they take the dangerous journey of seeking a better life overseas. She further states, most people believe those who make these types of voyages reach their destination safely, but that is not the case and most actually lose their lives, not to mention suffer many human right abuses. (The host seems to be very anti-tahriib. She hammers at the point of the risks far outweighing any potential benefits),

(Will now go straight to the interview. To protect her identity, the host decides to call the interviewee the name “Marwo”, which is a name of endearment. I too will stick to that name. The interviewee is also wearing a niqaab, which is covering everything except the eyes).

Host: Thanks Marwo for being brave and courageous to share her story.

Marwo: Is thankful to be on the program. She was born in Burco, a major city of the breakaway region of Somaliland, and now lives in Manchester, England. It seems she is in legal trouble in England and asks for help from those watching. She further calls on mothers, women, who have suffered to not hide their suffering, but come forward and tell their stories.

Marwo: My suffering is long. For a longtime I have suffered. My suffering is a result of not having a mother, having lost my mother, and not having the love and care of a mother. I have undertaken migration to foreign lands and suffered a lot in those lands.

Host: Where did you come from?

Marwo: My birthplace is the city of Burco and I migrated from Burco. From there I came to the city of Bossoso with my husband. I was pregnant at the time. We took a boat. There were many people on this boat. There was heavy rain, which made the boat tilt from side to side. Many people on the boat were forcefully thrown off the boat. I pray for the families of those who lost their lives.

Host: How were these people thrown off the boat?

Marwo: If the person was overweight, they were told to jump off. If they are unable to jump (because of fear), then a gun was pulled on them. Before we got on the boat, they searched everyone for weapons. (She mentions all the suffering she has witnessed in the experience of being a migrant, which will forever be tattooed on her conscious. Those who are telling people to jump off into the ocean are the traffickers, who solicit money from these migrants with a promise to take them to Europe.)

Host: Tell us more about the boat experience.

Marwo: As many people were being forcefully thrown off, while others were falling off, a pregnant woman gave birth on the boat. What was most shocking and stomach turning to me was the day I saw people, who were Somalis throw their own brethren off the boat…throw off the boat a woman, who is their sister and shares the name Somali with them. The pregnant woman gave birth due to the pain of what she witnessed. They told her to jump or sharks will come for us. (I suppose the reasoning behind this statement is because of the loss of blood, the mother has undergone having given birth). The woman hesitated and couldn’t jump so they took her baby and threw the baby overboard. When her baby was thrown, the mother jumped after the baby. What was most painful to witness was the cruelty people who are brethren inflicted on each other, and their lack of mercy. I pray God guides these people and to those who died, I pray God rests their souls. Then my husband, who I loved most in the world stood up and said to the men this is inhuman and unislamic. When he said this they stabbed him, took all his money and threw him to the ocean. (the Host repeats the story: the baby being thrown overboard, then the mother jumping after the baby, Marwo’s husband protesting the inhuman action of the traffickers and he too being killed.)

Marwo: I was pregnant when I got to Yemen. (She pauses indicating a poignant memory having landed in Yemen. She repeats several times, “the country of Yemen”). In Yemen everyone else ran away from me. As I kept walking, I saw an old man with a donkey who stopped to help me. I didn’t know how to swim. I must have been saved to come ashore. When I reached the shore….. (She pauses and says the tale is too painful to tell. The host urges her to keep narrating). The old man took me, while I was in chaotic state. I kept screaming and repeating the name of my husband. He took me to his home. (The host cuts her off and redirects the conversation towards Marwo being pregnant. She asks her to talk about how she gave birth on the street. But before she does, Marwo says she stayed in the old man’s home for a period of one month then he took her to a camp called Jihiin in Yemen. There is no word if she was abused/sexually assaulted by this man, but I suspect that was highly likely). I went to the camp feeling chaotic and confused, not knowing anyone or having any clan connections. I slept in the camp. A Yemeni man who runs the camp assisted me. To survive, I became part of the people who beg on the streets. It is on the streets I would beg. It was while I was on the street begging that I gave birth. I didn’t know anything about giving birth. It is the God who made me pregnant, who helped facilitate the birth. The people covered me in a blue bag and it was on the street that I gave birth.

Marwo: Radwan Mohamed Seed (she mentions this woman, who was at the camp with her. I am most likely spelling the individual name (s) wrong). I thank you dear sister for the help and kindness you have shown me. You maybe watching this( program) as I am on the air and I thank you sister. I believe you are in Canada or America. This woman had one tent at the camp and she gave me one side of the tent to live after I gave birth. (Marwo discusses how Radwan encouraged her to live with her and to also find a job and not beg on the street. It is not clear if they leave the camp and find a home outside of the camp, but I believe it is the latter. Marwo then leaves the city Radwan lives in, after a while of staying with her and she finds a job. There is no mention of what type of job and the duration of this process. It looks like it was several years and the job most likely was maid work. Marwo finds a baby sitter, while she goes out and works. In the home of the baby sitter, her boy was raped. He was six at the time. The host asks Marwo what she did to the people who raped her child. Marwo says she filed a complaint, but nothing was done. Then other Somalis began to harass her and shame her, because her son was raped and thus she went to another city. The bus she was on with her son was involved in an accident. Her son had a head injury as a result of that accident. At the hospital she was given the option to have blood money for her son’s injuries. It is not clear if this offer came from the bus driver. She didn’t take the money and said tragedies happen outside of human control. She resolved to marry to help herself and her child, because she was poor and had nothing. She says she met a man in the hospital, it is not clear if this man is the bus driver or the owner of the bus. She marries for the sole purpose of having a roof and a safe place for her son. She marries the Arab man for that reason and for a while she lived a good life, however his family didn’t like her).

Host: Did you have children for this man?

Marwo: I gave him two children. Their names are Osama and Muctas (wrong spelling). Unluckily, my two children, he took from me and I would have loved that they come with me to the UK.

Host: The man’s relatives didn’t like you and you had trouble with them, so he took your two children from you. And now all you have left is your first son. How did you and your son manage to leave?

Marwo: (She had help from a Somali woman who assists refugees. Papers were filed with the UN on her behalf and her son. Eventually she left Yemen for Romania. She was happy on the one end of leaving Yemen and on the other end deeply saddened to leave her children behind. When she comes to Romania, she is taken to a camp for refugees. There at the camp she meets another Somali woman, who shames Marwo for her son’s rape. Marwo fights this woman, who was spreading rumors around the camp. Marwo pulls a knife on this woman and the police are called. Only Marwo is arrested and this makes her very angry. She is in a chaotic state and can’t communicate why she is protesting the arrest. She is taken to a psychiatric ward, where she is sedated with drugs. They increase the dose during the times she fails to be sedated. She says her body was lifeless, but her mind was still functioning, when the Romanian doctor raped her.

Marwo: When I was taken to the psychiatric ward, I was evaluated and was not pregnant. When it was discovered I was pregnant, everyone was shocked. I am not blaming the entire United Nations, only the office, which brought me to Romania. They knew what I suffered and how I suffered, but turned a blind eye. It reached a point where officials from this agency sought to kill me and put a pillow over my face to kill me. A Romanian woman, Mama Maryana (who works for that UN agency) told me to have an abortion, because this pregnancy will embarrass the UN. An Arab guy, I thank him so much. I won’t say his name, because I don’t want to reveal his identity and for him to lose his job, this Arab guy from one of the Arab countries told me when I get to the UK I have a case to file a complaint against the UN office. (Eventually she lands in London with her first born son and her daughter from the Romania doctor).

Marwo: I was in London for a short while. I was broken. I didn’t know the language and the people who brought me, having taught me nothing, but just brought me to a home. My son called the authorities on me and said I beat him. My son and new born child were taken from me. He said I was not his mother and didn’t give birth to him. A DNA test was taken and it showed I was his mother. (The host and Marwo discuss the trauma faced by the young boy, his rape, the head injury from the bus accident, having led to him rejecting his mother. There is no question from the host if Marwo did beat her son. Marwo says she loves her son more than anything and asks people to pray for her that her children return to her).

The host: Summarizes the story of Marwo, recalling the details she shared.

Marwo: Mentions the Romanian doctor who raped her has not been charged and the officials/UN agency has put in her personal file that is she is psychotic so that she would never file a case against them and her testimony wouldn’t be taken seriously. (It seems Marwo is listed as psychotic in her files, even the ones she has in her now new residence of Manchester. This led to her children being taken away. This interests me, but the host doesn’t ask her further questions regarding this aspect of her story, ie the legal case against the UN agency, who helped sponsor her to the UN and the Romanian Doctor…. what is being done about the cover-up Instead the host goes on a tirade about the difficulties of tahriib/migration.) Marwo cuts off the host and brings attention to the problems facing Somalis in Yemen, especially new arrivals who came seeking employment. She mentions young Somali men face the greatest difficultly; they are being raped and set on fire by the Yemenis. She signals out a place in Yemen called: Basateen.

Caller: Calls in. He thanks Marwo for telling her painful story. Mentions many people have suffered like this, but are too afraid of shame to come public with their story. The caller seems to be an informed man and is a community activist. The host finally draws attention to the case in Romania and asks the caller what Marwo can do about the case. The caller details what Marwo can do about her case, file a lawsuit and so forth.

Host: Tells the caller about the evaluation papers Marwo has from a doctor in the UK, who has outlined Marwo is not crazy and has no cognitive deficits. (Marwo comes across as very intelligent, compassionate, sincere, and sane). This doctor encourages the state to reinstate the children to their mother. The baby girl was only two months old when she was taken by the authorities. The host asks the caller to speak on this.

Caller: He says this doctor’s paper will be very helpful for Marwo’s case. He explains what she can do with the law and encourages her to fight using the laws in place. (I am not sure if the Somali community and human rights adovcates in England are assisting Marwo. There is no mention of legal help or help of any kind she is getting).

The host opens the floor to more callers, who mainly pray for Marwo. I will end the post here.

It is an ugly fact so many lives have been swallowed up by the world’s seas. How many in the last two decades, we will never know. While those who survived the overwhelming journey, so many suffered like Marwo. Most of their stories will never be known. For me, I am always ambivalent when relating the stories of victims. Even though I am not a journalist and I am simply translating an interview, I don’t wish to define Marwo solely by her suffering and thus making her a case for pity. There is a delicate balance when telling stories and obviously, Marwo is much more than the horrors she has suffered. I don’t know her story beyond this interview, therefore I am limited in what I can relate, but I do feel the need to say this just in case one were to come across this post, I would want them to also remember the importance of not seeing people through one dimension. People are much more than the unfortune fate has dealt them. Regarding tahriib, I would encourage anyone who comes across this post to read the story of Olympian Samia Omar written by Teresa Krug. It is a very personal and beautiful piece by Teresa, who I believe captured that delicate balance of relating a tragedy.

I mourn for all of those who have perished seeking a better life and those still in the struggle.