Photo Documentary: Reflections

As an assignment, we were asked to do a photo documentary. I chose to photograph my family. I titled it "Mixed Cultures.''
I found it to be easy to talk about my family. My partner is from Nigeria, I am Canadian, and our children are 'mixed'. I take no offence to them being called 'mixed' children. That is what they are. They are Nigerian, Canadian, Yoruba, Swampy Cree, Status Indian, Catholics. Mixed culture is in their names, their blood, and their faces.
Our two cultures make for an interesting combination. One of my photos was of a plate of joloff rice, beef stew, and a cup of Tim Horton's coffee. My favourite things to have for dinner. 
Being part of a multi-cultural family is enlightening. I've experienced a new life, different traditions, and different people. 
This small town girl has been introduced to a different world and it's a great experience.       

Arrested Movement: Guantanamo Bay

Death Poem by Jumah al Dossari

Take my blood.

Take my death shroud and

The remnants of my body.

Take photographs of my corpse at the grave, lonely.


Send them to the world,

To the judges and

To the people of conscience,


Send them to the principled men and the fair-minded.

And let them bear the guilty burden before the world,

Of this innocent soul.

Let them bear the burden before their children and before history,

Of this wasted, sinless soul,

Of this soul which has suffered at the hands of the “protectors of peace.”  

Jumah al Dossari is a thirty-three-year-old Bahraini who has been held at Guantánamo Bay for more than five years. He has been in solitary confinement since the end of 2003 and, according to the U.S. military, has tried to kill himself twelve times while in custody.

This poem is so strong and moving. It reveals his truth. It’s like he’s saying, “You’ve taken everything from me, take it all. Have my life.”

The second verse seems to be sarcastic in the way he says, “to the people of conscience.” I believe he’s saying the people or government that put him there are wrong in their reasons for doing so.

The final verse is so sad. He calls himself a wasted, sinless soul. What have these people done to him, to make him feel this way? The man has suffered, “at the hands of the ‘protectors of peace’.” I believe he is speaking of a government, trying to find crime but in the wrong place. The ‘Death Poem’ is so moving, and disturbing. It’s revealing the final thoughts of a man who wants to die. This man feels he has nothing more of himself, that it’s been stripped away from the people who put him in there.

Interview with a Migrant: Reflection

As an assignment for this course, we were asked to interview a migrant. We asked what their life was like before, during, and after the transition from one country to another. I chose to interview my partner.

I’ve asked him questions before as to what his life in Nigeria was like while growing up and also what it was like coming to Canada. His upbringing was so different than mine. I couldn’t imagine sending our children off to boarding school at six years old, or allowing them to move out of the country, even as an adult. Over the years, I’ve found that he’s a very independent person, not really relying on anyone for help; whereas I’m in need of my mom anytime I catch a cold. I found his stories of moving to Canada amusing. He told me about the first time riding in a vehicle, watching the other vehicles, the roads, the infrastructure, the buildings surrounding him, he was amazed. “It was like a paradise.” were his words.

Hearing him speak of how great it was here made me realize how I’ve begun to take Canada for granted. I was born with a lot of benefits. Access to education, health care, jobs, and much more are available for me to use. I am thankful to be a Canadian, and I won't forget it again.

Here is a video made by local MP Charlie Angus.

And another of Mr. Angus speaking in Ottawa of the situation.



Borders

The border is "an open wound where the Third world grates against the First and bleeds.  And before a scab forms, it haemorrhages again, the life blood of two worlds merging to form a third, a border culture"                                                                                         

                                                                                                                                        Gloria Anzaldua

In one of our class discussions, we talked of borders within Canada. Rich and poor living right beside one another stuck out most. I couldn’t help but relate this back to the situation in Attawapiskat, Ontario. I am a member of Attawapiskat First Nation. In November, Chief Theresa Spence declared a state of emergency for the community. A great number of people there are living in third world conditions. Families of 6 or more living in tents, that are supposed to be used for recreational activities, have been there for more than two years. Elders living in sheds that are only insulated enough to keep your garden tools warm. There are a number of families living in homes that are condemned. Mold, no plumbing or proper heat is what they have had to live with for a number of years. It’s a really sad story, everyone is pointing fingers. No one is giving a solution. A lot of people are upset that Attawapiskat is living in these conditions while they are sitting right beside a Debeers diamond mine. The operation gathers money in the trillions and their neighbours are getting clean water from one community tap.

The Canadian Red Cross stepped in and offered supplies to the community. And many other communities surrounding Attawapiskat are helping by offering money, emergency supplies, and basic necessities. The Canadian government has decided though, to send in a Third Party Manager, to resolve what really happened to the funds that were given to Attawapiskat over the years. This manager will be paid out of the First Nation’s pocket. I find it insulting that my government would find it necessary to audit first, and then help my people. If the government doesn’t trust the community leaders enough to give more money, why not send supplies instead.

Here is a Youtube video posted by Christopher Kataquapit, he is a resident of my hometown and works along the James Bay Coast.

http://youtu.be/TC8ocRXyz1I

There have been many discussions and debates over what happened, and how a community could reach this state they are in now. The truth is, Attawapiskat is not the only First Nation in need of emergency care. Many First Nation reservations are in states of emergencies, and have been for many years. Not just with housing but with psychological, physical, emotional needs too. The community of Moose Factory in the past couple years has seen many tragedies. The suicide rate along the James Bay coast is very high. In 2009, more than 80 attempts were made by youth to end their own lives. My youngest sister has lost so many friends. I stopped counting, after I ran out of fingers to count how many lives were lost. Something is happening to all of the First Nations communities. It’s really quite disturbing.

Here is an article that was posted in the Toronto Star.

http://www.thestar.com/news/ontario/article/743190--swamped-by-teen-suicides

An interesting site to see

Here is  a website of local photographer, Paul Lantz, from Moosonee. There are many many albums to view. I just wanted to give a sense of where I come from. Enjoy!

www.paullantz.com

Leaving

This chapter is pretty interesting. The topic of leaving one’s home and the trials and experiences that go along with it, is a vast subject. In the first few classes, we grouped together, and talked of reasons why people leave. There were many reasons, asylum, refuge, new opportunities, work, just to name a few.

I can relate to the people who migrate looking for new opportunities. I moved just last April, with my two young children to Toronto. My plan is to receive a diploma in Accounting and a CGA designation. Accounting was part of my job for the past three and a half years because I worked as an accounts receivable clerk. I felt it was necessary to go back to college to better my skills and understanding of the accounting system. Surely the benefits later on will outweigh the sacrifices made now. The decision to leave home, family, friends, and everything the kids have ever really known was a difficult one. I had to make decisions not only for myself, but for my children. Where were we going to live? What will be our budget? How will the children cope without seeing their grandparents and aunts every day? What are the benefits now? What are the benefits in the future? I’ve had to analyze every aspect of my inner self to try and figure out if I was strong enough or even capable of living in the city again. I knew that moving to Toronto would mean very few days of seeing my parents and sisters, and even fewer of seeing life-long friends. I mean, these people are the people I lean on for help, advice, and friendship. Sure, having telephone and internet access eases any home sickness, but no one can give me my mother’s hugs or give the look of pride my father gives me. Just a couple of the things I’ve had to sacrifice.

The act of leaving, I believe, means having to lose something. This loss could be by the person’s own will or by force. A person may gain by having more success, more education, more experiences, but they will always lose. They may lose family, friends, bonds with their motherland, tradition, and even language. Losing is a sacrifice that occurs when one leaves. I believe the most frightening loss is not remembering. I myself have no recollection of what was taught to me when I was young of my Cree language. Part of me feels guilty for letting it go, and not trying to preserve the language of my ancestors. The other part of me is feeling not so guilty, but has a rather “pass the buck” mentality. I suppose it’s easier to convince myself that there are enough people out there who speak fluent Swampy Cree, to justify my lack of motivation to learn. I read an excerpt from Dionne Brand’s A Map to the Door of No Return. She writes of her grandfather and how he couldn’t even recall where he migrated from. Brand tells of how upsetting and life altering this fact is for her and her grandfather. The following are a couple of lines from the book.

 “We were not from the place where we lived and we could not remember where we were from or who we were. My grandfather could not summon up a vision of landscape or a people which would add up to a name. And it was profoundly disturbing.”

“It was a rupture in history, a rupture in the quality of being. It was also a physical rupture, a rupture of geography.”

Leaving is not just about the action of moving out of town, province, or country it is also about the physical, emotional and spiritual elements that go along with it. A true test of one’s character.